Manchester City will look to secure its second Premier League title in three years on Sunday when the club hosts West Ham United at the Etihad.
The Citizens, who are coming off of a 4-0 demolition of Aston Villa, finished the 2012 season atop the table on goal difference, but they can win the title outright this term with a victory over the Hammers.
Manuel Pellegrini has a reputation of getting his teams to the brink of success only to fall short when it matters most, but the City boss has said that he expects to win the Premier League title on Sunday.
"Of course I expect to win the title because now we are top of the table," Pellegrini said in a news conference. "Now we can talk about the title because if we win the next game we are going to win the title. We could not do the same before this game because we had to beat Aston Villa."
Second-place Liverpool needs to win its home match against Newcastle and hope that West Ham is able to sneak at win at the Etihad to have any realistic shot at claiming the title. The Reds can win the league with a victory over Newcastle and a Manchester City draw, but they would need to beat the Magpies by at least a 13-goal margin due to their inferior goal difference.
At the opposite end of the table, the relegation battle is all but complete for Cardiff City, Fulham and Norwich City.
Cardiff and Fulham have already been assured a spot in the Championship next season; they will finish their respective stays in the top flight with home matches against Chelsea and Crystal Palace.
Norwich, meanwhile, faces a similar predicament to Liverpool. In order to stay afloat in the Premier League, the Canaries must defeat Arsenal at Carrow Road and hope that West Bromwich Albion suffers defeat against Stoke City, all while erasing a 17-goal margin separating them from the Baggies.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Tottenham and Manchester United are expected to play their final matches under their current managers. Tottenham, hosting Aston Villa at White Hart Lane, is expected to move on from Tim Sherwood in the summer while United, traveling to St. Mary's for a clash with Southampton, continues to be linked to Louis van Gaal.
Rounding out the Premier League season, Hull City will host Everton at the KC Stadium and Sunderland will welcome Swansea City to the Stadium of Light.
[SportsNetwork.com]
