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In August, it felt optimistic to rank Nottingham Forest even 14th in the Premier League. In September, we thought that either Brighton or Tottenham Hotspur were among the five best teams in England. In November, we still thought Spurs were top-five contenders and, even more damning, we thought Manchester United were worthy of a midtable spot. (Silly us.) In January, we were all aboard the AFC Bournemouth train.

Record semi-regular power rankings for long enough and you begin to realize just how frequently one's perceptions can change over a ridiculously long season. And in a year in which both the title and relegation fights were over before May, we reach the final stretch of the 2024-25 Premier League campaign watching Newcastle United and Aston Villa rise and Forest fall back toward where they began the season. (We're also dreaming of a postseason playoff.)

Below are our final updated power rankings for the 2024-25 season, followed by some analysis of the most notable changes from our previous rankings in January. Newcastle and Villa are flying high, Manchester City have been laminated on that No. 4 spot for a while, everyone has been great and terrible at some point, and Forest have stumbled in an extremely predictable way.

The updated Premier League team rankings

We last did this in January, and our rerankings -- the combination of the individual rankings from Bill Connelly and Ryan O'Hanlon -- are listed along with the new May adjustments, plus each team's present points total in the Premier League table and goal differential. Here's our final rerank of the 2024-25 Premier League season:

Better late than never from Newcastle and Aston Villa

Imagine that the Premier League had a season-ending playoff system like they do in the Belgian Pro League; after the regular-season round-robin is complete, everyone's point totals are cut in half and the top six teams play an additional round-robin to determine the league's champion. Granted, this doesn't really work for a 20-team league (Belgium's has 16) -- that's a 38-game regular season, followed by 10 more games -- but we can do whatever we want in a thought experiment.

Using analyst Simon Tinsley's full-season projections and rounding odd numbers up, we would start a six-team Premier League playoff with Liverpool at 44 points, Arsenal at 37, Manchester City and Newcastle at 35, and Chelsea and Aston Villa at 33. It would still take a monstrous comeback for someone to catch Liverpool, but based on current form it wouldn't be unrealistic to think that Newcastle and Aston Villa might round out a post-playoff top three.

Newcastle have lost just one of their last 10 matches in all competitions -- and that one loss was to Villa, who have lost just three of their last 15. Since March 8, these are the only two teams to average more than 2.0 points per game in league play (Villa at 2.63; Newcastle 2.44), and they aren't really overachieving any of their underlying numbers. They've simply been two of, at worst, the top three teams in the league.

In this span, Newcastle are first in goals scored and third in goals allowed; Villa are the opposite: third in goals, first in goals allowed. They have moved up accordingly in our power rankings.

Newcastle are getting sustained brilliance from the wing pairing of Jacob Murphy (right) and Harvey Barnes (left); since March 8, they have combined for seven goals and seven assists.

Barnes has supplanted Anthony Gordon on the left side of the attack and, with 13 combined goals and assists this season, he's close to matching the 14 he produced in 1,100 more minutes at Leicester City in 2022-23. He's also completed 74 progressive carries in this span, second on the team and fifth in the league among non-defenders. Combined with Alexander Isak's continued brilliance, Barnes has given Newcastle's ultra-direct attack a jolt of life just as others' energy levels in the league have dissipated.

For Villa, meanwhile, it's been all about the combination of increasingly sturdy defense and attacking reinforcements from the bench. Their possession rate during this brilliant run is just 41.4% (16th in the league), and they're averaging just 29.3 touches in the attacking third (18th). But while they're allowing opponents to take as many shots as they want -- since March 8 they're allowing 0.16 shots per possession (17th) -- none are from good positions. They're allowing just 0.11 expected goals (xG) per shot, the lowest in the league.

Once they've properly absorbed pressure, Villa counter attack pretty well, especially late in a match. From the 70th minute onward, they've scored seven goals in this span (most in the league) and allowed just one (fewest). Adding both Marcus Rashford (loan) and Donyell Malen (€23 million) in the January transfer window allowed Emery to shuffle his attackers and create valuable substitutions, and Malen has two of those seven late goals.

Both teams needed this late surge. Heading into March 8, Villa were seventh in the league with 45 points and Newcastle were eighth at 44. Newcastle had lost four of six league matches, dropping decisions to Liverpool and Manchester City by a combined 6-0, while Villa had endured a five-match league winless streak. Now they're both among the top 10 teams in the world, per the Opta supercomputer.

Newcastle's odds of finishing in the top five have surged to 95%, per both Opta and Tinsley; Villa's are between 37% (Tinsley) and 42% (Opta). And those odds don't factor in that their final two matches are against Europa League finalists Tottenham Hotspur (May 16) and Manchester United (May 25) on both sides of that final. They could benefit from distraction in both instances. -- Connelly

Manchester City never really found fifth gear

I think we all expected Manchester City to figure it out at some point, right? To start scoring goals for fun? To shut things down at the other end? To control, suffocate and dominate games like they've been doing for nearly a decade?

Instead, there are two games left in the season, and City are just two points (and some goal differential) clear of missing out on the Champions League altogether. Now, they're probably not going to miss out -- Tinsley's projections give City a 95% likelihood of finishing in the top five -- but there's still a chance they don't.

