While the injury to Theo Walcott would have slightly marred England’s excellent 3-1 win in Basel, it did give Manchester City winger Adam Johnson a chance to enhance his ever growing reputation. The former Middlesbrough man did just that with an confident display that saw him get his second England goal in as many games. 

The performance of Johnson summed up a year in which his only disappointment was failing to earn a surprise call-up in to the England World Cup squad. Capello’s decision to opt against taking Johnson to South Africa was another one  grave mistakes from the Italian that lead to the oh so disappointing tournament in South Africa.

Ever since Johnson’s move to Eastlands in January, the 23-year-old’s progress has been remarkable and he is now arguably the brightest young prospect for both club and country. His rise to prominence has been nothing short of spectacular. For years he played second fiddle to Stewart Downing at the Riverside but ever since Downing’s move to Aston Villa, Johnson hasn’t looked back.

In the Championship he showed his potential and class and Roberto Mancini soon took the plunge on the highly rated winger. In an era of big money transfers at Eastlands, it made a refreshing change to see them not only snap up an English prospect, but throw him straight in to the first-team.

It begs the question why nobody else took a punt with Johnson?  Compared to some young prospects he was relatively cheap, and although he achieved most of the success for Middlesbrough in the Championship he did have Premier League experience. I’d certainly rather have Johnson in my side then most, if not all of the young Premier League wingers.

But it was City that did and the result has been nothing sort of extraordinary as Johnson brushed aside the likes of Shaun Wright Phillips and Stephen Ireland to earn a regular starting place. Mancini opted to deploy Johnson on the right, which compensates for his lack of genuine pace allowing him to cut inside on to his deadly left foot.

The question is how good could Johnson be?  If he continues his rapid progression then his potential is endless and I bet the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United are looking back with regret that they never took a chance on the future England star.

Fulham are on the brink of history. On Wednesday, they will be playing in the Europa League Final against Atletico Madrid. Win or lose this match, Fulham will leave some sort of historical mark. The question is which historical direction will Fulham go?

If they win this Final, I would compare this season to the 2001 New England Patriots. No one in the beginning of that season picked the Pats to win the Super Bowl. I don’t even know if any experts had them making the playoffs. This team was not made up of superstars. It was more about the “team” than the individual players. The quarterback was a 6th round pick in his second year. His name was Tom Brady. What the Pats had was a belief that they could win. They also had an incredible head coach named Bill Belichick. Each week Belichick put the Pats in a position to win. They were underdogs I believe in every playoff game. They beat 3 teams who were all favored to beat them to winning the Vince Lombardi Trophy. All 3 of these wins were victories that went down to the wire. Each time the Pats figured out a way to win. In concluding, this was an unexpected Super Bowl winner.

For Fulham, they are not made up of superstars. They are made up of players that play a very disciplined style of football. The club is extremely well drilled. They do not beat themselves. Their manager Roy Hodgson like Belichick puts his club in positions to win each week. During the Europa League, Fulham had tremendous victories over Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus, Wolfsburg, and Hamburg. They were not favored in any of these match-ups. Somehow they found a way to win. They would also win in dramatic fashion. The second legs against Juventus and Hamburg were dramatic endings. Fulham would be an unexpected Europa League Champion.

I see many similarities between the 2001 New England Patriots and this current Fulham Football Club. If they lose this comparison would make no sense. To be compared to a champion you need to be one.

If Fulham lose the Final they could be compared to the Middlesbrough Football Club of the 2005/2006 season. That particular club got to the UEFA Cup Finals against Sevilla. They lost this match 4-0. Shortly after the match Steve McClaren left Middlesbrough to become England Manager. Three years later, Middlesbrough were relegated to the Championship.

For Fulham, losing this match isn’t devastating, but they will be compared to a club that lost their manager to England and then 3 years later was out of the English Premier League. Ironically, Roy Hodgson has been mentioned as a potential England manager someday. For Fulham Fans let’s hope he stays with the Cottagers for a long time.

I have heard and read many comments regarding the lack of importance of the Europa League. For a club like Fulham, the Europa League has provided them with European Football. I personally think this tournament is viable and has offered great competition. Look who Fulham have beaten to get to the Final.

They first beat Shakhtar Donetsk. In my opinion they are the most talented club to play in this tournament this year. They won the UEFA Cup last year. Fulham beat them 2-1 at Craven Cottage. They then tied them away 1-1.

