Key events
Anyroad up, my stint here is done – join me for a Clockwatch of the 2pm kick-offs in an hour. But until then, I’m passing you back to Tom Bassam; peace out.
The problem Liverpool have now is that they’ve a lot of work to do in the summer market – really they need two centre-backs good enough to start, at least one midfielder, and perhaps a left-back. Then they need to integrate them and find a way of playing that works, because currently, they’re struggling, especially out of possession. Is Slot the man to mastermind all this?
Liverpool have been so smart in the market in recent times, and I guess in buying Alexander Isak and Huge Ekitike, they thought they were sorting their attack for the foreseeable. But doing nothing about a porous midfield and vulnerable back-four – at full-back, they invested in players much better at attacking than defending – was negligent, and the team is now living the consequences of that.
Talking of managers in trouble, is Arne Slot another?
We can’t make like last season’s title was him simply leaving alone Jürgen Klopp’s pro forma – he made tactical tweaks we saw work – but he doesn’t seem to have answers for his current problematic and, with Xabi Alonso out of work, there’s an obvious successor looming.
It is, I think, no great surprise to see Spurs doing better in Europe than domestically: Frank’s game-model is better suited to underdog football. Meantime, they’re just eight points off the relegation zone, a state of affairs that cannot sustain. He may get more time, but if things don’t improve, it won’t be much more.
Seeing as they’ve come up, do we think Frank has a future at Spurs? As a bloke, he has, I think, the minerals to manage a big club, but it’s not clear, at best, whether the way he likes to play suits a team seeking to dominate the ball. It’s fair to say, also, that his squad needs a lot of work, so perhaps it’s harsh to judge him at this point, but it’s rare for a manager to rebound from where he now finds himself in the eyes of the supporters.
You can follow all the moves here:
And here:
So far, the transfer window has been pretty quiet – though the acquisition of Marc Guéhi means that, since the last one, Pep Guardiola has bought an entire team for upwards of £500m – and he’s got a sub keeper. But there are strong rumours Andy Robertson will be leaving Liverpool for Spurs – good luck with that, old mate – and he seemed to linger longer last evening, acknowledging Liverpool’s away support. On the one hand, his experience and drive would be a useful addition to Thomas Frank’s squad; on the other, is a left-back well past his peak really going to purify the toxicity?
It’s already been a big weekend in the WSL with Arsenal’s win over Chelsea pretty much knocking the champions out of this season’s title race. But we’ve four more fixtures coming up this lunchtime, and you can follow them with John Brewin, here:
Also going on, a match between Elina Svitolina and Mirra Andreeva that could be brewing into a classic. Katy Murrells has you covered:
We’ve seen that, domestically teams often double-up on Bukayo Saka, and Arsenal have failed to score in their last two league games. United won’t do that, but they will probably play Patrick Dorgu, a left-back, at left-wing, and he has the engine and speed to get up and down the flank. Perhaps the main criticism of Arteta’s outfit is their lack of top-class attackers – shut down Saka and they can struggle – but nevertheless, it’s hard to look past their midfield power and set-piece prowess as the keys to this contest.
Arsenal meanwhile, are in a terrific position but have slipped up each time they’ve had a chance to build an almost insurmountable lead. Mikel Arteta is, of course, directly responsible for much of the good stuff they do, but I also wonder if dealing with him on a daily is draining – his team seem on the edge of desperation more often than your average title-winner.
Specifically as regards this game, he needs to find a way to control an attack that might actually be better than his own. United’s front three – plus Bruno and Mainoo – are still building connections and automatisms, but they’ve a lot about them, with Cunha and Sesko, both of whom are likely to be on the bench, offering game-changing options should they be necessary. I’d not be surprised to see Rice play a bit deeper than usual because Zubimendi doesn’t necessarily have the pace and power to cover the full width of the pitch, nor to track runners.
This match is a big test for both managers. Michael Carrick, though he won’t admit it, is surely keen on doing well enough to be asked to stay. Last weekend’s derby win was a near-perfect start, but this is a different challenge: Arsenal can match United physically, will ask questions at set-pieces, and look to have the players to dominate midfield. If Carrick – and his coaches – can formulate a plan that negates those second two aspects, they’ll really be talking.
