Right, I’m going to head off now but I will leave you to enjoy The Fiver, by Scott Murray, on Carlos Queiroz going all Scrappy-Doo in the Afcon semi-final against Cameroon. Thanks for reading. Bye!
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Spare a thought for Hartlepool captain Nicky Featherstone, who will miss the FA Cup clash at Crystal Palace after being sent off in the League Two game against Exeter last weekend. Here’s the stand-in Pools captain Gary Liddle. “We’re gutted for Feaths,” Liddle told the Hartlepool Mail. “He’s a good friend of mine at the football club and is someone I speak to quite often. Originally he was disappointed he got sent off with half an hour to go at the weekend and I think once the dust had settled with that he soon realised he was going to miss this game.” Palace, who have helped subsidise Hartlepool fans’ coach travel down to London, will be without Wilfried Zaha, who is back in training but being given time to recuperate after his efforts for Ivory Coast at Afcon.
Just a reminder that Chris Wilder won’t be letting any of his Middlesbrough players swap shirt with their Manchester United counterparts on the Old Trafford pitch tonight. But what if Cristiano Ronaldo really wants Duncan Watmore’s shirt? That’ll be a bit awkward for the Boro winger won’t it?
It is not sight-seeing for our players. It is not a shirt-swapping situation. I don’t want people going to Old Trafford to enjoy the visit. If they want a shirt, do it in the changing rooms after. We don’t want to be looking at them all fuzzy-eyed. They are up against a competitor.
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West Ham winger Andriy Yarmolenko has been charged by the FA with alleged misconduct in relation to an appearance in a betting advert in his home country of Ukraine.
Andrii Yarmolenko has been charged with a breach of FA Rule E8.5 following an alleged incident of misconduct in relation to advertising and/or promoting a betting activity in his personal capacity.
— FA Spokesperson (@FAspokesperson) February 4, 2022
Full statement: https://t.co/I01XM32FqZ pic.twitter.com/qCyxCFxNTb
Yarmolenko has until 18 February 18 to respond to the charge.
Some bad news for Chelsea after Reece James was ruled out of the Club World Cup campaign due to his continued hamstring troubles. Chelsea had hoped to see James back in team training this week but the England wing-back had experienced several small setbacks, including suffering coming down with flu.
Reece is not in team training yet, so he’s not available this weekend. And he will not travel with us to Abu Dhabi because he’s not back in team training. I’m too long as a manager to have big feelings for injuries, and not to get overexcited by pure dates that are maybe out there when a player can come back. I know you can have setbacks and it can take a long time sometimes, it depends, and the injury was a big injury and I felt it straight away. The diagnosis was straight away that it’s a big injury, and from there we need to be patient. It’s a hamstring, it’s always tricky and he’s a very physical player.”
Chelsea play in the semi-final of the Club World Cup on Wednesday 9 February and, should they make the final, will compete for the Club World Cup trophy on Saturday 12 February.
Let’s put the focus back on Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations final again. Having played three consecutive matches of 120 minutes – the last coming a day later than Senegal’s semi-final – surely Egypt will struggle on Sunday against Senegal, who have looked livelier in their attacking play. Mind you if Egypt do win, it will be some feat. They will be without both manager Carlos Queiroz and his assistant Roger de Sa, both of whom are banned. Egypt’s other assistant, Diaa El-Sayed, made a request for the final to be put back a day but that isn’t going to happen.
We are the only team that played 120 minutes in three consecutive games. The players are fully focused, they have a good base to build on, and we thank their clubs for that. [Mohamed] Salah being the group leader gives the players a lot of positive energy as well. We also have a great head coach that has a lot of experience dealing with players. I believe Queiroz’s send-off was undeserved, I’d like to dedicate the win to both him and his assistant Roger de Sa.
