victory over Port Vale<\/a> and has since apologised for his comments. Rosenior expressed hope Fern\u00e1ndez would be a \u201cmassive part of the group moving forward\u201d but said there were issues to clear up.<\/p>\n\u201cI had three or four [conversations] with Enzo,\u201d the head coach said. \u201cHe\u2019s apologised to me, he\u2019s apologised to the club, and we\u2019ll deal with that after a massive game on Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked about the talks he said: \u201cIt\u2019s a serious meeting about something very serious that Enzo has said. Every single step along this way, I\u2019m not questioning Enzo\u2019s character, I\u2019m not questioning who he is as a person. I believe people make mistakes and you can\u2019t overstep the punishment for the mistake. We\u2019ve made a sanction, I made a decision, and what I want from Enzo is to go on here and have an outstanding career.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe won\u2019t play on Sunday but hopefully after that he will be a massive part of the group moving forward. There are still are few hurdles that need to be overcome that I won\u2019t go into, but at the same time I want every player really, really focused on a huge run-in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sixth-placed Chelsea are pushing for Champions League qualification. Rosenior dismissed suggestions overlooking Fern\u00e1ndez for the City game was self-sabotage. \u201cFootball is a team sport; it\u2019s not about individuals, it\u2019s not about shooting yourself in the foot,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are certain values and cultures that I believe in, that this club believes in, that makes the team stronger if you get that right.\u201d PA Media<\/p>\n
2. Guardiola: City must win every game<\/p>\n
Pep Guardiola has said Manchester City must win every game, starting with Sunday\u2019s fixture at Chelsea, to have any chance of winning the Premier League. His second-placed team trail Arsenal by nine points but have a game in hand and host the leaders next Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the situation we are in the Premier League, we need to win all of them, otherwise it will not give us the chance to try until the end,\u201d Guardiola said. \u201cWe have not been consistent enough this season. We have dropped points that we should have taken, which is why we are now in the position where we cannot do anything differently.\u201c<\/p>\n
City have won six Premier League titles under Guardiola, and Bernardo Silva has been part of each. The head coach joked he was \u201cangry\u201d with the Portugal international for not telling him he would be leaving, after Pep Lijnders revealed Silva would depart in the summer. Silva has made 450 City appearances, the most during Guardiola\u2019s tenure, since signing in July 2017 from Monaco for \u00a343.5m.<\/p>\n
Guardiola said: \u201cI\u2019m so angry with Bernardo because a month ago I said: \u2018If you take a decision you have to be the first to tell me.\u2019 He didn\u2019t say anything yet. I said, joking: \u2018Tell me I deserve it,\u2019 but he didn\u2019t tell me so I don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bernardo Silva has won six Premier League titles with Manchester City. Photograph: Lee Smith\/Action Images\/Reuters<\/p>\n
Guardiola outlined why Silva is a favoured footballer of his. \u201cOne of the dreams of a manager is a player who can play in every position except the keeper,\u201d he said. \u201cIt means you have the intelligence to play in many positions.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a winger in the year of the Treble [2022-23], the decisive part of the season. Attacking midfield he can play but he\u2019s not a player to make a lot of goals or runs in behind but he\u2019s intelligent to read the tempo of the game and I like when he\u2019s involved in all the process.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe because he\u2019s getting old \u2013 and when you get old you go back and back and back \u2013 he now plays in central midfield. He is so smart to read what is going on and what we have to do and not all of them have this ability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Guardiola changed his policy for this season by deciding who should be captain, after previously allowing players to vote. He chose Silva. \u201cThe best decision I made this season,\u201d he said. Jamie Jackson<\/p>\n
3. Eze has \u2018obsession\u2019 with improving, says impressed Arteta<\/p>\n
Mikel Arteta has praised Eberechi Eze\u2019s determination to return early from a calf injury and said he was been surprised by the England forward\u2019s \u201cobsession\u201d with improving since joining from Crystal Palace last summer.<\/p>\n