Per Transfermarkt, City spent €218m on transfer fees for five players in January, while no other club in Europe was north of €55m. With all those new players in tow, here's how they've performed since the start of February -- based on their adjusted goal difference (a blend of 70% xG and 30% goals):

And here's how things looked before the start of February:

The numbers improved slightly: up from plus-0.54 to plus-0.61, and up from fifth-best to fourth-best. But this wasn't City returning to form as a Premier League- and Champions League-level challenger, like we saw with Liverpool toward the end of both of their down years, 2020-21 and 2022-23, under Jurgen Klopp. This was a borderline top-four-level team turning into a slightly less borderline top-four-level team.

Now, the defense has improved drastically. Their adjusted goals-allowed number was 1.41 per game before February, and it's plummeted all the way down to 0.96 since then. City are allowing nearly five fewer shots per game -- 13.3 before February; 8.0 since -- and they've allowed significantly tougher shots, too: 0.11 xG per shot, compared to 0.14 before February. The press, too, has been a little more aggressive and a little more effective now that they've integrated some younger legs into the lineup.

But it's come at a significant cost at the other end. City's adjusted-goals number has slipped from 1.96 per game before February to 1.57 per game since. Before February, they were attempting 17.2 shots per game -- just slightly behind Liverpool's league-leading mark of 17.7. But since February, that number has dropped to 13.8, and the quality of the shots hasn't improved at all.

So, basically, they're trading one form of instability for another. Before the January window, City could attack but they couldn't defend. And now they can defend but can't attack. Just take last weekend's Southampton game: They faced a team with nothing to play for -- and one that, according to City defender Rúben Dias, "didn't even try" -- but they were totally unable to generate any quality attempts.

What all this means is that City are not guarantee to win either of their remaining games, especially against tricky midtable teams like Fulham and Bournemouth. This just still isn't a team that can tilt the field so much that their opponent falls off the other end.

They'll probably hang on to finish in the top five, since they have a points lead and a goal difference lead, but if the team are going to bounce back to Premier League title contention next season, a lot is going to have to change. Right now, they're not even close to Liverpool ... or even Arsenal. -- O'Hanlon

Nottingham Forest couldn't outrun xG forever

On April 1, barely six weeks ago, Nottingham Forest beat Manchester United 1-0. Including a 0-0 draw with Arsenal and a 1-0 win over Manchester City, it extended a key unbeaten streak to four games. With eight matches to go, Forest were in third place with 57 points, eight ahead of fourth-place Chelsea, nine ahead of fifth-place City and, most importantly for Champions League qualification, 10 points ahead of sixth-place Newcastle.

Six matchdays later, they're in seventh. After blowing two different leads in a 2-2 draw against relegated Leicester City on Sunday, they're now a point behind in the race for a top-five spot and, with the way they've been playing, that gap feels much larger. They've won just one of their last seven games in all competitions and only one of six in the Premier League. If ever there were a use for the word "collapse," it's apt here.

It's only sort of a collapse, though. Looking at the advanced stats, it was pretty clear that Forest were running extraordinarily hot. It was only a question of whether they could lock down a Champions League berth before they came back down to earth. That is now looking unlikely.

On April 1, Forest had scored 50 goals (sixth in the league) on shots worth just 38.0 xG (15th). Their goal differential was plus-15 (fourth), despite an xG differential of plus-1.8 (10th). They had won five league matches with a negative xG differential, and in nine matches with an xG differential of minus-0.75 or worse, they had managed to steal eight points with two wins and two draws.

Meanwhile, in nine matches with a plus-0.75 xG differential or better, they had taken nine wins. They had certainly produced some sterling performances, and players like Murillo and Chris Wood -- the chief xG overachiever (he's scored 20 league goals from shots worth 12.4 xG) -- have been among the league's best. After finishing 16th and 17th over the previous two seasons, even improvement to about 10th would have been noteworthy. But, well, they had as many minus-0.75 performances as plus-0.75s above; that isn't a Champions League-worthy statistical résumé.

On paper, Forest should be closer to Everton and Manchester United than Chelsea and Manchester City and, unfortunately for them, reality is finally beginning to reflect that. Forest's form has certainly taken a further downturn in this awful six-match swing -- they've actually still managed to overachieve against xG, stealing a 2-1 win over Spurs (xG differential: minus-1.7) and a 1-1 draw with Palace (minus-1.6) in this span. But since April 2, they rank 15th in points per game (0.83) and 17th in xG differential (minus-5.6). They've hit a brick wall, but it's only so much of a surprise.

Of course, the story is not over just yet. This weekend, Forest play West Ham -- a team in form as rickety as theirs -- before hosting Chelsea in their final game. That might be a Champions League play-in of sorts, and Chelsea won't have suspended forward Nicolas Jackson, whose absence is usually noteworthy. (Chelsea average 1.89 points per game when Jackson starts and 1.50 when he doesn't.)

It would only take a couple more breaks for Forest to make their long-awaited return to the Champions League, a competition they won in 1979 and 1980 (when it was called the European Cup), but it might turn out that they've already exhausted their supply of good breaks. -- Connelly

Everyone in the middle's been great and terrible at some point

Don't look now, but Brentford are all the way up to eighth place. And while the table doesn't show it, this weekend's FA Cup finalists, Crystal Palace, might be even better than that, as they're currently eighth in the season-long adjusted-goal-difference table. More importantly, these two clubs are the biggest risers in the latest edition of these rerankings.

