Issue 1 - Straight Into It

No mission statement, no fluff. Just straight into action.

Is the end of the season the best time to launch a football newsletter? Perhaps not, but I have never been one to do things the sensible way.

The Premier League Review (Positions 11-20)

Southampton

At least they are not the worst Premier League team of all-time. The only solace that the outfit near the Solent can take from a disaster of a campaign.

One that saw Russell Martin offering Ange Postecoglou lessons in tactial inflexibility and the same campaign that saw Ivan Juric take the first taxi out of St Mary’s as soon as the Saints’ relegation to the Championship was confirmed.

However, the appointment of Will Still seems to be an interesting one and if he can work his magic in England’s second tier, then another quickfire return to the Premier League could be on the horizon for Southampton.

Ipswich

Ipswich’s positive momentum finally came to a screeching halt in this season’s edition of the Premier League but with successive promotions being recorded beforehand, there is the need to zoom out and look at the bigger picture.

A picture that sees Kieran McKenna still in his post and the Tractor Boys getting a commendable mention fot their efforts in the division. Two more wins than Southampton and 10 additional points means reasons to be cheerful even with the drop long since consigned.

With Ipswich unlikely to keep Liam Delap over the summer months, how they re-invest funds and keep hold of as many other key names as possible, will be integral to any promotion bid that begins in August.

Leicester

Of the three names that secured promotion from the Championship at the end of the 2023/24 season, there was a sense that Leicester had the capability to keep their heads above water.

Capabilities that seemingly disappeared by the time Steve Cooper was relieved of his duties and although hindsight is a wonderful thing, was the installation of Ruud van Nistelrooy really a shrewd move?

Van Nistelrooy oversees relegation, Jamie Vardy calls time on his incredible stint at the King Power and the Foxes are now in the crosshairs of the EFL with a potential points deduction looming. 2016 suddenly seems a very long-time ago.

Tottenham

Ange Postecoglou takes the debate of “Would you rather finish 4th or 17th and win a trophy?” to its absolute end point. A bizarre season to put it mildly and one that sees Spurs somehow end their 17-year trophy drought.

Whether this “high point” is the time where Ange falls on his sword remains to be seen. Personally, I think he should go because 22 Premier League defeats is an awful return but how can you sack a big cuddly bear that has just go you back in the Champions League?

As always, the future of the club lies in Daniel Levy's hands. Not only becuase of the decision he may or may not make in the next few days but also the decisions he makes in terms of player recruitment. Once again, it shouldn’t be a boring summer in N17.

Wolves

Although Vitor Pereira only picked up one point from the last 12 on offer, the Molineux men were definitely on the beach in the final month of the season - or should that be in Wetherspoons?

The current Wolves boss has certainly found affinity with Tim Martin’s chain of boozers and although his choice of pint is questionable (Who on Earth actually drink Ruddles?), his tactics are not.

A run of six successive league wins meant end of term certainly came early for Wolves and with the new manager bounce boosting the club clear of safety, it will be interesting to see how the build on this at the start of next season.

Manchester United

If you use Tottenham’s season as the measure of disappointing campaigns, Manchester United’s offering will have almost broken the scale. FA Cup winners 12 months ago under Erik ten Hag, the Dutchman not making it a further six months at the helm.

The former Ajax boss who is now the former United boss and his successor Ruben Amorim will have a lot of work to do if he is not to soon be spoken about in the past tense.

Among a backdrop of penny pinching, Amorim’s transfer cloth will have to be cut accordingly and with Rasmus Hjolund and Joshua Zirkzee being added to the long lost of striking flops, a move for Sporting’s Viktor Gyokeres (a player Amorim knows very well) looks unlikely.

West Ham

Is the grass greener on the other side at the London Stadium? Is the grass ever green at the London Stadium? That is what you have to ask yourselves as the West Ham board have made not one but two managerial switches since the departure of David Moyes.

Julen Lopetegui was the man trusted with the immeadiate key to E20 and after being backed handsomely in the summer window, a large portion of the football fraternity assumed the Hammers would be the ‘surprise act’ of the season.

