And with that, I’ll bid you good evening. Enjoy any games you go to, stay safe, have a good weekend and may your Cup overflow with good cheer. Stay on the site for live MBM coverage of Swindon v Man City tonight, and lots of action tomorrow and Sunday.
Thanks for your company and comments. Bye
“Re Coutinho’s questionable badge-pointing prowess, earlier,” writes Peter Oh. “To be fair, in the photo his finger does seem to be homed in on the crest, albeit from a distance. For his sake I hope this will be the only fingerpointing that he will be subjected to at Villa.”
Of more importance, I’d contend, that a clause be imposed whereby he promises not to performatively non-celebrate any goals he might score against Liverpool. No time for any of that.
Just sweeping up some other bits of transfer tittle-tattle scattered around the floor, along with discarded Christmas tree pine needles. Newcastle have submitted an “improved offer” for the Lille defender Sven Botman. Manchester United continue to be linked with Wolves’ Ruben Neves, while Real Madrid and PSG sniff around Chelsea’s Antonio Rüdiger, though Thomas Tuchel is confident the defender can be persuaded to stay and does not need “pampering”.
The Fiver has landed, with its take on inaccurate badge-pointer Kieran Trippier’s arrival on Tyneside.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! That was the noise of Wor Eddie How-ay’s massive brass balls banging loudly against each other, as he explained the reasons behind Kieran Trippier completing his move from Spanish champions and Big Cup contenders Atlético Madrid to Newcastle United earlier on Friday. Currently second from bottom of the Premier League but now the World’s Richest Football Club after their purchase by a Public Investment Fund that is in no way connected to a Saudi prince responsible for all manner of atrocities, Newcastle have got their anticipated January trolley dash off to what looks like an eminently sensible start by acquiring the England full-back.
Here’s Jamie Jackson’s full report on that presser with Ralf Rangnick, who’s confident his players are trying to buy into his approach. “I’m sure they are listening and I think we showed in the last games against [Crystal] Palace, Burnley and in parts against Norwich [all wins] and Newcastle [draw] that they are trying to follow the advice I give them. We conceded less goals than before – it’s 0.6 in six games.”
Ainsley Maitland-Niles is closing in on a loan move to Roma from Arsenal, and the chance for fun time under José Mourinho, on which he is keen, according to the Metro. “Ainsley came to me and explained the reasons why he thought the best thing for him and his career was to move away,” said his Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta. “He felt the opportunity to go to Rome and work with José was a good one.”
Bournemouth’s David Brooks has been talking about the progress of his cancer treatment. The Wales midfielder, who was diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin lymphona in the autumn, says “the outlook is promising and positive” as he continues treatment.
“I feel that now is the right time to update you all on my progress following my diagnosis in October last year,” he said in a statement. “I want to thank everyone who got in touch after the announcement. I was overwhelmed by the incredible messages of support from family, friends, team-mates and across social media during this difficult period.
“I’m currently undergoing treatment and although I’m only halfway through, the progress is good and the outlook is promising and positive! I’m keeping in touch with everyone at Bournemouth and the national team and looking forward to an exciting finish to the season for club and country.”
“Hey Tom, So, I don’t know where you stand on discussing silly transfers when there is proper old fashioned football on, in the form of the third round of the cup,” writes Ben Lake. I tut with the moralising disapproval of a Victorian dad, since you ask. Nevertheless, he persists. “Thought I’d chance my arm anyway. I’d just end having to do my job otherwise.
“Coutinho, is he, like, good? He’s played for some of the of biggest clubs in the world but from his time in Liverpool, I remember being consistently underwhelmed. He would occasionally pop up with a spectacular goal but then you’d barely see anything of note from him otherwise.
“Now, a complete lack of money (or friends willing to meet me outside) means I rarely ever see full matches. Was he doing a lot of note that doesn’t show up on highlights?
His time at Barcelona could be charitably be described as disappointing but then Barcelona were hardly a well run club during his stint.
Just seems like an odd gamble by Villa, I know it’s a loan but that’s one hell of a wage burden to be taking on when you have a young promising manager you could surround with equally hungry players.”
He’s undoubtedly had his moments, many of them, though Liverpool became more of a force after he went. While plenty of good players have struggled at the basketcase that has been Barcelona in recent seasons. I guess Villa see him as filling the star-vacancy left by Jack Grealish though I wonder how he’ll slot in alongside the likes of Emi Buendía and John McGinn. Will be an interesting poser for Steven Gerrard
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Aston Villa are reportedly interested in Yves Bissouma, currently with Mali for the Africa Cup of Nations, though Brighton’s Graham Potter wants him to stay.
