And I will leave you with John Brewin’s coverage of Nottingham Forest v Liverpool in the Premier League…
Before I end this blog, let me point you in the direction of some of our other live offerings for the afternoon, starting with Xaymaca Awoyungbo’s coverage of the Women’s FA Cup fifth-round clash between Chelsea and Manchester United…
Neil Squires was at Bramall Lane as Sheffield United sent Sheffield Wednesday down to League One.
Sheffield Wednesday currently sit on minus seven points. With 13 league games to play, they could become the first team in Football League history to end a campaign on minus points.
The three early Premier League games have kicked off…
Nottingham Forest 0-0 Liverpool
Crystal Palace 0-0 Wolves
Sunderland 0-0 Fulham
Sheffield Wednesday players head over to applaud their fans. They receive a standing ovation in response. It is a very emotional day for the Owls.
Sheffield Wednesday relegated
Sheffield Wednesday have been relegated to League One. They are the first-ever EFL team to have relegation confirmed in February.
Full-time: Sheffield United 2-1 Sheffield Wednesday
It’s official. Sheffield Wednesday are relegated from the Championship.
They have been sent down by their biggest rivals.
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We’re into seven minutes of added time…
RED CARD! Sheffield United 2-1 Sheffield Wednesday (Gabriel Otegbayo)
Gabriel Otegbayo gets his second yellow of the match for a cynical foul on Tyrese Campbell.
It’s now even on the pitch, with each team having 10 players.
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Sheffield Wednesday have suffered a double injury blow, with both Tayo Adaramola and Liam Cooper down and receiving treatment for what appears to be two muscle injuries.
Cooper definitely can’t play on. Adaramola looks like he will try.
Sheffield Wednesday had a good spell shortly after half-time, but United have settled now with 10 players and this feels much more even. Just under 20 minutes of normal time to play. The visitors can still win this, but it’s a huge ask now.
Premier League team news
Crystal Palace v Wolves
Crystal Palace XI: Henderson, Muñoz, Richards, Mitchell, Riad, Canvot, Hughes, Wharton, Sarr, Pino, Strand Larsen.
Subs: Johnson, Uche, Clyne, Kamada, Sosa, Guessand, DeVenny, Cardines, Benitez.
Wolves XI: Sa, Krejci, Mosquera, Bueno, Tchatchoua, Bueno, Andre, Arokodare, Bellegarde, Mane, Armstrong.
Subs: Doherty, Møller Wolfe, J.Gomes, Lima, Gomes, Toti, A.Gomes, Edozie, Johnstone.
Sunderland v Fulham
Sunderland XI: Roefs; Mukiele, Ballard, Alderete, Ta Bi; Sadiki, Le Fee; Hume, Diarra, Angulo; Brobbey.
Subs: Ellborg, Geertruida, Talbi, Rigg, Mayenda, O’Nien, Mundle, Isidor, Xhaka.
Fulham XI: Leno, Tete, Andersen, Bassey, Sessegnon, Iwobi, Berge, Wilson, Smith Rowe, Kevin, Jiménez.
Subs: Lecomte, Reed, Muniz, Cairney, Bobb, Cuenca, Castagne, King, Diop.
Nottingham Forest v Liverpool
Nottingham Forest XI: Ortega, Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams, Anderson, Sangare, Hudson-Odoi, Gibbs-White, Hutchinson, Jesus.
Subs: Gunn, Morato, Ndoye, Dominguez, Lucca, Yates, Cunha, McAtee, Bakwa’
Liverpool XI: Alisson, Szoboszlai, Van Dijk, Konate, Kerkez, Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Salah, Wirtz, Gakpo, Ekitike.
Subs: Mamardashvili, Gomez, Chiesa, Jones, Robertson, Nyoni, Ramsay, Morrison, Ngumoha.
That was Wednesday’s first away goal of 2026.
Just a reminder, they need to win this match to avoid relegation. With over half an hour to play and momentum currently in their favour, they will fancy their chances.
GOAL! Sheffield United 2-1 Sheffield Wednesday (McNeill, 53)
Wednesday have one back! Charlie McNeill brings down a cross from Tayo Adaramola before cutting inside and firing the ball home!
The visitors are really fired up now following that red card.
