Where do you start with the plan for English football's top six to breakaway from the Premier League?

It should hardly come as a surprise. It's been in the offing for years now and it's worth remembering that the Premier League itself was formed after a breakaway by England's greediest clubs in a bid to ensure the largest slices of the pie. But, back in the early 90s, the elements of what makes football a worthwhile spectacle remained intact: reward based on merit, local rivalry, supporters, history and tradition. Should the clubs follow up on their plan to leave, they will crush those kernels underfoot.

And for what? Money obviously and without barely a consideration for what has gone on over the last year regarding travel restrictions, empty stadia and people's finances. The lucrative rewards for the clubs – said to be a minimum £300m a season – will offset the losses brought about by 12-plus months of a global pandemic. 

READ MORE: European Super League: Everything you need to know

But don't expect fans of the clubs involved to embrace the idea lustily. This is in part a response to powerful clubs' disaffection at being denied automatic entry to the Champions League simply by dint of being a 'big club' – a spectacularly arrogant viewpoint from some of the prime movers in this putsch considering the performance of their clubs, yes you Stan Kroenke. The plan misses the point, too.

The magic of European football stemmed from an exotic mix of the rare and the unknown. The Champions League has lost that glitz not because of the format itself but rather because it has become monopolised by certain teams. It's a status quo in which apathy is rife is – exactly what the Super League proposes to reinforce.

Tuchel the hero, but for how long?

Some clubs change their managers as frequently as their players do training kit. Chelsea are one such outfit with Thomas Tuchel their 10th different boss in 10 years. Quick fixes tend to go against the grain of business common sense but then football is not any other industry and Chelsea are unlike any other club. 

Of course, trigger finger is usually a response to a failure in expectations being met and – having won 16 trophies since he bought the club in 2003 – Roman Abramovich's are lofty. His decision to dispense with Frank Lampard in January in favour of the German has been a masterstroke. Tuchel has lost just twice in 20 games since he took over at Stamford Bridge, rescued Chelsea's top-four aspirations, taken them to a Champions League semi-final and ended Manchester City's quadruple dream.

At this rate, he might have a chance of lasting beyond the 12-month average of his predecessors. But Abramovich once sacked Carlo Ancelotti a season after winning the double, so don't bet on it.

Sky's tired strategy

It must have been hard work for Fulham fans listening to their side's 1-1 draw against Arsenal yesterday. Sitting in the commentary box as analyst was Alan Smith – you know, the former striker who played more than 300 games for Arsenal? It's one thing having to listen to the monotone Smith drone on in matches, quite another altogether when everything he says is expressed through the prism of an Arsenal supporter. 

As such, Fulham's penalty in yesterday's game was up for debate, there was the insinuation that Josh Maja was lucky to score it, Bukayo Saka was the only hope of creativity (not the game's but Arsenal's) and Gabriel Martinelli should have gone down to win a spot kick of his own. Too often, it felt as if we were watching something on an in-house TV channel rather than a subscription service where you would expect a grain of objectivity.

Sky have increasingly pursued a strategy of employing highly partisan panellists expressing opinions on games in which they struggle to be impartial. As a live football broadcaster it was once the standard bearer but those days have long gone. In the interests of balance it is something they should stop doing – even more so for its own credibility.

A year's a long time in football

West Ham United were fourth bottom this time last season. It's the position Newcastle United found themselves in prior to their victory over David Moyes's side on Saturday. Moyes eventually guided the Hammers to 16th place, five points clear of trouble before embarking on a thrilling campaign this time around that has them sitting in the Champions League places. 

Any suggestion that Steve Bruce might be capable of the same next season would have been met with goggle-eyed incredulity not so long ago but there has been some kind of ju-ju at work as Newcastle have gone on a run in which they have lost just once in seven matches. Is it a template for next season? Perhaps but as Bruce admitted himself afterwards you never know quite what you're going to get with Newcastle.

Brewster epitomised blunt Blades

And so John Fleck, Oli McBurnie and Oli Burke's stay in the English top-flight has come to an end following Sheffield United's relegation in the joint-quickest time in Premier League history. Last July, when the 2019-20 campaign came to an end, there was little sign of the carnage ahead but perhaps transfer strategy played a part. 

Chris Wilder had built a team on a shoestring but spent almost half of his £50m budget on signing Rhian Brewster – an unmitigated disaster with the former Liverpool striker failing to score a single goal in 23 appearances. Fleck, McBurnie and Burke may all return to the Premier League, of course, but should they remain at Bramall Lane, they will hope that the club's recruitment plans return to the kind of calculated punts that served their club so well previously.