Leicester boss Dean Smith believes his side have piled the pressure onto Everton after seeing his team set up a dramatic final day of the Premier League season with a battling draw at high-flying Newcastle.

The 2016 champions will head into Sunday’s home clash with West Ham knowing even victory might not prove enough to keep them in the top-flight, but having piled the pressure on rivals Everton and Leeds.

If the Toffees win at home to Bournemouth, both City and Sam Allardyce’s side, who host Tottenham, will be relegated regardless of their results.

But a draw at Goodison Park coupled with a Leicester win would see the Foxes survive by virtue of goal difference and Smith believes they have put the heat on Everton.

“I think we have because if they draw and we win, we stay up. I did say it might be down to goal difference,” Smith said.

“But we’ve got a tough game against West Ham, who have just qualified for a European final and have got a very good manager who’s a friend of mine, David Moyes, who I have got a lot of respect for.

“He’ll make it, certainly, a really tough game for us. We hope now that we can get to the King Power and if fortunes go our way…

“We have taken it to the last game, we’ve made Everton have to win if we win ourselves.”

The need to win – something City have done on only eight occasions to date in the league this season – means there is no margin for error on Sunday with two points currently separating them from the final safe spot in the table.

However, Smith will not adopt a gung-ho approach to the task.

“No, because if you chuck everything, they have got good enough players – they’ve just qualified for a European final – that they could open some doors against us, and we can’t allow that,” Smith added.

“We have to make sure that we play a balanced performance to make sure we don’t give big chances away, but go and create some.”

It was a very different balance on Tyneside, where Smith admitted he had set up simply to avoid defeat by a team chasing and ultimately securing Champions League qualification, although the visitors might have emerged with three priceless points had Nick Pope not made his only save of the game to keep out Timothy Castagne’s stoppage-time volley.

“Have I gambled with Leicester’s future? No. I am a bit of a risk-taker, but that wasn’t a gamble,” Smith said when asked about his approach.

“If I came here and went at Newcastle, we could have been beaten four or five. It wasn’t a gamble.

“We kept a clean sheet, which was what we needed to do. We need to score, which we know we’ve got our problems with.”

Alfredo Morelos leads the list of five out-of-contract players confirmed as leaving Rangers this summer.

The Colombia striker, winger Ryan Kent, veteran goalkeeper Allan McGregor, midfielder Scott Arfield and defender Filip Helander will depart the cinch Premiership outfit.

The Ibrox club also announced that veteran midfielder Steven Davis, whose contract is also expiring, “remains in discussions to continue working with the club’s medical team to support his return to full fitness following a long-term ACL injury suffered in December 2022”.

The Light Blues finished runners-up to Premiership champions Celtic this season and will end the season without a trophy.

Boss Michael Beale, who took over from Giovanni van Bronckhorst in November, promised a revamp of the Rangers squad for next season.

A statement on the club’s official website read: “Each of the departing players has given the club excellent service and will move on to the next stage in their careers with the warmest wishes and thanks of everyone at Ibrox and the Rangers Training Centre.

“The individuals have contributed enormously to the club’s capture of a record 55th Scottish league title, last season’s Scottish Cup, the run to the UEFA Europa League final and qualification for the UEFA Champions League this season.

“Allan McGregor, of course, also gained significant honours with the club in his first spell and broke the 500 appearance mark for Gers back in April.

“Tributes to the departing players will be paid at tomorrow’s match with Hearts.

“Additional acknowledgements to those leaving will continue on the club’s digital platforms in the coming weeks, with Allan McGregor to be further recognised in his testimonial match with Newcastle on July 18.”

Callum Wilson is in line for an England recall as boss Gareth Southgate waits on Jude Bellingham’s fitness.

Newcastle striker Wilson has scored 11 goals since he was overlooked for the European Championship qualifying wins against Italy and Ukraine in March.

On Wednesday Southgate names his squad for the Euro 2024 qualifiers in Malta on June 16 and at home to North Macedonia in Manchester on June 19, with England top of Group C.

