It's a right royal rumble at bottom of the Championship

The Guardian

29-04-2025

While the last of this season's three Premier League relegation spots was confirmed the moment referee John Brooks blew his whistle to signal the end of the Championship playoff final between Leeds and Southampton 11 months ago, the late scramble to avoid the bottom three in the second tier has been thrilling by comparison. It couldn't not be, given that five of the six teams battling to stay out of the two remaining places in the drop zone at stumps on Saturday have each notched up more than the 10 victories Southampton, Leicester and Ipswich have managed between them.
Cardiff are already gone. The Welsh club's Hail Mary decision to sack their manager with three games to go and hope that former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey's vibes would keep them up has failed to pay off. Despite masterminding back-to-back draws in his first two games in charge, the famous Ramsey Curse has struck again and even a win at Norwich, who installed perma-knacked former Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere as interim boss around the same time, won't be enough to keep the Bluebirds from dropping into League One next season. 'I'm gutted,' sniffed Ramsey, when City's relegation was confirmed at the weekend. 'I'm a fan as well. I'm sad to see this club going down. The fans have had a difficult time this season and I really feel for them. I know how they're feeling.'
Plymouth Argyle should join Cardiff in the third tier next season, although they could still survive if they beat Leeds, the best team in the division, by up to 14 clear goals in their final game and several results elsewhere go their way. Effectively consigned to the drop by Matt Bloomfield's Luton's last-gasp win over Coventry last weekend, the Pilgrims have made a decent fist of survival under Miron Muslic, who replaced Wayne Rooney following a predictably disastrous spell in charge that yielded just 21 points from 69 available. 'I truly believe if I [had been] here with my staff from day one, we will be nowhere near where we are right now,' sighed Muslic recently, aiming his flamethrower of truth in the direction of the former England striker.
While the Pilgrims' progress to the division below looks guaranteed, Hull can still haul themselves out of the relegation zone if they beat Portsmouth at Fratton Park … and one of Luton or Preston just above them don't win. Or the next highest team Derby fail to beat a Stoke side who are the best placed of the teams still in danger but still need to avoid defeat to guarantee their safety. Even a draw could be enough for Hull, but only if resurgent Luton lose against a West Brom outfit who couldn't look like they're any more on the beach if their players were slathered in factor 50, wearing Bermuda shorts and deeply engrossed in the latest Richard Osman novel. Of the six sides still in danger, arguably the end-of-season jeopardy being endured by Preston is perhaps the most baffling. So boring and perennially mid-table that one writer recently felt compelled to write about the butter pie-fuelled vacuum of tedium in which they exist, the club seem to have viewed the column in question as a challenge to be accepted and failed to win any of their seven games since its publication. Having taken only two points from the past 21 their Championship survival hangs in the balance, while the denizens of Deepdale are yearning for the monotony of final days of seasons past.
Join Rob Smyth at 8pm (BST) for updates on Arsenal 1-2 PSG in the first leg of their Bigger Cup semi-final.
I told them, and I'm not exaggerating here, 'Guys, bring your boots, bring your shorts, bring your T-shirts, and let's play every ball together. We want to do something special'. That place has to be something that we haven't seen before' – John Sitton Mikel Arteta apparently wants Arsenal fans to go the full John Terry when they take on PSG in the first leg of their Bigger Cup semi-final.
If by Barry Glendenning's reckoning 'Arsenal are not a serious football club' (yesterday's Football Daily), I'm left to wonder how he might assess any of the 18 teams destined to finish below them in the Premier League table. I thank him mightily, however, for not only adding 'heroic begrudgery' to my phrase book but providing such a convincing demonstration' – Clinton Macsherry.
I have to disagree that Liverpool's 'This Means More' motto has no meaning for their fanbase (yesterday's Football Daily). If experience serves me right, for a generation of youngsters who just developed a passion for Liverpool after watching this season's procession on the telly, This Means More than finding a team within geographical reach and paying to get in and cheer them on, thus actually, y'know, supporting. And This Means More than any concept of sporting loyalty and glory other than who just won. Hopefully, This Means More when Liverpool have a slight fallow patch down the road and they have to deal with the outrage when sometimes you don't win. There is a widely spread demographic of folk in their 30s who once suddenly developed an affiliation with Manchester who could perhaps give them some tips for the future' – Jon Millard.
Congratulations to Truro on winning the National League South with a burst of three goals in the opening 10 minutes which gave the other contenders an absolute mountain to climb. Six clubs in the running as you reported last week but John Askey's boys prevailed. Top contender for manager of the season, any league. No doubt the fans will be looking forward to the possibility of Carlisle, Gateshead and Hartlepool away next season' – Dave Step.
