It was the year which saw a 5,000/1 outsider win the Premier League then take the Champions League by storm and go into a relegation fight in tandem.
More of the world's best managers came to England as Pep Guardiola and Antonio Conte arrived at Manchester City and Chelsea.
Jose Mourinho also returned to the game at Manchester United as the title race shaped up to be one of the most keenly-contested in several seasons.
This, ladies and gentlemen, was 2016 - and here is our take on what have been the best and worst moments for each Premier League side over the last 12 months.
Arsenal
Best - February 14, Last-gasp win over Leicester
Arsenal blew the title race wide open with a dramatic 2-1 win over Leicester at the Emirates on Valentine's Day, closing to within two points of the surprise Premier League leaders thanks to an injury-time header from Danny Welbeck, who was making his first competitive appearance since the previous April.
Leicester had been playing with 10 men for much of the second half following Danny Simpson's sending off and after Theo Walcott had cancelled out Jamie Vardy's penalty, Arsenal finally found their winner in the final moments.
The Emirates erupted and Arsene Wenger described it as a "pivotal moment" in the title race. Ultimately, his side were unable to kick on and Claudio Ranieri's team bounced back to clinch the crown. The Gunners did at least complete a final-day leap-frog of north London rivals Tottenham.
Worst - March 2, 2-1 Swansea loss increases pressure on Wenger
Going into 2016, Arsenal were in a good position to push for their first Premier League title in 12 years - but by the start of March those hopes had faded.
Just two points from a possible nine against Liverpool, Stoke and Chelsea was far from an ideal start to the year but a last-gasp win over Leicester had renewed expectations this could be Arsenal's year.
However, when defeat at Manchester United was followed by a home loss to Swansea, the task of overhauling the high-flying Foxes, now six points ahead, seemed beyond the Gunners - and left some Arsenal fans calling for boss Arsene Wenger to go.
Wenger stayed on and completed 20 years at the club in October but his wait for a first Premier League since 2004 remains a major blot on his copybook.
Bournemouth
Best - December 4, Historic comeback beats Liverpool
Signing Jack Wilshere on loan from Arsenal for the season raised eyebrows but the manner of Bournemouth's comeback win over Liverpool confirmed their progress as a Premier League team.
Trailing 3-1 to Jurgen Klopp's in-form side with 14 minutes left, Scottish youngster Ryan Fraser inspired a stunning response.
Having already won a penalty scored by Callum Wilson, he scored himself and then set up Steve Cook's equaliser before Nathan Ake won the game 4-3 in stoppage time.
It was a remarkable result for many reasons, not least because Bournemouth's first win over Liverpool was also their first against a top-four Premier League side.
Worst - July 1, Matt Ritchie leaves for Newcastle
Despite impressing in their first season in England's top flight and finishing comfortably above the relegation zone, Bournemouth were delivered a harsh blow this summer when key midfielder Matt Ritchie opted to join Championship-bound Newcastle, who had finished five points behind the Cherries.
The Scotland international had played in every game during their promotion campaign in 2014/15 and scored a goal-of-the-season contender against Sunderland as helped Bournemouth avoid an immediate return to the second tier.
However, the south coast club were unable to compete with Newcastle financially and had to let their man leave. "We weren't happy to let him go," said Eddie Howe. "But the reality is we just couldn't compete with Newcastle's finances and Matty expressed a desire to leave."
Burnley
Best - May 7, Going up as champions
In a league in which consistency can deliver so much, Burnley's unbeaten 23-game sequence in the second half of the Championship season saw them win the title on the final day.
Having already secured promotion with their 1-0 win over QPR five days earlier, a 3-0 success at Charlton saw them finish ahead of second-placed Middlesbrough.
After the win over QPR, Dyche said: "Two years ago, we went under the radar. This year we have gone 22 games unbeaten and won promotion. That is unbelievable."
Worst - November 21, Humbled by West Brom
After beating Everton, holding Manchester United to a draw at Old Trafford and then seeing off Crystal Palace at home, Burnley travelled to West Brom for a Monday Night Football clash optimistic of building on their good run. Instead, they left the Hawthorns with their tail between their legs after a 4-0 defeat which saw the hosts equal their biggest-ever margin of victory in the Premier League.
Matt Phillips, James Morrison and Darren Fletcher had the Baggies three to the good by half-time and Salomon Rondon rubbed salt into Burnley wounds after the break.
"I broke my leg here at 17 and I have never had a result here," said Clarets boss Sean Dyche after the match. "It's one of the few grounds in the country where I have had nothing."