Wilson has helped spearhead the Magpies’ top-four charge and they confirmed their return to the Champions League after 20 years with Monday’s 0-0 draw against Leicester.

The 31-year-old went to the World Cup in Qatar but scored just once in 13 games after the season resumed, prompting Southgate to leave him out.

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has previously backed his striker for a recall.

He said: “It’s one for Gareth, but he is certainly doing the right things, scoring goals. That is always going to get you the headlines. He is certainly in great form. I don’t know if it is his best.

“But I think he is very focused at the moment and he knows he has to be. I think the biggest compliment I can pay him is that, whatever situation he’s been in, he’s still been himself, laughing, smiling, joking.

“He is a really positive character. He’s somebody that the squad needs to be positive because he’s such a big personality within it.”

There is a spot available after Ivan Toney’s eight-month ban for betting offences was confirmed this month.

The Brentford striker made his debut as a late substitute in the 2-0 win over Ukraine but will be unable to play competitively again until January.

Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins missed out on a call-up last time and will come into Southgate’s thoughts again.

Watkins has 15 goals this season, although he has not scored in his last six outings and missed a penalty in Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Liverpool.

Borussia Dortmund’s Bellingham missed Sunday’s 3-0 win at Augsburg with a knee problem he suffered in the 5-2 win over Borussia Monchengladbach and is a doubt for Saturday’s final game against Mainz.

Dortmund are two points clear of Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga, hunting their first title since 2012.

Trent Alexander-Arnold is almost certain of a return after his improved form for Liverpool and with Reece James’ season having been ended by a hamstring injury in April.

Marcus Rashford is expected to be fit after injury and illness this month and Raheem Sterling could be recalled after being injured in March, while Morgan Gibbs-White’s form, which has helped Nottingham Forest stay in the Premier League, makes him an option for Southgate.

Ben Chilwell has a hamstring injury, which could open the door for Arsenal’s Ben White to return, while Chelsea team-mate Mason Mount had surgery on a pelvic injury last month and is unlikely to be risked.

LaLiga will request greater jurisdiction to punish clubs whose fans are guilty of racist abuse after feeling “powerless” at the lack of current sanctions in the wake of the latest Vinicius Junior incident.

The Spanish league is engulfed in a racism scandal after Real Madrid forward Vinicius was allegedly subjected to racist chants during Sunday’s game at Valencia and later claimed it was an example of “continuous episodes spread across several cities in Spain”.

LaLiga, according to the country’s law, can currently only identify and report incidents, and punishment is rarely handed out.

Now it wants legislation changing so that it has the power to impose punishment such as forcing games to be played behind closed doors or financial penalties.

It said in a statement: “LaLiga will request more sanctioning powers, with the aim of being more agile and effective in the fight against violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sport, where LaLiga has been leading the identification and reporting of such behaviour in football stadiums for years, but feels powerless when observing how its reporting ends.

“Despite its intense and continuous fight against violence and racism to the full extent of its powers (currently, according to Spanish legislation, limited to identifying and reporting the facts that occur), LaLiga feels tremendous frustration at the lack of sanctions and convictions by the sports disciplinary bodies, public administrations and jurisdictional bodies to which it reports.

“Faced with this serious situation, in the coming days LaLiga will formally request the amendment of Law 19/2007 of July 11, against violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sport and Law 39/2022 of December 30, on sport.

“The purpose of the proposal is to request that LaLiga may exercise disciplinary authority over incidents of this type which occur in matches of the professional competition, so that the disciplinary bodies of LaLiga may proceed to sanction them, among other things, with the total or partial closure of the sports venue, the prohibition of access to it in the case of members/fans and the imposition of financial penalties, without prejudice to the adoption of provisional or precautionary measures that may be appropriate, depending on the nature and seriousness of the incidents.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Vinicius Jr. ⚡️?? (@vinijr)

“As we have been repeating in recent days, LaLiga has been leading the fight against violence, racism and intolerance on football pitches, both inside and outside the stadium, identifying such behaviour through its match directors, security officers and television cameras, and subsequently reporting it to the relevant bodies.”

