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⚽ Spence and Toney in for England, Alexander-Arnold out
⚽ Premier League finale preview | Mail Michael your thoughts

Barney Ronay on social media makes a pertinent point: “Harry Maguire: anatomy of how NOT to make a case for being the perfect 7-week back-up squad member. No need for Tuchel to explain now. We all save five mins.”

The final man in the 26 is Djed Spence, the Tottenham full back. He can play on both flanks so offers versatility. There is no Trent Alexander-Arnold in the England squad.

• Enzo Maresca has agreed deal in principle to take over

• ‘What a time we have had together,’ Guardiola says

Manchester City have confirmed Pep Guardiola is leaving at the end of the season. The manager is to step away after Sunday’s match at home to Aston Villa with one year on his contract, and City have lined up Enzo Maresca to replace him.

“What a time we have had together,” Guardiola said. “Don’t ask me the reasons I’m leaving. There is no reason, but deep inside I know it’s my time. Nothing is eternal. If it was, I would be here. Eternal will be the feeling, the people, the memories, the love I have for my Manchester City.”

• Carrick handed job after his successful interim spell

• 44-year-old says he will target ‘biggest honours’

Michael Carrick has been confirmed as Manchester United’s permanent head coach until 2028, with the 44-year-old promising to “challenge for the biggest honours again”.

Since taking over as interim manager from Ruben Amorim in January with United seventh and out of cup competitions, Carrick has proved hugely successful, on and off the field. With morale low after the Portuguese’s disappointing tenure, Carrick restored the spirit of the team and guided United back into the Champions League and a guaranteed third-place finish going into the final day of the league season.

Arsenal’s party heading south, fights for Europe – and survival – and London taxpayers cheering on West Ham

• Premier League top scorers: the latest standings

Last week’s costly defeat at Leeds means Brighton must overcome Manchester United on the final day to ensure they secure a place in Europe for the second time in their history. The good news is that Michael Carrick’s side have nothing to play for and United have a wretched record at the Amex, losing in three of their past four visits in the Premier League including a 4-0 drubbing in 2022. Danny Welbeck could be key against his former club having enjoyed his most prolific season with 13 league goals. The veteran striker still has a chance of finishing as the highest scoring English player in the division if he can find the net on Sunday, with Ollie Watkins leading the way on 14 as it stands. Ed Aarons

Brighton v Manchester United (all games Sunday 4pm BST)

Burnley v Wolves

Crystal Palace v Arsenal

Fulham v Newcastle

Liverpool v Brentford

How the modest club from Krefeld rocked the holders to win the 1985 DFB-Pokal final – only for their fortunes to fade when funding ran dry

When Matthias Herget, flanked by Horst Feilzer and Norbert Brinkmann, lifted der Pott on a sun-dappled evening at Berlin’s Olympic stadium four decades ago, a unique moment passed in the stolid world of German football. A cup shock, the kind of wonderful giant-killing that is fairly routine in the English game but barely translates elsewhere.

Looking back now, it remains a seismic inverting of the natural order in a nation more used to an honour roll dominated by a handful of major clubs. Bayer 05 Uerdingen had just beaten the holders Bayern Munich 2-1 to win the 1985 German Cup final. As Goethe wrote: “Nothing is worth more than this day.”

As he prepares to say farewell to the club, the veteran left-back considers the highs – and tragic lows – of a stellar career at Anfield

There was the Barcelona comeback on the night he ruffled Lionel Messi’s hair, the Champions League triumph in Madrid, winning Liverpool’s first league title in 30 years and pressing five Manchester City players in one career-defining run at Anfield when 4-1 up. But the best feeling Andy Robertson experienced at Liverpool was “climbing the mountain” with Jürgen Klopp’s all-conquering team. Nobody climbed higher or harder.

The boy who was rejected by Celtic at 15 and tweeted: “Life at this age is rubbish with no money” after his debut for Queen’s Park aged 18 became the man many consider to be Liverpool’s finest left-back, and arguably the best in the world at his peak. With 377 fiercely committed appearances in a Liverpool shirt behind him, Robertson will say goodbye on Sunday. The 32-year-old Scotland captain leaves “with no regrets, no bitterness” and “glad that one of our Egyptian friends might take a bit more of the limelight. I can just sneak underneath that.”

