Radamel Falcao and Mario Balotelli the biggest losers while Eden Hazard and Harry Kane shine as Sportsmail's reporters pick their favourite games, goals and players of the 2014-15 season

• Chelsea won the Premier League title for the fourth time in their history 
• Blues winger Eden Hazard dazzled for Jose Mourinho's side this season
• Harry Kane scored 31 goals for Tottenham in a stellar breakthrough term 

Published: 04:46 EST, 26 May 2015 | Updated: 09:27 EST, 26 May 2015

Chelsea were crowned champions at the end of another season of engrossing action that saw them lift the Barclays Premier League title for the fourth time.

Sportsmail reporters travelled the length of the country to cover every Premier League match this year – and many games in Europe competition, too.

Our experts pass their judgement on the highs, lows and everything in between during the 2014-15 season.

NEIL ASHTON 

Best goal: Charlie Adam. Love the idea that a guy who was told by his coaching staff before the game that Thibaut Courtois is prone to go walkabout could be asked whether he meant to hit a 50-yard lob over the Chelsea keeper.

Best game: Swansea 0-5 Chelsea. The complete performance, a day when everything fell in to place of the Barclays Premier League champions. Was reminiscent of Liverpool’s famous 5-0 win at Anfield over Nottingham Forest in April 1988 - a game John Barnes describes as the best 90 minutes he ever played in.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. He has a touch that makes you melt, but of far greater significance is his attitude to the game because he is kicked to pieces most weeks. Hazard could easily stay down, as is the modern trend, to get opposition players booked, but he always jumps back on his feet. That is an impressive quality.

Signing of the season: Diego Costa. An absolute nuisance and he is always spoiling for a fight, but Mourinho earmarked him months before Atletico Madrid knocked Chelsea out of the Champions League last season. The guy munches goals.

Flop of the season: Mario Balotelli. An unmitigated disaster.

Manager of the season: Eddie Howe. One to watch next season when he takes Bournemouth into the Premier League. He has the mentality, the drive, the focus and the resources to make a success of their first season in the top flight.

Funniest moment: Louis van Gaal’s impromptu speech at the Manchester United player of the year awards ceremony went viral and rightly so. It narrowly edges out Phil Jones’ incredible caterpillar header at Old Trafford during the 1-1 draw with Arsenal.

Player to watch for next season: Jordon Ibe. Former Liverpool scout Mel Johnson deserves all the acclaim for the discovery and the recruitment of the young forward. Ibe is a talented young player and he can fly next season in a Liverpool shirt.

One wish for next season: That Roy Hodgson has a fully-fit squad to take to Euro 2016 and that they are fully prepared for the rigours, demands and challenges of tournament football in France. That would really make hearts flutter again.

Eden Hazard (left) has dazzled for Chelsea this season as they strolled to the Premier League title

The 24-year-old was crowned PFA and Football Writers' Association Player of the Year

Hazard's Blues team-mate Diego Costa (centre) scored 20 goals in his debut season at the club

ROB DRAPER

Best goal: Charlie Austin vs Southampton. Austin can score goals; everyone knows that. This was when he demonstrated he's much more than a goal scorer. The technique to bring the ball down followed by the volley was exquisite. No longer the former plasterer, suddenly he was the aspirant international

Best game: Barcelona 3-0 Bayern Munich. A match which served notice as to where football is heading and which also demonstrated how far the Premier League is behind. It had everything: unconventional tactics, open, attacking football, intensity, extraordinary technique and Lionel Messi at his best.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. An obvious choice because he was the best but also because watching a talented player fulfil his potential is one of the joys of life. With Hazard you were always sure he had the skill; the application might be in doubt. This season he had removed that question mark.

Signing of the season: Cesc Fabregas. The weekend Jose Mourinho missed his son's cup final to meet Fabregas is looking more and more like a family sacrifice worth making. He is the man who adds intelligence and guile to a midfield that could look a little flat before he came.

Flop of the season: Radamel Falcao. It might have been mesmerising had the striker we saw at Atletico joined Manchester United. Instead, they have made do with a man struggling to find himself following a knee injury. He's not even the best Colombian striker now. Hopefully he will recover - sadly it's unlikely to be in the Premier League.

