The most depressing words of this young sporting year were spoken by Jimmy Anderson. One of the more discordant sounds of an English summer is the distant drone of him sledging.

PATRICK COLLINS: The Mail on Sunday's Chief Sports Writer is retiring after 50 years on Fleet Street. To mark his departure, he has picked 10 great events from his memories.

PATRICK COLLINS: Sport at its cleanest and brightest generates a sense of wonder, a feeling that peaks are being scaled and limits are being breached.

PATRICK COLLINS: Charlton are owned by a chap who is apparently the 18th richest man in Belgium, however the Championship outfit are just his bit on the side.

PATRICK COLLINS: Bolt, Ali, Woods, Pele, Bradman and a precious few others — Jack Nicklaus, certainly, and, in time, Lionel Messi — constitute an elite on whom the term ‘genius’ sits lightly.

PATRICK COLLINS: When his massive contribution has been adequately assessed, Jimmy Hill will be seen as one of the most significant figures in the modern history of British football.

PATRICK COLLINS: Fifty-two years have passed since that February dawn, yet still the cry comes ringing down the decades: ‘Ah shook up the world! Ah shook up the world!’

Muhammad Ali could be cruel, arrogant, and merciless, then he would turn a wicked phrase or smile a roguish smile, and the world would forgive him his trespasses, writes PATRICK COLLINS.

PATRICK COLLINS: It should be remembered that the FA's initial instinct was to approach Arsene Wenger, a worthy if futile attempt to hire the very best. But then, absurdly, they changed tack.

PATRICK COLLINS: When youngsters wanted to know just what made Glenn Hoddle so very special, their fathers would search out a 20-second film clip. Tottenham versus Watford.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: To think Jordan Henderson's first official season as Liverpool captain ended with the club finishing eighth in the Premier League is quite remarkable.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: This has been Leicester's first real wobble. But their manager Brendan Rodgers will have been looking forward to this one - Liverpool at the King Power Stadium.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: With Carlo Ancelotti as a manager and Duncan Ferguson as a mentor, Dominic Calvert-Lewin is getting the best of both worlds. He can become a true No 9.

I say get rid of this shoulder and armpit nonsense and judge offside by the players' feet. Draw the line and see whether the attacker's foot is closer to the goal then that of the last defender.

JAMIE REDKNAPP - INSIGHT: Late October 2017, Liverpool went to Tottenham. Harry Kane destroyed Dejan Lovren, who was hooked after 31 minutes, and Jurgen Klopp's side lost 4-1.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: I remember Crystal Palace losing 9-0 to Liverpool in the old First Division in 1989. Then later that season, the Eagles exacted their revenge in the FA Cup semi-final.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: It seems as if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is trying to keep hold of his job by being everyone's friend, and you cannot do that as manager of this Manchester United side.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Frank Lampard, dripping with sweat, has just returned from his daily 45-minute post-training run around Chelsea's complex at Cobham with his assistants.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: Sadio Mane's reaction to being told he had just scored his 100th goal in the English game said it all. There are no egos in this Liverpool team.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: If Mourinho needs a striker, then he could do worse than look at Troy Parrott. He's been training with the first team, learning from the master Kane and has been capped by Ireland.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: We look at VAR as if it's the oracle but in reality it's one man, sat behind a bank of screens at Stockley Park, offering his opinion. It's not matter of fact - it's subjective.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: There is something about away games that Gabriel Jesus loves. Since arriving in the Premier League, he has scored more goals and racked up more assists on the road than at home.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: This was not a day to analyse Liverpool's downfalls to death but rather to celebrate Watford for what was a complete team performance.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: I remember times my brother, Mark, got angry or upset if someone was having a go at me in the stands. He'd want to say something. Now we have seen this with Eric Dier.

JAMIE REDKNAPP - Word is Jordan Henderson could be fit to face Atletico Madrid in Wednesday's second leg at Anfield and do not underestimate the impact that would have for this team. 

