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Preamble

Morning everyone and welcome to the first Premier League game of the weekend. It’s the Sergio Reguilon derby! It’s a replay of the last Europa League final! It can’t be as boring as that was!

Say what you like about Spurs, they are Ruben Amorim’s bogey team (and he has a few of those). They may have won only three home games in the league in the past year, two of them against promoted teams, but the other one was against Amorim’s United (1-0). They have also left Amorim empty-handed in the League Cup (4-3) and that Europa final (another 1-0).

Last season these two famous clubs finished 15th and 17th in the Premier League, keeping each other company on the slide to incompetence. This season they have at least found their way back to respectability: Spurs are up 11 places to sixth while United are up seven to eighth.

But Spurs have only done well away and United, apart from their triumph at Anfield, have only done well at home. United, as soon as they leave Salford, are a mid-table team (tenth in the away table); Spurs, at their own stadium, are still a piece of mouldy cheese (17th in the home table). On form, we can probably expect both of them to lose today.

The good news for Amorim is that his nemesis, Ange Postecoglou, is no longer there to say “Lads, it’s United”. His Spurs hoodoo may have been just an Ange hoodoo. The bad news for Amorim is that since the start of last season Spurs have four wins over United with three clean sheets and a combined score of 9-3. And they have four players who scored twice in those games, although three of them are now injured – James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke. So Brennan Johnson may have to do it all by himself, just as he did in Bilbao.

Thomas Frank needs to decide who’s ready to go again after the 4-0 cruise past FC Copenhagen. Amorim, with no European fixtures to worry about, needs to decide whether to stick with the XI who could only draw at Forest. The sole meeting so far between these managers, at Brentford six months ago, finished 4-3 to Frank. Given that both United and Spurs overhauled their attack in the summer while keeping faith with their defence, something similar seems perfectly plausible.

The kick-off is at 12.30pm (GMT) and I’ll be back soon with the teams.

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Is it harder than it used to be to adapt physically to the Premier League? Beto didn’t have a great start to his Everton career (3 goals in 30 league games in his first season) but looked like a good fit at times last season.

Different type of player but Florian Wirtz is finding the going tough at Liverpool despite proving himself as one of the best players in Germany.

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Today’s big games (3pm GMT unless stated)

Premier League

Tottenham v Manchester United (12.30pm) – Europa League revenge?

Everton v Fulham

West Ham v Burnley

Sunderland v Arsenal (5.30pm) – leaders go to surprise package

Chelsea v Wolves (8pm)

WSL

Arsenal v Chelsea (12pm) – European champions v English champions

Manchester United v Aston Villa (12pm)

European picks

Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (2.30pm) – league leaders in the capital

Juventus v Torino (5pm) – Turin derby

Borussia Mönchengladbach v Köln (5.30pm) – Rhine derby

Parma v Milan (7.45pm)

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Bundesliga: Werder Bremen scored a 94th-minute winner to beat Wolfsburg last night and continue their impressive recent form. Mattias Svanberg finished a move that involved Christian Eriksen to give Wolfsburg the lead in the first half before Jens Stage’s header levelled it for the hosts in the 83rd minute.

Deep into stoppage time, Victor Boniface’s botched overhead kick flew up in the air and was struck on the volley by Samuel Mbangula to spark, well, utter scenes. Werder are just three points off the Champions League places having won three of their last five games.

Elsewhere in Europe, Mikel Oyarzabal earned Real Sociedad a point at Elche with a late penalty, Jamie Vardy couldn’t stop Cremonese firing a blank in a defeat at Pisa and Breel Embolo won it for Rennes at Paris FC.

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Championship: Watford’s hot streak at home was halted last night when Bristol City earned a 1-1 draw at Vicarage Road. Scott Twine’s free-kick cancelled out Marc Bola’s opener to put an end to Watford’s four-game winning run at home. Bristol City stayed 7th in the table while Watford moved up to 11th.

Twine’s opportunistic free-kick impressed the Bristol City manager, Gerhard Struber, as did his overall contribution. “Scott [has] outstanding technical power with his monster leg,” he said. “It helped us to score in this way but I like his energy at the moment – his work ethic on the field to invest everything. You do not see it that often that players on this level work really hard against the ball but this was the key – players with high technical level were involved in our defensive pressing moments.”

Marc Bola’s first Watford goal gave the Hornets a sixth-minute lead, with the captain, Imran Louza, setting him up with a 70-yard pass from his own half. That allowed Bola to sprint in behind the City defence, control the ball with an impressive first touch and slot past Robins goalkeeper Radek Vitek. The Watford manager, Javi Gracia, said: “The pass was sensational, the control and finalising was very good – it was a very good goal.” PA Media

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Updated at 09.50 CET

Old habits die hard. Light at kick-off, dark by full-time – there’s something comforting about a 3pm game once the clocks have gone back in the UK. Wonder if DeadFinks is enjoying the Hill Dickinson as much as Goodison?

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Moyes: Barry is costing himself minutes with stupid yellow cards

Andy Hunter

David Moyes has defended his treatment of Thierno Barry and claimed the Everton striker has cost himself minutes on the pitch by collecting “stupid” bookings.

The Everton manager has replaced Barry with Beto or vice-versa in every game bar the Premier League opener at Leeds. Barry has not completed one of his five starts since joining for £27m from Villarreal in the summer and looked despondent after being withdrawn in the 57th minute of last Monday’s draw with Sunderland.

Barry missed a glorious chance to put Everton 2-0 up at the Stadium of Light and is yet to register a shot on target in 10 Premier League appearances. But Moyes insists the 23-year-old was substituted after picking up a first-half yellow card, as he did when replaced at half-time in the Carabao Cup exit at Wolves, and that it was not a reflection of his performance.

“We are taking them off because they are probably not getting us the goals or the opportunities and we are saying: ‘Well, let’s see if the other one can do it’,” said Moyes on his revolving striker policy.

“I think we have given Barry more football than I probably expected early on if I was being honest, but he has lost himself minutes by getting a booking. He got a booking at Wolves and so we weren’t taking the chance at half-time. He got a booking against Sunderland. The slightest thing could happen and I cannot take the risk of him getting sent off. We might have taken the risk with another player, like Jimmy Garner or Idrissa [Gueye], because they are a bit more experienced.

“It is something we are mentioning [to Barry]; he will feel it himself. We don’t think he is doing that badly, at times he is doing OK. We need him to score goals whether he is doing good or bad but we are saying: ‘By the way, if you are getting yourself stupidly booked then you are making it easier for us to make that decision because we cannot take the risk of going down to 10 men.’”

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Arteta: Xhaka could be a great coach

Ed Aarons

Mikel Arteta has tipped Grant Xhaka to become a “very good” manager and admitted pride that several of his former players have been inspired to begin their coaching careers while at Arsenal.

Xhaka will face his former club for the first time since he left for Bayer Leverkusen in 2023 when Sunderland host the Premier League leaders today. The 33-year-old has played a key role in Sunderland’s excellent start since their promotion via the playoffs. Arteta described his former captain as one of the signings of the summer, and his Sunderland counterpart, Régis Le Bris, has said the Switzerland midfielder is “like a second coach on the pitch”.

Xhaka started his coaching badges at Arsenal at the same time as Mohamed Elneny and Cédric Soares and took charge of a youth team that included Ethan Nwaneri. Arteta was impressed and believes Xhaka has the credentials to become a manager.

“I’m sure one day he’s going to be a great coach,” he said. “It would be up to him to decide. That’s not for me, but I think [he would be] a very good one – and many others that have started their licences while we are here. Because they feel inspired, they love it and they see an opportunity as well to improve their lives after they retire.”

Asked whether he would like Xhaka to join his coaching staff one day, Arteta said: “Let him play first. He’s playing every minute of every game, so I think you still have a long career ahead of him. Everybody has a pathway, everybody needs an opportunity. I got one, and the players and the people around you obviously need to have that. Everybody wants to develop and try things in life, and when they feel that’s the right thing to do, you have to let them fly and wish them the best.”

