And with that, it’s time for me to wrap up. I’ll be blogging away this evening on Manchester City 2-3 Wolves, so join me for that, pretty please.
A bit of Football Daily action from John Brewin.
Such is the pessimism that surrounds Spurs that much of the focus went on Ulrik Saltnes’s late goal, and the plastic pitch greeting them next week in far-northern Norway. “Look, it is on artificial grass but it’s still a game of football,” roared Ange Postecoglou.
Celtic meet Rangers on Sunday with the Scottish league title already in the bag, but I wouldn’t expect a guard of honour for the champions.
Here’s Brendan Rodgers on the matter, getting in a cheeky dig:
The guard of honour thing, it’s not a rule, that’s the first thing I would say. It’s not in the rules that you have to do it, and I think that when two clubs and the rivalry’s so emotional, it’s always difficult for the team that comes up short.
So it’s one that I’m relaxed either way on it. It’s one where I’m a little bit of a traditionalist because there’s a lot of things that are going out of our game over on these isles that are just moving away from the traditions of the great managers and the great people that ran our game and were successful in our game.
I always think if you’re a champion, or not a champion, showing that humility to the other team, whatever the rivalry is, it’s a mark of respect.
But like I said, Celtic-Rangers, it’s an emotional rivalry, and if you’re up short, and if you come up short quite a lot, then it can be a challenge for you and to justify that with your supporters. But, as I said, I’m a traditionalist. These are things that have been in our game for many, many years. Like I say, there’s no rule to it but I’m relaxed on it either way.
Trying to get yourself to five before you flee for the weekend? This quiz should help.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin could be on the bench for Everton this week as he returns from injury, and David Moyes has been speaking about the striker’s future. Calvert-Lewin is out of contract at the end of the season.
He’s part of that group of players who are coming out of contract who we’ll discuss with and see how things go in the coming weeks.
There has not been a contract offer [to Calvert-Lewin] on the table since I’ve been here. I think the contract offer was here under a different regime.
We want everybody to have to fight for what they’re doing, show what they’re worth. We’ve not had loads of time since January but we’ve had some time, unfortunately Dom has been injured for a big part of it, but Dom’s history has been very good so obviously we’ll be taking all of that into consideration.
Graham Potter has been asked about his press conference last weekend, when he was deeply frustrated after his West Ham side’s loss to Brighton.
As you get older I care less about what you guys think. I’m happy to just be myself. If myself is ‘I’m annoyed’ after we’ve conceded two goals in three minutes, I’m damned if I do, I’m damned if I don’t.
At the end of the day we’re not winning and you have to accept that and I think my reaction was a human reaction.
Dominic Booth has the latest on the Wrexham story and their next challenge: the Championship.
Reynolds and McEhlenney have known nothing but success since their takeover in February 2021. Since a missed promotion in 2021-22, their side have romped through league after league, making a mockery of cynics’ predictions on the way.
Hello, hello, hello. I’m jumping ahead of this weekend, straight to Arsenal’s clash with PSG next week. The Parisians – who have a 1-0 lead in the Champions League tie – have released an injury update, stating that Ousmane Dembélé has “strained” his right hamstring “but his situation is improving. A further update will be provided in due course.”
And with that I shall pass over to Taha Hashim for the late-afternoon sesh. Bye for now.
Kind words for Liverpool from a self-reflective Mikel Arteta, as Arsenal get ready to play Bournemouth at home on Saturday evening.
“The only thing we can control is our performances and emotional state. We haven’t achieved what we wanted. I will use this [time] to congratulate Liverpool with the manner they have done it. They have shown consistency and they deserved to win it. As a club in the last 10, 15 years, they have been there competing and winning those big trophies. They did it because they did a lot of things very well so they are deserved champions.”
There is a ‘but’, of course. A rather big one.
“I was very shocked just before the game at PSG at home. I saw Takehiro Tomiyasu, Riccardo Calafiori, Thomas Partey, Kai Havertz, Gabriel, Gabriel Jesus and Jorginho all together in the dressing room. That could have been a starting line up and we don’t have them and we haven’t for months. No one is talking about it in the building but that’s happening. I am proud of them.”
Ruben Amorim on one of his United heroes of Bilbao, and a returning hero.
“Casemiro improves a lot, works hard, he’s a good example. From not playing, with Collier in front of him, it is now hard to take him out.
