Key events
Paul MacInnes
More on this story from Paul MacInnes:
City have written to the League asking for arbitration over a new system of APT rules agreed by clubs before Christmas. The changes had been made in response to previous arbitration brought by City, which found aspects of the previous APT rules to be unlawful.
In a letter sent to clubs on Thursday the chief executive, Richard Masters, confirmed the arbitration request. “On January 20, 2025, Manchester City FC began a further arbitration to challenge the APT rules,” he wrote. “As you will see, the new challenge relates to the amendments to the APT rules that clubs approved at the 22 November 2024 shareholders’ meeting. Manchester City FC seeks a declaration that the amendments approved by clubs in November (and therefore the current APT rules in force) are unlawful and void.
“The Premier League remains strongly of the view that the amendments passed in November were lawful and the APT rules comply with all competition law requirements. We consider that the new arbitration must be resolved as soon as possible and, to that end, have agreed that the same tribunal should be appointed to hear the new case.
“The parties are currently corresponding in relation to further directions,” Masters added. “The APT rules remain in full force and effect and clubs remain required to comply with all aspects of the system.”
City, Aston Villa, Newcastle and Nottingham Forest were the only clubs to vote against the new rules at the time of the vote in November, with Chelsea also abstaining. City had written to clubs ahead of the vote arguing that the process was too hasty while, in a separate letter, Villa had warned of more legal action.
“It is now abundantly clear that any vote (if passed) will result in immediate further litigation by Manchester City FC and an associated defence by the EPL (English Premier League), incurring material further costs and unnecessary distraction and devotion of time to this issue,” the Villa letter read.
City and the Premier League have both been approached for comment.
Man City launch new legal action against Premier League
Paul MacInnes
Manchester City have initiated new legal action against the Premier League, as the defending champions look to challenge rules on associate party transactions (APT) for a second time.
The news comes as the two parties remain in dispute over an initial challenge to rules that control how much money clubs can generate through sponsorship from companies with connected owners. What is more, the verdict on the 130 charges brought against City for alleged breaches of Premier League rules is also imminent.
There’s a big Cup weekend coming up in Britain, but I’d like to doff my beret to perhaps the world’s best domestic cup – the Coupe de France. Big upsets and lower-league teams making deep runs are commonplace, and this season is no different. Only four of the eight quarter-finalists are from Ligue 1 and while PSG are still in it, the others – Brest, Angers and Reims – are mid-table sides.
There’s also two fourth-tier sides with home ties, including Breton side Stade Briochin, who face the mighty Parisians next. If only fifth-tier Bourgoin-Jallieu had got past Reims on penalties last night, an all lower-league final four would have been on.
Brest (Ligue 1) v Dunkerque (Ligue 2)
Cannes (National 2) v Guingamp (Ligue 2)
Stade Briochin (National 2) v PSG (Ligue 1)
Reims (Ligue 1) v Angers (Ligue 1)
“Have to say that as a Derby fan I’m not particularly surprised or disappointed that Paul Warne is moving on,” writes David Hopkins. “No points since Boxing Day tells its own story, along with the perception he’s a lower league manager in a job that’s too big for him. His chilled-out entertainer shtick was also wearing a bit thin!”
“My guess is the next manager will be selected on a pragmatic basis to try and avoid a return to League One – possibly even a short-term, gnarled old head in the Warnock/Allardyce mould. I’d be surprised if it’s Gerrard: Derby tried the England legend route a couple of times under the old regime and the new owner is much less given to flashy, PR-led moves.”
Interesting insight – it may be wishful thinking but I can see Sam Allardyce dusting off the suit for one last job, a bit like Harry Redknapp at Birmingham.
Crystal Palace must wait until Monday night for their FA Cup fourth-round tie, away at Doncaster Rovers. Palace signed Ben Chilwell on loan from Chelsea on deadline day, and Oliver Glasner expects the full-back to play some part.
“When we were looking for players on the market, Ben was always one of our top targets,” said Glasner. “Ben played many games for them and then, for reasons I don’t know and I don’t care, he didn’t play. That was the only opportunity that we could sign him here. It can be a big chance for him.”
“[Ben] has to compete with Tyrick Mitchell because he has had an excellent season for us, very consistent on a very high level. But he is doing really well in training. He is fit – the plan is he will get minutes at Doncaster.”
