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Adelaide United 2-0 Central Coast Mariners | A-League match report
Tom Finney, former England and Preston footballer, dies aged 91
Chelsea manager José Mourinho's sayings and slayings | Dominic Fifield
Mourinho: Wenger a failure specialist
Mathieu Flamini's return perfect timing in Arsenal's chase for trophies
Manchester City will throw everything at Chelsea, says Manuel Pellegrini
Everton 'must handle crowd's great expectations' when Swansea hit town
Rodgers to exploit 'exposed' Arsenal
Nigel Clough hopes Sheffield United can burst Nottingham Forest bubble
Gus Poyet wants Sunderland to avoid FA Cup replay against Southampton
Women's group attack BT Sport for employing Andy Gray as commentator
Fulham appoint Felix Magath
Cardiff City v Wigan: squad sheets
Brighton v Hull City: squad sheets
Sheffield United v Nottingham Forest: squad sheets
Sheffield Wednesday v Charlton Athletic: squad sheets
MPs demand football clubs allow far greater supporter involvement
Manchester City v Chelsea: squad sheets
Football Association suffers sponsors blow after FA Cup backers withdraw
Sunderland v Southampton: squad sheets
Arsenal v Liverpool: squad sheets
I'd like Cardiff to win the Cup and stay up, says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Júlio César joins Toronto on loan from Queens Park Rangers
Our favourite things online this week: from Robert Pirès to hockey fights
José Mourinho's spats: from 'Wenger the voyeur' to blasting Benítez

Adelaide United 2-0 Central Coast Mariners | A-League match report

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 03:20 PM PST

A day after his coach pleaded with him to sign a new contract, Marcelo
Carrusca delivered Adelaide United a 2-0 victory

Tom Finney, former England and Preston footballer, dies aged 91

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:42 PM PST

Forward made 76 appearances for his country, scoring 30 times, and 433 times for the Lancashire club

Former Preston North End and England footballer Sir Tom Finney has died, it has been announced.

The forward played for the Lancashire club 433 times between 1946 and 1960, scoring 187 goals. He also made 76 appearances for England, scoring 30 times – putting him joint sixth in the all-time goalscoring charts.

Despite his reputation as one of the greatest players of his age, domestic success eluded him. He finished as a league runner-up in the Football League Division One in 1953 and again five years later. He was also on the losing side in the FA Cup final in 1954.

Finney was the subject of one of the most famous football pictures in history, called the Splash, which showed him beating two defenders in sodden conditions at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge ground in 1956.

The image was also made into a statue, which stands outside Deepdale in Preston; the gorund with which he became so closely identified.

Former Leicester, Tottenham Hotspur and England striker Gary Lineker paid tribute, posting on Twitter: "Sir Tom Finney has left us. One of the greatest players this country has ever seen, and a true gentleman."

And Peter Reid, who played for Everton and managed Sunderland, wrote: "Sir Tom Finney, gentleman. Proper footballer."

A Preston North End statement read: "Preston North End have been informed of the extremely sad news of the passing of Sir Tom Finney.

"Sir Tom was the greatest player to ever play for Preston North End and one of the all time greats for England.

"The thoughts of everyone at the Club, and those connected with it, are with his family at this time."

After his playing career finished, Finney became president of Preston North End. He was born near Deepdale in 1922 and remained living in the Preston area. He was incredibly popular with the city's people, appearing regularly at local events into his old age.

Finney was nicknamed the "Preston Plumber" after completing an apprenticeship with his family's plumbing business, he was knighted in the 1998 Queen's New Year Honours list.

Preston's Deepdale stadium is currently located on Sir Tom Finney Way and the ground's old West Stand was renamed the Sir Tom Finney stand in 1995, with his image on its seats

Former team-mate Bill Shankly, who himself made 297 appearances with Preston North End before going on to huge success as Liverpool manager, said that, if pressed, he would say Sir Tom was "the best player ever born".

Before he died, Stanley Matthews, who played for Preston's biggest rivals Blackpool at the same time as Finney was playing, said: "To dictate the pace and course of a game, a player has to be blessed with awesome qualities.

"Those who have accomplished it on a regular basis can be counted on the fingers of one hand – Pele, Maradona, Best, Di Stefano, and Tom Finney."

And Sir Bobby Charlton said: "Sir Tom Finney was one of the greatest footballers there has ever been – he was the type of player that people would travel a long way to see.

Kevin Rawlinson

Chelsea manager José Mourinho's sayings and slayings | Dominic Fifield

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST

Mourinho has always been master of the killer line, knowing that his charisma will invariably win the day

In the end the only real surprise was the identity of the rival manager upon whom scorn was to be poured. Most had expected José Mourinho to resume his attempts to undermine Manuel Pellegrini, given Chelsea are due at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday evening for an FA Cup fifth-round tie and a resumption of recent hostilities. Instead, infuriated by some matter-of-fact observations made earlier on Friday morning by Arsène Wenger round the M25 at London Colney, the Portuguese ditched all pretence of that "truce" with the Frenchman and targeted an old adversary for an all-out attack.

So those managers, and only by implication Chelsea's principal among them, who refused to acknowledge their side as title contenders this season were saddled by a "fear to fail", were they? "He is a specialist of failure, I'm not," countered Mourinho. And so it began again, a laceration of Wenger's recent tenure across the capital provoked, almost entirely, by the latter's use of the word "fail" as he contemplated the tightest title race in years. The Chelsea manager, fresh from the deluge outside at Cobham, had been slightly delayed en route to the media conference room and, with the coach due to leave the training ground mid-afternoon for the trip to Manchester, had been in no mood to beat about the bush. He had a message to deliver, not a 120-page dossier like last time, and limited time in which to do it.

As an assassination of one of the most highly respected managers in the English game this was brutal and delivered as if it was 2005 all over again. The soundbite quality– made for Twitter, let alone yellow tickers or newspaper headlines – suggested it was all prepared and designed for maximum impact. The humour which has accompanied his press briefings this term was absent. Beyond Wenger's recently acquired specialty there was an admission that, had Mourinho gone even four years without winning a trophy, he would have "left London and not come back"; that true failure was actually "not winning a title in seven or eight years". There was dismay, too, that Wenger still "loves to look at this football club" from afar, to stir up memories of the original "voyeur" comments directed at his opposite number over eight years ago. Mourinho regrets having used those words then, but, in his eyes, the essence of his criticism was legitimate. "At the end of the day I'll be seen as the 'impolite guy'," he added. He had certainly ditched his moniker of "the happy one" for the afternoon.

Around the world, where the Portuguese acknowledged his words would resonate, many will sigh wearily at the familiarity of it all. Mourinho is box office because he launches himself into spats like this, refusing to turn the other cheek but fighting his club's, and his own, corner. It can be unsavoury and, at times, lowers the tone, infuriating rival fans as much as it does opposing managers, but it adds to the intrigue of the title race. The Portuguese has always been a master of the killer line, manipulating the media in various languages in the knowledge that his charisma will invariably win the day, and he recognises that even his most spurious arguments can deflect attention from reality. The suggestions that Pellegrini, a qualified civil engineer, was in need of a calculator earlier this week were accepted despite the fact Mourinho, in omitting Kurt Zouma's £12m signing from St Etienne, had actually erred in his own addition, though his point about his club's January profit would still have stood.

Likewise his assertions that Jack Wilshere (22), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (20) and Kieran Gibbs (24) should be considered "mature" while referring regularly to Oscar (22), Eden Hazard (23) or Willian (25) as "kids" do not necessarily stand up to scrutiny. Then there is Liverpool who, as Mourinho has pointed out, do not have European football to stretch their squad in the four-team title race. But even Brendan Rodgers, appointed as a youth-team coach at Chelsea during Mourinho's first spell at the club and still a close friend, dismissed his team's apparent sudden elevation. "It's getting stupid now, isn't it?" he said. "José made a comment when I first came to Liverpool that the conditions meant it would be a miracle for us to win the league, and I don't think over the past 18 months things have changed that much."

He laughed off the "mind games" in play. Others have failed to do likewise, for all their attempts to remain impervious to the Mourinho effect. From Rafael Benítez to Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola to Pellegrini, they have pretended to brush off the barbs smiling through all the digs, but eventually he has got to them all. Ancelotti, such a genial character, endured only a year as Milan's manager in direct competition to Mourinho's Internazionale, though that was enough. He referred to his rival as "his Mourinho-ness" and "the High Lord Specialness" in his autobiography, Preferisco la Coppa, and later added: "If Mourinho is Jesus, then I am certainly not one of his apostles." The references to the 2005 Champions League final in Istanbul, suggestions that the Italian was a member of "the establishment clan" or public hints that Milan's owner, Silvio Berlusconi, was allowed to pick the Rossoneri's team had hit the mark. When Ancelotti's Chelsea were drawn with Mourinho's Inter in the knock-out phase of the Champions League four years ago, even the Italian had bristled uncomfortably ahead of the tie. "He's a fantastic coach," he said, "but I'm not going to discuss his character."

