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Match of The Day a few quick thoughts

  • The main story was the abandonment of the Manchester United vs Bournemouth game due to a suspect package found in the ground before kick off. That meant that the season hasn’t quite finished due to this game being rescheduled for Tuesday but what it does mean is that United will be playing Europa League Football next season.
  • Also playing a league game 4 days before the Cup Final won’t be ideal preparation so don’t be surprised if a reserve side is put out now to face Bournemouth
  • That’s because of Manchester City getting the point needed to all but secure a Top 4 place, it’s going to have to take a mathematical freak of a result for United to overtake their cross town rivals. Just the 19-0 win will be enough on Tuesday, so no pressure on United whatsoever
  • As for City they almost went through the motions yesterday, after going in front early on they should have then gone on to wrap up the game but they spurned many chances and once Andre Ayew equalised just before half time, City were prepared to play for the point as the game petered out for a draw
  • So not quite the ending that Manuel Pellegrini would have wanted but at least he managed them to a Top 4 finish before he hands the reigns over to Pep Guardiola
  • Tottenham. Wow
  • Where do you start. 5-1 away at Newcastle. Relegated Newcastle I must add
  • An abysmal afternoon which has cost Tottenham 2nd place in the league and once again they finish below their arch rivals Arsenal
  • 2 points from their last 12. As I mentioned they really are a different side without Dembele and Alli and yesterday it showed
  • But even so that doesn’t legislate for a defeat of that magnitude. An awful end to what has been a decent season
  • This slump will no doubt take the shine of the players efforts but lets not forget they still managed to get Champions League Foobtall next season, so it’s not quite doom and  gloom but the ending certainly leaves a sour taste
  • A great day for Newcastle but surely the fans will be asking “Where have you been keeping that performance all season?”
  • The kind of performances they needed much earlier in the season
  • Will that win be enough to convince Rafa Benitez to stay on and take charge of the side in The Championship
  • Arsenal leapfrogged their arch rivals thanks to a 4-0 win over Aston Villa. Oliver Giroud with a hat-trick but let’s be honest it’s against Villa. Giroud isn’t going to be the man who is going to lead you to a league title
  • Arsene Wenger will have to go out and buy one in the Summer if they are to make that step up to the top rung of the league table
  • But 2nd place will no doubt go some way to appeasing the fan base that were calling for his heads a few weeks ago
  • Football fans are a fickle bunch
  • As for Aston Villa, their miserable season is finally over. Life in The Championship awaits, the question now is who will be taking charge
  • Southampton are going on a European tour after securing Europa League action thanks to a comfortable win over Crystal Palace
  • It’s 16 points out of 18 for Ronald Koeman’s side as they go up into 5th for now but with United’s game in hand I would imagine they would finish 6th. Even so that is enough to start dreaming of Europe
  • The key now is keeping hold of key players and also Ronald Koeman over the Summer otherwise they could be looking at the annual summer rebuilding process
  • As for Palace it seems apparent that they were dreaming of Wembley glory on Saturday as they were soundly beaten to end what has been a severely disappointing 2016 in the league
  • West Ham will be hoping that Palace don’t win on Saturday as the last Europa League place up for grabs is between those two sides
  • West Ham fell at the final hurdle after defeat to Stoke which now sees them 7th in the table. They now have to hope that Louis Van Gaal’s side do them a favour and allow The Hammers to sneak in and snatch the last Europa League slot
  • It will have been disappointment for Slaven Bilic as his side have been on the fringes of a Top 4 spot for so long so to see them slip down to 7th would have been a bitter pill to swallow
  • For Stoke a 3rd consecutive 9th place finish. If Jack Butland hadn’t got injured for England back in March then who knows where Mark Hughes’ side would have finished. But on the whole they will be happy with that
  • Champions Leicester came from behind to get a share of the points as the new champions faced the former champions at Stamford Bridge
  • It was Guus Hiddink’s last game in charge and he didn’t quite get the perfect send off thanks to Danny Drinkwater’s fantastic late equaliser for Leicester cancelled out Cesc Fabregas’ 2nd half spot kick
  • Although neither side have nothing to play for it was still played with a decent intensity and Leicester refused to just turn up and go through the motions, a real credit as to why they have been deserved Champions
  • After the match John Terry addressed  the fans and said that he wants to stay at the club, so maybe we will see him in a Chelsea shirt next season after all
  • At Vicarage Road it was Quique Sanchez Flores last game in charge of Watford and he had to make do with a point against a Sunderland side who could afford to make many changes after securing Premier League survival last Wednesday
  • For Watford it will be interesting to see who comes in and takes over, will they be able to build on the Spaniard’s platform this season or have the Pozzo family got rid of one Manager too many
  • For Sunderland it’s a job well done for the players and especially Big Sam. The key now is to make sure they buy well in the Summer so they can get a bit of distance between themselves and the drop zone
  • One place the departing Watford Manager could end up is Goodison Park. David Unsworth took charge of Everton yesterday as they strolled to a 3-0 win over relegated Norwich
  • The Toffees played without the tension and nerves of previous weeks and strolled to victory over a poor Norwich side
  • Alex Neil has to now start the rebuilding process at Carrow Road as they prepare for life outside the top flight
  • And finally Liverpool reserves draw away at West Brom. The draw means they finished the season 8th and that subsequently means that it’s Europa League victory or bust in terms of European Football for Liverpool next season
  • Maybe Jurgen Klopp has been clever enough to position his side outside of the Europa League qualification places
  • So even if they do lose on Wednesday it could be a smart move in the grand scheme of things
  • For West Brom the question is whether or not Tony Pulis will get a new contract. If his brief is just to keep The Baggies up then he has succeeded but it’s been some pretty tepid offerings as of late. Does Jeremy Peace stick or twist
  • That’s the final Match Of The Day of the season – next time we get to see Gary Lineker in his pants

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