Chelsea must move beyond football’s tendency to be reactionary if the club hope to create a long-term vision for their future, according to Frank Lampard.

Co-owner Todd Boehly has sacked two managers this season in what has been the team’s poorest campaign of the Premier League era, with a record low number of points won and a first bottom-half finish since 1996 now certain.

They are one of 11 top-flight clubs to have changed manager at least once this season, with themselves, Leeds and relegated Southampton having dispensed with two, as the average tenure for a Premier League coach has shrunk to just over 18 months.

Chelsea’s previously indifferent form has plummeted since Graham Potter was removed on April 2, with one win in 10 games in all competitions. The team has failed to score in six of those matches following Potter’s sacking.

Lampard takes his team to face Manchester United at Old Trafford on Thursday looking for only his second win in his 10th game since taking charge, having lost seven of the previous nine.

With Mauricio Pochettino expected to be confirmed imminently as the manager for next season, the outgoing interim coach suggested a resistance to modern trends must prevail if Chelsea are to challenge once more.

“That stat (11 clubs having sacked their manager) says it, I presume it’s a record,” said Lampard. “There are understandable factors, the Premier League brand and what it means to teams to stay in there.

“The first person that receives the blame is the coach, if you understand that going into the job that’s probably a good thing.

“Or course there’s lots of other factors. You wonder how successful always it is to changes those things. It’s clear it’s become that kind of a job and a situation and there are many teams that are fighting with expectations that might not be exactly stable.

“We’re in a very reactionary world anyway. In years gone by the reaction to one, two, three defeats might have been different. Now we have this explosion very quickly and you just have to understand it when you’re doing this job.”

The job of finding Potter’s permanent replacement has been carried out by co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, who themselves arrived at the club only during the last year.

Previously Boehly held the role of temporary sporting director and was hands-on in player recruitment and in the doomed appointment of former Brighton boss Potter.

Lampard said he had enjoyed working with Winstanley and Stewart and that the pair have created a working environment around the club to help his successor succeed.

The new manager’s first job will be trimming a bloated first-team squad before setting about making up a gap to the top four that could hit 30 points this campaign.

“The dialogue has been really good from the moment this opportunity came up for me,” Lampard said. “I’ve been able to get on well with them on a personal and professional level and it’s nice to have that close communication.

“Working in this job you understand when you don’t have communication on the footballing side, you miss it. With both of them, Paul and Lawrence, I’ve had that in their own ways and that’s been a good thing and I appreciate that.

“Their big job is to bring Chelsea back to where we want to get it to. The responsibility isn’t all theirs but they play an important role in it. I’ve been impressed by how our interactions have been and I wish them well going forward.

“There’s a real alignment of thinking through (successful clubs). Where we are at the minute, that would be the work process of trying to see where are we aligned and where do we want to get to and what does it look like? There’s a lot of work in that and in Paul and Laurence we have good people to do that.

“It’s hard in the modern world because everything’s very reactionary. If you want to go in a certain direction and you don’t get any joy for a while, people react to that. For Chelsea it has to be a longer picture than that to get us a bit more of a process. People have to stick with that along the way.”

Gareth Southgate criticised the wide-reaching nature of Ivan Toney’s eight-month betting ban and told the suspended England striker he can still make next summer’s Euros.

The 27-year-old made his international debut as a substitute against Ukraine in March’s Euro 2024 qualifier but the Brentford star will not be able play for club or country again this year.

Toney was charged with 262 betting offences at the end of 2022 and was last week hit with an eight-month Football Association ban after admitting 232 breaches.

The striker starts the suspension by watching the end of the campaign and England’s June qualifiers from afar, with Southgate raising concerns about the sweeping impact of the ban.

“I have spoken with him,” the England boss said. “I don’t know if that’s allowed, by the way, but f it isn’t then they can ban me and not add to his.

“Look, the ban is the ban. It is what it is. I think he recognised and accepted the punishment.

“What bothers me is we’ve got to look after people. He’s injured at the moment, what does he do about getting fit? What does he do?

“How do we give him some structure over the next few months that he can develop himself or be a better person at the end of it? Or have experiences that he might not experience?

“I don’t like the idea that we just leave somebody, so that they are not allowed to be a part of the football community.

