Premier League relegation: 'Hard to stop the slide' - the painful reality of fighting to stay up

1 year ago 60

Ipswich brag George Burley and Tony Mowbray

It is often suggested that immoderate teams are "too bully to spell down".

In reality, mediocre recruitment and squad spirit, oregon unspeakable luck with injuries, tin thrust immoderate broadside into a relegation conflict and acceptable alarm bells ringing.

Everton, Leicester City and West Ham are warring for their Premier League lives, contempt each having started the play with loftier aims backmost successful August.

The Hammers are inactive juggling European commitments, Leicester person won the Premier League, FA Cup and finished 5th doubly successful the past 7 years, portion Everton person the second-longest unbroken spell successful the apical flight.

But each 3 teams are present nervously pushing for each constituent against sides who began the run prepared to bash conscionable that.

Before the crunch lucifer betwixt Leicester, who person won conscionable 3 league games since the World Cup, and Everton connected Monday, BBC Sport explores the science of falling into trouble.

'When you're astatine the bottom, it is simply a agelong mode up'

In 2012-13, Newcastle United were expected to beryllium looking upwards.

After narrowly missing retired connected Champions League qualification the erstwhile season, the Magpies should person been heading into the run looking to situation again.

Like Leicester past summer, they lone made 1 elder signing, midfielder Vurnon Anita, which stretched Alan Pardew's threadbare squad to the limit.

Newcastle reached the Europa League quarter-finals but finished 16th successful the league, lone securing endurance connected the penultimate weekend.

"It is tough," erstwhile defender James Perch told BBC Sport. "We didn't person a large capable squad arsenic it was, truthful it was hard to get utilized to.

"By Christmas I was looking astatine the array knowing wherever we'd beryllium - I didn't deliberation for 1 2nd we'd beryllium capable to situation for the Champions League again due to the fact that of the deficiency of signings."

Another broadside who struggled to backmost up a stellar play were Ipswich Town.

The Tractor Boys finished 5th successful 2000-01 - their archetypal play aft promotion - which remains a top-flight grounds for the highest league decorativeness by a newly-promoted side.

But the club's manager astatine the time, George Burley, believes accrued expectations did not assistance arsenic Ipswich were relegated a twelvemonth later.

"If we'd had finished fourth-bottom, cipher would person said anything. Once you decorativeness fifth, you deliberation you had to get better," helium said.

"It was hard to rotation the thought that we volition beryllium fortunate to enactment successful the league again. Europe made it 10 times much difficult. When you're astatine the bottom, it is simply a agelong mode up."

'It creeps up connected you'

For teams with higher aims, it tin beryllium hard to judge world arsenic the play progresses - but with each decision the consciousness of peril intensifies.

"Nottingham Forest players volition person been going into pre-season thinking, 'we've got to enactment up', whereas Leicester and West Ham volition person been reasoning astir getting backmost into Europe," Perch says.

"Loss aft nonaccomplishment aft loss, they'll beryllium reasoning 'it is conscionable a blip', past it creeps up connected you. They're inactive determination with 5 oregon six games left, it is hard to halt the slide."

In 2011, Birmingham City followed up a ninth-placed decorativeness by winning the League Cup.

But a disastrous 2nd fractional of the season, underpinned by wounded problems and a abrupt nonaccomplishment of form, saw them spell down connected an unthinkable last day.

"Once you suffer a mates of games, it spirals and creates that anxiety," striker Cameron Jerome told BBC Sport successful 2021.

"You prime up a fewer much injuries, you're looking astir each of a abrupt and you deliberation 'we are connected a spot of a atrocious run'. Not winning 1 crippled snowballs into 4 oregon 5 games, past you're sucked into the combat astatine the bottom."

At that stage, it is astir looking astir and seeing if you tin spot your team-mates.

'Certain players nine together'

In the outpouring of 2012, Newcastle won six successive games and were hurtling towards the apical four.

The likes of Papiss Cisse - who scored 13 goals successful 14 games - Yohan Cabaye and Hatem Ben Arfa lit up St James' Park.

Talent is nary warrant and Perch did not consciousness immoderate of his team-mates were up for the combat erstwhile it mattered 12 months on.

Defeat to Benfica, ending Newcastle's European dream, was followed by a harrowing 3-0 Tyne-Wear derby nonaccomplishment to Sunderland and a 6-0 thumping by Liverpool successful April.

All of a sudden, it was panic stations.

"Certain players nine unneurotic and battle, but I tin retrieve looking circular reasoning 'right, Papiss doesn't look similar he's up for this one'," Perch says.

"I was acceptable to play Thursday and Sunday [but] a fewer of the lads would person missed 1 to ore connected the other.

"Once we were retired of Europe, world hit. It was each astir staying successful the Premier League - we were consecutive into the vigor of the relegation battle."

Jerome asserted that losing signifier astatine the close time, and not squad morale, was Birmingham's biggest problem.

"The squad tone was fantastic. We had a bully premix - yet it was inactive successful our hands, we had capable games near successful the season, we had capable bodies successful the door. We got connected a atrocious tally arsenic others got connected a bully one... it is astir timing."

Ipswich near their people successful the Uefa Cup, arsenic the Europa League was formerly known, 20 years aft they lifted the trophy, including beating Inter Milan astatine Portman Road.

But Burley does person immoderate regrets arsenic helium reminisces.

"Looking back, it wasn't a script for the agelong word due to the fact that it interfered with america staying successful the Premier League," helium said.

"I'm convinced if we hadn't been successful Europe, we'd person stayed up. You can't instrumentality distant the memories, but it was a hindrance."

When clubs purpose high, sometimes it makes the autumn adjacent harder.

Watch connected iPlayer banner