And that’s about it for today everyone. A huge day awaits for Manchester City, Chelsea, Brentford and Swansea. Join us tomorrow to see what drama unfolds. Thanks for reading.
Nice win for Japan. The shirt though.
Liverpool's Takumi Minamino nets twice as Japan score 10! 🇯🇵https://t.co/bSU5crlC1a pic.twitter.com/wE9HwvYZF8
— Liverpool FC News (@LivEchoLFC) May 28, 2021
Hillsborough update from David Conn. The mayors of Greater Manchester and the Liverpool city region have formally complained to the Bar Standards Board about comments by a QC appearing to blame misbehaviour by Liverpool supporters for the Hillsborough disaster.
Updated
More on the collapse of Eddie Howe’s move to Celtic.
(Via PA)
The former Bournemouth boss was the front-runner to replace Neil Lennon, who resigned in February with Old Firm rivals Rangers well on their way to stopping the Hoops’ quest for a 10th successive Premiership title.
It was widely believed that the hold-up in Howe’s appointment was due to Bournemouth being involved in the Championship play-offs, with Howe reportedly looking to bring first-team coaches Stephen Purches and Simon Weatherstone as well as the Cherries’ technical director Richard Hughes to Glasgow.
It is understood Celtic were willing to accommodate Howe’s requests but that the former Burnley boss will not move north of the border because he is unable to assemble the backroom staff he wanted.
Celtic are now in advanced talks with another candidate and hope to make an appointment soon.
Will Lionel Messi be at Barcelona next season? Will manager Ronald Koeman still be there? Club president Joan Laporta has been speaking.
It’s time for The Fiver.
“Few would argue that the Premier League champs aren’t the better side on paper, rightly going into the match as favourites, but Chelsea appear to have their number: they won both legs of the Cup Winners’ Cup semi in 1971, the only time these clubs have met in continental competition, and famously came out 5-4 winners in the 1986 Full Members Cup final. There are also the arguably more relevant recent wins in the FA Cup semi and the Sergio Agüero Humiliation Game, where Tommy T handed Pep his pips on a platter.”
Updated
Will Saturday prove to be a perfect farewell for Sergio Agüero? At least he won’t try a Panenka again - unless his tweet is a clever bluff. Probably just lash it, Sergio. That’s your best bet.
I would like to apologise to my teammates, staff and supporters for missing the penalty. It was a bad decision and I take full responsibility.
— Sergio Kun Aguero (@aguerosergiokun) May 8, 2021
- Should he play in this match, it will be Sergio Agüero’s final appearance for Manchester City. The Argentinian has scored 13 goals against Chelsea for City - only scoring more against Newcastle United - although he hasn’t scored in any of his last four appearances against them since a hat-trick in February 2019, including missing a penalty in their 2-1 defeat in the Premier League earlier this season.
Updated
Chelsea have beaten Manchester City twice in recent weeks. Does that give them a psychological edge? Or did Pep not show his full hand in those games? Let’s paste in the line-ups from the two live Guardian blogs:
FA Cup semi-final: Chelsea 1-0 Man City
Chelsea: Kepa, Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, Rudiger, James, Jorginho, Kante, Chilwell, Ziyech, Werner, Mount.
Subs: Caballero, Alonso, Emerson, Zouma, Gilmour, Havertz, Hudson-Odoi, Pulisic, Giroud.
Manchester City: Steffen, Cancelo, Dias, Laporte, Mendy, Rodrigo, Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Torres, Sterling, Jesus.
Subs: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Ake, Gundogan, Zinchenko, Bernardo, Mahrez, Foden.
Premier League: Man City 1-2 Chelsea
Manchester City: Ederson, Ake, Dias, Laporte, Joao Cancelo, Rodri, Mendy, Torres, Aguero, Sterling, Gabriel Jesus.
Subs: Walker, Gundogan, Zinchenko, Steffen, Bernardo Silva, Fernandinho, Mahrez, Foden, Garcia.
Chelsea: Mendy, Azpilicueta, Christensen, Rudiger, Kante, James, Ziyech, Gilmour, Alonso, Pulisic, Werner.
Subs: Arrizabalaga, Jorginho, Abraham, Zouma, Giroud, Hudson-Odoi, Havertz, Emerson Palmieri, Livramento.
Back to manager news and Celtic’s bid to appoint Eddie Howe looks to have hit the rocks.
As per @mcgowan_stephen .. Eddie Howe to Celtic is off. Three months on from Neil Lennon's exit (and several more after it was clear that may happen) the club should have Plans B, C, D, E, F...
