And so the year ends with the bottom three places in the Premier League occupied by the three promoted sides. With Wolves and Crystal Palace resurgent and Everton under new ownership and having found the solidity that is the key strength of Sean Dyche teams, the situation is bleak for the three now in the relegation zone.
Each will have their own reflections on the first half of the season but, more generally, the picture is worrying: the three promoted sides were relegated last season and the gulf between the Premier League and the Championship is coming to feel almost impossibly wide.
The bottom side, Southampton, are 10 points from safety. Realistically they probably need to average a point and a half a game from here to stay up - which is to say they are as good as down.
The two games since Russell Martin was sacked have shown an improvement, but even then battling performances at Fulham and Palace have yielded a single point. Perhaps they would have had a better chance of survival had they not been wedded to a high-risk passing style that kept on surrendering possession in dangerous areas, but this never looked anything like a Premier League squad.
This story is from the December 31, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
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This story is from the December 31, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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