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Brentford boss Thomas Frank has revealed what advice he would give to Manchester United's Erik ten Hag and Inter's Simone Inzaghi on how to beat Manchester City.

Vietnam’s exports contracted for a fourth month so far this year, adding to risks of a growth slowdown

Gary Lineker has congratulated Everton after his former club survived in the Premier League at the expense of his boyhood team Leicester. The two clubs had been in jeopardy heading into the final round of fixtures on Sunday but ultimately Everton’s 1-0 victory over Bournemouth ensured they avoided the drop. At one stage it looked as though it could be the Foxes who stayed up as they took an early lead against West Ham but their eventual 2-1 win was rendered academic by Everton’s result. The Toffees ended the season in 17th place, two points ahead of Leicester, while Leeds were also relegated after a 4-1 loss to Tottenham. Former England striker Lineker, who began his career at Leicester before spending a season at Everton in the mid-1980s, tweeted: “Absolutely gutted, but glad it’s Everton. Have a lot of love for that great football club. Congratulations.” Leicester’s relegation comes seven years after they were crowned Premier League champions and just two years after they won the FA Cup. Lineker added: “A word on Leicester. If eight years ago, you’d have given me the option of winning the Premier League and the FA Cup and then get relegated, I’d have snapped your hand off. Also I’d have told you not to be so utterly ridiculous.” It has been a dismal season for Leicester and TV pundit Roy Keane was not sure how quickly they could recover. The former Manchester United midfielder said on Sky Sports: “They didn’t seem to get any momentum into the season from a bad start. It’s no surprise to see them where they are. “Clubs can bounce back but it isn’t easy. I think it is a rebuilding job at Leicester.” Leeds’ three-year stint in the Premier League ended in a whimper as they were thrashed by Spurs at Elland Road. The club had brought in Sam Allardyce in a last-ditch attempt to escape relegation with four games remaining but the former England boss was unable to engineer a recovery. The team collected just one point from Allardyce’s games and finished in 19th position, five points behind Everton. Keane was scathing of their performances. He said: “They’ve looked weak over the last month or two, even with Sam coming in. “They were fighting for their lives today and conceded four goals at home. That’s nowhere near good enough. “Sam obviously came in too late. Defensively they look so weak. Some of the goals – it’s almost pub team defending. “Not strong enough mentally, that desire – nowhere near good enough.” Chelsea, meanwhile, aimed a parting shot at Leeds on social media. Rivalry between those two clubs dates back to some hard-fought clashes in the 1960s and 70s. In August, Leeds trolled Chelsea on Twitter during their 3-0 victory over the London club. In that game, Chelsea tweeted the Blues were “starting to assert ourselves” just moments before Leeds opened the scoring and quickly followed with a second goal. “Life comes at you fast!” Leeds tweeted in reply. Now, nine months later, Chelsea have got their own back. “It certainly does,” they tweeted. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Tom Banton inspires Somerset to third win from three at start of Blast campaign Katarina Johnson-Thompson finishes second on return to heptathlon in Gotzis French Open day 1: British singles contingent down to two after Dan Evans loses

Jeff Stelling revealed singer Sir Elton John was among his well-wishers this week as the presenter signed off from the “best job that anybody could possibly have wished for” at Soccer Saturday. Stelling announced last month his intention to stand down as anchor of the Sky Sports programme after almost 30 years and earmarked the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday as his last show. In the days leading up to his swansong, Stelling divulged he had messages of support from the likes of Gordon Strachan and Neil Warnock, plus a phone call from John, former chairman and director of Watford. Stelling, an unapologetic Hartlepool fan who frequently celebrated their goals on Soccer Saturday, said: “Somebody asked me the other day if I’d ever been starstruck and yeah, I was starstruck when Elton John rang me at home to say ‘Thank you very much for all you’ve done’. “He said ‘Every week I watch the show and every week you tell me Watford are losing and every week you tell me Hartlepool are losing so I feel like we’re kindred spirits’. There’s something in that, isn’t there?” After touching