In this weekend’s Premier League, two relegated six-point players are at the bottom of the table.
It all starts on Friday Night Football, with 16th-placed Leeds hosting 17th-placed Nottingham Forest. Both teams start this weekend on the same level, six points adrift of the bottom three.
Then, on Saturday, the Clarets will have a decisive match against 19th-placed Burnley and 18th-placed West Ham. Burnley are already 11 points from safety with 14 games remaining and five points behind the Hammers.
Sky Sports’ football journalists take a look at the key talking points for the four teams…
Leeds and Falke at a crossroads in their season
Home in Nottingham Forest. This is undoubtedly the biggest game of Leeds’ season and of Daniel Farke’s reign at Elland Road. Both the club and the manager are at a crossroads.
The German head coach has successfully put to rest early season doubts and given himself hope to prove he is more than just an elite Championship manager. He could also be successful in the Premier League.
Friday, February 6th 7:30pm
Kickoff at 8pm
However, what Falke and Leeds have been saying since the start of the season is that as long as the club is playing on a points-per-game basis, they will be fine.
Leeds currently have 26 points from 24 games, which means they are above the points per game mark. But if we don’t win against Forest on Friday, we might be a little nervous.
That’s because after this weekend Leeds will play away games against Chelsea and Aston Villa before facing Manchester City. Leeds could fall below that mark by the end of the month, but then questions will be asked again.
Sam Blitz
Will new boy Lucca be able to help Forrest change his mind?
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Sky Sports News’ Anton Troi has praised Nottingham Forest’s achievements in the January transfer window.
New striker Lorenzo Lucca, signed on loan from Napoli in January, could make his Nottingham Forest debut at Elland Road.
Manager Sean Dyche will want the 6ft 7in Italian to boost Forest’s goal conversion, which ranks among the worst in the Premier League. They rank 19th in goals (24), 19th in shot conversions (8.5 percent), and have failed to score in the second most games (11 of 24 – only Wolves have failed to score more).
Morgan Gibbs-White remains the league’s top scorer this season (six goals) and is arguably the best business to keep him in the summer, potentially putting him on par with Brian Roy (24 goals) as Forest’s second-highest scorer in the Premier League.
The club’s current top scorer in the league is Chris Wood (37), but injuries have limited his playing time and goals (two goals) this season. Forest’s other strikers Igor Jesus, Taiwo Awoniyi and Arnaud Karimendo have only scored three goals between them, so Lucca’s arrival is timely and will hopefully prove fruitful.
But despite their struggles in front of goal, Forest have continued their longest unbeaten run of the season (four games), winning four of their last seven away Premier League games, including the last two.
Can Forest add more goals to Morgan Gibbs-White?
Dyche’s first league win came against Leeds on November 9th, and he will be aiming for the same victory again as his duties to stabilize the ship continue on Friday Night Football.
charlotte marsh
There is hope for the Hammers – but they must bounce back from Chelsea’s blow
West Ham’s chances of survival appeared to have changed at half-time on Saturday, as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side looked set to gain a foothold to move out of the drop zone with a 2-0 win over Chelsea and back-to-back wins over Tottenham and Sunderland.
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Watch for free: Highlights of the Premier League match between Chelsea and West Ham.
But a heartbreaking collapse to their London rivals, capped off by Enzo Fernandes’ clinching stoppage-time strike, put the pressure on them again in the relegation battle. Now, a trip to Burnley looks like a must-win.
However, the Hammers can take encouragement from recent performances. Crisencio Somerville’s strong batting form increases the threat in attacking areas, while Deadline Day loan move Axel Disasi could help address persistent defensive issues from crosses that resurfaced at Stamford Bridge.
The trip to Turf Moor will be followed by games against Man United, Bournemouth, Liverpool, Fulham, Man City and Aston Villa. With that in mind, getting points on the board on Saturday is essential.
peter smith
last chance saloon burnley
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Watch for free: Highlights of the Premier League match between Sunderland and Burnley.
Now is the time for Burnley to end their 15-game winless run in the Premier League and begin their fight for survival, with manager Scott Parker looking for a response to the disastrous 3-0 defeat at Sunderland.
Relegation alarm bells had been ringing long before Monday’s embarrassing performance in the North East, and Saturday’s home game against West Ham was a key opportunity to close the gap to safety.
After draws with Tottenham, Liverpool and Man Utd, as well as an FA Cup win over Millwall, Burnley fell “too short” in terms of doing the “real fundamentals” at Sunderland.
“I didn’t see a performance like this coming,” Parker added. Defender Kyle Walker said: “As a club fighting for survival, this is unacceptable.
Will there be a reaction to that? In the January transfer window, there were no players who could help Burnley with their plight. James Ward-Prowse is the only player on loan and will not even play against his parent club on Saturday.
Burnley need to prove they are not ready for the Championship yet.
david richardson
