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Frank Lampard promised he would be back at Chelsea as a supporter after his tenure as interim manager ends on Sunday. His side host Newcastle looking to give Lampard the first home win of his second spell in charge, and help the club’s record goalscorer sign off on a relative high after losing eight of his 10 games. The former midfielder, who won three Premier League titles and the Champions League during his 13 years as a player in west London, did not return to Stamford Bridge after he was sacked as manager in January 2021 until April of this year to witness the team’s goalless draw against Liverpool. That came two days after ex-boss Graham Potter was sacked 31 games into a five-year contract, and within days Lampard had been installed as temporary boss while the club searched for a permanent successor. The 44-year-old insisted that it was only circumstances that had kept him away – the period coincided with the Covid-19 pandemic and his 12 months spent managing Everton – and that his visit for the Liverpool game, which he watched from the box of co-owner Todd Boehly, had been planned for weeks. It was later reported that Lampard had been touted as a possible interim candidate by club officials several weeks earlier when Potter was seriously on the ropes after a run of poor results. The game against Newcastle will round off a campaign that cannot come soon enough for fans after enduring comfortably the team’s worst season in 30 years. Nevertheless, Lampard was hopeful of giving them something positive to take into the summer as he prepared to make his third exit from the club. “I don’t want this to sound corny but I don’t feel like it is a goodbye,” said Lampard. “I appreciate it, it will be end of season and end of my time back but normally when you leave a club you don’t have a hurrah as a manager. You are in one day out the next and that’s fine. “This is the corny part, I will never feel like I am saying goodbye to the fans. My career as a player and as a coach first time around and this period and it is there. “I live close enough to the stadium and I will be back at Chelsea many times and when you take on a managerial career it doesn’t mean you will be at a club you had 13 years at as a player forever. “I’m quite calm about it and not too nostalgic about it but certainly do appreciate the fans’ support on Sunday. More than anything I would love to give them a performance to take away for the summer and feel a bit more positive about for sure.” Lampard could again turn to Chelsea’s young prospects against Newcastle with a number of first-team players unavailable. Reece James, N’Golo Kante and Benoit Badiashile have all played their final game of the campaign while Lampard was doubtful whether Mason Mount will be fit to make what could be a farewell appearance at Stamford Bridge. Raheem Sterling is also a doubt after injuring a hamstring in the defeat to Manchester City. The loss of James has been a particular blow for Lampard during his brief stay, with the England defender having been the standout performer this season as the team has struggled. He was ruled out of the rest of the campaign after injuring a thigh in the Champions League home defeat to Real Madrid. “(Reece) came out (to train on Wednesday) and went back in but because he had a little bit of an awareness but we hope the scan will show there is no real damage,” said Lampard. “It was just a little reminder that it is a bit too early to be out.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Liverpool’s lack of final-day drama ‘completely new’ to boss Jurgen Klopp Ruben Selles urges Southampton to end wretched season on positive note England will keep embracing risks during Ashes despite ‘blip’ – Daryl Mitchell

Coventry City and Luton Town are one game away from the Premier League as they meet in the Championship play-off final. Each side has fought back from times of strife to leave themselves on the verge of promotion after edging out Sunderland and Middlesbrough respectively in the semi-finals. Coventry were last in the English top flight in 2001, and have endured an eventul season that included another forced relocation due to stadium conflicts at the Coventry Building Society Arena. Their opponents, meanwhile, are hoping to earn their first elevation to the Premier League, having been relegated out of the top tier in the season before it rebranded in 1992 – dropping down to non-league before rising again. Here’s everything you need to know. When is the Championship play-off final? Coventry vs Luton is due to kick off at 4.45pm BST on Saturday 27 May at Wembley Stadium in London. How can I watch it? Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event, with coverage from 4pm BST. Subscribers can stream the action via the Sky Go app. Team news Gustavo Hamer has trained with the Coventry squad this week and appears likely to be fit after his decisive semi-final role. Tyler Walker remains absent with an undisclosed injury, but Casey Palmer has made an ahead-of-schedule return to training after initially being ruled out for the remainder of the season. His recovery from a hamstring issue could still force him out of the game. Luton would appear to be in good health and could well name an unchanged side from the semi-final second leg. Predicted line-ups Coventry City XI: Wilson; McNally, McFadzean, Doyle; Norton-Cuffy, Allen, Kelly, Hamer, Bidwell; Sheaf; Gyokeres. Luton Town XI: Horvarth; Osho, Lockyer, Bell; Drameh, Clark, Nakamba, Mpanzu, Doughty; Morris, Adebayo. Odds Coventry win 2/1 Luton win 7/5 Prediction A tight play-off final could be decided in extra time. Coventry 1-2 Luton a.e.t. How much will the winners get for being promoted to the Premier League? Ahead of the 2020 Championship play-off final, Deloitte reported that the victorious club could earn anywhere between £135m and £265m, depending on whether or not they could avoid immediate relegation from the Premier League. What TV money will the winning club receive in the Premier League? Official figures for the 2020-21 season showed that broadcast revenue incredibly totalled more than £2.5bn and was distributed among the 20 clubs in the Premier League. Of that, each club was guaranteed at least £31.4m in equal share payments, £47.5m in international TV money and £5.9m in central commercial payments: a baseline of roughly £84.8m per team, regardless of position. In fact, Norwich City, who finished bottom of the league in that campaign, were handed just over £101.5m. By comparison, Championships clubs only receive around £8m in TV rights income for a season spent in the second tier. What other payments are there? On top of this, clubs are given merit payments based on where they finish in the Premier League. For the 2022/23 campaign, the sliding scale will see the champions receive roughly £44m and the bottom-placed team around £2.2m. The team finishing 17th, and just avoiding relegation, is set to receive around £8.8m, as well as staying in the top tier to cash in again next term. Read More Of course the play-off final is about money – but Coventry and Luton also represent something greater Coventry City aiming to come full circle after journey to hell and back A tiny ground and a squad costing less than a Man City sub. How are Luton one game from the Premier League? Coventry and Luton are proof the play-off final means more than just money How much is winning the Championship play-off final worth? Play-off final ‘one for the romantics’ as Coventry and Luton meet

Sam Allardyce said Leeds chairman Andrea Radrizzani was “hugely frustrated and disappointed” as the club stand on the brink of relegation. The Premier League concludes on Sunday and Leeds must beat Tottenham at Elland Road while hoping relegation rivals Everton and Leicester both drop points in their final games. Majority shareholder Radrizzani boldly declared last summer that another relegation battle was “impossible” after Leeds had survived on the final day with victory at Brentford. But the odds of pulling off another great escape are even bigger this time round and Allardyce said: “He’s hugely frustrated and disappointed. “He didn’t expect at the start of the season that the club would be in this position. “He didn’t expect he would have to employ three managers to get out of this position. He’s hugely frustrated. “The only way you sort that out is at the end of the season, have a look at the whole structure of the football club, and do whatever needs to be done. “But in the meantime the only focus is one big game, one massive game for the players and for us all in controlling the destiny of Leeds, only by winning and hoping that other people lose. “It’s not what we wanted, but it’s the position we’re in.” Radrizzani is reported to be part of a consortium poised to complete a takeover of Italian club Sampdoria, in partnership with Paris St Germain owners Qatari Sports Investments. The Italian, who turned to Allardyce with four games left in a last-ditch bid to retain Leeds’ top-flight status, is expected to expedite the sale of his remaining shares to 49ers Enterprises. The financial arm of NFL franchise the San Francisco 49ers increased its stake in the club to 44 per cent at the end of 2021 and has an option to own 100 per cent by January next year. Allardyce has taken one point from his three games in charge since becoming Leeds’ third manager of the season. Marcelo Bielsa’s successor Jesse Marsch was sacked in February and his replacement Javi Gracia lasted 11 league games before he too was dismissed. Allardyce, open to talks about staying in the role whatever Sunday’s outcome, said: “We’ll try and take advantage of the fact we’ve still got a small window of opportunity open. “On the balance of where we are, there are two completely different avenues where the club goes down. “You can pencil things in, but the only way you can put it in ink is whether you’re in the Premier League or you’re not.” Allardyce invited in Leeds great Eddie Gray, plus former captains Gordon Strachan and Gary McAllister for inspirational talks with his players this week. The former England boss added: “They had very successful times here and I think on the mentality side it’s about improving our mentality to deliver. “So somebody speaking a different voice about football, about what they did at this club, how much they love this club, I think is really important.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Liverpool’s lack of final-day drama ‘completely new’ to boss Jurgen Klopp Frank Lampard will be ‘back at Chelsea many times’ as a fan after interim role Ruben Selles urges Southampton to end wretched season on positive note