tributes from colleagues past and present in a video montage, Stelling was given a standing ovation by the punditry panel of Paul Merson, Clinton Morrison, Kris Boyd and Michael Dawson. Stelling, who had planned to quit last year before reversing that decision, briefly hid his emotions with a mask of himself and quipped: “This is tricky because I’ve changed my mind – just kidding. “I haven’t changed my mind this time.” Stelling was clearly moved by the highlights package Sky televised in the final minutes of the show after Everton retained their top-flight status and confirmed the relegations of Leeds and Leicester. Merson, Alan Mullery, Frank McLintock, Clive Allen, Charlie Nicholas, Phil Thompson and Matt Le Tissier passed on their congratulations, as did Chris Kamara, who in a nod to the catchphrase that has become synonymous with the pair and the show, said: “You are unbelievable, Jeff!” Stelling looked back fondly on his 30-plus years with Sky, in which he not only covered football but live snooker, darts, greyhound racing, pool and thanked everyone with whom he had worked. So that's it. Soccer Saturday will be back next season. I'll be watching...From me, goodbye Jeff Stelling In his farewell monologue, he added: “It’s been the best job that anybody could possibly have wished for. My wife takes great pleasure in saying ‘You are the luckiest man ever to take a breath’ and you know what? I don’t tell her this often but she’s right. “The principle success of Soccer Saturday is you lot at home, who have given us unswerving support – both for the programme and for me personally. “So that’s it. Soccer Saturday will be back next season. I’ll be watching – when Hartlepool are not playing. From me, goodbye.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Katie Taylor sets sights on Chantelle Cameron rematch and not retirement Mikel Arteta pleased to see Granit Xhaka given appreciation from Arsenal fans I apologise I didn’t do better – Sam Allardyce says sorry after Leeds relegated

For about 40 minutes, including the half-time break, an era that dated back to the time Winston Churchill was prime minister was ending. As it stood, Everton’s 69-year stay in the top flight was entering its final throes. A first relegation since 1951 beckoned. This threatened to be a historic ignominy. Instead, it produced a place in Goodison Park folklore for Abdoulaye Doucoure; given the concerns about Everton’s finances and the question if the club could continue as a going concern without Premier League revenues, the midfielder might not have just been their savour in a footballing sense. But a rescuer he was. There were fireworks outside Goodison; those inside came from Doucoure’s right boot. A bearpit so often as Everton beat the drop last season, their rickety home was subdued, anxious, expecting the worst as Leicester led. Then it erupted. Because then Adam Smith headed out of the Bournemouth box. The ball sat up obligingly but Doucoure connected beautifully, hammering in a half volley from 20 yards. Mark Travers was motionless. Everton extended his contract this week; Doucoure repaid that, his £20m transfer fee and much more with a swing of his right foot. Marginalised under Frank Lampard, he become strangely, crucially prolific for Sean Dyche. The former Burnley manager was denied signings by the club’s ineptitude at the end of the January transfer window but the recalled Doucoure at least offered an injection of impetus. This was his fifth goal for the new manager. Two of the others came in the astonishing 5-1 triumph at Brighton, the most unlikely and ultimately decisive result in the relegation battle. And in a game high on tension and low on clear-cut opportunities – not least because Everton lacked the creativity to fashion them or a centre-forward of any kind – that sufficed. One-nil, the classic Dyche scoreline, came courtesy of plenty of perspiration and one moment of inspiration. This has been a successful salvage job by Dyche: his brand of grit has been unglamorous but his team of workhorses ground out a victory. Their destiny was in their hands and Everton clutched it. They could savour a wholehearted block from Yerry Mina and a wonderful tackle by Conor Coady on Dominic Solanke; two defenders Dyche had omitted were recalled in recent weeks and responded, excelling in what may prove their last games for the club. They could savour a terrific save by Jordan Pickford, parrying Matias Vina’s volley. They had to withstand 10 minutes of added time, some of it a product of Pickford’s timewasting. Amadou Onana punched the air when he won a throw. Then came the blessed relief of the final whistle: Pickford and Coady charged towards the Gwladys