“He is a lesson for all players here - no matter the past, everything can change. [Not having him has been] tough for us. He was the player that created all our [attacking] situations before he was injured. We don’t have many with his left foot characteristics, 1v1, so [his return is] massive.
“[Not having Amad Diallo has been] tough for us. He was the player that created all our [attacking] situations before he was injured. We don’t have many with his left foot characteristics, 1v1, so [his return is] massive.”
Tottenham news, and sad news for Lucas Bergvall, who was unable to play against former club Djurgardens/ Bodø-Glimt last night in the Europa League. More news on Dominic Solanke and James Maddison, too. The latter could be serious, too.
Via Ange Postecoglou: ““It looks like Lucas’ injury is significant enough to keep him out for the rest of the season. He tweaked some ligaments in his ankle so he’s out.
“Dom’s not too bad. He’s still a bit sore from last night but we don’t think it’s anything serious. He’s a doubt for the weekend, but we hope it’ll settle down pretty quickly. Mad’s a bit more of a concern because it’s his knee but we’ve sent him for a scan. We’re just waiting for the outcome.”
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Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea players will give champions Liverpool a guard of honour on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca said: “Yes. It’s tradition. We have to do that, and we are going to do that. They won the Premier League, so. they deserve it. It is there, you can see this clearly. My feeling is we are [moving] in the right direction and hopefully this gap can be smaller and smaller and smaller.
“The difference is they have been consistent compared to us. For part of the season we were very good, and then we lost some games. This has probably been the main reason why.
“And also in terms of experienced players that know how to win games and these kinds of things, I think they have something more compared to us.”
Swansea and Wales midfielder Joe Allen announces retirement
Joe Allen has announced he is retiring when the curtain comes down on Swansea City’s season this weekend. The 35-year-old, who has made almost 600 career appearances and won 77 caps for Wales, said it was not a decision he has taken lightly but believes the timing is right.
He has also represented Liverpool, Wrexham and Stoke. He came out of international retirement last year but has struggled for fitness. Allen, who was named in the Euro 2016 team of the tournament when Wales reached the semi-finals, said: “The truth is, when you’re getting to 35, you’re only getting worse ... there’s a line I didn’t want to cross in terms of the level of performance I can give. I’m just at that stage where I can’t push things any further.”
Not one to live the highlife, Allen hit the headlines in 2016 for appearing on the cover of Chicken & Egg magazine; he revealed in issue 12 that he looks after two cockerels and 12 hens at home, and has names for them all, including one called Silkie Steve. “[My wife] Lacey was behind the decision,” he said. “We both have an interest in animal welfare but she came up with the idea to save hens and I agreed it was something that would be great to do. We didn’t have any hens growing up but wanted to help chickens after they finished their commercial lives.”
It’s your chance to ask questions of the most feared Premier League – and SPL? – centre-forward of them all. The renowned pigeon-fancier Duncan Ferguson – he kept 3200 of them at one time – and Everton legend is ready to take your questions. You may recall that as a player he refused to answer questions at all. Now he’s willing to talk to you, yes you. Inundate him.
WSL: Weir signs new deal with Everton
The Everton centre-back Kenzie Weir has signed a new one-year contract with the Women’s Super League club until June 2026.
The 21-year-old has spent the majority of this season recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered last May, while on loan with Glasgow City, but has now returned to first-team action and she told the club’s media channels: “It has been a really, really tough year for me mentally and physically. But, this is what I’ve been working towards. I feel fit now and I am ready to put in the hard work and look forward to next year.”
Happy birthday, David Beckham, 50 today. Zoe Williams guides you through his greatest pics. Perhaps you might wish to remember the footballer, for he was a very good player.
The Slot/Klopp love-in continues, with Arne Slot revealing his predecessor has sent his best. “What did he have to say? Yeah, what most of them said, ‘congratulations, now you know how special of a club it is, now you are part of history as well’, these kind of things. He was really happy for me, for the players, for the staff, for the fans, like we all know Jürgen. Maybe I forgot a few but I think he was the most famous.”
Good afternoon from Guardian HQ. Can I also register my Coldplay refusal and a love of Bank’s Mild. It made it as far as Macclesfield and Wilmslow in my youth, and featured local resident Noddy Holder as the voiceover for an advert.
