Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi and the winners & losers of the 2022-23 European season

In the grand scheme of things, what happened this season on either side of the World Cup is irrelevant as far as Lionel Messi is concerned. He'd long since proved himself the GOAT - but his heroics in Qatar effectively ended the debate. He's now completed both international and club football.

However, there's no denying that the second half of the 2022-23 campaign didn't pan out as Messi planned. He looked utterly lost as PSG suffered a humiliating last-16 exit in the Champions League and very few fans were sad to see him leave. Indeed, Messi, rather incredibly, left with boos, whistles and jeers ringing in his ears.

To make matters worse, hopes of a romantic return to Barcelona were dashed by the grim reality of the very same financial problems that forced him out of Camp Nou two years ago.

Inter Miami is obviously a shrewd move for Messi, certainly from a financial and familial perspective, but there's no doubt that he would have preferred to end up back at Barca, aiming for the fifth Champions League title he'd long targeted.

The writing was on the wall for Xavi after Barcelona's humiliating group-stage elimination from the Champions League. And he knew it. "With the effort made by the club [during the summer transfer market] the squad we have, we have to compete for trophies," he admitted to reporters. "And if we don't, as the president [Joan Laporta] said, there will be consequences, starting with me. But I am going to give everything so that this works." And it did.

Barcelona's football certainly wasn't pretty - it was more reminiscent of the Louis van Gaal era at Camp Nou than Pep Guardiola's - but it delivered a first Liga title in four years that definitely saved Xavi from the sack. Of course, it's imperative that Barca challenge for the Champions League next season - not least for the club's coffers - but, for now, the coach can be proud of a job well done.

The Chelsea board issued a statement after the conclusion of the worst Premier League campaign in the club's history, acknowledging that "there is a lot" that they can do better. In truth, though, they need to do absolutely everything better next season, because the past year has been an absolute farce.

One could argue that Todd Boehly and his equally clueless colleagues only got one thing right: cancelling the annual end of season awards ceremony because they realised it would not have gone over well with the club's already furious fans.

The arrival of Mauricio Pochettino will hopefully restore a semblance of order at Stamford Bridge, but on the evidence of what we've seen so far - the shameful sacking of Thomas Tuchel, the embarrassing abandonment of the Graham Potter project, the ludicrous appointment of Frank Lampard on an interim basis and the arrival of one overpriced player after another - it would be naive to expect an end to the chaos anytime soon.

Racism is a societal problem. We all get that. But football's handling of the problem is, at best, embarrassingly haphazard, and, at worst, downright offensive. Seriously, what was more shocking: the racist abuse that Vinicius Junior has been repeatedly subjected to in Spain this season - or Javier Tebas' reaction to it? The head of La Liga was, incredibly, more interested in lashing out at the victim than doing anything about the culprits.

Tebas subsequently apologised for his shameful reaction, but it was indicative of a wider problem. When players of colour all across the world like Romelu Lukaku are still being booked for silent protests, one begins to understand the scale of the ignorance at the heart of football's supposed fight against racism. How can the game's authorities even begin trying to solve a problem that they clearly still don't understand?

It's still a little difficult for Napoli fans to get their heads around the fact that Luciano Spalletti is leaving right after ending the club's 33-year Serie A title drought, and becoming the oldest Scudetto-winning coach ever. Even neutrals were hoping that he would have another crack at the Champions League with an inexperienced but exhilarating side that reached the quarter-finals of this year's competition for the first time ever.

It quickly became clear, though, that the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona wasn't big enough for both Spalletti and president Aurelio De Laurentiis, making a parting of the ways inevitable. And, on the plus side, there is now no chance of Spalletti's relationship with the long-suffering people of Naples ever souring.

"I like the idea of returning here in 10 years," Spalletti said, "and still being considered a friend of many." He's more than that in the eyes of the fans, of course. He's a legend now, one of the club's immortals. As Andrea Carnevale told GOAL, "If you win with Napoli, you remain in the hearts of Neapolitans forever."

There was a time when Andrea Agnelli looked perfectly placed to become the most powerful man in club football. Now, he looks like the game's answer to Kendall Roy.

