UK police investigate sexual assault report after Russell Brand allegations
London's Metropolitan Police said Monday they were investigating an allegation of sexual assault in 2003, after a joint investigation into the comedian and actor Russell Brand by three British media outlets was published Saturday.
1970-01-01 08:00
Champions League 2023/24: Schedule, groups, fixtures and match dates
Newcastle United face a brutally tough draw on their return to the Champions League after being dropped in group F with Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund and AC Milan. Manchester United are up against Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich in group A along with Turkish champions Galatasaray, and new striker Rasmus Hojlund will also face his old side Copenhagen. Arsenal will play Europa League champions Sevilla as well as PSV Eindhoven and Lens, while holders Manchester City will take on RB Leipzig, Young Boys and Red Star Belgrade. Like Newcastle, Celtic were in pot four and also face a tricky group against Dutch champions Feyenoord, Atletico Madrid and Lazio. The fixtures will begin on Tuesday 19 September and wrap up on Wednesday 13 December. Champions League 2023/24 group stage schedule Matchday 1 19 September AC Milan vs Newcastle (17:45) Young Boys vs Leipzig (17:45) Feyenoord vs Celtic (20:00) Lazio vs Atlético de Madrid (20:00) Paris vs Dortmund (20:00) Man City vs Crvena zvezda (20:00) Barcelona vs Antwerp (20:00) Shakhtar Donetsk vs Porto (20:00) 20 September Galatasaray vs Copenhagen (17:45) Real Madrid vs Union Berlin (17:45) Bayern vs Man United (20:00) Sevilla vs Lens (20:00) Arsenal vs PSV Eindhoven (20:00) Braga vs Napoli (20:00) Benfica vs Salzburg (20:00) Real Sociedad vs Inter (20:00) Matchday 2 3 October Union Berlin vs Braga (17:45) Salzburg vs Real Sociedad (17:45) Man United vs Galatasaray (20:00) Copenhagen vs Bayern (20:00) Lens vs Arsenal (20:00) PSV Eindhoven vs Sevilla (20:00) Napoli vs Real Madrid (20:00) Inter vs Benfica (20:00) 4 October Atlético de Madrid vs Feyenoord (17:45) Antwerp vs Shakhtar Donetsk (17:45) Celtic vs Lazio (20:00) Dortmund vs Milan (20:00) Newcastle vs Paris (20:00) Leipzig vs Man City (20:00) Crvena zvezda vs Young Boys (20:00) Porto vs Barcelona (20:00) Matchday 3 24 October Galatasaray vs Bayern (17:45) Inter vs Salzburg (17:45) Man United vs Copenhagen (20:00) Sevilla vs Arsenal (20:00) Lens vs PSV Eindhoven (20:00) Braga vs Real Madrid (20:00) Union Berlin vs Napoli (20:00) Benfica vs Real Sociedad (20:00) 25 October Feyenoord vs Lazio (17:45) Barcelona vs Shakhtar Donetsk (17:45) Celtic vs Atlético de Madrid (20:00) Paris vs Milan (20:00) Newcastle vs Dortmund (20:00) Leipzig vs Crvena zvezda (20:00) Young Boys vs Man City (20:00) Antwerp vs Porto (20:00) Matchday 4 7 November Dortmund vs Newcastle (17:45) Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona (17:45) Atlético de Madrid vs Celtic (20:00) Lazio vs Feyenoord (20:00) Milan vs Paris (20:00) Man City vs Young Boys (20:00) Crvena zvezda vs Leipzig (20:00) Porto vs Royal Antwerp (20:00) 8 November Napoli vs Union Berlin (17:45) Real Sociedad vs Benfica (17:45) Bayern vs Galatasaray (20:00) Copenhagen vs Man United (20:00) Arsenal vs Sevilla (20:00) PSV Eindhoven vs Lens (20:00) Real Madrid vs Braga (20:00) Salzburg vs Inter (20:00) Matchday 5 28 November Lazio vs Celtic (17:45) Shakhtar Donetsk vs Antwerp (17:45) Feyenoord vs Atlético de Madrid (20:00) Paris vs Newcastle (20:00) Milan vs Dortmund (20:00) Man City vs Leipzig (20:00) Young Boys vs Crvena zvezda (20:00) Barcelona vs Porto (20:00) 29 November Galatasaray vs Man United (17:45) Sevilla vs PSV Eindhoven (17:45) Bayern vs Copenhagen (20:00) Arsenal vs Lens (20:00) Real Madrid vs Napoli (20:00) Braga vs Union Berlin (20:00): Benfica vs Inter (20:00) Real Sociedad vs Salzburg (20:00) Matchday 6 12 December Lens vs Sevilla (17:45) PSV Eindhoven vs Arsenal (17:45) Man United vs Bayern (20:00) Copenhagen vs Galatasaray (20:00) Napoli vs Braga (20:00) Union Berlin vs Real Madrid (20:00) Inter vs Real Sociedad (20:00) Salzburg vs Benfica (20:00) 13 December Leipzig vs Young Boys (17:45) Crvena zvezda vs Man City (17:45) Atlético de Madrid vs Lazio (20:00) Celtic vs Feyenoord (20:00) Dortmund vs Paris (20:00) Newcastle vs Milan (20:00) Porto vs Shakhtar Donetsk (20:00) Antwerp vs Barcelona (20:00) When is the Champions League final? The final will take place at London’s Wembley Stadium on 1 June 2024. Read More Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino understands Thiago Silva’s frustration Kyle Walker says Man City ‘start at the bottom of the mountain’ this season AC Milan’s Fikayo Tomori relishing clash with former team-mate Sandro Tonali Pep Guardiola challenges Man City to win back-to-back Champions League titles Aaron Wan-Bissaka injury adds to Manchester United’s list of problems Manchester United are a mess — and it could be about to get even worse
