Striker Didier Drogba is ready to sign a new contract and stay at Chelsea.
Daily Mirror)
Premier League newcomers Wolves and Birmingham are both battling to sign Manchester City keeper Joe Hart on loan.
Daily Mail)
Out-of-contract Portsmouth defender Sol Campbell is considering a three-year deal to finish his career in Switzerland with Basle.
Daily Mail)
Fulham are preparing a bid for £4.5m-rated West Bromwich Albion winger Chris Brunt.
Daily Mail)
Tuncay, Afonso Alves, Stewart Downing and David Wheater will be just some of the names leaving Middlesbrough after they were relegated to the Championship. (Daily Express)
Everton and Fulham are tracking Aston Villa midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker.
Daily Mirror)
Former Everton winger Andy van der Meyde is training with Blackburn in the hope of winning a deal there.
Daily Mirror)
Sunderland are lining up Celtic manager Gordon Strachan to replace Ricky Sbragia, who resigned as Black Cats boss on Sunday. (Daily Mirror)
Frank Rijkaard, Martin Jol and Slaven Bilic are also believed to be on Sunderland's shortlist to replace Sbragia. (Daily Mirror)
Shear drop, Sob on the Tyne, Sheer agony, Tears on the Tyne and Down and out are just some of the back-page headlines relating to Newcastle's relegation. (Various)
Real Madrid will step up their attempt to sign Xabi Alonso from Liverpool, while Sol Campbell could end his career in Switzerland with Basle.
THE SUN:
Michael Carrick will go into battle at the Stadio Olimpico with the war-cry: We are one step from greatness.
Sir Alex Ferguson says Rio Ferdinand will be fit to face Barcelona on Wednesday.
Gary Neville is back in the England squad - more than two years after he last played for his country.
Alan Shearer will tell the Newcastle board this week: It is time for a revolution.
Distraught Alan Shearer named and shamed Mike Ashley, Kevin Keegan and even himself as Newcastle crashed out of the Premier League.
Boro manager Gareth Southgate insists he is no quitter and he will fight to bring his side back into the Premier League.
Emmanuel Adebayor has again hardly endeared himself to his Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas - by mocking the Spaniard's pace.
DAILY STAR:
Alan Shearer will tell Newcastle's money men to swing the axe and make massive changes to stop the relegated club doing a Leeds.
Ricky Sbragia last night quit as Sunderland boss, paving the way for Niall Quinn to appoint a big-name replacement.
Arsene Wenger last night revealed one of his summer priorities is to get Robin van Persie to sign a new contract.
Antonio Valencia signed off with a performance that showed why Wigan manager Steve Bruce is gutted to see him leave.
Nicolas Anelka clinched the Golden Boot and Guus Hiddink signed off his brief Premier League career in winning style.
DAILY MAIL:
Barcelona midfielder Andreas Iniesta promised 80,000 title-celebrating fans: 'We will see you back here on Thursday with the European Cup.'
Real Madrid will step up their attempts to seal a transfer for Xabi Alonso this week after his agent told Liverpool the Spain midfielder wants to leave.
South Africa captain, Aaron Mokoena, 28, has confirmed he has agreed a three-year deal at Portsmouth.
Sol Campbell has been offered a three-year deal to finish his career in Switzerland with Basle.
DAILY EXPRESS:
Mark Hughes believes Manchester City are ready for take-off next season - and not just because their shirt sponsors will be Etihad Airways.
Tugay and West Brom both departed from the Premier League on Sunday in a game that could easily have been the Turkish star's testimonial.
THE SUN: Distraught Alan Shearer named and shamed Mike Ashley, Kevin Keegan and even himself as Newcastle crashed out of the Premier League. Also: Ricky Sbragia last night called time on his spell as Sunderland boss.
DAILY MIRROR: Newcastle were relegated in a flood of tears yesterday - with Alan Shearer blaming a "million" problems for their demise. Also: Sunderland beat the drop on Survival Sunday - moments before beleaguered boss Ricky Sbragia quit.
