Arsenal 7-3 Newcastle and City 2-3 United: Best Premier League Games of the Season

Arunava Ray

Arsenal 7-3 Newcastle United, 29 December 2012

Arsenal and Newcastle played out yet another entertaining fixture with both teams combining to plunder 10 goals in the game, a season high alongside Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion's 5-5 draw at the Hawthorns.

The reverse fixture a couple of seasons back saw eight goals scored, with the Magpies coming back from being four goals down to put themselves level.

Theo Walcott scored a hat-trick while Olivier Giroud came off the bench to score a brace to put the game to bed, but not before the Gunners had made heavy weather of the game.

Newcastle came back three times to level the scores but Arsenal were too strong for the Magpies and secured three vital points, which otherwise could have had a telling effect come the end of the season.

Naveen Ullal

Manchester City 2-3 Manchester United, 9 December 2012

The first Manchester derby of the 2012/13 campaign at the Etihad was possibly the best game of the season.

After losing the Premier League title to City on goal difference and losing both the derby games season before that, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was eyeing for nothing less than a win. On the other hand, the Citizens were looking to continue their unbeaten home run in 37 games since 2010.

Wayne Rooney's double gave United a 2-0 lead before the half time. However, Yaya Toure's goal on the hour mark and Pablo Zabaleta's strike four minutes from time saw the two teams heading into a draw.

Robin van Persie's free kick in added on time made sure United won the game and laid a significant marker down ahead of the rest of the season.

Nick Howson

Manchester United 4-3 Newcastle United, 26 December 2012

The day the Premier League title was gift-wrapped and delivered to Manchester United came as they stole a late win over Alan Pardew's Newcastle United at Old Trafford.

James Perch and Jonny Evans' controversial own goal twice had the Toon ahead, either side of the Northern Irishman's close range finish, before Patrice Evra drove home the leveller for United after the break.

Papiss Cisse smashed Newcastle back in front mid-way through the second half but Robin van Persie equalised three minutes later.

United produced a customary later winner in added on time as Javier Hernandez' slid past Tim Krul and coupled with Manchester City's defeat at Sunderland, Sir Alex Ferguson's men went seven points clear at the summit at the halfway stage.

Srinivasan Chandrashekar

West Bromwich Albion 5-5 Manchester United, 19 May 2013

Must a match be memorable only because of the negative news? Granted, the Liverpool-Chelsea/Suarez-biting-Ivanovic match perhaps generated more discussion. But no other match had as much emotion and significance as the final game of Sir Alex Ferguson's distinguished career.

The Scot has 38 trophies in 26 adrenaline-filled, controversial and heart-breaking seasons at Old Trafford and even he must have felt a 5-5 draw, with the Baggies scoring three in the final nine minutes, was a strangely appropriate way to bow out.

The absolutely perfect result would have been for Robin van Persie to nick a sixth in stoppage time. But then again, as Ferguson will tell you, few things in football are perfect.

Tony Mogan

Arsenal 7-3 Newcastle United, 29 December 2012

These two sides delivered us all a late Christmas present with this engrossing contest. Arsenal were still in the midst of Theo Walcott's exhausting contract negotiations at the time, but a scintillating performance from the England international marked by a hat trick instigated chants of 'Wenger, sign him up' and gave the club every possible reason to secure his future by any means necessary.

It was a relatively even contest at the Emirates until the 70th minutes as Newcastle relentlessly kept pace with the rampant Gunners, pulling the score back each time through goals from Sylvain Marveaux and a brace from Demba Ba to bring things at 3-3.

Whether it was shades of a Christmas hangover or just the chasm in class, as a brace each from Walcott and Olivier Giroud in a dynamic last 20 minutes shattered Newcastle's resilience to end the captivating encounter.

Vishnuprasad S

West Bromwich Albion 5-5 Manchester United, 19 May 2013

The amazing 10-goal thriller at the Hawthorns between West Brom and Manchester United on the final day of the season, in what was Sir Alex Ferguson's last game in charge, tops the list for matches of the season.

United were part of some close finishes this season, such as their 3-2 away wins over Chelsea, Manchester City, Southampton and Aston Villa, the 4-3 wins over Newcastle and Reading, and the 3-2 loss at Old Trafford to Tottenham. But this game was surely the best of the lot.

United had taken three-goal leads twice during the game (3-0 and 5-2), and looked like cruising towards victory.

However, the Baggies, who were playing for nothing other than pride, fought like their lives depended on it and eventually levelled in the 86th minute, to cap off a fantastic season.

West Brom finished eighth in the table with 49 points (their best finish since 1981), giving Steve Clarke a memorable debut campaign in his first senior managerial role.