Why Chelsea and Liverpool May Be Celebrating Aston Villa's Europa League Journey
Things are heating up across the Premier League, with the battle for Champions League qualification just one of many fascinating storylines heading into the final six rounds of fixtures.
Arsenal and Manchester City are effectively guaranteed places and Michael Carrick's Manchester United look to have done enough to join them. Behind that trio, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Chelsea are all chasing a spot at Europe's top table.
Liverpool and Chelsea are currently looking up at the top four and will be begging for Villa's downfall domestically, but the two sides should actually be cheering on their rivals on their quest to win the Europa League.
Aston Villa's Europa League Run Is Good News for Chelsea, Liverpool
Unai Emery's Villans have been a little mixed domestically over the past few months, but their European form has not faltered.
Latest to fall to Villa were Serie A's Bologna, beaten 7–1 on aggregate in the Europa League quarterfinals to set up a meeting with Premier League strugglers Nottingham Forest in the final four.
"When you face such a strong team, you take your hat off and applaud," Bologna's Riccardo Orsolini admitted after the final whistle on Thursday. "They'll definitely win the Europa League."
That prediction will be music to the earns of both Chelsea and Liverpool fans, whose own European ambitions may well end up resting on Villa's performance in the Europa League.
Central to this issue is the Premier League's winning of a fifth spot in the Champions League. It is usually the top four who earn a spot in the top competition, but thanks to the performance of English sides in Europe this season, fifth place now gets a place as well.
Liverpool hold that spot currently, with Chelsea four points behind heading into the weekend's action. The sixth-placed Blues are facing an uphill battle to qualify for the Champions League, but they could actually be gifted a spot thanks to Villa's European exploits.
If Villa win the Europa League, they will earn a spot in the Champions League regardless of their domestic performance. If they finish fourth in the Premier League as well, nothing changes and England would still have five teams in Europe. If they finish fifth, however, everything changes.
A fifth-placed finish for Villa would see the additional European Performance Spot (EPS) given to the team that finishes sixth. At this stage, that is Chelsea, but Liverpool will know that could easily be them if results, including May's meeting with the Blues, go against them.
If Aston Villa Finish Fifth and Win Europa League
| Position | Team | Route to Champions League |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Arsenal | Top Four |
| 2. | Man City | Top Four |
| 3. | Man Utd | Top Four |
| 4. | Liverpool | Top Four |
| 5. | Aston Villa | Europa League Winners |
| 6. | Chelsea | EPS |
Could Aston Villa Finish Fifth?
Villa currently boast a three-point cushion over Liverpool, leaving the margins for error perilously thin even before you factor in the meeting between the two sides scheduled for the penultimate round of the season on May 17.
Liverpool, despite the turmoil engulfing Anfield this season, boast a superior goal difference. If Arne Slot's side win their remaining six games, they will finish fourth at the very least. Even just matching Villa's results would, alongside victory over the Villans next month, get the job done.
Villa are unlikely to slide down to sixth, currently seven points above Chelsea, but a drop to fifth is entirely possible in this topsy-turvy season.
That may be the best outcome for Chelsea who, ironically, have the potential to spoil this masterplan for themselves. Liam Rosenior's side travel to Anfield on May 9, one week before Aston Villa vs. Liverpool, when victory over the Reds would provide a huge boost to Villa's chances of finishing above both teams.
Villa are favorites to win the Europa League, needing to overcome Forest before one of Braga or Freiburg, so Chelsea and Liverpool fans will be laser-focused on the Villans' performance in the Premier League over the remaining six weeks of the season. The stress of trying to qualify for the Champions League may well be taken out of their hands.
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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 5:35 AM.