Sam Lee and Liam Twomey sweep FA Cup semi-final today
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Manchester City 1 Chelsea 0: Tired City take the lead, Nicolas Jackson wastes
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Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder has criticised the mentality of some of his players following Saturday’s 4-1 home defeat to Burnley.
Wilder added that the Premier League is “too powerful” for his side, who are now at the back of the Premier League with 16 problems after their 23rd defeat of the season and ten unprotected problems with games remaining.
“When we were underneath, there were a couple of guys that wanted to get out of there,” Wilder said. “That can’t be the case.
“Maybe I wouldn’t make decisions, but I think there were a couple of guys that wanted to get out of there pretty temporarily after Game 4, which you can’t have, you just can’t have.
“I can’t settle for that. It’s a tricky scenario because of the lack of players we have, there’s nothing we can do about it from that point of view, but I think there were some who looked to get out of this fairly. quickly.
“The department is too us and on us as a group in the long run. “
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Chris Wilder criticises Sheffield United’s mentality in 4-1 home defeat to Burnley
It’s a brutal week for English clubs in Europe with the elimination of Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool and West Ham.
But there is still a (very) remote chance that the Premier League will secure a fifth position in the Champions League next year.
These are Aston Villa, 3 Germans and a table of coefficients.
Steve Madeley explains
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England’s chances of moving up five places in the Champions League are now 1. 1%, but here’s how it can happen
Angel City FC duo Paige Nielsen and Amandine Henry left the club ahead of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) industry deadline.
Nielsen, 30, travels to Houston Dash in exchange for $50,000 in stipends and $50,000 in funds.
Henry, 34, was sent to Utah Royals FC in exchange for a $75,000 stipend.
“These measures are key in our strategy to continue building for the future,” said FCAC Executive Director Angela Hucles Mangano.
“While such decisions are never easy, those moves allow us to make additions to our roster in the coming months. “
Prior to his stint at FCAC, Nielsen was a key member of the Washington Spirit team that earned the NWSL name in 2021.
“We are grateful to Paige for her role in the history of Angel City,” Hucles said. “She helped lay the foundation for what we started and continue to grow here. His love for enthusiasts and teammates was felt from day one and we wish him everything. “The best.
Henry joined the team in June 2023 after making 219 appearances in two stints for Olympique Lyonnais, where they won the Women’s Champions League seven times.
The line-ups are for the FA Cup semi-final.
Manchester City face Chelsea at Wembley less than forty-five minutes from kick-off.
Follow Athletic’s blog on the FA Cup semi-final here
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Jack Grealish described his season at Manchester City as “difficult” due to his fluctuating form, admitting he has struggled to gain confidence.
The 28-year-old suffered several injuries during the current campaign. He had an excessive case of dead leg that prevented him from going out for more than 3 weeks in August, which he says left him unable to walk.
Grealish also suffered a groin injury in City’s 3-1 Champions League first leg of 16 over Copenhagen, but suffered a recurrence of the challenge in the 6-2 FA Cup win over Luton Town in February.
The full story of the England international’s difficult season below
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Jack Grealish on ‘difficult’ season at Manchester City: ‘I wasn’t confident’
Rotherham United’s league match against Birmingham City resumed after the match was suspended for more than 20 minutes due to what the club described as a “medical emergency”.
The match was stopped in the 9th minute and players from both groups were taken to the locker room while medical teams responded to the emergency.
Rotherham showed that the fan eventually left the stadium with the medical professionals and said: “Everyone at Rotherham United would like to express our sincere thanks to the ambulance drivers, medical professionals and both amateur teams for the professionalism and compassion they showed in the match. the medical emergency at AESSEAL Stadium in New York this afternoon.
“Our minds and prayers are with the emergency room, who were transported to the hospital from the stadium after being treated at the scene by St. John’s doctor. John Ambulance and the respective doctors of both clubs.
“Under incredibly difficult circumstances, it was incredible to see loyalties on the field distinguish themselves and the efforts of medical professionals and staff receive the praise they deserved from everyone inside New York’s AESSEAL Stadium.
“We are now asking that the privacy of the enthusiasts be respected this time. “
Manchester City will face Erling Haaland in the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea this afternoon.
The 23-year-old striker did not travel to London with the team after being injured in City’s Champions League match against Real Madrid in midweek.
Haaland was substituted in the final minutes of Wednesday’s quarter-final second leg after complaining of a “muscle problem”.
City manager Pep Guardiola after the match in which Haaland had called for a red card.
“Erling felt something, a muscle problem,” Guardiola said. That’s why he told me I couldn’t go on. “
Haaland has scored 31 goals in all competitions this season, six of them in the FA Cup.
Argentina’s Julian Alvarez will update the defender in the absence of the Norwegian.
Kevin De Bruyne also asked to be expelled from City’s Champions League on Wednesday, but it starts against his former club.
Arsenal are winless in their three games and exited the Champions League last week.
They want a win over Wolverhampton Wanderers later that day to keep hopes of their name alive.
Mikel Arteta would possibly have to be ruthless with his team in the future.
The Athletic Football podcast discusses the decision that the Arsenal manager will have to make in the future.
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Chelsea Women put in a memorable performance at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys by beating Barcelona in the first leg of the Women’s Champions League semi-final.
Captain Erin Cuthbert’s goal in the 40th minute proved decisive and Emma Hayes’ side became the first team since 2019 to beat Barcelona on their own turf.
Alexia Putellas had a golden goal to equalize in the closing stages of the match, but she failed to achieve her goal.
