The Sky Sports Football Podcast

With the Premier League reaching its conclusion this weekend, Sky Sports football journalists Peter Smith, Nick Wright and Sam Blitz discuss, debate and celebrate the stars of the 2022/23 season. You can join in and have your say by visiting the Sky Sports website or App on Friday and posting your picks of the season in our interactive blog.

Coming towards the end of a bumpier first year in charge at Chelsea than either Todd Boehly or Behdad Eghbali could have ever envisaged, Sky Sports digital football journalist Joe Shread looks back on the most turbluent season in living memory at Stamford Bridge.In a special edition of Essential Football, Joe joins Ron Walker to discuss the key topics from a campaign which began with such promise after a tough end to the Roman Abramovich era.Up for discussion is how the new owners' relationship with Thomas Tuchel soured - and resulted in his sacking days after a chaotic summer transfer window had ended, before the pursuit of Graham Potter and the rapid toxic atmosphere which soon engulfed his reign amid another mad spending spree.Then it's onto the return of Frank Lampard and Chelsea plumetting to new depths under their interim manager - but renewed hope finally appearing due to the impending arrival of Mauricio Pochettino.Read Joe's full feature on Chelsea's 12 months of chaos on the Sky Sports website.

David Jones is joined by Liam Rosenior, Kolo Toure and Jamie Redknapp to analyse Brighton's 1-1 draw with Manchester City which guarantees them a Europa League spot for next season. Plus, Seagulls' manager Roberto De Zerbi joins the panel to reflect on the achievement and discuss his admiration for Pep Guardiola and Brighton owner Tony Bloom heaps praise on the Italian manager claiming, "he is the perfect man for the job".

David Jones is joined by Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville as they dissect Manchester City's dominance, both domestically and in Europe, and discuss their rise in form across the course of the season. They assess Newcastle’s season as Eddie Howe's side secured a Champions League place with a 0-0 draw against Leicester and look at who could be relegated on the final day of the season before finishing off the night with their end of season MNF awards.

On the latest Essential Football Weekend Wrap, Peter Smith takes you through a round of games which saw Manchester City lift the Premier League trophy after Arsenal lost at Nottingham Forest.We hear from key figures at Man City on their triumph and Gary Neville explains why this is his favourite version of a Pep Guardiola team at Man City.We also dive into the relegation battle, with Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper explaining what it feels like for his side to now be safe, Sean Dyche assessing Everton’s situation after their last-gasp draw at Wolves and Sky Sports’ Ben Grounds reports from the London Stadium where Leeds remain in big trouble after losing to West Ham.It was partytime on the south coast, though, as Brighton celebrated a first-ever European qualification. Lewis Jones explains how they did it. Liverpool are likely to join them in the Europa League and Jurgen Klopp pays tribute to Roberto Firmino and James Milner after their draw with Aston Villa. That result boosted Man Utd’s Champions League chances and Joe Shread reflects on their win at Bournemouth.Tottenham slipped out of the European qualifying spots this weekend and Dev Trehan looks back on their disappointing defeat at home to a Brentford side who could incredible sneak into the Europa Conference League themselves. Plus Sam Blitz reports from Craven Cottage where Fulham and Crystal Palace drew and their supporters paid tribute to Roy Hodgson. And that's your Premier League Weekend Wrap!

Kelly Cates is joined by Tony Adams, Michael Dawson and Jamie Carragher and they witnessed Nottingham Forest clinch Premier League survival with their 1-0 win against Arsenal which also crowned Manchester City champions for a third successive season. Carragher felt the Gunners struggled to cope with the atmosphere and intensity at the City Ground and that was credit to Steve Cooper’s players for the fighting performance they produced. The trio also reflect on Arsenal’s stuttering end to the season and Manchester City’s relentless recent form which ultimately secured them the title.Adams feels a contributing factor to Arsenal’s recent demise is the lack of depth in the squad compared to their rivals, Manchester City. Carragher believes the Gunners blew their best chance at winning the Premier League and also pointed to a lack of quality alternatives in the squad compared with their starting eleven.Steve Cooper gives his reaction to Kelly, Tony, Michael and Jamie and found it difficult to describe his emotions at the time, but said that remaining in the Premier League allows the club to keep building and growing. Mikel Arteta congratulated Manchester City on securing the Premier League during his post-match interview, but admitted it was a really sad day for the club. Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis also speaks with Pat Davison and said that keeping faith with Steve Cooper was a very wise decision.

On a special edition of Essential Football, Melissa Reddy, Paul Gilmour and Lyall Thomas join Ron Walker to look ahead to Mauricio Pochettino's impending appointment as Chelsea's third manager of the Todd Boehly era.Melissa and Paul explain the depth of the philosophy which made the Argentine such a successful figure at Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton, why he can re-energise a tired Chelsea and what he's learned from his time abroad at PSG.With a huge squad for Pochettino to deal with this summer, Lyall charts the task he has on his hands in the upcoming transfer window, who could be on their way out at Stamford Bridge and where he will want to see investment ahead of the new season.

Kelly Cates is joined by Jamie Redknapp and Chris Houghton in the studio to analyse Newcastle's impressive 4-1 win over Brighton at home that sees them being one win away from securing a Champions League spot next season. The studio panel also discussed how well Arsenal have done to push Manchester City all the way and the regelation run in as we near the last few games of the season.

David Jones is joined by Jamie Carragher, Gary Neville and special guest Howard Webb on Monday Night Football as before the match they look at how VAR works in the background and during a key decision in the Premier League. After Liverpool’s 3-0 win over Leicester, Jamie and Gary assess both the relegation run in and the race for the top four, looking at who has the toughest fixtures and who will likely reach the Champions League and avoid relegation come the end of the season. The pair then compare Manchester United’s treble winning side from 1999 to this season’s Manchester City team and create their own combined XIs.

On the latest Essential Football Weekend Wrap, Peter Smith takes you through a dramatic and potentially decisive round of Premier League games which saw Man City move to within touching distance of the Premier League crown after Arsenal were beaten at home by Brighton. We hear from Mikel Arteta, Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira on a dramatic Super Sunday. We also assess the race for European football, with Joe Shread’s assessment of Man Utd’s win over Wolves and Declan Olley’s verdict on Aston Villa’s victory against Tottenham. Plus the relegation battle is proving to be a fascinating one – Zinny Boswell reflects on Nottingham Forest’s point at Chelsea which helps their hopes of escaping danger, while Nick Wright analyses Crystal Palace’s win over a Bournemouth side who had their top-flight status confirmed by Everton’s defeat to Man City. The fight is over for Southampton, though – they have been relegated to the Championship and Ben Grounds was there at St Mary’s to see their 11-season stay in the Premier League come to an end. And that's your Premier League Weekend Wrap!