West Brom Women will wear navy shorts with their home kit from now on because of concerns about having to wear white while on their periods.
The players will wear navy for the rest of this season and beyond after discussions with the club.
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Former Chelsea right-back Mario Melchiot has insisted Graham Potter’s side must ‘sit back’ and take a more defensive approach to beat Crystal Palace.
The Blues head to Selhurst Park on Saturday for Potter’s first Premier League game in charge of the west London club after he joined from Brighton.
Potter’s first match as head coach ended in a 1-1 draw with Red Bull Salzburg at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League just before the international break.
He took over from ex-boss Thomas Tuchel, with the side currently seventh in the table after a poor start.
Palace, meanwhile, have registered one victory, three draws and two defeats from their opening six top-flight fixtures this term under Patrick Vieira.
‘I feel like Potter is not the guy who wants to dictate the game away from home,’ Melchiot told ESPN FC.
‘Knowing Patrick Vieira, he wants to win. If Chelsea can sit back, and they are comfortable in sitting back, the way Potter likes to play, he does not mind hitting them on the break.
‘Especially going to that stadium, it is always tough. It’s not an easy one. When you go there, it’s never your favourite place to play.
‘They get so much support behind them. Potter knows if he sits back and hits them on the break he can use it to his advantage.
‘We all know they have [Wilfried] Zaha in their team, he is the focal point and he always wants to get the crowd going.
‘As long as Chelsea can control the game for 90 minutes, I feel it can be Potter’s first win.’
Pressed on if Chelsea will really sit back at Selhurst Park, Melchiot added: ‘Yes. And I’m going to tell you why.
‘Chelsea, away from home, I don’t expect them to go out there and start firing.
‘People see Chelsea and think they will control, they will dictate the tempo, they will take the ball, they will play [good] football, no.
‘Last time I saw Chelsea, I didn’t look at them like that. Potter is working to build his team to the way he wants to play [first].
‘People say Palace are a smaller team. Please guys, don’t get surprised [if they win] because they can really surprise you when you go there.’
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Saturday 12.30pm BT Sport 1 Venue Emirates Stadium Last season Arsenal 3 Tottenham 1
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Armando Broja is one of many Chelsea players who are unhappy with their FIFA 23 rating following EA Sports’ latest release.
Chelsea gave Mason Mount the honour of delivering the new ratings to his teammates but Marc Cucurella, Reece James and Thiago Silva were among those who were less than impressed with what they received.
In the video which was released by Chelsea, Cucurella complained that he is rated slower than Jorginho, while Thiago Silva just shook his head after looking at his card and said, ‘no respect’.
Broja was also among those who felt disrespected by EA Sports’ assessment of his ability, but even Ben Chilwell agreed that the 21-year-old’s pace statistics should be bumped up.
Chilwell also suggested that Broja, who claims he is quicker than Raheem Sterling, has gone under the radar due to his lack of playing time at Chelsea.
After looking at his new FIFA 23 card, Broja told Chilwell: ‘I’m quicker than Raheem.’
Chilwell then replied: ‘You probably are, you know. You’re probably the quickest in the team. They don’t know about you yet, bro.’
Broja is yet to start a game for Chelsea this season and has made four appearances as a substitute in the Premier League, plus two more in the Champions League.
Last season, the 21-year-old scored six goals in the Premier League during his loan spell at Southampton.
The Albania international is now looking to impress new manager Graham Potter as he competes for a starting role ahead of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Chelsea resume their Premier League campaign on Saturday as they play Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
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Aaron Ramsdale says Arsenal’s summer signings Oleksandr Zinchenko and Gabriel Jesus have ‘brought something different’ to the team’.
The Gunners signed Zinchenko and Jesus from Manchester City in the summer after they helped Pep Guardiola’s side win the title last season.
The duo developed a winning mentality during their time at Etihad Stadium, having both picked up four league titles with City.
Both players have enjoyed fast starts to their careers in north London, with Zinchenko impressing with his technical ability.
Jesus, meanwhile, has transformed Arsenal’s attack, contributing four goals and three assists in seven league matches.
Gunners goalkeeper Ramsdale has highlighted the impact the former City players have made not only in matches, but also in training.