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First, let’s do the news. There are a couple of lines coming out of yesterday’s Premier League press conferences, including Mikel Arteta on Granit Xhaka and David Moyes on Thierno Barry.

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Tottenham v Man Utd Q&A

Get your questions in for the Guardian’s European sports correspondent, Nick Ames, our man at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the 12.30pm (GMT) kick-off. He’ll be on hand from the press box just after 11am to discuss how Tottenham and Manchester United are getting on and what may lie in store when they meet in the Premier League today.

Thomas Frank will be expecting a better showing from Spurs in front of their home supporters after their dismal performance against Chelsea last weekend. A 4-0 win over Copenhagen on Tuesday and that goal from Micky van de Ven has calmed any discontent for now.

As for Ruben Amorim, his United side are four unbeaten and making the most of free midweeks (a consequence of losing the Europa League final to Spurs in May) to prepare for every league fixture. They’re beginning to look like a competitive team towards the top of the table once more.

You can the dedicated matchday.live@theguardian.com email or comment below the line to ask Nick a question.

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Preamble

Hello and welcome to matchday live on a weekend that is sure to set the tone for the winter ahead as Europe’s top leagues prepare to break for men’s international fixtures for the final time this year.

We’ll be building up to today’s football, including some heavyweight early kick-offs in the Premier League and WSL, with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United all in action in both leagues before the day is out.

We’d also like to hear from you. Whether it’s your opinions on the season so far, thoughts on Thomas Tuchel’s latest England squad or your plans to watch the action today, comment below or send an email to matchday.live@theguardian.com.

Our European sports correspondent, Nick Ames, will at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium a bit later on for a Q&A ahead of Spurs v Manchester United – more on that in a moment.

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Key events

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Brentford: Keith Andrews side welcome a Newcastle side whose Premier League form has been up and down like a yo-yo to the Getech Community Stadium on Sunday and in the build-up to what could be an intriguing match, the Dubliner has been talking about the non-return of Yoane Wissa, the former Bees striker who spat the dummy and demanded a move to Newqcastle during the summer but has yet to play under Eddie Howe because he’s sidelined with a knee injury.

“Wissa is a very good player, so I am not too displeased that he is not going to be available because it’s the nature of competing against teams,” he said. “Around the transfer window, I was glad when it was closed; it wasn’t enjoyable for a lot of people, I would imagine. I think the nature of that deal in particular - there was a lot made around certain aspects of it. Ultimately, they paid a really good fee for a player of a certain age, a really good player, but I think we as a club did pretty well out of that.”

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Brighton: Fabian Hurzeler’s side travel to Selhurst Park for a Premier League needle match between two clubs whose fans can’t stand each other despite most people who live outside their bubble having no real idea why. There’s a timeless explainer here and ahead of the game, Brighton’s German coach said the significance of the A23 derby is not lost on him.

“I understood from the first second,” he said. “We have to promise the supporters we will try to do everything to win it. At the end of the day, you cannot promise wins but you can promise to leave your heart on the pitch.

“It’s going to be really important to be in the right place mentally. If you’re too emotional, you can’t make the right decisions. If you’re not emotional enough, you won’t be committing to duels or keeping your intensity up. We need to find the right balance.”

Brighton will travel to London without James Milner, Brajan Gruda and Jack Hinshelwood, who are all injured. Joel Veltman is available for selection after recovering from a calf-injury, while Kaoru Mitoma is rated at no better than 50-50 as he continues his revoery from an ankle issue.

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Updated at 17.27 CET

Gary O'Neil in talks to take over at Southampton

Ben Fisher

Southampton: Already one of the hardest working men in football journalism, Ben Fisher has been busier than several hives full of bees today. Not content with bringing us the latest updates on Wolves’ hitching their skirts in the direction of Boro coach Rob Edwards, Ben has news of Gary O’Neil, who turned down a return to Molineux earlier this week and now looks like he might be off to the south coast instead. Read on …

Southampton have sounded out Gary O’Neil for their managerial vacancy and the former Wolves head coach is thought to have held preliminary talks about succeeding Will Still at St Mary’s, he writes. Still was sacked after two league wins in 13 matches with Saints hovering above the relegation zone.

O’Neil was poised to return to Wolves to succeed Vítor Pereira but pulled out of talks on Monday. He faced a supporter backlash and is also thought to have had reservations about the club’s working structure. O’Neil, who was sacked last December, is still being paid by Wolves under the terms of his severance package.

Wolves’s Supporters’ Trust said O’Neil’s return would evidence “a clear lack of strategic direction” by the Molineux club. Domenico Teti, the director of football who was an ally of Pereira’s, departed the club on Wednesday. Wolves have switched focus to Middlesbrough’s Rob Edwards, whose future is shrouded in doubt before Boro’s home meeting with Birmingham on Saturday.

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Wolves: Rob Edwards did not take Middlesbrough training this morning, leaving his future in serious doubt amid continued interest from Wolves. Boro swiftly rejected an official approach from the Premier League club for their head coach on Thursday but 24 hours later uncertainty remains in regards to the situation. Ben Fisher reports …

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Fulham: A former Everton manager who worked for the club between May 2018 and December 2019, Marco Silva takes Fulham to play their first match at hill dickenson Stadium tomorrow afternoon. Asked how it felt to be returning to face his former club, the Portuguese said he was looking forward to a pleasant afternoon catching up with familiar faces in an unfamiliar stadium.

“It’s always good when you go back to a place where you are going to see familiar faces and some people you know very well, and people who treat you very, very well,” he said.

“Some people in that structure, some players, they are still there from our time as well. And what I expect is always the same that I got the other times before, to have some good conversation before and after the match with people that I know very, very well, and people that welcome us always very well in that football club.

“Of course, Goodison was a special one. Okay, [moving] was the step that the club should give, and they gave. They are pleased with the place where they are playing right now and it’s going to be the first time, first experience for us in that stadium.

“But you can feel it, you can see it, that it’s been very, very good for them in that aspect, and we are going to embrace the challenge of playing there against a good side. A side with a very experienced manager, some mature players as well.”

Everton go into tomrrow’s game having won just one of their past seven matches in the top flight, while Fulham arrive on the back of an emphatic victory over Wolves that ended a run of four consecutive league defeats.

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Thomas Frank: We'll "keep supporting" Destiny Odogie

Tottenham Hotspur: Thomas Frank says Tottenham are doing everything they can to support Destiny Udogie after a “terrible situation” in which he was allegedly threatened with a gun in north London.

The Metropolitan Police have launched an investigation after the incident involving the Spurs left-back on 6 September, while the club said on Tuesday it was providing support to Udogie and his family. A 31-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession of firearms with intent, blackmail and driving without a licence following the incident. He has been bailed while inquiries continue, the force said.

Udogie was identified by Italian media on Tuesday as the previously unnamed Premier League player involved in the incident, with the 22-year-old still producing an impressive display in the 4-0 win over Copenhagen in the Champions League later that night. Ahead of Saturday’s visit of Manchester United, Frank revealed everyone at Tottenham had rallied around Udogie.

“It is a terrible situation to have been in and I can’t speak too much about it as it’s a legal case, as we know, but the club and we have done everything we can to support him,” he said. “We’ll do that and he’s clearly doing well on the pitch, which is good and we’ll keep supporting him.”

On 6 September at 11.14pm, police were called following reports a man in his 20s had been threatened with a gun in Cockfosters Parade, Barnet. “Officers spoke to the victim and during the course of their investigation, it was also a reported another man in his 20s had also allegedly been blackmailed and threatened by the same individual,” said a police statement. “No injuries were reported in either incident. A 31-year-old man was arrested on Monday, 8 September on suspicion of possession of firearms with intent, blackmail and driving without a licence. He has been bailed while inquiries continue.”