Familiarity bred contempt with Benítez, the Spaniard's Liverpool side colliding with Chelsea 16 times over the Portuguese's initial spell in English football, with the pair's tussles in the Champions League particularly inflammatory. Even now there is the occasional disdain for the Europa League, or even the team's tactical approach, which harks back to Benítez's spell in interim charge in the capital last season. Yet Mourinho's ability to seek out the most potent threat to his own team's progress and unnerve those in charge was most apparent in the ferocity of the Real Madrid/Barcelona rivalry. Guardiola put up with it for a year – the conspiracy theories of Barça favouritism and the questioning of the legitimacy of their 2009 European Cup win, given Tom Henning Ovrebo's refereeing display in the semi-final in "the scandal of Stamford Bridge".

Then in April 2011, before a Champions League semi-final between the clubs, he snapped with a rant so out of character – if apparently pre-meditated – that it was hard not to conclude Mourinho had broken his man. "In this [press] room, [Mourinho] is the fucking boss, the fucking master. I don't want to compete with him for a moment [for that]. Off the pitch he is the winner – but this is a game of football." Barcelona won the game 2-0 the following day but Guardiola had been worn down. He had never had much of an appetite for this kind of fight. Zlatan Ibrahimovic later revealed in his autobiography that he had berated his manager after a game at Villarreal. "I yelled to him: 'You have no balls!' and probably worse things than that," he wrote. "And I added: 'You're shitting yourself about Mourinho!'" Some pointed to Guardiola's departure for a sabbatical as evidence that the Portuguese had won.

The one oddity in all this remains Sir Alex Ferguson, a rival with whom the Chelsea manager apparently enjoyed a friendship. Maybe that was a superficial alliance. Possibly the older man was cute enough to make it known he would never allow raw emotion to overcome him in the way others were overwhelmed. Regardless, Mourinho still reacts almost incredulously when talk of "mind games" and deliberate targeting of the threat crops up.

Pellegrini, who had become embroiled in an argument over whether City are adopting Mourinho's own "fair financial fair play" criteria, pointedly refused on Friday to discuss the man he will confront in the technical areas at the Etihad Stadium. It was as if he was administering his own slap on the wrist for being provoked over the last month. "But if he doesn't like to speak about me, perfect," said Mourinho. "I also don't like to speak about other managers. I think he's right. So if he doesn't want to speak about me, that's perfect."

Whether Wenger can prove as thick-skinned remains to be seen. Even he might wonder now if the time has come to take Sam Allardyce's lead when it comes to verbal jousts with the Impolite One. "He can't take it because we've out-tactic-ed him, out-witted him," the West Ham manager had concluded after all those criticisms of "nineteenth-century football" last month. "He just can't cope. He can tell me all he wants. I don't give a shite."

Dominic Fifield

Mourinho: Wenger a failure specialist

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST

• Wenger had been referring to counterparts' 'fear to fail'
• I would leave if trophyless after four years, says Mourinho

The fragile truce between José Mourinho and Arsène Wenger has finally been shattered after the Chelsea manager denounced his counterpart at Arsenal as "a specialist in failure".

In a verbal attack reminiscent of the regular spats between the pair during Mourinho's first spell in English football, when he had once infamously declared Wenger a "voyeur" obsessed with watching Chelsea from afar, the Portuguese claimed his rival still "loves to look at this football club".

The Portuguese pointed to Arsenal's eight-season period without a trophy as evidence of real failure, and claimed he would have walked away from a club if he had gone four years, the length of his current contract, without winning one.

Mourinho was responding to comments from Wenger earlier in the day when the Frenchman, without mentioning his direct rival by name, had suggested rival managers' unwillingness to admit their teams are contenders for the Premier League title was born of a "fear to fail".

"If you declare yourself not in the race, you cannot lose it, simple as that," Wenger had said. "I just think our job is to be ambitious and to try to win. And if we do not win, to take full responsibility for that. It's very difficult when you're first in the league to distract people."

Chelsea currently top the table, with Wenger having made clear even back on new year's eve that he did was giving short shrift to Mourinho's regular insistence that his team were unlikely title challengers. Yet the implication of his words clearly struck a nerve. "He is a specialist in failure, I'm not," retorted the Portuguese. "So if supposing Wenger's right and I'm afraid of failure, it's because I don't fail many times. So maybe he's right. I'm not used to failing. But the reality is he's a specialist because, eight years without a piece of silverware, that's failure. If I did that in Chelsea I'd leave London and not come back."

Asked if Wenger's comments had annoyed him, Mourinho said: "Yes. He loves to look at this football club. I thought between 2007 and 2013 [when the Portuguese was at Internazionale and Real Madrid] was enough time for Wenger to forget this. But it looks like he always likes to look at this club. Am I afraid of failure? What is that. I believe at the end of the day I'll be seen as the 'impolite guy', the one who's aggressive in his words. But I'm not.

"He is saying we're not candidates because we're afraid of failure? Failure of what? Not winning a title this year? Or in two years? I have a lot of respect for him, he's a great coach, but failure is not winning a title in seven or eight years. That's failure. Am I aggressive in my words? I don't know. Ask him, not me [why he is obsessed with Chelsea]."

Mourinho expressed regret at having used the word "voyeur" in an outburst back in October 2005 about what he perceived to have been Wenger's regular commentary on events at Stamford Bridge. "I'm very sorry for that, so sorry for that," he said. But he failed to disguise his astonishment that the Frenchman had been allowed to go eight years since winning the 2005 FA Cup without winning another cup.

"If I don't win a trophy in four years, I don't want a new contract," he added. "It's as simple as that. I don't think a manager should be embarrassed when he gives everything, tries everything, dedicates himself to the club, the project and the collective dream. If you don't get results, that's football. But for my mentality – my mentality – there is a limit. There is a limit. And you have to be strong enough and proud enough to admit when it's enough.

"In eight years you have to build so much, so much, so much. The club gave me a four-year contract – four years, no? [he sought clarification from Chelsea's head of communications at his side] – and that's the period where I want to give everything and try to get results. If I don't, I think that's normal [to leave]. That's normal in football."

Dominic Fifield

Mathieu Flamini's return perfect timing in Arsenal's chase for trophies

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST

French midfielder's three-match ban ends as Gunners face Liverpool in the FA Cup fifth round tie

It was almost as though Mathieu Flamini was spirited back to Arsenal under the cover of darkness. His Bosman return in the final days of last August, after his Bosman departure in 2008 to Milan, did not exactly quicken the pulse, coming, as it did, against the backdrop of those thunderous calls for lavish, A-list investment.

Here was a player who had previously walked out on the club; a blue-collar, no frills, midfield hustler. And he was coming on the cheap. From a PR point of view, it felt like a tough sell and there was no drum roll or grand unveiling for him. Happily for Arsenal, that would come when Mesut Özil joined for £42.5m from Real Madrid.

But the spotlight will pick out Flamini on Sunday, when he returns to the Arsenal team for the FA Cup last-16 visit of Liverpool after a three-match ban and there is general relish about his involvement, not least from the 29-year-old himself.

Arsène Wenger is expected to rest the majority of his star names, as they lick their wounds after the exertions of Wednesday night's 0-0 draw with Manchester United and look ahead to next Wednesday's Champions League last-16 first-leg tie at home to Bayern Munich. Lukas Podolski will come in for Santi Cazorla, who Wenger said was feeling ill anyway, while it would be a major surprise if regulars Mikel Arteta, Jack Wilshere, Özil or Olivier Giroud were to start the match against Liverpool.

Flamini stands to shoulder great responsibility, which is a tribute to the impact that he has made this season. Never go back? Not in Flamini's case. He has been a pivotal player for Arsenal in the Premier League and Champions League, and the statistics support him strongly.

When he plays, Arsenal score much more, they concede less and they win much more. According to Opta, the club's win percentage with Flamini in the team is 72.73%; without him, it is 50%. As an aside, he has the highest pass completion ratio of any midfielder in the Premier League, his 92.38% narrowly eclipsing Arteta in second, which speaks volumes for his reliability.

Flamini, though, is on a mission to atone for one major blot on his season, the rush of blood that saw him sent off in the 2-2 draw at Southampton on 28 January. He has previous for two-footed tackles – he was guilty of a horrible one on Tottenham Hotspur's Vedran Corluka for Milan in the 2010-11 Champions League – and he should have known better than to jump in at Southampton's Morgan Schneiderlin last month. It was the 99th red card of Wenger's Arsenal tenure.

Flamini crossed the line at Southampton but he has previously impressed in pushing all the way up to it. He brings a spikiness to the team, which the likes of Cesc Fábregas and Robin van Persie used to do. The former club captains could be demanding but in a good way.

Flamini loves the "dark role," according to Wenger. He is a scrapper; the Hong Kong Phooey to Özil's Pink Panther. Above all, he is the balancing ingredient to a line-up that is heavy on creative players. "We looked sometimes, in the big occasions, a little bit afraid defensively," Wenger said recently. "Flamini gives us something more."

Arsenal have been feted for their defensive assurance this season, apart from in the thumping league defeats at Manchester City and Liverpool, and Flamini, the screen in front of the back four, has been a factor. Tactically more savvy after his five years at Milan, where he won the Serie A title in 2011, his experience at pressure points is a boon, and this is a pressure point for Arsenal.