‘Yeah, it’s crazy how the two players especially, Alex [Zinchenko] and Gabby Jesus, they’ve just brought something different,’ Ramsdale told BT Sport.
‘The only way I can describe it is a winning mentality. Just wanting to win every time and they’ve been doing it with us every day so it’s lifted the training.’
Ramsdale also praised fellow goalkeeper Matt Turner, who was brought in to be his No.2 in the summer.
“Especially in with the goalkeepers, we’ve got the lad Matt Turner from America, he’s like Tigger,’ Ramsdale added.
‘It’s like a classic American almost where you always want to do everything.
‘He wants to say yes to everything and it’s great because there’s days where you’re a bit tired and when you’ve got him who’s new to the club, it picks you up.’
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Jamie Carragher has issued advice to Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez on how to handle Manchester City star Erling Haaland this weekend.
The Manchester derby takes place at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday as the Red Devils look to continue their fine form in the league.
Erik ten Hag’s side lost their first two games of the campaign, but have bounced back with four straight victories.
This weekend, however, United face the most clinical striker in the league in Haaland.
The Norway international has hit the ground running since signing for City in the summer, netting 11 goals in just seven games.
The Red Devils own summer signing, defender Martinez, will have the tough task of stopping Haaland on Sunday.
Liverpool legend Carragher thinks the best thing the centre-back can is try and out-think the striker rather than get drawn into a physical battle with him.
‘The best advice Manchester United coach Erik ten Hag can offer Lisandro Martínez about dealing with Erling Haaland is to keep away from him,’ Carragher told the Telegraph.
‘Some battles can be won by outmuscling or outplaying an opponent. Other players need out-thinking. Martínez must be at his smartest to get the better of his Manchester City rival this weekend.
‘You cannot completely keep away from your direct opponent, of course, but with experience comes the knowledge that you need to pick your battles and identify the right areas in which to duel.
‘It is a psychological as much as a physical test in the biggest fixtures against the best players, recognising what you are up against and trying to work out what the opponent wants you to do most, and what they enjoy least.
‘That is the challenge for Martínez, Raphaël Varane or anyone facing Haaland.’
‘There is a lot to like about Martínez’s first appearances in a United shirt. The fans have taken to him as a cult figure because he is a warrior and natural leader,’ Carragher added.
‘United’s defence has impressed since the calamitous performance against Brentford and Martínez has been central to that. Since he was paired with Varane, they have kept three clean sheets in five games. But, long-term, the reservations I had when first seeing Martínez remain.
‘He looks a little too short to play centre-back in the Premier League. We saw when United struggled badly against Brentford – a game where Martínez was subbed at half-time – how difficult it is for him if sides hit long balls into the penalty area to a striker relishing such service like Ivan Toney. There is nothing you can do about a height disadvantage when forced into continuous aerial challenges.
‘Haaland may have been kept quiet by Martínez in Ajax’s Champions League game against Borussia Dortmund last season (the Dutch won 4-0) but the Norwegian is currently the best striker in the world. He can hurt a side in many ways, but he has the profile of an old-fashioned No 9. ‘
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Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly’s push to have an All-Star match is gaining traction, though fellow Premier League executives would rather take on a combined European XI instead.
American billionaire Boehly faced criticism earlier this month when he suggested a North vs South Premier League All-Star match to be played during the off-season – likely overseas.
Despite the backlash – which saw Jamie Carragher label the Chelsea owner as ‘arrogant’ – the Premier League are open to the idea and, according to The Times, have been discussing what guise it might take.
Boehly’s version of how an All-Star match might work was just one of a number of ideas deliberated by Premier League club executives recently, and there was one proposal that stood out.
Rather than having an ‘in-house’ face-off between two teams made up of an assortment of players from England’s top-flight, a more popular plan was to form a combined Premier League XI to take on Europe.
That match-up could either see a Premier League XI take on a best XI from one specific league, or a combined XI from the Bundesliga, La Liga, Ligue 1, Serie A and other top divisions.
In theory, therefore, a Premier League All-Star XI could come up against a European side featuring Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema, PSG’s Lionel Messi, Inter’s Milan Skriniar and Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham, among others.