“I don’t think that’s how we should work, I don’t think that’s how the best rehabilitation programmes would work.

“But he knows that we picked him because we felt until there was a charge, he should be allowed to play.

“When he comes back, if he plays well then we’ll pick him.

“It won’t have any bearing but I think he’ll have additional motivation through what he is experiencing. I think he is a resilient guy with great character and we are here to support him.”

Toney is prohibited from training until September 17 and cannot play football again until January 17, 2024.

There is only four-and-a-half months between the striker’s return and the Euros kicking off in Germany, but Southgate says the door remains open for him.

Asked if Toney can still make the tournament in Germany, the England boss said: “Yeah, without a doubt.

“It is not ideal because he is going to miss a large chunk of the season and you don’t know after that sort of period out how physically he’s going to adapt and how he’s going to play.

“But it’s possible for him. There would still be time.

“He’s really impressed us with the way he’s played.

“I like personality, I like his belief and the way he goes about his job, so everything is still possible for him I think.”

Gareth Southgate believes the fight against racism in football may have reached a defining moment as the fall-out from the abuse levelled against Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior in Valencia last weekend continues.

The England boss has led calls for stricter punishment since his side came close to walking off the field after some players were subjected to racial abuse during a match in Bulgaria in 2019.

Vinicius threatened to leave the pitch in the second half of Sunday’s LaLiga match at the Mestalla after being subjected to alleged monkey chants from the crowd and Real Madrid, who said the incident constituted a “hate crime”, filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

In response, Valencia were given a partial stadium ban for five matches plus a fine of 45,000 euros (£39,000) – a punishment the club called “totally disproportionate”, while Valencia head coach Ruben Baraja vowed to lead the fight back against what he described as “smears”.

Southgate said: “It is a disgusting situation. I think it is so bad that it looks like it is going to force change. I am hoping there will be something positive to come from it.

“If anyone suggests to me we don’t have a problem in society with racism then there is another example of what we are dealing with, and more examples of people burying their heads in the sand, quite frankly.

“Hopefully it is a story that doesn’t just disappear in 24-48 hours without there being some significant change.”

The action by the Spanish football federation (RFEF), who order that Valencia shut the Mario Kempes south stand, where the alleged abuse happened, for five matches, was strongly criticised by the club, who vowed to appeal.

That criticism was echoed by Baraja in a prepared statement prior to a press conference on Wednesday, in which he stressed he was “absolutely against racism”, but added: “I am not going to allow the Valencia CF fans and Mestalla to be smeared with labels that do not represent us.

“Just as a player rightly fights back against insults and I support that with all my might, we as a club and a fanbase rebel against those who, during the days since the game, have accused us of being what we are not.”

Earlier, Valencia had issued a robust statement against the ruling, saying: “Valencia CF wishes to show its total disagreement and indignation at the unfair and disproportionate penalty imposed by the competition committee on the club with the closure of the stand for five games.

“Valencia CF wants to publicly denounce that in this resolution of the RFEF competition committee they show evidence that contradicts what the national police and LaLiga say.

“In addition, this sanction is based on evidence that the club has not been able to see and without giving us a hearing.

“Valencia CF has condemned, condemns and will condemn in the most energetic way any act of racism or violence. These behaviours have no place in football or in society and we will continue to act in the most forceful way to eradicate this scourge.

“For this reason, Valencia CF is collaborating from the first minute with the police and all relevant authorities to clarify the events that occurred last Sunday.

“In addition, it has applied the maximum possible sanction with the expulsion for life from our stadium to the fans that the police have identified for their racist behaviour.

“For this reason we consider that penalising and depriving all the fans who were not involved in these unfortunate incidents from seeing their team is a totally disproportionate, unfair and unprecedented measure against which we will fight.

“The fight against racism requires the real commitment of all the parties involved without using it as a pretext to incur serious injustices.

“Valencia CF will appeal to the last instance the closure of the stand, a sanction that it considers totally unfair and one more offence in the latest disciplinary decisions that have been taken against the club. Valencia CF asks for the utmost respect and rigour for our institution and fans.”

In announcing the punishment against Valencia, the RFEF said in a statement: “The competition committee has sanctioned Valencia CF with the partial closure of the Mestalla stadium for five matches, more specifically the Mario Kempes south stand, following the events that occurred during the league match between the local team and Real Madrid CF.