Glasner also talked about Tottenham’s late offer for Marc Guéhi, which was quickly rejected. “We can’t sell a player on deadline day because we don’t find a replacement within a few hours. It’s just impossible,” he said. “Credit to the chairman, I think they were not really negotiations.”
Here’s Gareth Taylor, who says Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw is back in training today. The Manchester City forward missed last night’s win over Arsenal, pulling out of the game after receiving racist and misogynistic abuse.
“I think we covered it last night, I took questions on it … the situation is the situation … but Bunny’s back with us today, she’s OK, she trained with the team,” Taylor says. “I don’t really want to give any more airtime to this horrible issue. There’s no place for it in any walk in life, in anything that we do.”
On the victory that sets up a League Cup final with Chelsea, who they will also face in the Women’s Champions League, Taylor says: “Last night was a really good performance, perhaps better than I expected – I think we were dominant, we were the better team. I think we stepped up when they equalised, the mentality was really strong.”
Next up for City is a home Women’s FA Cup tie against Leicester on Sunday. “I think we’ve stood up to the challenges of this season well, we’re in a Cup final which is amazing, and have a chance to reach a quarter-final on Sunday.”
Right, it’s time for me to pop off and hand over to the always-excellent Niall McVeigh. He’ll steer you through to Friday teatime.
Re: Rashford … an email from Zach Neeley has dropped:
The more Amorim talks about Rashford the less convinced I am by what he’s saying. Doesn’t he have a dozen more important problems right now? Rashford was no talisman for the team before Amorim got there, increasingly seems like a welcome distraction from leading United’s worst run in the decade since Fergie left (competitive category).
It’s certainly a divisive topic, Zach. Rashford was a 30-goal-a-season man in 22/23 and the current United side struggle to score goals.
Who knew that Kanye West was a Spurs fan?
Emery excited to help Rashford at Aston Villa
Unai Emery is looking forward to the “huge challenge” of getting Marcus Rashford back to his best.
The 27-year-old has joined Aston Villa on loan on from Manchester United until the end of season, with the option of a permanent deal in the summer.
Rashford was frozen out at United by Ruben Amorim, with his performances having stagnated over the last couple of years. But he’s is in the frame to make his Villa debut against Tottenham in Sunday’s FA Cup fourth round.
“I’m very happy with the window we did, I’m very happy with him,” said Emery. “The conversation I had with him was a very normal conversation with a player and coach, speaking about football.
“I only want the best football from him. As a person as well into the dressing room like one more player helping us. I think his potential is huge potential to exploit. I don’t want to know the reason he is leaving from Manchester but I am very happy keeping him here.
“I am very happy to try to exploit and help him recover his performances, individually and collectively. My challenge with him is huge. His challenge with us is exciting.”
Emery was not prepared to look too far into the future as to whether Rashford’s long-term future would be at Villa Park.
“Today he trained fantastic, tomorrow again, Sunday match,” he said. “We will enjoy each step and then the future is only building with the present. “If we try and get the future before building the present it’s impossible, if we do it we’ll crash.” PA Media
Rob Edwards for me, Clive. It ended badly at Luton but he did a fine job for the most part. (It’s going to be Gerrard, isn’t it?)
Early odds for next Derby County manager #DCFC
Steven Gerrard – EVS
Steve Cooper – 2/1
Rob Edwards – 3/1
Russell Martin – 5/1
Ryan Lowe – 7/1Who do you think should take over at Pride Park next? 🤔
18+ GambleAware pic.twitter.com/C87prEvlhh
— OLBG.com (@OLBG) February 7, 2025
Here’s more on that Jermaine Jenas story. Lots going on today.
Paul Warne has won promotion from League One four times since 2018. He’s just never quite cracked it in the Championship. Who will take over next at Derby? Steven Gerrard and Russell Martin have already been linked with the vacancy.
Derby sack manager Paul Warne
Derby County have announced they have sacked manager Paul Warne, with the club sitting in the Championship relegation places.
Warne guided the Rams back into the second tier with promotion from League One but has overseen a run of seven successive defeats in the league since Boxing Day.
Malen omitted from Villa’s Champions League squad
Aston Villa signed Donyell Malen from Borussia Dortmund for an initial £20m among five new January additions, but the forward has been omitted from their squad for the remainder of the Champions League.
UEFA rules state that clubs can only register a maximum of three new players for the knockout stages … and those spots have gone to Marcus Rashford, Marco Asensio and Axel Disasi. Andres Garcia – who arrived from Levante in January – also misses out.
