On Sunday, May 15, West Bromwich Albion hosts Liverpool in the final match day of the English Premier League 15/16 season. With the title and relegation places decided, focus on the final day will be on which teams represent England in Europe next season. The game will be played at the Hawthorns in the city of West Bromwich and will kick off at 15:00 BST.
The hosts are currently 15th on the league table with 42 points from 37 games, while the visitors are in 8th place in the standings, with 59 points from 37 matches.
A win for the underdogs can see them finish as high as 12th place, while a defeat can see them drop no lower than 16th place. The 8th placed team can still finish the season as high as 6th place, while a defeat will leave them no lower than their current position.
West Brom mental holidaysSince mathematically confirming their status in the premier league, West Brom have been playing like a team who couldn’t care less about results. Motivation is clearly absent, and this may well continue into this last game.
The Baggies, managed by Tony Pulis are in poor form, with two draws and three defeats in their last five games. These draws were against Tottenham (1-1 on April 25), and in their most recent outing against AFC Bournemouth (1-1 on May 7).
Tony Pulis men have sufferd recent defeats at the hands of Watford (0-1 on April 16), Arsenal (2-0 on April 21), and West Ham United (0-3 on April 30).
Liverpool dramatic end to the seasonLiverpool’s future in Europe could still swing in one of several ways. They could qualify for the Champions League if they win their Europa league final game against Sevilla, they could qualify for the Europa League if they manage to finish in 7th place or higher, or they could miss out on Europe outright if they lost both this game, and their Europa League final game.
The Reds, managed by Jurgen Klopp are in indifferent form, with two wins, one draw and two defeats in their last five games in all competitions. These wins were against Villarreal in the Europa League semifinal second leg (3-0 on May 5), and against Watford in the league (2-0 on May 8).
The Europa League finalist could only manage a draw against Chelsea in their most recent outing (1-1 on May 11), but suffered defeats at the hands of Villarreal in the first leg of the Europa league semifinal tie (1-0 on April 28), and Swansea City in the league (3-1 on May 1).
Tony Pulis has performed admirably against Liverpool the last three times he has come up against them, but he will know to get anything from this game, he will need his center backs Gareth McAuley and Jonas Olsson to be on the top of their game. Roberto Firmino and James Milner have been the standout players for Liverpool this calendar year, and their manager will be hoping they can work their magic in this game.
West Brom have been poor in the last couple of games, while opponents Liverpool have won only 3 of their last 10 game away from home in all competitions. I see both teams canceling each other out and playing out a low scoring draw.