— Ewan Murray (@mrewanmurray) May 28, 2021
Next up for Man City, it’s skipper Fernandinho.
On Phil Foden’s rise: “To me personally it’s no surprise at all. He has been training with us for five years already and he’s grown up so much. The quality he has is hard to find and the desire he has is incredible.”
On the league table - City finished 19 points above Chelsea - counting for nothing: “I think it’s a different competition and game. Every game has its own history. The Premier League has gone already. We celebrated and this will be a different game.”
His message to the team: “Try to do the same thing we have done this season, don’t change nothing, play simple. I think that’s the best way to prepare and to win. My message is (to) not change anything and be as relaxed as much as you can.”
And now some Kevin De Bruyne quotes.
On relishing the occasion: “It’s been one of the goals of the club and one of the goals of the players. To be able to be there and play on the highest stage is a privilege.”
On learning from past mistakes: “The identity of the team is the same but I think in the difficult moments we didn’t make too many mistakes. In the other years, in these types of games, we made one mistake too many and the other teams reacted to it by going ahead and we couldn’t get back. In games this year we didn’t concede the goals that we have done in previous years.”
On whether he has to win the Champions League to be considered one of the world’s best players: “To be in for these types of individual awards you need to win things but in the end other people decide. I’m happy with who I am as a player and a person. I feel comfortable either way that it goes for me.”
Updated
Time for some Pep Guardiola. The Manchester City boss is in full flow as he answers questions about Saturday’s final.
On calming nerves: “I know exactly the way we want to play, with who we’re going to play and I’m not going to bother them much. It’s an incredible experience to be here. I know exactly what I’m going to tell them. The guys who are anxious and nervous, I will tell them that’s normal.”
On going through pain to achieve victory: “We suffered against PSG and Dortmund but we stuck together. Tomorrow we will not have 90 minutes of one side dominating. We are going to suffer but when we get momentum we will have to use it.”
On telling the players not in his starting XI: “Terrible. It’s absolutely (a) disaster. I advise you, don’t be a manager in your life. I don’t have any nice words to feel relief about the guys who won’t play, but my advice is to stick with the team. There are five or six substitutions and everybody has a chance.”
On penalties: “We can train the penalties but you can not apply the tension when it happens for real. I will talk to the players and I know what I will tell them but I’ve had a few things to think about more than the penalty shootout.”
Reports of trouble in Porto
Sigh. News of fans fighting.
This is the latest from PA:
Chelsea and Manchester City fans have been involved in violent clashes in Porto ahead of this weekend’s Champions League final.
Footage shared on social media shows supporters chanting and fighting in the streets and throwing chairs at each other. Locals were seen attempting to intervene before police eventually broke up the violence. There have been no reports of any arrests.
Mayor of Porto Rui Moreira said one person was taken to hospital but their injuries are “nothing serious”. He told Sky Sports News: “As far as I know, and I spoke with the police this morning, it was nothing serious.
“We had to shut down the bars and the pubs because that’s the law, the curfew law, by 10.30pm people had to leave. Between the fans, there was some aggression. One guy went to hospital, it was nothing serious, no arrests.
“People went to their hotels and it always happens. We have this experience also with our national games. You can’t change it, that’s life, but nothing that concerns us so far.”
Thousands of supporters are expected in the city for the match, which was moved from Istanbul to allow English fans to travel within current coronavirus guidance.
Mr Moreira added: “The police were very careful, they know how to handle fans because we are a football city.”
Updated
Full Brentford v Swansea play-off team news.
(Via PA)
“Brentford will make a late call on Christian Norgaard ahead of the play-off final against Swansea.
“Denmark midfielder Norgaard pulled up injured prior to the semi-final second leg win over Bournemouth.
“Left-back Rico Henry has been ruled out of the Wembley showpiece with a hamstring injury.
“Josh Dasilva and Shandon Baptiste remain long-term absentees.
“Swansea will be without Wayne Routledge after the veteran wideman suffered a knee injury in the semi-final win over Barnsley.
“Routledge, who has made over 300 appearances in nearly 10 years at Swansea, is out of contract at the end of the season and may have played his last game for the club.
“Young midfielder Oli Cooper also misses out after suffering a knee injury in training.
“Defender Brandon Cooper had already been ruled out with an ankle sprain, but apart from that namesake boss Steve has a clean bill of health.”
Could Erling Haaland be playing for Manchester City, Chelsea or Manchester United in the near future? Maybe, but his latest quotes suggest it won’t be this summer.
The Norwegian has been a sensation at Borussia Dortmund so far, scoring 59 goals in 57 appearances. That included a double in the 4-1 DFB-Pokal final win over RB Leipzig earlier this month.