Elsewhere, the rift between Rafa Benítez and Lucas Digne looks unresolvable, with the Everton manager accusing the full-back of putting his own interests above the club’s. Andy Hunter has the story:
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Benjamin Mendy freed on bail
The Manchester City defender, accused of rape, has been bailed until 24 January.
“Following on from Kidderminster pies earlier,” scoffs Phil Malayan, “one of the best days out is at Crook Town FC in the Northern League. Their Millfield ground match day luxury takeaway, ‘Only Foods and Sauces’, does the best chip buttie and black and amber burger in the North East.” Tell us more about the black and amber burger …
More awards: the Fifa women’s player of the year shortlist comprises Chelsea’s Sam Kerr and the Barcelona and Spain pair Jennifer Hermoso and Alexia Putellas.
The award winners will be announced in a virtual ceremony on January 17.
Meanwhile, a PA Media take on Rangnick’s presser:
Ralf Rangnick downplayed talk of dressing room discontent as the interim Manchester United manager looks to recover from the shock loss to Wolves. There has been intense scrutiny on the Old Trafford giants in the wake of a 1-0 home loss on Monday that was more one-sided than the scoreline suggests.
It has been reported that as many as 17 players are unhappy with the current situation but interim manager Rangnick seemed unperturbed by talk of dissatisfied fringe players.
“Well, I mean this is not only an issue with a club like Manchester United,” he said. “When you have a big squad, in the last two games we had most players available.
“Yes, we had an issue with three centre-backs missing out against Wolves but - in general - we had most players available, apart from Paul Pogba. If you have that many players and 10 outfield players can play and three being substituted, then of course you have quite a number of players - in our case 12, 13, 14 players who don’t even play, or not even being in the squad.
“Then those players are not happy about that situation. It’s obvious, it’s clear. In total, we have a big squad. I tend to explain to players every two or three weeks why they are not playing but obviously I cannot do that every game and that is an issue in our team as well as in other clubs.”
Got a feeling he’s making the phrase “this is not only an issue with a club like Manchester United” do a lot of heavy lifting there.
Anyway, this is the kind of Content we’re about. Ian Haskins trumps me on the subject of Swindon v Man City nostalgia: “You can forget 1993, it’s 1910 the boys at the County Ground will be channelling tonight …”
Spurs' Son out for a month
More from Spurs, and Antonio Conte has revealed that Son Heung-min has sustained an injury that could rule him out until at least the end of the month. The South Korea international has had a scan on a muscle problem he first suffered at Chelsea on Wednesday and Conte says he will not train before the international window at the end of the month.
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Here’s a curious one: Chester, who play in the English pyramid, may have breached Welsh coronavirus regulations when they hosted crowds at two matches over Christmas and new year. PA Media takes up the story.
The National League North club’s Swansway Chester Stadium straddles the border of England and Wales, with the front gates and main office in England but the pitch in Wales.
Sporting events in Wales must currently be played behind closed doors under rules to tackle the spread of the Omicron variant which came into force on Boxing Day. There are presently no such restrictions in England.
Chester’s home matches against Fylde and Telford on December 28 and January 2 were attended by crowds of 2,075 and 2,116 respectively.
The club have announced they have been informed by authorities of the potential breaches and that they risk more by hosting further games in front of fans. This could mean them having to play matches behind closed doors while the current Welsh rules remain in place.
Chester, who are next due to play at home when they face Brackley Town on January 15, are seeking legal advice.
Antonio Conte speaks ahead of Tottenham’s home tie with Morecambe on Sunday, about what sort of backing he might get in the transfer market in the light of reports of chairman Daniel Levy and owner Joe Lewis having squad-related chinwags, without offering too many hints. “I’m sure we all want the best for Tottenham and the first person who wants to improve is for sure our owner and I would have time to speak with the people that work in the club to try to understand well the situation. It’ll be a good opportunity after two months here to think about the situation now and what we want clearly. We want to improve the level of the players we have in our squad but as you know January is not easy for anyone and we’ll see.”
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Should we really care about individual awards in a team game? Whatever, we have another shortlist for you folks, with the Fifa Best Men’s Player award. And 2021’s nominees are Mo Salah, Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi. The same top three as the Guardian’s own.