1970-01-01 08:00
Mohamed Salah, Sven Botman and 5 players to target for FPL Gameweek 6
Fantasy Premier League managers get one free transfer a week to make and with the competition in full flow some players may have saved up for two free switches to their teams while others will be considering a four-point hit or more to maximise their chances of success. With prices and form fluctuating on a daily basis over these opening weeks to the season here are five players who we think are worthwhile considering as the Premier League heads into the new gameweek, judging by upcoming fixtures and individual player form. Mohamed Salah, Liverpool - Midfielder (12.5) Possibly the most consistent midfielder in the Fantasy Premier League though still going under the radar. Liverpool’s Mo Salah has scored points in every gameweek so far with his best return (10) coming in the recent victory over Wolves. He’s sliding under the radar due to the lack of goals scored (for his own ridiculous standards) with just two in five games but it is the assists where Salah is cleaning up. He’s got four already this year and looks to be settling into a new role as a supplier for the rest of the forward line. At £12.5m he’s a pricey option but will almost guarantee points and could be a fine choice of captain if you want to move away from Erling Haaland. Odsonne Edouard, Crystal Palace - Forward (5.5) Speaking of, do you need someone to partner Haaland up top that isn’t too costly? Odsonne Edouard is that man. The Crystal Palace forward is coming up trumps this season thanks to more regular gametime for Eagles. In FPL terms he’s only blanked on two occasions and has four goals in five matches. Palace have only failed to score in one of their games (against Arsenal) and will be targeting Fulham, Manchester United and Nottingham Forest and upcoming fixtures they can win. If they do so Edouard will no doubt play a big role and put a couple in the back of the net. Sven Botman, Newcastle - Defender (4.5) The Newcastle centre-back is a slight risk as you are banking on the Magpies to keep clean sheets in order to profit from his skills. He’s a threat in the air from set pieces but doesn’t score many goals and any he does net should be seen as bonuses. It must be noted that Eddie Howe’s team have been poor in defence, shipping seven goals in five games and keeping just one cleansheet. However, their performance against Bournemouth at the weekend was encouraging and it is likely they will earn repeat shutouts against Sheffield United and Burnley over the next two weeks. A relatively cheap option for a defender, Botman may be worth selecting for short term gain. Pedro Neto, Wolves - Midfielder (5.5) A bargain option in midfield, Neto is a pick you make to try and maximise your differentials. He is in form returning 22 points from matches against Everton, Crystal Palace and Liverpool despite Wolves losing two of those games. A quick winger who loves taking players on, whipping in crosses and pinging shots at goal Neto has the basis covered for the goals and assists required from a midfield choice. Wolves should dominate against Luton next up before a clash with Manchester City should play into Neto’s counter-attacking strengths. Robert Sanchez, Chelsea - Goalkeeper (4.5) Chelsea’s results have been eye-catching for all the wrong reasons this year but their main problems have come in the forward line and, for the most part, they’ve been defensively solid across their five matches with the exception being a 3-1 loss to West Ham. Robert Sanchez is Mauricio Pochettino’s No. 1 pick, is guaranteed gametime and recently earned a 10 point with a cleansheet and three bonus points against Bournemouth. The Blues’ next three fixtures are all favourable with Aston Villa, Fulham and Burnley to come so Sanchez could be a canny choice if you’re looking to replace you goalkeeper. Read More Fantasy Premier League: 30 players you must consider for 2023/24 season James Maddison, Julian Alvarez and 5 players to target for FPL Gameweek 5 James Ward-Prowse, Raheem Sterling and 5 players to buy ahead of FPL Gameweek 4 Football rumours: Joao Palhinha in the sights of Bayern Munich for January swoop Messi favourite for men’s Ballon d’Or with four Lionesses on women’s list Football rumours: Al-Ittihad set to make record £215m bid for Mohamed Salah