Manager of the season: Garry Monk. The argument for Mourinho, Ronald Koeman or Eddie Howe are well rehearsed and convincing. But Monk was a jobbing centre half 18 months ago. Last year he kept Swansea up but that might simply have been change-of-manager syndrome. This season he has proved he is bright, smart tactically and strong. Anyone who annoys Arsene Wenger that much will go far.

Funniest moment: No contest - Louis van Gaal's end-of-season speech at Manchester United's function. We really were laughing with him - he's that charismatic - rather than at him. But he was perilously close to crossing that line at times.

One to watch for next season: Dominic Solanke. Linked to my answer below, but when a scout at a top European club says Solanke would be in their first team so good is he, then you long for him to get his chance at Chelsea.

Wish for next season: Not just at Chelsea but clubs everywhere turn to the young English talent in their ranks and give them the chance they need.

Lionel Messi (right) scored twice in Barcelona's 3-0 win over Bayern in their Champions League semi first leg

MATT BARLOW 

Best goal: Juan Mata at Liverpool. Inventive and acrobatic. Who doesn't love a scissor kick. Technically excellent. And at a crucial point in a key game for his team.

Best game: Chelsea vs Liverpool Capital One Cup semi-final second leg. Thrilling high energy, high intensity, high-stakes football, strangely helped as a spectacle by a couple of refereeing mistakes which magnified the emotion.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. Brilliantly consistent ability to influence games. Goals and creativity. Never hid. Fun to watch. One of the key forces for the champions.

Signing of the season: Diego Costa. Gave Chelsea what they needed to do what Jose Mourinho wanted. Missed chunks of the season but produced the goals to get them started and inspire belief.

Flop of the season: Plenty of candidates after some wasteful investment decisions by so many clubs. Angel di Maria pips Mario Balotelli because the expectations were so high after his performance in Real Madrid's Champions League win. As was the fee.

Manager of the season: Garry Monk. Stabilised a club in trouble after the Michael Laudrup tenure had ended badly but he has revived Swansea, sold their best player and led them to their highest Premier League points total with fine wins at Arsenal and Manchester United.

Funniest moment: Reaction of Roy Keane and Paul Lambert when Mourinho tried to their shake hands before the end when Chelsea faced Aston Villa earlier this season.

Player to watch for next season: Troy Deeney. Can he follow the likes of Charlie Austin, Jamie Vardy and Danny Ings and impress with goals in a freshly promoted team?

One wish for next season: A proper title race.

Juan Mata scored a stunning acrobatic effort as Manchester United won 2-1 at Liverpool in March

DOMINIC KING 

Best goal: If we are talking the Barclays Premier League, I’d say Charlie Adam’s unguided missile for Stoke at Stamford Bridge. If we are talking the best one I’ve seen, I’d say the 35-pass move from England’s Under 21s that led to James Ward-Prowse’s winner against Germany in March.

Best game: I’ve been to 73 matches this year but, oddly, none of them stood out as being classics. It’s been that type of season, really. The game I enjoyed most of all was Juventus’s first leg Champions League semi-final win over Real Madrid.

Player of the season: John Terry. For all that Harry Kane has been an endearing story and Eden Hazard has provided some magical moments, Terry has been majestic, the rock on which Chelsea’s title challenge was built.

Signing of the season: Alexis Sanchez. The ramifications of one signature could not have been more profound. Arsenal were able to get the goals that kept them in the top four and put them on track to successfully defend the FA Cup. Liverpool fell apart after missing out.

Flop of the season: Radamel Falcao. The memory of his destruction of Chelsea when he played for Atletico Madrid was in my mind when he arrived on loan at Old Trafford. Sadly, it looks like he will never recover from a cruciate ligament problem.

Manager of the season: Jose Mourinho. How can it be anyone else? He’s won the league, won the Capital One Cup and had Chelsea on top of the table from start to finish. Never mind the resources he has, his management has been magnificent.

Funniest moment: Anything to do with Louis van Gaal. I was with someone on May 19 when his end-of-season speech was broadcast and the laughter at 'Hey! Pay attention to the manager!' was uncontrollable.

Player to watch for next season: Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Saw him play for Chelsea’s youth team at Anfield a couple of years ago and he was head and shoulders above anything around him. Already had a taste of the big time, he will make headlines going forward.

