Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

As the dust settles on the 2024-25 Premier League season, we have been taking a look at some of the alternative ways the the table could have finished...

"We never do it the easy way."

Something muttered by many a football fan as they watch their side go 1-0 down again.

As frustrating as it can be watching from the stands or on the TV, it is a position some teams thrive in.

Luring the opposition into a false sense of security, it is almost as though they do not get going until they have given the other team a chance.

And if the league was measured on how well a team bounces back after conceding the first goal, then this season would have seen Brighton coming away with a Premier League title.

There were 17 occasions in 2024-25 when the Seagulls conceded the first goal, but from those they came back to win five and draw five - rescuing 20 points in the process.

It will not have made for comfortable watching for the fans, but it does show the tenacity of Fabian Hurzeler's side to turn a match around.

The sign of champions is to win when you are not at your best and that is what Liverpool did this campaign. They may not have have conceded first as often as Brighton, but they still came back to win four times and draw seven.

It will not have always helped the cause of those chasing European spots, but Newcastle, Fulham and Aston Villa all showed the resilience that they could go one-goal down and still get much-needed points from a game.

At the other end of the scale, while some teams thrive in this situation, others flounder.

Nottingham Forest surprised many onlookers going from relegation candidates to battling for a Champions League spot in less than 12 months.

But key to that was their defence. There were not many occasions where they went 1-0 down - however, when they did, their ability to turn it around was in relegation territory.

The silver-lining for Reds fans, though, is that they really did make it difficult for the opposition to get in front and this is a strength they will hope to build on going forwards.

Pat Riddell
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Ideally, this summer will see Nottingham Forest build on the success of European qualification and near-misses in the FA Cup and making the Champions League.

It is pretty obvious where we need to recruit – injuries and fatigue caught up with us at the end of the season and losing the likes of Chris Wood, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Murillo cost us in important games.

Last summer's business, adding Elliot Anderson and Nikola Milenkovic, was particularly astute. But the other gs did not strengthen the squad as we might have hoped, and the recruitment team will do well to find a few more rough, or even polished, diamonds.

We are well stocked in central midfield but really need competition in defence and attack.

Our position now, compared with 12 months ago, is a different proposition for potential players - rather than battling relegation, those looking to make a name in the Premier League outside of the 'big six' have a new destination. And financially we are in a fairly good place to be growing the squad sustainably.

That said, beyond new gs it is a time to consider how we develop tactically.

Steve Cooper tried and failed to move from a 4-2-3-1 formation to 4-3-3, and it is no easy transition without well-drilled players and strategic nous.

Foregoing possession and playing on the break has served Forest very well in recent seasons, but it was evident in the latter games of the campaign that when teams offered up the ball the Reds were not really sure how best to capitalise. What happens when we have more than 50% possession? How do we adapt to those games?

That problem will rear its head again. Of course, I'm not the only one thinking this - and Nuno Espirito Santo will have inevitably started thinking about how we progress.

Greater depth in players, as well as a settled squad and management team, will make the transition easier.

But, for the first time in a generation, we can start a new Premier League season without nervously looking over our shoulder and instead setting our sights above us.

Find more from Pat Riddell at The Famous Club, external

BBC Sport pundit Nedum Onuoha has given us his insight and opinion every fortnight on your Premier League club throughout this season.

But this week, he's in the hotseat for your questions.

Maybe ask him who should be on your club's radar this summer, or where a rumoured target or new g might fit into the team.

Perhaps see what he thinks about how successful a new recruit might be, who it is vital to keep, or what is needed to make next season a success.

Send in your questions here and we'll put a selection to him

As the dust settles on the 2024-25 Premier League season, we have been taking a look at some of the alternative ways the the table could have finished...

Many of us will have been there in school.

It was not always about being the best, but about being better. Not trying to beat the others' scores or times, but about beating your own.

In sport too, it is why personal bests exist. It is a way of measuring your own improvement against what has gone before - we can't all be Usain Bolt and Florence Griffith-Joyner.

So if the Premier League season was all about how you compared to the campaign before, who would have come out on top?

Well, there is one clear winner.

With 29 points more than they had in 2023-24, Nottingham Forest would have been lifting that trophy.

They may not have finished the season quite as they hoped having spent so much time in the Champions League spots, but having narrowly avoided relegation a year ago, this shows the sheer scale of the improvement this term.

Their nearest challenger on this basis would have been Brentford.

With 56 points, they were three points short of their best ever Premier League tally, but having flirted with relegation last time out, it made for a more enjoyable season this time around.

Brighton, Bournemouth and Fulham may have just missed out on European adventures in the real league, but they are also teams who can be happy with the improvements they are showing as now well-established top-flight sides.

And despite the chaotic nature of Chelsea since the new ownership came in, they too can look to steady progress.

At the other end of the scale (or table), it is a very different picture.

Many question whether the traditional 'big six' teams is still relevant, given how others have broken that mould in recent years.

But if the season was based on improvement, four of those six would have been at the bottom.

Tottenham dropped-off in the league nearly as much as Forest improved. Manchester City had a high bar to reach, but a torrid spell proved costly. Manchester United have set multiple unwanted club records, while Arsenal struggled to maintain a real challenge for the title.

They say beware the wounded tiger, and it is hard to see all these sides having the same difficulties next season, but they will not have it all their own way with those teams that are on the up.