• Commission gives reasons behind playoff expulsion

• Tonda Eckert ‘specifically authorised’ spying on rivals

The independent disciplinary commission investigating the spygate affair found that Southampton had formed a “contrived and determined plan from the top down” to obtain illicit information for sporting advantage, as they explained their decision to kick the club out of the Championship playoffs.

In a strongly worded assessment of the disciplinary process, the commission also revealed that Southampton had initially denied filming Middlesbrough in training before their playoff semi-final, before ultimately accepting the charges, and that the Saints manager, Tonda Eckert, had “specifically authorised” the spying on three occasions during the season.

• Arsenal fan Daniel Bull was in Mayfair nightclub Tape

• ‘I was thinking what the hell is going on?’

Daniel Bull has waited his whole life to see Arsenal win the Premier League and it is fair to say that the 22-year-old from north London will never forget the celebrations on Tuesday night. Having found himself sharing a bottle of champagne with Ian Wright as thousands of supporters gathered outside the Emirates Stadium, the devoted Gunners supporter and two close friends took a gamble as the party was petering out.

“I had just heard a whisper,” Bull says. That whisper was that Arsenal’s players were gathering at the exclusive Tape nightclub in Mayfair after they had watched from the training ground as Bournemouth drew with Manchester City to crown the club champions for the first time since 2004. An Instagram video later posted by Noni Madueke’s mother showed the England forward returning home to much acclaim before immediately announcing, “I’m going out.”

The US president will have a prominent role at this summer’s World Cup, but his involvement with the sport started in military school

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Drive north from New York City and into the Hudson valley. Take Exit 17 and follow Route 7 as it heads south along the river, past the abandoned shipyard and the aptly named Cadet Motel. Hang a left after a few miles, wind up a long driveway and you’ll arrive at New York Military Academy.

It’s open, barely. Hundreds of students used to attend this place, but that number has dwindled to a few dozen; most of the 50 or so buildings on campus have fallen into disrepair and many seem entirely abandoned. Come here after dark and you’ll start to feel a little uneasy.

Departing Manchester City manager has left huge imprint but equally stands alone in his willingness to adapt

When Pep Guardiola arrived in English football in the summer of 2016, there was a degree of scepticism. The quality of the football produced by his Barcelona had been extraordinary – and it’s perhaps difficult now, 18 years on, to remember the impact that side had when they first emerged, how incomprehensible the focus on passing and the manipulation of space seemed.

But his Bayern Munich had not won the Champions League and it was reasonable enough to ask whether that very precise, technically accomplished style would be as effective amid the hurly-burly of an English winter as it had been in Spain and Germany.

From the No 1 goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to the shock call-up Ivan Toney, a player-by-player guide to the 26 bound for the US

• Spence and Toney in, Alexander-Arnold out

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• Manager could not bear to watch City’s draw at Bournemouth

• Arteta cites pre-season meeting around tree as a turning point

Mikel Arteta has said he could not bear to watch Manchester City’s draw at Bournemouth and was building a fire in his garden when Arsenal’s first title in 22 years was confirmed. The manager also admitted his relief at being crowned champions after three successive runners-up finishes and revealed he had questioned whether he was good enough to help his team make the final step.

Arteta had gone to the training ground to watch the City match with the squad on Tuesday, having previously said he planned to stay at home. But 20 minutes before kick-off he decided he could not bear the tension and went back to be with his family.

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With the Arsenal Fun Boat having finally docked at its destination on Tuesday after a 22-year voyage, attention on Wednesday turned to Aston Villa’s Crazy Train as its passengers alighted in Istanbul. Having passed away last summer, Ozzy Osbourne, whose famous anthem serves as Villa’s walk-on music, was not present to see his team lift Bigger Vase but the ease with which they strolled to victory would certainly have met with his approval. In spanking three goals without reply past Freiberg, Unai Emery’s side ended a trophy drought that stretched back 30 years and for their Spanish manager it marked a fifth success in the competition with three different teams. It is a state of affairs rendered all the more remarkable by the weird quirk that each of them has ‘villa’ in their names.

Regarding songs to play during VAR decisions (Football Daily letters passim) how about Rise by Public Image Ltd, featuring the oft repeated line: ‘I could be wrong I could be right’?” – Adrian Bradshaw.

