One of the major rivalries in English football is based in the North-East, and it is between Newcastle United and Sunderland.The two clubs are not competing in the same division this season as they swapped places, with Newcastle moving back up to the Premier League and Sunderland getting relegated to the Championship.Fans of the clubs grasp any opportunity they can to mock the other, and that even extends to former players and managers.Alan Shearer – a Newcastle legend – took to Twitter to throw a playful jibe at the Black Cats.Chris Coleman’s team are struggling in the second tier as they currently reside in the relegation zone, two points from safety.Sunderland have picked up just two wins in their last eight league matches, and the displays on the pitch have been rather dismal.With regards to matters away from football,ÂThe Northern EchoÂreports that the club had to turn down the chance of hosting a Rolling Stones concert at the Stadium of Light due to failure to agree on dates.This particular story caught Shearer’s eye, and he could not resist a cheeky dig.

Danny Rose has not been the most popular player at Tottenham Hotspur due to his explosive claims prior to the start of the season.

In an interview with The Sun, the left-back criticised the club’s transfer activity, as well as their wage structure.

He also questioned the club’s ambition and indicated that he would one day like to return to the North of England, which sparked rumours about a possible switch to Manchester United.

Rose was shielded from the furore following the interview as he recovered from a knee injury.

The England international has since been welcomed back into the Mauricio Pochettino’s team, but he has been in and out of the side.

In total, the 27-year-old has made 11 appearances in all competitions, five of which have been Premier League starts.

On Sunday, the left-back played in an entertaining 2-2 draw with Rochdale in the fifth round of the FA Cup at Spotland Stadium.

After Harry Kane’s late penalty – which the players mistakenly thought was the winner – Rose approached one of the TV cameras and said “Ryan Mason” before kissing the lens.

The former Tottenham midfielder was forced to retire last week at the age of 26 due to a head injury.

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The Hull City player fractured his skill in January 2017 during a collision of heads with Chelsea defender Gary Cahill, and due to the risks involved, Mason was advised by medics to walk away from competitive football.

Despite some fans still harbouring ill feelings towards Rose for his interview in the summer, many praised the left-back for his tribute to Mason.

There was one position that Everton fans desperately wanted the club to fill in the January transfer window – left-back.

Leighton Baines is first choice, but at the age of 33, the Englishman is nearing the closing stages of his career.

On top of that, the left-back has struggled with injuries this season, which led to Cuco Martina being handed the role.

The main problem has been the fact that the Dutchman is predominantly right-footed.

The 27-year-old’s performances have attracted criticism from the supporters, with many left exasperated that the club did not bring in a new player to boost the position.

Even though the left-back role is not a natural position for Martina, the 28-year-old has not shied away from his responsibilities.

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In fact, Martina has revealed that he has been working on improving the left side of his game with coach Duncan Ferguson.

The fans may not be too impressed by Martina’s performances, but they can appreciate his effort.

As reported by The Scotsman, Brendan Rodgers has ruled out Aberdeen making Ryan Christie’s loan move from Celtic a permanent one at the end of the season.

What’s the story?

Christie is having a very impressive season at the Dons and manager Derek McInnes spoke earlier this week about his desire to sign the 23-year-old permanently.

Rodgers though is insistent he returns to Celtic, ready to assess the player after he integrates back into the Hoops squad ahead of the new season.

As quoted by The Scotsman, the treble-winning manager said:

As a staff, we’ve watched him closely in a lot of the games and he’s been a really influential player for Aberdeen. So the plan will be for him to come back and reintegrate into the squad here over the summer and he has a year left on his contract, so we’ll look at it from there. I can’t blame Derek for wanting to have a player of that quality but it’s not a discussion we’ll have. Ryan will come back here.

Can the attacking midfielder make an impact when he does return to the reigning champions, or will he forever be on the fringes of Rodgers’ starting eleven?

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Does he deserve a chance?

Christie has been one of the stand-out players in the Scottish Premiership this season and has arguably had a better campaign than a number of established first team stars at the Hoops.

For Aberdeen, he’s scored seven goals and created a massive 13 assists in 32 appearances, delighting fans at Pittodrie.

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If he could replicate that at Celtic, there’s no doubt he’d be a hit with supporters in Glasgow too, but he needs the first team football and faith from the manager to reach those heights.

He’s only ever been given six starts by the Hoops, four of which came under Rodgers, but surely his form at Dons means he should be give more opportunities next season?

Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has not closed the door on welcoming back Aleksandar Mitrovic to the club, reports the Chronicle.

What’s the word?

The Serbian was offloaded in the January transfer window to Fulham on a loan deal until the end of the season.

Mitrovic dropped down the pecking order under Benitez, with Dwight Gayle and Joselu ahead of him.

In fact, the striker made just seven appearances in the first half of the season.

Since making the move to Craven Cottage, Mitrovic has impressed by scoring seven goals in eight appearances.

Understandably, attention has turned to whether or not the 23-year-old has a future at Newcastle.

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According to the Chronicle, Benitez has discussed the possibility of Mitrovic returning to St James’ Park, and he has not ruled it out.

“There are two ways to analyse this. One is Mitrovic is scoring goals in the Championship. It’s good news for him and us. Two, he is playing before the World Cup and he is our player. We then have to discuss his future in May. In May we will see and if he is doing well, fine no problem.”

Is Mitrovic likely to be there next season?

The Serbian has certainly been performing at a better level for the Cottagers, but there is nothing to say that he will carry that form with him back to Newcastle.

The man himself has suggested that Fulham’s way of playing is better than how the Magpies performed in the Championship last season.