It comes on the day four people have been arrested in Spain under suspicion of hanging an effigy of Vinicius off a bridge in January.

An inflatable doll dressed in a Vinicius shirt was hung from the railings with a banner that read ‘Madrid hates Real Madrid’ ahead of Real’s Copa del Rey game with city rivals Atletico at the start of the year.

And Spanish police confirmed on Tuesday that four suspects had been apprehended.

They tweeted: “Arrested in #Madrid 4 people who allegedly hung a mannequin with the #Vinicius shirt on a bridge near the Ciudad Deportiva del @realmadrid.”

The arrests follow the latest racism scandal that has engulfed Spanish football, with Vinicius targeted by racist chants during Sunday’s LaLiga game with Valencia.

The Brazil international threatened to leave the pitch in the second half after being subjected to alleged monkey chants at the Mestalla.

Real Madrid said the abuse constituted a “hate crime” and filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

Valencia confirmed police had identified a fan who made racist gestures at Vinicius and that individual faces a lifetime stadium ban.

Vinicius tweeted on Monday night: “Every round away from home is an unpleasant surprise. And there were many this season. Death wishes, hanged doll, many criminal screams… All registered.

“But the speech always falls on ‘isolated cases’, ‘a fan’. No, these are not isolated cases. They are continuous episodes spread across several cities in Spain (and even in a television programme).

“The evidence is there in the video. Now I ask: how many of these racists had names and photos exposed on websites? I answer to make it easier: zero. None to tell a sad story or make those fake public apologies.

“What is missing to criminalise these people? And punish clubs sportingly? Why don’t sponsors charge LaLiga? Don’t televisions bother to broadcast this barbarity every weekend?

“The problem is very serious and communications no longer work. Not blaming me to justify criminal acts either. You are not football, you are inhuman.”

Television coverage of the Women’s Champions League will move largely behind a paywall from next season, the rights holder DAZN has announced.

The group, which has broadcast the competition exclusively on its YouTube channel since 2021, said in a press release that it plans to include 42 of the competition’s 61 matches as part of a subscription package, with the other 19, including the final, remaining free to view.

Twelve group-stage matches as well as four from the (two-legged) quarter-finals and two from the semi-finals will also be available free on DAZN’s online platform, with the rest requiring viewers to pay £9.99 a month to watch.

The news comes as DAZN announced the findings of an investigation analysing the reach of its women’s football coverage.

The group reported that the Women’s Champions League is watched in more than 230 countries, with 362,000 subscribers to its platform.

The final of last season’s competition between Barcelona and Lyon was watched by 3.6million viewers across the broadcaster’s online and TV platforms.

DAZN’s global markets CEO Veronica Diquattro said: “We want to help the women’s game realise its potential, by reaching audiences and by developing its obvious commercial appeal to create a virtuous circle of investment, growth, raising standards and overall interest.”

Jamaica's U-20 Reggae Girlz Head Coach, Hugh Bradford, is gearing up for what he believes will be one of the most challenging and demanding Concacaf Women's Under-20 Championships in the country's history. However, Bradford remains confident in the depth of his 20-player squad, which he expects to showcase their competitiveness and secure a historic spot at the FIFA Women's Under-20 World Cup next year.

In the first phase of qualifiers, the young Reggae Girlz displayed their prowess by defeating Anguilla 6-0, Bermuda 2-0, and Honduras by a similar scoreline, securing the top spot in their group. However, their upcoming matches in Group A will prove to be tougher, as they face the defending seven-time champions, the United States, along with another powerhouse, Canada, and Panama.

Their campaign kicks off against Canada on Wednesday at 3:00 pm, followed by a clash with the United States two days later at 5:00 pm, and concluding with a match against Panama on Sunday at 2:00 pm. Meanwhile, Group B will witness Mexico, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and the host nation Dominican Republic battling it out.

