Welcome to Back Pages, bringing you everything you need to know about the biggest sports stories making the headlines in the morning's newspapers. I'm Rob Jones. Joining me, The Telegraph's chief football correspondent, Jason Burt, and Charlie Wyatt, the football editor at The Sun. Welcome to you both.
But we will start with that huge day on Tuesday night, the first leg of Arsenal's Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain. We've already seen off plenty of English opposition in the competition so far this season, but Arsenal beat PSG in the group stages. Your paper, Charlie, goes with wait and see. Mikel Arteta, my lads, will finally deliver. It's in their eyes. How significant are these two fixtures for the manager and for the club's short-term future, would you say?
Well, massive. This could shape or will shape Arteta's future at the club, really. And, yes, certainly short term. And it's one of the biggest games in Arsenal's history. And I was at the Emirates tonight watching the press conference. And Arteta, as you would expect, was really upbeat, energetic.
Just talking about the opportunity that's there for his team and, you know, urging the fans to create even better atmosphere than what we saw a few weeks ago with the Real Madrid game, which was without doubt the finest night Arsenal have had at that stadium since they moved in in, what, 2006. But, you know, a different challenge tomorrow night, an even bigger challenge in many respects purely because it is,
the semi-final. So, yeah, really looking forward to it. And, yeah, Arteta, as you would expect, was extremely upbeat this evening. Just touch on some of the quotes then, Jason, from Mikel Arteta, who says, I hoped and dreamed that we could achieve this. The dark days were necessary. You have to learn and you have to go through certain periods and successive eighth-place finishes at the start of his tenure. The progression is clear, but for a club like Arsenal, it's...
it can't just be about progression. There has to be something tangible to go with it, doesn't there? Yeah, and that's the point, isn't it? I mean, obviously, Arsenal have done extremely well under Mikel Arteta. There have been some dark days. There were some difficult times at the start. Obviously, he won the FA Cup in his first season. But after that, it was quite tricky, especially in the league.
They've spent a lot of money, they've invested a lot, they've changed the team a lot, they've backed the manager, and there comes a point when you have to deliver. And, you know, it'd be harsh to say if they go out to Paris Saint-Germain he's failed, but there comes a point where they have to go that step further
closer and that step to the end to actually win a trophy by two and possibly now three second place finishes in the Premier League and you know it's about potential but eventually you have to deliver on that PSG are I think the best team in Europe I think the most exciting team in Europe but they can be beaten
as Arsenal have proven already this season. It's a different PSG this time, obviously, same season, but they've changed an awful lot since they played in September at the Emirates. But we saw with Aston Villa, they can be got at, especially in a hostile atmosphere. So I think tomorrow night, the key, as Arteta says himself, will be the fans as well. It's quite interesting he talks about them bringing their boots, even bringing their shorts, bringing their shirts, to be quite seen if they bring all those things
bits with them as well. But I think we saw with the Real Madrid game in the quarter-final what they can achieve when the crowd gets behind them and when they're playing
at full capacity. And I think they need, they absolutely desperately do need a good lead tomorrow night to take back to Paris next week, because that will be equally hostile, if not more so. And Paris Saint-Germain at home are a very, very dangerous team. But it's an absolutely mouthwatering tie. But as you say, it really does come down to now is the time to deliver for Arsenal and for Arteta. And he's embraced that, to be fair to him. He's understood that and he's done his rallying cry and he's embraced that fully.
The Times has a picture, Charlie, of the man who was so integral in the two legs against Real Madrid, Declan Rice. What areas of the pitch do you think will be particularly significant in deciding this semi-final?
Well, it'd be great if he could score another free kick or even two like he did the other night against Real Madrid, the other week rather, sorry. But that Thomas Partey suspended, that's going to have an impact on the Arsenal midfield and of course who they play up front. So Mourinho could be dropping back into midfield. Trossard, who's played the last couple of matches up front and scored as well, he might play there. So, you know, Arteta has had to make changes, but the confidence of
that that first free kick gave Rice was just shown by what happened in the next free kick. That's all about self-belief. So if there are free kicks in dangerous areas, there's up to Declan Rice to maybe do it. Arsenal will feel that maybe PSG are slightly weak in
at corners and free kicks and crosses into the area with Donnarumma. Donnarumma's had some brilliant performances against English clubs, actually this season as well, of course, against Aston Villa and Liverpool. But he has been suspect with some crosses, as he was actually for a couple of the goals when Arsenal beat PSG here in October. Obviously, it's a totally different game now.
And both sets of managers were asked about that. And equally, you know, Luis Enrique was interesting. I was in for his press conference tonight and got a little bit tetchy at times. You know, he was speaking in Spanish via a French translator and he was moaning at a few of the French journalists for being negative because they were asking about the fact that PSG have only won one of their last four games. So he was trying to be upbeat and was getting a bit angry.
