Nine months, 38 games – and it took just six minutes to decide the Premier League title race

Manchester City are champions again, just as they were a season ago, writes Ben Burrows

The stage was set for a grandstand finish, and Manchester City didn’t disappoint (AFP/Getty)

After nine months and 38 games, it took just six minutes to decide the Premier League title race. Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City are champions again, just as they were a season ago, after a scarcely believable come-from-behind win over Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon.

But they were made to work for it as they were pushed all the way by a relentless Liverpool, triumphing by just a single point on the season’s final day. It was a Reds old boy in Steven Gerrard who nearly handed the crown to his former club with the ex-skipper’s Villa doing the unthinkable and going 2-0 up at the Etihad.

Liverpool needed City to slip up to have any chance and when Philippe Coutinho’s strike found the back of the net just before 5.30pm news filtered back to an expectant Anfield that they just might.

But then came the twist as substitute Ilkay Gundogan climbed off the bench to head in City’s first reply before Rodri’s inch-perfect daisy-cutter levelled the match minutes later.

The stage was set for a grandstand finish, and it was Gundogan again, on hand to tap home Kevin De Bruyne’s cross at the far post, who brought the house down in east Manchester. The Etihad is no stranger to last-day drama, of course, with a new statue outside commemorating Sergio Aguero’s iconic title-winner back in 2012. This wasn’t as late but was almost equally as dramatic as City came back from (seemingly) the dead to claim the trophy.

Guardiola was reduced to tears as the enormity of a fourth title in five years finally dawned on him amid the bedlam at full-time. The scenes were all the more sober on Merseyside as Jurgen Klopp’s side were again pipped to the post by the slimmest of margins. They have the chance to end their season on the highest of notes, however, with the Champions League final against Real Madrid on Saturday.

If it’s anywhere near as entertaining as this finale was, every football fan will be in for another treat.

Yours,

Ben Burrows

Sports editor