Category: Sport

Ruud van Nistelrooy is set to be named the next Leicester City manager following the dismissal of Steve Cooper.

The Foxes are currently 16th in the Premier League with Cooper winning ten points from his ten games in charge at the King Power Stadium.

Cooper was appointed in the summer after Enzo Maresca – who led Leicester to the Championship title last season – was poached by Chelsea.

Van Nistelrooy is available having been let go by Manchester United following the arrival of Ruben Amorim, after the United legend had stepped up from his assistant coaching role under Erik ten Hag to take interim charge.

The Dutchman joined Ten Hag’s team in the summer having impressed as manager of PSV Eindhoven and was unbeaten in his four games at the Old Trafford helm following Ten Hag’s sacking, including two wins over Leicester in the Premier League and Carabao Cup.

His stock rose as a result of that spell, to the point where Leicester have decided to make Van Nistelrooy their next manager, according to The Telegraph.

The report claims Van Nistelrooy has held ‘extensive talks’ with the Foxes and is set to be confirmed as Cooper’s successor, and may even be appointed in time to take charge for their game against Brentford this weekend.

READ MORE: Five PL moves for Ruud van Nistelrooy post-Man Utd include replacing Ange Postecoglou at Spurs

United legend Rio Ferdinand was full of praise for the job Van Nistelrooy did in his short time at the club, claiming the players “had grown to really like” him.

Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel: “His audition couldn’t have gone any better.

“I think, knowing him, there was a steely determination underneath that said, ‘I’m going to put myself in the best position, either to stay at the club in some capacity or someone else is going to say we need you as a manager’.

“He looked the part and he produced. The players needed that. We’re in a time where there was a lot of turbulence, the manager’s relationships with some players seemed fractured and irreversible and the fans seemed to have made their minds up that that was it.

“And the new manager comes in – and you always get that bounce – but this seemed a bit different from a bounce. The players had grown to really like him, they appreciated how he informed them of different bits and pieces – tactically, individually, as a team – and there was a genuine ‘we want to do well for this guy’.”

Parviz Nasibov and Zhan Belenyuk were among the top three Greco-Roman wrestlers according to UWW. Both athletes won medals at the Olympic Games in Paris and the European Championships.

The United World of wrestling (UWW) has published its final ranking for 2024. The top three in their weight categories included Ukrainian Greco-Roman wrestlers: Parviz Nasibov and Zhan Belenyuk, reports UNN with reference to the NOC.

When compiling the rating, the results of the Olympic Games, World Championships, continental championships, as well as rating tournaments were taken into account.

Having become the third prize-winner of the Olympic Games in Paris, Viborov won the bronze medal of the champion of Europe and won the victory at the prestigious rating tour of the Zagreb Open.

Parviz Nasibov wins silver medal in the final of the OlympicsAug 8 2024, 05:49 PM • 105074 views

"This shows that there is room to grow and where to strive: to move those two ahead. Therefore, I will do everything possible to top this rating next year," Parviz Nasibov commented on his achievement.

In turn, Zhan Belenyuk became the bronze medalist of the European Championship and the Olympics. During the Games in Paris, he officially announced the end of his sports career.

Jean Belenyuk's watch stolen at the 2024 OlympicsAug 13 2024, 11:13 PM • 20452 views

The hearing into Manchester City’s 115 alleged breaches of profit and sustainability rules (PSR) has been paused in what could amount to a ‘huge headache’ for the Premier League.

An independent commission hearing to examine 115 charges laid by the Premier League against Man City started in September.

The Premier League opened an investigation into City way back in 2018 and after a number of legal delays, charges were finally laid in February 2023 and the club were referred to an independent commission.

The charges against the Citizens relate to the requirement to accurately report financial information, including around the value of sponsorship deals, the submission of details of manager and player pay information and to a club’s responsibility as a Premier League member to adhere to financial fair play rules.

The hearing is nearing its end, but it’s now claimed by The Times that the case will not be concluded before the end of the season, ‘creating a huge potential headache for the Premier League if sanctions are imposed which would have an impact on other clubs’.

