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It’s been an unforgettable Premier League campaign and one that has thrown up so many shocks with Leicester City winning the league, Chelsea’s catastrophic title defence and giants Aston Villa and Newcastle being relegated.

And as usual it’s a sad time for football fans as the season draws to a close [Thank god for the Euro’s].

The final day of the Premier League will be a slight anti-climax with many clubs having nothing to play for, however here’s five reasons to watch the season finale this weekend:

John Terry’s Farewell - Chelsea take on newly crowned champions Leicester City and whilst JT won’t be able to play due to suspension, he will still be saying farewell to the Chelsea fans post match.

John Terry’s career hasn’t been without it's controversies, but it’s a well-known fact he’s one of the best defenders to grace the division. Much like when Scholes, Gerrard, Beckham and Lampard left, it signals the end of an era and he’s certainly cemented his legacy at Chelsea.

Chelsea could still decide to make a u-turn and keep Terry, but at the moment, it looks as if he’s heading for the Chinese Super League. The Chelsea die-hard fans will have big tributes planned for the long-serving defender in what will be an emotional farewell, which you won’t want to miss on Saturday.

Top Four Race - It’s been more of a stumble than a race, and fourth spot is still up for grabs on the last day, however you’d fancy Manchester City to get over the line ahead of City rivals United.

Louis Van Gaal’s army squandered a golden opportunity to take fourth spot in mid-week, when a trip to West Ham’s Boleyn Ground was too much to handle and they lost 3-2 in a heated atmosphere, as The Hammers gave their stadium of 112 years the perfect send off.

That defeat means if City don’t lose to Swansea they will all but secure Champions League football [Pep Guardiola breathes sigh of relief] however United will be keen to take advantage if City fail, when they take on Bournemouth at home this weekend. The race for top four is still on, but let’s say United have their legs tied together at the moment.

Manager’s Exodus - For every overachiever, there's an underachiever and whilst teams like Leicester, Spurs, and West Ham have thrived this season, Chelsea and Everton are just two that have declined.

We already know Guus Hiddink isn’t staying at Chelsea and he might not be the only manager participating in his last Premier League game. In breaking news, Everton's Roberto Martinez has just been sacked, meaning there's already a high-profile club looking for new management.

Another Spaniard in danger is Watford’s Quique Sanchez Flores, despite what many outsiders feel has been a great season for The Hornets, the club's owners are discontent with the second half of the season and it’s expected he’ll be sacked in the off-season.

Rafa Benitez makes it a hat-trick of Spaniard’s expected to depart, however in a completely different scenario. With Newcastle relegated many feel Benitez will have too many big offers to hang around on Tyneside, but who knows, perhaps he can be persuaded to endure Burton Albion away.

We’ll also be saying goodbye to Manuel Pellegrini, as he prepares to make way for Pep Guardiola, although if you believe rumours we may be seeing the Chilean in the Premier League next year just with a different club.

Ranieri Returns a Champion - As John Terry says goodbye, the man who gave him his first Chelsea opportunity, Claudio Ranieri returns to Stamford Bridge as a Premier League winner.

It’s the sort of story only the footballing gods could conjure up, and as well as the tributes for JT, a few Blues supporters are bound to pay homage to Claudio and congratulate the Italian on what he’s accomplished.

Some fans will feel it’s embarrassing considering Chelsea were the reigning champions, however, most people won’t begrudge the Leicester manager’s fairytale story, in what will be a fascinating climax to The Foxes historical season.

Witness How the Mighty have Fallen - Aston Villa will be keen to end their torment as they close out a horrific season which has seen them relegated from the Premier League for the first time.

With the way they have failed to put up any kind of fight and under the current ownership you have to really fear for the Birmingham club’s future, and a bounce-back isn’t guaranteed, so you may want to catch their last top flight game for awhile when they take on Arsenal away. [Good luck lads]

Villa will be joined in the Championship by Newcastle United, a club who are used to underachieving and have been in this predicament before. Once again, questionable ownership and poor decisions have seen the north-east club spiral out of control and they face Tottenham in their last fixture.