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That’s my two-hour stint done. Next up, you lucky people have Macclesfield’s finest John Brewin to steer things along. Enjoy!
It’s worth going over those Championship permutations to be honest.
In the title race:
Burnley need to better Leeds’s result to win the Championship title.
Leeds will be champions if they win, or match Burnley’s result.
In the playoffs:
Sheffield United and Sunderland are assured of 3rd and 4th spots respectively
Bristol City and Coventry can guarantee their places if they win
A draw may be enough for them but Millwall and Blackburn would have to fail to win
Boro need to beat Coventry and hope Millwall and Blackburn fail to win
Blackburn need two of Bristol City, Coventry and Millwall to not win
Millwall must win and hope Bristol City or Coventry fail to win.
In the relegation fight:
Plymouth are effectively down, needing to beat title-chasing Leeds and a 14-goal swing to stay up
Hull can stay up with a victory; a loss would relegate them
Derby and Stoke play each other in a huge game, whoever wins will be safe. It gets complicated if Derby lose – they’d need to match one of either Preston or Luton’s results to stay up
Preston will stay up if they win or if Hull lose
Luton will stay up if they win, but a draw or worse puts them at risk.
So that’s all good.
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Permutations! A word seemingly exclusive to this particular stage of a football season. Love it.
It’s a big day for Coventry and Frank Lampard tomorrow as they look to wrap up a spot in the Championship playoffs. Lampard has done a pretty stellar job since taking charge of the Sky Blues in November.
Victory over Middlesbrough at the CBS Arena on Saturday would seal that top six spot. A defeat to Boro would open the door for Michael Carrick’s side, or Millwall or Blackburn.
“Well there’s no point in hiding what’s on the game,” said Lampard. “It’s very clear, it’s in our hands but it’s a really tough match. So we just have to focus absolutely on the opponent and what we want to do, as we do every week, and keep a pretty clear head going into the game.
“There will be different permutations on the day so we’ll have to be aware of that because there’s a lot that can change.”
Can someone check the record books? Bournemouth’s Justin Kluivert believes he deserves a place in history for scoring in the top division in the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, France, Spain and England.
“I need to be in the book of Guinness World Records,” he told the BBC. “I think I am the first player to score in the top six competitions – if Holland is the sixth.”
On the prospect of qualifying for Europe with the Cherries, he added: “The future for Bournemouth is very good and I am very excited to be part of it. We can for sure achieve Europe this season. Why not? I am going to give it my best always.”
An email on the subject of Chelsea’s chances of European silverware.
Sam Turner says: “I think the sense in the blog today that Chelsea are nailed on to win the Conference league is overstated. Both Fiorentina and Real Betis are capable teams with Betis being in great form, the final is definitely not a foregone conclusion.”
Harry Maguire has turned into a barnstorming centre-forward and a tricky right-winger in Manchester United’s past two Europa League games to help them to the brink of the tournament’s final.
And he’s been chatting after their 3-0 win in Bilbao:
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Slot: title can lure new players to Liverpool
A bit more from Arne Slot now, with the Liverpool manager admitting he will have an easy job to sell the club – with its recent title win and “special fans” – to prospective new players this summer.
“The main advantage of winning the league is, until now if I spoke to players I wanted to bring, in I always told them our fans are really special and it’s special to play at this club,” he said. “That was maybe not even necessary to tell them in the past but after Sunday I don’t think I ever have to tell anyone again how special our fans are because that was unbelievable. Winning the league, having these fans, this is a big attraction to every player we want to bring in.”
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A lot of clubs are already planning for the summer and the end of June will be a significant date for many.
There are suggestions the likes of Aston Villa, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest may have to sell players before 30 June to comply with PSR (profitability and sustainability restrictions).
Here’s Newcastle’s Eddie Howe on where his club sit in relation to those relatively new rules:
The PSR deadline plays a huge role for clubs – both those clubs with PSR issues and those without – because those without may potentially look to try to sign players.
They will look to take advantage of other clubs, as clubs did to us last year, quite rightly. It’s a really interesting dynamic and one that we’re really aware of and that we’ll try to use to our advantage if we can.
I can’t go into the details of that, but no doubt we’ve got people at the club who are working very hard behind the scenes on it.
Was last night’s 3-0 win in Bilbao Ruben Amorim’s best ever result as Manchester United manager? He certainly thinks so.
