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Graeme Souness has a point about Declan Rice. But his conclusion is harder to defend
Graeme Souness has long had doubts about Declan Rice. His latest criticism, delivered on the first episode of Piers Morgan and Simon Jordan’s new Football Uncensored show, has brought that long-running argument back into focus. Souness believes Rice spends too much time dropping out of midfield during Arsenal’s build-up. He pointed to occasions when the England international moves between the centre-backs, or into the space between a centre-back and full-back, to collect possession with relatively little pressure on him. For Souness, that is not what an elite central midfielder should be doing. He described it as “old man’s football” and argued that receiving the ball in those areas allows Rice to take the easier option rather than influencing the game from midfield. He even suggested that...
What Germany’s World Cup exit tells Jürgen Klopp about the job ahead
A couple of months on from Germany’s World Cup exit to Paraguay, the result still looks difficult to reconcile with the basic match statistics. Germany enjoyed far more possession, completed considerably more passes and registered 21 shots to Paraguay’s seven. ESPN’s xG figures put Germany ahead 1.57 to 0.35. On another day, those numbers might have produced a comfortable victory and a place in the next round. But the headline statistics only tell part of the story. Look more closely and Germany’s dominance becomes progressively less convincing as the ball moves towards the areas that matter most. The question for Jürgen Klopp is therefore not simply how to turn possession into goals. It is whether the way Germany used the ball left them too predictable and too easy to contain. Germany’s a...
Chelsea and Manchester City teams confirmed for FA Cup final
Chelsea and Manchester City have named their teams for this afternoon’s FA Cup final at Wembley, with both managers making major calls for the showpiece. Pep Guardiola brings Rodri back into the Manchester City midfield, while Erling Haaland returns to lead the line after being rested in midweek. Omar Marmoush is also handed a start in attack, with Rayan Cherki left out of the XI. For Chelsea, Robert Sanchez returns in goal after recovering from the head injury he sustained against Nottingham Forest. Captain Reece James is also fit to start and is expected to operate in midfield alongside Moises Caicedo. Kick-off at Wembley is at 3pm BST. Chelsea team news Chelsea interim boss Calum McFarlane has gone with Sanchez in goal, with Malo Gusto, Levi Colwill, Wesley Fofana and Jorrel Hato formin...
Confirmed: Manchester City and Chelsea teams
Manchester City team: Ederson, Nunes, Khusanov, Akanji, Gvardiol, Kovacic, Gundogan, Bernardo, Marmoush, Foden, Haaland Subs: Ortega Moreno, Stones, Grealish, De Bruyne, Reis, Savinho, O’Reilly, Lewis, McAtee Chelsea team: Sanchez, James, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella, Caicedo, Enzo, Madueke, Palmer Sancho, Jackson Subs: Jorgensen, Disasi, Acheampong, Tosin, Gusto, Dewsbury-Hall, Neto, Nkunku, Guiu Manchester City vs Chelsea kicks off at the Etihad Stadium at 17:30 GMT on Saturday 25th of January 2025.
Confirmed: Leicester and Manchester City teams
Leicester team: Stolarczyk, Justin, Coady, Vestergaard, Kristiansen, Winks, Soumare, El Khannouss, Mavididi, Buonanotte, Vardy. Subs: Iversen, Okoli, Wilson-Brown, Thomas, Skipp, Choudhury, De Cordova-Reid, Alves; Daka. Manchester City team: Moreno, Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol, Kovacic, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Savinho, Foden; Haaland. Subs: Carson, Walker, Grealish, Doku, Gundogan, Simpson-Pusey, Mubama, O’Reilly, McAtee. Foxes make two changes Ruud van Nistelrooy adjusts his Leicester line-up following their 3-1 defeat to Liverpool. Goalscorer Jordan Ayew is swapped out for Facundo Buonanotte, while Jamie Vardy comes in to replace Patson Daka. City make one change Pep Guardiola alters his Manchester City line-up from the 1-1 draw against Everton, bringing Kevin De Bruyne back into the...
Confirmed: Brighton vs Manchester City teams
Brighton team: Verbruggen; Veltman, Van Hecke, Julio, Estupinan; Hinshelwood, Ayari, Rutter; Adingra, Welbeck, Mitoma Subs: Steele, Gruda, Pedro, Enciso, Moder, Baleba, Wieffer, Ferguson, O’Riley Manchester City team: Ederson; Walker, Simpson-Pusey, Gvardiol, Lewis; Kovacic, Gundogan, Nunes; Savinho, Haaland, Foden Subs: Ortega, Ake, De Bruyne, Bernardo, Akanji, Wright, O’Reilly, McAtee, Wilson-Esbrand Adingra in Brighton XI, Pedro and O’Riley on the bench Brighton make a single change from the side that lost to Liverpool. With Ferdi Kadioglu out of the squad, Simon Adingra takes his place on the right wing. The Seagulls’ bench brings good news, as Joao Pedro and Matt O’Riley are both available as they work back from injury. Lewis Dunk remains sidelined, while Carlos Baleba is ...