Fulham then beat Juventus. The Italian giants are a legendary club. They might be having a down year, but beating them is a great accomplishment. Juventus won their home leg 3-1. Fulham then beat Juventus 4-1 at Craven Cottage to move on to the Quarterfinals.

Fulham then beat Wolfsburg. This club happens to be the defending German Champions. In the first leg, Fulham beat Wolfsburg 2-1 at Craven Cottage. In the second leg Fulham won 1-0 in Germany. They would then move on to the Semifinals.

Fulham then beat Hamburg. This club is very talented with great players up front. They have players like Ruud van Nistelrooy and Mladen Petric. In the first leg, the score was a 0-0 draw. In the second leg at Craven Cottage, Fulham came from behind to win 2 – 1. They scored two goals in the second half to move on to the Finals.

I accept that some fans just don’t think this Final is that important. I wouldn’t tell that to the Fulham Fans and the players. I think they were pretty excited. If you don’t believe me please check out this video from Fulham.theoffside.com entitled “Post match Festivities at the Cottage.”

No matter what happens on Wednesday, Fulham’s accomplishment has been remarkable. The only question left is their legacy in the Final. Will Fulham become the 2001 New England Patriots or the 2005-06 Middlesbrough Football Club?

Russ Goldman is a Fulham blogger who posts regularly on his website www.cottagersconfidential.com. His website is a part of sbnation. This is a network of 250 sports blogs. There are several soccer related sites and many more to be added soon.

Editor’s note: View an online magazine celebrating the final in Hamburg between Fulham and Atletico Madrid.

If you hadn’t been paying attention to Middlesbrough last season or the first half of the current campaign in the Championship – and let’s face it – most people don’t pay much attention to Middlesbrough – you won’t have seen how good Adam Johnson is.

A graduate of Middlesbrough’s fantastic youth academy, many Boro people have thought for many years now that Johnson is the very best players the club has ever produced.

Indeed, when Martin O’Neill bought what outsiders thought was the club’s greatest asset in Stewart Downing, there are plenty who thought he bought the wrong winger. This will be proved in the second half of this season as Johnson lights up the Premier League.

Downing is mentally fragile. He disappears for long periods as anyone who saw Villa’s dreadful game against Spurs at the weekend can attest. That was a typical performance. He will throw one of those in every three or four matches. He manages to become almost entirely invisible, only reappearing when substituted.

While he has some pace, he’s not lightening quick. His greatest asset is his crossing but frankly, you wouldn’t want to bet anything valuable on him delivering regularly. It was only being left footed that got him in the England squad.

Johnson on the other hand has genuine pace. He has better close control, he has vision and better still, scores goals – 11 in 24 in the Championship this season. When Downing was the main man at Boro, he seemed to be held back. Her went out on loan to Watford and did really well. But Downing was always in front of him when he returned. As soon as Downing was sold, he really came into his own.

He now seems a confident lad who won’t hide the way Downing does. All of this was immediately on display last night in Manchester City’s game against Bolton where he as easily man of the match. He can beat defenders and draw fouls. He’s got a good shot on him and can drift right and left.

A couple of seasons ago he was a skinny, lightweight kid and was too easy to knock off the ball. Now he has grown into a broader, stronger man and looks the part. His only real weakness is he’s very left-footed, if he can do something other than stand on his right foot, then he’ll be the finished article.

If you’re looking for a dark horse to go to the World Cup, look no further than Adam Johnson. Capello has already singled him out as being ‘very, very good’ and a left-footed player is always an asset for any squad looking for balance.

With Walcott as busted flush, Lennon injured, Shaun Wright-Philips too small and too inconsistent, come May, Johnson might look like the answer to both the right and left side of midfield. There’s always one man who breaks out of the ranks before a World Cup, I’m putting my money on it being him.

The third round of the FA Cup is like Christmas to me. There’s always a surprise or two that you never expect. Plus, I usually get up early in anticipation of the matches that are before me. And this year, it was great to see the added touch of snow across England to make the games more festive.

However, I’ve come to the realization that the third round of the tournament is best enjoyed not by watching television, but by listening to radio.

Let me explain why.

After the initial disappointment of the Bristol City against Cardiff game being postponed on Saturday morning, I ended up with two hours to spare to get into the FA Cup spirit, so the first place I went to was BBC Radio Five. It’s not often I get a chance to listen to Five Live anymore especially on matchdays when the broadcasts are blocked for listeners outside the United States, but since the early kickoff was postponed, the Beeb reported from all over England about the weather conditions, interviewed managers and chairmen and told us which other games were being postponed. Plus, we got to hear from legendary broadcaster Stuart Hall reporting from the DW Stadium in Wigan, and that’s always a pleasure.