More from Rangnick, Jamie Jackson reports: “They [the players] are at least trying, I’m sure they are listening and we showed in the last games against Palace, Burnley and parts against Norwich and Newcastle they are trying to follow the advice I give them.”
Ralf Rangnick press conference incoming, amid talk of player dissatisfaction at the well-oiled high-functioning corporate machine that is Manchester United:
Rangnick so far very stonewall-y...
— jamie jackson (@JamieJackson___) January 7, 2022
Looks like more legacy issues:
"We have made some progress but maybe Wolves was a relapse to [play of] teams of the past", says Rangnick...
— jamie jackson (@JamieJackson___) January 7, 2022
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Another nudge on the revolving door at Aston Villa – Wesley is leaving the building (that he’s not been in it much) to join the Brazilian club Internacional on a 12-month loan. The Brazilian had spent the early part of this season on loan at Club Brugge, and has struggled for fitness since moving to Villa in 2019.
This from the Bruno Lage presser. He summed up Wolves’ stance well, and the questions that might arise if someone were to come in with a gigantic bid for, say, Rúben Neves. “When you want to do the next step and every time you are selling your best players, then the next step can never happen. We are here with the project and our ideas – that’s everyone: the chairman, sporting director and the manager – and the main point is to continue with the same players, try to improve them and go to the next level.
“But you know this model of football: If one big transfer appears – I can compare with when I was at Benfica and a team came and paid 120 million for one player - you cannot say no. Or you can say no but you have to balance it: do you receive the money and use it to improve the team or do you continue with the same player? That’s the thing.”
Thanks Gregg, festive cheeseboard duly polished off (almost). And I return with some grim injury news for Leicester, with Jamie Vardy out for eight weeks with his hamstring injury and Jonny Evans now sidelined until April after hamstring surgery.
Elsewhere, Michail Antonio has signed a contract extension at West Ham keeping him at the London Stadium until 2024.
Here’s a story that is worth reading if, like me, you play Fantasy Football.
And Tom is back from his lunch now so I’ll hand back over to him. Bye!
Kieran Trippier speaks!
Here’s Newcastle’s new full-back on why he made the move from a Champions League club to one that could be in the Championship if they don’t start winning more games.
I think I made it clear that if I had the opportunity to come back to the Premier League I would do. It’s important for my family. I like challenges. I know the position they’re in and I want to help them on and off the field. I’m excited about it. It was important [that I’d worked with Eddie Howe before]. I know what he demands in training, I know what he expects. Managers who have coached me know what character I am. I’m still ambitious. I still want to get in the England team. I still feel like I’m in very good shape.
Thomas Tuchel has been previewing Chelsea’s FA Cup tie against Chesterfield and was asked whether he was considering trying to get Emerson Palmieri back from his loan spell at Lyon. These quotes suggest he might just give it a go:
In general, I will not hide from the fact we have a long-term injury with Ben Chilwell who will miss the whole season. I won’t go into details. We appreciate him as a player and person. He’s a top guy and professional, and still a Chelsea player. It’s not what I wish for, but we need to evaluate the situation. We are looking into it. It’s an option.
To be fair to Maxwell Cornet, he hasn’t missed much else since joining Burnley.
Although Trippier and Coutinho are coming in for a bit of stick for not quite pointing at their new club badges, they still have a long way to go before they top Burnley’s Maxwel Cornet… pic.twitter.com/f3MdqCfGf5
— Sam Quek (@SamanthaQuek) January 7, 2022
Here’s what Rafael Benítez had to say about Lucas Digne’s request to leave Everton.
I have no explanation [for why he wants to leave]. We are professional and are paid big money to do our job. If someone is happy or not happy, it is up to you because are paid big money and have to perform. You have to put your interests behind those of the club. In modern football, maybe the stats and the priorities have changed and maybe people think about themselves before the team. It’s very simple. The 31st January, if we finish the transfer window and he is still here, we will do what we have to do. We were trying to manage the situation. We have interest but nothing concrete. What I cannot do is bring players who want to be here, and then give priority to players who are not really interested.
Benítez also spoke more generally about the club’s progress and hinted at a few battles he might be having in the dressing-room.
I don’t want to finish 10th, I want to finish as high as possible. I want to be sure that Everton is growing and improving and creating a winning mentality. Do we want to grow and improve or just to manage the egos and leave the team behind?”
