The Premier League relegation battle could go right to the end, with Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United in a tight fight to stay up, and with only a few games left, there is very little between them, meaning even a small detail could decide who stays and who goes down.
The race to avoid the drop is getting closer, with only four matches left this season. What is usually a big London rivalry has now turned into a fight for survival. With Wolverhampton Wanderers and Burnley already relegated, there is just one place left in the bottom three, and four teams are still in danger.
Leeds United and Nottingham Forest are slightly ahead on 40 and 39 points, and will hope that is enough to stay safe. That means the focus is now on the two London clubs.
West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur are in a direct battle to avoid relegation. West Ham are on 36 points, two points ahead of Spurs, who are in 18th place. And talking about goal difference, Tottenham have a slightly better goal difference at -10, compared to West Ham’s -16.
Tottenham have a slightly better goal difference, but the gap is very small. Because of that, the final outcome could come down to the league’s rules for breaking ties, which might decide who stays up and who goes down.
Tottenham vs West Ham relegation fight: How the winner is decided
When two teams finish the season with the same number of points, the Premier League follows a clear order of rules to separate them. Usually, goal difference is enough to decide the positions.
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If that is the same, the league then looks at total goals scored. Currently, the Lilywhites have scored 43 goals while West Ham United have scored 42.
If these numbers are also level, the next step is the head-to-head rule. This looks only at the two matches played between the teams during the season. The first check is who took more points from those games. If both teams won one match each, they are level on three points.
If that still does not separate them, the final rule is head-to-head away goals. This means the team that scored more goals in the other team’s stadium gets the advantage.
Tottenham’s remaining four Premier League fixtures:
West Ham’s remaining four Premier League fixtures:
Three goals that could decide the season for Spurs
Looking back at this season’s London derbies, the away goals rule currently favours North London. In September 2025, Tottenham Hotspur went to the London Stadium and won 3-0. In January 2026, West Ham United responded with a 2-1 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Because both teams have one win each, they are level on head-to-head points. That means the next step is away goals. Tottenham scored 3 goals away at West Ham, while West Ham scored 2 away at Spurs. Because of that difference, Tottenham would finish higher in the table if everything else is equal.