"He gives us that little bit more stability at the back," Wojciech Szczesny, the goalkeeper, said. "He also gives some of the other players more freedom to attack. He's a terrific player. He's been great for us."

"He gives us sometimes a balance between offence and defence," Wenger added, " ... but especially when Arteta is not there because Arteta is a tactical brain. Flamini, as well, is good tactically so you need always one of the two."

Wenger disputes the notion that Arsenal have missed Flamini since his ban. They beat Crystal Palace 2-0 at Emirates Stadium before the 5-1 loss at Liverpool and the home blank with United, and Wenger reverted to his 'special circumstances' routine to explain away Anfield. The first two goals, he said, followed freakish set-piece lapses and Arsenal had no choice but to open themselves up afterwards. Away from home, against a good attacking team, the heavy result can happen.

But Flamini's comeback feels timely, particularly as Arteta endures a lull. Flamini is the only surviving link on the playing side to Arsenal's last trophy – the 2005 FA Cup – although he was not in the squad for the penalty shoot-out victory over United in the final.

Wenger talked up the importance of Liverpool's visit. They were the "first team" Arsenal wanted to play, he said, rather than the last and revenge for the 5-1 would be at stake. How Arsenal fared in the cup, he added, would impact the club's fortunes in the other competitions and the temperature has been raised by the reaction of the Emirates crowd to the United stalemate. Wenger admitted that he was surprised to hear the boos.

A test of strength looms. Flamini is ready.

David Hytner

Manchester City will throw everything at Chelsea, says Manuel Pellegrini

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST

• No chance of tactics after recent home defeat to Chelsea
• Pellegrini unconcerned about drop in City's strike rate

A defiant Manuel Pellegrini is intent on Manchester City again attacking Chelsea in Saturday's FA Cup tie despite José Mourinho's side winning the recent league meeting by hitting them on the break.

Samir Nasri should start in the fifth-round match at the Etihad Stadium following a month out with an injured knee.

Chelsea won the previous game 1-0 with Mourinho's successful use of the counterattack leading to criticism of Pellegrini, whose side appeared too open, with City's manager deploying the central defender Martín Demichelis in a holding midfield role.

City were particularly exposed by the pace of Eden Hazard, yet Pellegrini does not plan to change his philosophy. "Why? Because I am absolutely sure that in the previous game it was not a problem with tactics," said the Chilean. "The squad had a lot of changes and we had three or four clear chances before they scored. If we'd scored we could have scored again."

Chelsea won with a rare goal from Branislav Ivanovic with his weaker foot. "The goal they got, he does not find it easy to shoot with his left foot – but he did it in that game," Pellegrini said. "If we'd scored first the result could have been different but the tactics would have been the same."

Demichelis was deployed in midfield because of Fernandinho's absence with a muscle injury, though Pellegrini denied this had weakened City. "I don't think so. They had a shot from [Nemanja] Matic and a header against the post from [Gary] Cahill – but they didn't have any more chances in the second half," said the manager.

"In the first half they had one after we missed a pass and resulted in a counterattack. And they scored the goal they got. It was not because we didn't have Fernandinho, it was because we made a mistake with a pass. We were not in order."

Pellegrini was clear that City had not been gung-ho when losing that match to Chelsea. "I don't agree with you," he said. "In the first game we played with two midfielders – Demichelis and Yaya Touré. We had 64% average of possession of the ball. It's important to be balanced when you are attacking. Not just with defensive midfielders."

City have not scored in their past two matches after piling up 115 goals this season and Pellegrini again stressed how his approach is to score more than the opposition. "I don't have any concerns – we know exactly the way Chelsea attack and the way they defend," he said.

"It's more important for me if we score goals. If we scored one goal we'd have drawn that game, if we'd got one against Norwich [in the last match] we'd have won it. I repeat, I will continue to think exactly in the same way – it's important to score and defend well."

City face Barcelona on Tuesday in the Champions League last-16 first leg. Pellegrini, who stated that Fernandinho and Sergio Agüero will not be available for that game, is not tempted to give Nasri the weekend off to be sure he is fit. "One of the most important things in a recovery is to play a bit," said the 60-year-old.

"When the doctor says he is ready and the player is 100% he can return to a normal performance. He is not ready to play 90 minutes but it will be useful for him to play some minutes."

City's midweek league meeting with Sunderland was postponed because of stormy weather and a wet pitch. The match will be rearranged and, with the Manchester derby also having to be put back because of City's Capital One Cup final with the same opponents, Pellegrini admits there is a worry over a fixture pile-up hampering their attempt to claim an unprecedented quadruple.

"It maybe a concern but I'd prefer to have that concern if it means we stay in all the competitions," he said. "Maybe if we don't continue in the FA Cup or Champions League, we'll have midweeks to play. But I'd prefer to stay in and then be concerned about when we will play those matches."

Jamie Jackson

Everton 'must handle crowd's great expectations' when Swansea hit town

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST

• Don't let it become a burden, adds Roberto Martínez
• Everton manager praises his former captain, Garry Monk

Roberto Martínez believes Everton's fifth-round tie against Swansea City can shape the club's campaign providing they handle the expectation that contributed to their FA Cup downfall last season.

Martínez orchestrated Everton's elimination from the competition last term when his Wigan Athletic team won 3-0 at Goodison Park in the quarter-finals en route to beating Manchester City in the final. Wigan's win extended Everton's wait for a trophy into a 19th year and ended David Moyes' last chance of a trophy in 11 years as manager.

Moyes' successor, who admits Everton struggled with that burden against Wigan, has warned his players must overcome a similar pressure when Garry Monk's team visit on Sunday . "I don't think Everton were complacent against Wigan," said Martínez. "But I thought there was a real feeling of responsibility on them, of wanting to get to Wembley, and that probably affected them at the start of the game. We scored three goals and it became very difficult. What you need to be careful of in cup competitions, when you're playing at home and you are favourites, is coping with that feeling.

"You can be too relaxed or too tense going into a game that you are expected to win so it is crucial to find that happy medium. I feel the dressing room has got something special and we can react and face adversity in an incredible manner, as we've shown in the last few weeks. The way we want to play and the way we want to win games is clear. We want to keep polishing that and keep getting better so the focus is on that – it is not about winning a trophy."

Everton have lost ground in the race for Champions League qualification after one win in their past four league games. But Martínez believes a positive FA Cup result would benefit their top-four prospects. Asked if he would rather retain the FA Cup or finish in the top four, the manager replied: "Why can't we have both?

"To be honest, I think you have a better chance to get both, I don't think it is one or the other. There is momentum, competition for places and it is better to rotate players when you are winning. I think we could do that but I do feel Sunday is a very, very difficult game. Swansea will come with a good mentality, nothing to lose, and they are a possession team like us. For us, this is the same as the game last season when Everton played Wigan in the FA Cup, 100%."

Martínez made Monk captain when he took over at Swansea in 2007 and believes his former club have been galvanised by the long-serving defender's appointment as successor to Michael Laudrup.

"Gary was my first big decision as Swansea manager in terms of shaping the squad," said the Everton manager, who could give the loan signing Lacina Traoré his debut on Sunday. "I had to decide on giving him a new contract after he ruptured his cruciate and built the squad around him because he was perfect for the job. It's a nice twist, a nice moment to see him in the opposite dugout.

"The south Wales derby can be as intense as it gets for a manager coming into one of those clubs so that [last week's 3-0 win over Cardiff City] was a great start for him. And the Stoke game after that shows they are going to be a difficult team to play.

"You could see Gary had that leadership DNA of being able to control a group. He is very thorough, he puts a lot of time into everything he does and he knows what he wants. He has a lot of respect in the dressing room."

Andy Hunter

Rodgers to exploit 'exposed' Arsenal

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:29 PM PST

• Wenger's team face test of nerve in FA Cup reunion
• Rodgers keen to rub salt in wounds after 5-1 mauling

Brendan Rodgers has said the raw memory of how Liverpool "exposed" Arsenal at Anfield will weigh on Arsène Wenger's players in Sunday's FA Cup reunion.

Liverpool enter the fifth round tie at the Emirates Stadium with increased self-belief after demolishing Arsenal 5-1 last Saturday and closing the gap on Premier League leaders Chelsea to four points with a stoppage-time win at Fulham in midweek.

Arsenal were unable to respond at home to Manchester United, producing what Wenger described as a nervous display due to the manner of their Anfield defeat. A swift encounter with the team responsible for the mauling will, Rodgers believes, play on Arsenal minds as they again struggle at a defining point in the season.

"You could see Arsenal were nervous in the game the other night, you could sense that," the Liverpool manager said. "It's never easy when you get exposed like that but mainly it was down to our brilliance on the day really. We were outstanding.

"Usually a team will get time to get over a defeat like that so to come across us so quickly afterwards, it will be interesting to see the effects. When you put in a performance like we did against Arsenal, who were top of the league, it is one that can stick in the mind a wee bit more. But they will be motivated for this game.

"Players at this level are really competitive and will want to show the defeat is past them. They have some outstanding players, they have real quality right throughout the team and theyhave the quality to come back. But if we can get anywhere near the level we were at in the league game we will have a great chance of winning."

