Gunners’ glory

 

Arsenal were crowned champions of England with a game to spare after finishing second 3 times in a row. Manchester City had been a constant thread. Manchester United finally found their feet to finish third, followed by Aston Villa, Liverpool and Bournemouth. With Wolves and Burnley already relegated, Tottenham were in serious danger of relegation, but a vital victory at Aston Villa gave them the edge over West Ham who fell on the final day.

Week 31 – On Friday evening Bournemouth twice levelled to draw at home to Manchester United who had been reduced to 10 players while on Saturday Liverpool lost 2-1 at Brighton for whom Danny Welbeck scored twice and a Beto brace was instrumental in Chelsea’s 3-0 downfall at Everton. Burnley ended up with 10 players as they lost the lead and the match 3-1 at Fulham and Brentford dew 0-0 at Leeds while on Sunday as Manchester City were beating Arsenal 2-0 to win the League Cup at Wembley, Tottenham were being humiliated 3-0 at hoe to fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest. Sunderland came from behind to celebrate a 2-1 win at Newcastle and West Ham lost 2-0 at Aston Villa.

Week 32 – Konstantinos Mavropanos and Valentin Castellanos scored twice each for West Ham as the hosts punished Wolves 4-0 on Friday evening while on Saturday Arsenal suffered a huge blow to their title hopes when they lost 2-1 at home to Bournemouth and Everton scored in stoppage time to earn a 2-2 draw at Brentford for whom Igor Thiago scored both goals. Mats Wieffer scored both goals of the match in Brighton’s win at Burnley and Liverpool put 2 past their visitors from Fulham while on Sunday Manchester City closed the gap with Arsenal with 3 second-half goals at Chelsea. Jean-Philippe Mateta came off the bench at Selhurst Park to turn the match around with 2 late goals and give Crystal Palace a 2-1 win against Newcastle while Tottenham fell to a single goal at Sunderland and Aston Villa drew 1-1 at Nottingham Forest. On Monday evening Noah Okafor netted a brace for Leeds United at Manchester United who pulled a goal back after being reduce to 10 men.  

Week 33 – Leeds United took a step towards safety with a 3-0 victory at home to bottom of the table Wolves while Tottenham were denied a home win when Brighton levelled at 2-2 deep into stoppage time and Newcastle were defeated 2-1 by their visitors from Bournemouth. A single goal gave Manchester United a win at Chelsea while there were no goals between Brentford and Fulham. On Sunday, in a 7-goal thriller at Aston Villa, Ollie Watkins netted a brace for the hosts but Sunderland fought back from 3-1 down to level with 2 late goals only to lose to a goal in stoppage time while Liverpool scored deep into added-on time to beat Everton 2-1 in their first Merseyside derby at the Hill Dickinson Stadium and Morgan Gibbs-White scored 3 times at the City Ground as a 4-1 victory for Nottingham Forest pushed Burnley closer to relegation. In the battle of the top two, Arsenal lost 2-1 at Manchester City and on Monday evening West Ham United earned a point in a goalless draw at Crystal Palace, resulting in the relegation of Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Week 34 – With the FA Cup semi-final matches at the weekend, several matches were played during the week. On Tuesday Brighton brushed visitors Chelsea aside 3-0 ending Liam Rosenior's short stint as Chelsea manager and on Wednesday Bournemouth twice took the lead but their visitors from Leeds earned a 2-2 draw with a goal late into stoppage time while Burnley were relegated I front of their home crowd as Manchester City scored an early goal to go above Arsenal on goals scored. On Friday Nottingham Forest thrashed Sunderland 5-0 at the Stadium of Light with 4 of the goals coming in the first half and on Saturday Tottenham finally won when they scored the only goal of the match at Wolves while West Ham United stayed above dotted line with a 2-1 home win over Everton and Arsenal picked up a nervous 1-0 win at home to Newcastle. Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 3-1 at Anfield while Aston Villa suffered a 1-0 loss at Fulham and on Monday Manchester United picked up a 2-1 win at home to Brentford.

