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Tag: Epl

  • EPL: Arsenal give update on Buakyo Saka recovery

    EPL: Arsenal give update on Buakyo Saka recovery

    Premier League side Arsenal have provided a positive injury update, revealing Bukayo Saka is back in the gym as he recovers from a torn hamstring.

    Saka has been sidelined since suffering the injury against Crystal Palace in mid-December, with Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli also facing fitness issues.

    Mikel Arteta recently confirmed Martinelli will undergo a scan for his own hamstring problem.

    The Gunners’ inconsistent form in front of goal has left them trailing Premier League leaders Liverpool by six points, with the Reds holding a game in hand.

    Currently in Dubai for a warm-weather training camp following their FA Cup exit, Arsenal confirmed Saka is making progress in his rehabilitation.

    His return would provide a much-needed boost as the team looks to reignite their title challenge.

  • EPL: I know I’m risking Man Utd job – Amorim

    EPL: I know I’m risking Man Utd job – Amorim

    Manager Ruben Amorim admitted his job is at risk after Manchester United’s decision not to sign a striker in the transfer window.

    With United struggling in 13th place and losing five of their last six home games, Amorim acknowledged that sticking to his system without adding attacking reinforcements was a gamble.

    He conceded that poor results have increased the pressure on his position ahead of their FA Cup clash with Leicester.

    “I knew when I chose this profession that you have the risk of results,” said Amorim.

    ”We are fighting for our jobs until the summer.

    “I knew when I came here, I looked at the schedule, I looked at the team, and I understood my decision of changing everything in the middle of the season, without new signings, was a danger for a coach.

    “But since day one, with good results or bad results, I’ve had a clear idea of what I want to do and I take these risks because, in the end, I think it’s going to pay off.

    “But I’m not naive, I’ve said that many times. This is a sport of results and we are in a difficult situation. But the board already knew and I explained all the risks. Everything that has happened, I explained to the board and they said the same thing: ‘We need to start now – we’re doing that.’

    “But I understand, at this moment, with a lot of losses, especially at home, that the environment is really hard. We’re taking some risks, but it’s the way we want to proceed. It’s hard to turn things around in just a few games.

    “It’s going to be like that, really hard until the end of the season, but we are taking that risk, because we want a different thing in our team and different profiles. That was my decision.”

  • EPL: Arsenal crush Manchester City to stay in title hunt

    EPL: Arsenal crush Manchester City to stay in title hunt

    Arsenal delivered a statement of intent in the Premier League title race with a 5-1 hammering of champions Manchester City to close the gap at the top to six points on Sunday.

    Captain Martin Odegaard fired Arsenal into a second-minute lead and City were finished off in ruthless fashion after the break with teenagers Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri both on target for the rampant Gunners.

    Erling Haaland’s 55th-minute equaliser, his 250th senior career goal, had briefly raised City’s hopes, but they could have no complaints as any lingering chance of winning a fifth successive title surely disappeared into the north London night.

    Arsenal are now 14 games unbeaten in the league and have 50 points from 24 games with leaders Liverpool on 56 from 23. Manchester City are a distant fourth with 41.

    Arsenal have been accused of being over-reliant on set-piece goals this season but on Sunday they played with fluency and flare to rack up their biggest home win of the league season.

    “It was a top game, a top performance and with the fans and the atmosphere it can’t be better, so very happy. In the end, I think we got what we deserved, “Odegaard said

    City, whose six-game unbeaten run in the league had suggested they were returning to form, were generally second-best apart from a lively spell before halftime when Arsenal keeper David Raya was forced into a couple of crucial saves.

    “It is difficult. I think all of us don’t take losing well,” City defender John Stones said. “It is hard to put into words straight after a game like that. How we played in the last 30 minutes was not acceptable.”

    Sloppy City gifted Arsenal the lead when Manuel Akanji was put in trouble by teammate John Stones and was dispossessed before Kai Havertz calmly set up Odegaard to sweep home from close range despite an attempted block by Stones.

    With City at sixes and sevens, Arsenal thought they had made it 2-0 shortly afterwards when Gabriel Martinelli lifted a shot past Stefan Ortega but was adjudged to be offside.

    City were spared further punishment when they again lost the ball playing out from the back and Havertz, with the whole goal to aim at, somehow dragged his shot wide.

    Haaland touched the ball only six times in the first half but came alive in the 55th minute to head in Savinho’s cross.

    For a moment it looked as though Arsenal’s earlier misses might haunt them but 38 seconds after the restart Phil Foden gave the ball away and Thomas Partey’s shot deflected off Stones to leave Ortega with no chance.

    With their tails up, Arsenal looked to rub City’s noses in the dirt and Lewis-Skelly took a pass from Declan Rice before sending a right-footed shot past the diving Ortega.

