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How every Premier League season would have finished after gameweek 29: 2016-17

Given the current uncertainty over the resumption of the Premier League, Sports Mole looks at how the 2016-17 season would have ended after gameweek 29.

The coronavirus pandemic has brought the Premier League season to a standstill and it remains to be seen whether the campaign will conclude.

Top-flight clubs have held a number of meetings to discuss 'Project Restart', with a behind-closed-doors return in early June still a possibility.

However, the longer the uncertainty goes on, the more likely it seems that an alternative plan will have to be found.

That could mean declaring 2019-20 null and void, or possibly freezing the table as it stands - either way, all 20 teams face an anxious wait over their final positions.

Ligue 1 and the Eredivisie are the most high-profile divisions to end their campaigns early, but what would have happened if previous Premier League seasons finished after gameweek 29?

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the 2016-17 campaign, which saw Chelsea finish above Tottenham Hotspur to win a fifth Premier League title in style.


Chelsea's players celebrate their Premier League title success in May 2017© Reuters

The Blues sealed top spot with a couple of games to spare and eventually finished seven points clear of Tottenham, who recorded their best-ever finish.

Seven points was also the margin after the 29th round of matches, with Spurs unable to close the gap in what was still a memorable campaign for Mauricio Pochettino's men.

Indeed, Tottenham did well to hold off the chasing pack over the final two months, with Liverpool and Manchester City hot on their heels ahead of the last nine games.

Liverpool occupied third place at that point, but dropped points at home to Crystal Palace and Southampton allowed Man City to leapfrog them into third spot.

Still, a final-day win over Middlesbrough was enough for the Reds to hold off Arsenal for the final Champions League qualifying spot, and they would go on to reach the following year's final.

Antonio Conte in charge of Chelsea on May 19, 2018© Reuters

Arsenal had done well to drag themselves into Champions League contention, having been down in sixth place and seven points off the top four with nine games to go.

Manchester United climbed from sixth to fifth, meanwhile, and Everton maintained their position of seventh to qualify for the Europa League.

While teams in the top half changed positions, the bottom three remained as it was as Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Hull City all dropped into the Championship.

Swansea City were at risk of replacing Hull in the relegation zone after gameweek 29, finding themselves one point above the dotted line, but a run of four wins and a draw in their final five matches saw them climb clear.

Elsewhere, defending champions Leicester City's campaign petered out as they moved from 13th to 12th in the final couple of months.

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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool16123137162139
2Chelsea17105237191835
3Arsenal1796234161833
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest179442319431
5Bournemouth178452721628
6Aston Villa178452626028
7Manchester CityMan City178362925427
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle177552721626
9Fulham176742422225
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton176742726125
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1772839251423
12Brentford177283232023
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd176472122-122
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham175572230-820
15Everton163761421-716
16Crystal Palace173771826-816
17Leicester CityLeicester173592137-1614
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1733112740-1312
19Ipswich TownIpswich172691632-1612
20Southampton1713131136-256


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