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Pep Guardiola has eased concerns over the fitness of a number of key Manchester City players ahead of the FA Cup final against Manchester United on Saturday. Jack Grealish, Kevin De Bruyne, Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji all missed the champions’ final Premier League game of the season at Brentford last week. Those players have all since returned to training and are expected to come back into contention for both the Wembley showpiece and next weekend’s Champions League final in Istanbul. City manager Guardiola said: “They’ve trained well in the last two training sessions. They are all of them, more or less, fine.” Guardiola has also confirmed second-choice goalkeeper Stefan Ortega will start at Wembley, in keeping with his usual policy for domestic cup fixtures. The German, who started two of the last three Premier League games, has not yet conceded in the FA Cup this season. Guardiola said: “Stefan is going to play. I have always been like that in the FA Cup. The keeper who has played in the FA Cup is going to play in the FA Cup (final).” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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Manchester United have been hit by a setback for Antony ahead of the FA Cup final, with Erik ten Hag saying it is “unlikely” the winger will be fit to face Manchester City. The 23-year-old winger went down in agony last Thursday during the first half of the penultimate Premier League game of the season against Chelsea. Antony left on a stretcher and Ten Hag feared a “serious” injury, only to allay concerns three days later by saying the “first assessment is not too bad” and that he had a “good opportunity” to face City. But this week has not gone as well as expected and the Brazil international now looks set to miss the first ever all-Manchester FA Cup final. “Unlikely (he will be fit),” he said. “Dos Santos (Antony) still has a chance but it’s a really small chance. “He didn’t make the progress, so he still has a chance but unlikely he is available.” Lisandro Martinez, Marcel Sabitzer and Donny van de Beek have long since been ruled out of the final, while Anthony Martial’s injury-hit season will end on the sidelines. The 27-year-old strained a hamstring towards the end of Sunday’s win against Fulham and will miss the Wembley showdown after scans showed a muscle tear. “These questions so many times about the absence of players in the last couple of months,” Ten Hag said. “Every time I say the same answer: it’s about the players who are available and many times we were successful. “We have a good squad and from that good squad we make a good team.” Absentee-hit United wrapped up third spot last weekend and are looking to complete the domestic cup double for the first time, having lifted the Carabao Cup in February. Ten Hag says Saturday will be a “good test” against Premier League champions City, who are looking to take another step towards the treble by winning at Wembley. United fans are desperate for their side to extinguish those dreams as Pep Guardiola’s men look to replicate Sir Alex Ferguson’s 1999 treble heroes. “We want to win, we want to win a cup,” Ten Hag said. “It’s not about stopping them. It is about that we win, that we win the cup. We have a great opportunity. “That’s great that we deserved that opportunity to be in the cup final and then meet Man City. That’s a great opportunity. “We fought so hard for it. I think we progressed that well that we are in that FA Cup final.” City won this season’s first meeting 6-3 at the Etihad Stadium, with United coming back to win 2-1 at Old Trafford in January. Ten Hag’s Red Devils finished 14 points behind the Premier League winners and a big summer lies ahead as they look to launch a sustained title challenge. “I think they do a very good job,” the Dutchman said days after Ferguson named Guardiola as LMA Manager of the Year – a trophy that carries the United great’s name. “They play very good football, so they deserve it. “Of course I look at others because they are opponents and I evaluate it, but we look to ourselves. “You have to see where you are as club. From thereon, you have to make progress and I think we did over the last season. “We make very good progress, we are in a good direction and now we use the coming period as well. “Now we get the opportunity in the summer to make new targets, new goals on the short term. “But the longer term, yeah, that will stay the same. As I said last year, we want to restore Man United but we have a way to go.”

Welcome to Social Buzz, a daily column looking at what’s trending on social media platforms. I’m Caitlin Fichtel,

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Former England international Jesse Lingard will leave Nottingham Forest at the end of his contract. Lingard raised eyebrows when he joined Forest last season following their promotion to the Premier League, turning down West Ham to sign a lucrative one-year deal. But his time at the City Ground did not work out and he made just 20 appearances in all competitions, scoring two goals in the Carabao Cup. He featured just four times in 2023, but was a constant presence on the touchline as Forest beat the odds to retain their Premier League status. The 30-year-old will now look for a third club in three years, with reports linking him to a number of cash-rich leagues abroad. Andre Ayew, who signed a short-term contract in January, will also depart the City Ground this summer, along with Jack Colback, Cafu, Lyle Taylor and Jordan Smith. Right-back Serge Aurier, who was a key performer in Forest’s survival mission, has triggered the one-year option in his contract so will stay for the 2023/24 campaign. Loanees Dean Henderson, Keylor Navas and Renan Lodi come to the end of their deals, though Forest are understood to be interested in exploring permanent moves for Manchester United goalkeeper Henderson and Brazilian Lodi. Forest are not expected to have a repeat of last summer’s recruitment drive, which saw them sign 22 players by the end of the transfer window and go up to 30 by the end of January. But it is still likely to be busy as boss Steve Cooper targets a smaller number of quality additions and will be keen to move several players on as he trims a bloated squad. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

