LIVERPOOL, May 19 — The battle for Champions League qualification will go to the final day of the Premier League season with five clubs in the running for three remaining places.
Arsenal guaranteed they will join Liverpool in Europe’s elite competition next season with a 1-0 win over Newcastle on Sunday.
But just one point separates Newcastle in third from seventh-placed Nottingham Forest.
Emotions ran high for Everton and Leicester fans on Sunday for different reasons.
The Toffees waved goodbye to Goodison Park, their home for 133 years with a 2-0 win over Southampton.
Leicester’s farewell was for one of their greatest ever players as Jamie Vardy struck his 200th goal in his 500th appearance for the Foxes against Ipswich.
AFP Sports looks at three talking points from the Premier League weekend.
Arsenal’s Jakub Kiwior, Riccardo Calafiori and Myles Lewis-Skelly clashes with Newcastle United’s Dan Burn and Fabian Schar. — Reuters pic
Arsenal’s consolation prize
Mikel Arteta admitted Arsenal’s ambitions at the start of the season were bigger than finishing second for a third consecutive season.
But after failing to keep pace with Liverpool and suffering a heartbreaking Champions League semi-final exit to Paris Saint-Germain, the Spaniard did have something to celebrate by guaranteeing a top-five finish.
“We had a dream,” said Arteta. “(To) bring the big trophies to you guys and we couldn’t do it for many circumstances.
“We need to make sure that chasing a dream doesn’t get blurry and make sure we chase the dream with positivity and enthusiasm for next season.”
Newcastle’s defeat means Manchester City can go third if they win their game in hand against Bournemouth on Tuesday.
But fresh from the disappointment of losing the FA Cup final to Crystal Palace, City are now under massive pressure not to miss out on the Champions League.
Victories for Chelsea and Aston Villa on Friday pushed Pep Guardiola’s men down to sixth.
City’s superior goal difference, though, means that four points from their final two games will be enough to qualify.
Vardy’s leaving party
A season to forget for Leicester at least had a happy ending as Vardy brought down the curtain on a remarkable spell at the King Power Stadium.
Singed from non-league club Fleetwood Town in 2012, Vardy spearheaded the Foxes stunning Premier League title triumph in 2015-16.
He also helped Leicester to win the FA Cup for the first time in 2021.
“As a symbol of the spirit that defined the most successful era in our history, Jamie rightly carries the title of our greatest of all time,” Leicester chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha said.
The 38-year-old has not yet revealed where he will go next season as Leicester head back to the Championship.
“I’ve enjoyed every minute of this. I look forward to keeping an eye on the club I love,” said Vardy, who was visibly emotional as he was replaced to a standing ovation in the second half.
Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy with his family during the lap of appreciation after playing his last match for Leicester City. — Reuters pic
Everton’s end of an era
The tears also flowed at Goodison as Everton supporters paid homage to the scene of the club’s bygone glory days.
Despite failing to win a trophy for 30 years, the Toffees’ nine top-flight English titles are only surpassed by four other clubs.
Iliman Ndiaye’s double ensured there was no spoiling the party against relegated Southampton.
And Everton manager David Moyes was keen to use the emotional goodbye as a springboard to a brighter future when the men’s team move to a new 52,000 capacity stadium in Liverpool’s docklands next season.
“It is a club that is needing some big days, a big future. Let’s hope this is the start of it,” said Moyes.
“If we can take what we had today to the new stadium, it will be something.” — AFP