Rodgers believes Arsenal's impending Champions League date with the holders, Bayern Munich, will be another factor in Liverpool's favour on Sunday, when the visitors will field their strongest team possible. He added: "We want to win the FA Cup and because we don't have a game in midweek we can go as strong as we wish to go. It might be different for Arsenal with a massive Champions League game to come, but we won't have to rest anybody."

The Liverpool defender Aly Cissokho admitted he has never been involved a game like the 5-1 rout during his career, one that includes spells at Lyon and Valencia, and believes it has left an indelible mark. The on-loan left back said: "It will be very tough for Arsenal after losing the game like they did last week. Arsenal like to dominate, to pass the ball a lot, but I've never experienced anything like that in a game between two such big teams in the first 20 minutes, with the quality of passing, the goals we scored and the atmosphere it created.

"Lets hope no one arrived late as it would have been a real sickener if you'd missed that. It will stick in my memory and everyone else who was there."

Cissokho also claimed Arsenal have again suffered a loss of form at a critical juncture and that the Bayern game adds to the pressure on Wenger's team in the FA Cup. "It's been a tough week for Arsenal with losing to us, drawing against United and then with Bayern Munich, the Champions League holders, just around the corner," he added.

"It's a difficult run for them and they're not in the best run of form at the moment. But Arsène Wenger is very experienced and a lot of the players are too. We have to make sure we profit from their drop in form and don't let them develop their game. We must get on top from the first tackle and make them uncomfortable. In their mind they must be thinking of Bayern too. We have to get on top early and concentrate on the cup."

Rodgers deployed Luis Suárez on the right to devastating effect against Nacho Monreal last Saturday and insists the striker's selfless contribution "showed what a true team player he is". The Liverpool manager explained: "He is prepared to do it for the team. I've seen a mix with Luis with Uruguay too, I've seen him play wide and also through the middle with Cavani. He'll do what is best for the team but he'll always get himself in those goalscoring positions."

Andy Hunter

Nigel Clough hopes Sheffield United can burst Nottingham Forest bubble

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:29 PM PST

• 'One thing you are sure of is you will get sacked at some point'
• Forest bidding to extend their 16-match unbeaten run

Short of a reprise of his infamous touchline set-to with old nemesis Billy Davies, Nigel Clough is guaranteed to be in better humour following Sunday's FA Cup meeting with Nottingham Forest than after his previous contest against them.

Last September, Clough, 47, was sacked by Derby after a single-goal defeat to a club he graced with such distinction as a player. Having spent four-and-a-half years turning fortunes around at Pride Park, the circumstances and setting could not have been more cruel.

"One thing you are certain of in football is that you will get the sack at some point. We are brought up on it," said the Sheffield United manager in typically emotionless manner. "We played well that day. We were a bit unlucky. There was nothing in the game at all and we had a great chance to equalise in injury time. We had some brilliant results there over the years. We won four on the spin. Some people forget, but that's life."

With Derby well placed in the Championship play-off race, another thing conveniently forgotten is what he left behind. "All the comments that were made afterwards about recruitment … if they can get better players than Craig Bryson, Jamie Ward, Richard Keogh, Jake Buxton, John Brayford, who they tripled their money on, Craig Forsyth, who was £100,000 buy from Watford, Chris Martin, signed on a free transfer, Johnny Russell from Dundee United, then good luck to them," Clough said.

Brayford, taken on loan from Premier League Cardiff, is among the newcomers in Clough's latest rebuilding job at Bramall Lane, one that has combined a cup run with a League One relegation fight. The Blades are two points off safety, but with two games in hand on 20th-placed Crewe Alexandra. Success in one has been a bonus, failure in the other would be unthinkable.

Yet Clough remains steadfastly true to the world's most famous knockout competition. "Someone said to me that the last thing we want is a replay, but I will take a replay over getting knocked out," Clough, seemingly unruffled by the prospect of greater fixture congestion, said. "We want to stay in as long as possible."

Given their status as lowest-ranked of the clubs vying for the quarter-finals, Clough is surprised that the eliminators of Aston Villa and Fulham, with Sheffield United beating the Premier League side 1-0 at Craven Cottage after extra time in the replay, are not having their attempts to halt Forest's unbeaten run, which currently stands at 16 matches, screened to a national audience. "There's a buzz around Sheffield with both clubs still in the cup, but we have to temper that with the dose of reality that we are in the bottom four of League One."

Defeat would mean concentrating on that league plight but whatever the result, Clough insists he will be cordial towards Davies, with whom he had an after-match skirmish in a Forest-Derby fixture of 2010. "We shake hands, so that's peace. Is that peace? We shook hands at the City Ground earlier in the season so we will do the same again. Well, I will offer my hand anyway …" Clough said, smiling.

Richard Gibson

Gus Poyet wants Sunderland to avoid FA Cup replay against Southampton

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 02:00 PM PST

• Sunderland manager aims to avoid fixture congestion
• Adam Johnson says avoiding relegation more important

Draws rarely constitute disasters but there are exceptions to every rule and Gus Poyet fears an FA Cup fifth-round replay with Southampton could prove calamitous for his Sunderland side

"The worst result against Southampton is a replay," says a manager acutely mindful of the potential effect of fixture congestion on a relegation-threatened team. "Is it worse than losing? Yes."

It somehow seems rank incompetence that Sunderland meet Manchester City in the Capital One Cup final on Sunday week, yet have spent virtually the entire season in the Premier League's bottom three.

Much as he would relish being the club's first manager to secure silverware since Bob Stokoe in 1973, Poyet appreciates the paradox. He is also uncomfortably aware of the uneasy doubles achieved by, among others, Wigan who won last season's FA Cup but were relegated to the Championship and Birmingham, who went down in 2011 after winning the League Cup.

"The last thing we want to do is a Wigan," says Poyet. "I have to manage the situation. I don't want my players to think they can't get injured or get another booking in case they miss Wembley."

Alex McLeish appreciates the delicacy of the Uruguayan's balancing act. "It's the fine line between being a managerial genius and an idiot," says the former Birmingham manager, who went from the zenith of celebrating Obafemi Martins winning goal against Arsenal to the nadir of relegation. "If we'd stayed up in 2011, it would have been the greatest season in Birmingham's history but the League Cup took it out of us."

Roberto Martínez acknowledges Wigan's Premier League exit represented "the lowest of the lows" but refuses to blame an FA Cup run culminating in victory against Manchester City. "The Cup helped give us direction and confidence," says the Everton manager. "I couldn't quite believe we went down."

Under Paolo Di Canio Sunderland narrowly escaped relegation last May partly due to Wigan's failure to cope with an end- of-season fixture pile-up.

In Poyet's position Steve McClaren would presumably prefer to "take the positives". Early in 2006 Middlesbrough appeared in serious relegation peril. After losing 7-0 at Arsenal and 4-0 at home to Aston Villa his job was under threat and the dressing room unsettled.

Subsequent knock-out success changed Boro's season beyond recognition. Not content with making the FA Cup semi-finals, they reached the Uefa Cup final. No matter they lost it 4-0 to Sevilla. The momentum generated by that European charge altered the agenda so radically that by May Boro finished 14th in the League and McClaren had a new title – England manager.

"It's no coincidence that teams who struggle in the league tend to do well in the cups," says Sunderland's former Boro winger, Adam Johnson. He struggles to empathise when Wearsiders claim they would prefer to beat City next weekend and/or win the FA Cup than avoid relegation. "I really can't understand why some fans would rather win a trophy than stay up. Premier League survival is much more important. It's about being a Premier League footballer. A Cup final is just one game. We've all seen teams win a cup, go down and never be seen again?"

Having succeeded Di Canio in October, Poyet has used Sunderland's cup ties as invaluable experiments intended to accelerate the absorption of his possession-based passing principles in a squad that took time to comprehend their new manager's philosophy.

Significantly November's 2-1 League Cup win over Southampton saw him road-test his hallmark 4-1-4-1 formation and the now indispensable midfielder Ki Sung-yueng to impressive effect. Four days later Manchester City were beaten 1-0 in the League and a renaissance, albeit fragile, was under way.

Now, though, Poyet fears that in the context of a survival struggle the FA Cup may be a field too far. "The intensity of so many games is not nice," he says. "I need to find out how to switch off. I used to read. But now I can't read. It doesn't go in. It's not a normal life."

Louise Taylor

Women's group attack BT Sport for employing Andy Gray as commentator

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 01:12 PM PST

• Women In Football 'disappointed' over Gray's return
• BT Sport 'delighted' former Sky pundit will appear

A women's campaign group for equality in football has criticised BT Sport's decision to employ Andy Gray as co-commentator for Sunday's FA Cup tie between Arsenal and Liverpool.

Women In Football, made up of leading professionals within the game, says many will be disappointed that the broadcaster has opted to employ Gray, who was sacked by Sky over sexist comments that were leaked to the press in 2011. His colleague at Sky, Richard Keys, who was also at the centre of the controversy, resigned.

Gray, who will stand in for Michael Owen, had returned to British TV last month when BT selected him as a co-commentator for Everton's FA Cup victory over Stevenage. However, new footage of the pundit making sexist remarks had cast doubt that he would continue in the role.