Eight-time winners Olympique Lyonnais will host Paris St Germain in the first leg of the semifinals later on Saturday.
Defending champions Barcelona, who have reached the final in four of the last five seasons, will travel to west London for the second leg at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, April 27.
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Aitana Bonmati: The WSL, an “attractive” league for Spanish players
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says Cole Palmer had been asking to leave the club for two years before moving to Chelsea in the summer, as he prepares to face his former player in the FA Cup semi-final on Saturday.
City had wanted to keep Palmer this summer, especially after the sale of Riyad Mahrez to Al Ahli in July, but the academy product wanted to move on in search of regular minutes and joined Chelsea on a £42. 5m ($52. 8m) deal. . Cut-off day.
The 21-year-old has scored 20 goals in 25 Premier League games for Chelsea and his four goals against Everton on Monday night have put him alongside Erling Haaland at the top of the division’s scoring charts.
Asked if he regretted Palmer, Guardiola replied: “I don’t know. He’s an exceptional player when he’s here. I’ve said it many times, I didn’t give him the minutes he maybe deserved and now I gave them to him at Chelsea. “. I understand that perfectly.
Full story below
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Pep Guardiola: Cole Palmer to leave Manchester City two years before Chelsea departure
Leicester City defender Conor Coady completed a eulogy for teammate Hamza Choudhury following his side’s 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion.
Goals from Wilfred Ndidi and Jamie Vardy secured an important win for Leicester, opening a four-point gap between the league-best side and third-placed Leeds United.
Choudhury, 26, received the Man of the Match award for an impressive defensive performance that allowed him to make three goal-line clearances at the King Power Stadium.
Coady told Sky Sports: “We want other people like that. It’s remarkable all over the field. The clearances on the goal line speak for themselves, but that’s what we want in this team right now. “
“We have to cross the baseline with other tactics and to have other people like him on the pitch, like him today is exceptional. It’s phenomenal. “
Choudhury highlighted the importance of the win, saying: “We’ve been through a tough few months since the start of the year. We know what we’re like as a team. We all love each other and are very close. “
“We’re really looking forward to doing it (winning promotion) for ourselves, our families and our fans. Crossing the baseline shows that we can dig deep and hold on when we want to. “
Leicester, who have 3 games left in the season, will be next Tuesday against Southampton.
Manchester City will face Chelsea today in the semi-final of the FA Cup.
The boy of the moment, Cole Palmer, will once again face his shaper look, to continue his good form lately.
Will the 21-year-old midfielder reunite with his ex?
Here’s a look at Palmer’s return on The Athletic Football podcast
Rock Bottom’s back-to-back moment at Bramall Lane this afternoon when Sheffield United host Burnley in one of two games at 3pm. this afternoon.
Ben Brereton Diaz and Oli McBurnie will lead the hosts’ lineup, while Vini Souza and James McAtee will return to the starting lineup.
Blades coach Chris Wilder named 18-year-old defenseman Sam Curtis as one of his replacements, while Mason Holgate and Yasser Larouci were benched.
Burnley manager Vincent Kompany remains confident with Arijanet Muric on the goal ahead of James Trafford despite the own goal in last weekend’s draw against Brighton.
Defender Dara O’Shea returns to the starting XI after missing Brighton’s suspension.
Sheff Utd full XI: Grbic, Bogle, Ahmedhodzic, Trusty, Souza, McAtee, Hamer, Alblaster, Osborn, Brereton Diaz, McBurnie.
Full Burnley XI: Muric, Assignon, O’Shea, Esteve, Taylor, Vitinho, Cullen, Berge, Larsen, Odobert, Foster.
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Ivan Toney is not included in Brentford’s squad for their match against Luton Town.
The 28-year-old is suffering from a hip injury and had an unused replacement in the 2-0 win over Sheffield United last Saturday.
The striker played a factor in the warm-up ahead of Brentford’s 0-0 draw at Brighton
He was on the bench when they faced Aston Villa three days later and was only on for 10 minutes.
Thomas Frank told the media on Friday that Toney was “making progress” and “desperate to get started” at Kenilworth Road, but that they will have to make do without him in a crash.
Brentford are seven points clear of Luton ahead of this afternoon’s game.
Toney has scored 4 goals in thirteen appearances this season since returning from an eight-month suspension for breaking the rules.
Luton XI: Kaminski, Kabore, Burke, Mengi, Osho, Doughty, Lokonga, Barkley, Clark, Chong, Morris.
Brentford full XI: Flekken, Ajer, Collins, Pinnock, Reguilon, Janelt, Damsgaard, Mbeumo, Lewis-Potter, Wissa.
Xavi says Barcelona have to “get back into La Liga” with a win against Real Madrid tomorrow.
The 44-year-old was knocked out of the Champions League on Tuesday after losing 4-1 at home to Paris Saint-Germain, but a win in the Clasico for Barcelona, who are eight points behind league leaders Real, could reignite an accusation about his name.
Xavi, who was sent off in last week’s defeat to PSG, has called on his side to use anger over their exit from the Champions League to fuel their performance at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday.
Full story below
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Barcelona have the chance to ‘return to La Liga’ with Clasico win: Xavi
Leicester City have the chance to extend their lead at the top of the league with a win over West Bromwich Albion.
They went into the break with a 1-0 lead thanks to a goal from Wilfred Ndidi.
It could have been two if Jamie Vardy hadn’t hit the post with his penalty in the 44th minute.
Will West Brom, who had their moments in the first half, be able to return to the King Power Stadium?