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Showing posts matching the search for April 2023

FA Cup: Man United progress after tense semi-final

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Brighton & Hove Albion 0 - 0 Manchester United United won 7-6 on penalties Manchester United set up a final against Manchester City after beating Brighton in a dramatic penalty shootout. In a match that finished goalless after extra time, United defender Victor Lindelof scored the decisive spot-kick after Solly March sent his effort high over the bar. The result means Erik ten Hag's side has reached their second domestic final of the season. In a scrappy semi-final, both goalkeepers excelled with David de Gea making several fine saves and Brighton's Robert Sanchez brilliantly turning away Marcus Rashford's deflected effort in extra time. With Manchester City still battling for a Treble after beating Sheffield United 3-0 with a Riyad Mahrez hat-trick, the two Manchester sides have a huge game to look forward to. Whatever happens, it will likely  be a match that people talk about for a long time. FA Cup reaction as Man City progress to final (eurosuperfootball.blogsp

Premier League: Classic match at the Amex Stadium

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 Brighton and Hove Albion 3 - 3 Brentford Brighton and Brentford played out one of the games of the season as both clubs chase European qualification.  Brighton settled into an early rhythm, keeping the ball well, and looking to get Solly March and Mitoma involved from wide areas. The returning Jansson was stepping out of defence to shadow Argentina’s World Cup winner, Mac Allister, wherever he went. That left space in the right centre-back position which Brighton tried to exploit. A brilliant Pinnock challenge was the only thing that stopped Mitoma from opening the scoring on six minutes - the Japanese winger racing down that channel and in on goal from Moises Caicedo’s through ball. From the resulting corner, Mathias Jensen got his body in the way of March’s close-range effort.Joel Veltman had Brighton’s next opening, again from a corner, before Brentford took the lead with their first real foray forward. After sending everyone up for a long throw, Jensen went short before receiv

Burnley: 2023/2024 Season Review

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 We are going to explore Burnley's 2023/2024 season. This was the 142nd season in the history of Burnley Football Club and their first season back in the Premier League since the 2021–22 campaign, following promotion from the EFL Championship in the previous season.  They also participated in the FA Cup and EFL Cup. After losing 2–1 at home to West Ham United on 25 November 2023, Burnley became the second team in English league history (after Newport County in 1970–71) to lose their first seven home matches of the season. The streak was then ended the following game when they beat Sheffield United 5–0. On 11 May 2024, they were officially relegated from the Premier League following a 2–1 loss at Tottenham Hotspur. They finished the season in 19th position.  Their form in the cup competitions wasn't much better. They only made it to the 4th round of the EFL Cup and couldn't make it past their first hurdle in the FA Cup.  A look at some of the key moments from their seaso

PL News: Slot confirmed as Liverpool manager

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 Feyenoord manager Arne Slot has been announced as Liverpool's new boss. In April, Liverpool struck a deal with the Dutch club after deciding the 45-year-old Slot was the right person to replace Jurgen Klopp at Anfield. Klopp, who had been at the helm since October 2015, departed following Liverpool's season-ending victory over Wolves on Sunday. After the match, the 56-year-old German urged Liverpool supporters to back their new manager, leading a chant of "Arne Slot, na na na na na". Slot will officially begin his three-year tenure at Liverpool on 1 June, pending a work permit. During his time at Feyenoord, Slot guided the team to the Eredivisie title in the 2022-23 seaso n, and this year they won the Dutch Cup and finished as league runners-up. Liverpool were particularly impressed by Slot's attacking style, his personality, and his ability to develop players, which made him their top candidate. Slot, who took charge at Feyenoord in 2021, expressed his inter