In the midst of all the kerfuffle of the weekend – Real Madrid players as petulant as ever, inflated and deflated managers brandishing their egos – it might have been good to see a mention from you of James Forrest of Celtic who collected his 26th trophy in 524 appearances, overtaking the Lisbon Lion Bobby Lennox. What stands out about Forrest is his loyalty to the club and dedication to training and the squad, even when regularly on the bench. He has scored in each of the last 15 seasons so here's hoping he grabs one before the end of this one. A model club player – something of a rarity these days' – Danny Sullivan.
Send letters to [e-mail]. Today's prizeless letter o' the day winner is … Danny Sullivan. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here.
It's David Squires on … Liverpool's 20th league title and hard-to-please ma and pa Slot.
Faye Carruthers is joined by Sophie Downey, Ameé Ruszkai and Marva Kreel to discuss Arsenal's WCL win, Chelsea's loss and more for the latest Women's Football Weekly podcast.
The FA has defended paying chief suit Mark Bullingham £1.32m last year – a figure that included a tasty £450,000 bonus – saying he 'met and exceeded robust targets on and off the pitch'.
Wolves players feel let down by a lack of ambition from their club after learning an application for promotion to the Women's Championship was not submitted, despite the team battling Nottingham Forest for top spot all season.
Former Arsenal defender Louise Quinn has retired at 34. She won the WSL and League Cup during her spell with the Gunners and collected 121 caps for the Republic of Ireland.
Antonio Rüdiger has undergone surgery on knee-knack and will miss the rest of a season he may well have been banned for anyway, after lobbing ice at the Copa del Rey final referee.
One Man Went to Mow could be echoing around Twickenham if Chelsea take up an RFU offer to temporarily use the historic egg-chasing venue while possibly rebuilding Stamford Bridge.
Boca Juniors have flung Fernando Gago through the door marked Do One after barely six months in charge, following a 2-1 loss to River Plate in the Argentinian Superclásico. 'This is as far as he goes,' growled Mauricio Serna, a member of Boca's governing council. 'It hasn't been easy because he's a man of the house, but we're here to make decisions.'
In other South American managerial news, sacked Brazil boss Dorival Jr has been named as manager of struggling Corinthians. 'I hope to leave a legacy within the work that has already been going on,' he cheered. 'I hope we can fight for all the competitions we're in.' It only seems a minute ago he was saying similar things about the Seleção.
And Bruno Fernandes reckons success in Bigger Vase would not make Manchester United's season any less embarrassing. 'It's very important to get the silverware this season,' he sniffed. 'But it won't save anything.'
Leeds are closing on the Championship title after a 4-0 beatdown of Bristol City. But will it be enough to keep Daniel Farke in his job? The new(ish) owners, 49ers Enterprises, are clearly an ambitious bunch and will want the team to go up and stay up in the Premier League now they have unveiled the fancy images to go with plans to expand Elland Road from a capacity of 37,645 to a bumper 53,000. And Farke's 12% top-flight win record and two relegations with Norwich don't sit well on his CV, really, despite success this season. Can Farke match his club's ambition? Let's just say, he may need a good PowerPoint presentation of how he plans to keep that bigger ground full when he meets his paymasters.
The NWSL stunned many by ditching the draft approach to assembling squads, and now a host of talented rookies are running amok as a result. Megan Swanick, writing for our sister newsletter, has more.
Before the first night of four kicks off in the Bigger Cup semis, here are some previews and predictions.
Resident PSG whirling dervish Désiré Doué can play, can't he? As Luke Enwistle trills, those alongside him for the ride know exactly how he got where he is. Meanwhile Nick Ames and Matt Hughes give us the skinny on chief suit Nasser al-Khelaifi: their powerful, divisive driving force.
Luka Modric sidling behind the scenes at Swansea caught almost everyone on the hop. Ben Fisher explains how it came about.
A life ban for former coach Patrick Assoumou Eyi – known as 'Capello' – ends one saga in Gabon but, as Ed Aarons and Romain Molina attest, more abuse cases are still out there.
One for Leeds and Everton fans? Aaron Timms on the myth of the new stadium: it will cost bucketloads, but won't necessarily rescue your club or regenerate the area in which it resides.
Sophie Downey salutes Kim Little, Arsenal's beating heart in midfield against Lyon in Women's Big Cup.
Liverpool fans from around the world quite enjoyed getting over the line on Sunday, it turns out.
And please enjoy these wondrous pics of lawnmowers, hi-vis heroes and fidgety matchday mascots in a glimpse behind-the-scenes at FA Cup semi-final weekend.
13 April 1979: Cyrille Regis dances through a narrow gap between three Southampton players during a 1-1 draw at the Dell in which he scored. It was his 13th goal of a season in which the high-flying Baggies, managed by Ron Atkinson, finished all the way up in third behind Nottingham Forest and Liverpool.