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Uefa has postponed all matches scheduled to take place in Israel over the next two weeks. War has left at least 700 people dead, a staggering toll on a scale the country has not experienced in decades. Israel were set to face Switzerland on Thursday in European Championship qualifying Group I but the match at Tel Aviv’s Bloomfield Stadium will not take place. The nation’s European Under-21 Championship qualifiers against Estonia and Germany on October 12 and 17 respectively have also been postponed. And European football’s governing body has also called a halt to an Under-17 mini-tournament involving Israel, Belgium, Gibraltar and Wales, due to run from Wednesday until October 17. Uefa said: “Uefa will continue to closely monitor the situation and will remain in contact with all teams involved before making decisions on new dates and on potential changes to other upcoming fixtures. “Uefa will take the coming days to assess whether Israel can take part in their Euro 2024 qualifier against Kosovo in Prishtina.” Read More Uefa torn over plans to reinstate Russian youth teams Liverpool-Tottenham replay possible under Uefa rules loophole

A crucial deflection, and maybe a diversion in the fortune of many of those involved in this growing fixture. Arsenal claimed their first Premier League victory over Manchester City since December 2015, and the first points for Mikel Arteta against his old employers. The Gunners came into the match facing the prospect of 13 losses in a row against the champions, but it was instead Arsenal that enjoyed the luck as the numbers finally changed. City themselves have lost two successive league games for the first time since December 2018, after Gabriel Martinelli’s opportunistic effort cannoned off the head of Nathan Ake and past Ederson for a win that may yet prove significant in the burgeoning title race. That shouldn’t just be dismissed as fortune, though, since Arteta’s side forced it. He had quite a telling intervention himself. At a key moment, the Basque introduced Kai Havertz, who offered a moment that may well prove a turning point in his early Arsenal career. It was the midfielder’s presence of mind and spatial awareness that set up Martinelli. It was also precisely the area that Rodri usually patrols, which ensured that these two league defeats in a row also made it three defeats from three without the defensive midfielder commonly seen as the best in the world now. That in turn made City look less than the European and English champions they are. They can admittedly point to other absences, but Arsenal were themselves missing Bukayo Saka to go with lesser depth. This will give the north Londoners much more substance, certainly from a psychological perspective. They won’t feel inferior any more. That could be seen in Declan Rice’s raucous reaction after the match, having put in a superb individual performance. It was more than deserved. City had never really been at it. Erling Haaland again went without scoring. One of City’s most productive periods of attacking was actually in the opening few minutes, only to be shut down by Rice. That was to become a theme. This moment was much more box-office than all the steadier work he did, as the midfielder headed a bouncing Josko Gvardiol strike off the line. It was in this period that City were closest to the Arsenal goal – if not necessarily any closer to a goal than that – as Julian Alvarez had evidently been instructed to hound David Raya for every touch. One quickfire interception was so close that it seemed like it rippled the inside of the net rather than the side. It felt like something that could end up proving influential, as did Michael Oliver’s first big refereeing decision. Rice and Jorginho did an awful lot to steady the general element of chaos about the Arsenal defending and get their side much higher up the pitch, and that evidently frustrated Mateo Kovacic. The Croatian went in wildly with two challenges. If Kovacic was fortunate the first wasn’t given as a red, it was simply remarkable it wasn’t two bookings. That just summed up how something wasn’t quite right about City. They weren’t always the only team like that, too. For a long time, it felt like it could be destined for a 0-0, amid that sense it was a game between the top two that came that bit too early in the season. There was a lot of frantic action but not that much focus or purpose. It was as if there was initially a subconscious awareness there was so much more football to come, lessening the stakes as well as the intensity. Neither of the managers felt like that, mind. They were watching in increasing agitation, looking to affect something. Arteta did so first. Arsenal did