And so to the big game of the weekend…
In particular, I enjoy Michael Kayode, who could mature into one of the best full-backs around, but it’s the collective that is really the star: everyone knows their job and fully commits to it. Forest will have to play and compete really well to get something out of this one.
Back to the Premeer League, how about Brentford then? i can’t lie, I was chatting to a Sunderland fan pre-season, trying to work out how they’d stay up – with ease, as it’s turned out – but aside from Wolves and the two other promoted clubs, we felt his hope lay with the Bees.
Yeah, alright. Keith Andrews was already doing a magnificent job tending to his barnet, and he’s taken the skills that task taught him and applied them to management. Despite losing Mbeumo, Norgaard and Wissa, he’s got his side playing to the same physical standard as they did under Thomas Frank, and to that added some finesse.
It’s so unusual to see so physically imposing a player move with such grace and deftness and, at 20, his game intelligence is an outrage. over the next decade or so, he’s going to be a very serious character in the rolling epic of Football.
Juve have one of my current favourite players – if you’re not totally familiar with Kenan Yildiz and even if you are, get a load of this.
Anyroad up, more on United later, when we preview their visit to Arsenal. But before we go there, we’ve some tasty-looking Serie A fixtures today: at 5pm GMT, Juve, on a tear under new manager Luciano Spalletti, entertain champions Napoli, who really need a win to stay in touch with leaders Inter. Then, at 7.45, Milan, six points off the pace in second, visit Roma, who lie level with Napoli in fourth; it’s going to be a long day.
On the United manager situation, I wouldn’t put the blame of Solskjær’s failure on the Ronaldo signing. The main issue was the players signed, but the decision not to strengthen in midfield was far more of a problem – had the Maguire money been spent on Declan Rice, he’d have lasted longer than he did and perhaps/probably beaten Villarreal in the Europa League final, and the same applies to the Sancho money. And talking of Maguire, he and and Luke Shaw came back after the Euros dropping consistent 2/10s – those were also more of an issue than the Ronaldo return, though it was an error. In mine, of course.
Thanks Tom and morning all. We cans say what we like about the provenance of it – and in fact we’re mandated to – but today’s matches are prettay prettay good.
Daniel Harris will be with you shortly to take over, so I’ll sign off with this from below the line:
Sorry for anyone expecting echos of Keane vs Vieira, Winterburn vs McClair, Rooney vs Sol/fresh air or Henry’s half volley on the spin.
Arsenal are going to make this a turd of a game.
Michael Butler
Soap, wifi, but no football: a room without a view at Blackpool’s stadium hotel
It seems perfectly reasonable that anyone booking a “Superior Room with Pitch View” at the Blackpool Football Club Stadium Hotel, located inside the Bloomfield Road Stadium, would expect a hotel room with a view of the pitch. And that is exactly the case except – bizarrely – when Blackpool are actually playing, with some hotel guests recently scuppered by the smallest of fine print when booking: “Due to the EFL rules and regulations, bedroom curtains have to be kept drawn throughout a match.” Failure to do so could result in a £2,500 fine. Ouch.
Read Michael Butler’s feature in full here:
Martin O’Neill won all of his games as interim manager earlier this season and is yet to lose since coming back to Celtic on 5th January. Aura is too right.
Only as good as the next game – as the saying goes. Its a BIG next game for both Hearts and Celtic today. Also a big next game for Martin O’Neil to see if his mythical aura gets bigger or “the (HIS) bubble bursts”.
Have you played ‘On the ball’ yet?
The rules are simple: guess the Premier League player, past or present, with the fewest clues possible, and impress your pals – and yourself – by doing so.
It’s up to you whether you choose to start with a player’s country, the three clubs they have played for the most, when they made their Premier League debut, their age, the number of Premier League appearances or titles they have to their name, or how many different countries they have been based. The aim is to guess the player with the fewest clues, with points deducted for every clue used up, and to land a score as close to 100 points as possible.
Each day will see a new player to guess. Can you remember who else Mohamed Salah played for? Which midfielder has played for Tottenham, Leicester and Norwich? Go on: test yourself. And your friends.
Get On the ball from the Puzzles tab of the Guardian app.
Jonathan Wilson
Carrick has nailed quick fixes at Manchester United but is he more than new Solskjær?
