1<\/p>\n
Amad\u2019s quick feet crucial for United<\/p>\n
Though Manchester United continued to win after playing brilliantly against Manchester City<\/a> and Arsenal in Michael Carrick\u2019s first two games as manager, the quality and coherence of their performances decreased thereafter. Lacking balance without the injured Patrick Dorgu, they\u2019ve been rescued on three separate occasion by Benjamin Sesko\u2019s goals \u2013 goals which eventually forced him into the team at the expense of Amad Diallo. But though Amad is easier to omit than Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, both of whom are older, dearer and more productive, without him United lacked a dribbler: a player eager to run at opponents, who isn\u2019t necessarily seeking the quickest route to goal, and whose quick feet in tight spaces are invaluable against disciplined defences. It is no coincidence that on his return to the starting XI, against Villa last weekend<\/a>, United delivered their best display since those early weeks. Though, at some point soon, Sesko\u2019s form will again demand his inclusion, this time it is unlikely to be Amad who makes way. Daniel Harris<\/p>\n 2<\/p>\n Mitoma absence benefits March<\/p>\n The Amex has not been a happy hunting ground for Liverpool in recent years: they have only won once at the ground in their last five visits and that was in the Carabao Cup last season. Their last Premier League victory there came in March 2022<\/a> and Arne Slot\u2019s side will face a Brighton team who have won three of their last four matches. Fabian H\u00fcrzeler may have to do without Kaoru Mitoma again after the Japan forward sat out their win at Sunderland owing to an ankle injury he picked up against Arsenal the previous weekend. His absence could mean there is more of a role for Solly March to play \u2013 March scored twice against Liverpool in a 3-0 win back in January 2023<\/a> \u2013 after he returned from almost a year out injured as a substitute against Nottingham Forest this month. Ed Aarons<\/p>\n 3<\/p>\n Fulham look to Wilson for touch of genius<\/p>\n There have never been as many players in the game able to score and create goals with moments of unlikely magic, and Harry Wilson is one such; so far this season, he has bagged nine and assisted six. The question, though, is whether he is a useful player in the form of his life or one maturing into something more significant and, given he\u2019s 28, the former seems more likely. Fulham, though, will hope he\u2019s in the process of stepping up a level. Though they lie 11th in the table, European football remains a viable prospect: they are only four points behind seventh-place Brentford<\/a>, who occupy what is currently the sole Conference League spot, and there exists the strong possibility that eighth \u2013 perhaps lower \u2013 will be good enough for continental competition, depending on who lifts the various cups. Consequently, a win this weekend is essential and, as has been the case so often this season, Wilson may hold the key. DH<\/p>\n Harry Wilson will be vital to Fulham fulfilling their ambitions for the rest of the season. Photograph: Nathan Stirk\/Getty Images<\/p>\n 4<\/p>\n Chelsea\u2019s easy ride proves Everton\u2019s point<\/p>\n It is with rich irony that Chelsea\u2019s first Premier League game since being fined for breaching financial rules<\/a> during Roman Abramovich\u2019s ownership should be away at Everton, the club the Premier League made an example of when reinforcing its authority over disobedient members (except the wealthiest ones who tried to join a European Super League). Cheat for seven years by making illicit payments totalling \u00a347.5m for players who help you win two Premier League titles, the Champions League, the Europa League and two FA Cups, and not only do you get to keep those trophies but you escape with a fine of \u00a310.75m and a nine month academy transfer ban. If you\u2019re Chelsea. Breach financial rules by \u00a319.5m over a three-year period while taking out loans to build a new stadium and losing sponsorship deals owing to Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, and you receive a 10-point deduction<\/a> reduced to six on appeal. If you\u2019re Everton. The Premier League wanted a 12-point punishment, don\u2019t forget, which would have pushed Everton closer to a relegation that could have triggered administration. Evertonians were condescendingly dismissed as conspiracists when accusing the Premier League of operating a two-tier disciplinary system in 2023. This week they received confirmation they were correct. Andy Hunter<\/p>\n 5<\/p>\n Farke urges Leeds to constrain Thiago<\/p>\n Daniel Farke\u2019s contract at Leeds runs until the end of the 2026-27 season. He is keen to extend that deal but Elland Road directors maintain any talks are \u201coff the table\u201d until the team secures Premier League<\/a> survival. A home win against Brentford on Saturday evening would represent a significant step towards it for a Leeds side currently 15th but only three points clear of the relegation zone. \u201cWe have 32 points, we\u2019re on a good path and I\u2019m pretty sure we\u2019ll show that we deserve to stay in this league, but there\u2019s still work to do,\u201d cautioned Farke on Thursday. If Keith Andrews will be mindful that Leeds\u2019 recent performances have often been better than their results \u2013 something perhaps evidenced by the midfielder Anton Stach\u2019s Germany call-up \u2013 the Brentford manager will not underestimate the attacking threat posed by Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Farke feels much the same about the visiting centre-forward, Igor Thiago. \u201cBrentford are pushing for Europe,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re capable of finding solutions to their questions but one key topic is controlling Igor Thiago.