john slip terry

One of the teams performed a slightly self-conscious lap of honour at the end of this match, but not the justified one. The bouquets and plaudits deserved to be thrown and offered to Chelsea, whose players have made what could have been a dismal, depressing season for English football memorable for the right reasons.
Had the European Championship debacle been followed by disappointment in Europe and a tired, predictable chase for the Barclays Premier League title, the 2007-08 season might have fizzled out, a damp squib from every angle. Instead, the first all-English final in the Champions League will be preceded by the most exciting final day of the league in the modern era, with Chelsea locked on points at the top of the table with Manchester United, with all the delicious permutations that implies.
No Premier League season has ever been this close, indeed, only two have gone to the final day with the destination of the title still to be decided, and statisticians were forced to trawl back through four decades to find a final set of fixtures as beautifully poised.
The last comparable date was May 11, 1968, when Manchester United and Manchester City were joined at the hip on 56 points at the top of the old first division. Manchester United lost 2-1 at home to Sunderland, Manchester City won 4-3 away to Newcastle United and the prize went to Maine Road (although United stole their thunder, and how, in the European Cup final some days later). There have been other occasions when rival teams have played games in hand at a later date, collected the trophy from a beach as Derby County did in 1972, or played catch-up in an incredible head-to-head match as Arsenal managed to do away to Liverpool in 1989, but in terms of nail-biting spectacle, people with radios glued to their ears, false alarms and the potential for emotional turmoil at opposite ends of the country, this is as good as it gets.

timesonline.co.uk


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