The fifth place in the Premier League may not qualify for the Champions League, and Manchester United will lose 10 million in the Europa League! Ten Hag bets on the FA Cup
With Manchester City eliminated on penalties by Real Madrid and Arsenal losing 1-0 to Bayern Munich, the Premier League teams have all been eliminated from the Champions League this season. Moreover, Thursday's Europa League may replicate the same story, with Liverpool losing 3-0 at home to Serie A Atalanta in the first leg and West Ham United losing 0-2 away at the feet of Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen. The Premier League's favourites for European competition are Aston Villa, who beat Lille 2-1 in the first leg and are favourites to win the tournament.
The Champions League will be expanded to 36 teams next season, so the top two leagues in terms of European competition this season will be eligible for an additional Champions League spot. Serie A are currently well ahead and they could secure a fifth Champions League spot as soon as Thursday. As long as Atalanta remain unbeaten at home to Liverpool in the Europa League, and Fiorentina beat Viktoria Plzen in the UEFA Europa League to advance to the semi-finals, Serie A will lock up the top two in the European coefficient table in advance.
The remaining position is the "Anglo-German battle", which is currently leading the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich eliminated Arsenal in the Champions League, and if Bayer Leverkusen can keep the win and eliminate West Ham, then the Germans are likely to beat the Premier League.
If only four teams can compete in the Champions League next season, the chances of Manchester United playing in the Champions League are slim to none. Ten Hag's side are currently as many as 13 points behind fourth-placed Villa and a full 20 goals off goal difference! With just six games remaining, Unai Emery's side only need two more wins for the Red Devils to catch up.
Manchester United, who are currently seventh in the Premier League, may even continue to slip down the table, with Chelsea, who have been in excellent form of late, only three points behind, and a game with 10 more goals to achieve a lift.
According to the rules, if there are only four Champions League places in the Premier League, then the fifth place in the league and the FA Cup winner will play in the Europa League, and the sixth place and the League Cup winner will play in the UEFA Europa League. If the FA Cup winner has already qualified for the Champions League by other means, the quota will be placed in sixth place in the Premier League, and if the League Cup winner has already qualified for the Champions League or Europa League by other means, the UEFA Cup place will be transferred to eighth place in the Premier League. The FA Cup and League Cup runners-up are not eligible for European competition.
As a result, the British media predict that Ten Hag will devote more energy to the FA Cup, with Manchester United travelling to Wembley on Sunday to face Championship side Coventry for the final. Reaching the FA Cup final for the second year in a row would be a good result, and if it could be won, it would be an honour.
Winning the FA Cup will also be the only way Ten Hag can keep his position. It won't be easy, and it may not be difficult to beat Coventry, but the opponents in the final will certainly not be easy to deal with, whether it's Pep Guardiola's Manchester City or Mauricio Pochettino's Chelsea. But United know that the league table needs to be consistent and good, and the FA Cup only needs two more wins.
The fourth or seventh place in the Premier League is not much different in terms of prize money, which is a difference between £37.4 million and £30.8 million. However, missing out on the Champions League will bring huge financial losses, not counting performance bonuses and matchday earnings, Manchester United entered the Champions League group stage this season with a participation fee of 13.37 million pounds, while the Europa League group stage participation starting from only 3.5 million pounds and the UEFA Cup 2.5 million pounds.
Not only that, but in the Champions League, the prize money for winning is £2.39 million per game, the Europa League is only £550,000 and the UEFA Europa League is only £427,000.