Why stop with VAR music to fill dead spots in games? Imagine, the next time a player goes down, hearing that memorable opening line from Johnny Cash, “I hear the trainer coming!” What? Oh” – John Nielsen-Gammon.

A doff of the cap to the great Unai Emery, who won the Uefa Emery League yet again last night but also achieved a rare, unprecedented double this season as he also got promotion to Primera Federación, the third tier of Spanish football, in April with Real Union, which he has been the owner of since 2021 (his father and grandfather used to play for them)” – Noble Francis

Re Steve McClaren and his new role at Rotherham (Football Daily passim, full email edition), do you think he thought it was Rotterdam and he got confused by the accent?” – Dan J Levy.

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• Melbourne Victory playmaker wins Johnny Warren medal

• Veteran still to make call on future with playing career up in air

Juan Mata had been written off, another caught in the mire of Australian football despite being a World Cup winner. Ever-smiling, now the 38-year-old also has the last laugh, having won the A-League Men’s Johnny Warren medal, the award for the competition’s player of the year.

After receiving the accolade, the out-of-contract Melbourne Victory playmaker said he wondered at the start of the season whether he would even go around again.

• Julian Nagelsmann includes 40-year-old in 26-man squad

• ‘We want to become world champions,’ says head coach

Bayern Munich’s Manuel Neuer has come out of international retirement after being named on Thursday as the starting goalkeeper in Germany’s World Cup squad by head coach Julian Nagelsmann. Nagelsmann made the decision after having long labelled Hoffenheim’s Oliver Baumann as his first-choice keeper.

“Yes I plan with [Neuer as No 1],” Nagelsmann said. “The main task was to nominate the best three keepers. So we decided that these three are part of that. We contacted Manuel and asked him if he wanted to play for the national team again.”

• Crystal Palace center-back will miss season finale

• 26-year-old uncertain for Conference League final

• Richards has been vital to Pochettino’s US plans

US national team center-back Chris Richards has “two torn ligaments in his ankle”, Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner said on Thursday, casting uncertainty on the stalwart defender’s status for this summer’s World Cup.

The club had said Richards “was in discomfort” late in last weekend’s match against Brentford, which he entered in the 61st minute.

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Archie Rhind-Tutt, Lars Sivertsen and Dan Bardell to discuss Villa’s Europa League success

On today’s podcast: Aston Villa won their first trophy in 30 years and secured their first European triumph for over 40. There were jubilant scenes, from Istanbul to Birmingham, as Unai Emery did it again in the Europa League. Youri Tielemans shone with perhaps his second best cup final goal ever to send the Villa fans into delirium, before Emi Buendía and Morgan Rogers wrapped up a dominant victory over Freiburg.

Elsewhere, Southampton lost their appeal over spygate – we’ll talk through Wednesday’s developments and then preview the final weekend of the 2025-26 Premier League. Arsenal may already be champions but there is still plenty at stake.

Plus, the World Cup squad announcements have begun and your questions answered.

Europa League glory kicked off scenes of royal ribbing, ski goggles on the team bus and knee slides with nephews

It was 1.43am in Istanbul when Aston Villa’s players began to make tracks for their hotel, over the road from the rubber ring-like Besiktas Park. Matty Cash walked into a windowless basement at the stadium, bottle of Efes in hand, and toasted a Europa League victory that will be etched in history, the club’s first trophy in three decades. “The king set the gameplan out for us,” he said of Unai Emery, who, if he was not there already, now has a god-like status among the fans.

Moments earlier, John McGinn joked that Prince William, who joined the players for beers amid the dressing-room celebrations, might “get his credit card out” and stump up for a free bar. Villa’s billionaire co-owners, Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens, were also in attendance, the former delighted that Emery had delivered on his promise to put another piece of silverware in a trophy cabinet that had been gathering dust. “It means a lot,” Sawiris said, wearing a Villa scarf. “I can’t express myself with words. Amazing. Very special. An eight-year ride and we saw today what hard work can do with Unai’s effort and the whole team.” Asked what’s next, there came a reminder of Villa’s ambition. “The sky’s the limit,” he replied.

