Tyrique George has caught the eye since breaking into Chelsea’s first team. A homegrown talent, the 19-year-old winger has done well in his Conference League outings and is in contention for his first start in the league when Enzo Maresca’s side host Everton in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off. Fast, direct and sharp on the ball, George has quickly become a favourite with supporters and he lifted some of the pressure off Maresca after coming off the bench to score an excellent equaliser inChelsea’s comeback win at Fulhamlast weekend. Thrown on as a striker, George made it 1-1 with a fine shot from the edge of the area. It was the latest in a series of positive contributions from the teenager. His enthusiasm could make a difference against Everton.Jacob Steinberg
“I have been trying to improve my sleep but it doesn’t happen overnight,” said Fabian Hürzeler this week. The Brighton manager – “dressed head to toe in Stone Island” for his interview with GQ Magazine – revealed he had employed a sleep expert who recommended changing his daily routine. “Because of that I bought an electric bike for the half-hour commute to work. It helps me relax more than going by car.” With West Ham visiting the Amex Stadium on Saturday, Brighton supporters will be hoping that Hürzeler’s peace of mind can inspire a turnaround in their fortunes after a miserable few weeks that have derailed their push for Europe. Graham Potter’s side have a terrible record against his former club, having beaten them once since Brighton were promoted in 2017, although that came the last time this fixture took place, at the start of last season.Ed Aarons
Should Jack Clarke start for Ipswich or, more likely , step off the bench, he can be expected to be greeted by resounding boos. That is the fate of any former Sunderland player appearing at St James’ Park. But Clarke might welcome a bit of recognition after a season in which his newfound status as a bit-part player has served as a microcosm of the gulf between the top and second tiers. The winger starred at Sunderland last season, prompting the initial £15m transfer fee that transported him to East Anglia. The only problem was that Premier League full-backs have proved far less susceptible to his advances than their Championship counterparts. While his old friends at Sunderland prepare for the playoffs, Ipswich will have their relegation rubber-stamped unless they beat Champions League-chasing Newcastle. All eyes will be on Liam Delap, Kieran McKenna’s much-coveted centre-forward. Chelsea andManchester Unitedmay be favourites to sign Delap this summer but Newcastle retain an interest and this could prove a timely audition.Louise Taylor
Could this be Southampton’s day of glory? After reaching the monumental heights of 11 points last week with aninjury-time equaliser at West Ham, Simon Rusk’s side could surpass Derby in 2007-08, the worst team in Premier League history, if they avoid losing against Fulham. The first positive for Saints is they did just that atCraven Cottage in December with a goalless draw, one of four league games they have not lost away from home this season. Unfortunately, their home form is somehow even worse. They have won once, againstSean Dyche’s appalling version of Everton, and battled todraws with IpswichandCrystal Palace. With Manchester City and Arsenal to come in their final Premier League games at St Mary’s for a while, this is a fantastic opportunity to put the points tally concerns to bed. Better news for Saints fans is that Fulham have endured a late-season wobble, losing their past two matches to leave them potentially eyeing up their summer holidays.Will Unwin
Jamie Vardy’sexit at the end of the seasonmarks the end of an era for Leicester City, with the 38-year-old the last remaining member of the 2015-16 title-winning squad. Relegation this campaign will invariably trigger change and there are big decisions for the chairman, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, to consider. Ruud van Nistelrooy is unlikely to start next season in charge, while the work of Jon Rudkin, the director of football who began at Leicester as a part-time academy coach, is the subject of much disillusionment. If Vardy plays every remaining game this season, starting at Wolves on Saturday, he will break the 500-game mark in a Leicester shirt. His achievements will go down in club folklore. Vardy is worthy of the statue mooted after he announced his departure on Thursday – but now Leicester need new heroes.Ben Fisher
Considering the teams Aston Villa have beaten this season, including Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain andManchester City, it will irk Unai Emery that in three matches against Crystal Palace they have failed to win, losing away and drawing at home in the league, and losing at Villa Park in the League Cup. It has been almost 30 years since Villa last won a major trophy and playing a team five places and 12 points below them in the league should be an ideal situation. Oliver Glasner seems to be one step ahead of Emery at the moment, though. Even in the 2-2 draw at Villa Park, Palace were the better team and repeatedly hit the hosts on the break. It will be up to the Villa manager to find a way to counter the speed of Eberechi Eze and Ismaïla Sarr, or Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final could be the biggest disappointment of the four meetings with Palace this term.WU
Ruben Amorim will use more of his youngsters in the coming weeks as heprioritises the Europa League semi-final against Athletic Bilbao. Manchester United desperately need to qualify for the Champions League and this is the only route back to European football next season. Amorim showed his intent by starting the highly regarded Tyler Fredricson and Harry Amassagainst Wolves. On the bench, however, the only academy player present was Chido Obi. That seems strange considering Jaydan Kamason, Godwill Kukonki and Jack Moorhouse were named as substitutesagainst Lyon. There were even three centre-backs for the Wolves fixture, including Jonny Evans, whose time at the club is rapidly running out. If Amorim is to take his policy seriously, he needs to back the kids.WU
One point, just one point, and Tottenham will leapfrog Wolves into 15th providing Vítor Pereira’s in-form side suffer a surprise home defeat against Leicester the day before. Apologies for the flippancy, but that sums up the meagre opposition standing in the way ofLiverpooland a monumental party on Sunday. Anfield awaits a second Premier League title in five years, although it will be the first time since 28 April 1990 that fans will be able to join the celebrations when Arne Slot’s side get the job done. They could not have picked a more inviting opponent than a Spurs team who have endured 10 away defeats in the league – only relegated Leicester and Southampton have more. Liverpool have already beaten Spurs 6-3 and 4-0 (the latter in the League Cup) this season, and Tottenham have a Europa League semi-final first leg to come next Thursday. Having won the league by beating Spurs at Anfield twice before, in 1981-82 and 1987-88, it would register as a seismic shock should the hosts fail to make it a hat-trick on Sunday. Anfield has waited long enough.Andy Hunter
Morgan Gibbs-White has been linked with a move to Manchester City this summer as Pep Guardiola seeks a creative replacement for Kevin De Bruyne. The England international’s majestic skills as an attacking midfielder are a key reason behind Forest’s challenge for a Champions League spot and progress to an FA Cup semi-final. The 25-year-old has scored five and assisted nine in 29 Premier League appearances. It is this level of output that has attracted City; it shows he has the dynamism and physical attributes to make a difference for an elite team. Forest have a previous Wembley hero, their former manager Steve Cooper, to thank for his arrival at the City Ground. Despite Wolvesnot budging on their £35m price, Cooper did not want second-best. Gibbs-White will have another chance to show Guardiola what he has in his locker and how he can perform on the biggest stage.WU
There are tickets still available to buy in the Manchester City end at Wembley on Sunday. It is even possible for supporters to buy four seats at a time, although that might not be advisable with many priced at £90, £120 and £150 each. There should be plenty of room to spread out without snapping up extra seats for the sake of it. Partly, the issue is that City have been to Wembley more times recently than anyone cares to remember. The prospect of another expensive day out, including a lengthy trip to London on unreliable trains, is not the enticing prospect it once was for their fans. Besides, hosting a semi-final between teams from Manchester and Nottingham in northwest Londonis pointless and inconsiderate. The FA needs to reconsider their strategy and utilise the country’s many top-class and more convenient stadiums because, once again, it looks like no one cares about supporters.WU