Skipper Tom Heaton has credited the Burnley squad’s togetherness for enabling them to avoid relegation from the Premier League this season.

The Clarets struggled away from home early in the season but under the guidance of Sean Dyche, managed to secure survival weeks before the final game of the campaign.

Heaton picked out their 4-0 defeat to West Brom back in November as a key moment in the season, despite it being Burnley’s worst result of the campaign.

“One moment sticks out for me – half-time away at West Brom,” he said. “We were 3-0 down and we had a moment before the manager said his piece, which was pretty strong.

“It was: ‘whatever happens from here on in, we stick together’.

“They are the sort of moments where, as a team, you have to stick together. You can’t start pointing the finger, you can’t start chucking the towel in, and it’s tough.

 (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

“Things aren’t going your way, and they’re probably not going to go your way, but it’s important that we really had that togetherness.

“I thought that was a pivotal moment in the season.

“All right, we got beaten on the night. You hold your hands up and we weren’t great, but I think we really did stick together in that second half.

“It’s important and it’s very difficult, at times, to do that in team sports, certainly in my experience.”

Walter Mazzarri has paid tribute to the Watford faithful for their support throughout the season as he prepares to leave the club.

The Watford boss was sacked by the club, with the Hornets tumbling down the Premier League table after reaching the 40 point-mark.

After their 1-0 win over Swansea City on April 15, Watford lost five straight games, but that hasn’t stopped Mazzarri praising his players’ effort.

“I would like to thank the main characters of this season – the players and the fans,” said Mazzarri.

“Our fans have always been extraordinary with their participation and with their fantastic passion for the whole season.

“The fans have always helped us give more than we thought we could, so they have been very important.

(Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

“They have been unique and we were never alone or without them. I want to thank them in the most sincere way.

“Also, I thank the players, who have always given 200 per cent of what they had, always going further and pushing their limits.

Giving more, going further and pushing their limits, even though it hasn’t been an easy season because we had a lot of injuries and a decimated squad.”

Tony Pulis knows that West Brom face a fight when they take on Swansea in the season finale on Sunday but the Baggies boss believes he may face a bigger battle 24 hours later.

Monday will see Pulis head to China to meet with West Brom owner Guochuan Lai to discuss the transfer and wage budgets he will have to play with this summer.

Albion have spent the majority of the Premier League campaign in eighth spot and although they dropped to ninth recently, they could reclaim what has become their second home with a win over Swansea on Sunday.

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Even if they lose, Pulis is guaranteed a first top-ten Premier League finish of his managerial career and is desperate to sign off with a victory.

“We know it will be a tough game down there,” Pulis said. “But we’re desperate to win the game.

“I think we’re guaranteed a top-ten finish now so it would be nice to go down there and win our last game if we can. But we know Swansea will be trying to do the same.

“The most important thing is going to China on Monday, having a meeting with the Chinese and Mr Lai, finding out exactly what they’ve got and their views going forward

“That’s very important. We’ll have a good discussion about what we think will be available and costs.

“It will be a good couple of days hopefully. The most important thing is to find out what we’ve got to spend and what ambitions the club have got to push on.”

Swansea City manager Paul Clement has revealed that he opted not to tune in to watch his team’s Premier League fate be decided last weekend.

With a vital win over Sunderland on Saturday already secure, Crystal Palace’s 4-0 victory over Hull City last Sunday secured the Swans’ top-flight status.

But boss Clement couldn’t put himself through tuning in to watch events at Selhurst Park unfold.

“I decided it was too difficult to watch so I went for a run down Mumbles Road,” said the Liberty Stadium chief, whose side host West Bromwich Albion on Sunday afternoon.

(Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images)

“When I got back to my apartment, there were 60 minutes gone and Palace were 2-0 up.

“Even then, I was in and out of the room because it was so tense watching. Then, I could hear the penalty being given, and when Palace scored that, then we could breathe a little easier.

“It affects your life with what happens next in the situation we found ourselves in, so it was a big relief to have come through this and maintain our Premier League status.

“There is not a game where I’ve not been nervous until the final whistle.

“So to hear that final whistle during the Palace v Hull game; you can imagine the release of emotion from that –huge relief probably isn’t doing it justice.

“But I’m delighted for the players, the staff, the owners, and particularly the fans, because they’ve been absolutely fantastic.”

Southampton skipper Steven Davis is keen to sign off for the summer with his side sitting pretty in eighth in the Premier League.

The Saints bring the curtain down on their campaign at home to Stoke City on Sunday afternoon and a win over the Potters would see Claude Puel’s troops ensure that they hang on to their position ahead of West Bromwich Albion, Bournemouth and Leicester City.

Experienced midfielder Davis was disappointed that his team were unable to take all three points against Manchester United in midweek and is keen to see Southampton end their campaign to end on a high.

“It’s always nice to have a home game to finish and you want to go off on your break on a high – it’s an opportunity for us to do that,” said the 32-year-old.

(Photo by Matthew Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images)

“There were a lot of positives to take from the other night (against Manchester United). We were frustrated we couldn’t take three points but we go again against Stoke.

“We created chances against United but couldn’t take [them]. If we keep the same attitude and keep making chances, then ultimately, one is going to go into the back of the net.

“Hopefully we can do that this weekend and send the fans home happy.”

