Alan Shearer's Return To The Toon Army

Newcastle have left themselves with a lot of work to do to qualify for the Europa League having lost one of their games in May so far. This has left them only two points clear of Tottenham in 8th place which means that they need to win their next game to qualify. On the last day, Newcastle (A) will play Hull City whilst Tottenham (H) face Crystal Palace. All Newcastle can do is play their best and hope that they get the right result, something which has not happened to often this season as Newcastle have passed up a lot of chances. The last game of the season will be televised on BT Sport. The May results so far can be viewed below.

: Sebastian Bassong

Despite dominating the game heavily, Newcastle succumbed to a 1-0 defeat to Norwich as another dent was put in their quest for Europe. Newcastle hosted and should have taken their chances but as with many other matches Newcastle have played in this season, they couldn't and paid the price. Norwich won the game when Wes Hoolahan played a ball through to Leroy Fer who slotted the ball past Tim Krul. Attendance: 45,101.

: Fabricio Coloccini

Again, Newcastle dominated the game and took a much needed win at St James's Park. They took the lead when Rúben crossed the ball in. It found Gaël Bigirimana who nodded the ball back to Italian striker Alessandro Matri, who fired past the goalkeeper. This gave Newcastle hope of qualifying for the Europa League but it all remains very close in the race for 6th.
Attendance: 51,193.

Here is the Premier League table with one game left to play.

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Hello and welcome to the last day of the Premier League season. Thanks for joining me Jamie Redknapp and my colleague Faustino Asprilla for live coverage of Hull City Vs Newcastle. We will now get underway.
JR: Faustino, you played for Newcastle, how do you think Shearer's done in his first proper year as manager?
FA: I think he's done a good job in getting them where they are in the league now. They've also had a nice cup run and made some good signings.
JR: Who do you think has been their best signing?
FA: I think Gabby Agbonlahor or Nicolás Gaitán because they've both had an effect on the pitch and with the fans. Gaitán has been great with his set pieces while Agbonlahor has been their 'super-sub'. It's tough but I think Gaitán because of his phenomenal work from set pieces.
JR: OK, we've just received the team lineups and will give you our analysis of the starting XI's.




JR: Faustino, let's start with Hull. They look very defensive with five at the back. Are they trying to prevent Newcastle from qualifying or are they just going how they normally do?
FA:Well Jamie, in most matches I've seen, Hull have used this formation. Newcastle will have to look out for Proschwitz and Vossen up front as they could score a couple if Newcastle don't defend well.
JR:Thanks for that Faustino, now let's look at Newcastle's lineup.
FA: They look like they're going back to as close to the team they were at the start of the season with Astori and Coloccini playing as center backs. The fullbacks are changed however with Santon and Debuchy out with injuries. Yanga Mbiwa and Rúben come in to replace them. A solid back four but Mbiwa is a little inexperienced this season and might be a bit shaky. They keep the same formation in midfield with Vurnon Anita keeping his role as a defensive midfielder, Hatem Ben Arfa and Moussa Sissoko in the center and Gaitán playing as an attacking midfielder.
JR: A very stong midfield there and they could cause a few problems for the Hull defense. Moving on to the strikers and we go back to the original partnership of Yoan Gouffran and Alessandro Matri with Gabby Agbonlahor on the bench. I'm told that we are about to kick off. We'll keep you updated throughout the match, as well as hearing the scores from Spurs and Arsenal. Without further ado, let's begin.



JR: The first half comes to an end with Newcastle having had the most chances. Anyone impressed you so far Faustino?
FA: I was impressed by Tim Krul, he made a great save and he has been the puppet master of his defense. Good display and I think Newcastle should have taken their chances.
JR: Thanks Faustino, let's go back to the game for the second half.

The Premier League drew to a close yesterday with an exciting final day. We'll review the season for you.

