The 2024-25 European club football season has now wrapped up, so let's now take a look back at some of the standout highlights during it.
Kylian Mbappé signs for Real Madrid (June 3, 2024)
After years of speculation surrounding a possible move from Paris Saint-Germain to Real, Kylian Mbappé confirmed that he would be signing for Real near the end of the 2023-24 season. Not long after Real closed out the season by winning the Champions League for a record-extending 15th time, Mbappé made his move to the Santiago Bernabéu official.
Despite a slow start to the season, Mbappé soon found the level of form that justified the hype behind his arrival at Real. The French striker would go on to win the European Golden Shoe with 31 league goals; however, in spite of his success on the individual front, Real would finish the season without any titles after losing La Liga and the Copa del Rey to arch-rivals Barcelona; they were also knocked out of the Champions League in the quarterfinals against Arsenal.
Antonio Conte takes over at Napoli (June 5, 2024)
After a feeble attempt at a Serie A title defense in the 2023-24 season which saw Napoli finish just 10th. It was a turbulent season which saw three different head coaches spend time in the dugout at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. In response, yet another change was made heading into the 2024-25 season with Antonio Conte taking over.
Conte proved that his difficult stint at Tottenham Hotspur - his most recent position prior to Napoli - was an outlier in what has been a highly decorated career. With Conte at the helm, Napoli reclaimed the Scudetto, beating Inter to the title by two points. It was Conte’s fifth Serie A title as a coach and sixth overall across major European leagues.
Manchester City 2-2 Arsenal (September 22, 2024)
This ended up being more than just an early-season clash between two Premier League title contenders. By far the biggest story of the match wasn’t the result itself; it was the fact that City’s superstar defensive midfielder Rodri - about to be the newly-minted Ballon d’Or winner - tore his ACL and would go on to miss almost the entirety of the rest of the season, only returning during the very last matchday.
Rodri’s absence completely derailed City’s season. Following this match, the Citizens were nowhere near the level they were capable of playing at for the remainder of the campaign. City finished the season without a trophy for the first time in eight years.
Real Madrid 0-4 Barcelona (October 27, 2024)
Despite being relatively early in the season, this particular iteration of El Clásico ended up setting the tone for how things would eventually play out. In an absolutely dominant showing, Barça took Real apart at the Santiago Bernabéu. Not even for a moment did Real even appear to pose anything resembling a threat to Barça.
This victory as well as Barça’s subsequent win in the reverse fixture later in the season proved to be crucial to the league title race; Barça would go on to win La Liga ahead of Real by four points. Barça would also beat Real in the Copa del Rey final to clinch a domestic double while Real would finish the season empty-handed.
Khvicha Kvaratshkelia signs for Paris Saint-Germain (January 17, 2025)
Throughout the first half of the season, “Kvara” had not only unquestionably been Napoli’s best player; the Georgian was also arguably the best player in Serie A. As such, his mid-season switch to PSG for €70 million was the clear highlight of the January transfer window.
Kvaratshkelia’s impact in the French capital was almost immediate; in addition to helping them clinch a domestic league title against, to be quite frank, vastly inferior opposition, Kvaratshkelia played a vital role in bringing PSG the club’s first-ever Champions League title and by doing so, made himself one of the leading candidates to win the Ballon d’Or.
Kevin De Bruyne announces departure from Manchester City (April 4, 2025)
The greatest player to ever put on a City jersey called time on a spectacular decade-long stint at the Etihad Stadium. Over 10 years, De Bruyne played over 400 matches for City and established himself as one of the greatest midfielders of all time. He was twice named Premier League Player of the Season and was a perennial Ballon d’Or candidate in his prime.
De Bruyne, who has now left City for reigning Serie A champions Napoli, will be honoured with a statue in front of the Etihad; he will become the seventh City player to be immortalized with one. There’s a strong case to be made that De Bruyne isn’t just City’s and Belgium’s GOAT - he’s arguably the greatest player of the modern era of English club football which started in 1992-93.
Inter Milan 4-3 Barcelona (May 7, 2025)
This Champions League semifinal’s second leg was match of the season without any question whatsoever. Following a 3-3 first leg in Catalonia, a spot in the final hung in the balance. Although Barça had the bulk of the goalscoring chances and the vast majority of the possession, Inter went into half-time with a 2-0 lead on the night and thus a 5-3 aggregate lead.
Astonishingly, Barça turned it around and after the 87th minute, the Blaugrana led 3-2 and were in position to make the Champions League final for the first time in a decade. Despite this, the most stunning twist was to come - Francesco Acerbi scored Inter’s equalizer in stoppage time before Davide Frattesi’s extra-time winner put Inter in the final for the second time in three seasons.
Luka Modrić announces departure from Real Madrid (May 22, 2025)
Not long after De Bruyne’s announcement, Modrić would do likewise, bringing down the curtain on a 13-year stint at Real. During his time at Real, the legendary Croatian midfielder not only broke the Ballon d’Or duopoly of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018; he also won a joint-record six Champions League titles alongside teammates Nacho and Dani Carvajal.
Modrić will make his decision on his next club after the Club World Cup - assuming he doesn’t choose to retire at the age of 40. So impressive was Modrić’s career at Real that when he was substituted in his final match for the club, he received a guard of honour not only from his own teammates, but also those of opponents Real Sociedad; a fittingly remarkable tribute for an even more remarkable player.
Napoli 2-0 Cagliari (May 24, 2025)
By far the most compelling of the league title races among the major European leagues this season was Serie A’s. Napoli and Inter headed into the final matchday with a chance at the Scudetto; Napoli led by one point which meant that all they needed to do to win the league for the second time in three seasons was to beat Cagliari at home.
Napoli duly did so, beating their Sardinian opponents 2-0 to win the league for the fourth time in club history - especially impressive considering Kvaratshkelia’s aforementioned mid-season departure to PSG. Even after his departure, Napoli didn’t miss a beat with the rest of the squad stepping up to fill the void; midfielder Scott McTominay was also named Serie A’s Player of the Season.
Paris Saint-Germain 5-0 Inter Milan (June 1, 2025)
PSG could not have secured their first-ever Champions League title and smashed their seemingly perpetual “Champions League curse” in a more stunning fashion. It was the largest margin of victory in the final in the entire history of the tournament dating back almost seven decades.
Inter never stood a chance as PSG dominated the match right from opening kick-off and never looked back. In one glorious evening, the Parisian club banished every demon that had ever afflicted them over their years of struggles on European football’s biggest stage and completed a remarkable turnaround even in the same season, going from almost being eliminated in the league phase to winning it all.
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