    Havertz made up for his earlier miss with a clinical finish from Gabriel Martinelli’s pass after a counter-attack.

    The party was already in full swing when substitute Nwaneri left Ortega for dead with a sublime curling finish after a long passing move.

    Arsenal will now try to overturn a 2-0 first-leg deficit in Wednesday’s League Cup semi-final at Newcastle United.

    While City will have to dust themselves down as a seismic Champions League playoff against Real Madrid looms.

  • EPL: Crystal Palace pile on more pain for Man Utd

    EPL: Crystal Palace pile on more pain for Man Utd

    Manchester United suffered their fifth home defeat in six Premier League games as Jean-Philippe Mateta’s second-half double gave Crystal Palace their fourth victory in six seasons at Old Trafford.

    As Marcus Rashford prepares to leave for Aston Villa, United head coach Ruben Amorim chose to leave out £100m-worth of attacking talent in Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee and instead use Kobbie Mainoo as a false nine.

    Despite a bright start, the experiment didn’t work and Palace were looking dangerous before Eberechi Eze, who was supposed to be missing the game due to a foot injury, came on as a substitute and floated an excellent 64th-minute free-kick deep into the penalty area.

    Maxence Lacroix’s header came back off the bar but with Andre Onana at full stretch, the Cameroon international keeper was unable to prevent Mateta turning the bouncing ball into an empty net.

    Mateta took his Premier League tally to 10 for the season – and six in five games – when he tapped home Daniel Munoz’s low cross in the final minute.

    A disappointing day got worse for the hosts as central defender Lisandro Martinez was stretchered off in tears after suffering what appeared to be a serious knee injury following a tangle with Ismaila Sarr.

    The result meant Palace have won three successive Premier League away games for the first time since 2019 and extended their recent impressive recent record away from Selhurst Park. Oliver Glasner’s side have now collected 16 points on their travels since the beginning of December, more than any other top flight side.

    United meanwhile slipped back to 13th place, having still failed to record successive league wins under Amorim.

    United have also now lost seven of their first 13 home league matches this season – their joint-most at this stage of a league campaign and matching a mark set in 1893-94.

    BBC

  • I am gay – Sacked EPL referee, David Coote comes out of the closet

    I am gay – Sacked EPL referee, David Coote comes out of the closet

    A recently sacked English Premier League (EPL) referee, David Coote, has publicly revealed that he’s a homosexual.

    TheNewsGuru recalls that Coote was sacked by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) following an investigation into allegations regarding his behavior. 

    His ban was prompted following a viral video which captured the moment Coote was making derogatory remarks about Liverpool Football Club and their former manager, Jurgen Klopp.

    Also, a photo was published by The Sun, depicting Coote sniffing a white powder through a rolled-up US bank note.

    However,  Coote, in an interview with The Sun, shared that he struggled with feeling proud of his sexuality, fearing the abuse he would receive for being homosexual.

    He revealed that he hid his emotions and sexuality during his career, which led to a “whole course of behaviours” that ultimately contributed to his downfall.

    The 42-year-old former referee said the pressure of his work contributed to the behaviour that led to his sacking.

    He said, “I’m gay and I have struggled with feeling proud of being ‘me’ over a long period of time.

    “I have received deeply unpleasant abuse during my career as a ref and to add my sexuality to that would have been really difficult.

    “My sexuality is not the only reason that led me to be in that position. But I’m not telling an authentic story if I do not say that I am gay, and that I’ve had real struggles dealing with hiding that.

    “I hid my emotions as a young ref and I hid my sexuality as well – a good quality as a referee but a terrible quality as a human being. And that’s led me to a whole course of behaviours.”

    In a statement on Monday, Coote apologised for his behaviour, describing the moment as “one of the most difficult periods of my life”.

    “This has been one of the most difficult periods of my life. I take full responsibility for my actions, which fell way below what was expected of me.,” the statement reads in part.

    “I am truly sorry for any offence caused by my actions and for the negative spotlight it put on the game that I love. I hope people will understand that they were private moments taken during very low times in my life. They do not reflect who I am today or what I think.”

  • EPL: Declan Rice makes plea to Arsenal board

    EPL: Declan Rice makes plea to Arsenal board

    Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice is urging the board to back manager Mikel Arteta in buying a new striker this month.

    After victory at Champions League opponents Dinamo Zagreb, Rice admitted the players are now feeling their lack of options in attack.

    “I think now where we’ve lost Gabi (Gabriel Jesus), he’s probably going to be out for a year with an ACL, that’s really tough,” he said.