To strengthen the team's chances, Bradford made eight changes to the squad that excelled in the first phase of qualifying. These alterations indicate his determination to secure one of the three World Cup spots up for grabs.

"Our expectation is to qualify, but we are aware of the challenges that lie ahead due to the tough draw. Therefore, we are taking it one game at a time and aiming to perform at our best in each match," stated Bradford. He emphasized the importance of depth at this stage, noting that the young ladies, especially those who were part of the previous tournament in Nicaragua, have demonstrated their determination to fight for World Cup qualification.

Among the new additions to the squad are defender Amelia Van Zanten, sister of senior Reggae Girlz winger Kalyssa "Kiki" Van Zanten, and West Bromwich Albion's Una Moy Lue. Additionally, players such as Canada-born Taijah Fraser, as well as American-born athletes Kaitlyn Ennis, Anaiyah Robinson, Njeri Butts, and Njeri Lewis, have caught Bradford's attention.

Despite facing challenges in achieving team cohesion due to unavailability for a planned camp before departure, Bradford remains optimistic about his team's ability to overcome the stiff competition. He explained that while it's beneficial for players to get touches on the ball, the local league doesn't fully prepare them for the tournament's intensity. Consequently, Bradford incorporated new players into the squad to bring a fresh dynamic to their gameplay. He believes that with the right application, the team will compete strongly in the tournament, which promises to be both demanding and exciting.

Following the round-robin stage, the two best teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage. The finalists and the third-placed team will secure qualification for next year's World Cup.

Jamaica's highest placement in the Concacaf Women's Championship, during its 12 appearances, was a fourth-place finish in 2006. Jody Brown, a diminutive forward, holds the record for the country's all-time leading scorer in the tournament, with nine goals.

Squad: Andrene Smith, Shaneil Buckley, Una Moy Lue, Davia Richards, Liha Williams, Taijah Fraser, Tiny Seaton, Kaitlyn Ennis, Natoya Atkinson, Destiny Powell, Akeila Johnson, Janiel Mignott, Amelia Zanten, Liya Brooks, Avery Johnson, Maya Raghunandanan,

Jimmy Jeggo believes Hibernian can recover from Sunday’s setback against Rangers to keep themselves in contention for a European place.

The Hibees had not lost in four games before the 3-1 cinch Premiership defeat to the Light Blues where goals from Gers skipper James Tavernier, Ianis Hagi and Todd Cantwell rendered Paul Hanlon’s added-time header as a consolation.

Lee Johnson’s side are in fifth place – two points ahead of St Mirren, four points behind Hearts and six behind Aberdeen – with European places potentially available up to fifth place in the league as long as champions Celtic beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final.

Hibs finish the campaign with two tough matches, at home to Celtic and away to Edinburgh rivals Hearts and Jeggo remains positive.

The 31-year-old midfielder, who signed from Belgian club Eupen in January, said: “There were positives but there are still a lot of things we need to improve when it comes to these types of games to get a little bit closer.

“But we are at that stage in the season where we need results.

“We are still in with a chance of European football, which is our aim. It is about taking the positives from Sunday, looking at the things we need to improve on and then taking them into the game on Wednesday night, which will be a similar game.

“We know where we are as a team and we want to keep building.

“We feel that over the last couple of weeks we have taken a step forward and it is about continuing that.

“It is that time of the season where there is no point getting too down about things.

“We know we have to go out there in the next couple of games and do a job. We know it is going to be difficult, but we are ready for that.

“There is still an overriding sense of confidence in the team that we can do what we need to do to get a European place.

“A club like Hibs has to be in Europe. We are all well aware of the expectation.

“As players, that’s where we want to be. We know there are two really big games coming up and it is going to be difficult.

“But the gaffer is clear. We are building and there is another window coming up and all that kind of stuff.