admittedly recover from their erratic start to assert themselves but most of their attacks were Gabriel Jesus or Martin Odegaard trying to dribble through. It was really as if Arsenal were missing Saka’s intensity. With a quarter of the match remaining, Alvarez was taken off for Jeremy Doku but City persisted with getting on Raya any time he got on the ball. Arsenal responded by introducing Havertz. It was to prove inspired, in a subtle way, which was a bit like how to describe the onfield product of that change. On 86 minutes, with the game looking like it was going to peter out in a stalemate but with Arsenal still pushing, the German found a bit of space around the area to also find Martinelli. The Brazilian forward took his chance and the shot, to claim the reward. He got some luck, but he had made that luck. It now completely changes Arsenal’s outlook for the season, as well as the very profile of the title race. Just nine days ago, after all, City had a 100 per cent record and looked like they could just roll to a record four titles in a row. They are now back in third, two behind both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur, and one ahead of Liverpool. It is enticingly tight, even if it is still early. Arsenal’s late winner brought that feeling, as well as so much more emotion around the stadium. The significance of this was all too palpable, for the team, as well as so many individuals involved. This time, after that shot, it fell for them. Read More Brighton’s new midfield gem Carlos Baleba stays calm in the chaos of Liverpool draw Gary O’Neil plays down tension after Unai Emery walks away before handshake Substitute Mohammed Kudus earns West Ham a point with late equaliser against Newcastle How did the VAR system fare after a week under the spotlight? Gabriel Martinelli snatches last-gasp victory for Arsenal against Man City Arsenal deal blow to Manchester City, but the significance will only be felt in May

Bukayo Saka will not join up with England for international duty next week, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed. Saka was missing for the Gunners’ 1-0 win over Manchester City after struggling with a hamstring issue during recent matches. The absence of Saka ended his run of appearing in 87 consecutive Premier League games and Arteta says he will now sit out England’s upcoming fixtures with Australia (October 13) and Italy (October 17). “No, he will not make it,” Arteta said. “He has not trained for a single session. He is not available to play football at the moment.” The 22-year-old winger limped off during Arsenal’s loss at Lens on Tuesday, having also been withdrawn in last weekend’s victory at Bournemouth. England manager Gareth Southgate had stated on Thursday he would take no risks with Saka despite the Italy clash being a crucial European Championship qualifier. “I can only go via what Mikel (Arteta) has said about the last few games,” Southgate said earlier this week. “We look after the players as well as any country. There’s always a focus on our players because they are playing their club football, in the main, in England and then we are playing here as well. “Whereas all the other countries call the players that are playing in the Premier League and nobody looks at how they look after them and how they train them. “When we have really good dialogue with all of their clubs, I think they pretty much all would agree that we probably give better feedback than every other nation. “They have trust in us that we make decisions that are right for the long term whenever we can. We only have 10 matches a year. And there’s been times when… Bukayo, for example, we haven’t always played. “But there are certain key games where, if it’s possible to have your best players, then you do want to have them. “So we’ve got that responsibility of qualifying for the country but… I’ve been a player… I’ve never ever taken a risk on a player’s physical wellbeing. And nor would I.” Read More How did the VAR system fare after a week under the spotlight? Gabriel Martinelli snatches last-gasp victory for Arsenal against Man City Jacksonville Jaguars clinch back-to-back London wins by beating Buffalo Bills Louis Rees-Zammit focused on Wales glory over bid to be World Cup top try-scorer Aberdeen held to goalless draw by bottom side St Johnstone at wet Pittodrie Gregor Townsend eager for Scotland’s old heads to prolong international careers