While Friday morning is the official announcement, the makeup of the squad has become clear and features some big calls

Thomas Tuchel has a way to go to emulate his Brazil counterpart, Carlo Ancelotti, in terms of sheer spectacle when it comes to the announcement of a World Cup squad. Ancelotti took centre stage at the elegant Museum of Tomorrow in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday to reveal his 26 players, going name by name, the large audience of celebrities and influencers erupting when he eventually confirmed that Neymar was in.

There will nevertheless be a sense of razzmatazz on Friday morning when Tuchel confirms his England squad for the tournament in the US, Canada and Mexico. It is a seismic day in the football cycle, one that does not need additional trimmings. But it will get them anyway, with the Football Association going digital-first in an effort to harness the excitement and zap it straight to supporters’ devices.

Mario Lapointe became the Scottish club’s unlikely owner last year and his radical plans are taking shape at the Rock

“A lot of people ask me the same thing,” says a laughing Mario Lapointe, on how a Canadian songwriter and entrepreneur became owner of the Scottish lower league club Dumbarton 12 months ago. “When I was looking for a football club, this club kept calling me back – not literally.

“For example, I wrote a song in 1992 which had a lyric about sitting on the rock, and Dumbarton’s stadium is called the Rock. It’s also on the river and I wrote a lot of lyrics about rivers and ships, so it felt meant to be.”

Italian is expected to follow Pep Guardiola and it seems the decision was made a long time ago

Now the secret is out it is possible to look at Enzo Maresca’s incendiary remarks about his “worst 48 hours” at Chelsea through a different lens. Change is coming at Manchester City, who are preparing for Pep Guardiola’s departure at the end of the season, and it does not require much reading between the lines to work out their decision to pass the crown to Maresca was made a long time ago.

There never was a clear explanation from the Italian after he sat in front of the media after Chelsea’s unspectacular 2-0 win over Everton on 13 December and surprised the room by taking the extraordinary step of going to war with his employers. “Since I joined the club, the last 48 hours have been the worst because many people didn’t support us,” he said. “People didn’t support me and the team.”

From the end of the Invincibles and the post-Wenger wilderness years to the steady rise under Mikel Arteta

The Invincibles were slain in Manchester on Sunday 24 October 2004, when Arsenal’s record 49-match unbeaten run ended in a traumatic, wildly controversial defeat at Old Trafford. It took a month for Arsenal to process their grief and rage; by the time they did, José Mourinho’s remorseless Chelsea had zoomed past them. Though Arsenal were still the most watchable team in England, something had died in them.

While there is no denying the magnitude of his achievements, his legacy is also tied up in politics, propaganda and hard power

Well, that’s that then. Put out more flags. Mount the iconic Jedi‑style woollen cardigan in the club museum. He really does seem to be done this time.

In the absence of formal denials, it now seems highly likely the scheduled final year of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City contract will be spent trawling the high-concept food ateliers of the Iberian peninsula, debating spatial architecture with a Slovenian Cluedo grandmaster over hummingbird martinis, and generally recharging after a decade of unceasing devotion to victory.

• Friendlies against Denmark and Chile still going ahead

• Team staff who are based in DRC ‘leaving in next hours’

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have cancelled their three-day World Cup preparation training camp and a planned farewell to fans in the capital, Kinshasa, because of an outbreak of Ebola in the east of the country.

Preparations will take place elsewhere after an outbreak of a rare type of Ebola known as Bundibugyo, which is thought to have killed more than 130 people and caused nearly 600 suspected cases. The World Health Organization has declared it a public health emergency of international concern.

• Carlo Ancelotti praises ‘improved fitness’ of Santos player

• Vinícius Júnior, Rayan and Igor Thiago also selected

Neymar will make his fourth World Cup appearance after Brazil named him to their 26-man squad on Monday. The decision was not guaranteed as questions surrounded Neymar’s fitness since his anterior cruciate ligament tear more than two years ago.

The Brazil coach, Carlo Ancelotti, said that Neymar “has improved his fitness” after the squad announcement at a gala in Rio de Janeiro. “He will be an important player in this World Cup.”

• Incident is alleged to have happened in October 2024

• Mosengo-Omba set to be elected Fecofa president

Véron Mosengo-Omba, the sole candidate to become the president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo football federation, Fecofa, is at the centre of allegations of bullying and intimidation by members of the Confederation of African Football’s (Caf) audit and compliance committee (AACC).

