Romping their way to a against Everton on the final weekend, Manchester City wrapped up what has been another famous campaign at the Etihad in some style.

Lifting their third Premier League title in the last four years, Pep Guardiola’s side still have a triple-winning campaign at the top of their agenda before the 2021/22 season quickly gets underway.

In a campaign that saw West Ham mark a European return and Sheffield United drastically fail to match the same level they set on their Premier League return, we certainly witnessed an unprecedented year in English football.

With fans finally making their return to stadiums up and down the country, we have taken a look at 5 key talking points after an action-packed season in the Premier League.

City recaptur…

Footballing great Diego Maradona believes Gareth Bale has contributed more to Wales progress than Cristiano Ronaldo has for Portugal at Euro 2016.

Real Madrid team-mates Bale and Ronaldo will go head-to-head in a blockbuster semi-final in Lyon on Wednesday.

Bale and Wales have taken the European Championship by storm, Chris Coleman s men entertaining all the way to the final four, with the former s three goals aiding their cause.

The same cannot be said about Portugal, who have stifled their way to the semis, drawing all five games in regulation time.

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo has scored two goals, though he has often cut a frustrated figured in France.

This will also be a clash between the left and right flanks of Real Madrid, Maradona …

Benfica star Darwin Nunez will remain at the Portuguese giants until at least 2022 amid links to Barcelona, according to his agent Edgardo Lasalvia.

Nunez became Benfica s most expensive signing when he arrived from Almeria in a €24million deal in September, and he has already caught the attention of LaLiga powerhouse Barca.

The 21-year-old forward opened his account with a hat-trick in the Europa League last month, while the Uruguay international has netted five goals across all competitions.

Juventus have also been linked to Nunez and when asked about the Benfica forward s future, Lasalvia said via Sport: Darwin will remain at Benfica at least until 2022.

— SL Benfica (@SLBenfica)

Benfica head coach Jorge Jesus has tipped Nunez…

Croatia are capable of surprising at Euro 2012, but face what is a crucial opening clash against the Republic of Ireland.

Slaven Bilic s side are not favoured to progress from a Group C which includes reigning world and European champions Spain, Italy and Ireland.

But their chances of doing so would be dealt a huge blow if they suffer defeat against Giovanni Trapattoni s side on Sunday.

Former West Ham and Everton defender Bilic will take over at Lokomotiv Moscow after the European Championships, and will be eager to advance to at least the quarter-finals.

The 43-year-old has a solid squad at his disposal, led by Tottenham playmaker Luka Modric and Everton forward Nikica Jelavic.

With Darijo Srna likely to start on the right of midfield, Niko Kra…

Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal’s fixation on rectifying their near-miss in the Premier League last season is the difference for his players this time around.

After battling to a 2-2 draw against Manchester City last Sunday, the Gunners booked their place in the EFL Cup fourth round with an emphatic win over Bolton Wanderers, with several of their emerging talents starring at the Emirates.

Ethan Nwaneri and Jack Porter stole the limelight in midweek, with the former grabbing two goals on his senior Arsenal start, with Arteta also giving four more teenagers the chance to shine against the League One outfit.

But speaking ahead of this weekend’s fixture against Leicester, the Arsenal head coach believes his squad’s hunger to achieve this season is the difference…

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has tipped Spanish midfielder Cesc Fabregas to impress as much in this month s European Championships as he has in the Premier League over the last few seasons.

The Frenchman has been amazed by how the slightly-built Fabregas manages to get the better of his more robust and muscular counterparts.

His intention is always to play football, and that is fantastic to see at a young age, said Wenger.

I see him every day, and he has a great understanding of the game.

I like it that in a period where football is going more towards the athletes only, as long as you have the quality, you don t have to run 100 metres in 10 seconds.

Intelligence still means a lot and in the modern game where everyone is quick and strong, it…

Chelsea begin their bid to become the first team since Manchester United in 2008-09 to retain the Premier League title when they travel to Burnley on Saturday.

But with Antonio Conte disgruntled by the number of players the Blues have managed to bring in – not to mention one they have been unable to move on – can the Manchester clubs convert their latest close season of huge spending off the field into defining success on it?

Conte s concerns over fighting on two fronts will be similarly felt by Jurgen Klopp, whose Liverpool squad depth will be severely tested by a Champions League campaign, irrespective of whether Barcelona manage to prize Philippe Coutinho away from Merseyside. Meanwhile, Mauricio Pochettino had a Wembley hex to ponder at Tottenham long before Dann…

Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has backed Franck Ribery to make his comeback before the turn of the year.

The ex-France international has been out of action since March due to ankle and back problems and it remains uncertain when exactly he will return to match action.

However, Rummenigge remains optimistic that the 32-year-old will soon be back, even though he has acknowledged Ribery could still be unavailable for a number of weeks.

I have no doubt about it that Franck will return to the pitch this year, Rummenigge told TZ.

The first thing we need now is an exact diagnosis of the problem. It could still be a while, though.

Rummenigge then went on to discuss Bayern s Champions League match versus Olympiacos on Wednesday and warned…

England suffered another familiar failing in the Euro 2024 final as Gary Neville was left fed up with every Three Lions manager referencing the same struggles in possession.

Gareth Southgate acknowledged his side did not keep the ball well against Spain, who triumphed 2-1 in Berlin thanks to Mikel Oyarzabal s late winner on Sunday.

England managed just a 34.9% share of possession in the showpiece, losing the ball 98 times across the team and completing only 66.5% of passes in Spain s half.

Former England full-back Neville cut a frustrated figure on ITV pundit duties, blasting a repeated struggle for the Three Lions shortcomings.

We can focus on a lot of things, but Southgate s answer on how we did not keep the ball well enough should be the title of the …

Sunday s World Cup final will not be the first time Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi have met on this stage.

If the encounter at Lusail Stadium is half as good as the instant classic witnessed in Kazan four years ago, then we ll be in for a treat.

France won 4-3 in their last-16 duel, a game that was defined by Argentina s fragility and Les Bleus ruthlessness.

Didier Deschamps men of course went on to win the tournament; Argentina soon sacked Jorge Sampaoli and Lionel Messi went into a self-imposed international exile.

It was a seismic contest in a variety of ways.

Mbappe elevated to superstardom

The final of Qatar 2022 is of course being billed as Mbappe versus Messi. Ahead of their meeting in Kazan, this wasn t really the case, with the la…