The VAR system was under the spotlight in the Premier League this weekend following the error in last week’s match between Tottenham and Liverpool. New VAR guidelines were introduced in time for the latest round of fixtures after Liverpool forward Luis Diaz’s goal was wrongly disallowed for offside at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Here, the PA news agency looks at how VAR operated at each of this weekend’s top-flight fixtures. Arsenal 1 Manchester City 0 Until Gabriel Martinelli’s late winner, referee Michael Oliver’s decision not to send off City’s Mateo Kovacic in the first half was set to be the biggest talking point at the Emirates Stadium. The VAR, John Brooks, reviewed the City midfielder’s poor challenge on Martin Odegaard, but did not advise Oliver to go to the pitchside monitor and review whether to upgrade his booking to a red card. Kovacic stayed on the pitch and avoided another yellow card shortly afterwards. Brighton 2 Liverpool 2 Brighton’s draw at the Amex Stadium saw the VAR, Craig Pawson, called on to verify a penalty awarded by on-field referee Anthony Taylor at the end of the first half when Pascal Gross hauled down Dominik Szoboszlai by his collar. The video referee upheld the decision, but despite Gross appearing to be the last man, there was no red card shown to the Brighton midfielder. Burnley 1 Chelsea 4 The VAR, Darren Bond, was called on twice in the second half at Turf Moor, first to check whether Vitinho’s foul on Raheem Sterling was inside the box once referee Stuart Atwell had awarded a penalty, and then to check if Sterling was onside in the build-up to scoring Chelsea’s third. Both of the on-field decisions were confirmed without controversy, although Chelsea fans made their feelings known about both delays. Crystal Palace 0 Nottingham Forest 0 It was a quiet afternoon for VAR Michael Salisbury and his assistant Sian Massey-Ellis in this stalemate at Selhurst Park. In a game of few chances in Palace boss Roy Hodgson’s 400th game as a Premier League manager, no VAR checks or interventions were needed. Everton 3 Bournemouth 0 There was a slightly longer check for Everton’s third goal, scored by Abdoulaye Doucoure on the hour-mark, but nothing too delaying or taxing. Five minutes later, there was a baffling check by VAR Simon Hooper, match referee for Liverpool’s defeat at Tottenham last week, for a Bournemouth handball in their own penalty area. But by the time the stadium announcer had revealed the VAR check was taking place, the decision had already been made that no offence had been committed. Fulham 3 Sheffield United 1 It was a routine VAR performance at Craven Cottage. Paul Tierney reviewed a potential offside in the build-up to Fulham defender Antonee Robinson’s second-half own-goal, but deemed a team-mate to have been behind Blades left-back Yasser Larouci when the cross was made. Video footage supported the decision and referee Sam Barrott was able to award the goal. Luton 0 Tottenham 1 The VAR was only called on once, in the 39th minute, at Kenilworth Road when Tom Lockyer headed in from close range for Luton before his effort was immediately ruled out. Referee John Brooks gave a foul for Elijah Adebayo’s push on Tottenham defender Cristian Romero and video replays via VAR showed his decision to have been correct with the review taking minimal time. Manchester United 2 Brentford 1 With United trailing 1-0 in the 89th minute, Anthony Martial flicked on a cross and Kristoffer Ajer inadvertently directed the ball into his own net. Assistant referee Harry Lennard immediately raised his flag and the VAR, Peter Bankes, confirmed Martial had been offside in the build-up, ruling out the equaliser. In the end it mattered little for United as substitute Scott McTominay’s stoppage-time brace sealed a turnaround. Wolves 1 Aston Villa 1 The VAR, David Coote, checked a violent conduct claim against Douglas Luiz when he clashed with Wolves forward Hwang Hee-chan, but the check was completed within a minute with video replays exonerating the Villa midfielder. There were no further VAR incidents at Molineux. West Ham 2 Newcastle 2 Alexander Isak’s first goal for Newcastle was checked by VAR, Andy Madley. The striker looked offside when he stabbed home a loose ball, but video replays showed the ball had come off the head of West Ham’s Edson Alvarez and the goal correctly stood. Read More Gabriel Martinelli snatches last-gasp victory for Arsenal against Man City Jacksonville Jaguars clinch back-to-back London wins by beating Buffalo Bills Louis Rees-Zammit focused on Wales glory over bid to be World Cup top try-scorer Aberdeen held to goalless draw by bottom side St Johnstone at wet Pittodrie Gregor Townsend eager for Scotland’s old heads to prolong international careers Kieran Hardy gets World Cup call as Wales look to boost scrum-half options

