Blackburn Rovers suffered a devastating relegation to League One on Sunday despite winning 3-1 at Brentford on the final day of the Championship season.

Tony Mowbray’s men knew that they needed to pick up all three points at Griffin Park to give themselves any chance of surviving, and they fulfilled their part of the bargain with goals from Charlie Mulgrew, Danny Guthrie and Craig Conway giving them a relatively comfortable win in the capital.

However, relegation rivals Nottingham Forest and Birmingham City also won to send Rovers – who won the Premier League title in 1995 – down to the third tier of English football for the first time since 1980.

Blackburn supporters were quick to have their say on the news via social media, and they were understandably distraught.

They are now demanding the owners – Venky’s – leave the club this summer following a turbulent spell at Ewood Park.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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It doesn’t get much bigger than the last North London Derby at White Hart Lane does it? Tottenham Hotspur host Arsenal and there’s more than just pride on the line.

Spurs are chasing the Premier League title and know that a defeat or even dropped points could put an end to their challenge on Chelsea.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side have come so far but there’s still so much work to do before the season ends and this afternoon’s match may be one of their toughest tests.

Spurs fans are confident though, perhaps more confident than you’d expect. They’ve gotten used to Arsenal finishing above them year after year and fearing the worst on these occasions but the tables have turned.

They’re expecting big things from their team this afternoon. Can they pick up all three points and make a big statement to Chelsea that this title race is not over yet?

Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts ahead of kick-off…

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With the title race all but mathematically over, it’s time for Tottenham Hotspur to start thinking about the summer and which potential targets could get them over the line in next season’s hunt for the English crown.

Indeed, had Mauricio Pochettino been privy to slightly superior squad depth this season, Spurs may well have closed the gap on pace-setters Chelsea, or perhaps more importantly, started the campaign in much stronger form after drawing six of their first eleven games.

Potential recruits mooted by the press are by no means in short supply and last week, The Daily Mail hinted at a swoop for Leicester City’s Demarai Gray, who has impressed in a cameo berth since moving to the King Power Stadium but is yet to solidify a spot in the starting XI.

With the young winger’s contract allegedly including a £22million release clause, we asked Spurs fans last week whether their club should look to activate it this summer and the result of our poll was – quite miraculously – an exact 50/50 split.

Tottenham’s fan base appear divided on whether Gray’s worth £22million, but what side of the fence do you sit on? Let us know by commenting below!

Out-of-favour Tottenham Hotspur defender Kevin Wimmer sent out a social media post on Sunday thanking the fans for their support and stated that he was looking forward to next season.

The Austria international was speaking after Spurs beat Hong Kong Premier League champions Kitchee 4-1 in a post-season friendly, and he praised the north London outfit for another impressive campaign in which they once again came close to winning the Premier League title.

It wasn’t such a successful personal campaign for the 24-year-old though, who made just 11 appearances in all competitions as he struggled to compete with the likes of Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen and Eric Dier in the backline.

Tottenham supporters were quick to have their say on the post from the centre-back, and they asked him to stay at the club and believe that he will get more opportunities under Mauricio Pochettino next season.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

According to reports in the Daily Mail, Bolton Wanderers boss Phil Parkinson has emerged as frontrunner to succeed Garry Monk as Leeds United manager.

The Yorkshire outfit were shocked by the resignation of Monk last month with the 38-year-old and new owner Andrea Radrizzani unable to come to an agreement over extending his initial 12-month rolling contract, and it means the Whites are looking for their seventh permanent manager in just the last three years.

After a number of disappointing seasons of finishing mid-table in the Championship, Leeds found themselves in the play-off positions for the majority of the campaign before a poor run of form at the end of the season saw them finish seventh.

Radrizzani will be aware that his new man needs to be able to build on that progress if the club are to finally return to the Premier League for the first time since 2004.

Here are three reasons Leeds must not appoint Parkinson as their new manager…

Wasted opportunity

Having only narrowly missed out on the play-off positions and with key players like Chris Wood and Pontus Jansson in their ranks as well as a new owner, it seems like a great opportunity for Leeds to make a statement and try and appoint a high-profile or experienced manager at this level.

If they do, the new candidate would be able to build on the progress of this season and add new faces to the squad to freshen it up and have another crack at promotion.

Parkinson certainly wouldn’t fit under that criteria and with all due respect, he would probably be something of an underwhelming appointment for the supporters and the players.

Championship experience

While he may have won promotion on three occasions – once from League Two and twice from League One – Parkinson has little experience and success of managing in the Championship.

When he has with Hull City and Charlton Athletic he didn’t fare too well, only winning four league matches with the Tigers before being sacked in December 2006 with the club in the relegation zone.

Then he was handed the job with the Addicks on a permanent basis in December 2008 despite failing to win any of eight caretaker matches in charge previously, but he couldn’t prevent the Londoners suffering relegation to third tier for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Expectations

While he did brilliantly with Bolton this season and finally succeeded in bringing Bradford City back to League One in 2013, Parkinson’s spells in charge of Hull City and Charlton are worrying.

The 49-year-old would have been under pressure to get results at both clubs but that is nothing to what would be expected of him at Elland Road.

The passionate supporters travel in their thousands away from home and demand and deserve good performances, and it takes a strong manager to deal with that.

Question marks certainly remain over whether Parkinson has the character and charisma required to be a success with Leeds.

Do you agree, Leeds fans? Let us know below.