We've been enamored with various other mid-ish table clubs throughout the season, too. There was a period where Brighton's talented young players and manager were putting up impressive results, week in and week out. We've been high on Fulham. We've liked what Everton have done since David Moyes returned. We like what Wolves are doing right now. We rode the Forest train until it ran out of steam. And we once even tabbed Bournemouth as one of the favorites for a Champions League place.

The point is: the Premier League's midtable is stacked and that's been lost amidst the awful relegated sides, Liverpool's walk to the title, and the struggles of almost every other big club. But I think part of the reason that most of the big clubs have struggled this year is that there are fewer "gimme" matches than ever before. Throw Villa into the mix above and you have nine teams outside of the traditional Big Six and Newcastle who have been genuinely tough to play against this season, at least at some point.

This isn't just a subjective feeling, either.

The Club Elo ratings view clubs purely based on their results. There are no league adjustments or underlying data sources or anything like this. You win games, you gain rating points. You lose a game, you lose points. And how many points you win or lose is determined by the quality of the opponent (based on all the points they've won and lost in the past) and the location of the game.

Based on these rankings, Villa are the 11th-strongest team in the world; Palace sit 16th and Brentford 17th, sandwiched below Napoli and above Borussia Dortmund. Then there's Bournemouth in 20th, one spot below Roma and one ahead of Juventus. Forest are 22nd, below Juve and ahead of AC Milan. And Brighton are one spot below Milan. Thanks to their Europa League performance, even Manchester United sneak into the last spot of the top 25.

Put another way, the teams sitting in sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, 10th, 12th, and 16th in the Premier League are all among the 25 best teams in the world.

Stretch it out to the top 50 and Tottenham (31), Everton (33), Fulham (34), West Ham (41), Wolves (44) all make it, as do the two automatic qualifiers from the Championship: Burnley (47) and Leeds (49). Were team strengths distributed equally across the five biggest countries, you'd expect each league to have eight or nine teams -- leaving some room for the best teams in the Netherlands and Portugal.

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has confirmed that Dejan Kulusevski will be out for "a few months" and will miss next week's Europa League's final.

After being forced off in Sunday's Premier League defeat to Crystal Palace, it was revealed on Wednesday that the winger had undergone surgery on his right knee.

While no timeframe was offered for his absence, Kulusevski was a near certainty to miss the final against Manchester United on May 22 and Postecoglou has now confirmed that.

"It's obviously disappointing news," Postecoglou said at a news conference on Thursday. "Initially we thought it wasn't too serious because obviously the medical team were worried about how the knee was structurally, but it seemed pretty good.

"But then it kind of blew up a day after and so we knew there was an issue there. He's had surgery and it will put him out at least for a few months."

Asked if Kulusevski would be back the start of next season in August, Postecoglou added: "We'll see. I've only got basic information in terms of recovery but it will certainly put him out for a while."

With James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall both suffering season-ending injuries, Tottenham could only have three fit senior midfielders for the clash with United in Biblao -- Rodrigo Bentancur, Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr.

Maddison suffered a knee injury in the 3-1 Europa League semi-final first leg win over Bodo/Glimt at the start of the month, while Bergvall suffered ankle ligament damage in training ahead of the same game.

There was speculation that Bergvall could make a shock return against United, but Postecoglou quashed those rumours on Thursday.

"No, it's still the same sort of timeframe," he said.

"Never long term, but he's just got out of his boot and taking his first steps on the grass. He'll likely be a while."

Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-Min has filed a complaint to South Korean police alleging he was the victim of a blackmail attempt, his agency said on Thursday, after media reports that a woman had threatened him with a false pregnancy claim.

"The police are currently investigating, so we will let you know the results as soon as they are available," his agency Son & Football Limited said in a statement. "We'd like to tell you that Son Heung-Min is clearly the victim of this incident."

Police had arrested a woman in her 20s and a man in his 40s, and were investigating allegations they tried to extort money from Son with the fake pregnancy claim, local media reported on Thursday, citing police.

The Seoul Gangnam Police Station did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the reports.

Son, 32 is hugely popular in South Korea, not only for his success on the pitch in England's Premier League but also for his dedication to the country's national team as its captain.

Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-Min has filed a complaint to South Korean police alleging he was the victim of a blackmail attempt, his agency said on Thursday, after media reports that a woman had threatened him with a false pregnancy claim.

"The police are currently investigating, so we will let you know the results as soon as they are available," his agency Son & Football Limited said in a statement. "We'd like to tell you that Son Heung-Min is clearly the victim of this incident."

Police had arrested a woman in her 20s and a man in his 40s, and were investigating allegations they tried to extort money from Son with the fake pregnancy claim, local media reported on Thursday, citing police.

The Seoul Gangnam Police Station did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the reports.

Son, 32 is hugely popular in South Korea, not only for his success on the pitch in England's Premier League but also for his dedication to the country's national team as its captain.

Dejan Kulusevski is set to miss Tottenham Hotspur's Europa League final against Manchester United next Wednesday after undergoing surgery on the knee injury he suffered against Crystal Palace at the weekend.

In a statement confirming the injury, Spurs stopped short of confirming the timeframe for Kulusevski's recovery, but with the match in Bilbao just seven days away, it is likely that Ange Postecoglou will be able to call upon just three fit senior midfielders for the clash with United -- Rodrigo Bentancur, Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr.

