So, who's staying up and who's going down? In this season of topsy turvyness (Dalglish back at Liverpool! Beckham training at Spurs! Wayne Bridge earning a reported £90K a week!) why not take a look at some of the teams who are a step closer to playing Barnsley at home next season? Step this way...

15th Fulham

Why they'll survive:

Fulham aren't a bad side. They've gone from being European cup finalists to relegation candidates in a little under a year. They still have decent players - Hangeland, Gera, Shwarzer and Dempsey to name but a few. Hughes's teams generally do better in the second half of the season though and their 2-0 victory away to Stoke over the Christmas period shows that they have the ability to go to difficult venues and come away with the 3 points.

Why they're going down:

Goals, or a complete lack of them chiefly. Since Zamora was hacked into two by Wolves' Karl Henry, the West Londoners have struggled to find the back of the net on a regular basis. A few weeks back, they played West Ham and although they completely dominated the first half they still came away with a 3-1 loss. If they can't make long spells of possesion and chances count for them they'll struggle. Johnson has struggled to step into Zamora's boots and the latters return from injury can't come soon enough.

Verdict: Staying up. Probably comfortably so.

16th Birmingham

Why they'll survive:

Very solid last season, the results just have not been there for them in the last few months. They are another team who seem to be suffering from a complete lack of creativity in front of goal - something that Alex McLeish is trying to address by signing David Bentley and being in the market for another striker. If they can find some flair they could well stave off the horrible cliche that is second season syndrome.

Why they're going down:

Their solid home form of last season seems to have deserted them, in fact, you have to go back to November since they last won a home match in the league. With the Robbie Keane deal falling through, Birmingham will need more then Bentley and (if he still signs) Kenny Miller to keep them up. They have a tricky run of games in the next few weeks - playing the two Manchester clubs before taking on West Ham in what will obviously be a massive relegation six-pointer clash. If they lose to West Ham then they'll be in a massive pile of the smelly stuff by mid-February.

Verdict: Going down I'm afraid. Second season syndrome ahoy.

17th Aston Villa

Why they'll survive:

What the hell has happened to them ? In the mix for Champions League places the last few seasons and finishing a respectable sixth for the last three years. The Villans find themselves in deep, deep trouble. If you or I had such a dramatic loss of abilty at our places of employment there would probably be countless internal reviews. Surely the unthinkable can't happen and they end up playing Scunthorpe next season ? The signing of Darren Bent at least adds a proven goalscorer to their ranks. They have players of genuine abilty in Young and Albrighton and although they're not showing it, surely it's just a matter of time before they pull through ?

Why they're going down:

If I was a Villa supporter, I'd be very worried right now. Houllier does not have the team playing with any sense of purpose or gameplan. Senior players like Dunne and Carew look like they'd rather be anywhere but Villa park at this moment in time and the games against Liverpool and Manchester City were as spineless a surrender as I have ever seen. Have they put all of their eggs in one basket with the Bent transfer ? £18 million is a lot to spend on one striker and would those funds have been better served bringing in two or three other players ? Their form since December shows that maybe a goalscorer is not the answer to their problems. In those seven games, Villa have shipped 15 goals including letting in ten in the games against Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea alone. Out of all of the other teams I've covered in this blog only West Ham can compete with that statistic and the Londoners have played a game more. They need to start playing very quickly if they're to have any chance of getting out of this mess. All they seem to be acheiving at the moment is making Martin O'Neill's CV look more positive by the second.

Verdict: I still can't believe that they'd go down: Staying up.

18th Wigan Athletic

Why they'll survive:

Sometimes it seems that various media sources would be delighted if the Latics went down due to the small home support that they carry (for more about this, see something I wrote here: http://blogs.soccernet.com/wiganathletic/archives/2010/10/do_sparsely_supported_teams_deserve_their_place_in_the_premier_league_.php ) despite this, Wigan have got enough abilty to avoid the drop, if they can hang onto players like N'zogbia and Rodellega. Cleverley has proven to be a class act in the midfield and they will need every bit of his creativity. Results against teams like Arsenal and Spurs shows that the Latics have got what it takes to mix it with the top teams in this division. The fact that they've only lost once in their last seven games shows that Wigan are becoming harder to beat and perhaps the inconsistency of last season is finally coming to an end. Roberto Martinez has had the benefit of last seasons flirtation with relegation (Only him and McCarthy have had this experience recently from the current relegation threatened teams. I guess you could also include Avram Grant in that equation but Portsmouth didn't exactly put up much of a fight last season) so perhaps he's learned a thing or two.

Why they're going down:

Wigan are constantly punished for having a profligate attitude in front of goal. Saturday's performance is a classic example: Rodallega had four golden chances to score, he only managed to take one of these and five minutes from time Fulham equalised. The game should really have had the fat lady bursting into song long before Johnson even thought about scoring for Fulham. To stand a chance of staying up, Wigan will need a decent goal scorer and will have to hang onto their better players. How will the Bent transfer to Villa effect them ? Will Sunderland with the best part of £20 million burning a hole in their pockets come calling for N'Zogbia ? Can Wigan afford for this to happen ? I doubt it.

Verdict: A gut feeling that they'll stay up. By the skin of their teeth.

19th Wolves

Why they'll survive:

They just love playing the big boys don't they ? They should really have got something from City on Saturday and they've taken 3 points off Chelsea and Liverpool in the last few weeks. They seem to have a never-say-die spirit, typified by the (almost) comeback against City and last minute win against Sunderland. An attitude like that will stand them in good stead in a relegation fight.

Why they're going down:

They are probably the most inconsistent team in the division. In their last eight games they've not had one draw and have taken it in turns to win or lose every other week. They beat Chelsea but before that they lost against West Ham. It's a theme which seems to be common for them as they let themselves down badly when playing teams in the bottom half. So far this season they've dropped three points to Blackburn, West Ham, Wigan, Aston Villa and Fulham. A quite shocking sequence. If they keep on gifting their rivals three points like that then they'll never be far from trouble.

Verdict: Going down. I like McCarthy's style but by the summer he'll either have his P45 or be a Championship manager.

20th West Ham

Why they'll survive:

Erm...........

Why they're going down:

Where do I start ? Having the worst goal difference in the division ? The fact that they've only won two of their last eight games ? Their horrible thrashing at the hands of Newcastle ? West Ham are a sinking ship at this moment in time. While they hang onto Grant as manager they look completely impotent as a footballing entity. I actually think Grant is a decent boss but there has been so much speculation of late that the players look completely shell shocked every time they step onto the pitch. Too many players at Upton Park are of very average quality and Scott Parker must be wondering how he has had the misfortune to be the fulcrum of a team that are so badly misfiring. To stay up they need at least two quality signings and probably a new manager. Both of those factors don't look exactly forthcoming right now.

Verdict: Grant staying on is probably the worst thing that could happen to them. At the moment they're going down, more with a whimper then a bang.

Thanks for reading. Don't forget, you can also follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/PaulJohno500 for news, views and random thoughts.

Tweet

Follow ESPNsoccernet's Football Correspondents on Twitter and Facebook