Tuesday 13 June 2023

The Season 2022/23 - Manchester City complete incredible Treble


MANCHESTER CITY completed a Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup treble after beating Internazionale 1-0 in the European Cup Final.

Rodri struck the only goal with a well-placed shot from the edge of the box midway through the second half as Pep Guardiola's men achieved true football greatness at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul.

The lead almost did not last long but somehow Federico Dimarco only managed to hit his own man Romelu Lukaku on the rebound from his own looping header onto the bar.

Then, in a nervy finish, the Blues were indebted to the positioning of their Brazilian goalkeeper Ederson when Lukaku astonishingly failed to convert a header from just six yards. 

Whether by luck or good judgement, the ball hit Ederson on the knee and stayed out of the net - and the keeper was soon called into more conventional action in stoppage time to tip over Alessandro Bastoni's header. 

But, after Inter could make nothing of one last corner, the most raucous ever Manchester City celebrations could finally begin. 

On the previous weekend, Ilkay Gundogan had got Guardiola's side off to an ideal start in the FA Cup Final by scoring the fastest ever goal in the history of the Wembley showpiece with a beautiful volley after just 12 seconds.

Bruno Fernandes equalised from the penalty spot for Manchester United but Gundogan struck another volley early in the second half - and even had the ball in the net for a third time, only for it to be ruled offside. 

Man City survived a late scare when goalkeeper Stefan Ortega scrambled Raphael Varane's scrappy effort onto the bar - but overall the blue half of Manchester fully deserved to complete the second part of the trilogy against their bitter cross-city rivals. 

Earlier, a seventh Premier League title - and ninth top division title overall - landed at the Etihad Stadium as Man City overtook long-time leaders Arsenal during the run-in.

The Gunners led the league for 248 days - but the dropped points in draws against West Ham United, Liverpool and Southampton, and in defeats to Man City and Nottingham Forest, meant Mikel Arteta's men had to settle for a runners-up spot.

Erik Ten Haag provided Man United supporters with some encouragement in his debut season at Old Trafford by finishing in third place and winning the Carabao Cup Final.

In both endeavours, the Red Devils got the better of Newcastle United. Nevertheless, the Magpies still enjoyed an excellent first full campaign on Tyneside under Eddie Howe to finish fourth and qualify for the Champions League for the first time in 20 years.

That meant the late-season seven-match winning run from Liverpool was all in vain and the Reds must make-do with the Europa League in 2023-24.

While that has come across as a disappointment to Jurgen Klopp's men, sixth place for Brighton & Hove Albion represents a first foray into European competition in the club's history.

Not even the disruption of losing Graham Potter to Chelsea in September could derail the Seagulls as his replacement Roberto De Zerbi proved an astute appointment.

Italian De Zerbi actually introduced a more attacking style of play and it paid off as Brighton combined their league form with a run to the FA Cup semi finals.

The last league-based European spot went to seventh-placed Aston Villa who will wonder what might have been if they had started the season under Unai Emery and not Steven Gerrard who struggled for much of his tenure. 

Emery eventually delivered a Europa Conference League spot to the Villains, which will be the first European football at Villa Park for 13 years. 

By contrast, Tottenham Hotspur in eighth missed out altogether for the first time in 15 years after an already abject season completely fell apart in the closing stages.

Spurs reached their nadir when 5-0 down against Newcastle in just 21 minutes in an extraordinary collapse which cost caretaker Cristian Stellini his job.

Stellini himself had replaced Antonio Conte after the multiple champion had delivered a spectacular rant against the club's ownership and "selfish" players - and the season ended with another messy, as of yet unresolved, search for a new head coach. 

Remarkably, Chelsea fared worse still - and, having started the season with Thomas Tuchel, they finished it in 12th with Frank Lampard for their lowest league placing since 1993-94. 

The Blues even fell short of matching fellow west London sides, Brentford and Fulham, who were ninth and 10th respectively - and in fact finished above only one other team from the capital, West Ham.

The Hammers, though, can at least more than console themselves with a first major trophy in 43 years - and their first European silverware since Sir Bobby Moore lifted the Cup Winners Cup in 1965. 

Jarrod Bowen was the hero of the night for David Moyes's men in Prague, striding past the Fiorentina offside trap and keeping his cool in the 90th minute to make it 2-1.

As such, West Ham will also take part in the Europa League next season, meaning that the Premier League boasts an impressive eight teams in UEFA competitions in 2023-24.

