As the Premier League edges towards its last quarter, bets have already been placed on who will be relegated this season. The table is looking completely different than what it was a couple of months earlier. With just eight points differentiating the bottom seven clubs, the finish is expected to be a cracker.
West Ham United and Leicester City who were once struggling in the relegation zone have bounced back from their awful performances. Despite the departure of Dimitri Payet, Slaven Bilic has managed to extract some clinical performances from his team and that is why they are currently in the 11th place.
A number of managers have been sacked but the most surprising was the removal of Claudio Ranieri. The Italian guided the Foxes to their maiden Premier League title but football can be very cruel sometimes. Crystal Palace also showed the door to Alan Pardew and replaced him with ex-England manager Sam Allardyce.
A number of clubs are currently struggling in the relegation zone and here are three clubs who have to improve their performance to save them from relegation.
Middlesbrough
Aitor Karanka’s side hasn’t managed a win in their last seven matches and are currently in the 18th place. The Teesside outfit also haven’t found the net in the last four games and Stoke City further piled on the misery with a 2-0 defeat against them. Scoring goals has been a problem for them. They have only scored 19 goals this season, the lowest in the Premier League. Front man Alvaro Negredo has lost his touch and has only scored six goals. New signing Rudy Gestede hasn’t got the chance so far to showcase his abilities. Boro still have a good chance to avoid relegation as they will have to play the remaining relegation zoned teams.
Crystal Palace
Sam Allardyce has never been relegated but his new team can buck the trend. The defence has been a problem for the Eagles and Allardyce brought Mamadou Sakho from Liverpool in the winter transfer window to solve the issue. Sakho should take this chance and will have to be on top of his game to create an influence. They have won their last two matches and if they can maintain the momentum, Big Sam might be able to save his job and the team.
Sunderland
David Moyes’s’ side have a tough task ahead and have lost three matches on the bounce. Jermain Defoe who has scored 14 goals this term and Adnan Januzaj have to step up to the stop the team going down to the Championship. They showed fight against Manchester City but only points matter now.