"Following further specialist consultation, the midfielder has undergone surgery today and will commence his rehabilitation with our medical staff immediately," the north London club said in a statement.

Lucas Bergvall suffered an ankle injury in training before Spurs' semifinal first leg victory over Bodo/Glimt and will miss the remainder of the campaign as a result. James Maddison will also miss the final after he suffered a knee injury against the Norwegian side.

Speaking after the Palace game in which Kulusevski was substituted in the 19th minute after receiving treatment on the pitch, Postecoglou suggested the injury would not keep him out of the final.

Asked about the extent of Kulusevski's issue, Postecoglou said: "He should be OK [from] just talking to him after.

"The medical team is not too concerned with him. It's more of a knock than anything else. We are hoping he should be OK."

Kulusevski was a regular in Postecoglou's starting XI during the first half of the campaign, but a foot injury in March kept him sidelined for two months. His absence coincided with the emergence of the 19-year-old Bergvall and Maddison's return to form. However, all three have had their seasons ended by injury over the last two weeks.

Injuries have been a constant theme of Postecoglou's second season in charge but the timing of Kulusevski, Bergvall and Maddison's respective absences could hardly have been worse for Spurs' under-pressure head coach.

Spurs' dismal league campaign has left them languishing in 17th place in the Premier League table -- one place above the relegation zone -- with only the possibility of a triumph in the Europa League left to salvage something from the season.

If Spurs do overcome United -- who they have beaten three times in all competitions already the season -- it would see them qualify for the Champions League and represent their first trophy since 2008.

Tottenham Hotspur are planning to parade the Europa League trophy in front of their fans if they win the final despite opponents Manchester United indicating they will not hold a major celebration if they are victorious in Bilbao, sources have told ESPN.

Tottenham will attempt to win their first piece of silverware since 2008 when they meet United in the Europa League final in Spain next week.

A source has told ESPN that Spurs, who sit one place above the relegation places in the Premier League after a miserable domestic campaign, are keen to hold a parade if they win.

United, however, will not do the same if they win the final. The club have traditionally decided against holding open-top bus parades after winning cups.

There was no parade after winning the FA Cup in 2016, the Carabao Cup and Europa League in 2017, the Carabao Cup in 2023 or the FA Cup in 2024.

The last United parade was held to celebrate their 20th title in 2013, also the year of Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement.

United would struggle to find time to hold a parade even if there was a desire to organise one.

Following the Europa League final on May 21, Ruben Amorim's team play their final Premier League fixture of the season against Aston Villa at Old Trafford on May 25.

The squad are then due to fly to Malaysia immediately after the game for a two-match post-season tour. Following their return, a number of players will be expected to join up with their national teams for international fixtures in June.

Speaking about the post-season tour, Amorim said: "We need to help the club, because the club wins some money.

"We are going to connect with our fans around the world. And that is important, especially when we lose and we disappoint our supporters during this tough season.

"So I think it's the least we can do. And we are going to take all the team, young kids also, we'll have the staff there. We have a lot of changes in the staff, so we are trying to build something as a family. I think it's also a good thing."

The 2024-25 Women's Super League (WSL) season is over and Chelsea have been crowed champions for the sixth successive year. Many predicted that the Blues might struggle in the wake of losing legendary manager Emma Hayes last summer but Sonia Bompastor has made a mockery of those suggestions by leading the team to an unbeaten season, a record points total (60) and League Cup success, with an FA Cup final to come against Manchester United next weekend.

Arsenal pipped United to second place, while last year's runners-up Manchester City struggled with injuries, sacked manager Gareth Taylor and only managed to finish fourth.

Elsewhere, inconsistency dogged Liverpool and Brighton in their push to break into the top four, while Tottenham had one of their worst seasons ever to finish 11th after winning just five of their 22 games under Robert Vilaham. And, as so often happens in the women's top flight, the promoted team (in this case, Crystal Palace) went straight back down.

Next year will see Michele Kang's London City Lionesses become the first independent women's club to play in the WSL, so that could change, but for now let's look back at the season.

TEAM GRADES

CHELSEA (A+)

Given their sixth-consecutive title and an unbeaten run (19 wins, three draws from 22 games) all season in the league, it's impossible to argue that Chelsea do not deserve the highest grade possible. It was a seamless transition during Sonia Bompastor's first year -- you wouldn't know Emma Hayes had left with how dominant the Blues have been. A record points tally (60), beating their former record of 58, tops off an impeccable campaign.

ARSENAL (B-)

It's been a frustrating season for Arsenal. It started slow, as they won only one of their first four games, and Jonas Eidevall resigned in October. Then there was a rebirth under Renée Slegers, who was appointed full-time in January. But the Gunners dropped off at the end of the season, conceding 12 goals (46% of their overall tally) in their last three games. Despite reaching their first European final in 18 years -- they face Barcelona in the Women's Champions League final on May 24 -- the domestic campaign has left a lot to be desired and they finished 12 points behind Chelsea.

MANCHESTER UNITED (B)

Despite putting in an exceptional defensive campaign, with the joint-most clean sheets, United's lack of clinical finishing left them struggling for answers in games they should have won comfortably. While ending the season in third place rather than fifth (as they did last year) shows improvement, it's hard to see where the team are growing. An FA Cup win next weekend would allow them to go out on a high, but they'll need some investment if they are to mount a serious title challenge.

