Friday 31 March 2017 07:56, UK
Things are getting tense at the foot of the Premier League as the battle to avoid the drop heats up as the run-in approaches.
But what does the form guide say and which will be the key games? Where will it be decided and who is really up against it with the fixture list?
Ahead of Swansea versus Middlesbrough live on Sky Sports this Sunday, we take a look at how things stand in the relegation scrap.
As it stands
A quick reminder. Sunderland are rock bottom of the table and seven points from safety. They are joined by Middlesbrough and Hull - both clubs at risk of going straight back down.
Swansea and Crystal Palace are the two teams above the bottom three who, on the face of it, are most at risk of being dragged into the drop zone.
Even so, things are so congested at the bottom that everyone up to top-half Southampton is within nine points of the relegation places.
Form guide
That being the case, this is not a good time to be out of form - as Middlesbrough, winless since Christmas, have found to their cost in sliding down the table.
Sunderland have fared little better but Hull have 11 points from nine games since Marco Silva arrived in January. If they can repeat that they will set the mark at 35 points.
Swansea will need to find three more wins to beat that and back-to-back defeats at Hull and Bournemouth in their last two matches suggest that might not be guaranteed.
Still, there are bottom-half sides in worse form. Watford are without a win in four, West Ham haven't tasted victory in five games and for Burnley it's a six-game winless streak.
All will feel they need a win or two more. So while Leicester and Palace are closer to the drop, with each having won three in a row they'll be more confident of finding the points.
Fixture list
Much will hinge on the matches that are to come - the games with the six-point swings - and Middlesbrough's trip to Swansea this Sunday is clearly a crucial clash.
Boro can close the gap between the two teams to just two points ahead of the midweek away game at Hull, but lose both and they could be eight from safety inside a week.
Some run-ins are kinder than others too. While Hull are among those with only two games remaining against top-six sides, Palace must still play the lot.
What next?
With so many teams still in the mix, there are a myriad of possibilities. All could become clearer very shortly - or become murkier still.
There are twists and turns to come in this Premier League relegation battle and perhaps the next big one could come at the Liberty Stadium this Sunday.
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