Eddie Howe has vowed to adopt a siege mentality once again as Newcastle prepare for a first Champions League campaign in 20 years. The Magpies have dragged themselves from the thick of a Premier League relegation fight when the club’s new owners took control in October 2021 to Europe’s top table in the space of a remarkable 19 months. They have done so with the help of a £250million-plus investment, provided in large part by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which holds an 80 per cent stake, and the source of that wealth has prompted concerted criticism, with human rights campaign group Amnesty International in particular voicing concerns over “sportswashing”. That focus is only likely to increase as they strengthen further before taking to the European stage, but head coach Howe has insisted his mission will not be derailed as a result. He said: “We’ve been used to that from day one, to be honest. There’s been that feeling that popularity-wise, I don’t think we’re high up on people’s lists for various reasons. “You accept that, I’ve got no issue with that and almost we’ve tried to use that for our benefit and for our gain, really. “I’ve said we’re not here to be popular, we don’t care, really, about outside opinion. We very much care about inside opinion, we care about what the people of Newcastle think of us and what our supporters think. “We’ve tried to act in the right way and make them proud, that’s been our biggest focus.” Newcastle will bring down the curtain on a season which has delivered far more than they might have expected back in August at Chelsea on Sunday, where they will face a club which has spent around £600million since Todd Boehly completed his takeover last summer, but will end the campaign in the bottom half of the table. That tends to suggest that money alone is not the key to success, and the way Howe has blended his new arrivals with the players he inherited and has since improved markedly has been equally, if not more important. Asked if he regretted the focus on finance, the 45-year-old said: “I don’t really take it personally as in my achievement because it’s not really my achievement, it’s the achievement of the players who have committed to this season and what they’ve given. That would hurt me for them. I've said many times sitting here, it's not about money. Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe “I think the players deserve huge credit individually for some of the seasons that they’ve delivered and collectively for what they’ve done. “I’ve said many times sitting here, it’s not about money. Money has played a part, it’s been a contributing factor, of course it has. “But we’ve seen teams up and down the Premier League spend similar amounts of money and not have the success and not be as consistent as we have.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Liverpool’s lack of final-day drama ‘completely new’ to boss Jurgen Klopp Frank Lampard will be ‘back at Chelsea many times’ as a fan after interim role Ruben Selles urges Southampton to end wretched season on positive note

Roberto De Zerbi insists Europa League-bound Brighton will not be in holiday mode during their Premier League finale at Aston Villa. Albion’s visit to Villa Park had been earmarked as a potentially pivotal contest in the battle for European football. But the Seagulls travel to the West Midlands relatively pressure free having already cemented sixth position following Wednesday evening’s thrilling 1-1 draw at home to champions Manchester City. Seventh-placed Villa need to win on Sunday to extinguish any prospect of Tottenham or Brentford leapfrogging them into the Europa Conference League spot. Despite the match being a dead rubber for Brighton, head coach De Zerbi is determined to maintain standards and register a 19th victory of a record-breaking campaign. “We have to respect our club, our fans, ourself in every situation,” said the Italian. “In training sessions, in friendly games, in Premier League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup, we have to play seriously, all the time. “We will prepare our best for the next game and we leave to Birmingham to win and to play in our way. “I spoke with the players, we have to arrive ready and the holiday has not started.” Villa were one of only five visiting teams to win at the Amex Stadium this term thanks to a 2-1 success in Brighton’s final game before the World Cup. That November victory came in Unai Emery’s third top-flight match in charge of the club following the sacking of Steven Gerrard. Former Arsenal boss Emery has transformed Villa’s season after arriving with his side sitting just above the relegation zone. “Aston Villa deserve to achieve Europe,” said De Zerbi. “Emery has changed the season for Aston Villa. They have big players. They have a clear style of play and it will be a tough game.”