Chelsea
Best - October 1, Changing the system to 3-4-3
After beginning with four wins, Antonio Conte's promising start to life at Chelsea took a turn for the worse as his team then failed to win any of their following four fixtures.
With the Italian under increasing pressure, a 3-0 defeat at Arsenal saw speculation about his future increase and his reaction was both ruthless and emphatic.
A change of system from 4-3-3 to 3-4-3 saw Chelsea win 2-0 at Hull in their next match and they have since transformed into title favourites, topping the Premier League table at Christmas by six points after 11 straight wins - including headline-grabbing, emphatic triumphs over Manchester Untied, Everton and Manchester City, as well as a comeback success over London rivals Tottenham.
Worst - May 15, Finishing 10th and missing Europe
Failing to win any of their last four games of 2015/16 saw Chelsea finish a lowly 10th in the Premier League, their worst finish in 20 years.
That coincided with them not qualifying for European football for the first time in two decades as well after 13 consecutive appearances in the Champions League.
Indeed, the defence of their title was the worst in Premier League history as they won just 12 times - although Leicester are threatening to be even poorer in the months ahead.
Crystal Palace
Best - May 21, First FA Cup final in 26 years
OK, so Palace lost their FA Cup final with Manchester United and in somewhat cruel fashion, as Jesse Lingard scored the winner 10 minutes from the end of extra-time.
But simply getting there was a clear high, however, and let's not forget they led with 12 minutes left at Wembley through Jason Puncheon.
The dad dancing which followed from Alan Pardew was questionable and things went downhill from there, with Juan Mata levelling before Lingard settled the contest but in a 2016 which has seen Palace win fewer points-per-game than any other team in England's top four tiers, this was a day to remember.
Worst - December 17, Two little ducks
But for a couple of weeks at the start of this season, Crystal Palace haven't spent any other time in the Premier League's relegation zone - yet you have to wonder how.
Going into their weekend game with Chelsea, there was talk of a 21st-minute walk out from fans in protest at their 21 defeats in 2016 so far.
That didn't materialise but Diego Costa's goal ensured a 22nd loss duly followed. With just six Premier League victories in the calendar year, this has been one for Palace to forget.
Everton
Best - August 31, Lukaku stays at Goodison
Romelu Lukaku's contribution to Everton's cause has been significant but he rocked them last season with claims he wanted to be playing Champions League football this term.
While John Stones did go to Manchester City for almost £50m despite an indifferent 2015/16, Lukaku was still at Goodison when the transfer window closed.
His exciting partnership with new signing Yannick Bolasie was put on hold when the winger suffered a serious knee injury and the likelihood is there will be more speculation about Lukaku's future in January but with nine goals so far this season he remains a key figure for Ronald Koeman.
Worst - May 12, Martinez sacked by Toffees
Roberto Martinez led Everton to the semi-finals of both cup competitions last season but failure to go any further and their poor Premier League form saw him sacked by the club.
Pressure slowly mounted on him throughout last term, with fans ultimately displaying banners calling for his departure.
A run of just one win in 10 matches saw the Spanish dismissed after nearly three years at Goodison Park, with Everton's end-of-season awards dinner cancelled too.
Hull City
Best - May 28, Diame goal sends Hull back up
After a six-game run without a win saw them drop from first to fourth in the Championship, it looked like Hull had blown their chance of getting back into the Premier League.
They comfortably secured a play-off place, however, and clung on for a 3-2 aggregate win in the semi-finals against Derby.
Meeting Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley, Mohamed Diame's strike 18 minutes from the end gave them a 1-0 win which sent them straight back up to the Premier League at the first attempt after relegation.
Worst - July 22, Losing Steve Bruce
After the high of winning promotion via the play-offs, what followed was much less savoury for Hull fan, as manager Steve Bruce left the club less than two months later.
With his relationship with the club's hierarchy breaking down over reported concerns about a lack of investment in new players while Hull were up for sale, Bruce chose to walk.
He had already been interviewed for the England job but lost out to Sam Allardyce and is now making progress with a previously misfiring Aston Villa.
Mike Phelan took temporary charge of Hull for several weeks before being appointed full-time but City quickly faded after winning their first two top flight games and will be bottom of the table at Christmas.
Leicester City
Best - May 2, English champions for the first time
The greatest football story of the year - and for many years, too - Leicester were confirmed as champions of England for the very first time in 2016, after overcoming odds of 5,000/1 to shock the world.
Jamie Vardy had a party all right. In fact, the whole City squad were at his house to take in Tottenham's 2-2 draw at Chelsea live on Sky Sports which gave them the crown.