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RED CARD! Sheffield United 2-0 Sheffield Wednesday (Kalvin Phillips)
Kalvin Phillips sees red! The midfielder is sent off straight away for a challenge on Svante Ingelsson.
The initial tackle was fine, but he followed through on the midfielder’s shin. The referee spotted it immediately and did not hesitate when getting the card out.
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We’re back under way for the second half at Bramall Lane.
Thanks John. It’s really not looking good for Sheffield Wednesday. They are just 45 minutes away from being relegated.
And back to Emillia goes the live blog. She can document the impending doom from here.
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Half-time: Sheffield United 2-0 Sheffield Wednesday
The inevitable draws near for Wednesday, and their basic errors only exacerbated the inevitability. United have not needed to get much beyond second gear. Their fans have enjoyed this, Wednesday fans have meanwhile endured this.
Tangaga comes across coolly to rob Ndala, who has played well since his error, The first half is drawing to a close. It’s been grim for Wednesday but it could actually have been far worse.
William Preston gets in touch: “Prior to the game kicking off, I had high hopes of Sheffield Wednesday being able to get a stomp on the game right away, and by full time only have conceded nine. Now, it’ll take thrilling heroics to keep eleven out. Three years from now this will all be a dream and the Owls will be back fighting for twelfth in the Championship. Have a better afternoon than me!”
Ndala, trying to make up for that early error, makes a decent run, and forces a corner. Fair play also to the Wednesday players for not chucking it in.
Scenes of exasperation among the Wednesday supporters. Fair play to them for turning up for what was always likely to be a day of pain.
Tempers are fraying. Wednesday’s Svante Ingelsson has just been booked for a nasty challenge. Here’s some ironic cheering as Wednesday win a corner, eventually cleared by Patrick Bamford. Now there’s a scuffle, and a lengthy one, after shirts are pulled during the corner routine. Gus Harmer kicked out at Jamal Lowe, and that was all a bit aggressive. The referee does well to calm things down. Had there been VAR, it’s possible two players would be vying for the first squeeze of the Wash & Go.
Henrik Pedersen, the Wednesday manager, stares at his feet. The club are going down, and staring down the abyss, make no mistake about that.
Goal! Sheffield United 2-0 Sheffield Wednesday (Burrows, 19)
More defensive chaos, and striding up from left back, Harrison Burrows, left unmarked, smashes the ball in. This could get ugly.
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Louise Taylor and Matt Hughes delved into Wednesday’s parlous situation.
A long throw from Sheffield United goalkeeper sets up another attack. Wednesday have been shelling players all season and kicked off on -7 points. They’re still without an owner. It really is a desperate situation for a club with huge potential, but one that has ebbed away since relegation from the Premier League in 2000. Japhet Tanganga, the Blades captain, goes close as the barrage continues.
That United goal came after a frankly horrible clearance from Wednesday’s Joel Ndala. Ouch.
Goal! Sheffield United 1-0 Sheffield Wednesday (Bamford, 2)
It’s started early. Harmer’s ball finds Patrick Bamford, who shows all his experience to score past Seny Dieng, who is Wednesday’s seventh goalkeeper of the season.
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It’s even sunny in Sheffield. The future isn’t so bright for Wednesday that they have to wear shades.
The teams are out at Bramall Lane, where there’s one hell of a racket for midday. It’s win or relegation for Sheffield Wednesday.
With that, I’m handing this blog over to John Brewin, who will guide you through the first-half action at Bramall Lane.
Speaking ahead of the match about the prospect of relegation, Sheffield Wednesday manager Henrik Pedersen said: “We will do everything to bring a top, top performance to compete with them. Of course, we know it will happen some day. Nobody understands what this group has been through in the past many months.
“I have a group with a big belief and big motivation, and a group of senior players who are ready to do everything for our fans and stand up and perform. They know that 95% will not be enough.”
Krishnamoorthy has emailed in to say:
“We know that Spurs(y) has entered the lexicon as a verb/adjective. Even Swedish economists are using them. Has Arsenal made it too?”
Joshua Keeling has messaged in:
“I’m not an Arsenal fan, but I have to challenge Dave Estherby. I do think City will win it from here - it looks like Arsenal are, to coin a phrase, bottling it again. But the idea that the title will be gone for them if they lose today is for the birds. They would still be top if they lost, remember.”
