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Manchester United’s fourth place finish marked a decent first season in charge for Louis van Gaal, who ensured the club’s primary aim of securing Champions League football was met with six points to spare.

Attention has already turned to next season, however, and there is still plenty of work to do in order to fulfil the notably higher expectations they will face. It’s already clear United want to be challenging for the league title next term, but the squad will have to be strengthened if they are to have any hope of overhauling the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea.

Despite the defence remaining a cause for concern and the goalkeeping situation a worry with the future of goalkeeper David de Gea still in doubt, it’s the attacking players that could have the biggest influence on their success next season.

The Red Devils struggled at times in the campaign just gone with a lack of firepower ultimately costing them a top three finish. It was hard to envisage that at the start of the season, but with Robin van Persie struggling for both fitness and form and Radamel Falcao failing to make a significant impression; there appears to be a real need for a new striker this summer – especially as the latter has been sent back to Monaco.

A few names have already been linked with a move to Old Trafford including Harry Kane and Gonzalo Higuain, but there is the possibility that Real Madrid could be willing to cash in on Karim Benzema. This is the player Van Gaal should be prioritising over the summer and a signing that could make them a real threat next season.

The arrival of Rafa Benitez at Madrid has led to speculation that Benzema may lose his place in the side, with Ronaldo tipped to fill the centre forward position at the Bernabeu. And with suggestions that the striker could also be used in some sort of deal to finally sign De Gea; Benzema’s time in Spain could be coming to an end.

Arsenal have also been strongly linked with the Frenchman who still remains one of the best goalscorers in Europe, and the destination of the 27-year-old could well be the difference between which of these teams finishes higher next season.

Benzema netted 22 goals last term, and it’s that sort of return that United will be desperate for going forward. He’s not only a superb finisher that will guarantee goals, but his ability to create opportunities for his team-mates would make him a great asset to United, providing the cutting edge they lacked so dearly.

Given the outstanding exploits of Ronaldo; Benzema’s contribution often gets overlooked, but the fact he’s scored 123 goals in less than 250 appearances for the Spanish giants highlights his class and potency.

At the prime of his career; he certainly looks like the marquee signing that United require upfront and would send a huge signal of intent to the rest of the Premier League.

Van Gaal will be desperate to improve on the lacklustre tally of 62 goals that his United side registered last season – their second lowest in Premier League history – and a pairing of Wayne Rooney and Benzema would definitely provide them with the firepower to do so.

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Whether or not the forward leaves the Spanish capital this summer remains to be seen; and you’d have to say it would be strange were Real willing to let a player of this quality depart. But if this is the case what the Red Devils mustn’t do is allow him to join the Gunners without doing all they can to secure his signature.

Which ever team can win the race for the £30m striker will not only have put themselves in the best position to wrestle the league title off Chelsea, but also have dealt a huge blow to one of their major rivals before the season has even got underway.

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Tottenham Hotspur might not be a club necessarily blessed with an abundance of natural leaders, but in Michael Dawson, supporters at least have one figure they can count upon when the chips are down.

Quite how downcast the mood is within N17 is of course open to discussion, but following the central defender’s rallying call to fans this week, you get the idea that after the side’s dispiriting wobble which saw them drop out the top four for the first time since December last weekend, Dawson’s sentiments were very well timed indeed.

Speaking to Sky Sports News, the 29-year-old reassured fans that no one in the squad was contemplating a failure to finish within the top-four.

“We’re not thinking of that,” he said this week.

“As players you can’t. Who knows what will happen on 19th May? Hopefully it will be a good day and we’re celebrating. There’s a lot of hard work to go in from ourselves and also the other teams to get there.

But while his positive reflections will sit well with supporters, it was his call to the White Hart Lane faithful to raise the volume level against Manchester City this Sunday, that felt particularly poignant.

“There is no better place than White Hart Lane when it’s rocking and that support can make such a difference,” the former Nottingham Forest man continued.

“When the players are performing and the fans are behind us, they are our 12th man, just like they were recently against Arsenal. We’d all love a repeat of that.”

On face value, there’s nothing within Dawson’s cries for an added vocal presence in N17 that particularly resonates as out of the ordinary. Calls for solidarity and a collective grouping together when clubs’ backs are against the wall is nothing new and if such a thing as a skipper’s handbook existed, you imagine the previous sentiment would feature somewhere towards the front.

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Yet after a season that has seen White Hart Lane draped in a blanket of tension and a mire of skepticism – perhaps thanks in no small part to the side’s difficulty in finding a rhythm when playing in front of the home crowd – the debate upon the atmosphere is more a topical point of conversation, as opposed to a small flash in the pan.