“It is considered proven that, as reflected by the referee in his minutes, there were racist shouts at Vinicius, a Real Madrid CF player, during the aforementioned match, altering the normal course of the match and considering the infractions very serious.”

Valencia head coach Ruben Baraja has said his club will fight back against “smears” after they were handed a five-game partial stadium closure and hefty fine following the racist abuse aimed at Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior.

Speaking at a press conference, Baraja stressed he was “absolutely against racism”, but echoed Valencia’s earlier claim that the sanction was “unfair and disproportionate”, and added: “I am not going to allow the Valencia CF fans and Mestalla to be smeared with labels that do not represent us.

“Just as a player rightly fights back against insults and I support that with all my might, we as a club and a fanbase rebel against those who, during the days since the game, have accused us of being what we are not.”

Vinicius threatened to leave the pitch in the second half of Sunday’s LaLiga match at the Mestalla after being subjected to alleged monkey chants from the crowd and Real Madrid, who said the incident constituted a “hate crime”, filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

In response, Valencia have been ordered to shut the Mario Kempes south stand, where the alleged abuse happened, for five matches and have also been fined 45,000 euros (£39,000) by the Spanish football federation (RFEF).

Reacting to that sanction, Valencia said in a strongly worded statement on Tuesday evening: “Valencia CF wishes to show its total disagreement and indignation at the unfair and disproportionate penalty imposed by the competition committee on the club with the closure of the stand for five games.

“Valencia CF wants to publicly denounce that in this resolution of the RFEF competition committee they show evidence that contradicts what the national police and LaLiga say.

“In addition, this sanction is based on evidence that the club has not been able to see and without giving us a hearing.

“Valencia CF has condemned, condemns and will condemn in the most energetic way any act of racism or violence. These behaviours have no place in football or in society and we will continue to act in the most forceful way to eradicate this scourge.

“For this reason, Valencia CF is collaborating from the first minute with the police and all relevant authorities to clarify the events that occurred last Sunday.

“In addition, it has applied the maximum possible sanction with the expulsion for life from our stadium to the fans that the police have identified for their racist behaviour.

“For this reason we consider that penalising and depriving all the fans who were not involved in these unfortunate incidents from seeing their team is a totally disproportionate, unfair and unprecedented measure against which we will fight.

“The fight against racism requires the real commitment of all the parties involved without using it as a pretext to incur serious injustices.

“Valencia CF will appeal to the last instance the closure of the stand, a sanction that it considers totally unfair and one more offence in the latest disciplinary decisions that have been taken against the club. Valencia CF asks for the utmost respect and rigour for our institution and fans.”

In announcing the punishment against Valencia, the RFEF said in a statement: “The competition committee has sanctioned Valencia CF with the partial closure of the Mestalla stadium for five matches, more specifically the Mario Kempes south stand, following the events that occurred during the league match between the local team and Real Madrid CF.

“It is considered proven that, as reflected by the referee in his minutes, there were racist shouts at Vinicius, a Real Madrid CF player, during the aforementioned match, altering the normal course of the match and considering the infractions very serious.”

LaLiga players and officials called for racism to be tackled in Spain in the wake of Sunday’s match.

Before Tuesday night’s games between Real Valladolid and Barcelona, and Celta Vigo and Girona, players from both sides, as well as the match officials, stood behind banners which read ‘Racism, out of football’.

LaLiga shared a pre-match clip from the Celta-Girona game on its official Twitter account with the hashtag #JUNTOSContraElRacismo (#TOGETHERagainstRacism).

The footage also showed a supporter holding up a placard with ‘No Al Racismo’ (No to Racism) written on it.

There were similar sentiments at the Valladolid-Barcelona game as fans showed their support for Brazil international Vinicius.

Barcelona forward Raphinha removed his shirt when substituted to show a message which read: “As long as the colour of the skin is more important than the brightness of the eyes, there will be war.”

Vinicius was not included in Real’s 23-man squad for Wednesday night’s LaLiga match against Rayo Vallecano at the Bernabeu.

The forward’s red card against Valencia had been rescinded by the RFEF but the 22-year-old did not train on Tuesday, with Real coach Carlo Ancelotti saying the winger had some discomfort in his knee.