Both clubs are bound to participate in heavy protests against their ownership, and the ugly scenes that unfold could make for interesting viewership.

EPL , Football , Sports

5 Reasons to Watch the BPL this Weekend

Admin Thursday, 12 May 2016

Paul Dummett announced that he will continue serving for relegation threatened premier league side Newcastle united.

The 24 year old defender his venture with United at 2013 on a deal which had a option to extend the deal up to six years.

The Wales international's contract extension is expected to agreed before he is going to Euro 2016 with Wales National team.

This contract seems to be reflected on his status as first choice left back at Newcastle.

So far he has managed to represent the Toon army on 73 occasions and managed to score 3

EPL , Football , Sports

Paul Dummett to sign contract extension with Newcastle United

Admin Thursday, 5 May 2016

When Wonga was added to the list of Mike Ashley’s crimes against the good name of Newcastle, many fans were appalled.

One of the poorest regions in the UK having a legal loan shark charging ridiculous levels of interest emblazoned across the shirt of it’s football club, yet another reason for the once good name of the club to be dragged through the mud.

However, those unhappy fans may have reason for hope, as it looks increasingly unlikely that Wonga will be continuing their relationship with Newcastle United.

A crackdown on payday lenders led to a £37.3m loss by Wonga in 2014 and now the figures for 2015 have been released and the slide continues at a pace.

The 2015 losses are £80.2m and the company saw revenue drop from £217.2m to only £77.3m, Wonga blaming the regulatory body’s stricter lending criteria and introduction of a regulatory price cap.

EPL , Football , Sports

Wonga record losses put in doubt Newcastle United partnership

Admin Wednesday, 4 May 2016

Though the FA Cup took the headlines, we weren't without goals and drama in the league. Mahrez swung Leicester out of Arsenal's reach, whilst those at the bottom came out scrapping. We were treated to 19 goals in the 4 games on Saturday, and whilst Sunday didn't have such a high goals/game ratio, the resultswere equally interesting.

Man City v Stoke

Prediction: Man City 3 - 0 Stoke

Score: Man City 4 - 0 Stoke

Real Madrid, are you watching? Just before the Spanish giants, minusRonaldo, made hard work ofRayo Vallecano, their Champions League opponents walked all over Stoke. As I said in my Iheanacho focus, the Stoke back line were unable to handle the young Nigerian's partnership with the talismanic Argentinian. Iheanacho got two, Aguero one, but in all honesty this could have been even more. Stoke lacked the quality, effort and desire to win, and they were rightly dispatched. I came close to the perfect score, but not close enough.

Aston Villa v Southampton

Prediction: Aston Villa 1 - 3 Southampton

Score: Aston Villa 2 - 4 Southampton

I bet Joleon Lescott was glad to get into bed last night. Booed almost constantly throughout the game, his words came back to haunt him. Though Villa did seem to play with an iota more freedom, they were still second-best. Ashley Westwood's brace could only halve the deficit, as Southampton dominated. The coastal club kept up the pace on West Ham, two points ahead in 6th, and dreams of Europe, well and truly alive. I think we all called this one; Villa have been cut-adrift for a while now.

Bournemouth v Chelsea

Prediction: Bournemouth 0 - 1 Chelsea

Score: Bournemouth 1 - 4 Chelsea

Chelsea recovered from their disappointing defeat to Manchester City with a confident victory over a overly-comfortable Bournemouth side. Chelsea set right the loss they suffered in the reverse fixture earlier this season, but this was at the back of everyone's mind come full time. Most important to the travelling fans were the two goals from the 2015 PFA player of the year. Eden Hazard's first league goals of the campaign have been a long time coming, but they'll have been a huge weight off his shoulders. Another one a few of us saw coming, but I doubt anyone saw this level of Bournemouth leakiness.