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Updated at 16.50 CET

Sunderland: Regis Le Bris has reported no fresh injury concerns ahead of tomorrow’s match against Arsenal at the Stadium of Light but told reporters that centre-back Omar Alderete will miss the game due to concussion protocols after suffering a concussion during Sunderland’s win over Wolves a fortnight ago.

Reports from Paraguay suggest Alderete will also miss out on his nation’s upcoming friendlies against the USA and Mexico, even if Regis seems oblivious to the speculation. “Probably he will get some minutes with his national team progressively and get ready for Sunderland against Fulham,” said the Frenchman.

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Manchester City: Pep Guardiola has said Rodri is unlikely to be risked in Sunday’s Premier League clash with Liverpool. The Ballon d’Or-winning midfielder missed the midweek Champions League defeat of Borussia Dortmund after suffering another injury setback after starting just six games this season and the Spain international is still working his way back to full fitness following the knee surgery that ruled him out of most of the last campaign.

“We will see tomorrow but I think we will not take the risk,” said Pep. “It is the international break afterwards. You have to find the moment when you feel strong, you feel fit and can sustain the actions of the games that are so demanding, sustain it proper. You have to make that step.

“Still we are in November. The best part of the season is ahead of us and we need him. We are still playing without the Ballon d’Or winner, a massively important player for us. We are desperate to have him back but Nico [Gonzalez] right now is becoming a really important player.”

Rodri had missed four games with a hamstrong problem before returning as a late substitute in the victory over Bournemouth last Sunday. City’s first game after the international break is against Newcastle at St James’ Park on 22 November and Rodri has not been picked for the Spain squad to face Georgia and Turkey in the interim.

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Aston Villa: Ollie Watkins has just one goal to his name in 15 appearances for Aston Villa so far this season, a poor run of form that appears to have cost him his place in the England squad announced by Thomas Tuchel this morning. It is a subject that was raised with Unai Emery ahead of Villa’s match against Bournemouth on Sunday and Emery said he was unconcerned by his striker’s lack of goals.

“All his career he’s shown that he’s a fighter and he overcame a lot of situations early in his career through being a fighter,” he said of Watkins. “And now - he must keep moving forward. He has to focus with us again recover his good form, get confident.

“Yesterday we were speaking and I told him ‘I am so so happy with you. You are a striker, you have been consistent all your career. From when I have arrived here, you’ve shown me your capacity to be resilient in all the moments we need to get fighting like you are and now I know you are going to recover and get your performance through being consistent and through fighting as you did and through focusing with us’.”

Speaking of his decision to drop Watkins from the England squad for the looming international break, Thomas Tuchel said: “We understood and could observe it when we watch Ollie that he is playing through discomfort, so it didn’t make sense to bring him into camp. We wanted to give him a break to get treatment and fight for his place again in March.”

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Newcastle United: Eddie Howe will mark his fourth anniversary as Newcastle United manager tomorrow and could celebrate the occasion with his 100th win in charge of the club. Newcastle travel to play Brentford on Sunday but if they are to win at the Gtech Community Stadium, they may have to do so without Anthony Gordon, who was forced off at half-time in Newcastle’s win over Athletic Club on Wednesday night.

“We don’t think it’s a serious injury,” said Howe. “We’re going to get him scanned and we’re awaiting the results. There’s every chance he might miss out on Sunday but we’ll give him every opportunity to be fit.” William Osula will also miss out on Sunday’s match with an ankle injury which Howe says could rule the striker out for “a matter of weeks, not any longer.”

On the subject of Yoane Wissa, who Newcastle signed from Brentford during the summer but have yet to see in action because he was injured on international duty before he made his debut for his new club, Howe had this to say: “Yoane is working well. He’s on the grass and he’s building his fitness. The knee is feeling good and there’s no problems with that. It’s more a case of looking at his fitness, sharpness, all the things he’s going to need to put together. “He’s in a good place to kick on and push his body. We need to give him time to get fit, robust enough and be in a position to give his best version of himself for the team. I’m sure he’ll be worth the wait.”

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Thomas Tuchel open to England contract extension

Thomas Tuchel is open to extending his stay as England manager beyond next summer’s World Cup, contrary to expectations that he would move on and vacate his position regardless of how England fared in the tournament.

The 52-year-old was named Gareth Southgate’s permanent successor last October and began working in the job at the turn of the year. Tuchel’s deal with the Football Association takes the former Chelsea boss through to the end of next year’s World Cup, which England have qualified for with two games to spare.

It is a job the German coach seems to enjoy and one he hinted in Friday’s press conference that he was interested in staying in beyond the tournament in North America. “I open up the possibility,” Tuchel he told BBC Radio 5 Live. “There’s always a possibility. If everyone, the FA is happy with me, there’s always the possibility, but the focus is now for camp. [The job is] not more fun than I thought. I find it just reassuring. I find it as exciting as I was hoping it to be.

“I didn’t know exactly what was coming. I knew that I would love to work with the players, but I was not aware what demands of international football for a coach actually means. Am I missing the daily work with the players? Yes, still, but it is very exciting so far to be close to this group of players and to shape this group of players, and of course, lead the group into a World Cup, so the best is yet to come. The most exciting part is yet to come and I’m looking very much forward to it. Personally, I’m in a good place, I like where I am. It’s a lot of fun. It’s very demanding, so all fine.”

Asked if he thought the England job suited him better than he thought it would, Tuchel said he wasn’t sure. “I was the one pleading for a short-term contract,” he said. “I was the one to say ‘let’s streamline it, let’s make it straightforward and let’s make this contract until the World Cup’, so I don’t lose focus and we all don’t lose focus and we get used to each other. I think this was fair enough. Now we’re almost one year in. It’s not the time for reflection, even if you try to talk me into this, because the third camp in a short notice is coming and this is where the focus is.”

Tuchel is over halfway through his contract as he and his players prepares to complete the formalities of their World Cup qualification fixtures with a Wembley clash against Serbia and a trip to Albania in the upcoming international break.

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Tottenham Hotspur: Considering Spurs have won five and drawn two of their last seven games against tomorrow’s visitors, it’s probably fair to say the “Lads, it’s Tottenham” era is well and truly over for Manchester United. The sides meet in north London tomorrow afternoon and Thomas Frank has let it be known that his winger Mohammed Kudus is only “touch and go for tomorrow” after missing his team’s midweek win over Copenhagen in the Champions League.

Lucas Bergvall will also miss out with a concussion, while Atchie Gray, Yves Bissouma, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies, Dominic Solanke, James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski are also numbered among his team’s long- and short-term lame and halt.

Speaking of Solanke, who has been absent since August after undergoing surgery on an ankle injury, Frank had this to say: “I think the international break will be the big decider and we have two weeks to push him for the next steps. It is going forward. It was clear he was not ready before the international break. After is what we’re aiming for and you always want to get it right.”

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Manchester City: Of course, the part of their job that all football managers enjoy the most is undertaking their obligations to deal with journalists before and after games and as he approaches his 1,000th game in charge, Pep jokes that he is no exception. “Two thousand press conferences!” he says. “Those were the best moments! Plus interviews. No, when I started, I didn’t expect this. But it is a joy. I didn’t enjoy every single moment but I enjoyed the journey a lot. I have been blessed.”

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Updated at 16.00 CET

Manchester City: Eighteen years after he managed Barcelona B for the first time in a match against Premia in the Spanish fourth tier, Pep Guardiola will take charge of his 1,000th game for different sides –Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City – when his current club host Liverpool on Sunday.

“If I could chose one rival for his personal milestone that I want to share with many, many people - that would be the best,” he said. “I have been a long time in this country. Of course, Barcelona and the impact it had on my life as a ball boy, football player and manager. Of course, Bayern was an incredible step. But Liverpool, especially with Jurgen [Klopp], have been the biggest rival in this country and it could not be better. The destiny of the universe.

“I know how quickly things change. One week ago it was Liverpool ‘disaster, disaster’ and now they win two and it’s ‘are they back to their best?’ I’m sure the managers take a little bit more perspective of the situation. Always in a season there are ups and down.”

