Sunday, May 11, 2008

Repeat Title For Red Devils; Toffees Clinch UEFA Cup Berth; Cottagers Stay Up While Reading and Birmingham City Go Down (Alongside Feckless Rams)

Sunday marked the conclusion of the 2007-08 English Premier League season:

At Wigan:

Record-holder Ryan Giggs marked a lifetime's loyalty with the best present possible as he delivered another Premier League title to Manchester United as they beat Wigan 2-0.

United were in front but needing calming despite Cristiano Ronaldo's first-half penalty when Giggs kept his nerve to coolly slot home Wayne Rooney's through ball.

A quarter of an hour earlier, Giggs' had been introduced for his 758th United appearance, equalling a milestone left by Sir Bobby Charlton that will surely be eclipsed in Moscow on May 21.



At London:

The afternoon began in hope but ended in despair for Chelsea as Manchester United retained the Barclays Premier League title.

Substitute Andriy Shevchenko's second-half strike was cancelled out by Kevin Davies' added-time leveller in a 1-1 draw against Bolton but the Blues were also left reeling from the loss of captain John Terry with shoulder injury in the first half.



At Liverpool:

Record signing Ayegbeni Yakubu struck twice to help Everton to a 3-1 win against Newcastle and back into Europe for the third time in four seasons.

The £11million that boss David Moyes paid for Yakubu has clearly paid off, with fifth place now secured.



At Portsmouth:

Fulham fans danced with delight after Danny Murphy's header 14 minutes from time kept them in the Barclays Premier League with an amazing third away win in a row as they beat Portsmouth 1-0.

Midfielder Murphy was left virtually unchallenged to nod in a Jimmy Bullard free-kick of a largely dismal game at Fratton Park which left FA Cup Finalists Portsmouth nursing their fourth consecutive defeat before next week's Wembley final against Cardiff.



At Derby:

Reading were relegated from the Barclays Premier League despite a convincing 4-0 victory over Derby at Pride Park.

The Royals put in a performance to be proud of as they swept the Rams aside with relative ease. James Harper curled home to hand the Royals a deserved half-time lead before Dave Kitson, Kevin Doyle and Leroy Lita made it a second-half rout.

However, their efforts were to prove in vain as Fulham's victory at Portsmouth ensured Steve Coppell's men will join Derby and Birmingham in the second tier next season by virtue of goal difference.



At Birmingham:

Birmingham fans turned on chairman David Gold and co-owner David Sullivan as their side's relegation from the Barclays Premier League was confirmed despite substitute Cameron Jerome's late double in a 4-1 win against Blackburn.

At Middlesbrough:

Sven-Goran Eriksson's anticipated final match in charge of Manchester City ended in humiliating fashion as his 10-man side lost 8-1 at Middlesbrough.

The former England boss has guided the club to ninth in the Premier League and a likely place in the UEFA Cup via the Fair Play League but that does not appear enough to save his job.



At Sunderland:

Theo Walcott handed Arsene Wenger a winning finish to the season with the only goal as they beat Sunderland 1-0.

The England Under-21 international fired home from Gilberto's 24th-minute pass to claim the points as the Black Cats fought them all the way to the whistle.



At London:

Liverpool striker Fernando Torres wrapped up a 2-0 victory at Tottenham to set a record for goals scored by a foreigner in his first season in the Premier League.

Torres' goal was his 24th since arriving from Atletico Madrid, taking him past Ruud van Nistelrooy's total when he arrived at Manchester United.



At London:

Aston Villa's last-ditch push to secure a UEFA Cup place ended in failure as they concluded their season with a 2-2 draw at West Ham.

Skipper Gareth Barry appeared to have fired a second-half winner when he expertly finished a move he started but Hammers striker Dean Ashton struck a late equaliser to earn his side a point they scarcely deserved.

But ultimately Villa's efforts to secure European qualification were rendered meaningless by Everton's victory over Newcastle which took the matter out of their hands.



And here are the final standings for the EPL season:


May 11, 2008GPPT
Man Utd3887
Chelsea3885
Arsenal3883
Liverpool3876
Everton3865
Aston Villa3860
Blackburn3858
Portsmouth3857
Man City3855
West Ham3849
Tottenham3846
Newcastle3843
Middlesbrough3842
Wigan3840
Sunderland3839
Bolton3837
Fulham3836
Reading3836
Birmingham3835
Derby3811

Manchster United and Chelsea have clinched berths in the group stage for the 2008-09 UEFA Champions League, Arsenal and Liverpool clinched berths in the third qualifying round for the Champions League, Everton has clinched a berth in the second qualifying round for the 2008-09 UEFA Cup. Liverpool can clinch a UEFA Cup berth by beating Cardiff in the May 17 FA Cup final. It appears likely that Manchester City will also be heading for UEFA Cup play. Reading, Birmingham City, and Derby County have been relegated to the League Championship.







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