If Chelsea’s march to inevitable Conference League glory has felt like a procession this season, then the one bright spot has been the number of youngsters who have shone for the Blues.
Despite their lavish spending, the Stamford Bridge production line is still as strong as ever, with Reggie Walsh making his debut in last night’s 4-1 demolition of Djurgården. Walsh, 16, was born AFTER that 2008 Champions League final. Goodness me,
“It’s a great moment, he’s very young,” Maresca said of the midfielder. “To be honest, it’s already a long time that I feel excited to give him the debut chance because he’s so good.
“He’s very young but in the way we want to play, in our way, in our style, he’s perfect. But he’s still very young, he needs to learn, he needs to work hard and he needs to grow for sure. But we are happy.
“[Chelsea staff] just said to me that we gave eight debuts this season from the academy. I think it’s good.”
Fabian Hürzeler has hailed the character of Brighton captain Lewis Dunk.
Dunk returned to the side at the beginning of April following struggles with fitness and form, with Hürzeler full of praise for the veteran centre-back.
It is 15 years since Dunk made his debut for Brighton, and his head coach said: “I think we can’t praise Lewis enough in that moment because obviously he went through a bad period, he had a difficult season so far, he never really got into his rhythm, but he always is there.
“He never hides when he gets critical feedback, he never hides when he has a bad performance, and that shows for me big, big character. And therefore he made a big step in the last weeks because we weren’t able to have a lot of leaders on the pitch and he had to step more and more into this role.
“He was very verbally present on the pitch, he had great body language no matter how many setbacks he had, he was always supportive of his team-mates, and that is not easy in a situation where you struggle as an individual.” PA Media
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So barring a complete meltdown from either Manchester United or Tottenham in their semi-final second legs (which isn’t unfeasible to be honest) we look well set for an all-English Europa League final. What on earth that says about the rest of Europe, given they are 14th and 16th in the Premier League table, I’m not quite sure – but it isn’t good.
Both clubs have been involved in all-English European finals before, of course, both in the Champions League. United beat Chelsea in that 2008 Moscow final (John Terry’s slip and all that) while Spurs were 2019 losers, in rather meek fashion, to Liverpool.
The most recent all-English European final was when Chelsea stunned Manchester City 1-0 in Porto with Kai Havertz’s strike clinching the Blues the 2021 Champions League.
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Thanks Tom superb work as always, aside from the Coldplay slander.
More managerial press conference goodness to come.
Right, I’m launching this blog down the channels for Dominic Booth to pick up now – he’ll guide you through the next two hours or so. Have a great weekend, and may your team win (unless they’re playing my team). Bye.
Villa Park will host England’s World Cup qualifier with Andorra on 6 September, because Wembley is hosting a similarly tepid room-temperature event, a Coldplay gig, It will be England’s second successive match away from the national stadium as they play Senegal in a friendly at the City Ground in June.
More of this please (England playing around the country that is, not Coldplay gigs)
In case you missed it, here’s Ben Fisher’s interview with everyone’s favourite pub-going top-flight gaffer, Vitor Pereira of Wolves.
“You need to be with the people because you need to see the smiles. When I go to a pub it’s not about the beer. Of course, I like the beer,” he grins, his go-to lager Stella Artois, “but I go to be with the people, to feel that I’m doing something to make them happy, to make them proud. This is my energy. I must go to a pub, because this is the culture.”
A bit disappointing that Pereira’s a Stella man in the spiritual home of Banks’s Mild but it’s a learning curve …
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Andoni Iraola has been having a bit of a gripe about (what else?) VAR and the extent to which he feels Bournemouth have suffered from it this season, having seen Evanilson’s damaging red card against Manchester United last Sunday subsequently overturned. “The system is not working very well,” said the Cherries manager. “The decision [by VAR] supposedly has to be clear and obvious and it has big consequences for us. I support VAR but it’s clear there are a lot of things it should be much better at.”
The positive for Bournemouth is that Evanilson is of course available for the trip to Arsenal tomorrow evening.
Eric Dier to leave Bayern Munich
He’s set to join his fellow ex-Spur Harry Kane in winning a trophy, but Eric Dier will depart the Allianz Arena soon afterwards, per PA Media:
Eric Dier will leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season after opting not to sign a new contract. The 31-year-old joined the German giants, initially on loan, from Tottenham in January 2024 before signing a 12-month deal last summer. However, he has struggled for regular game time under Vincent Kompany this season, making just 13 starts in the Bundesliga and three in the Champions League among 25 total appearances.
