End-of-season reports: Part one

Arsenal.

Premier League: 4th. Champions League: Last 16. FA Cup: Quarter-Final. Carling Cup: Final.

Lowdown: Arsenal have made a habit in recent seasons of throwing trophies away, but even by their standards this campaign took the biscuit. They lost at home to newly-promoted Newcastle and West Brom, threw away a two-goal lead at home to rivals Tottenham to lose 3-2, lost a two-goal lead away at Tottenham to draw 3-3, became the first side in Premier League history to blow a four-goal lead away at Newcastle and conceded the latest goal in Premier League history to lose a 1-0 lead against Liverpool.

Arsenal struggled to recover after losing the Carling Cup final

Well-placed in all four competitions, they capitulated after losing the Carling Cup final to Birmingham. They were knocked out of the Champions League and FA Cup not long after and their six-year trophy drought appears no nearer to ending. They also won just two of their eleven league games following the League Cup final, falling from one point behind Manchester United at the end of February to twelve behind at the end of the season, slipping to fourth place in the process. Their mental instability cost them dear throughout the season and unless a leader is added to this team, they won't win anything anytime soon. There were some positives this season, such as the emergence of Jack Wilshere and Wojciech Szczesny and great form of Robin van Persie and Samir Nasri, but this campaign will go down as another one where the team has promised much but delivered very little.

Best player: Robin van Persie. He scored 18 goals in 25 league games, a terrific tally, with Arsenal fans surely pondering what might have been had he been fit for the entire season. Injuries have been his nemesis throughout his career but if he could have one season injury-free, Arsenal would be a very difficult team to stop. Samir Nasri and Jack Wilshere also had fine seasons, but van Persie's superb goalscoring form wins him this award.

Without Robin van Persie's goals, Arsenal may have struggled to qualify for the Champions League

Worst player: Sebastien Squillaci. The French defender was signed last summer and was supposed to add some much-needed experience to Arsenal's back-line, but has proved to be well past his best. He doesn't seem to be up to the demands of the Premier League and it would be a surprise to see him feature heavily next season. Andrei Arshavin ran him close for this 'award', as he possesses so much talent but has been lacklustre and lazy this season.

Highlight: Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea, Premier League, 27 December 2010. Their Champions League first-leg victory over Barcelona ran this close, but the game against Chelsea was the one to show Arsenal really meant business in the title race. This later proved to be a false dawn but the Gunners were sensational in this game, tearing Chelsea apart in a magnificent spell just before and after half-time. They terrorised Chelsea with their wonderfully attractive football and if they had played like this on a consistent basis, they would have won the league at a canter.

Lowlight: Arsenal 1-2 Birmingham, Carling Cup final, 27 February 2011. Plenty of games ran this close, for instance their two disastrous derbies with Tottenham and four-goal capitulation against Newcastle, but this was the most agonising one for Arsenal fans. Many players and indeed supporters seemed to believe the trophy was already won before they played Birmingham, but the Blues stood tall to deny the Gunners a first trophy in six years. Arsenal dominated the game for long periods but were left devastated by Obafemi Martins' 89th-minute winner. All their problems in other competitions seemed to stem from this game, which destabilised their season.

Manager: Arsene Wenger insists his side are young and still learning but the excuses need to stop now. He remains a legend at Arsenal for his past achievements but he needs to win a trophy fast to save his reputation. He is more agitated on the touchline now than he ever has been as he knows fans are starting to lose belief in him and his team. Wenger needs to swallow his pride and dip his toes into the transfer market this summer if Arsenal are to progress.

Some Arsenal fans are growing impatient with manager Arsene Wenger

Five games that shaped their season:
Manchester City 1-3 Arsenal, Premier League, 24 October 2010.
Arsenal 2-3 Tottenham, Premier League, 20 November 2010.
Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea, Premier League, 27 December 2010.
Newcastle 4-4 Arsenal, Premier League, 5 February 2011.
Arsenal 1-2 Birmingham, Carling Cup, 27 February 2011.

