The 2015/16 season is almost done and dusted and it has been one of the most memorable seasons in years. The Premier League saw a new champion crowned while La Liga went down to the final day. Elsewhere in Europe, most of the favourites went on to comfortably wrap up their league titles – some as early as March.
But there were certain moments this season when fate itself was tempted to take a different path. Moments of heartbreak and heart-in-mouth were seen in equal measure as certain teams’ campaigns threatened to unravel when results did not go their way.
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We look at five such moments which saw many a mind swayed before the teams got themselves back on track.
1) Arsenal beating Leicester City in February
After topping the Premier League at the turn of the year, things never looked better for the Gunners. But even a compulsive gambler would not have placed a bet on Arsene Wenger’s side to go all the way knowing his squad’s fragile ‘mental strength’ that sees them capitulate on the final stretch every year.
A string of three draws and a defeat in the January-February period had seen the north London side lose their grip on top spot and see them slide down the table but still holding on to a top four spot. Meanwhile, high-flying Leicester City had moved up to the top of the league, shattering the norm and bookies’ profits in the process.
Then came the crunch game at the Emirates on Valentine’s Day. The Foxes had lost only twice in the league and looked set to maintain that record when Jamie Vardy converted a penalty he won himself. But Theo Walcott equalised in the second half to set up a thrilling finish.
With the Foxes down to 10 men following a second yellow to Danny Simpson, the Gunners were handed a lifeline right at the death when they won a free-kick. Mesut Ozil stepped up delivered a ball into the box that was headed home by Danny Welbeck on his return to football action for the first time this season – a fairytale winner that threatened to open up the title race.
But that was as far as Arsenal got. They lost the next two games to Manchester United and Swansea City to eventually see their title challenge shrivel up and die while Claudio Ranieri’s side went on to make history as Arsenal eventually finished in second place.
2) Barcelona losing 3 La Liga matches in a row
When Barcelona beat Getafe 6-0 in the second week of March, they were rewriting the record books. A string of matches without defeat going all the way back to October had seen the Catalan club steamroll their opponents and build an 11-point lead at the top – almost unassailable by La Liga standards.
Almost.
A 2-2 draw against Villarreal in the next game when the defending champions were up 2-0 was just a sign of things to come. At a time when both Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone and Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane had conceded the league title, the entire world was in for a shocking awakening.
Real Madrid drew first blood with a win over Barcelona in the Clasico at the Camp Nou, showing all sides that they were not as invincible as they looked. A visit to Real Sociedad followed and the Catalan club’s poor record at the Anoeta continued as they failed to register a win yet again – something they haven’t achieved since 2007.
The 1-2 loss to Valencia at home seemed to be the penultimate nail in the coffin as both the Madrid sides made up ground and threw the league wide open. Atletico even knocked them out of the Champions League to add insult to injury.
However, Barcelona recovered quickly, did not panic, and won their last five games with an aggregate scoreline of 24-0, keeping five clean sheets as they eventually lifted their 24th league title with a one-point lead that Real Madrid simply could not erase.
3) Napoli topping Serie A at the winter break
Nobody predicted the abysmal defence of the Serie A title that Juventus mounted at the start of the 2015/16 season. Having won the past four league titles, the Old Lady had won just one game in their first two months of the new season – a 2-0 win over 10-man Genoa.
Napoli also started slowly before shrugging it off and accumulating a number of wins under their belt. Juventus also took their time to get back in the mix for European positions as the league gathered steam.
By the time the winter break rolled around, Gli Azzurri were top of the league. It was a symbolic achievement as the ‘winter champions’ had won the league in the last 12 years. The last time Napoli topped the league in December was 1990 when they went on to win the league.
But Juventus were slowly, but surely, stamping their authority on the league. From the start of October, the next 26 games saw them win 25 and draw one as they waltzed to the league title while Napoli struggled. Gianluigi Buffon had fired up his troops and almost single-handedly ensured Juventus would finish at the top, setting a new record of 973 minutes without conceding a goal.
And Napoli? Two draws and a loss (to Juventus) in February saw them lose their advantage, after which Udinese, Inter and Roma handed them three more losses. The loss against Udinese was painful with the league’s top scorer Gonzalo Higuain’s red card a turning point. The final table saw Juventus top – nine points ahead of Napoli.
4) Wolfsburg beating Real Madrid 2-0
Real Madrid’s dream of winning their 11th Champions League crown may soon be realised at the San Siro in Milan when they face derby rivals Atletico Madrid on 28 May. But it almost never came to pass when they faced elimination in the quarter-finals.
Madridistas had celebrated when La Liga rivals Atletico Madrid were drawn with Barcelona while they were drawn with Wolfsburg. The German club, who were not exactly having one of their best seasons in the Bundesliga, were focused on going as far as possible in the Champions League and eventually did give Zidane’s side a real scare.
Die Wolfe surprisingly came out on top in the first leg with a 2-0 win that saw Real Madrid put in one of their most insipid performances of the season. Ricardo Rodríguez scored the opener in the 18th minute before Maximilian Arnold doubled it just seven minutes later.
Real Madrid were stunned with the Wolves' 4-2-3-1 formation seeing players find space in and around the box with ease thanks to their players rapidly switching positions.Bruno Henrique and Julian Draxler were instrumental in setting up goals as Sergio Ramos and Pepe were caught napping in central defence.
However, all doubts were laid to rest in the second leg as a Cristiano Ronaldo masterclass saw the Portuguese forward grab a hat-trick to see Los Blancos through to the semi-finals. The 3-0 win, the deciding goal coming off a free-kick 13 minutes from time, also saw them go on a 10-match undefeated streak as they put pressure on Barcelona till the final day of the season.
5) Manchester United topping the Premier League table
In Louis van Gaal’s first season, Manchester United found some sort of stability as they returned to the Champions League with a top-four finish. And fans expected the Red Devils to kick on and challenge for the title in 2015/16.
After the first seven games, things were going according to plan for the Dutch manager. New signings such as Memphis Depay were slowly integrating themselves into the lineup, Anthony Martial had scored on debut in a win over rivals Liverpool and Wayne Rooney had just broken his longest ever Premier League goal scoring drought. United were soon top of the league – after what felt like ages – following a 3-0 win over Sunderland.
That was when the dream came crashing down and it first started going wrong at the Emirates. A 3-0 mauling at the hands of Arsenal saw United slip. Draws in the Manchester derby and against Crystal Palace did not help as their grip on the top four also started to look shaky.
Finally, a run of six games that saw three draws and three consecutive defeats (against Bournemouth, Norwich City and Stoke City) ended any hopes of topping the table again this season. Van Gaal’s side were also knocked out of the Champions League group stages in what was a relatively easy group on paper with defeats away to group winners Wolfsburg and runners-up PSV Eindhoven.
The Red Devils would eventually end the season without qualifying for the Champions League for the second time in three seasons.
