English Premier League Weekly Review

Weekly report : 24.5.2009

On a tense final day of the Premier League campaign, Sunderland and Hull City managed to stay up despite losing. Sunderland lost 3-2 at home to Chelsea and after their narrow escape coach Ricky Sbragia confirmed that he was standing down. Hull lost 1-0 at home to a Manchester United reserve side. Fulham claimed the final European berth in seventh despite losing 2-0 to fifth-placed Everton.

Meanwhile, one-time Newcastle great Alan Shearer failed to keep the club in the Premier League following a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa. on Sunday. Newcastle were relegated along with West Bromwich Albion and Middlesbrough. Middlesbrough's 2-1 defeat at West Ham United ended their slim chances of staying up. West Bromwich Albion, who drew 0-0 at Blackburn Rovers, were already doomed.

Team of the week

Statistics

Weekly report : 17.5.2009

Manchester United tied Arsenal 0-0 to capture a third straight Premier League title and match Liverpool's mark of 18 league championships. At the opposite end of the table, West Bromwich Albion were relegated from the top flight after just one season when they lost 2-0 to Liverpool. Liverpool stayed in second place, behind champions United, moving on to 83 points, three ahead of Chelsea.

Chelsea beat Blackburn 2-0 with Nicolas Anelka scoring the second to draw level on 18 goals with United's Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the scorers' list. Newcastle United slipped back into the relegation zone after a 1-0 loss to Fulham. Middlesbrough drew 1-1 with Aston Villa and, with one game remaining, sit three points from safety with a worse goal difference than the teams above them.

Weekly report : 10.5.2009

Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez sent Manchester United closer to a third straight Premier League title on Sunday, scoring in a 2-0 victory over Manchester City. Liverpool kept some pressure on manager Alex Ferguson's team in the race for the crown with a 3-0 win at West Ham on Saturday. Liverpool have 80 points, while United are on 83 and have three games left to play to Liverpool's two.

Chelsea made sure of finishing at least third with a 4-1 victory at Arsenal, also securing automatic qualification for next season's UEFA Champions League. At the other end of the table, West Bromwich Albion gave themselves hope of avoiding relegation by defeating Wigan Athletic 3-1 and now lie just three points adrift of fourth-bottom Hull City, who lost at home to Stoke City.