Transfer activity: Need a goalkeeper, centre-half, defensive midfielder and a striker. Scott Parker would be a good signing as he would also provide the leadership qualities Arsenal severely lack. Other useful acquisitions could be Ben Foster, Gary Cahill and Karim Benzema. It remains to be seen though whether Wenger is ready to splash the cash.

Going out, this may be the summer Arsenal lose captain Cesc Fabregas. The likes of Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri have also been linked with moves but Arsenal must keep players like this if they are to move forward. It would not be a surprise to see the likes of Arshavin, Nicklas Bendtner and Manuel Almunia leave, though.

Aim for next season: Must get closer to winning the title. They always seem to be in the title race before falling away at the end, so they must improve mentally and provide a sustained challenge. Wenger must end the trophy drought next season, too, so should concentrate a lot of his efforts on the cup competitions.

Season rating out of 10: 5. Most teams would give anything to be in Arsenal's position but the truth is a club of Arsenal's stature should be doing much better. This has been another season where they have promised much but delivered very little.

Aston Villa. 

Premier League: 9th. Europa League: Play-off round. FA Cup: 5th round. Carling Cup: Quarter-Final.

Lowdown: A quick glance at the final league table, with Aston Villa sitting in ninth, and you may feel Villa have had a satisfactory season. The table very rarely lies, but in this case it masks what has been a crisis-hit and disappointing season. The resignation of manager Martin O'Neill, who had led Villa to three sixth-place finishes in a row, just five days before the start of the season unsettled the squad and the sale of James Milner late in the summer transfer window did not help their cause. Under caretaker manager Kevin MacDonald, they lost 6-0 at Newcastle and fell at the first hurdle in the Europa League, leaving new manager Gerard Houllier with a restless squad.

The Carling Cup loss to Birmingham was the worst moment of the season for many Villa fans

Under Houllier, results momentarily improved before the rot set in and Villa became embroiled in a relegation battle. They also lost to bitter rivals Birmingham in the Carling Cup, the lowlight of many Villa fans' season. They threw away a 2-0 lead against Manchester United to draw 2-2, with Houllier unable to instil any belief in his team. Fans turned against Houllier and his team, with the 4-0 defeat at Manchester City in late-December the tipping point for many. The January signing of Darren Bent from Sunderland provided Villa with the goals they needed to retain their Premier League status, and due to the tight nature of the league they finished in the top half. Ashley Young, Stewart Downing and Marc Albrighton all had good seasons, and Villa will need to keep hold of them if they are to return to the heights they reached under O'Neill. They still had troubles, though, with the home defeat to neighbours Wolves leading to many calling for Houllier to be sacked, so in the end they were glad just to stay up. They ended the season under Gary McAllister after Houllier suffered health problems - they finished with successive victories over Arsenal and Liverpool - and it remains to be seen whether Houllier will be fit to resume his role for next season.

Best player: Stewart Downing. Downing was an ever-present in the league for Villa, scoring seven times and playing a key role in the team. Ashley Young may grab more headlines, but it was Downing who stepped up to the plate this year, impressing throughout. He has been linked with a move away from Villa Park this summer, with Liverpool said to be interested, but Villa must keep him if they have any ambitions of moving forward. If he does stay next season and Villa can keep hold of Young and Albrighton too, Darren Bent will be licking his lips as there will be no better set of wingers in the Premier League.

Stewart Downing and Marc Albrighton were key players for Villa this season

Worst player: Richard Dunne. Dunne used to be a colossus at the back for Manchester City, but was a shadow of his former self this season. He had a good first season at Villa Park in the last campaign, but a number of costly mistakes this season has led many to say he is past his best. He also got involved in a feud with Houllier's coaching staff, so it remains to be seen whether he will still be at Villa next season.

Highlight: West Ham 1-2 Aston Villa, Premier League, 16 April 2011. The overriding feeling after this game was one of relief, with Villa all but sealing their survival with a hard-fought win at Upton Park. After falling behind just two minutes in, it looked like it might be a long afternoon for the Villains but Darren Bent's equaliser and Gabriel Agbonlahor's stoppage-time winner sparked scenes of jubilation among Villa's players, staff and fans.

