⚽Matchday 31: Top 4 Dreams & Drop Zone Nightmares

It’s Matchweek 31 🤯🤯

If it feels like you just finished watching games… it’s because you did. Two days later, we’re back with another full slate of matches — and they’re just as tasty as ever.

(If you still haven’t snagged your brother’s Peacock login, now’s the time to bite the bullet and send that text.) -Gabe

🔥🧙🏻‍♂️ Two Games to Rule Them All
At both the top and bottom of the table, we’ve got a pair of barn burners that could shake up the Champions League race and the relegation battle.

Ipswich vs Wolves
The “Tractor Boys” get ready to protect their flock as they take on Wolves today.
These two are split by the relegation line — and 9 points — with everything to play for. Both sides come in buzzing after big midweek wins, and neither will want to give an inch.

• If Ipswich can pull off a win today (something they’ve only managed four times all season), they might just yank their stuck boot out of the mud pit that is the drop zone.

  I’ve officially run out of Ed Sheeran puns (he’s Ipswich’s shirt sponsor). If you’ve got better material, send it to [email protected] — just kidding, don’t email that. It’s not real… yet.
  

• Wolves have a chance to tip the scales in the all-time head-to-head — currently deadlocked at four wins apiece — and notch their third straight victory.

  Can someone say heating up?

Villa Vs Forest
Now on the opposite end of the table, we’ve got two of the league’s big dogs slugging it out for a top-four finish. Both teams handled business midweek and come into this clash looking to make a statement.

• Villa
  Having added two big-name players in February — Marco Asensio and Marcus Rashford — to an already stacked squad, Villa are looking extremely dangerous. They’ve won five straight in all competitions, booked a spot in the Champions League quarterfinals (first leg vs. PSG on April 9), and are heading to the FA Cup semifinals.

  This month could go down as one of the biggest in the Villans’ history books.

• Forest
  
  Forest sit in 3rd place after a gritty 1–0 win over Man United, thanks to a monster box-to-box run and finish from Anthony Elanga (watch it here). Keeper Mat Sels — who, yes, sells seashells by the seashore — added to his league-leading total, now at 13 clean sheets this season.

  Team Treebeard are also headed to the FA Cup semifinals, so there's a chance we could see these two meet again at Wembley next month.

⚽ Matchday Preview:

🔵Everton vs.🔴 Arsenal

• Everton have lost just two of their last 13 home league fixtures, making Goodison Park a challenging venue for visitors.​ Arsenal on the other hand have the second-best away record this season. Coin flip?

🦅Palace vs. 🐧Brighton

• The last five meetings between Palace and Brighton have ended in 1-1 draws, highlighting the evenly matched nature of this rivalry. Hopefully this week we’ll see one of these two birds be able to escape the cage

⚒️West Ham vs. 🍒Bournemouth

• Mid-Table mediocrity: With both teams having little to play for in terms of European spots or relegation fears, this match is about pride and….doing your best.

At the end of the season, Kevin De Bruyne — aka KDB, aka possibly a 13-year-old child in disguise — will be leaving Manchester City as a free agent.

One of the most gifted midfielders to ever grace the Premier League (and definitely the best to wear City blue), KDB leaves behind shoes that won’t be easy to fill — even with some cheeky FFP bending.

His career Premier League stats are worth a pause:

📊Stats

• 6 Premier League Championships

• 2 Player of the Seasons

• 280 appearances

• 118 Assists

• 70 Goals

• 1 Headed Goal (my favorite stat)

Good luck Kevin in your future endeavors wherever that may be, and hopefully your next team will let you talk.