One wish for next season: Some more excitement. From a very early stage this year, it was evident how the major issues would play out. We won’t be looking back at 2014-15 as a vintage… fingers crossed 2015-16 will be considerably better. 

Alexis Sanchez (right) has proved a revelation at Arsenal this season since his summer switch from Barca

Conversely, Radamel Falcao's loan move to Manchester United from Monaco has been a disaster

CHRIS WHEELER

Best goal: Charlie Adam’s long-range missile from inside his own half for Stoke against Chelsea. We love goals like that, and to beat a 6ft 6in keeper of the calibre of Thibaut Courtois from there is just ridiculous.

Best game: Leicester City 5-3 Manchester United in September. Eight goals at the King Power Stadium, including four for Leicester in just over 20 minutes after United’s Galacticos twice led by two. Crazy. Why are we surprised they stayed up?

Player of the season: Harry Kane. Chelsea’s Eden Hazard got the award but to score 31 goals for a pretty average team like Tottenham is a phenomenal achievement. Where would they have been without him?

Signing of the season: Diego Costa. A total of 20 Premier League goals is a very decent return on Chelsea’s £32m investment. Costa’s season was disrupted by injury towards the end but if he’d finished the campaign like he started it, we’d be raving about him even more.

Flop of the season: Angel di Maria. Some players, even ones who cost a British record £59.7m, take time to settle in English football. The Manchester United star actually started quite well and then went downhill. Very quickly.

Manager of the season: Garry Monk. He started with a surprise win at Old Trafford and guided Swansea to their best-ever Premier League finish in his first season as a manager. Enough said.

Funniest moment: Leicester boss Nigel Pearson throttling Crystal Palace midfielder James McArthur on the touchline in February. Also qualifies for most disturbing moment and a few more besides. Remember, Pearson can look after himself...

Player to watch for next season: Kelechi Iheanacho. It’s not easy for young talent to shine at Manchester City but the Nigeria striker impressed on tour last summer and has continued to press his claims for a first-team call-up.

One wish for next season: Can everyone please stop parking the bus. In fact, there is no bus. It doesn’t exist. It’s a game of football. Just try and win it.

Swansea manager Garry Monk has guided them to their best-ever Premier League finish this season

JOE BERNSTEIN

Best goal: Charlie Adam vs Chelsea. Other goals might have been technically more difficult but Charlie's goal from inside his own half was the one that everyone talked about with the player asked to re-enact it at the training ground.

Best game: Chelsea 2-2 Paris Saint-Germain. A gripping storyline from start to finish as Paris recovered from the injustice of Zlatan Ibrahimovic's red card to knock out Jose Mourinho at the Bridge. And naturally David Luiz had a major part to play.

Player of the season: Lionel Messi. I thought Messi's best days were behind him but 43 La Liga goals and a match-winning performance against Bayern in Europe tell otherwise. In the absence of a standout Premier League player, it's Leo.

Signing of the season: Diego Costa. Forget Eden Hazard and John Terry, Costa made the difference to Chelsea in the title race. His goals and attitude gave Mourinho an unassailable advantage, when he got injured, they limped over the line.

Flop of the season: Mario Balotelli. Some boffins fed data into a computer after last summer's transfer window and came up with the conclusion Balotelli was the best value-for-money in the Premier League. Proof that moneyball is another word for drivel.

Manager of the season: Ronald Koeman. Easy to forget now but nine months ago Southampton were tipped by many to go down. Koeman lost Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, Luke Shaw and Rickie Lambert but turned it to his advantage to build a new and better team

Funniest moment: Maybe because it is so recent in the memory but Louis van Gaal's impression of Jonny Vegas at the Manchester United player of the year awards was comedy gold. Refreshing to see a manager going off-piste and not caring.

Player to watch for next season: Luke Shaw. Such a tough first season at Old Trafford but he has too much talent and energy not to make the grade. The fact Van Gaal fought to keep him out of the European Under 21 Championship next season indicates he has big plans for him.

One wish for next season: I hope Eddie Howe doesn't change. A young, bright English manager who takes the game seriously but doesn't confuse football with a cure for cancer, he will be under pressure to watch what he says, lambast officials when he loses, and all the other hallmarks of a 'top manager'. I hope he stays exactly as he is. 

