Three things to expect when EPL resumes

The English Premier League resumes on June 17 after it was suspended in March due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Soccer fans cannot wait to see how the season will round off with Liverpool primed to be crowned winners.

The Reds, who have not won the title since 1990, sit on top of the table with 82 points after 29 matches, 25 points more than second-place Manchester City. They only need two victories to be crowned champions of England.

There will be two games on June 17 with Manchester City hosting  Arsenal and Sheffield United facing Aston Villa.

There are however some changes to experience as the season resumes later in the month:

For the first time in the history of the Premier League, football matches will be played without fans at the stands.

This will be strange for teams like Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Newcastle United known to have noisy fans supporting their teams.

As observed in the resumed German Bundesliga, some officials on the bench will wear facemasks, which is one of the preventive measures against coronavirus. This development, new to football, will make it a little difficult to recognise some of these officials and team doctors. It remains to be seen if reserve players too will use the facemasks.

Four teams are expected to represent England in the UEFA Champions League next season. As it stands, Liverpool, currently on top of the league, will play the Champions League next season. Manchester City and Leicester City have 57 and 53 points respectively. Chelsea have 48 points with Manchester United on 45 points

This means the battle for the remaining three spots will be fierce and we are in for a contest .

There will also be a battle for survival at the bottom end of the table.  Last-placed Norwich City is four points behind everyone else and six points from escaping the relegation zone.

Immediately above them, four points separate five teams. Brighton leads the group with 29 points and a relatively respectable -8 goal-difference. After them, West Ham, Watford and Bournemouth are all tied on 27 points. Aston Villa is in 19th with 25 points.

We expect a fierce battle here.