Premier League: Arsenal prove title credentials again

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Brighton & Hove Albion 0 - 3 Arsenal Arsenal moved to the top of the Premier League table (potentially only for one day) after a convincing away victory over Brighton, keeping their hope for their first title in 20 years alive. The returning Bukayo Saka, absent for Wednesday's 2-0 victory over Luton with a minor injury, kept his composure under pressure to slam in a first-half penalty awarded for Tariq Lamptey's foul on Gabriel Jesus. David Raya jumped to save Julio Enciso's long-range shot, which was Brighton's first on-target attempt, securing Arsenal's lead before halftime. It was the in-form Kai Havertz who gave the Gunners breathing space, slotting in from Jorginho's cut-back to settle nerves among the travelling Arsenal support after the hour mark. Leandro Trossard initially failed to score against Bart Verbruggen, but later on, he calmly lifted the ball over the Seagulls goalkeeper to seal the victory after being played through by Havertz. Tro

How the 2023/2024 Bundesliga title was won

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 The 2023/2024 season will probably go down as one of the most iconic in the Bundesliga's history. The season began on 18 August 2023 and concluded on 18 May 2024.  On 14 April 2024, Bayer Leverkusen were crowned champions for the first time with five matches to spare following a 5–0 win over Werder Bremen.  Theyy would go onto become the first Bundesliga team in history to finish a season unbeaten, ending the campaign with a record of 28 wins and six draws. They would also go onto win the German Cup and reach the Europa League final. It was in that Europa League final match where they lost their only game of the season. Let's explore some key stories match reports from the season.  In August, it was announced that Bayern Munich had signed Harry Kane. The transfer was completed for an initial sum of around 100 million euros (£86.4 million), and there was believed to be additional provisions for performance-related bonuses.  At the time of the announcement, we spoke to a num

Wolves: 23/24 Season Review

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 Let's explore how Wolves got on during their 2023/2024 campaign  It was the 146th season in the history of the club and their sixth consecutive season in the Premier League since they were promoted in 2018.  Before the season, they parted company with Julen Lopetegui by mutual agreement. Only a day later, the former Bournemouth boss Gary O'Neil was appointed head coach on a three-year deal. A closer look at all their match reports from the 2023/2024 season The campaign started with an unlucky 1-0 defeat against Manchester United . In this match, Raphael Varane secured the decisive goal with just 14 minutes remaining, propelling Manchester United to a somewhat lucky victory.  Following the match, one Wolves fan told us: "We were brilliant throughout the match except for their finishing touches. Despite a summer filled with doubts and pessimism, We outperformed them for significant periods of the game. On another occasion, we could have secured a comfortable victory or at

Premier League: Missed opportunities for Man United

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Crystal Palace 0 - 0 Manchester United Manchester United missed several big chances in their goalless draw at Selhurst Park in the Premier League. Fresh from their 7-0 EFL Cup win over Barnsley on Tuesday , Ten Hag's side cut Palace open at will in a dominant first half. Alejandro Garnacho, who replaced Marcus Rashford in the starting XI, had an early shot saved by the goalkeeper before Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez were denied by the home goalkeeper Dean Henderson's feet. The visitors continued to pile on the pressure with Garnacho sweeping against the bar after being played in down the left. The rebound fell to Bruno Fernandes, who was often the orchestrator for the Reds. His effort bounced off the pitch before it clipped the top of the bar. The home side eventually grew into the half and came closest when Eberechi Eze slotted into the hands of Andre Onana when unmarked on the penalty spot. The second half was definitely more even. Fernandes curled wide before a

UCL: Inter Milan in control of quarter-final

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Benfica 0 - 2 Inter Milan Romelu Lukaku scored an 82nd-minute penalty as Inter Milan put themselves in a strong position to advance to the semi-finals of the Champions League after a deserved win away to Benfica. Nicolo Barella's downward header gave Inter the lead in the quarter-final first leg in Lisbon. Benfica struggled to dictate play in front of their own fans as Inter produced a defensive masterclass in Lisbon. This was almost reminiscent of their 2010 triumph with Jose Mourinho.  <Click here to find more news and stories from across Italy> Rafa Silva was denied by Andre Onana's first-half save before Inter's Netherlands defender Denzel Dumfries produced a crucial block from close range as Benfica pushed for an equaliser. The Italian visitors wrapped up their win when substitute Lukaku, on loan from Chelsea, scored from the spot after former Inter player Joao Mario handled. Premier League referee Michael Oliver awarded the penalty after watching the incide