Manchester City and the Premier League are currently preparing their closing arguments, but those aren’t due for a couple of weeks and then we will likely have to wait months for a judgement and several more months should either party appeal.

The report adds:

‘The Lawyer website has reported that the hearing at the International Dispute Resolution Centre in London has been paused while the two parties — City and the Premier League — prepare their closing arguments. These are not due to start until early to mid-December and it could be three months or more before the three-man commission issues a judgment.

‘If City or the Premier League were to challenge that judgment via an appeal that would probably take several more months.

‘One complex financial case heard by the High Court last year had a 13-week hearing, similar to the length of City’s, but a judgment has still not been issued a year later. Other less complex cases can take a much shorter time, but legal experts say it is impossible to predict how long City’s will take.’

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Former Everton CEO Keith Wyness claimed the appeal process after the verdict of Man City’s case could drag on until 2026.

Wyness told Football Insider: “Once the deliberations have been made public, and I imagine there will be a three or four-hundred-page document, there will likely be an appeal.

“There could also be a settlement, it all depends on the verdict reached. And I’m hoping common sense can prevail and that settlement can be reached to put an end to this.

“But if there is an appeal, it will go on just that much longer. We could be talking about the end of 2025 or even 2026. Let’s just wait and see how we go with the initial verdict and see if cool heads can prevail.”

Marino Pushic plans to renegotiate his contract with Shakhtar during the winter break due to the difficult situation in Ukraine. The coach spoke about the stressful working conditions and the bombing of the hotel before the match with Kryvbas.

Coach of the Shakhtar football club Marino Pushic in an interview with the media noted that his thoughts with the team "are not always about football", since Russia invaded Ukraine. the specialist also explained that despite the desire to stay at the Shakhtar club for as long as possible, he can nevertheless review the contract and decide on further plans.

Transfer UNN iz posilannam to Telegraaf.nl that NOS.

Details

"During the winter break, I will sit down with the club at the negotiating table. I'm going to think carefully about my next steps. The situation is very stressful in many ways.

But I'm having a good time in terms of football, we're building a team. Shakhtar Champions League team. The team is making a lot of progress.

I don't want to just give it up. .. In addition to the current contract, I felt a certain duty to Shakhtar, so this (departure – approx.) was not an option. Now I plan to review the situation, " Marino Pushic said.

Journalists of the Dutch publication nos found out that the thoughts of the Donetsk club are not always about football, since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Debut of the 17-year-old Ukrainian, Zinchenko wins, Lewandowski scores the hundredth goal – results of Champions League matchesNov 27 2024, 07:59 AM • 12069 views

For example, at the end of August, Shakhtar had to drive eight hours for an away match with Kryvbas. A few days before the arrival of the "Orange", their hotel was "bombed to pieces".

There was a click of death. Let's think about it: so that we could. .. There was a great deal of importance to the community of the world. We happened to know in our own way the steps of Today's match. It wasn't surreal

Pushich said.

The specialist also explained why he actually exchanged Feyenoord for coaching in Ukraine.

I think people have lived on Earth too little to get into trouble with each other. We are on earth to live together in peace, not in the circumstances that we unfortunately have to go through

At a press conference before the match against PSV, Pushic also said that he hopes to continue working with FC Shakhtar.

I could have left the team and gone to other clubs, one of which was Liverpool, but I explained why I didn't. I have a year and a half contract with Shakhtar. I intend to stay here as long as possible. .. Despite all the difficulties in the country, I am not a person who will just run away. .. In football, you never know what will happen, everything is very unpredictable here. But my intention is to stay at the club as long as possible

Pushich said.

“Shakhtar win a strong-willed victory over Zorya after conceding a goalNov 10 2024, 04:31 PM • 22835 views

BeIN Sports presenter Richard Keys aimed a dig at Marcus Rashford after the Man Utd forward scored in their 1-1 draw against Ipswich Town on Sunday.

The Red Devils were held to a draw at Portman Road after Omari Hutchinson’s long-range deflected strike cancelled out Rashford’s early opener.