And following Clint Dempsey’s recent suggestions that the unease emitted from the home support might be beginning to have a detrimental effect upon the first team, Dawson’s recent comments might hold a little more weight than simply a series of throwaway remarks.

This isn’t to say that the England man has wheeled out something of a coded jibe to a set of fans in which he is thought very highly of indeed, but following a 2-2 draw with Everton played out in front of a backdrop of frustration and jangling nerves, there might have been more to Dawson’s comments than initially met the eye.

And although sensitivity must always be harnessed when approaching the subject of dwindling atmosphere with supporters, with so much on the line for Spurs this season, it’s perhaps imperative that the subject has been given an added spot of prominence over the last ten days.

Frustrations with the noise levels at White Hart Lane have been bubbling under the surface for a while now. Some have attributed a harder-line approach from stewards to standing at games – an obvious flouting of the regulations but commonplace across the more vocally prominent stands in the Premier League – while others have looked towards the jagged and awkward performances that Villas-Boas’ side have served up in North London.

But although both of the aforementioned have played a part, the patented vivacity and energy of the White Hart Lane crowd just hasn’t been there for large parts of this campaign and it’s something which has to change over the last handful of games this season.

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As Dawson mentioned, we know that this home crowd is still capable of carrying their team over the line, as they did almost single-handedly during the 2-1 over Arsenal earlier on this year and although a north London derby can of course be classified as a one-off, the fixtures against Manchester United and West Ham drew a similar level of passion out of the paying public in N17.

And moving forward, that’s what the Tottenham support simply have to try and replicate during their remaining home clashes with City, Southampton and Sunderland on the last day of the season.

The likelihood is, it’s going to be tough, it’s going to be scrappy and it might not necessarily be pleasant. But now’s not the time to start yearning for anything approaching box office football.

Spurs have to get over the line one way or another, but the chorus of moans, groans and general feeling of discontent that felt palpable at times during the Everton game isn’t likely to help anyone. Be it the genteel smattering of boos that greeted Emmanuel Adebayor’s name on the line-up or the general feeling of disdain that Clint Dempsey seems to have attracted, regardless of how much supporters may believe it’s affecting the first team, it’s certainly not having a positive effect.

It’s time to lay the arms down, take a deep breath and put the frustration on the backburner in N17, at least until the end of the season. Tottenham need their 12th man back and they’d be no better time to return than against Manchester City this weekend.

Well, there is just a bit of pressure on West Ham United goalkeeper Adrian to perform against Manchester City this weekend then.

Adrian will face the Premier League champions due to the fact that Joe Hart is ineligible to take on his parent club, and the Spaniard will be looking to produce a strong performance so that he can finish the season as West Ham’s number one.

Facing City is not exactly the easiest of tasks, and it does appear that head coach David Moyes has placed an unnecessary amount of pressure on Adrian with his comments on Friday afternoon.

It would be a huge surprise if West Ham dropped out of the Premier League from their current position, but they face a huge task at home to City on Sunday afternoon.

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The Hammers will then take on Leicester City, Manchester United and Everton in their final three league fixtures of the 2017-18 campaign, and defeat in all four would certainly leave them a bit vulnerable.

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The West Ham fans were furious with Moyes’ comments on Friday afternoon, and the Scot appears to be losing the supporters pretty quickly.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Aston Villa’s late season resurgence is likely ensure they will remain in the Premier League as well as giving them a season-ender at Wembley for the FA Cup Final. Much of the plaudits for this Midlands renaissance have been heaped at the feet of their new manager Tim Sherwood; but his centre forward, Christian Benteke, has proved to be the catalyst for their improved run of form.

With the Belgian now enjoying his most consistent run of form since his debut season in England, clubs are again rumoured to be looking at the Villa man, but is he good enough to make the step up to the elite level?

His first season at Villa Park was one of the better debut campaigns for a striker in a number of years. In a struggling side he managed to plunder 19 league goals, at a ratio of better than one in two. His unerring speed and eye for goal made him one of the hottest properties in English football and despite the club’s protestations, Benteke put in a transfer request and seemed destined to leave the Midlands for a multi-million pound fee.

However, the striker retracted his request and stayed at the club, and since that transfer fiasco the 24 year old has struggled to regain the kind of blistering form he found at the start of his Villa career. This was until the emergence of Mr. Sherwood, the striker has been revitalised under his new boss and has managed to notch six goals in his last four games, including a winner at Tottenham, a hat-trick against QPR and the equaliser at Wembley against Liverpool.