Premier League: Palace stun Liverpool again

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 Liverpool 0 - 1 Crystal Palace  Crystal Palace have done it against Liverpool again.  Older fans of the London club would have been taken back to the 1990 FA Cup semi-final. Younger fans would have been remembering that stunning comeback from 3-0 down in 2014 that wrecked their title chances. What is it about Palace and destroying Liverpool's trophy dreams? The reaction to the final whistle suggested that this was a hugely damaging week for Liverpool. Jürgen Klopp congratulated his opponent on a Crystal Palace victory that has reverberated at both ends of the table before puffing out his cheeks and shaking his head in despair.  At the end of the match, Andy Robertson looked like he was in a trance. The home fans filed out of Anfield in total silence. In a title race with the tightest margins, Liverpool have blinked first.  Arsenal, would of course, blink later on in the day. This ultimately makes it advantage for Manchester City. It's starting to look like the pressure is

Premier League: Bournemouth boost survival chances

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 Tottenham Hotspur 2 - 3 AFC Bournemouth Bournemouth took a huge step towards Premier League survival. Dango Ouattara scored a stoppage-time winner in a fantastic finish at Tottenham. Son Heung-min had earlier opened the scoring for the hosts in the first half before Uruguay left-back Matias Vina marked his first Premier League start with a deserved equaliser for Bournemouth. The Cherries looked set to clinch all three points after Dominic Solanke put them in front early in the second half, only for Arnaut Danjuma to come off the bench and equalise against his former club on 88 minutes. Fellow Spurs substitute Richarlison then sent a free header wide deep into stoppage time. The visitors went up the other end and Ouattara netted a dramatic winner. Click the link here for more Premier League news:  Premier League news (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Reaction from some of those involved “The primary feeling that we have is disappointment.” That was the response of Arnaut Danjuma.

The Big Questions: How do Chelsea improve?

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As the 22/23 season slowly concludes, we are delighted to launch our new series of articles. The Big Questions will explore some of the issues in the minds of fans as we approach what could prove to be a vital summer for many clubs.  This is the first article. Can Chelsea find a solution that gets the best out of their players? It's hard to believe they were seen by some as an outside bet for a title push at the start of the campaign. Since then, they have sacked two managers and had to reappoint Frank Lampard as Interim Manager until the end of the season. Let's explore what Chelsea fans are saying and how they believe they can improve next season. Frank Lampard told the Chelsea social media accounts: "It's important we understand the pride that's at stake when you play for Chelsea." 'It's important we understand the pride that's at stake when you play for Chelsea.' 💙 Frank looks ahead to #CheBre . 👊 pic.twitter.com/8XsnycogKl — Chelse

Scotland: Celtic close to another title

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 Kilmarnock 1 - 4 Celtic Celtic are now only seven points away from retaining the Scottish Premiership after a ruthless first-half performance saw them easily win against Kilmarnock. The away raced into a stunning four-goal lead inside 27 minutes against hapless the hapless home side. Some calamitous defending compounded the home side's woe, gifting the league leaders an excess of chances, which were gobbled up by Kyogo Furuhashi, Daizen Maeda and Matt O'Riley during a rampant first period. Fraser Murray's back pass was pounced on by Kyogo to open the scoring. Maeda troubled the visitors' advantage with a well-timed header five minutes later. With Kilmarnock in disarray, the killer blow was dealt when O'Riley profited from Joe Wright's mistake, tucking a neat strike inside the post, before being found by a pinpoint Greg Taylor pass and rifling into the far corner. Kyogo also missed a great chance to add to his mounting goal tally when hitting the post from t