With the build-up to the kick-off, I fell back in love with radio until the BBC cut the broadcast for international listeners, as they always do, when the 3pm local time matches kick off. No surprise there, but still frustrating.

So I began watching the two matches on television — Sunderland against Barrow on Setanta, and Middlesbrough versus Manchester City on Fox Soccer Channel. Despite an extremely impressive start from Barrow, who brought 7,000 jubilant supporters to the Stadium of Light, Sunderland took the lead in the first 15 minutes and it was only a matter of how many more goals would Sunderland score after that.

Watching the two matches, I had the sudden realization that this is not the optimal way to experience the third round of the FA Cup. The chances of an upset appearing in either the two games shown on television was slim. But the chances of an upset happening in one of the other games was much more.

So, I turned to TalkSport and listened to their commentary instead in the hopes of hearing about an upset from any of the FA Cup games throughout England. Reports came in from around the grounds in England. York City taking a shock lead against Stoke City. Carlisle equalized against Everton at Goodison Park. Middlesbrough were still 0-0 against Manchester City.

The spontaneity and excitement of hearing a goal going in via a radio report is so much better than watching a TV match of the FA Cup third round except when that TV match is the one with the upset. But it’s so rare to see FA Cup upsets live on television especially in the third round when there are simply so many games played at the same time.

As it turned out, the 3pm games in England didn’t generate any Premier League upsets. There’s still hope in the remaining games from the weekend that a shock may happen, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens.

For me, I’ll continue to watch the FA Cup matches on television but when the third round comes around again, I’ll be listening more intently to the radio. Maybe even the fourth round, too.

The English First Division came into being in 1888 and within 4 years, a young man named Steve Bloomer signed for Derby County from local league side Tutbury Hawthorn. Whilst he may have been highly thought of in the local area, such was the turnover of young men trying their hand at football; Bloomer could have easily been another statistic of those days of the Football League’s infancy. To say Bloomer had an extraordinary life would be something of an understatement and he would write his name in footballing history.

He made his Derby County debut at the beginning of the 1892-93 season and scored his first goal for County on September 24th in a 3-1 win against West Bromwich Albion. That season saw Bloomer finish with very respectable figures of 11 goals in 28 games and the slightly framed, pale skinned young man quickly established himself as a crowd favourite at the Baseball Ground. Possessing great pace, a thundering shot with either foot and a range of passing rarely seen in a forward, his performances quickly saw him chosen to represent England in 1895.

Scoring 2 goals on his debut for England in a 9-0 romp against Ireland, Bloomer seemed to have the football world at his feet but the first of the tragedies that befell him occurred when his brother, Philip, also briefly a Derby County player died in 1896 of peritonitis. Bloomer continued to build his reputation the following season scoring 35 goals in 36 games which included 5 hat tricks and hit a run of hitting 21 goals in 20 games.

A strange side note to this part of his career is that he actually led Derby County to the British Baseball Championship in 1895, 1897 and the final season of 1898, which is why Derby County’s old ground was known as the Baseball Ground.  As the baseball team folded, Bloomer’s football moved in to a different level scoring goals for fun for both club and country. He became the first player to score 5 goals for his country against Wales and then followed it up 5 years later with another 4 goal haul again in a match against Wales, thus also making him the first England player to score two hat tricks.

In his first spell at Derby, Bloomer was the leading goal scorer in the First Division on 5 separate occasions and twice in all European Leagues. He hit 6 goals in one match against Sheffield Wednesday in 1899 and also scored the first goal at West Bromwich Albion’s Hawthorns Ground in 1900. This man set records for fun and couldn’t stop throughout his career and it was interesting to note how his fortune continued to rise as he left Derby County to join Middlesbrough in March 1906 for the princely sum of £750.  Shorn of Bloomer’s skills, Derby County were relegated the following season but Bloomer continued to find the back of the net for his new employers.

In his first two full seasons at Boro, he unsurprisingly finished as their leading scorer and played his final match for England in 1907. By 1910, Bloomer was coming up to his 36th birthday, but as Stanley Matthews had returned back to his first love, in 1910, Bloomer returned to a hero’s welcome at Derby County, who were still languishing in the Second Division. Bloomers return almost had an instant impact with another 24 goals but Derby’s promotion charge faltered and they finished 6th.