Lowlight: Newcastle 6-0 Aston Villa, Premier League, 22 August 2010. This game was about as nightmarish as it could get for Villa fans. They were dominated by a Newcastle side playing their first home game since winning promotion back to the Premier League, with a Villa side who had finished sixth the season before looking well off the pace. The threat of relegation hadn't even been thought about before this game, but after it Villa fans must have wondered what sort of season they were in for. Losses to Birmingham in the Carling Cup and to Liverpool, Manchester City and Wolves in the Premier League ran this close.

Manager: Gerard Houllier was under intense pressure throughout the season after taking over from caretaker boss MacDonald, with many fans hoping he does not return for next season. His health problems mean he may not be well enough to return to the dug-out but players appear keen for him to stay. If he does remain as manager, his side will need to have a strong start to next season to get fans back on side, while Houllier will need to be busy in the transfer market as his squad is too thin.

It is not yet known whether Houllier will return as Aston Villa manager for next season

Five games that shaped their season:
Newcastle 6-0 Aston Villa, Premier League, 22 August 2010.
Aston Villa 2-2 Manchester United, Premier League, 13 November 2010.
Birmingham 2-1 Aston Villa, Carling Cup, 1 December 2010.
Manchester City 4-0 Aston Villa, Premier League, 28 December 2010.
West Ham 1-2 Aston Villa, Premier League, 16 April 2011.

Transfer activity: Need a goalkeeper (if Brad Friedel leaves), new centre-half, new left-back, new central midfielder and a new striker to complement Bent, at the very least. Good acquisitions would be Shay Given, Sebastien Bassong, Emilio Izaguirre, Joey Barton and Hugo Rodallega. This squad needs a major revamp as it has been caught short this season.

Perhaps the best signings Villa could make this summer are tying Ashley Young and Stewart Downing to new contracts. Young seems likely to leave while Downing has raised the possibility of leaving in recent days, but Villa need to keep them if they are to progress. Nigel Reo-Coker has already been released and that is something of a surprise as he has a lot to offer. There are a number of players fans would like to see leave though, like Stephen Ireland, Habib Beye, Robert Pires, John Carew and Emile Heskey, so these five could leave to make space for quality new arrivals.

Aim for next season: A club of Villa's stature should be aiming for Europe. They got nowhere near that last season but just a year or two ago they challenged for a Champions League place under Martin O'Neill, so a few new signings in the summer could push them back into that sort of contention. One thing is for sure, there needs to be a major improvement from this season.

Season rating out of 10: 4. Should have been challenging for Europe but were involved in a relegation scrap for much of the season. Only late results saved this from being a 2 or a 3.

Birmingham.

Premier League: 18th. FA Cup: Quarter-Final. Carling Cup: Winners.

Lowdown: To describe this as a season of mixed emotions for Birmingham City would be an understatement. They went from the exhilarating high of winning the Carling Cup at Wembley in February to the depressing low of relegation in May, where all the joy of their cup triumph turned to despair. After their promising first season back in the Premier League last year, this should have been the year for them to kick on and really establish themselves as a Premier League club, but they have went the opposite way and must start again from square one now. Their big problem this year was the lack of goals. By scoring just 37 times in the league, they were the only Premier League club to average less than a goal a game and this is where they lost their Premier League status.

Birmingham's Carling Cup win was their first major trophy since 1963

Quality centre-back Scott Dann was ruled out for the rest of the season in January and this was a crippling blow for them. His partnership with Roger Johnson was one of the best in the Premier League and Johnson was clearly lost without his partner. Birmingham were not too bad this season, but they entered a rut towards the end, losing five of their last six games, which was the worst possible time for them to enter the worst form of their season. They did have high points during the campaign, such as their Carling Cup triumph and home victory over Chelsea, but Alex McLeish and his aging squad were simply not good enough when push came to shove. Their Carling Cup win should have given them a platform to build on, but that has been ruined by the relegation. They qualified for Europe through their cup win but even that does not seem so glamorous now.

