You see the bus at the stop. It’s just over there. You can obviously make it. You quicken your step.
As you do, you hear the engine start. The doors fold closed. You could sprint for it — you’re fast enough — but the idea is unappealing. The sweat, sure, but also just the indignity of it. You don’t need this bus. There will be others.
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The doors reopen. Someone else is now getting on. It’s extremely makeable now, you could probably just jog. But something stops you. You have already committed to not going for it, your nonchalance now non-negotiable. It could linger there for 20 or 30 more seconds for all you care. You’re walking slowly, you’re missing that bus and that’s the end of the matter.
This, essentially, has been Arsenal’s approach to the Premier League title race since the start of February. Even as Liverpool have spluttered and stuttered, Mikel Arteta’s side have doggedly refused to take advantage, declining to ignite the thing as a contest. They have committed to second place and decided to focus their attention elsewhere.
That is their right. If they win the Champions League, it will look like an astute policy. It has, however, left the upper reaches of the Premier League table looking oddly decaffeinated as we head into what should be the business end of the season.
Down at the bottom, too, we are low on drama and the potential for it. The relegation battleground has fallen silent. You can still visit, but there is nothing to see beyond a series of gravestones and a few relieved-looking Wolves supporters laying flowers.
The best you’re getting, between now and the end of May, is the arm-wrestle for fifth, the final Champions League place.
Which is fine, but you can understand why there has been a certain amount of hand-wringing recently. If a vintage — or even an average — league season involves sustained excitement at both ends of the table, this one has come up short.
That’s the bad news. Here’s the good: there are other leagues out there! And a few of them are still brimful of tension as we move into the final weeks of the 2024-25 season.
Things are still very much up for grabs in Italy, where three points separate the top two with six matches of the season remaining. Treble-chasing Inter top Serie A and are looking ominous again after a few wobbles in February. But they have yet to shake Napoli, a slightly rag-tag collection of players punching above their weight under Antonio Conte. If the notion of Scott McTominay, Billy Gilmour and Philip Billing lifting the Serie A trophy doesn’t appeal, you should probably check your pulse.
Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour are hoping to be Serie A champions this season (Carlo Hermann/AFP via Getty Images)
Nor is the title the only thing to be decided: Juventus, Bologna and Lazio are fighting it out for Champions League qualification.
In Spain, the temptation is to assume Barcelona will make good on their four-point advantage over a Real Madrid side fresh from another paddling against Arsenal, but there could yet be a few twists and turns. For one thing, Barca still have Champions League duties to work around. They have just played seven matches in 20 days and there were signs of fatigue against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday. Madrid, whose calendar is now rather less full, have wounded egos to repair. There is still a Clasico to come, too, at Camp Nou on May 11.
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La Liga also boasts a decent relegation scrap. There is no real reason for Premier League-following neutrals to be invested in the fortunes of Alaves or Leganes, but Las Palmas? That’s a different matter. Scott McKenna bossing the defence, Fabio Silva scoring goals for fun, Oli McBurnie bashing around and suddenly speaking excellent Spanish… this is a cause to believe in.
There is not much to get excited about in Germany, beyond Mainz’s unexpected Champions League push and Borussia Dortmund’s efforts to sneak into the European places. In France, Paris Saint-Germain are in real danger of… hahaha, no, obviously that’s all over, but there is a battle royale developing for the remaining two Champions League places. Monaco and Marseille are the incumbents, but both have been dropping points all over the shop, meaning Lyon, Lille, Strasbourg and even seventh-placed Nice are still in contention.
There are two more tight title races outside of the ‘big five’ leagues. One is in Turkey, where Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce have been slowly reeling in Super Lig pace-setters Galatasaray over the past few weeks. Fenerbahce are still six points behind the leaders, but play their game in hand against mid-table Kayserispor on Sunday.
In Portugal, things are tight at the top after Benfica drew 2-2 at home to Arouca last weekend. Lisbon rivals Sporting CP are pushing them close — no mean feat considering they lost Ruben Amorim mid-campaign and had to reconfigure when his replacement, Joao Pereira, floundered. The derby in the penultimate round of the season promises to be spectacular.
That is probably plenty of continental action for you to be getting on with. It is worth noting, though, that the English Football League also has a few tricks up its sleeve.
Most obviously, there is the Championship. Sheffield United looked like they had completely tanked in the past fortnight — three losses in a row, pure misery — but a 2-0 win against Cardiff City on Friday revived their faint hopes of automatic promotion. With three rounds to play, they are five points behind leaders Leeds United and Burnley.
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There is also carnage down at the other end, with five points separating the bottom five teams.
Finally, there is League Two, in which the entire top four are split by three points.
Remember, then, when you’re watching another fairly inconsequential round of Premier League football this weekend: there are other options out there. You just have to know where to look.
(Top photos: Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe and Fenerbahce head coach Jose Mourinho; by Getty Images)