Unai Emery said: “It wasn’t a good decision that I had to take but I spoke with Andres and I spoke with Donyell to tell them the decision.”
Right, here’s Pep Guardiola, speaking while backed by a series of FA Cup logos at the Etihad Campus.
On Nico González: “It’s a position we were week in after the absence of Rodri. He’s a young player, can play No 6, No 8, in the pockets. I’m really pleased the club have brought him here for the coming years.”
On playing Leyton Orient: “We’ve have struggles away in this competition and in the Carabao Cup. We’re ready for the challenge.”
On the Bunny Shaw abuse: “I support her like I support all the people who have suffered abuse.”
On Jack Grealish: “The competition from Savinho and Jérémy [Doku] has been massive this season. It’s not personal, or that I don’t like Jack, I know his attributes. The manager sometimes has to select one player over the other. Of course I make mistakes and maybe he should play more but it’s a manager’s life, we have to accept. I have to be honest with myself.”
Poor old Caoimhín Kelleher. Here’s what Arne Slot said on Liverpool’s unlucky stand-in goalkeeper.
Jenas speaks out amid return to broadcasting
Jermaine Jenas is back in media circles this weekend, working for the radio station talkSPORT on the clash between Aston Villa and Tottenham this Sunday. He’s expressed regret over the scandal that saw him dismissed from his roles with the BBC, after messages he sent to two women came to light.
Here’s what Jenas has said:
The biggest thing in this whole situation is about taking responsibility and that has been at the forefront of my mind. You need to take responsibility for your actions. There’s a reason why you’re in this position, and there’s a reason why this has happened.
Once you kind of accept those things, then you can work on yourself and you can work on the other things, and you can work on your family and work towards a brighter future. I’m very grateful to talkSPORT for giving me the opportunity to come talk to yourself and get back to doing what I love most. This is about me looking inwards, making some improvements and coming back a better person.
Speaking of Steven Sessegnon, this has always been a great X thread, looking back on England’s triumphant born-in-2000 generation.
In 2017, England won the under-17s World Cup in India.
It led to fresh optimism of a “Golden Generation” being on the horizon for the Three Lions.
But some players in that side have gone in very different directions to others…
Here’s what happened to that team:
(THREAD 🧵) pic.twitter.com/oAm9DVGOCQ
— Ryan Dilks (@RyanDilks1) December 8, 2022
Wigan v Fulham tomorrow will be the battle of the Sessegnon twins – if Latics’ star Steven is fit and if visiting boss Marco Silva hands a rare start to Ryan. The pair, of course, came through at Fulham before going their separate ways.
“[Steven] Sessegnon didn’t play in the last game, but he is probably going to be ready to play against us,” Silva said when asked about the prospect of the twin brothers facing each other. “If he is ready, he is probably going to play and it’s going to be another great connection from the game.”
Andoni Iraola has called for Bournemouth to earn the right to advance in the FA Cup ahead of their fourth-round tie at Everton on Saturday.
The Toffees have won three out of their four matches since David Moyes’ return as manager and ought to provide stiff opposition.
“We have a very difficult opponent,” said Iraola. “There’s no guarantee that if you rest players you can win the next league game so we go there knowing it will be difficult. We need to earn the right to play another game in the FA Cup because we are playing another Premier League team in a very good form at the moment.
“He [Moyes] has been been very good in the four games he’s been there. You can see with the results and he knows more about the club than anyone. It will be a smooth transition for him and he has started really well.
“I think we have the experience to play there, with the atmosphere, the kind of team they are and obviously with the confidence being high after their wins in recent weeks, I expect a difficult game.”
Ruben Amorim insisted Manchester United “have two strikers who can score goals” – although the records of Rasmus Højlund and Joshua Zirkzee – five Premier League goals between them this season – call that statement into question somewhat.
Amorim was asked whether young forwards like Chido Obi-Martin could come into his side for tonight’s FA Cup clash with Leicester.
United are without Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw tonight, so new left-sided signings Patrick Dorgu and Ayden Heaven could feature.
The latest episode of Football Weekly has dropped, a review of the Carabao Cup semi-finals and a preview of the FA Cup fourth round. Get your ears around Max and the gang here:
Thank you, John. I always look forward to your Stockport-centric introductions.
I’ve got Pep Guardiola and Kieran McKenna press conferences to cover this afternoon, among other things.
Right, that’s been a busy old morning. Now to pass on to the A6’s finest, Mr Dominic Booth.
More on that bad news for the church of Cherno Samba.