So, yeah, annoyed with some of the questioning, which was quite interesting to watch as well. What I think is quite interesting, Jason, I don't know whether Mikel Arteta meant it, but it's something you could take into the quotes. You've both referenced the quarterfinal against Real Madrid. He says they're a very different opposition to Real Madrid. They are a team that are very well worked with a lot of detail and attention. You could read into that that Real Madrid,
With this all-star forward line in particular, it was all sort of a bit disjointed and everyone tried to do things off the cuff. Whereas Enrique has sort of transformed PSG from that into an actual unit now.
That's exactly the point I was going to make, actually. Yeah, exactly. I mean, Real Madrid at the moment look like what PSG used to look like when they had Mbappe, Neymar and Messi basically doing their own thing. I remember going to games and watching PSG and you basically had the eight players behind those three and there's a big gap and then those three were staying up front on their own and it wasn't a team. They were doing their own thing. They were playing individually. Obviously, fantastic players. So clearly they won games because of that, but they couldn't go all the way
and win the Champions League. But now Luis Enrique has created not just a very exciting team, a complete team in many ways, but a young team who I think, if they don't even go on to win the Champions League this year, will be a real force the next couple of years. So I think they really are on a very strong upward curve. But he certainly has coached them in a way that is, you know,
I think a real good example to how coaches in modern football should be played with those wingers who take on their defenders and with that midfield, which I think will be the key tomorrow night with the absence of Partey. I think Arsenal might struggle to control that PSG midfield. But absolutely, he has done a fabulous job and PSG themselves as well in recognising that it needed to change. They couldn't carry down this kind of Galacticos route.
What they called it was no more bling bling, basically. And they've ended that now. And they've obviously gone down a much more sort of French-based, younger team, exciting team. And he takes a huge amount of credit for doing that. Just briefly from you, Charlie, Jason's already said that he thinks PSG are the strongest team left of the four. Where would your tip be for the eventual winners of the competition?
Well, I mean, I agree with Jason on form over the last season, really, forgetting the last couple of weeks. PSG are the best team in Europe. But I still think Arsenal have got a chance. I really do. Are they going to win the Champions League in Munich? I'm not so sure. But if they get through to the final, then of course they've got a chance. And I think they might well beat PSG over the two legs. But they, of course, need...
to win tomorrow, ideally by a couple of goals. I wanted to get into a piece, Jason, written by yourself and Tom Gibbs, because I think it's a fascinating subject that has sort of rumbled on even before Liverpool were crowned as champions, as to the worthiness of them as champions. And I think you nail it with one sentence, the rush to try to devalue what Liverpool have achieved is pretty pathetic. I don't understand why people seem desperate to pick holes in what Arnaud Slott has achieved this season.
No, absolutely. I think it's an interesting argument, obviously. I get the fact that we haven't had the Premier League title race that maybe we've had in previous seasons when Liverpool and Manchester City have gone head-to-head. We've been spoilt to a degree that it's often gone down to the final day. It's over with four games to go.
But I think, unfortunately, some people have used that as a way of trying to devalue Liverpool's title, which is absolute nonsense. It's not their fault they've been great. It's not their fault they've been playing really well. It's everyone else's fault that they haven't matched what Liverpool have achieved. And I genuinely think, you know, what Arne Slott has done, and I was racking my brains about this, I wrote this piece yesterday, I think he's surpassed
any other manager, a foreign manager in particular, in his first season in the Premier League. And include Jose Mourinho in that, who won the league and the League Cup in his first year at Chelsea because of the way he's done it without effectively spending any money and following the man. I mean, we have this massive debate about how difficult it was for Manchester United to replace
how difficult it was for Arsenal to replace Arsene Wenger, how difficult it might be for Liverpool to replace Jurgen Klopp. Well, it's not happened at all. And I think what Liverpool have done is absolutely incredible achievement this season. The way they've gone about their business, they could well surpass 90 points, which is...
Again, it's something that has been an incredible achievement in terms of a points total. And I think it's a little bit cheap that some people have gone after them and tried to in some way create an argument saying, well, OK, fine, others have underachieved, underperformed, therefore it's been a boring season, therefore Liverpool are boring champions. That is a very twisted logic to try and extrapolate all of that and devalue Liverpool's achievement because others have been not good enough. Is there anything there, Charlie, that you disagree with?
