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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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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
2Arsenal32225575264971
3Liverpool32218372314171
4Aston Villa33196868491963
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle321551269521750
7Manchester UnitedMan Utd32155124748-150
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham33139115258-648
9Chelsea31138106152947
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves32127134651-543
12Fulham33126154951-242
13Bournemouth32119124757-1042
14Crystal Palace3289153754-1733
15Brentford3388174758-1132
16Everton3298153248-1627
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3379174258-1626
18Luton TownLuton3367204670-2425
19Burnley3348213368-3520
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3237223084-5416


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