1970-01-01 08:00
From ‘unpromotable’ to the Champions League: Union Berlin fairytale is perfect antidote to modern football
“Ja so eisern wie Granit, so wie einst Real Madrid und so zogen wir in die Bundesliga ein und wir werden auch mal deutscher Meister sein (Irgendwann).” “Yeah, so iron, like granite, just like Real Madrid, so we’ll move into the Bundesliga, and we’ll also become German champions.” They could sing that at Union Berlin, safe in the knowledge they would never actually play Real Madrid. It was a fanciful chant, from a different footballing universe. In 2005-06, when Sergio Ramos was making his Real debut, Union were playing in the Oberliga-Nord, a regional league of clubs in the old East Germany. Less than two decades later, Union’s players and staff and their families gathered to watch the Champions League draw. Eventually, there were two possible pools for them: B and C. They were placed in the latter. And then it became clear: they would meet Real as peers. “Surreal and overwhelming,” said Christian Arbeit, the matchday announcer at Union’s Alte Forsterei ground and a lifelong fan. “For the very first time we are playing the biggest competition in club football and meet the biggest club in the world and it is the very first game.” For Union, life as a Champions League club starts at the Bernabeu. It caps the rise of Union, the underdog club from East Berlin. They haven’t become German champions yet, though they led the table after two games of this campaign and finished fourth last season. They have gatecrashed the European elite with an old-fashioned formula, an almost defiant anti-commercialism that has given them an authenticity that, paradoxically, some corporations find attractive and with a ground that was rebuilt by the fans. Arbeit is one of them, a supporter for almost four decades who took a few days’ leave from his job at a cinema company. “I knew I could never come back if I wouldn’t have helped,” he recalled. Without Arbeit, without the 2,333 supporters who provided 140,000 hours of voluntary work in 2008 and 2009, it is safe to say Union would not have reached the Bundesliga, let alone the Champions League. There was nothing inevitable about this, about the organic, improbable surge of the people’s club from the DDR. The people saved Union when the city of Berlin and the district of Kopenick, each having done nothing to maintain the Alte Forsterei, handed it over to the club, but at a point when the German Football Federation denied it a licence to host matches; unless it was refurbished, anyway. “A very heartwarming 13 months of a building site,” Arbeit remembered. “There was around about 100 people each day – you couldn’t employ more – and 80 of them had never built something before. They were like me – cinema people, teachers, sales people – and you had 20 guys, proper building people, and they had to guide us through this building site. It is kind of a miracle. We have told this story a million times but still when I do talk about it, it gives me goosebumps because it is such a crazy story.” The miracle had its roots in a different country and a different time. Union were not the dominant club in the East German capital; that mantle resided with Dynamo, who were in a run of 10 consecutive titles when a 12-year-old Arbeit first went to a game in 1986 with his father, an engineer who tended to spend his spare time playing the trombone in a Dixieland jazz band. “Until that day I was not interested in football and we came to the stadium and it was a strange world I had never experienced before,” Arbeit said. “There were grown-up men singing and chanting and shouting and swearing and using words I was not allowed to use at home so it was a huge impression of a strange way of freedom.” That freedom brought a contrast with Dynamo Berlin, the club of the notorious Stasi chief Erich Mielke and who benefitted from his patronage. “You don’t go to the secret police unless you have to,” Arbeit rationalised. And so Union attracted a different crowd. “It was more what we nowadays would call alternative culture: the young guys with longer hair, with parka jackets. The club was not an opposition club or a rebel movement because that would not have been possible. But I remember when my classmates noticed I go to Union. It was: ‘They are so-called rowdies and hooligans.’ They were considered a wild bunch, the Union fans. But I experienced them mostly like they are today, very engaged in supporting the team. In funny ways, of course.” Relegation was an occupational hazard for Union back then. German reunification brought other problems. “We played in the third division and it was very regional, it was more or less a Berlin-based league,” Arbeit said. “You had to play on Sunday at 11 in the morning in the drizzling rain and it was about 700 people turning up; it was really depressing. The people had so many more existential problems: How can I find a job? How can I feed my children?” And Union disappeared off the radar of many people, re-emerging with a first indication of their 21st-century propensity to upset more fancied teams. They had spent the 1990s acquiring the nickname of Unpromotables as, stuck in the third division, they found a range of ways not to go up. They were “Unaufstiegbar”. Twice even winning their league was not enough; financial issues meant they were not granted the licence needed to play in a higher division. And then, in 2001, they got promoted and reached the German Cup final, knocking out Borussia Monchengladbach and Bochum on their way. “It was like, wow, how did we do that?” Arbeit recalled. “After many years of being ignored, everyone noticed us.” The route to the Bernabeu nonetheless involved going backwards. Union were relegated twice in four years after the German Cup final. Short of funds, they needed the unpaid labour of their supporters to ensure they could keeping playing at the Alte Forsterei. But it helped they had a loyal fanbase: their status as outsiders may have benefited them whereas Dynamo, the former secret-police club, are now found in the Regionalliga-Nordost. Along the way, Union have acquired different rivals within the same city. They went up to the Bundesliga in 2019, a year after the appointment of the catalytic manager Urs Fischer. And then Hertha BSC got in touch. “I remember when we first got promoted to the Bundesliga, even in the congratulations was included, ‘congratulations, Union, we are happy and we are looking forward to six points,’” said Arbeit. Last season, as Hertha propped up the Bundesliga, Union took six points at their neighbours’ expense. There was long the sense that Berlin, one of Europe’s great capitals, ought to have a Champions League club. Hertha thought it should be them. No one thought it would be Union. The investor Lars Windhorst put €374m into Hertha and got just €15m back. Hertha spent more than €100m on signings in 2019-20, a season of four managers and a bottom-half finish. The most expensive of those buys, Lucas Tousart, joined Union for a cut-price fee this summer. “They manoeuvred themselves into financial and organisational instability,” Arbeit said. “We had not that much money but we had a very stable organisation.” Hertha’s grandiose dreams extended to Union territory. Dirk Zingler, Union’s president since 2004 and another lifelong fan, has described them as an East Berlin club; in a city that was divided for almost three decades, the distinction matters. “We would never go out with the approach to say we are the one club for Berlin,” Arbeit said. “The funny thing is Hertha did that for a very long time. They tried a lot of public campaigns to say that: ‘one city, one club, we are the club for the whole city’.” Instead, Hertha’s members are largely in the west, Union’s generally in the east. Now Champions League football will come to Hertha: or their ground, anyway. When Union first qualified for Europe, Uefa did not allow them to play their 2021-22 Conference League games at the Alte Forsterei. Now they had a choice: a ground with a capacity of 22,000, with fewer than 4,000 seats, but a home of symbolic importance, or a massive venue. Real Madrid, Napoli and Braga will go to West Berlin, to the Olympiastadion. So will thousands of fans, with cheap tickets. “The Champions League is for all Unioners,” said Zingler at the time. “It was one of the most difficult decisions we had to make,” said Arbeit. “We always say it is the people we are doing it for. It is something extraordinary, it is possible it is the only time in our history we reach that competition and that is why we decided to show it to as many people as possible. Still we are a bit sad.” Even Union have to compromise sometimes. But not often. Their matchday is a different experience. “We want to keep the dignity of the football match itself,” Arbeit said. “We don’t want any advertising Zeppelins flying around at the half-time break and no kiss-cam and no T-shirt gun. We don’t make any noise or any announcements in a commercial way and just a little bit, this is already something special in German