Let me preface this column (my first one, for that matter) by saying that I am by no means a soccer expert. My youth soccer career was cut short due to a lack of interest and a coach that never wanted to put me in an offensive position. I was always kicking the ball as hard as I could with my toes, rather than my instep. I don’t think I left the game of soccer with even an assist to my name.

My generation is considered to be the digital generation. So it’s only fitting that a video game was the reason my interest in soccer was reignited. Not to go off on an endorsement tangent, but it you haven’t played FIFA Soccer 12, you are clearly missing out. With it being Mother’s Day recently, I know my mom can personally attest to the sounds of competition, victory, and defeat she would hear beckon from my basement as I played with my friends.

All right, enough of the preludes and introductions. I feel readers are now picturing me as an out of shape lowlife that still lives at home with his mother. The point I’m trying to get to is that I have taken a huge liking to soccer to the point where I have become somewhat of an “advanced casual” fan. If you listen to me on the Illini Drive @ 5 (self-promotion), you’ll know that I get clobbered on-air for showing my appreciation of soccer. The first time I even brought up soccer was when I dubbed Manchester City my “Badass of the Week” for their 6-1 drubbing of Manchester United at Old Trafford. Ah, Manchester City you say? This column seems to be going somewhere

now.

After 44 years of waiting, the Barclays Premier League title has a sky blue glisten to it. Manchester City showed that no title is guaranteed until the whistle blows after 90 minutes. Except in their case, they needed four minutes after the first 90 for the whistle to blow.

While City seemed to have the title slipping through their grasp, the crosstown rivals of Manchester United seemed to be tasting the crown for a second straight season. A win coupled with a City loss meant the title would return to Old Trafford. And even after holding off Sunderland 1-0, Man. U. was certainly in for a shocker minutes later, as United fans began scoreboard watching.

Two goals in stoppage time to tie and defeat Queens Park Rangers 3-2 ended up being the greatest finish to a Barclays Premier League campaign in history. The relentless attack of City against a 10-man QPR side proved to be the difference when prized signing Sergio Aguero took the ball to the right side of the box and put it in the near post. The mood in the Eithiad Stadium went from sadness to jubilation as fast as a Kurt Cobain mood swing. And after final whistle blew, 44 years of stress was released as City supporters mobbed the pitch singing “Blue Moon.” Only this time, they were not alone, and the dream in their heart of seeing their team raise the Premier League trophy had finally come true.

A finish to a season like that had everything you wanted. Like the NHL, European soccer has done a masterful job with the points system, ensuring that teams are rewarded on performance, not just wins and losses. While City and United did finished tied for points in the season with 89, City held on to win the title by goal differential. Now some may argue for “Americanizing” this system and say that the teams should meet one more time in a playoff to determine the outright champion. I say nay. It’s a 38 game season, you play everybody twice. In the case of Manchester City, that title won on goal differential comes in large part to their “badass” performance back on Oct. 23 at Manchester United.

A finish to a season like that has the “advanced casual” fan like myselfwanting more.

“Don’t worry,” I tell myself. “There is plenty more to come.”

In less than a week, all eyes of European football will be on the Allianz Arena in Munich for the UEFA Champions League Final between Chelsea and Bayern Munich. I get it, the sexy names of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo aren’t in this, but you have the two teams that beat Real Madrid and Barcelona in this final. Not to mention Chelsea has to win the final in order to qualify for Champions League next year because of their underwhelming sixth place finish in the Premier League.

Normally, the Champions League final is the rich dessert to end the European football season. (The MLS can be the mint or toothpick you take on your way out. You can choose which one you’d rather have.) Except every 4 years, European football will extend the invitation to rejoin them at their restaurant, where they will serve you a mouth-watering, multicourse meal known UEFA Euro 2012.

I’m not going to get into any of the major storylines of Euro 2012. I may have to save it for another column; I’m starting to like this writing thing. Just imagine the stage of the World Cup, minus the vuvuzela symphony in the background.

So, there it is. Not much scientific theory, but the finale to Premier League season certainly does leave soccer fans eagerly waiting for top-tier matches of the summer. Come to think of it, that certainly does sound like hypothesis to an experiment. Might just have to test it somehow, just like how I am testing this whole writing business.

_Max is a senior in Media. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @AirMaxTane._