He’s been speaking to Jan Aage Fjortoft on Viaplay and had this to say:
“Well I have a contract for a couple of years, so I am respectful towards my contract. I am a simple guy. When I like something I just want to have more – when I score a goal, I always chase the next goal.”
As for securing Champions League football and a first trophy with Dortmund:
“It was a relief to secure that spot. It was really important. Like I have said before I am a big fan of the Champions League and I think everybody knows that. I have big dreams. I just won my first major trophy and it was a great feeling. So I want to win trophies.”
Updated
News from Brentford boss Thomas Frank ahead of Saturday’s play-off final against Swansea.
Team news: “From the last squad, the only doubt is Christian Nørgaard. We will assess him and take a decision later today. Rico Henry is out.”
On mood in the camp: “We are excited. I was thinking about it driving home from training yesterday that the atmosphere was calm and focused. There is that good focus with the understanding we are facing a Swansea team that has done a fantastic season.”
On Swansea: “We’ve played them twice, both 1-1 draws. Steve Cooper is one of the most talented managers in this country, and his experienced coaching staff, who have just performed and performed even better. It’s going to be unbelievably tight.”
On last year’s experience: “I think it is a plus, how big a plus you don’t really know. That experience from last year will help in a way but it is not like we are suddenly 20 per cent better. It might help in the decisive moments.”
On pre-match nerves: “We will all be a tiny bit more tense but that is a good thing. It is important that we do everything we can to be brave and make sure that we don’t regret anything when we look back. If we perform well then we can’t do more.”
On fans: “You saw in the game against Bournemouth how much the fans can help us; they had a massive impact on the result. We need the fans there to cheer us on throughout the game because this game will take twists and turns.”
Some departures to note.
Aston Villa are releasing Ahmed Elmohamady, Neil Taylor and goalkeeper Tom Heaton. The former Burnley stopper did not appear for Villa this season and has been reported to have agreed a deal to return to Manchester United.
Also, Ibrahima Konaté’s arrival at Liverpool means another central defender is on his way.
Ozan Kabak moved out of his house in Formby on Monday and said his goodbyes, after being informed Liverpool won’t trigger their option to buy him for £18 million following the end of his loan spell from German club Schalke. [@TheAthleticUK]
— DaveOCKOP (@DaveOCKOP) May 28, 2021
Another switch. David Tindall here again. You want content? Here’s the latest from Chelsea with a clip of Thomas Tuchel boarding a plane and, erm, all sorts.
London ➟ Porto! ✈️#UCLFinal, we're on the way! pic.twitter.com/82itpHHKs2
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 28, 2021
Allegri back as Juventus manager
Confirmed: Max is back.
Massimiliano Allegri is the Juventus manager once more. Now we are ready to begin again with Allegri, to build our future together with his enormous professionalism, his moral strength, with the brilliant ideas of a coach capable of shuffling the cards, both on and off the pitch. With his smile, a sort of ‘signature’. With his way of understanding football and life with simplicity, with his desire to play things down and with the commitment to enjoy every beautiful moment that being at Juventus can give and will give.
Welcome back home, Max! ⚪⚫#AllegriIN
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) May 28, 2021
This here tweet means Max Allegri is going back to Juventus. That’s a map of the state of Minnesota.
To quote James Horncastle, writing for ESPN in 2019, this is why.
One day at the races, Allegri bet on a horse by the name of Minnesota. The odds of it winning were very long, so long that a friend joked it was about as likely to come in first as Allegri was to make it as a coach. Minnesota won, and Allegri not only collected his winnings, he went on to become one of the leading coaches of his generation.
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) May 28, 2021
An important piece from David Conn.
Andy Hunter reports on Liverpool’s latest defensive recruit.
Some play-off content now. Steve Cooper, the Swansea manager, has been speaking. Cooper was the Welshman who coached England to winning the Under-20 World Cup in 2017. Now for the hundred bazillion million game that the TV commentators will keep mentioning the price of.
It’s my biggest game in club football, of course. But I haven’t thought about it being my biggest game in management. I just think about what it means to the football club and the supporters. It’s a proud city, a proud football club, we are very much together as a community because we haven’t got any clubs around us. Going up to Wembley is a real together club trying to do the business, and I’m very much focused on what’s in hand and what I can control.
You have to get the balance right between the magnitude of the game and what’s at stake. There’s no point in ignoring that because there’s so much to play for. But it’s a game and you still have to stick to your way of working, stick to the plan, give consistent messages so the players feel as comfortable and as clear as they can be. There’s lots of stuff around the game, but it’s a football match we need to be ready for.