Week 35 – On Friday evening Leeds United took a step closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Burnley at Elland Road while on Saturday West Ham suffered a 3-0 loss at Brentford and 10 men from Sunderland drew 1-1 at Wolves. Arsenal put 3 past Fulham in the first half with a double from Viktor Gyökeres and Newcastle enjoyed a 3-1 win over their visitors from Brighton while on Sunday Tottenham picked up a vital 2-1 win at Aston Villa. Liverpool fought back from 2 early goals to level, but lost 3-2 at Manchester United and Crystal Palace were beaten 3-0 at Bournemouth while on Monday Chelsea lost 3-1 at home to Nottingham Forest for whom Taiwo Awoniyi scored twice and in a thrilling match at the Hill Dickinson Stadium Thierno Barry netted a brace for Everton who took a 3-1 lead, but Manchester City earned a 3-3 draw when Jérémy Doku completed his double with a wonder strike with virtually the last kick of the match.

Week 36 – Liverpool drew 1-1 with Chelsea at Anfield while Manchester United played a goalless match at Sunderland and with both teams reduced to 10 players, a single goal gave Bournemouth a win at Fulham. Brighton struck twice in the first 5 minutes and added another late in the match to send Wolves home with their tails between their legs while Manchester City scored 3 times after the hour mark at home to Brentford and on Sunday Burnley drew 2-2 with Aston Villa as did Crystal Palace with Everton while Nottingham Forest scored late to earn a 1-1 draw at home to Newcastle United. Arsenal scored a vital goal to win at West Ham while on Monday Tottenham drew 1-1 at home to Leeds and on Manchester City put 3 past Crystal Palace to keep the pressure on league leaders Arsenal.

 Week 37 – The fixtures began on Friday evening when Virgil van Dijk scored both goals for Liverpool who were thumped 4-2 at Aston Villa for whom Ollie Watkins netted a brace ensuring a spot in the Champions League for Villa. No league matches took place on Saturday as the focus was on Wembley where Manchester City defeated Chelsea 1-0 to lift the FA Cup trophy, but on Sunday the Premier League resumed and Manchester Unites cemented third place with a 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford while Sunderland enjoyed a 3-1 win at Everton and William Osula scored twice as West Ham lost 3-1 at Newcastle, leaving them perilously close to the drop. Crystal Palace drew 2-2 at Brentford for whom Dango Ouattara scored both goals while Fulham drew 1-1 at Wolves and Leeds United scored the only goal of the match late in stoppage time to beat Brighton at Elland Road. On Monday Arsenal took a step closer to the title with a single goal at home to relegated side Burnley and on Tuesday they were confirmed champions of England when Manchester City drew 1-1 at Bournemouth while Tottenham lost 2-1 at Chelsea.

Week 38 – West Ham United’s spirited 3-0 win at home to Leeds United ended in profound sadness as they were relegated after Tottenham celebrated safety with a single goal in front of their home fans against Everton while Wolves drew 1-1 at Burnley to finish bottom of the league. Newly crowned champions, Arsenal, won 2-1 at Crystal Palace while Manchester City finished 7 points behind them after losing 2-1 at home to Aston Villa and Manchester United scored 3 times without reply at Brighton. Brentford drew 1-1 at Liverpool but missed out on a European spot while Sunderland earned a European place with a 2-1 victory at home to 10-man Chelsea and Bournemouth drew 1-1 at Nottingham Forest while Fulham beat their visitors from Newcastle 2-0 to finish above them in the middle of the table. Coventry, Ipswich and Hull City were promoted to the Premier League.

 Final Premier League table 2025-2026

 

Gunners going for gold

 

Arsenal are on course for glory as Manchester City can only hope for several slip-ups if they are to take it to the wire. Manchester United’s recent good form puts them in third spot ahead of Aston Villa, Liverpool and Chelsea all with Europe on their minds.

