Liverpool Finishes Third, Late Leicester Collapse Sees Chelsea Qualify for UCL

Liverpool finished third in the Premier League with a win against Crystal Palace while Leicester's late collapse to Spurs sees Chelsea finish in the top four.

Despite a loss to Aston Villa on the final day, Chelsea got the help it needed and Liverpool went unbeaten in its final 10 games of the season to clinch a spot in next season's Champions League at the expense of Leicester City.

After beating Leicester City on Tuesday to put Chelsea in pole position for a Champions League spot, the Blues struggled mightily at Villa Park in a 2–1 loss while Leicester entered the final 15 minutes with a 2–1 lead against Spurs, where a win would have seen the Foxes return to the Champions League.

But Tottenham gave its hated London rival a helping hand with three late goals against Leicester, including two from Gareth Bale in the final 10 minutes, to keep Chelsea in fourth place with a one-point berth over Leicester. 

Gareth Bale winds up scoring what could be the final decisive blow in the top-four race. Tottenham leads Leicester late, which would save Chelsea and keep Leicester rooted in fifth

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— SI Soccer (@si_soccer) May 23, 2021

Knowing it just needed a win to get in, Liverpool cruised to victory Sunday against Crystal Palace behind two goals from Sadio Mané, sending the club into third on 69 points. 

A huge goal for Sadio Mane in front of fans at Anfield changes the Premier League’s top four equation. *As it stands* Liverpool and Leicester are in, and Chelsea is out 👀

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— SI Soccer (@si_soccer) May 23, 2021

Less than a year after winning its first Premier League title, Liverpool's luck turned on a head in what manager Jürgen Klopp called the most difficult season of his life. Season-ending injuries to starting defenders Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez in the first two months of the season led Klopp to play 16 different center-back combinations throughout the season. 

At one point in March, Liverpool sat in eighth place after losing six out of seven. But the 2019 Champions League winners went the final two months without a league loss, led by Golden Boot runner-up Mohamed Salah's 22 goals. 

Last year, 66 points were enough for two Champions League spots, but it wasn't enough for FA Cup champion Leicester, who ended each week of the season in the top four until this last week. The Foxes finished in fifth place after a late-season collapse for the second straight year.

With a goal against Leicester City, Harry Kane ended a week filled with transfer rumors with his third Premier League Golden Boot—this time on 23 goals. Tottenham's win and seventh-place finish qualified Spurs for the inaugural Europa Conference League while also denying North London nemesis Arsenal a spot in Europe for the first time in 25 years. 

Harry Kane does Chelsea a solid! His equalizer vs. Leicester sends the Blues back into the top four and Leicester into fifth in the live table–even with Chelsea going behind Aston Villa 😱

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— SI Soccer (@si_soccer) May 23, 2021

Thanks to two goals from Sergio Agüero in his final match with Manchester City, the league winners won 5-0 on the final day ahead of next week's Champions League final against Chelsea. Meanwhile, runner-up Manchester United also finished the season with a win before Wednesday's Europa League final against Villarreal.