Derbies highlight return of EPL as teams hit home stretch

The English Premier is on the final lap.
After the international break, most teams get a little more breathing room than the usual scramble of players coming back from around the world on Friday for league games to run on Saturday and Sunday.
This weekend sees the FA Cup quarterfinals take place, so only Fulham, Crystal Palace, Brighton, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Bournemouth and Manchester City have to deal with any jet-lagged, weary players.
On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, the league resumes with just nine games to go.
Arsenal versus Fulham on Tuesday and Liverpool against Everton on Wednesday could tell us if there is to be any drama for the league title or if it’s going to be a bridge too far for the Gunners.
If Arsenal drops any points and Liverpool can stretch their 12-point lead at the top, it becomes unrealistic to expect Arsenal to reel in the Reds.
But, should Liverpool drop any points to hated rivals Everton and Arsenal can close the gap, the race remains alive.
Liverpool have only lost once at home to Everton in the past 26 years. But the Reds limped into the international break on a low having lost the Carabao Cup final 2-1 to Newcastle and being knocked out of the Champions League in a shootout by Paris St-Germain.
The Toffees, though, haven’t lost in eight games since firing Sean Dyche and bringing back David Moyes as manager. They’ve drawn the past four games after four wins, one of them a controversial 2-2 draw with Liverpool at their own stadium, but if they managed to get a point and steal two from Liverpool, Arsenal would be thrilled.
In an anomaly of the schedule, the following weekend sees a complete flip-flop of those fixtures, as Arsenal travels to Everton and Liverpool plays at Fulham.
Liverpool are pulling away and the three bottom-dwellers already looking doomed to relegation, it’s the race for the Champions League spots that will carry the most drama the rest of the season.
There’s a couple of games next week that will be crucial in that race. From Aston Villa in ninth to Chelsea in fourth — the last qualification spot — there are just five points. That’s six teams within striking striking distance of that one spot.
Brighton, who sit seventh with 47 points, two back of Chelsea, host Aston Villa who sit in ninth with 45 points.
Fulham are eighth with 45 points, so they’re not going to be strolling through their games with Arsenal and Liverpool, they have legitimate designs on moving up the table. The challenge for them is they have to get through the FA Cup quarterfinal with Crystal Palace this weekend as well and those demands are difficult for teams without huge squad depth.