Birmingham's players were left devastated after defeat at Tottenham saw them relegated

Best player: Craig Gardner's 10 goals from midfield this season gave Birmingham real hope, but the fact he was top scorer tells you where Birmingham's problems lay. Gardner's passion, energy and commitment dragged his side through games at times and his performances deserved so much more. He will be crucial for them next season as they try to bounce straight back, as he is clearly a Premier League player who should shine in the Championship. If he was playing for any other club in this situation, he would probably leave, but the fact he is a Birmingham fan means he is likely to stay, which will be a huge relief to Birmingham fans. Ben Foster also had an excellent season and it would not be a surprise to see him join a Premier League club this summer.

Craig Gardner was an inspiration for Birmingham this season

Worst player: Martin Jiranek. It is hard to single a player out of this team for being the 'worst player', as no-one was particularly awful. Jiranek only played 10 league games so it may be a little harsh to single him out, but he was expected to make a bigger impact than he did. It took a long time for him to break into the team and when he did, he suffered injuries. When he played, he didn't appear to be up to the demands of English football so it was no surprise to see him released after the season. Alexander Hleb and Obafemi Martins also proved to be a waste of resources.

Highlight: Arsenal 1-2 Birmingham, Carling Cup final, 27 February 2011. What else but their day of glory at Wembley? For one day, their relegation battle was forgotten about as the Blues defied the bookies and the critics to overcome a strong Arsenal side. Their first major trophy since 1963, this is a day which will live long in the memory of Birmingham fans despite the pain of relegation which followed. Obafemi Martins' 89th-minute winner sparked great scenes and ensured this season was not all doom and gloom.

Lowlight: Tottenham 2-1 Birmingham, Premier League, 22 May 2011. From the joy of Wembley to the despair of White Hart Lane. On a day of unbearable drama, Craig Gardner's 79th-minute equaliser looked set to keep Birmingham up until news came through of Stephen Hunt's late strike for Wolves. With Birmingham needing a winner to stay up, they pushed their defenders forward and Roman Pavlyuchenko utilised the space to seal the Blues' fate. Birmingham's emotions had fluctuated throughout 'Survival Sunday' but at the end of play they were left devastated as they were forced to come to terms with relegation.

Manager: Alex McLeish is still popular among Birmingham fans for winning the Carling Cup as well as the two successful seasons prior to this one, but must deliver promotion next season to save his job. Birmingham's board have warned they expect the Scot to win promotion at the first time of asking, so a slow start to next season and McLeish will find himself out of a job. He suffered bad luck this season with injuries and suspensions at crucial times, while he has the experience of winning promotion with Birmingham, so he is certainly still the right man for the job. For now.

Alex McLeish looks set to stay on as Birmingham manager for next season

Five games that shaped their season:
Birmingham 1-0 Chelsea, Premier League, 20 November 2010.
Arsenal 1-2 Birmingham, Carling Cup, 27 February 2011.
Birmingham 1-3 West Brom, Premier League, 5 March 2011.
Wigan 2-1 Birmingham, Premier League, 19 March 2011.
Tottenham 2-1 Birmingham, Premier League, 22 May 2011.

Transfer activity: A set of new strikers should be a priority, while a new right-winger is needed to replace the out-of-contract Sebastian Larsson and any other key players who leave will also need to be replaced. Quality players with good Championship experience are needed, so Birmingham could do worse than sign the likes of Jay Bothroyd, Danny Graham, Danny Guthrie and Michael Kightly.

On the going out front, Kevin Phillips, Sebastian Larsson and Lee Bowyer have already been released and all three of them could have done a good job for Birmingham next season. Phillips and Bowyer are still good enough for the Championship, so it was a surprise to see them released, although it would have been difficult to hold onto Larsson who clearly has ambitions to play in the Premier League next season. Birmingham will need to fight hard to keep hold of Ben Foster and Craig Gardner, with both set to be key players should they stay. Roger Johnson and Scott Dann will also be courted by Premier League clubs but if the Blues can keep hold of the likes of them, they will be odds-on to come straight back up. Loan players will also return back to their clubs which will allow Birmingham to start afresh in certain areas and build a team capable of winning promotion.