The Super League obviously played a key role in Agnelli's spectacular and rapid fall from grace, with the project's prompt collapse resulting in the loss of an awful lot of powerful friends, including UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin. Agnelli still had Juventus, at least... But not anymore.

Agnelli and the rest of his board resigned last November, while the club's accounts were under intense scrutiny as a result of two separate investigations (one focusing on capital gains, and the other on salary manoeuvres). Some of his colleagues have since been cleared of any wrongdoing, but Agnelli's ban has been upheld.

He will likely never work in football again, and the man who oversaw an unprecedented era of sustained success at Juve will be forever remembered as bringing his family's club to its knees, agreeing plea deals with the likes of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and UEFA just to avoid heftier financial and sporting sanctions.

Jose Luis Mendilibar has taken the idea of a 'new manager bounce' to a whole other level. He didn't just stave off the threat of relegation - Sevilla were just two points above the Liga drop zone when he took over in March - he also led the Andalusians to a seventh Europa League title, thanks to victories over Manchester United, Juventus and Roma. Not bad for a coach whose last taste of continental competition had come with Athletic Club in the Intertoto Cup 18 years previously!

Even after Sevilla's triumph in Budapest, Mendilibar admitted that he still didn't know if his short-term contract would be renewed this summer - but he's since penned one of the most well-earned extensions in football history!

Praise from Pep Guardiola should obviously be always taken with a pinch of salt. The Manchester City manager is often guilty of gross hyperbole when it comes to analysing adversaries with an even slightly similar footballing philosophy to his own. So, one shouldn't read too much into Guardiola's claim that De Zerbi is "one of the most influential managers of the past 20 years".

For example, few English football followers had any idea who he was when he was appointed as Brighton boss last September. Graeme Souness certainly didn't - and, after a quick Google search, labelled the Italian a massive risk based solely on the fact that "he doesn't know our game".

What De Zerbi does know, though, is how to put together a wonderfully well-drilled team that plays a beautiful brand of football - and on a shoestring budget. He did it at Sassuolo and he's done it again at Brighton, who qualified for Europe for the first time in their history via a sensational sixth-placed finish in the Premier League.

The Seagulls might just be the best-run club in Europe right now and, in De Zerbi, they've certainly got its most exciting young coach.

By broadcasting a tell-all interview with Cristiano Ronaldo, Piers Morgan was obviously trying to help restore his idol's reputation. Instead, he left it in absolute tatters.

The dreadful displays of petulance we had seen from the Portuguese at Old Trafford during the first few months of the season were nothing compared to what came out during a pathetic PR exercise that went horribly wrong. It even contributed to the end of Ronaldo's working relationship with agent Jorge Mendes, who reportedly deemed the interview "a f*ck-up"!

Worse was to follow for not only Ronaldo, who was once again slated over his childish conduct at the 2022 World Cup, but also Morgan. The Englishman cemented his status as Arsenal's most dislikeable fan by accusing his team of bottling the Premier League title race. Stay classy, Piers!

Borussia Dortmund blowing the Bundesliga title was one of the stories of the season. They only needed to beat mid-table Mainz at home on the final day to prevent Bayern Munich from winning an 11th successive title, but were instead held to a 2-2 draw. "It was in our hands," Gio Reyna wrote on Instagram, "and we let something we worked so hard for slip away."

But when coach Edin Terzic claimed that Dortmund will come back stronger for the experience, you actually believed him. Why? Because of their fans. They were understandably devastated by their team's final-day disaster, and yet the supporters that make up the famous 'Yellow Wall' at Westfalenstadion did nothing but collectively console a teary-eyed Terzic and his crestfallen players.

Bouncing back from such a painful experience will be far from easy - particularly without the Real Madrid-bound Jude Bellingham - but Dortmund at least have a chance of doing so thanks to such touching and all-too rare shows of unconditional love and loyalty.

There's an awful lot more to come out about the circumstances surrounding Paolo Maldini's shock departure at AC Milan. There have already been reports that the bad blood at boardroom level dates back to the aborted attempt to essentially give Ralf Rangnick the keys to the club, while it has also been claimed that Maldini wanted to replace coach Stefano Pioli with Andrea Pirlo.