    “I’m sure the manager is probably going to look for something, because tonight we’ve had to bring Tierney on left wing, we’ve had to bring Zin (Oleksandr Zinchenko) in on left wing so we’re a bit short up there.

    “I’m not surprised if we are going to do something.”

  • EPL: Chelsea exposed our problems – Wolves boss

    EPL: Chelsea exposed our problems – Wolves boss

    Wolves manager Vitor Pereira had no complaints after their defeat at Chelsea on Monday night.

    Tosin Adarabioyo, Marc Cucurella and Noni Madueke struck the goals for Chelsea, with Matt Doherty scoring for Wolves on halftime.

    Pereira said: “We faced a strong team with players that one against one can create chances. We started the game not in the way that I like. We defended too much in the low block.

    “We concede two goals in set pieces and a goal that we cannot concede. We need to improve tactical maturity.

    “The worst moment of our game is when we are defending in the last third. When we are defending in front of our box, this is a problem for us.”

  • EPL: We’re the worst team in Man Utd history – Amorim

    EPL: We’re the worst team in Man Utd history – Amorim

    Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim would not sugar coat his words this weekend.

    The Portuguese was outspoken in his thoughts on his team after they lost 3-1 at home to Brighton.

    Amorim admitted his team were second best and deserved to lose, even labeling them one of the worst United teams in history.

    He stated: “In 10 Premier League games, we’ve won two. I know that. If it’s (like) this for a fan of Manchester United, imagine what it’s like for me.

    “You are getting a new coach that is losing more than the last coach, I have full knowledge of that. Like I said, I’m not going to change, no matter what, and I know we can succeed.

    “But we need to survive this moment because I’m not naive and I know that we need to survive now. We are being the worst team, maybe, in the history of Manchester United, and I know that you want headlines but I’m saying that because we have to acknowledge that and change that.”

  • Man City back in top four after 6-0 drubbing of Ipswich

    Man City back in top four after 6-0 drubbing of Ipswich

    Manchester City’s Phil Foden scored twice and created another goal in an outstanding first-half display as they hammered Ipswich Town 6-0 at Portman Road on Sunday.

    The comprehensive win moved City to 38 points and into fourth position on goal difference ahead of Newcastle United.

    But they are still 12 points behind leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand, and six behind Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.

    Ipswich, who remain 18th on 16 points, had a couple of good early chances but City shook off the shackles of recent poor performances with a superb display of attacking football, and once they got the first goal, there was no way back for their hosts.

    It came in the 27th minute as Jeremy Doku combined with Kevin De Bruyne, and he in turn worked the ball on for Foden to take a touch before drilling it home to break the deadlock.

    That trio tormented the Ipswich defence as Mateo Kovacic doubled the lead three minutes later.

    Doku was again involved down the left, feeding the ball for Foden to set up Kovacic, and the Croat needed no second invitation to fire into the net from the edge of the box.

    City continued to attack down the left and their perseverance paid off in the 42nd minute as Foden added his second, his shot squirming under the body of Ipswich keeper Christian Walton and across the line.

    There was no let-up after the break as Doku scored four minutes into the second half before setting up Erling Haaland, who signed a lucrative 10-year-contract in midweek, to make it 5-0.

    Substitute James McAtee completed the rout in the 69th minute with a looping header, much to the delight of coach Pep Guardiola, whose side look to be back to something resembling their best form.

  • Late Darwin Nunez goals give Liverpool victory at Brentford

    Late Darwin Nunez goals give Liverpool victory at Brentford

    Substitute Darwin Nunez scored a late double to guide Liverpool to victory at Brentford and extend their lead at the top of the Premier League table to seven points.

    It looked like Liverpool’s wait for a league win in 2025 was going to stretch to three games until Nunez stepped up in stoppage time.

    Nunez grabbed the opener in the 91st minute with a simple finish from close range after meeting a low cross from Trent Alexander-Arnold.

    The Uruguay forward scored again two minutes later, showing patience in a crowded area to round off a counter-attack as Brentford were caught short in defence.

    Despite taking so long to break the deadlock, Liverpool had dominated possession and territory for large periods and were fully deserving of all three points.

    Dominik Szoboszlai saw an effort crash off the top of the crossbar in the first half and Luis Diaz should have made better of an attempt with his head after emerging unmarked at the far post.

    Brentford were happy to sit deep and soak up pressure but struggled to pose any serious threat on the counter, with striker Bryan Mbeumo left isolated.

    Liverpool maintained complete control of the tempo in the latter stages as Brentford dropped ever deeper, but lacked the potency in front of goal which they oozed in the first half of the season until Nunez delivered the decisive blows.

    Victory gives the league leaders further breathing space over second-placed Arsenal, who face Aston Villa, while Brentford stay 11th.

    BBC