Here’s the story on those relationship issues that Pep Guardiola and João Cancelo have finally worked their way through:
The option to make five substitutions in a match is set to be made permanent by the game’s lawmakers next month, reports PA. The International Football Association Board’s annual general meeting will take place on 3 March and it is expected that the temporary dispensation to Law 3 to allow up to five changes in a game – introduced to help clubs manage congestion related to the Covid-19 pandemic – will be made a permanent option for competitions worldwide. It doesn’t mean the Premier League has to adopt it, however, though many other leagues already have and will likely continue to do so. The wording of the offside law will also be discussed at the meeting, though it is understood it is very unlikely any changes to it will be ratified.
Chelsea appear to have brought Inter to Lukaku with this ‘Pride of London’ kit they have released today. Extraordinary.
Some live pics coming in from West Ham’s training session before they travel to Kidderminster and all I can think of when I see this image of Declan Rice is Bryan Adams.
Marie Meyer asks: “Is there a point to the Ashley Cole appointment other than Frank the Londoner feeling uncomfortable in Liverpool?” Everyone needs a sidekick, don’t they Marie? Big Sam had Little Sammy, Clough had Taylor, Mourinho and Clarke was a good double-act and Wenger and Rice weren’t too shabby were they? But more likely is that Lampard just needs a body between himself and Big Dunc.
Some good news for Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers, who has had a catalogue of injuries to contend with in his squad this season. Wesley Fofana, who suffered a broken leg and ankle ligament damage before the season started, could make his long-awaited return. The French centre-half’s rehabilitation is nearing its end following his operation almost six months ago and the aim is for the 21-year-old to begin training with the rest of the Foxes squad in 10 days’ time. Here’s Rodgers:
He’s doing terrific and he will look to join the squad the week beginning February 14, which is great news for us. He has worked ever so hard for six months – almost to the day since his operation – and he’s recovered and for a young player I have been really, really impressed by his mentality and his attitude to his recovery. He has been super professional and worked very hard and we just can’t wait to have him back with the team again. I think you can see his importance, you’ve seen what we’ve missed throughout the season.
Along with Fofana, Jamie Vardy, Jonny Evans, Timothy Castagne and Ricardo Pereira remain out injured for Leicester’s FA Cup fourth-round clash against midlands rivals Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
Steve Bruce is unveiled as West Brom manager!
Steve Bruce is speaking at West Brom. Why get back into football after what happened at Newcastle, where he received vile abuse?
Is it a drug? Is it something inside you? It’s what you do. You go to work. I’m a spring chicken compared to Roy [Hodgson]. I hope he doesn’t mind me saying that. If I didn’t think West Brom could get into the Premier League, I wouldn’t be sat here. I thought ‘did I have the enthusiasm for it?’ The answer was yes. The only way I could [get over the abuse at Newcastle] was to get back on the horse. Newcastle’s gone. It’s a chapter of my football life. I want the club to do well. It was a difficult time for me but maybe in a few years people will think finishing 12th and 13th was not so bad. I think [they will escape relegation]. I wish them the best of luck, I really do.
Bruce says he turned down a few offers before taking the West Brom job. What was the appeal?
I think this is a wonderful opportunity for me to go and enjoy management again. When Ron [Gourlay, West Brom chief executive] told me the vision for the club I saw the attraction. I would love to make it five [personal promotions from the Championship]. This club is a Premier League-size club. It has spent 13 of 20 seasons in the Premier League.
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Manchester City’s Alex Greenwood has been talking to Louise Taylor about the club’s topsy-turvy season and and England’s prospects at the Euros. City face champions Chelsea on Sunday with an outside chance of getting back into the title race after recovering from an awful start to the season.
Boreham Wood’s manager, Luke Garrard, wants to repay chairman Danny Hunter by causing an upset at Bournemouth because Hunter went so far as to pay for his big shop for him during the pandemic! “Paying us all 100%, paying for my food shopping, who does that, what chairman does that,” asked Garrard. “This is the best group I have ever worked with and we get the fruits of our labour. If we can repay [Hunter] with one small moment on Sunday, I will make a fat man very happy – and those are his words, not mine so I am not being disrespectful in any way, shape or form.” Boreham Wood beat AFC Wimbledon last time out to seal their first-ever appearance at this stage of the competition and were rewarded with a trip to the Vitality Stadium to take on Scott Parker’s side on Sunday night.