West Ham United defender Aaron Cresswell has said that Pablo Zabaleta will bring ‘quality, loyalty and experience’ to the Hammers after joining from Manchester City earlier this summer.

Zabaleta spent nine years with Man City between 2008 and 2017, making more than 330 appearances and winning two Premier League titles during his time at the Etihad Stadium.

West Ham won the race to sign the 32-year-old following his release from Man City, and Cresswell has revealed that he cannot wait to play alongside the Argentine at the London Stadium during the 2017-18 campaign.

Cresswell told West Ham’s official website:

“Watching him throughout his time with Manchester City, which was nearly a decade, the things Pablo Zabaleta did for that club were fantastic, winning Premier League titles cups and the like.

“He will now bring those qualities, his loyalty and experience to West Ham and his presence will only help us, not only his fellow defenders but the whole team.

“His quality is there for all to see, so he is a great addition to the squad. Pablo will not only make his presence felt on the pitch, but his experience will rub off on the young lads around the training ground.”

Man City paid just under £7m to sign Zabaleta from La Liga outfit Espanyol in the summer of 2008, with the versatile defender said to have turned down an offer from Italian giants Juventus to move to England.

The Argentine international only started 11 Premier League games last season after struggling with injury, although he did start five times in the Champions League.

According to reports in The Sun, Leeds United are in talks to sign free agent midfielder Vurnon Anita after he was released by Newcastle United last month.

Despite featuring 31 times for the Magpies as they won the Championship title and made an immediate return to the Premier League, Rafa Benitez decided it wasn’t enough to hand the versatile 28-year-old – who can also play at full-back – a contract extension.

The Dutchman is now looking for a new club and The Sun says Whites boss Thomas Christiansen is keen to bring him to Elland Road this summer, as he looks to build on Leeds’ seventh-place finish last time out by mounting a promotion push next term.

Leeds supporters were quick to have their say on the potential deal via social media, with many questioning whether they needed another central midfield or full-back option.

However, while some acknowledged that he would be a good signing, others felt that he could be “another waste of space” in the squad.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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Former Manchester United player Dion Dublin has claimed that the club’s new signing Romelu Lukaku is not quite the finished product just yet.

The Red Devils announced at the weekend that they have agreed a deal with Everton to sign the Belgian forward.

Lukaku was heavily linked to his former club Chelsea, but he will now fill the void left by Zlatan Ibrahimovic at Old Trafford.

The striker was Everton’s main man last season, eventually ending the campaign with an impressive 25-goal haul.

While Dublin believes that Lukaku is a great “prospect”, he is not convinced that he possesses the same threat as that of Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane.

The England forward picked up his second consecutive Golden Boot at the end of last season after finding the back of the net 29 times in the Premier League.

He told talkSPORT:

“As a centre-forward, I don’t think there’s a box [Lukaku] doesn’t tick. Harry Kane, for me, ticks every single box. Lukaku is maybe just half a notch off Harry Kane. I believe Lukaku is the biggest prospect in the Premier League, and can get better – a lot better.”

Meanwhile, Everton did not leave empty-handed as they secured the return of their former player Wayne Rooney from United on a separate deal.

The 31-year-old, who began his career at Goodison Park, has signed a two-year deal with the Merseyside outfit.

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As reported by The Daily Mail, Newcastle United are interested in signing West Ham United goalkeeper Adrian this summer.

What’s the story?

The Magpies have already signed four players this summer but Rafa Benitez still has a bit of work to do on his squad if they’re to be capable of a comfortable finish in the English Premier League next term.

One position it looks like he’ll be strengthening is between the sticks, with a potential move for a top-flight goalkeeper in the offing.

That’s according to The Daily Mail, who say that Newcastle are interested in signing West Ham United man Adrian.

Despite Darren Randolph moving to Middlesbrough, The Mail reckon that the Hammers are willing to let the Spaniard leave too after completing a season-long loan deal for Joe Hart.

Rated at £6.8m by Transfermarkt, the goalkeeper will find his chances limited at the London Stadium now Hart has arrived.

The right choice?

Shopping for goalkeepers can be notoriously difficult but in Adrian, Newcastle would at least be signing a number one with a proven track record in the English Premier League.

He’s made 106 top-flight appearances since joining from Real Betis in 2013, keeping 29 clean sheets, which isn’t a half bad record for a team that isn’t exactly pushing for top four places.

He started the majority of Premier League games last term, 22 in total, and although West Ham have seemingly moved onto other options, he could be a quality pick for Newcastle United in their quest to bolster depth in the position and bring out the competitive streak in their existing goalkeepers.

Chelsea beat Tottenham Hotspur to the signing of Willian in the summer of 2013, with the Brazilian making the move to England after a short spell at Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala.

The attacker has scored 31 times in 181 appearances for the Blues in all competitions, managing 23 goals in the last two seasons after becoming a key part of the club’s first XI.

It would be fair to say that Willian is extremely popular with the Chelsea supporters, not just because of his goals, but also his attitude. Indeed, when a number of his teammates went missing during the 2015-16 season, the 43-time Brazil international came to the forefront.

Willian turned 29 on Wednesday, and as is often the case with club’s Twitter accounts these days, there was a happy birthday message waiting for the versatile attacker.

As expected, there were some responses from Chelsea fans signalling the need for more new signings ahead of the start of the Premier League this weekend, but the majority came from those paying their respects to the popular forward.