1.   Aston Villa, which finished fourth and also won the League Cup, travels to Sheffield Wednesday, which climbed clear of relegation trouble last term.

2.   Burnley, deep in relegation trouble in league play, also held on for a scoreless tie with third-place Liverpool.

3.   Real Madrid was outplayed by Real Sociedad, which prior to the game had been in relegation trouble.

4.   He was sold to AS Roma at the end of last season but was bought back on loan at Christmas as Gladbach sank into relegation trouble.

5.   If any club is entitled to feel cursed at the moment it is Brescia who have tumbled deep into relegation trouble after a series of misfortunes.

6.   Brescia host Piacenza while Udinese meet Atalanta in matches between teams in relegation trouble.

7.   Defeat plunged Rangers back into relegation trouble following a mini revival in which they beat both Bolton and Aston Villa before Christmas.

8.   Those defeats spelt despair for Palace and Villa, who remain deep in relegation trouble.

9.   The extension to his contract completes a remarkable turnaround for Roeder who has hauled the Hammers out of relegation trouble after a difficult start.