A woman bombarded Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount with messages in a four-month stalking campaign after he broke off their relationship, a court has heard.

TikToker Orla Melissa Sloan, 21, pleaded guilty to stalking the 24-year-old and his former team-mate Billy Gilmour, 21, as well as harassing fellow Blues star Ben Chilwell, 26, at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.

The court heard she slept with Mount, who had surgery on a pelvic injury last month, after they met at a party at his England team-mate Chilwell’s home in November 2020.

Prosecutor Jason Seetal said they stayed in contact for around six months before Mount “decided that the relationship was not going to progress”.

“Upon informing Miss Sloan of this, he has been subjected to a bombardment of messages,” he said.

“He began asking her to stop messaging him before blocking the number.

“He then began to receive messages from new numbers and each time he would block those numbers there would be messages from a different number.”

Mr Seetal said a total of 21 different numbers were used to contact Mount with some messages including collages of photos of the player with other women.

The court heard that in one message from an Instagram account using the name ‘Devil Baby’, she said: “I can morph at any time so let me apologise and set things right.”

Another showed an Apple account buying a new number for £12.99 with the words: “I’m not buying food anymore so I can get more numbers. I will be faster than you.”

Mr Seetal said Mount was “concerned she had an obsession or fixation with him and he didn’t know what she was capable of”.

In a statement, Mount said: “Miss Sloan knows roughly where I live and where I train.

“I’m worried as if she is unable to contact me she might turn up at my training centre.”

The court heard other messages were aimed at professional footballers, friends and family members, including left-back Chilwell.

He told how he found Sloan’s behaviour “erratic”, while Scotland midfielder Gilmour said her messages had a “huge impact” on his life, after he joined Brighton from Chelsea last September.

“I have not been able to sleep and have had to take sleeping tablets,” he said.

“It’s had a negative effect on my performance and professional life.”

“Being in a new town where I don’t have my friends or family, it’s really upsetting.”

The court heard Gilmour had initially exchanged messages with Sloan before telling her he did not want their contact to continue and did not have a relationship with her.

But she claimed to have fallen pregnant in allegations described in court as “completely fictitious”.

“I don’t know who I can trust anymore,” Gilmour said.

“Some of the information would only have been known by people close to me.”

Sloan, from Exeter, pleaded guilty to causing “serious alarm or distress” by stalking Gilmour between September 10 and October 28 last year.

She also admitted stalking Mount between June 19 and October 28 last year, as well as causing harassment to Chilwell between October 20 and October 29, 2022.

District Judge Neeta Minhas adjourned sentencing to June 20 for reports to be prepared, telling her the most serious offence, against Gilmour, crossed the custody threshold.

She was granted unconditional bail.

Jordi Alba’s glittering Barcelona career will come to a close at the end of the season after the LaLiga giants announced they had reached an agreement to terminate his contract.

The 34-year-old, who current deal was due to expire at the end of 2023/24, has made 458 appearances for the club and won 19 major trophies since he made his official debut against Real Sociedad in 2012.

Barcelona said in a statement: “FC Barcelona would like to publicly express its gratitude to Alba for his professionalism, commitment and dedication, and his ever-positive and friendly relationship with all members of the Barca family, and wishes him every fortune in the future.

“Barca will always be a home for you, Jordi.”

Alba was born in Barcelona and moved through the club’s youth ranks before being allowed to leave in 2005.

He moved to Valencia for whom he became a first-team regular before Barcelona brought him back to the Nou Camp in 2012.

Nick Pope is to undergo an operation on his left hand and looks set to miss Newcastle’s final game of the season against Chelsea.

Pope, an ever-present in the Premier League in his first season at St James’ Park following his £10million move from Burnley, has been instrumental in the Magpies guaranteeing a top-four finish.

The 31-year-old goalkeeper made a fine save on Monday to deny Leicester’s Timothy Castagne and ensure Eddie Howe’s side got the point they needed to guarantee Champions League football next term for the first time in 20 years.

A goalless draw against the Foxes was Pope’s 14th clean sheet in the top flight this season but it seems likely to be his final match of the season, with his left arm bandaged when he attended an event in Northumberland on Wednesday afternoon.

And Newcastle confirmed Pope has withdrawn from the England squad for next month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia next month as he is set to have surgery on his hand.