Bruno Lage wins Premier League manager of month award!
Wolves beat Manchester United and Brentford away, and Southampton at home in January. And what a sound man Lage appears to be. Here he is getting all of the behind-the-scenes staff together to share the award with them, from his backroom coaches to those who work in the canteen.
When I knew we won the award I said to everyone to come, the players don’t need to come because it’s not just for me and it’s not just for my staff, but I think the work we do everyday, I think we should be proud. The boys have everything to just play football.
Nice one, Bruno!
Go behind the scenes as Bruno gathers every staff member at Compton together to thank them for their contributions and for that #MOTM pic.
— Wolves (@Wolves) February 4, 2022
🏆🎥 pic.twitter.com/vAjg8ohqKp
Wolves host Norwich in the FA Cup on Saturday.
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A bit more from Pep Guardiola, who also spoke about Joao Cancelo, who signed a contract extension to 2027 this week. Guardiola looked a little miffed when he was asked why Cancelo is so good now having struggled to make an impact since joining in 2019. But, it’s a fair question.
Everybody knows how important Joao is for us, especially what we have done in the last two seasons. We struggled together in the first part when he arrived. We didn’t agree on many things but it was partly my mistakes. Now he’s incredible and I’m so delighted he’s fully happy here. Now he’s playing every day. There are players who accept playing, others are not happy and have to understand. We know each other much better, every player must be treated differently. I got more time to know him, how sensitive he is, [he has] a big heart.
Let’s have a little look at what’s going on at the top of La Liga, where Sevilla have emerged as title contenders. They travel to mid-table Osasuna tomorrow with the aim of moving to within a point of leaders Real Madrid, who face Granada on Sunday. Julen Lopetegui has now got a shiny new forward available to him in Anthony Martial too, but is trying to keep a lid on any title talk.
Our battle is against Osasuna, nothing more or we would be seriously mistaken. We have more players available. The boys from Africa, Argentina and Jesús that has just come back. Martial will travel and is available. He has to get up to speed which we hope will be as soon as possible to help us in such an important part of the season. We need to focus ourselves on what we are able to do. I expect that they are going to be aggressive. Whoever plays, they’re decisive and show quality in the last moments of the game with a good attack and goal threat. If there’s any stadium that puts you under pressure, it’s El Sadar.
Lopetegui has done very well to rebuild his career after the disastrous decision to quit Spain for Madrid, where he lasted about 12 seconds before being sacked.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 22 | 27 | 50 |
| 2 | Sevilla | 22 | 18 | 46 |
| 3 | Real Betis | 22 | 16 | 40 |
| 4 | Atletico Madrid | 21 | 10 | 36 |
| 5 | Barcelona | 21 | 9 | 35 |
Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou does not “do breaks”. Having not had playmaker Tom Rogic available for the 3-0 win over Rangers due his international commitments, Postecoglu has no sympathy for anyone feeling fatigue.
We don’t do breaks during the year, he will get a break at the end of the year like everyone else. He’s back and ready to play.
It sounds more like a threat than a statement but maybe that’s just because Postecoglou always talks in a low growl. The former Australia boss revealed no casualties from the game against Rangers with striker Daizen Maeda, who was on the bench and came on as a second-half substitute after returning from international duty with Japan, ready to start if required. Postecoglou said: “Everyone is fine, no issues. We had a couple of little niggles going into it with the boys who were starting but they all got through it okay. We will obviously get back Nir Bitton who was suspended and Tommy Rogic is obviously available and Daizen Maeda is fully available, they are the main changes.”
Plymouth’s Jordan Houghton will face his former club Chelsea when he travels there for the FA Cup tie tomorrow. He has fond memories of playing at Stamford Bridge, where he scored as Chelsea won the 2014 FA Youth Cup in a two-legged final against Fulham.
I’ve got my medal and shirt signed by all the lads framed, but also the pair of boots I wore in the game framed because it is a special memory.