“It is a big advantage to the club having European football and also for us as a team. It provides us with more challenges to grow and more challenges to get better.”

Ilkay Gundogan is determined not to lose momentum as Manchester City aim to close out the season by winning the treble.

City claimed the first of the three trophies they are chasing by winning the Premier League title over the weekend.

Their sights are now set on adding the FA Cup and Champions League but, before they can switch thoughts fully to their two finals next month, they have to complete the league programme.

City, who are unbeaten in 24 games, wrap up their Premier League campaign by travelling to Brighton on Wednesday and Brentford next Sunday and Gundogan is wary of easing up in those matches.

The City captain said: “We haven’t lost any games for so many weeks and that’s the standard that we have to set for ourselves.

“We do nothing different – we do the same things that we’ve done in the last few weeks and hopefully it can be a really special end to the season.

“I love the club and being part of this amazing team.

“Obviously, we want to finish the season with two more trophies. We have two more big finals, and the last two games of the Premier League season are going to be preparation for that.

“We don’t want to drop anything. I would love to lift two more trophies.”

The ultimate success of City’s season will now be defined by the FA Cup final, in which they face Manchester United on June 3, and the Champions League final against Inter Milan the following week.

After a strong run throughout the spring – capped by magnificent performances in crunch games against title rivals Arsenal and then Real Madrid in the Champions League – the focus is strong.

Kevin De Bruyne, who like Gundogan is now a five-time Premier League winner, said: “We like to win, and we’re never bored of it. We’ve won a lot in the past but we want to win again and again.

“We keep on working. We enjoy the games against Brighton and Brentford and prepare for United and Inter and hopefully we can do something special.

“Everybody wants it. We know we need to win two games, but they are hard games, and we need to prepare ourselves the best as possible and hopefully we can win them.”

Midfielder Rodri is confident City can achieve their goal.

He said: “We know there is a long way to go with two big finals and we have to prepare good.

“We can do it. We believe in ourselves. We have been working to arrive in these moments and we are prepared.”

Nick Pope ensured Newcastle booked their Champions League place with a game to spare as he denied Leicester a priceless victory in their bid for Premier League survival.

The Magpies’ £10million summer signing kept out Timothy Castagne’s volley in the second minute of stoppage time with his first save of the game to secure a 0-0 draw on a night when the home side battered at the door but were unable to find a way through.

Callum Wilson and Miguel Almiron were both denied by the woodwork, but a point was all their team needed to ensure their place among the continent’s big boys for the first time in 20 years.

By contrast, Leicester, who are still two points adrift of safety, will head into their final-day clash with West Ham knowing their fate is not in their own hands.

Eddie Howe’s men were lauded by a crowd of 52,152 on the final whistle, having secured Champions League football for just the third time in the club’s history and way ahead of the schedule drawn up by the club’s Saudi-backed owners when they took control in October 2021.

In some senses it proved to be a frustrating 90 minutes – it might have been more so had key midfielder Bruno Guimaraes seen red rather than yellow for a poor early challenge of Boubakary Soumare – but it was ultimately the bigger picture which mattered.

Howe was forced to make a last-minute change when, after he had taken part in the warm-up, midfielder Joelinton was unable to start and was replaced by Elliot Anderson.

Any fears the reshuffle might unsettle his team proved unfounded as they took the game by the scruff of the neck amid a party atmosphere at St James’ Park, although Guimaraes was perhaps fortunate to escape with only a booking for his studs-up ninth-minute clash with Soumare.

The Magpies dominated possession but in the early stages were unable to find a telling final ball.

Almiron, who had made another high-octane start, fired over after cutting inside from the right and Anderson tested goalkeeper Daniel Iversen for the first time with a curling attempt.

Alexander Isak was seeing plenty of the ball down the left but sliced a long-range effort well wide as the Magpies piled forward repeatedly without ever really being able to summon up the required precision to make the pressure tell.

For their part, City attempted to hit Jamie Vardy and Kelechi Iheanacho long and early and, although they achieved a measure of success, they met with stubborn resistance from Fabian Schar and Sven Botman.