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With that in mind, he may want to seek pastures new when the loan deal comes to an end.

If Benitez stays as manager then it seems unlikely that Mitrovic would be given much more playing time than what he received in the first half of this season.

It might be best for both parties to call it a day, and it could work out well financially for Newcastle as Mitrovic’s current form could boost his price tag.

Alexandre Lacazette has not exactly had the easiest of first seasons in English football.

Indeed, the 26-year-old joined Arsenal for huge money last summer, and has only managed nine Premier League goals for the Gunners this term.

The France international started quite well, but he has only scored once in the Premier League since the start of December.

That said, Lacazette has not been seen in the league since picking up a knee problem in the defeat at Tottenham Hotspur on February 10.

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The centre-forward, who is believed to be on £120,000 a week at the London Stadium, has been pictured in training for Arsenal this week, however, suggesting that he is closing on a return to the first team.

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Arsenal’s official Twitter account posted the image of the Frenchman on Monday, and it must be said that the majority of the club’s supporters were delighted to see him back on the training field.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Southampton’s win over Wigan Athletic in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup has injected vital positivity into the club ahead of the most pivotal match of their season so far – a meeting with fellow surprise relegation rivals West Ham at the London Stadium on Saturday.

Mark Hughes seems likely to continue using the 4-4-2 formation that inspired the win over the Latics, and while most of the attention will be on the two strikers, the true execution of the system depends on the wide-men; they’ll be expected to provide creativity and penetration on the flanks, but will need to do their fair share of defending as well with one less body in midfield.

With that in mind, we asked Southampton fans earlier this week whether Hughes should issue Sofiane Boufal – who Transfermarkt value at £13.5milion – another start after fielding him against Wigan, or give Nathan Redmond the left wing berth instead.

And our poll revealed that Saints supporters are incredibly divided on the issue; while 52% want Boufal to keep his place, 48% reckon it’s time to bring Redmond back into the fold. How would you line up Hughes’ side at the London Stadium? Let us know by commenting below…

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West Ham United are planning to offer Declan Rice a new deal with a big bump in wages, according to Claret & Hugh.

What’s the word?

The 19-year-old attracted attention towards the end of last season the he made his first senior appearance, but he did not make his full debut until the start of the current campaign.

Since making the first XI in a 3-2 defeat to Southampton in August, Rice has gone on to make a further 18 appearances in the top flight, seven of which were starts.

The teenager also featured four times in the Carabao Cup, as well as in the FA Cup, and now attention has turned to his future.

According to Claret & Hugh, the Hammers intend to offer the youngster a new deal until 2023 worth around £20,000 a week and will include performance-related clauses that could potentially pocket him around £40,000 per week.

Is Rice worth investing in?

Even though it is still early days in Rice’s career, the defender has shown numerous times that he can cope with the demands of the Premier League.

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Claret & Hugh claims that the teenager is not financially motivated and would prefer to continue developing at West Ham than join another club for a bigger pay packet and struggle for game time.

Having a dedicated young player keen to learn presents the perfect situation for the Hammers, and it could also save them some money.

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The publication claims that Moyes had planned to bring in two new defenders this summer, but now that Rice has broken through, the manager may not have to.

The Republic of Ireland international can also play as a defensive midfielder, which gives the boss another option if required.

As reported by The Sun, Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing defender Ryan Bertrand this summer.

What’s the story?

With Danny Rose the subject of plenty of transfer speculation this season, there’s doubt about his long-term future at Spurs, meaning they could be on the hunt for a left-back this summer.

One player who could join up to fill that position is Southampton left-back Ryan Bertrand.

That’s according to The Sun, who reckon that Spurs are one of four teams interested in securing his signature this summer.

The paper say he could be available for around £25m, with the player eager to seek a fresh challenge even if relegation threatened Southampton stay up come the end of the season.

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Is he Spurs quality?

There’s no doubt that Bertrand could play a role in Mauricio Pochettino’s first team squad, especially if Danny Rose ends up leaving.

Spurs though are on the brink of mounting serious challenges for silverware at home and abroad and the 28-year-old isn’t really the kind of next level signing or player with serious potential that can take them there.

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With players like Ryan Sessegnon showing exciting progress or players with experience of European competition out there, it’s fair to say Spurs may be able to do better, even though Bertrand does have quality.

He’s also not the most dynamic of attacking full-backs and with Spurs looking for a return to the exciting wide play we saw from them last season, perhaps signing a squad player for the position isn’t good enough.

Tottenham Hotspur will be keen to strengthen their squad this summer as they prepare to begin life in their new stadium.

The North London outfit hope to eventually compete with the size of the Premier League’s elite, and the new ground has taken them that step closer.

So far, the majority of the transfer gossip surrounding Tottenham has related to the future of the current playing personnel.

The contract situations of Toby Alderweireld and Mousa Dembele have regularly been reported on over the past few weeks.

According to The Mirror, Spurs are prepared to sell Dembele this summer before he enters the final year in his contract, while Alderweireld is also believed to be on the way out.

With the uncertainty rumbling on behind the scenes, possible replacements have entered the fray.

A recent report in The Mirror claimed that Barcelona’s Andre Gomes and Bryan Cristante, who is on loan at Atalanta from Benfica, are targets for the North London outfit.

Cristante has made 32 appearances in Serie A this season and has contributed with eight goals and one assist.

The 23-year-old predominantly plays in a central midfield role, but can also play further forward in an advanced position.

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Tottenham have plenty of attacking options in Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Dele Alli, but they have lacked goals from midfield.

We asked you whether the club should swoop for Cristante this summer, and the majority of voters think that the Italian would be a good addition to the team.

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