You can read Ben Fisher’s interview with the midfielder here:
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Manchester City v Fulham. There could be goals at the Etihad, folks. Pep Guardiola is speaking before the leaders of the Premier League face Marco Silva’s free-scoring leaders of the Championship. Guardiola was more than happy to heap praise on Silva now that he is looking more like Magic Marco again:
I’m very pleased with what he’s doing. I’ve been really impressed, for a long time. I’m not surprised they’re top of the Championship. It’s not just the goals, way they play, positionally, is exceptional. Everyone moves for his teammate. I’m happy for him. I know him a little, good relationship at Everton and Watford. Now I see his team play much better. He’s there because they play really well. Going back to the Premier League for Fulham is so important. It’s no secret, it will be a good test after a game off. The best opponent we can face, they have a lot of qualities, they have a lot of alternatives. Many players have a lot of quality.
One of those players is Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has scored 28 of Fulham’s seventy-four goals in 28 league games this season. Perhaps even more remarkable is the fact that Mitrovic is still only 27!
Thanks Dave. So what about the FA Cup’s lowest-ranked club, Kidderminster Harriers? They host West Ham on Saturday lunchtime at Aggborough, where the manager Russell Penn was seen dancing with a mop at midnight after the third-round win over Reading. Here’s Ben Fisher with a lovely piece in which he reveals that Cup fever has very much taken hold of the Harriers.
And on the back of Conte’s inward inferno, I’ll hand you back to Gregg Bakowski.
Antonio Conte has been having his say on the somewhat strange goings on at Tottenham. By strange, I mean the series of events that led to them sending three players bought for a combined £122million out on loan.
That included their two most expensive players: £55m Tanguy Ndombele returning to Lyon and £42m Giovani Lo Celso heading to Villarreal for the rest of the season.
Just for shits and giggles, £25m summer signing Bryan Gil was loaned to Valencia.
What do you make of all that then Antonio?
For sure it was strange because it means something wrong has happened in the past. It means that maybe in the past you have to see what you did and maybe to understand that there were some mistakes in the past. Usually you buy players to reinforce your team but if you send away on loan after two or three years it is strange. We have to pay more attention in the future when we go into the market.
Spurs did bring in Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur from Juventus and Conte said both will be in the squad to face Brighton in Saturday’s FA Cup fourth round.
Kulusevski and Bentancur are fit and for this reason they are available for sure. To start the game is not right because they need to work with the team for a period. These two players can help us a lot.
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Manchester United v Middlesbrough gets the fourth round FA Cup action underway tonight. Check out these fun stats from Opta. Scott McTominay getting the only goal in a 1-0 home win then.
- Since a 4-1 defeat at the Riverside Stadium in October 2005, Manchester United have remained unbeaten in their last 13 matches with Middlesbrough across all competitions (W8 D5), with their last meeting coming in March 2017.
- Middlesbrough have been drawn with Manchester United for the 11th time in the FA Cup, more often than any other opponent. They’ve progressed from three of the other 10 ties, most recently in 2001-02 during their run to the semi-finals.
- Manchester United have won 28 of their last 31 home FA Cup matches against sides from a lower division (D2 L1), including each of their last eight without conceding a goal.
- Middlesbrough have progressed from only one of their last 10 FA Cup ties against Premier League opposition, though that one instance did come in Manchester in 2014-15, beating Man City 2-0 at the Etihad.
- Scott McTominay has scored three of Manchester United’s last seven FA Cup goals, all of which have come in 1-0 victories at Old Trafford – v Watford (Jan 2021), West Ham (Feb 2021) and Aston Villa in round three this season.
Southampton reached the FA Cup semi-finals last year, their dreams of glory being ended after a 1-0 defeat to eventual winners Leicester.
With Southampton safely tucked away in 12th place in the Premier League, boss Ralph Hasenhüttl fancies another morale-boosting cup run.
The Austrian calls it an “epic chance” as they prepare to host Coventry (10th in the Championship) on Saturday afternoon.
