Arsenal Secure Second Place, Five Teams Competing for Champions League

LONDON, SUNDAY — The second place in the English League once again serves as a solace for Arsenal in their trophyless season. While Liverpool and Arsenal have secured their spots in the 2025-2026 edition of the Champions League, the remaining three slots in the continent's premier club competition are contested by five teams until the final week.

The goal contribution from Declan Rice, one of Arsenal's most consistent players throughout this season, in the 55th minute secured Arsenal's 1-0 lead over Newcastle United, Sunday (18/5/2025). The three points in the last home match at the Emirates Stadium during the 2024-2025 competition campaign ensured Arsenal's return to the Champions League.

With a collection of 71 points, "Si Meriam" can no longer be caught by the three teams below them, all of which have accumulated 66 points. The three teams are Newcastle, Chelsea, and Aston Villa.

The constellation of the top five zones, which serves as the battleground for spots in the Champions League, could change this midweek. This will be influenced by the outcome of the match between Manchester City and Bournemouth on Wednesday (21/5/2025) at the Etihad Stadium. A victory would elevate City's position to third place, below Arsenal.

If they win against Bournemouth, mathematically, City could still displace Arsenal from second place in the 38th week. However, that situation is unlikely to occur as Arsenal faces Southampton, the team at the bottom of the standings, while City travels to Fulham's home ground. With that scenario, the Gunners only need a draw against Southampton to maintain their second position.

Amid the strong certainty of securing second place below Liverpool, the English Premier League champions, Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta has finally expressed his disappointment openly. Arteta has only delivered one FA Cup trophy in the 2019-2020 season since taking the managerial position at Arsenal in December 2019.

In this season, he led Arsenal to the semifinals in two competitions, namely the Champions League, where they were defeated by Paris Saint-Germain, and the English League Cup, where they were eliminated by Newcastle, the trophy holder. They also could only reach the third round of the FA Cup after being defeated by Manchester United.

"We are not satisfied and frustrated. However, I believe we are on the right track," said Arteta in the post-match press conference after the final game at the Emirates this season, as reported by the BBC.

"What I can promise is that I will do my very best (to win the trophy). I will dedicate my life and assist all the players here to achieve the trophy (in the upcoming season)," Arteta continued.

Although he has only secured one championship title, the tactician from the Basque region of Spain is the best manager in Arsenal's history in terms of winning percentage. Arteta has achieved a 59 percent win rate in 255 games leading the Gunners. This means he has helped Arsenal win in 151 matches.

That percentage figure cannot be matched by any previous Arsenal manager who has recorded at least 100 matches. Arteta has already surpassed the legendary Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger (1996-2018), who achieved a 57 percent positive result, and Herbert Chapman (1925-1934) with a 49 percent win rate.

Defeating Newcastle brings Arsenal closer to occupying the second position for three consecutive seasons. Unfortunately, Arsenal's performance has declined this season. They can only manage to accumulate a maximum of 74 points.

The collection of points decreased by 15 points compared to the 2023-2024 season with 89 points. Bukayo Saka and his teammates failed to finish with a record of more than 80 points for the first time since the 2022-2023 edition of the Premier League.

"We must ensure that the pursuit of dreams does not fade and that we chase trophies with a positive situation and enthusiasm. There are still many things that this team can achieve, although it is not easy. The players possess great talent," said Arteta.

The competition for Champions League tickets is certainly not over. However, the five teams occupying the third to seventh positions have already secured their spots to participate in the European club competition.

Positions one to five will qualify for the Champions League, while the sixth position will accompany Crystal Palace—the FA Cup champion—to the Europa League, and the seventh position will represent England in the Europa Conference League.

The allocation for English teams in the Champions League will increase for Tottenham Hotspur or Manchester United, who have reached the final of the 2024-2025 Europa League. The winner of the match between the 17th and 16th place teams in the Premier League will help the Premier League become the first competition to send six representatives to the Champions League.

The intensifying competition in the rankings from third to seventh place, which are separated by just one point, is closely related to Nottingham Forest's 2-1 victory over West Ham United at the London Olympic Stadium. Morgan Gibbs-White (11') and Nikola Milenkovic (61') helped Forest maintain their hopes of finishing in the top five.

"It's a big win. I think from the beginning of the season we wanted to fight with a clear objective. In the last game at the City Ground we tried to create something magical," Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo told Sky Sports.

Forest must defeat Chelsea in the final match of the season to qualify for the Champions League next season. In addition to winning, Forest also needs to hope that one of their three competitors, namely City (against Fulham), Newcastle (against Everton), and Aston Villa (against MU), does not achieve victory to facilitate their ambition of finishing in the top five.

Referring to Opta's calculations, the three teams with the greatest chance of completing the five-team line-up advancing to the Champions League via the Premier League rankings are City (85.9 percent), Newcastle (83.55 percent), and Chelsea (56.84 percent). Meanwhile, Villa and Forest are only favored with a chance of 44.42 percent and 29.29 percent respectively.