Such a contest would surely have broadcasters and even fans salivating at the prospect and the All-Star match is increasingly seen as an idea worth pursuing in order to grow audiences – particularly younger viewers – and enhance overseas TV rights.
The match could be staged across Europe or taken around the world either during the summer or even in a winter break.
Boehly is far from alone in his desire to see an All-Star match happen, with half the clubs in the Premier League having some form of investment from the United States – with many of those investors keen to see the idea implemented.
For now, the plans are on the backburner due to the backlash Boehly received but the Premier League intends to speak to foreign leagues about a possible team up – with those leagues likely to jump at the chance to latch onto English football’s global profile.
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Paul Scholes believes Erik ten Hag has had to quickly adapt his philosophy away from the possession football he prefers and claims two Manchester United stars are not good enough footballers to play that way.
The Dutch coach, who arrived from Ajax in the summer, lost his first two Premier League matches in charge of the club against Brighton and Brentford, trying to play out from the back in both defeats.
Since then, United have moved away from focusing on possession and have built up their play far quicker and more directly, with David de Gea notably now kicking the ball long rather than playing it short.
Whether by accident or design, Scholes feels it was an integral tactical switch to make and believes neither De Gea or Raphael Varane – two regulars in Ten Hag’s line-up – can play the way the manager ideally wants.
‘Louis Van Gaal joined Manchester United and wanted to play possession-based football, but United are not that,’ said Scholes on Sky Sports’ The Overlap.
‘It was always about substance over style, scoring goals and making chances rather than a pretty end product.
‘The crowd get nervous when the goalkeeper tries to play a ten-yard pass, that’s not a Manchester United philosophy, that’s Barcelona or Ajax. With Erik ten Hag, he’s stumbled across it.
‘After the Brentford game, he realised he didn’t have the players to play that way, he knew he had to go more direct.
‘Raphael Varane, as great a player as he’s been, is not a great footballer. David De Gea is not a great footballer.
‘So, play to your strengths, which for United is the attacking players, and you have to admire the new manager for playing that way [more direct].’
On Varane, Scholes added: ‘Why would a club like Real Madrid let Varane go? If you looked at him last season, he didn’t look right.’
Expanding on Ten Hag’s decision to change his style of play, the United legend continued: ‘I’ve been encouraged with what I’ve seen so far by Erik ten Hag. He’s changed a lot since the Brentford game.
‘The simple thing was, don’t play out from the back. Get the ball forward to your best players. Get Christian Eriksen into centre midfield, a player who can play balls to the forward players. He had to leave Harry Maguire out. It was a brave decision. He’s a brave manager.’
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Antonio Conte believes Tottenham face a massive test in Saturday’s north London derby and has praised Arsenal’s start to the new Premier League season – as well as their new signings.
Unbeaten Spurs sit in third place in the table, one point behind leaders Arsenal, and travel to the Emirates in the weekend’s early kick-off looking to become the first team since Brighton in early April to take points off the Gunners at home.
Mikel Arteta strengthened his squad significantly over the summer – bringing in the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko – and Conte is in no doubt about the quality of the side he is coming up against.
Asked if it is important to try to leapfrog Arsenal to top spot in the table, Conte said at his pre-match press conference on Thursday: ‘You know very well that this is the eighth game we are going to play, we have just started this league.
‘For sure, Arsenal have had a fantastic start. They lost only one game against Manchester United. They are showing to be a really good team.
‘I think in the summer they made good signings for them and improved a team that, don’t forget, they were four points up on us with three games left last season.
‘It means that we are talking about a really good team, and last season we did a really good job to overcome them in the last three games.
‘But at the same time I know the quality of this team. I know they are working with Mikel Arteta for many years. They are really well organised.
‘I said last season, Arteta for me is a really good coach. He’s young but he can have in front of him a great career.
‘We know that Arsenal are one of the six teams that try to take the best position in the Premier League.’
Conte also revealed that he had watched some of Arsenal’s All or Nothing documentary on Amazon though has yet to finish the series – and he burst out laughing when it was suggested he would like the ending.
‘To be honest I didn’t finish watching it but for sure in the future I will finish this documentary,’ he said. ‘I did the same with Tottenham, Manchester City and Juventus because I’m really curious to understand the way to manage the situation for the coach.