Bloomer was not being denied the season after and Derby won promotion as Champions in 1911-1912 and he hit another 19 goals for the Rams.  Bloomer managed to have another 2 seasons in the First Division, but at 40 years old he finally retired as a player. For most players, that would be the end for their careers in football, but Steve Bloomer’s life then took another amazing turn.  In July 1914, he decided to take up the offer to become the manager of the German side Britannia Berlin 92.

3 weeks later, World War I broke out and Bloomer, as a British citizen was interred in a prisoner of war camp in Berlin, Ruhleben. Amazingly, a football season of sorts was organised between the prisoners and Bloomer once again found himself playing regular football, albeit in a prisoner of war league. He also played Cricket in a prison league that was set up to run through the summer months in the camp, and unsurprisingly Bloomer excelled at that game as well.

During his internment, tragedy once again visited Bloomer and he lost two daughters to illness to compound the earlier loss of his brother. Once again, his success was tarred by personal loss. Released in 1918 at the end of the war, Bloomer had a short spell coaching in Holland but by 1922 he had drifted away from football. On the horizon though was one last amazing hurrah.

In 1923, he made a return to management, taking the reins at Spanish side Real Union. Guiding Union to the regional championship, he found his side in the Copa Del Rey. In those days, the cup was used to decide the Spanish Champions and amazingly, Union had got to the semi-final after beating Seville 3-1. Their opponents were the giants of Barcelona and it seemed that their amazing cup run would come to an end. Bloomer had other ideas and Union blew Barcelona away 6-1, an amazing result for a regional team such as Union.

The Copa Del Rey final would surely be one game too many for Bloomers plucky side as who else but Real Madrid were waiting for them, but once again Bloomer’s side turned the form book on its head to snatch the title with a 1-0 win and become Spanish Champions. It was beyond belief for most people but simply another amazing achievement in the life of Steve Bloomer.

Bloomer eventually returned to Derby and passed away in April 1938, aged 64. In January 2009, Derby County erected a bust of him inside Pride Park facing the pitch, placed next to the home dug out. English football’s first superstar will never be forgotten.

• 684 games for Derby County and Middlesbrough, scoring 430 goals
• 28 goals in 23 games for England
• Won the European Golden boot twice & First Division leading scorer in 5 seasons
• Derby’s leading goalscorer in a season an incredible 14 seasons in a row
• 3rd highest goalscorer in First Division/Premiership history with 314 goals.

The weekend promised excitement, drama and last-minute heartache with several sides still fighting for survival at the season’s very end. Sunderland, Hull, Newcastle and Middlesbrough were all on the edge of the cliff. Some already hanging off the side. Others teetering on the brink. In the end, four losses would keep all sides in their places. Newcastle and Middlesbrough join West Brom in relegation to the Championship. Sunderland and Hull survive by the slimmest of margins.

Hull City: Early Form Rewarded

Hull’s explosive first half of the season (2o points from their first nine matches) was rewarded yesterday despite a 1-0 loss to Manchester United. The results of Newcastle and Middlesbrough allowed Hull supporters to forgive Phil Brown and Co. for the disastrous spell that eventually displaced their early good form. Hull only won one of their last 22 matches.

The Tigers defied expecation at the start of their campaign, recording wins against Fulham, Newcastle, Arsenal, Spurs, West Ham and West Brom all before the end of October. They dazzled further in November when they scored three goals at Old Trafford. They still lost to hosts Manchester United, but after being 4-1 down at the half, scoring two more goals against the Champs and bringing a point within view, showed the true grit of Hull City.

A lengthy slump aside, Hull deserved to stay up after their fierce start to the season. Now the question is: can they find that form again next year?

Death By Own Goal

One devastating moment from yesterday’s match at Villa Park sums up Newcastle United’s season. Villa’s Gareth Barry took a speculative shot from distance, firing the ball into traffic. United’s Damien Duff stood his ground, but was crushed when the ball ricochetted off his shin and careened into the net.

1-0 was the final score. And since other results meant Newcastle only needed a draw to survive, that one moment encapsulates the pain and frustration forced upon supporters as Newcastle’s latest campaign comes to an ugly close.

The Magpies will go down after 16 years in the top flight. Though they’ve had their rough patches, Newcastle always seemed to climb out of trouble and endure. But too many managerial changes and not investing enough in defense led to the fall.

