The handing over of the title for Arsenal, the farewells of Pep Guardiola to Manchester City and Mohamed Salah to Liverpool, the battle for the last European places and the long-distance fight for survival between Tottenham and West Ham… The multiplex of the 38th and final day of the Premier League gave us some surprises. At Selhurst Park, Mikel Arteta had largely rotated his team, already looking towards the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain. Faced with the compact block of the Eagles, the Gunners ended up finding the fault just before the break thanks to Gabriel Jesus (42nd). The new champions of England doubled their lead after returning from the locker room thanks to Madueke (48th), who came off injured a few minutes later. But while the Gunners thought they were calmly heading towards their 26th league success of the season, Palace reduced the gap with Mateta (89th), then equalized on a goal from Pino (90th+1)… ultimately refused. Arsenal finished the season seven points ahead of their runner-up and can now celebrate their title… before falling to Budapest.
More than 260 km from London, the Etihad Stadium experienced an afternoon full of emotions for Pep Guardiola’s 593rd and final match for Manchester City. Also starting, Bernardo Silva and John Stones started against Aston Villa. Opposed to the recent winners of the Europa League, the Cityzens had control of the ball for a long time and were able to make the difference thanks to Semenyo (23rd). But the Villans were in the mood to spoil the Skyblues party and first equalized (47th), then went ahead thanks to a double from Watkins (63rd). Phil Foden, unable to find the net in 2026, thought he would equalize as added time approached. But his goal was ultimately refused for offside. Pep Guardiola therefore concludes his immense history at Manchester City with a defeat (1-2), probably the most anecdotal of his career.
Salah bids farewell to Liverpool, Bournemouth and Sunderland will discover the C3
In Liverpool, Anfield also paid tribute to two major figures in its history: Andy Robertson and especially Mohamed Salah, both of whom are departing. Starting for the occasion, the Egyptian experienced an afternoon full of emotions in front of an audience committed to his cause. On the pitch, he ended his adventure with the Reds with an assist for Curtis Jones (58th). Insufficient, however, for Arne Slot’s troop to end this season with a victory, since the Bees snatched a draw (1-1).
At the same time, Manchester United concluded its season with a success at Brighton (0-3), driven by Bruno Fernandes’ 21st assist. Voted best player in the championship, the Portuguese became the only best passer in the Premier League over the course of a season. Engaged in the race for the Europa League, the Seagulls fell to 8th place and will have to settle for the Conference League. On the other hand, the Europa League will welcome two newcomers next season: Bournemouth, 6th despite a draw at Nottingham Forest for the last of Andoni Iraola on the Cherries bench (1-1), and Sunderland, 7th after the success of Régis Le Bris’ men against Chelsea (2-1). Eighth before the start of the multiplex and provisionally qualified for the C4, the Blues finally fell to 10th place and will not compete in any European Cup next season, a huge disappointment for Xabi Alonso’s future team.
In the other matches of this last day, Newcastle concluded a disappointing season with a defeat at Fulham (2-0), while Wolverhampton and Burnley neutralized each other in the relegated duel (1-1). It remained to decide the fate of the fight for survival between West Ham and Tottenham. Seventeenth at kick-off in their decisive match against Everton, Spurs had their destiny in hand. Dominant in the first period, they finally found the fault just before the break with a goal from Palhinha (44th). A goal which was enough to deliver the entire Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and which was enough to keep Tottenham in the elite. Despite their victory against Leeds (3-0), West Ham finished 18th and accompanied Wolves and Burnley in the second division.
The results of the 5 p.m. multiplex:
Crystal Palace 1 – 2 Arsenal : Jean-Philippe Mateta (89th) / Gabriel Jesus (42nd), Noni Madueke (48th)
Manchester City 1 – 2 Aston Villa : Antoine Semenyo (23rd) / Ollie Watkins (47th, 63rd)
Liverpool 1 – 1 Brentford: Curtis Jones (58th) / Kevin Schade (64th)
Brighton 0 – 3 Manchester United : Patrick Dorgu (33rd), Bryan Mbeumo (44th), Bruno Fernandes (48th)
Nottingham Forest 1 – 1 Bournemouth: Morgan Gibbs-White (34th) / Marcus Tavernier (54th)
Sunderland 2 – 1 Chelsea: Trai Hume (25th), Malo Gusto (CSC, 50th) / Cole Palmer (57th)
Fulham 2 – 0 Newcastle: Issa Diop (20th), Tom Cairney (80th)
Tottenham 1 – 0 Everton: João Palhinha (44th)
West Ham 3 – 0 Leeds: Valentín Castellanos (67th), Jarrod Bowen (79th), Callum Wilson (90th + 4)
Burnley 1 – 1 Wolverhampton: Zian Flemming (47th) / Adam Amstorong (5th)