The problem Manchester United have – after 13 years and seven managers of failure – is that for whatever action they take now, there is a bad precedent. Keep Michael Carrick on, and it’s just another Ole Gunnar Solskjær situation. But replace him and, for almost whoever they appoint – be it a Premier League veteran, foreign maestro, renowned past-his-best winner, Red Bull-adjacent gegenpresser, austere Dutchman or Portuguese ideologue – they have done it before and it hasn’t worked. It’s almost like the biggest problem at the club isn’t the manager.
Carrick’s start was undeniably impressive. There was pace and zip and creativity. The relief of players being released from the 3-4-2-1 was akin to one of those videos of cows being allowed back into the pasture after being kept in a barn over the winter. Who could possibly have predicted that Amad Diallo would excel as a right-sided forward, or that Bruno Fernandes might thrive as a No 10? United didn’t just beat Manchester City 2-0; they hammered them.
A crushing victory in the derby? A display full of attacking flair? Unpicking Pep Guardiola’s tactical schema? Give him the job now! Where do you want your statue, Michael? But Solskjær’s first game after replacing José Mourinho in December 2018, it may be remembered, was a 5-1 demolition of Cardiff. He proceeded to win 13 of the following 16 games, the only defeat coming at home against Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League, a setback that was turned around in the second leg at the Parc des Princes, which turned out to be the high point of his reign.
Read Jonathan Wilson’s latest ‘Inside football’ cloumn in full here:
We’ve had a few Arsenal v United memories come through. Firstly, Conor Delaney via email:
In August ‘99, United and Arsenal clashed at Highbury. United fresh from their treble heroics, playing an Arsenal side that had won the double the previous season. Truly the two forces of English football at the time. Roy Keane scored two goals, cancelling out Freddie Ljungberg’s strike. Keane was in his pomp, and arguably the best midfielder in Europe at the time. The match was high on intensity and quality, with Keane and Vieira exchanging heated physical interactions. This would set the tone for the next few years of Fergie and Wenger going at it, until Mou entered the scene.
Keep them coming via email or in the comments below the line.
The other Premier League fixture kicking off at 2pm is Crystal Palace v Chelsea Did anyone think that Oliver Glasner would still be in charge for this one after his rant last weekend at Sunderland?
It’s a bizarre quirk that all of Liam Rosenior’s first five fixtures in charge of Chelsea have been in London – three at Stamford Bridge and one at the Valley. Even when he watched from the stands before his official appointment he did so at Craven Cottage. Who know what kind of Palace we get today. There was no Europa Conference in midweek but there was another blow this week as striker Jean-Philippe Mateta informed club officials that he wants to be the next cab off the rank at Selhurst Park this month. There is a not unrealistic chance that Palace end January having sold their captain and top scorer. What a mess.
Nottingham Forest have struggled in their first season back in Europe. Their record after playing on Thursday nights is two wins and four defeats. Like Villa, there was little rest for them after a midweek trip to Portugal, they are back on the road, albeit this time only to west London. Brentford were unlucky against Chelsea last week. They can’t miss as many chances again, surely?
I probably should have mentioned this already, but the Premier League’s third best team are in action at 2pm. I am of course talking about Aston Villa, who hit the road to take on Newcastle. Unai Emery’s boys would have only landed back from Istanbul on Friday and then faced another travel day to get to the north east. Yet, Villa have won all of their matches after playing in the Europa League on a Thursday, helped no doubt by a squad now used to the rigours of European competition. In theory, Newcastle should be heavy favourites here. They had an easy 3-0 win over PSV at home in midweek and should be the better rested.
There is also a big game in the Championship today as Portsmouth take on rivals Southampton at Fratton Park. Pompey really need a win to get out of the relegation zone, but do have a game in hand on most of the teams around them. Should they win both of those, Portsmouth would be just a point behind Saints in 15th, which goes to show jusy how tight things are at the foot of the Championship.
Saints have eased away from the drop zone since Tonda Eckert replaced Will Still in the dugout but their only win in their last six matches was against Sheffield United last time out. These two drew 0-0 back in September, will we get a different result today?