Team news - Sheffield United v Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield United XI: Cooper, Tanganga, Bindon, Hamer, O’Hare, Brooks, Burrows, Phillips, Seriki, Peck, Bamford.
Subs: A. Davies, Arblaster, Hjelde, Cannon, Hoever, Soumaré, Campbell, Chong, McGuinness.
Sheffield Wednesday XI: Dieng, Palmer, Otegbayo, Cooper, Adaramola, Ingelsson, Heskey, McNeill, Ndala, J. Lowe, Yates.
Subs: Stretch, McGhee, Emery, Johnson, Fusire, Thornton, Grainger, Moses, Ugbo.
Bernard has messaged in with his North London Derby prediction…
“Arsenal get their mojo back and ease past an insipid Spurs.
”As a ManU fan I’d like to see Arsenal win it this season, and give us a run for our money when we win it next season. Am I being nostalgic for the 90s?”
If you’ve got some time to spare before this afternoon’s games, be sure to give the latest episode of Football Weekly a watch.
But there are also a few people who say that it’s only downhill from here…
A few people in the comments are convinced that Spurs will take all three points today…
Eberechi Eze was the star of the show last time Arsenal faced Tottenham. The 27-year-old scored a hat-trick against Spurs in the North London Derby in November. However, his form has dipped since then.
The former Crystal Palace man can still play a crucial role going into the final months of the season as Arsenal continue to hunt down four trophies.
Elsewhere across the UK and Europe today
Championship:
Sheffield United v Sheffield Wednesday
Scottish Premiership:
Celtic v Hibernian
Livingston v Rangers
LaLiga:
Getafe v Sevilla
Barcelona v Levante
Celta Vigo v Mallorca
Bundesliga:
SC Freiburg v Borussia Mönchengladbach
St. Pauli v Werder Bremen
Heidenheim v VfB Stuttgart
Ligue 1
Auxerre v Rennes
Angers v Lille
Nice v Lorient
Nantes v Le Havre
Serie A
Genoa v Torino
Atalanta v Napoli
AC Milan v Parma
Roma v Cremonese
Sheffield Wednesday face Sheffield United in the Steel City Derby today. The Owls will be relegated from the Championship if they fail to beat their rivals. If that is the case, Wednesday will become the first EFL side to go down in February.
Dave Estherby has emailed in about the North London Derby…
“Don’t want to be the bearer of bad tides but anyone expecting a classic this afternoon is gonna be seriously disappointed; both sides need a win but absolutely CANNOT lose. Defeat for Arsenal means the title is as good as gone and if Forest manage to embarrass Liverpool in the earlier game then Tottenham (if they lose) will be one place and 4 - FOUR! - points off the scary zone.
“Strap yourselves in for 90 minutes, 22 players and 2 very large buses, folks.”
As always, feel free to email in with any thoughts, feelings, predictions and all that jazz ahead of today’s games. You can also leave a comment below the line.
How things stand in the Premier League…
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 27 | 32 | 58 |
| 2 | Man City | 27 | 31 | 56 |
| 3 | Aston Villa | 27 | 10 | 51 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 27 | 17 | 45 |
| 5 | Man Utd | 26 | 10 | 45 |
| 6 | Liverpool | 26 | 6 | 42 |
| 7 | Brentford | 27 | 3 | 40 |
| 8 | AFC Bournemouth | 27 | -2 | 38 |
| 9 | Everton | 26 | -1 | 37 |
| 10 | Newcastle | 27 | -1 | 36 |
| 11 | Sunderland | 26 | -3 | 36 |
| 12 | Brighton | 27 | 2 | 34 |
| 13 | Fulham | 26 | -5 | 34 |
| 14 | Crystal Palace | 26 | -4 | 32 |
| 15 | Leeds | 27 | -9 | 31 |
| 16 | Tottenham Hotspur | 26 | -1 | 29 |
| 17 | Nottm Forest | 26 | -13 | 27 |
| 18 | West Ham | 27 | -17 | 25 |
| 19 | Burnley | 27 | -23 | 19 |
| 20 | Wolverhampton | 27 | -32 | 10 |
Hannibal Mejbri and Wesley Fofana have both been racially abused on Instagram in the wake of the former’s Burnley side drawing 1-1 at Chelsea after the latter was sent off.
Liam Rosenior has revealed that one of his Chelsea stars marked the wrong Burnley player in added time yesterday, resulting in Zian Flemming’s equaliser.
