Everton may have just been handed another European boost ahead of their remaining seven Premier League fixtures.
David Moyes has pushed Everton for European qualification from the very start of the 2025/26 campaign.
With more and more positions opening up for Premier League sides across the three European competitions, the dream is becoming very real for Everton.
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Everton manager David Moyes on Europe.
There is even now a scenario where 55% of Premier League clubs (11) could qualify for Europe this season.
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Everton handed European boost as 11 teams could qualify
It is a long stretch, but there is a scenario where 11 teams could qualify for the European competitions.
The Athletic have laid out the potential scenario, with the top five expected to secure Champions League football.
Sixth place is expected to receive the first of two Europa League spots, with the FA Cup winners claiming the other.
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David Moyes, manager of Everton, claps fans after a 3-0 win in the Premier League match between Everton and Chelsea.
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However, six of the eight sides remaining in the FA Cup are already in the top six of the Premier League table.
If any of those sides win the FA Cup, that would push the Europa League spot to the team who finish seventh, on the presumption the FA Cup winner maintains their current spot in the league.
The Europa Conference League spot earned by Man City – for winning the Carabao Cup – would then go to eighth spot, which is currently the Blues.
If Nottingham Forest were to win the Europa League, they would automatically secure a spot in the Champions League. Crystal Palace could also land a Europa League spot by winning the Conference League.
An unlikely drop-off from Liverpool and Aston Villa could still see them qualify for the Champions League by winning their respective European competitions, which would make them the sixth and seventh representatives from the Premier League.
As a result, this would then create a spot for the team in 10th place to qualify for the Europa Conference League.
Everton should be confident over European qualification
There are undoubtedly some difficult fixtures ahead of the Blues in the run-in, but Jarrad Branthwaite feels Everton should qualify for Europe.
With the possibility for more and more positions in the competitions opening up, now is as good an opportunity for the Toffees to end their European drought.
Perhaps the most encouraging thing for Everton is their next two games are against Brentford and Liverpool, who sit just a matter of points above Moyes’ side.
Victory in both games would see Everton potentially leapfrog the pair of them and make a major statement in the race for Champions League qualification.
With the 10th-placed potentially securing a spot in the Conference League, Everton go into the remaining games with a three-point cushion over Brighton, who currently sit in 10th.
A lot of football remains to be played, but Everton should be optimistic.
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