Not by any means saying we will finish 3rd, as IMO we could finish anywhere between 2nd-5th but if we did get 3rd who would you want to get 4th and why?
Can't see it. They're as good as 7 points off 4th with Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Spurs all to play away.
One other thing to consider is that the consequences for either are catastrophic if they don't make the top 4. Spurs are building a new stadium on he premise they'll be in it and inevitably want to break into that upper echelon of English clubs. To do that they need to keep the likes of Bale, without CL football they will have to raise capital elsewhere and sell, replacing them with shrewd signings like Holtby. Arsenal on the other hand need CL Football and fan discontent is at an all time high. Arsenal could go a year without CL football but they are basing it on the premise they can easily get back in. Spurs would strengthen and you'd imagine United, City and Chelsea's places would be cemented next year.
Let's not forget that the 4th placed team is not in the CL, they are only in the qualifiers, the fact that UEFA have changed the format so champions play each other gives more opportunity for clubs from smaller countries to qualify, such as Celtic. The one and only time spurs got to the CL they were very lucky to get away with it against young boys, plus we just scraped past Udinese (I think it was). The days of english clubs just having to turn up in the qualifiers are long gone, and there is no guarantee that the 4th place team will be in the CL group stage like some fans think.
Very true Possibly Valencia, Schalke, AC Milan and Braga are in position to be in the play-offs along with possibly Marseille, Anzhi or Zenit, Fenerbahce, PSV and Dynamo Kiev Not as forgone a conclusion as people think
I'm not sure City's place in the top 4 are cemented. I know they're second now, but they really haven't played together this season and with Yay Toure rumored to be discont with how things have gone this season, someone of the mercenaries might look for greener pastures. Who knows if City will replace Mancini as that would also have an effect on them this season. I think we'll be able to tell where they'll sit after we see what they do in the summer. Chelsea, will be top 3 next season. You've got a young, talented squad, and if you sign another good striker and offload Torres you'd be much better off. The only big name players I can see leaving would be Lampard and Torres. As long as Alex Ferguson is in charge of United, we'll finish top 3.
With City, whilst I wouldn't totally rule out a City collapse but 9 points is a lot let alone when you consider that every point Arsenal dropped would have to be dropped by City in addition to the 9 points, plus we'd also have to take advantage... and Chelsea. It all seems far too remote to me.