Street End until Everton’s players were swamped by a pitch invasion, the blue smoke from flares clouding the air. And so Goodison Park, which first staged top-flight football in 1892, will do so again in its final fixture in 2024 before Everton move to a new ground at Bramley-Moore Dock. Everton will make it 70 consecutive seasons in either the old Division 1 or the Premier League. But the jubilation had not lasted long before a chorus of “sack the board”. Once again, Everton have stumbled towards crisis, only to somehow spare themselves. The £600m of spending in the transfer market during Farhad Moshiri’s ownership has produced a team that only procured 36 points. Dyche did well to take 21 from his 18 matches in charge. For a game of such importance, he ended up with what was both a logical team selection and an utterly ludicrous one. Dyche picked his best available 11, but none of them are a specialist striker or a full-back. A manager with a marked preference for a regimented 4-4-2 formation ended up with a 3-3-3-1 more associated with Marcelo Bielsa and with three men out of position: James Garner and Dwight McNeil as wing-backs and Demarai Gray as a lone striker. Dyche was forced to improvise: Everton showed urgency, but also incoherency in an enforced experiment. It took Everton half an hour to carve out a chance of note and then, after an incisive pass from Amadou Onana, Idrissa Gueye’s shot was tipped over. Travers also clawed away a lob from Garner and parried a header from Gray that a proper centre-forward would probably have scored. But then came a goal of both great quality and huge importance. For Doucoure, a status alongside Graham Stuart, Gareth Farrelly and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the men who delivered the dramatic goals to spare Everton relegation in 1994, 1998 and 2022. There are times when Everton have needed to be the great escapologists. But even in mediocre seasons, with undistinguished teams, they have found a hero, produced an uplifting end. Everton are the great constants in the top division. Ever-presents since the 1950s, they will return once more next year where Leicester and Leeds will not. Read More Leicester’s unexpected twist provides reminder of football’s new reality Wigan already facing threat of second relegation with double points deduction From Netflix disaster to the Premier League? Sunderland seek to leave chaos behind Coventry aim to come full circle after journey to hell and back I apologise I didn’t do better – Sam Allardyce says sorry after Leeds relegated Mikel Arteta pleased to see Granit Xhaka given appreciation from Arsenal fans

Granit Xhaka marked his farewell appearance for Arsenal with a brace to help the Premier League runners-up finish their fine campaign with a 5-0 thrashing of Wolves. Xhaka is set to depart the Emirates this summer to join Bayer Leverkusen and signed off a rollercoaster seven years in north London on a high with a first-half double, although he did later miss a great chance for his hat-trick. It failed to spoil the perfect goodbye for the previously much-maligned former Arsenal captain with Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Jakub Kiwior also on target to ensure Mikel Arteta’s men regrouped from their title disappointment at Nottingham Forest last weekend to secure a 26th league win of the season. While Xhaka’s impending departure had yet to be confirmed, the huge cheer that greeted his name before kick off played into the narrative this was his final Arsenal outing. It was the latest evidence of his own remarkable turnaround with the Emirates crowd, who he had clashed with so memorable in the winter of 2019 during a match with Crystal Palace – an incident that saw him stripped of the captaincy and on the verge of leaving before Arteta’s intervention. Xhaka immediately set about living up to his lead role with a strong tackle on Matheus Nunes a matter of seconds into the contest. While Nunes saw a fierce effort headed away by Gabriel Jesus during the opening exchanges, it did not take long for Arsenal and their number 34 to open the scoring after 11 minutes. Unorthodox right-back Thomas Partey passed out wide to Jesus and his whipped cross was headed home by Xhaka from close range to begin his farewell in style. After a group celebration with his team-mates, the Swiss international held his hands out in a thank you gesture to the home fans in the Clock End. Three minutes later and Xhaka made it 2-0 to Arsenal. Saka dribbled past Hugo Bueno before Martin Odegaard flicked on his pass, which Wolves captain Max Kilman sliced into the path of Xhaka, who side-footed beyond Jose Sa from six yards. Xhaka celebrated his ninth goal