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Bournemouth: Andoni Iraola has been speaking ahead of Bournemouth’s trip to Aston Villa on Sunday and naturally talk turned to Alex Scott’s call-up to the England squad by Thomas Tuchel.

“I’m pleased for him,” said the Spaniard. “He has been playing very well. Everyone was really excited for him this morning. In the beginning of the season he was also good for the England Under-21s. I am also pleased for the club, for his team-mates. Everyone around the club was happy as even if it’s an individual call, we feel it collectively and there is a recognition of playing for Bournemouth. If you do well you can have this reward.

“I think Alex, in the two seasons with us, has had three knee injuries. He hasn’t had a long run of games where he could play the level he is lately. To play in the summer with England put him in a perfect place for pre-season. He arrived strong, did a good pre-season and won his place in the team. He has strong competition in those positions. I think this period without any issue has been very good for him.”

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Premier League: A reminder of this weekend’s top flight fixtures …

Saturday, 8 November

Tottenham v Man Utd (12:30)

Everton v Fulham (15:00)

West Ham v Burnley (15:00)

Sunderland v Arsenal (17:30)

Chelsea v Wolves (20:00)

Sunday, 9 November

Aston Villa v Bournemouth (14:00)

Brentford v Newcastle (14:00)

Crystal Palace v Brighton (14:00)

Nottm Forest v Leeds (14:00)

Man City v Liverpool (16:30)

View the Premier League table

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Time now to hand over to Barry Glendenning for more hot news. Enjoy!

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Adam Wharton may have been recalled to the England squad but he’s not a certain starter for Crystal Palace this weekend. The 21-year-old missed the wins over Liverpool and Brentford due to illness and then played the final 30 minutes of Palace’s 3-1 Conference League victory over AZ Alkmaar on Thursday.

However, Palace boss Oliver Glasner said he’s not guaranteed to get the nod for the home showdown with Brighton on Sunday after watching Wharton in action against Alkmaar.

He’s still feeling his chest is not completely free. Sometimes you need to cough it out. I hope this will happen now. Let’s see. It was good for him to play 30 minutes. For me he felt a little bit rusty at the beginning, moving a little bit slow. That’s why we wanted him to play these 30 minutes because he can recover in these next two days.

It was important for him to raise his heart frequency and get a little bit of intensity. He did better and better during the game. If it’s enough to start against Brighton, I don’t know at the moment.

Glasner also had this to say about his squad.

A few knocks, Marc (Guehi) had a knock at the end but he’s fine. At the moment it looks like all players who were involved (on Thursday) will be available.

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Collins confirms he's in charge for Wolves' trip to Chelsea

While we await further news on Rob Edwards, Wolves interim coach James Collins has been speaking to the press. And Collins has provided a bit of clarity for this weekend at least, confirming that he’ll be in the away dugout.

What I have been told is that I’ll be taking the game this weekend. The likelihood is that it will be one, one week only, but you never know in football. Last time we were told it could be a week or two, and it ended up being six. My focus is on the team and our week’s work.

We were determined not to do is that it’s a week’s holiday and a new manager comes in. We had to make sure that we prepared properly for the game this weekend, it’s a Premier League game that can be won. That was the message to the players, and they’ve responded brilliantly. They’ve been unbelievably receptive to what we’ve done with them.

Collins, Wolves’ youth-team boss, has also praised the departed Vitor Pereira, who was sacked after a terrible start to the season which yielded just two points.

Vitor and his staff were brilliant with me, they welcomed us to watch training, they welcomed us to be around it, they welcomed us into meetings, they were enthusiastic about the U21s, and get players through. I can’t speak highly enough of them; they were brilliant people and good coaches.

Sometimes in football, it is dictated by results and in the end, if you keep losing, you lose your job. They understand that, but they did their job diligently, great people, and they treated me with great respect, and I wish them well.

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Most Erling Haaland stats make the eyes go pop. For example, the Manchester City striker has scored 27 goals in 17 matches for club and country this season.

Here’s another from Opta: Haaland has netted 98 goals in 107 Premier League appearances – if he scores a brace in this game he will become the fastest player to 100 goals in Premier League history, with Alan Shearer the current quickest to 100 in 124 games.

And yet, his record against Sunday’s opponents, Liverpool, is underwhelming. He’s faced them eight times and only emerged on the winning side once. And in those matches he’s managed a paltry (for him) three goals. I was at Anfield for the first, the equaliser in a mad game when RB Salzburg fought back from 3-0 down before Mo Salah struck to give the relieved hosts a 4-3 win. Haaland was a sub that day in October 2019.

Haaland has only scored one Premier League goal against the Reds so will he improve that record this weekend?

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Krishnamoorthy v has emailed having cast his eye over the fixtures.

“This weekend schedule is a silent tribute to Shakespeare. It starts with the Comedy of Errors and ends with The Tempest.” Fair? You be the judge as we remind you of the games involved.

Saturday

Tottenham v Man Utd (12.30pm)

Everton v Fulham (3pm)

West Ham v Burnley (3pm)

Sunderland v Arsenal (5.30pm)

Chelsea v Wolves (8pm)

Sunday

Crystal Palace v Brighton (2pm)

Aston Villa v Bournemouth (2pm)

Brentford v Newcastle (2pm)

Nottm Forest v Leeds United (2pm)

Manchester City v Liverpool (4.30pm)

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Ahead of Chelsea v Wolves, Blues boss Enzo Maresca has been talking about the idea of facing a team without a manager. Although perhaps his comments will become moribund if Rob Edwards is making his way to the Black Country as we speak.

Maresca said in his press conference: “It’s difficult for this reason, it is also difficult because we play Wednesday night - the players were off yesterday, we have a small session today and a game tomorrow. So the game plan is also different, but we need to adapt.”

Chelsea could be without Romeo Lavia for the visit of Wolves after the midfielder was forced off early in the 2-2 draw against Qarabag with yet another injury.

“We don’t have an update at the moment,” said Maresca. “We need to wait some hours to do all the checks that he needs. He is painful. It’s a shame. We are tying to minimise minutes for him. But even with that he’s injured again. We need to persist until we find the right solution.”

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Thanks Rob. Am enjoying the ‘On this day’ flashbacks.

Let’s take a look at something more recent and lots of angles of this beauty from Emiliano Buendia which has been voted October 2025’s Guinness Goal of the Month.

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Au revoir department

It’s time for me to depart the Guardian liveblog bunker, at least until tomorrow. David Tindall will keep you abreast of association football affairs for the next hour or so. Cheers for your company and emails – bye.

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Wolves target Edwards not at Middlesbrough training

Ben Fisher

Rob Edwards didn’t take Middlesbrough training this morning amid sustained interest from Wolves. Boro rejected an approach for Edwards from the Premier League club on Thursday afternoon but 24 hours on his future is in serious doubt. Edwards is understood to be in discussions with the Boro hierarchy regarding what happens next. This morning Boro cancelled his pre-match press conference, scheduled for 1.30pm, to preview Saturday’s game against Birmingham.

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On this day in 2000… Rangers go out of the Champions League on a raw night at Ibrox.

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Mbeumo wins Premier League player of the month

An October double for Manchester United. Ruben Amorim was manager of the month; now Bryan Mbeumo has been announced as the player of the month. He scored after a minute in the victory at Anfield and added two more against Brighton the following weekend. It’s the first time Mbeumo has won the award.

He’s also the second Cameroon player to win the award after Liverpool defender Joel Matip in February 2022.

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Manchester City v Liverpool (Sunday, 4.30pm)

Dominik Szoboszlai, one of the players of the Premier League season so far, has been speaking ahead of Liverpool’s trip to the Etihad.

The season is long. If we were seven points clear at this stage nobody would be saying we had won the league already. We just need to focus on ourselves, win our games and then let’s see what other teams are doing.

