Chelsea, Arsenal and Swansea City fans will be hoping their heroes return next season.
The final day of the season can be a strange time for clubs especially when they have little to play for but pride.
Often the stories are not all about the clubs, rather the players or managers themselves.
Arsenal are the exception of the three clubs mentioned, they did have something to play for yesterday, and mainly thanks to a farcical performance from Martin F(u)lop in the West Brom goal, third place was secured.
Robin van Persie’s words after the final whistle will have left each and every Gunner feeling nervous; ‘Whatever happens I’ll always love Arsenal’.
This week contract talks will begin, and Arsenal fans will be sweating on the result of them, every bit as much as Tottenham Hotspur are the result of the Champions League final.
Which brings us nicely onto Roberto di Matteo, who may have managed his last league match as Chelsea manager, whatever happens in Munich.
Chelsea’s sixth place finish is their lowest for more than a decade, hardly his fault, more to do with Andre Villas-Boas.
When Di Matteo came in, it was an impossible job to turn around the league, FA Cup, and Champions League.
He has done two, and that should greatly be admired, already winning the cup at Wembley, but chairman Bruce Buck has been critical of the club’s final position.
“We do not consider [finishing outside the top four] to be satisfactory and Roman [Abramovich] and the board will be working over the summer to try to ensure that doesn’t happen again.”
It sounds ominous, when Buck says they will be be taking action, it is difficult to read whether that means bringing in a new manager, new players or both, but their track record and recent history indicate that Di Matteo could have bossed his last league game.
The past month in the league has been a patchy one results-wise for the Blues, set against the glory of reaching the Champions League final of course.
If it were up to us, we’d give Di Matteo the chance to continue next season, but you just never know what is going on behind the scenes and who may have been approached.
Another who may have said his goodbye yesterday is Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson, who starred in Swansea City’s 1-0 win over Liverpool.
He has been a revelation since arriving on loan at the Liberty Stadium in January, and manager Brendan Rodgers will be regretting not pushing German club Hoffenheim into a permanent deal there and then.
Interest in him has soared, with Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Newcastle all linked with his signature.
Swansea have already had a bid for him turned down, but they find themselves outbid by the English giants if their interest is serious.
If it is to be than Sigurdsson has played his last game for Swansea, it was a memorable one. He came close to scoring and the result summed out the Swans successful Premier League season.
Swansea could afford to replace him, they will find an alternative if he ends up elsewhere. Chelsea have a luxurious choice of being in the box-seat with Di Matteo’s negotiations, if they feel somebody better comes along, then take the plunge, otherwise they will continue with him.
Arsenal on the other hand cannot afford to let Van Persie go. They may not have a choice. If the Dutchman wants out, the scale of the rebuilding job at Arsenal could put their progress back a whole season.
Which of these three will return to their clubs next season?
image: © Ronnie Macdonald
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