Aim for next season: To win promotion, it's as simple as that. Alex McLeish's blueprint from the owners is to bring Birmingham straight back to the Premier League and if the core of this side is kept together, they will be very hard to stop. They must bounce back at the first attempt though, as any key players who are persuaded to stay now are unlikely to stick around for a second season of Championship football.

Season rating out of 10: 4. Only their Carling Cup triumph stops this from being lower but this has been a season of major disappointment for Birmingham fans overall as this team should not have been relegated.

Blackburn. 

Premier League: 15th. FA Cup: 4th round. Carling Cup: 3rd round.

Lowdown: This season must go down as one of massive disappointment for Blackburn. They only escaped relegation on the final day and their strong end to the season does not mask what has been a confusing campaign. New owners Venky's appeared to offer great hope when they took over the club in November, but destabilised the club and plunged them into a relegation battle by sacking Sam Allardyce. Allardyce was the right man to take the club forward and firing him made no sense, particularly when they replaced him with the untested Steve Kean. The Indian owners clearly know nothing about football as Allardyce's team would have been nowhere near the bottom three, so they are at fault for Blackburn being in a relegation battle.

Blackburn's new Indian owners sacked manager Sam Allardyce within weeks of buying the club

There were some positives this season, such as the performances of Christopher Samba and Martin Olsson and emergence of Junior Hoilett, and they had some creditable results, such as the 3-1 home victory over Liverpool. However, their disastrous run of no wins in eleven between January and April proved Kean was not the right man for the job. The owners are thought to have plenty of resources but must not just throw money around in the summer: they should trust their manager, Kean or otherwise, to draw up a list of suitable targets based on the money available. January links with Ronaldinho and David Beckham were fanciful to say the least and they need to be sensible if Blackburn are to have a sustainable future.

Best player: Christopher Samba. This beast of a centre-half saves Blackburn so many points a season with his immense displays, so without him Rovers could easily have gone down. He is incredibly brave, capable of making last-ditch tackles, magnificent in the air and a great blocker, as well as being dangerous from set-pieces. It is a surprise he hasn't been more strongly linked with moves in the past as the Congolese international is one of the best defenders in the Premier League. Paul Robinson and Junior Hoilett also had great campaigns and were unlucky to miss out on this award.

Defender Christopher Samba has been linked with a summer move to Arsenal

Worst player: Roque Santa Cruz. It is perhaps a bit harsh to call him Blackburn's worst player this season as he only joined on loan in January and only made seven league appearances, but his signing should have proved the catalyst for a strong end to the season for Blackburn. When he did play, he looked a shadow of his former self as he failed to score and made no real impact on games. He struggled with injuries during his loan spell, something he has been blighted by in the last few years. He hopes for a permanent switch back to Ewood Park but if he is signed it will be due to his achievements in the past rather than his current form and ability.

Highlight: Blackburn 3-1 Liverpool, Premier League, 5 January 2011. This season has certainly not been a vintage one at Blackburn so there are not many to choose from here. Their mid-season victory over Liverpool was a rare high point though, as they tore the Merseysiders apart with goals from Martin Olsson and Benjani (2). Steve Kean's side were excellent although Roy Hodgson's Liverpool had their chances, with this game proving to be Hodgson's last in charge. Their last-day win over Wolves may have meant more, but for the quality of the performance the Liverpool game was Blackburn's best of the season.

Lowlight: Manchester United 7-1 Blackburn, Premier League, 27 November 2010. Blackburn had many woeful performances under Steve Kean, but their worst of the season was under Sam Allardyce at Old Trafford. Dimitar Berbatov scored five times and at one point it looked like United could reach double figures, so Rovers' problems were there before Kean took charge. Around two weeks after this game, Allardyce was sacked, and it is hard to think this mauling did not play a part in his dismissal.

