The final days of many a Premier League season have resulted in several dramatic moments, reminding us time and again that nothing is impossible in the beautiful game. From unbelievable title wins to exhilarating relegation battles, there have been some unforgettable memories for football fans. Here, we present to you our pick of the 10 most dramatic final day moments that have been etched in the annals of Premier League history.
10. Lasagne Gate | 2005/06
In the 2005/06 season, Tottenham Hotspur missed out on Champions League qualification due to an infamous incident involving lasagne.
Spurs looked all set to pip their North London rivals Arsenal to a Champions League spot, but on the eve of their final game illness swamped through their squad after eating lasagne at the hotel where they were staying. Tottenham requested for the game to be postponed, but their request was denied. A weakened Spurs then went on to lose 1-2 to West Ham United, ending their extraordinary season in disaster.
Contrasting scenes could be seen at Highbury, where the Gunners were celebrating a Thierry Henry hattrick that sealed a 4-2 win over Wigan Athletic and handed them the bragging rights in North London as their side secured Champions League football at the expense of their bitter rivals.
9. Carlos Tevez’s heroics deal Sheffield United a Hammer blow | 2006/07
West Ham left it late in the 2006/07 season to survive the drop when Carlos Tevez turned hero in the final weeks to drag the Hammers out of the jaws of relegation.
Tevez and Javier Mascherano had arrived at West Ham in a controversial deal involving third-party ownership issues. While Mascherano couldn’t make much of an impact, Tevez earned cult-hero status by scoring seven goals in the last ten games of the season, including an incredible final day winner against champions Manchester United to drag the Hammers out of relegation, but the drama didn’t end here.
Staying up ahead of Sheffield United on goal difference, the Hammers were fined £5.5 million after breaking rules over the Tevez transfer, but they fortunately avoided a points deduction. Dissatisfied with the proceedings, Sheffield United sought compensation and a bitter legal battle ensued. The Hammers eventually reached an out-of-court settlement that saw them handing £20 million to the relegated Blades.
8. The £20m game | 2002/03
Chelsea faced Liverpool in the final weekend of the 2002/03 season with both sides looking to grab the last Champions League spot. The game was dubbed as the “£20 Million Game” due to the prize money that was on offer.
In dramatic fashion, Chelsea came from behind to make the top four thanks to goals from Marcel Desailly and Jesper Grønkjær after Sami Hyypiä’s header had given Liverpool the lead in the 11th minute.
Grønkjær’s winner earned Chelsea not just Champions League football for the season after, it also changed their fortunes forever. The Blues had been on the brink of financial wreckage at the time, and their Champions League qualification put them in the eyeline of the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who was in the market for investment into a football club. His acquisition of Chelsea just weeks later kickstarted the revival that has since made Chelsea a global footballing superpower.
7. Blackpool and Birmingham City go down | 2010/11
This was the a season that saw at least five teams entangled in a relegation scrap. With West Ham already relegated, two of Wigan, Blackpool, Birmingham City, Wolves, and Blackburn Rovers were set to go down on the final day.
Wigan, Birmingham City, and Blackpool were all on 39 points, with not even goal difference separating them by much, so a heavy defeat for any side could have ended their stay in the topflight.
Blackburn ensured their safety after going 3-0 up at half-time at Wolves, and when Blackpool led at Man United, they started believing. However, a comeback from the champions-elect saw them lose 4-2 and drop down to the Championship.
Birmingham grabbed an 80th-minute equaliser at Tottenham to temporarily send Wigan into the drop zone, but an 82nd-minute Latics winner at Stoke City and a late Spurs winner broke the hearts of the Birmingham Blues.
6. Everton’s redemption in a Goodison thriller | 1993/94
Everton looked destined for the Championship going into the last game of the season against Wimbledon in ’94. Even a win wasn’t going to be enough for them to ensure safety. The Toffees hadn’t been relegated since 1951, but poor performances in the latter half of this season had strongly suggested that that was about to change.
The game started adversely for Everton as Wimbledon scored as early as the fourth minute through a Dean Holdsworth penalty to silence the home fans. 15 minutes into the game, Gary Ablett’s comedic own goal looked to have sealed Everton’s fate.
But the Merseyside Blues did not lose hope. Buoyed on by a buzzing home crowd, they fashioned their best-ever comeback in Premier League history. Graham Stuart converted from a spot-kick to pull one back before half-time, and a fine effort from Barry Horne and Stuart’s second of the game late on completed the hard-fought win. Sheffield United, who were leading at Chelsea, ended up losing 3-2 in West London and went down in the Toffees’ stead.
