Match previews - Sun 22nd May

A look ahead to Sunday's fixtures in the Barclays Premier League.

The Barclays Premier League season is boiling up to a thrilling finale with the spotlight falling on the foot of the table where five teams are battling to avoid two relegation places.
Two of them play each other as Wolverhampton Wanderers host Blackburn Rovers.
A point behind the pair come Birmingham City who travel to Tottenham Hotspur chasing Europa League qualification.
Wigan Athletic visit Stoke City and Blackpool visit champions Manchester United who will receive the Barclays Premier League trophy at the final whistle.
Manchester City chase third place at Bolton Wanderers with Arsenal ready to pounce as they make the short trip to Fulham.
Runners-up Chelsea go to Everton and Newcastle United host West Bromwich Albion. Liverpool finish their campaign at Aston Villa.
Relegated West Ham United say goodbye to the Barclays Premier League with a home match against Sunderland.

Aston Villa v Liverpool

Liverpool still harbour hopes of qualifying for the Europa League despite a costly home defeat by Spurs.
Kenny Dalglish's side have to better Tottenham's result in order to claim fifth place.
The Reds had won three on the spin before that home defeat by Spurs while Villa's victory at Arsenal ended a three-match winless run.
Aston Villa have not won this fixture since February 1998. Since then the Merseysiders have won seven and drawn five of their 13 visits in all competitions.

Bolton v Man City

Manchester City can secure third place with a victory at the Reebok while a draw would leave Arsenal needing to win at fulham to overhaul them.
Bolton have lost four in a row while City have taken 12 points from a possible 15 - and ended their 35-year trophy drought by winning the FA Cup.
City have lost four of their last five on the road and not won at Bolton in the Premier League since December 2004 but they did beat the Trotters 1-0 at Eastlands in December.

Everton v Chelsea

Chelsea - 12 goals better off than Man City - are effectively guaranteed second spot but aim to finish with a flourish.
The sides have already met three times this season with all three encounters finishing 1-1. Everton won on penalties at Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup.
The Toffees are unbeaten in their last 10 home matches while Carlo Ancelotti's men are aiming to avoid a third match without a win.

Fulham v Arsenal

Arsenal are still battling to finish third but have to hope Man City slip up.
Fulham will be keen to avoid any bookings in order to claim a Europa League place via the Fair Play table.
The Gunners have won the last three meetings between the sides but have lost three of their last four matches.
By contrast the Cottagers have won three of their last four outings and still have a chance of finishing seventh.

Man Utd v Blackpool

Blackpool aim to spoil Manchester United's title party in order to secure Barclays Premier League survival.
The Seasiders have not won at Old Trafford in seven attempts since 1962.
Ian Holloway's men are unbeaten in four but United have dropped just two points at home all season.
Blackpool led 2-0 with 18 minutes remaining against Sir Alex Ferguson's side at Bloomfield Road in January but Dimitar Berbatov scored twice as the visitors hit back to win 3-2.

Newcastle v West Brom

Newcastle can leapfrog their opponents if they round off their campaign with a win.
The Magpies have taken seven points from their last three home matches while the Baggies have won two of their last three and have an outside chance of finishing eighth.
Albion have not won in the league at St James' Park since their 3-0 success in September 1977 although they do have two cup successes since then on Tyneside.

Stoke v Wigan

Wigan desperately need a win to boost their survival chances but Stoke have not lost at the Britannia Stadium in 2011.
The Latics have never beaten the Potters in the Premier League but know even a victory may not be enough.
Roberto Martinez's men have not lost in three while Stoke have to pick themselves up from two successive defeats by Man City, including the FA Cup final.

Spurs v Birmingham

Tottenham can guarantee a Europa League place with victory but Birmingham are desperate for points to secure survival.
Even a victory may not be enough to save the Blues but a defeat does not necessarily doom them.
Alex McLeish's side have taken just one point from a possible 15 to slip into the thick of the survival struggle.
Tottenham's win at Liverpool ended a run of five matches without a victory. the sides have already drawn 1-1 at St Andrew's in December.

West Ham v Sunderland

West Ham hope to sign off with a win as they prepare for life in the Championship under caretaker manager Steve Keen.
The Hammers have lost six of their last seven and are destined to finish bottom of the table.
The Black Cats are due a victory having alternated defeats and wins in their last five fixtures. However they have lost their last four visits to Upton Park.

Wolves v Blackburn

Neither of these sides are safe. Victory for either would guarantee survival but even a defeat might not send them down. A draw could save - or doom - both.
Wolves have taken seven points from a possible nine. Blackburn are also unbeaten in three, winning one and drawing two.
Rovbers have not won this fixture since their 3-2 success in October 1990 but the last three Molineux meetings have finished all-square.

Barclays Premier League fixtures

Click on a fixture below to view the match preview:
Aston Villa v Liverpool (Referee: Lee Probert)
Bolton Wanderers v Manchester City (Chris Foy)
Everton v Chelsea (Peter Walton)
Fulham v Arsenal (Martin Atkinson)
Manchester United v Blackpool (Mike Dean)
Newcastle United v West Bromwich Albion (Mark Halsey)
Stoke City v Wigan Athletic (Andre Marriner)
Tottenham Hotspur v Birmingham City (Mark Clattenburg)
West Ham United v Sunderland (Anthony Taylor)
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Blackburn Rovers (Howard Webb)