In the end, Leicester won the league by 10 points and had Andrea Bocelli singing at the King Power on the day they collected the trophy. Who could have predicted that 12 months earlier?
Manager Claudio Ranieri said: "The fans pushed us all season. I am very happy. It was an amazing moment to lift the trophy."
Worst - November 26, Leicester enter 'battle of relegation'
Many people expected Leicester to drop off in their Premier League title defence and they did but to a greater extent than many thought.
Indeed, after having to twice come back from the penalty spot at home to promoted Middlesbrough, Ranieri was forced to admit his team was in a 'battle of relegation'.
Recording more wins in Europe than the Premier League in the first few months of the season, City must improve considerably over the rest of the campaign or risk going down.
Liverpool
Best - November 6, Top again after two and a half years
Liverpool have had plenty of high points under Jurgen Klopp and another of those saw them go top of the Premier League with a 6-1 win over Watford in November.
Whether the Anfield side can sustain their challenge for a first English title since 1990 remains to be seen but they have undoubtedly shown promise this term.
Their stay at the summit didn't last long and a collapse at Bournemouth as they lost 4-3 posed pertinent questions but they will be optimistic in the second half of the campaign after going into the Christmas period as the top flight's leading scorers and Chelsea's nearest challengers.
Worst - May 18, Undone by Sevilla in Switzerland
At one point, Jurgen Klopp's first season on Merseyside looked as though it might be a trophy-laden one but his team instead lost in two cup finals.
Being beaten on penalties by Manchester City in February's League Cup final was disappointing but worse was the follow as Sevilla beat Liverpool to the Europa League trophy.
Having got past Augsburg, Manchester United, Borussia Dortmund and Villarreal to reach the final, Daniel Sturridge's goal in Basel put the Reds ahead at half-time.
Sevilla hit back after the break, however, with Kevin Gameiro scoring before a Coke double ensured the La Liga team' won the competition for a third consecutive year.
Manchester City
Best - February 28, Pellegrini's final trophy
Manuel Pellegrini's final season in charge of Manchester City was a frustrating one, with the club falling out of the title race early on, having to scrap for a top four-finish and the manager overshadowed by the upcoming summer arrival of Pep Guardiola.
But the Chilean did deliver silverware during his final term, beating Liverpool on penalties in the final of the Capital One Cup. It's not the trophy he would have dreamed of at the start of the campaign but it did confirm him as the club's most successful manager since the 1960s.
City fans will hope his successor Guardiola can exceed Pellegrini's haul of one Premier League and two League Cups and a landmark 3-1 win over Barcelona in the Champions League group stage at the Etihad Stadium has sparked hopes they can see off Europe's best.
Worst - March 20, United kill title hopes
Consecutive defeats to Leicester, Tottenham and Liverpool had left City not just off the pace in the title race but in danger of slipping out of the top four altogether.
Not having Champions League football to play in Guardiola's first season was an unthinkable prospect but it became more as United went to the Etihad and won.
Marcus Rashford's early goal separated the sides and left City 15 points behind Leicester, with any hope of claiming a third title in five seasons killed by their biggest rivals.
Manchester United
Best - May 21, Van Gaal signs off with cup win
While Jose Mourinho's appointment as Manchester United manager is the biggest thing to happen at Old Trafford this year, his start hasn't been as emphatic as he would have liked.
Instead, the club's first trophy win in three years at the FA Cup final as Crystal Palace were beaten 2-1 - with Jesse Lingard scoring an extra-time winner - is their best moment of 2016.
The result allowed Louis van Gaal to end his turbulent two-year spell at the club with silverware, with his departure announced officially two days later.
Worst - October 23, 'The Return' goes horribly wrong
There have been a few moments in 2016 United fans would rather forget but they would do well to put their team's 4-0 thrashing at Chelsea in October out of their minds.
In Mourinho's first game back at Stamford Bridge as an opposition manager since his second spell in charge there ended, he saw his team fall behind to Pedro's goal after just 30 seconds.
Gary Cahill, Eden Hazard and N'Golo Kante rounded off a miserable day, with the Portuguese claiming after his opposite number Antonio Conte had humiliated him.
Middlesbrough
Best - May 7, Beating Brighton to promotion
Middlesbrough returned to the Premier League this year after seven seasons in the Championship but even then, it was bittersweet given they should have won the title.
Nevertheless, the way they sealed their rise was at least satisfying despite finishing four points behind winners Burnley.
