It has felt like a fait accompli for a number of weeks now but this past weekend saw Liverpool finally mathematically clinch the Premier League title – their first since 2020 and just a second top-flight triumph for 35 years. Anfield was rocking as a 5-1 triumph over hapless Tottenham sealed the deal in style, with the Reds now 15 points clear of second-placed Arsenal with just four games remaining. They may have fallen by the wayside in other competitions throughout the season but the Merseysiders have been imperious in the league. Wrapping up the title with four matches to go, the earliest a team has done so since Liverpool themselves had a record seven matches to spare in 2020, is testament to Arne Slot and his squad. The Dutchman had plenty of doubters when he replaced the legendary Jurgen Klopp last summer but he has exceeded all expectations during his first season in the Anfield dugout. Richard Jolly has written about how Slot repaid the favour done for him by Klopp, as well as taking a deep dive into just how the ex-Feyenoord boss has reinvented Liverpool as champions without a single major signing. Meanwhile, Miguel Delaney digs into exactly what the Reds did off the pitch to ensure this triumph certainly wasn't about luck and Kieran Jackson tells the story of the celebrations that gripped the city – five years after Covid denied fans the opportunity to properly bask in the glory of that 2020 title win. |
Also in your Sports Brief newsletter this week: |
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| Jamie Braidwood Assistant Sports Editor |
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Our favourite sport features |
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| Why Conor Benn didn't lose his epic fight with Chris Eubank Jr |
The hugely-anticipated fight between Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn had promised many things in the years and weeks before the first bell; they then went out and delivered on every single one of them. As Steve Bunce explains, Eubank won but nobody lost. Fittingly, after the fight both men fell, exhausted, into the arms of their fathers, who had gone to war in a boxing ring three decades prior. As a bonus, Alex Pattle reflected on how the two combatants produced a boxing melodrama worthy of those very fathers. |
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| Sublime Crystal Palace set up shot at FA Cup history and show others the way |
This is what the FA Cup is supposed to be about. Crystal Palace are now one game away from a first trophy in their long history after a 3-0 demolition of Aston Villa in the semi-final at Wembley. It was a performance that was a credit to manager Oliver Glasner, who has fashioned a fine team, brimming with vibrant quality, that has grown throughout the season. As a club, they have a real identity, true to their south London roots, and according to Miguel Delaney, they have created the blueprint that a lot of upper-level English teams should be copying. |
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| How Barcelona's rampant win over Chelsea exposed a gulf in class but Arsenal produced stunning comeback |
Twenty-four hours after witnessing Palace beating Villa at Wembley, Miguel Delaney was at Stamford Bridge to see another semi-final, as Chelsea's Women's Champions League dreams came to a crushing end – obliterated 8-2 on aggregate by a rampant Barcelona. No one in football can really replicate what Barca do. This is the outstanding team of the age, now fittingly on the brink of the European gold-standard feat of three Champions Leagues in a row and the gulf in class between them and the English sides they face is striking. That makes Arsenal's task in the final, trying to dethrone the queens of Europe, all the more daunting. The Gunners did spectacularly well to produce a stunning comeback away from home against Lyon but will need something even more miraculous in the final to change the narrative around English football in Europe. |
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England survive mighty fright to claim Women's Six Nations grand slam again |
England secured a seventh straight Women's Six Nations title when they beat France at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham over the weekend. Simple, right? Absolutely not... The Red Roses were given an almighty fright in the grand slam decider by a French side who have often underwhelmed during this Six Nations but came to play in Le Crunch. They were agonisingly close to stealing the title away from the overwhelming favourites but a thrilling 43-42 win for the now seven-time reigning champs proved just enough. England haven't lost a single game since the last World Cup final, often smashing teams by 50+ points, but it's all building towards that home World Cup in August/September and righting the wrongs of 2022. Harry Latham-Coyle explains why this close shave was exactly what the Red Roses needed but that big decisions now loom for coach John Mitchell ahead of the World Cup. |
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.jpg?quality=75&width=1368&crop=3%3A2%2Csmart&trim=85%2C0%2C85%2C0&auto=webp "Swim")
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