Charlie Adam (right) scored a stunning long-range effort for Stoke in their 2-1 defeat by Chelsea in April

The 60-yard goal left Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois red-faced at Stamford Bridge

Adam (centre left) is hugged by his Stoke team-mates after his outrageous strike against Chelsea

RIATH  AL-SAMARRAI

Best goal: Charlie Adam vs Chelsea. How many times will you see someone score from inside their own half?

Best game: Swansea 2-4 Manchester City. Garry Monk was riled by criticism from Arsene Wenger so deliberately went ‘toe-to-toe’ with City. What an incredible match.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. He is getting close to that point when you might wonder if he is too good even for Chelsea.

Signing of the season: Cesc Fabregas. His dips in the second half of a season are a strange recurring feature of his career. But irrespective of that, he was Chelsea’s best player at a stage in those first few months when Chelsea blew teams away and set the platform for their title win. He made them dynamic and exciting and he accentuated the effectiveness of Diego Costa.

Flop of the season: Mario Balotelli. Always over-rated but rarely as useless as he has been for Liverpool.

Manager of the season: Garry Monk. He did the double over Manchester United and Arsenal, he led Swansea to their record points haul in the Premier League and he did it all while losing his star striker to a bigger club. He is young, he is English and he was expected to struggle.

Funniest moment: Cesc Fabregas’s red card against West Brom. It was a stupid thing to do, but at the same time there was something artistic in the petulance. He struck the ball so cleanly…

Player to watch for next season: Raheem Sterling, but mainly for the reason that he and his camp have raised expectations through the roof. If he can thrive against such self-inflicted pressure, then magnificent – what a story. If it affects him negatively, he only has himself to blame. It is a huge season for him.

One wish for next season: That Harry Kane can do it again. I’m still not sure if he is brilliant or very good so I would love to see a British striker end that particular conversation. 

Mario Balotelli has endured a miserable season at Liverpool following his £16million move last summer

SAMI MOKBEL 

Best goal: Charlie Adam against Chelsea. Why? How often do you get to see someone score from 60 yards live? That's why.

Best game: For sheer drama, it's Arsenal's FA Cup semi-final win over Reading. The Gunners were on the ropes before Adam Federici gifted them victory with an extra-time howler. The photo of the Australian trying to retrieve the ball as it crossed the line is one of the best snaps of the season.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. Often provided the flash of brilliance Chelsea have needed to get over the line in games. An exceptional season from the brilliant Belgian.

Signing of the season: Alexis Sanchez. He's run close by Cesc Fabregas - but the Chilean has been like a breath of fresh air. His class on the ball is unquestionable but his work rate sets him apart.

Flop of the season: Mario Balotelli. A replacement for Luis Suarez? Hahahahaha! Don't make me laugh. A shocking signing from Brendan Rodgers. Liverpool will have to take a big financial hit to get rid this summer.

Manager of the season: Alan Pardew. Has led Crystal Palace to safety at a canter since his arrival. Newcastle's demise simply underlines the excellent work he did at St James' Park, too.

Funniest moment: Louis van Gaal's performance at Manchester United's end-of-season awards night was priceless. I could watch his slap on the back of Ryan Giggs' head all day.

Player to watch for next season: Hector Bellerin. Has all the attributes to be one of Europe's leading full backs. He's comfortable in both halves of the field and his pace is blistering. His positional sense needs work, but that comes with experience.

One wish for next season: For English clubs not to flop in Europe like they have this season. There's nothing like the anticipation of a big Champions League night involving one of our clubs. We've been deprived this season.

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal gave an amusing speech at their end-of-season awards

SAM CUNNINGHAM 

Best goal: Charlie Adam v Chelsea. Players simply just do not score from inside their own half at this level, particularly not against Chelsea and certainly not against one of the best goalkeepers in the world in Thibaut Courtois. To generate that much power with the swipe of Adam’s boot to send the ball up and over all 6ft 6ins of Courtois and in was special.

Best game: Leicester 5-3 Manchester United. The season was only a month old and newly-promoted Leicester were supposed to be trounced by a Manchester United team led by their legendary new Dutch manager Louis van Gaal, who had spent more than £100million in the summer.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. In a team full of title-winning stars he has effortlessly out-shone them all. Hazard takes three opposition players out of the game with one run, creating acres of space for his team-mates and scores important goals. As Jose Mourinho said recently, he is destined for greatness.