DAILY EXPRESS: Alan Shearer branded Newcastle a mess after they were relegated yesterday and will decide this week if he can rescue them from their crisis. Also: Gary Neville has been hauled out of the international wilderness and handed a surprise recall by England more than two years after his last appearance.
DAILY STAR: Alan Shearer will tell Newcastle's money men to swing the axe and make massive changes to stop the relegated club doing a Leeds. Also: Ricky Sbragia last night quit as Sunderland boss, paving the way for Niall Quinn to appoint a big-name replacement.
THE GUARDIAN: Alan Shearer last night admitted there are "huge problems" within Newcastle United and called for "big changes" to be made in the wake of yesterday's relegation to the Championship.
DAILY MAIL: Alan Shearer cast doubt on his Newcastle future as they slumped out of the Premier League in disarray with a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa.
THE TIMES: Alan Shearer warned last night that Newcastle United are in need of "a complete overhaul" after their relegation from the Barclays Premier League.
DAILY TELEGRAPH: Alan Shearer last night refused to confirm whether he will start next season as manager of Newcastle.
THE INDEPENDENT: Alan Shearer warned yesterday that Newcastle need a "complete overhaul" after their relegation from the Premier League if they are not to suffer the same drastic fate that befell Leeds United.
Football transfer rumours: Steve Bruce to replace Ricky Sbragia at Sunderland?
Today's rumours could not imagine an uglier accent
* Paolo Bandini
* guardian.co.uk, Monday 25 May 2009 09.27 BST
* Article history
Steve Bruce
The new Ricky Sbragia? Photograph: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
Another Premier League season comes to an end, and as usual fans are left with more questions than answers. Who will replace Ricky Sbragia at Sunderland? Must we put up with Alan Shearer on Match of the Day again next year? Has there ever been a more shameless spectacle than that of Phil Brown, the man whose public humiliation of his players during a defeat to Manchester City prompted one of the most dramatic falls from grace ever witnessed, tooting loudly on his own horn after Hull avoided relegation only because of the ineptitude of the teams below them? And are Pringles – 42% potato – really crisps, just because the courts say they are?
Thankfully the Mill is here to help with all such concerns. Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn was quick to declare that the team were looking for a "big name" to replace Sbragia, yet the biggest the Sun could come up with this morning was a paltry 10 letters long. Steve Bruce was the man in question, though the Mirror did slightly better, mooting Gordon Strachan (14 letters) and Frank Rijkaard (13). As for the other three other queries above, the answer is "no" in every instance.
One man not used to hearing the word "no" all that often is Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, which may explain why his team is about to purchase Lyon's Juninho, even though City already have c. 4,000 creative Brazilian midfielders. Real Madrid and Juventus are also said to be interested.
Down in London, meanwhile, Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is heading off to market armed only with £30m and a Bentley, known affectionately as David, which he is hoping to part-exchange for a more reliable model. Expect him back any minute now clutching Lille's Brazilian winger Michel Bastos, Celtic midfielder Scott Brown and Sunderland striker Kenwyne Jones.
In other news, Ryan Babel is said to be pondering a move to Aston Villa, Fulham see Chris Brunt as Europa League material, and Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce reckons it's not too late to save Andy van der Meyde's career.
Feel free to leave your own question-and-answer guff below
Always check out the guardian rumour mill - if only for the style!
So how was it for you? The Barclays Premier League season reviewed club-by-club
By Tim Nichols
ARSENAL
Final Premier League position - 4th (Champions League)
Top PL scorer - Robin van Persie 11
Van Persie
Van Persie
Player of the Season - Robin van Persie
Villain of the Season - Emmanuel Adebayor
Biggest PL win - 4-0 Blackburn (home and away)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-3 Man City (a)
PL Game of the Season - Liverpool 4 Arsenal 4
Signing of the Season - Andriy Arshavin (Zenit St Petersburg, £15m)
Cup record
FA Cup - semi-finals; League Cup - quarter-finals; Champions League - semi-finals
Manager - Arsene Wenger 7/10
Depending on your point of view. Another fine season that has seen Arsenal challenge the top teams in the country on a fraction of the budget.