Wilson twice went close to his 19th goal of the season four minutes before the break when he stabbed a shot against a post and then saw Wilfred Ndidi clear his follow-up header off the line, while Almiron was similarly denied by the woodwork before Isak steered the rebound wide seconds later.

Wilson headed over from a Kieran Trippier corner in stoppage time after Iversen had misjudged the flight and the half ended goalless.

James Maddison entered the fray at the break as a replacement for Iheanacho, but the traffic continued to head very much in the direction of his team’s goal, with Isak and Almiron menacing out wide, although the massed ranks of blue held impressively firm.

Iversen had to turn a 59th-minute Isak snapshot over his crossbar and block Sean Longstaff’s 76th-minute drive with a foot, but it was the Foxes who almost snatched victory at the death when Pope was forced into his first save of the game to keep out Castagne’s stoppage-time volley.

Juventus' hopes of a top-four Serie A finish suffered a huge double blow as the Bianconeri were thrashed 4-1 at Empoli on the same day they received a 10-point deduction. 

Moments before kick-off, Juve expressed "great bitterness" at the Italian Football Federation's decision to issue a new penalty over alleged transfer irregularities, putting them seventh in the table.

Massimiliano Allegri's side showed no signs of being fired up by that ruling, as Francesco Caputo's penalty and Sebastiano Luperto's powerful effort quickly put Empoli in control. 

Caputo doubled up with a delicate finish after half-time and though Federico Chiesa pulled one back, Roberto Piccoli's stoppage-time strike compounded the visitors' misery and left them five points outside the top four with two games remaining.

Federico Gatti had the ball in the net after 14 minutes, prodding in the rebound after Arkadiusz Milik headed against the crossbar, but Bremer was adjudged to have fouled goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Empoli took full advantage of that escape four minutes later, Caputo drilling home from the spot after Milik clumsily tripped Nicolo Cambiaghi just inside the area.

The hosts only required a further three minutes to double their lead, Luperto smashing into the roof of the net from close range after Wojciech Szczesny denied Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro.

Juve missed huge chances to pull one back either side of half-time, Bremer and Dusan Vlahovic both blazing over the crossbar when unmarked inside the area. 

Vlahovic's miss was swiftly punished as Caputo put the result beyond doubt after 48 minutes, lifting Akpa Akpro's square ball over Szczesny to complete his brace.

Chiesa gave Juve a faint glimmer of hope when he drilled a shot under Vicario with five minutes left, but Empoli restored their three-goal cushion in stoppage time as Piccoli fired into the bottom-left corner.

Juventus have been docked 10 points by the Italian football federation for irregularities in the club’s accounting.

The Serie A side were initially hit with a 15-point sanction in January but the penalty was rescinded after an appeal.

The federation has now moved to issue a new punishment after the federal court of appeal intervened, meaning the club could miss out on European football next season.

Southampton’s owners have announced a shake-up at board level in the wake of relegation from the Premier League.

Martin Semmens has left his role as CEO, with Sport Republic – the majority shareholder at St Mary’s – taking full operational control of the club.

Serbian businessman Dragan Solak has been appointed chairman of Sport Republic but Rasmus Ankersen will continue as CEO of the company and Henrik Kraft stays on as club chairman.

Saints are still looking for a new manager, with Swansea boss Russell Martin reported to be the frontrunner.

A statement read: “These are the first of many changes that we will be making to ensure the success of the club.

“Our incoming director of football, Jason Wilcox, will lead a review of the football department and we will announce the club’s leadership team for next season in the coming weeks.

“By taking these steps now, we are laying the groundwork for our goal of returning Southampton FC to the Premier League as soon as possible.”

Sports stars and clubs across the world continue to provide an insight into their lives on social media.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the best examples from May 22.

Football

Manchester City were still celebrating.

Manchester also remembered the victims of the Arena bombing.

Vinicius Junior received support.

