Joe Hart’s Manchester City career certainly seems over with Pep Guardiola at the helm, but his loan club Torino are one side that are desperate to retain the England international’s services for next season.

The 29-year-old shot-stopper was loaned out to the Italian outfit at the start of the season after incoming boss Guardiola made it clear he was not in his plans at the Etihad Stadium.

But after he has impressed in Serie A, Torino manager Sinisa Mihajlovic is piling the pressure on City to give them a quick decision on Hart’s future.

With the club lacking the funds to buy him permanently, il Toro – sitting tenth in the Serie A standings currently – would need another loan deal to keep him at the club, but their Serbian manager is adamant Hart wants to stay put.

“Hart would like to stay at Torino,” Mihajlovic said. “But we’re aware, both the club and him, that we can’t buy him.

“At most we can loan him for another year but that depends on Manchester City and on what he wants.

“We want to know soon, because if we have Hart next year it’s one thing, if not then we have to plan differently.

“Torino can still only take him on loan, so it’s up to him and City to decide, but we need a quick decision so we can plan for the future.”

Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick believes that his side need to find a ruthless streak to be successful in the final weeks of the season.

United dominated proceedings against Anderlecht in their Europa League clash on Thursday evening but scored just one of 16 shots on goal in Brussels, when Henrikh Mkhitaryan netted ten minutes before the break.

And the profligacy in front of goal was punished when the hosts grabbed an equaliser four minutes from time as Leander Dendoncker’s powerful header flew in.

Veteran midfielder Carrick is adamant there are positives to take ahead of the second leg at Old Trafford but acknowledges the Red Devils must learn to show no mercy when they have teams on the ropes.

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“It’s bitterly disappointing,” said Carrick. “We need to be more ruthless – it’s as simple as that. I thought we played well in the first half against Anderlecht but we were too comfortable.

“We need to get ourselves in a better position to make it easier for ourselves. We’re getting in some great positions to make that final pass.

“We’re still in a good position going into the second leg, but it’s just frustrating. We need that little bit of edge to take us to the next level to be successful.

“I’m sure we’ll get there. We’ve got the players to do that. We’ll stay positive and look forward to the next game, play well and hopefully go through.”

Arsene Wenger insists his focus is on Arsenal’s end of season rather than his own future at the Emirates Stadium.

With the Gunners struggling to make the top four for the first time since the Frenchman took over, there has been increased speculation that Wenger might call time on his 20 years at the club.

A 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace on Monday leaves Arsenal sixth in the table with eight games to go, having lost their last four games away from home.

Next up is a trip to struggling Middlesbrough, and Wenger insists that must be his next priority, rather than a possible new contract at the club.

(Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

He said: “In the final part of the season, with eight games to go, it’s difficult when you get distracted.

“We have to focus on the right things. In the summer, you have a longer period for the club to negotiate and plan the future.

“I focus on what is important for me, that is the performance of the team and what the fans are interested in is the performance of the team.

“We spend a lot of time in our society focusing on things that are superficial and not taking care of the essentials.

“The essential in football is that we have to make sure of one thing. Good players on the football pitch. That’s what we have to take care of.”

Jordan Pickford has had a breakneck rise to prominence and young midfielder Ethan Robson admits the goalkeeper is an inspiration to every player in the Sunderland academy.

Pickford only made his Premier League debut against Tottenham in January 2016 but has gone on to cement himself as Sunderland’s first-choice keeper in the 16 months since.

His brilliant performances in a rather dismal Black Cats season have seen the 23-year-old nominated for PFA Young Player of the Year – alongside Spurs duo Dele Alli and Harry Kane, Everton’s Romelu Lukaku, Manchester City’s Leroy Sane and Burnley’s Michael Keane.

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Midfielder Robson, 20, is yet to make his first-team Sunderland debut but claims the progress of Pickford – who attended St Robert of Newminster Catholic School, the same as Robson – motivates him and other academy prospects to head down the same path.

“I went to the same school as Jordan and I suppose you could say I look up to him,” said Robson.

“He has done some great things in the game at such a young age and he is doing really well for Sunderland.

“As a youngster I have just got to keep believing that I can go on to achieve the kind of things Jordan has and hopefully that will be me one day.”

Injured Crystal Palace captain Scott Dann is on the road to recovery but admits he may have made things worse by over-celebrating during his colleagues’ win over Arsenal.

The 30-year-old suffered a knee ligament injury during his side’s shock win at Stamford Bridge earlier this month.

Dann was watching on with interest as the Eagles put three past a struggling Arsenal on Monday night, but in his programme notes ahead of Palace’s Easter Saturday clash with resurgent champions Leicester City, he admitted to maybe getting a little too excited as a spectator.

“As I’m still on crutches, I thought I’d stay at home and watch the Arsenal game on TV last Monday night, but I wish I had gone now,” he said.

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“Things are going well injury-wise – I started a bit more rehab this week  but hopefully by this weekend I’ll be putting some weight through the leg, so I’m slowly getting there.

“I’m not a great watcher of games knowing I can’t control things, but when the lads were on it and the goals were going in, I probably got a couple more injuries from celebrating!

“It was a great night and when we get enough points to stay up we can look back and say it was one of the best nights of the season.”

Craig Shakespeare says he will not put Leicester’s Champions League qualification bid above the fitness of captain Wes Morgan.