We have shown last season that there is always a chance to come very far – we have been in the semi-finals and it was absolutely enjoyable. Even more interesting is that (this season) it will be in a moment when you know all the supporters can come to watch it at Wembley, so this is the target to do even better than last season. Last season we had been very clear in our message that we take it (FA Cup) very seriously because we have been (in a) very good position in the table. This season it is similar, but we have also a bigger squad and this makes it easier for me than last season when we took the risk and then had a lot of injuries. I remember the Arsenal game (in the fourth round) where we lost three players afterwards (to injury) which hurt us a lot, but in the end, we have to take it very seriously – and we will definitely because it is an epic chance, our supporters love it. We also love it to be in the next round of the FA Cup and to be part of this competition as long as possible.
It’s Mo Salah (Egypt) v Sadio Mane in the Africa Cup of Nations final on Sunday and the PA has been comparing the two Liverpool strikers. An amalgamation of the two would be some player and also sound better too - Mo Mane or Sadio Salah.
From the PA:
Given their status as two of the Premier League’s most feared forwards, it is little surprise that Mane and Salah are the headline acts in their national teams. Mane has had the most impressive tournament of the two, bagging three goals and an assist in his six games so far. He even climbed off his hospital bed after a head injury to lead Senegal to a second successive AFCON final. Salah, who has been touted as the best player in the world this season, has been a little more muted, but has still bagged two goals and claimed an assist. The Egyptian has looked leggy as all three of his country’s knockout games went to extra-time. But the 29-year-old has a better international pedigree than his Liverpool team-mate, scoring 45 goals in 78 games, while Mane has bagged 26 in 80 caps.
Form in 2021/22
Both men have enjoyed fruitful seasons for Liverpool as they challenge on four fronts this season, but Salah is having a standout year. He equalled Jamie Vardy’s record of scoring or creating a goal in 15 successive Premier League games amid a run of scoring in 10 consecutive games. He is the Premier League top scorer with 16 in 20 games, with nine assists, and bagged another seven in the Champions League group stage. Unsurprisingly, it has been difficult for Mane to compete with that, but the Senegalese has had a solid campaign in his own right. He has scored 10 goals in all competitions, nine of them coming in the Premier League, and is still very much a key part of one of the most exciting front lines in Europe.
Record for Liverpool
When the dust settles on their time at Anfield in years to come, both men will be remembered among the greats of the club, having already joined the century club. Salah is the most prolific of the two, scoring 148 goals in 229 games, with 56 assists. That sees him sitting 10th in the all-time list of Liverpool scorers and his form suggests he will overtake Harry Chambers (151) and Michael Owen (158) before the season is out. Mane has scored 107 goals in 244 games, while also making 44.
Differences in style
Playing in a front three, primarily with Roberto Firmino or Diogo Jota in recent years, the pair have contrasting styles that give defenders different kinds of nightmares. Mane has power and physicality and his combination with Andrew Robertson on the left is a formidable pairing. He is strong in the air and has the knack of being in the right place at the right time. Salah is a more skilful player, capable of weaving his way through the tightest spots. He also has the pace to live on the shoulder of the last man and makes a living out of cutting inside and letting his left foot do the damage. He is also highly efficient from the penalty spot.
While I’m down a rabbit hole and we’re discussing Everton’s new manager, it seems an ideal time to dig out Frank Lampard Snr’s corner flag dance in the 1980 FA Cup semi-final for West Ham against... erm, Everton!
That dance around the corner flag! ❤️
— West Ham United (@WestHam) April 16, 2019
3️⃣9️⃣ years ago today Frank Lampard senior scored an 118th-minute winner to send us to Wembley and the 1980 FA Cup final 🏆 pic.twitter.com/P2dwdBpers
Thanks Gregg. You’ve caught me on YouTube looking back at a penalty shootout from the 1992 Africa Cup of Nations.
Mo Salah wasn’t even required to take a spot-kick in Egypt’s semi-final shootout win last night after three Cameroon players made a right old horlicks of it from the spot. Very different to this one when even the goalkeepers were forced into action.
Here’s a view on Lampard’s opening run of games as Everton manager.
@GreggBakowski are there “easy” games? Lampard has essentially two “free hits” in Brentford cup tie and City game, and three eminently winnable (and equally eminently loseable) games in between.