\u201d Louise Taylor<\/p>\n 6<\/p>\n Newcastle look to bounce back in derby<\/p>\n Eddie Howe has asked his Newcastle players to approach the Tyne-Wear derby as if \u201ctheir lives depend on winning it\u201d. Howe is desperate to end not merely his club\u2019s 10-game winless run in league meetings with Sunderland but avenge the December defeat at the Stadium of Light when Nick Woltemade\u2019s spectacular own goal gave R\u00e9gis Le Bris\u2019s side victory. While much may be contingent on the psychological fallout of Newcastle\u2019s 7-2 Champions League defeat at Barcelona<\/a> on Wednesday night, injuries could also shape the outcome. While Howe is hoping Sandro Tonali can overcome a groin problem, Le Bris waits to see whether a raft of key players in Robin Roefs, Nordi Mukiele, Dan Ballard, Reinildo and Enzo Le F\u00e9e will be fit enough to start at St James\u2019 Park. Goals have not exactly been free-flowing for Sunderland in recent weeks but their manager can only be heartened by Newcastle\u2019s failure to keep a clean sheet in all but five of their last 35 games. LT<\/p>\n Newcastle had a rough night at Barcelona in midweek. Photograph: Mike Egerton\/PA<\/p>\n 7<\/p>\n Villa need to sort out home wobbles<\/p>\n How Aston Villa would welcome a return to winning ways after defeat at Old Trafford made it three straight losses in the Premier League. Victory against West Ham on Sunday would not only provide a natural fillip but could also prove a major psychological boost heading into the international break. Villa do not return to league action until a trip to Nottingham Forest<\/a> on 11 April and if they win this weekend they will spend the next three weeks nestled inside the top four. The thing is, Villa Park is not the fortress it once was, with Villa having taken victory from just one of their last five home matches in the league. They won seven in a row between September and January. This week John McGinn, discussing their shot at the Europa League, insisted he and his teammates do not want to be perceived as \u201cone-season wonders\u201d and remedying their home form will go a long way to ensuring that. Ben Fisher<\/p>\n 8<\/p>\n Judgment day for Spurs and Forest<\/p>\n Neither Tottenham nor Nottingham Forest should be disgracing themselves with the ignominy of a relegation scrap. It\u2019s easy to blame the players but the suffering is principally the fault of myopic and megalomaniacal boardroom leadership, respectively. At this stage of proceedings, though, only the players can resolve the situation, and Sunday\u2019s match looks set to be settled in midfield. Forest\u2019s trio of Ibrahim Sangar\u00e9, Elliot Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White should be among the best in the division, while Spurs may have stumbled upon a workable combination just in time. Finally allowed to play in his position, Archie Gray is excelling and, with Pape Matar Sarr providing ballast alongside him, there is now scope for Mathys Tel and Xavi Simons to roam and create, secure \u2013 ish! \u2013 in the knowledge that behind them is a back five with full-backs eager to supply width. This is not just the biggest game of the weekend, it is the biggest game of the season so far. DH<\/p>\n 9<\/p>\n Gy\u00f6keres can earn hero status against City<\/p>\n Mikel Arteta found himself having to defend Viktor Gy\u00f6keres after he managed only 22 touches for Arsenal against Manchester City in September\u2019s 1-1 draw<\/a> at the Emirates. \u201cWe have to provide more for him, that\u2019s it,\u201d said Arteta. Six months on the Sweden striker\u2019s recent performances have suggested he is now on the same wavelength as the rest of Arsenal\u2019s attackers, having scored his 16th goal of the campaign against Everton last week. Following his \u00a364m transfer last summer<\/a>, a reunion with his former club Sporting awaits in the quarter-finals of the Champions League next month. But Gy\u00f6keres has an opportunity to establish himself as an Arsenal hero if he can score the goals that see off City at Wembley in Sunday\u2019s Carabao Cup final. EA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1 Amad\u2019s quick feet crucial for United Though Manchester United continued to win after playing brilliantly against Manchester…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":548592,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":["post-548591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-soccer","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/548591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=548591"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/548591\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/548592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=548591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=548591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=548591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}