And with the PFA Player of the Year awards just around the corner, the press are discussing who should pick of the prize after a long, hard season.
All that and more in today’s roundup of the sports pages.
Let’s start with the Player of the Year talk and BBC Sport’s Alex Scott believes Raheem Sterling deserves to pick up the trophy.
“Raheem’s goals, and the intelligence of his runs to get them, have really stood out,” she writes.
“He just keeps on getting better and better as a player - and for him to do that while dealing with and speaking out about the racist abuse he has received this season in the Premier League and on international duty for England, shows how he has matured as a person too.”
And her colleague Jermain Jenas agrees:
“Raheem is playing with some of the best attacking players in the world, and he is still standing out,” he writes.
“Also, if he is not number one on the team sheet, he is number two behind Sergio. He is developing into a leader, which makes him even more important to the team.”
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The Guardian’s Simon Hattenstone believes City’s midweek Champions League game was “drama in its purest form,” comparing it to a work of art.
“…this was football at its best. Pure, palpitating theatre,” he writes.
“The best sport is always dangerous to watch. It is drama in its purest form: raw, unrehearsed and unknowable. And, of course, fans are watching with a supreme vested interest. Shakespeare might be the bee’s bollocks when it comes to literary drama, but most of us are not watching Hamlet desperately hoping that the prince is going to smack one past Claudius in the last minute so we can hold our head up high and go into work singing: “We’re Hamlet till we die”, or “1-0 to the Danish prince”.
Matt Law, writing for Sports Mole, says City are interested in signing Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain.
“Manchester City are reportedly considering a summer swoop for Paris Saint-Germain attacker Neymar,” he writes.
“Neymar has scored 48 goals in 53 appearances for PSG since arriving from Barcelona in 2017.
“The 27-year-old has been consistently linked with a move away from the French giants, though, and according to reports in Spain, City are lining up a move at the end of the season, with head coach Pep Guardiola said to be desperate to coach the Brazil international.”
And, finally, the Manchester Evening News’ Dan O’Toole says City need to move on from Wednesday’s disappointment and focus on becoming the first side in a decade to retain the Premier League title.
“City’s job now, after dusting themselves down from Wednesday night’s considerable trauma, is to become the first side to retain the league title since Manchester United 10 years ago, which, in the Premier League’s current guise, is highly commendable,” he writes.
“Extending their winning league run of nine games by a further five will confirm that, and with a fully-fit squad now available to Guardiola, City’s sole obstacle will be the emotional scarring that Wednesday night might have caused.
“The fixture list is now of particular interest. Following Liverpool’s games against Cardiff and Huddersfield, their semi-final games against Barcelona - the first of which is away - bookend a trip to Newcastle, where former manager Rafa Benitez and his bus-parking expertise will offer the furthest thing from a helping hand to Jurgen Klopp’s side. Liverpool, it is worth remembering, dropped points against Leicester and West Ham who used similar tactics, with a draw at Fulham narrowly averted.”
That’s all for this morning’s Media Watch. But stay with us throughout the day as we continue to bring you buildup to this weekend’s Premier League game at home to Spurs.