The play-off final ten years ago announced Brendan Rodgers to the world when he took Swansea up.
👕✨
— Swansea City AFC (@SwansOfficial) May 28, 2021
We’ll be in our away kit at Wembley tomorrow 🙌 pic.twitter.com/KXOMfWRLwJ
Sid Lowe hears from the man who worked with Guardiola at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City. Great snippet on how long it took for Pep to realise Phil Foden was the genuine article.
More on Pirlo/Allegri here.
Liverpool sign Konaté
In other news, Liverpool have signed a defender, Ibrahima Konaté from RB Leipzig.
From Liverpool’s press release.
The 22-year-old defender has agreed a long-term contract with the Reds from July 1, subject to international clearance and a successful work permit application process, after finalising terms and passing a medical.
Konate said: “I’m really happy to be joining such a massive club like Liverpool.
“It’s a really exciting moment for me and my family and I am really looking forward to meeting my new teammates, the staff and getting started on this new chapter.
“Right now, my focus is on the U21 European Championships with France, but after this competition I know I will be joining one of the best teams in the world and that gives me a great feeling.”
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) May 28, 2021
Time for a toblerone so I’ll hand back to John Brewin...
Recent Champions League finals between sides from the same country. The smart money says Man City v Chelsea could go beyond 90 minutes.
Milan 0-0 Juventus (Milan won on pens)
Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (Man Utd won on pens)
Bayern 2-1 Borussia Dortmund
Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid (4-1 after ET)
Liverpool 2-0 Tottenham
Thankfully, Wayne Rooney didn’t ‘Steve Morrow’ Paul Scholes.
A nice lunchtime sports quiz sprinkled with a bit of football. No excuses for getting under 6 out of 10.
Sunday morning as Tuchel celebrates (see 12:05 entry).
“Guten Tag, Roman. Ich habe viele Toblerones gegessen vier insgesamt. Ich habe vier weissen ubrig, weil ich die weissen nicht gerne esse und habe die dunklen lieber.”
Another stat to mull over. Chelsea a ‘bogey’ team?
In his entire managerial career, Man City manager Pep Guardiola has lost more matches against Chelsea in all competitions than any other club (7). He has lost his last two games against the Blues, only losing three in a row against Real Madrid (2012-14) and Liverpool (2018).
Tuchel not a drinker but looks like he could demolish a few Ritter Sport if all goes well. A celebratory drive to Düsseldorf in his bare feet perhaps?
From our fun facts piece by Michael Butler:
After victories I’m prone to all kinds of messes: chocolate, peanuts, chips. Fast food only very rarely. Something special must have happened there. And it has to be dark, otherwise I can’t get fast food down.
Surely Phil Foden and Bernado Silva have to start if Pep reads his glossy Champions League Opta stat pack.
- Since featuring in a 2-1 defeat to Lyon in September 2018, Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva is unbeaten in his last 26 UEFA Champions League matches (W23 D3) – the longest unbeaten run in the history of the competition. His team-mate Phil Foden is on the second-longest current run, unbeaten in 21 matches (W18 D3) since playing in a defeat to Basel in March 2018.
It’s not just the Simpsons that predicts the future. Just under 36 years before Manchester United and Villarreal were deadlocked after 90 minutes, here’s another big, fancied English team being held by Spanish minnows in a European final. Surely this Basora character should have gone for that tackle.
Thirty-six years ago: Drama at the final of the European Cup-Winners' Cup. Mr Gray and Mr Morgan help Roy off the field and the Player-Manager is in a lot of pain. It wasn't always easy being Roy of the Rovers. Sorry, Roy, for planning some tough storylines! pic.twitter.com/Z24IMNl5jh
— Barrie Tomlinson (@BarrieEditor1) May 22, 2021
Petr > Didier when it comes to drawing.
These two. 🤗 #UCLFinal
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 27, 2021
Managerial vacancies now at three big clubs. And Tottenham.
Juve, Real Madrid and Inter all sifting through candidates. If the bookies are to be believed, it’s Antonio Conte (8/11) to Real and Mauricio Pochettino (4/11) back to Spurs. Massimiliano Allegri is also being heavily linked with a return to Juventus.
Talking of the Super League, Juventus have announced the departure of head coach Andrea Pirlo after just one season in charge.
Finishing fourth after nine successive titles just didn’t cut it. Here’s the goodbye on the official Juventus website. Are you sitting comfortably children?...
Thanks Andrea. These are the first words that all of us must pronounce at the end of this special experience lived together.