Liverpool v Newcastle

Prediction: Liverpool 2 - 1 Newcastle

Score: Liverpool 2 - 2 Newcastle

Half an hour in, Liverpool were two-nil up and cruising. Liverpool's English attackers, Sturridge and Lallana, had fired a pair of beautiful goals and Newcastle looked beaten. Rafa's team-talk must have been brilliant. Papiss Cisse proved his selection over Mitrovic to be astute management, as his leaping header set up a nervy second half. A Liverpool side without the Sakho distraction may have held out for all three points. That wasn't to be the case, and Newcastle stayed within touching distance. Michael W called the draw, and bravo to him for doing so!

Sunderland v Arsenal

Prediction: Sunderland 2 - 4 Arsenal

Score: Sunderland 0 - 0 Arsenal

Arsenal disappoint again. Danny T called the draw, as did Steve T, but we all expected at least one. Not only did the goal produce six fewer goals than I'd hoped for, the spectacle was equally lacking. Hardly a thrilling encounter, this draw will have been satisfactory for Allardyce, but devastating for Wenger. Sunderland bounced out of the bottom three, albeit on goal difference, whilst Arsenal remain in fourth, seemingly their spiritual home. Giroud looked toothless, Ozil limp and Sanchez lacking ideas, as Arsenal floundered in front of a resolute Sunderland defence. Kaboul, Kone and Kirchoff, let's not put those three into an acronym, were unmovable, even when Welbeck and Walcott were thrown on. The only positive for the Gunners? A returning Wilshere, who looks as lively as anyone after his return.

Leicester v Swansea

Prediction: Leicester 1 - 0 Swansea

Score: Leicester 4 - 0 Swansea

Frimpong tweeted the following after Mahrez's opener this afternoon: "Even to this day I still watch Leicester and think how is this possible". I think most of us would agree. Proving the great Mike Bassett right, playing a simple 4-4-2 formation, Leicester coped brilliantly without their top goalscorer, taking the game to Swansea. Vardy's replacement, Leo Ulloa, bagged a brace after the Player of the Year-to-be, Riyad Mahrez, had powered them into the lead. Swansea fought in the face of certain defeat, but this was not their day. This was the day Leicester went 8 points clear, if only temporarily.Stephen Whitepicked this one almost spot-on, being much more complimentary to the leagueleadersthan I.

So how did you all do? Many greenscreens or were they all ruined by Newcastle?

EPL , Football , Sports

Premier League Recap - 23 - 24 April

bitcorrespondent Sunday, 24 April 2016

It's kind of a stereotype for United fans that the majority of them are international fans. Glory hunter, plastic fan, I've heard that before. But perhaps it's a fair question; just why does an American with no attachments to Manchester (that I know of, anyway; I have ancestors who came from England and I don't know where they lived before they came to the USA) become a Manchester United supporter?

Well, fair credit to the club itself for excellent marketing over the years. When in my early twenties I decided to give a look to soccer/football to distract me from a broken friendship and some depression I really had no idea which team to look at. The MLS matches are hard to find online due to intense crackdowns on their part regarding piracy and whatnot otherwise I might be a more aggressive Chicago Fire fan; as it is I recalled an American sitcom I was watching one night mentioning Manchester United. So I typed that into google and out came the Chelsea vs Manchester United 2008 Champions League final.

I remember being entranced by watching Ronaldo move up the left wing. I remember Ronaldo scoring the goal. I remember Vidic wanting to beat the crap out of Drogba and the players having to hold him back. I remember Drogba acting surprised he got a red card. I don't remember much more than that off the top of my head, just those flashes. Most of the game is a blur to me. I do know that before the penalty kicks (I purposefully did not look at the score ahead of time to know who won btw) that I was a United fan. I remember being nervous despite the game having been played 3+ years before I watched it. I remember the look of shock and worry on Ronaldo's face when he missed. A distraught John Terry who missed completely. The look of delight on Van Der Sar's face when he made that big save from Anelka's kick. And I remember the squad losing their minds as Rio lifted that trophy up into the air.