“Nick Pope – who withdrew from the last Three Lions squad due to injury – is not involved as he is set to undergo an operation on his hand,” a statement on Newcastle’s website read.

Eberechi Eze received his first call-up and Lewis Dunk returned four-and-a-half years after his only cap as Gareth Southgate named the England squad for June’s Euro 2024 qualifiers.

Having kicked off Euro 2024 qualification with wins over Italy and Ukraine, Group C continues with next month’s double header against Malta and North Macedonia.

Southgate has named a 25-man squad, with Eric Dier and Raheem Sterling the high-profile absentees and Crystal Palace attacking midfielder Eze the only uncapped player in the group.

Brighton captain Dunk returned for the first time since making his debut against the United States in November 2018.

Callum Wilson, Tyrone Mings, Sam Johnstone and Trent Alexander-Arnold also returned to the fold.

Sterling, who has won 82 caps, has endured a difficult first season since joining Chelsea from Manchester City.

A representative for the forward said: “Following a private conversation between coach and player, a mutual decision has been made for Raheem Sterling to sit out the upcoming internationals, focusing instead on recuperating his body in preparation for the upcoming season.”

Ruud Van Nistelrooy has resigned as manager of PSV Eindhoven ahead of their final game of the season, the Dutch club have announced.

The former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker had been in charge for just one year at the Philips Stadion and won the Dutch Cup earlier this month.

PSV will secure a second-place finish in the Eredivisie if they take a point from their last game at AZ Alkmaar on Sunday.

A statement from the club on Wednesday said Van Nistelrooy, 46, did not feel he had sufficient support following several recent discussions about “internal affairs”.

The club wanted him to see out of the season but he has opted to leave immediately. Fred Rutten will take charge for the trip to Alkmaar.

The statement read: “Van Nistelrooy reported this morning that in his opinion there was not enough support within the club to continue longer.

“He immediately explained this to the players and staff.

“PSV regrets Van Nistelrooy’s decision and is grateful to him for winning the Johan Cruyff Shield and the KNVB Cup this season and hopes to close the football year with second place.”

Erik ten Hag expects Marcus Rashford to be ready to face Chelsea on Thursday night but admitted he is not sure whether Manchester United’s top scorer is fully fit.

Rashford has missed United’s last two fixtures, first with a leg injury and then through illness, but has returned to training this week.

Asked if the 29-goal forward was ready to play, Ten Hag said: “It looks like (it). Yesterday, he returned to training, he looks quite fit but we have to see today what is the outcome of the training, how did we recover and then we will make our choices.”

Rashford’s absence against Wolves and Bournemouth – both games United won without him – once again brought into focus United’s lack of depth in the forward positions.

Anthony Martial was handed a rare start on the south coast on Sunday, but headed straight down the tunnel when he was withdrawn after an hour before later returning to the bench.

Martial’s reaction led to fresh speculation over his United future. The 27-year-old, who finished last season on loan at Sevilla, has scored eight times in 27 appearances for United this season, but has struggled at times with injuries.

“If you are not available, you can’t score,” Ten Hag said. “When he was available we played better, the team is winning games, he’s also scoring goals but he has to be available.”

And Ten Hag also batted away a question about speculation linking United with Paris St Germain’s Brazil forward Neymar by offering his stock answer on transfer rumours, saying: “When we have news, we will tell you.”

United will secure a top-four place and a return to the Champions League for next season if they take at least a point against Frank Lampard’s side.

“It’s clear, we want to win every game,” the Dutchman said. “That is what we do all season so tomorrow we want to do the same, we want to win the game, play dominant football and get the job done…

“First, we have to win the game tomorrow and get the job done. Then, it’s about judgement from others if it’s a good, bad or normal performance.

“We are in a project, we want to go back and win trophies, we win one trophy but we want more trophies, compete with the best, we are still in a journey but we think we are in the right direction but it can always be better. Because good is not good enough.”

With the League Cup trophy already in the cabinet, booking a return to Europe’s premier competition would be another significant marker for Ten Hag in his first season at Old Trafford.

“If we want to compete with the best, then you have to be in the Champions League,” he said.

“We want to compete with the best and be in the Champions League. In the Premier League, you have to be one of the first four, that’s not easy, many are competing for it, many think they should be in and we are one of them.”

