Arsenal’s midweek victory over Real Madrid means the Premier League is guaranteed to receive five qualification places for next season’s Champions League, but the competition for Europe’s premier competition remains an intense as ever ahead of the final six weeks of the domestic season.
Newcastle head into this weekend’s matches sitting in fifth position in the table, boasting a game in hand of all four of the sides currently above them.
However, with only ten points separating third-placed Nottingham Forest from ninth-placed Brighton, the race for the Champions League promises to go all the way to the wire, with some unexpected names still involved in the battle.
“There are so many good teams in the Premier League now, as we’ve seen,” said Tindall, who spoke to the press at Newcastle’s Darsley Park training ground yesterday in place of Eddie Howe, who is struggling with an illness. “It’s incredibly tough to win games.
“You’re always going to get top teams that are going to be there or thereabouts and there are going to be teams who want to try and break into that league and we’re seeing that now.
“Aston Villa are doing really well now. Brighton, Fulham, Chelsea, Tottenham, Man City, Liverpool and Arsenal are all going to be there still.
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“Everyone is fighting for the same thing, but probably long gone are the days where maybe it was the top two or three teams every season that would be there or thereabouts. I think the competition is really tough and it’s getting harder year by year.”
Newcastle have also enjoyed a hugely successful season thanks to their success in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley last month.
The win over Liverpool in the final means the Magpies are guaranteed a place in next season’s UEFA Conference League, but a return to the Champions League remains the key ambition in the remainder of the season.
Tindall is confident his side are capable of finishing in the top five, but accepts they cannot afford to rest on their laurels despite last month’s trophy success.
“Every club wants success,” he said. “Every club wants their team to deliver good performances and win games. Our job, when we arrived here, was to try to do the best we could and to try to be as successful as we could.
“So far, it’s been a great journey, but as we know, you can’t dwell on the past because it will come back and shoot you down very quickly. We have to focus on what we do day-to-day and try to make sure there are more successful moments to come.”