Jurgen Klopp’s seasons at Anfield have tended to end with everything riding on the last game: Champions League qualification or winning the Champions League. Even the one that didn’t, in 2020, could culminate in a celebration, with Liverpool already champions of England for the first time in 30 years. Now comes a rare meaningless match, with Southampton certain to come bottom and Liverpool guaranteed to end up fifth, and a chance to reflect on what might have been. Last season threatened to be Liverpool’s greatest, when they closed in on a quadruple. After the false dawn of an emphatic Community Shield win over Manchester City, things soon started to go awry. “It was clear from a specific point on it would not be a historically good season,” said Klopp. Perhaps that specific point was the opening league game, and a disjointed, disappointing first hour against promoted Fulham. Or maybe their first match at Anfield, when Darwin Nunez, the flagship summer signing, was sent off on his home debut for headbutting Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen. Or possibly their third outing: a defeat at Old Trafford that kickstarted Erik ten Hag’s reign at Manchester United and to a team who ultimately pipped them to a top-four finish. For three-quarters of a season, Liverpool only mustered three away wins and did not muster three victories in a row, except when those fixtures were separated by a World Cup. Klopp nevertheless felt, and the facts supported him, that the mid-season break brought an improvement. “After the training camp during the World Cup, it was not that everything was great but the amount of points we have won since then is pretty good,” he said. “If we could have done that over the whole season, we would be in a different place.” He is right: only the Manchester clubs have more points over the last six months. However, it still went wrong over the course of Liverpool’s first 29 matches, when they dropped 43 points and were left at the risk of their lowest league finish since promotion in 1962. “I think we said everything about it, we are absolutely not happy with it,” said Klopp. “We made mistakes, we couldn’t deliver often enough and were not consistent enough.” Three particularly damning results, symptoms of that inconsistency and which could cost them Champions League football, were the defeats to Leeds, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth, all then in the relegation zone. That they lost to Forest six days after beating City and were beaten at Bournemouth six days after scoring seven against United make each missed opportunities to generate momentum. “I really think this was not a season we will talk about,” reflected Klopp. “Maybe about parts but we failed to give the people more to enjoy.” Perhaps he was doubly wrong: Liverpool’s shortcomings can always bring anguish and anxiety while, amid mediocrity, there have been genuine highs: at Anfield against both Manchester clubs, winning home and away against Newcastle, the contrasting double against Tottenham, thrashing Leeds 6-1 and Rangers 7-1 on the road, the 9-0 demolition of Bournemouth. Yet each illustrated what could have been, not what ultimately was. There were causes. A crippling injury list felt a constant, with midfield the most affected department but lengthy absences of Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota feeling particularly telling in attack. There was the already infamous decision not to buy a midfielder last summer, which was compounded by Fabinho’s awful form, Naby Keita’s seemingly never-ending injuries, Thiago Alcantara’s perhaps predictable absences and signs of ageing from Jordan Henderson. There were mix-and-match combinations from Klopp all season, casting around in search of a solution before a late-season switch to bring Trent Alexander-Arnold infield alongside Fabinho and behind Curtis Jones and Henderson worked. It reflected two enduring issues: Alexander-Arnold’s defensive deficiencies at right-back had felt more pronounced when he was afforded less protection and the 4-3-3 formation that had served Klopp so well for years brought a rethink. There were flirtations with 4-4-2 and 4-2-3-1 before a spring switch towards 3-2-4-1. Klopp has started to argue that at most clubs, the manager changes inside seven-and-a-half years; at Liverpool, the manager is belatedly changing things. Maybe the most damaging change was not of his own volition. Sadio Mane’s move to Bayern Munich has worked out for neither club nor the player. Without him, with Roberto Firmino starting only 12 league games, there has been a different dynamic in the attack. In part the story of the season has lain in the erratic, compellingly watchable Nunez; thus far, he has been an imperfect fit in different combinations and, with decidedly mixed finishing, one of the great expected goals underachievers while Liverpool have struggled to press as rigorously. Maybe it is no coincidence