Signing of the season: Alexis Sanchez. OK, he set them back £30m but scoring more than 20 goals in a debut season having never played in the Premier League is spectacular and Arsene Wenger appears to have found the world-beating forward he has needed.

Flop of the season: Angel di Maria. Radamel Falcao runs him a close second, but the Colombian joined on a temporary basis and they have always had the option to get rid of him whereas Di Maria, at £60m, is the most expensive player in Premier League history.

Manager of the season: Ronald Koeman. The Dutchman inherited a squad depleted of its stars and whose former manager had jumped ship to Tottenham. Many tipped them for relegation, I even feared the hard work during their rapid rise was about to unravel. But Koeman has spent shrewdly, played attractive football and delivered a record points total. He is also an honest, straight-talker, making it all the more fun.

Funniest moment: Cesc Fabregas vs West Bromwich Albion. Chelsea have already won the league, there’re only a couple of games left and the mischievous Fabregas sees a crowd of West Brom players - already irate after five minutes of rowing with Chelsea players and the referee - 20 metres away. What does he do? Ping a ball into the group, of course, hitting Chris Brunt on the head. This was what your mates used to do in the school playground but Fabregas was doing it on live telly in front of millions. It was an irate teacher running over back then; Fabregas saw a red card flash in his face instead. You had to laugh.

Player to watch for next season: Dele Alli. The 19-year-old is one of the most exciting English powerhouse central midfielders since a certain pair who are set to leave these shores for America. Tottenham have done well to beat rivals to his signature and, under Mauricio Pochettino who puts faith in youth, Alli is set to star. He was well-advised to cut his teeth in the lower leagues when Premier League clubs came in for him earlier in his career and 16 goals this season helped MK Dons to promotion.

One wish for next season: Harry Kane to keep banging the goals in and replicate that form for England, too, going into the European Championship in France. I don’t care where he is playing, as long as those goals keep coming.

Tottenham striker Harry Kane has scored 21 Premier League goals during a stellar breakthrough season

LAURIE WHITWELL

Best goal: Juan Mata’s second vs Liverpool. It should probably be Charlie Adam’s but the I saw the Mata goal live so the impact was greater. It was a quite brilliant strike of technique, imagination and importance. A swirling scissor kick at the home of the great rival? Yes please.

Best game: Leicester City 5-3 Manchester United. A ludicrous game. United looked rampant, Angel di Maria a world beater. Then some bloke who was playing non-League football three years previous made his mark. We were all left shaking our heads.

Player of the season: Eden Hazard. Made a difference and did so in style. Scorer of great goals and important goals, capable of dribbling through the tights gaps. A joy to watch at his best.

Signing of the season: Esteban Cambiasso. Getting a Champions League-winning midfielder with the experience and drive for nothing was outstanding. He conducted Leicester’s midfield and contributed significant goals. A key reason for their remarkable survival.

Flop of the season: Radamel Falcao. Just never looked the player who used to terrorise Europe. How much is down to his knee injury we can only speculate but a comprehensively disappointing campaign.

Manager of the season: Nigel Pearson. To finish in 14th place, six points clear of danger, having been bottom for 140 days is quite astonishing. Pearson may have brought scrutiny on his position with odd outbursts but he cultivates a fierce loyalty among his players and makes bold selections of tactical ingenuity. Makes Lazarus look lazy. Jose Mourinho, Mark Hughes, Garry Monk, Tony Pulis, Alan Pardew and Ronald Koeman all deserve praise too.

Funniest moment: Pick out any of Tim Sherwood’s one-liners from pre-match press conferences. The Twix bonus, the Cleverley gag, the Wenger story, the gamble with a Sky Sports News presenter. He does have a knack.

Player to watch for next season: Jack Grealish. Has thrived in this latter part of the season with the pressure on, it will be interesting to watch him develop over a full campaign. A player of sublime touch and vision.

One wish for next season: That we have more riding on the last day than a sole relegation place. The title needs to go down to the wire and not be a procession from October. 

Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish (left) has thrived under the tutelage of Tim Sherwood this season