‘I think it was really, really interesting, but Arsenal documentary I started, but didn’t finish but in the future for sure I will finish. I think it’s positive because this documentary shows behind the scenes. Sometimes I think it’s positive to bring us out of our world.’
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Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has questioned Erik ten Hag’s role in the signing of Casemiro from Real Madrid.
The Brazilian joined the Red Devils in a £60million move in August, with the midfielder signing a four-year deal worth around £300,000-a-week.
Casemiro’s move came after a 10-week failed pursuit of Frenkie de Jong from Barcelona and the transfer was completed within 72 hours following the side’s defeat to Brentford.
Ten Hag had been insistent on signing a deep-lying playmaker but Casemiro is more of a defensive midfielder, having spent the last decade playing alongside Luka Modric and Toni Kroos.
United had given Ten Hag a budget of around £130m at the start of the summer but their final outlay was around £225m, with the board releasing more funds following the side’s defeats to Brighton and Brentford.
Though Ten Hag was pleased with the window by its close, United scrambled for signings in the final weeks of August and ended up paying over the odds for Casemiro and Antony.
And Scholes has questioned whether the Dutchman had an influential role in the purchase of Casemiro.
Speaking on the Overlap with Gary Neville, Scholes discussed United’s recruitment over the last few years before talking about Casemiro’s arrival.
‘Jadon Sancho was a young player who Manchester United spent a lot of money on, who was unproven in the league,’ said Scholes.
‘And why would a club like Real Madrid let Varane go? If you looked at him last season, he didn’t look right. I didn’t think it was a great transfer window.”
’Nobody at the club is taking responsibility for it. This year, Casemiro was done over two days. I wonder if it was the manager’s signing. A lot of money, long contract.
‘I think they need to put someone in charge of recruitment. Eventually, the manager will get blamed for it.’
Casemiro is yet to start a Premier League match since moving to Old Trafford.
Ten Hag has favoured Scott McTominay alongside Christian Eriksen and the Scot’s performances have been impressive since the Brazilian’s arrival.
Paul Scholes was speaking on The Overlap, in partnership with Sky Bet
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Barcelona are eyeing a move for Manchester City star Ilkay Gundogan, according to reports.
The 31-year-old Germany international midfielder has entered the final year of his contract, which expires in the summer of 2023.
Barcelona are not giving up hope on signing Gundogan’s team-mate Bernardo Silva – who remains their No.1 target – but they will target the German if they cannot convince Pep Guardiola to change his mind over the Portugal star.
And that looks likely, given Guardiola ruled out an exit for Silva in the summer.
‘Bernardo Silva will stay at Man City, there are no negotiations,’ Guardiola told reporters in August.
‘He will stay here. We don’t have any phone call from any club regarding Bernardo Silva. That’s why he will stay. I tell you, he will stay.’
Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo report that Barcelona will submit an offer to Gundogan if he does not sign a new deal at City and leaves the club next summer.
The club are keen to bring in a midfielder, with uncertainly still surrounding Frenkie de Jong, who was has been strongly linked with Manchester United and Chelsea and could still leave in January or next summer.
Gundogan, meanwhile, has scored 51 goals across 263 games for City since he joined from Borussia Dortmund in 2016.
He has won four Premier League titles during his time at the club as well as four League Cups and the FA Cup.
Gundogan was named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year and Champions League Squad of the Season for the 2020-21 campaign.
Last season, he won the Premier League’s first ever Game Changer award, handed to the player with the single most game-changing performance over a season, for his two late goals against Aston Villa on the final day which secured the title.
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Former Manchester United striker Federico Macheda has lifted the lid on what it was like training with one of the club’s most gifted youth teams, though feels one team-mate should have had a much bigger career.
The Italian – who now plays for Turkish side Ankaragucu – broke onto the scene at Old Trafford with a memorable late winner against Aston Villa at the age of just 17 back in 2009.
Macheda was part of an enormously talented youth team at the time which also featured the likes of future World Cup winner Paul Pogba and striker Danny Welbeck, though there was one youngster that outshone them all: Ravel Morrison.
In an interview with Rio Ferdinand’s FIVE YouTube channel, Macheda was asked which player from his age group he expected to have a bigger career than actually materialised, instantly replying: ‘I would say Ravel Morrison. He was a great, crazy talent.
