Premier League relegation run-in: Can Spurs catch West Ham, Forest or Leeds? How soon could they go down?

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How soon could they go down?Will it be Spurs or West Ham who drop... or someone else? Getty Images Share article4Tottenham Hotspur are two points adrift of safety with four games to play after a dramatic round of fixtures in which they, West Ham United and Nottingham Forest all won. It means just six points cover Leeds United in 15th, Forest in 16th, West Ham in 17th and third-bottom Spurs, with Burnley and Wolves already relegated. Newcastle United are two points further ahead in 14th, with their match against Arsenal ongoing at time of writing. Here, The Athletic explains who each club have left to play in their final four games, which of them has the easiest and toughest fixtures, when each team last went down and how soon the third and final side can be relegated from the Premier League this season. Tottenham’s 1-0 win at Wolves on Saturday — their first in the league in 2026 — kept the gap between them and the safety line down to two points, the same as it was at kick-off, but with one fewer round of games remaining. For a while, it looked like Roberto De Zerbi’s side were about to climb out of the bottom three after Joao Palhinha gave them an 82nd-minute lead at Molineux and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall wiped out West Ham’s 1-0 advantage at home to Everton moments later. Those two strikes, for a few minutes, turned a potential four-point West Ham lead into a tiny Spurs advantage on goal difference. But Callum Wilson’s stoppage-time winner for West Ham dumped Tottenham back into the drop zone. Nottingham Forest, five clear of Spurs, and Leeds United, a further point better off, are the other sides in realistic danger but both will be feeling much more comfortable right now than their two rivals. Leeds United: Burnley (home, May 1), Tottenham (away, May 11), Brighton (home, May 17*), West Ham (away, May 24) Nottingham Forest: Chelsea (away, May 4), Newcastle (home, May 10), Manchester United (away, May 17*), Bournemouth (home, May 24) West Ham United: Brentford (away, May 2), Arsenal (home, May 10), Newcastle (away, May 17*), Leeds (home, May 24) Tottenham Hotspur: Aston Villa (away, May 3), Leeds (home, May 11), Chelsea (away, May 17*), Everton (home, May 24) * — may be moved for live TV coverage For Leeds, all four fixtures look winnable and Daniel Farke’s side are unlikely to need many more points. In fact, there is a good chance that their current total of 40 is enough already. Should Forest need another point or three, their home game against struggling Newcastle in a couple of weeks looks like their best chance. West Ham’s run-in looks like the most daunting of the four but Nuno Espirito Santo’s side will be banking on beating Leeds at the London Stadium on the final day of the season should things get tight, while Tottenham will view their own home game against the same opposition a week on Monday as a glorious chance for a win, especially if the Yorkshire club are officially safe and into the FA Cup final by then. But if Spurs are to survive as a top-flight club this season it will probably go all the way, so their final-day home match with Everton looks potentially huge. There is no doubt that relegation for Spurs would be the biggest shift in the Premier League’s tectonic plates because many of their current fans were not alive when the club were last dumped out of the top flight. That came in 1977 in the first year of what would become a decorated eight-year stint as manager for Keith Burkinshaw. His side won promotion a year later, and Tottenham have been a permanent fixture in the First Division and then the Premier League ever since. West Ham have been relegated twice this century but the most recent occasion was in 2011 when an Avram Grant-managed team finished bottom of the table. They bounced straight back to the Premier League a year later under Sam Allardyce and have stayed for 14 seasons including the current one. Forest were last relegated from the top division in 1999 and remained outside it until 2022, even spending three years in the third tier. Leeds fans only have to look back to 2023 for their most recent Premier League exit. They returned a year ago. In theory, they could go down as early as May 11 if they fail to take a minimum two points from next Sunday’s game against Aston Villa and the home match with Leeds that following Monday and West Ham beat both Brentford and Arsenal in their next two fixtures. That combination of results would give Nuno Espirito Santo’s side at least a seven-point lead and Tottenham would only have six left to play for. West Ham cannot now go down until May 17 — the penultimate weekend of the season — if Spurs win two of their next three matches and results go against the east Londoners. If Forest and Leeds are to be relegated, it will go down to the final round of Premier League games on Sunday, May 24. West Ham writer Roshane Thomas: There were scenes of jubilation when Callum Wilson scored that stoppage-time winner against Everton on Saturday. All the other West Ham players ran towards him in the lower tier of the west stand as they celebrated with supporters. The victory means the gap between them and Tottenham remains the same at two points, but West Ham will take huge confidence given the manner of their latest victory. Minutes before full time today, supporters in the stands were shown on the press-box TV monitors anxiously checking their phones when it emerged Tottenham had scored at Wolves. The mood soon changed to frustration when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored a dramatic Everton equaliser in the 88th minute. But an unmarked Wilson, courtesy of Jarrod Bowen’s assist, was the hero when he got his winner four minutes later. Post-match, there was a massive roar from the London Stadium faithful, while the home players embraced on the field. West Ham have strengthened their position in terms of securing Premier League survival with this result. They no longer have to rely on other clubs as their top-flight fate is firmly in their hands. They crucially have momentum with four league games remaining against Brentford (a), Arsenal (h), Newcastle (h) and Leeds (h). Tottenham may have won their first league match this calendar year today, but West Ham’s unity remains strong, as shown against Everton. Tottenham writer Jay Harris: Spurs are still in the bottom three but they have won a league game for the first time in 119 days with today’s nervy 1-0 at Wolves. Breaking that horrible run will give the players a huge boost psychologically and you could tell it was a significant moment by the way they celebrated with their travelling supporters at full time. Goalscorer Joao Palhinha could not stop hugging his team-mates, including Antonin Kinsky and Pedro Porro, while head coach Roberto De Zerbi gleefully pumped his fists in front of the away fans. Palhinha’s scrappy late goal capped off an ugly performance, but nobody involved with the club will care for now. When their happiness subsides, Spurs will worry about the severity of the injuries suffered by Dominic Solanke and Xavi Simons, with both forced off at Molineux. They deserve credit for grinding out a win this afternoon without two of their most influential attacking players but it is going to be difficult to maintain this momentum if those two now have to miss their remaining four games. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms