Kathmandu, Aug. 1 -- Liverpool's first Premier League crown was not the only story of this difficult season. The fight for European places, the relegation battle and other smaller dramas within individual teams made up the season. The newly promoted teams had to prove that they belonged. For cash strapped teams like Brighton, avoiding relegation would be a victory.

Despite their flying start, the relegation of Norwich was looking likely as early as January. They had won the Championship but they soon seemed out of their depth in this league. Newly-promoted Aston Villa seemed likely to join them until the very last two games. In their penultimate game they beat Arsenal 1-0. Depending on Watford's result against (again) Arsenal on the last...