I think everybody could see against Real Madrid all of us running, fighting, being there for each other, covering each other’s back. The most important thing is to keep going like this. Now it’s all about the Premier League and facing Man City at the weekend. We know how good they are now.

I just try to do my best on the pitch. If it seems like I am a leader, then I’ll keep doing that on the pitch, not outside the pitch. We are a really close team. Everyone protects each other, we are there for each other, that’s been the most important thing.

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Ten things to look out for this weekend

Granit Xhaka was never the most popular figure at Arsenal. The old tweets of New York’s newly elected mayor and lifelong Gooner, Zohran Mamdani, surfaced this week after his victory. Mamdani took aim at the midfielder in the lead-up to Arsenal’s match against Chelsea on Boxing Day 2020. Xhaka proved his critics wrong that day, scoring a sensational free kick in a 3-1 win, and has done the same since leaving Arsenal. Xhaka has been a revelation at Bayer Leverkusen – where he won the Bundesliga title undefeated – and now Sunderland, where he is adored by fans for perfectly complementing the youth of Régis Le Bris’ surging side. The league leaders will go to the Stadium of Light wary of their former captain, who will surely be out to prove a point.

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Interview: Taylor Hinds

Arsenal face Chelsea in the WSL, a cracking way to start any football-based weekend. Suzanne Wrack has been chatting to Arsenal – and now England - left-back Taylor Hinds.

This is the type of team that I want to be in. I have the utmost respect for Liverpool for everything they’ve done for me over the five years. There’s a little part of me that’s always going to love Liverpool. So many of my friends are still up there, scousers are just one of a kind too, and I definitely miss that side of it, the people, but I’m also loving it here and I’m really thriving and happy.

The difference is just the standard, the intensity and the quality. Everything’s so fast-paced and training every day is like playing in a game every day. That’s what you want: you want to train how you play and here I get to do that with world-class players and learn from them.

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Amorim wins manager of the month award

Plenty of people thought Ruben Amorim would receive a freshly printed P45 in October. Instead he has won the Premier League manager of the month award for the first time.

United beat Sunderland, Liverpool and Brighton in their three Premier League games, ending the month in sixth place in the table. It’s coming home!

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Updated at 13.27 CET

Maresca responds to Rooney criticism

Some thinly sliced ultra-processed beef for you. Wayne Rooney was gently criticial of the extent to which Enzo Maresca rotates his Chelsea side after they draw with Qarabag in the Champions League. Maresca has responded thus:

We are in an era where anyone can say what they want. Since I joined the club, it’s my view to rotate players. No one complains when you win. When you don’t win I can understand no one is agreeing.

I loved rotation as a player. Football is a bit different compared to years ago in terms of physicality and intensity. It’s impossible to play with the same players 65 games in one season.

You cannot say: ‘why, years ago, was it possible?’ Because it was different. It was not so physical. I played for 20 years. Now it’s changed. You need to rotate.

If you want to see the season like a marathon, when you are in February and March, the last sprint, you have to think in a different way.

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Brentford v Newcastle (Sun, 2pm)

Anthony Gordon, who is in the England squad, is waiting for the results of a scan on a hip injury and may miss Newcastle’s game at Brentford on Sunday.

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Chelsea v Wolves (8pm)

Some more injury problems for Chelsea. Romeo Lavia will miss tomorrow’s game against Wolves; Pedro Neto is also doubtful.

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Hearts manager Derek McInnes has won his third consecutive manager of the month award, and quite right too. Hearts are nine points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership, though Celtic have a game in hand.

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On this day in 1990… Aston Villa, 2-0 up from the first leg of their Uefa Cup tie against Internazionale, have their dreams crushed in the San Siro.

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Sports quiz of the week

A defiantly mediocre 8/16 for me. Can you do better? I hope so, for all our sakes.

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Updated at 12.58 CET

Sunderland v Arsenal (Sat, 5.30pm)

Mikel Arteta has been saying some nice things about Granit Xhaka, who will face his old Arsenal teammates tomorrow.

He made me a better coach. He helped us to develop and improve a lot as a team and a club. I will be eternally grateful because I have great memories with him.

I am laughing because I just visualised Granit and it makes me laugh because he was such a character, a huge personality, very funny, super professional,” Arteta added.

One of those guys who can change the spirit of a dressing room and a team. That’s a superpower to have. It wasn’t an easy decision (to let him leave) because I knew the impact he could still have. But then when you have one of those leaders, you need to have him in the right frame of mind, feeling committed.

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West Ham v Burnley (Sat 3pm)

Nuno Espirito Santo has been talking about Freddie Potts, who made such an impressive full debut for West Ham in their win over Newcastle last week.

He played really, really good and did a fantastic match. He was balanced and almost all his actions were accurate. He did what I think the team needed in that moment, with his presence there in the middle of the park, but Freddie has started one (Premier League) game.

Freddie has played many games in Championship and League One, that is what made him. Now I think he is a good option for us but he started one game. We are here to help all the players improve. Freddie is one of those that has got so much talent, so we are looking forward to seeing what he can do.

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Arne Slot on the return of Alexander Isak

He will train for the first time today with the team again, after being three weeks out. I know that I said three weeks ago that his pre-season has ended so now it’s time for us to see where he is. But I have to come back to those words, because if you are three weeks only with the rehab, that doesn’t bring you back to the levels he was three weeks ago.

You cannot compare rehab with games of football or training sessions with the team. As much as we try to replicate it, that’s simply not possible. So, again I have to say, give him some time.

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Sir Alex Ferguson has paid tribute to Pep Guardiola, who will manage his 1,000th game on Sunday.

Pep! I am absolutely delighted to welcome you to join the prestigious LMA Hall of Fame 1,000 Club.

Your deep love and passion for the game has always been so evident and you should be very proud of the indelible impact you continue to have across the global game.

Reaching 1,000 matches and achieving such longevity in football is a landmark that can never be underestimated and, to continue to deliver league, Champions League and domestic cup titles in three of Europe’s most competitive leagues is outstanding.

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Wolves target Edwards cancel pre-match press conference

Ben Fisher

Wolves’ search for their next head coach has taken another twist: Middlesbrough’s Rob Edwards will no longer be conducting his pre-match press conference. Wolves had an official approach for Edwards rejected on Thursday with Boro determined to keep the man who has led them to third in the Championship after taking over in the summer on a three-year contract.

Wolves are longstanding admirers of Edwards, who has a fondness for the club, having previously played and coached at Molineux. He also had a spell in caretaker charge in 2016, shortly after the Wolves owner, Fosun, assumed control of the club. Might he now take permanent charge?

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Updated at 12.43 CET

A proud day for Guernsey

“With Alex Scott’s call up we now have a donkey (not a derogatory term!) in both men’s and women’s senior England squads!” writes Alex from Guernsey. “Maya Le Tissier has been representing the Lionesses brilliantly and hopefully Alex can follow for the men. Incidentally they are step-siblings, which is not widely known. Proud day to be a Guern!”

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Updated at 12.21 CET

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David Hytner

Thomas Frank has called for better support from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium crowd after revealing that Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence had apologised to him for their reaction to the 1-0 home defeat against Chelsea on Saturday.

Van de Ven and Spence were incensed when the full-time whistle sounded and the Spurs fans booed, as they had done at half-time with their team trailing to João Pedro’s 34th‑minute goal. The defenders stormed past Frank towards the tunnel, ignoring their manager’s attempts to get them to acknowledge the supporters in the South Stand – a bad look at the end of another bad Premier League day at the stadium.

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Dowman makes Champions League history.

Arsenal are apparently cruising to another victory/clean sheet combo. Mikel Merino has scored twice in the second half to give them a 3-0 lead against Slavia Prague – and Max Dowman has just come off the bench to become the youngest player in Champions League history. He’s 15.

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Updated at 20.29 CET

Youssoufa Moukoko, still only 20 but tipped for big things since the age of 14, starts in attack for Copenhagen tonight. Michael Butler traces his career so far.

