by TRUG AT THE TOP?
After playing a largely uneven 90 minutes last Sunday, which left fans, managers and players of both teams largely happy and everyone else who saw him lamenting how tired he was as was the whole business, Manchester City and Arsenal are back in the competition. Fortunately for those not in the Premier League title race, they are up against different teams, rather than each other, so we can probably expect Arsenal to be a lot less cagey in their approach. game against Luton at the Emirates. Although losing against the Hatters just a few days after leaving the Etihad with a point that could have been priceless would be front was previously made of gel.
Except a few times they haven’t, Luton have proven they can give the Premier League’s most elite teams a good game but on this occasion, the occasion of their first visit to Arsenal in 33 years, one doubts that they could be in your. a rush of footballers released from their shackles after being forced to play uncharacteristically defensively last time out. While it will come as no surprise to see Arsenal lose and the plucky Luton struggle under battering, it is hoped that their players will not disturb the celebration police by high-fiving each other too hard or too often at the final whistle. .
Related: Mikel Arteta admits to ditching Arsenal ‘ideology’ to take on Manchester City
On paper at least, Manchester City will have a much tougher task when they host a team they have already beaten this season, where the 1-0 scoreline proved Aston’s near total dominance to be a huge injustice. Villa are the reigning champions. As well as defending Erling Haaland against Roy Keane’s accusations that certain aspects of the Norwegian striker’s play would be more suited to Mansfield Town than Manchester City, Pep Guardiola had to defend himself against criticism of the very public dressing-up Jack Grealish. after Sunday’s stalemate which was for the benefit of the television cameras. “I’m the celebrity of this team,” he told reporters, applying the sarcasm liberally with a ladle from the training ground kitchen. “I need the cameras for my ego so I can go to sleep with incredible satisfaction. I always try to criticize the players so I can tell them how bad they are; especially when Erling scores three goals, the praise must be mine.”
With his side two points clear at the Premier League summit, Jürgen Klopp will be keenly monitoring events at the Emirates and Etihad stadiums, ahead of Liverpool’s top-of-the-table clash with Sheffield United on Thursday. . Or so you would think. “I didn’t even know they were going to play tonight,” he said, demonstrating the meticulous attention to detail that has made him one of the world’s great managers. “That’s not really my thing. I expect them to always win. It’s impossible to do that when they play against each other – but now they don’t do that anymore so I expect them to always win.” Asked if he would consider resting players against the Blades with Sunday’s game against Manchester United in mind, Klopp’s response could hardly have been more blunt. “Sheffield United deserve our full respect and will get that,” he said, with the gravitas of a man who would never dream of eating a sandwich in Chris Wilder’s presence, no matter how hungry he was.
LIVE ON A BIG WEBSITE
Join Michael Butler at 7.30pm (BST) for updates on Arsenal 3-0 Luton, while Taha Hashim will be available at 8.15pm for Manchester City 1-1 Aston Villa.
STATEMENT OF THE DAY
“I agree with him [hacks] on the body language. We see it ourselves from the beginning of the game. We are Chelsea, but we have to behave like Chelsea, we have to behave like we want to be part of a big club… we can’t be an exhibition team that plays football for fun. We have to compete. That’s why I was upset and disappointed after Burnley. We tried to create chances, but after that, we have to run. Why? Because we are Chelsea. In search of the Burnley [player] like they are a Manchester United player, or a Real Madrid player” – Mauricio Pochettino continues to change during many complex press conferences this season. If only some of his players could follow suit.
DAILY FOOTBALL LETTERS
Now that Craig Bellamy is wise (apparently), maybe we can raise the gray cells in Vincent Kompany, continuing the wise goalkeeper. No offense Mr Trafford, just a retelling of Ruby & the Romantics Our Day Will Come. Yes, I know the Amy Winehouse version is within living memory but I was at Turf Moor in 1956, flooded and mad. My day, and The Clarets’, have come and gone many times. Many times (copyright Round The Horne)” –Bruce Ellis.
