Key events
Just spilled coffee all over my keyboard. Thankfully no damage done.
What have you spilled/dropped/messed up this weekend? That’s not just a question for Unai Emery.
Wolves finally look like they’re in some sort of shape, well done Rob Edwards, albeit it’ll be far too late to stay up.
Let’s hear it for Rob Edwards, he’s turned around Wolves amazingly, I thought he was two pence short of a ten pence for going there and leaving Middlesbrough, but maybe I was wrong, and Wolves look a strong outfit now, so I’d suggest the bounce back to the Premier League will be immediately next season.
And what about this chat with the Premier League’s all-time top appearance-maker, Mr James Milner?
It turns out to keep playing as long Milner has, it helps to do yoga, be teetotal and have a direct line to Gareth Barry.
Enjoy this interview with Manchester United’s Senne Lammens over your morning coffee.
When I was growing up my biggest idol was probably Neuer. I take pride in being an all-around goalkeeper and that’s why I was such a big fan because he didn’t really have a weak point. But I try to learn something from everyone because everyone has strong points.
My personal hot take on the Champions League draw is that, despite being drawn against European heavyweights, Newcastle, Chelsea and even Tottenham could all progress to the quarter-finals. Imagine if all six English sides made it? It’s not unfeasible.
PSG have not hit the levels they scaled last season so Chelsea have a chance. Barcelona are good on their day but St James’s Park could be a real cauldron for Newcastle in that home leg, while Spurs are a different prospect entirely in Europe compared to the Premier League.
I look forward to seeing lots of comments below the line agreeing with this very sensible take I have proffered …
Speaking of the Champions League, the draw for the last 16 was made yesterday so our man Jonathan Wilson has sifted through the ties and decided who is going to win each one. So you don’t even need to watch Real Madrid v Manchester City for the 1,836th time.
Bundesliga: There are four 2.30pm (GMT) kick-offs in the German top flight today but the headline acts comes later on in the shape of Der Klassiker. It’s a game that could kill off the title race – if there ever was one – once and for all, given Bayern Munich lead Borussia Dortmund by eight points before kick-off. A home win at Signal Iduna Park, however, could spice things up, though whether Dortmund will be weather-beaten by their Champions League collapse against Atalanta remains to be seen.
Niko Kovac’s side have only lost once in the Bundesliga this season, the 2-1 reverse at Bayern in October. But we’ve all seen this movie before and it usually ends with Harry Kane doing that jump and fist pump celebration thing.
Elsewhere in the football world on Friday night, Watford irked Bristol City, firstly by calling them ‘Bristol’ on X, provoking a spiky response, then via Jeremy Ngakia’s lovely 77th-minute winner at Ashton Gate.
It means Ed Still has won two, drawn one and lost one of his four games in charge of the Hornets, who leapfrogged the Robins in the table, both teams sitting just outside the playoff spots.
In League Two it finished 1-1 between Harrogate and Cheltenham, a result that keeps the Yorkshire side in the bottom two.
I should give Ben Fisher’s report from Molineux a plug, of course. And credit must go to Rob Edwards and Wolves. Would you believe that they’ve only lost four of their past 13 games in all competitions?
Shame about the 12 successive defeats earlier in the campaign.
About last night: It was a tale of two Gomes’s in Wolverhampton last night as Aston Villa’s blip in form became a dip in form, suffering the ignominy of becoming just the second Premier League team to lose to Wolves this season. João Gomes and Rodrigo Gomes were on target in the second half to breeze Wolves past that infamous Derby County points total of 2008. Villa have now firmly been dragged into the battle for Champions League qualification with Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea.
Unai Emery was in phlegmatic mood after the defeat, though.
He said: “In September I was worried and the objective was to stay in the Premier League. In December I was so happy and excited to get the top-five position and achieve the Champions League.
“One month ago I was dreaming about maybe winning the Premier League. Now we are in the average to be in the top five.
“Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United, they are trying to get to us, for them it is a priority to get into the Champions League.”
Preamble
Good morning and welcome to matchday live, The Guardian’s one-stop-shop for all things weekend football buildup. As well as encouraging your emails and comments – get in touch to let us know how you’re following the football this fine February Saturday – we’ll be spinning through all the headlines and previews, as well as fallout from last night’s action.
There are five Premier League games today, starting with Bournemouth v Sunderland at 12.30pm (all times GMT). Those Black Cats fans will be well on their way down the country to the Vitality Stadium by now. Leeds v Manchester City at 5.30pm looks particularly appealing. And there’s a whole host of games in the EFL and further afield with plenty of promotion and relegation permutations as the season (and the weather, maybe?) begins to heat up.
Let’s get stuck into it all, shall we? Grab yourself a coffee and stay tuned.