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Tottenham v FC Copenhagen team news

Thomas Frank makes five changes from Saturday’s miserable defeat to Chelsea. Destiny Udogie, Cristian Romero, Brennan Johnson, Xavi Simons (who played most of that game but didn’t actually start it) and Wilson Odobert replace Djed Spence, Kevin Danso, Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Bergvall and Joao Palhinha.

Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-3-1) Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Sarr; Johnson, Simons, Odobert; Kolo Muani.

Subs: Rowswell, Kinsky, Austin, Danso, Joao Palhinha, Richarlison,

Spence, Scarlett, Kyerematen, Akhamrich.

Copenhagen (4-4-2) Kotarski; Suzuki, Gabriel Pereira, Hatzidiakos, Lopez; Larsson, Lerager, Clem, Achouri; Moukoko, Elyounoussi.

Subs: Dadason, Zague, Madsen, Robert, Cornelius, Claesson, Garananga, Gadeberg-Burr, Runarsson.

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Philipp Lahm on Harry Kane

In his third season in Munich, Kane is able to transfer his style of play to the club. He now interprets his role as he did at Tottenham: as a striker who gets the ball in midfield, distributes it and hits crossfield passes. I can’t remember a centre-forward whose passing was better. He also has a keen sense of when to move into the penalty area.

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Liverpool v Real Madrid team news

Florian Wirtz starts for Liverpool; Trent Alexander-Arnold is on the bench for Real Madrid. Scott Murray has the full team news.

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There’s been a second goal in Prague. You will believe the score!

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Paris Saint-Germain v Bayern Munich team news

Paris Saint-Germain (4-3-3) Chevalier; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes; Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, Zaire Emery; Kvaratskhelia, Dembele, Barcola.

Subs: Neves, Mbaye, Ndjantou, Mayulu, Hernandez, Lee, Goncalo Ramos, Lucas Beraldo, Marin, Safonov.

Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1) Neuer; Stanisic, Tah, Upamecano, Laimer; Kimmich, Pavlovic; Olise, Gnabry, Diaz; Kane.

Subs: Ulreich, Urbig, Kim, Goretzka, Jackson, Bischof, Guerreiro, Boey, Karl.

Referee Maurizio Mariani (Italy)

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Updated at 19.57 CET

Half time: Slavia Prague 0-1 Arsenal

Bukayo Saka’s penalty has given Arsenal the lead in one of two early games. Niall McVeigh has dedicated his entire life (okay, the next hour or so) to a separate liveblog for that; you can follow the second half with him.

The other early game is goalless at half-time: Napoli 0-0 Frankfurt.

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Preamble

Hello, konbanwa and welcome to another busy Champions League clockwatch. It’s matchday four already, and the table is taking shape. Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, the top two at the start of play, meet in arguably the match of the night. There’s also a clash of European Cup royalty at Anfield, which you can follow separately with Scott Murray, and a chance for Spurs to extend their perfect home record in this year’s competition.

Here’s the fixture list, all 8pm kick-offs unless stated.

Napoli 0-0 Frankfurt (5.45pm)

Slavia Prague 0-1 Arsenal (5.45pm)

Atletico Madrid v Union SG

Bodo/Glimt v Monaco

Juventus v Sporting

Liverpool v Real Madrid

Olympiacos v PSV

PSG v Bayern

Tottenham v FC Copenhagen

If you’re reading this you probably have nothing better to do this evening, so why not follow along? What do you mean one of your DJs has pulled out and you need to find an urgent replacement?

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Updated at 19.53 CET

Spurs make two changes to the team selected for the 3-0 win at Everton last weekend. Lucas Bergvall and Pape Matar Sarr come in for Brennan Johnson and Xavi Simons, who drop to the bench.

Chelsea also make two changes to the XI that started their last Premier League fixture, the 1-2 home reverse to Sunderland. Wesley Fofana and Malo Gusto replace Josh Acheampong and Marc Guiu, who are both benched. Both sides with slightly more defensive selections than last week, then.

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Preamble

There are two ways to look at this. Tottenham Hotspur are currently third in the Premier League, while Chelsea flounder in ninth. So that’s way number one, and it was good for Spurs.

Here’s the other way. Chelsea have won their last four Premier League fixtures against Spurs. They’ve won five of their six Premier League matches at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. They’ve scored four times on each of their last two visits. They’ve only lost one of the last 13 Premier League meetings. They’re 37-8 up on wins in the Premier League era, leading by an aggregate score of 121-63. So that’s way number, er, two, and it’s fair to say the recent record between these two clubs is fairly lopsided.

Hold on, come to think of it, there’s a third way. Spurs have just lost at home to Aston Villa and won well at Everton, while Chelsea won well at Nottingham Forest before losing at home to Sunderland. So way number three suggests we simply don’t know what on earth to expect here tonight. Hey, unpredictability is the fun and lifeblood of football. Kick-off is at 5.30pm GMT. It’s on!

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Half-time: Newcastle 1-0 Tottenham

The home side go into the break with the advantage after Fabian Schar’s header. Interesting that Spurs’ captain tonight is Pedro Porro, in Micky van de Ven’s absence. The Dutchman is on the bench.

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Newcastle 1-0 Tottenham

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Half-time reading:

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Newcastle 1-0 Tottenham

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Half-time scores in the 7.45pm GMT kick-offs

You might notice that Palace have doubled their lead at Anfield. Join Scott Murray for the latest.

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Arsenal 0-0 Brighton

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GOAL! Wolves 0-3 Chelsea (Estêvão 41)

Dear me. A huge mix-up between Sa and Lopez allows Andrey Santos to nick the ball, the ball falls to Estêvão on the edge of Wolves’ box and with no defender in sight, the young Brazilian impudently dinks the ball over the keeper. A delicious finish but that was suicidal football from Wolves.

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Updated at 21.44 CET

There has been a goal at Anfield, with Crystal Palace taking the lead over Liverpool through Ismaïla Sarr. I’ll let Scott Murray tell you about that one.

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GOAL! Newcastle 1-0 Tottenham (Schar 23)

As simple as you like! From a corner, Schar has a free run at a header and buries his effort past Kinsky! Tottenham were defending zonally, but nobody took the initiative and Schar stole in.

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Updated at 21.39 CET

GOAL! Swansea City 1-1 Manchester City (Doku 39)

Pep Guardiola’s side claw themselves back into the game with a deflected strike! Doku wriggles clear down the left – if there is one thing Doku does well, it is wriggling – and the Belgian gets to the byline before cutting back on his stronger right foot. The ball fizzes through a crowd of players, nicking off Burgess (I think) and into the net. No chance for Fisher.

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Wolves 0-2 Chelsea

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Arsenal 0-0 Brighton

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Swansea City 1-0 Manchester City

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Newcastle 0-0 Tottenham

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Swansea City 1-0 Manchester City

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Arsenal 0-0 Brighton

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Wolves 0-2 Chelsea

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Peeeeeeeep!

Our sole 8pm GMT kick-off – Newcastle v Tottenham – is also underway.

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GOAL! Wolves 0-2 Chelsea (George 15)

As Football Manager would say, Wolves are sinking without trace! Gittens tears down the left wing, burning past Doherty with ease to reach the byline and the Englishman cuts a low cross to George in the middle, who has a simple tap in from five yards out. This could end up being a cricket score.

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Updated at 21.12 CET

GOAL! Swansea City 1-0 Manchester City (Franco 12)

The Championship side are ahead! Swansea put Premier League opposition (Nottingham Forest) to the sword in the last round and now the Welsh side are ahead here! Trafford had no chance in the City goal as Franco shaped a peach of a curler from the edge of the area right into the top corner, the Portuguese midfielder kissing his shot off the inside the post. Postage stamp stuff!