The Chelsea head coach said: “An assignment was missed. An assignment, a marking assignment wasn’t done. Flemming, we know, is their best header of the ball.
“And there was a player who I won’t… I’m not here to throw players under the bus, I will always protect my players, I will deal with it in the week. There was a player we assigned that duty who marked the wrong player.”
Elsewhere in the Premier League yesterday, Zian Flemming scored a late equaliser against Chelsea to earn a point for Burnley.
Manchester City moved within two points of Arsenal last night with a 2-0 win over Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium. Nico O’Reilly scored a first-half brace to pile the pressure on the Gunners ahead of today’s North London Derby.
Yesterday’s Premier League results
Aston Villa 1-1 Leeds United
Brentford 0-2 Brighton
Chelsea 1-1 Burnley
West Ham 0-0 Bournemouth
Manchester City 2-1 Newcastle
“When did the reality dawn? Perhaps it was towards the end of the first half of West Ham’s game at Chelsea at the end of January with the away side leading 2-0. Or perhaps it was when West Ham took the lead against Manchester United 10 days later. As it turned out, West Ham won neither fixture; had they done so they would have had five points more and so been level with Tottenham going into this weekend. And then Tottenham’s proximity to relegation could not have been denied.
West Ham’s revival means this isn’t like last season, when a win at Ipswich at the end of February took Tottenham to 33 points and as good as confirmed their continued presence in the Premier League, allowing Ange Postecoglou to focus on Europe. Were Spurs to pull off something extremely unlikely and beat Arsenal on Sunday, they would move to 32 and, for all the glee their fans would feel, nobody would feel secure…”
Igor Tudor has said Tottenham are in “an emergency situation” but issued a guarantee that his new team would escape relegation.
Tudor is a veteran of short-term appointments and has performed rescue jobs at Udinese, Verona and Juventus. He offered a curt “100%” in response to questions on his confidence in Spurs’s survival. The Croat’s tenure begins on Sunday with a north London derby at home to the wobbling Premier League leaders, though a lengthy injury list leaves him with only 13 fit senior players.
“What I saw this week was the quality of the players,” said Tudor. “We have enormous quality in the squad.”
A coach presiding over 12 remaining league matches, the Champions League being a lower priority with Spurs five points off the relegation zone, made no promises of living up to the club’s attacking traditions.
“When you start pre-season and then you have 50 days in pre-season and you have 20 players, of course then we see the style. This is an emergency, an emergency situation, when you need to find fast what suits the 10 plus three players and it’s totally different.”
Mikel Arteta has insisted the word “bottlers” is not in his vocabulary and that Arsenal must take criticism “on the chin” after surrendering a 2-0 lead against the bottom side, Wolves, in midweek.
It’s North London Derby day! Always a huge occasion for both teams but it feels even more so today. For Arsenal, today marks a fantastic opportunity to bounce back from their midweek 2-2 draw at Wolves. The result on Wednesday sparked an all too familiar feeling among Arsenal fans as the Gunners lost ground in the title race once again. It meant that Manchester City were able to move within two points following their 2-1 win over Newcastle last night (more on that later). But victory today could spark a much-needed resurgence going into the most important part of the season.
Meanwhile, for Tottenham it presents an opportunity to get their first Premier League win of the year. Spurs have endured a run of poor form and now begin a new – albeit likely small – era with new interim head coach Igor Tudor, who was appointed until the end of the season last week following the dismissal of Thomas Frank.
It is also a chance for Spurs to get their revenge following their humiliating 4-1 defeat in November.
Today’s Premier League games (2pm GMT unless stated otherwise)
Nottingham Forest v Liverpool
Sunderland v Fulham
Crystal Palace v Wolves
Tottenham v Arsenal (4:30pm)
Preamble
Hello, good morning and welcome to another Matchday live! We’ve got some huge games to look forward to this afternoon, including the North London Derby and the Steel City Derby.
Arsenal need a win at Tottenham later to restore their five-point lead at the top of the Premier League table. It comes after they were held to a 2-2 draw by Wolves on Wednesday, having squandered a two-goal advantage.
Meanwhile, Sheffield Wednesday need a victory against their local rivals to delay relegation to League One.
We’ll also be looking ahead to plenty more games across the UK and Europe as the day goes on, so join us!
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