OR another trophyless campaign that highlights the growing gulf between Wenger's team and the top three. Sportsmail's view?
A bit of both.
ASTON VILLA
Final Premier League position - 6th (Europa League)
Top PL scorer - Gabriel Agbonlahor 12
Ashley Young
Ashley Young
Player of the Season - Ashley Young
Villain of the Season - John Carew
Biggest PL win - 4-0 Wigan (a)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-5 Liverpool (a)
PL Game of the Season - Everton 2 Aston Villa 3
Signing of the Season - Brad Friedel (Blackburn, free)
Cup record
FA Cup - 5th round; League Cup - 3rd round; UEFA Cup - Last 32
Manager - Martin O'Neill 7/10
Threatened to gatecrash the cosy Champions League cartel before spectacular collapse in the second half of the season.
O'Neill deserves credit for immeasurable improvement at Villa Park even though they finished in the same position of sixth, but recent form underlines just how far they have to go to consistently challenge the big boys.
BLACKBURN
Final Premier League position - 15th
Top PL scorer - Benni McCarthy 10
Player of the Season - Ryan Nelsen
Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz
Villain of the Season - Roque Santa Cruz
Biggest PL win - 3-0 Stoke (h); 3-0 Newcastle (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-4 Arsenal (h & a); 0-4 Liverpool
PL Game of the Season - Blackburn 3 Newcastle 0
Signing of the Season - Paul Robinson (Tottenham, £3.5m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 5th round; League Cup - quarter-finals
Manager - Sam Allardyce 9/10
Allardyce rates Blackburn's survival as the greatest achievement of his managerial career. The 1995 Premier League champions were five points adrift of safety and looked doomed when Big Sam replaced Paul Ince in December. But the turnaround at Ewood Park has been remarkable. Big Sam gets results.
BOLTON
Final Premier League position - 13th
Top PL scorer - Kevin Davies 12
Player of the Season - Kevin Davies
Elmander
Elmander
Villain of the Season - Johan Elmander
Biggest win - 4-1 Middlesbrough (h)
Biggest defeat - 0-3 Liverpool (a); 0-3 Everton (a)
PL Game of the Season - Bolton 3 Tottenham 2
Signing of the Season - Fabrice Muamba (Birmingham, £4m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 3rd round; League Cup - 2nd round
Manager - Gary Megson 7/10
He will always divide opinion - he certainly has at the Reebok - but Megson deserves credit for the job he's done in this relatively unfashionable corner of Lancashire.
Bolton have never really been contenders to go down and that, whatever their fans may think, is an achievement in itself in such a fiercely competitive league.
CHELSEA
Final Premier League position - 3rd (Champions League)
Signing of the Season - Jose Bosingwa (£16.2m, FC Porto)
Cup record
FA Cup - finalists; League Cup - 4th round; Champions League - semi-finals
Manager - Guus Hiddink 8/10
The Dutch master proved, once again, why he is considered to be one of the world's best manager's after succeeding Luiz Felipe Scolari at Stamford Bridge. His impressive, yet brief, spell at Stamford Bridge has only added to his reputation.
EVERTON
Final Premier League position - 5th (Europa League)
Top PL scorer - Tim Cahill 8
Jagielka
Jagielka
Player of the Season - Phil Jagielka
Villain of the Season - Victor Anichebe
Biggest PL win - 4-0 Wigan (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-3 Portsmouth (h)
PL Game of the Season - Everton 1 Arsenal 1
Signing of the Season - Marouane Fellaini (Standard Liege, £15m)
Cup record
FA Cup - finalists; League Cup - 3rd round; UEFA Cup - 1st round
Manager - David Moyes 9/10
Credit must go to Moyes for another fine season at Goodison Park. Despite a poor start, Everton have again confirmed their status as the 'best of the rest' with their fourth top six finish in five seasons - and a second successive fifth - not to mention an FA Cup final.