Big Sir Jim and Sir Dave have laid their plans. Now for Marc Skinner to make them work.
Premier League’s manager and player of the month, respectively, for January, and deservedly so, are Andoni Iraola and Justin Kluivert of Bournemouth. Even Liverpool got a scare off Cherries.
Manchester City and Chelsea set for Women’s Champions League showdown
Tom Garry
Chelsea will meet Manchester City in an all-English Women’s Champions League quarter-final, while Arsenal will take on Real Madrid.
The holders, Barcelona, will face Wolfsburg in a repeat of the 2023 final, and the winner of that tie will face Chelsea or City in the semi-finals, putting Barça, the favourites and Spanish league leaders, and Chelsea, the English league leaders, in the same half of the draw.
The Group C winners Arsenal, who won England’s only women’s European title in 2007, will face opponents who were runners-up to Chelsea in Group B, and whichever side progress will meet Bayern Munich or Lyon.
City knew that having finished second in their group behind Barcelona, the defending champions, they had a two-in-three chance of being pitted against an English side. Unable to face Barcelona again, they could only meet one of the other three group winners: Arsenal, Chelsea and Lyon.
Champions League news: Manchester City have included new signings Nico Gonzalez, Abdukodir Khusanov, Omar Marmoush in their Champions League squad. Vitor Reis is not in the squad, with only three squad additions permitted prior to Thursday night’s deadline. The Brazilian defender, who was bought from Palmeiras in January, will not be eligible to face Real Madrid in the play-off round or, if City progress, in any future European matches this season. He was only 19 last month, after all.
Those quarter-finals at a glance.
The Estádio José Alvalade – home of Sporting Club – will host the final on Saturday 24 March. It’s right in the centre of Lisbon, too.
The draw is not done: the winners of the second semi will be the “home team”.
Here comes the semis draw:
Wolfsburg/Barcelona v Manchester City/ Chelsea
Real Madrid/Arsenal v Bayern/Lyon
The path to Lisbon is on the way.
Remaining ties:
Wolfsburg v Barcelona
Bayern v Lyon
City v Chelsea in the Women’s Champions League
Manchester City draw Barcelona but as they met in the groups, they instead draw Chelsea.
David Gough, an Irishman, takes on the Giorgio Marchetti joking official role, and explains the rules. As ever the balls take a bit to unscrew. Nadine has to ad-lib away before Carla pulls out:
Real Madrid v Arsenal
The special guest is none other than finals ambassador Carla Couto. She tips Barcelona to win.
The Women’s Champions League draw is imminent in Switzerland.
It’s group winners v runners-up. Nadine Kessler is doing the draw in Nyon. She’s chief suit in women’s football at Uefa. “Thanks to some seismic transfer deals,” she says, the competition just got bigger. Lisbon awaits.
Postecoglou keeps the faith despite Liverpool thrashing
Ed Aarons
Ange Postecloglou has insisted that he still has belief in his players and doesn’t listen to criticism from pundits after Tottenham’s thrashing against Liverpool.
Spurs went into the second leg of their Carabao Cup semifinal at Anfield with a 1 -0 advantage but did not even manage to have a shot on target against Arne Slot’s side. That led to widespread criticism of Postecoglou and his squad, with Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp describing their performance as “abject”.
But ahead of their trip to face Aston Villa on Sunday in the FA Cup, the Spurs manager defended his players. “There’s plenty about them,” he said. “I get the pile-on at the moment, it’s really easy for people to stick their boots in. And question the players and all that kind of stuff. That’s not something I question. We were disappointed last night didn’t go the way we wanted to, didn’t really perform at the levels we wanted to. That doesn’t define this group of players by any stretch, in my eyes. We’ll go out there on Sunday and put in more of a performance that reflects where we’re at.”
Asked whether he can use the criticism to attempt to prove people wrong, Postecoglou added: “I don’t know which people I’m meant to be proving wrong. I said last night, it’s irrelevant to me what other people’s opinions are. People are on the TV and the radio and in the newspapers to give opinions and I respect that. They’re allowed to do that but I don’t have any obligation to listen to any of it. To get fuelled by the comments of people I’ve never even met, I don’t know how you live your life, but I certainly don’t live my life that way.
“That’s with all respect that they’re there to give an opinion. It’s not like I want to be successful here so I can go to these people and say to them ‘oh, look, you were wrong’. I don’t even know them. Why would I care where they think we’re at? They’re a million miles away from us, but they’re allowed to have their opinion.
