How the Last 10 EPL Seasons Would Have Ended with F1's Double Points Finale
The Formula One season comes to an end in Abu Dhabi this weekend, with the controversial double points system ensuring that it's going to go down to the wire in the battle for the Drivers' Championship between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.
Having been met with plenty of criticism, the F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has told The Independent that having double points on offer for the final race of the season is an experiment which isn't likely to be repeated next year. But what if a similar rule was introduced for the final weekend of the Premier League?
Here we take a look at what the climaxes to the last 10 seasons would have been like if it was six points for a win and two for a draw.
2004/05: Liverpool Pip Everton to Fourth, and Its Even More Chaos at the Bottom
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Jose Mourinho's Chelsea are already so far ahead at the top that the two points they pick up from the draw at Newcastle United don't really change much, with Arsenal's 2-1 loss at Birmingham ensuring that the Blues win the title by 13 points instead of 12.
The biggest change comes in fourth place, where Djibril Cisse's brace gives a Liverpool side preparing for their Istanbul Champions League final a 2-1 win over Aston Villa, with those six points seeing them pip Everton to the top four.
David Moyes' men 3-2 loss at Bolton Wanderers sees them miss out on fourth place on goal difference to their rivals. Moyes never makes it into the top four as Everton manager, and so perhaps never gets the Manchester United job eight years later.
It's madness at the bottom as goals keep changing the situation, but ultimately everything stays the same as the six points picked up by West Bromwich Albion from their win over Portsmouth sees them stay up by three points despite being bottom at the start of the day, with Crystal Palace, Southampton and Norwich City going down.
2005/06: Insult Is Added to Illness for Tottenham Hotspur
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Mourinho's Chelsea are again already so far ahead that their final day defeat at Newcastle doesn't matter, although it does mean they only finish five points ahead of second-placed Manchester United and six ahead of Liverpool in third after both record final-day six-point wins.
Not even the altered points on offer can save Tottenham Hotspur from their final day lasagne-based misery at West Ham United, as they lose 2-1, and indeed it is made all the worse for Martin Jol's men as they fall to sixth following wins for Arsenal and Blackburn Rovers. Mark Hughes' Rovers end the season fifth after beating Manchester City 2-0.
The only change at the bottom sees West Brom take two points on the final day following a 2-2 draw at Everton, but the Baggies still go down with Birmingham City and Sunderland, who both lose on the last day.
2006/07: Carlos Tevez Keeps West Ham Up and Almost Gives Them a Mid-Table Finish
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Draws for Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal add two points to their final totals but keep them in second, third and fourth, respectively, with Manchester United winning the title by five points despite their final day loss to West Ham at Old Trafford.
Carlos Tevez's winner there is the key point of a fascinating battle at the bottom, which ends with the Hammers finishing as high as 14th place after claiming their crucial six points.
They end the campaign six points ahead of relegated Sheffield United, potentially enough to avert the messy legal wrangle over the Tevez transfer which we saw over the next few years.
Also relegated are Charlton Athletic and Watford, whose final-day draws aren't enough.
2007/08: Arsenal Finish Second, While Reading Stay Up and Bolton Go Down
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The double points rule means that Arsenal can win the title on the final day as well as Manchester United and Chelsea, and Theo Walcott's early goal at Sunderland means that midway through the first halves all three clubs are locked together on 86 points.
United soon take control, though, and a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty at Wigan puts them clear at the top, with a Ryan Giggs strike and a late Bolton leveller at Chelsea ensuring that they win the league by four points, with Arsenal beating Chelsea to second on goal difference.
At the bottom, that 92nd minute equaliser from Bolton's Matt Taylor at Stamford Bridge isn't enough to keep them up.
They claim two points for that, but Reading pick up six from a 4-0 win at hapless Derby County. They finish on 39 points along with Fulham and Sunderland, with Bolton joining Birmingham and Derby in going down.
Could the Royals have become a Premier League force if they'd stayed up for a third season?
2008/09: Middlesbrough End Up Bottom of the Pile
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Second placed Liverpool go into the final day four points behind Manchester United, and they claim six from their win over Spurs, but United's 1-0 success at Hull City ensures that they claim the league honours by four points from their rivals.
