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They never led the league and weren't really close to reining in Liverpool's lead in the second half of the season, were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round by struggling Manchester United on penalties, were soundly beaten by Newcastle United (2-0 both home and away) in the Carabao Cup semifinal, and were outclassed by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.

After two turbulent seasons marked by managerial changes, bloated squads, €1.6 billion of spending and lackluster displays on the pitch, the Blues have found their feet again under manager Enzo Maresca (8).

While hopes of a Premier League title run proved to be premature, the side shook off a dip in form to finish fourth and sneak into the UEFA Champions League places this term, and return to Europe's premier competition for the first time since 2023, while also landing a place in the Conference League final where they will face Real Betis on Wednesday.

Coming into this season, one of Maresca's biggest challenges was to restructure Chelsea's porous defense.

-- Tom Fenton

LIVERPOOL (4-2-1-3)

GK: Alisson (8)
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold (6) | CB: Virgil van Dijk (9) | CB: Ibrahima Konaté (9) | LB: Andrew Robertson (6)
CM: Ryan Gravenberch (8) | CM: Alexis Mac Allister (8)
FW: Mohamed Salah (10) | AM: Dominik Szoboszlai (7) | FW: Cody Gakpo (7)
FW: Luis Díaz (8)

MANAGER: Arne Slot (9)

SUBS: GK: Caoimhín Kelleher (8) | LB: Kostas Tsimikas (6) | RB: Conor Bradley (6) | CB: Jarell Quansah (5) | CB: Joe Gomez (5) | CM: Wataru Endo (7) | CM: Curtis Jones (6) | ST: Darwin Núñez (5) | ST: Diogo Jota (5)

Liverpool ended the season with just their second Premier League title since 1990, after a convincing combination of consistency and swashbuckling attacking play amid Arne Slot's historic first campaign.

Mohamed Salah's sublime form puts the Reds' talisman in line to become the first Ballon d'Or winner from Africa since George Weah in 1995.

The season was marred by injuries (namely to Ballon d'Or winner Rodri), tactical missteps and underwhelming performances, culminating in a shock FA Cup final loss to Crystal Palace.

City struggled for consistency in all competitions and had a run of six Premier League defeats in nine games before Christmas that left them way off the pace.

Marmoush, signed for €70m in January, showed moments of brilliance in the Premier League, which included a hat trick against Newcastle, although questions remain over how he and Haaland will fit into the same system next season.

With the title race out of reach, the second half of the season presented Guardiola with the opportunity to experiment tactically, integrate his new signings and reward academy talent.

A dramatic run to the UEFA Europa League final meant they had a chance to seal a surprise place in the Champions League with a win, but they lost 1-0 to Spurs at Estadio de San Mames in a terrible match.

Goalkeeper Andre Onana (4) was put under the spotlight due to his costly mistakes, which were part of the reason the club only narrowly avoided their worst-ever league record of 58 goals conceded (54).

Young centre-back Leny Yoro (6) showed promising signs, but struggled with injuries, while Noussair Mazraoui (6) offered some consistency and veteran defender Harry Maguire (6) came up with some big moments in the Europa League -- including playing as a makeshift striker.
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