4th Place Drama All For Nothing?

After witnessing perhaps the craziest game of European football ever, certainly in my time of watching, I had time to reflect on the league and the battle for 4th place perhaps being in vein.

With all the drama of who will make 4th place it could boil down to nothing if Chelsea win this now, which they stand a very good chance of in my opinion.

Newcastle fans....were you cheering for Chelsea last night?

Personally I would feel sorry for them, I thought it was harsh when Everton were denied a spot owing to Liverpool winning it a few years back.

Everton wernt denied a spot. They were put into the qualifiers and lost out to Villareal. It was becasue we had 5 teams in the champions league that season Uefa brought the champions taken the 4th place rule in

I'm a newcastle fan and, yes, I was supporting Barca for obvious reasons, however I personally think the damage has been done. I mean no Terry, Ivanovic, Meireles and most importantly no Ramires swings the final massively in favor of Real or Bayern.

As quick as people are to hype on about the job Di Matteo has done, the situation at Chelsea could drop as quick as it as risen. In my opinion there is a huge chance Chelsea could lose the Champs Lge final, lose the F.A Cup final to Liverpool and even miss out on the top 4 where they are 4 points off and playing awful. This Chelsea side is 6th for a reason.

Yes, I would be massively disappointed if we achieve 4th and Chelsea won the champions league but in my opinion I can't see us getting 4th. We've got some tough games coming up, even at Wigan, and there's a chance we could just 'blow up' after one defeat and the momentus is lost.

Everton got exactly what they would have if Liverpool didn't win the Champions League, Liverpool got put into one of the early qualifying rounds.

It'll be disappointing to see Newcastle pull it off only for it to be ruined by Chelsea.

I'm no fan of Chelsea, but it's about time there was a new name on the European cup and a London team winning the trophy is LOOOOOOONG over due and if Chelsea winning the trophy means hard luck to Newcastle or Spurs, then so be it, Spurs especially will only have themselves to blame.

All I know is who ever finishes 4th in the end is going to feel like a long wait till the final.

I think it would be very hard on either Newcastle or Tottenham. OK I'm a NUFC fan but the reality is Chelsea are very unlikely to finish 4th so winning the Champions League is there lifeline into next season's competition and because the powers that bew don't win a fifth premiership team would deny Newcastle or Spurs the opportunity to play in the premier football competition with all the money that entails.

Now, of course, if Newcastle were to have an unbelievable end to the season to go along with their recent run of form they could (theoretically) finish 3rd and then Arsenal would be denied. Either way if Chelsea (and it's still a very big IF) win the Champions League then it's highly likely one of North London or the North East miss out.

Just a question, if chelsea fail to win the champions league and finish outside the top 4, what will this mean for the club financially?

I mean Abramovich has pledged like £100m to spend in the summer or woteva but failure to reach champions lge with their situation and wages, surely there will be some kind of crisis, or not because abramovich is so rich? Failure to win the champions lge and not top 4 will surely mean the end for lampard/drogba/malouda etc.

Some people have said Chelsea FC is Abramovich's life insurance. Less risk of being bumped off in taking such a high profile asset. Russian politics and big business murkiness.

I wouldn't be disappointed if Spuds missed out by any means purely for my sheer hatred to the COYS mob but I would feel for Newcastle as they have been a refreshing change since they got relegated and came back up.

I think it's right that they get to defend their title, but I still think that there should still be 4 teams regardless of who wins owing to the stregth and size on the Premier League.

I was happy merely for the fact that the pundits can no longer cream over Barca when I think Real Madrid have probably played some better football. If Messi has scored Ramires' goal they would have shot their loads!

not too sure I agree with newballs's comments about Chelsea not having much chance of finishing fourth. Let's not forget they have Newcastle at home in the run-in. A win there narrows the gap to a point, and Newcastle also have Man City to play. Spurs are in disarray at the moment too. I'm not saying it's likely, but it's far from impossible.