Premier League: United boost Champions League hopes

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 Manchester United 1 - 0 Brentford Marcus Rashford scored his 28th goal of the season as Manchester United defeated Brentford with a controlled win at Old Trafford. Our write up on just a second defeat in 17 Premier League games ⤵ #MUNBRE | #BrentfordFC — Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) April 5, 2023 The Bees stunned Erik ten Hag's side back in August, storming to a 4-0 win. Who remembers that incredible match back in August. Premier League: A new low for Manchester United (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) However, there was no sign of a repeat on a rain-soaked night in Manchester, as United's three-game scoreless run was broken expertly by Rashford. The striker latched onto Marcel Sabitzer's knockdown in the 27th minute. He volleyed emphatically beyond David Raya from close range to secure a vital three points for his side.  Brentford were surprisingly passive after being engaged in a 3-3 thriller with Brighton only four days prior and such an exertion was evident in Thom

Sheffield United: 23/24 Season Review

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 It's time to explore the season of each Premier League club. We will start  off  at the bottom with Sheffield United. The 2023–24 season marked the 135th year in Sheffield United’s history and their return to the Premier League after being promoted from the Championship last season. Alongside their league campaign, the club also competed in the FA Cup and the EFL Cup. On 24 April, they suffered a 4–2 defeat to Manchester United, setting a new record for the most goals conceded in a 38-game Premier League season, surpassing the previous record held by Derby County in the 2007–08 season. Just three days later, a 5–1 loss away to Newcastle United confirmed their relegation back to the Championship. This result left the Blades with 16 points, trailing 17th-placed Nottingham Forest by 10 points, with only three matches left to play. On 4 May, The Blades matched Swindon Town's record for the most goals conceded in a Premier League season (100 goals) following a 3–1 home defeat

Premier League: Leeds United's chances of survival dented

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 Fulham 2 - 1 Leeds United Leeds United's chances of staying in the Premier League were dented after a poor performance at Craven Cottage.  Goals from Harry Wilson and Andreas Pereira handed Fulham a 2-1 victory over Leeds United at Craven Cottage, cementing the west London side's position in the top half of the table. This team. 😍 #FULLEE pic.twitter.com/KQkv60yOhM — Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) April 22, 2023 Chances were few and far between in a quiet first half, with Leeds' Marc Roca forcing goalkeeper Bernd Leno into a good save from a free kick. Fulham's best opportunities fell to Pereira from long range. Fulham took the lead in the 58th minute with a powerful finish from Wilson after Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier parried a Willian cross into Wilson's path. Fulham continued to apply the pressure and almost doubled their lead when a Pereira free kick rattled the crossbar. And the hosts' second came similarly. Meslier could only divert a cross fr

Premier League: Wolves edge closer to safety

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 Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 - 0 Crystal Palace Wolves gave their survival hopes a massive lift with what turned out to be a fairly comfortable win over Palace. In a match that was low on clear-cut chances, Wolves went in front after three minutes when Ruben Neves' corner bounced off the knee of Palace centre-back Joachim Andersen and in off the crossbar. A slightly nervy affair was settled by Neves' stoppage-time penalty as Wolves, who were bottom of the table when Lopetegui took charge in November, moved nine points clear of the relegation zone. This surely means survival for the home side.  Premier League news (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Albert Sambi Lokonga came closest to providing a Palace equaliser before half-time but his snap-shot from eight yards out was saved by Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa. Palace don't take advantage  Thank you for all your support last night, Palace fans ❤️💙 #CPFC pic.twitter.com/Fd4SRtqZ3e — Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) April 26, 2023

Everton: 23/24 Season Review

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 It was a dramatic 2023/2024 season at Goodison Park The campaign marked Everton's 145th year and their 70th consecutive season in the top tier of English football. They also competed in the FA Cup and the EFL Cup. On 17 November, they were handed a ten-point deduction from their Premier League tally for violating the league's profit and sustainability rules, the largest points deduction in Premier League history. The club appealed the decision, with the appeal scheduled for March 2024.  On 15 January, they were found to have committed another breach of the same rules, prompting an ongoing investigation. On 26 February, the initial ten-point deduction was reduced to six points following the appeal board's decision. On 8 April, the club were again found guilty of a second breach of the profit and sustainability rules, resulting in a further two-point deduction, pending appeal. This made Everton the first club in English top-flight history to receive two separate points d