Image source, BBC Sport

The Premier League is thankfully well and truly back.

It feels like welcoming an old friend in for a brew and a chance to reminisce, albeit that would have to be in the garden at the moment.

I've got to be honest though, the season was suspended that long ago I'm probably in need of some sort of catch up just to remember what's happened so far.

And this piece is a very good aid to get up to speed with a picture of the Premier League in eight graphics.

If you're wondering just what is going on in the National League clubs...

Well clubs are due to vote on ending the season via points per game.

Under the plan Barrow would be promoted to League Two as champions while only bottom side Chorley would be relegated.

The proposals would allow play-offs for a second promotion place to the English Football League.

However, a plan to cancel play-offs in National League North and South has been removed from the proposals amid uncertainty over what the government classes as elite sport.

You can read all about that here.

Chris Wilder has been taking us through everything connected to the Premier League's restart for his Sheffield United team, but what exactly is going on at the other end of the football pyramid...?

Sheffield United

Normally at this stage of the year, player contracts are done and dusted.

So clubs have a firm idea of who is staying and which players will be leaving. But the coronavirus pandemic has thrown lots of things awry in that respect.

Billy Sharp and vice-captain Ollie Norwood have though both recently agreed new deals while David McGoldrick has also penned an extension.

And Chris Wilder has added his own update to that situation at Sheffield United:

"We were in conversations before and they were paused because I didn’t think it was morally right at that stage of the pandemic," he said.

"They are in the negotiation stages. I’ve said it before that I have responsibility to the club to get the best deal for Sheffield United.

"It’s important that we have a strong dressing room, it’s obviously set up by me and the coaching staff but then the players take it over. To keep that continuity in the dressing room is key but all of these players have earned their contracts.”

Sheffield United

Chris Wilder is not one for distractions is he. It's all about the matter at hand, so talk of Europe and the Champions League is not where he wants to be and is exactly the sort of attitude I can imagine he ingrains in his players...

"Are we going to talk about Villa or what? It's the first game up. Is there any chance to talk about that? Because that's all I am looking at. I am not looking at anything else," he said.

"If it gets to the situation where we are one or two games out and we are still in a fantastic position then we will possibly talk about that.

"At the moment we have quarter of a season to go near enough. I am sure that you have seen the fixture list as such as I have seen it, there are some incredible challenges in front of us.

"We have got to control what we can control and that is our own performances and results and if we are still there with a couple of games to go then we will look to turn a good season into a memorable one."

I know what Chris Wilder means on the substitution numbers when the Premier League returns but I'd imagine a few of the players will be relatively pleased at the prospect of having more chance of a breather.

Playing in June and July can't be easy.

Sheffield United

Victory for the Blades at Villa Park would take Chris Wilder’s men into fifth with nine games left.

However, with matches against Manchester United, Tottenham and Chelsea to come, Wilder thinks expanding to five substitutes is a negative for his team.

“It favours the powerful clubs,” he said. “We don’t think that is the right way to go about it.”

Simon Stone
BBC Sport

Sheffield United play in the first match of Project Restart, three months after the Premier League closed down.

The suggestion has been it is similar to the first game of the season but Wilder does not agree.

"It is not like the opening day of the season,” he said.

“There are a lot of differences and it is difficult to sum up how it is. Even the excitement of media day, doing it over Zoom is different.

"But we are delighted we are back playing and giving people something to watch in difficult times.”

Sheffield United

Excuse the pun but Chris Wilder also says Dean Henderson is very much a 'keeper'.

So could the Manchester United goalkeeper be heading back to Bramall Lane for a third loan campaign next term?

“We have had early conversations and of course we would be open to Dean coming back,” Wilder said.

“But he is Manchester United’s player and they will make that decision. If there is an opportunity we would look to take that up.”

Sheffield United

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder also says goalkeeper Dean Henderson is on the verge of extending his loan deal from Manchester United until the end of the season.

That's good news for Blades fans, with Henderson having been in outstanding form so far this season. The goalkeeper is one of a number of reasons the club is on the brink of a Champions League spot.

With his loan due to run out on 30 June, Wilder confirmed he has had positive talks with United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

“I spoke to Ole yesterday morning and thanked him for his co-operation with Dean,” said Wilder.

“It is in the process in next couple of days for Dean to stay with us for the rest of the season.”

Sheffield United

Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder says he is well aware of the magnitude of his side's trip to Aston Villa on Wednesday.

It'll be a new normal and have the feel of a slightly new era with the league having been suspended for three months due to the coronavirus..

"First game back is going to be a little bit different, what we understand is the magnitude of the game, the coverage of the game.

"You can't get away from the fact that possibly Villa-Sheffield United was a Championship game last year and would possibly have been seventh or eighth on Match Of The Day.

"Now it is 6pm on the TV and worldwide coverage. From our point of view we want to put on a good show and make sure we play well. Players will naturally want to play well and we want to do that as a football club."

The Premier League is of course back in business on Wednesday with Aston Villa taking on Sheffield United (18:00 BST) in the first of two games that evening.

So it's time to finally hear what the Blades boss Chris Wilder has had to say...

Now this may be of interest to fans of Bolton Wanderers...

The League One, soon to be League Two club, are on the hunt for a new manager after it was announced that Keith Hill and his assistant David Flitcroft will leave at the end of the month.

Kevin Nolan, Sam Ricketts, Gary Bowyer are among some of the other names linked with the job.

While we're on the theme of uplifting stories and moments, this is well worth a ganders.

Image source, Mike Boateng

It's not been an easy road back for Mike 'Boats' Boateng, the twice-jailed former Bristol Rovers defender who now helps keep England's future talent on track.

Mike served 16 months in prison for an attempted match-fixing fraud in 2013 before receiving a lifetime ban from football.

Now a qualified personal trainer, his list of clients include Jadon Sancho who stars for Borussia Dortmund in Germany. He also works with twins Ryan and Steven Sessegnon who play for Tottenham and Fulham respectively.

Read more

Striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang says the decision whether to sign a new deal with Arsenal is "possibly the most important" of his career.

The 30-year-old Gabon international's current contract runs out in June 2021.

"I haven't had an offer recently, but I did speak to the club quite a few months ago, and they know why nothing has happened yet," Aubameyang told French football programme Telefoot.

"It's a turning point in my career and I want to be honest with everyone."

Read more here.

Image source, .

...then pass the time by watching highlights of Bayern doing what Bayern do.

Image source, .

Hands up who is in favour of the 'five substitutes' rule?

The introduction of this for the rest of the Premier League season is understandable because of the number of games in a relatively short period - it's set to be intense.

But will it favour those with stronger squads?

BTW, if you're waiting for news from the Sheffield United and Aston Villa news conferences, they are coming up.

Surely you can all wait just that little bit longer?