MANCHESTER CITY (C-)

City's campaign has been anything but positive. It all started well, with six wins from seven games, but collapsed as five defeats ensured they failed to qualify for Europe and finished fourth. Last season's runners-up closed the gap so many times but were undone by their own misfortunes. Their injury crisis didn't help, neither did Gareth Taylor's sacking five days before their League Cup final loss to Chelsea. The only way is up next season.

BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION (B)

Brighton pulled out some pretty impressive results -- including a win over Arsenal and draw against Chelsea -- and looked like they might challenge for the top four early on. Yet in games you'd think they'd win easily, they struggled immensely. Ultimately, that inconsistency sealed their fate as they finished 15 points off City, but there are positives for manager Dario Vidosic to build on from his debut campaign.

ASTON VILLA (C+)

If you were to rank Villa's opening half of the season, it would be a D. But their second half of the season, which included five straight wins to take them from 11th to sixth, would rate as an A. That turbulence has made it hard to grade the season as a whole, but the turnaround under new manager Natalia Arroyo has been nothing short of remarkable.

LIVERPOOL (B-)

After their fourth-placed finish last season, Liverpool will be disappointed to fall to seventh. They lost their grip on the top half of the table toward the end of the season, as coach Matt Beard was sacked in February, and it was a repeated narrative for the Reds: poor defending, injuries, and a lack of clinical finishing. Something needs to change soon or they could face further disappointment and it's unclear if interim boss Amber Whiteley will remain in charge.

EVERTON (B-)

There have been plenty of positives this season -- including doing the double over local rivals Liverpool for the first time since 2012 -- but it consistently feels like Everton are stuck in the middle of the pack and they struggled horribly with injuries to key players again. Backing manager Brian Sørensen with another contract, plus new investment following the club's takeover, means the future looks bright. But more is needed for them to push on.

WEST HAM UNITED (A-)

It was a disappointing end for West Ham, who were on track to finish in the top half of the table before one win from their last five games. Yet they've often been the surprise team of the campaign -- notching draws against Chelsea, Man United and Man City -- with Shekiera Martinez (10) and Viviane Asseyi (9) providing plenty of goals. The pieces might finally be falling into place for manager Rehanne Skinner.

LEICESTER CITY (D)

An injury crisis threatened to derail Leicester's season -- at one point the side had no fit forwards available. Yet they responded well to clinch a 1-1 draw against a Chelsea side that had won nine out of nine games in December. With other lower-table teams picking up wins, Leicester needed good home wins over Villa, Liverpool and Brighton in 2025 to keep clear of danger and were helped by Crystal Palace's early drop-off. Warning signs have been there for Leicester for some time and another season passes without much improvement.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR (F)

Having secured a sixth-placed finish and a spot in the FA Cup final last season, many tipped Spurs to push on. But instead they have massively regressed. Five wins from 22 games isn't good enough for this side but their defence was poor and conceded the joint second-most goals in the league (44). There have been few positives this season and manager Robert Vilahamn's job will be on the line this summer.

CRYSTAL PALACE (D)

The disparity between the first and second tier of English women's football has, once again, been made clear. Like many of the promoted teams before them, Palace were unable to sustain their place in the WSL after only one season and drop back to the Championship after conceding 65 goals and picking up only two wins. There were positives, but a lack of experience and resources sealed their fate with two games remaining. Sacking manager Laura Kaminski in February also didn't help. -- Emily Keogh

SEASON-LEADING STATS

The WSL trophy and Golden Boot award honor the best team and goal scorer respectively, but football is about more than just that. Here, we look at the standout players from the season in a multitude of different skill categories, using data from FBref. And the numbers don't lie.

Best creator: Mariona Caldentey (Arsenal)

Caldentey has been one of the most influential players this season, as evidenced by her winning the Player of the Season award, and her 14 goal contributions (9 goals and 5 assists) were only bettered by West Ham's Viviane Asseyi and Man United's Elisabeth Terland (15 each). However, Caldentey accrued the league's highest expected assist (xA) tally of 6.9, while the Spain international was also the only player to record over 100 shot-creating actions (104), with 88 of them coming from open play.

Most overperforming xG: Shekiera Martinez (West Ham United)

The 23-year-old averaged a goal contribution every 90 minutes: including four goals against Crystal Palace, a brace against Chelsea, and one against Arsenal. Only Man City's Khadija Shaw (12) and Arsenal's Alessia Russo (11) scored more non-penalty goals than the Germany U20 international (10), despite her only returning from her loan at Freiburg midway through the season in January. But her 10 goals came from an impressive expected goals (xG) tally of 5.5.

Best in the box: Alessia Russo (Arsenal)

Russo's ability to threaten inside the box has been a vital addition to Arsenal's attack and the England forward registered 149 touches in the opposition area this season, the most by any player in the WSL. Indeed, she has been a constant outlet for the Gunners in behind, getting on the end of 137 progressive passes and was caught offside 26 times -- 10 more than her nearest rival.

