January loan signing Cole Stockton opened his Barrow account in style with the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win over fellow play-off hopefuls MK Dons at Holker Street.
Barrow boss Pete Wild saw his side squander a host of presentable chances in front of their home fans before Stockton struck a 78th-minute winner.
Dons keeper Filip Marschall did well to tip Elliot Newby’s strike past the post in the first half and Sam Foley and Kian Spence both missed decent chances for the home side as they fired off target towards half-time.
After the break, Barrow striker Dom Telford fluffed his lines before the unmarked Foley missed the biggest opportunity of the lot when he volleyed Dean Campbell’s cross over at the back post.
However, with time running out and a goal still proving elusive, Barrow finally made the breakthrough.
Substitute Ben Whitfield, who was a handful after being introduced just before the hour, played in Stockton to fire home his first goal for the club.
The midfielder then produced a pin-point corner for Jamie Proctor to nod over as Barrow looked to finish off their opponents.
Whitfield himself was frustrated when Marschall kept his near-post volley out and Barrow were almost made to pay for their missed chances in stoppage time, when goalkeeper Paul Farman needed to produce a great stop to deny Joe Tomlinson.
Napoli 0-0 Lecce: Azzurri's European hopes end with goalless season finale
Napoli missed out on their slim chance to participate in Europe next season after being held to a 0-0 home draw by Lecce in their final Serie A game of the campaign on Sunday.
After a lacklustre first half, Napoli had chances to win the game in the second, with Cyril Ngonge coming closest when he rattled the crossbar.
Patrick Dorgu had already given the Azzurri a scare just nine minutes in, firing Lecce's first shot off Alex Meret's post.
Napoli had to win to climb to ninth place, but instead, finished below Torino, who lost 3-0 to recently crowned Europa League champions Atalanta, due to their head-to-head record.
Torino could now earn a Europa Conference League play-off spot if Fiorentina beat Olympiacos in that final on Wednesday.
Data Debrief: Napoli's season fizzles out
Napoli finished the season on 53 points - it is the second-worst return for a team that started the season as Serie A reigning champions in the three-point-per-win era after Milan in 1996-97 (43).
After scoring in each of their 12 home matches against Lecce in Serie A prior to Sunday's match, Napoli failed to find the back of the net against them for the first time at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Meulensteen backs Slot success at Liverpool as Klopp comparisons evident
Liverpool will not see many differences between Jurgen Klopp and incoming manager Arne Slot, though the Dutchman must learn to cope with the added pressure at Anfield.
That was the message from Australia coach and former Manchester United assistant Rene Meulensteen, who expects fellow countryman Slot to succeed on Merseyside.
Slot leaves the Netherlands after three highly successful seasons with Feyenoord, during which he led them to the league title in 2023 and was named Eredivisie Manager of the Year on two occasions.
That record has Meulensteen expecting further success for the former Feyenoord boss.
Meulensteen, speaking on behalf of William Hill Vegas, told Stats Perform: "There was a lot of speculation about different names being touted with [Xabi] Alonso and Rubin Amorim, but then when Arne Slot's name came up, I didn't necessarily think that it was a bad choice and a bad decision.
"I like him. I rate him as a coach and as a person. I think he's got a likeability about him, he's a good communicator, he plays a brand of football that is very much in line with what Klopp has done over the last few years.
"You won't see many differences there, he might tweak one or two things, but it will still be high press, high energy, dynamic football.
"In my opinion, I think it's always the proof is in the pudding, but I think it's not a bad choice at all for Liverpool."
Liverpool managed 82 points in the 2023-24 Premier League, finishing nine behind Manchester City and seven adrift of second-placed Arsenal.
The Dutchman will officially take charge from next Saturday, subject to receiving a work permit, and Meulensteen believes it will be a step up for Slot.
"Liverpool are a global brand, it's a big club, it brings different expectations and winning the Premier League is the hardest thing to do," he added.
"The ambitions will be there for Liverpool. Same with the Champions League. So the difference between that step from Feyenoord to Liverpool is really in terms of the expectations, which brings a different kind of pressure.
"You need to be able to handle that, clubs like Liverpool, Man United, Arsenal, City, Chelsea, you want to be successful, but at the same time play in an attractive style of football.
"It's a difficult kind of combination, and obviously he's going from the Eredivisie, the Dutch league, to the Premier League.
"That will be his biggest step up because that is where he's going to be confronted with every week.
"If he's clever, he has to bring somebody in his staff along that knows the Premier League, that understands the Premier League."
Rene Meulensteen was speaking on behalf of William Hill Vegas: https://vegas.williamhill.com
'Sometimes, it's not meant to be' - Farke magnanimous after Leeds miss out on promotion
Daniel Farke conceded "it wasn't meant to be" for Leeds United, following their Championship play-off final defeat by Southampton.
Farke's side missed out on an immediate return to the Premier League, as Adam Armstrong's first-half strike was enough to settle the contest at Wembley.
Leeds controlled large periods of the final and went agonisingly close to equalising later on when Daniel James rattled the crossbar, but they must now prepare for another season back in the Championship.
Nevertheless Farke, who missed out on becoming the third manager to win three promotions to the Premier League, was gracious in defeat.
"It's football. Congratulations to Southampton, they were able to be effective today," he told Sky Sports. "We had more possession, more shots and dominated the game in many spells, but they defended very well.
"It's always important to be good in both boxes. We started the game totally on the front foot and had many good situations but, in the final third, we weren't always precise with the final pass.
"We tried everything in the second half. Daniel [James] hit the crossbar. Sometimes, it's not meant to be. It's hard today because we are all suffering and are so disappointed. It's a difficult day for us.
"Sometimes, after such setbacks, you learn a lot and develop your personality. The lads have played a fantastic season, 90 points, we were great in the semi-finals [beating Norwich City 4-0 on aggregate].
"I was proud of the performance in many ways. In the final third, we could have been more effective but, apart from this, there is nothing to dwell on. We'll suffer for a few days, but use the break to recover and go again.
The German also paid tribute to Leeds' fans, who were in fine voice throughout the day, despite seeing their side fall in an EFL play-off final for a record-breaking fourth time.
"It's obviously a big disappointment for us because we were so close," he added.
"The support for this club is second to none - not just in the Championship, but even in this country. They carried us through difficult times, and were always there for us today. For them, we have to go again."
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