As their Premier League opponents look on, Arsenal and Manchester City are getting ready for important Champions League quarterfinal meetings.
Ahead of their quarterfinal matches this evening (8pm kickoff), Manchester City and Arsenal could play a significant role in the fight for Champions League and European status in the Premier League.
Real Madrid held Man City, while Arsenal and Bayern Munich drew in their first leg quarterfinal match. The outcome could significantly affect which country, Germany or England, receives an extra Champions League spot for the upcoming season.
According to a new UEFA regulation, the two leagues whose teams finish first overall in the 2023–24 Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League competitions would receive extra Champions League spot for the 2024-25 campaign.
It has been up to teams like Arsenal and Man City to make apologies and assist England in gaining an additional spot in the competition for the following season after Newcastle United and Manchester United both failed to go past the group stage of the Champions League.
The Europa League and Europa Conference League spots will also fall farther down the league standings in exchange for an additional Champions League spot. This might mean that a Premier League team that finishes as low as ninth can make it to Europe the following year.
As of right now, Newcastle is trailing Aston Villa in fourth place by 13 points and Tottenham Hotspur in fifth place by 10 points in the Premier League standings.
But England currently sit behind Italy and Germany in the 2023-24 UEFA country coefficients that will decide which two leagues get the extra spot. And with Borussia Dortmund progressing to the semi-final of the Champions League, wins for Arsenal and Man City could be vital in seeing England leapfrog Germany into second place.
West Ham’s 2-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen and Liverpool’s 3-0 loss against Atalanta put more pressure on the likes of Man City and Arsenal in the Champions League as well as Aston Villa in the Europa League.
With a current coefficient of 18.428 and no Italian teams left in the Champions League, Serie A is almost guaranteed an additional qualification spot for the following season. When AC Milan plays AS Roma in the quarterfinal of the Europa League, at least one Italian team is assured a trip to the semifinals.
Furthermore, two teams in the final four appear possible after Atalanta’s victory over Liverpool in the first leg. Fiorentina is also in the Conference League’s latter stages.
After dividing their season total of 134.000 points by the number of competing teams, English clubs have a coefficient score of 16.750. Italy now has an 18.428 coefficient value, while Germany is at 17.214.
With a score of at least 17.500, wins for Manchester City and Arsenal would push England over Germany in the coefficient rankings.
Below is a summary of the coefficient standings for every Premier League team playing in Europe this season.
1. Manchester City: 27.000
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Champions League champions with 27.000 With victories in all but one of their league games this season, Manchester City has the greatest coefficient score of any team in Europe. City failed to earn the maximum 28 points at this round of the competition due to a 3-3 tie with Real Madrid in the first leg of their quarterfinal match. A victory that puts them up to at least 30.000 points will be their goal as they attempt to advance.
2. Arsenal – 22.000
Arsenal have a score of 22.000 so far this season. 13 for winning their Champions League group with four wins and a draw, five for progressing to the last-16 where they earned a further two points for beating Porto in the second leg and progressing on penalties. They earned a point for competing in the quarter-final against Bayern Munich with a first leg draw awarding them another point. A win on Wednesday night would take Arsenal up to a coefficient score of at least 25.000.
3. Liverpool – 18.000
Liverpool have picked up 18.000 coefficient points and could still earn more despite being on the brink of a Europa League quarter-final exit. The Reds earned 12 points from finishing top of their group with four wins and two losses. A total of five points for winning home and away against Sparta Prague in the last-16 of the competition and a further point for playing the quarter-final against Atalanta, where they were beaten 3-0.
4. 18.000 for West Ham United
The Hammers’ advancement to the Europa League quarterfinal has earned them 18,000 points thus far. With five victories and one loss, West Ham finished first in their group and received 14 points. Despite losing the first leg, they gained three more points by defeating Freiburg in the round of 16. They were awarded an additional point for taking on Bayer Leverkusen in the quarterfinal; nevertheless, the second leg resulted in a 2-0 loss. If David Moyes’ team wants to go farther, they’ll need to be the first to defeat Leverkusen this season.
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