Sergio Agüero secures final day league win
A moment that will be remembered forever.
Take it away, Sergio Aguero 💙
(via @ManCity)pic.twitter.com/90MDXNw4es
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) December 15, 2021
Perhaps the one that almost everyone remembers where they were or what they were doing in this iconic moment in time, but Sergio Agüero’s dramatic winner in stoppage time against Queens Park Rangers to lift Manchester City to Premier League champion on the final day over city rivals Manchester United is one that will never be forgotten.
Little did many know that the diminutive Argentine international would go on his way to become one of the greatest forwards in the history of the Premier League, but that moment already cemented his place in club lore for all time irrespective of how his career would have panned out. One hundred and eighty-four goals later, no goal was as important as this one.
The final match at Highbury
Arsenal and Highbury was a love affair that lasted 93-years and witnessed countless iconic moments in the club’s illustrious history. The decision to leave the ground for new pastures with the development of the Emirates Stadium is one that is still contentious for many to this day, partly because the club has not garnered the success in their new home that they managed to grab with both hands at the old stomping ground, which is now an estate of luxury apartments.
But that final day at Highbury was special, and the Gunners could not have bid farewell in better fashion than a 4-2 win over Wigan Athletic that saw them leapfrog bitter rivals Spurs into fourth and secure Champions League football the following season. Three points, and a Thierry Henry hattrick all the while sticking it to Tottenham? No Arsenal fan could have hoped for a better send-off.
Sir Alex Ferguson says goodbye to football
Arguably the keystone embodiment of the Premier League era in England, legendary Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is a titan of football both at home and abroad and is at the very heart of so many iconic moments in the top flight of English football. Saying goodbye to him was something that many Red Devils will lament now more than ever considering the doldrums the club currently finds itself in.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – MAY 12: Manchester United Manager Sir Alex Ferguson embraces Rio Ferdinand following the Barclays Premier League match between Manchester United and Swansea City at Old Trafford on May 12, 2013 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
After 1,500 matches in charge, and another league win under his belt in his final season, the 5-5 draw against West Brom after the Baggies scored three times in the closing minutes of the match at Old Trafford was not the send-off that the club – or its fans – would have hoped for, but the day SAF finally hung up his whistle will certainly forever be remembered.
Tottenham miss out on the Champions League
If you are a Tottenham supporter, so much of your football calendar year on year comes down to one simple discussion; will they finish ahead of bitter rivals Arsenal in the Premier League. For most of the current era – and eras before, if we are honest – Spurs have been well behind their north London rivals. Though recent history suggests Tottenham could be in the ascendancy more so than the Gunners, one painful reminder in years past of the gap between the two clubs came on the final day of the 2003 Premier League season when Spurs lost to West Ham on the final day amid a rampant food poisoning bug that ripped through the first-team.
In such bizarre fashion, Martin Jol’s men would drop all three points to the Hammers, and Arsenal’s win over Wigan would subject Tottenham fans to another season behind their rivals while missing out on Champions League football.
West Brom’s great escape
The final day of any league around the world would not be complete without a great escape and avoidance of relegation. The heartbreak of dropping down a football ladder is so often the greatest fear of many supporters, but in 2005, West Bromwich perpetrated arguably the greatest reversal of fortunes in the history of English football when the Baggies secured a 2-0 win against Portsmouth but were made to wait for other results around the league to know if they were safe for another season.
In the end, those results did transpire when Southampton was dropped by Manchester United, Norwich lost to Fulham, and Charlton Athletic secured a draw against Crystal Palace. Despite being bottom of the table at Christmas and all but guaranteed to not live to fight another day, West Brom had other ideas but had many to thank all the same.