The allegations centre on a two-hour meeting between Mosengo-Omba and the audit and compliance committee on 19 October 2024. During the meeting Mosengo-Omba, at the time the Caf general secretary, threatened to sue the members of the AACC and report them to the Fifa ethics committee because they endorsed a 2023-24 governance, risk and compliance (GRC) report which was highly critical of Mosengo-Omba’s ethical conduct. The Guardian has listened to a recording of the meeting.

Unheralded coach has presided over a remarkable turnaround as club navigates La Liga’s epic relegation battle

Luís Castro was 11 when he started vomiting blood. Taken to hospital and diagnosed with purpura, initially doctors told his parents there was no chance of him living and even when he was cured they said he couldn’t do any physical exercise ever again. But three lonely years later, driven by an inner strength he ascribed to a higher power, he was back on a football pitch, building a career that took him through the lower leagues in Portugal as a player and around the world as coach, winning trophies in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine and Brazil, until one day in December his name landed on the president’s desk at Levante: just the kind of man the Spanish club needed in their impossible fight for survival.

Oh, wait. No, that’s not right. “I had heard of another Luís Castro but not this one,” Pablo Sánchez admitted on Sunday night, “and this one turned out to be the ideal coach for our club.”

Trusting a rookie coach to rebuild the club in late 2019 was a big call but after three runners-up finishes the Spaniard has delivered a long-awaited title

They say good things come to those who wait, and for Arsenal supporters it has felt like an eternity. Since their unforgettable 2003-04 season when Arsène Wenger’s Invincibles went the top-flight campaign unbeaten, their team had spent an incredible 984 days at the top of the table without being champions. Until now.

After all the disappointments of the late Wenger era and finishing as runners-up in the past three seasons, that unwanted statistic can finally be put to bed after a campaign in which Mikel Arteta’s side have shown they are capable of holding their nerve. There have been many doubters along the way, not least during a disastrous April during which Arsenal lost twice to their chief rivals, Manchester City, in a run of four consecutive domestic defeats in three competitions. But it is a triumph that rewards the faith shown by the hierarchy towards a rookie manager who arrived a week before Christmas in 2019 on a mission to restore them to former glories.

Philadelphia, Kansas City and Atlanta are among the hosts showing that price-gouging at this summer’s tournament is, ultimately, a choice

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Philadelphia has spotted an opportunity. A chance to burnish a budding reputation as one of the East Coast’s most pleasant and interesting big cities – in the view of this columnist, at least – and one of its most affordable, too.

The ample offering of public transportation to the six 2026 World Cup matches slated for Lincoln Financial Field (dubbed Philadelphia Stadium for the tournament, as per Fifa’s sponsor rules) will set fans back a mere $2.90. Tickets to see those matches are somehow getting cheaper on the secondary market – down about 16% from last month. Hotels are still reasonably priced. And fan fests will remain free for every day of the tournament. There will be no getting charged three times as much for shade, either, as you will in Los Angeles.

The former Real Madrid manager’s desire to sign and create mentality monsters breaks with previous club policy

The Chelsea end was mostly empty by the time the players went to collect their losers’ medals. There was no grand ovation for the beaten team. The disconnect was evident after defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup final, underlining how one of Xabi Alonso’s first challenges as Chelsea’s new manager will be to lift the mood and get players, fans and owners pulling in the same direction after a hugely disappointing season.

Many people are wondering why Alonso has agreed to take over on a four-year deal. Why, after running into player power and reluctance to build a project at Real Madrid, would you choose Chelsea? Just how big is the payoff?

The SPFL and SFA wobble at the knees when it comes to punishing their biggest clubs but scenes at Celtic Park risk setting a dangerous precedent

The placing of a full stop on any league campaign offers cause for reflection. In Scotland, there are reasons to wonder if the grim denouement to a stunning title race will prompt a shift in attitudes on two fronts. Whether a Celtic board which has been castigated for its stewardship regards the securing of another title as vindication is an intriguing question. More immediate is how the champions and others will respond to the grim scenes that triggered an enforced conclusion to the visit of Hearts. The behaviour of a section of the Celtic support is so unruly during dominance that one wonders what on earth may happen if the team struggle badly.