A few months ago Andrea Pirlo, an icon of world football, began a new adventure on the Juventus bench, his first as a coach.
To do this, first of all it takes courage, as well as awareness of one’s own means, especially in a period marked by many difficulties, with the world forced by the pandemic to reinvent its own rules day after day.
Andrea did it too: he started (and we are sure of this: his will be a brilliant career as a coach) a journey of transformation, seeking, and often managing, to bring his ideas and his experience as a champion on the pitch from the “Other side” of the barricade.
For the courage, the dedication, the passion with which he demonstrated every day, our thanks go to the ‘Maestro’, the coach and to Andrea, that really comes from the heart, as well as our good luck for the future that will surely be a wonderful one.
Grazie di tutto, Mister @Pirlo_Official!
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) May 28, 2021
Updated
Well, no-one thought this was going to just Fade Away...
Joan Laporta, who remains committed to the European Super League, is giving his first press conference this am since becoming Barcelona president for the second time. Here's a link: https://t.co/PHV8NfA6rZ
— tariq panja (@tariqpanja) May 28, 2021
We’ve heard from Noel but nothing yet from Liam about the Champions League final. At least he didn’t miss this open goal after Wednesday night’s events in Gdansk.
We all live in a YELLOW SUBMARINE
— Liam Gallagher (@liamgallagher) May 26, 2021
David Tindall here now. While John goes off to eat cake after putting the thought in his mind, I’ll take the blog for a while.
They will probably hold off the chocolate cake for tonight. Plenty of time for that on Sunday.
A 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐨 of birthdays today! 🥳
— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 28, 2021
🎈 @PhilFoden
🎈 @kylewalker2
🎈 John Stones
Have a great day, lads!
🔷 #ManCity | https://t.co/axa0klD5re pic.twitter.com/KNXqdpyhZ9
Saturday night in the Estádio do Dragão will all be about mentality, and Ben Welch’s piece for the Blizzard, carried in these pages, hears from psychologists and players who share their tips for staying self-assured.
The rest of the Premier League will look on at City and Chelsea with gimlet eyes, but the transfer window is about to be prised open. Manchester United look like early market movers, though we probably say that every year.
Noel Gallagher has been talking to the BBC about Manchester City and, well, himself.
What Manchester City have done is exactly what the owners said would happen.
When they came in and said they were determined to turn us into one of the biggest clubs in Europe and the world, all I was thinking was, I don’t care what you do, as long as that banner comes down at Old Trafford, the one showing how long we’d been without a trophy.
I remember meeting [City chairman] Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the start and telling him that and he was adamant, saying ‘oh no no no, it’s going to be much greater than that’.
I was like ‘whatever’ but my God they have been true to their word and it has just been an amazing journey that the club has been on.
It feels like quite a neat anniversary - we’ve had 10 years of the High Flying Birds and 10 years of City in the Champions League. Not only that but it’s my birthday on Saturday and I’m going to be in Porto, so it’s a big day all round.
And here’s the brilliant Barney Ronay on Kevin De Bruyne, the main man for Manchester City.
De Bruyne will turn 30 next month. He’s about to play his 494th professional game. To date he has three Premier League titles, an FA Cup and five League Cups, which is certainly a lot of League Cups. He has been player of the year in England, Germany and Belgium, but never above ninth spot in the Ballon d’Or.
This will be Manchester City’s second European final. Remembering Big Mal, Joe Mercer, the other Neil Young with those who were in Vienna in 1970, including City stalwart Tommy Booth.
Updated
Jacob Steinberg dove deeply into Tactics Tom ahead of the final. Great piece.
Preamble
Saturday is also upon us, and it will be a tremendous day of red hot soccer. Brentford and Swansea, two teams who play the game the ‘right’ way will serve as an hors d’oeuvre for the evening’s events in Porto when they play in the EFL Championship play-off final. It will be a match when every kick can be measured by how much money it might cost, football divined right down to the pecuniary.
Talking of which, can Manchester City reach the holy grail of winning the competition their owners set out to win on buying the club in 2008 or will Roman Abramovich celebrate success for the second time, having set out a similar target five years before.
Setting aside such cynicism, both games promise so much with Thomas Tuchel seeming to have Pep Guardiola’s number so far this season and Swansea and Brentford drew both their games 1-1 in the regular season. Last year, of course, Brentford did a number on the Swans in the play-off semis only to lose to Scott Parker’s Fulham.
Two different matches, two rather different forms of jeopardy. We will try our best to keep you up to speed on the latest news, previews and voices throughout the day.
Join us.