football. We don’t do a half-time show with sponsored games or quiz shows. You can’t win some products. You have no entertainment before the game. “The people come here and meet their friends and they can have their beer and sausage. Just 20 minutes before kick-off, I just come on the pitch and say hello and introduce the guest team and then our team.” Union nevertheless have a corporate shirt sponsor, Paramount, and JD Sports on their sleeves, but on their own terms. “We develop in sponsorship terms from regional and local companies to international,” Arbeit said. If Union may be Germany’s least commercial club, their opposites are the other East German representatives in the Champions League: RB Leipzig, propelled by the Red Bull group. “From the view of our fans, it was about establishing a monumental marketing piece in football for a product which is Red Bull,” Arbeit said. “We are the last protesting audience: whenever we play against Leipzig our fans spend the first 15 minutes in silence.” If Leipzig – parachuted into a city with two established clubs, Chemie and Lokomotive – are the break from the past and Union a link with it, that still did not bring Ostalgie, the nostalgia for East Germany; DDR flags have been seen at other grounds behind the old Iron Curtain, but not Union’s. But they were born in the DDR. About three-quarters of off-field staff are supporters, some converts after they start working for the club. For most, it is not a stepping stone. A community club nevertheless display their ambition. As a newly-promoted club, they signed the former double Bundesliga winners Neven Subotic and Christian Gentner. A year later, Max Kruse, once the enfant terrible of German football, joined: he ended his first season with an injury-time goal on the final day to take Union into Europe. “Since then, everyone in our surroundings believes we can sign whoever we want. We are not afraid of calling someone up and asking,” Arbeit said. That policy reaped a reward this summer. Enter Robin Gosens, whose final contribution in an Internazionale shirt was to almost equalise in last year’s Champions League final, and, most remarkably, Leonardo Bonucci. The Euro 2020 winner and Italy captain left Juventus to play Champions League football with Union, a sentence that would long have sounded ludicrous. “He was perfectly prepared,” Arbeit explained. “When we had talks with him, he knew almost everything about our club; that was for us kind of a surprise because we didn’t expect this guy to know we have three sides of standing terraces. That meant to us that this person might perfectly fit because he could have gone to America or Saudi Arabia to take the next 20 million or anything but it looked like that he wanted for himself something special as well. When I was a boy, I always thought, why don’t players in the late years of their career, when they made their money already, why don’t they do something nice? And now I experienced that.” Union’s unique sales pitch is to offer less money. After all, they have no billionaire backer, a small stadium, low ticket prices and eschew some commercial deals. They have got players to buy into them, into the dream. Their wage bill last season, before bonuses for Champions League qualification, was in the bottom half of the Bundesliga’s, perhaps the bottom third. The chances are that striker Kevin Behrens can afford a car but, after he scored an opening-day hat-trick against Mainz this season, he was spotted cycling home. Only at Union, perhaps. But then the Unpromotables have done it their way as they have kept on going up and up. Union are the antidote to the worst excesses of 21st-century football. And for the fans who gravitated towards them 40 or 50 years ago, the long-haired and the parka-jacketed who sought some freedom and some wildness in communist East Germany, they don’t need to sing about playing Real Madrid anymore. It’s really happening. Read More Harry Kane is Bundesliga’s greatest weapon in battle for eyeballs Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti hails ‘consistent’ Jude Bellingham Jude Bellingham’s captaincy credentials are in evidence with England on and off the pitch Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti hails ‘consistent’ Jude Bellingham Mohamed Salah, Sven Botman and 5 players to target for FPL Gameweek 6 Big-spending Chelsea rarely threaten in drab goalless draw at Bournemouth
1970-01-01 08:00
Rugby World Cup: Fiji win v Australia ‘worst result’ for Wales
The surprise result raises the stakes for Wales' upcoming clash with the Wallabies, fans say.