On Sunday, the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) “utterly condemned” Celtic supporters who flooded on to the pitch at the time of Callum Osmand’s third goal. “Supporters entering the field of play in any circumstances is wholly unacceptable and puts those participating and working at a match at risk,” added the SPFL. Hearts players were accosted and abused during their most crushing of moments, having lost the opportunity to break the Old Firm’s four decades of title dominance.

Our cartoonist on the unbridled joy and soul-crushing pain that followed the Scottish Premiership title decider

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National League side secured FA Trophy in a shootout – and as their manager told his squad beforehand in the hotel ‘it’s been a hell of a journey’

The noise gave it away. The sweet sound of 22,000 ecstatic Southend supporters swimming in a sea of Wembley ecstasy left their head coach, Kevin Maher, in no doubt: soon he would raise the FA Trophy.

Maher, unable to tolerate the tension, had turned away just before Gus Scott-Morriss’s winning penalty against Wealdstone, but was instantly embraced by Mark Bentley, his first-team coach, former midfield partner and, most importantly, friend.

As the campaign draws to a close, we looked at what each of the teams did best this season in the English top-flight

“What enriches you is the game, not the result. The result is a piece of data,” the Spanish football coach Juanma Lillo once said. “The birthrate goes up. Is that enriching? No. But the process that led to that? Now that’s enriching.”

Let that serve as the thinking behind the first annual Football Style Awards, a celebration of process over results. These awards are not about who won, though they are about pieces of data. A club data scientist friend and I have spent the last year building a new football app called futi that measures not just who’s good but what they’re good at, based on detailed phase of play data and models that measure how teams and players play.

The 2022 World Cup failed to deliver on its environmental promises. From air travel emissions to heat-related dangers, the 2026 edition will be even worse

Soccer fans are increasingly watching preparations for the 2026 World Cup through their fingers. The most popular sporting event on the planet is awash in controversy, whether it’s the eye-watering ticket prices, the question of Iran’s participation while the president of one of the host countries threatens war crimes against it, or the role that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement may or may not play in policing the event. And yet, lost in the political pyrotechnics is a fiasco that carries as much long-term peril as any: the tournament’s staggering contribution to runaway climate change.

The 2026 World Cup is not only the most politically combustible tournament in modern history, but it is also on track to be the “most polluting” World Cup ever, with total greenhouse gas emissions hitting nearly two times the historical average. Scientists conservatively project that the tournament will generate around 9m tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. Air travel comprises approximately 7.7m tons of this carbon budget, and more than four times that of the average for tournaments held between 2010 and 2022. The researchers note that the worst-case upper estimate for air transport is about 13.7m tons of CO2. That may sound bad, but that’s just because World Cup emissions have never been worse.

Mikel Arteta’s side will be deeply unpopular champions, but this probably says more about us than it does about them

There was a minor stir a few years back when some American scientists bred a strain of “gene-edited” hamsters with the chemical that causes anger removed, presumably so they could achieve one of humanity’s historic goals: the dream of a more docile hamster.

Unfortunately the opposite happened. What the scientists created was a race of hyper-angry hamsters. These were described a little glibly in the media as Mutant Rage Monsters. But science is always more nuanced than this. We shouldn’t put angry hamsters in a box, even when we are literally putting angry hamsters in a box. Longer studies have shown more varied results. Sarcastic hamsters. Hamsters that hold grudges. Hamsters that retreat into silence on long car journeys. Even a subset of passive-aggressive hamsters who are, seriously, just fine with this. It’s pretty much what they expected from you, anyway.

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It may have taken Mikel Arteta six years and well over a billion pounds but his team trusted the process and got there in the end. Arsenal are Premier League champions and in scenes that called to mind the closing moments of the movie Fever Pitch, jubilant Gooners spilled out of homes and pubs around Highbury and Islington in a collective release of tension and pure, unadulterated joy to mark the occasion. However, unlike Fever Pitch, it wasn’t broad daylight at 9.55pm and instead of Colin Firth and Ruth Gemmell, it was Robbie Lyle from AFTV and Ian Wright who got their smooch on as fans partied long into the night outside the stadium. Any doubts that a brooding and occasionally intense man from a small town near San Sebastián might not have been up to the task of getting Arsenal over the line had finally been dispelled and for that, Andoni Iraola deserves great credit. His Bournemouth side’s draw against Manchester City means Arsenal can no longer be caught.

