Throughout the season so far, one aspect that we have been lauded for has been our home form.
Until recent defeats to Everton and United, we had posted a long unbeaten run at the City of Manchester Stadium, coupled with an impressive stretch where we had not failed to score on home turf. This was thought to be the prime reason for our knocking on the door of Champions League qualification.
However, a closer look at the table shows that the return from our home games hasn't quite been as effective as advertised:
| 1 | Chelsea | 35 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 53 | 14 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 33 | 18 | 54 | 77 |
| 2 | Man Utd | 35 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 45 | 11 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 33 | 16 | 51 | 76 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 35 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 44 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 34 | 24 | 39 | 71 |
| 4 | Tottenham | 34 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 39 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 23 | 22 | 28 | 64 |
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| 5 | Man City | 34 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 38 | 18 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 31 | 24 | 27 | 62 |
| 6 | Aston Villa | 35 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 28 | 15 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 22 | 20 | 15 | 61 |
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| 7 | Liverpool | 35 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 43 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 14 | 20 | 24 | 59 |
Certainly in comparison to those sides around us, our return of 11 wins and 37 points from 17 games at CoMS is bettered by all of the top seven with the exception of Aston Villa (who boats an impressive record away from Villa Park).
With just four fixtures now remaining (two at home and two away), I think 71 points will be enough for fourth spot, meaning three wins will be required. Given that our two remaining home fixtures are against Aston Villa and then Tottenham, who are both also in the thick of the race for fourth, then realistically two of these wins need to be against these sides which would tremendously dent their ambitions whilst boosting our own hopes significantly.
The six defeats we have suffered this season is equal best in the division, yet too many draws has resulted in us battling for fourth rather than having a clear advantage over other sides.
Wins are what is required if we are going to finish the season on a high and ensure the first top four finish for over thirty years.
Time to make home advantage count.