1970-01-01 08:00
UK Rents Surge at Record Pace as Home Sellers Lift Asking Prices
Britain’s property market has shattered another record with rental costs growing at the fastest pace in at least
1970-01-01 08:00
Arsenal end Goodison curse thanks to Mikel Arteta’s bargain buy
One of the stranger jinxes in English football may be over. Arsenal had lost on their previous three trips to Goodison Park, twice to horribly out-of-form Everton teams. Maybe logic intervened on Mikel Arteta’s fourth visit back to his former club. Or perhaps Leandro Trossard did, the substitute’s wonderfully precise finish giving Arsenal a fourth victory in five league games this season. There was a sense Arsenal avenged February’s 1-0 defeat in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge of Everton, not merely reversing the scoreline but showing their skill to take the same method – a set-piece – to find a very different way of deciding a match. Not a thumping James Tarkowski header from a corner, but a well-worked routine that culminated in Martin Odegaard slipping in Bukayo Saka, whose cutback brought a deft finish from Trossard, angled in off the far post. If some of Arteta’s recruitment in 2023 has a contentious feel, Trossard is the sort of signing who can simply be celebrated: a £20m bargain, a creative force last season who has two goals already in this, a player whose versatility makes him an ideal substitute but who has the quality to be decisive. When Gabriel Martinelli went off injured in the first half, Arteta summoned Trossard rather than the benched Kai Havertz; his decision was richly rewarded. Another of his transfer-market gambits mattered less: while David Raya may depose Aaron Ramsdale more frequently, the goalkeeper’s debut was an inconclusive affair. Everton scarcely tested the on-loan Spaniard. If the game’s best saves, one before the goal and one after, came at Odegaard’s expense, with Pickford parrying two fine efforts, they reflected the growing influence of the captain after the break. And that, in turn, was a sign of his stature. As Arsenal demonstrated more urgency, much of the excellence came from the Norwegian. It is a recurring theme: many a time in Arteta’s reign, victory has stemmed from flair players – often Odegaard or Saka – showing their substance. As the game opened up, Odegaard seized the initiative. Which was welcome. A first half of dismal drabness brought back unwanted memories of a stalemate in December 2019 in Arsenal’s last game before Arteta and Carlo Ancelotti took charge of the respective clubs; Everton are on their fourth supposedly permanent manager of the Spaniard’s time in north London and, should 777 Partners complete a takeover, a second owner as well. Whether that entails visiting English football’s second tier remains to be seen. Everton’s start has produced a solitary point in five games. They have had three matches at Goodison Park and lost all without scoring. A relegation six-pointer beckons when Luton visit later this month. Their gameplan was to defend diligently in a narrow block and they were largely untroubled before the break. The one exception came when Martinelli latched on to Fabio Vieira’s perceptive pass and placed a shot past Pickford. A VAR check later and Eddie Nketiah was spotted offside in the build-up; it meant Martinelli’s wait for a first goal of the season continues, with injury bringing his departure soon after and perhaps extending his drought further. The 22-year-old headed straight down the tunnel before reappearing on the bench shortly afterwards, and there was concern in the voice of the Gunners boss afterwards when he told Sky Sports: “He [Martinelli] felt something, he felt it in his hammy [hamstring] so he will need to be assessed.” For Nketiah, meanwhile, it summed up an ineffectual display. If Arteta got other decisions right, perhaps he should have preferred Gabriel Jesus, a regular tormentor of Everton in his Manchester City days. His choice of Raya was both instructive and irrelevant; Ramsdale, in the PFA Team of the Year for last season, watched on. His new rival had a lone shot on target to field, a tame effort from Idrissa Gueye from long range. He held it. Everton were passive before conceding. They failed to launch an onslaught after going behind, in part because they just saw too little of the ball. They have no passer of the calibre of Arteta himself when he graced their midfield for six seasons. They eschewed possession at times, having just 22 per cent of the ball before