The 2021/22 season has come to an end and what a season it was! It was full of memorable events; joys, thrillers, hopes and disappointments. It was indeed a roller-coaster season.
While some clubs like Real Madrid, Eintracht Frankfurt, AC Milan, Real Betis, AS Roma and Villareal exceeded expectations and impressed; others disappointed by performing well below expectations.
In this post, FootballOrbit brings you the top 10 clubs that flopped in the 2021/22 season.
1. Juventus
Juventus lost the Serie A title to Inter Milan last season which led to the sacking of manager and club legend, Andrea Pirlo. Massimiliano Allegri was appointed to rejuvenate the club.
But Juventus badly flopped under Allegri in this past season. The Old Lady finished 4th in Serie A — 9 points behind 3rd-placed Napoli and a whopping 16 points behind Champions, AC Milan.
Juventus also shockingly got eliminated in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 by Villareal and lost 4-2 to Inter Milan in the final of the Coppa Italia.
2. Barcelona
Barcelona’s season began in the worst possible fashion as they lost club legend and captain Lionel Messi to PSG on a free transfer due to their inability to afford him a new contract.
Their woes continued on the pitch as they embarrassingly got eliminated from the Champions League group stage and subsequently dropped to the Europa League.
The Catalans were the favourites to win the Europa League but astonishingly lost to Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarterfinals right at the Camp Nou!
Barca were also dumped out of the Copa del Rey by Athletico Bilbao in the round of 16!
It was only a remarkable resurgence following the appointment of Xavi as manager that even got them into the top four in La Liga where they finished second — 13 points behind champions, Real Madrid.
3. Norwich
Norwich City’s movement from the EFL Championship to the Premier League in recent years is utterly baffling. The club regularly proves too superior to the others in the 2nd division but will look totally out of place in the top flight!
The Canaries comfortably won the Championship in 2020/21 and were expected to replicate such outstanding performance in the EPL but flopped throughout the season and got relegated — setting an unwanted record as the most relegated club in Premier League history (6 times)!!!
Norwich got just 22 points out of a possible 114 in the league, won just 5 matches, scored 23 goals and conceded 84.
4. PSG
Including PSG on the list of clubs that flopped this season might be surprising but considering the calibre of players they signed last summer, they were expected to win the Champions League this season.
The attacking front three of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe were also expected to become one of the greatest attacking partnerships in football history.
PSG’s ultimate aim has always been to win the UEFA Champions League but Messi and co got eliminated by Real Madrid in the round of 16, despite leading 2-0 on aggregate at a point in the tie. A very huge disappointment!
Mauricio Pochettino’s men also got eliminated by Nice in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France.
5. Arsenal
Arsenal were expected to perform so very well this season due to the fact that they were not playing in any European competition. Having more days to rest and prepare for games was a huge advantage for them.
They were expected to at least qualify for the UEFA Champions League after a 5-year absence.
But they had a topsy-turvy season. Despite their inconsistent performances, Mikel Arteta’s side had their Champions League destiny in their own hands towards the end of the season but inexplicably faltered under pressure and eventually missed out on Champions League football next season.
Qualifying for Europe’s premier club football tournament will have generated huge revenue for the Gunners.
6. Manchester United
This was the season that Manchester United were expected to challenge the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool for the Premier League title having finished in 2nd place in 2020/21.
The addition of Jadon Sancho and the legendary Cristiano Ronaldo to the squad was expected to take Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men to the next level.
But United not only failed to win the league but also missed out on the top four!
More embarrassingly, it was only because Westham lost their last game of the season that secured Europa League qualification for the Red Devils, else, they will be competing in the UEFA Conference League — the 3rd tier of European football!
Manchester United ended the 2021/22 season in 6th place on the Premier League table. 13 points behind 4th-placed Tottenham and an astonishing 35 points behind champions, Manchester City.
Incoming manager, Erik ten Hag, really has a lot of work to do at Old Trafford.
7. Valencia
Once upon a time, Valencia used to compete against the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Athletico Madrid and Sevilla in La Liga and regularly plays European football, most especially the UEFA Champions League.
But in recent years the club have been struggling and flopped this season by finishing in the 9th position in La Liga — a massive 22 points behind 4th-placed Sevilla.
Which means that they will not compete in any of the European competitions (Champions League, Europa League and the Conference League) altogether next season.
Winning the Copa del Rey would have secured Europa League qualification for them but Valencia surprisingly got defeated by Real Betis in the final.
8. Watford
Watford secured an instant promotion back to the English Premier League in 2020/21 and strengthened their squad by splashing the cash to recruit quality players to enable them compete in the top flight.
But the Hornets won just 6 matches and managed 23 points out of a possible 114 (just 1 point ahead of Norwich). They also lost 25 games in the EPL this season — more than any other team.
Consequently, Watford got relegated from the Premier League for the 4th time in their history.
9. Everton
After investing heavily in quality players, Everton were expected to start challenging the Premier League’s “top six” clubs. But the Toffees have done the exact opposite!
Instead of going up against the top clubs, Everton found themselves going down versus the bottom clubs, fighting relegation!!!
The Merseyside side club almost got relegated from the Premier League for the first time in history this season and only survived due to the utter mediocrity of the clubs around them in the relegation zone and some late end-of-the-season spirited performances.
Frank Lampard’s men earned 39 points out of a possible 114 to finish in the 16th position.
Everton are the new Stoke City, Sunderland, West Brom and Burnley!!!
10. Lille
Lille stunned the world last season when they won the French Ligue 1 ahead of a star-studded PSG team.
Although no one expected them to defend their title with another fairytale run, but they performed well below expectations this season.
Lille finished in a disappointing 10th position in Ligue 1 and failed to qualify for any European competition next season.
They also got eliminated from the Coupe de France by Lens in the round of 32!
In your opinion, which other clubs flopped in the 2021/22 season and do you agree with this list? Use the comment box below to let us know.