FULHAM
Final Premier League position - 7th (Europa League)
Top PL scorer - Clint Dempsey and Andy Johnson 7
Player of the Season - Brede Hangeland
Zamora
Zamora
Villain of the Season - Bobby Zamora
Biggest PL win - 3-0 Middlesbrough (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-3 Man United (a)
PL Game of the Season - Fulham 2 Man United 0
Signing of the Season - Mark Schwarzer (Middlesbrough, free)
Cup record
FA Cup - quarter-finals; League Cup - 3rd round
Manager - Roy Hodgson 10/10
Fulham looked doomed when Hodgson took charge towards the end of last season, but the subsequent upturn in fortunes has been sensational. Hodgson has led Fulham to their highest ever League finish, their highest ever points total and into Europe on merit (not via the not-even-remotely-missed InterToto Cup). Brilliant.
HULL CITY
Final Premier League position - 17th
Top PL scorer - Geovanni 8
Player of the Season - Michael Turner
Villain of the Season - Marlon King
King
King
Biggest PL win - 3-0 West Brom (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-5 Wigan (h)
PL Game of the Season - Arsenal 1 Hull 2
Signing of the Season - Geovanni (Man City, free)
Cup record
FA Cup - quarter-finals; League Cup - 2nd round
Manager - Phil Brown - 7/10
Started to believe his own hype after Hull's remarkable start to the season, even committing one of the ultimate sins - referring to himself in the third person. His now infamous half-time teamtalk on the pitch at Man City had a catastrophic effect and Hull tumbled down the table, only surviving because of Newcastle's inability to hit any semblence of form.
But he did his job, and few would have tipped Hull to stay up.
LIVERPOOL
Final Premier League position - 2nd (Champions League)
Top PL scorer - Steven Gerrard 16
Player of the Season - Steven Gerrard
Villain of the Season - Robbie Keane
Biggest PL win - 5-0 Aston Villa (a)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-2 Middlesbrough (a)
PL Game of the Season - Man United 1 Liverpool 4
Signing of the Season - Albert Riera (Espanyol, £8m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 4th round; League Cup - 4th round; Champions League - quarter-finals
Manager - Rafa Benitez - 9/10
Benitez
Benitez
Benitez has received plenty of criticism since taking over at Anfield in 2004, but deserves credit for Liverpool's best Premier League season in years and sustaining their title challenge into May. The best goal difference, the most goals scored, the fewest defeats and an unbeaten record against their top four rivals - but too many home draws. Fact.
MANCHESTER CITY
Final Premier League position - 10th
Top PL scorer - Robinho 14
Player of the Season - Stephen Ireland
Villain of the Season - Elano
Biggest PL win - 6-0 Portsmouth (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 2-4 Aston Villa (a)
PL Game of the Season - City 3 Arsenal 1
Signing of the Season - Vincent Kompany (Hamburg, £6.7m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 3rd round; League Cup - 2nd round; UEFA Cup - quarter-finals
Manager - Mark Hughes 6/10
Hughes
Hughes
The challenge Hughes faced once City were bought by Abu Dhabi United was vastly different from the job he inherited. Overnight, expectations soared and City were being talked about as genuine Champions League contenders without anything other than billions in the bank and an overrated Brazilian on the pitch to back it up. Despite coping well with increased pressure and unrealistic expectations, City should really have been closer to the top six.