After trailing Stoke for much of the season, Man City won it on the final day with a win against Aston Villa. They needed Arsenal to beat Stoke and they did so well played to Man City as they win their second Premier League title during the Al Mubarak era. They will hope that next year will be their year too.

The Runners-up

Branded as the 'over-achievers' of the season, Stoke City shocked everyone by finishing as runners-up tom Man City. They could have won it on the last day against Arsenal but lost 3-0 and finished second.

The teams that were relegated to the Npower Championship were Cardiff City, Sunderland and West Ham United.

Wigan and QPR have made an instant return to the Premier League after gaining automatic promotion. Wigan won the league, QPR finished in second place and Sheffield Wednesday beat Leeds United in the playoff final to mark their return to the Premier League.

Chelsea's Robert Lewandowski picked up the Golden Boot award with a magnificent 30 goals in the league. Liverpool's Luis Suarez and Manchester United's Robin Van Persie came in 2nd and 3rd place with 22 goals each.

Wayne Rooney picks up the Player Of The Year award after a great season which saw him score 19 goals and set up 5 in 27 appearances for Manchester United.

Yaya Toure was voted best player by the Premier League players in a campaign which saw him score 10 and set up 10 goals for champions Manchester City.

Gareth Bale wins the Young Player Of The Year award after scoring 10 and setting up 7 in 29 appearances for Tottenham.

Mark Hughes wins the award after guiding his team Stoke into second place in his first season at the club.

Hi guys, I just want to thank you all for viewing, I'm really grateful for all the feedback I'v received from you. I've really enjoyed writing this for you and I hope you've enjoyed reading it. Any feedback across the first season would be hugely appreciated. Feel free t tel me what you liked and didn't like. Thanks :D.

Earlier today, Alan Shearer announced that he had been approached by French club AS Monaco to replace Claudio Ranieri as manager. He said that he would give the job some consideration but right now, his focuses were all on Newcastle. And then a few minutes ago, he called a press conference. Our BBC journalists are there right now to see what Shearer has to say.

Alan Shearer: Thanks for coming today. I called you here to tell you that I have rejected the contract that was offered from Monaco because I want to turn my club Newcastle into a global force.

BBC: We understand that you have signed a new contract with Newcastle. Can you tell us how that came about?

Shearer: Mike Ashley, the chairman called me up and said that he felt a great transformation had happened under my management. He offered me a four year contract but I didn't want to commit for that long. It doesn't mean that I won't be here for another four years but we'll see how it goes. I'm really enjoying managing the lads, they've all been great this first season. Very welcoming.

BBC: What did the Monaco chairman say when he approached you?

Shearer: He said that they'd be very happy to offer me the job with a good transfer budget to sign some top players. However, as I explained before, I want to continue my career with Newcastle. It would seem like a waste just to leave after the work that we put in last season. I'd also like to see some European success from us after qualifying, but we're taking things slowly at the minute and we look to be making steady progress.

BBC: Thanks Alan, good luck with the new season.

Alan: Thank you.

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Senegalese striker Demba Ba has returned to Newcastle on a season long loan from Chelsea. He left Newcastle for Chelsea in 2012 for a fee of £7 million. This left many Magpie fans unhappy at previous manager Alan Pardew's decision. However he couldn't reject the offer due to it meeting a release clause in his contract. Ba had a decent first season for Chelsea under Rafael Benitez but when 'The Special One' Jose Mourinho returned to Chelsea last season, the player did not get many opportunities and was put up for sale. However, Alan Shearer decided to make the move temporary with Ba said to be happy to be returning to Newcastle. Having joined the Magpie's on a free transfer from West Ham in 2011, due to a relegation clause in his contract, he went on to make 54 appearances for Newcastle, scoring 29 goals. He made himself into a real fan favorite whilst at Newcastle and the fans will surely be pleased that the striker is back for another season at least. Alan Shearer has warned fans not too expect much more activity in the transfer market, as he looks to lower the wage bill.