their surge of 22 points from their last eight games came with Nunez largely a substitute. Transition was perhaps never going to be easy for Liverpool but has been jarringly awkward at times this season. And yet that recent run engenders optimism. Liverpool may have turned a corner; they never became as fractured as some of their rivals. “The dressing room is not in a bad mood,” Klopp said. “We have learned to deal with the situation. We didn’t get divided in one moment between manager and team, which is super helpful. We didn’t point fingers at each other.” They ended up seemingly pointed further forward than he had wanted, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, James Milner, Keita and Firmino all going, when Klopp had wanted to keep two of them. There will be Europa League football at Anfield next season, perhaps further sightings of Alexander-Arnold in midfield. But as the German’s worst year in England comes to an anticlimactic conclusion, it is with the last few weeks offering renewed hope it will be a one-off. Read More Jurgen Klopp: ‘If a player wants to leave Liverpool because of Champions League, I will drive them’ Mohamed Salah ‘devastated’ as Liverpool fail to qualify for Champions League Jurgen Klopp has ‘no worries’ over Mohamed Salah’s future at Liverpool Jurgen Klopp: ‘If a player wants to leave Liverpool, I will drive them’ Jurgen Klopp reacts to Mohammed Salah’s ‘no excuse’ tweet

Valencia have had their partial stadium closure reduced to three matches and their fine cut to 27,000 euros following the racist abuse of Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior by fans. The Spanish Football Federation appeals committee said that it had decided to “partially uphold” Valencia’s appeal. It means the partial closure of the Mestalla Stadium has come down from five matches, with an initial 45,000 euros (£39,000) punishment reduced by 18,000 euros. Vinicius threatened to leave the pitch in the second half of Real Madrid’s LaLiga match against Valencia on Sunday after being subjected to alleged monkey chants from the crowd and Madrid, who said the abuse constituted a “hate crime”, filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office. Valencia had 10 working days to file an appeal to the appeals committee. LaLiga players and officials called for racism to be tackled in Spain in the wake of Sunday’s match. Before Tuesday night’s games between Real Valladolid and Barcelona, and Celta Vigo and Girona, players from both sides, as well as the match officials, stood behind banners which read “Racism, out of football”. Vinicius was set to serve a two or three-match ban after being sent off at Valencia, but Spain’s competition committee – a body formed by one member from LaLiga, one from the Spanish Sports Council (CSD) and one from RFEF (Spanish FA) – has rescinded that red card. LaLiga, meanwhile, said it would request greater jurisdiction to punish clubs whose fans were guilty of racist abuse after feeling “powerless” at the lack of current sanctions in the wake of the latest Vinicius incident. According to the country’s law, LaLiga can currently only identify and report incidents, and punishment is rarely handed out. Four people were arrested in Spain on Tuesday under suspicion of hanging an effigy of Vinicius off a bridge in January. An inflatable doll dressed in a Vinicius shirt was hung from the railings with a banner that read ‘Madrid hates Real Madrid’ ahead of Real’s Copa del Rey game with city rivals Atletico at the start of the year. And Spanish police confirmed on Tuesday that four suspects had been apprehended. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Kris Doolan vows free-scoring Partick will attack Premiership play-off final Jurgen Klopp has ‘no worries’ over Mohamed Salah’s future at Liverpool Granit Xhaka ‘crucial’ part of surprise Arsenal title challenge – Mikel Arteta

Ryan Mason insists Tottenham are still a “big club” and an attractive proposition for managers despite the ongoing search for a new head coach. Spurs saw another contender to permanently replace Antonio Conte exit the running this week after Feyenoord boss Arne Slot committed his long-term future to the Eredivisie club before he signed a new deal on Friday. Tottenham held an interest in Slot but the PA news agency understands no direct discussions with the 44-year-old took place. Mason is under no illusions the top job at Spurs remains desirable. “It is Tottenham Hotspur, it is a big club. Not just for managers or coaches, but for staff members, for players,” Spurs’ acting head coach said before Sunday’s trip to Leeds. “Anyone here should feel the privilege and honour to represent the badge. If they don’t, then they shouldn’t be here. It is as simple as that. “Maybe these people (like Slot) you might be mentioning, I don’t know who because I’ve not been looking at the press, but if their name is out there, they are not exactly moving themselves