of the season, the best tally of his career, by running over to embrace injured midfielder Mohamed Elneny, the only player still at the club from when he joined in 2016. Arsenal were not ready to take their foot off the gas and Arteta watched his side move into a three-goal lead in the 27th-minute. Odegaard and Leandro Trossard exchanged passes before the latter found Saka, who checked back inside Kilman brilliantly and curled into the corner to mark his new contract with a 15th goal this season. It should have been 4-0 soon after. A one-two between Saka and Odegaard on the right saw the goalscorer scuff an effort across the face of goal, but Xhaka fluffed his lines from 10 yards and sliced wide with a hat-trick at his mercy. Wolves were able to avoid any further damage before half-time and Julen Lopetegui introduced Ruben Neves and Rayan Ait-Nouri but it failed to stem the tide. Partey had the ball in the net for Arsenal in the 52nd minute but his joy was short-lived with the goal ruled out after Ben White had barged into Wolves goalkeeper Sa. The Gunners faithful did not have to wait too much longer for the fourth goal. Arsenal hurt the visitors down the left this time with Trossard able to chip in for Jesus to power home a header at the back post in the 58th minute. All that was left was Xhaka’s farewell with the midfielder substituted to a standing ovation in the 75th minute, which was followed with chants urging him to stay. Kiwior grabbed a fifth with 12 minutes left when he lashed home from a corner that Sa should have saved before Arsenal’s season ended to the backdrop of a partisan atmosphere at a sun-soaked Emirates with the home fans hoping this is just the beginning for Arteta’s young team. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Sean Dyche planning major changes at Everton after avoiding relegation Frank Lampard believes Chelsea standards have slipped as cheerless campaign ends Erik ten Hag backs Man Utd to win FA Cup and end neighbours City’s treble charge

Liverpool blew a two-goal lead before battling back from 4-2 down to end an underwhelming Premier League season with a remarkable 4-4 draw at relegated Southampton. Quick-fire finishes from Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota salvaged a point for Jurgen Klopp’s side on a chaotic afternoon at St Mary’s. Saints had looked set to end a miserable campaign in style after Kamaldeen Sulemana’s brace and strikes from James Ward-Prowse and Adam Armstrong overturned early goals from Jota and Roberto Firmino. But Southampton’s final match under manager Ruben Selles, who is expected to be replaced by Swansea boss Russell Martin in the coming days, ended all square after Gakpo and Jota struck in the space of a minute. Fifth-placed Liverpool went close to leaving the south coast with maximum points as Mohamed Salah inadvertently struck a post and was denied by a fine stop from Alex McCarthy late on. But the Merseyside club had to be content with extending their unbeaten top-flight run to 11 games, having begun the day knowing they would miss out on a top-four finish for the first time since 2015-16. James Milner and Firmino started on their farewell appearances for the Europa League-bound Reds as manager Klopp made seven changes, including selecting Caoimhin Kelleher in goal. With Southampton seeking to restore a modicum of pride after their fate was sealed a fortnight ago, Liverpool initially looked like they would canter to victory. Dreadful defending gifted the visitors the 10th-minute opener as Jota fired into an unguarded net from close range after being teed up by a woeful pass from Romeo Lavia as Saints attempted to play out from the back. Firmino swiftly doubled the Reds’ advantage, collecting a pass from Fabinho on the edge of the hosts’ 18-yard box before dummying his way beyond Lyanco and Jan Bednarek and driving through the legs of Saints goalkeeper McCarthy. There was a strong sense of deja vu for long-suffering home fans who have witnessed just two home league wins all season but Southampton responded by showing the fight they have so often lacked. Long-serving midfielder Ward-Prowse – who was potentially making his final Saints appearance ahead of a mooted summer move – halved the deficit in the 19th minute by coolly slotting into the bottom-right corner after being picked out by Carlos Alcaraz. And Selles’ side were level just nine minutes later. Firmino sloppily conceded possession to Lavia close to the halfway line as Liverpool attempted to break, allowing Theo Walcott to slide in Sulemana, who fired his first goal in English football under Kelleher. Sulemana stylishly completed Southampton’s stunning comeback just two minutes into the