‘This guy was crazy man. He would come up in the first team and start to dribble [past] everybody, and everybody was shocked.
‘When you watched him play you expected him to be the next [big] thing, you know, because he had everything.
‘The Man United team then was crazy players, so to come up to the first team and do the things he was doing was just crazy.’
Ferdinand himself chimed in: ‘I told you guys. You don’t understand how good this kid was!
‘He blew your mind. It is mad, everyone talks about [him] but it’s almost like you needed to be there to really see and understand what he was doing – and not only in the reserves.
‘Sometimes if you’re coming back from injury or something like that you’d go and train with the reserves, he would do even more stupid stuff with the reserves. He’d play centre-back sometimes in training!’
Macheda replied: ‘Yeah he would just go and get the ball everywhere and start to do crazy things.’
Although Morrison stood out, Macheda also felt it was obvious that Pogba and Welbeck would go on to have excellent careers while that same youth team also produced other, less glamorous names that also enjoyed long top-flight careers.
He added: ‘I could see the talent of a few of them, especially Paul and Danny. I love Danny Welbeck, I loved to watch him, the style he had for me was amazing.
‘I was playing alongside him from the Under-18s and I could see he had something special. Also, others were very good, Robbie Brady, Danny Drinkwater.’
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Arsenal are hopeful that four of their injured stars will be back and available to face Tottenham in Saturday’s north London derby – though Cedric Soares has now picked up a knock.
The Gunners have a number of fitness issues going into the weekend, with Kieran Tierney and Thomas Partey both forced to withdraw from international duty in the past week.
Takehiro Tomiyasu also returned to London Colney early after playing for Japan against the USA, while Oleksandr Zinchenko was not even able to link up with Ukraine after sustaining a calf problem.
But, according to Football London, all four players are close to returning and could be involved against Spurs in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off.
Tierney was only released by Scotland as a precautionary measure after suffering concussion against Ireland and Arsenal have received positive news that he should be fine to play.
The other trio of Tomiyasu, Zinchenko and Partey are still being assessed by Arsenal’s medical team but they remain hopeful they will be passed fit to make Saturday’s matchday squad.
Despite being called up by Ghana and travelling, Partey did not play a minute for his nation after picking up a knee injury.
Speaking after Partey left the squad prior to last week’s clash with Brazil, Ghana boss Otto Addo said: ‘Hopefully Thomas will be healthy very, very soon.
‘We didn’t want to take that risk in a friendly game to play him against Brazil, but surely playing a player like him against a squad like Brazil would have been helpful.’
Captain Martin Odegaard, meanwhile, missed Arsenal’s last match against Brentford with a calf problem but played in both of Norway’s Nations League matches against Slovenia and Serbia and should be fine for the north London derby.
Reiss Nelson is back in training but Mohamed Elneny remains sidelined, with the Egyptian still recovering from a hamstring injury.
While Mikel Arteta has received plenty of positive news on the injury front, Cedric Soares has sustained a fresh knock that will keep him out of action for around two weeks having only just come back from an injury that saw him miss the matches against FC Zurich and Brentford.
MORE : Mikael Silvestre explains why Arsenal could be in ‘trouble’ for north London derby
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Former Manchester United striker Federico Macheda has named Gary Neville as the most intimidating player he faced in training at the club.
Macheda, who joined United’s youth academy from Lazio, made his debut in 2008 during the Sir Alex Ferguson era and left in 2014 after several loan spells away.
The Italian scored four goals across 19 Premier League games for United and made a total of 36 appearances before joining Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Cardiff.
Speaking to Rio Ferdinand’s YouTube channel, Macheda was quizzed about what it was like training in Ferguson’s star-studded squad during that period and was asked who was the most intimidating team-mate he faced.
Ferdinand’s co-host suggested names such as Nemanja Vidic and Ryan Giggs, but Macheda revealed it was a certain Sky Sports pundit who he found the most intimidating.
‘I would say Gary Neville,’ Macheda said as Ferdinand and his co-hosts looked somewhat confused at the suggestion.
‘Sometimes he would kick you out of nowhere, and you don’t know why. The ball would be on the other side of the pitch, and he would just kick you.’