Shearer should not be criticized. If he’d had more time to work out a system with the players (and if he’d had the brilliant goalkeeping of Shay Given at his disposal), it might have been a different outcome.

Duff, gutted from yesterdays events, vows to stay with Newcastle and fight for their promotion next season. Newcastle faithful wait to hear what Shearer’s plans are.

Gareth Southgate’s Nightmare

Middlesbrough have had their troubles since their last promotion to the top flight in 1998. We smirk when we think of 2006, when a fan stormed the pitch and threw his season ticket at Steve McClaren in frustration. But despite various problems, Boro spent the last ten years making themselves a Premier League mainstay. They usually finished mid-table, but even when they dipped lower, they secured enough points to keep from sweating over the drop.

But this season the problems became insurmountable. Former Boro hitman, John Hendrie blames poor transfer window moves and lack of firepower. Boro were the lowest scoring side in the league. Whatever the root cause, Boro simply could not climb out of the ditch they dug themselves.

But Gareth Southgate is expected to stay on as manager and despite the fear of losing some big players, Middlesbrough should have a good enough chance at returning to the top flight.

Sunderland Survive

The Blackcats put their old yo-yoing ways behind them as they prepare to enjoy a third consecutive season in the Premier League. Despite their survival, manager Ricky Sbragia stepped down after Sunderland’s loss to Chelsea. Read more here. Sbragia took over the post when Roy Keane left in December.

Sunderland announced today they will not be signing 27-year-old striker Djibril Cisse who spend the season on loan from Marseille. It will be intersting to see who Sunderland bring in to manage and play for the next season.

With Boro and Newcastle relegated, Sunderland will be the only side from the north east in the Premier League.

Conclusion

The season was very tight for a long time with many upsets and surprises. It took a while for the European hopefuls to pull away from the relegation zone denizens. Unlike last year, when Derby County clinched relegation early, this season’s bottom teams had their chances going into the final weekends. It is sad to see two mainstays go down, but that’s part of the life-cycle of the Premier League. Wolves, Birmingham and Burnley will come up to try and stake their claim on top flight football. Newcastle, Boro and others will fight in the Championship for a fresh chance to rise.

The rest of us will spend the summer scouring transfer rumors and analyzing friendlies and internationals while we wait for the league action to start anew.

Who will feel the effect most if they relegated to the Championship?

With West Bromwich Albion’s fate sealed last week we can now prepare ourselves for a dramatic conclusion to the Premier League season on Sunday. The neutral (including yours truly) will relish it and will want to see as many twists and turns as possible. Anyone supporters involved will have struggled to sleep for a week.

We all have our own predictions as to who will go down and what the sequence of results to will be. What I wondered is what effect will relegation have on the clubs involved.

West Bromwich Albion – 31 points (already relegated)

Even the most biased of Baggies supporters could not have been surprised about the clubs fate this season. However there seems relatively little for the Hawthorns club to worry about. Brom perenially spend within their limits upon promotion and Tony Mowbray has followed similiar traits. Signings that broke the £1 Million mark included: Scott Carson (£3.5 million), Marek Cech (£1.4 million) ,Luke moore (£3 million), Zuiverloon (3.2 million) , Valero (4.7 million), Aboulaye Meitie (£2 million) and Roman bednar at  £2.3 million.

Not taking into account players that left that Hawthorns, the Throstles have forked out around £20 million. No doubt a  few of the above will leave to recoup some of this. It is also likely that some contracts will include a drop in wages upon relegation ,West Brom should be relatively comfortble providing they spend their parachute monies wisely next season and offload a few big-earners.

Middlesbrough – 32 points

Although ‘Boro are technically £85 million in debt, the vast majority is owed to chairman Steve Gibson – which is the equivalent of owing your Dad 200 quid. Conisdering Gibson’s patience with Gareth Southgate it seems highly unlikey he will let the club suffer. However should ‘Boro suffer the drop (and it seems likely they will) they will have to get wheeling and dealing quickly. One of the first names out of the door will be Alfonso Alves, who was signed for a fee rumoured to be £12.7 million and one shudders to think what kind of wages the Brazillian is on at the Riverside. After breaking his foot against in the relegation six-pointer against Newcastle and a poor goals return for the club, ‘Boro may have to brace themselves for a big financial loss. The other big name out of the door, and the one Middlesbrough will miss most from an on-field perspective is Stewart Downing. A host of clubs will have relished the prospect of Boro’s demise in order to sign Downing and it is thought that Spurs will lead the chase after keeping tabs on the winger for considerable time. Boro will be hoping for auction fever from rival clubs in order to raise as much cash as possible. It will come as no surprise that Tuncay and David Wheater will also raise the eyebrow for a host of clubs, with Robert Huth also likely to be the subject of some interest.