Manager: Steve Kean surprisingly took charge after Allardyce's sacking in December and he hasn't proved to be up to the job so far. He guided them through the relegation battle quite well, but Blackburn didn't seem to be in the dogfight before he took over so he must take some of the blame for their late-season worries. The owners seem to really rate him, on account of him being a "good talker", and they have insisted he will be their manager for next season. Despite their public backing however, do not be surprised to see him replaced by a bigger name in the summer.

Steve Kean's side won 3-2 at Wolves on the final day to secure survival

Five games that shaped their season:
Manchester United 7-1 Blackburn, Premier League, 27 November 2010.
Blackburn 3-1 Liverpool, Premier League, 5 January 2011.
Wigan 4-3 Blackburn, Premier League, 5 February 2011.
Blackburn 1-0 Bolton, Premier League, 30 April 2011.
Wolves 2-3 Blackburn, Premier League, 22 May 2011.

Transfer activity: How much money Blackburn have to spend is anyone's guess but one thing is for sure: they need to strengthen their strike-force. They also need a central midfielder and their squad needs greater depth. Good summer signings could be Ruud van Nistelrooy, Demba Ba, Sebastian Larsson and Nigel Reo-Coker, although if the owners have plenty of resources they may be targeting even more well-known names.

Blackburn's most important business this summer could be keeping hold of Christopher Samba and Phil Jones. Both have been strongly linked with Arsenal and it is not difficult to see why: both are quality defenders who have their best years ahead of them. Samba's importance has already been discussed, but keeping Jones could be even more important to Rovers' future. At just 19, he looks like he could become one of the best central defenders of his generation and it is no surprise to see him linked with massive clubs. While Blackburn must hold onto Samba and Jones, Rovers fans may not be too sorry to see the back of Keith Andrews, El-Hadji Diouf and Benjani this summer.

Aim for next season: Again, this all depends on how much money they have to spend. Venky's want Blackburn to be a top-five club, the sooner the better, but unless they spend a massive amount of money, a top-half finish is probably the best they can hope for. If they have another season with a relegation battle, Steve Kean will not last much longer as manager.

Season rating out of 10: 4. Failed to build on last season's top-half finish and went nowhere in the cups. This team should have been nowhere near the bottom three and the players, manager and particularly board need to shoulder the blame for this season's failings.

Blackpool.

Premier League: 19th. FA Cup: 3rd round. Carling Cup: 2nd round.

Lowdown: Blackpool fans are probably fed up of hearing their team described as a 'breath of fresh air' but they should take it as a compliment as they added so much to the Premier League this season. Their exciting, attacking football was a joy to watch and it is a real shame they couldn't stay up. With the squad they have, it is something of a miracle they managed to win 39 points so that is testament to the great job Ian Holloway has done at Bloomfield Road. He stuck to his attacking principles while other newly-promoted clubs may try to stay up by defending, and was rewarded with some stunning displays, not least the opening day 4-0 win at Wigan and the home and away wins against Liverpool. They provided so much entertainment and as Sir Alex Ferguson said, they will be a loss to the Premier League. The Seasiders started the season excellently and looked set to stay up comfortably until a run of two wins in nineteen after the turn of the year, but were only consigned to relegation after a roller-coaster of events on 'Survival Sunday'.

Blackpool's players should not be disheartened by how they played this season

Blackpool won as many games away from home as champions Manchester United so it is at Bloomfield Road where they lost their Premier League status. They won five times at home, the joint-lowest in the Premier League, and it was their defending which cost them. They scored 55 goals - a record for a relegated side - but conceded 78, meaning they were perhaps a little naive at times. This was at its most evident in the home game with Manchester United, when they threw away a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2. Holloway believes his side did not get their fair share of decisions this season, with a number of penalty appeals turned down, and most people would not have begrudged them a second season in the Premier League. They were up against it from the start, with chairman Karl Oyston not backing Holloway in the transfer market, so it is amazing they got so close to staying up. The likes of Charlie Adam, DJ Campbell, Matt Gilks and David Vaughan all made names for themselves in the top flight but they needed more Premier League experience to just steer them over the line to safety.