Sam Allardyce has set his sights on getting Crystal Palace’s prepared for the start of next season.

With Palace’s 4-0 over Hull last weekend securing their Premier League safety and relegating the Tigers, Allardyce is hoping to end the season on a high against Manchester United on the final day of the campaign on Sunday.

Palace are 13^th in the league, and could finish as high as 11^th if results go their way on the final day and they beat Jose Mourinho’s Red Devils.

And the Eagles boss revealed plans are already in place to make sure Palace’s players report back for duty in peak condition.

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“It will all be about carrying on where we left off this season by getting the players even more prepared for the start of next season than they are finishing this one,” said Allardyce.

“They will have training programmes while they are away from the club. A pre-season planned out to get them match fit for the start of the new season and a big push on trying to prevent as many injuries next season as we’ve had this season.

“And then it’s about recruitment and the best players we can possibly find for the money that we have available, and that’s a real tough task as always in the current market.”

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has described his side’s final game of the season against Watford as a ‘cup final’, such is the importance of a third-place finish.

A win on Sunday afternoon would ensure City automatic qualification for the Champions League and avoid a play-off at the beginning of the new season.

Guardiola’s men were in fine form on Tuesday night as they eased to a 3-1 victory over West Brom with Gabriel Jesus, Kevin de Bruyne and Yaya Toure all scoring.

The Citizens cannot finish any higher than third this season however with Chelsea and Tottenham out of reach and Guardiola knows improvements must be made ahead of the new campaign.

“It’s a crucial game for us, absolutely a final. It’s in our hands. Just look at we have to do, win the game against a team who at home over the season made a good result,” he said.

“Every game is pressure, every game we play with everything.

(Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

“It’s in our hands. It depends not on Arsenal or Liverpool. We have to go there and win the game. The good teams always fight until the end.

“We are going to finish the season with 15 or 17 points behind the first and second in the league, the gap is big, so we have to work harder next season to reduce that gap.

“I was so happy working in this club, that’s the important thing.”

Daniel Amartey insists Leicester City’s season is not over just yet as they prepare to take on Bournemouth in their final game of the campaign.

The Foxes appeared to be on holiday when Harry Kane scored four times in a 6-1 win for Spurs on Thursday night at the King Power Stadium.

But victory over the Cherries at home on Sunday would see Leicester leapfrog their opponents into the top half of the league table.

And Amartey has called on the players to get their heads right in order to give the fans something to cheer about heading into the summer.

“We have to get our mentality right to get a win for the last game,” said Amartey.

(Photo by Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images)

“We’ll do our homework and focus on that game. Everybody has good spirit so I think if we’re playing at King Power Stadium, the fans support us a lot.

“Bournemouth are good too – they’re good at defending and create chances.

“They’ve won three games recently but they’re coming to the King Power Stadium so we have to focus, be compact and take our chances.

“Everybody wants to win the last game to make the fans happy. It’s good if we win, then we’ll see the table.”

They may have lost out to Arsenal in their last encounter, but Sunderland goalkeeper Jordan Pickford is calling on his side to replicate that performance this weekend.

The curtain falls on Sunderland’s ten-year stay in the Premier League when they visit Chelsea on Sunday, hoping to end on at least some sort of positive note.

Not even a win at Stamford Bridge would prevent the Black Cats finishing bottom though, with their 2-0 midweek defeat to Arsenal a 25th loss of the season.

Despite the loss, the visitors had a resurgent Pickford to thank for the scoreline not being more than it was, with the Gunners having a record 36 shots across the 90 minutes.

SUNDERLAND, ENGLAND – MARCH 05: Jordan Pickford of Sunderland gives his team mates instructions during the Premier League match between Sunderland and Manchester City at Stadium of Light on March 5, 2017 in Sunderland, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

And the 22-year-old stopper is urging his teammates to match the attitude shown in that contest, with the fans the motivation for a good performance.

“We hope to replicate our performance from midweek against Chelsea and hopefully we take something from the game,” he said.

“It’s going to be a celebration for them at the week but we’re going to try and go there and get the win.

“The fans have been brilliant home and away all season but to see them down at Arsenal on a Tuesday night – for a rearranged game – shows why they’re top fans.

“We were pleased to get their applause after the game and that showed we had a really good go at the game, and that’s all they ever ask from us.

“Our attitude was there so we can’t complain.”

Marco Silva admits the frustration of Hull City’s relegation will be felt for a long time yet as the curtain falls on their Premier League campaign on Sunday.

The Tigers face Tottenham Hotspur already knowing they’ll be playing Championship football next season, sitting with just 34 points to their name.

That includes just nine wins, with problems at the back leading to their downfall – conceding a league-high 73 goals across the campaign, nine more that bottom-side Sunderland.

But with the fans set to turn out in numbers for one last outing, Silva is calling on his charges to send them home with at least something to smile about at the season’s end.

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“I want the players to play with the motivation to end the season well in front of our own fans,” said the head coach.

“That is our focus, but of course we are playing against a team that is in a good place at this moment.

“Tottenham have had a very good season and play some very good football, but we want to give our fans one last good result this season.

“Of course the disappointment and frustration is still felt because we didn’t achieve our goal of staying up.

“It’s a time to analyse and I think we have improved collectively and we have improved individuals as well.

“But we didn’t achieve our big goal and that is frustrating and disappointing.”