Eze is in line to feature against Bournemouth on Saturday after a calf injury that ruled him out of last month\u2019s Carabao Cup final. The\u00a0\u00a367.5m signing has missed Arsenal\u2019s past three games and had been expected to be sidelined for longer. But with doubts over Bukayo Saka and Martin \u00d8degaard for Saturday\u2019s crucial lunchtime meeting with Bournemouth, Arteta was delighted to confirm Eze would be available.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe will that he\u2019s shown from day one to get back as quick as possible, how he\u2019s pushed the medical staff and himself to be there, it\u2019s just great to watch,\u201d said Arteta. \u201cI didn\u2019t know that he was so determined, so obsessed and so willing to push his body. I didn\u2019t know that part of him. He really surprised me in a really powerful way, how much he loves the game. When you take somebody\u2019s opportunity to play, you really see their reaction. How involved he was in and around the team, the energy that he brings every day in the building.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eberechi Eze is fit to return for Arsenal against Bournemouth on Saturday. Photograph: Tom Jenkins\/The Guardian<\/p>\n
Arsenal sent an email to season-ticket holders this week asking them to arrive early for the 12.30pm kick-off, and Arteta has urged fans to \u201chave an early breakfast, bring your lunch\u201d. Victory would stretch their lead over Manchester City to 12 points before Pep Guardiola\u2019s side face Chelsea on Sunday and Arteta recognised the importance of the occasion.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe closer we get, the relevance and importance of the match increases, obviously, and tomorrow is a big day for us,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Spaniard\u2019s contract is due to expire at the end of next season and it is understood Arsenal have held talks with Arteta over an extension and would like him to stay regardless of what happens this season. \u201cI\u2019m fully committed here,\u201d Arteta said. \u201cI\u2019m really happy and I feel good. My family is good. I still have so much ambition and things to do in this football club and for now we are in a good place.\u201d Ed Aarons<\/p>\n
4. Howe \u2018aligned\u2019 with Newcastle chief executive<\/p>\n
Eddie Howe insists \u201cnothing has changed\u201d at Newcastle and that his relationship with the chief executive, David Hopkinson, remains \u201caligned\u201d and amicable. During the international break Hopkinson hinted Howe\u2019s managerial tenure on Tyneside could end this summer, saying: \u201cI don\u2019t have a stance on the manager\u2019s future\u201d and stating that he had spent a two-hour one-one-one lunch with Howe dissecting last month\u2019s painful home defeat to Sunderland.<\/p>\n
Newcastle\u2019s manager responded in typically understated fashion before Sunday\u2019s trip to Crystal Palace. \u201cFor me nothing has changed,\u201d Howe said. \u201cI\u2019m 100% committed to the job. That commitment has never wavered from my side. I am right across everything for the summer and next season with Ross [Wilson, Newcastle\u2019s sporting director] and David, whether that is potentials during the transfer window or pre-season schedules.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pressed as to whether his lunch with Hopkinson had been cordial, Howe replied: \u201cAbsolutely. It was all constructive. It was not necessarily a meeting about Sunderland. It was a planned meeting about the future and making sure we are aligned. We are all aligned. There have certainly been no falling-outs. I\u2019ve got a very good relationship with Ross and David. I\u2019ve had really good support from both of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked whether he had challenged Hopkinson over the Canadian\u2019s remarks to reporters during a briefing regarding Newcastle\u2019s financial results, Howe demurred. \u201cAbsolutely not,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t need assurances from anybody. We have spoken and had communication but not about those comments.\u201d<\/p>\n
Howe, whose nephew Andy Howe has a senior recruitment role at Newcastle, enjoys significantly greater say in player signings than many Premier League peers but offered a robust defence of this arrangement.<\/p>\n
\u201cJudge me by every signing we\u2019ve made since I\u2019ve been here,\u201d he said. \u201cNot just by one or two that people want to sort of beat with a stick about. Across the board I think we\u2019ve recruited really well. I\u2019m really proud of our recruitment. Every player we\u2019ve signed has been chased and endorsed by myself.\u201d Louise Taylor<\/p>\n
5. Pereira asks Premier League to \u2018protect\u2019 clubs in Europe<\/p>\n
V\u00edtor Pereira has called on the Premier League to \u201cprotect\u201d its clubs by adapting the schedule to help them prosper in Europe, insisting doing so would result in more silverware.<\/p>\n