He has decided not to extend his stay at the Allianz Arena and will become a free agent. Sporting director Christoph Freund said at a press conference on Friday: “We had discussions with Eric about a new contract. He told us that he doesn’t want to extend and will leave us. He’s a great guy. We had a great time together. Hopefully he crowns his time with us with his first title.”
Vincent Kompany’s side can seal the Bundesliga title with a win over RB Leipzig this weekend. Kane will miss the game due to a one-match suspension.
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A bit more from Eddie Howe, on Alexander Isak: “He’s not for sale from my perspective …”
Dejan Kulusevski has been talking about how the Europa League has brought out Tottenham’s best amid a wretched domestic season, PA Media reports
“When you do performances like [the win at Eintracht Frankfurt], you want to repeat them,” Kulusevski said. “I think in Europe, we play a little bit different. We play with less risk and we put the ball up more in the space like we did today and we got to keep doing that in Europe.
“This season has been really disappointing but at least, let’s finish it in the best possible way. We have got to do everything possible every day to make it happen. It is different football (on an artificial pitch), it is a different pitch, but in life, you have to do what you have to do to find a way to win and we have got to do that.”
Asked if Spurs would train on an artificial pitch before the second leg, Kulusevski said: “Yes, probably we have to do it. It is good for me. I have been playing it in Sweden so I should be prepared.
“Happy with the 3-1 win. It is good to be winning an important game like this, so it is perfect. It was beautiful, really beautiful (the atmosphere). Hopefully it can be like this every week. It was unbelievable. The energy was there. Then we got to 2-0. We always wanted more goals but 3-1 is good. We are still two up. We are Tottenham and we have to go there and win the game.”
What can happen this weekend: Simon Burnton has helpfully mapped out what’s at stake in Leagues One and Two. A lot is already settled in the third tier, with Birmingham’s and Wrexham’s riches guiding them up and the relegation places decided, leaving Leyton Orient – who have just acquired new majority owners – and Reading – who very definitely haven’t – duking it out for the final playoff spot. Both have overachieved this season. League Two, meanwhile, features an enthralling/nerve-wrecking battle for the final automatic promotion spot and the playoff places.
Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna says Leeds manager Daniel Farke and Burnley’s Scott Parker can give him a call for advice on how to handle the Premier League, reports PA Media, but warned the gap from the Championship is only getting bigger.
McKenna said: “My phone is reachable if anyone wants to pick it up. I certainly picked up my phone last year to teams who were in this position, as I’m sure teams did in the year before that. That’s pretty common practice. Again, they will be private discussions. As I’ve said before, the gap is certainly big and getting bigger.
The Ipswich manager is upbeat about his clubs’s prospects after consecutive promotions were followed by immediate relegation. “Our journey is our journey,” he said. “We know how quickly it’s come. As I’ve said many times, I think we’ll be in a much stronger position going into next season than we have been for the previous years, and certainly the previous years at Championship level.
“I’d even like to think that as a squad, with infrastructure, staffing and everything, we’ll be in a strong position irrespective of league for I don’t know how many years. We’re on our own journey and we’re going to try and keep progressing the club in every way. We hope that that will ultimately lead to establishing ourselves in the Premier League.”
Liverpool fans cause actual quake: Boffins at the University of Liverpool’s department of Earth, ocean and environmental sciences were on site on Sunday to measure ground movement from the crowd when Arne Slot’s clinched the Premier League title with that rout of Spurs. The data revealed that the 60,415-strong crowd generated real seismic activity, particularly in response to the six goals scored during the game. “Probably Evertonians smashing crockery,” quips my Koppite colleague.
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Eddie Howe has been up before the media, talking of the importance of Newcastle being in control of their Champions League destiny but wary of how quickly things can turn around.
Howe, whose Newcastle side visit Brighton on Sunday, said: “We want to be in control of our destiny but we’re very aware it can change in one round of games –we’ve been really consistent with our training but we don’t want it to tail off right at the end
It’s always a tough game against Brighton [who’ve beaten Newcastle twice this season], the two games were tight and could have gone either way. Brighton are a very good team – there’s a good atmosphere for them there but it’s a lovely pitch for away teams too – certainly we’re going to have to play at our very best because they have become a harder team to beat.”