*All data from Opta and only teams who were in the league in 2023-24

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for you to tell us what Nottingham Forest need to do in the summer transfer window.

Here are some of your comments:

Mark: Like any organisation that relies on stats to decisions, Forest should now look to release players twho are liabilities and costing them matches with their mistakes. One look at the number of free-kicks awarded against players should highlight where reckless tackles have had serious consequences. If that behaviour can't be rectified in training then it's time to let a player go. So, Ryan Yates, play with your feet, not your arms...!

Jesse: Forest have a strong squad at the moment but if we want to challenge for the Champions League places next season and win the Conference League, we need to make the squad even stronger. The other teams at the top of the Premier League seem to be looking at making big gs this summer and if we want to compete with those teams then we need to sign players as well. Specific areas we need to improve are the midfield mostly, but also the bench. We do not have a strong enough bench to be rotating in all competitions. I think we also need to try to hold on to the big players.

Jack: Nuno needs to be realistic. We were fortunate with injuries last season and still struggled with depth. Now we have a potential European campaign on the cards, despite Nuno's preference for a small squad we simply must get bigger. I think we cash in on Morgan Gibbs-white now. In that back third of the season, I'm not sure how he was being deployed but it seemed all he wanted to do was beat players and shoot. I think he's a much better centre mid than being a pseudo number 10, but he wants the glory and attention so won't do it.

David: Complete confidence in the club to continue our progress. To compete deep into more than one competition, though, we need big bench upgrades but particularly need a younger, more mobile forward, more goal threat out wide and competition at full-back. Sangare fit again is like a new g.

Peter: Most of us accept Gibbs-White will be off, likely to Manchester City. If/when he does, it's just the reality of how a club like us has to operate. He has been excellent for three seasons and now we will cash in on him. Eventually, Murillo will go the same way, but hopefully not until at least January. In of incomings, our lack of squad depth became painfully clear as we stumbled out of the Champions League and into the Conference League. So I expect this to be addressed and early, so that Nuno can foster the exceptional squad unity that was the bedrock of our still exceptional season.

Thank you for the you submitted on the Premier League club pages.

Our aim is to contain all of the BBC's in-depth coverage of that team in one place, so it is helpful to hear from you - you are who the pages are for after all.

We are going through all your responses and will take suggestions on board for next season.

As the dust settles on this Premier League campaign, we asked former England international Fara Williams for her underrated XI for the season.

She selected Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest as part of her midfield.

I've been so impressed with Anderson this season. We saw glimpses of his quality at Newcastle but I was not sure how he would perform as a regular starter in a Premier League midfield.

He has shown himself to be an assured and consistent performer who was a key cog in a team that enjoyed a really impressive season. He is so calm on the ball, rarely gives it away and is a excellent dribbler.

I'm really excited to see how he does in Europe next season.

Anderson started 33 Premier League games this season, scoring twice and assisting six times.

Fara Williams was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

Image source, Getty Images

The transfer window opens on Sunday - albeit for 10 days initially, mainly so sides competing in the Club World Cup can get early business done - before reopening for the rest of the summer on 16 June.

Are there certain players you are desperate for Nottingham Forest to sign, or an area of the squad that needs improving? Or maybe holding on to a key player is your biggest priority.

And what about sales - who needs to go?

So over to you... what names need bringing in and shipping out?

Let us know here

Image source, Getty Images

Former Nottingham Forest midfielder Steve Hodge believes that the Reds will struggle to hold on to their best players going into next season, particularly Morgan Gibbs-White.

Hodge told BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up And Show More Football podcast that Gibbs-White needs to be in the Champions League in order to make a World Cup squad.

"It's a fact, it's the way of football," he said. "If he wants to go to a World Cup he'll probably believe that Thomas Tuchel wants him in a Champions League team, either in England or Europe somewhere.

"These players are here for their career, to enhance their career, and if they see a better opportunity elsewhere they will want to move on. I think that's genuinely how players should look at it.

"Opportunity comes along every now and then and the players will look at it and think: 'I want to be at the World Cup next year so I need to be playing in the Champions League.'

"Thomas Tuchel and the like will say: 'You need to be with a team that's challenging with the pressure of having to go somewhere and win a game.' At Forest, it's a bit different."

Listen to more from Hodge on the Shut Up And Show More Football podcast on BBC Sounds here

Image source, Getty Images

The team at BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up And Show More Football podcast looked back on a mixed season for Forest, after missing out on Champions League football by only two points.

Host David Jackson asked Colin Fray for his reflection on the Premier League season at the City Ground and he said: "Overall you have to commend them for what's been an incredible season.

"A totally unexpected challenge for anywhere near the top half of the table which ended up prolonging into a challenge for European football, and they've ended up getting European football.

"They doubled their points tally from last season, they've take so many strides in so many areas but at the same time, I'm sure that there is some regret about what's happened over the last few weeks of the season.

"I'm sure there are very good reasons for it, I'm sure a lot of the players have just hit a brick wall in of fatigue, tiredness, injuries and I think some of them have been playing through injuries and I think that's affected them over the run-in.

"It's easy to say now if they had added a couple of players [in the January transfer window] then I'm fairly sure it gives them an extra couple of points."

Listen to the full podcast on BBC Sounds here

The latest episode of BBC Radio Nottingham's Shut Up And Show More Football podcast has landed.

The team reflect on an amazing season at the City Ground where Forest have secured European football for the first time in 30 years.

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds