1
Positive Ten Hags revs United's engines
We need to save the season, said Erik ten Hag. And they somehow succeeded with a goal from Anthony and a goal from Amad Diallo. There are twice as many wingers (Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford among them) as defenders (only Harry Maguire and Diogo Dalot) on the pitch. After parking the bus at Anfield, Ten Hag revved up the engine and kept it revving. Anthony scored his first goal of the season against a team other than Newport County. Diallo scored his first goal for United since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge with a lovely back-header against Milan. In extra time, United had nine shots to Liverpool's two. Rashford came into this scene at both ends of the game, first on the left wing and then at centre-forward. He missed two good chances, but kept his cool and took the next one. Ten Hag said like a fan. attack! attack! ” And it worked. His players may have saved not only the season, but his job as well. Tim De Lisle
2
Wild Cup contest is a worry for the Foxes
Chelsea vs. Leicester was a very entertaining cup match, with five great goals, a great own goal, a missed penalty and a red card. It must be said that Leicester are not in the form they were in the first half of the season, even though they started at the top of the Championship. Leicester certainly threatened Chelsea in the minutes between Axel DiSasi's own goal and Callum Doyle's red card. But at the same time, especially in the first half, the visiting team felt worryingly Burnley-like. A team that had performed well in the Championship was finding it very difficult to stop the attacking flow in the Premier League. Cole Palmer found too much space and there was trouble every time Nicholas Jackson aimed at Jannik Westergaard. If Leicester move up the table, they will need to tighten things up even more if they are to continue winning next season. Jonathan Wilson
3
Back-up keeper impressing at Etihad Airways
The art of being a second-choice goalkeeper is not being able to drop into the team and cause chaos. Stefan Ortega and Martin Dubravka started the FA Cup match on Saturday night as expected, but with injuries to Ederson and Nick Pope both players are expected to see increased playing time in the coming weeks. Ortega was calm and collected in his position and was looking to match his Brazilian colleague in terms of distribution. Newcastle were limited to a few chances but made a fine save in the first half to deny Alexander Isak's powerful shot from close range. Dubravka has been in cover for some time and his eligibility could not be questioned on Saturday. Bernardo Silva's two goals were both the result of deflections, and only the harshest critics will say he could have done more. The Slovakian made a number of important saves, particularly in one-on-one situations, and was quick to get off his line, helping to limit City's sophisticated attack. Like Dubravka, City's reserve Ortega should grow in confidence the more he plays. I can't win
Four
O'Neal was worried as Wolves' group was stretched thin.
Gary O'Neill was the first to warn against prematurely declaring Wolves' season a success. Listening to him reflect on Saturday's FA Cup defeat to second-tier Coventry, his team could face some pain between now and May. Felt. O'Neill lamented the lack of depth in his team (Pablo Sarabia was the only available senior forward) and the gap between the resources at his disposal and those of his next opponent, Aston Villa. He pointed out that there was a gap between the players, but said that equal leading scorer Matheus Cunha could return from a hamstring injury. He was injured in time for the trip to Villa Park. “Premier League games at the moment are going to be really, really difficult,” O'Neill said. “Villa will probably have Ollie Watkins. [Moussa] Diaby, [Leon] Bailey, [Jacob] ramsey, plus [Nicolò] with Zaniolo [Jhon] Duran will likely come off the bench. ” ben fisher
Five
More VAR frustrations for the Hammers
VAR's unerring ability to steal the narrative saw the London Stadium play out the longest session ever at a Premier League ground as they awaited the process and intrigue at Stockley Park. It took 5 minutes and 37 seconds to deduce that Tomas Soucek's arm was involved. So much time had passed that by the time the wait was over, the players who had been giving their best to each other just moments before were chatting casually and had regained their composure. The longer the game goes on, the more it feels like the home team is not coming away with a victory. The Hammers' fourth goal in the past week, both handballs, was met with half-hearted boos, which was refuted by video evidence. “We think it's a goal, but it's not us who decides, it's VAR,” said an increasingly upset manager David Moyes, who tried to stick to his own advice. “I think the referee made a good decision because there was a handball,” Villa goalscorer Nicolo Zaniolo said. Bottom line: VAR decisions remain forever in the eye of the beholder. John Brewin
After newsletter promotion
6
Son makes no excuses after Spurs failure
Son Heung-min's withering assessment of Tottenham's dismal performance in Saturday's defeat to Fulham reflected the manager's frustration. But manager Ange Postecoglou says he is more worried about his team showing signs of improvement than finishing in the top four, while Son said he was worried about Tottenham's scoring streak coming to an end after 39 games. didn't pull any punches in the post-fight interview. “That's unacceptable, including me,” he said. “Everyone has to look in the mirror and say, 'This is my fault.' It wasn't enough. The effort this season wasn't good enough. The performance wasn't good enough, the attitude wasn't good enough.” Home Son and Spurs will at least have a chance to get into shape after the international break, with games against Luton and Nottingham Forest sandwiched by a test trip to West Ham. Ed Aarons
7
Muric contributes to Burnley's win against the B team
They were the B team in Match of the Day. Eilidh Barber was in Gary Lineker's seat, Glenn Murray was in Alan Shearer's seat, and the main event was… Burnley v Brentford. In the drama, Sergio Reguilon was shown an early red card and Brentford almost scored a second goal with a late goal, but the goal was canceled out. In terms of quality, it wasn't very impressive due to the absence of some spectators, but main culprit David Datolo Fofana made amends with a cool finish. Vincent Kompany gave goalkeeper Alijanette Muric, who was the star of the show, a Premier League debut, while Thomas Frank gave credit to both managers for not making a fuss about the red card or the resulting penalty. Burnley still seem doomed to decline and Brentford are now at risk of joining them, but there is no sign either manager will be sacked. Tim De Lisle
8
Berry shows Hatters' fighting spirit
It was entirely fitting that substitute Luke Berry scored a late goal for Luton as his last goal against relegation rivals Nottingham Forest proved decisive in retaining them in the top flight. That's probably true. Berry has now scored goals for Luton in all four divisions of the Football League, and manager Rob Edwards says this represents what “makes us unique and brings us even closer”. Forest had a strong player on the bench in Callum Hudson-Odoi, but Luton relied on a player they signed in League Two, and he delivered. “We are who we are and we love it,” Edwards said. “There's a lot of guys who had to fight and work and work hard to get here. They don't want to give it up.” The underdogs aren't planning on relinquishing their spot just yet. ben bloom