— Robin Cannon(he/him) (@ShinyToyRobots) February 4, 2022
I’m going to hand over to Dave Tindall now while I grab some lunch. Back in a bit.
Inter coach Simone Inzaghi leads his team in the Milan derby on Saturday night but he has been tying to play down the importance of it, saying that the result won’t be decisive. He’s right about that but they could take a big step towards the Scudetto given they have a game in hand over Napoli and Milan.
I don’t think it’s decisive because there are many games remaining. We saw what happened in the first [Milan derby], we were seven points behind Milan, but we picked up a draw and then we’ve filled the gap. It’s a very important match, we know what it means for our fans. I know Stefano Pioli well. Milan are well organised and have put in excellent performances since the match against Empoli. The title race is still open, the table is telling the truth. Aside from Milan and Napoli, Atalanta and Juventus are also very strong. Juventus were my favourite in the summer, and have improved over the last two months.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Inter Milan | 22 | 36 | 53 |
| 2 | Napoli | 23 | 27 | 49 |
| 3 | AC Milan | 23 | 22 | 49 |
| 4 | Atalanta | 22 | 18 | 43 |
| 5 | Juventus | 23 | 13 | 42 |
Here’s a bit more from Jürgen Klopp on why Liverpool are still interested in Fulham teenager Fabio Carvalho. The fact Klopp is still very much focused on renewing his Liverpool squad will be music to the ears of some Reds fans, who always seem to be in fear of Klopp putting a date on when he will leave:
Our strategy is to sign the right players at the right moment. We recognise issues like a position or contracts. We are long together with this team, it’s a fantastic team, one of the most successful in the history of this club but we will never miss having a look ahead and that’s exactly what we are doing. We are Liverpool so we cannot only work with talents and say: ‘Let’s have a look in two or three years and they will be ready’. There must always be a mix-up. We have a lot of incredible talent already, in the first-team squad and around the first-team squad and we are 100% sure they will definitely be Liverpool players, but not now. That’s what we do: building a team for now and tomorrow. We are happy. This is the way the club is doing it, pretty much before I even arrived and I am absolutely used to it but that’s the way it is.
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Richard Harris writes: “I disagree about the upcoming fixtures for Everton. The first four are eminently winnable and even City are beatable if you play without fear and take your chances. I think Frank Lampard’s Everton will be climbing the table and well clear of the relegation scrap by the time they play City. Also think Frank will get them to the Cup final.” It will be like 1995 all over again. Here’s a reminder of that from the Goodison Park corridors.
The new man at Watford, Roy Hodgson, has been getting his chat on with BBC Radio 4 and has admitted that Saturday afternoons without live football were horrible. Being the nice man that he is, he didn’t want to go round harassing people to cadge tickets, either.
Saturday afternoon has always been the worst time because that’s the time when you feel you should be involved in football, and I’ve not wanted to ring around people asking for tickets because that didn’t seem right either. I thought that when I left Crystal Palace that that was the right time to to retire gracefully [but] of course I did say at the time, ‘I’m never going to say never, I’m not going to say something won’t come along that I want to do’. But I suppose I could be accused of not retiring gracefully. I can only hope that the job I’ve been brought in to do, by the people who believe I can do it, will be the right one.
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It’s interesting that Frank Lampard spoke so honestly about what will be expected of him at Everton. “I will be as good as the team’s short-term results … one bad month and you’re out,” he said. It’s a bit of a departure from what an older manager might say. With Lampard having played and managed Chelsea he knows better than many how cut-throat Premier League management is. The problem is, that by being so honest, he could very easily have those words thrown back at him if Everton don’t hit the ground running. How do you think he will do? Here are his first five fixtures (Premier League, unless stated):
- Brentford (h) FA Cup
- Newcastle (a)
- Leeds (h)
- Southampton (a)
- Man City (h)
They don’t look so easy to me.
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This is a very nice interview with Sven, who enjoyed his time in Serie A more than any other. He took the Roma job in 1984! And he’s still one year younger than Roy Hodgson.