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In a season of immense struggles for the club he has still managed to hit double figures, and in doing so has scored nearly 50% of his team’s goals. His recent form has earned them enough valuable points to mean glances over claret and blue shoulders are becoming less and less frequent.

His recent form has again stoked the fire of speculation and it seems as if Liverpool are keen on adding the Belgian to their ranks. Brendan Rodgers’ team has struggled to find the net this term and a natural goalscorer is top of his wish list. Benteke has consistently managed to find the net – he has nearly 40 in less than 85 games for the Villains – and this record becomes even more impressive when you consider he has been in a poorer team and had a serious knee injury.

Quality, high level strikers are at a genuine premium in football and ones that have proven themselves in the English top flight are at an ever greater one. Christian Benteke crosses all the boxes that any team needs from their head of attack and has the potential to be one of the division’s top players.

The Villa striker has proven his worth at a struggling side but now he must surely be looking over the other side of the fence and see the glory that could await him. His performances at Villa Park have earned him a move to one of the country’s genuine title contenders and he may prove to be a shrewd bit of business to anyone that can acquire him.

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With the Premier League’s final run in now well under way, Manchester United’s Shinji Kagawa looks set to finish his debut season at Old Trafford with not only a winner’s medal, but a whole realm of warm goodwill to boot.

You’ll find few supporters who have anything in the way of a bad thing to say about their Japanese superstar and the general consensus in the red half of Manchester, is that the recently turned 24-year-old has enjoyed a solid start to life within English football.

And when he has played, it’s felt incredibly difficult to argue with that. Technically gifted with an outstanding eye for a pass, the way in which the ex-Borussia Dortmund man plays football is incredibly easy on the eye and his recent hat-trick in the 4-0 win against Norwich City, displayed exactly what he’s capable of when at his devastating best.

The only problem, however, is that we’ve not seen Kagawa at his devastating best particularly often this season. In fact, over the course of the campaign, we’ve barely seen him at all.

With only 11 starts and two substitute appearances in the league this term, Kagawa has only made three more than the minimum ten showings you need to qualify for a Premier League winners medal. Having made a mere 18 appearances in all competitions, we’ve perhaps only learned marginally more about the talented midfielder, than we did before he first left the Bundesliga.

It does however speak volumes about the impact that he’s had with the Old Trafford faithful, that despite a debut campaign that’s been largely ravaged by injury – most prominently a twisted knee picked up against Braga in October that kept him out for two months – his initial £12million acquisition from Dortmund has been deemed a relative success.

But while he remains a prodigiously talented attacking outlet, he still resembles something of an enigmatic presence within this United side and one that perhaps Sir Alex Ferguson is yet to truly figure out.

His initial showings within English football at the start of the season, were understandably a mixed bag. As high as expectations were following his summer arrival, those that were left slightly puzzled at Kagawa’s inability to produce the goods from the off, were maybe being a little unrealistic in their demands.

The Kobe-born star remains in the process of adapting to the rigors of English football and back in October, he was keen to remind supporters that he was working hard to do his bit in smoothing the transition, telling The Independent: “I’ve realised that I need to limber up and strengthen my body trunk,” as he liked to put it.

Despite continuing to offer brilliance in short bursts, rather than sustained periods, Kagawa has slowly looked a more comfortable component within Ferguson’s side, even if his mid-season injury lay off represented a huge disruption in his adaptation.

But after carrying on from where he left off, since Kagawa’s return from injury, while his individual performances have begun to look a lot less puzzling, his presence remains an enigmatic puzzle piece within the overall collective at Old Trafford.

Because fitting his talents within a side that include both Robin van Persie but most prominently, Wayne Rooney, has proved a difficult prospect at the very least and one that still doesn’t look closer to reaching a permanent solution any time soon.

When Kagawa has played in his favoured position as the No10 behind Robin van Persie, that’s when we’ve tended to see the very best out of him, although the role behind the Dutchman just so happens to be the one in which Rooney also looks most comfortable. Ferguson’s managerial skills may well be peerless within the game, but fitting two into one is a feat that even the Scot may well find a bridge too far.

Kagawa’s fitness issues seem to have swept the issue under the carpet for large parts of the season but within recent weeks, it’s becoming increasingly impossible to ignore. With Van Persie a seeming lock-in up in attack and the flirtations with a diamond midfield now consigned to recent history, there’s only room for one behind the ex-Arsenal man.

The trend for much of the season when Kagawa and Rooney have been playing together, has been to shift the one not playing centrally out on the left hand side. But while Kagawa has perhaps suffered more when played out wide, he’s also arguably looked far more effective than the Englishman when he’s got the nod as the No10.

