MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Liverpool has been crowned Premier League champion with weeks to spare.
The fight for survival is done.
And while there is still a wide open battle to secure Champions League qualification, as far as English soccer is concerned the best show in town this weekend is in the second-tier Championship.
In the final round on Saturday, as many as 10 teams are vying for a place in the playoffs or scrapping to avoid relegation.
There's also the not-so-small matter of which team will go up to the Premier League as champion, with Leeds and Burnley neck and neck at the top of the standings.
So buckle up and get ready for a day of drama.
Title fight
Relegated from the top flight over the past two seasons, Leeds and Burnley have bounced back in style.
If both win their final game they will be promoted on 100 points each.
Leeds, relegated in 2023, leads the way on goal difference, meaning a win at second-from-bottom Plymouth will almost certainly be enough to seal the title. For Burnley, relegated last year, to go top if both teams win, it would need to better Leeds' result by an improbable 14 goals. Burnley is playing playoff-challenging Millwall.
Playoffs
Third-placed Sheffield United was also relegated last year and has an almighty fight on its hands to join Leeds and Burnley back in the top flight.
Third place means the playoffs, where four teams play in two semifinals and a final to secure the last promotion spot.
Sunderland, in fourth, has also qualified for the playoffs, leaving five teams to compete for the last two spots.
Just three points separate fifth-placed Bristol City and ninth-placed Middlesbrough. Coventry, Millwall and Blackburn are also in contention.
The standout game is sixth-placed Coventry vs. Middlesbrough. A win for Middlesbrough would see it leapfrog Coventry, but it would still need other results to go its way to be sure of a playoff place.
Relegation
Luton Town, a Premier League team last season, has one more game to avoid making it back-to-back relegations.
Luton is one of five teams, realistically, fighting for survival on the final day. Luton, which plays West Brom, is one of three teams that start the day one point above the relegation zone along with Derby and Preston.
Plymouth's fate has not yet been sealed but with a goal difference of -36, relegation is all but certain in a match against top-of-the-table Leeds.
Only two points separate Stoke in 18th and Hull in the last relegation spot in 22nd. A draw for Hull at Portsmouth could be enough to see it climb out of the bottom three if other results go its way.
One game that is sure to be fraught with tension is Derby vs. Midlands rival Stoke, where defeat for either team would leave them relying on other results to stay up.
Premier League
Champions League qualification is the main issue still to be determined in the Premier League.
With England getting a bonus fifth place for next season, the fight to finish in the top five remains wide open with Newcastle, Manchester City, Chelsea, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa close together.
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
James Robson, The Associated Press