Regarding the article, I think it's desperately harsh on either of them if it happens. The trouble with "add a place to the winner" rule (which would mean an extra team for the country who wins it) is that it's very rare for the CL winner to finish outside CL qualification (only Liverpool have done it before?), which means that every year you'd have Spain, England or Italy (I exaggerate but you get the idea) with five teams in the CL...

In the past it was only who came in first place that mattered. But now, with the European Champions League, there is this "top four" distinction, where finishing third or fourth has its own meaning beyond being second or third "loser" (of the top division league).

Nowadays, to win the Premiership, most football supporters have to hope some multi-billionnaire capitalistic money theiving bustard, buys their team and lavishes hundreds of millions of pounds on foreign mercenaries with a talent for kicking a football around.

I don't think Chelsea beating Newcastle is so 'inevitable' Mad For Chelsea. Not only is your league form poor as you currently lie 6th, but you face QPR fighting relegation and then you face Newcastle just three days before the F.A Cup final. You then play Liverpool away followed by Blackburn at home who will be fighting tooth and nail to avoid relegation.

You then face Bayern in the final at their home ground with no Terry, Ivanovic, Meireles and Ramires. Ribery & Robben will dominate your full backs all night especially Bosingwa. In my opinion there's nothing 'in the bag' at all regarding Chelsea's run in. Your right Newcastle have a tough run in but we've got nothing to lose, we were tipped for relegation and are guaranteed europa league football. Chelsea could end up with no cup wins and just europa league football.....that's more worrying

its eally sad either way.

chelsea have been part of this tourny big time in previous years- got knocked out by barca in the semis to the most inept ref display of all time, and have lost the final on pens to man u.

They have also got into about 8 consecutive qf's(something like that!!)

But then what newcastle and pardew have done is also outstanding.

We shoulld get 5 teams in the event in fairness in this case. It is ludicrous to but less deserving teams in as they do!

However are pardew and redknapp fighting for a very different prize= the england managers job!

thinking about it- imagine totenham do finish 4th and dont get into the CL by virtue of chelsea winning.

that will almost certainly push redknapp into the england managers job..

So everyone support chelsea, its gonna be good for england!

John wrote:I don't think Chelsea beating Newcastle is so 'inevitable' Mad For Chelsea. Not only is your league form poor as you currently lie 6th, but you face QPR fighting relegation and then you face Newcastle just three days before the F.A Cup final. You then play Liverpool away followed by Blackburn at home who will be fighting tooth and nail to avoid relegation.

You then face Bayern in the final at their home ground with no Terry, Ivanovic, Meireles and Ramires. Ribery & Robben will dominate your full backs all night especially Bosingwa. In my opinion there's nothing 'in the bag' at all regarding Chelsea's run in. Your right Newcastle have a tough run in but we've got nothing to lose, we were tipped for relegation and are guaranteed europa league football. Chelsea could end up with no cup wins and just europa league football.....that's more worrying

Mad For Chelsea has said it is not likely that Chelesea will finish fourth, but that it is possible. He also hasn't said that a win against Newcastle is inevitable - even though you have used quotation marks.

In the same way, you have put quotation marks around in the bag, and i cannot see a record of that phrase being used in any context, let alone Chelsea's run in.

re-reading I may have worded it poorly, would have been better had I said "Should they win it narrows the gap to a point" rather than "A win there narrows..." I'm taking nothing for granted, but equally after the way Chelsea have performed in the CL under Di Matteo I believe nothing is impossible either. Let's not forget Bayern will be missing two of their first choice defenders as well.

As for "Ribery and Robben will dominate your full-backs all night long", given how Messi & co utterly failed to dominate Cole (magnificent in both legs) I wouldn't be so sure...

the biggest problem they have is that its a real away game for chelsea!!

I am not gonna say that chelsea are that disadvantaged with the missing players. I doubt that will be the key factor if they lose

annoying but one of those things