second period. The Ghana international collected the ball midway inside his own half, eased past Fabinho and then accelerated unchallenged to the edge of the box before bending into the bottom-right corner and celebrating with a backflip. And the Reds were soon facing a major uphill battle to salvage something as substitute Armstrong made an immediate impact. A minute after replacing Lavia, the striker intercepted Jordan Henderson’s careless pass and raced forward before his low-angled finish into the bottom-right corner seemed to catch Kelleher out of position. Liverpool were stunned by the extraordinary turnaround but intent to protect an unbeaten run dating back to April 1. Gakpo – a one-time Southampton target – halved Saints’ lead by tapping in Trent Alexander-Arnold’s volleyed cross in the 72nd minute before Jota found space to lash home his second from Salah’s pass moments later. Salah almost snatched victory for the Reds 11 minutes from time but his attempted control from a long pass struck the left post after looping over the head of McCarthy and the spoils were shared. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Sean Dyche planning major changes at Everton after avoiding relegation Frank Lampard believes Chelsea standards have slipped as cheerless campaign ends Erik ten Hag backs Man Utd to win FA Cup and end neighbours City’s treble charge

Leeds’ three-season stay in the Premier League is over after a 4-1 home defeat to Tottenham confirmed their relegation. Harry Kane and Pedro Porro scored early in either half to put Spurs 2-0 up and, although Jack Harrison reduced the deficit, Kane struck a game-clinching second in what could be his last game for the London club. Tottenham substitute Lucas Moura rubbed salt into Leeds’ wounds by waltzing through a porous defence in stoppage time to complete their misery. Leeds went into the final day needing not only victory, but for relegation rivals Everton and Leicester to drop points and, since they both won, the Yorkshire club’s 21st league defeat of the season was immaterial. The hosts have not kept a clean sheet since February and their hopes of doing so on Sunday went up in smoke in just the second minute. The ease with which Porro and Son Heung-min combined to carve open the defence typified Leeds’ season, with Kane finding space among headless chickens to hit the first nail into the home side’s coffin. Leeds fans responded to Kane’s 28th league goal of the season with raucous defiance, ‘We’re going down’ being one of their chants. Leeds’ players rallied and did their best to give something back to the Elland Road faithful, but in terms of confidence and quality they have long been running on empty. Robin Koch spurned their best chance, heading wayward from in front of goal from Rodrigo’s brilliant cross before Pascal Struijk’s shot was deflected for a corner. Adam Forshaw’s fierce drive was blocked by Davinson Sanchez and another Koch header curled the wrong side of a post. Leeds boss Sam Allardyce cut a forlorn figure in the dugout and saw his side waste further first-half chances as Rodrigo headed Forshaw’s cross off target and Rasmus Kristensen volleyed over. Tottenham continually threatened on the break without creating any more first-half scoring chances, but they soon remedied that. Just as they had done in the first half, Leeds conceded inside the opening two minutes of the second as Kane brilliantly set up Porro, who arrowed a low shot into the far corner from a narrow angle to put the visitors 2-0 up. Leeds gamely searched for a goal of their own and were rewarded when Harrison made space on the edge of the area to drill a low shot into the far corner. But within two minutes Tottenham restored their two-goal advantage. Sanchez’s simple long clearance caught Leeds’ defence all at sea and Kane curled a neat finish inside the far post. As Leeds fans vented their fury at their club’s plight in the closing stages, Moura – on his last appearance for the north London club – completed the scoring after a mazy run from halfway before chants of ‘Sack the board’ rang out through the home terraces. Read More Everton safe as reality bites for Leeds and Leicester – 5 Premier League things Leicester and Leeds down as Abdoulaye Doucoure stunner is enough to save Everton Gareth Southgate knows Euro 2024 must go ‘very, very well’ to keep England job Ryan Mason believes Daniel Levy has ‘been let down by other people’ at Tottenham Ryan Mason ‘trusts the people making decisions’ at Tottenham ahead of key summer Kane proud of Freedom of the City of London award – Friday’s sporting social