‘A bully!’ Ferdinand said with a smile, before Macheda laughed and added: ‘Yes, a bully! He was bullying people.
‘But the rest, no. There were good characters in training. Against Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand… I found it motivational, just to train against them.
‘It was amazing to try and improve, to try and beat them.’
Macheda was then asked to name his ultimate 5-a-side team from those he had played with over the course of his career.
‘They will all be United players!’ he added. ‘OK, I would put Rio Ferdinand, he was technically a top [defender] and also Nemanja Vidic, he would just kill people.
‘Then I would put Paul Scholes with Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. There, we have five!’
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William Gallas believes Graham Potter has already created a ‘problem’ with Raheem Sterling at Chelsea by playing him out of position.
Potter has only been in charge for one game since Chelsea’s decision to sack Thomas Tuchel, which was the 1-1 draw with Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League.
For that match, Potter opted to play Sterling on the left flank, with Marc Cucurella, Thiago Silva and Cesar Azpilicueta forming a back three.
And Gallas admits he does not understand Potter’s thinking behind where to play Chelsea’s £50 million summer signing from Manchester City.
‘That is a problem. When I saw Sterling playing as left wing-back, I didn’t understand it,’ Gallas told Genting Casino.
‘It’s difficult for me to understand why he wants to experiment with something like this, especially in a Champions League game. You are playing at home and you put Cucurella as a centre-back, you have Fofana on the bench with Koulibaly, Chalobah on the bench, and you put Sterling as a left-wing back? I don’t understand.
‘In the end, they didn’t have a good result, they drew 1-1. People will always judge the result, and the question is why did he put those two players in those positions?
‘Graham Potter seems like a nice guy and a good manager, but I’m still waiting to see what he’s going to do to get Chelsea back to top form.
‘He looks very calm, and looks like he likes to have conversations with his players from what I see from the outside, but I don’t know if he’s like this in reality. I’m still waiting.
‘He did a good job at Brighton, but Chelsea is not Brighton, he has gone to another level with more expectations, more pressure, so it will be good to see if he can be the right manager.’
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Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.AFC Fylde’s manager, James Rowe, has been charged with sexual assault and is due to appear in court in November.
The alleged offence occurred last November when Rowe was Chesterfield manager. He left the Derbyshire club by “mutual consent” in February and took over at Fylde, of National League North, the following month.
Continue reading...Our cartoonist on the forward, who is getting a long overdue statue after being called up for England and then cruelly overlooked
Nedum Onuoha has hit back at Arsenal’s critics and has insisted they are the best team in England.
The Gunners are top of the Premier League table after their opening seven games, winning six and losing once.
Mikel Arteta is attempting to guide his side to a top-four finish for the first time since 2015-16 – but some have tipped them as dark horses for for the title after their strong start.
Others, though, have criticised Arsenal, insisting they have benefited from an easy run of fixtures and have pointed out their defeat to Manchester United.
The north London club have recorded wins over Crystal Palace, Leicester City, Bournemouth, Fulham, Aston Villa and Brentford so far this term.
Arsenal face unbeaten Tottenham in their next match for the first north London derby of the season on Saturday, with Spurs able to leapfrog them with a win.
‘People can be critical of Arsenal in terms of the teams they have beaten,’ Onuoha told ESPN FC.
‘There’s a perception in football that you only do well if you beat the teams around you.
‘But if you beat the teams in the bottom 10 twice over, that’s 60 points. Let’s just make it clear, if you want to be successful, you need those points.
‘Manchester City do it, Liverpool do it, that’s why they end up near the top.
‘[The north London derby] will be a great occasion… Arsenal are currently the best team in England.’
Meanwhile, Gabriel Agbonlahor has insisted that Arsenal’s decision to bring in Gabriel Jesus was the best signing of the summer in the Premier League.
The 25-year-old Brazil international striker has scored four goals and provided three assists across his opening seven top-flight games for the club.
Jesus was left out of Brazil’s latest squad and has said he will do everything he can to earn a recall for the World Cup.
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Al-Hilal have confirmed they were the previously unnamed Saudi Arabian club who made a mammoth offer to prise Cristiano Ronaldo away from Manchester United during the summer.