the break. That figure rose to a meagre 25 per cent by the end. Throwing on centre-forwards, in Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Youssef Chermiti, made little difference when Arsenal controlled the game and, for Everton, other numbers make for miserable reading. They have failed to score in four of five league matches this season and failed to keep a clean sheet in any of them. These two clubs are on the longest unbroken stretches of top-flight football but there is no guarantee they will meet again after this season. Not after a limp display by Everton. It became a question of whether Arsenal had the wherewithal to break them down. Thanks to Trossard and Odegaard they did and the Goodison curse was lifted. Read More Mikel Arteta claims Gabriel Jesus ‘changed Arsenal’s world’ when he joined the club Everton sale to American firm agreed Everton savour Sean Dyche effect to stun Premier League leaders Arsenal Mauricio Pochettino shares Chelsea fans’ frustrations after goalless stalemate Everton v Arsenal LIVE: Latest Premier League updates Erik ten Hag wants to see ‘how strong’ Manchester United are after Brighton loss
1970-01-01 08:00
Is Everton vs Arsenal on TV today? Kick-off time, channel and how to watch Premier League fixture
Arsenal look to maintain their unbeaten start to the Premier League as they travel to take on struggling Everton on Sunday. Mikel Arteta’s side snatched a late victory over Manchester United before the international break to make it ten points from a possible twelve in their opening four games as they look to keep pace with Manchester City at the top of the table. LIVE! Follow Arsenal vs Everton with our live blog Sean Dyche’s side, meanwhile, picked up their opening points of the season prior to the international break with a 2-2 away draw against Sheffield United. The Merseyside club won this fixture 1-0 last season in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge and will be hoping for a repeat performance to kickstart their league campaign. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the game; get all the latest football betting sites offers here. When is Everton vs Arsenal? The match kicks off at 16:30pm BST on Sunday 17 September at Goodison Park. Where can I watch it? Everton vs Arsenal will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League. It will be streamed live on the Sky Go app and desktop website for subscribers. What is the team news? Everton continue to grapple with a host of injuries to key players with Dele Ali and Seamus Coleman long-term absentees. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Jarrad Branthwaite, Jack Harrison and Andre Gomes could all make a return to the starting XI following their various injuries, while James Tarkowski is expected to recover from a facial injury sustained against Sheffield United. Arsenal, by contrast, have few injury concerns. Summer-signing Jurien Timber is set for a long spell on the sidelines, while Sunday’s game may well come too soon for Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny who are recovering from groin and knee injuries respectively. Predicted lineups Everton - Pickford, Patterson, Tarkowski, Godfrey, Young, Onana, Gueye, Garner, Doucoure, Danjuma, Beto. Arsenal - Ramsdale, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko, Odegaard, Rice, Havertz, Saka, Jesus, Martinelli. Odds Everton: 21/4 Draw: 7/2 Arsenal: 1/2 Prediction Arsenal should prove to have too much quality for an Everton side that is yet to click into gear this season. Everton 1-3 Arsenal If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch the event, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help and includes deals on VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are and also with the terms of their service provider. We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent. Read More Everton v Arsenal LIVE: Latest Premier League updates Erik ten Hag wants to see ‘how strong’ Manchester United are after Brighton loss Mikel Arteta claims Gabriel Jesus ‘changed Arsenal’s world’ when he joined the club Gabriel Jesus ‘changed Arsenal’s world last season’, says Mikel Arteta Erik ten Hag unsure whether Jadon Sancho will play for Manchester United again Mikel Arteta keen to end Arsenal’s Everton hoodoo despite ’emotional connection’
1970-01-01 08:00
Rugby World Cup: Honeymoon at tournament for Welsh-English couple
Welsh woman Clare Ervin and English husband Paddy had their first date watching the Six Nations.