Should Middlesborough fail to survive, the winds of change are likely to blow through this cold part of the country including the possibility of a new manager.  With numerous players likely to leave and taking into account the squads lack of experience, ’Boro may well have to be happy with a season of stability next season rather than a promotion charge.

Newcastle – 34 Points

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. There may have been talks of a conspiracy theory in regard to the strength of Manchester United’s team selection at Hull. But based on perfomances alone, Newcastle are where they deserve to be. If Newcastle are relegated we will witness a real exodus from St James Park, which in turn demonstrates the extent of the problems the Magpies will face. The list of players likely to leave include: Michael Owen, Mark Viduka, Obamfemi Martins, Damien Duff, Alan Smith, Nicky Butt, Jose Enrique, Geremi, Gutierrez and possibly Steven Taylor. If things continue in the trational ways of the Tyneside soap-opera then you wouldn’t rule out yet further changes at either boardroom or management level. Chairman Mike Ashley has been ostracised from the club before and if he cannot either persuade Shearer to take the job permanently and/or the Toon don’t get off to a flyer in the championship he knows showing his face in the Sir John Hall stand would be a tad unwise.

Newcastle will have to do their best to wheel and deal as early as possible in order to get the new players to gel as a unit early in the forthcoming season. The first thing they need to do is oust Joe Kinnear from his role, he isn’t physically fit to do job, and if the club are indeed relegated the job starts the minute the final whistle is sounded on Sunday. Although sacking managers isn’t a sign of stability, do any of us genuinely think that Kinnear would stay in the job until the end of next season – fit or not? With expectations and pressure form the fans likley to be huge and the club not in the best of health financially, relegation would hit United very, very hard.

Hull City - 35 Points

And to think the start Hull City had. The Tigers are clawing on for dear life in the Premier League and require one last roar this Sunday to ensure survival. Hull are likely to face a considerably weakened Manchester United team on Sunday which may give them half a chance of stealing a point. Whether any of that will come to fruition is another matter. Should Hull find themselves with an instant return to the Championship you would feel that financially the club will not suffer to the degree some of their rivals will. City were desperately unlucky to lose Jimmy Bullard so quickly after his £5 million move from Fulham and could find him leaving the club sooner rather than later at a cut-price fee.  Bernard Mendy and Andy Dawson will also have attracted some attention, Giovvani’s early season exploits may tempt a rival club into a gamble. Hull however – are sound financially, have a good boardroom and a good manager in Phil Brown. Providing they can keep the nucleus of the squad together City should be stable and will look to try and bounce back at the first attempt.

Sunderland – 36  Points

The fans and players alike pleaded for the board to give Ricky Sbragia the managers job on a permanent basis, the phrase ‘be careful what you wish for’ now springs to mind. Should Sunderland fail to beat Chelsea in Guus Hiddink’s last league game in charge, the Mackems may need another black cat in the dressing room for luck. The club would appear financially sound given the money they have spent in the last few seasons however I would still expect a few to leave. Sunderland shouldn’t really be in this trouble given what they have spent over the last couple of seasons. If the club are confined to the Championship, it is likely they will look to offload the wages of Steed Malbranque and Craig Gordon. I cannot see Kenwyne Jones staying at the Stadium of Light, particularly with Tottenham knocking on Niall Quinn’s door. Kieran Richardson and Anton Ferdinand will attract offers and no doubt the pair pick up a fair size wage packet each too. This being said, Ellis short is now linked to a buy out of the club followed by a change of manager and a £200 million transfer kitty – if Sunderland stay up and we are to beleive the tabloids.

Ready For Sunday then?

So, how’s your nerves? Sky Sports News have today been running an article about stress relief for fans for Sunday. Tips included having a hot bath, avoiding alcohol and meditating to stay relaxed in the build up to the final round of matches in the Premiership. Which will be no help to any of the fans who’s nerves are probably already shredded about Sunday. For the first time in the UK, we’re going to have 4 games broadcasted from the Premiership simultaneously with streams coming in from Hull, Sunderland, Aston Villa and West Ham, which worries me about the potential for an RSI based injury.