Best player: Charlie Adam was simply superb in his first season in the Premier League. Everything Blackpool did went through him: his passing was key, he was the captain, he took all free-kicks, corners and penalties, and he chipped in with 12 league goals to give Blackpool a fighting chance of survival. It will be impossible for the Seasiders to keep hold of Adam as he was so impressive and influential the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham are highly interested in him. The likes of Gilks, Campbell and Vaughan also had terrific seasons, while the unsung heroes Gary Taylor-Fletcher and Stephen Crainey did themselves no harm.

Charlie Adam was Blackpool's talisman this season

Worst player: James Beattie looked nothing like the player he once was after joining on loan in January. He made no impact whatsoever at Bloomfield Road and it is a certainty Ian Holloway will not be following up his loan deal with a bid to sign him permanently. Overall, no Blackpool player disgraced themselves in the Premier League though as they exceeded expectations and almost achieved the impossible of survival.

Highlight: Liverpool 1-2 Blackpool, Premier League, 3 October 2010. Blackpool fans have some great memories to take away from this season, such as their opening day thrashing of Wigan and home wins over Liverpool and Tottenham, but the highlight must be their first win at Anfield since 1967. Against all the odds, the Seasiders were 2-0 up at half-time and went on to close out the game 2-1, surely one of the best results in the club's recent history. Blackpool fans must have been in dreamland after this game as at this time their side could seemingly do no wrong.

Charlie Adam's penalty helped Blackpool to a historic 2-1 win at Liverpool

Lowlight: Blackpool 1-3 Wigan, Premier League, 16 April 2011. The Seasiders went into this game knowing a win was crucial in their quest for survival, but they were second-best from start to finish and could have lost by more. The loss plunged them into the bottom three for the first time this season and there just appeared no way back for them after this game. They had lost all belief and although they almost saved themselves in the games following this, it was here they truly lost their Premier League lives.

Manager: Ian Holloway did an unbelievable job to get Blackpool into the Premier League and an even more astonishing job to win them 39 points and almost keep them in the top flight. He got the maximum he possibly could out of this squad and proved himself as a Premier League manager. He is disheartened at the lack of backing he received in the transfer market and it is understood he wants funds in the summer to stay, and Blackpool need him to stay or they will have little chance of bouncing back anytime soon.

It remains to be seen whether Ian Holloway will stay on as Blackpool manager this summer

Five games that shaped their season:
Wigan 0-4 Blackpool, Premier League, 14 August 2010.
Liverpool 1-2 Blackpool, Premier League, 3 October 2010.
Blackpool 2-3 Manchester United, Premier League, 25 January 2011.
Wolves 4-0 Blackpool, Premier League, 26 February 2011.
Blackpool 1-3 Wigan, Premier League, 16 April 2011.

Transfer activity: Depending on who leaves the club in the summer, Blackpool's squad could be set for a major overhaul. The likes of Charlie Adam, David Vaughan, DJ Campbell and Matt Gilks will all need to be replaced should they leave, but it will be difficult to get players of sufficient quality to replace them. The likes of Lee Bowyer and Kevin Phillips could be decent free transfer signings to give them a chance of winning promotion next season, but the chairman will need to spend money if they are to have any realistic chance of bouncing back immediately.

It seems certain Blackpool's key players - Adam, Vaughan and Campbell - will leave, while the likes of Gilks are heavily linked with moves. There are a number of players the club would be glad to see leave though, with James Beattie, Sergei Kornilenko and Andy Reid seemingly surplus to requirements at Bloomfield Road. This will be a big summer as poor transfer activity could lead to Blackpool spiralling to the wrong end of the Championship next season.

Aim for next season: If it was hard for Ian Holloway to win promotion last time, it will be even harder now without the key players from that play-off triumph. The aim, of course, will be to bounce straight back up but that will be a huge ask. Ian Holloway has worked miracles before but it would be remarkable if Blackpool were to win promotion at the first attempt next season.

Season rating out of 10: 7. Most relegated teams would get a much lower rating than this but Blackpool have won everyone over with their play this season. They deserved to stay up for their positive play so it is a real shame they will be playing Championship football next season.