“We’re an easy mark at the moment, and look after last night, there are times you’ve just got to take it, keep your council and atone for it in the way that only really matters and that is with playing the football I know we can.”
News of Marc Guiu’s injury from Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca: “We are still waiting. It doesn’t look like a short injury, it looks like a long injury. Exactly how long, I don’t know. Probably weeks/months, yes.”
Nico Jackson could be back. Romeo Lavia: a long wait.
Arne Slot has been talking to the media. Things are coming up Liverpool.
“It’s difficult for me to judge because I wasn’t here last season, so I don’t know. I can only tell you that at this moment in time we are in a very good place. I’m not just talking about the results, but the players are fit and ready.
“We are in a good place but we also know how long the season still is and how many difficult challenges there will still be for us. I’m not expecting us to win every game like we did yesterday, but that is also not what I ask of them. We just try to do everything to win every single football match.”
Bad news for the gaming community: Football Manager 25 has been cancelled.
A statement:
“Sports Interactive regret to inform that, following extensive internal discussion and careful consideration with SEGA, we have made the difficult decision to cancel Football Manager 25 and shift our focus to the next release.
“For the large numbers of you who pre-ordered FM25, we thank you enormously for your trust and support – we’re very sorry to have let you down.
“We know this will come as a huge disappointment, especially given that the release date has already moved twice, and you have been eagerly anticipating the first gameplay reveal.
“We can only apologise for the time it has taken to communicate this decision. Today was the earliest date that we could issue this statement.
“We have always prided ourselves on delivering the best value for money games that bring you countless hours of enjoyment, that feel worth every moment and every penny you spend. With the launch of FM25 we set out to create the biggest technical and visual advancement in the series for a generation, laying the building blocks for a new era.”
Refunds will be paid to those who ordered.
January transfer business was record-breaking
Some interesting stats on the January transfer window, as compiled by Fifa’s International Transfer Snapshot.
According to the report – composed by the Miami-based Fifa Legal & Compliance Division – a total of 5,863 international transfers were recorded in men’s professional football in January. This is the highest-ever figure for any January window and almost 20% higher than the previous record from January 2024.
A total of $2.35bn was spent by clubs on international transfer fees, which is also a new all-time high for any January window. The amount is 57.9% higher compared to January 2024 and 47.1% higher than the previous record from January 2023.
New records were also set in both categories in women’s professional football. $5.8m was spent by clubs on international transfer fees, the highest ever in any January window and more than twice the previous record (+180.6%) from January 2024. Some 455 international transfers were recorded in the women’s professional game, up 22.6% compared to the previous record from January 2024.
In men’s football, clubs in England led the way by spending $621.6m on transfer fees. The top five was completed by clubs in Germany ($295.7m), Italy ($223.8m), France ($209.7m) and Saudi Arabia ($202.1m). Meanwhile, clubs in France received the highest amount in transfer fees ($371.0m), followed by clubs in Germany ($226.2m), England ($185.2m), Portugal ($176.4m) and Italy ($162.0m).
Brazil came out on top for the most incoming transfers (471), followed by Argentina (265), Portugal (207), Spain (200) and England (190). The country with the highest number of outgoing transfers was Argentina (255), with Brazil (212), England (211), the United States (188) and Portugal (170) rounding out the top five.
Clubs in England were the top spenders in women’s football too ($2.3m) and they also made the most incoming transfers (39). Meanwhile, January 2025 was the first-ever transfer window to witness transfers with fees of more than $1m in women’s professional football.
On Marcus Rashford, Ruben Amorim had this to say on him on Thursday.
“As a journalist or a fan, you can take this in the way that you want,” the manager said. “What I say is I couldn’t put Marcus to see the way you’re supposed to play football and to train the way I see it. And sometimes you have one player who is really good with one coach and the same player with another coach is different. I just wish the best to Rashford and Unai Emery, and they can connect because he’s a very good player.”
Amorim was asked if, in essence, Rashford had said he did not agree with the head coach’s ideas regarding football. “You know, like me, it’s not the way that occurs, it’s something that you feel, as a coach and a player,” said Amorim. “It’s quite normal, it happened with a lot of coaches. The important thing is that I’m here saying it was my decision. And Tyrell [Malacia] and Antony: it was my decision, to do these loans [too].”