The footage, understood to be authentic, showed Gray and Keys singing "get your tits out for the lads" to the Sky presenter Clare Tomlinson during the early 2000s.

A spokesperson for Women In Football said: "Many women working in the football industry will be disappointed with the decision to give Andy Gray a platform on UK television, a move which appears to be at odds with BT Sport's commitment to championing women in sport when the channel launched last summer."

Gray resurrected his career by presenting a TalkSport radio show with Keys from Doha, where the pair front Premier League coverage for beIN Sports.

A BT spokesman said: "BT can confirm that Andy Gray will make a guest appearance for BT Sport at the FA Cup tie between Arsenal and Liverpool. Andy is a very experienced broadcaster and we are delighted that he will be making another appearance for us."

Fulham appoint Felix Magath

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 12:05 PM PST

• Craven Cottage manager sacked after 75 days
• German manager has won three Bundesliga titles

Fulham have appointed Felix Magath as their manager and charged him with saving their Premier League status after losing faith in René Meulensteen and sacking him after just 75 days in charge during a dramatic evening.

Magath, the 60-year-old disciplinarian, who has won the Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich (twice) and Wolfsburg, had been on the brink of returning to Hamburg, the club where he became a legend as a player. Hamburg are mired in a desperate relegation struggle under Bert van Marwijk. Yet Magath's demands for full control of the club and a place on the board were not acceptable and, on Thursday, the deal was called off, paving the way for Fulham's approach.

Alastair Mackintosh, the Fulham chief executive, had also considered Dick Advocaat of AZ Alkmaar as he sought a solution to the club's problems; relegation to him and Khan is unthinkable. Advocaat could not be persuaded.

Meulensteen said: "I am very surprised, very disappointed and very frustrated, because the job that I stepped into was one that took me by surprise from the start. It was not anticipated with Martin Jol leaving and obviously you then have to step into a situation which is not the best.

"I haven't really been given any time to make it work. Twelve games to go, plenty of points to play for … I'm sure we would have turned it around. I knew the owners were freaking out and panicking about the fact that Fulham could get relegated but they had that sort of attitude already 10 games back. They've hit the panic button on emotions of fear."

Mackintosh had long harboured doubts about Meulensteen's ability to lift Fulham clear of danger but Khan, who bought the club for £150m last summer from Mohamed Al Fayed, believed in him.

The Dutchman, a highly rated coach at Manchester United, was appointed to assist Jol last November and, when Jol was sacked on 1 December, Khan wanted Meulensteen to be given a chance. Khan had met him in the United States and had been impressed.

Results continued to be poor and Mackintosh oversaw the appointment of Alan Curbishley as the first-team technical director at Christmas. It was followed by Ray Wilkins being made the assistant head coach. Curbishley's presence gave Mackintosh an insurance policy: he could replace Meulensteen with him.

Instead Mackintosh and Khan turned to Magath. It is unclear what the future holds for Curbishley and Wilkins, given the German's preference for control and to appoint his own staff.

Magath will not win many friends within the Fulham squad owing to his old-fashioned and uncompromising methods. He has used medicine balls in training ground sprinting drills and he is known for working his players into the ground. He will not care and nor will Fulham if he can keep them in the division.

They sit bottom of the table, four points adrift of safety, with 12 matches to go. Magath has been out of work since he left Wolfsburg in October 2012.

Shahid Khan, the club's owner, said: "Felix is an accomplished manager with multiple honours in the Bundesliga and a hunger to replicate his success with Fulham. I'm especially impressed with the reputation Felix has for coming into clubs at difficult times, often late in the season, and lifting them to their potential and beyond.

"Felix knows that is precisely the task awaiting him at Fulham and he made it abundantly clear that he wants and is ready for the opportunity."

Meulensteen, who won three, drew one and lost nine of his 13 league matches, was stunned when he was told of his dismissal by Mackintosh early on Friday evening. Meulensteen said that he had not spoken to Khan. His 75 days as Fulham's manager follow the 16 days he lasted at Anzhi Makhachkala last year. "It's the story of my life in this management job," he said.

Fulham's confirmed the appointment of Magath on an 18-month contract and also said that the composition of his backroom staff would be revealed "in the near future". The club's statement made no mention of Meulensteen, or the fact that he had been sacked. There was also nothing about Curbishley and Wilkins, or Meulensteen's assistants, John Hill and Mick Priest.

Meulensteen had been backed only two weeks before on transfer deadline day, when he was allowed to sign the striker Kostas Mitroglou for a club record £12.5m, together with John Heitinga on a free and Lewis Holtby on loan. He also took the young midfielders Ryan Tunnicliffe and Larnell Cole from Manchester United and they supplemented the previous loans of Clint Dempsey and William Kvist.

"I feel really sorry for these guys because I brought them in for the right reasons," Meulensteen said. "I still hope they have a future at Fulham, especially the young guys that I signed. It's not too bad for the loan players."

Meulensteen said the knee-jerk reaction is "the problem with owners who don't really understand the Premier League".

David Hytner

Cardiff City v Wigan: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:32 AM PST

Cardiff's Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is likely to make several changes with Premier League survival paramount, and he may start with a trio of recently acquired Norwegians: Magnus Wolff Eikrem, Mats Moller Daehli and Jo Inge Berget. Wigan, the holders, have shown improved form under Uwe Rösler and will fancy their chances having dispatched of Crystal Palace in the previous round. Alan Smith

Kick-off Saturday 3pm

Venue Cardiff City Stadium

Referee M Atkinson

This season G24, Y73, R3, 3.3 cards per game

Odds H 6-5 A 12-5 D 11-4

Cardiff City

Subs from Lewis, Whittingham, Connolly, Medel, Kim, Smith, Noone, Cowie, Caulker, McNaughton

Doubtful Zaha

Cup-tied Da Silva, Jones

Injured Mutch (hamstring, Mar)

Suspended Bellamy

Form LWLWLD

Discipline Y34 R0

Leading scorer Campbell 7

Wigan

Subs from Carson, Nicholls, Rogne, Crainey, Espinoza, McEachran, Fyvie, Holgersson, Ramis, García

Doubtful None

Cup-tied Maynard, Kiernan, Waghorn

Injured McArthur (illness, 22 Feb), Maloney (hip, unknown), Powell (hamstring, unknown), Caldwell (achilles, unknown)

Suspended None

Form LWDWLW

Discipline Y58 R2

Leading scorer Powell 7

Brighton v Hull City: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:29 AM PST

Brighton, who lie a point off the Championship play-offs, have won their past four home games 1-0. They have beaten Reading and Port Vale to reach this stage but Hull represent a bigger obstacle. The Hull manager, Steve Bruce, will give Matt Fryatt, scorer of both goals in the last round against Southend, another chance to impress with Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic Cup-tied. Alan Smith

Kick-off Monday 7.45pm

Venue Amex Stadium

Live BT Sport 1

Referee L Probert

This season G19, Y32, R5, 2.2 cards per game

Odds H 7-5 A 5-2 D 12-5

Brighton

Subs from Brezovan, Bruno, March, Agustien, Andrews, Orlandi, LuaLua, Forster-Caskey, Lita, Obika

Doubtful Andrews (hamstring)

Injured Crofts (knee, unknown), Hoskins (knee, unknown), Mackail-Smith (achilles, unknown)

Suspended None

Form LWDLWW

Discipline Y58 R1

Leading scorer Ulloa 8

Hull City

Subs from Harper, Davies, Quinn, Faye, Boyd, Koren, Sagbo, Jahraldo-Martin, Henderson, Dudgeon

Doubtful None

Cup tied Long, Jelavic,

Injured Rosenior (hip, 22 Feb), Chester (hamstring, Mar), McShane (ankle, Aug)

Suspended None

Form LWLDWL

Discipline Y41 R3

Leading scorers Fryatt 7

Sheffield United v Nottingham Forest: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:26 AM PST

Sheffield United, the lowest-ranked team left in the Cup, will be looking to reach the sixth round for the first time since 2004 in a battle that sees old foes Nigel Clough and Billy Davies meet. Clough's side overcame Fulham in dramatic circumstances last week and will fancy claiming another scalp against Forest, who have beaten West Ham and Preston, in a replay, to reach this stage. Alan Smith

Kick-off Sunday 3pm

Venue Bramall Lane

Referee M Oliver

This season G25, Y95, R3, 4.0 cards per game

Odds H 12-5 A 6-5 D 9-4

Sheffield United

Subs from Long, Baxter, Miller, Coady, Kennedy, Calvert-Lewin, Johns, Barry, Eyre, De Girolamo, Hill

Doubtful None

Injured None

Suspended None

Cup-tied McFadzean, Paynter, Whitehouse

Form LDDLWW

Discipline Y32 R1

Leading scorers Baxter 7

Nottingham Forest

Subs from De Vries, Harding, Collins, Henderson, Mackie, Greening, Abdoun, Jara, Tudgay, Derbyshire, McLaughlin

Doubtful Moussi (calf)

Injured Lichaj (hernia, 22 Feb), Wilson (back, 22 Feb), Blackstock (knee, Mar), Cohen (knee, Mar), Lansbury (back, Mar), Vaughan (knee, Apr)

