This year’s Premier League title race feels like it’s done and dusted. Liverpool head into April with a 12-point lead and in far more consistent form than closest challengers Arsenal, who look poised to finish second for a third year in succession.
However, with every big lead at the top comes along the prospect of a team completely losing their composure at the crucial moments.
Over the years, even the best teams have suffered from stage fright when the going got tough, with the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool themselves guilty of fluffing their lines with the title in reach.
Here, we’ve looked back at some examples of teams who have squandered huge chances to win the Premier League. If you’re a Liverpool fan, you’ll be hoping history won’t repeat itself.
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1
Man Utd 1994/95
Failure to beat West Ham hands title to Blackburn
In truth, this could very easily have been a section about Blackburn Rovers bottling the title. Indeed, the Lancashire side had only won one of their previous five matches heading into the season finale, which gave Manchester United the opportunity to seal a third straight title should they slip up again.
Despite Rovers’ poor late-season form, they still led the Premier League ahead of their final-day clash against Liverpool, but knew that even a draw could let United in due to the Red Devils’ superior goal difference.
Blackburn’s worst nightmares then appeared to be coming true as they succumbed to a 2-1 loss at Anfield, meaning a win for United would earn Sir Alex Ferguson’s men another league championship.
But United uncharacteristically fluffed their lines, running into an inspired Ludek Miklosko in the Hammers net as they were continuously denied a winner that would have secured the title, settling for a 1-1 draw at the Boleyn Ground.
2
Newcastle 1995/96
Toon squander huge lead as Keegan’s Entertainers implode
If today’s Arsenal squad needed a reminder that 12-point leads can vanish, they’d be wise to look at Newcastle United’s collapse in 1995/96 for inspiration.
The Magpies, led by Kevin Keegan, installed a 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League by mid-January.
But within two months, Newcastle had lost three and drawn once to allow Manchester United to close the gap.
To make matters worse, the Toon then lost to Liverpool and Blackburn in the space of a week to fully hand the initiative to the Red Devils.
Newcastle even had the chance to head into the final day level on points before two successive draws saw Man Utd wrestle the title back at the first time of asking.
3
Man Utd 1997/98
Awful run-in lets Arsenal snatch title glory
In fairness to Manchester United, Arsenal were on a hot streak in the latter months of the 1997/98 campaign, but for seasoned winners, their sudden fall from title certainties to also-rans will have been a bitter pill to swallow.
With 10 games remaining, Fergie’s men led the table by 11 points – 12 clear of Arsenal, who did have three games in hand.
March 1998 saw Arsenal reel off 10 straight victories, but United’s position still meant that all they needed to do to retain the title was see off either Liverpool or Newcastle at home – or even take a point from Arsenal at Old Trafford.
Those draws and Arsenal’s winning run (including a 1-0 success in Manchester) meant the Gunners could afford two defeats at the end of their campaign.
It was an opportunity missed for the Red Devils, though they did make up for it with a treble a year later.
4
Arsenal 1998/99
Defeat in penultimate match gift-wraps title for United
Arsenal were aiming to secure back-to-back titles in 1999, but despite getting themselves in a marvellous position to get the job done, they let themselves down just before the final hurdle.
The Gunners had won just 6 of their first 17 matches, but a competitive field that season meant there was still time for a title charge in the new year.
They won 15 of the next 19 matches to go level on points with two games to play, but a dramatic late defeat at Leeds meant United could afford to drop points at Blackburn Rovers and win the title by a point.
This one is more in hindsight, but one more win would surely have been enough to deny United the title – and their historic treble.
5
Arsenal 2002/03
Champions in control until Bolton comeback derails season
Arsenal were in a similar position in 2002/03 as they looked to successfully defend the title.
And despite having the title in their hands after a crunch clash with Manchester United, a late draw at Bolton Wanderers – in which Martin Keown scored an own goal – handed United the advantage.
The Gunners were then shocked at home by relegation-threatened Leeds United to go from title favourites to confirmed runners-up in a matter of weeks.