Another award for Declan Rice.

Ryan Reynolds caved in to public pressure.

Golf

What a shot!

Tyrrell Hatton looked back on his recovery from a bad start at the US PGA Championship.

Justin Rose was happy with his week at Oak Hill.

So too was Min Woo Lee.

Shane Lowry congratulated Brooks Koepka on his win.

Cricket

Jimmy marked an anniversary.

Ben Stokes made Anderson feel old!

Stuart Broad enjoyed his week.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Stuart Broad (@stuartbroad)

KP went up in the world.

Boxing

Katie Taylor received Conor McGregor’s praise.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Conor McGregor Official (@thenotoriousmma)

Formula One

A Monaco flashback.

Everton have entered an exclusivity agreement with American firm MSP Sports Capital as they look to secure an injection of new investment, the PA news agency understands.

It is understood that, while a deal over funding is yet to be concluded, talks between New York-based MSP and the Toffees – who had also been speaking to 777 Partners – are progressing well.

Seventeenth in the table after the weekend’s action, Everton play Bournemouth at Goodison Park next Sunday as the battle for Premier League survival goes down to the final game of the season for Sean Dyche’s men.

The Merseyside outfit’s new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock is currently under construction at a cost of £760million.

Figures from MSP were present at Goodison when Everton lost 2-1 to Southampton in January.

MSP and 777 Partners, another American company, were then understood to be parties being spoken to after Everton owner Farhad Moshiri in February said he was in talks with “top investors of real quality to bridge a gap on the stadium”.

Roberto De Zerbi accepts that some of Brighton’s top talents may not be part of his Seagulls set-up when they take on Europe for the first time next season.

Albion guaranteed themselves at least the Europa Conference League with Sunday’s 3-1 Premier League victory over Southampton, though sixth place and the Europa League are also all-but assured.

What remains less certain are the futures of multiple men who helped make history at the Amex, with Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo among the names linked with summer transfers.

De Zerbi said: “Now we have to organise, we have to build a new squad. We have to organise the new season. We have to finish before, OK, but then we have to organise and we have to build a new squad.

“I think we don’t need too many players but we have to compete in the Europa League. We have to compete in the Premier League because it will be tougher for sure for us.

“I think we will lose some big players, but it’s right, no? Because they deserve to play for other targets in another team, but we have to be ready to bring in other big players with the policy of the club.

“We have to arrive ready to compete in four competitions.”

According to some reports, World Cup winner Mac Allister, who joined Albion in January 2019 on a four-and-a-half-year deal, has already principally agreed a move to Liverpool.

Brighton CEO Paul Barber, however, was quick to dismiss those rumours, telling talkSPORT: “If I lost sleep over every report that I read about one of our players doing that, then I wouldn’t be sleeping very much at all.

“At the moment he’s focused on doing what he can for us in our final two games of the season. We’ve got a massive game here against Manchester City on Wednesday and then we go to Villa Park on Sunday to complete what has been a fantastic season for us.

“I saw him down on the pitch looking very happy and obviously we’d love him to be here next season.

“We know that there are going to be a lot of clubs, not just in this country but around Europe, around the world that are going to be wanting Alexis to play for them.

“But at the moment he is wearing blue and white stripes and I’m delighted about that.”

Southampton boss Ruben Selles was also looking ahead to his club’s future, though what happens to him after the conclusion of the campaign is unclear.

Selles’ agreement also expires at the end of the season, with Swansea boss Russell Martin rumoured to replace him.

The Spaniard handed academy prospects Kamari Doyle and Dom Ballard their league debuts in the relegated Saints’ penultimate Premier League contest, with just Liverpool at St Mary’s left to play.

He said: “I’m looking ahead to what can I do if I’m here or not. And that’s why I can give our players that are coming from the academy all the way into the first team.

“I can get players that are ready to go and perform for the first team and even if it’s some minutes today or against Liverpool, that is a big step for their careers and they just keep the door open for them.”