Week 21 – In midweek matches West Ham United took the lead at home but lost 2-1 to Nottingham Forest while Tottenham lost 3-2 in stoppage time at Bournemouth and Wolves drew 1-1 at Everton who ended the match with 9 players. Ten-man Chelsea were beaten 2-1 at Fulham and Igor Thiago scored twice as Brentford put 3 past their visitors from Sunderland while Brighton earned a 1-1 draw at Manchester City and Benjamin Šeško scored both goals in Manchester United’s 2-2 draw at Burnley. Leeds United took the lead 3 times at Newcastle with a Brenden Aaronson brace but Harvey Barnes completed his double with the latest ever goal in Premier League history to give the Magpies a 4-3 victory while Crystal Palace and Aston Villa played a goalless match and on Thursday Liverpool drew 0-0 at league leaders Arsenal.

Week 22 – Under the managership of Michael Carrick, Manchester United defeated their City neighbours 2-0 while Chelsea enjoyed the same result at home to Brentford and Arsenal drew blanks at Nottingham Forest. Liverpool could only draw 1-1 at home to Burnley while a single goal gave Leeds United a win over Fulham and Crystal Palace opened the scoring but lost 2-1 at Sunderland. West Ham United scored in stoppage time to win 2-1 at Tottenham while on Sunday one goal settled the match in Everton’s favour at Aston Villa and there were no goals between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Newcastle United. On Monday evening Brighton scored in stoppage time to earn a 1-1 draw at home to Bournemouth.

Week 23 – Liverpool fought back from 2 down to level the score but lost to a goal deep into stoppage time at Bournemouth while West Ham celebrated a 3-1 win over their visitors from Sunderland and Wolves lost 2-0 at Manchester City. Tottenham scored in the last minute to earn a 2-2 draw at Burnley and Fulham scored in stoppage time to win 2-1 at home to Fulham while on Sunday all the away teams won, as Manchester United scored a late goal to win 3-2 at Arsenal, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest scored twice at Newcastle and Brentford respectively and Chelsea were 3-1 winners at 10-man Crystal Palace. On Monday evening Leeds United drew 1-1 at Everton.

Week 24 – Arsenal returned from Leeds with a 4-0 win while Newcastle opened the scoring at Liverpool but lost 4-1 with a double from Hugo Etikite and Chelsea fought back from 2 down at home win 3-2 with a goal in stoppage time against West Ham who finished the match with 10 players. Bournemouth were 2-0 winners at Wolves and Everton scored late into stoppage time to earn a 1-1 draw at Brighton while on Sunday ten men from Brentford scored the only goal at Aston Villa and Fulham bounced back from 2 goals down at Manchester United but lost to a goal in added-on time. Dominic Solanke scored twice as Tottenham came from 2 down to draw 2-2 at home to Manchester City and Crystal Palace drew 1-1 at 10-man Nottingham Forest while on Monday evening Sunderland put 3 past their visitors from Burnley.

Week 25 – On Friday evening Leeds United enjoyed a 3-1 home win over Nottingham Forest while on Saturday Viktor Gyökeres scored twice as Arsenal defeated Sunderland 3-0 and 10-man Tottenham lost 2-0 at Manchester United. West Ham scored twice in the first half to win at Burnley and Cole Palmer scored twice from the spot before completing his hat-trick as Wolves won 3-1 at Wolves while Fulham took the lead in front of their home crowd but lost 2-1 to Everton and Brentford triumphed 3-2 at Newcastle. Bournemouth and Aston Villa drew 1-1 while on Sunday, in a controversial match, Manchester City came from behind to win 2-1 with a goal in stoppage time at Liverpool who finished the match with 10 players and Crystal Palace were victorious 1-0 at Brighton.

