England

And then there was just one. Manchester City had to come from behind to beat Everton 3-2 and that resilience has paid off. Ross Barkley (below) scored a beauty to open things up early on, but City were simply too good for the Liverpudlians. Aguero equalised and a pair of Dzeko goals gave them a 3-1 lead before Lukaku pegged one back. Everton were unable to muster another one though. City rose to the top of the table for the first time since beating Spurs at the end of January – even if it was only on goal difference.

City have slipped from top since, but the title is firmly theirs to lose with a game in hand still. Chelsea were the first contender to throw it away. Somehow a near full strength side was unable to break down Norwich City, the team with the worst away record in the league, at Stamford Bridge. It was a limp ending to a very mixed season, but one that is ultimately going to end trophy-less now. Even Manchester United snagged the Community Shield! On the same day, Arsenal managed a 1-0 win over West Brom (it should have been a lot more) which coupled with Everton’s loss guarantees them fourth place and Champions League footy.

Then Liverpool. What can you say? Joe Allen gave them the half time lead against Crystal Palace with a headed effort, and they extended that lead after the break thanks to one for each of the SAS marksmen. 3-0 down at home with nothing left to play for and only 25 minutes left, Palace threw on Dwight Gale, and it proved inspired. First Damien Delaney hit one in with his left from outside the box (helped by a deflection from Glen Johnson). 12 minutes left, 3-1. Liverpool go on the attack but lose the ball in the Palace box. A counter attack follows. Yannick Bolasie shows some great pace to get by Johnson, squares it to Gale and it’s 3-2. Palace aren’t done there though. A few minutes later they pump a long ball towards the box. Skrtel runs out to challenge the header but is too late, and the ball is flicked into the path of Gale – right in the space vacated by Skrtel – and Palace are level. 3 goals in 9 minutes and Liverpool’s championship hopes are all but over. Had they won or even drawn against Chelsea, this game would almost have decided the title. Instead now they need City to drop 3 points against Aston Villa and West Ham, with they themselves beating Newcastle. It could happen, sure. But Brandon Rodgers isn’t buying it.

Ryan Giggs’ interim management took a stumble with a 1-0 loss at home to Sunderland. Yet another Old Trafford loss to a team that hadn’t won there since before most of their players were born. The end of this season just cannot come soon enough for those players. Tottenham lost to West Ham in an embarrassing performance that included the much maligned Stewart Downing’s first goal for the Hammers – a pathetic free kick that somehow found its way through the wall!

That meant that if United won out they could still grab 6th, yet a few hours later Sunderland were leaving victorious. Plenty of chances but no cutting edge, largely due to the wastefulness of Nani and Ashley Young out wide. Things were better for them against Hull midweek. Giggsy even managed to dump the tracksuit and get out for a run himself. He’s stressed that he’ll give everyone a chance, and this time that meant young’uns James Wilson (who’s been on a tear for their U-21s) and Tom Lawrence (A young Welshman fresh from a loan spell at Carlisle). Wilson in particular grabbed the opportunity, bagging a pair of goals on a dream debut, before coming off for Robin Van Persie who himself added a third (after an incisive pass from his manager). Matty Fryatt scored a beauty for Hull. 3-1 was the final score.

Sunderland’s win at Old Trafford relegated Cardiff and Fulham, though they can have no complaints after very weak losses with their seasons on the line. Sunderland need one more point against West Brom or Swansea to be safe and to send Norwich down. The Canaries absolutely have to beat Arsenal in their final match. Good luck with that…

Spain

When it rains it pours, right? All three of the big boys in Spain dropped points this past week. All three of them. Missed opportunities all around, but it leaves us with a thrilling last couple of weeks in La Liga before the champions are crowned – whoever they may turn out to be!

