Manchester United secured qualification for next season's Champions League with a 4-1 victory against wasteful Chelsea.

Manchester United secured qualification for next season's Champions League as Erik ten Hag's men roared to a comprehensive 4-1 victory against wasteful Chelsea.
The Dutchman has led the Red Devils to Carabao Cup glory and next month's FA Cup final during a promising first season that looked certain to end in a top-four finish until a recent wobble.
But Ten Hag has righted the ship and United secured a return to European football's top table with a game to spare as Casemiro, Anthony Martial, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford scored against toothless Chelsea.
This was a club record 16th defeat in a 38-match Premier League season for Frank Lampard's Blues, who saw a bad early Mykhailo Mudryk miss punished by a sixth minute Casemiro header.
Further Chelsea chances went begging across the evening, including the miss by Conor Gallagher in first half stoppage time that was followed by Martial scoring.
Bruno Fernandes' penalty and substitute Marcus Rashford's goal – his 30th of the season in all competitions – wrapped up a victory that was only dampened by Antony's exit on a stretcher and a late Joao Felix consolation.
Ten Hag stuck with the side that beat Bournemouth and took an early lead when Christian Eriksen sent over a free-kick from the left and Casemiro rose high to power a header past statuesque Kepa Arrizabalaga.
The Brazil international punched the air after the goal was given the green light by the VAR after checking for offside.
Things could have been so different had Mudryk – one of Chelsea's three changes– displayed a modicum of composure two minutes earlier.
With Aaron Wan-Bissaka drawn inside and Antony failing to track Lewis Hall's run, the winger somehow turned wide after the promising left-back put it on a plate for him.
Play swung from end-to-end and United had a glorious chance to double their advantage when Eriksen put three team-mates through against one defender.
Fernandes' smart run opened a lane for Antony to play in Martial, but the dithering forward was caught by Cesar Azpilicueta.
It proved Antony's last impact of note as soon the winger left the field on a stretcher having pulled up in agony during an innocuous-looking coming together.
Rashford replaced him and when play resumed Chelsea were again ruing another wasted chance, with Kai Havertz heading a Hall cross wide.
Fernandes saw penalty claims against Wesley Fofana overlooked and Gallagher bent wide as a helter-skelter half headed towards a conclusion.
The Chelsea midfielder would go closer still in stoppage time. Put behind by Enzo Fernandez's fine pass, Gallagher dragged across the face of goal.
It proved another costly miss as Casemiro played an exceptional pass through to Jadon Sancho, who delivered a low ball for Martial to turn in at the back post.
That gut punch was nearly followed by another blow with moments of the second half getting under way.
United, who replaced Luke Shaw with Tyrell Malacia, won the ball through Victor Lindelof and Sancho teed up Fernandes to crash a strike off the woodwork.
Like the first half, this was an entertaining back and forth.
De Gea stretched to tip a deflected Mudryk shot behind before the slightest deflection meant Eriksen could not tap in a low Malacia cross. Kepa got back to claw off the line and Casemiro curled the follow-up just wide.
Hall was denied by De Gea, as was Mudryk's deflected follow-up, and Chelsea saw penalty claims ignored as they looked to reduce the deficit.
But hope of a comeback was ended once and for all in the 73rd minute.
Fofana caught Fernandes with a lazy recovery challenge after being nutmegged by the Portuguese, who stepped up to coolly to convert in front of the Stretford End.
Rashford bent wide as United pushed for a fourth, which he would get in the 79th minute.
Fernandes cut out a lax Fofana pass and teed up the returning forward to put into an empty net after Kepa's first save only slowed the ball.
Alejandro Garnacho hit the bar and was denied by Kepa either side of a fine Chelsea consolation, with Felix running through the centre and ending a fine solo run with a thumping drive.

Manchester United thump Chelsea to secure Champions League football

Mauricio Pochettino has been appointed Chelsea manager on a two-year deal.