I threw myself into learning all I could about Manchester United after that. About their current squad, about the club historically, about those players I had just watched. I bought several books about United over the years including one about the Munich air disaster. I felt, as a fan who could not claim that team as my home team given I'm a continent away, that I was almost obligated to learn everything I could about it. My connection could not be born from geography, but it could be born from knowledge and appreciation.

But why choose soccer? Why choose a team from another country, another continent? Well, I grew up watching the Chicago Bulls in the 90s when with Air Jordan, Pippin, and legendary coach Phil Jackson they won 6 championships. I cheered the White Sox through a World Series win (which was exciting). But those were either support due to location (to live in Illinois and not be a Bulls fan in the 90s was......well let me put it this way; it'd be like a devoted family of Manchester United supporters having a child who supported Liverpool. That level of treason) or teenage spite (being in a family of Cubs supporters cheering for the White Sox throughout my youth was a mild form of rebellion for me).

As I grew older I pretty much ignored sports. Baseball is really boring, to be blunt, and basketball just wasn't the same after the Bulls' dynasty ended and Michael retired. I can't stand the start and stop and stop and commercial and start and stop and more commercials nature of American football or gridiron and the only kind of golf I like is miniature golf. Soccer was just the only option (or at least the only one I could think of). And I liked playing it in P.E. classes in school.

Maybe part of the reason I chose Manchester United had to do with the colors. Red, white, black. Same as the Chicago Bulls when I was growing up. I'd wager somewhere packed away my mom still has my Michael Jordan jersey. Perhaps that got into my subconscious somehow. I don't remember the sitcom that mentioned Man United but I'm glad it popped into my head, even if there have been a few lows since Sir Alex retired. But experiencing the bad I've also found old matches online featuring some of the many greats to have played for the club and, in a way, been able to experience the good from before I was even born. Not to mention the good now. Marcus Rashford's jawdropping Europa League debut will and then the team's performance against Arsenal will live long in my memory.

All that said, I do have to give credit to the US national team. They made my passion for soccer/football even larger. Even stronger. Even a bit crazier. I think I scared my whole house with my shouts when the US Women's team won the World Cup and I nearly made my mom deaf when I was on the phone with her when Dempsey scored that quick goal against Ghana in the 2014 World Cup. That's not to say I don't get that way with United; I definitely do. But I find that my love for the US team enhanced those feelings regarding United and regarding the Chicago Fire, which is a more recent love but potent nonetheless.

United served to distract me in a time in my life when I needed distracting. When I needed something to obsess over to ignore the bad things going on in my life. I'm in a much better, happier place now and United have certainly played a part in it among other things (pretty sure my dog would demand a mention so Nero, you're the best dog ever).

And that, friends and lobsters, is how I became a United fan.

EPL , Football , Sports

How This Yankee Became a United Fan

bitcorrespondent Wednesday, 16 March 2016

As one run comes to an end, another keeps its remarkable pace. Benitez had not lost an opening game as manager since 2001, until his Newcastle bow, whilst Newcastle have now lost 18 of their last 22 Premier League away games. Rafa must have known the scale, and importance, of the job ahead of him, but last night it was reaffirmed. He has a big week ahead of him, before a monumental Tyne-Wear derby on Sunday, but what must he do to turn the tide?

Forget yesterday's result.
After last night's low-key affair, Leicester are still charging toward the championship, whilst Newcastle are still charging for the Championship. The most important thing for Benitez is to ignore the Leicester result and focus on the winnable games ahead of him. He has Sunderland, Norwich, Southampton and Swansea to plan for.

Newcastle showed last night that they are in decent shape. They have enough quality, having spent around £90 million on players this year, to really threaten teams. They also looked sufficiently solid at the back yesterday eve, restricting Leicester to just one shot on target. That one shot on target turned out to be the deciding goal, but there is a lot Rafa should be focusing on apart from the dropped points.