Suspended None

Form DWWWDW

Discipline 63 R2

Leading scorer Reid 9

Sheffield Wednesday v Charlton Athletic: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:19 AM PST

Having transformed their season with an 11-game unbeaten run to move above the Championship relegation battle, Stuart Gray suffered his first defeat as Wednesday manager against Wigan on Tuesday. But he is determined to reach the last eight for the first time as player or manager against Charlton, who are currently stationed third from bottom in the second tier. Alan Smith

Kick-off Saturday 3pm

Venue Hillsborough

Referee M Clattenburg

This season G26, Y86, R1, 3.4 cards per game

Odds H 11-10 A 3-1 D 9-4

Sheffield Wednesday

Subs from Martínez, Buxton, Madine, R Johnson, A Gardner, Zayatte, Coke, Antonio, J Johnson, Prutton, Mattock, Lavery, Hutchinson, Best, McCabe, Hélan

Doubtful Loovens (hamstring)

Injured Semedo (broken leg, Apr)

Suspended None

Form DWDWWL

Discipline Y58 R5

Leading scorer Maguire 6

Charlton Athletic

Subs from Hamer, Phillips, Dervite, Green, Pritchard, Cook, Cort, Hollands, Nego, Parzyszek, Wiggins, Gower

Doubtful Hamer (ankle), Wiggins (hamstring)

Injured Cort (knee, Mar), Solly (knee, Mar)

Suspended None

Form LWWLLL

Discipline Y30 R3

Leading scorer Church 6

MPs demand football clubs allow far greater supporter involvement

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:18 AM PST

• Bundesliga rule says over 50% of club is owned by its fans
• Committee demands government should take stronger line

The government should "take urgent action" to force professional football clubs and the Football Association to involve supporters substantially more in their decision-making, a committee of MPs, chaired by Jonathan Evans, Conservative MP for Cardiff North, has recommended.

In a report highly critical of what it called top clubs' "financial dependency of wealthy rentier owners," the all-party parliamentary group for mutuals called for the football authorities to promote supporter ownership "as a strategy for building trust and confidence for the long term".

The group, which is dedicated to promoting mutual values, argues that supporter-owned stakes in clubs, which are held democratically, are "a positive feature" and the football authorities should undertake a study of the German Bundesliga, which has a rule that over 50% of a club must be controlled by its supporters.

"The group wants to see a system of ownership based on what people can put back into the game rather than on what a wealthy elite can take out of football," the report said. "We should encourage club ownership based on the long-term sustainability central to mutualism, rather than the financial dependency of wealthy rentier owners."

Supporter representation on the FA council "is woefully inadequate", the group argued – there is just one fans' representative, Malcolm Clarke, chairman of the Football Supporters Federation, among more than 100 members of the FA's decision-making body.

The report also highlighted the financial insecurity of Supporters Direct, the initiative backed by successive governments to promote fan involvement in clubs, yet which the government does not fund. The organisation is now funded by the Premier League, but faces constant rounds of bidding and re-bidding for a relatively tiny budget before it is approved.

"Supporters Direct would have a stable and predictable funding from the proceeds of football," the report argues.

It calls on the government to "take a stronger line with football authorities," saying it should "urgently" prepare a draft bill and be prepared to legislate to effect these changes, after years of slow progress on supporter involvement.

In a joint response the Premier League and Football League reiterated their stance of being "neutral" on ownership types, arguing that supporters holding a stake would not be "intrinsically superior" to the current position in which clubs are overwhelmingly owned by single business people, often from overseas.

"Our priority, whatever their ownership structure, is that clubs are financially sustainable and that they make a positive contribution to the competitions they play in, the wider community and domestic football," the leagues' statement said.

David Conn

Manchester City v Chelsea: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:13 AM PST

A few weeks ago Manchester City would have gone into this tie bounding with confidence. Yet the league meeting between these sides was an ordeal for Manuel Pellegrini's team. They had averaged four goals in every home game before that point but Chelsea were so robust it makes this rematch a test of City's nerve. Pellegrini also has significant injury issues, especially with a Champions League tie against Barcelona on Tuesday. José Mourinho's priority will also be Chelsea's next European assignment, against Galatasaray, but he would love to strike another psychological blow against the team, he insists, should win the league. Daniel Taylor

Kick-off Saturday 5.15pm

Venue Etihad Stadium

Live ITV1

Referee P Dowd

This season G24, Y105, R2, 4.5 cards per game

Odds H 11-10 A 12-5 D 5-2

Manchester CIty

Subs from Pantilimon, Richards, Negredo, Lescott, Boyata, Navas,

García, Rodwell, Kolarov

Doubtful None

Injured Fernandinho (thigh, 22 Feb), Nastasic (knee, 22 Feb), Agüero (knee, Mar)

Suspended None

Form WWWWLD

Discipline Y51 R1

Leading scorer Agüero 19

Chelsea

Subs from Cech, Hilário, Blackman, Kalas, Ake, Matic, Salah, Hazard, Willian, Eto'o, Ba

Doubtful None

Injured Terry (glute, 22 Feb), Cahill (calf, 22 Feb), Van Ginkel (knee, Apr)

Suspended None

Form WWDWWD

Discipline Y41 R1

Leading scorer Hazard 12

Football Association suffers sponsors blow after FA Cup backers withdraw

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:11 AM PST

• Budweiser to concentrate on World Cup from next year
• FA hopeful as BBC coverage engages young audience

The Football Association has yet to secure a new main sponsor for the FA Cup, following the disappointment to the game's governing body of Budweiser deciding not to renew its £8m-a-year deal from next season.

The Cup sponsorship is a vital component of the FA's finances, forming only a small proportion of the total £318m income in 2011-12 but with few costs attached to it, unlike earnings from matches and events at Wembley which produce more marginal profits.

The FA's commercial director, Stuart Turner, who was in the US this week finalising commercial arrangements for the England team's pre-World Cup tour, is understood to be in discussions with four possible main sponsors, hoping to agree a deal a little above the £32m over four years which Budweiser paid.

The bookmaker William Hill and Nike are signed up as secondary sponsors and the FA is also planning to enlist international "partners" for the first time. Phil Barker, who was previously in Manchester United's London office where deals with international sponsors were done, has been recruited to Turner's team to find companies in Africa, Asia and America for the FA Cup. This global sponsorship model, which Premier League clubs are also pursuing following United's lead, is expected to add around 10% of the £35m the FA is hoping for from a main UK sponsor.

Contrary to the perceptions of many long-term lovers of the FA Cup who feel "the FA Cup sponsored by Budweiser" hardly resounds with class, the governing body does agonise about the status and cachet of its famed 142-year-old competition. It was happy with Budweiser – Turner has said the beer company "embraced the FA Cup" – and expected a renewal, until a change of personnel and direction at the US parent Anheuser-Busch led to the decision to concentrate on the World Cup and music sponsorships.

Aware that despite generally good crowds this season the Cup's aura has been steadily undermined by the dominance of the Premier League and Champions League, and some top clubs habitually fielding weaker teams, the FA is aiming to build the competition's appeal to a younger audience. Turner is understood to be hoping that the next sponsor will not be a bookmaker, beer or high-calorie food brand, which are saturating sports sponsorships to burnish their image.

The movement of the FA Cup broadcasting from ITV to the BBC and BT for four years from next season, understood to be for a combined £200m, is said to have been partly motivated by the BBC's ability to engage with a younger audience online.

Announcing Budweiser's non-renewal, Turner mentioned excitement at the move to "the BBC's platforms" and he said the FA Cup is also well-watched overseas, for its own attractions and as the English football alternative to the Premier League on Cup weekends.

"The FA Cup is still a strong broadcasting product," Turner said, "and we are keen to take the sponsorship overseas for the first time from next season."

The FA had £228m net debt at 31 December 2012, the burden still of the massive cost of building Wembley, and paid £25m in net interest and finance costs. The FA's pre-tax profit was £44m, so broadcasting and sponsorship are the key elements of the governing body's financial health and ability to distribute money for football development.

Turner is optimistic he will secure a solid replacement sponsorship for the world's oldest, most distinguished football competition, and one which adds to, rather than further diminishes, the FA Cup's lustre.

David Conn

Sunderland v Southampton: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 11:08 AM PST

Gus Poyet and Mauricio Pochettino will refresh their teams for a tie Sunderland's relegation threatened Capital One finalists could probably do with losing. The Wearsiders should get a first sight of Ignacio Scocco, their new Argentina striker, while Italy's Emanuele Giaccherini will enjoy a rare start. With Southampton's Premier League status secure, their fans will be hoping Pochettino starts taking the FA Cup seriously. Louise Taylor

Kick-off Saturday 12.45pm

Venue Stadium of Light

Live BT Sport 1

Referee M Dean

This season G24, Y82, R5, 3.8 cards per game

Odds H 2-1 A 6-5 D 9-4

Sunderland

Subs from Mannone, Alonso, Bardsley, O'Shea, Roberge, Bridcutt, Ki, Johnson, Ba, Colback, Altidore, Borini

Doubtful Cuéllar (thigh)

Injured Fletcher (achilles, Mar) Westwood (shoulder, unknown)

Suspended Brown (first of two)

Form DLWWWL

Discipline Y59 R6

Leading scorer Johnson 9

Southampton

Subs from Gazzaniga, K Davis, Clyne, Hooiveld, Targett, Ward-Prowse, Reed, Wanyama, Isgrove, Stephens, Do Prado, Gallagher

Injured Lovren (ankle, Mar), Ramírez (ankle, Mar)

Suspended None

Form DWDWDW

Discipline Y45 R0

Leading scorer Rodriguez 12

Arsenal v Liverpool: squad sheets

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 10:57 AM PST

The possibilities are tantalising. Whoever advances here would be installed as the Cup favourites alongside Manchester City or Chelsea. It is a wonderful chance of silverware; possibly the best for both Arsenal and Liverpool this season. Arsène Wenger, though, is set to gamble with his selection, as Bayern Munich loom in the Champions League. Liverpool, 5-1 victors over Arsenal last weekend and unencumbered by Europe, have their tails up. David Hytner

Kick-off Sunday 4pm

Venue Emirates Stadium

Live BT Sport 1

Referee H Webb

This season G28, Y85, R3, 3.2 cards per game

Odds H 8-5 A 9-5 D 13-5

Arsenal

Subs from Szczesny, Viviano, Sagna, Gibbs, Zelalem, Arteta, Wilshere, Özil,

Miyaichi, Giroud, Sanogo

Doubtful Vermaelen (calf), Cazorla (illness)

Injured Diaby (knee, Mar), Ramsey (thigh, Mar), Kallstrom (back, Mar) Walcott (knee, Aug)

Suspended None

Form WWDWLD

Discipline Y39 R3

Leading scorer Giroud 11

Liverpool

Subs from Jones, Kelly, Touré, Allen, Alberto, Aspas, Moses, Ibe, Teixeira

Doubtful None

Injured Johnson (ankle, 22 Feb), Lucas (knee, Mar), Sakho (hamstring, Mar), Enrique (knee, unknown)

Suspended None

Form DWWDWW

Discipline Y39 R0

Leading scorer Suárez 23

I'd like Cardiff to win the Cup and stay up, says Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 10:21 AM PST

• Cardiff face Wigan in FA Cup fifth round
• 'Vincent Tam has been everything I hoped for'

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insists he is staying out of Cardiff's dispute with the former manager Malky Mackay. The club sacked Mackay in December after a series of disagreements relating to the summer's transfer business.

Cardiff surprisingly decided to again raise the issue on Thursday by releasing a statement in which the chief executive Simon Lim again criticised Mackay, particularly the signing of the striker Andreas Cornelius, which Lim claimed cost the club in excess of £8.5m. Cornelius returned to FC Copenhagen in January and scored a hat-trick on his second debut for the club.

The League Managers' Association chief executive Richard Bevan responded by claiming Mackay had to report to Lim "in respect of all matters pertaining to the transfer of players".

The statement by Lim did, however, praise Solskjaer's work in the January transfer window, but the Norwegian did not want to offer his thoughts on Mackay. "It is early doors for me and it is encouraging they are happy with what I have done but what happened in the past is not for me," he said. "It guides what resources they give me and what remit I have. I'm just running the club as I would like to. It's not got anything to do with me, what happened before. I am just focused on my team because the January window was chaotic."

Solskjaer did suggest the money spent last summer, when Cardiff broke their transfer record three times, had left him with a smaller budget to work with, and was very positive about his relationship with owner Vincent Tan.

"I have the resources that were given to me, it was different in the summer, they had more money as they had just come up," he said. "Now it is not like that, it was not right when people said I had £25m to spend but you have to look at the long-term. You can't just panic and only think of the short term, I only did what I could with the resources I was given.

"I have spoken with the owner a few times. He is very committed to the club, he wants us to be successful, he wants me to be successful. He helps me, he has been everything I hoped for."

On the pitch, Cardiff face the holders Wigan in the FA Cup on Saturday. The Latics were relegated from the Premier League last season, just days after their Cup final success over Manchester City at Wembley and, with Cardiff in the relegation zone, Solskjaer hopes his club do not follow Wigan's lead.

"They proved last season what the FA Cup was all about, a chance for smaller clubs to win trophies," he said. "I would like to go one better than they did and win the Cup and stay up, but in any way, shape or form, if you play in a Cup game you want to win it. It's a chance for some players to come in and show they should be playing in the league."

Solskjaer was also keen to end the dispute with the Swansea manager Garry Monk following last weekend's derby. Solskjaer criticised Jonathan de Guzman's reaction to being hit by Craig Bellamy, who received a three-match ban, while Monk defended his midfielder and accused Cardiff's Kim Bo-kyung of punching and headbutting Wayne Routledge.

"I am not aware of that incident," said Solskjaer. "I would like to forget that game. We got no points and a three-match suspension for Craig, who did nothing.

"I cannot comment on what he [Monk] said, but I did see someone [Angel Rangel] kick Wilfried Zaha off the ball. But this rivalry between Cardiff and Swansea and us being in the Premier League is good for us. I think we push them and they push us so lets not make it like we are enemies and accuse someone of something that has not happened."

Júlio César joins Toronto on loan from Queens Park Rangers

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 09:44 AM PST

• Brazil goalkeeper is high-profile signing for Toronto
• Tranmere manager Ronnie Moore investigated by FA

Queens Park Rangers

The Brazil goalkeeper Júlio César is set to join Toronto on loan. The move to the MLS will end a difficult spell for the former Internazionale goalkeeper, who has kept his place as Brazil's first choice in the run-up to the World Cup finals despite falling out of favour at Loftus Road. The five-times Serie A winner lost his place in the Rangers starting lineup to the former England keeper Rob Green and has made only one appearance this season in a 4-0 FA Cup defeat by Everton in January. César will be another high-profile signing for Toronto, who have also secured the Tottenham Hotspur striker Jermain Defoe and the USA's Michael Bradley from Roma. Reuters

Tranmere Rovers

The manager Ronnie Moore is being investigated by the Football Association over an alleged breach of betting rules The FA intends to question Moore over claims he broke rules that prevent him from betting on any competition involving Tranmere. It is understood that no FA charges have been brought against the 61-year-old and he has not been suspended. Moore did not answer calls on Friday while Tranmere released a brief statement which read: "Tranmere Rovers are aware of media reports regarding Ronnie Moore. As this is an ongoing matter the club will make no further comment at this time." The FA would neither confirm nor deny that Moore was the subject of an investigation by its integrity unit, which deals with betting matters. Moore became manager of Tranmere for a second time in 2012 following spells at Oldham, Southport and Rotherham. The club are two places above the League One relegation zone. PA

West Bromwich Albion

Markus Rosenberg has left the entire contents of his West Midlands home to charity. The Swede had his contract with West Brom cancelled by mutual consent earlier this month but before departing from England the striker donated all the furnishings from his luxury house in Solihull to the Sue Ryder care centre charity. It included not only all of Rosenberg's furniture but also items such as kitchen plates, cutlery and utensils, taking six hours to clear. Sue Ryder's regional retail manager Karen Rogers said: "From the whole team at Sue Ryder we'd like to say a huge heartfelt thank you to Markus for his generous donation. Support like this is amazing, and helps Sue Ryder provide incredible care to over 16,000 people living with life-changing illness across the UK." PA

Our favourite things online this week: from Robert Pirès to hockey fights

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 09:25 AM PST

Featuring snooker in Germany, an Irishman abroad, golfing greats, Lionel Messi's goals and old Winter Olympics photos

Thanks for all your comments and suggestions on our last blog.

1) Robert Pirès talks about Arsenal, France and retirement

In the recent ITV documentary about Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira, the pair were asked to pick a composite best XI from their time playing at Manchester United and Arsenal. Some players went straight into the team with little fuss – Jaap Stam, Thierry Henry, Eric Cantona and, of course, themselves – while other choices brought out their competitive sides. Vieira was baffled by Keane's pick of Denis Irwin at left-back, and Keane was equally astounded by Vieira's preference for Ashley Cole. Like the rest of the programme, it was great theatre and more than a little tongue-in-cheek. But one thing stood out: Keane was happy to let Vieira pick Robert Pirès instead of David Beckham.

It's not hard to see why. Pirès won 79 caps for France from 1996 to 2004, winning the World Cup and European Championship in the process; he became a member of the Invincibles at Arsenal, where he won two Premier League titles and three FA Cups; and he entertained fans across Europe, from Marseille to Aston Villa, via Villareal.

Pirès opens up about his whole career in this three-part interview with Jeremy Smith of French Football Weekly. He explains why he chose the nickname "the Duck" rather than "Le Suceur" during his early days at Metz, where the reserve coach put him on the left wing for the first time. He admits that he thought Roger Lemerre was mad when he brought him on to play in the Euro 2000 final – and how he blacked out after he set up fellow substiture David Trezeguet for the golden goal.

Pirès speaks about how Arsenal fans whistled him at Highbury in his first few months; how he detests it when strikers don't thank midfielders for their assists; and how he was at fault when Thierry Henry missed from that penalty. All things considered, this is a wonderful interview.

