The 2018-19 football season was one of the best in recent times for the English football compared to anywhere else in the world. We had an epic, record-breaking Premier League title race between Manchester City and Liverpool, four English clubs contesting the two major European finals and an explosion in the popularity of women’s football.
As the new season kicks off and summer comes to a close, we wanted to round up our favourite highlights and key moments, take a look at our top 10:
1 - Manchester City win the Premier League title
Manchester City tore up the record books to win the Premier League title in 2017-18. But in many ways, winning the title again last season was even more impressive. No side had retained the championship in a decade and City were hunted all the way by a relentless Liverpool, yet Pep Guardiola’s side still ended the campaign on top and within a fingertip of breaking the 100 points barrier.
2 - Vincent Kompany scores a screamer
We can’t mention City lifting the title without talking about this key moment. They had to beat Leicester City to hold off the Liverpool advance, but a dogged Foxes performance looked like it would hand the advantage to Merseyside going into the final weekend of the season as the teams entered the final 20 minutes locked at 0-0. Then, Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany came striding forward and smashed the ball into the top corner from a full 30 yards out, in what turned out to be his final appearance at the Etihad Stadium. Some moments are just written in the stars.
3 - Liverpool get their consolation in the Champions League
Given the season that they had, it would have been harsh in the extreme if Liverpool had finished up without a trophy. Their wait for a league title may be about to stretch into a 30th year, but Jurgen Klopp delivered a sixth European Cup to the Anfield trophy cabinet after they edged out Spurs in the final in Madrid.
4 - The Lionesses made history, again!
England’s Women’s World Cup campaign may have ended at the semi-final stage at the hands of the United States, but the tournament looks to be a real watershed moment for the game in this country. Record television audiences, unparalleled news coverage and the likes of Steph Houghton, Lucy Bronze and Ellen White becoming household names. We could be about to enter a golden age for women’s football in England.
5 - The new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium finally opens
Spurs became something of a laughing stock over the course of the year as the opening of their new stadium was besieged by delays. Originally scheduled to be ready at the start of the season, the moving in date got pushed further and further back, much to the club’s embarrassment. It turned out to be well worth it though – when it finally did open with a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on April 3rd, it could lay genuine claims to being the best stadium in the world. 
6 - Ajax shock Real Madrid
As far as results go, there weren’t many as extraordinary as what happened when Ajax went to the Bernabeu in the last 16 of the Champions League in March. Real Madrid, winners of the past three European Cups, held a 2-1 advantage from the first leg at the Johan Cruyff Arena and seemed to be cruising into the last eight. So confident were they of dispatching of the Dutch champions that Sergio Ramos even got himself deliberately suspended for the second leg to clear the yellow card hanging over him ahead of the quarter finals. That didn’t go quite to plan as Ajax won 4-1 in Madrid, a coming-of-age performance for a young team packed with homegrown talent which brought Real’s dynasty crashing to the ground.
7 - Mike Dean passes a century
No referee in Premier League history had racked up 100 red cards before. Needless to say, the first official to break through the barrier was the great showman Mike Dean, who hit his century when dismissing Ashley Young as Manchester United lost 2-1 at Wolves. Sadly, the man of a thousand memes didn’t add another to his impressive reel as Young was sent for an early bath, with none of the normal theatrics we’ve become accustomed to from Dean.
8 - Aaron Ramsey’s backheel goal
There were more spectacular goals scored across the season, but from a team point of view there was nothing as pleasing as Arsenal’s third in their 5-1 win away at Fulham. It took less than 60 seconds and nine passes for the Gunners to turn defence at one end into a goal at the other. What’s more, those passes contained flicks, headers and around the corner blind through balls. And it was all rounded off by Aaron Ramsey finishing with a backheel. Breath-taking football.
9 - Charlie Austin’s Parklife rant
Footballers are accused of being robotic and showing no personality in interviews these days, but the same cannot be said for Charlie Austin. The Southampton striker was incensed when he had a goal against Watford ruled out for offside in November, launching into a spectacular rant in a post-match interview. Some genius then added Blur’s 1994 classic single Parklife as a backing track, and one of the most popular viral videos of the season was born.
10 - Marcelo Bielsa’s Spygate press conference
When Leeds United manager Marcelo Bielsa called a press conference in the wake of accusations flying around that he’d sent a spy to watch Derby County in training, many people expected him to announce his resignation over the furore. After all, there were talks about fines and points deductions for Leeds. Instead, the nation’s press were treated to a 70 minute Powerpoint presentation in which Bielsa highlighted all the scouting work he’d carried out on Derby, their weaknesses as a team and an analysis of each individual in the Rams’ squad. It’s little wonder Guardiola hails Bielsa as a genius.
We hope you’ve enjoyed these top 10 moments and that the next season has even more exciting news coming our way, check out our social page for the latest news in the game!
