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How does FC Thun’s Swiss title triumph compare to Leicester City 2016?

A decade on from Leicester City’s still sensational Premier League title, the memory has been evoked by a team in Switzerland. In some ways, FC Thun have exceeded the Foxes’ achievement because not even Leicester won the title immediately after promotion in the way the new Swiss champions did.

Thun, hailing from a town of just 45,000 people, were predicted to struggle in the Swiss Super League this season. Many expected them to go straight back down to the second division. Instead, Mauro Lustrinelli’s team embarked on an incredible run that deserves to be ranked alongside some of soccer’s great underdog tales.

Lustrinelli played for Thun when they qualified for the Champions League in 2005, when, had it not been for a Dennis Bergkamp winner in stoppage time, the Swiss would have claimed a famous point at Arsenal.

What unfolded this season, however, was even more memorable. In their 128-year history, Thun had never won the Swiss title. Their net spend in the transfer market this season amounted to roughly €700,000 ($820,000). Thun’s captain, Marko Burki, isn’t even the most famous soccer player in his own family – former Switzerland goalkeeper Roman Burki is his older brother.

Like Leicester, Thun took advantage of a weak field to finish top. Traditional superpowers Basel and Young Boys are rebuilding so the opportunity was there for an outsider to make a run and Thun were the ones who put it all together. Switzerland may never crown another champion like them.

What comes next for Wrexham after the end of their playoff dream?

Wrexham had forgotten what it’s like to have a season that doesn’t end in promotion. The Welsh side had won three successive promotions before Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Middlesbrough ended their hopes of a Championship playoff place. For once, Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds had nothing to celebrate.

They’ve got a big summer ahead. Until now, Wrexham’s strategy has been simple – spend more than the competition. It’s worked well, taking the club from the National League to the Championship in just four years. Their rise has been remarkable, albeit explicable. Now, though, Wrexham are finding their Disney millions no longer stack up so favourably.

According to Transfermarkt, Wrexham’s squad was only the 15th most valuable in the Championship this season with their wage bill estimated by Capology to be the 12th largest. That Phil Parkinson’s team finished seventh was an overachievement, even if the failure to make the playoffs on the final day was a disappointment.

Everything must be examined if Wrexham are to take the next step. Is Parkinson the right manager to guide them to the Premier League? Is his style of play too conservative for Wrexham to impose themselves on Championship opponents? Are they signing the right players to go up? Do they need a clearer transfer strategy?

Adversity will make Welcome To Wrexham more watchable, but as a team with Premier League aspirations they will now be tested like never before. The true measure of McElhenney and Reynolds as owners will be taken from this point forward.

Has Champions League qualification made Michael Carrick the right man for the Manchester United job?

The famous Champions League music will be heard again at Old Trafford next season. While qualification for European soccer’s most prestigious club competition seemed unlikely when Ruben Amorim spectacularly flamed out as Manchester United manager at the start of the year, Sunday’s win over Liverpool confirmed the club’s place in the Premier League’s top five.

Whether Michael Carrick will still be in charge to lead United in the Champions League next season is yet to be confirmed although the former midfielder is expected to be offered the chance. Club executives were waiting on the outcome of the team’s top-five pursuit, which is now settled.

Other, more illustrious, names were linked with the vacancy. The qualities of Andoni Iraola, Oliver Glasner and Julian Nagelsmann among many, many others have been discussed by fans and experts who argue United should look at the bigger picture and not just the last three months.

Carrick, however, has made it impossible for the club to hire anyone else. While an argument can be made that someone with a broader resume would fare better, Carrick has tangible evidence to suggest he deserves the opportunity to build on a very impressive run. Everything else is hypothetical.

United have won five more points than any other Premier League side in the period since Carrick’s arrival and while results have been better than performances, Old Trafford is clearly a healthier environment than it was six months ago. Under Carrick, Manchester United have been the sum of their parts which is a huge improvement on Amorim’s reign.

Those parts may not be enough to withstand the rigours of Champions League soccer next season. United must use the summer transfer window to add depth to a squad that will have played only 40 matches in all competitions once this season is over. It’s been easier for Carrick to set up his side when he and his coaching staff have had a full week on the training field between games, a luxury other top sides in the Premier League have not enjoyed this season.

Nonetheless, Manchester United would risk breaking things all over again by hiring someone else. Across the sport, the cult of the manager may also be on the wane. Bayern Munich hired Vincent Kompany from Burnley. Mikel Arteta had no senior management experience before taking over at Arsenal. The best manager isn’t always the same thing as the best manager for the job.