So, poor old Noble Francis didn’t win a single letter despite putting in a bad pun, a Star Wars reference, and cheap pop music by Man City fans, and no competition. Were you jealous that he accomplished in three sentences everything you wanted (and failed) to do in a week?” – Andrew Pechey.
Send letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. The winner of our unique letter today is … Noble Francis.
RECOMMENDED LISTENING
Join Max Rushden, Barry Glendenning and the Football Weekly pod squad as they chew over Tuesday night’s action.
NEWS, YEAST AND BOBS
Disgraced former football confederation president Luis Rubiales has been detained by Spanish police after returning to the country amid an ongoing corruption investigation.
Getafe have been ordered to partially close their central stand for three games by the Spanish FA following the racist and xenophobic abuse suffered by Sevilla manager Quique Sánchez Flores and player Marcos Acuña in a La Liga match Saturday.
Spurs chief suitor Daniel Levy says he is in talks with potential investors to “capitalize on our long-term potential” after the club posted an overall loss of £86.8m despite an increase in revenue.
They may have lost Alexis McAllister, Yves Bissouma and Marc Cucurella, but the sales of those three – plus Topcashback returns from Graham Potter’s move to Chelsea – saw Brighton post a £122.8m profit.
Erik ten Hag suffered a defensive gloom with the news that Lisandro Martínez and Victor Lindelöf are out for a month with calf and head injuries respectively… but then came the hurrahs at Carrington and Raphaël Varane and Jonny Evans back in training ahead of Thursday’s trip to Chelsea.
Vincent Kompany has been hit with a misconduct charge for his protests against Lorenz Assignon’s second booking in Burnley’s 2-2 draw at Chelsea on Saturday. He received a red card of his own at the time from referee Darren England.
Trabzonspor were ordered to play six games behind closed doors after violence broke out following the Turkish Super Lig win against Fenerbahce last month.
Jarrod Bowen is aiming to become the first West Ham player to score 20 Premier League goals in a season. He is just behind Paolo Di Canio’s 1999-2000 club best of 16. After West Ham’s 1-1 draw with Spurs, in which he produced his best chance with the Italian’s fluctuating, blistering score, said he: “I want to keep doing what I’m doing.”
And Norwich have agreed a three-year “strategic partnership” deal with Indian Super League side Chennaiyin, a two-time stop for former Manchester City midfielder Elano. Hey, let’s have a “mutually beneficial and culturally authentic collaboration”, added Norwich outfit Sam Jeffery. “This is far from a marketing ploy,” sniffed his Chennaiyin colleague Ekansh Gupta.
HEARTS-BRÜCKEN
The German Cup miracle is not to be. Lowly Saarbrücken’s fairytale run to the semi-finals against rivals Kaiserslautern came to an end on Tuesday night, with the second-tier strugglers beating their third-tier neighbors 2-0 in a game that turned around goalkeeper Tim Schreiber. However, he faced it: “It’s a ball I could usually catch in my sleep. I wanted to pick up the ball and then I felt it go through my legs,” he laughs. “Of course, it’s like a knife in the heart unfortunately.” However, his manager, Rüdiger Ziehl, had his back. “We win together, we lose together. He has often saved us. He knows himself.” Chin up, Tim. There is always next year.
STILL ABOUT MORE?
“I was very patient. I went out on loan and got some experience last year, and I was able to come back and finally get a chance to show a little bit about myself” – Manchester City midfielder Jess Park, working hard for her chance with Lionesses.
Vietnam may still want Park Hang-seo’s pragmatism while Indonesia looks the brightest for both teams in the qualification race for World Cup 2026 spots. John Duerden reports.
A potted history of mid-game marriage proposals, as well as managers who have been in charge of every club they’ve ever played for. Because Wednesdays are Knowledge days.
MEMORY LANE
On this day in 1996: it was Liverpool 4-3 Newcastle. If you want to relive a classic Premier League match, this minute-by-minute retro report is well worth your time.