The only surprise was how long Lopetegui lasted and with Graham Potter bringing himself out of the managerial wilderness, his string of dead rubber fixtures in the second half of the campaign will at least afforded him the luxury of what he still needs and what needs to go over the next few months.

Everton

The grass may not be greener at the London Stadium but once again David Moyes is laughing in the face of the adage “you should never go back in management”. Already pointing to a more successful second spell at West Ham, he now has Everton fans smiling again.

Of course, the former Manchester United, Sunderland and Real Sociedad boss has not taken Everton back to the heights of a top-four finish recorded 20 years ago but there is reason to be cheerful on the blue half of Merseyside.

A new stadium awaits (no sniggering about the name please) as the old girl of Goodison Park gets handed over to their Womens’ team (PSR loophole in 24 months anyone?) but its a familiar face who gets to lead the Toffees out of their previous sticky situation.

Crystal Palace

The team of the season? They are certainly in with a shout and although 12th in the Premier League will not necessarily get pulses racing in SE25, Crystal Palace’s recent FA Cup success at Wembley certainly will.

Oliver Glasner’s WWE-style promo to Pep Guardiola after Palace’s 5-2 defeat at the Etihad was almost a sign of manifestation as the Austrian and his players did exactly what the Europa League winner with Eintracht Frankfurt said they would do if they faced City again.

A first major trophy, a first dalliance with Europe on the horizon and although the outlook does look very positive in South London, there are potential pitfalls. Boardroom struggles, key names being desired and who knows, European football may even stretch this squad too far to the point where they are relegated at the end of next season.

Fulham

Fulham are one of four clubs were you could almost write the same review and just change the names of the main characters. An 11th-place finish that could have been eighth with less inconsistency, failure to finish in the top half brining slight disappointment to Marco Silva.

However, there have certainly been some high points in Fulham’s season - none more so than the home win over champions elect Liverpool but any team that finds parity in terms of goals scored and conceded across the season, is always consigned to midtable.

54 goals at the right end, 54 at the wrong end. On their day the Cottagers can be a handful, as Arne Slot’s men would have learned but it was their defeat to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup last eight that arguably rankles the most. At least one trip to Wembley would have been fair reward for their efforts across the season.

Goodbye Gary

After his tribute on Sunday’s edition of Match of the Day, there is no point trying to attempt to beat the send off that Gary Lineker was given after his quarter-decade stint as host of the iconic football show.

However, it would be remiss not to say a few words for a man who has been football coverage with the BBC for such a long time and the man who has undoubtedly been the glue of the show for more than two decades.

Although Lineker’s BBC departure was somewhat clumsy - for two reasons a) that social media post but also b) being given another year just to do the FA and World Cup, there is no doubt that he was still highly respected by those at the Beeb and the wider media industry.

For a player to make such a transition from pitch to camera is not unique but the likes of his high-profile at the time to his high-profile status now is one that is unlikely to be repeated soon if at all.

No longer do world-class players need to think about what they are doing in retirement, now they are set for life before they have even reached their mid-20s and therefore, a stint behind the camera is not the natural evolution it once was.

While it is also fair to say that Lineker evolved with Match of the Day - even if the format stayed the same. Far more relaxed as a presenter in his last decade the helm, the dress going from suit to smart casual and the wordplay allowed to flow freely.

From Hansen and Lawrenson to Shearer and Richards, Lineker’s ability to draw insight (and it was like getting blood out of a stone with the former duo) was certainly one of his strengths and although the trio of Cates, Chapman and Logan are capable of doing the same, they will have incredibly big shoes to fill.

The appointment of a trio of presenters is wise in that there is no direct successor to Lineker and as long as there are not huge tweaks to the Match of the Day format, life will go on from August without much looking back.

Will Lineker end up at another rival broadcaster for the 2026 World Cup? We will have to wait and see.

Admin

Right, that’s the end of issue 1. Big thanks to those who subscribed before a word was even written. The next favour is to get one friend to subscribe as well.

Also, feedback is certainly going to help drive this forward. If you want to take the time to tell me what you liked, what you didn’t like and/or what you want to see.

My email for correspondence is

[email protected]

Issue 2 will be out on Friday May 30th

Thanks for reading

Dan