I did not know a stroopwafel could taste anywhere near that good. Bravo” – Thad Brown.

Using Josh Windass’s logic and running with it, can I be one of 1,057 to suggest that the whole Championship season should be replayed, which will also have the added benefit of forcing Noble Francis to relive that whole Wednesday attempt at the campaign all over again” – Jon Millard.

I can understand Hull being upset, having been focused on playing Southampton and now having limited time to prepare for Middlesbrough instead. Can’t they just ask Southampton if they just happen to have a detailed dossier on Middlesbrough lying around?” – James Vortkamp-Tong.

Since childhood, I have secretly hoped that the top flight of English football would one day finish in alphabetical order. Congratulations are due not only to Arsenal for doing their bit to make it happen, but also to Tottenham, West Ham and Wolves for playing along. Bournemouth fans will no doubt forgive the awkward AFC prefix, while their cousins, Brighton and Brentford, have done their utmost. Chelsea obligingly produced a poor run-in, and Aston Villa made a decent stab at fulfilling my dream. The real problem clubs remain Liverpool and the two Manchesters, although Burnley’s relegation significantly improves the prospects for next season. Everton, Fulham and Newcastle look capable of taking their places, but Crystal Palace need to buck up their ideas. I think 2026-27 will finally be my year” – Phil Hearn.

Noble Francis’s pointing out that Benfica only finished third, despite an unbeaten season (yesterday’s Football Daily letters), brings to mind my Hamilton AFC (NZ) team that, likewise, were unbeaten in a league season but finished runners-up, having drawn three matches. If only we’d had the notion to dub ourselves ‘The Invincibles’ I may have felt a whole lot better over the last 35 years” – Rod de Lisle.

Going back to the thread of suitable songs to play while VAR are deliberating (Football Daily letters passim), The Kinks’ ‘Tired of waiting’ would seem like a very obvious choice followed by Britney Spears’ ‘Oops I did it again’ when the incorrect conclusion is announced to the bewildered supporters in the stadium. There must be many others in the canon” – Nigel Sanders.

This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.

WSL2 midfielder Malaika Meena has been collecting football kit to send to her ‘favourite country in the world’

It began with a social media post from a 13-year-old playing in Chelsea’s academy who wanted to offer spare kit to people less fortunate than her.

A decade on Malaika Meena, an established WSL2 player, finds herself sifting through more than 1,000 items collected from players, fans and coaches in the past month alone, as her family tradition of donating football boots and kit to schoolchildren in Tanzania has blossomed into a movement larger than anything she could have imagined.

Failure to wrench the title from the Glasgow giants is no cause for remorse given that Celtic and Rangers have been shaken from their lethargy

Another final-day showdown, another final-day heartbreak. The pain has been spread over 61 years, but that won’t make it any easier to bear for Hearts who, having been top for 250 days of the Scottish Premiership season, missed out on the title again.

There was, of course, a Celtic penalty for handball and a critical video assistant referee decision that went their way, but, on this occasion, neither provided the controversy. That came from the confusion as the game was ended by a pitch invasion with 23 seconds, plus whatever else the referee felt needed to be added, still to play.

Seagulls are in their first Women’s FA Cup final but their coach, Dario Vidosic, is determined to keep aiming higher

As Brighton’s old song goes, “Hark to the merry bugles”, because there is something in the air in Sussex by the sea. A purpose-built women’s team stadium is in the offing, a second consecutive top-half Women’s Super League finish is on the cards and the women’s side are heading to Wembley for the first time. The fans have never had it this good.

It took something special for Brighton to overturn a two-goal deficit in Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final victory at Liverpool and they left it late – very late – as Nadine Noordam settled a classic, five-goal thriller with her 95th-minute winner, but reaching this final is something the club have been building towards. In 2022, Brighton set out a bold vision to become a “top-four WSL club” and last summer the head coach, Dario Vidosic, was unafraid to discuss even higher targets, speaking in a determined, bullish and unwaveringly ambitious tone during an interview with the Guardian.