UEFA has confirmed referee Szymon Marciniak will remain in charge of next week’s Champions League final after investigating his alleged links with a far-right movement. Marciniak was under review after speaking at a recent event organised by Polish far-right leader Slawomir Mentzen and his role as match official for Manchester City’s clash with Inter Milan in Istanbul on June 10 was in doubt. But UEFA is satisfied that Marciniak had been “gravely misled and completely unaware of the true nature and affiliations of the event in question” and will keep the 42-year-old Pole as referee. UEFA said: “Following Mr. Marciniak’s statement, UEFA acknowledges his profound apologies and clarification. “UEFA also reached out to “NEVERAGAIN,” an NGO affiliated with the FARE network, which raised the initial concerns about Mr. Marciniak’s involvement in the event. “They requested that Mr. Marciniak remain in his role as the referee for the upcoming UEFA Champions League final, firmly asserting that removing him would undermine the promotion of anti-discrimination. “Based on the information provided, UEFA confirms that Mr. Marciniak will fulfil his role as the referee for the 2023 UEFA Champions League final.” It is important to understand that the values promoted by this movement are entirely contrary to my personal beliefs and the principles I strive to uphold in my life Champions League final referee Szymon Marciniak The organiser of the event at which Marciniak was a guest speaker, co-chairman of the Confederation party Mentzen, launched the political slogan ‘We stand against Jews, gays, abortion, taxation and the European Union’. Anti-racism group Never Again had urged UEFA to drop Marciniak after the event at the International Congress Centre in Katowice. Marciniak said in a statement: “I want to express my deepest apologies for my involvement and any distress or harm it may have caused. “Upon reflection and further investigation, it has become evident that I was gravely misled and completely unaware of the true nature and affiliations of the event in question.

Polish referee will keep his role in charge of the Champions League final after apologising for appearing at a far-right event in Poland. Marciniak spoke at a recent event organised by a Polish far-right leader Slawomir Mentzen. Uefa appointed Marciniak last month to referee the Champions League final between Manchester City and Inter Milan in Istanbul, which takes place next Saturday, 10 June. He said in a statement: “I want to express my deepest apologies for my involvement and any distress or harm it may have caused. “Upon reflection and further investigation, it has become evident that I was gravely misled and completely unaware of the true nature and affiliations of the event in question. I had no knowledge that it was associated [with] a Polish extreme-right movement. Had I been aware of this fact, I would have categorically declined the invitation. “It is important to understand that the values promoted by this movement are entirely contrary to my personal beliefs and the principles I strive to uphold in my life. I am deeply remorseful for any perception that my participation may have contradicted them.” Mentzen, co-chairman of the Confederation party, launched the political slogan ‘We stand against Jews, gays, abortion, taxation and the European Union’. Anti-racism group Never Again had urged Uefa to drop Marciniak after claiming he had promoted and was one of the keynote speakers at an event held by Mentzen at the International Congress Centre in Katowice. But Marciniak has kept his role and Uefa said: “After conducting a thorough review, we have received a statement from Mr Marciniak expressing his deepest apologies and providing a clarification regarding his involvement in the event.” Marciniak, 42, became the first Polish referee to take charge of a World Cup final in Qatar last December when Argentina beat France on penalties. He refereed the second leg of City’s semi-final win against Real Madrid and has taken charge of seven other Champions League fixtures. Read More Erling Haaland: Winning treble with Manchester City would be my biggest dream Why Man City’s FFP case could be another Super League moment for football

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The Premier League has joined refereeing body PGMOL in condemning abuse directed at Anthony Taylor after video footage emerged of him being accosted by angry fans at Budapest Airport. Taylor and his family can be seen trying to evade a mob, who were shouting at him as he travelled home after refereeing Wednesday night’s Europa League final between Roma and Sevilla in the Hungarian capital. A Premier League spokesperson said it was “shocked and appalled by the abuse suffered by Taylor, whilst PGMOL described the incident as “unjustified and abhorrent”. The Premier League official was criticised for his performance in the final by Roma boss Jose Mourinho during his post-match press conference after the Italian side lost on penalties to Sevilla. And in video footage which later emerged on social media, the former Chelsea and Manchester United manager is seen gesticulating at Taylor and officials in the stadium car park and heard saying “disgrace”. In the incident at the airport, clips on Twitter show a chair and drinks being thrown in the direction of Taylor and his group as they make their way through a gathering of Roma fans. A Premier League spokesperson said: “We are shocked and appalled by the unacceptable abuse directed at Anthony Taylor and his family as they travelled back from the UEFA Europa League Final. “No one should have to suffer the inexcusable behaviour they had to endure yesterday. “Anthony is one of our most experienced and accomplished match officials and we fully support him and his family.” The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) said in a statement on Thursday evening: “PGMOL is aware of videos circulating on social media showing Anthony Taylor and his family being harassed and abused at Budapest Airport. “We are appalled at the unjustified and abhorrent abuse directed at Anthony and his family as he tries to make his way home from refereeing the UEFA Europa League final. “We will continue to provide our full support to Anthony and his family.” UEFA is awaiting Taylor’s reports before deciding whether to take action against Mourinho for his rant. Taylor booked Mourinho during the game, which finished 1-1 after extra time before Sevilla sealed their seventh Europa League triumph by winning 4-1 in a penalty shoot-out. Tempers simmered on and off the pitch in a disappointing final, with 13 players shown yellow cards, seven of them to Roma players, while fourth official Michael Oliver had his work cut out to keep control of both dug-outs. The game was littered with delays, with a total of 25 minutes’ stoppage time added to the 120 minutes of playing time. West Ham boss David Moyes condemned the treatment of Taylor as he prepares his side for Wednesday’s Europa Conference League final against Fiorentina in Prague. “I didn’t see the game so I can’t comment on the game itself or the officiating,” Moyes said. “All referees have a really difficult job and shouldn’t be put through any difficult situations, which I heard about this morning. That’s not correct.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Discipline is key for David Moyes as West Ham promise fair play in Prague final Champions League final referee could be removed over alleged far-right links Jude Bellingham determined to inspire the next generation of footballers

Polish soccer referee Szymon Marciniak has apologized for speaking at a business event tied to a far-right politician and was confirmed by UEFA to officiate next week's Champions League final