Best in the air: Sophie Román Haug (Liverpool)

No player has contested or won more aerial duels than the Norway international this season (88/140 aerial duels won). She may only be 5-foot-7, but Roman Haug is one of just two players to win over 50 aerial duels in this season alongside Crystal Palace's Katie Stengel (51). Much like Liverpool men's player Diogo Jota, it's her aerial technique that makes her such a dominant figure rather than her height, and it adds a further dimension to the team's attacking structure.

Best all-action defender: Ashleigh Neville (Tottenham Hotspur)

While Tottenham had a poor overall season, finishing second from bottom, Neville put up great defensive numbers. The 32-year-old full-back, who has played on the right and left this season, has been a behemoth in defence and no player won more tackles (73) or intercepted the ball more times (44) than her. Neville's 42 blocks was also second behind Crystal Palace's Lexi Potter (45).

Best at recovering the ball: Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City)

Playing as the defensive midfielder often requires you to tidy up loose balls, screen the defence and initiate attacks, among other things. And, with 174 recoveries, no player recovered the ball more than Hasegawa. The Japan international did all the defensive work while committing no fouls in her 1,935 minutes -- the most by any outfielder.

Best goalkeeper: Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United)

Tullis-Joyce had big shoes to fill at Manchester United this summer in replacing Mary Earps, but she kept 13 clean sheets in her 22 league games and shared the Golden Glove award with Chelsea's Hannah Hampton.

In the chart below we can quantify a goalkeeper's impact on their side by looking at the goals saved tally. This metric allows us to see how many goals a goalkeeper would have conceded based on the number of shots on target they faced. And the 28-year-old tops the charts by having stopped 6.8 goals for her side.

Best at drawing fouls: Olivia Smith (Liverpool)

Nimble forwards are a delight to watch; anything is possible with the ball at their feet as they twist, turn and create issues for the defenders. Among the WSL players to have played over 900 minutes this season, no one drew fouls at a better rate than Smith (2.64 fouls won per 90 minutes) and the 20-year-old wreaked havoc against Man City, Man United and Arsenal. Nine of the fouls drawn led to shots, with only West Ham's Asseyi recording more (10).

Best at threading the needle: Grace Clinton (Manchester United)

A through-ball is one of the most threatening passes in the game and Manchester United's Clinton recorded eight. The 22-year-old midfielder has played some of her best football this season, scoring eight times, though none of her deliveries resulted in an assist.

Best at switching play: Millie Bright (Chelsea)

Chelsea ran away with the league title, with Bright at the heart of things, but it wasn't just her defensive qualities that made the 31-year-old centre-back valuable. Her 17 switch passes were the most by any player and, among players with over 100 attempted long balls this season, she had the second-best completion rate (71%), only behind Manchester City's Laia Aleixandri (75%).

Most reliable outfielder: Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United)

Le Tissier was key to United's solid defence and her impeccable fitness and availability saw her become the only outfield player to start and finish every single league game in the WSL this season. In fact, she has started and finished all league games in four of her last five WSL seasons, never missing a game due to injury or suspension. Her importance to the Red Devils is also shown by her comfort on the ball and she accounted for 13.1% of United's total open-play touches this season, the highest share of any player. -- Yash Thakur

The finish line is in sight across the European leagues, and there is tension everywhere as clubs jostle for positions in the standings.

Well, most clubs are anyway. In the case Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, it was another two woeful losses in the Premier League as their focus shifts fully towards the UEFA Europa League final.

In Spain, Barcelona once again came back to break Real Madrid hearts, this time in a 4-3 humdinger at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, while in Germany, league champions Bayern Munich got to say farewell to a legend in Thomas Müller.

All that and more in this edition of Weekend Review as Luis Miguel Echegaray, Sam Marsden and Constantin Eckner look across Europe for the big takeaways and highlights from the weekend.

Premier League

Top takeaway: Man United, Tottenham lose again

You can read our recap of Liverpool's 2-2 draw with Arsenal here, so let me begin this weekend's review with the Europa League finalists.

Both played at home on Sunday and suffered the same fate as Manchester United (16th) lost 2-0 to West Ham United whilst Tottenham Hotspur (17th) suffered defeat to Crystal Palace by the same scoreline. Ruben Amorim's side cannot finish higher than 13th place as a result of their latest loss -- making this their worst season in the Premier League and worst in the top-flight since 1973-1974 when they were relegated. In that campaign, United also suffered 17 league losses. There is no fluidity to their game, nor is there a consistency to their shape of strategy when they have the ball. And I have to be honest, I think they would have been in serious relegation problems had it not been for the presence of Bruno Fernandes.

How about Spurs? In their second season under Ange Postecoglou, the North London side were horrific against Palace as the wonderful Eberechi Eze carved them out with a brace and quite frankly, it could have been more for Oliver Glasner's Eagles. It was Tottenham's 20th defeat of the season.

The question, therefore, begs to be asked: Will this season's Europa League final host the worst two finalists in history? If we're basing it solely on table standings: absolutely. And this includes UEFA Cup's history. Back in 1993-1994, Internazionale finished 13th, avoided relegation by a point in Serie A (four teams went down in a table of 18 teams) and still managed to win the aforementioned UEFA Cup against Austria Salzburg (now known as RB Salzburg) so that would be the closest comparison. But this final in Bilbao? It speaks for breaking any record, both statistically (16th against 17th with a combined 37 league losses) and aesthetically. The fact that one of these teams will play in the Champions League next season is almost insulting.