No, Jason's nailed it. I find it really weird, this conversation that people are talking about, that, you know, it's been devalued in any way. You know, there's been other seasons, maybe not recently, where teams have won the league easily. There's been seasons, for example, when Leicester won it.
with the so-called bigger clubs didn't, you know, they weren't anywhere near. Obviously, it was Chelsea and Tottenham, but no one has tried to devalue Leicester's success. It was an absolutely brilliant story. Liverpool is an absolutely brilliant story and a phenomenal achievement.
as Jason says, from a manager in his first season who wasn't able to really buy anyone apart from Federico Chiesa and Mehmet Ashvili, the goalkeeper who's going to be arriving this summer. So it is an extraordinary achievement. And, you know, Liverpool are by far and away the best team in the Premier League. And I actually think they will take some catching next season, even if, as expected, the other teams try to improve.
So what will Liverpool do to try and improve next season? Again, in Jason's paper, The Telegraph, Chris Baskin writes Liverpool's spending spree. Arne Slott will be back with one of Liverpool's biggest summer transfer budgets to pursue a record-breaking 21st league title. If you were Arne Slott, and as we've just discussed, Jason, it's a high bar, what positions would you look to try and improve? Yeah, I think what will be fascinating is how he goes about reshaping the team now because he's inherited this squad of players recently
got them over the line in the Premier League but obviously eventually he'll want to try and change things and put a little bit more of his own stamp and also improve them because they did go out to the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain there is a problem at number nine he needs to get in a new striker a new centre forward I think that forward line despite the fact they've scored so many goals I think there will be some changes there not just with Darwin Nunes probably going I could see Diogo Jota going possibly even Luis Diaz and a real shake up there at
front. And then obviously the left side of defence, do they replace Andy Robertson with another left back? Obviously, Kirk Ayres at Bournemouth has been mentioned, but as my colleagues, Chris says, it's quite a lot of money if he's going to be an understudy to Robertson, or does he replace Robertson and then possibly even another centre-half? We know they like Dean Howson at Bournemouth again, but everyone likes Dean Howson and he's got a £50 million buyout on his contract. So I think there also will be a bit of movement in mid
field as well and a few departures. Kelleher, obviously the goalkeeper will go. Joe Gomez could go, as I mentioned, those forwards as well. So it could be quite an interesting reshaping of the squad. Don't think a huge change. Clearly the biggest two bits of transfer business that
that Liverpool have done so far is to sign up Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk. The expectation remains that Trent Alexander-Arnold will go, so maybe they need to look at right-back as well. Obviously, they've got Conor Bradley, but they may need to bring in this. So suddenly there's quite a lot of business that could be done at Liverpool, and what's good for them and their supporters is they've got a lot of money to spend. They're not up against it at all in terms of PSR. They didn't spend last year. They haven't spent heavily for quite some time, actually, so they've got...
Quite a lot of money to play with and they will bring in money through sales. I think a couple of those players may even go to Saudi Pro League. So it's quite exciting times for Liverpool as to what they can do to achieve and go forward now.
Interestingly, Charlie, I interviewed Cody Gakpo after yesterday. He touched on the two that have signed their contracts and then finished with the sentence, and hopefully Trent stays too, which a lot of people excitedly read into on social media afterwards. Is there anything to be said that as he looked out across the Kop, as the Scouser he is on Sunday, that that might have just tugged at the heartstrings a little bit to get him to sign a new deal?
Certainly an interesting comment. And yeah, that has certainly given some optimistic Liverpool fans hopes. But I still think, you know, he's going to be joining his mate Jude Bellingham around Madrid. So that is an area, as Jason says right back, Connor Bradley is going to be, already is, one hell of a player. Maybe they'll look to strengthen there. But, you know, Trent Alexander-Arnold, I'm glad that he was able to enjoy the scenes yesterday. I think some of the stick,
he's been getting from Liverpool fans but I think I would stress Liverpool fans online as opposed to those who have been watching him every week and you know who are packing Anfield as ever they've been giving him a really good reception and you know I'd expect
nothing less so yeah it was a memorable day for Trent Alexander-Arnold whatever happens over the next few weeks Just a quick one to finish with both of you and I'll come to you first Jason purely because it was a conversation I was having with a colleague yesterday about who might be the sort of individual award winner come the end of the season we were involved in a tussle between Van Dijk and Salah and I wonder where your vote might go
Yeah, it looks like it. As a football writer, sometimes you try and think a little bit outside the box and something different. I was wondering about Declan Rice in terms of what he's achieved at Arsenal, but I think if he gets into the Champions League final, he would be a consideration, but clearly I think the voting will happen before then. But I
For me, I think it's Mo Salah. I think the numbers he's achieved this season, the return, the way he's played, the way he's driven that team forward. I get that Van Dijk has been fantastic as well, but I think, you know, I naturally tend to lean much more towards the guys who score the goals. And I think for me, it'll be Mo Salah. Charlie? Virgil van Dijk for me. Mo Salah, yeah, absolutely outstanding. But with a new manager, with...