Mauricio Pochettino has been appointed Chelsea manager on a two-year deal.The former Tottenham coach, who has been out of work since leaving Paris St Germain last year, will take over from interim boss Frank Lampard – who oversaw his final game in charge against Newcastle in the Premier League on Sunday.It brings to an end an almost two-month process to find a permanent successor to Graham Potter, who was sacked on April 2.Pochettino had been the club's first choice from early in the search, which was led by co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart.He was the only candidate the club got into serious talks with, despite conversations that took place with former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann, ex-Spain coach Luis Enrique and Burnley's Vincent Kompany.It is understood that, contrary to reports that Pochettino had sought reassurances about the running of the club behind the scenes, he has been satisfied from early in the process that he could work within Chelsea's sporting structure.Stewart and Winstanley said in a statement: "Mauricio's experience, standards of excellence, leadership qualities and character will serve Chelsea Football Club well as we move forward."He is a winning coach, who has worked at the highest levels, in multiple leagues and languages. His ethos, tactical approach and commitment to development all made him the exceptional candidate."The new manager, whose contract includes an option for a third season, will work closely with the co-sporting directors as the club look to rebuild after their worst season in 30 years.Since Potter was removed and Lampard handed the reigns, Chelsea have lost eight of their 11 games, winning only once.They were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid at the quarter-final stage, and a 12th-place finish – their lowest since 1996 – means they will not play in Europe next season.Lampard said on Sunday that working with a bloated squad of 34 first-team players was the most challenging thing he faced at Stamford Bridge.One of Pochettino's first tasks will be deciding who of that number are part of his plans and who can leave, with the club under pressure to sell players in order to satisfy Financial Fair Play rules after spending around £600million on transfers in the last 12 months.

Mauricio Pochettino appointed new Chelsea manager

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta wants his charges to prove they have become one of the Premier League's real title challengers.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta wants his charges to prove they have become one of the Premier League's real title challengers.
The Gunners ended a campaign of obvious progress with a 5-0 thrashing of Wolves on the final day, which meant they finished only five points behind champions Manchester City.
Arsenal had been top of the Premier League for 248 days before a run of two wins in eight fixtures during the closing weeks of the season saw their title quest end on the penultimate weekend.
Finishing as runners-up behind City means Champions League football will return to the Emirates for the first time since 2017 and, while Arteta was delighted to achieve their initial goal this season, he is well aware of the work required to kick on this summer.
"We wanted to bring the club back to the Champions League, that was the main target," he said.
"That was obviously a big demand in the summer before we did certain things and before we managed to keep some of our players.
"Then the journey started and day by day, you start to have a feeling that the team is moving in the right direction and the energy and spirit is really good. Then you start to generate some belief.
"We didn't expect to finish where we are. I think it's the third best record in the club, with the history of the club, the most wins ever.
"It's a lot but it's still not enough to win it. We understand where the level is. If we want to be the real deal, we can't be happy with what we have, and we have to be next season much better.
"I think we have some great foundations, that is true but in sport you have to prove it again.
"You have to be back in the first day of pre-season and look at each other and I don't want to see any complacency or, ‘we've done really well and its OK'.
"We are going to have to be much better. It will be a challenging season but a season with plenty of opportunities and one of those opportunities is to be consistent, to do it again and be better. This is what we have to demand from each other."
Gabriel Jesus was on target against Wolves with Bukayo Saka, Jakub Kiwior and Granit Xhaka also scoring, the latter netting twice in what is expected to be his final appearance for Arsenal.
Jesus' second-half header ensured he finished his debut campaign for the Gunners with 11 goals and he is excited about the direction the club are heading.
He told the official club website: "It was good. Unfortunately, we didn't win a trophy which was our target, but I think we had a good season, very good.
"We are building a good atmosphere from inside and outside, the fans coming with us always supporting, pushing us.
"I am so excited (for next season). I was a little bit unlucky about my injury, I missed a big part of the season but my mentality has always been my fitness and then to help my team, so next my main target is to be fit all season and help my team."
There remains a large degree of uncertainty for Wolves ahead of next season with boss Julen Lopetegui revealing Joao Moutinho, Adama Traore and Diego Costa could leave on free transfers due to the club's financial problems.
"This is a problem. You have players that you want to re-sign but you can't because it is like a new signing in the financial terms," the Spaniard explained.
"I am not a financial adviser, I am a coach. We will see.
"I know the sporting directors, they have to work very, very hard these five months and they have different targets for the squad but to execute any target, you need to know how much money you have. If not, it is impossible."