COMMENT: Perhaps, the one plus side to this summer's European Championship being moved to 2021 is that it offers Kane time. The team figurehead will not have to rush to get back.

JAMIE REDKNAPP: Harry Kane is at home, in self-isolation, with a series of Tottenham Hotspur shirts on the wall behind him and Sportsmail's Jamie Redknapp on the screen in front.

EXCLUSIVE: The defender who earns his living by not giving opponents an inch is contemplating the fact he now has to steer two metres clear for the foreseeable future.

Erling Haaland has scored an astonishing 11 goals in just seven games for Borussia Dortmund after sealing his £17million switch from Red Bull Salzburg in January.

Ahead of facing Watford this weekend, Fernandes opened up on the impact Cristiano Ronaldo, who he plays alongside for the Portuguese national team, has had on his career to date.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner may make his 1000th professional appearance against the Serie A strugglers. Ronaldo has played 835 games in club football and 164 times internationally.

As a result of his support, Michu reached out to the Borussia Dortmund star to send him a signed Brugos jersey with Haaland's name on the back. 'Wow what a legend!!' Haaland responded.

The award-winning footballer, 34, enjoyed some quality time with his kids Cristiano Jr, nine, twins Eva and Mateo, two, and Alana - his daughter with girlfriend Georgina - also two, in the bathtub.

Cristiano Ronaldo Jr, nine, amassed almost 800,000 Instagram followers on Tuesday, less than 24 hours after joining the photo-sharing platform.

The evergreen pair of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo may continue to defy the laws of time but a changing of the guard has started to emerge at football's elite level.

The Champions League is a must, rather than a want, for Juventus these days. It's an itch that they cannot scratch, an addiction they cannot kick and Maurizio Sarri knows it is top of his brief to go and deliver it.

David Alaba believes that Bayern Munich teammate Robert Lewandowski should be rated alongside Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as one of the best player's in the world. 

Lyon secured an impressive Champions League last-16 first-leg victory at home to Juventus thanks to Lucas Tousart's first-half goal, with the visitors failing to have a shot on target.

Former Argentina forward Diego Maradona suggested Lionel Messi was 'in decline' after Barcelona's 1-1 draw in the Champions League against his old side on Tuesday evening.

Maurizio Sarri launched into a bizarre outburst at the expense of his Juventus side, following their abject 1-0 defeat to Lyon in the Champions League last 16 first-leg. No punches were pulled.

ALVISE CAGNAZZO IN ITALY: Juventus produced their worst performance of the season as they lost 1-0 to Lyon. But their struggles in France are indicative of deeper problems with Sarri and the squad.

Juventus host Inter Milan in the standout fixture of this weekend's Serie A schedule but, as things stand, the top of the table clash will be played out in front of empty stands.

The Turin giants' duo were caught on camera at half-time, and could be overheard bemoaning a lack of support during another underwhelming display.

Cristiano Ronaldo was spotted celebrating Vinicius Jr's opening goal during Real Madrid's 2-0 win over Barcelona on Sunday night after the Brazilian copied his famous celebration.

PETE JENSON IN SPAIN: Vinicius delighted the Bernabeu - including the watching Cristiano Ronaldo - by opening the scoring against Barcelona. So is the 19-year-old Brazilian coming of age?

Jorge Mendes' house in Portugal has been searched by Portuguese tax authorities as part of an ongoing investigation.

Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala were caught on camera moaning about the paucity of the Juventus midfield and they certainly have a point. Maurizio Sarri has struggled to get a tune out of his players all season.

Cristiano Ronaldo led Portugal to glory in 2016 despite injury and is one of a number of greats to write his name into the glittering history of the Euros since they were introduced in 1960.

ALVISE CAGNAZZO IN ITALY: Juventus president Andrea Agnelli (inset) has retained a close relationship with club legend Zinedine Zidane (right) and is hopeful of luring him back to Turin.

INTERVIEW BY KIERAN JACKSON: At the beginning, Ben Greenhalgh went along for a laugh. Playing football, like any 17-year-old obsessive, was all he craved.