First of all, Barcelona. A first half Lionel Messi goal – his 28th league goal of the season – saw them leading 1-0 and with every chance to extend that with their dominance. It was Getafe that levelled though, less than 10 minutes before half time to ensure things were level at the break. Getafe are fighting for survival, while Barca are fighting for their fifth title in six years, and the gulf in class was evident, but Barcelona were guilty of failing to turn their possession into chances. Alexis Sanchez put them back in the lead, but their laidback attitude caught up with them on the night and Angel Lafita scored well into injury time to grab a crucial point for Getafe and possibly end Barcelona’s chances at a top placed finish.

Atletico Madrid were next to take the field, away to Levante. Just like their Catalan rivals, they found themselves with plenty of possession, and plenty of shots, though few on target. A win would have all but wrapped up the Primera title for Atletico. Instead they fell behind early thanks to an own goal by Filipe Luis, and Diego Simeone’s men, perhaps feeling the fatigue of a run to the Champions League final too, conceded again with 20 to play, to fall 2-0.

That meant that a win for Real and they would move within 3 points of Atletico, with a game in hand and a superior goal difference. It was hardly that easy against Valencia though. Real went behind just before half time. Sergio Ramos equalised with a header around the hour mark, but then Daniel Parejo (a former Real player) restored Valencia’s lead five minutes later and it looked like they were on their way to a shocking upset victory when Ronaldo, as the greatest players so often do, pulled out a sublime piece of skill when his team most needed it, with this stunning finish off his heel. That salvaged point means that if Real win out, they can still take the prize if Atletico drop points to Barca on the final day of the season.

Italy

Well it's official, Juventus wrapped up their third consecutive Serie A title. No mean feat considering they were left to fight for scraps following some match fixing dramas. They have become a potent force in Italy with very good strikers such as Carlos Tevez, Osvaldo and Llorente getting passes served on a platter by Andres Pirlo in a midfield held together by the likes of Paul Pogba. Juve battled hard for a 1-0 win against Atalanta, but they already knew they had the title in the bag thanks to Roma who were destroyed by near bottom Catania 4-1. Cue the celebrations

Besides chasing another title next year, Juve will be keen to make a bigger dent in Europe. They've kinda showcased the strength of their club within Italy but the icing on the cake will come when they can consistently compete with the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Chelsea etc. Considering they couldn't even make the final of the Europa League after being knocked out of the Champions League, you would expect Juve to have much loftier goals on their horizons. Oh an by the way, AC Milan emerged with the Milan derby spoils as they defeated Inter 1-0 thanks to a Nigel de Jong header. It was a pretty dull affair with not much at stake ... here's hoping to some happier times in Milan.

France

The French are a extremely tough bunch to please. Much of the attention in France is focussed on the future of Laurent Blanc who despite being well on track to win the league and leading PSG to a Coup de la Ligue win over Olympique Lyonnais, failed to advance to the Champions League final. Much of the drama seems to be the way Blanc was out-coached by Jose Mourinho as Chelsea knocked PSG out of the Champions League in the semis ... many a coach has fallen victim to Mourinho. But apparently Blanc's tactical limits have been exposed.

Another interesting storyline is the future of Edison Cavani who is apparently unsettled at PSG ... not surprising considering he's playing alongside one of the very best in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Both play a similar style, two large bodied athletic strikers with skills a plenty ... you can't really have both of them in your squad and expect them to both be happy as Larry. PSG snapped up Cavani while he was one of the most wanted hitmen on the market ... if he so much as farts out a desire to leave Paris expect a whole bunch of teams to be keen especially Chelsea.

Scores? Results? Well PSG will probably have won the title by the time you read this as they can wrap it up by beating Stade Rennais midweek.

Germany

It’s a running joke that the Germans are boring and efficient. Their footballers are actually some of the most talented and creative going around, but the Bundesliga as a competition? Well, with a single round remaining things appear all but settled. With the top 6 all winning, and the bottom 6 all losing, Werder Bremen were the only team in the entire competition to move up the ladder this past week. Bayern are champs, Dortmund are second, Schalke will probably finish third and Leverkusen need a win in their final game to secure the final UCL spot. Other than that it’s all quiet on the western front.