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Archie Rhind-Tutt, Lars Sivertsen and Dan Bardell to discuss Villa’s Europa League success

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On today’s podcast: Aston Villa won their first trophy in 30 years and secured their first European triumph for over 40. There were jubilant scenes, from Istanbul to Birmingham, as Unai Emery did it again in the Europa League. Youri Tielemans shone with perhaps his second best cup final goal ever to send the Villa fans into delirium, before Emi Buendía and Morgan Rogers wrapped up a dominant victory over Freiburg.

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Nicky Bandini and Sam Dalling as Manchester City drop points at Bournemouth to hand the Premier League title to Arsenal

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On today’s podcast: joyous scenes on the Holloway Road as, with a game to spare, Arsenal are champions for the first time in 22 years. All of Mikel Arteta’s tactics, his training ground bonfires, his technical area jousting in tight trousers justified. Now just the small matter of a Champions League final to think about.

Faye Carruthers is joined by Suzy Wrack, Sophie Downey and Marva Kreel to review the 2025-26 WSL season

On today’s pod: as the WSL season comes to an end, the panel reviews each team as Manchester City officially lift the Barclays WSL trophy after ending their 10-year wait for a league title. The panel reflects on Andrée Jeglertz’s instant impact, Bunny Shaw’s remarkable season and what the summer could hold amid uncertainty surrounding her future.

Elsewhere, Arsenal secure second place and automatic Champions League qualification but, after another trophyless domestic campaign, the panel assesses where things fell short for Renée Slegers’ side and what the departures of Beth Mead and Katie McCabe mean for the club moving forward.

Bafflement at Old Trafford, Chelsea’s Wembley drought goes on and Leeds give fans cause for optimism

Luke Shaw’s first goal in over three years for Manchester United was a further reminder of the left-back’s capabilities. This has been his best season at Old Trafford having featured in all 37 league games thus far, leaving his injury-prone past forgotten. Considering Shaw’s experience and quality, he should be considered for a spot at the World Cup. Thomas Tuchel does not have a vast array of riches in the position and Shaw’s consistency has been key to Michael Carrick’s turnaround at Old Trafford. “He deserves to go,” said Carrick after the win against Nottingham Forest. “His consistency, his performances, his experience, his qualities. He’s an excellent full-back.” Nico O’Reilly is the current first choice for England and he has a very different profile from Shaw, having converted from playing as a central midfielder under Pep Guardiola. Tuchel may want to take Shaw to provide variety and reliability, which would be a sensible approach. Will Unwin

Match report: Manchester United 3-2 Nottingham Forest

Match report: Newcastle 3-1 West Ham

Match report: Aston Villa 4-2 Liverpool

Ousmane Dembélé becomes our seventh winner as he beats Lamine Yamal into second and Vitinha into third on our list of the best players on the planet

• Premier League dominates list | How every judge voted | Our methodology | The top 100 female players for 2025

• 2024 edition | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012

The Frenchman, who has been named the best male footballer in the world by the Guardian, has benefitted from PSG’s focus on the team rather than individuals

What makes a good player great, and a great player the best? This question has been occupying me since 2014, when the Guardian first asked me to contribute to its inaugural Next Generation feature. My job was to look for a France-based talent born in 1997 who could go on to have a stellar career.

After a great deal of research, I narrowed it down from my shortlist of five by asking questions not about the players’ football ability, but about other attributes: resilience, adaptability, decision-making, creativity, work ethic, response to feedback and willingness to learn. Qualities we cannot see, and are harder to measure.

Aitana Bonmatí has been voted the best female player on the planet by our panel of 127 experts ahead of Mariona Caldentey and Alessia Russo

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The margin may have got smaller but the brilliant Spanish midfielder makes it a hat-trick of No 1 finishes

They say the best things come in threes, and Aitana Bonmatí has written herself into the Guardian’s top 100 history as the first player to finish at the top of the tree for a third consecutive year.

Last year the majestic midfielder emulated her Barcelona and Spain teammate Alexia Putellas by winning for a second year running, but the 27-year-old has now gone one better, establishing herself once again at the top of the women’s game.

From PSG’s Ibrahim Mbaye to Brazil’s next hope, we select some of the most talented players born in 2008. Check the progress of our classes of 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 … and go even further back. Here’s our Premier League class of 2025