What is clear, though, is that Maldini and owner Gerry Cardinale had very different views on the way in which Milan should be run. The legendary left-back had publicly stated that if the Rossoneri really wanted to challenge for an eighth European Cup, they would need to invest more heavily in the playing squad. It was a reasonable view, particularly in the money-dominated modern era, but one clearly not shared by his bosses.

Interestingly, Maldini will not be directly replaced, with the club deciding on a restructuring of roles that he also reportedly didn't agree with. Milan president Paolo Scaroni claimed that Maldini was no longer needed at San Siro, which was a hell of a thing to say about a legendary figure who was revered by the likes of Rafael Leao and Mike Maignan, and played a pivotal role in last season's surprise Scudetto success with a number of bargain buys.

Last summer's signings undeniably proved disastrous, but Cardinale & Co. have taken a massive gamble here. They need it to pay off. If it doesn't, the fan backlash will become even more brutal.

Confirmation of Jude Bellingham's signing can't come soon enough for Real Madrid fans. They could do with a lift right now. Madrid may have won the Copa del Rey this season, but they were dethroned as both the champions of Spain and Europe, and in worrying fashion.

Carlo Ancelotti's side allowed Barcelona to run away with the Liga title, while the midfield's need for rejuvenation was made painfully clear in their chastening 4-0 loss to Manchester City in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final at the Etihad.

Bellingham should obviously help enormously in that regard - while the hope must be that Aurelien Tchouameni comes of age next season and Eduardo Camavinga is no longer used as a makeshift defender - but Madrid are now in the unexpected position of also having to sign a world-class striker this summer, after Karim Benzema's shock Saudi Arabia switch.

The Frenchman's move took Ancelotti completely by surprise, and when he said Madrid are a "team in transition" right now, he wasn't exaggerating. If anything, he was underselling it. If Florentino Perez doesn't land a Harry Kane or a Kylian Mbappe this summer, Real really could struggle to reclaim their titles next year.

What a season it's been for the Middle East. Qatari-owned Paris Saint-Germain may have once again disappointed in the Champions League, but the country's first World Cup couldn't have gone much better from a 'soft power' perspective, with the final effectively turning into a shootout between two PSG players, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe. A Qatari consortium could also be about to buy Manchester United from the Glazer family.

If that deal goes through, the Premier League would have three clubs funded by Gulf States, with Abu-Dhabi backed Manchester City having just won their fifth title in six seasons (as part of that aforementioned treble), and Saudi Arabia-owned Newcastle back in the Champions League for the first time in 20 years thanks to a fourth-placed finish. It's also worth adding that the Saudi Pro League is currently on a recruitment drive that could completely alter the footballing landscape.

After all, oil money has essentially just bought golf. Football may well be next.

First came the pathetic sight of Jose Mourinho waiting around in a carpark to verbally abuse Anthony Taylor and his fellow match officials after the Europa League final. Then, the terrifying real-life consequences of such abhorrent behaviour, with the referee insulted by Roma supporters in front of his terrified family as he tried to board a flight out of Budapest.

Mourinho is, of course, not the only manager who harasses referees. Jurgen Klopp even injured himself running to roar in a fourth official's face after Liverpool's late winner in a 4-3 victory over Tottenham.

Football is a passionate game and losing hurts like hell. But that is simply no excuse for some of the behaviour we have seen towards officials, from managers and fans alike. If there is not a serious change in the toxic atmosphere surrounding the game, it is only a matter of time before someone gets seriously hurt.

Erling Haaland scored 52 timesthis season, finishing as top scorer in both the Premier League and the Champions League, and then, after his final game in Manchester City's treble-winning campaign, declared: "I can improve a lot."

That's actually scary, because it's probably true. Haaland is, after, all just 22 years of age. It's inevitable that he will get better the more he works with Pep Guardiola, the man he calls "the best coach in the world". It's also worth pointing out that he actually ran out of steam at the business end of the season, managing just one goal, against Everton, in his final eight outings in all competitions.

So, who knows, when he hits his peak, maybe he'll even have a serious crack at Lionel Messi's single-season record of 73 goals! After all, the Argentine achieved that ridiculous tally playing under the very same manager.