away from it. They know it is a big club. “They know if Tottenham and their name is being linked, it is a massive positive for them. “It is a big club, we know it is. Every manager and every coach knows it is a big club, players do, fans do. “You can really feel it when you are here, when you are in our stadium. This will stay a big club and will be attractive for whoever is in charge next season. “I am sure players as well will want to come here. When Conte left his position on March 26 Tottenham were firmly in the race for Champions League qualification, but they travel to relegation-threatened Leeds on Sunday with only a faint chance of securing a place in the Europa Conference League. Mason insisted that, while European football for next season is crucial, the most important task for the club is to put a plan in place. “Obviously it has its implications and it’s not where the football club wants to be. We definitely want to be competing in Europe,” the 31-year-old stated. “Any European competition is important for a club this size but at the same time the most important thing, regardless of whether we’re in or out of Europe, is that there is a plan and there is commitment from everyone to that going forward.” During the last few weeks, Mason has repeatedly referenced the need for commitment at the club without going into specifics. Even before Conte departed two months ago, the future of the Italian was uncertain with his deal set to expire this summer anyway. Mason again refused to be drawn on whether any coaches, players or members of staff had lacked commitment this season, but admitted the squad had been affected by the turmoil off the pitch. He added: “The results before he (Conte) left weren’t amazing. I don’t think results have dipped a huge amount. “Obviously we were in a different position but I think you could feel it, you could feel it the weeks leading up to it there was uncertainty and it’s never great to have that uncertainty. “We’ve probably been in that situation for the last eight weeks where there’s been a lot of uncertainty. “That is why one of my main things when me and my team of people came in, I wanted to create a togetherness and make us feel part of something towards the end of the season.”

Julen Lopetegui admits the uncertainly surrounding his future cannot be allowed to drag on. The former Real Madrid manager’s long-term future at Molineux has been in the spotlight. Financial fair play regulations will impact the club’s spending power this summer and Lopetegui has previously said he only discovered the constraints last week. He has been calling for investment since securing Premier League safety and the manager will continue to speak to chairman Jeff Shi about what backing he will receive – but knows there needs to be a quick resolution. He said: “I hope – we will see. “I want to solve the problems. Maybe me or the club aren’t able to solve them 100 per cent, but I think we have to try, for our fans, for our club, for our history and for our future. “If we want to be demanding in the future we have to demand now with ourselves and with this summer. “I have a contract and I’ve been here for six months. I’m very happy here and I hope I can continue being happy here. “But we have a problem and we must be honest and look each other in the eyes to try to solve the problems. “Maybe not 100 per cent, but maybe 80 per cent, who knows? “This is all. About my future, I have a contract and we will see what is going to happen, This is football, we don’t know. “We have to talk, it’s not about one or two days. We have to talk about the solution and the future to be able to have a squad ready to compete again. “This year has been a wake-up call. We have to learn why it has happened and to overcome and make our homework this summer. It’s not about one or two days. We need a clear picture. “It’s important to have the squad ready. Maybe not 100 per cent of players but maybe 90 per cent. For me it’s very important, to have the squad ready to start working with us on July 1.” Wolves to go Arsenal for Sunday’s Premier League finale and Joao Moutinho will not feature and is likely to have played his last game for the club as he is out of contract in the summer. Sasa Kalajdzic (knee) is out while Lopetegui himself is banned from the touchline for collecting four yellow cards. He added: “On Sunday we have an important match because it’s the last of the season. They have been very close to winning the Premier League and will want to make a good match in front of their fans. We have to be ready to compete with them.