Whisper it quietly among the ABU (Anyone But United) brigade, but the Premier League desperately needs Manchester United back at their best in order to push Chelsea all the way next season, just as they did at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

ARSENAL 2 READING 1: As impressive as Arsenal have been in rebuilding their season, the narrow victory that secured their place in the FA Cup final confirmed Arsene Wenger’s side still possess a flakiness that continues to undermine their ambitions to regain the position of dominance they vacated more than a decade ago.

Former Manchester United star David Beckham videobombed his son Brooklyn in hilarious fashion yesterday.

The pipes, the pipes are evidently calling Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling,

Jose Mourinho has joked the reason Chelsea are officially the worst behaved team in the Premier League is because the catering at Stamford Bridge is too good and that the FA’s match delegates are distracted by “eating sushi and lobster, and drinking Cristal champagne”.

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal wants to see a complete performance from his team when they come up against league leaders Chelsea this evening.

It remains one of the great mysteries: why Chelsea, with the financial backing of Roman Abramovich and with one of the greatest judges of players installed as manager, decided selling Juan Mata to Manchester United made both economic and football sense.

Hubris. Now there’s a word I really like, with its hint of a serpent’s hiss at the end offset by the near certainty that the slithery one is in for a nasty surprise.

Tottenham striker Harry Kane is among the six players to have been nominated for the Premier League’s PFA Player of the Year award.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has every confidence Wojciech Szczesny is up to the challenge of returning in goal for tomorrow’s FA Cup semi-final against Reading at Wembley, but will offer no guarantees the Poland stopper will be their long-term number one.

Crystal Palace 1 Arsenal 2: Add some silky skills to a solid base of willpower and resolute resilience before topping with a dollop of good luck, and you have yourself the makings of a successful football team.

Southampton 0 Liverpool 2: Liverpool have Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal in their sights after taking their unbeaten run to 18 games with a victory at Southampton that underlines just how far they have come in the last fourth months.

Aston Villa 1 Stoke City 2: Tim Sherwood has admitted that losing his first game as Aston Villa boss is one of the lowest points of his career.

Swansea City 2 Manchester United 1: Having dubbed his side as the best in the country on the eve of Saturday’s excursion to south Wales, Louis van Gaal now faces the possibility of seeing Manchester United miss out again on a place in next season’s Champions League.

One of my oldest friends reported a telling exchange with his son on Saturday night.

Allianz Hurling League Division 1A

Premier League

Premier League

In an interview first published on February 21, 2015, Liam Miller reflected on his career with Liam Mackey.

Once again, it was all about Roy on our television screens this week. But this time it was not Yer Man, it was Yer Other Man, says Liam Mackey.