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• Kane in the clear for Euro 2024 after back injury, says Southgate

  Gareth Southgate has confirmed England captain Harry Kane will be fully fit for Euro 2024, saying the back injury which has kept him out in recent weeks has cleared up.

  Fears were expressed about Kane's chances of featuring in Germany when he missed Bayern Munich's final two games of the Bundesliga season, returning to England to seek treatment on a back problem.

  Kane enjoyed a stunning individual campaign in 2023-24, with no player from Europe's top five leagues bettering his 44 goals in all competitions, though he was unable to end his wait for a first major trophy.

  England will hope that arrives in his new homeland in July, and Southgate is confident Kane will be in peak condition for the tournament. 

  "Kane is pretty much clear now. He is quite relaxed about it. I think a sensible decision was taken not to push for the last game there," Southgate said.

  "Back problems can just happen, but it is not something we are concerned about at this moment in time. 

  "Our understanding of it is that it is something that is pretty much clear now."

  Kane has scored 12 goals across the last three major international tournaments, netting six at the 2018 World Cup, four at Euro 2020 and two at the 2022 World Cup, with Kylian Mbappe the only other European player to equal that haul.

  While Kane's incredible goalscoring feats are yet to be rewarded with silverware, Southgate says his striker is determined to put that right at the Euros.

  "It won't be nice for him and I am sure he will be aware of what people will say about that," Southgate said of Kane's failure to win a trophy with Bayern.

  "But his love for this challenge and desire to make this work has never wavered and he is definitely looking forward to this tournament.

  "He has delivered what we thought he would deliver in terms of goals in that league and I know the club are super happy with what he has done."

• Guardiola wins fifth Premier League Manager of the Season award

  Pep Guardiola has been named Premier League Manager of the Season for the fifth time after leading Manchester City to a fourth straight title.

  City edged out Arsenal by two points on the final day of the season to win their eighth Premier League title, their sixth under Guardiola and their fourth in a row.

  They are the first team in English football history to win more than three consecutive titles, while Guardiola is just the fourth manager to win six English top-flight crowns. 

  Alex Ferguson leads the way with 13, while Guardiola has matched former Aston Villa manager George Ramsay and Liverpool legend Bob Paisley.

  With 11, Ferguson is also the only person to win the Premier League Manager of the Season award more often than Guardiola, with his fifth dragging him further clear of Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger (three each).

  Guardiola also claimed the prize after overseeing title-winning campaigns in 2017-18, 2018-19, 2020-21 and 2022-23.

  Having seen off competition from four other nominees, Guardiola said they deserved to share the honour with him.

  "I want to share it, especially with Mikel [Arteta] for the incredible job he has done until the last game, bringing us to our limits," said Guardiola.

  "Of course, for Jurgen [Klopp], for the unforgettable battles for many, many years. And Unai Emery, making something unbelievable again to bring Aston Villa to the Champions League.

  "And Andoni Iraola, with Bournemouth, being his first season in the Premier League, doing what he has done and coming back from a tough start to the season.

  "It is an honour to be alongside all of them and to win this trophy. We will defend this award as best as possible in the future."

• Ferguson still better than Guardiola, says James

  Former Manchester City goalkeeper David James hails Pep Guardiola for "doing remarkable things" but believes he is still not at Alex Ferguson’s level.

  City became the first team in Premier League history to win four consecutive titles with their 3-1 win over West Ham on Sunday, pipping Arsenal to the crown by two points.

  Manchester United had previously won three consecutive Premier League seasons, achieving the feat twice under Ferguson (1998-2001 and 2006-2009).

  Guardiola’s side can create more history on Saturday as they aim to clinch unprecedented back-to-back league and FA Cup doubles against the Red Devils.

  Asked if this achievement put Guardiola’s name alongside Ferguson’s as the best Premier League manager, James, who spent two years with City, disagreed.

  "No, Fergie's still the best. Look at statistics and longevity," James told Stats Perform. "And even more so, since Fergie left, what's happened to Manchester United.

  "You can't even blame or use the excuse he had a good team and did well with it, Fergie rode the waves, he was up and down and even these downs weren't particularly bad.

  "I think third or fourth was probably the worst they ever did; Fergie was the best and Pep will have to hang around for another decade, I think, before he can actually challenge that position.

  "But what we're seeing at the moment, you've got a different style of football, a different type of game in so many different ways. The way the league is constructed at the moment with other competitions around it, Pep is having to do different things to what Fergie may have had to do.

  "I know Fergie was a great manager, but not necessarily the greatest coach. Pep is a great manager and a great coach. He's also got an extra string to his bow in that sense.

  "To be the winner of that league four years in a row, you need to be a superb manager. And I think Pep, in this short time frame, is doing some remarkable things, but he's going to have to hang around for a lot longer to take Ferguson's crown."

  Following their victory over West Ham, Guardiola stated that he was "closer to leaving than staying", raising speculation that next season could be his last.

  "I think the big question for Pep, and it is logical that he will now become the focus given that Jurgen Klopp announced his departure a few months ago, and all of a sudden it was nothing, but Jurgen and he will be the next focus," James added.

  "I think the thing for Pep is, what does he want to do as a person? And it's not that he's completed the treble and that's enough because I think that he would want to do a treble treble, you want to do a quadruple.

  "I can see that competitive side in him, he doesn't seem to change on the sidelines. Even yesterday, when they conceded the goal, and it was a fantastic goal from Kudus, he wasn't happy.

  "I think you can still see that he's still animated, still engaged with the game. There's no question that he's feeling tired in that sense.

  "I would like him to stay. I would like him to stay because I think when you've got someone so good, you need someone to beat them legitimately rather than them just step away and allow everyone else to play.

  "I think he should stay. And I'm sure City will do everything they can to keep him in charge for the foreseeable future."