The trapdoor to the Championship is wide open, beckoning 2 teams to join West Bromwich Albion in relegation despair. Poor WBA, such lovely football, but no cutting edge, what they’d give for a 15 goal a season striker, it would have made all the difference to such a good football side as daft as that sounds.  At 6pm, we will know which of the four candidates will have joined them, with each team’s destiny entirely in their own hands, but for Middlesbrough, it just looks too big a job.

Turning around a 5 goal deficit on Hull City, couple with a Newcastle defeat, is the Boro’s only hope. It’s not impossible to imagine Manchester United putting 3 past Hull, but to win 2-0 at West Ham? That’s a tough ask for most sides, but is it impossible to achieve? Come the last day, nothing would surprise me anymore. Can a team who’ve only scored 27 goals get at least 2 away from home and hope that results in two other games go their way?

Most eyes are going to be on the K>C Stadium, to see exactly which team Ferguson sends out to face Hull City. I’m annoyed by the accusations of a “weakened” Manchester United side taking the field, a side that will probably feature Neville, Ferdinand, Nani, Fletcher,Giggs and Tevez. Disgraceful isn’t it to pick such inexperienced players as those. It’s a side track issue that shouldn’t be even a discussion point; all of those players would walk into every other side outside the top 4 without question.

Newcastle need to worry about themselves at Villa Park, if they don’t win then it could possibly not matter. They have to win and hope for the best, but it’s a massive ask of a team that has only won 2 games this year. Defenders are dropping like flies, Owen isn’t fit, Andy Carroll is definitely out and a couple of youth team players may be on the bench. It all looks hopeless, yet I can’t condemn them fully, something just won’t allow me to say they’re down. It looks impossible but with all of the potential relegation sides in such poor form, it’s too close to call.

Finally, Sunderland, who have just drifted into this situation from seemingly nowhere. Keane walked out when he was rightly questioned over his signings by the majority investor, Ellis Short, over just what value for money they were getting. When someone pays £6 million for Teemu Tainio, you’ve got to ask questions haven’t you? Of all the sides at the bottom, they’ve spent the most, yet got worse so have the most to lose in my opinion, by being relegated some Sunday.

I’m going to be here all the way through on Sunday, so if you can’t get to watch any of the games, hopefully you’ll join us here on epltalk.com, and I’ll try to keep pace with events for us all. Let’s hope we’ve we have a fantastic last day and may the best teams stay up!

EDITOR’S NOTE: Join the live blog on Sunday at 10:45am ET/3:45pm BST for the Premier League finale hosted by Paul Bestall. Celebrate the final day of the relegation battle with one eye on the television set, and the other eye on your computer as you participate in the online experience with football fans from around the world.

All they needed was a win to make sure they were free of being dragged in to the final day relegation battle against a side guaranteed Premiership Football for next season but Portsmouth proved a bridge too far for Sunderland. They will now go in to Sunday’s final round of matches knowing whatever happens they have to match Newcastle United and Hull City’s results come 6pm to have any chance of survival. It sets up a tremendous day that gives us a parallel with the final day of the 2006-2007 season when Shefffield United, West Ham United or Wigan Athletic were set to be relegated depending on the results.

Thankfully as far as I’m aware we won’t be having any legal challenges after the final whistle this season but I won’t be counting my chickens just yet. Whilst we will miss anything like the titanic clash between Sheffield United and Wigan on the final day, we know now that 3 matches will have a direct effect on the Premiership relegation issues. Someone will go down to join West Bromwich and Middlesbrough, unless Middlesbrough put 4 past West Ham at Upton Park and Hull and Newcastle United lose.

The interesting thing here now is that we could face the fact that the powers that be will be now be faced with showing 3 games simultaneously as events unfold in Hull, Birmingham and Sunderland. God knows what they’ll do if Middlesbough do go 2 goals up against the Hammers.

The permutations that could effect the final day seem to be most I’ve seen since the Premiership started back in 1992 and I can’t honestly say who will stay up. I’m going to try and work out who needs what for Sunday.

So Middlesbrough will survive if Hull and Newcastle lose and they win as well as making up the 4 goals they need on Hull City.

Newcastle will stay up if they win or draw and Hull City lose.If Hull draw, they need to win.

Hull will stay up if they match Newcastle and Middlesbrough’s results, regardless of the score.