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And it was during the most memorable moment of Kagawa’s short United career so far, that Ferguson may have finally found the best way of cracking his Japanese enigma; but the answer isn’t one without difficult ramifications.

After a first 45 in which Rooney found himself playing centrally against Norwich City, it was when the ex-Everton striker swapped placed with Kagawa, that we really saw what United’s mercurial summer signing had to offer. Kagawa was absolutely magnificent playing in the archetypal playmaker role and despite the questionable quality of the opposition, he arguably looked like the best fit that United have had in that position in months – maybe even all season.

The problem for Manchester United is that for as potentially brilliant as Kagawa may be, exuding the very best performance out of him in the long term is going to have to come at the cost of pushing Wayne Rooney even further away from goal and for as polarising as he may continue to be, that remains an extremely difficult decision to make indeed.

But with Rooney no longer looking bulletproof within this United side, the prospect of Kagawa securing a central role for himself might not be so distant after all.

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Everton couldn’t manage a Merseyside derby win against a weakened Liverpool side last weekend and then had to watch on as their bitter rivals spent the week celebrated making the Champions League semi-finals.

To pile on the misery, the Toffees are stuck going nowhere fast under Sam Allardyce who should be using the dead rubbers towards the end of the season to work towards next season.

He isn’t, but is persisting with the same shape and largely the same players that have led to the malaise at Goodison Park and the natives are not impressed.

That means that the sight of promising young winger Nikola Vlasic on the substitutes bench for the trip to Swansea is enough to get them excited at this stage.

We’ve taken a closer look at the best of the reaction from the Toffees as the wideman moves closer to getting his chance to add some genuine width to this Everton side…

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Despite enjoying the profits of the much documented ‘Luis Suarez cash’ that got spent rather hastily throughout the course of last summer, Liverpool’s latest batch of new signings simply haven’t worked out as well as most would have expected for Brendan Rodgers.

It must obviously be remembered that the likes of Lazar Markovic, Adam Lallana and Dejan Lovren still remain in the early stages of their Anfield careers, with certain new additions such as Emre Can already proving to be worthwhile acquisitions so far – but ultimately the Reds just haven’t reinvested their money with a great deal of efficiency.

With Roma’s star midfielder – Miralem Pjanic – still seemingly remaining a high transfer priority for Brendan Rodgers however, perhaps Liverpool’s recent transfer activity might just start being seen in a different light. The Bosnian international could simply prove to be the missing piece of the puzzle for Liverpool next season.

As the 24-year-old will reportedly cost the Premier League club in the region of £37million though, would such a bold investment really be worth it for Brendan Rodgers in his attempts to transform the Reds into a title winning side? The answer might just be yes…

Although continuing to get the chequebook out in such a carefree manner may come across as somewhat unsustainable at first, Liverpool just haven’t been able to match the lofty expectations of their fans throughout the Premier League era – so maybe more risks will inevitably have to be taken.

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Miralem Pjanic though – should he eventually sign at Anfield – would nevertheless offer something that the Reds are currently lacking. The Bosnian star shined at last summer’s World Cup for his ability to connect his team’s strikers with the rest of his side. Through a combination of his flawless passing, intelligent vision across the pitch, and impressive composure on the ball throughout the whole 90 minutes – Pjanic acts as an attacking anchor for his respective teams, and more often than not proves worthy of his current status in European football.

Roma have recently been experiencing somewhat of a renaissance in recent years, successfully challenging Juventus for that all-important top spot in Serie A ahead of both Inter and AC Milan. Such a turnaround in fortunes comes as no surprise however, as this recent golden era for the Romans has conveniently coincided with Miralem Pjanic’s time at the club. His role within Rudi Garcia’s team therefore comes with a great deal of importance.

Should Liverpool finally give the go ahead on such a deal, space within Brendan Rodgers’ current squad would simply have to be freed up in order to successfully house the former Lyon man.

Alongside the likes of Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho – with Daniel Sturridge performing his usual duties up top and Adam Lallana fleeting in and out of proceedings – Liverpool would perhaps have what it takes to both reassert themselves domestically and in the Champions League, as well as finally moving on from missing the ever remembered Luis Suarez down at Anfield.

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At a hefty £37m though, time will simply have to tell on this particular transfer story. With the likes of PSG previously reporting an interest in bringing the up and coming talent under their wing, Liverpool will simply have a huge task ahead of them if they want to be the ones to land the Bosnian.