At the bottom, season-long strugglers Southampton meekly slumped out of the top flight after an 11-year sojourn, and the south coast club were joined by Leeds United and Leicester City. 

Leeds had turned to Sam Allardyce in a bid to rescue their Premier League status - but, unsurprisingly, the tiresome dinosaur failed to get anywhere near to sorting out the Whites defence and took just one point out of 12. 

The biggest casualties of the season, though, were undoubtedly Leicester City after Dean Smith was unable to get the Foxes out of the terrible funk which they had fallen into under predecessor Brendan Rodgers.

Bizarrely, Smith played for a point away at Newcastle in their penultimate match, a result which took the fate of his side out of their hands - and it ultimately it proved costly as Everton escaped again on the last day by beating Bournemouth at home. 

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Elsewhere, in English football, this season was the first occurrence of all three of the Football League Playoff Finals needing at least extra time for an outcome.

Two of them, in fact, needed penalties as Luton Town became the 51st club to be represented in the Premier League era by beating Coventry City from 12 yards to return to the top flight after a 32-year absence.

Dan Potts scored the decisive kick for the Hatters - and left them with plenty of work to do over the summer just to ensure their rather ramshackle Kenilworth Road ground meets Premier League standards. 

In League One, Sheffield Wednesday endured perhaps the most torturous post-season adventure ever.

Thrashed 4-0 in the first leg of the semi final by Peterborough United, the Owls' hopes looked over - but the Yorkshire club staged an amazing comeback in the second leg to equalise.

Even then, in extra time in the second leg, Posh regained a 5-4 lead and Wednesday had to equalise again ahead of victory on penalties. 

In the Final, Wednesday held the upper hand for most of the match with south Yorkshire rivals Barnsley reduced to 10 men early in the second half. 

However, it took until the third minute of stoppage time in extra time - and effectively the last touch of the game - for Josh Windass to make the breakthrough with a fantastic diving header. 

Carlisle United also won under the Wembley Arch in League Two as the Cumbrians held their nerve to beat Stockport County on spot-kicks after narrowly getting the better of Bradford City in the semi finals.

Victory means Paul Simpson's side will play in the third tier for the first time in 10 years while Stockport County must try again in the bottom tier having also missed out on automatic promotion on the last day of the regular season. 

Finally, in the National League, Notts County's effort of 107 points in the regular season did not go to waste - but, after Wrexham had taken the only automatic place on 111 points, the Magpies needed to negotiate the playoffs. 

It almost went wrong in the semi finals against against Boreham Wood - but Notts recovered to win 3-2 in extra time before scraping past East Midlands rivals Chesterfield on penalties in the Final.

As a result, Notts County once again can proudly claim ownership of being the oldest club in the Football League. 

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(1) MANCHESTER CITY
W28 D5 L5 F94 A33 +61 Pts 89

Manager Pep Guardiola (since July 2016)
FA Cup Winners League Cup Quarter finals Champions League Winners
Top scorer Erling Haaland (36) Clean sheets 13 Failed to score 3

(2) ARSENAL W26 D6 L6 F88 A3 +45 Pts 84
Manager Mikel Arteta (since December 2019)
FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Third round Europa League Last 16
Top scorers Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard (15) Clean sheets 14 Failed to score 4

(3) MANCHESTER UNITED W23 D6 L9 F58 A43 +15 Pts 75
Manager Erik ten Hag (since May 2022)
FA Cup Runners-up League Cup Winners Europa League Quarter finals
Top scorer Marcus Rashford (17) Clean sheets 17 Failed to score 7

(4) NEWCASTLE UNITED W19 D14 L5 F68 A33 +35 Pts 71
Manager Eddie Howe (since November 2021)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Runners-up
Top scorer Callum Wilson (18) Clean sheets 14 Failed to score 11

(5) LIVERPOOL W19 D10 L10 F75 A47 +28 Pts 67
Manager Jürgen Klopp (since October 2015)
FA Cup Fourth round League Cup Fourth round Champions League Last 16
Top scorer Mohamed Salah (19) Clean sheets 14 Failed to score 8

(6) BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION W18 D8 L12 F72 A53 +19 Pts 62
Managers Roberto De Zerbi (since September 2022); Graham Potter (until September 2022)
FA Cup Semi finals League Cup Fourth round
Top scorer Alexis MacAllister (10) Clean sheets 12 Failed to score 5