Needing just a draw with third-top Brighton to stay ahead of the long-time leaders in their final match, they got off to the perfect start through Cristhian Stuani's goal.
Dale Stephens levelled before being sent off but while there was a nervy finish, Boro hung on to win automatic promotion as runners-up, while Brighton lost out in the play-offs.
Worst - March 11, Karanka rows with players
Footballers have been known to go AWOL from time to time but it's rare a manager should do so in the way Aitor Karanka did from Middlesbrough in March.
After a 1-0 defeat at Rotherham - the latest in a run of results which saw them slip from the top of the Championship - the Spaniard told his players he didn't want to manage them again.
Storming out of training, he left his assistant Steve Agnew to take charge of a 2-0 defeat at Charlton and looked set to leave the club.
Their differences were resolved and Boro were unbeaten in their final 10 games as they were promoted as runners-up - but the incident so nearly saw Karanka quit the Riverside.
Southampton
Best - May 7, Van Dijk commits for six years
Since signing from Celtic in 2015, Virgil van Dijk has consistently proved himself to be one of the Premier League's most outstanding defenders.
Already attracting interest from elsewhere after an impressive first season at St Mary's, it was therefore pleasing for Saints to secure him on a new deal until 2022 back in May.
The club have seen so many star names sold in recent years but Van Dijk showed his commitment to the cause and has again impressed in the 2016/17 campaign.
Worst - December 8, Going out of the Europa League
Having sneaked into the competition on the final day of the Premier League season, Southampton looked well placed to do well in the Europa League after the groups were drawn.
Indeed, things started well enough with a 3-0 home win against Sparta Prague and a draw at Hapoel Be'er Sheva before home wins were exchanged over two games with Inter.
Yet from there Southampton finished weakly, losing away to section winners Sparta then coming back to draw 1-1 with Hapoel when a 0-0 score would have been enough.
They were eliminated due to their head-to-head results with the Israeli side despite finishing level on points with them and having a better goal difference.
Stoke City
Best - July 25, Allen signs from Liverpool
It's fair to suggest this hasn't been the most spectacular of years for Stoke but one high point was undoubtedly the summer recruitment of Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen.
His stock had never been higher than it was off the back of Euro 2016, where his performances for semi-finalists Wales saw him named in UEFA's team of the tournament.
With Allen's name linked with clubs around Europe, it was something of a surprise he was allowed to leave Anfield - and arguably more of a shock he ended up with the Potters.
A real coup for Mark Hughes, the former Swansea player has repaid some of that faith with five goals so far for his new club - including a late equaliser in the draw at Manchester United.
Worst - March 26, Losing Jack Butland to injury
England's 3-2 win over Germany in Berlin was the national team's best moment of 2016 but it was also Stoke's worst as their goalkeeper Jack Butland was injured during the match.
Fracturing an ankle shortly before half-time, he was sidelined for the rest of 2015/16 and is yet to make a playing comeback.
Without him in their side, Stoke have struggled to keep clean sheets as replacements Jakob Haugaard, Shay Given and Lee Grant have mustered just a few between them.
Sunderland
Best - May 11, Beating the drop… again
Sunderland have become masters of surviving the threat of relegation in recent seasons and made it with a game to spare last season after a remarkable recovery under Sam Allardyce.
While they were within touching distance of safety at the end of February, they weren't showing many signs of securing their place in the Premier League for another year.
But consecutive draws with Crystal Palace, Southampton, Newcastle and West Brom were a catalyst. Although they were then beaten by Leicester, wins over Norwich, Chelsea and Everton ensured the preservation of their top-flight status with 90 minutes still to play.
Worst - July 22, Losing Allardyce to England
After the high of staying up gave Sunderland fans hope of building on that this season, losing Sam Allardyce to the England job little more than two months later was a huge setback.
Although David Moyes was swiftly named as his replacement and he brought in 10 new faces, it took time for the squad the Scot had assembled time to gel.
Indeed, they took up a familiar position in the bottom three and took until November to finally register a Premier League win in their 2-1 success at Bournemouth.
Swansea City
Best - November 26, Coming back to beat Palace 5-4
In one of the most dramatic games in Premier League history, Swansea had led Crystal Palace 3-1 but conceded three goals in seven minutes and looked set to lose 4-3.
Yet a remarkable turnaround saw the Welsh side score twice in stoppage time to turn the game on its head once again and give Bob Bradley his first win as manager.
Fernando Llorente got both goals and he also struck twice a fortnight later against Sunderland in Bradley's other win of what has otherwise been a difficult start for him in Wales.