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Willy Caballero has extended his short-term Southampton deal until the end of the season. Will Caballero is 40! He’s clearly a good vibes man as well as a decent backup goalkeeper. Here’s what Ralph Hasenhüttl had to say about the veteran stopper.
Willy is a fantastic character who has freshened up our goalkeeper group massively. With the experience he brings, he is absolutely an important part of that group, and that was the reason we wanted to convince him to stay with us until the end of the season, and I am very happy he has decided to do this.
Some more news out of Aston Villa. Their Brazilian striker Wesley, who suffered a dreadful knee injury last season at Burnley, has joined Internacional on a 12-month loan deal.
Wishing Wesley all the best, as he heads back to Brazil on loan with Internacional. 👊
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) January 7, 2022
Hello! Hope we’re all doing well. Let’s kick off with a a piece about the lowest-ranked club in the FA Cup third round, Kidderminster Harriers, who will not be live on screen but that has not hit their feeling of excitement. Here’s Jamie Jackson’s piece:
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Lucas Digne has asked to leave Everton, Sky is now reporting, to no great surprise.
And on that bombshell, I’m going to run away for a spot of lunch, and leave you in the capable hands of Gregg Bakowski. See you later.
Back on the topic of transfers, Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhüttl believes the Premier League should consider preventing January signings from featuring in matches that have been rearranged from the past month of Covid disruption.
Ben Fisher has more:
Covid has been causing all manner of havoc in Italy, with four games not happening this week in somewhat farcical circumstances. Nicky Bandini’s Serie A blog has more:
Bologna, Torino, Salernitana and Udinese were each ordered to quarantine following outbreaks in their respective squads. Their opponents – Inter, Atalanta, Venezia and Fiorentina – still each showed up to the relevant stadium and performed the surreal but increasingly familiar ritual of pretending to get ready for football matches that could not take place
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Arsenal will wear all-white tops for Sunday’s FA Cup match at Nottingham Forest as part of a campaign against youth violence after London saw a record 30th teenage murder in a year. The north London side will roll out their “No More Red” campaign, which will see their jersey stripped of its traditional red.
The former Arsenal striker Ian Wright is a part of the initiative and said on Friday: “We can never accept loss of life through youth violence as ‘normal’ in our city and it’s so important that we all work together to create a better environment for young people. The shirt will become a symbol of positivity in the community, given to individuals and organisations who are giving back to the community and creating a positive environment for young people.”
“It’s sad that this Friday live blog has lowered itself to comments about football,” sniffs coldcut BTL. “Where are breakfast updates? Live blog of the live blog? This nonsense needs to stop.”
Breakfast!? Luxury – not had time for that, which is probably why my mind drifted into Kidderminster pie-based reverie just there. Happy to exchange more pastry-based hot takes.
Perhaps the best food I’ve ever had at a football ground was in the away end at Kidderminster, around 20 years ago. Those pies were lush. Though those catering arrangements appear to have been controversially changed of late. All of which is an indulgent preamble to mentioning that Harriers are the lowest-placed side in the FA Cup third round, and host Reading, who’ve had a rough old season, so anything could happen. Jamie Jackson has a more detailed preview
At 3pm on Saturday, Kidderminster, fifth in sixth-tier National League North, will hope to add another dream-come-true tale to the FA Cup story by knocking out Reading, the domestic game’s 41st-ranked side.
“That’s exactly what we want,” says Sam Austin, the Carpetmen’s longest-serving player, who joined in 2016 and will line up as the No 10 in Russell Penn’s 4-2-3-1. The 25-year-old, though, was not always a creative force with a penchant for ‘wordly’ goals such as the 20-yard left-foot volley he blazed in against Manchester United during a pre-season friendly in the summer.
“When you get one, you gain the confidence to try again, don’t you?” he says. “You carry it on, you take a few more chances than you probably would if you’re low on confidence. But when I first joined it was all about earning experience, trying to get into the team. A chance arose at full-back and I thought: ‘Well, to get games I’ll have to adjust my playing style.’ I played there for a few seasons and I always loved the attacking aspect of full-back.”
A reminder that Covid has forced the postponement of three Women’s Super League matches this weekend – Chelsea’s home game against Spurs tonight, Aston Villa v Everton tomorrow and West Ham’s fixture against Manchester United on Sunday. Brighton v Man City looks the pick of the WSL matches that have survived.
A contribution from below the line from regular vsbain, about the Bundesliga, which resumes this evening:
Dropping by to say hi because I am on winter break until next week.
