Colney production line might be starting to whir again

There was a time when Arsenal used to produce a regular flow of talent into the first team. All of the London club's best teams over the years bolstered youth players that had come through the Colney production line. The 1971 double-winning team was founded on a slew of homegrown players including such luminaries as Pat Rice, Charlie George, George Armstrong, Ray Kennedy and John Radford – huge names that remain synonymous with the club today. Similarly George Graham's title winners of 1989 and 1991 were peppered with players that came through the ranks. The 2002 side that emulated the double-winning feat 21 years later contained Ashley Cole, Tony Adams, Martin Keown and Ray Parlour but there hasn't been much to get excited about in the years since. That might be about to change with their current crop. Bukayo Saka will be on the shortlist for PFA young player of the year, Emile Smith-Rowe has had an impressive first full season while Joe Willock has finally got the game time necessary to show he can make a contribution with six goals in his 12 games on loan at Newcastle United.

With an exodus expected at the club in the summer following an indifferent campaign, expect to see those such as Folarin Balogun and Tyreece John-Jules making the jump next season.

Leeds ones to watch next season

Marcelo Bielsa has long been criticised as a coach whose teams fall away as the campaign nears its end. For the second season running, his Leeds side are confounding that cliché by finishing in style. Last year, of course, the Yorkshire outfit completed their return to the top-flight at a canter and it's been more of the same this time around. They have won five of their last eight and drawn two of those games against Manchester United and Liverpool. If Victor Orta, the club's sporting director, can better his admittedly excellent recruitment of last summer then expect Leeds to take another massive stride next season – possibly one which allows them to join Leicester City as pretenders to the Champions League places.

Moyes sweating in seventh

West Ham's season is still not finished but it is now on a bit of knife edge having appeared set for something memorable. David Moyes' side still have West Brom and Southampton to come and they can still finish in the Europa League spots even if qualification for the Champions League now looks beyond them. For a club that was steeling itself for a relegation battle at the start of the season it's an unexpected bonus on those measurements. However, there will be disappointment at what might have been. Moyes seventh-placed side's remote chances of a top-four finish vanished after the 1-1 draw with Brighton and he will want to ensure the slip is not punished more. There will be kudos in Europa League qualification, which will be considerably more preferable than a date with its ugly sister, the Conference League, which looks as if it is a competition that fuses all the worst elements of the current incarnation of the Europa League into one.

Rodgers has made his point

Brendan Rodgers was vilified by Celtic supporters when he left Parkhead for Leicester in early 2019 but the decision has come to fruition this season. The Northern Irishman became frustrated at the lack of funds available at Celtic – in particular over a move for Craig Dawson, who was then at West Brom. The central defender subsequently joined Watford and returned to the Premier League this season with West Ham. He has made a solid contribution to their bid for Champions League qualification and would have been a solid signing for Celtic especially in light of this season's woes. Perhaps Rodgers was always destined to return to English football but it makes you wonder that had Celtic been more receptive to some of his demands, he might just have stuck around a little bit longer. Saturday's FA Cup final victory over Chelsea will certainly have struck a chord with those inside the Parkhead boardroom and beyond – sometimes you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone. The trouble is, all at the club clearly did know.

Let's not kid ourselves over Liverpool's miracle win

We're at the end of the season, the 'on-the-beach' phase as ex-pros love to call it, but it came as a shock to see Liverpool in that mood yesterday. The outgoing champions have been a shadow of their former selves almost since the campaign started, bar a brief flurry when they topped the table around Christmas. Yet, here they are, with Champions League qualification inexplicably still in their grasp, looking like a team that is utterly spent. Yes, they won 2-1 at The Hawthorns against West Brom but they were listless, lethargic and devoid of ideas – much as they have been all season – and needed a hugely debatable VAR decision in their favour, not to mention a thunderous headed goal from their goalkeeper Alisson – in the fifth minute of injury time with four on the clock – to get over the line. Take nothing away from the contribution of the Brazilian, whose father was killed in a drowning accident in February – he might just have saved Liverpool's season, but it was a win they barely deserved.