Everton manager Sean Dyche will allow his players to briefly enjoy their escape from relegation but he has already laid down the law that major changes are needed at the club. Abdoulaye Doucoure’s 57th-minute thunderbolt gave the Toffees a 1-0 win over Bournemouth and the victory which ensured they stayed up and extended their stay in the top flight to 70 successive seasons. For the second consecutive season there was a pitch invasion at the final whistle – although nowhere near as many numbers joined in as 12 months ago when safety was secured with a game to spare. There was a feeling inside the club that they did not want to be seen to be celebrating avoiding failure and that probably came from Dyche himself. “It’s a horrible day for all concerned, there is no joy in it for me other than getting the job done,” said the former Burnley boss, who only took over in late January. “I came in here to change a mentality and I think there have been signs of that. There is still more to go. “I said to the the players ‘We shouldn’t be here. Enjoy this today and you’ve earned it but at the end of the day it has got to change’. “There is no point in sitting on it and saying ‘Look how great we are’ because it is not like that. “There is loads to change here and a lot of work to be done but it was a big step to secure it.” Dyche was able to speak from a greater position of strength after avoiding what would have been only the club’s third relegation in their 145-year history. That gave him the confidence to dish out some home truths in his post-match press conference which he had been reticent to do so previously for fear of creating more instability and detracting from the task in hand. “Don’t think I thought this was an easy fix because it is not, far from it,” he added. “It’s a big club, make no mistake. Big history, big club, but we are not performing like a big club. We have to find a way of changing that. This is two seasons now. “I’ve played my little part in two seasons of this but there is a massive amount of change to build to a new dawn, a new future, a bigger future if you like.” That future is likely to see him make significant changes to a totally unbalanced squad which somehow avoided relegation despite playing the whole season with their main striker – Dominic Calvert-Lewin – featuring in less than half of it and his back-up – Neal Maupay – managing just one goal (in September) in 29 appearances. Asked if he would have to sell players, with the club having made more than £430m of losses in the last four years, Dyche added: “There’s a chance. I’ll find out about that. “There’s not been any depth, there have been peripheral talks based on ifs, buts and maybes but that will come over the coming weeks when we find out the truth of what we have got, what we can do, what we can’t do. “We had to get this (safety) sorted out, we’ve got it over the line. It was absolutely the key focus. Now it is time to immediately re-focus on the rest of it.” Bournemouth boss Gary O’Neil was disappointed not to have got something from the game. “I thought we were the better side and had control for the most part but there is still a lot to progress on,” he said. “We knew we were coming into a tough atmosphere against a direct team and I thought the lads stood up to it well. We maybe didn’t create enough. “We maybe got a little too desperate towards the end but there was a lot there I liked. It’s just a shame we didn’t score, I always thought we would get one.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Everton safe as reality bites for Leeds and Leicester – 5 Premier League things Frank Lampard believes Chelsea standards have slipped as cheerless campaign ends Erik ten Hag backs Man Utd to win FA Cup and end neighbours City’s treble charge

Roy Hodgson believes an 11th-placed finish for Crystal Palace is an excellent achievement. A 1-1 draw at home to Nottingham Forest saw the south London outfit finish in their highest position since 2017-18, in a campaign that saw the 75-year old replace Patrick Vieira in March. A Will Hughes effort cancelled out an opener for Taiwo Awoniyi, but Hodgson – who refused to be drawn on his future – was proud of the club’s accomplishment. “An 11th place for Palace, in any season, is always acceptable. At the moment that is definitely where we want to be at least,” Hodgson said. “We can always hope we have a better season and some of the seasons beyond that, and hope we get into the top half. “But I think there’s always going to be a gap to teams which spend £200million or more on putting their playing staff together, whose only interest is getting into the Champions League. “I hope our fans and the club realise that’s a hell of an ask where you can finish higher than 11th or 12th.” Nottingham Forest took the lead