Gabriel Martinelli returned with a bang as the Arsenal substitute’s deflected effort sealed a late, long-awaited victory against Premier League champions Manchester City. Last season the Gunners pushed City in the title race, only to eventually fall just short as Pep Guardiola’s side went on to become just the second English team to win the treble. Arsenal’s inability to win a point off City last term proved costly but things are already different this time around, with Martinelli’s deflected strike securing a last-gasp 1-0 win at an elated Emirates Stadium. The substitute’s first-time effort in the 86th minute flew in off Nathan Ake, ending a run of 12 straight league losses in this fixture as they beat City in the Premier League for the first time since 2015. Read More Jacksonville Jaguars clinch back-to-back London wins by beating Buffalo Bills Louis Rees-Zammit focused on Wales glory over bid to be World Cup top try-scorer Aberdeen held to goalless draw by bottom side St Johnstone at wet Pittodrie

Carlos Baleba finished his first Premier League start in tatters. The 19-year-old had given everything to Brighton’s cause, and in the final minutes, he could be seen bent double, gasping for breath, telling his goalkeeper to keep hold of the ball for a few seconds longer, like a man begging for mercy. By this point, he looked a little disheveled, with his socks fallen down and shorts rolled up. His final act was to chop down Liverpool’s galloping Ryan Gravenberch, for which he was rightly booked. And when the whistle blew on this wild 2-2 draw, he dropped to the grass in relief and stretched out the cramp coursing through his legs. Baleba hobbled over to shake the hands of various Liverpool players, most of whom wouldn’t have known anything about this Cameroonian teenager before their team meeting on Friday. But after a performance full of energy, guile, skill, outrageous confidence and physical dominance in midfield – one that sapped his body dry – they do now. Ask people inside Brighton who will be the next diamond in the rough, the player who will be sold for five times their asking price after doing wondrous things on this Amex Stadium pitch, then you might be pointed to Kaoru Mitoma or Evan Ferguson, Mahmoud Dahoud or Joao Pedro. But those really in the know will point to Baleba. That includes the manager, Roberto De Zerbi, who said without hesitation on Baleba’s signing this summer: “He will be the future of the club.” If that sounded like hyperbole, there was enough evidence in this 100-minute sample to suggest the Italian is right, as he has tended to be about most things in his short Brighton career. After a Carabao Cup start and a couple of league appearances off the bench, De Zerbi showed enormous faith in Baleba with this full Premier League debut against Liverpool, and that faith was repaid in spades. This was Baleba’s kind of match, stretched and full of holes, with little fires popping up all over the pitch that needed putting out. As the defensive shield, he rushed to cover off counter-attacks and snuff out threatening direct balls. He stood in front of his back four checking over his shoulder for Mohamed Salah’s movement, and then cut out the through ball when it came. When Lewis Dunk pressed so high up the pitch that he left a void in Brighton’s defence, Baleba instinctively slotted back and filled the space. In possession, he was calm and composed and occasionally he injected little jolts of energy, like early in the first half, in his own half, where he threw in a stepover before charging away from Liverpool’s midfield and setting Brighton’s attacking players away as the crowd urged him on. Or a few minutes after Brighton had scored their first goal, when he dribbled through the centre of the pitch from the halfway line, jinked away from a defender on the edge of Liverpool’s box and hit his shot just wide. Baleba was a source of calm in what was a wild game. The first half could have been the subject of an art installation simply titled: ‘Get rid’. All three goals were the result of kamikaze passing at the back that went disastrously wrong, enough to boil the blood of proper football men everywhere. First, it was Virgil van Dijk plodding a pass to Alexis Mac Allister, which Brighton’s Simon Adingra (like Baleba, the 21-year-old winger was exceptional) stole and quickly swept past an out-of-position Alisson Becker for Brighton’s opener. Liverpool hit back with two goals of their own, first when Dunk misplaced a pass and Salah finished off a flowing counterattack, and then just before the break when Pascal Gross lost the ball in his own box and hauled down Dominik Szoboszlai, and Salah scored from the penalty spot. Brighton went into the break 2-1 up, so it was a compliment to the Baleba-Gross partnership when Jurgen Klopp brought on Ryan Gravenberch at half-time to stabilise Liverpool’s overrun midfield. It worked, and for a period Liverpool took control, but they failed to score a third and