With five clubs fighting for three Champions League berths, final-day drama is guaranteed.

The Premier League’s race for Champions League qualification is set for a blockbuster final day, with five clubs still scrapping over just three places. Champions Liverpool and runners-up Arsenal have already secured their tickets to Europe’s elite competition—but behind them, it’s chaos.

Newcastle United, Chelsea, and Aston Villa all sit on 66 points after the penultimate weekend. Breathing down their necks are Manchester City and Nottingham Forest, each on 65. With five Champions League places available to English clubs this year—thanks to a UEFA coefficient boost—three spots remain open.

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe summed it up: “I had the feeling it would go right to the end.” And he was right.

Here’s how it stands going into the decisive fixtures:

• Manchester City, in sixth, have a game in hand against Bournemouth at home on Tuesday. If they win that, they move to 68 points—leapfrogging into third—and will only need a final-day win at Fulham to clinch qualification.
  
• Newcastle know that a victory at home against Everton on Sunday will see them through. Their superior goal difference is a vital buffer in such a tight race.
  
• Chelsea also control their destiny but face a dangerous trip to Nottingham Forest, who have their own Champions League hopes alive. Forest’s win over West Ham on Sunday gave them a lifeline. They’ll need to beat Chelsea and hope one or more teams above them slip up.
  
• Aston Villa are the most precariously placed. They must beat Manchester United at Old Trafford and then hope for favourable results elsewhere. Even then, goal difference could prove costly.
  

To add further tension, the Europa League final on Wednesday between Manchester United and Tottenham has no bearing on this Champions League race but carries its own implications. The winner heads to the Champions League next season. The loser—stuck in the Premier League’s bottom five—misses out on Europe altogether.

In the background, Chelsea’s European final appearance could still shift the make-up of other continental qualifiers, depending on how their campaign ends, but their league match at the City Ground takes priority this week.

Arsenal’s narrow 1-0 win over Newcastle on Sunday locked up second place and condemned the Magpies to a stressful finish. The Gunners celebrated, but Howe and his men were left clinging to permutations.

With goal difference, game states, and emotional fatigue all in play, this final Sunday (kick-off 16:00 BST) could deliver Premier League theatre at its most dramatic. Five teams, three golden tickets—and no room for error.