Europe: Domestic Leagues End With Mixed Feelings
By Tanko Bauka
The curtain has been drawn in all the major domestic leagues across Europe, and it was a dramatic weekend for football fans as some will be celebrating a successful season, and some will bemoan what exactly happened.
Let’s begin to unfold the dramatic day how it happened in the English Barclays Premier League.
Manchester City, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest are all neck deep in the battle to grab the remaining three spots to qualify for the most glamorous Champions League tournament next football season.
Chelsea travelled to take on Nottingham Forest in their backyard; Manchester City also travelled to face Fulham at Craven Cottage stadium in London while Aston Villa confronted Ruben Amorim Manchester United while Newcastle United ambush Everton at Saint James’ Park with both teams fighting for the three points at stake except for Manchester United and Everton.
Chelsea really turned out for the match knowing fully well that nothing short of three points will guarantee qualifications but Aston Villa actually didn’t turn up at all as they were squarely beaten by Manchester United which seemed to save their best match of the season for the final match of the season at Old Trafford as they dominated the match from start to finish.
Nottingham Forest, on the other hand, will lick their wounds for allowing Enzo Marasca Chelsea to pip them 1-0 to pick the remaining spots and return back to the UEFA Champions League.
Manchester City finished third position by beating Fulham 2-0 while Everton defeated Newcastle United 1-0
With the result, Aston Villa will now test might in the EUROPA League with the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, which beat Manchester United to the trophy and Crystal Palace following their success in the FA Cup, while Nottingham Forest slipped down to the Conference League.
Southampton, Leicester City and Ipswich Town are all banished back to the Championship.
In Spanish LA Liga, it was an emotional moment for one of the most decorated club sides in the history of LA Liga Real Madrid as they bid goodbye to one of the greatest players, an icon and a legend, Lukas Modric, who is set to leave the club.
Despite the disappointing season, Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe took home the Golden Boot, scoring 31 goals in the process.
And at the moment, as things stand, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, and Athletic Bilbao have secured Champions League berths, while Villarreal secured the EUROPA League spot.
Laganes, Las Palmas and Real Valladolid are relegated.
In the Italian Serie A, the drama started between Inter Milan and Napoli, with both teams seeking to secure the top spot and be crowned Champion with just one point separating them.
The stage was set, but at the end of the normal regulation 90 minutes, both teams won their last match, defeating their opponents 2-0.
Inter Milan beat Como 2-0 the same result Napoli posted against Cagliari to lift the Serie A title.
In the race for the Champions League place, Juventus, Roma and Lazio are all in the hunt as Napoli, Inter Milan and Ademola Lookman Atalanta have already guaranteed a place and in the course of the match, the position keeps interchanging between AS Roma and old ladies, Juventus but at end of proceeding Juventus grab the last spot, and would join the league Champion Napoli, Inter Milan for the next year UEFA Champions League while AS Roma qualified for the Europa League with Bologna taking the Conference league
Empoli, Venezia and AC Monza were relegated to the lower league.
In the German Bundesliga, Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and a new entrant, Eintracht Frankfurt, will play in the elite tournament, while SC Freiburg, the Europa League while Stuttgart, will feature in the Conference league.
Heidenheim failed to qualify through the playoff and was equally relegated alongside Holstein Kiel and VFL Bochum.
The major leagues across the super football power-playing country have closed and attention will shift to the transfer market where the club side would want to strengthen for next season but some finest players that have to lighten the world with their skills will be missed; worthy of mentioning is Lukas Modric a well-decorated legend who together with Real Madrid won five UEFA Champions League.
Results across Europe
English Barclays Premier League
Bournemouth 2- Leicester 1
Fulham 0- Manchester City 2
Ipswich Town 1- West Ham 3
Liverpool 1- Crystal Palace 1
Manchester United 2- Aston Villa 0
Newcastle United 0- Everton 1
Nottingham Forest 0- Chelsea 1
Southampton 1- Arsenal 2
Tottenham 1- Brighton Albion 4
Wolves 1- Brentford 1
Spanish LA Liga
Real Betis 1- Valencia 1
Real Madrid 2- Real Sociedad 0
Laganes 3- Real Valladolid 0
Espanyol 2- Las Palmas 0
Rayo Vallacano 0- Mallorca 0
Deportivo 1- Osasuna 1
Gatafe 1- Celta Vigo 2
Girona 0- Atletico Madrid 4
Villarreal 4- Sevilla 2
Athletic Bilbao 0- FC Barcelona 3
Italian Serie A
Como 0- Inter Milan 2
Napoli 2- Cagliari 0
Bologna 1- Genoa 3
AC Milan 2- AC Monza 0