Such as...

Scoring goals.
Newcastle don't score enough. They've managed just 8 goals in their last 21 away league games. Sometimes football is a simple sport and that is a relegation stat if ever I've read one. This needs to change, quickly. Mitrovic looked interested last night and his effort could not be faultered. He might have even levelled the game up, if it had not been for a goal-shy Sissoko in his path.

Yet, their most dangerous man was played wide instead of on the middle where he is more of a handful. Ayoze Perez may not be the oldest or most imposing striker Newcastle have at their disposal, but he could be their best option. Kept on the wing, and on the periphery last night, Perez is a very reliable goalscorer and will score goals if he's allowed to poach. It is up to Benitez to fit Ayoze and Aleksander in the same attack.

Leaders but no leadership.
Goals will also come when confidence is lifted. So will clean sheets. Mark Albrighton was almost handed a goal late in the first half as Taylor hesitated to meet the ball for a clearance. That would have killed off the game and, if so, would have been down to a lack of confidence.

Rafa will have a big job in giving his players the boost they need in training, but on the pitch it is harder for him to make such an impact. Therefore, he needs to find leaders in his squad and get them firing his team on. Leicester have a squad littered with such men and are flourishing because of it.

Newcastle have placed their trust in Jonjo Shelvey. A £12million January signing, Jonjo was handed the captain's armband last night and looks like a fighter. Yet, in recent years Newcastle have had players like Kevin Nolan, Joey Barton and Shay Given holding their squads together. Rafa urgently needs experienced players like Taylor, Sissoko and Elliot to pull up their socks and make the team fight until the final whistle.

This will go a long way to...

Keep the fans on side.
Rafa's appointment alone has done some to temper the Newcastle fans frustration, but this will soon fade if results do not change. Rafa can't pick the results, but he can pick how ambitious his side are for points.

If Newcastle rely on draws and scrappy victories against the teams around them, the Championship could beckon. Even worse, cautious strategy may encourage the fans to get on their fragile players' backs. Newcastle need to use their superior quality and take games to their opponents, especially at St. James'. At this moment, results might be the sole focus, but determination, drive and intensity will go a long way come the judgments in May.

Keeping players fit.
Benitez might need to pray a little for this one, but it's also an area he needs to watch dilligently. Newcastle haven't had the best of time this season with injuries and currently sit top of the PL injury table. Without Cisse, Krul, Dummett, Tiote, Mbemba, Coloccini out among others, Newcastle lack their solid foundations. If things get any worse, and Townsend or Shelvey gets crocked, Benitez might jot have enough to work with to ensure safety (and that huge TV rights deal beginning next season.)

Have I missed anything? Does Rafa have a job too big for even him? Where does he need to focus? Let me know, and maybe he'll even read it!

EPL , Sports

5 things Rafa must address at Newcastle

Admin Tuesday, 15 March 2016

The BPL's most shocking tittle contender has proven to us that they will be qualifying for the Europe's fiercest tournament, the UEFA Champions League.

That is really good news for the club and its fans, as its their first time qualifying in a major European tournament, but the question is can Leicester survive the strike of the MSN or the cunning skills of CR7 or other teams like Juventus, Bayern and Roma in the competition, or not?

In Football, anything can happen, but I think Leicester is going to choke in the UCL, as all of their players have really less experience in the competition or have none at all, as half of them were playing in the lower divisions for their whole lives. They have no idea how other teams in the UCL play.

People think Mahrez and Vardy might help Leicester in Europe, but are they still going to be in Leicester or are they going to be partying in Madrid or Catalonia with big fat pay checks.

Their demands are increasing by everyday, so Leicester might need to do a really good job convincingthem not to leave.

If Mahrez and Vardy stay at Leicester they are going to help, but their help is not going to be enough tobringtheglorious trophy with them to the city of Leicester.

I think Leicester is going to get knocked out in the group stages.