Valencia will appeal against their five-game partial stadium closure and hefty fine following the racist abuse aimed at Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior, calling the sanction “unfair and disproportionate”.

Vinicius threatened to leave the pitch in the second half of Sunday’s LaLiga match at the Mestalla after being subjected to alleged monkey chants from the crowd and Real Madrid, who said the incident constituted a “hate crime”, filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

In response, the club have been ordered to shut the Mario Kempes south stand, where the alleged abuse happened, for five matches and have also been fined 45,000 euros (£39,000) by the Spanish football federation (RFEF).

Valencia said in a strongly worded statement: “Valencia CF wishes to show its total disagreement and indignation at the unfair and disproportionate penalty imposed by the competition committee on the club with the closure of the stand for five games.

“Valencia CF wants to publicly denounce that in this resolution of the RFEF competition committee they show evidence that contradicts what the national police and LaLiga say.

“In addition, this sanction is based on evidence that the club has not been able to see and without giving us a hearing.

“Valencia CF has condemned, condemns and will condemn in the most energetic way any act of racism or violence. These behaviours have no place in football or in society and we will continue to act in the most forceful way to eradicate this scourge.

“For this reason, Valencia CF is collaborating from the first minute with the police and all relevant authorities to clarify the events that occurred last Sunday.

“In addition, it has applied the maximum possible sanction with the expulsion for life from our stadium to the fans that the police have identified for their racist behaviour.

“For this reason we consider that penalising and depriving all the fans who were not involved in these unfortunate incidents from seeing their team is a totally disproportionate, unfair and unprecedented measure against which we will fight.

“The fight against racism requires the real commitment of all the parties involved without using it as a pretext to incur serious injustices.

“Valencia CF will appeal to the last instance the closure of the stand, a sanction that it considers totally unfair and one more offence in the latest disciplinary decisions that have been taken against the club. Valencia CF asks for the utmost respect and rigour for our institution and fans.”

An RFEF statement on Tuesday night read: “The competition committee has sanctioned Valencia CF with the partial closure of the Mestalla stadium for five matches, more specifically the Mario Kempes south stand, following the events that occurred during the league match between the local team and Real Madrid CF.

“It is considered proven that, as reflected by the referee in his minutes, there were racist shouts at Vinicius, a Real Madrid CF player, during the aforementioned match, altering the normal course of the match and considering the infractions very serious.

“In addition, an economic sanction of 45,000 euros (£39,000) is imposed on Valencia.”

LaLiga players and officials called for racism to be tackled in Spain in the wake of Sunday’s match.

Before Tuesday night’s games between Real Valladolid and Barcelona, and Celta Vigo and Girona, players from both sides, as well as the match officials, stood behind banners which read ‘Racism, out of football’.

LaLiga shared a pre-match clip from the Celta-Girona game on its official Twitter account with the hashtag #JUNTOSContraElRacismo (#TOGETHERagainstRacism).

The footage also showed a supporter holding up a placard with ‘No Al Racismo’ (No to Racism) written on it.

There were similar sentiments at the Valladolid-Barcelona game as fans showed their support for Brazil international Vinicius.

Barcelona forward Raphinha removed his shirt when substituted to show a message which read: “As long as the colour of the skin is more important than the brightness of the eyes, there will be war.”

Luton will never forget how far they have come and will stay grounded as they look to secure promotion to the Premier League, according to club great Mick Harford.

The Hatters will meet Coventry in the Sky Bet Championship play-off final at Wembley on Saturday with each aiming to cap a remarkable upturn in fortunes by earning a place back among England’s elite.

For Luton, it would be the culmination of a journey which saw them drop out of the Football League in 2009 in the wake of a 30-point deduction for financial irregularities under previous ownership.

Following a five-year exile, the Bedfordshire club slowly worked their way back up the pyramid.

Last season’s promotion hopes from the Championship finished with defeat in the semi-finals under former boss Nathan Jones, who had returned for another spell in charge.

Former Hatters striker Harford was part of the Luton team which won the 1988 League Cup with victory over Arsenal.

The 64-year-old is now Town’s chief recruitment officer, the latest of several roles he has held at Kenilworth Road – including stints as manager, helping to finish the push to the 2018-19 League One title.