Best match: Nottingham Forest 2-2 Leicester City

On paper and to the neutral, this would have seemed like an automatic win for Forest, who remain stoic in their historic hunt for Champions League football. A game at City Ground against the already-relegated Leicester City? Too easy, surely.

But what both these fanbases will remind you is that this is an East Midlands derby so there is always room for tension. Leicester didn't care that they were already down, they weren't here just to make up numbers. They led 1-0 and after Forest came back to make it 2-1, Ruud van Nistelrooy's men kept pushing and it was the introduction of Brighton & Hove Albion loanee Facundo Buonanotte that made the difference. His 81st minute goal made it 2-2 and that's how the game ended, thus severely damaging Forest's hopes of a top-five finish.

At the final whistle, Forest owner Evangelos Marinaki stormed the pitch venting his frustration at Nuno Espirito Santo, which was a terrible show of support and an act of horrible taste. I think we have to remind the Greek owner that the mere fact that Forest are even in this situation is nothing short of remarkable.

Best goal: Eberechi Eze vs. Tottenham

The 26-year-old attacker already had the opener in the 45th minute thanks to Daniel Muñoz's assist and then continued on his threatening mood three minutes into the second half. It was a quick counter from Palace as Eze drove the ball forward from inside his own half until finding Ismaïla Sarr with a delicious pass with the outside of his foot. He kept running towards the box as Sarr returned the favor, finding Eze, who slotted past Spurs keeper Antonín Kinský. Eze is a tremendous talent and there is no reason why Glasner's side could not beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final.

MVP of the weekend: Matty Cash

It's quite simple really. Aston Villa have to keep winning in order to stand a chance for Champions League football and this included this past weekend when Unai Emery's men faced AFC Bournemouth, who have European ambitions of their own.

Cash had the daunting task of dealing with the menacing runs of Milos Kerkez and handled it very well. But it was in the final moments of the game where Cash delivered heroics. Villa were leading 1-0 but playing with 10 men after Jacob Ramsey's red card in the 80th minute. The Cherries kept pushing for the equalizer and with seconds to go, Antoine Semenyo put in a ball inside the box heading towards Emiliano Martínez's far post where Daniel Jebbison was ready to meet it and make it 1-1. The Aston Villa goalkeeper put a hand to it but it was still heading towards Jebbison. But Cash put his body on the line to clear the danger and ensured his team's lead. A vital intervention from the Poland international that helped his team earn three incredibly important points. -- Echegaray

LaLiga

Top takeaway: Trouble brewing at Sevilla

One of Spain's biggest clubs are in genuine relegation trouble and it's getting ugly.

On Saturday, Sevilla lost 3-2 away at 10-man Celta Vigo to continue their slide down the table. The decision to sack García Pimienta and replace him with Joaquín Caparrós has not paid off. They have now failed to win in eight games, four under Caparrós, and, with just three matches to play, are only four points clear of the drop zone.

They host relegation rivals Las Palmas on Tuesday at the Sánchez-Pizjuán and then finish the season with difficult fixtures against Real Madrid and Champions League-chasing Villarreal.

The club's supporters are getting nervous. On Saturday, after the squad returned to the training ground from Vigo, a group of angry fans forced their way into the premises and barricaded the players inside.

Sevilla confirmed that the players had to spend the night at the training base to avoid any trouble, with local media reporting police used rubber bullets to clear out the most aggressive groups.

"Sevilla will report to the relevant authorities the unusual violent attacks on its employees, players, technical staff and management upon their arrival at the training complex," the club said in a statement.

Best match: Barcelona 4-3 Real Madrid

How could it not be the Clásico? Barça came from 2-0 down to beat Madrid 4-3 and put one hand on the LaLiga title. After romping to their fourth consecutive victory over Madrid this season, Hansi Flick's side need just two more points from their final three league fixtures. For the second time in three years, they could even seal the title away at city rivals Espanyol on Thursday.

Best goal: Lamine Yamal vs. Real Madrid

To borrow an old phrase: the teenager is still not a great goal-scorer, but he is a scorer of great goals. Case in point was his brilliant equaliser against Madrid. It looked like there was no room to get a shot away in a crowded box, but he found a way through a bunch of Madrid bodies, angling the ball into the corner and leaving Thibaut Courtois no chance.

MVP of the weekend: Alexander Sørloth

Sørloth stated his case to start more games for Atlético Madrid next season by scoring the earliest hat trick in LaLiga history against his former side Real Sociedad. The Norwegian's treble came inside 11 minutes, with just five minutes separating his first goal from his third, and then he went on to score a fourth goal on the half-hour mark as Atlético won 4-0. The best part? Sørloth told ESPN after the game it's not even the best four-goal haul he's netted in LaLiga.

"I think last season [when he scored four vs. Real Madrid for Villarreal] was better," he said, "because it was against a better opponent." -- Marsden

Bundesliga

Top takeaway: Thomas Müller's final home game

Bayern Munich secured their 34th German championship last week, so a lot of smiles in and around the Allianz Arena were to be expected. Just like a few tears among Bayern Munich supporters, because their beloved forward Müller had to say "Auf Wiedersehen" to his fans. Müller made his first appearance for the first team in 2008 and has since played 750 competitive games, winning countless national and European titles.