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Updated at 21.10 CET

Arsenal 0-0 Brighton

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GOAL! Wolves 0-1 Chelsea (Andrey Santos 5)

Wolves give the ball away in midfield and Chelsea pounce, feeding the ball to Andrey Santos on the edge of the home box, and the Brazilian rifles a low shot into the corner, just out of the reach of José Sa’s left hand!

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Updated at 21.03 CET

Peeeeeeeeep!

The four 7.45pm GMT kick-offs are underway!

Arsenal v Brighton

Swansea City v Manchester City

Wolves v Chelsea …

… and Liverpool v Crystal Palace, although you can follow the latter game with Scott Murray in our dedicated MBM.

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This is what Mikel Arteta had to say about Max Dowman in the lead up to Arsenal’s match against Brighton. The 15-year-old signed scholarship terms with Arsenal last week, with a professional contract due to be finalised for his 17th birthday. He joined as a five‑year‑old and the hope is that he will stay for the long term.

[Dowman staying is] what we all want. I think what he wants as well. After that it is more for [the sporting director] Andrea [Berta] and the club. But the feeling that I have is that genuinely he loves it here. He is a huge Arsenal supporter and his family are really happy with the way things are developing around him as well. Hopefully for many years he will be with us.

If we looked at his passport every day we would never play him, simple as that. So it is finding a balance, an understanding, especially the load, the things that are changing in his life, and making sure he can cope with that. So far, he has done that.

In the front line, that is where we have more difficulties. Gabby Jesus out, Kai [Havertz] out, [Gabriel] Martinelli and [Noni] Madueke out. We have to be more careful as we don’t have many options.”

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Updated at 20.46 CET

Here are some relevant preview pieces for you to enjoy.

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Team news: Wolves v Chelsea

Wolves: Jose Sa, Doherty, Mosquera, Agbadou, Toti Gomes, Wolfe, Tchatchoua, Joao Gomes, Lopez, Hwang, Arokodare.

Subs: Bentley, Hugo Bueno, Munetsi, Larsen, Rodrigo Gomes, Chirewa, Bellegarde, Mane, Krejci.

Chelsea: Jorgensen, Gusto, Acheampong, Adarabioyo, Hato, Lavia, Santos, Estevao, Buonanotte, Gittens, George.

Subs: Sanchez, Fofana, Cucurella, James, Caicedo, Fernandez, Pedro Neto, Joao Pedro, Delap.

This is the fixture with the most changes. Few will expect Wolves to trouble Chelsea with that line-up.

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Team news: Newcastle United v Tottenham Hotspur

Newcastle: Ramsdale, Krafth, Thiaw, Schar, Burn, Willock, Tonali, Ramsey, Elanga, Woltemade, Barnes.

Subs: Pope, Trippier, Botman, Joelinton, Gordon, Osula, Jacob Murphy, Guimaraes, Miley.

Tottenham Hotspur: Kinsky, Porro, Danso, Sarr, Spence, Bentancur, Joao Palhinha, Johnson, Bergvall, Simons, Richarlison.

Subs: Austin, Tel, Kudus, van de Ven, Muani, Scarlett, Olusesi, Rowswell, Gunter.

Yes, there are some key omissions, but it’s fair to say that both sides are going for it!

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Updated at 20.29 CET

Team news: Swansea City v Manchester City

Swansea: Fisher, Key, Casey, Burgess, Samuels-Smith, Tymon, Inoussa, Goncalo Franco, Galbraith, Widell, Idah.

Subs: Farman, Fulton, Cabango, Vipotnik, Eom, Cullen, Benson, Santos, Ronald.

Manchester City: Trafford, Lewis, Khusanov, Ake, Ait Nouri, Gonzalez, Mukasa, Bobb, Cherki, Doku, Marmoush.

Subs: Bettinelli, Donnarumma, Stones, Gvardiol, Savio, Matheus Luiz, O’Reilly, Phillips, Foden.

The Wilfried Bony Derby! Manchester City ring the changes, but make no mistake, this is an elite, international XI, possibly with the exception of Divine Mukasa, whose sole senior appearance came in the last round.

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Team news: Arsenal v Brighton

Arsenal: Arrizabalaga, White, Mosquera, Hincapie, Lewis-Skelly, Merino, Norgaard, Nwaneri, Dowman, Harriman-Annous, Eze.

Subs: Saka, Gabriel, Raya, Timber, Gyokeres, Calafiori, Trossard, Zubimendi, Rice.

Brighton: Steele, Kadioglu, Coppola, van Hecke, De Cuyper, Baleba, Boscagli, Rutter, Kostoulas, Gomez, Tzimas.

Subs: Dunk, Minteh, Watson, Welbeck, Ayari, Wieffer, Simmonds, Ramming, Knight.

At 15 years and 302, Max Dowman becomes the youngest ever person to start for Arsenal. Andre Harriman-Annous, who at 17 is almost middle-aged in comparison, makes his first ever appearance for the Gunners’ senior team. And it’s a start!

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Updated at 20.21 CET

Preamble

There are only a few teams that can probably justify not fielding their best XI for these Carabao Cup fourth-round matches, but for most, there are no real excuses why each side shouldn’t be going full throttle to reach Wembley.

We saw last season with Newcastle United just what a League Cup triumph can do to a football club and its fanbase, just imagine what a successful defence would mean to the Geordies, or what might mean to the mid-table stalwarts of Brighton (no major honours ever), Crystal Palace (one major honour ever), or the Championship’s Swansea City (one major honour). With relegation heavily unlikely for all these sides, and with only minor European qualification (or a play-off place) to play for, there is no reason why these sides shouldn’t invest in this competition (especially as Europa League qualification comes with the silverware). Win tonight, and they are in the quarter-finals, and nearly within touching distance of Wembley. Woof.

Even for Mikel Arteta, trophyless for the last five seasons, a taste of Carabao would be sweet, although few expect the title-chasing Gunners to field their first XI (in fairness, their second XI is jam packed full of internationals) against Brighton.

Liverpool will be wary of another damaging domestic defeat. Palace are a formidable away team, and there might be fewer changes to Arne Slot’s side than expected as he looks to guarantee safe passage and another PR crisis.

Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester City and Wolves (no major honours in 45 years) are probably the only sides tonight that are nailed on to rest players. In fairness to the latter, Wolves do have a bit of a relegation scrap on their hands, and a crucial trip to Fulham this weekend. Vítor Pereira is likely more concerned that and about keeping his job for another week, than a Carabao Cup final in February.

It’s a grand mix of intriguing ties as the teams look to join Brentford, Fulham and Cardiff in the last eight. Following Wednesday’s ties (below), I will also bring you live updates from the quarter-final draw, so please do stick around after the final whistles.

A reminder that Scott Murray is doing a dedicated minute-by-minute report of Liverpool v Palace, so follow him here for that game. I will post updates when I can, but will focus my most of my attention of the other four matches.

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Preamble

Afternoon everyone and welcome to … well, take your pick. Welcome to the darkest afternoon game of the Premier League season so far. Or welcome to the Richarlison derby. I said this to Paul, the editor who doles out the matches to us writers. And he came back with the Vinny Samways derby, which was a better line. We didn’t even get as far as Gazza, let alone Gary Lineker.

If Everton and Spurs had met a month ago, you’d have said it was two teams on the rise. Then Thomas Frank’s Spurs went a bit Spursy. But that was at home: they remain top of the away table, and even with a few injuries they should be a headache for David Moyes. He may have to manage without Jack Grealish, who, when he escaped from Man City, took about five minutes to become (a) his old self and (b) Everton’s new talisman.

On form there’s nothing to choose between the two sides. Both have won two, drawn two and lost two of their last six league games. Everton have had a full week to rehearse for this, whereas Spurs had a trip to Monaco for a Champions League stalemate. Truth be told, anything could happen. Back soon with the teams.

Arsenal remained top of the Premier League table with a win over Crystal Palace, while Aston Villa earned a shock victory over Manchester City at Villa Park

Arsenal 1-0 Crystal Palace, Aston Villa 1-0 Manchester City and more: clockwatch – as it happened

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Penalty to Ajax!

