Hello and welcome to Early Doors Football! After an absolutely astounding end to the Premier League, I feel it is worth discussing everything that occurred. With the title, top four, and relegation all coming down to the final day, it was truly a blockbuster Championship Sunday. Before I jump in, I am going to insert the final Premier League table, just so everyone is aware of how things finished.

Red vs. Sky Blue: Who Won the Title?
Thanks to some kind results over the past few weeks, the title went down to the final day. City and Liverpool both dropped points, but as the final matches kicked off, Manchester City were one point ahead. The title was in the hands of the Cityzens, but after a very nervy start, it looked like they might slip at the vital moment. Cash and Coutinho fired Villa into a 2-0 lead, which they held deep into the second half. Pep’s men never looked like scoring in all honesty; the players were clearly nervous and unsure of themselves. Across the country, Liverpool were not getting the job done either. A remarkably fast goal from Neto put Wolves in the driver's seat and stunned Anfield. It was a very poor goal to concede by any team’s standards, so it was quite surprising to see such a silly goal given away by this great side. Mane leveled things up in the 24th minute, but a draw was not good enough for Liverpool. Time ticked away, and soon enough, all hell broke loose in Manchester.
It was clear Guardiola needed to alter the team at halftime, so he brought in Zinchenko for Fernandinho, who had been poor in the first half. Zinchenko certainly brightened things up on the left-hand side, but Villa were still proving difficult to break down. In the 68th minute, Guardiola brought in Gundogan for Bernardo Silva; this move would prove to be a masterstroke. 8 minutes after coming on, Gundogan ghosted in at the back post and headed in a cross from Raheem Sterling (who was also a substitute). This set us up for a grandstand finish, and it did not disappoint. At 2-1, the Ethiad erupted, as if they knew the outcome already. Only two minutes later, Zinchenko set up Rodri for a lovely strike from outside of the box. At this point, they were almost there. If Liverpool could claim a victory against Wolves, they would still snatch the title away, so Manchester City still needed the third goal. Again, only minutes later, a poor piece of defending from Tyrone Mings gave them the opportunity. De Bruyne latched onto a mis-clearance, burst past a defender, and slotted an inch-perfect ball to Gundogan. Pandemonium ensued, and for good reason. It looked as if the Cityzens were handing Liverpool the title, but from nothing, they stole it right back. Back in Liverpool, Salah and Robertson scored late in the second half to ensure the Reds finished their season with a victory, but the madness had already occurred at the Ethiad. While the most unlikely of scenarios seemed at our doorstep, Liverpool never topped the table on the final day.
It goes without saying that this was one of the best Championship Sundays we have seen in a long time. There were twists and turns constantly, so we were kept on the edge of our seats throughout. Luckily, I had enough screens to keep up with both of these matches, but I gravitated towards City’s match as the time wore on. They hadn’t been at their best the past few weeks, but I still could not comprehend how they would let this slip. While they undoubtedly did it the hard way, they presented us with a fantastic spectacle to cap off a brilliant season. I have to take a moment to give credit to the phenomenal substitutions that Guardiola made as well. Perhaps Fernandinho’s removal was a bit obvious, as he was miles off the pace, but Zinchenko had a hugely positive impact. Sterling came on and contributed an assist as well, but Gundogan was obviously the star of the show. As a man known for his ghosting runs into the box, it was the perfect match for him to come into. On both occasions, he finds himself free on the back post, and has the composure to finish smartly. It will be a season to remember for City fans, despite their shocking exit from the Champions League. We know Pep strives for perfection, so I am sure he will be looking to next season very soon.
On the flipped side of this, Liverpool will be gutted with how the final day went. They played poorly and still got the result they needed, but it was not enough in the end. I am sure the players knew the score of the match in Manchester at halftime, so they surely sensed their opportunity. By the time they claimed the lead, Villa had already been toppled. There is even a video of fans telling Salah the score after he put the ball in the back of the net, so that was undoubtedly a deflating moment. Over a 38 game season, you get what you deserve, so while there will be disappointment, no excuses can be made.
Liverpool cannot sit back and sulk however, with the Champions League final on the horizon. Truthfully, I think they have been far from satisfying recently, and this performance fell into that category as well. Obviously, I hope that Klopp’s men can improve their performance for the final, but only time will tell. After narrowly missing out on the Premier League, winning the Champions League would be the perfect remedy for their disappointment. Liverpool and Manchester City both served up a fantastic title race, but City just about beat Liverpool to the title in the end. I am sure they will duke it out again for next season’s title, so I am already eagerly awaiting next season.