For many years, the saying, "You never sub off Müller" was held in high regard among fans, meaning that managers who did not fully trust the fan favourite received suspicious looks. Müller's team faced a bravely defending and countering Borussia Monchengladbach side which definitely wanted to become party poopers. But Manuel Neuer, who made his return after a lengthy absence due to a muscle tear in his calf, denied several promising attempts by the guests.

Meanwhile, Müller tried to get into a position for a final goal at the Allianz Arena but remained unlucky throughout the game. He was subbed off in the 84th minute, as his teammates stood in line for him while fans were chanting, "Müller, Müller, Müller." Following Bayern's 2-0 win, they were handed over the Meisterschale, with Müller being the first to lift the trophy which had been absent from Bayern's stadium for a year. It was an emotional day all around in Munich.

Best match: Union Berlin 0-3 Heidenheim

With an empathic win over Union, who are in no man's land in the standings, Heidenheim keep their chances to avoid relegation alive. The guests were quite effective in offense, as they converted their first chances against an underwhelming Union side. While Kiel and Bochum lost their respective games on Saturday, Heidenheim will at least qualify for the relegation playoffs against the third-placed team of 2. Bundesliga.

Best goal: Michael Olise vs. Gladbach

Bayern managed to seal the deal late, minutes after Müller had left the field. Leroy Sané moved into position from the right wind and then dummied a shot before playing a precise pass through the opposing line to Olise. The Frenchman hit the ball with the outside of his boot, sending it into the corner. It was a great way to get the championship celebrations rolling.

MVP of the weekend: Manuel Neuer

The 39-year-old had missed 10 games after suffering a muscle injury in early March, with up-and-comer Jonas Urbig replacing the veteran goalkeeper for the time being. Neuer made his comeback on Saturday against Borussia Mönchengladbach and turned out to be a nightmare for the visitors. Particularly in the second half, Neuer managed to make a number of saves on route to a clean sheet. The expectation is that Neuer intends to play a final season with Bayern before calling it a day. -- Eckner

What else you missed this weekend

Final spot for the Champions League in Serie A is coming down to the wire

It's not just the Premier League where we have a dramatic race for remaining Champions League spots. In Italy, fourth place is up for contention. After Napoli, Internazionale and Atalanta there is a legitimate battle for UCL between six teams. Juventus currently hold fourth place but Saturday's 1-1 draw against fifth-placed Lazio means that other teams below them can take advantage.

AS Roma play a difficult game away at Atalanta on Monday and they need a win in order to overtake Juventus and Lazio in the standings. Serie A favors head-to-head and, because Roma drew with Juve twice this season, goal differential takes precedence and that's currently led by Juventus.

Eze double hands Palace win, Spurs 20th EPL loss

Eberechi Eze scored on either side of halftime to give Crystal Palace a 2-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and condemn the hosts to their 20th Premier League defeat of the season.

May 11, 2025, 05:25 pm - Reuters

Eberechi Eze scored on either side of halftime to give Crystal Palace a 2-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and condemn the hosts to their 20th Premier League defeat of the season.

Palace's first league win since early April kept them in 12th place with 49 points - equalling their best-ever points tally in the Premier League with two games left in the season.

Both teams had little to play for, but the clash at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium still had an air of optimism about it, with Palace having reached the FA Cup final and Spurs within touching distance of Europa League glory.

The home fans' cheer quickly evaporated, however, and they were subjected to a frustrating afternoon in which Palace had the hosts on the ropes from the get-go.

"Good performance. We did everything we needed to do today. Energy and we won our duels. We're in a good position for next week [FA Cup final]," Eze told Sky Sports.

"The final means everything. We have to put ourselves in the best position and today was a good step towards that. We're confident and we need to do what we do, be the best version of ourselves and anything is possible."

Palace repeatedly tore through Tottenham's defence with ease and put the ball in the net in the eighth minute but Ismaïla Sarr's goal was ruled out to due to an offside in the build-up.

Oliver Glasner's side created a string of chances and had another goal disallowed in the 43rd minute after Maxence Lacroix's header glanced off team mate Marc Guéhi's arm before crossing the line.

They finally broke the deadlock just before halftime when winger Daniel Muñoz bombed down the right flank and squared the ball to Eze for a tap in.

Three minutes after the interval Tottenham were rocked by another sweeping attack as Eze ghosted into the box and calmly slotted home Sarr's pass to net his seventh league goal of the season.

The goal drew a reaction from a listless Tottenham but despite their efforts they could not piece together any truly threatening attacks, while Palace almost added a third when Eddie Nketiah drew a sharp save from Antonin Kinsky in the 92nd minute.

For Tottenham, who have only one win in 10 league games, the defeat extended an abysmal run and dropped them into 17th place in the standings after West Ham United beat Manchester United.

The north-London club, who have only the already-relegated trio of Ipswich Town, Leicester City and Southampton below them, are on course for their lowest finish since the 1976-77 season, when they finished 22nd and were relegated from the top-flight.

They were also dealt an injury blow when attacker Dejan Kulusevski went off injured after only 19 minutes - a significant concern for manager Ange Postecoglou with just 10 days until their Europa League final against United.

"It was disappointing, we never really got into the game and we didn't control it at any time...," Postecoglou told Sky Sports.

"I'm disappointed, it's clear we're not anywhere near the level we need to be. We're making changes and the guys are getting opportunities."