(7) ASTON VILLA W18 D7 L13 F51 A46 +5 Pts 61
Managers Unai Emery (since November 2022); Steven Gerrard (until October 2022)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round
Top scorer Ollie Watkins (15) Clean sheets 12 Failed to score 8

(8) TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR W18 D6 L14 F70 A63 +7 Pts 60
Managers Ange Postecoglou (since June 2023); Antonio Conte (until March 2023), Cristian Stellini (interim, until April 2023), Ryan Mason (interim, until May 2023)
FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Third round Champions League Last 16
Top scorer Harry Kane (30) Clean sheets 10 Failed to score 4

(9) BRENTFORD W15 D14 L9 F58 A46 +12 Pts 59
Manager Thomas Frank (since October 2018)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round
Top scorer Ivan Toney (20) Clean sheets 12 Failed to score 9

(10) FULHAM W15 D7 L16 F55 A53 +2 Pts 52
Manager Marco Silva (since July 2021)
FA Cup Quarter finals League Cup Second round
Top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic (14) Clean sheets 9 Failed to score 9

(11) CRYSTAL PALACE W11 D12 L15 F40 A49 -9 Pts 45
Managers Roy Hodgson (since March 2023); Patrick Vieira (until March 2023)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round
Top scorer Eberechi Eze (10) Clean sheets 9 Failed to score 16

(12) CHELSEA W11 D11 L16 F38 A47 -9 Pts 44
Managers Mauricio Pochettino (since May 2023); Thomas Tuchel (until September 2022), Graham Potter (until April 2023), Frank Lampard (until May 2023)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round Champions League Quarter finals
Top scorer Kai Havertz (7) Clean sheets 10 Failed to score 14

(13) WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS W11 D8 L19 F31 A58 -27 Pts 41
Managers Julen Lopetegui (since November 2022); Bruno Lage (until October 2022)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Quarter finals
Top scorers Ruben Neves, Daniel Podence (6) Clean sheets 11 Failed to score 15

(14) WEST HAM UNITED W11 D7 L20 F42 A55 -13 Pts 40
Manager David Moyes (since December 2019)
FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Third round Europa Conference Winners
Top scorer Said Benrahma (6) Clean sheets 9 Failed to score 13

(15) AFC BOURNEMOUTH W11 D6 L21 F37 A71 -34 Pts 39
Managers Gary O'Neil (since August 2022); Scott Parker (until August 2022)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Fourth round
Top scorer Philip Billing (7) Clean sheets 8 Failed to score 18

(16) NOTTINGHAM FOREST W9 D11 L18 F38 A68 -30 Pts 38
Manager Steve Cooper (since September 2021)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Semi finals
Top scorer Taiwo Awoniyi (10) Clean sheets 7 Failed to score 12

(17) EVERTON W8 D12 L18 F34 A57 -23 Pts 36
Managers Sean Dyche (since January 2023); Frank Lampard (until January 2023)
FA Cup Third round League Cup Third round
Top scorer Dwight McNeil (7) Clean sheets 9 Failed to score 14

(18) LEICESTER CITY W9 D7 L22 F51 A68 -17 Pts 34
Managers Vacant; Brendan Rodgers (until April 2023), Dean Smith (until May 2023)
FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Quarter finals
Top scorer Harvey Barnes (13) Clean sheets 7 Failed to score 12

(19) LEEDS UNITED W7 D10 L21 F48 A78 -30 Pts 31
Managers Vacant; Jesse Marsch (until February 2023), Javi Gracia (until May 2023), Sam Allardyce (until June 2023)
FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Third round
Top scorer Rodrigo (13) Clean sheets 5 Failed to score 10

(20) SOUTHAMPTON W6 D7 L25 F36 A73 -37 Pts 25
Managers Vacant; Ralph Hasenhüttl (until November 2022), Nathan Jones (until February 2023), Rubén Sellés (until May 2023)
FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Semi finals
Top scorers James Ward-Prowse (9) Clean sheets 4 Failed to score 15

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ROLL OF HONOUR 2022-23

ENGLAND
Premier League
ChampionsManchester City
Runners-upArsenal
Champions LeagueManchester United (3rd), Newcastle United (4th)
Europa LeagueLiverpool (5th), Brighton & Hove Albion (6th)
Europa ConferenceAston Villa (7th)
RelegationLeicester City, Leeds United, Southampton

