It’s a relatively quiet day for rumours, which is probably just as well after those Champions League semi-finals wreaked havoc with the heart and nervous system. No great dramas or shocks to report this morning, thankfully. Here follows the relaxing gossip-based equivalent of a freshly drawn bubble bath, mug of herbal tea, a CD containing the atmospheric sounds of the pan pipes, and 14kg of valium.

Darren Moore’s Pardew-shaming two-win, two-draw stint at caretaker manager of West Bromwich Albion may not be enough to land him the job full time. The club are thinking about asking Brentford boss Dean Smith to take over, and they’ve got designs on Leicester assistant Michael Appleton as well.



Perhaps Claude Puel should throw his hat in the ring. He’s likely to be shown the door by Leicester, who take some impressing these days, just ask poor Claudio, so a strong finish to the season might not be enough to save him.

Manchester United have some irritated players to placate. Marcus Rashford wants improved terms. Anthony Martial just wants to play. And elbowing his way to the front of the queue: Marouane Fellani, who is threatening to up sticks to China if he doesn’t get a sizable new contract.



Luke Shaw by contrast has probably just given up, and who can blame him. He’ll be replaced by Juventus left-back Alex Sandro next season. David de Gea doesn’t appear to be agitating for anything, though, which may explain why Real Madrid are sniffing around Thibaut Courtois again.



Articles about Tottenham containing phrases like “reality check”, “cost of construction” and “Daniel Levy struggles to sleep at night” have started to appear in the media, so fans will be disconcerted to hear that Paris Saint-Germain are preparing a £100m bid for Christian Eriksen. The Dane may or may not be joined in a new-look midfield by Chelsea force of nature N’Golo Kanté.

Manchester City fancy Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey. Southampton are after Celtic midfielder Tom Rogic. Burnley want Bristol City left-back Joe Bryan. And that’s your lot. Enjoy the rest of your day, if you can. Arsenal, be gentle with us.