Mikel Arteta: Arsenal must use this season as a launch pad

USM Alger beat Tanzanian club Young Africans (Yanga) 2-1 in the first leg of the Confederation Cup final at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium.

USM Alger beat Tanzanian club Young Africans (Yanga) 2-1 in the first leg of the Confederation Cup final at Benjamin Mkapa Stadium.
The victory gave the Algerian side an advantage heading into the return leg at home.
Yanga began the match energetically with strong support from their fans, but USM Alger gradually took control.
In the 32nd minute, Alger broke the deadlock with a superb header from Mahious.
Despite falling behind, Yanga remained determined and pushed forward in search of an equaliser. However, they couldn't convert their clear chances as Alger's defense held firm.
The first half ended with Alger leading 1-0. In the second half, Yanga started with renewed motivation but struggled to break through Alger's defense.
Alger, on the other hand, created scoring opportunities but failed to capitalise.
In the 82nd minute, Yanga managed to level the score through Fiston Mayele, giving hope to their fans.
However, just a minute later, Alger regained the lead, dampening Yanga's spirits. Alger successfully held on to their advantage, executing their game plan effectively.

Confederation Cup final: USM Alger take advantage into second leg 

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp does not feel he needs a break from Premier League management after a difficult season.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp does not feel he needs a break from Premier League management after a difficult season.
The Reds missed out on Champions League qualification after finishing outside the top four for the first time in a full season under the German.
Sunday's thrilling 4-4 draw at relegated Southampton stretched Liverpool's unbeaten top-flight run to 11 games but the late resurgence was not enough to make up for earlier poor results.
Klopp, the division's longest-serving manager, maintains he is "full of energy" and ready to revive the club's fortunes going into the summer.
Asked if he needs time off, the Reds boss replied: "No, no, no, not at all. Honestly, I'm completely fine.
"If you'd asked me 11 games ago, 'do you want to have a break?', I would have thought about it, to be honest.
"But I'm absolutely fine, full of energy.
"I have a break - I don't have training and these kind of things. But a really busy period hopefully starts now in a different area of the game. I'm more than happy to do that.
"I will find time to reenergise and then we start again in July."
Liverpool's fifth-placed finish was their lowest since they finished eighth in 2015-16 - the season during which Klopp replaced Brendan Rodgers at Anfield.
The Reds looked destined to sign off this term in style following early strikes from Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino at St Mary's.
But quick-fire second-half finishes from substitute Cody Gakpo and Jota were required to avoid a major shock after Kamaldeen Sulemana's double and goals from James Ward-Prowse and Adam Armstrong turned a chaotic contest in Southampton's favour.
Klopp believes his club has stuck together during some difficult moments and is determined that they regain a fear factor for rival sides.
"There is not a lot to learn (from the season) but a lot of clubs when the expectations are as high as ours when things don't go well pretty quickly you start blaming each other," he said. "That didn't happen here.
"The better you behave in a crisis, the better you get out of it - and I really thought that was the case for us.
"We're really, really not happy about it and for a club like us it's massive not to qualify for the Champions League.
"If we improve, we are all of a sudden again a team nobody wants to play against and that's what we have to become again.
"There were a lot of games in the season where I think teams were happy to face us. That's actually the worst thing that can happen to you and I hated these moments. But that's over and now let's start again."
Southampton are preparing for life in the Sky Bet Championship following an exhilarating end to a dismal season.
Saints manager Ruben Selles, who will leave the club and is likely be replaced by Swansea boss Russell Martin, conducted a performance review ahead of his departure.
"We discussed the points we can do better, the points we need to hold," said the Spaniard.
"We needed to end in a professional way and that's not a discussion because it's not about us as a technical staff, it's about Southampton and the information we can pass to the future people working here is key in not repeating the same mistakes.
"If they find themselves in the same situations that we did, at least they have this footage and experience of what we did.
"We did our review as a technical staff together. We got some conclusions for us and somebody will present it in the proper place to present it.
"It's not for us to decide for the future but it is for us to say what we think can be different next season."