MANCHESTER UNITED
Final Premier League position - 1st (Champions League)
Top PL scorer - Cristiano Ronaldo 18
Player of the Season - Nemanja Vidic
Berbatov
Berbatov
Villain of the Season - Dimitar Berbatov
Biggest win - 5-0 Stoke (h); 5-0 West Brom (a)
Biggest defeat - 1-4 Liverpool (h)
PL Game of the Season - Man United 3 Chelsea 0
Signing of the Season - Dimitar Berbatov (Tottenham, £30.75m)
Cup record
FA Cup - semi-finals; League Cup - winners; Champions League - finalists; Club World Cup - winners
Manager - Sir Alex Ferguson 10/10
The greatest manager British football ever. Once again, Fergie has set the standard. United might have the best players, the strongest squad and the deepest pockets, but someone has to bring it all together and mould them into a winning unit . Deserved champions and the best team in the country. Love him or hate him, you have to respect him.
MIDDLESBROUGH
Final Premier League position - 19th (relegated)
Top PL scorer - Tuncay Sanli 7
Player of the Season - Stewart Downing
Alves
Alves
Villain of the Season - Afonso Alves
Biggest PL win - 3-1 Hull (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-5 Chelsea (h)
PL Game of the Season - Middlesbrough 2 Liverpool 0
Signing of the Season - Didier Digard (Paris St-Germain, £4m)
Cup record
FA Cup - quarter-finals; League Cup - 3rd round
Manager - Gareth Southgate 2/10
Boro's demise has been coming. A failure to replace experienced talent and an over-reliance on youth ultimately proved costly. Some bad moves in the transfer market didn't help either. Southgate must take his share of the blame for failing to address the problems that were plain for all to see. Any team that manages just 28 goals in a 38-game season deserves to go down.
NEWCASTLE
Final Premier League position - 18th (relegated)
Top PL scorer - Michael Owen and Obafemi Martins 8
Player of the Season - Sebastien Bassong
Barton
Barton
Villain of the Season - Joey Barton
Biggest PL win - 3-0 Portsmouth (a)
Biggest PL defeat - 1-5 Liverpool (h)
PL Game of the Season - Newcastle 2 Aston Villa 0
Signing of the Season - Sebastien Bassong (Metz, £500,000)
Cup record
FA Cup - 3rd round; League Cup - 3rd round
Manager - Alan Shearer 3/10
Stick to the Match of the Day sofa Alan. To be fair to Shearer, Newcastle were in deep trouble when he took charge, but subsequent performances have arguably been worse.....
PORTSMOUTH
Final Premier League position - 14th
Top PL scorer - Peter Crouch 11
Player of the Season - Glen Johnson
Villain of the Season - Sacha Gaydamak
Biggest PL win - 3-0 Everton (a)
Johnson
Johnson
Biggest PL defeat - 0-6 Man City (a)
PL Game of the Season - Portsmouth 2 Man City 0
Signing of the Season - Peter Crouch (£9m, Liverpool)
Cup record
FA Cup - 4th round; League Cup - 3rd round; UEFA Cup - group stage
Manager - Paul Hart 6/10
Cleaned up the mess left by Tony Adams, steadied the ship and ensured another season of Premier League football at Fratton Park.
The only problem is, we're not sure whether Portsmouth's survival is down to Hart or the ineptitude of the clubs' around them.
STOKE CITY
Signing of the Season - James Beattie (Sheffield United, £3m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 3rd round; League Cup - quarter-finals
Manager - Tony Pulis 10/10
Sportsmail's Premier League manager of the season, Pulis deserves huge credit for Stoke's debut Premier League campaign. Written off and tipped to 'do a Derby' before a ball was even kicked, Stoke were a breath of fresh air and deserve their place at the top table. Pulis proved you can't put a price on experience.