in a 60-second spell that could have seen them fall behind. A shot by Eberechi Eze on the hour was blocked by Jordan Ayew, with goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey turning away a Hughes shot on the rebound. A long ball out of the Forest half almost immediately by Morgan Gibbs-White found Awoniyi, who got the better of Joachim Anderson in the box and slotted home. Palace equalised in the 65th minute, albeit with some good fortune. A cross by Michael Olise into the box was flicked on by Hughes past Hennessey – although the ball deflected off the challenging Willy Boly. While both sides were looking for a winning effort to round off the season, it proved to be a satisfactory – if winless – ending for both sides. Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper revealed his appreciation for Hodgson, and also believed the travelling support got a deserved reward. “I said to Roy at the end it was an honour to come up against him. I’ve only done four years of this first-team lark,” Cooper said. “For him to do as much as he’s done and to have the career he’s done, I’m full of admiration. He doesn’t need any kind words from me, but at the same time it’s a privilege to come up against him. “We wanted to win and I think it was important to give the supporters a result. “Our away support has been incredible and we haven’t given them enough in terms of results and sometimes performances. “It could have been any result today and it would have been the same atmosphere, they’ve given us that.”

Pep Guardiola admits he does not know if Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish will be fit for next weekend’s FA Cup final. Manchester City’s attacking duo, and defender Ruben Dias, missed the1-0 final-day defeat at Brentford through injury. The champions, who face Manchester United at Wembley on Saturday as they bid to complete the second leg of an historic Treble, were consigned to defeat by Ethan Pinnock’s late goal. With De Bruyne and Grealish missing completely and Erling Haaland left on the bench, it was a scratch City side and those established stars who did play, like Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez, had little impact. But Guardiola said: “Congratulations to Brentford for the victory. It’s difficult to faze them, how quick they play, how aggressive they are in all departments. “I’m pretty sure we would have behaved a little bit different if we needed the points. “I don’t have any complaints of how we behaved, I said to the players just now ‘you won the title, enjoy two days with your families and then we will prepare for the first final’. “The guys who didn’t play who normally play were exhausted yesterday, mentally completely drained. They needed to rest to arrive with the right energy to face United.” When asked if the players who missed out would be fit for Wembley, Guardiola said: “I don’t know right now. Hopefully. “Ruben, Jack and Kevin couldn’t play. It is what it is. I think they will be ready but it’s hard to get ready in training. That’s why I had to see the players who played today.” Pinnock’s 85th-minute strike made Brentford the only team to do the double over City this season, and only the fifth since Guardiola took over in 2016. The Spaniard added: “They are the best team by far at set-pieces, they are exceptional. What Thomas Frank has done for years is amazing and the unity of his squad is there for all to see. “Hopefully we can do better and beat them like we did last season, so we have a target for next season already.” The Bees still needed a double save from goalkeeper David Raya to deny Cole Palmer at the death to end another impressive season on a high. They had a slim chance to qualify for the Europa Conference League, and although victories for Tottenham and Aston Villa ultimately scuppered that dream, they finished a creditable ninth. “Of course beating them twice means something, it means even more for the fans, they like that narrative and hopefully City win the Treble,” said Frank. “Ending ninth in the Premier League, getting 59 points – and maybe deserve to have even more – it’s incredible the journey we have been on. “What advice would I give United and Inter Milan? Well, I think we top performed in those two games. “They are the best offensive team in then world so you need to defend very well and we did, and we were very brave throughout the game. I loved that from my players.”

It was only a matter of time before Mike Bohn was going to be exposed as an absentee USC AD.You don't even know what all was going wrong during Mike Bohn's controversial tenure as the USC athletic director.The Athletic's Justin Williams (subscription required) gave more insigh...