Alan Shearer: “If I’m honest they have done better than I thought.
“I think I was like everyone else, probably a little bit apprehensive.
"You’ve got to give them credit they’ve done really well – they’ve stayed away from the bottom six for the majority of the season.
“I think that was their target when they first set out and they’ve achieved that, really, with ease.
“It’s never really been panic stations, as it has been in other seasons.
"We hope that’s the same next season – but that really depends on what the manager’s going to be given to spend.
“You spend £10million to stand still. That’s the harsh fact of it. It all depends on what’s going to happen, there’s only one guy that can answer that.
“Hopefully he’ll give him a few quid and they can start climbing.
“You have to say the manager has done very well and the players have done very well. Now we’ll have to see who comes and goes in the summer.
“There’s obviously the money there from Andy Carroll – they’ll have to bring in one or two strikers in. I’m sure everyone will be looking at the transfer activity.
“That will be a good time for everyone – everyone will be looking forward to next season.”