If the Reds manage to successfully do it however, Brendan Rodgers’ side will definitely be looking a great deal stronger in the run up to the new 2015/16 campaign. Ahead of Jordan Henderson perhaps, it might just be Miralem Pjanic who turns out to be the man worthy of effectively replacing Steven Gerrard at Anfield for the foreseeable future.

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We are down to the last 16 of the Europa League and Chelsea, Tottenham and Newcastle are flying the flag for English clubs in pursuit of European glory. Tottenham v Inter Milan is arguably the tie of the round and Andre Villas-Boas will be eager to see Spurs progress ahead of his quest to be the first manager to win the Europa League with two different clubs.

There are some excellent fixtures to look forward to and below are the ten key facts ahead of the last 16 ties.

1. The round of 16 participants come from 11 countries, with representation split as follows:

3 clubs – England, Russia

2 clubs – Italy

1 club – Czech Republic, France, Germany, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey

2. Of the eight clubs that transferred to the competition after the UEFA Champions League group stage, only three survive: Chelsea FC, SL Benfica and FC Zenit St Petersburg.

3. Only three remaining clubs have graced the UEFA Europa League round of 16 before: Zenit (reached 2010/11 round of 16), Benfica (2010/11 semi-finals, 2009/10 quarter-finals) and FC Rubin Kazan (2009/10 round of 16).

4. UEFA Champions League holders Chelsea are among four previous winners of the European Cup, along with FC Internazionale Milano, Benfica and FC Steaua Bucureşti.

5. Three other clubs in the last 16 have won a major UEFA club competition title: Zenit, S.S. Lazio and Tottenham Hotspur FC. Newcastle United FC won the non-UEFA-backed Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.

6. There are two reigning domestic champions competing in the round of 16: Zenit (Russia) and FC Basel 1893 (Switzerland). One is guaranteed to reach the quarter-finals as the pair meet in the last 16.

7. Including qualifying and play-off fixtures, the clubs who have required most games in Europe this season to reach the last 16 are Basel, FC Anji Makhachkala and FC Viktoria Plzeň, each with 14. Anji and Plzeň are the UEFA Europa League’s longest survivors this season, having entered in the second qualifying round. Basel began their European campaign at the equivalent stage of the UEFA Champions League.

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8. Rubin and Steaua are the only surviving participants that have appeared in all four editions of the UEFA Europa League.

9. Tottenham’s André Villas-Boas is bidding to become the first coach to win the UEFA Europa League twice, having captured it with FC Porto in 2010/11. Chelsea’s Rafael Benítez won the UEFA Cup with Valencia CF in 2004.

10. Only two coaches involved in the round of 16 have lifted the European Champion Clubs’ Cup – Anji’s Guus Hiddink, a winner with PSV Eindhoven in 1988, and Benítez with Liverpool in 2005. Additionally, Villas-Boas was the Chelsea coach for part of their triumphant 2011/12 UEFA Champions League campaign before being replaced by Roberto Di Matteo.

West Ham United had watched scorelines go their way in the relegation fight before their trip to Chelsea which only added to the growing sense that they would be okay this season.

Southampton and Stoke both lost out to North London sides and they travelled to Stamford Bridge with the capacity to approach the game as something of a free hit.

If getting anything out of the trip to face London rivals Chelsea was a bonus then a point, garnered after enduring a lot of home pressure after a promising opening, was a welcome one in their battle against the drop.

Joe Hart’s inclusion did not necessarily please West Ham fans prior to kick off but the England international kept his side in the game at times and was the unexpected subject of praise from his own fans.

Substitute Javier Hernandez grabbed an equaliser late on but it was the England man who got his fair share of plaudits after arguably his best performance of the season…

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There are few things more cringe-worthy in the modern game than the sort of pre-game banter often exchanged between official club twitter accounts.Arsenal and Monaco seem to be masters of the art, however, as they proved tonight with this exchange:

Some say the arguments that take place beneath YouTube videos is the lowest form of discourse. Others believe that this is offered by Jeremy Kyle.

However, as Arsenal and AS Monaco have shown us tonight, it would seem the kind of ‘banter’ exchanged between official club twitter handles is making a strong argument for that crown.

Arsenal are the only team, alongside Real Madrid, to have reached the knockout stages of the Champions League in every season since the new format in 2003/04. However, they have been knocked out in the last 16 in each of the last four seasons.

Monaco, on the other hand, have gone through against English clubs in their last three knockout encounters: in the 1996/97 UEFA Cup quarter finals v Newcastle, in the 1997/98 Champions League quarter finals v Manchester Utd and in the 2003/04 Champions League semi-finals v Chelsea.

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