Sunderland will stay up if they match Newcastle and Hull’s result.They will be relegated if they lose or draw and Newcastle United and Hull City win.

Ok, so have we got that then? Form wise it’s hard to separate the 4 teams above West Bromich either.Based on the each of the 4 sides last ten games, it’s tough to see any of them winning on the final day, but ironically, Sunderland and Middlesbrough’s only win in the last ten was against Hull City. Newcastle’s only win in the last ten games was against Middlesbrough and Hull’s only win was away at Fulham.

• Newcastle United Last 10. W1 D3 L6 F 7 A15 7 Points
• Middlesbrough      Last 10. W1 D3 L6 F7 A19 7 Points
• Hull City                   Last 10. W1 D2 L7 F5 A13 6 Points
• Sunderland             Last 10. W1 D2 L7 F4 A 16 6 Points

Going on that form you’d have to say that it wouldn’t beyond the realms of imagination to see all 4 sides lose on the final day and stay exactly where they are. Whilst I doubt that scenario could happen, days like this are what keeps us coming back for more. I wish the fans of all 4 sides the very best of luck and may the best, or least worse side stay up.

Keep your radio’s at your ears, get the mobile phone fully juiced and make sure if you’re at the game you’ve a reliable friend sat at home who can tell you exactly what’s happening at any ground at any given time.For the rest of us lucky enough not to be involved, I just hope we have a cracking day and we’ll see exactly who will be playing Premiership football next season at 6pm Sunday.

A man under pressure

Gareth Southgate’s Middlesbrough look al but destined for the drop after a 1-1 draw against Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon. Sanli Tuncay scored their only goal, which was a sublime overhead kick. But the impotence of the Boro’ attack was apparent as they failed to convert one of the many chances they fashioned. With only two wins from their last 24 matches, a win was essential if Middlesbrough were to harbour any hopes of retaining their place in the Premier League especially after losing to relegation rivals and neighbours Newcastle.

In my opinion questions must be asked of manager Gareth Southgate. Is he good enough? Is he tactically aware? And does he have the ability to spot talent in the recession hit transfer market? And does he stunt players’ growth? Maybe it is time to replace the former England man; his tenure must surely be at an end.

This season he has made a fair number of so called ‘blunders’. In the summer a legend of the club, namely Mark Schwarzer, was allowed to leave on a free transfer. His replacement, a young inexperienced player in Ross Turnbull, whose talent may well blossom but has shown a lack of command in his penalty area which can be attributed to the lack of guidance from a more experienced ‘keeper in the dugout.

Stewart Downing’s obvious wish is not to stay with his hometown club, but to move on, to a team that can match his ambitions. Mido earlier in the season was more demanding than Mariah Carey on tour and Marlon King has been accused of sexual assault. These issues have been handled by Southgate but have they been handled well? Or can they be attributed to a club with no leadership in the dressing room?

The transfer of Alfonso Alves has been much maligned over the season and at £12 million he certainly was not a snip. His transfer fee is seen as somewhat of an extravagance, but he has scored shed loads of goals at all of his previous clubs, including Heerenveen where he bagged an incredible 45 goals in 39 appearances. His record at Middlesbrough is tame in comparison, 10 goals in 42 appearances. This only tells half the story, my complaint with Alves is his lack of cutting edge, he wastes a superhuman amount of opportunities to score. Money not so well spent.

Other acquisitions include Marvin Emnes, Didier Digard and Justin Hoyte. Digard to be fair has been a solid buy and is a decent ball winner. Hoyte is a veritable disaster in comparison. He offers little or no width going forward, whilst his defensive skills are in need of urgent attention. This brings me nicely to forgotten man Emnes, costing a princely sum of £3.2 million and has only started two games in the Premier League, this, a player who offered the Dutch U21 side tremendous width down the right, has been criminally underused. The buck stops at the manager’s office.

Not wishing to fully stick the boot in, I will commend Southgate on bringing through some exciting young talent. Adam Johnson, Matthew Bates, Anthony McMahon and David Wheater, who has become an England international under Southgate’s tutelage. These players have all blossomed this season, but they are still developing. I do like the trust placed in these players, they are the future of the club, and credit must go to Southgate.

With these young talents I believe Middlesbrough will return to the Premier League at the first time of asking, should Southgate remain in his job, I feel he needs to build the side round these talents, getting rid of the dead wood and players with a lack of interest in playing for the jersey. This though makes a rather large assumption … Southgate will be in a position to make these decisions.