4th Is the New 1st

The Battle for the Champions League will go down to the final day.

Last season, the Premier League Championship was about as dramatic as possible. Two rivals from the same city on the final day, ending in the best ending possible. Even a neutral fan like me jumped out of my chair when Sergio Aguero scored City's second goal in stoppage time and Ian Darke famously yelled, "Who is writing this stuff?"But 2013 is a completely different story, Manchester United seemingly won their 20th title in January, and the attention turned a few spots down the table for a shot at the Champions League. Here I will make some Premier League predictions that are sure to be wrong.

Simply put, it is three teams for two spots. Three London teams, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Tottenham want  a chance to compete against the world's best, two will make it, and the last will be sent to Europe's NIT Tournament, the Europa League. While some teams would love to jump up to fifth and make european play, for all three teams being in the Europa League would feel like a failure. 1996 was the last time the Gunners fell outside of the Top-4. Manager Arsene Wegner has led them to the Champions League every season in charge, so anything less is a disappointment. Chelsea are the most recent champions of Europe, combined with the unpopularity of manager Rafa Benitez, a Europa League spot would upset fans. Tottenham are the new kids on the block, getting their first taste of Champions League play in 2010. Spurs fans will want a top-4 finish with rumors of Welsh superstar Gareth Bale moving on to a bigger club.

Its clear that all three want to finish top-4, but who will actually accomplish it? Chelsea currently sits in third with 68 points. They sit in the pole position but have the toughest road ahead. Their next match is a massive one against Tottenham. They also have a games against relegation threatened Aston Villa and Everton with the Europa League Final against Benfica sandwiched in-between. Recently Chelsea has been getting goals from their midfielders and defenders, which has been needed to stay afloat with their strikers struggling. Since the beginning of March, Chelsea strikers have had just three goals, two by Eden Hazard and one by Demba Ba, in eight games against Premier League competition. But their midfield had more than picked up the slack and I expect them to finish with a couple wins and 75 points.

Arsenal has the easiest remaining schedule, but it is also the shortest. In a situation where points are valuable and a necessity, Arsenal wants more than just matches against Wigan and Newcastle. It hasn't been a pretty last three games for the Gunners, but they've picked up seven points in that stretch, largely in part to some very early Theo Walcott goals. While goals have not been there, the results have and Arsenal should pick up their final six points and end with 73.

The wildcard in this situation is Tottenham. As important is the May 8th matchup is for Chelsea, it is exponentially more massive for their North London rivals. A win would set them up with 68 points with 2 games remaining against Stoke City and Sunderland. For Spurs Champions League dreams to come true, Gareth Bale has carried them so far, but they will need production from others like Jermaine Defoe or American Clint Dempsey.

Can Tottenham pull the upset, breaking the hearts of Arsenal, their North London rivals? Can Clint Dempsey breakthrough to the Champions League he wanted when leaving Fulham? While wins in their final two games seems likely, a win against a Chelsea team getting positive results at Stamford Bridge seems too much to ask. Heading into the final day, Chelsea will have 74 points, Arsenal will have 70 points and Tottenham will have 68, giving spurs fans hope for a fourth place finish. However, despite three points against Sunderland, Arsenal's 2-0 win over Newcastle gives them another year to celebrate St. Totteringham's Day and a place in the Champions League.