Monday, December 9, 2024

Five things you might have missed on the final day in the Premier League

Premier League final day featuring Spurs, West Ham, Man Utd and Man City - five things you might have missed

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After what can only be described as an enthralling final day in the Premier League, Manchester City came out on top and won their sixth title with Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool falling short by just a singular point.

It was a topsy-turvy day which started with both teams at the top conceding early on. Pedro Neto gave Wolves the lead at Anfield after just three minutes and a Matty Cash header meant Aston Villa led at the Etihad Stadium in the first half. 

Aston Villa then doubled their lead before a flurry of three goals in just five minutes gave Man City a 3-2 lead. On the other end of the M62, Liverpool had equalised through Sadio Mane, before goals from Mohamed Salah and Andrew Robertson gave the Reds a 3-1 lead.

Liverpool had done their job but, unfortunately for them, so had Pep Guardiola’s men, who managed to hold on and take all three points.

At the other end of the table, the fight to stay in the league was just as exciting, with Burnley and Leeds United battling it out to avoid the drop. Much to the disappointment of Clarets fans, Burnley were played off the park by Newcastle while Leeds managed to scrape past Brentford 2-1 to secure their spot in the big time for next season.

With all the drama taking place around the country, here are five things you might have missed throughout the day.

1. Antonio Conte seals Champions League football for Spurs

After what has been a torrid few years for Tottenham Hotspur, they are finally back in the Champions League after beating Norwich City 5-0.

They started the day in the driving seat after Arsenal slipped up against Newcastle last week, a win would have been enough for Tottenham to get them back in the UEFA Champions League.

An already-relegated Canaries side could have been a potential banana skin but Antonio Conte’s men delivered the ultimate performance. With London rivals Arsenal winning 5-1 against Everton, it was important that Spurs did the business at Carrow Road.

Goals from Dejan Kulusevski, Heung-min Son and Harry Kane secured the three points and qualification for the Champions League.

The celebrations from the Spurs squad and fans showed what it meant to the club to return to the biggest competition in Europe after a two-year absence. With serial winner Antonio Conte settling into the job at Spurs, the future could be very bright for Tottenham Hotspur.

2. Brilliant Brighton spoil West Ham Europa hopes

West Ham United have received a lot of praise this season for their performances this season and rightly so, considering they reached the Europa League semi-final and have now qualified for another year of European football – albeit this time in the UEFA Conference League.

After taking the lead through striker Michail Antonio just before the halftime break, it looked like another victory was on the cards for the side from East London.

However, Graham Potter’s men had other ideas as they came out from the break fighting and put the pressure on. Joel Veltman pulled the Seagulls level before two goals in the last 10 minutes sealed the win.

It was a performance that Brighton and Hove Albion had seen glimpses of throughout the season – but could never find consistently. Having had 18 shots to West Ham’s seven, Brighton will hope to take this momentum into next season and build on what has been a promising end to another progressive season.

3. Erik ten Hag witnesses Manchester United’s nightmare season come to a close

In what has been a season to forget for Manchester United, the final game of the season might have come as a relief for everyone involved with the club. However, the pressure was on the players as the new manager was in town to watch what he has to deal with next season.

Erik ten Hag was in attendance at Selhurst Park to see what he would be working with in the future and he will not be too impressed. Man United players will have known their every move would be analysed by the Dutchman in the stands but very few will have impressed as Vieira’s men strolled to victory.

The main talking point from the game from a United point of view was the introduction of many youngsters to the fray, with Hannibal Mejbri and Alejandro Garnacho making appearances, which will bring Ten Hag hope.

4. Sensational substitutions from Pep steer City to back-to-back titles

With the Premier League title on the line, and Man City trailing against Aston Villa, Pep Guardiola had to earn his money. He did exactly that as he made a magnificent substitution by bringing Ilkay Gundogan off the bench replacing Bernardo Silva.

This substitution changed the game and swung momentum back in City’s favour and was the main catalyst in the home side scoring three goals in five minutes to come back from 2-0 down.

With many saying that Pep has failed at City by not winning the Champions League, it is times like this when they have been pushed right to the wire by Liverpool that Guardiola has shown that he is a tactical genius and deserves praise for the job he has done.

5. Heung-min Son and Mohamed Salah share Golden Boot glory

The Premier League trophy wasn’t the only award being competed for at Anfield, as Mohamed Salah was hoping to pip Heung-min Son to claim the Golden Boot award for the third time. 

Despite holding a 10-goal head start earlier this year, Salah was competing with the South Korean who had hit a fine spell of form towards the end of the season, almost single-handedly dragging Spurs to the top four.

Salah perhaps thought he’d claimed both the Golden Boot and the league title when his late goal put Liverpool ahead against Wolves, however, Son grabbed a brace in a comprehensive 5-0 victory over Norwich to share the award.

It’s been a season that will last long in the memory of many Premier League fans, especially those who were involved in a nail-biting end to the final day.

Ed Hague-Saunders
Ed Hague-Saunders
Hi, I'm Ed. I am a football journalist at the University of Derby. On this page you will be able to see all of my work, and contact information.

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