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5. Oldham Athletic live to fight another day | 1992/93
Oldham Athletic pulled off a stunning late escape in a ten-day span despite sitting second from bottom with three games remaining.
Joe Royle led his side to a shock victory over second-placed Aston Villa before securing another shock result by bagging three points against Liverpool to set up a dramatic final-day encounter with fellow strugglers Southampton. In the final-day fixture, Matt Le Tissier scored a hattrick for the Saints but still ended up on the losing side as Oldham beat them in a 4-3 box-office thriller. Oldham were not out of the woods yet, as they needed favourable results elsewhere.
Their salvation arrived in the form of Crystal Palace, who lost 3-0 to Arsenal on the final day, prompting Boundary Park to erupt in crazy celebrations as Oldham survived on goal difference.
4. Blackburn Rovers become champions even in defeat | 1994/95
Blackburn Rovers were top of the table going into the final game of the season at Anfield, with Manchester United in tow. A loss for them and a United win would have shipped the Premier League trophy to Manchester.
Blackburn, led by Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish, started brightly as Alan Shearer opened the scoring, but a John Barnes equaliser threatened to tilt the balance in favour of the Red Devils. However, Liverpool scored a stoppage-time winner from a Jamie Redknapp free-kick to defeat them 2-1.
Over in London, Manchester United had managed to equalise after going 1-0 down at West Ham, ensuring a dramatic climax. They could not capitalise on their dominant display, however, as the Hammers keeper Ludek Mikloško turned hero for Blackburn, ensuring they clinched the league title even in defeat. Their first topflight title lift in 81 years was witnessed by a jubilant Anfield crowd applauding Dalglish, the Blackburn boss, and their hero.
3. Manchester City grab victory from jaws of defeat | 2021/22
Manchester City and Liverpool went into the last game of the season with City leading by a point. In a thrilling finale, Liverpool were drawing against Wolves at home, while the Cityzens were shockingly trailing 0-2 to, of all sides, Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa. Liverpool managed to win their game courtesy of Mohamed Salah, but in the end it wasn’t enough.
At the Etihad, Ilkay Gündogan came off the bench and inspired a brilliant comeback, scoring two of the three goals in a frantic six-minute period that sent the City fans berserk.
This was one of the closest title battles in recent years, and Manchester City showed their champion mentality as they came from behind to secure a second consecutive title to the dismay of the Merseyside Reds, who were left feeling hard done by as they failed to win the title despite accruing 92 points and losing only two games all season.
2. West Brom’s epic survival | 2004/05
West Bromwich Albion looked all set to drop to the Championship after being bottom of the pile at Christmas. In an unbelievable turn of events come the final day of the season, however, the Baggies avoided relegation and went from being bottom-placed to leapfrog the ultimately-relegated teams.
Bryan Robson’s team beat Portsmouth 2-0 at The Hawthorns in the final fixture. Substitute Geoff Horsfield opened the scoring with an excellent volley before Kieran Richardson doubled the advantage, though West Brom had to wait for the other results to come through for them before they could celebrate.
Elsewhere, Norwich City and Southampton lost their respective games and Crystal Palace drew theirs, allowing West Brom to climb out of the relegation places as pandemonium ensued among their fans.
1. “Agueroooo!” | 2011/12
The most iconic and unforgettable moment of the Premier League came on the final day of the 2011/12 season. Manchester United were on course to defend their league title, but an unexpected collapse from them gave Roberto Mancini’s City side some much-required boost, and they beat United with two games to go to set up a thrilling final day.
City had to beat Queens Park Rangers at home to clinch the coveted trophy, but it was easier said than done as QPR were in a relegation scrap of their own.
Pablo Zabaleta scored the opener on the day, giving City the lead. United then took the lead at Sunderland as they breathed down City’s neck before QPR, down to ten men, entered the stoppage time 2-1 up at the Etihad. Edin Džeko then headed home early into injury time to grab City the equaliser, raising the hopes of the home fans. With the clock counting down, a golden opportunity arrived for the Sky Blues as Mario Balotelli pushed the ball through to Sergio Agüero in the QPR box, who didn’t make any mistake in front of a delirious home crowd.
City ended up winning the Premier League title on goal difference, ending a 44-year-long wait for English topflight silverware as shockwaves went reverberating throughout the red half of Manchester.
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