The middle of May always brings it’s fair share of joy and despair as relegation, promotion and Championship matters are settled. Today, Ajax snatched the Eredisie title away from FC Twente after beating them 3-1 in sweet revenge for their 3-2 defeat in the Dutch Cup Final last week. Glasgow Rangers emphatically stamped their authority on the Scottish Premier League once again with a 5-1 victory against Kilmarnock, giving them another title and defying their bitter rivals Celtic. West Ham United suffered the agony of relegation as they lost their slender grip on their English Premier League place, becoming the first and so far only club to be relegated from that division so far after losing 3-2 to fellow struggleer Wigan Athletic, who may yet join them. However, their win gives them a fighting chance heading into next weekend’s showdown where any two from five teams can fall at the final hurdle. For them, as it can for any club, after 9 months of hard-fought football, it has all come down to 90 minutes.
AC Milan have already won the Serie A title and Barcelona clinched La Liga last week, Lille look set to claim the French title whilst Borussia Dortmund are already Bundesliga champions. Porto were run-away winners in Portugal but the Turkish leaguewill go down to the wire as Fenerbahce and Trabzonspor fight it out for top spot. The beauty of the beautiful game is that it remains (almost) completely unpredictable.
Once the remaining titles have been settled, the European season will come to a climax with the finals of the Europa League and the drama that is the Champions League Final. After that, well, it’s make your own entertainment for two months.
That entertainment is usually a combination of watching the odd international match (whether it be a World Cup or more localised competitiion) or a qualifying match for any of the aforementioned, and reading the rumours over who may or may not be playing for your team next season. But the world of football goes on. The Japanese J League is back in action after the tragic events that naturally put football on hold and there are matches to be played in Brazil. No matter where they are, a football fan will always have something to think about.
But the European closed season is the one most likely to retain the headline writers interest given the vast sums of money likely to change hands for players from across the globe. And it is that activity that will keep the bloggers blogging during the ‘quiet periods’. It will also fuel the imagination and more than a few ‘spurious’ transfer deals will gain their first momentum from a blogger with an over-active fiction gland. I may well be one.
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