I had the fortune to be at Celtic’s visit to Tynecastle earlier this season. The place was bouncing as Hearts won 3-1. A similar result today would go a long way in carrying Hearts challenge on into the latter part of the season. It would give the Jambos a nine-point lead over Celtic and a six point lead over Rangers. Can they do it? Let me know in the comments or via the email link at the top of the page.
Ewan Murray
Pressure firmly on Celtic in Scottish title race finally worthy of the name
It is instructive that Thursday evening’s Europa League clash in Bologna could be regarded by Celtic as an inconvenience. Aberdeen hold the Scottish Cup. St Mirren claimed the League Cup in December. Celtic find themselves involved in a title race worthy of the name. In short, domestic dominance is no longer a guarantee.
Much has been said – and screamed – about the flow of poor decision-making that at least has Celtic’s hitherto immovable position in Scotland under threat. There has also been wild exaggeration in respect of the current crop of Celtic and Rangers players being among the worst in living memory. Celtic finished fourth and adrift of Motherwell in successive seasons from 1993. Rangers rattled around unconvincingly in the lower divisions, including a failed attempt to win promotion from the second tier, after their financial meltdown of 2012. The relative weakness of others in Scotland’s top flight is a reasonable point for debate but Old Firm fans have encountered much, much worse than this.
It is instead worth focusing on the significance of the occasion as Celtic visit Tynecastle Park on Sunday. Tony Bloom promised disruption and tilts at glory when he formalised his involvement with Hearts last summer. In a matter of months, his prescience has been borne out. Hearts, the most consistent and therefore finest team in Scotland so far this season, have spent four of them atop the Premiership.
Pressure is firmly on Celtic to eat into a gap which sits at six points before a ball is kicked in Edinburgh. It would be wrong to suggest Scottish football’s broad audience would relish a Hearts title triumph – followers of Hibernian understandably would not fancy that outcome very much – but even the notion of the league flag flying outside Glasgow for the first time in more than 40 years has turned heads in far-off lands.
Read Ewan Murray’s full preview of the big Scottish Premiership fixture this weekend:
Jamie Jackson
Carrick reveals Solskjær backing for Manchester United role
Michael Carrick has revealed that Ole Gunnar Solskjær has been fully supportive of his appointment as Manchester United’s interim head coach because the Norwegian, who was also interviewed for the role, is a close friend.
The pair were at United together during the 2006-07 season and Carrick was a member of Solskjær’s coaching staff when the Norwegian was first the club’s caretaker manager then a permanent appointment from December 2018 to November 2021.
When Solskjær was sacked Carrick managed United for three games but he departed after Ralf Rangnick took over, stating that loyalty to Solskjær was a factor. Carrick was asked whether he had spoken to his former teammate since beginning his second interim tenure.
Yes, I spoke to him. I’m close, we’ve been through a lot together, so he’s been fully supportive as you’d expect. He’s some man and I respect him an awful lot. He wished us all the best and he was happy that we got the right result against Manchester City.
Jamie Jackson was Michael Carrick’s pre-match press duties, here’s his full piece:
Arsenal and Manchester United’s failure to be good at the same time means this game is some way off the peak of this fixture in the Ferguson-Wenger years, but it’s still evocative. You can guarantee eyeballs whenever these two meet and United’s win over City came at the right moment to suggest that Michael Carrick’s team could pose a threat at Emirates Stadium. It’s amazing what playing in a system which suits the squad will do for confidence.
United have only won once in north London in the 2020s, that coming on penalties in the FA Cup, so simply avoiding defeat will be a positive result for the visitors. To be honest, even an honest attempt to take the game to Arsenal will be well received by the United fanbase.
Do Arsenal need a statement performance here? Probably not, but it would put the lid on some of the anxiety that seems to course through the veins of their home support. A pair of 0-0 draws in their last two fixtures has done little to reassure anyone that Mikel Arteta’s team are ready to seize this title by the scruff of the neck.
Hopefully this one lives up to the promise. What’s your favourite meeting between these two clubs? Let me know via the comments section below the line or the email link at the top of the page.
David Hytner
Talk of Arsenal being champions-elect ‘takes focus to wrong place’, says Arteta
Mikel Arteta says nobody is more driven than him to win the Premier League this season as he promised his Arsenal players would not be distracted by talk of them as champions-elect.
