The Premier League title race has come down to the final day of the season.
Both Manchester City and Liverpool survived scares in their penultimate matches of the campaign, seeing the two just a single point apart in the league table with just one match remaining.
Aston Villa and Wolves will have a hand in determining where the title will go this season, as they hit the road to take on Man City and Liverpool, respectively.
Man City are hoping to quell the pain of UEFA Champions League semifinal defeat with a league victory, while Liverpool have dreams of an historic quadruple on their minds.
MORE: Liverpool's quadruple trophy chase is still on
Premier League standings
Pep Guardiola and Man City hold the slight advantage, in front by a single point and holding the goal differential advantage. This means Liverpool must realistically eclipse Man City in the table to secure the Premier League title.
| Place | Team | PTS | GP | GD | Final Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Man City | 90 | 37 | +72 | vs. AVL, May 22 |
| 2. | Liverpool | 89 | 37 | +66 | vs. WOL, May 22 |
| 3. | Chelsea | 71 | 37 | +42 | vs. WAT, May 22 |
PTS = Points, GP = Games Played, GD = Goal Difference
MORE: Full Premier League table with updates on every race
Liverpool, Man City final fixtures
For sporting reasons, the Premier League schedules every single team in the league to play its final fixture on the same day at the same time. This way no team gains an advantage before kickoff by knowing what it must accomplish to secure a desired standings finish.
With just the final matchday to go in the 2021-22 Premier League season, here are the two games everyone will be focused on:
Man City fixture remaining
| Match | Date | Home/ Away | Opponent | Time (BST / ET) |
| 38 | Sun, May 22 | H | Aston Villa | 4 p.m. / 11 a.m. |
Liverpool fixtures remaining
| Match | Date | Home/ Away | Opponent | Time (BST / ET) |
| 38 | Sun, May 22 | H | Wolves | 4 p.m. / 11 a.m. |
Interestingly, Man City must navigate a final-day fixture against Aston Villa, coached by former Liverpool standout Steven Gerrard. This gives Gerrard, who never won a title with Liverpool, a chance to help his old club by securing a result against the current leaders.
Liverpool, meanwhile, has a home date with defensively-minded Wolves. The mid-table side have slipped of late, drawing with last-placed Norwich City in their last match to follow up a 5-1 blasting at the hands of Man City. If the Reds can replicate City's result against Wolves, they'll be in with a shot of winning the league title.
What Man City need to win the Premier League
For Manchester City the picture is clear: win and a repeat title is secure. Given that City currently lead the table by a point, Pep Guardiola's side controls its own destiny. Victory would be enough to secure the Premier League crown.
They can still win the title with a draw or even a loss, however, that would also depend on Liverpool's result. All City must do is better Liverpool's result, and the title is theirs.
In case the teams finish level on 90 points, City would hope its superior goal differential would be enough to claim the crown. With a +6 advantage over Liverpool heading into the final day, City would still come away with the trophy even in the event of a loss to Aston Villa, so long as Liverpool only draw with Wolves and the defeat to Villa isn't utterly catastrophic.
Man City win the Premier League title if:
- Man City win vs. Aston Villa
OR
- Man City draw vs. Aston Villa AND Liverpool draw or loss vs. Wolves
OR
- Man City loss vs. Aston Villa by 5 or fewer goals AND Liverpool draw vs. Wolves
What Liverpool need to win the Premier League
The Reds, first and foremost, need to win. Liverpool cannot realistically win the title without achieving victory over Wolves.
The rest is up to Man City. If Man City beat Aston Villa, the race is over no matter what Liverpool do in their match. If Man City slip, the chance is there.
There are a pair of utterly chaotic scenarios technically on the cards, but it would require Man City to fall by six or more goals to Aston Villa, which just isn't realistic.
Liverpool win the Premier League title if:
- Liverpool win vs. Wolves AND Man City draw or loss vs. Aston Villa
OR
- Liverpool draw vs. Wolves AND Man City loss vs. Aston Villa by 7+ goals
OR
- Liverpool draw vs. Wolves AND Man City loss vs. Aston Villa by 6 goals AND Liverpool score 5+ more goals than Man City
What happens if Man City and Liverpool finish tied?
The following is the pecking order of tiebreakers to determine which club finishes above the other in the event they finish level on points.
- Goal difference
- Goals scored
- Head-to-head results
- Head-to-head away goals
- One-game playoff
There is a fully chaotic, technically possible scenario that would see the two sides contest a one-game playoff for the Premier League title, but it is extremely unrealistic.
Because the pair of league fixtures between these two clubs both finished in 2-2 draws, the head-to-head points and away goals in head-to-head matches are both even.
This means that should the teams finish level on points, goal difference, and goals scored, Man City and Liverpool would indeed contest a one-game playoff to determine the Premier League champion.
A one-game playoff would result if:
- Man City lose to Aston Villa by exactly six goals
AND
- Liverpool draw with Wolves
AND
- In their draw Liverpool score exactly five more goals than Man City