The top Bundesliga resumes tonight and, as tradition, we get a free to air game. It is inevitably Bayern and they are playing Gladbach. Not so quick to yawn because the last time we got fed that - in the autumn - the latter totally surprised us with a 5-0 win.
There was a lot of speculation that this would be postponed because Bayern have a lot of covid but it is currently scheduled. Fair enough. My team had it at the start and had to complete fixtures anyhow, such as with juniors. Duly lost all games and did not score. You just move on.
It’s a big day for Chesterfield tomorrow when they visit Chelsea. Riding high at the top of the National League under James Rowe, the Spireites are a team transformed after years of decline. Rank outsiders against last year’s runners-up they may be but Rowe says his side “have to dream”.
“A lot of players are fulfilling their dreams tomorrow, as well as myself, it is just a really great day to be a part of,” he told the Derbyshire Times. “If there was not a chance I would not be getting on the coach this afternoon.
“It is a bonus game and it really puts us back on the map. I have some comments around the town saying ‘we are getting our club back’.” And they’ve sold 6,000 tickets for tomorrow’s tie.
There’s a tasty old south London derby at the Den tomorrow lunchtime, when Crystal Palace visit Millwall. And Patrick Vieira intends to play Palace’s “best team”.
Cheikhou Kouyate, Jordan Ayew and Wilfried Zaha are absent on Africa Cup of Nations duty, but the Premier League club have no plans to rotate. “For me, it was always clear to put the best team on the field to compete,” Vieira said. “It is a derby, it is the FA Cup and it will be challenging. We will need our best starting XI to compete and to try to win the game.”
Conor Gallagher will return at the Den but James McArthur (hamstring) remains absent. Vieira was coy over Palace’s transfer activity for this month, insisting Jean-Philippe Mateta “will be part of the group” for the Cup tie despite speculation linking him with a move to St Etienne. On reported interested in Eddie Nketiah and Aaron Ramsey, the manager added: “There is not much to say about those players because for us what is really important is to concentrate and focus on the players we have.”
Some more from PA Media on Kieran Trippier joining Newcastle, with Eddie Howe obviously expecting the full-back’s arrival to pave the way for further January signings after insisting he has not joined the club for the money.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup third round tie against Cambridge, in which Trippier could feature, Howe said: “It’s a sign that the club has a huge pull - and I’m not talking financial here.
“Kieran hasn’t come for the financial benefits of the contract. He’s come for the club and for the challenge that the team faces at the current time, but also the longer-term vision, so I think that’s a massive thing for the football club.
“Hopefully with his signing, other players around the world will potentially look at that and share his dream and his vision for what he sees. That’s a big thing for us.”
Asked if he was confident about further signings, he replied: “Yes, I’d say at this moment I am. But we’re in the hands of clubs selling players, we’re in the hands of agents and players wanting to come. There are no guarantees. It might sound simple from the outside; it’s very, very different when you’re on the inside, so I’m confident, but there are no promises.”
The threat of relegation may not help Newcastle as they attempt to bolster their squad over the remaining weeks of the winter transfer window – Callum Wilson is due to undergo a scan to determine the extent of his calf injury which could yet impact on their plans – although Howe indicated his distaste for escape clauses in contracts.
He said: “Offering relegation clauses is a sure-fire way to potentially bring players in who don’t have the correct motivation. I want players who are absolutely committed and have no way out, to say ‘I’ve got to make that work’, and that’s the only way we’re going to get success anyway.”
Covid infections continue to jolt Africa Cup of Nations preparations, with Gabon and Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang among the players to test positive. Reuters also reports that Egypt have cancelled training and delayed their departure to Cameroon while Guinea were forced to leave three players behind at their training base in Rwanda.
Aubameyang tested positive on arrival in Cameroon on Thursday, along with his teammate Mario Lemina. They are now awaiting the results of PCR tests but both missed the country’s first training session on Friday. If confirmed positive, they will have to go into isolation and would almost certainly miss Gabon’s opening game in Group C against the Comoros Islands on Monday.
The Guinea Football Federation said on Friday that the defender Mikael Dyrestam was isolating in accordance with local Covid protocols, together with the goalkeeper coach Kemoko Camara, who also tested positive, while the rest of their delegation departed for Cameroon. The striker Seydouba Soumah was already in isolation after testing positive. Guinea play their opening Group B match on Monday against Malawi.
The Cape Verde Islands were also waiting for the results of PCR tests on two of their players – defender João Paulo Fernandes and midfielder Nenass – after they tested positive on arrival on Thursday. Squad sizes have been increased to 28 players for the tournament.