SUNDERLAND
Final Premier League position - 16th
Top PL scorer - Djibril Cisse 10
Player of the Season - Danny Collins
Cisse
Cisse
Villain of the Season - El-Hadji Diouf
Biggest PL win - 4-0 West Brom (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 0-5 Chelsea (a)
PL Game of the Season - Sunderland 2 Newcastle 1
Signing of the Season - Anton Ferdinand (West Ham, £8m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 4th round; League Cup - 4th round
Manager - Ricky Sbragia 4/10
Enjoyed a great start at the Stadium of Light after taking over from Roy Keane and ultimately did enough to preserve Sunderland's Premier League status for another year, but alarming dip in form plunged them into a relegation battle. But the Black Cats will need a new manager next season because he decided to quit after the last-game 3-2 home defeat to Chelsea.
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Final Premier League position - 8th
Top PL scorer - Darren Bent 12
Player of the Season - Jonathan Woodgate
Redknapp
Redknapp
Villain of the Season - David Bentley
Biggest PL win - 4-0 Middlesbrough (h)
Biggest PL defeat - 2-5 Man United (a)
PL Game of the Season - Arsenal 4 Tottenham 4
Signing of the Season - Luka Modric (Dinamo Zagreb, £16.5m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 4th round; League Cup - runners-up; UEFA Cup - Last 32
Manager - Harry Redknapp 8/10
Apparently Tottenham only had two points from eight games when 'Arry took charge back in October.
Since then, Tottenham's form has been impressive - admittedly helped by the arrival of £45million-worth of new talent in January - and they even managed a late charge for Europe which they (thankfully) missed out on.
WEST BROM
Signing of the Season - Jonas Olsson (NEC Nijmegen, £800,000)
Cup record
FA Cup - 4th round; League Cup - 2nd round
Manager rating - Tony Mowbray 3/10
There's a touch of the Arsene Wenger about Mowbray's stubborn refusal to compromise his footballing principles. Mowbray's determination to play attractive football has ultimately cost West Brom their Premier League status and for that, Mowbray gets marked down. Easy on the eye, but too easy for their opponents.
WEST HAM
Biggest defeat - 0-3 Man City (a); 0-3 Liverpool (h)
PL Game of the Season - Portsmouth 1 West Ham 4
Signing of the Season - Valon Behrami (Lazio, £5m)
Cup record
FA Cup - 5th round; League Cup - third round
Manager: Gianfranco Zola - 8/10
Superb debut season in club management for the popular little Italian. West Ham looked in serious trouble in December but Zola turned it around while continuing the club's admirable policy of promoting young, English talent. Genuine cause for optimism at Upton Park.
What ****. He was pretty solid for us in the latter half and I hope he sticks with us and shows his worth. I'm pretty sure the villian of the season for us is that Welsh humpty backed no-necked mother's minge, Bellamy. Or anyone involved with the Blunts.
SirStoneyOfBow wrote:Luis Boa Morte villian of the season?
What sh*t. He was pretty solid for us in the latter half and I hope he sticks with us and shows his worth. I'm pretty sure the villian of the season for us is that Welsh humpty backed no-necked mother's minge, Bellamy. Or anyone involved with the Blunts.
Its probably based on the volume of Booing he got.
AlfieG wrote:Its probably based on the volume of Booing he got.
But still, it's lame to jump on his back considering. I've been tormented by his outgoings as well, but I'd rather him stay than DDM or Tristan.
I dont think a villian can be anyone at the club, even if they have been poor.
Trevor Montana wrote:Villain of the Season - Dimitar Berbatov
Signing of the Season - Dimitar Berbatov (T*ttenham, £30.75m)
Bullsh*t comments from poor journalists
Is it? All I heard from Mancs on this side of the pond is Berbatov is lazy, wasn't worth money, etc. Still did a great job controlling the attack when he was out there for me though, slows things down without making a mess out of it -- and he does it in the blistering pace of the Premiership better than just about anybody.
westhamerica wrote:Is it? All I heard from Mancs on this side of the pond is Berbatov is lazy, wasn't worth money, etc. Still did a great job controlling the attack when he was out there for me though, slows things down without making a mess out of it -- and he does it in the blistering pace of the Premiership better than just about anybody.
I think the point was that he was named as both villain of the season and signing of the season.
