Chelsea have been handed a huge boost after Reece James returned to full first-team training. James has endured an injury-plagued season for the Blues and the Chelsea captain underwent surgery in December to address his recurring hamstring issues.   The England international has been restricted to just five Premier League starts in 2023/24, though is closing in on a return after resuming full training with Mauricio Pochettino’s squad. Chelsea have confirmed the news in an update on their squad ahead of Saturday’s trip to face Nottingham Forest, with Lesley Ugochukwu also in full training ..read more

Six talking points ahead of the Premier League weekend, featuring crucial clashes in the title race and David Moyes’ farewell at West Ham. Arsenal hoping for Fulham favour The weekend’s early kick-off sees Manchester City travel to face Fulham, perhaps the toughest examination remaining for the Citizens given the circumstances of the run-in. Pep Guardiola’s side have their fate in their own hands and have been down this road before, though Fulham have proven this season that Craven Cottage is no easy trip for any side. Only the top three and Everton have conceded fewer goals than Fulham (20) o ..read more

Manchester United could join the long list of clubs searching for a new head coach this summer with Erik ten Hag’s position under real threat. The Red Devils could miss out on European qualification for next season and have suffered a club-record 13 league defeats in a single Premier League campaign, with question marks over Ten Hag’s ability to bring the best from an underperforming squad. Monday night’s 4-0 defeat at Crystal Palace was the latest low in a season of setbacks, and the club’s new hierarchy could decide on change at the end of the campaign. We’ve decided to look at the names in ..read more

The nominees for the Premier League’s end-of-season awards have been announced, with shortlists for the Player, Young Player and Manager of the Season for 2023/24. While most of the shortlists were as expected, there were some obvious omissions from the final names in contention for the illustrious awards. We’ve looked at the biggest omissions from the Premier League award nominees. Player of the Season – Rodri (Manchester City) Rodri said in March that he hoped a defensive midfielder would soon win the Ballon d’Or, suggesting those in his role are often overlooked for individual prizes. The ..read more

Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund will compete in the Champions League final next month, as club football’s biggest game heads to Wembley. For Real Madrid, it is yet another visit to the Champions League final with the Spanish side having dominated European competition across the last decade. Several of their squad are vastly experienced on this stage and for Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, and Dani Carvajal it could be a sixth appearance in the Champions League’s decisive game. Ahead of this season’s final, we’ve looked at the players with the most final appearances in the Champions League era. Toni ..read more

The Premier League Player of the Season nominees have been announced with an eight-player shortlist for the award. Erling Haaland won the accolade last season and is again shortlisted in 2023/24, with the Manchester City forward the leading scorer in the Premier League with 25 goals.   City teammate Phil Foden, who won the FWA Footballer of the Year award last week, is also included. Cole Palmer has been nominated after a brilliant breakout season at Chelsea, as has Ollie Watkins, who leads the league for assists and has starred during Aston Villa’s push for a top-four finish. Arsenal ha ..read more

Chelsea are unlikely to make a move to sign Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez this summer despite long-term admiration of the player. Nunez has sparked speculation that he could leave Liverpool after removing all photos of himself in the club’s colours from his social media page.   The Uruguay international was named as a substitute for the second successive game against Tottenham at the weekend, and has faced criticism for his performances in recent weeks. Nunez posted photos of himself alongside Barcelona defender and international teammate Ronald Araujo this week and has been linked with ..read more

Aston Villa are confident the club can beat competition from the Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ to the signing of Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise. Unai Emery’s team are closing in on a place in next season’s Champions League and can confirm their qualification with a win over Liverpool on Monday night, or if Spurs fail to beat Burnley on Saturday.   Qualification for Europe’s elite competition will see Aston Villa step up the next stage of their rebuild. Football Transfers are reporting that Olise is a transfer target for Villa and the club’s likely place in the Champions League, alongsi ..read more

Four things we learned from the Champions League semi-finals, featuring Jude Bellingham’s Hollywood-style season and Borussia Dortmund’s return to Wembley. Bellingham script writers add latest chapter The post-game narrative will rightly centre around Joselu following his dramatic double to rescue Real Madrid this week, though the attention will soon turn back to Jude Bellingham. The midfielder’s debut season with the Spaniards has been a Hollywood script so far, comparable to Goal II: Living the Dream (remember that?) without the off-field tribulations that troubled poor old Santiago Muñez ..read more

Our Champions League awards honour the best – and worst – of the competition’s semi-final action this week. Moment of the Week Real Madrid’s remarkable record in this competition continues as the record winners booked their place in another Champions League final. Not for the first time, Real made hard work of it. Rodrygo’s late brace had turned their semi-final on its ahead against Manchester City two years ago and the Spanish side were thankful for another dramatic double in the last four once again. Joselu came off the bench to rescue Real, turning in from Manuel Neuer’s error on 88 minute ..read more