David Moyes has been previewing the tie with Kidderminster but first he was asked about West Ham’s failure to land a signing, despite having chased Raphinha, Kalvin Phillips, Leandro Trossard, Patrik Schick, Darwin Nunez, Jesse Lingard, Roy Race and Sport Billy during the January window. Here’s what he had to say:
We were always trying to add to what we thought we could do. It would be hard to get better than Jarrod Bowen if we’re talking about another striker. I didn’t just want back-up, I wanted real competition. I could have easily gone out and bought back-up. Easily. I wanted people who were actually going to take other people’s jerseys and challenge them.
And on the challenge of facing Kidderminster, Jarrod Bowen said:
Of course people want giant killing in the FA Cup. So as a group of players the challenge we’ve got is going to be difficult, no doubt about it. We want to qualify for the next round and that’s our focus. They will be right up for it, for sure, so we want to go there, no hiccups, win the game and get through to the next round. To win a trophy would mean everything. I mean we’ve got a couple of competitions that we have a good chance in. For me as a player I would love to achieve that.
Burnley will have new signing and Dutch man-mountain Wout Weghorst available when they host Watford in the Premier League survival scrap on Saturday night. Clarets captain Ben Mee has obviously had an up close and personal view of him in training this week.
He looks a handful! He is a good quality player who comes with a lot of experience as well, hopefully we can bed him in early and he hits the ground running. There is more to his game than just his 6ft 6in frame and hopefully we can utilise that as well as getting the ball into the box to him.
It may not come as a surprise to know that he can head the ball with the force of a dozen rhinos.
That was unstoppable 👊
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) November 27, 2020
Wolfsburg's Weghorst with a bullet header for the lead in this goal fest of a game 🍿 pic.twitter.com/H9QT2eIm2T
Cameroon added their name to an increasingly long list of hosts who have not been able to win the Africa Cup of Nations on home soil. They were knocked out by Egypt after some hard-to-watch penalties on Thursday night. Not since 2006, when Egypt were hosts, has the home team been able to win the tournament.
Egypt beat them 3-1 on spot-kicks and there was some finger-pointing from Cameroon captain Vincent Aboubakar in the aftermath, accusing some of his teammates of being selfish. “It’s a big disappointment, in football, you reap what you sow. We have a big team and every time we play as a team, we win,” Aboubakar said. “In this game, everyone wanted to show what he was capable of and here is the pay off. Whenever we are collectively strong, we win but the moment everyone tries to do what they want, we miss out.”
The bigger picture is that the tournament has been overshadowed by the death of eight people and serious injuries to seven after the crush at the Olembé Stadium.
Both Everton and Brentford brought in new signings in January but only the Bees’ goalkeeper Jonas Lössl, brought in from Midtjylland, will be available for the fourth-round tie at Goodison.
For Everton, Frank Lampard will not have Dominic Calvert-Lewin available. The striker is still out with a knock sustained in the loss to Aston Villa a fortnight ago while new signings Dele Alli and Donny Van de Beek are both cup-tied. Abdoulaye Doucoure (groin), Fabian Delph (thigh) and Tom Davies (hamstring) are also out.
Brentford could welcome back first-choice goalkeeper David Raya but also have Lössl as an option. Deadline day signing Christian Eriksen is not in contention and will only train with his new teammates for the first time on Monday. Julian Jeanvier (knee), Mathias Jorgensen (thigh) and Tariq Fosu (hamstring) are still absent. Bees manager Thomas Frank has been talking about Eriksen and how the Danish connection clearly helped him to attract the playmaker:
I think because of the circumstances and what happened, naturally some of the bigger clubs maybe weren’t that interested to take that risk or chance. If some of them had really called and told him ‘we want to play you’ then maybe he would have considered that more, maybe? I don’t know but I also think with this crazy experience he wants to do something he knows. Premier League, London, a club where he knows some of his teammates already, has a relationship or Danish connection to me, so I think that definitely helped in his choice. I didn’t feel that I have to persuade him or seduce him like I normally do with other players.