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp does not believe Mohamed Salah will be looking for an escape route in search of Champions League football. Writing on social media after Manchester United’s win over Chelsea on Thursday consigned Liverpool to the Europa League next season, the Egypt forward said he was “devastated” and there was “absolutely no excuse” for not finishing in the Premier League’s top four. Last summer the 30-year-old signed a new contract, making him the highest-paid player in the club’s history, but even if next term goes to plan and they regain their place in the Champions League he will be close to entering the final 12 months of that deal. Asked whether he was concerned about Salah’s immediate future after his rare public statement, Klopp said: “No worries, no. I only heard what he said but I couldn’t read anything that could lead in that direction. “Obviously Mo loves being here and Mo was part of it. He said apologies for what ‘we’ did – not apologies for ‘what the other guys did, but I had to go with them’. It is all fine. “If ever a player would come to me and said, ‘oh, we didn’t qualify for the Champions League, I have to leave’, I would drive him to the other club myself. “I would take the key, (and say) ‘come in the car, where do you want to go, I drive you’. “That would be something I never could understand. It is, I would say, ‘oh, we didn’t qualify for the Champions League, I need to work in the Champions League so I go’.” Klopp said if that was a mentality he accepted he too would be looking to leave. “I am responsible for this mess, or whatever, so you cannot go in these moments,” he added. “It is not the case with Mo, not at all, and nobody else told me. They ask if they can have a longer holiday or whatever – but nobody asks me if after the holiday they have to come back. “So that was not in our conversation. “I saw him now in the canteen and he was smiling. I don’t know for which reason as I didn’t ask him, but he is not in a bad mood. That’s it. “We didn’t point fingers at each other. That’s all good. If you don’t qualify for the Champions League, the best place you can possibly end up is fifth, so that’s what we did. We didn't deliver what everybody wanted or expected but we are still really united, that's the good thing about it Jurgen Klopp “If you’d have asked me 10 games ago if that was possible, I’d have said no. That the boys did that is really good but it’s not perfect. “We didn’t end up fifth because of the last 10 games, we ended up there because of the lack of consistency before that. “We didn’t deliver what everybody wanted or expected but we are still really united, that’s the good thing about it.” Failure to qualify for the Champions League is set to cost Liverpool at least £50million next season but there may be implications in the shorter term as UEFA’s second-tier competition is likely to be less attractive to leading players. The club have already pulled out of the running for primary target Jude Bellingham after the asking price for the Borussia Dortmund midfielder became prohibitive, and reports this week suggested Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount’s preferred destination is Manchester United. Klopp is keen to get his business done early and is hopeful finishing fifth will not put a spanner in the works of their planning. “I don’t think so but we will see. That is obviously possible, it’s always possible things don’t go as quick as you want. It’s not only possible, it is probably likely,” he added ahead of Sunday’s final match of the season at Southampton. “The better the players you want the lesser is the desire of the other club to let him go and that’s exactly what we are prepared for. “But it’s a long window and a long pre-season and a long break in-between so we have time. If we get in players tomorrow or in six or seven weeks it is not a game-changer for me to be honest. “In an ideal world they all sign tomorrow and I can tell them when to be here and we can start giving them the plans for the summer break but that will not likely happen.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Granit Xhaka ‘crucial’ part of surprise Arsenal title challenge – Mikel Arteta Michael O’Neill to put faith in youth as injuries pile up for Northern Ireland Tottenham is a big club – Ryan Mason sure Spurs job still attractive proposition

Partick Thistle manager Kris Doolan declared they would attack the cinch Premiership play-off final with the same mentality that has seen them score 16 goals in four games. The Jags set up a two-legged final against Kilmarnock or Ross County with a 5-0 semi-final second-leg victory over 10-man Ayr at Somerset Park. Looking ahead to next Thursday’s first leg, Doolan said: “They are Premiership sides for a reason but we have a one-track mentality, we want to go up. “We haven’t limped into the play-offs, we have not sat back and absorbed pressure, we have been the team in the ascendancy. That won’t change in the final.” A double from Scott Tiffoney and goals from Jack McMillan, Steven Lawless and Kevin Holt completed an 8-0 aggregate victory. Doolan said: “It’s a statement of what we’re capable of. To score five goals in a play-off game under the pressure that comes was brilliant to watch. “We’ve got stronger