Get in the mood for tonight’s tie with footage of Manchester City’s Premier League visit to Swindon in 1993, where luminaries such as Nicky Summerbee and Niall Quinn turn it round against the top-flight newbies before a blatantly offside third. Thems were days …
And Paul Doyle had a chinwag with Jan Åge Fjørtoft about that season earlier in the week. Read here:
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Staying in Liverpool, the moving TV drama series this week about the Hillsborough campaigner Anne Williams has put the injustices of the disaster back in the spotlight. Calls for a “Hillsborough law” to ensure fairer treatment for the bereaved in the justice system will be made later today. Mark Brown has the story:
Calls for a “Hillsborough law” to rebalance the UK’s justice system and ensure fairer treatment for bereaved families will be made at a high-profile event on Friday.
The Hillsborough Law Now summit will be co-hosted by the mayors of Greater Manchester and Liverpool, Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram, and will have speakers who include representatives of bereaved families from tragedies past and present.
It has been timed to build on the extra awareness of the issue, which has been revived by the powerful ITV drama Anne that tells the story of Anne Williams’ fight for justice for her teenage son Kevin. The actor Maxine Peake, who played Williams, is expected at the event, which will be livestreamed on Facebook.
Liverpool will reopen their first team training ground today and have confirmed assistant manager Peter Krawietz is to take charge of preparations for Sunday’s FA Cup third round tie against Shrewsbury. Liverpool closed the first team facilities on Wednesday amid an escalating Covid outbreak that led to the postponement of the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at Arsenal. Those first team players who are available will train today. Krawietz is leading preparations for the game while Jurgen Klopp and Pepijn Lijnders isolate.
Liverpool expect to pitch a smattering of youth and academy players into their tie at Shrewsbury on Sunday. Virgil van Dijk, Fabinho, Curtis Jones, Alisson and Joel Matip could be available but the likes of Kaide Gordon, Harvey Davies, James Balagizi, Harvey Blair and James Norris from the academy could also feature.
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Whispers have it that Crystal Palace are sniffing around Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah while Norwich’s Todd Cantwell is among those players being linked to the Saudi Newcastle project, though Dean Smith was saying nothing either way in his weekend presser. “I know there is an awful lot of speculation about Todd at the moment and there always is about good players,” the Norwich manager said. “He has been in a situation where when we arrived he had not been training with the first team for a while, so we had to build up his fitness and he is in a good place now.
“He is contention to play on Sunday [in the FA Cup at Charlton], but I don’t deal with the speculation, Stuart [Webber, the sporting director] does, so I don’t know is the honest answer.”
Such is the mood on Tyneside that a home tie against a third-tier club is a sell-out, but that 52,000 crowd will include 5,000 from Cambridge, who’ve been on an upward curve in recent seasons. Louise Taylor has been talking to their owner, Paul Barry, about the resurgence of a proper community club.
A bit of news from Southampton, where Willy Caballero has agreed to extend his short-term stay at St Mary’s until the end of season. The 40-year-old keeper joined last month as cover after injuries to Alex McCarthy and Fraser Forster.
And we’ve got a bucket-full of speculation courtesy of today’s Rumour Mill. Luis Diaz to Liverpool? Nat Phillips to Watford? Issa Diop to Newcastle? Read on …
Preamble
Morning everyone. And welcome to third-round weekend. While lamentations about the fading magic of the FA Cup don’t have the same allure that lamentations about the fading magic of the FA Cup had 15 or 20 years ago, it’s still a big date in the calendar for many fans. There’ll be an extra spring in the steps of fans at places such as Kidderminster, Yeovil, Chesterfield and others. So while many teams – and not just those at the top – may field much-changed sides on third-round day, the fact that Covid means practically no one can field their first-choice XIs anyway adds a certain unpredictability. Starting tonight, when League Two promotion-challengers Swindon host a youthful Manchester City side. I saw Ben Garner’s revitalised Swindon last month and they looked slick and enterprising, if porous at the back. It won’t be 0-0 at the County Ground this evening, and should be worth watching.
And we have transfer activity in abundance. Two big deals have been confirmed already this morning – Kieran Trippier becoming the first big-name signing of the new Newcastle regime, and Philippe Coutinho’s loan move to Aston Villa sending out a statement.
And you can track every deal in Europe’s top five leagues, for men and women, with our transfer interactives:
