Results on Tuesday in the Premier League have given Aston Villa a relegation lifeline.
It was all change at the bottom of the Premier League on Tuesday night as Aston Villa hauled themselves out of the bottom 3 with a 1-0 win over Arsenal.
Aston Villa given additional relegation boost by Man City
The win for Villa came just hours after Manchester City thrashed Watford 4-0 at Vicarage Road. The thrashing has left the Hornets now in serious peril of being relegated to the Championship.
The defeat for Watford was not just crushing from a moral perspective, it also brought their goal difference level with Villa's. This meant any win for Villa over Arsenal, would see them overhaul Watford on goal difference. And Dean Smith's men duly obliged with a well deserved 1-0 win over the Gunners.
The flip flop in league positions has also being replicated in the latest relegation betting.
Latest Relegation Betting
In the latest football betting, Aston Villa are now 9/4 for the drop, with Watford at 1/3. It's now more understandable to see why the Watford hierarchy panicked and pulled the trigger on Nigel Pearson last Sunday. The powers-that-be were desperately looking for a reaction from the Watford players, which they haven't so far got.
West Ham are in action at Old Trafford on Wednesday night. But the Hammers are out of the relegation picture, barring some insane thrashings that would need to take place.
West Ham's goal difference is 13 goals better than Villa, and 14 better than Watford. So they aren't going down. Really David Moyes' team just need to avoid a hammering at Old Trafford on Wednesday to be safe.
For the record, Bournemouth are 1/40 for the drop.
The final round of Premier League fixtures take place on Sunday afternoon. On paper, Watford have the hardest looking match, they visit Arsenal at the Emirates.
Bournemouth visit Everton, while Villa are away at West Ham. Eddie Howe's Bournemouth are in the worst possible position. On 31 points, they sit 3 points behind both Watford and Villa, who have 34 points each.
Going into the final day of the season, Villa and Watford can still influence their own destinies. While for Bournemouth, they are relying on the other two to lose, and then they still need to win to stay up.