Many might find it rather hilarious that Tottenham are actually getting dragged into a relegation battle, but that is the reality.
It’s Sacking Season – What’s Going On?
Welcome to the Football4Cast Weekend Preview for Friday 13 February. It’s the FA Cup 4th round so a perfect time for a Premier League refresher. Arsenal extend their grip on the title, despite people talking up a Man City title charge and despite a 1-1 draw away at Brentford last night, Arsenal now have an 88% chance of lifting the title. Man City are down at 11% whilst Aston Villa are negligible. Things are getting a little more fun at the other end of the table:
Down at the bottom of the table, clubs are making moves as their situations become precarious. Wolves are down, Burnley will in all likelihood join them. What is getting interesting is that West Ham are slowly increasing their chances of staying up, and other teams are getting dragged into the mix. Namely, two: Tottenham Hotspur and Nottingham Forest.
Many might find it rather hilarious that Tottenham are actually getting dragged into a relegation battle, but that is the reality. They are falling and falling fast. They still do, however, have time to turn it around and stay clear of relegation. They have a 91% chance of that happening which is very likely and so it’s not all doom and gloom. But it is this increasing of their relegation probability which has led to the owners firing Thomas Frank. Frank, a mere six months ago, was a media darling, having done wonders for Brentford. However, the facts don’t lie. It is predicted that they are unlikely to improve on their 17th place finish from last year, when they sacked off the league to win a minor European bauble. It is therefore, understandable that Tottenham sought to make a change of manager.
The picture is slightly more complicated at Forest. Sean Dyche has had a very short term in office, and has done rather well to string some results together. However, with Forest’s relegation chance increasing to 16% in recent times, the Forest owner got spooked. Considering Forest’s poor start, this does seem a tad harsh, as they are far more likely to comfortably avoid relegation. It is the way football is these days, and fans have to shoulder a lot of the blame. It’s easy to blame eccentric owners, however, it is fans who are far quicker to suggest a manager’s time is up after a bad patch of results than ever before.
FA CUP FOURTH ROUND FIXTURES
Scotland
In the totally absorbing three-way fight for the title in Scotland, Celtic have retaken the advantage. After relinquishing being favourites only a couple of weeks ago, Celtic are now just 6 points behind Hearts with a game in hand. How will Hearts manage to cope down the stretch? Can they hold on despite’s Celtic’s best attempts?
Rangers v Hearts
A big game this weekend in the title fight as Rangers face Hearts. If Hearts drop points, Celtic will be right upon them and the gap could just be three points.
Rangers have the edge and Hearts could be well up against it at Ibrox. A point would be a great return.
Celtic’s Next Fixtures
Some fairly gentle fixtures next up for Celtic which should allow them to close the gap further on Hearts.
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