The defender has missed the last five matches with a back injury and has been ruled out of Saturday’s clash with Crystal Palace.

The Foxes lost 1-0 at Atlético Madrid on Wednesday and play the return fixture at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday.

And they will be without Robert Huth through suspension, leaving Yohan Benalouane and Marcin Wasilewski as their only available centre-backs.

But Shakespeare is more concerned with Morgan’s recovery than a spot in the Champions League’s last four.

(Michael Regan/Getty Images)

“We’ll only put him in if he’s ready,” he said.

“The conversation will be with Wes and our medical department and we’ll give him every opportunity between now and then but if he’s not ready we won’t take a gamble.

“He’s trained [Thursday], not all with the squad, but I have said before it will be 50-50 for Atletico Madrid. He won’t feature against Palace.

“I haven’t seen the players [Friday] morning but I need to assess them all. We only had a light training session on Thursday for the players who played and a full session for those who didn’t.”

Everton manager Ronald Koeman has warned his players not to be complacent against Burnley despite the Clarets’ woeful away form.

Burnley are the only Premier League side not to win on the road this season having picked up just four draws from 16 matches.

Meanwhile the Blues have won their last seven at Goodison Park including a 4-2 victory over champions Leicester last weekend.

A win on Saturday would see Everton leapfrog Arsenal, who do not play until Monday night, into sixth.

But even with the odds stacked in his side’s favour, Koeman is wary of relying on the form guide.

“We can’t make the mistake of looking at Burnley’s away record because every game is different,” he said.

“We have momentum at home but we know we need to be 100% at it. We need to be concentrated, disciplined and we need to play out of a good organisation with a lot of freedom for the front players.

“If we play on the same level as the Leicester game, we have a lot of possibilities to win against Burnley, but we need to start the game well and maintain our concentration, like we did in our recent home games.

“We have produced really strong performances at home, of course. Even last week when we conceded two goals we scored four to win the game against the Premier League champions and it’s important to feel good at home.

“Confidence is key and after we beat Manchester City 4-0 earlier this season at Goodison it gave a big boost to everybody and we have continued that momentum at home.”

Claude Puel believes there is a certain fragility when it comes to the Premier League table, and the manager is calling on his Southampton side not to crack heading into the closing stages of the season.

Saints have spent the majority of the campaign flirting with the top half, sat ninth with 40 points from their 30 games heading into the Easter weekend.

That’s largely thanks to four wins in their last six, though victory over Manchester City would give them three successive wins for the first time this season.

But in order to get the better of the Citizens in Saturday’s tea-time clash, Puel knows his side must maintain their focus, looking to build on the football that has become a staple part of the St Mary’s diet.

(Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

“It’s always difficult, it’s fragile. You can see for example when we played AFC Bournemouth we were in the same part of the table three games ago,” he said.

“Now we are ninth and they are 16th. It’s important to keep a good focus in every game and we start against Manchester City.

“It’s important to keep this with good football, while being strong in defence and quality with the ball. We will see if we can go up against this team.

“They’re a great but we have to play against a lot of great teams at the end of the season.”

Tottenham Hotspur may look set to finish above Arsenal in the Premier League table this season but boss Mauricio Pochettino insists his side have their eyes set on a much bigger prize.

Spurs currently sit second in the standings, seven points behind leaders Chelsea, while Arsenal languish in sixth having picked up just one league victory in their last five games.

Gunners fans rejoiced last season upon leapfrogging their North London rivals at the end of the campaign, despite being some way off eventual champions Leicester City.

More than two decades have passed since Spurs last finished above Arsene Wenger’s men in the top flight, but Pochettino insists his side’s focus is purely on silverware with just seven games to play, including Saturday’s lunchtime clash with Bournemouth.

(Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)

“I think we’re playing and fighting for bigger things,” he said.

“If we look at the bigger picture, it’s to try to reduce the gap with Chelsea.

“I think today it’s not important the gap we have with Arsenal.

“The most important thing is to do our job, try to win games and try to reduce the gap with Chelsea.”

SLAVEN Bilic has lamented the loss of Michail Antonio as a ‘massive blow’ for West Ham United after their top-scorer was ruled out for the rest of the season.

The 27-year-old, who has found the net nine times this term, had to be substituted in the first half of the Hammers’ 1-0 win over Swansea City last weekend with a hamstring injury and manager Bilic has confirmed that the forward will be sidelined for the remainder of the current campaign.

Antonio, who has been called up to two England squads this term but has yet to make his international debut, has most recently operated up front for West Ham, having played as a winger or at right-back at different parts of the season.

With Bilic’s men travelling to Sunderland on Saturday, the London Stadium chief may have to turn to the on-loan Jonathan Calleri, who replaced Antonio against Swansea, or Andy Carroll, who is expected to return from injury, to lead the line at the Stadium of Light.

“For Antonio, it is a significant injury, so he is out for the season,” said the Hammers boss.

“It’s a massive blow, of course. We know what he is giving us in every game.

“He’s one of our best players, so it’s going to be a big blow that we’re going to be without him for the rest of the season.

“Calleri did really well when he came on against Swansea with his energy, with his pressing, and with his creating open spaces for other people.

“We’re going to see with Andy. He is always a big weapon for us and a threat for the opponent.

“It’s a good thing we have options and we’re definitely going to need both of them on Saturday to share the minutes of the game.

“Who’s going to start? We’re going to decide on Saturday, of course.”