6
Arsenal 2007/08
Gunners let commanding lead slip after horror March
Arsene Wenger’s Gunners were not expected to challenge in the 2007/08 season, especially with club legend Thierry Henry leaving in the summer.
But the north Londoners produced an exciting start to the campaign, not losing until December and leading by five points with 12 games left.
The turning point came in a dramatic 2-2 draw at Birmingham City, which saw Eduardo da Silva suffer a double leg break and Gael Clichy concede a contentious last-minute penalty.
Arsenal struggled to restore their momentum, and four straight draws and a defeat to title rivals Chelsea saw their lead wiped out.
Despite winning their last four games, they had to settle for third place, having fallen just short in the big games at the business end of the campaign.
7
Man Utd 2011/12
Red Devils lose 8-point lead in final six games
With six matches remaining in the 2011/12 season, it looked for all the world that Manchester United would defend their title thanks to an eight-point lead at the summit.
Manchester City had threatened to knock them off their perch but defeats to the likes of Swansea City and Arsenal seemed to have killed off their challenge.
City then won five on the spin – including in the Manchester derby – to set up the historic final day that saw them win the title on goal difference.
But United could have avoided all the drama by avoiding defeat to Wigan Athletic or holding onto their lead at home to Everton, in games that will still be leaving a scar today.
8
Liverpool 2013/14
Suarez cries as Reds waste huge chance to win PL title
When Liverpool beat Manchester City in April 2014, it looked as if the Reds would finally end their decades-long wait for a league title.
When title rivals Chelsea lost prior to another Liverpool victory over Norwich City, the Reds had extended their lead to five points with three matches to play, albeit with Man City having games in hand.
Then it all went wrong. Defeat to Chelsea in their following match meant the door was open for City, who only had a slender advantage on goal difference.
But an ignominious draw to Crystal Palace when the Reds had led 3-0 destroyed their realistic chances of winning the league.
Man City then got their job done on the final day with a victory over West Ham, leaving Liverpool’s success over Newcastle academic.
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9
Tottenham 2015/16
Pochettino’s Spurs come third in two-horse race
In Spurs’ defence, they were never meant to even challenge for the title in 2015/16. But then again, neither were eventual winners Leicester City.
It seems a little unfair to call Tottenham Hotspur out on their failure to take a once-in-a-generation chance of winning the title when so many others underperformed, but when you get to the last 11 games and you’re just two points off Leicester in second, anyone would kick themselves.
Unfortunately for Spurs, they won just four of their remaining matches, and collapsed so dramatically that losing their final two games allowed rivals Arsenal to pip them to second place.
Ironically, the following season was more successful from a points perspective, though they were accused of being ‘bottlejobs’ despite barely even getting to within touching distance of a relentless Chelsea. 2015/16 surely hurts more.
10
Arsenal 2015/16
Underwhelming Gunners lose out to fairytale Leicester side
As was the case with Spurs, Arsenal may have performed far better than their expected title rivals this year – Chelsea finished 10th and Liverpool finished outside the European places – but they also failed to convert a fairly unique position into title glory.
Points-wise, the Gunners didn’t dip too drastically (scoring just four fewer than the previous campaign), but in a season where they only needed 10 more to win the title, it was a huge opportunity wasted.
It was a season of false dawns for the Gunners, who had beaten both Manchester sides and eventual champions Leicester to lead the table at the turn of the year.
But a series of needless draws and a failure to build momentum after their last-gasp win over the Foxes – which had left them two points off the summit – meant the Gunners were the nearly men once more.
11
Arsenal 2022/23
Arteta’s side run out of steam in face of City juggernaut
This may have been another unexpected title charge from the Gunners, but after such a commanding start, the Gunners’ dodgy run-in allowed the powerhouses of Manchester City to steal in.
Arsenal accumulated 50 points at the halfway stage – while only leading by five points – and even recovered from a mid-season blip to enter April with an eight-point advantage.
But three successive draws, which included a pair of squandered two-goal leads, allowed the City juggernaut to click into gear.
The Citizens’ 11-game winning run was enough to see off the Gunners’ challenge, with Arsenal winning just three of their final nine matches to fall just short.