The signs for Arsenal are extremely promising despite the inevitable anxiety among their fanbase, which has been felt during the past two league matches – the 0-0 draws against Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.
Arsenal are seven points clear at the top as they prepare for the visit of Manchester United on Sunday; they have by far the meanest defence in the division and have shown their strength in many other areas, including set pieces.
Pep Guardiola, whose Manchester City are second, described Arsenal as “the best team in the world” on Friday and Arteta has heard the line about how it is their title to lose. Arsenal last won the league in 2003-04.
I don’t think anybody has probably more motivation, more hunger, more desire for us to go all the way and win it [than me]. But we know that the only way to do it is focusing and being very present in the moment and doing everything that we have to do today … then do it better tomorrow. That’s the only thing we can control. The rest is just things that don’t add any value to us and they can take the focus to the wrong place.
It is talking every single day about what we have to do, what we are doing, what we can improve. We know how tough it’s going to be on Sunday and if we start to prepare on Sunday it’s too late. So we already start to prepare after our Champions League win over Inter Milan on Tuesday.
Ben Fisher
Adli scrambles last-gasp winner as Bournemouth take down Liverpool
Where to start with this intoxicating Premier League white-knuckle ride? As second-half stoppage time ticked into a fifth minute, the Bournemouth defender James Hill hurled one last long throw into the box and, after Ryan Gravenberch inadvertently poked the ball against a post in a desperate attempt to clear and with Alisson slipping and sliding on the sodden surface, Amine Adli wellied in a winner from an acute angle with virtually the last kick to condemn Liverpool to defeat.
Fifteen minutes earlier Dominik Szoboszlai cannoned in a stunning free-kick to haul Arne Slot’s side level from two goals down. Where would Liverpool be this season without the Hungary midfielder? Slot clenched both fists and gave his assistant Giovanni van Bronckhorst a high 10, but it was Andoni Iraola, beaming from ear to ear, who departed the pitch high-fiving his staff, only a second win since October secured. “It is probably the best goal to score … 10 seconds before I asked the fourth official [how long was left] and he told me the game would be over after the throw.”
When Hill launched one final missile in from the right flank, almost in line with Liverpool’s 18-yard box, Adli flicked on and then Marcos Senesi made himself a nuisance. Wataru Endo and Gravenberch ended up on the turf, shuffling their feet like pincers to intervene, but could not prevent a first loss since November and one that extended their winless league run to five matches. If results go against Liverpool on Sunday, Slot’s side could finish the weekend as low as eighth.
Ben Fisher was at the Vitality Stadium, here’s his report:
Will Unwin
Frank calls for ‘calm heads’ as Tottenham fans renew calls for his exit
Thomas Frank has called for “calm heads” after Tottenham fans urged the club to dismiss him during their draw at relegation-threatened Burnley. The away end sang “You’re getting sacked in the morning” at full time, making their views clear to the hierarchy and head coach.
Cristian Romero salvaged a late point for Tottenham after Axel Tuanzebe and Lyle Foster had turned things around to counter Micky van de Ven’s opening goal. The draw leaves Tottenham with two wins in 14 and mired in mid-table.
“You can’t say we didn’t do everything to win,” Frank said. “We just need to keep improving. The only way it can be is calm heads, carry on and keep doing what we think is the right thing.
“We do more than enough to win the game, we just need to defend better in two situations. And, of course, score another goal that could make the difference at 1-0.”
Read Will Unwin’s full report from Turf Moor:
It was another bad day for Premier League Managers Under Pressuretm. Thomas Frank endured chants of: “You’re getting sacked in the morning” from the away end at Turf Moor when full time blew on a 2-2 draw with Burnley. While on south coast, Arne Slot’s Liverpool came from 2-0 down make it 2-2 but conceded late on to lose 3-2 at Bournemouth. Slot offered up that a few of his players “ran out of energy” at the Vitality after the midweek effort in Marseille. Do Frank or Slot make it to the end of the season?
Preamble
Morning everyone, welcome to Sunday’s matchday live. We’re in for a big day of football, including a classic Premier League fixture as Arsenal host Manchester United and the latest test of Hearts’ mettle in the Scottish Premiership title race, with Celtic the visitors to Tynecastle. Please get in touch via the email at the top of the page.