Chelsea and Arsenal stay in third and fourth, with the only slightly significant change seeing Gareth Southgate's Middlesbrough end the season at the bottom of the table as they lose 2-1 at West Ham, while West Brom pick up two points from a goalless draw at Blackburn.
Both still go down though, along with Newcastle following their loss at Aston Villa.
2009/10: Final Day Agony for Manchester City and Liverpool
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Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea go into the final day a point ahead of Manchester United, and they make sure of the title in emphatic style as they hammer Wigan Athletic 8-0 to secure their six points and end on a total of 89.
Arsenal finish third but, with Tottenham surprisingly losing at already relegated Burnley, Manchester City blow their chance to leap above them and into the top four when they can only draw at a West Ham side whose two points from their 1-1 draw secures safety.
Along with an already gone Portsmouth, Hull go down despite two points from a goalless draw with Liverpool, who dramatically end the season behind Everton in the table when Diniyar Bilyaletdinov scores a 94th minute winner against Portsmouth at Goodison Park.
As a result, the Blues take seventh spot ahead of the Reds, securing European football in the process.
2010/11: Roman Pavlyuchenko Relegates Birmingham in 93rd Minute
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There's a six-point gap between Manchester United and Chelsea going into the final day of the season, and so the Blues can still conceivably win the league, but United get the job done with a 4-2 win over Blackpool.
Chelsea's 1-0 loss at Everton leads to the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti, with Manchester City pipping them to second with a win at Bolton. Arsenal could have overtaken them, too, but they only draw at Fulham and finish fourth.
It's chaos at the bottom, with West Ham and Blackpool down because of defeats, Wigan staying up because of the six points they claim at Stoke City and Birmingham looking all set to join them as they protect the two points from their draw at Tottenham into the final moments.
However, with Wolverhampton Wanderers—who are losing 3-2 at home to Blackburn—looking all set to go down, a dramatic 93rd minute Tottenham winner from Roman Pavlyuchenko robs Birmingham of their two points and sends them down instead of Midlands rivals Wolves.
Pavlyuchenko is soon awarded the freedom of Wolverhampton.
2011/12: Six-Point Swing Seals Manchester City the Title
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Leading at Sunderland and with Manchester City 2-1 down at home to Queens Park Rangers going into stoppage time, Manchester United look set to win their 20th league title by six points from their rivals, until Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero strike to turn no points into six and secure the crown on goal difference.
Soon-to-be European champions Chelsea steal fifth from Newcastle on the final day, while there's not much change at the bottom, with the extra point gained by Bolton from their draw at Stoke not proving enough to climb above QPR and out of the relegation zone. They go down on goal difference.
2012/13: Ron Vlaar's Leveller Relegates Cup Kings Wigan
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A shock home defeat to Norwich sees Manchester City slip from second to third on the final day, with Chelsea taking their place as runners-up to Manchester United, who win the title by 12 points after a crazy 5-5 draw with West Brom.
Arsenal stay fourth ahead of Spurs, while there is a direct reversal of 2009/10 as Liverpool take the six points they need to finish above Everton on the final day thanks to Philippe Coutinho's winner against QPR.
The R's were already relegated along with Reading, but a win for Wigan over Aston Villa would have secured them safety a week on from winning the FA Cup, given that Sunderland lost at Tottenham. However, Ron Vlaar's equaliser ensures that the Latics take just two points from a 2-2 draw and go down.
2013/14: No Change at the Top, but Gayle's Brace Sends Fulham Down
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Chelsea can still win the title on the last day, but both they and Liverpool fall behind to Cardiff City and Newcastle, respectively, raising the possibility that Manchester City could win it by eight points when they take the lead against West Ham.
In the end, all three win to leave City as champions, with the top eight all remaining the same as the start of the day.
At the bottom, both Norwich and Fulham would have climbed out of the relegation zone with victories, thereby relegating West Brom, but the Canaries lost to Arsenal and Fulham could only draw 2-2 at home to Crystal Palace, with Dwight Gayle's double for the Eagles effectively sending their London rivals down.