After Luton beat Sunderland to book their trip to Wembley, Harford is hoping for a fairytale ending to the latest chapter in the club’s history.

“We have got to the point now where it is just one game,” said Harford, who is supporting Prostate Cancer UK’s Prostate FC campaign as he continues to receive treatment for the disease.

“We have the utmost respect for our opponents because they have come through the same route, from League Two up into the Championship, but we have been really consistent over the season.

“We were the best of the rest in the league (to finish third). We are going into the game full of confidence, but respectful of the opposition.”

While Harford accepts Saturday is “probably one of the biggest games in Luton’s history”, that will not detract those in charge from taking their focus away from the bigger picture.

“Our chief executive Gary Sweet always says those years in the Conference gave us a bit of grounding,” Harford said.

“You have got no divine right to be at the top of the pyramid. You have got to do the right things and show a lot of respect.

“We have been very diligent on our recruitment, trying to recruit the best kind of players and the best people, good characters.

“It is tough and it is hard. You have to be patient, you have to be strong.

“We have tried to sign players but couldn’t because financially we couldn’t compete with other clubs, so we had to move on to our next choice.

“We believe in our processes at the football club. There is a great culture, a great environment.

“We have created a great vibe at the training ground over the last few months – (manager) Rob (Edwards) has done a brilliant job.

“The togetherness and the spirit of the players, the camaraderie has been excellent and that has been a massive bonus for us.

“The atmosphere at Wembley will be incredible. Coventry have come a long way and so have we. It is going to be an exciting day and hopefully it falls in our favour.”

Harford was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December 2020, and following a course of radiotherapy continues to receive hormone treatment.

He is calling on football fans to join Prostate FC, helping to raise awareness of the risk factors, fund research and save lives in every club across the UK.

Luton’s head matchday hospitality host Les Turton has undergone successful surgery following his own diagnosis.

“Our aim has always been about if we can just help one person,” Harford said.

“We have been trying to get the word out there as much as we can to raise awareness and for people to get tested for this terrible disease.

“We have achieved quite a few things and hopefully we will carry on doing that.”

:: Prostate FC is the biggest team in football taking on the most common cancer in men. Find out how you can help save men’s lives and join Mick and Les at Prostate FC by visiting prostatecanceruk.org/prostatefc

What the papers say

Liverpool defender Andy Robertson has reportedly made it onto Real Madrid’s transfer radar.

According to the Daily Mail, the 29-year-old Scotland captain is viewed by the LaLiga club as a potential replacement for injury-plagued defender Ferland Mendy. However, Robertson is contracted to Liverpool until 2026 and has shown no intention of leaving.

Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror reports Arsenal are prepared to move mountains in order to fuel their transfer capital. The paper says Gunners bosses are willing to sell as many as eight players to raise funds for their summer transfer pursuits, which includes Leicester’s James Maddison and West Ham’s Declan Rice.

Ajax forward Mohammed Kudus is eager to part ways with the Dutch club, according to The Sun. Citing De Telegraaf, the paper says the 22-year-old is ready for a change of scenery, with Manchester United, Arsenal and Newcastle all believed to be interested in the Ghana international.

And The Guardian reports Tottenham are considering approaching Feyenoord boss Arne Slot to take over as Spurs manager.

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Ilkay Gundogan: ESPN says Arsenal are interested in a move for the Manchester City midfielder.

Julian Alvarez: Bayern Munich view the Manchester City forward as a summer transfer target, reports Bild.

Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt says England “would consider” bidding to host the 2031 Women’s World Cup.

Having won last year’s European Championship on home soil, Sarina Wiegman’s side will bid for the global title in Australia and New Zealand this summer and could soon be in contention to host another showpiece event.

Hewitt told the Times: “We want to be known as a centre for successfully hosting major events.

“It has a hugely positive impact on the country and on local communities who participate, so why wouldn’t we have ambitions to host a Women’s World Cup, particularly as the women’s game is growing?”

Asked whether that meant a possible bid for the 2031 tournament, Hewitt said: “We would certainly consider it.”

The bidding process will not open until the host of the 2027 tournament is decided next May. Should a joint bid from Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium be successful, there will not be a second successive European host so England would have to wait until 2035 at the earliest.