Man City win historic fourth straight Premier League title

Manchester City players celebrate with the Premier League trophy after the English Premier League match between Manchester City and West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium Sunday. (AP)
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Updated 20 May 2024
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Man City win historic fourth straight Premier League title

  • The champions’ relentless surge to the finishing line has included 19 wins and four draws since their last defeat in the league, at Aston Villa in early December
  • The Gunners, without a Premier League trophy since 2004, came from a goal down to beat Everton 2-1 but had to content themselves with second place for a second straight season

MANCHESTER, United Kingdom: Manchester City created English football history on Sunday, beating West Ham 3-1 to win their fourth straight Premier League title and break Arsenal’s hearts as Jurgen Klopp made an emotional Liverpool exit.

Phil Foden scored two early goals — including one after 79 seconds — at an expectant Etihad to lay the foundations for City’s victory.

West Ham’s Mohammed Kudus pulled a goal back with a spectacular overhead kick to give Arsenal renewed hope but Rodri struck just before the hour mark to effectively wrap up the title.

The Gunners, without a Premier League trophy since 2004, came from a goal down to beat Everton 2-1 but had to content themselves with second place for a second straight season after they finished two points behind City’s tally of 91.

The champions’ relentless surge to the finishing line has included 19 wins and four draws since their last defeat in the league, at Aston Villa in early December.

City, who have now won six titles in seven seasons, stand alone as the only English team to have won four straight top-flight titles, eclipsing the achievements of the great Liverpool and Manchester United teams of the past.

“When I moved here, if someone had said I would win six leagues in seven seasons I would say ‘You’re insane — no way’,” said City manager Pep Guardiola.

“All these players for Manchester United and Liverpool and Chelsea, all these teams. Now is our period. We are part of that.”

But while City have set new standards in English football, they remain under a cloud as a result of 115 Premier League charges for alleged financial irregularities, levelled early last year.

Elsewhere on the final day of the Premier League season, Luton’s relegation was confirmed with a 4-2 loss at home to Fulham. They will join Burnley and Sheffield United in the Championship next season.

Tottenham beat Sheffield United 3-0 to seal fifth spot and a place in next season’s Europa League while Chelsea guaranteed a sixth-place finish and European football with a 2-1 win against Bournemouth.

Newcastle’s 4-2 win at Brentford condemned Manchester United to an eighth-place finish — their lowest since 1990.

Erik ten Hag’s men, who beat Brighton 2-0 in Roberto De Zerbi’s last game in charge of the south coast club, have a chance to salvage something from a disastrous season in next week’s FA Cup final against City.

But if United lose that they will miss out on European football.

Foden, 23, has enjoyed his most impressive season yet for City, taking his tally to 27 goals in all competitions on Sunday, together with 11 assists.

The England midfielder opened the scoring on Sunday in the second minute with a vicious left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, settling nerves among the home fans. He then stroked the ball into the net in the 18th minute after an assist from Jeremy Doku.

The title race briefly came alive again when Takehiro Tomiyasu side-footed home to level for Arsenal at the Emirates before Kudus pulled one back for West Ham.

The atmosphere became more subdued at the Etihad but the visitors rarely threatened again in David Moyes’s final game in charge for the visitors and Rodri’s goal in the 59th minute ultimately made the game safe.

Kai Havertz’s late winner for Arsenal proved irrelevant.

Arteta gave a rousing speech to the fans in the immediate aftermath of the match, urging them to crave more.

“All this is happening because you started believing, you started to be patient and started to understand what we tried to do,” he said.

“All the credit has to go to the players and the staff. Don’t be satisfied. We want much more than that and we’re going to get it.”

Klopp ended his Liverpool reign with a 2-0 win at home to Wolves but the match was merely a sideshow as the fans paid a warm tribute to a manager who has transformed the club since arriving in 2015.

“It doesn’t feel like an end,” the German told a packed Anfield. “It just feels like a start. Today I saw a football team play full of talent, youth, creativity, desire, greed.”

He added: “We have this wonderful stadium, training center and you — the superpower of world football. Wow.”


Neres’ double leads Napoli to Super Cup glory in Riyadh

Updated 23 December 2025
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Neres’ double leads Napoli to Super Cup glory in Riyadh

  • Napoli defeats first-time participants Bologna in Italian Super Cup final at Al-Awwal Park
  • In semifinals Napoli beat AC Milan, while Bologna edged Inter Milan on penalties

RIYADH: It was a night to remember for David Neres. Arriving in Riyadh on Monday looking to cement a regular starting role, the Brazilian winger delivered in emphatic fashion by scoring twice to lead Napoli to the title and win the Man of the Match award.

Neres, who netted his first brace for the club a month ago against Atalanta in Serie A, will have given Napoli’s coaching staff plenty to think about after his decisive performances in the four-team tournament.

Napoli were made to work for their breakthrough. Bologna kept them at bay for the opening half hour, with Neres and Rasmus Hojlund managing to break past the lines on more than one occasion, only to be denied by Torborjn Heggem and Jhon Lucumi.

Semifinal hero Federico Ravaglia’s composure was on show as he protected Bologna between the posts, but he was finally beaten in the 39th minute by a moment of quality, as Neres curled his strike into the corner to give Napoli the lead.

Napoli maintained control after the break, showcasing their passing combinations in front of the energetic Riyadh crowd while searching for a second.

That goal arrived in the 57th minute, with Neres once again at the heart of it. The winger won possession from Lucumi on the edge of the box before clipping it over Ravaglia to extend Napoli’s lead.

Neres also came centimeters away from completing a hat-trick, racing forward on the counter following a through-ball to Hojlund, but the latter’s pass across the box proved a tad too powerful for the Brazilian to convert.

When Neres was withdrawn 15 minutes later, the stadium rose to applaud his performance because he carried Napoli to their first Super Cup title in over a decade.

Napoli nearly added a third, when in the 87th minute Matteo Politano was found right in front of the open net only to lift his effort narrowly over the crossbar.

The victory, Napoli’s maiden triumph in Riyadh, represents their third Italian Super Cup title, following previous triumphs in 1990 and 2014. It was a fitting moment of redemption after their injury-time defeat to Inter Milan at Al-Awwal Park in the 2023 final.

The game was the sixth Italian Super Cup hosted in the Kingdom, with Napoli becoming the fourth winner after Juventus (2018, 2019), Inter Milan (2022, 2023) and AC Milan (2024/25).