Worst - December 17, Humbled by Boro
Swansea's 5-0 thrashing at Tottenham last month was worse but they were at least competitive for spells of the match before losing goals as they chased the game late on.
Against Middlesbrough, they found themselves two goals down within half an hour against a relegation rival and later lost a third as they meekly slipped back into the bottom three.
Having already changed their manager this season and given previous incumbent Francesco Guidolin less than nine months in the position, the lack of stability at the club is clear.
Tottenham
Best - December 1, Kane signs new long-term deal
Harry Kane's importance to Tottenham has been evident since he marked his first full season as a regular in their side with 31 goals in the 2014/15 campaign.
He had signed a new contract in the latter part of that campaign but his continued progress has been such that an improved deal had been spoken of for much of the time since.
With Kane's commitment to the club unrelenting, Tottenham never truly looked like losing him, even if his availability would have sparked interest from across Europe.
At the start of this month Mauricio Pochettino finally got his man as Kane penned a deal until 2022. He's scored nine goals so far this season.
Worst - May 2, Blowing the title race
Tottenham's 2-2 draw with Chelsea at the start of May was ultimately the game which confirmed the White Hart Lane club wouldn't win their first title since 1961.
Yet it was a series of inconsistent results in the lead up to that, combined with Leicester's relentless form, which killed their challenge.
While victories over Stoke and Manchester United were emphatic, Tottenham only won four games in a nine-match stretch and eventually slipped to third, 11 points behind Leicester.
Watford
Best - March 13, Beating Arsenal to reach Wembley
Watford hadn't won at Arsenal since 1988 so when they were handed an away quarter-final at the Emirates in the FA Cup their fans went there more in hope than expectation.
Yet the team delivered one of their best performances of the season, going ahead through Odion Ighalo before Adlene Guedioura got a second in the 2-1 win.
That took Watford to Wembley for their third last-four appearance in 13 seasons, where they once again failed to progress any further as they were beaten 2-1 by Crystal Palace.
Worst - December 17, The demise of Odion Ighalo
After 16 goals at the start of 2015, Odion Ighalo was one of the standout players in the first half of the 2015/16 Premier League season as he scored 13 more before the year was out.
Yet from 29 goals in that 12-month stretch, he has stumbled his way to just six in this calendar year - and two of those were cup goals against lower-league opponents.
Ighalo has still largely kept his place in the Watford starting XI but having been one of the league's hottest properties not so long ago, he's making much less impact now. A blank against Sunderland on December 17 made it one goal in 14 Premier League appearances this season.
West Brom
Best - March 6, Rare win over Manchester United
West Brom capped a superb run of form with a rare victory over Manchester United to all-but secure their Premier League status for another season.
In February, Tony Pulis' side were in a relegation battle, just six points above the drop zone, but three wins and a draw in their next four games - including this 1-0 success over 10-man United moved them onto 39 points and up to 11th in the table.
Salomon Rondon was the hero, firing the Baggies to their first home league win over United since 1984.
Worst - February 20, Brunt struck by his own fans
West Brom are not a team with a great record in the cups and so it proved as, after stumbling past Peterborough on penalties, they went out of the FA Cup to Reading in February.
Their 3-1 defeat at the Madjeski was unspectacular as they hosts came back from a goal to win but what followed afterwards was even less savoury.
As Chris Brunt went to give his shirt to a West Brom fan after the match, another threw a coin at him which struck him just below his eye.
Brunt reacted furiously, confronting supporters as he sought the culprit, and later said he was disgusted and ashamed of the incident.
West Ham United
Best - May 10, beating Manchester United in the last game at the Boleyn Ground
West Ham had an emotional farewell to their iconic home at Upton Park after a 112-year stay with a dramatic comeback 3-2 win over Manchester United.
Falling behind in the closing stages of the second half, it looked as though the finale would end on a sour note but Michail Antonio's leveller gave them hope.
Just 10 minutes from the end, Winston Reid wrote himself into history as he scored the last goal at the old stadium to give West Ham a rousing victory.
Manager Slaven Bilic was in tears at the final whistle and said: "It was a special game. This was the win of character. We totally deserved it so it was a great night."
Worst - December 3, London Stadium teething problems
West Ham moved into their new home at the former Olympic Stadium with plenty of hype but were beset with problems almost from the moment they arrived.
Segregation problems, fans turning up to find they didn't have seats and crowd trouble all blighted their first few months at London Stadium.
On-pitch results weren't great either and while losing 3-0 and 4-2 to Southampton and Watford were low points, a 5-1 thrashing by Alexis Sanchez-inspired Arsenal was worse.