Some young players in the squad, players that underperformed last year, like Gravenbert, who have been a revelation this year. Van Dijk has had a lot to do on and off the pitch. You know, his form's generally been outstanding. Let's not forget he had a serious knee injury a few years ago. So as captain of Liverpool and helping to oversee an extraordinary title challenge, Van Dijk,
to say Salah has been brilliant. I don't expect goals from some of those key players, but for me, it is their captain. Let's just touch on a couple of other stories whilst we have time and get into the Guardian. RFU chief keen to host Chelsea, Twickenham. Bill Sweeney, who's the chief executive of the RFU, has floated the idea it could be a possibility, Jason.
There have been conversations previously about possible Premiership clubs coming here. Richmond Borough is more concerned about that. I just think in terms of impact on local residents, fans and so on, they're a little bit more sensitive. It's an interesting one that if Chelsea do need to relocate or redevelop, that it would suit them. Financially, it would suit the RFU. And as that alludes to from Bill Sweetie, it might well come down to Richmond Borough Council.
Yeah, absolutely. As Bill Sweeney says, it's been around before. I think 2017 they talked about it. But I remember 20 years ago almost, when I used to cover Chelsea an awful lot, there was even talk then of a possibility of going to Twickenham. At that stage, there was an awful lot of local opposition to it. I think people didn't want football fans...
the area every other Saturday. To me, this story says more about the RFU in Twickenham than it does about Chelsea. Chelsea clearly will have to look for a temporary home if they fully redevelop Stamford Bridge. But I think this goes to the heart of the financial problems that the RFU are facing and the fact they've got Twickenham, which they're going to have to redevelop themselves. I think it needs about £600 million worth of investment. But they can only use that venue. I think it's not used for 340 days a year. And clearly they want to try and take concerts there. So I think it's all part of a process
to try and put a bit of pressure on the council and local residents to say, look, if you want to have Twickenham as a stadium, as the home of the English rugby, then we need to drive the revenue and bring in more revenue to make it more viable. And I think that's what it's all about. And I think they're actually floating the idea of bringing in a football tenant for a while is part of
that and Chelsea are the obvious ones clearly so I think it's definitely one that is being driven much more by the RFU than by Chelsea at this stage anyway and I think it says an awful lot about the state of the RFU we obviously know they've got a big financial crisis I've had one and they're trying to sort that out at the moment. Yeah just to confirm only two non-rugby match days are allowed at Twickenham at the moment but I think Bill Sweeney has spoken about
hopefully that will change and more concerts might be allowed moving forward let's just finish it in the mirror Charlie who go with Hurt Rash unlikely to play again for Aston Villa Marcus Rashford who missed the FA Cup semi-final defeat to Crystal Palace on Saturday might be done given particularly that Villa's last game of the season is against Manchester United a game he couldn't play in so a question I feel we might ask a lot in the next couple of months what next for Marcus Rashford
Well, that's up to Marcus Rashford, isn't it, really? Because, you know, one route out of Manchester United and he's clearly going to leave Manchester United. I don't think anyone really expects him to sort of find a way back there. We know that from both sides, really. Aston Villa would love him. He has made an impact, positive impact. Still more to come from him. He's got his England place back.
But in the case of whether he thinks he could do better than Aston Villa, whether he thinks he could get that move to Barcelona, I think Aston Villa has been a great fit for him, will be a great fit for him next season. And if Villa can afford him, which I'm sure they can, that's the move he's got to make. It's a shame that the season potentially is going to end with a hamstring injury, because, of course, he has been a key player for Villa over the last few months.
But, yeah, I think it would be nice to see him back at Villa Park for Unai Emery next season. Does it feel largely dependent, Jason, on whether or not Villa are in the Champions League?
I think that's key. Yeah, I think you're absolutely right. I think Marcus Rashford wants to play Champions League football. I think at the moment, the way things are with him, I probably think he's more likely to leave Villa. I think he feels that he can do better in a way. And I think that Barcelona link is something that he's never let go. And I think he really, really does dream of playing for Barcelona. But he's
If Villa do get over the line, I think it could help sway him to stay at Aston Villa, which I agree with Charlie. I think it's been a good move for him. I think he's starting to emerge and starting to show again the football that he can play. And I think he should settle down there and stay at Aston Villa and be a mainstay of their team. And I think it'll be a smart move for him and a good one for Villa if they can make the finances work. Just very quickly, Charlie, Barcelona could be tricky in terms of their own finances.
Yeah, look, it's not going to be an easy move in terms of that amount of money they'd probably have to spend. But the amount of times we hear about Barcelona and Real Madrid having financial problems, then all of a sudden they still find £50 million to £100 million for someone. So, yeah, nothing would surprise me with Barcelona. Gentlemen, thank you very much indeed for your company this evening.