The Premier League have lost their 5th Champions League slot next season in the wake of Arsenal and Manchester City’s 2023/24 quarterfinal defeats, MySportDab reports.
The race for a 5th slot in the prestigious European club competition had gathered momentum since UEFA confirmed the reformatting and expansion of the competition from next season.
It is understood the European football’s governing body will draw the curtain on the current 32-team format for an expanded version that will feature 36 clubs from Europe.
The race for the four additional slots in the tournament has been on with the top five leagues in Europe jostling for them.
MySportDab understands the top two leagues – previously Italy Serie A and England Premier League – were leading the race to earn a 5th Champions League slot next season based on UEFA Coefficient – a ranking system for the leagues based on the performance of their clubs in UEFA club competitions.
As per Daily Mail, Arsenal and Manchester City’s respective quarterfinal defeats to Bayern Munich and Real Madrid last night have turned the table in the UEFA Coefficient rankings.
The Premier League have reportedly dropped from second to third with 16.851 points, behind German Bundesliga, who have climbed to second with 17.642 points. Italy’s elite division, the Serie A, are still leading the pack with 18.428 points.
As things stand, the Premier League will retain its 4 slots in the Champions League, while Germany will gain an additional one slot.
However, there are suggestions England can regain their second spot in the standings if West Ham United and Liverpool in the Europa League, including Aston Villa in the Conference League progress to the next round of the competition.
But it appears that looks unlikely. Aston Villa were the only team that won their quarterfinal first leg with Liverpool and West Ham settling for defeats.
The permutations are that the Premier League chances of returning to second place and gaining a 5th slot will be doomed if Bayer Leverkusen knock out West Ham United with Liverpool also teetering on the edges of elimination from the competition.