Towards the start of the transfer window, the 37-year-old informed United’s hierarchy that he wanted to leave the club after they only managed to qualify for the Europa League, but no offers from a Champions League side materialised.
The only official bid that came in was from an unnamed Saudi team who were prepared to make Ronaldo the highest-paid player in world football.
In addition to offering the five-time Ballon d’Or winner a two-year contract worth £210million – or around £2m per week – they were also willing to pay a transfer fee of £25m, which is more than United paid Juventus just over a year ago.
However, the deal never transpired and it was initially suggested that Ronaldo snubbed the move as he still wants to continue competing at the highest level in European football.
But now Al-Hilal president Fahad ben Nafel has revealed that talks between the Saudi club and the Portuguese superstar had progressed well, but they were prevented from completing the deal due to a transfer ban.
Speaking on the Thamanya YouTube channel, he said: ‘Yes, we negotiated with Ronaldo. The problem was not in the money or the principle.
‘Al-Hilal is able to bring in the stars of the world, but it was in the decision of the Sports Arbitration Center that prevented us from registering the players.
‘We did not stop negotiating with the players despite the decision to ban, but we were delaying entering the final stage of the negotiations until the ban was lifted.’
A transfer ban was imposed on Al-Hilal in May after Mohamed Kanno backtracked on a move to Al-Nassr at the last minute, which meant he had signed contracts with two different clubs.
Al-Hilal had tried to overturn the ban but did not manage to do so, with their move for Ronaldo ultimately ending in disappointment.
The veteran forward has endured a difficult start to the new season and has only started once in the Premier League under new boss Erik ten Hag, with his only goal so far coming in the Europa League against FC Sheriff.
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Bukayo Saka has been told to leave Arsenal and join Manchester City by former England and Liverpool goalkeeper David James.
Premier League champions City are thought to view Saka as their ‘dream replacement’ for Raheem Sterling – who departed for Chelsea this summer – and the 20-year-old’s current contract at the Emirates is set to expire in 2024.
England international Saka was one of Mikel Arteta’s standout performers last season with 11 goals and seven assists in the Premier League and has been named Arsenal’s Player of the Season for the last two campaigns.
But Arsenal have failed to qualify for the top four since 2015-16 and star winger Saka – who made his debut in 2018 and won the FA Cup in 2019-20 – has been linked with a step up to a team who can regularly challenge for titles.
Arsenal are said to have offered Saka a significant pay rise to prevent him from joining Pep Guardiola’s side, but he is yet to respond to the north London club.
The Gunners have started the 2022-23 campaign strongly and sit top of the Premier League after their opening seven games, with Saka registering a goal and four assists in that time, but City are unbeaten and just one point behind them.
‘I do like what Mikel Arteta is doing at Arsenal and Bukayo Saka is a big part of that,’ James told GGRecon. ‘I can, however, understand why players want to move.
‘Sometimes you find yourself in a situation where you’ve been at a club for a while, and even when things change, you still feel that you need a change yourself.
‘If there’s a chance of Saka moving to Manchester City, then he’d be joining the best team in England over recent years.
‘Arsenal are currently the best team in England as we speak, purely from their league position, but more than likely Manchester City are going to challenge them for that position.
‘The question is, would Saka be given enough game time at Manchester City? It’s almost guaranteed rotation when you’re fit because that’s what Pep Guardiola does.
‘Anyone who goes to Manchester City knows they’re not going there to play every game.
‘What’s best for Bukayo? Well, if you want to be part of a revolution in a sense, then you should stay at Arsenal as they’re building something and they’ve not won the league for 18 years.
‘You’re part of a revolution if you can get Arsenal to compete for the Premier League title, but if you want trophies instantly, then you’re almost guaranteed it if you go to Manchester City.
‘I believe he’d be a wonderful addition for Manchester City. I’ve got a lot of Arsenal friends, so I believe he should move to Manchester City.’
MORE : Will Bukayo Saka join Man City? Liverpool legend Steve McManaman shares his verdict
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Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.Here’s more on Steve Clarke’s team selection, which was affected by a virus in the camp
The Northern Ireland captain Jonny Evans wins his 100th cap.