Nick Fenton is up for the FA Cup: “I’m hugely looking forward to the early start at Brisbane Road tomorrow. It feels a bit surreal for us to be hosting City after a turbulent cup run that has seen us sneak past National League Boreham Wood on pens, National League Oldham in extra time (thanks to Josh Keeley’s much-publicised last minute header up from between the sticks), then Derby on pens as well. Brisbane Road was rocking for that Derby match – and it will be a real picture at 12.15 tomorrow. The pubs are opening at 9am and the club’s limited edition Orient v City coffee mugs have sold out already – huge excitement in E10!
“I was sat behind the goal for Keeley’s header against Oldham – see attached. Just one of those moments you know you’ll never forget. I’m not sure I’ll ever make a noise like this again – but if one of our new signings puts us 1-0 up tomorrow then you just never know….
“Keep an eye on Ethan Galbraith tomorrow – been absolutely brilliant for us and destined for the Championship next season one way or another (but hopefully wearing Orient red!). Enjoy the weekend and come on you Os.”
There was a Nick Fenton who played for City in their 1990s golden era.
Celtic fans allowed to attend Munich game
Per PA Media: “Celtic fans will be able to attend the Champions League clash against Bayern Munich in Germany after being handed a UEFA reprieve.
The Scottish champions were on a suspended ban on away supporters when they were hit with a disciplinary notice after a green smoke canister was thrown from among the visiting fans during Celtic’s 4-2 defeat at Villa Park last month. However, they have escaped with a fine following a decision from UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body.
The club have received a fine of 10,000 euros (£8,340) for the lighting of fireworks and throwing of objects. Celtic had received double the fine and a one-match ban on selling tickets for travelling fans – which was suspended for two years – after a major pyrotechnic display in their Champions League encounter with Borussia Dortmund in September.
Police investigate abuse aimed at Shaw
Tom Garry
A police investigation is ongoing after Manchester City’s report of what the club described as “disgusting, racist and misogynistic” abuse aimed online at their Jamaica striker Khadija “Bunny” Shaw.
The club informed the authorities about the matter, which took place after Sunday’s 4-3 loss to Arsenal in the Women’s Super League, and Greater Manchester police have confirmed to the Guardian that inquiries are ongoing. No arrests had been made as of Friday morning UK time.
Shaw withdrew from Thursday’s League Cup semi-final, which City won 2-1 at Arsenal, to look after her mental wellbeing in the wake of the abuse. On Tuesday City said: “Discrimination of any kind, either in stadiums or online, will not be tolerated and has absolutely no place inside or outside the game. The club offers our full support to Bunny following the disgusting treatment she’s received.”
Time to get out the rattle, the Bovril and the whippet. It’s the FA Cup.
Who is Nico Gonzalez? Good thing we have Will Unwin to tell us what’s what.
Why did Ruud not stay on as interim and wait for Ruben Amorim to come in for the summer?
Who can stop Liverpool?
Let’s start with last night. Well done, Liverpool. Though perhaps the key quotes comes from Ange Postecoglou.
Ange Postecoglou continues to live under immense pressure; a route to silverware now closed off, his team struggling in 14th place in the Premier League. “We didn’t give ourselves a chance to take the opportunity which is probably more disappointing,” the Spurs manager said. “I would have liked us to play more like who we are. There is a lesson in there for us that if we veer away from that it almost becomes impossible for us.
“I think they understood the opportunity. When the reality of it out there hits you, it’s a bit different to maybe what you envisioned in your head. Our intent was to play the same way we play every week. We were trying to put pressure on them and unsettle them but it never really materialised. We didn’t have conviction when we had the ball either, which allowed them to get control of the game.”
Further bad news: Ange has to given another press conference today.
Preamble
Good morning, football. Sore heads all round after a week of Carabao. How sore is Daniel Levy’s head. We await news of Ange Postecoglou, though surely he will be given Sunday’s FA Cup tie at Aston Villa. Lose that, and, well, let’s see.
It’s the FA Cup fourth round, and that means there’s football spread around the weekend, starting with Manchester United hosting Ruud van Nistelrooy and Leicester. Those who like their romance will be looking to Leyton Orient v Manchester City as Saturday’s early kick-off. Saturday-night special: Brighton v Chelsea. Plymouth v Liverpool on Sunday is followed by Frank Lampard’s Coventry taking on Ipswich. We go as far as Monday night: Doncaster Rovers v Crystal Palace.
Plus, the Women’s Champions League draw. That’s at midday UK time.
All that and plenty of news flying around. Join me for the morning load.