In France, the Ligue de Football Professionnel rescheduled Paris Saint-Germain\u2019s Ligue 1 matches to provide them with more rest before Champions League knockout fixtures.<\/p>\n
Nottingham Forest host Aston Villa on Sunday less than 48 hours after arriving back from their first-leg draw at Porto, and Villa played in Bologna on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Pereira referenced how the Portuguese Primeira Liga has shifted games to help Porto cope with the schedule. Last month the league approved Sporting\u2019s request to postpone a league game against Tondela between last-16 matches.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey schedule the game for Sunday but [move it] to Monday and this is completely different,\u201d said the Forest head coach. \u201cIt is one more day, they can recover \u2013 24 hours more to recover makes a big difference.<\/p>\n
V\u00edtor Pereira\u2019s Forest take on Villa on Sunday. Photograph: Martin Rickett\/PA<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my opinion, to protect the teams who are playing in the Europa League and the Conference League especially, and even the Champions League, just one day after is very important to get results. Sometimes it\u2019s important to protect the clubs, to give them the chance to win more titles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Forest and Villa will meet in the semi-finals if both teams prevail. Pereira accepted the schedule was beyond his powers: \u201cIf we protect these teams, the teams in the Europa League, Conference League and the Champions League, for sure England can get more titles. For sure, I don\u2019t have any doubts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at PSG, they [LFP] delayed the previous four matches to be in conditions to compete in the league and Champions League. This is what we need to reflect on.\u201d Ben Fisher<\/p>\n
6. Sunderland aim to be in top seven every year, says Le Bris<\/p>\n
R\u00e9gis Le Bris has pledged that his promoted Sunderland side will not rest on their laurels after collecting 43 points in a season featuring two landmark wins against Newcastle. \u201cIt is clear what the board want, they want to be a strong club, consistently in the top 10 in the Premier League and, maybe after one or two more years, the top six or seven,\u201d said Sunderland\u2019s manager as he prepared to welcome Tottenham and their new head coach, Roberto De Zerbi, to the Stadium of Light on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is their vision and I share that vision. We want to grow, we want to become a bigger club. We are ambitious, this is not the end of the story.\u201d<\/p>\n
Regular European football is the aim of Sunderland\u2019s owner, Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, and the club\u2019s sporting director, Florent Ghisolfi, and Le Bris\u2019s 11th-placed team have an outside chance of achieving it this season. \u201cWe are doing well,\u201d Le Bris said. \u201cThe players are ambitious, there is pressure internally; we have to try to seize the opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a team we\u2019re emotional but I think this is good. It\u2019s not always easy to manage at half-time! But it shows the players care. They care about our style of play, about our results, about our ambition.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although less of a tactical fundamentalist than De Zerbi, Le Bris has long been a fan of the Italian and made detailed studies of his Shakhtar Donetsk and Brighton teams. \u201cHe\u2019s a great coach,\u201d said a manager who revealed that Robin Roefs, Nordi Mukiele, Reinildo and Enzo Le F\u00e9e were fit to start after injuries but that Dan Ballard would be sidelined by a hamstring injury for a further week. \u201cIs it my style? Not always but he\u2019s got good ideas and a clear identity. That\u2019s important.\u201d Louise Taylor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1. Rosenior casts further doubt on Fern\u00e1ndez\u2019s future Liam Rosenior has cast further doubt on Enzo Fern\u00e1ndez\u2019s future…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":576391,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[403,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-576390","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-soccer","9":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/576390","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=576390"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/576390\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/576391"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=576390"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=576390"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=576390"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}