Tottenham Hotspurs manager, Jose Mourinho has admitted that Arsenal’s progress in the FA Cup has piled pressure on his team to at least finish seventh to be able to qualify for the Europa League.
Spurs might lose the 6th spot to Wolves that will be welcoming Crystal Palace to the Molineux tonight.
To have any realistic chance of clinching the 6th spot at least, Spurs must win its last game. The 3-0 win over Leicester City is a huge boost for the North London club.
Manchester United can dislodge the Foxes to fifth and move straight to third, if they win their next game against West Ham.
Wolves on the other hand need to do the needful by beating Palace and win the Champions, Liverpool at Anfield on the final day.
Arsenal on 53 points with a game in hand could get six points against Aston Villa and Watford in their last games as well. But winning the FA Cup will give them automatic qualification with only the 5th and 6th spots for grabs.
But Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Manchester City is now a concern for the former Chelsea boss.
If the Gunners wins the competition, it means the Europa slot will only be available to teams on the 5th and 6th respectively. Arsenal eventually got a win over City after seven attempted through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s brace.
It will, therefore, be a London affair in the final of the FA Cup at Wembley next month as Arsenal will slug it out with Chelsea.
More pressure on Jose Mourinho and other rivals
The Portuguese told Sky Sports before his side’s clash with Leicester that he believe Arsenal’s win over Manchester City puts more pressure on his team and their Europa League rivals.
“They did very well yesterday and deserve to be in the final. They have one match to lose or to win If they win they are in Europe. I think it puts more pressure in this group of where we are because there is a 50 percent possibility they win the cup.”
Speaking on his side’s run of form, Mourinho said rhe progress is good in terms of results and performances.
“But we have two matches to play and we need to win both if we want to have a chance of qualifying for Europe. We can not wait for others. We can now wait for Sheffield or Wolves or Arsenal.
“We have to think about us, win our matches and see what happens.”