as these games have gone on and we spoke about that. “I’ve been on the other side of it as a Premiership side when you’re used to losing games and you come up against a Championship side who are used to winning. We’ve built a winning environment here. “We will rest up and be ready for the next challenge ahead and come into it confident.” Ayr’s top goalscorer Dipo Akinyemi was sent off in the 25th minute after lashing out at Aaron Muirhead and appearing to catch the defender’s chin with his forearm. “I’ve not seen it so I am being careful not to comment on it but I felt there was a foul on him prior to that and he has reacted,” said Ayr manager Lee Bullen, who bemoaned defensive errors over the two legs. “But you can’t react and you can’t lift your hands. By the letter of the law he probably does go but if he gets the foul in the first place he maybe doesn’t raise his hands.” Meanwhile, Bullen was in the dark over rumours that Dundee had approached Ayr for permission to speak to him over their vacant managerial position. “I have not heard a dickie bird,” he said. “Nothing at all, absolutely nothing at all. I have got a job to do at Ayr, we are still in the early parts of that, building a story at Ayr United and I have genuinely not heard a thing from Dundee at all.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Jurgen Klopp has ‘no worries’ over Mohamed Salah’s future at Liverpool Granit Xhaka ‘crucial’ part of surprise Arsenal title challenge – Mikel Arteta Michael O’Neill to put faith in youth as injuries pile up for Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill will be leaning on young players again for next month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers with injuries continuing to limit his options. O’Neill is yet to confirm a date to name his squad for the qualifiers away to Denmark and at home to Kazakhstan in mid-June, but he has already ruled seven senior players out of contention due to long-term injuries. Steven Davis, Stuart Dallas, Corry Evans, Liam Boyce, Josh Magennis, Conor Washington and Shane Ferguson will play no part in the matches, which has meant O’Neill has had his eye on potential call-ups while leading an under-21 training camp in Belfast this week. O’Neill is due to hold two training camps in England between now and the qualifiers, trying to keep players whose seasons have already finished fit during the intervening period, and some of the under-21s will be involved. “This is where this is really important to us,” O’Neill said. “We will use some of these players in the next weeks and this gives them some exposure to the senior squad. “We know Steven and Stuart are still injured, Corry and Liam Boyce are still not back playing any first-team football, Josh Magennis will be out, Conor Washington is out and Shane Ferguson has had groin surgery, so that’s seven players that’s missing. “It is going to challenge us. We had younger players in the squad for March and we will have younger players again next month.” Dallas has been out all season following a double leg-break, meaning the versatile player has been unable to help Leeds in their fight against relegation. With Jonny Evans’ Leicester also under threat going into the final day of the top-flight season on Sunday, Northern Ireland could potentially be left without any Premier League regulars next season. However, O’Neill said that would not necessarily have a major impact on the national team. “I realise that as the Premier League continues to go in the direction it goes that we will always have a limited number of players playing in the Premier League,” he said. “Probably when I came into the job in 2012 we had most of our players playing there, maybe six or seven at that point in time, but it was also a time when the international team was not doing particularly well. “The most important thing is that players are playing regularly. Going forward we will predominantly be made up of Championship and League One players, hopefully some Premier League players as well, that’s just something we have to accept. “It’s very difficult for some of the younger lads who are at Premier League clubs to find that pathway to break in. In the Premier League there is no patience, managers can’t afford it. You can lose your job – and you see the number of changes in the Premier League and Championship this season. “I would love to be going to Premier League matches every week but I’m not. I’m going to Championship, League One, League Two, Scottish Premiership and under-21 games in England. I’m going to see Isaac Price and Shea Charles playing under-21 games. “That’s where we are with the resources we have.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Tottenham is a big club – Ryan Mason sure Spurs job still attractive proposition Julen Lopetegui wants to ‘solve the problem’ amid doubts over his Wolves future Don’t be overawed by Wembley, says Liam Kelly as Coventry aim for Premier League