EPL , Football , Sports

Will Leicester Be Able To Survive The UCL?

bitcorrespondent Sunday, 13 March 2016

At the star of every season, just before the end of summer transfer window, everyone expects that the upcoming season would be Arsenal season. Unfortunately, for Arsen Wenger’s squad, their time did not came since 2003-2004 season. It was the same this season until last Saturday. Arsenal were 5 pints behind Leicester and 3 behind their local rival – Tottenham Hotspur. In spite of the first place, The Foxes were not considered as favourite to win the title … till now.

After 29 games Claudio Ranieri’s boys are still comfortably standing at the top of the league. In the remaining 9 games Jamie Vardy and company just need to earn enough points which will help them to win the title. But it does not seem so easy, because now they have to play in every single game like it is final for them. If Leicester players were giving 100 percent at every game till now, for the next games they have to double that percentage, if they were giving 150 percent, now they have to give 300 and so on. It is true that everything depends on them, but on the other hand the pressure will increase every day. It is once in a lifetime chance for the Leicester players to become winners, because it will be extremely difficult for the club such as Leicester City to keep its stars.

Leicester may become the first club in the English Premier League history, since Blackburn Rovers, who can destroy the dominance of the big clubs full of world stars and unlimited financial power. In the modern football era, Leicester performance can be already considered as a big achievement. Actually, there were some other example of smaller clubs winning the title in their countries such as Montpellier in season 2011-2012 and Wolfsburg 3 years earlier. Here we can also mention the Greece triumph on Euro 2004 and Porto Champions League Trophy from the same year. There are a few example of small clubs that were congruent to the big ounces and that is why every neutral football fan is supporting the Foxes. Claudio Ranieri and his players deserve the title, but even if they do not win it, they will be the real champion in the end of the season, because they brought the passion back in Premiership and showed fans all over the world that not everything can be bought by money.

EPL , Football , Sports

Leicester City - the real champion

Admin Thursday, 10 March 2016

Wow, what a win. I normally try and remain neutral in my match reviews and previews but that’s just not possible today. That first half was probably the most dominating performance I’ve seen from West Ham all season, Spurs just couldn't get going. Antonio netted his fourth goal in as many home games in the seventh minute, a fantastic header from the near post from an equally good Payet corner. Then it was just attack after attack, chance after chance; we were playing well, but it must be said that Spurs were playing poorly. The pressing from Noble and Obiang seemed to unsettle a Spurs midfield without regulars Alli and Dembele and they just didn't seem capable to get any sort of attack going. Credit to Hugo Lloris as well who kept them in it, with a great save from a Mark Noble 25 yard rocket being worthy of a mention. In truth, it was disappointing to only be 1-0 up going in after 45 minutes and I was worried we would pay the price. Spurs didn't even manage a shot in the first half while we had 7, not to mention the disallowed goal for offside - that just shows how one sided it was.

Spurs are a very good team though and the way they came out in the second half showed that. Both teams had good chances and it was a fairly equal second 45. It didn’t help West Ham that James Collins went off injured meaning that 17-year-old Reece Oxford had to come on for him at centre back, while Ogbonna spent almost the whole half limping. Meanwhile Dele Alli’s introduction for Spurs made a big difference going forward for them. Harry Kane had a great couple of chances, one which should have been called offside and produced a great save from Adrian while there were a couple of testing long shots rifled in which the Spaniard had to deal with too. Payet’s delivery was consistently brilliant though and Antonio probably should have doubled his tally with a half volley from one of the Frenchman’s free kicks. That was an incredibly nervy 45 minutes though and I spent the last ten minutes with my head in my hands, more listening to the commentary than watching.

Slaven Bilic has to get immense credit for tonights win, with an injury/suspension struck defence, he went with the formation of 3-5-2, with Kouyate joining Collins and Ogbonna at Centre Back and allowing Antonio and Cresswell to wreck havoc down the wings. Noble and Obiang then got back when needed and pressed superbly in the middle of the park while Payet and Lanzini seemed to be given free roles, with them popping up everywhere in Tottenham’s half while Emenike was up top. It was also great to see him showing faith in Reece Oxford as well, bringing him on instead of Alex Song or even Doneil Henry. Carroll provided a good alternative when he came on, as did Diafra Sakho who it was great to see coming back from a long injury.