It’s all going on, with Raúl Moro going down inside the area after Tosin catches the Ajax winger’s right foot. It’s an easy call for the referee.

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GOAL! Chelsea 2-0 Ajax (Caicedo 27)

Oh, this is tough on Ajax. Moisés Caicedo launches a piledriver from range … it’s low and probably not going in … until it takes a wicked deflection off Josip Sutalo into the net.

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GOAL! Sporting 0-1 Marseille (Paixão 14)

It’s gorgeous from Igor Paixão to give Marseille the lead in Lisbon. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang sets it up, lofting the ball to the other wing: Paixão collects, cuts in from the left, and finds the top right corner from outside the area.

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GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Ajax (Guiu 18)

Chelsea are quick to take advantage of the red card, with Marc Guiu tapping in from close range after a header across goal by Wesley Fofana. It suddenly looks a rather straightforward night in London.

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Updated at 21.30 CEST

RED CARD! Taylor sent off for Ajax!

Kenneth Taylor is off for Ajax after a VAR review, his studs up as he lunges into Enzo Fernández! The ref doesn’t have to spend much time looking at the on-pitch monitor before upgrading his yellow to red.

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Updated at 21.26 CEST

Bayern Munich 2-0 Club Brugge (Kane 14)

There it is. Harry Kane takes 14 minutes to rack up his 20th club goal of the season. Konrad Laimer bursts into the area and plays an appetising ball across goal, with Kane there for perhaps the easiest tap-in of his career.

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Updated at 21.23 CEST

Bayern Munich 1-0 Club Brugge: Karl, an age-group international with Germany, is making his first Champions League start. A special moment, that was also his first senior club goal.

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Updated at 21.13 CEST

GOAL! Bayern Munich 1-0 Club Brugge (Karl 5)

Bayern have scored … and it’s not Harry Kane! No, it’s the 17-year-old Lennart Karl with a stunner: he picks up the ball in midfield, jinks past his man, thunders into the D, and wallops the ball into the top right corner. Remember the name!

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Updated at 21.14 CEST

Peeeeeeeep!

All seven 8pm BST kick-offs in the Champions League are underway. Let the goals commence!

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Updated at 21.05 CEST

Nick Wayne opens up on his concerns:

I’m worried. Monaco might just find their feet and the ball. Brittle doesn’t describe Spurs’ frontline. COYS

As mentioned earlier, there’s no Eric Dier for Monaco, the former Spurs centre-half missing with a hamstring injury. The two sides met in the group stage of the Champions League back in 2016 … with Monaco winning both games 2-1. Bernardo Silva was on the scoresheet at Wembley in front of 85,000 fans.

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It’s full-time in the early kick-offs, with Athletic Bilbao and Galatasaray racking up 3-1 wins (Qarabag and Bodo/Glimt the respective losers). Here’s how the table’s looking, with Qarabag also losing their 100% record.

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Atalanta v Slavia Prague teams

Atalanta: Carnesecchi, Kossounou, Hien, Djimsiti, Zappacosta, De Roon, Éderson, Bernasconi, De Ketelaere, Krstovic, Lookman

Subs: Rossi, Sportiello, Musah, Sulemana, Pasalic, Scamacca, Samardzic, Bellanova, Brescianini, Zalewski, Ahanor, Maldini

Slavia Prague: Markovic, Boril, Vlcek, Zima, Mbodji, Moses, Zafeiris, Dorley, Kusej, Chory, Provod

Subs: Stanek, Rezek, Chaloupek, Cham, Hashioka, Sanyang, Chytil, Sadilek, Prekop, Jelinek, Sloncik, Kovar

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Chelsea v Ajax teams

Chelsea: Jørgensen, Caicedo, Fofana, Adarabioyo, Hato, Fernández, Lavia, Buonanotte, Estêvão, Gittens, Guiu

Subs: Sánchez, Merrick, Cucurella, Pedro Neto, Santos, Chalobah, James, George, Acheampong, Walsh, Garnacho, Kavuma-McQueen

Ajax: Pasveer, Rosa, Itakura, Sutalo, Baas, McConnell, Gloukh, Taylor, Moro, Weghorst, Godts

Subs: Jaros, Heerkens, Gaaei, Regeer, Edvardsen, Klaassen, Konadu, Mokio, Fitz-Jim, Alders, Bounida

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Monaco v Tottenham teams

Monaco: Kohn, Kehrer, Salisu, Henrique, Diatta, Teze, Coulibaly, Ouattara, Akliouche, Fati, Balogun

Subs: Cabral, Bamba, Michal, Ilenikhena, Minamino, Idumbo, Biereth, Mawissa, Stawiecki , Lienard, Golovin

Tottenham: Vicario, Porro, Gray, Danso, Van de Ven, Bentancur, João Palhinha, Bergvall, Odobert, Richarlison, Kudus

Subs: Byfield, Williams-Barnett, Olusesi, Scarlett, Muani, Kinsky, Austin, Simons, Johnson, Spence, Sarr

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Bayern Munich v Club Brugge teams

Bayern Munich: Neuer, Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Guerreiro, Kimmich, Pavlovic, Karl, Olise, Díaz, Kane

Subs: Ulreich, Urbig, Kim, Goretzka, Jackson, Bischof, Boey, Mike, Manuba

Club Brugge: Jackers, Sabbe, Ordoñez, Mechele, Meijer, Stankovic, Forbs, Audoor, Vanaken, Tzolis, Tresoldi

Subs: Van den Heuvel, Romero, Vetlesen, Sandra, Vermant, Nilsson, Siquet, Spileers, Seys, Diakhon, Campbell, Furo

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Real Madrid v Juventus teams

Real Madrid: Courtois, Valverde, Asencio, Éder Militão, Carreras, Tchouaméni, Güler, Diaz, Bellingham, Mbappé, Vinicius Júnior

Subs: Pitarch, Mastantuono, Mendy, Fran Garcia, Gonzalo, Rodrygo, Endrick, Camavinga, González, Lunin

Juventus: Di Gregorio, Gatti, Rugani, Kelly, Kalulu, McKennie, Thuram, Cambiaso, Koopmeiners, Vlahovic, Yildiz

Subs: David, João Mário, Miretti, Openda, Kostic, Adzic, Zhegrova, Francisco Conceição, Locatelli, Fuscaldo, Perin

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Sporting v Marseille teams

Sporting: Rui Silva, Fresneda, Debast, Inácio, Araújo, Hjulmand, Simões, Quenda, Trincão, Goncalves, Suárez

Subs: João Virgínia, Reis, Morita, Catamo, Vagiannidis, Kochorashvili, Diomande, Santos, Ribeiro, Quaresma, Ioannidis, Mangas

Marseille: Rulli, Pavard, Aguerd, Balerdi, Emerson, Vermeeren, Højbjerg, Igor Paixão, Greenwood, Aubameyang, Weah

Subs: De Lange, Van Neck, Egan-Riley, Garcia, Gomes, O’Riley, Nadir, Vaz, Murillo

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Elsewhere, can Liverpool make it five in a row?

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Two games are already underway and halfway through. Athletic Bilbao are one-all with Qarabag, while Galatasaray are 2-0 up against Bodo/Glimt thanks to a Victor Osimhen brace. The second was comical, with Osimhen getting in the way of a backpass to set up a simple one-on-one with the keeper.

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Preamble

GOALS! REDS! PENS! Tuesday night was hectic in the Champions League, with 43 (!) goals across nine games (Yara deserves a raise). Here’s to more tonight, even if my fingers are left unusable for the next fortnight.

We’ve got some juicy fixtures: Real Madrid v Juventus is the heritage pick, while it’s the Eric Dier derby with Spurs’ visit to Monaco (even if he’s injured). Chelsea host Ajax, while Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich welcome Club Brugge. Keep me company for the 44 goals to be scored this evening, with my eyeballs ready to explode as I juggle various screens. Let’s play!

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