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Jürgen Klopp has been up bright and early to preview Liverpool’s FA Cup tie against Cardiff on Sunday. He spoke on a number of topics. He was asked whether new signing Luis Díaz would feature though, given the player has yet to train at Liverpool after being away on international duty with Colombia, that would appear doubtful.
I’ve not even seen him yet. He hasn’t been to the training ground yet … we like pretty much everything about him. I’ve followed him for a while. [He has an] exceptional skillset and character. Really happy we could get him in now. His story so far is a special one. I like that. Now he’s one of us. We can’t wait to welcome him here.
Klopp also spoke about Harvey Elliott, who may make a remarkably speedy return for Liverpool on Sunday after recovering from an horrific ankle fracture and dislocation in September. Klopp said: “Harvey did everything we told him without question. He’s in a good place. Full team training. We will see what’s right for him – he will be in the squad for the Cardiff game.”
And has Klopp been watching Afcon and what doe he make of the meeting of Sadio Mané and Mo Salah in Sunday’s final?
We’ve followed it pretty closely. What a great achievement. Naby played an exceptional tournament as well. It will be exciting on Sunday. One will be really happy after, the other much less so. They both have the chance to achieve something big. I think they will be available for (the Leicester match on) Thursday. Whichever one wins will probably fly back to their home country [for a parade]. Whoever wins will be back here Tuesday or Wednesday.
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It’s been a tough week for Manchester United’s manager, Ralf Rangnick, after the arrest of Mason Greenwood and though the German said his players have trained well before the FA Cup tie against Middlesbrough this evening, it appears he has a difference of opinion with Jesse Lingard to deal with. The Manchester United midfielder has disputed Rangnick’s claims that Lingard asked for a few days off to clear his head after a January move failed to materialise.
The club advised me to have time off due to personal reasons! But my headspace is clear and I’ll always be professional when called upon and give 100 percent
— Jesse Lingard (@JesseLingard) February 3, 2022
For further reading around this weekend’s FA Cup fourth-round ties, have a little look at this:
There is a full slate of fixtures in the Women’s Super League this weekend, too. The standout match is Arsenal v Manchester United, with the league leaders hosting their third-placed rivals, who trail by five points. The manager of reigning champions Chelsea, Emma Hayes, will watch that one closely before they host Manchester City in another big match on Sunday. The Blues have a game in hand on the Gunners and will look to capitalise on any dropped points.
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Preamble
Good morning! There is plenty of football going on this weekend to keep you entertained. In England it’s the fourth round of the FA Cup, with the standout match being non-league Kidderminster’s home tie against West Ham at at Aggborough, where they knocked out Reading in the third round. There is also Frank Lampard’s debut as Everton manager. The Toffees have a tough tie against Premier League Brentford at Goodison. After their heroics in seeing off Newcastle in the last round, Cambridge United might fancy their chances of making the fifth round as they host Championship Luton at the Abbey Stadium. League One Plymouth travel to the capital hoping to give Chelsea a bloody nose and then, on Sunday, there’s a tasty east midlands derby between Nottingham Forest and Leicester before non-league Boreham Wood travel to Bournemouth hoping to cause an upset. Before all of that, Manchester United host resurgent Championship side Middlesbrough at 8pm GMT this evening (Friday).
You can view all of the FA Cup fourth round fixtures here.
There is one Premier League match this weekend, the rearranged relegation six-pointer between Burnley and Watford, whose latest manager is Roy Hodgson. That one kicks off at Turf Moor at 6pm on Saturday.
The touchpaper appears to have been lit on the Scottish Premiership title race in the past fortnight and, after Celtic’s Old Firm victory on Wednesday, they now lead Rangers by a point. Both sides are in action on Sunday, with Celtic travelling to Motherwell before Rangers host Hearts.
There’s the small matter of a Milan derby on Saturday too, with top-of-the-table Inter the home side at San Siro as they face third placed Milan, who trail them by four points.
And I will also bring you any updates before the Africa Cup of Nations final between Egypt and Senegal on Sunday evening, in which Sadio Mané and Mo Salah will lead their forward lines for their respective nations. You get the sense that whoever wins may never receive a pass off their Liverpool teammate ever again. It’s on!
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