Battle of North London: Who Achieved Champions League Football?
While the other two races were set to go down to the wire, the race for Top 4 was a bit more straightforward. Tottenham’s definitive win in the North London Derby gave them a chance to jump over Arsenal. The Gunners were outplayed against Newcastle in the following match and lost 2-0, which essentially buried any hope of a return to the Champions League. Because of Arsenal’s insufficiency, Spurs only needed to avoid defeat against Norwich to finish above their rivals.
Arsenal were set to play Everton, who already escaped relegation, so this was a simple game for them as well. Having your hopes lie in Norwich is never a promising idea, so they were resigned to 5th in most people’s minds. Sure enough, everything went to plan. Both North London clubs hit their opponents for 5, while Arsenal conceded one goal. After a topsy-turvy race for the final UCL spot, it finished without any more twists or turns. Although Arsenal were in the driver’s seat heading into the final period of the season, I do not think they can be overly disappointed with 5th place. Of course, it is frustrating to have slipped at the vital moment, but if you had offered Arteta 5th place at the beginning of the season, he would have absolutely taken it. After finishing 8th in the past two seasons, this is a clear sign of progress. This is the youngest team in the Premier League, so they still have time to mature and improve. Additionally, I do not think they had the squad to handle the Champions League and Premier League (you can say the same about Spurs), so perhaps the Europa League could be a blessing in disguise.
Conte’s time at Spurs has been very inconsistent, but in the end, he has shown why he is a top quality manager. He reached the goal that Spurs wanted, and did so against the odds. Tottenham sat in 9th when he was appointed, so this is a great achievement. Spurs need to do absolutely everything to keep him in charge, as I think he can turn this team into a formidable side, assuming he is backed in the transfer market. He has been reluctant to commit his future to Tottenham in recent press conferences, so it remains to be seen if he will remain at the helm. Regardless, both North London clubs have big summers ahead of them, as they look to close the gap on the title challengers.
Avoiding the Drop: Who got Relegated?
Norwich and Watford have long been chained to English footballing purgatory, as they have been relegated for weeks now. However, the last spot was still yet to be decided. Everton, Leeds, and Burnley were scrapping it out in the past few weeks, and the ever-changing landscape meant it was difficult to predict who would drop out of the Premier League as we neared the end of the season.
The relegation picture was made clearer thanks to a few miraculous results from Everton. After beating Chelsea and Leicester City in the month of May, they edged closer to safety. In their penultimate game against Crystal Palace, victory would secure another season in the top flight. After a disastrous first half, a miraculous second half turn-around sent Goodison Park into euphoric celebrations. It has been an utter nightmare to be an Everton fan this season, but they finally had something to celebrate. The overall situation at the club is still far from ideal, but securing safety will give them the opportunity to regroup this summer.
This left us with Leeds and Burnley, who were lined up against Brentford and Newcastle respectively. The two sides were level on points, but Burnley had Leeds beat in terms of goal difference. This meant that Leeds had to better the Claret’s result, so it was destined to be a stressful day for both sets of fans. Heading into the final minutes of the game, it was 1-1 at the Brentford Community Stadium and 2-1 to Newcastle at Turf Moor. Leeds were set to stay up if the results held, however a goal in either match, for any of the teams involved, could have effectively sent one of them down. Burnley battled and fought, but could not find the tying goal. This meant they were left to hope a goal would come from Brentford, but it never arrived. In fact, Jack Harrison scored a last-minute goal to win the match for Leeds, but more importantly, keep them up. This battle went to the final minutes of the season, only adding to the entertainment of the final day.
Personally, I am very happy Leeds will be in the Premier League next season. I find them to be a very interesting team to watch, and with Jesse Marsch as the manager, I have a soft spot for them. The American manager will get a chance to showcase himself in more ordinary circumstances next season, and with a full transfer window, he can really put his stamp on this squad. When looking at Burnley, I am quite concerned for them. Financially, it looks as if they may be in big trouble. To make a long story short, their owners took out a loan to purchase the club, and now that they have been relegated, they have to pay the loan back early. The owners claim they can pay the loan off easily, but there remains some skepticism around that statement. Some key players are also out of contract, while others are likely to leave at bargain prices solely because of their relegation. Hopefully everything can be smoothed out, but only time will tell.
Well that is everything I have to say about this fantastic end to the season. I miss the Premier League already, but there will still be plenty of football to discuss over the summer. As always, feel free to reach out with any feedback or thoughts, and please share the article with anyone you think would enjoy it! Thank you for reading, and have a great day!
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