A win tonight for Tottenham would have seen them take top spot, but Arsenal also losing will at least be a tiny positive for them. Leicester, meanwhile, must be laughing. West Ham are now just one point behind fourth place Man City (although they do have a game in hand) and with the way this season’s going, why not dare to dream of a Champions League spot?

EPL , Football , Sports

Match Review: West Ham United vs Tottenham Hotspur

Admin Wednesday, 2 March 2016

Aston Villa certainly seem doomed for the drop this season. After a terrible campaign to date, the midlands club sit rock bottom of the Premier League, with just 16 points from 25 games.

Although the table looks rather ominous, Villa fans can take inspiration from other teams to have performed miracles at the wrong end of the table in previous years.

We take a look at the five greatest Premier League great escapes of all time to try and motivate the Villa Park faithful into still believing.

5. Portsmouth FC(2005-2006) -With ten games to play, Portsmouth were eight points from safety. They seemed all but relegated before a stunning volley in extra time from Pedro Mendes earned them a 2-1 win over Manchester City at Fratton Park.This last gasp victory ultimately acted as the catalyst for their survival, as they went on to win six matches from their final ten games. Pompey finished the season on 38 points, four clear of relegated Birmingham City.

4. Fulham FC(2007-2008) -Trailing 2-0 to Manchester City and with 20 minutes to go, Fulham seemed resigned to relegation. However, a heroic display from Diomansy Kamara saw the striker net twice, either side of a Danny Murphy penalty and Fulham remarkably won the match 3-2 with the last kick of the game.The Cottagers went on to win their final two matches, surviving the drop ahead of Reading on goal difference.

3. Wigan Athletic(2011-2012) -Every season that Wigan were in the Premier League, it seemed like an uphill task to stay in the division. The 2011-2012 campaign was no different, and they found themselves in the thick of a relegation battle once again after sitting bottom of the league in February.However, a remarkable 2-1 victory over Liverpool at Anfield sparked a frantic upsurge in results and the Latics went on to win seven matches from their remaining nine.Remarkably, after the final game of the season, Wigan were seven points clear of the drop zone and lived to fight another season.

2. West Bromwich Albion(2004-2005) -West Brom’s escape from relegation during 2004-2005 was nothing short of remarkable. Up until this season, no team that had been bottom of the league at Christmas had gone on to survive the drop. However, The Baggies seemed determined to break that curse.From March onwards, West Brom displayed incredible resilience and picked up three wins from four matches, along with draws away at Manchester United and Aston Villa. Come the final day, the Midlands club knew that a win against Portsmouth, combined with other results going their way, would see them safe.West Brom won the game 2-0 thanks to goals from Geoff Horsfield and Kieran Richardson, and the great escape was completed as other results had fallen in their favour. Southampton, Crystal Palace and Norwich were all relegated, leaving the Baggies to revel in an incredible turnaround.To date, this is the only season where all the three relegation places were to be decided on the final day.

1. Leicester City(2014-2015) -Leicester produced arguably the greatest escape of all time last season. Bottom of the league in March, Nigel Pearson’s men went on an incredible run, winning seven and drawing one of their remaining nine games.Remarkably, the Foxes finished the season in 14th place after beating QPR 6-1 on the final day.The momentum gained from last season’s surge has continued into this campaign and new manager Claudio Ranieri has guided his team to the top of the Premier League after 25 games.The stark contrast from last season to this season is nothing short of incredible, and that’s why the Foxes take the number one spot in our list of greatest Premier League escapes of all time.

EPL , Football , Sports

Top 5 Premier League ‘Great Escapes’

bitcorrespondent Sunday, 14 February 2016

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