1970-01-01 08:00
World Adapts to Fed’s Rate Order in 36-Hour Sequence
A 36-hour rush of global monetary decisions may set the tone for the rest of the year as
1970-01-01 08:00
Rugby-Gatland lauds improvement of second-tier teams
By Nick Said NICE, France Coach Warren Gatland was given a scare but was relieved to get an
1970-01-01 08:00
Shambolic Manchester United endure crowd dissent after humbling defeat to Brighton
In a sense, Erik ten Hag is back to where he began at Old Trafford with a loss to Brighton. In others, it is far worse than that. On and off the pitch, the problems are multiplying for Manchester United. A troubled start to the season has already encompassed three defeats and, with Bayern Munich next and the prospect of a fourth, it threatens to become a terrible one. A disastrous result was accompanied by dissent in the stands. Ten Hag had carried the Old Trafford crowd with him when he won his power struggle with Cristiano Ronaldo. But when he substituted his new £72m forward Rasmus Hojlund for Anthony Martial, the decision was met with whistles and boos. It was a rare public rebuke of a manager who has been popular but United have faced three probable top-half sides this season and lost to them all. On this evidence, Brighton look likelier to get a top-four finish. Given the ease with which Roberto De Zerbi’s wonderfully incisive Albion eviscerated United, it was hard to argue that the absence of Jadon Sancho, last spotted watching the Under-18s as he is punished by Ten Hag, was the reason for defeat; nor that of Antony, the Dutchman’s costliest signing who is on a leave of absence while he addresses serious allegations of assault by three women. But for a manager who had talked on Friday of setting standards, those on the field of play have been too low in an increasingly shambolic beginning to the campaign. Ten Hag had also lost his first game in charge to Albion. But, 13 months on, with £400m spent in his reign, with an initial 11 who arrived for £347m, defeat to a patched-up Brighton side whose starting 11 cost a mere £20m was more damning. For all United’s trials and tribulations, their injuries and absences, this ought to have been a fine time to face Brighton. For various reasons, none of Evan Ferguson, Solly March, Joao Pedro, Billy Gilmour or Pervis Estupinan began at Old Trafford. Instead, Simon Adingra marked his first Premier League start with one assist, Tariq Lamptey his first in six months – and when playing out of position on the left – with two. There was a certain predictability to two of their scorers: Danny Welbeck, sold by Louis van Gaal, has found the net against United under their last four permanent managers and Pascal Gross, whose seventh goal against them continued his status as their unlikely scourge. Pedro came off the bench to add the third, completing another act of catalytic brilliance by De Zerbi. United, though, had another day when plans backfired. Lacking a right winger, Ten Hag switched to a midfield diamond, using Hojlund and Marcus Rashford as wide strikers. The Mancunian was dynamic, bringing everything but the goal, but the narrow shape left United’s full-backs exposed. Brighton, brimming with counter-attacking menace, created all three goals on the flanks. For the first, the debutant Sergio Reguilon, an emergency signing on deadline day, was found wanting. For the other two, Diogo Dalot was afforded too little protection. The centre-backs were fooled by dummies for goals, Victor Lindelof for the first, the similarly out-of-form Lisandro Martinez for the second. United ended up playing with Lindelof as a lone central defender and required an injury-time save from Andre Onana to stop Ansu Fati from adding a fourth Albion goal. It was still Ten Hag’s heaviest home defeat. His more chastening days had tended to come on the road while United went 20 league games unbeaten at Old Trafford. Now, home and away, Brighton have four consecutive league wins against United; virtually every Albion supporter can recall a time when that would have sounded inconceivable. Not now. They were deserving winners and showed the clinical touch United lacked. First Welbeck completed a one-two of sorts with Adingra, releasing the winger and meeting his cutback with a neat finish. The other crucial contribution came from Adam Lallana, who dummied Adingra’s cross. On his first start since January, the veteran’s footballing intelligence was apparent. On the first start of his Premier League career, the youngster had an assist. Then Gross had latched on to Lamptey’s pass and fooled Martinez before beating Onana. Pedro found the top corner after another Lamptey pass. United’s response came from a rookie. Hannibal Mejbri, brought on with Martial, rifled in United’s only goal from 20 yards. Another should escape the harshest of the criticism. Rashford was electric, if unable to apply the final touch. He had one shot saved by Jason Steele, another deflected onto the bar by the sliding Joel Veltman. A third flew just wide, a fourth was rifled into the side netting. Hojlund celebrated a first United goal, prodded in from Rashford’s low cutback, until VAR ruled the ball was out of play before the Mancunian crossed. If it was the first decision involving Hojlund, who showed a couple of promising touches, to irritate the majority at Old Trafford, it was not the last. His departure brought jeers. It may not be a tipping point for Ten Hag just yet. But United, no strangers to a crisis over the last decade, could soon find themselves teetering on the brink of another. Read More Erik ten Hag says he inherited Manchester United with ‘no good culture’ Erik ten Hag unsure whether Jadon Sancho will play for Manchester United again Liverpool leave it late to come from behind and beat Wolves Erik ten Hag wants to see ‘how strong’ Manchester United are after Brighton loss Pep Guardiola hails impact of Jeremy Doku in Man City’s win at West Ham Roy Hodgson ‘feeling better’ after missing Crystal Palace defeat at Aston Villa
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