Championship
ChampionsBurnley
Runners-upSheffield United
Playoff winnersLuton Town (won 6-5 on penalties against Coventry City following 1-1 aet)
RelegationReading, Blackpool, Wigan Athletic

League One
ChampionsPlymouth Argyle
Runners-upIpswich Town
Playoff winnersSheffield Wednesday (won 1-0 against Barnsley, after extra time)
RelegationMilton Keynes Dons, Morecambe, Accrington Stanley, Forest Green Rovers

League Two
ChampionsLeyton Orient
Runners-upStevenage
Also promotedNorthampton Town
Playoff winnersCarlisle United (won 5-4 on penalties against Stockport County following 1-1 aet)
RelegationHartlepool United, Rochdale

National League Premier
ChampionsWrexham
Playoff winnersNotts County (won 4-3 on penalties against Chesterfield following 2-2 aet)
RelegationTorquay United, Yeovil Town, Scunthorpe United, Maidstone United

National League North
ChampionsAFC Fylde
Playoff winnersKidderminster Harriers (won 2-0 against Brackley Town)
RelegationKettering Town, Leamington, Bradford (Park Avenue), AFC Telford United

National League South
ChampionsEbbsfleet United
Playoff winnersOxford City (won 4-0 against St Albans City)
RelegationDulwich Hamlet, Concord Rangers, Cheshunt, Hungerford Town

Domestic Cup Finals
FA Cup FinalManchester City 2-1 Manchester United
League Cup FinalManchester United 2-0 Newcastle United
FA Community ShieldLiverpool 3-1 Manchester City
EFL TrophyBolton Wanderers 4-0 Plymouth Argyle
FA TrophyHalifax Town 1-0 Gateshead
FA VaseAscot United 1-0 Newport Pagnell Town

SCOTLAND
Premiership
ChampionsCeltic
Runners-upRangers
Europa LeagueAberdeen (3rd)
Europa ConferenceHearts (4th), Hibernian (5th)
RelegationDundee United

Championship
ChampionsDundee
Runners-upAyr United (not promoted)
RelegationHamilton Academical, Cove Rangers

League One
ChampionsDunfermline Athletic
Runners-upFalkirk (not promoted)
Playoff winners

Airdrieonians (won 6-5 on penalties, after 2-2 on agg, v Hamilton Academical
(1-0h, 1-2a aet))
RelegationClyde, Peterhead

League Two
ChampionsStirling Albion
Runners-upDumbarton (not promoted)
Playoff winnersAnnan Athletic (won 5-2 on aggregate v Clyde (3-1h, 2-1a))
RelegationAlbion Rovers (lost 1-2 on aggregate v The Spartans (1-1h, 1-0a))

Domestic Cup Finals
FA Cup FinalCeltic 3-1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle
League Cup FinalCeltic 2-1 Rangers
Challenge Cup FinalHamilton Academical 1-0 Raith Rovers

WALES
Welsh Premier League
ChampionsThe New Saints
Europa ConferenceConnah's Quay Nomads (2nd), Penybont (3rd), Haverfordwest County (playoffs)
RelegationFlint Town United, Airbus UK Broughton

Welsh Cup Finals

FA Cup FinalThe New Saints 6-0 Bala Town
League Cup Final

Bala Town 0-0 Connah's Quay Nomads, after extra time
Bala Town won 4-3 on penalties

NORTHERN IRELAND
Irish Premiership
ChampionsLarne
Europa ConferenceLinfield (2nd), Crusaders (cup winners), Glentoran (playoff winners)
RelegationPortadown

Irish Cup Finals

IFA Cup FinalCrusaders 4-0 Ballymena United
League Cup FinalLinfield 2-0 Coleraine

EUROPE
UEFA Finals
Champions LeagueManchester City (Eng) 1-0 Internazionale (Ita) 
Europa LeagueSevilla (Spa) 1-1 Roma (Ita), after extra time. Sevilla won 4-1 on penalties.
Europa ConferenceWest Ham United (Eng) 2-1 Fiorentina (Ita)
Super CupReal Madrid (Spa) 2-0 Eintracht Frankfurt (Ger)

Major European league champions
SpainBarcelona
ItalyNapoli
GermanyBayern Munich
France Paris Saint-Germain
PortugalBenfica
NetherlandsFeyenoord
BelgiumRoyal Antwerp
GreeceAEK Athens
TurkeyGalatasaray

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