2) The 100 best modern-day golfers

Golf World used 34 years of PGA Tour data to compile this list of the 100 best golfers in the modern era. You don't need to click on the link to know who came out on top, but the rankings below Tiger Woods make the exercise fascinating. Greg Norman came second, with Phil Mickelson third and Rory McIlroy the highest-place Briton back in ninth (just in front of Nick Faldo, who keeps Seve Ballesteros out of the top 10). These lists can usually be dismissed fairly quickly, but Golf World's statistical methodology gives this some legitimacy.

3) How will news that Michael Sam is gay affect his NFL draft stock?

Most of the athletes who have come out as gay in recent years have done so in retirement. Michael Sam made his announcement before the NFL draft, the biggest day of his professional life. Pete Thamel and Thayer Evans of Sports Illustrated asked eight NFL executives and coaches how they expected the news to affect Sam's placing in the draft – and the results are shocking, if not suprising.

The executives and coaches were granted anonymity for their honesty and they did not hold back: "'I don't think football is ready for [an openly gay player] just yet,' said an NFL player personnel assistant. 'In the coming decade or two, it's going to be acceptable, but at this point in time it's still a man's-man game. To call somebody a [gay slur] is still so commonplace. It'd chemically imbalance an NFL locker room and meeting room.'"

4) Dale Hansen Unplugged: Celebrating our differences

Thankfully, American broadcaster Dale Hansen was on hand to offer some words of wisdom on the Michael Sam story.

5) How Germany fell in love with snooker

Which of the world's snooker arenas has the largest capacity? It's not the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, which can house a respectable 980 fans, but the Berlin Tempodrom, the home of the sport in Germany. Ronnie O'Sullivan once told Hector Nunns that players should have to pay for the privilege of playing in the Tempodrom. Perhaps O'Sullivan should be thankful that Germany are yet to produce a player whose talent matches the enthusiasm of their fans.

6) Jarlath Regan interviews middleweight boxer Andy Lee

Jarlath Regan has interviewed another sportsman on his Irishman Abroad podcast, thus guaranteeing his return to this column. The standup comedian has a wonderful way of bringing the best out of his guests and his convivial charm is on show in this episode with Andy Lee. The middleweight boxer opens up about the pressure of fighting in front of an Irish crowd in America, the personal and professional risks he faces every time he enters the ring and how the intensity of his training affects his home life.

7) Terry Butcher on music, politics and more

Terry Butcher took some time out from managing Hibs to give Aidan Smith of the Scotsman an art lesson in this interview. If Butcher could be any artist, he would choose JMW Turner: "Because he painted the sea so much. The sea is very important to me; I have to be near it. I grew up in Lowestoft. My parents still live on the Suffolk coast, as do Rita's, and we've already bought the house in a village called Bawdsey where we're going to retire." It turns out Butcher is a great conversationalist.

8) A visit from the goon squad

This week's award for the best opening sentence goes to Bryan Curtis of Grantland: "On a freezing night on Long Island, David Singer left his wife and two sons and locked himself in his home office so he could pursue his hobby: watching men beat each other senseless." Singer is the founder of the Hockey Fights website and spends a lot of time uploading videos of men smacking each other in protective pads. He has the good sense to recognise that his wife is an "extremely patient" woman: "That's probably the best and only way I'd dare to describe how she feels about it."

9) Scoring ability: the good, the bad and the Messi

It's difficult to keep up with the proliferation of football data websites, but the 2+2=11 is worth bookmarking. In this piece, they have analysed numbers from the past five years of the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga and Serie A and worked out which players have the best and worst shot accuracy. The average conversion rate for all shots is 9.2%, a percentage that remains out of reach for poor Stewart Downing. He hit 80 shots without scoring in the 2008-09 season and followed that up by failing to score from another 71 shots in 2011-12. Lionel Messi fared a little better, with an incredible conversation rate of 21%.

10) Photos from the first 12 Winter Olympics

Those were the days.

Paul Campbell

José Mourinho's spats: from 'Wenger the voyeur' to blasting Benítez

Posted: 14 Feb 2014 09:20 AM PST

José Mourinho has been involved in plenty of spats with rival managers over the years. Here is a selection of his best …

José Mourinho has never been a stranger to playing mind games with opposing managers, with his latest shot fired at the Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, accusing the Frenchman of being a "specialist in failure", evoking memories of his previous spats with rivals. Below is a collection of Mourinho's most infamous disputes dating back to his first spell with Chelsea.

Mourinho v Rafa Benítez

The Mourinho-Benítez rivalry was sparked during the Portuguese's first tenure as Chelsea manager. In the Champions League semi-final at Anfield in 2005, Luis García's controversial 'ghost goal' helped Liverpool to eventually achieve Champions League glory, with the Spaniard matching Mourinho's record of winning the Uefa Cup and Champions League in successive seasons. The pair have since had numerous spats centred on each other's squads and management style, with the Portuguese manager piling pressure on Benítez by asking: "How many championships has Benítez won since he joined Liverpool? None. And how many names were suggested by the press to replace him? None." The rivalry has also extended beyond British shores, often ignited by the pairs similarities in club's managed but differences in personality and tactical philosophies.

Most memorable quote: "I expected at least a thankyou for the success that I gave him [leaving him a Internazionale team to win the Club World Cup]. Ask all the Inter fans what they think of me and him."

Mourinho v Arsène Wenger

After winning the title in his first season in England, Mourinho took aim at the Arsenal manager early in his second, famously describing the Frenchman as a "voyeur".

While Chelsea sat comfortably in first place at the end of October 2005, Arsenal were languishing in seventh. However, this didn't prevent Wenger from saying that the reigning champions' mid-week Carling Cup defeat on penalties to Charlton Athletic gave other sides "a little hope" that they could overhaul Mourinho's team. This prompted the Special One to vent: "There are some guys who, when they are at home, have a big telescope to see what happens in other families. He speaks, speaks, speaks about Chelsea". Mourinho's jibe appeared to get the better of Wenger that season, as Chelsea went on to win a second consecutive title while Arsenal were left to secure fourth place on the final day of the season – a mammoth 24 points adrift of the Blues.

Most memorable quote: "I think he is one of these people who is a voyeur. He likes to watch other people. There are some guys who, when they are at home, have a big telescope to see what happens in other families. He speaks, speaks, speaks about Chelsea."

Mourinho v Carlo Ancelotti

Whenever Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti have crossed paths during their managerial careers the pair have had plenty to say about each other. During Mourinho's first season in Italy with Internazionale in 2008-09 the then AC Milan manager Ancelotti described his rival as "lacking respect" after Mourinho was sent off for storming on to the pitch in protest at a refereeing decision during a match against Sampdoria. The pair would trade verbal blows once more when they met in the Champions League during the 2009-10 season, when after Ancelotti questioned Mourinho's popularity in Italy the Internazionale manager responded by saying Ancelotti had been "told to say that because he belongs to the clan". In both instances it would be Mourinho who laughed last; his side won Serie A by 10 points in his first season in charge while Ancelotti's Chelsea were seen off by Mourinho in the Champions League on his Stamford Bridge return.

Most memorable quote: "Many coaches have won it more than once but there is only one club that was leading 3-0 in the final and managed to lose it." (on the Champions League and AC Milan's defeat to Liverpool in 2005).

Mourinho v Pep Guardiola

The subject of Pep Guardiola has often served as a sticking point with Mourinho in what is arguably his most pungent rivalry. The dispute first emerged in 2009-10 when Mourinho's Internazionale knocked out Pep's Barcelona, whose Champions League victory eventually led to the Portuguese becoming the Real Madrid manager. The El-Clásico derbies in La Liga and in Europe often created entertaining crossfires in press conferences, most notably after Real Madrid's controversial defeat to Barça in the Champions League semi-final in 2010. Mourinho questioned the integrity of the Catalan club's win by admitting that "One day I would like Josep Guardiola to win this competition properly".

Guardiola often hit back, with quips such as "Off the pitch, he is the winner … but this is a game of football", and regularly drew attention to his impressive head-to-head record against the former-Real Madrid manager. The two may have now left Spain, but their heated war of attrition continues.

Most memorable quote: "I have won two Champions Leagues. He has won [only] one Champions League and that is one that would embarrass me. I would be ashamed to have won it with the scandal of Stamford Bridge and, if he wins it this year, it will be with the scandal of the Bernabéu. I hope that one day he can win a proper Champions League."

Mourinho v Manuel Pellegrini

Mourinho and Pellegrini's simmering feud was first forged after Mourinho took over Pellegrini's Real Madrid in 2010. Mourinho was quick to strike out at The Chilean, branding him as a "loser" for finishing in second place the previous season. The former Real Madrid manager was soon at the helm of 17th-placed Málaga, which Mourinho again publicly scrutinised by saying he would only move to a "top-class" team in Pellegrini's position. The pair departed La Liga last summer, only to quarrel again at Chelsea and Manchester City. Both clubs are looking to show a return on substantial investment by winning the Premier League title, further fuelling the intensity of the rivalry between the two with public spats over spending and title favourites.

Most memorable quote: "Second place is just the first loser. If Madrid were to fire me, I wouldn't go to Málaga. I'd go to a top-level team in Italy or England."

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Saturday, 15 February 2014

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Mourinho v Rafa Benítez

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