TFT Editorial: Premier League season in review

2007/08 will go down as one of the better seasons of recent times, despite the apparent solidification of a top three as the big boys pull away from the rest.

Liverpool would dispute my assertion that there is an established top three, but I believe Liverpool are a lot more catchable than they seem. With a different manager, maybe, they'd be well away. Then again, without Fernando Torres...

The reason this season will be so memorable is that almost everything - Champions League qualification being the only exception - went down to the last day.

The title was won on the last day by Manchester United, after a rampant fightback by Chelsea which just faltered in the final few weeks of the season. Everton and Aston Villa went into their last games with their sights on the UEFA Cup spot in fifth, and Everton held their nerve to beat Newcastle United to book their place in Europe.

For Villa's part, they took the Intertoto Cup place which in turn was still available come game 38. Blackburn Rovers were the other team eyeing the spot, and they fell 4-1 at Birmingham City.

That Birmingham win leads us on nicely to the relegation battle. With the worst team in the Premier League's short history, Derby County, already relegated, Fulham, Blues and Reading were fighting it out to claim the one safety berth on the final day. Amazingly, all three won, meaning Birmingham and Reading join County in the Championship next season.

So what's the story of the season? What will we remember?

A season is defined by its Champions, and Manchester United won it in some style - second placed Chelsea would not have been able to say the same. We finally saw the apparent demise of Louis Saha's United career, and Sir Alex Ferguson's shunning of a natural 'number 9' role has led to some wonderful movement. Cristiano Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney buzzing around up top has been a pleasure to watch, and is the reason I was delighted United won the title ahead of their cynical, negative, boring West London rivals.

Ronaldo has put forward a case for a story of the season on a solo basis. He's scored countless goals, put in some stunning performances and nabbed a winner's medal. If anyone's grabbed a season by the scruff of the neck and made it his own in a more convincing manner than Ronaldo, nobody flagged it up to me. This season simply had his name on it.

We've had Chelsea's revival as Jose Mourinho's team pulled together to allow Avram Grant to manage them on cruise control. We've had R*fael Ben*tez rotating his side and successfully winning...nothing. There's been the farce at Manchester City, Derby's record-breaking season, the exciting relegation battle. And what about Everton's qualification for Europe with a combination of businesslike grit and determined attacking.

Of course there are plenty of other stories, indeed each team has its own. All in all, it's been brilliant. Roll on August.