Continue reading...Sarina Wiegman has admitted to having had some “hard conversations” this week after choosing to leave Euro 2022 winners Beth England, Lotte Wubben-Moy and Nikita Parris out of her squad to face USA, the World Cup holders, and Czech Republic next month.
“There were hard conversations and hard choices,” the England manager said. “When you look at the team it is very competitive in the different positions. We look at quality, talent, being fit and having playing minutes with your team, then winning the competition with ones you are in the same position as.
Continue reading...Jonas Eidevall has called on Arsenal to learn from their poor performance in the 2-2 draw with Ajax in Champions League qualifying last week, insisting that is the only way the team can grow.
“If you experience situations together and you learn from it, that’s when you mature as a team,” Eidevall said on the eve of the return leg at the De Toekomst stadium in Amsterdam on Wednesday night, with the winner booking a place in the Champions League group stage.
Continue reading...13 min: A very poor giveaway by Adams in the back gives Saudi Arabia a clear opportunity on the goal, but the shot is fired wide left of the target.
9 min: Alyami makes his first save of the night, easily corralling a right-footed shot by McKennie from the top of the area. That’s the third time the Juventus man has made a deep run into the final third.
Continue reading...Gareth Southgate remains loyal to his senior players but still has a number of important decisions to make for Qatar
It is inconceivable that Jordan Pickford will not be England’s No 1 despite missing the latest camp with a thigh injury. Gareth Southgate is loyal to his senior players and often prefers to go with the tried and trusted. The manager has repeatedly backed Harry Maguire, even after the centre-back blundered during Tuesday’s 3-3 draw with Germany, and is past the point of experimentation. He values experience and wants leaders like Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier around. Both are familiar with Southgate’s back three, as is a resurgent Eric Dier, while Reece James’s occasional defensive wobbles are cancelled out by the thrust he offers from right wing-back.
Continue reading...
The FIFA World Cup will take place in winter for the first time ever this season, causing a number of knock-on effects for leagues across Europe.
The greatest show on Earth has been moved from its traditional slot in June and July to November and December in order to deal with the extreme heat at the height of summer in Qatar.
Despite the World Cup still being a number of weeks away, the impact on the Premier League is being felt already by players, managers and fans alike.
Here is everything you need to know about the disruption to this season’s Premier League.
The main impact on the Premier League will be the six week break in domestic football whilst the World Cup takes place in the Middle East.
The last Premier League fixtures will take place on Sunday, November 13, with players jetting off to join up with their national teams a day later.
The World Cup will then start just one week afterwards on Sunday, November 20.
The World Cup final is scheduled to take place at the Lusail Iconic Stadium on Sunday, December 18.
And Premier League clubs will be in action just eight days later, with a full fixture list set for Boxing Day.
The traditional December 28 and 29 fixtures have been scrapped, with clubs next in action on December 31.
There will be a grueling 48 hour turnaround before the next set of matches on January 2.
As a consequence of the six week hiatus, the Premier League fixture list has been condensed in the run-up to the Qatar tournament.
Clubs will face more midweek Premier League matches, which means that some weeks clubs in the top flight will be playing three league matches inside seven or eight days.
The changes to the schedule will have the biggest impact on teams playing Champions League and Europa League football, with fixture lists in the two competitions condensed into an eight week window instead of the usual twelve.
This means that clubs playing in the group stages of UEFA’s club competitions will hardly have a midweek free between now and the start of the World Cup.
By the time the division stops on November 13, clubs will have played 16 matches in the Premier League.
The league started a week earlier than normal, August 6, and will finish a week later on May 28, 2023.
With the increase in the volume of games, coupled with the reduction in recovery time between matches, there are concerns for player welfare and fitness across the Premier League.
Managers have already expressed anxiety towards the effects the unprecedented fixture list will have on their players.
It is likely that Premier League managers will rotate their squads more often than usual to reduce player workloads.
Premier League clubs finally agreed to the use of five substitutes for this season’s competition, partly due to fears of injuries caused by the condensed fixture list.
Argentina have already asked Premier League clubs not to include their players in matches on the final weekend before the league stops for the World Cup, in an attempt to afford their players extra recovery time before Qatar.
However, the South Americans have no authority on this matter and their request is likely to be rejected.
MORE : Will England play any World Cup warm up games ahead of Qatar 2022?
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