Week 26 – In midweek matches Leeds came from 2 down to draw at Chelsea and Manchester United scored in added-on time to earn a 1-1 draw at West Ham while there were 2-1 wins for Newcastle at Tottenham and for Bournemouth who came from behind to win at Everton who were reduced to 10 players. Jørgen Strand Larsen scored twice on his home debut for Crystal Palace but Burnley hit back to win with 3 goals before the break and Manchester City also scored 3 times before the interval to win at home to Fulham while Brighton fell to a late own-goal at Aston Villa and there were no goals between Nottingham Forest and Wolverhampton Wanderers. Liverpool won 1-0 at Sunderland while on Thursday Arsenal dropped points in their 1-1 draw at Brentford. After a weekend of FA Cup matches, the league returned with a re-arranged match and league leaders Arsenal dropped further points when they let a 2-goal lead slip to draw 2-2 at bottom of the table Wolves with the leveller coming deep into stoppage time.

Week 27 – Aston Villa needed a late goal to avoid defeat at home in a 1-1 draw against Leeds United while Burnley scored in stoppage time to draw 1-1 at 10-man Chelsea and Brighton were 2-0 winners at Brentford. A Nico O’Reilly double at Manchester City settled the match 2-1 against Newcastle before half an hour had been played while West Ham played a goalless match against Bournemouth and on Sunday Wolves, who had been reduced to 10 players, fell to a last-minute goal at Crystal Palace. It took until late in stoppage time for Liverpool to break down their hosts Nottingham Forest while Fulham enjoyed a 3-1 win at Sunderland thanks to a brace from Raul Jimenez and 2 goals each from Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyökeres gave Arsenal a 4-1 victory at Tottenham. On Monday evening, one goal was enough to give Manchester United a win at Everton.

Week 28 – The week’s fixtures began on Friday evening when Wolves celebrated a 2-0 win at home to Aston Villa while on Saturday Burnley fought back from 3 down at home to level the score only to lose when Mikkel Damsgaard completed his double for Brentford in stoppage time and in another goal-rich match Liverpool beat West Ham 5-2 at Anfield. Newcastle levelled twice but each time Everton hit back to win 3-2 at St James’ Park while Sunderland drew 1-1 at Bournemouth and one goal at Leeds gave Manchester City another win. On Sunday there were 2-1 wins for the four hosts as Brighton beat Nottingham Forest, with all the goals coming in the first 15 minutes, Fulham got the better of Tottenham while Crystal Palace and Chelsea, having each had a player sent off, lost to Manchester United and Arsenal respectively.

Week 29 – In midweek matches Liverpool lost 2-1 at bottom of the table Wolves with their winner coming in stoppage time and Leeds lost 1-0 at home to Sunderland while Everton won 2-0 at home to Burnley and there was a goalless match between Bournemouth and Brentford. Michael Carrick suffered his first defeat as Manchester United lost 2-1 to a last-minute goal at 10-man Newcastle and West Ham United were 1-0 winners at Fulham while Arsenal earned 3 points with an early strike at Brighton, but Manchester City failed to close the gap as they drew 2-2 at home to Nottingham Forest. Aston Villa were quick to score in their home match against Chelsea who hit back to win 4-1 with a hat-trick from João Pedro and on Thursday Ismaïla Sarr scored twice as Crystal Palace came from behind to beat 10-man Tottenham in front of their disgruntled fans with 3 goals just before the break.

Week 30 – Two late goals, including a goal with the last kick of the match by the youngest ever Premier League scorer Max Dowman, gave Arsenal a 2-0 win at home to Everton while Manchester City dropped points in their 1-1 draw at West Ham and a there were 1-0 away wins for Brighton at Sunderland and for Newcastle at Chelsea. Burnley and Bournemouth played a goalless match while on Sunday Manchester United enjoyed a 3-1 win over Aston Villa at Old Trafford and Tottenham scored a last-minute goal to draw 1-1 at Liverpool. There were goalless draws for Fulham at Nottingham Forest and for 10-man Leeds at Crystal Palace while on Monday evening Wolves came from 2 down to draw at Brentford.