Confirmed: West Ham and Everton teams
West Ham team: Fabianski, Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Emerson, Rodriguez, Soucek, Paqueta, Summerville, Bowen, Antonio. Subs: Foderingham, Cresswell, Soler, Coufal, Mavropanos, Guilherme, Ings, Irving, Scarles. Everton team: Pickford, Young, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko, Mangala, Gueye, Doucoure, Ndiaye, Lindstrom, Calvert-Lewin. Subs: Virginia, Begovic, Patterson, Keane, Harrison, Beto, O’Brien, Armstrong, Bates. Soucek and Antonio return to West Ham’s starting XI Under-pressure manager Julen Lopetegui has made two adjustments to his West Ham lineup following their 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest. Konstantinos Mavropanos is left out, and with Edson Alvarez suspended, Michail Antonio and Tomas Soucek are brought into the starting eleven. Doucoure and Branthwaite enter Everton’s...
Confirmed: Newcastle Utd and Arsenal teams
Newcastle Utd team: Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Longstaff, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Willock, Isak, Gordon Subs: Dubravka, Tonali, Barnes, Krafth, Osula, Almiron, Kelly, A.Murphy, Miley Arsenal team: Raya; Partey, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Rice, Merino, Trossard; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli Subs: Neto, White, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Lewis-Skelly, Jorginho, Sterling, Nwaneri, Jesus Tonali on the bench, Gordon and Willock in the starting XI Newcastle make three changes from the side that faced Chelsea last Sunday. In a somewhat unexpected move, Sandro Tonali is on the bench, with Sean Longstaff stepping into midfield. Anthony Gordon returns to the Premier League line-up as Harvey Barnes moves to the bench, and former Arsenal player Joe Willock replaces Miguel Almiron. Gabriel and Saliba return ...
Confirmed: RB Leipzig vs Liverpool teams
RB Leipzig team: Gulacsi; Geetruida, Orban, Lukeba; Henrichs, Vermeeren, Haidara, Nusa; Simons, Sesko; Openda Subs: Vandevoort, Bitshiabu, Elmas, Poulsen, Baumgartner, Silva, Kampl, Gebel Liverpool team: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister; Salah, Gakpo, Nunez Substitutes: Jaros, Davies, Gomez, Quansah, Robertson, Endo, Jones, Morton, Nyoni, Diaz, One change for Leipzig Henrichs replaces Klosterman Nunez, Mac Allister, and Tsimikas start for Liverpool With Diogo Jota unavailable due to injury, Darwin Nunez leads the attack. Alexis Mac Allister is back in the starting team, replacing Curtis Jones, while Kostas Tsimikas comes in for Andy Robertson. RB Leipzig vs Liverpool in Champions League Round 1 kicks off at the Red Bull Arena at ...
Confirmed: Wolves vs Manchester City teams
Wolves team: Sa; Semedo, Bueno, Dawson, Toti, Ait-Nouri, Andre, Lemina, J Gomes, Cunha, Larsen. Subs: Bentley, Doherty, R Gomes, Doyle, Sarabia, Forbs, Bellegarde, Guedes, Lima. Manchester City team: Ederson, Lewis, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol, Kovacic, Gundogan, Bernardo, Savinho, Doku, Haaland. Subs: Ortega Moreno, Carson, Ake, Grealish, Akanji, Nunes, Foden, O’Reilly, McAtee. Wolves make two changes Jose Sa is back in the starting line-up for Wolves, with Sam Johnstone missing from the squad. Gary O’Neil has also tweaked the formation, adding Santi Bueno as a third centre-back, replacing Carlos Forbs. Savinho and Doku named in Man City starting XI Manchester City have made three alterations to the team that defeated Fulham before the international break. John Stones replaces Manuel Aka...
Confirmed: Tottenham and West Ham teams
Tottenham team: Vicario, Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie, Bissouma, Maddison, Kulusevski, Johnson, Solanke, Son. Subs: Forster, Dragusin, Gray, Bentancur, Sarr, Bergvall, Moore, Richarlison, Werner. West Ham team: Areola, Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Emerson, Rodriguez, Soucek, Paqueta, Kudus, Bowen, Antonio. Subs: Fabianski, Cresswell, Soler, Coufal, Summerville, Mavropanos, Guilherme, Ings, Alvarez. Son starts, Richarlison among the substitutes Heung-Min Son makes his return to the Tottenham starting XI after recovering from a hamstring injury, joining Dominic Solanke and Brennan Johnson in the forward line. Son replaces Timo Werner on the left side of the front three. Richarlison, having been sidelined for most of the season, is fit enough to take a spot on the bench. In midfield, Yv...
Confirmed: Liverpool and Tottenham teams
Liverpool team: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Quansah, Van Dijk, Robertson; Endo, Elliott, Mac Allister; Salah, Diaz, Gakpo Subs: Kelleher, Konate, Gomez, Bradley, Bajcetic, Gravenberch, Jones, Szoboszlai, Nunez Tottenham team: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Royal; Bissouma, Bentancur; Johnson, Sarr, Kulusevski; Son Subs: Austin, Dragusin, Skipp, Hojbjerg, Lo Celso, Maddison, Bryan, Moore, Richarlison Salah returns Mohamed Salah returns to Liverpool’s starting lineup for the clash against Tottenham, following a recent disagreement with manager Jurgen Klopp during the West Ham match. Virgil van Dijk, despite initial injury concerns, also features from the start. Ryan Gravenberch finds himself among the substitutes, while Conor Bradley makes his return to the bench after overcoming i...