Brighton went hunting for an equaliser, which came late through Dunk’s close-range volley. Baleba never stopped, and his defensive nous regularly kept counter-attacks at bay. “I have to congratulate the club on finding two more amazing players, in Adingra and Baleba,” De Zerbi said after the game. “Baleba is very young and I think this club needs the characteristics of Baleba. He is a great replacement for Caicedo. But we can’t forget Ansu Fati, Mahmoud Dahoud, Joao Pedro.” In other words, there is plenty more where that came from. Why give Baleba his first start now? “I gave him the right steps. He played a part of the game with Bournemouth, played 70 minutes in Stamford Bridge [in the League Cup] in a big stadium. I gave him time to understand the new style of play, the timing of when to receive the ball, the right line of passing: our idea. It is not so easy [to learn] because our style, in the defensive phase we can change depending on the opponent, our build-up play can change. “He’s very young, a very good player with incredible potential, and he can be one of the most important midfielders in Europe in the future.” De Zerbi believes. And after this performance, we’re all Balebas now. Read More Brighton v Liverpool LIVE: Premier League result and reaction Liverpool’s new double-act are surprising even Jurgen Klopp Rumours: Brazilian is Liverpool’s January target and City want Haaland renewal No need for a replay as Liverpool return to normality in Europa League Liverpool vs Union Saint-Gilloise LIVE: Latest Europa League updates PGMOL rejects Ben Foster’s claim that refs pressured Sky into VAR cover-up

The fall-out from Uefa’s plans to reinstate Russian underage teams to European competition is causing a huge split within the governing body, putting president Aleksander Ceferin under immense pressure to “revisit” the issue at this week’s Executive Committee meeting. The controversy has already caused the confederation vice-president Karl-Erik Nilsson to resign as boss of the Swedish Sports Confederation and led Denmark to become the latest association to say they will not play Russian sides to go with England, Ireland and Ukraine. The Independent has been told that there is tension within some national associations that didn’t immediately reject the idea out of hand. There is similarly huge dissatisfaction among other federations for the manner in which the issue was raised by Uefa at the last meeting, with Ceferin simply bringing it up under “any other business” – according to one source – with “no prior notice”. There was huge surprise at this, and it has been viewed with the context of Fifa’s decision to do the same. That has caused Uefa to bring it onto the agenda for Tuesday’s ExCo meeting, where it will also be confirmed that Euro 2028 is going to the United Kingdom and Ireland. Various sources have insisted the Russia decision could be amended, such is the strength of feeling around it. Senior national and club teams nevertheless remain banned regardless, as has been the case since February 2022. A statement on 26 September said: “Uefa was the first sports body to react to the war in Ukraine and took decisive action in February 2022 - suspending all Russian teams from its competitions, removing events scheduled in Russia like the Uefa Champions League final in Saint Petersburg and the Uefa Super Cup in Kazan, and cancelling its sponsorship contract with Gazprom. “However, Uefa is also aware that children should not be punished for actions whose responsibility lies exclusively with adults and is firmly convinced that football should never give up sending messages of peace and hope. “It is particularly aggrieving that, due to the enduring conflict, a generation of minors is deprived of its right to compete in international football. For these reasons, the Uefa Executive Committee has decided that Russian teams of minor players will be readmitted to its competitions in the course of this season. In this respect, the Executive Committee has asked the Uefa administration to propose a technical solution that would enable the reinstatement of the Russian U17 teams (both girls and boys) even when draws have already been held. “All matches of the Russian teams shall be played without the country flag, anthem, national playing kit and not on the Russian territory. “At the same time, the Executive Committee reiterated its condemnation of Russia’s illegal war and confirmed that the suspension of all other teams of Russia (clubs and national teams) will remain in force until the end of the conflict in Ukraine.” Read More FIFA set to approve letting Russian youth soccer national teams return to competition UK and Ireland set to host Euro 2028 after Turkey withdraw bid European soccer body UEFA's handling of Russia and Rubiales invites scrutiny on values and process

David Moyes was frustrated by some of the decisions made by referee Peter Bankes in the 2-2 draw with Newcastle. Mohammed Kudus climbed off the bench to score his first Premier League goal a minute from full-time as the Hammers snatched a point. But Moyes was fuming with Bankes for awarding a free-kick for Lucas Paqueta’s challenge on Sandro Tonali which led to Alexander Isak’s first goal. The Hammers boss also felt Bruno Guimaraes could have been shown a second yellow card, having been booked moments earlier, when he tripped James Ward-Prowse. “It might have got away from us a wee bit but I wouldn’t blame them with the referee’s decisions,” said Moyes. “That came from the free-kick that got the first goal back. I think on another day it wouldn’t have been given. “I thought that was pretty harsh on us, as was the decision early on which could have been a second yellow card. I’m not going to say something to get me into trouble. I just think it was a really close call.” Newcastle boss Eddie Howe defended his Brazilian midfielder. He said: “It’s one of those where he’s made two challenges in quick succession which probably makes them look worse than they are. I think it would’ve been incredibly harsh.” Tomas Soucek fired West Ham into the lead after eight minutes but Isak’s quickfire second-half double put Newcastle in control. Isak also hit a post from a tight angle before Ghana winger Kudus lashed in an equaliser from 20 yards. West Ham almost won it when Jarrod Bowen, on the day he signed a new long-term contract, fizzed the ball across goal and wide. “I’m pleased with a point,” added Moyes. “We played well in the first half against a top team, one of the best teams in Europe the way they’ve been playing. “It was tough, they played really well. We had difficult moments but we stuck at it. We could have gone 3-1 down but we could have won it 3-2. The game was very close,” Howe admitted Isak’s late miss after rounding Hammers keeper Alphonse Areola proved costly. “He’s played really well today, he’s gone round the keeper and done everything right, but the angle got too tight in the end. But when you’ve drawn that’s maybe a moment you’d like to replay again. “It was a really tough first half, we weren’t ourselves and probably deserved to be 1-0 down. It was totally different in the second half, we deserved to lead so it’s disappointing not to get over the line.” Read More Aberdeen held to goalless draw by bottom side St Johnstone at wet Pittodrie Gregor Townsend eager for Scotland’s old heads to prolong international careers Gary O’Neil plays down tension after Unai Emery walks away before handshake Kieran Hardy gets World Cup call as Wales look to boost scrum-half options Lewis Dunk’s goal denies Liverpool come-from-behind victory at Brighton Jake Jarman takes vault gold at World Gymnastics Championships

Aberdeen were held to a goalless draw by bottom-of-the-table St Johnstone in a Premiership contest which will not live long in the memory. The Dons were chasing a third straight league win, which would have propelled them into the top half of the standings for the first time this season. But they did not trouble Dimitar Mitov enough to merit maximum points as winless Saints picked up a deserved point at a wet, miserable Pittodrie. Aberdeen made two changes from the side that drew 1-1 with HJK Helsinki in the Europa Conference League on Thursday night, Connor Barron and Jonny Hayes coming in for Leighton Clarkson and Jack MacKenzie. St Johnstone were able to select skipper Liam Gordon after his red card against Livingston last weekend was downgraded to a yellow on appeal. But Gordon and his fellow defenders did not have much to do in an uninspiring first half, which produced next to nothing in the way of chances. Other than a Luis ‘Duk’ Lopes free-kick from distance, which Mitov fumbled before gathering at the second attempt, there was not an effort on target at either end, However, Aberdeen thought they had taken the lead on the stroke of half-time when their former stalwart Andrew Considine headed into his own net when trying to deal with Barron’s cross. But with Duk marginally offside and deemed to be interfering with play, the goal was chalked off following a VAR review – much to the annoyance of the home support. An inventive free-kick almost paid off for the Dons early in the second half as Hayes fed Barron to create a better crossing angle, but his delivery just evaded Richard Jensen. Reds boss Barry Robson made a double switch in the 56th minute in a bid to energise his midfield, with captain Graeme Shinnie and Jamie McGrath making way for Clarkson and Dante Polvara. The visitors were still comfortable, although Luke Robinson nearly put his team in trouble with a stray pass in a dangerous area, which Aberdeen should have made more of. Down the other end, Gordon unleashed a powerful 25-yard shot, which deflected narrowly wide for a corner as Saints sensed they could break their winless duck at the eighth attempt. It was the hosts who looked likeliest, though, as they upped the pressure in the closing stages. Bojan Miovski spurned their best opportunity in the 71st minute when he collected Barron’s pass and cut across the box to work a shooting chance on to his favoured left foot, only to blaze his shot harmlessly over from 12 yards. The North Macedonia international then flashed a stoppage-time header wide from a Hayes free-kick as the match ended in stalemate. Read More Gregor Townsend eager for Scotland’s old heads to prolong international careers David Moyes critical of referee Peter Bankes after draw with Newcastle Gary O’Neil plays down tension after Unai Emery walks away before handshake Kieran Hardy gets World Cup call as Wales look to boost scrum-half options Lewis Dunk’s goal denies Liverpool come-from-behind victory at Brighton Jake Jarman takes vault gold at World Gymnastics Championships

Wolves boss Gary O’Neil defused any tension after Unai Emery left without a handshake. The Aston Villa manager walked down the tunnel after Sunday’s 1-1 draw while O’Neil spoke to the fourth official at full time. Pau Torres had quickly cancelled out Hwang Hee-Chan’s second-half opener as Villa missed the chance to move into the Premier League’s top four. Ollie Watkins hit the post with the last touch of the game after Mario Lemina was dismissed in stoppage time for a second caution. They remain fifth after a scrappy derby at Molineux while Wolves built on their 2-1 victory at Manchester City last week and O’Neil dismissed any issue with Emery. He said: “It was a lot of nothing, I was moaning at the fourth about playing 114 minutes and Unai didn’t want to wait for the handshake so he went to walk down the tunnel. I just said: ‘No problem, go down the tunnel’. “I’ve waited ages for people (managers in the past), I understand that they want to talk with the fourth official. “My conversation with the fourth official was about eight seconds long so he wouldn’t have had to wait very long. But I understand if he doesn’t want to, no problem. I’ve got no problem with Unai at all. “I thought we edged it 11 v 11, apart from the start but a point is fairish I’d suggest. We looked comfortable, there wasn’t a huge gap between the sides. “Eight points is not a bad return, we’re managing to score goals and trying to improve.” Rayan Ait-Nouri steered Wolves’ best first-half chance wide and Jose Sa needed to be alert to divert Watkins’ effort over soon after the break. But Wolves struck first after 53 minutes when Neto’s pace took him past Torres to cross for Hwang to net his sixth goal of the season. The lead lasted just two minutes as Torres netted his first Villa goal when he turned in Watkins’ cross at the far post after Wolves were unable to clear Douglas Luiz’s free kick. With 12 minutes left Neto should have settled the game when Sasa Kalajdzic’s excellent cross found Wolves’ star man only for him to blaze over from 10 yards. Wolves then had to navigate eight of the 12 minutes of stoppage time with 10 men after Lemina was dismissed, earning a second yellow card for a tug on Nicolo Zaniolo. And Villa nearly cashed in with the last touch of the game when Watkins thumped the base of the post. Victory would have lifted Villa into the Champions League spots, after Liverpool’s 2-2 draw at Brighton. “It’s a derby and we felt it on the pitch. There are a lot of supporters with us, they are pushing, it was a great atmosphere,” said Emery, who also called leaving without a handshake ‘nothing’. “We tried to focus on the match. We reacted to the goal very quickly, it was key, and in 11 v 11 we created more chances but they had some very good transitions and chances. “When they had a red card it was the moment where we tried to get the advantage. “We are ambitious and very demanding. The first half we started very well but we lost a bit of control. We weren’t controlling the game and at that moment I was frustrated and upset.” Read More Kieran Hardy gets World Cup call as Wales look to boost scrum-half options Lewis Dunk’s goal denies Liverpool come-from-behind victory at Brighton Jake Jarman takes vault gold at World Gymnastics Championships Stuart McCloskey banishes retirement thoughts to enjoy memorable World Cup debut It’s some turnaround – Leigh Wood relishing late career resurgence Diogo Dalot urges Man United to make Brentford fightback a ‘turning point’

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.

Lewis Dunk’s late equaliser earned Brighton a 2-2 Premier League draw with Liverpool at the Amex Stadium. Winger Simon Adingra took advantage of an error from Alisson in the visitors’ goal to give the Seagulls the lead midway through the first half. But the game turned on its head before the break, Mohamed Salah slotting home to level after being played in by Harvey Elliott, then firing the Reds in front with a penalty after Pascal Gross had hauled down Dominik Szoboszlai. Ryan Gravenberch spurned a golden chance to seal the win when he struck the bar with the goal at his mercy, before the final word went to the home side, Dunk volleying in 12 minutes from the end to keep Brighton sixth. Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi made six changes from the side that drew in Marseille, in keeping with the trend in the early weeks of their debut season in Europe. Yet in the first half they appeared to pick up where they left off in storming back from two down to draw in the Stade Velodrome on Thursday. The Seagulls’ first chance came after only four minutes. Dunk got free at the back post from a corner and nodded back across goal, the ball sitting up at a good height for Joao Pedro, whose shot deflected wide. The opening goal was a calamity of Liverpool’s own making. Alisson played a careless pass to the feet of Alexis Mac Allister, seemingly oblivious to the lurking Adingra. He stole in to nick the ball from the former Brighton player, and with quick thinking took the shot early and rolled it inside the post before goalkeeper Alisson could recover and set himself. Liverpool were shaken and Brighton began to take a hold of the game. Carlos Baleba exposed the visitors’ porous midfield when he collected inside his own half and drove through the heart of Jurgen Klopp’s side, carrying the ball to the edge of the box before checking back and dragging a left foot effort inches wide. Liverpool equalised against the run of play after 39 minutes. Dunk gave the ball away to Szoboszlai near halfway and the Hungarian fed it forward to Darwin Nunez. He moved it on to Luis Diaz, whose ball in to Elliott was perfectly weighted for him to set up Salah to slot home. Salah gave Liverpool the lead from the penalty spot in the 44th minute after Bart Verbruggen playing an awkward pass to Gross that put the midfielder under pressure. He was dispossessed by Szoboszlai and in a desperate attempt to recover the ball he yanked down the Liverpool midfielder, allowing Salah to step up and bag his second from the spot. The hosts almost restored parity in the first few minutes of the second half, Evan Ferguson finding Adingra with a reaching pass into the right channel. Adingra darted beyond Andy Robertson and feinted to shoot, instead cutting back inside and hitting a low effort that was well saved by Alisson. Gravenberch, on as a half-time substitute, wasted a glorious chance to extend the lead when he struck the crossbar with the goal gaping from Szoboszlai’s cross, before the Hungarian turned provider for Diaz who burst into the box and blasted wide. Karou Mitoma thought he had won Brighton a penalty after 69 minutes, cracking a shot at goal from six yards that appeared to ricochet onto the arm of Joel Matip. There was to be no spot-kick and furious De Zerbi was booked for remonstrating with the fourth official. Brighton’s equaliser was no more than their assured performance warranted. Solly March’s whipped free-kick from the left had pace and bend, and as Robertson missed it at the near post it was met first time by Dunk, who thumped home on the volley. Pedro should have won it when he was left unmarked from 10 yards out, instead the striker leaned back and ballooned a glorious chance over as an entertaining game finished level. Read More Wolves cling on to claim point against high-flying Aston Villa Sub Mohammed Kudus earns West Ham a point with late equaliser against Newcastle Jake Jarman takes vault gold at World Gymnastics Championships Stuart McCloskey banishes retirement thoughts to enjoy memorable World Cup debut It’s some turnaround – Leigh Wood relishing late career resurgence Diogo Dalot urges Man United to make Brentford fightback a ‘turning point’