The Toon manager also added that Joelinton is unlikely to play again this season due to ongoing knee trouble. He’s seen a specialist who’s advised some rest and he’s currently back in Brazil, providing an opportunity for Joe Willock to step up. “I still have a lot of faith in Joe – he does a lot of his best work on the left, as Joelinton does, he’s got goalscoring instincts, is a good ball carrier and very athletic. He probably needs a god run of games to be at his very best.”
It’s Friday morning, so time for 10 Premier League things to jabber about this weekend. Are you off to a game this weekend? Tell us more about your expectations, plans and rail replacement buses.
Arne Slot has admitted he will rotate his squad a little for Liverpool’s four remaining league games now the Premier League trophy is safely in the bag “We are going to these four games trying to win them all and that’s what every player who wears the Liverpool shirt should aim for. My lineups will be different – we’re not going to change everyone but there will be a certain rotation in the upcoming games. I think some of the players deserved to play earlier in the season but they are good enough to play for this club. Earlier in the season I mainly chose the same people but this is a moment to see where others are but definitely also becauase they deserved to play this season.”
Harvey Elliott, who has spoken of his desire to stay at Anfield, is one such. “I think it’s very important that players who are here want to stay – that’s a big compliment. Harvey is one of the players who’s not had as much playing time as he deserves, partly because he was injured for a long time and when he first came back he wasn’t quite the player he had been but that level has gone up now and I like hiim more now than when he came back from injury. [Players like Elliott] don’t have anything to prove because I see them every day on the trianing ground but I think they want to prove it to themselves
The Liverpool manager had praise for Sunday’s opponents, Chelsea. “We played Chelsea early in the season and I’m, competely surprised at the gap between us now because at that moment in time they were the better team on the pitch but we found a way to win. To be so many points ahead of them is a big compliment.”
And finally he batted away questions about Trent Alexander-Arnold, chuckling.
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Let’s have a scroll through some of last night’s pieces. Nick Ames, fresh from his Scandinavian jaunt to tell us more about Bodø/Glimt, sees reasons to be cheerful for the Norwegian side. They’re more than handy at home, too.
Then came another of the moments that will be sung about among companions for years. How appropriate that it was a deflected strike by Ulrik Saltnes, who joined Bodø/Glimt when they were fighting for survival almost a decade and a half ago, that prised open the door. On the touchline, Knutsen and his support staff erupted. In the far corner, 3,000 fans who had undertaken that long, long journey could finally lose their minds. Tottenham remain well placed to adopt the role of playground bully next Thursday but may yet be the latest to learn that, even against the bigger boys, friends can work sporting miracles.
Sid Lowe and Jamie Jackson were at San Mamés to assess a result they probably weren’t quite expecting:
And Jacob Steinberg was in Sweden to see Chelsea dominate on Djurgarden’s big Conference League night:
Preamble
Morning everyone, here to guide you through reflections on, buildup to and news about a breathless, nerve-shredding few days of football.
Last night threw up less drama than the previous two but it pushed Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham further towards European glory, and the anomalous situation whereby two from three of the most discontented fanbases in the Premier League are going to end up celebrating a trophy this season, whereas those who’ve had a lot of fun – at Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Bournemouth etc – will end it potless. But other than the shock of Manchester United putting in a dominant display in a big game, that the Europa League final will probably be contested by comfortably the richest clubs in it comes as no real surprise.
All of which means the Premier League is likely to have a frankly ridiculous six English teams in the Champions League next season, though Forest are less likely to be one of them after their deflating defeat by Brentford.
And a busy domestic weekend kicks off tonight with Manchester City looking to strengthen their Champions League qualification hopes when they host a Wolves side feeling all nice and safe following their charge away from the drop zone. Aston Villa (at home to Fulham tomorrow), Newcastle (at Brighton on Sunday), Chelsea (hosting Liverpool later that afternoon) and Nottingham Forest (at Palace on Monday) will want plenty to say about that though.
Elsewhere, we’ve got scrambles for Championship playoff spots and against relegation slots, a tussle for sixth in League One and two automatic slots and four playoff places still to be sorted in League Two. Whether your team’s on the beach or poised to put your nerves through the wringer, we’ll have previews and news through the day. Stick around.
