The first weekend in February saw two of the three most serious Premier League title contenders, Arsenal and Liverpool, do battle at the Emirates Stadium, and despite Liverpool still being at the top of the table, Arsenal s triumph in North London wasn t too much of a surprise. These two teams met at the same venue in the third round of the FA Cup, and though Liverpool won that day, Arsenal dominated a great portion of the game, and their inability to convert their chances coupled with Liverpool s to take everything they could wasn t likely to repeat itself.

The stadium exploded with joy when Bukayo Saka broke the deadlock in the 14th minute, and for a long time it seemed the visitors would be very lucky to go to the break one goal down. But in bizarre twist of events, Gabriel …

Rio Ferdinand accused former England team-mate John Terry of having a fragile ego after he took exception to a seemingly innocuous list of all-time greatest Premier League centre-backs.

Manchester United great Ferdinand listed himself first and Chelsea legend Terry fifth during an interview with Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk.

Ferdinand had his former United centre-back partner Nemanja Vidic second, with both Van Dijk and Jaap Stam ahead of Terry.

The BT Sport pundit said of Terry: In terms of his longevity at that club, what they won, body on the line, a much better footballer than people give him credit for, could play off his left and right foot.

Terry was seemingly unimpressed by Ferdinand s assessment, though, and took to Instagram to showcase …

Newcastle United are interested in signing Goncalo Ramos from Benfica in the summer transfer window, according to journalist . The well-known and well-respected reported has claimed that Newcastle will make an offer for the 21-year-old Portuguese forward in the coming days.

It has been reported that Benfica could sell Ramos if they receive a bid worth over €30 million. Newcastle are not the only club from England who are interested in Ramos. Wolverhampton Wanderers and Nottingham Forest are also claimed to be keen on securing the services of the Portugal Under-21 international this summer.

Ramos has been on the books of Benfica since 2013 and has progressed through the youth academy to establish himself in the first team. The Portuguese youngster made 17 starts and 12…

Arsenal dropped points in the title race on a busy Saturday in the Premier League, denied by an Ivan Toney equaliser as Brentford drew 1-1 at Emirates Stadium.

Mikel Arteta s had a better day of it than north London rivals Tottenham, though, as Spurs were thrashed 4-1 at Leicester City, despite taking an early lead.

Elsewhere, Chelsea were denied a win at West Ham after Emerson Palmieri equalised Joao Felix s first goal of his loan spell from Atletico Madrid.

Southampton s woes continued as they were beaten 2-1 at home against Wolves, despite taking the lead and having a man advantage for over an hour after Mario Lemina was sent off for the visitors.

Newcastle United s run of draws continued as they were held 1-1 at Bournemouth, while Crystal Palace and B…

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola will not be pressured into making a decision on his long-term future at the Etihad Stadium.

The 53-year-old s contract expires at the end of the 2024-25 season and he is, as yet, undecided on what he wants to do when that time comes.

City take on Wolves this weekend, and sit second in the Premier League after going unbeaten through their first seven games. They are just one point behind league leaders Liverpool.

When it s going to happen, it s going to happen, Guardiola told BBC Sport, when asked if any decision on his future from the end of the season onwards had been made.

Guardiola had been heavily linked with the previously vacant England position, before it was announced this week that Thomas Tuchel will take over …

Lionel Messi has been urged by player-turned-pundit Jerome Rothen to quit Paris Saint-Germain after just one season.

The Argentine forward signed a lucrative two-year deal last August after being turfed out of Barcelona when the Spanish club realised they could not afford to register him.

It meant there was the tantalising prospect of Messi teaming up with Neymar and Kylian Mbappe at the Parc des Princes, but they have only featured together in fits and starts due to illness and injury.

PSG hoped to storm the Champions League but were eliminated by Real Madrid at the last-16 stage after squandering a 2-0 aggregate lead during the second leg in Spain.

Messi has managed just two Ligue 1 goals, and seven in all competitions, meaning that for the first time s…

He posted on Instagram: After careful and thoughtful consideration, I announce my immediate retirement from club and international football.

I feel incredibly fortunate to have realised my dream of playing the sport I love. It has truly given me some of the best moments of my life. The highest of highs over 17 seasons, that will be impossible to replicate, no matter what the next chapter has in store for me.

From my very first touch at Southampton to my last with LAFC and everything in between, shaped a club career that I have an immense pride and gratitude for. Playing for and captaining my country 111 times has truly been a dream come true.

To show my gratitude to all of those that have played their part along this journey, feels like an impossibility. I fee…

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After a long journey to central Asia last week, Norway return home to host Austria in their UEFA Nations League match on Monday. The two teams meet in Oslo with the group still wide open, as both opening matches in Group B3 ended in draws.

Norway will be eager to make the most of home advantage, while Austria will be looking to build on their solid start.

Norway

Norway s 0-0 draw away in Kazakhstan did little to alleviate the mounting pressure on manager Stale Solbakken, who has been criticized for not getting the most out of a highly talented squad. Despite having attacking stars like Erling Haaland, Alexander Sorloth, and Martin Odegaard, Norway has yet to translate their potential into tangible success on the international s…

Dean Windass proclaimed himself the “proudest man in the world” after his son Josh scored a dramatic Wembley winner to clinch promotion for Sheffield Wednesday.

Windass junior headed home in stoppage time of extra time in the Sky Bet League One play-off final as the Owls snatched a 1-0 victory over 10-man neighbours Barnsley and a place in the Championship.

The goal had echoes of Dean Windass’ own play-off heroics, when he struck a stunning winner against Bristol City to send Hull into the Premier League in 2008.

“It’s absolutely incredible,” Dean told Sky Sports. “I said this morning he would get the winner.

“I can’t believe he actually headed it to be honest – because he loves his hair too much – but I’m the proudest man in the w…

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson will meet Bournemouth boss Gary O’Neil for the first time at Selhurst Park on Saturday – but revealed the two nearly crossed paths years ago at Craven Cottage.

O’Neil, 39, played for nine different clubs during his senior career and hung up his boots in 2019 before joining Liverpool as under-23 assistant manager the following year.

Hodgson, 75, recalled being so impressed by O’Neil that at one point the midfielder was seen as a potential Fulham target.

“I have a lot of respect for him, I don’t know him,” said Hodgson, who managed the Cottagers from 2007-2010.

“I remember him well as a player, and he was even on our radar several times at Fulham as a potential signing, so I should be pleased to meet him fo…