Welcome to The Radar, where Nick Wright mixes data and opinion to highlight the Premier League stories to watch this weekend.
Eze’s dream season
Eberechi Eze has enjoyed a season few could have imagined. On Sunday he goes back to Selhurst Park not as a departing prospect but as a Premier League winner with Arsenal — a player likely to receive a guard of honour from his former club.
Eze remains fondly remembered at Palace after scoring the winning goal in last season’s FA Cup final, and he has quickly built affection at the Emirates too. His move — a former academy player once courted by Spurs — felt like a homecoming when Arsenal unveiled him in August, and he has delivered key contributions in big matches, including decisive strikes at the Emirates and a goal against Newcastle in April.
There were adjustment challenges: adapting to Mikel Arteta’s off-the-ball demands took time. But Eze has also brought a lightness of spirit that helped him navigate the season without being weighed down by past near-misses. His candid, viral press-conference remarks in April underlined a player confident in his team’s quality and unbothered by outside opinions.
Before Arsenal focus turns to the Champions League final, Eze gets a full-circle moment against Crystal Palace — a fitting cap to a breakthrough campaign.
Castellanos key to West Ham hopes
West Ham were handed a lifeline for the final day, but team selection against Newcastle — notably starting without Taty Castellanos — looked costly. Nuno Espirito Santo reverted to a back four and brought Castellanos on after 26 minutes, but West Ham were already two goals down and struggled to recover.
When introduced, Castellanos immediately made his presence felt. His acrobatic finish over Nick Pope after a long pass from Mads Hermansen was one of eight shots he had in the game — the second-highest single-game total by any player this season — despite playing only 64 minutes. He also struck the bar and was denied by fine saves, encapsulating a high-effort, high-threat display.
Since joining from Lazio in January, Castellanos has scored five goals; those numbers could arguably be higher. More important to West Ham’s survival prospects is what he offers beyond finishes: he gets into dangerous positions regularly. He ranks among the Premier League’s top 10 for shots and headed shots per 90 minutes and sits fifth for shots on target per 90. That volume and positioning make him a constant threat. With the club’s fate now out of their hands, West Ham need Castellanos starting against Leeds.
Maddison shows what’s been missing for Spurs
James Maddison’s brief return from a season troubled by injury underlined what Spurs have been missing. In only his second appearance this season he came off the bench and immediately demanded the ball, making a visible difference in the final phases of the game against Chelsea.
Between the 69th minute and full time he had 28 touches — more than any other player in that period — and made 23 passes without misplacing one. He also made more forward passes in those 21 minutes than Conor Gallagher managed in an entire match for another side, underscoring the creative bite Maddison brings.
Roberto De Zerbi has clearly improved Spurs defensively since his arrival — underlying metrics show a major uplift in expected goals against — but the attack has been blunted by injuries to key players such as Dejan Kulusevski, Xavi Simons and Mohammed Kudus. Maddison is a boost, but he is still recovering from a long-term knee injury and warns that rushing his return could be “catastrophic” for his career. Spurs may have to rely on brief, impactful appearances from him as they fight to avoid relegation.
Iraola’s Bournemouth transformation
Not all clubs head into the final weekend with survival on the line. Bournemouth travel to Nottingham Forest with European qualification secured — the club will play in Europe for the first time in their 127-year history. A 1-1 draw with Manchester City that helped hand Arsenal the title extended Bournemouth’s unbeaten run to 17 games and left them sitting in sixth, a position that guarantees the highest league finish in the club’s history and could yet yield even more depending on other results.
Andoni Iraola’s achievement is notable for how he delivered it. He reshaped Bournemouth’s playing identity over three seasons while managing significant player turnover and doing so without a full complement of his own backroom staff; his intended assistant, Inigo Perez, was unable to join due to work-permit issues. Instead Iraola leaned on former Bournemouth players and staff — Tommy Elphick, Shaun Cooper, Neil Moss and Gareth Stewart — to imprint his style and approach. That adaptability and the football the team plays mean Iraola will have admirers this summer.
What to watch on the final day
All ten fixtures kick off at 4pm on Sunday. Key matches and those with major implications:
– Spurs v Everton
– Crystal Palace v Arsenal
– West Ham v Leeds
– Liverpool v Brentford
– Brighton v Manchester United
– Manchester City v Aston Villa
– Nottingham Forest v Bournemouth
– Sunderland v Chelsea
– Fulham v Newcastle
– Burnley v Wolves
As the season reaches its dramatic conclusion, several individual narratives look set to shape both silverware and survival: Eze’s homecoming, Castellanos’s goal threat, Maddison’s return from injury and Iraola’s Bournemouth legacy are all storylines to follow.