Chelsea to miss out on a top-five finish after their costly defeat to Newcastle United last weekend.
Chelsea, who entered the match sitting fifth, had hoped to strengthen their chances of securing Champions League football but suffered a setback at St James’ Park.
Enzo Maresca’s men were dealt a further blow when Nicolas Jackson was sent off in the first half, and ultimately, they fell to a 2-0 loss.
This season, the Premier League’s top five will qualify for next year’s Champions League.
Liverpool has already secured their place as champions, while Arsenal looks poised to join them, currently sitting second with 68 points.
Meanwhile, just four points separate third-placed Newcastle and seventh-placed Nottingham Forest, adding further uncertainty to the race with two matches remaining.
Forest dropped valuable points at home against relegated Leicester City, and Carragher now believes Nuno Espirito Santo’s squad will also fall short of Champions League qualification.
It would be a frustrating end for Forest, who had been in third place for much of the campaign before experiencing a significant dip in form. However, Europa League participation would still offer them a chance to compete in Europe next season.
Carragher, the former Liverpool and England defender, has backed both Chelsea and Forest to miss out on a Champions League spot, with Chelsea set to face Manchester United and Forest in their final league fixtures.
‘Chelsea will beat Man United,’ he said on Sky Sports. ‘It’s whether they can beat Nottingham Forest away.
‘There will be a big atmosphere there. Een if they can’t get Champions League football by then, I think Nottingham Forest, last game of the season, the supporters will be desperate to say almost like a big thank you for the season that they’ve had.
‘They’ve got European football which is a great achievement. I actually think it’ll be Chelsea and Nottingham Forest who miss out and Aston Villa get in.’
At the start of the season, former Liverpool and England defender Carragher warned that another failure to secure Champions League qualification would be a major setback for Chelsea.
He even speculated that missing out on Europe’s elite competition could lead to key players, including England international Cole Palmer, considering their future away from Stamford Bridge.
‘Chelsea have spent over a billion quid,’ he said. ‘They’re out of the cup competitions, the European cup competition [UEFA Conference League] is not a European competition for Chelsea.
‘They can play the second string all the way to the final. They have to get Champions League. If they don’t get Champions League it’ll be a disaster, it will be.
‘The one worry I took from this game [a 3-0 defeat to Brighton] was not just how poor they were, it was the frustration on Cole Palmer.
‘He won’t wait around for this idea that in a couple of years we’re going to make the Champions League.
‘Imagine saying that to Cole Palmer, that it’s going to be a couple of years until we get in the Champions League.’
While Chelsea look to secure top-five finish, they also have one eye on the Europa Conference League final, to be played on May 28 against Spanish team Real Betis.
