By Daily Sports Nigeria on May 6, 2025

Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo has said the race to secure a Champions League place will go "all the way" this season.

After their top-five hopes suffered a blow in a defeat by Brentford on Thursday, Forest dropped more points on Monday in a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace.

Forest failed to move level on points with Newcastle and Chelsea - in fourth and fifth respectively - but Nuno is confident his side can catch up.

"There's nobody that's out. It's for sure [going to go] all the way," Nuno told Sky Sports.

A top-five finish remains in Forest's hands with favourable fixtures against relegated Leicester and 17th-placed West Ham before a potentially decisive meeting with Chelsea at the City Ground on 25 May.

"This last few games are going to be like this. Nervous games, tight games, everybody is fighting for something," Nuno added on BBC Match of the Day.

"It's up to us to react and read the moments of the game better, and make better decisions playing with all this noise around us so the boys can settle down again and play."

However, Opta are less positive on Forest's prospects, with the stats experts predicting Newcastle and Chelsea will finish above Nuno's team, while Arsenal and Manchester City are expected to occupy second and third.

Just four points separate Manchester City in third place from Aston Villa in seventh, with the Premier League's top five guaranteed a spot in the Champions League next season.

There will be at least eight Premier league teams competing in Europe next season - up from the usual seven - but things could change in the final weeks of the campaign.

Twelfth-placed Crystal Palace, who beat Villa in the FA Cup semi-finals last weekend, could still end up qualifying for Europe by beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final this month.

BBC Sport looks at how many teams could qualify for each of the continental competitions: the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League.

Source BBC Sports

Posted May 6, 2025

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