That point moved Man Utd up one place to 12th in the Premier League table with only Everton, Southampton and Crystal Palace scoring fewer goals this season.

Rashford, as well as Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee have been criticised over their performances with four goals between the three players in the Premier League this term.

England international Rashford has struggled over the last year or two with many feeling that he’s lost some of his enthusiasm for playing football.

And Keys sarcastically praised the Man Utd forward for “smiling” and temporarily rediscovering his “appetite” for playing the game.

Keys wrote in his blog: “It’s not often that Manchester United fans have a better matchweek their City rivals – but they did yesterday.

“What a start the new coach got off to – a goal up after only 80 seconds or so, but don’t mention the shanked cross that turned into a really good ball!

“And just for a moment it looked as though Marcus Rashford had re-discovered his appetite for the game. He was even smiling.

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“I loved the way Amorim reacted to the goal. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He was motionless. Class.

“But – the freshness, the optimism, the joy all faded too quickly and it was clear that despite the system – and there’s nothing wrong with it – this United team is in terminal decline and Amorim has got a hell of a job on his hands.

“But we knew that didn’t we? There’s no short term fix. He simply doesn’t have enough players who are good enough to wear the jersey.

“Look at the starting line-up. How many of them would you keep? Three? Certainly no more. And where do you get rid of the rest? Who’s going to take Rashford and pay him £350,000 a week? Casemiro? Eriksen? Evans? De Light? Ugarte? Fernandes? Mount? Zirkzee? It’s scary.

“Only surgery is going to sort the mess out and that will require Ratcliffe to find someone money – big money. Factor in wages, I reckon it’s going to need a billion – £500m on players at least – the rest in wages and agents fees.

“Is Ratcliffe going to spend that kind of money? Is he hell. Don’t bet on United re-joining everybody else at the top table any time soon. I genuinely wish Amorim all the luck in the world. He seems like a really nice guy, but that won’t be enough.”

Suspended Premier League referee David Coote has “refuted false and defamatory allegations” after it was revealed he’s ‘at the centre of a betting probe’.

Earlier this month, the Premier League official was suspended by the PGMOL after his sweary rant on Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp leaked online.

He said: “Liverpool were s**t.

“C**t, absolute c**t. Aside from having a right pop at me when I was reffing against Burnley in lockdown, he accused me of lying and then just had a right f***ing pop at me.

“I’ve got no interest in speaking to somebody as f***ing arrogant. I do my best not to speak to him…my god, German c***t. F*** me.”

Coote‘s situation later worsened as it emerged that he organised a Travelodge ‘drugs party’ while officiating a Carabao Cup clash between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City.

READ: Don’t be surprised if referees think you and your manager are c***s

On Tuesday night, a report from The Sun revealed ‘Coote is at the centre of betting probe after discussing booking player before a game’.

The game in question was between Leeds United and West Brom in October 2019 as Ezgjan Alioski was booked after 17 minutes for a foul on Darnell Furlong.

Coote’s post-match ‘message to a pal’ read: “I hope you backed as discussed”.

It is also noted that ‘Coote accepts a discussion took place, but claims it was only banter and nothing improper took place.’

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The Sun has broken down how the reported exchange with Coote unfolded.

‘In the new exchange unearthed by The Sun, Coote appears keen to impress a Leeds fan he met online. He bragged that he was set to officiate in the upcoming Leeds- West Brom Championship clash.

‘The pal says he jokingly told Coote to give a yellow card to Leeds left-back Ezgjan Alioski so he could put a bet on it at the bookies beforehand.

‘The day before the game, Coote tells him: “Yeah really good I’ve got Leeds tomorrow.” The friend replied: “Ooh big game. We still on for what we ­discussed (Alioski). Maybe I could join you if so.”

‘Coote replies: “Haha don’t know what you mean.” His friend then posts: “Haha well I’m off to back it in the morning so don’t let me down.” Coote answered: “Haha will see.”

‘The following evening, Alioski is booked in the 18th minute of the game for a sliding challenge on Darnell Furlong.

‘Last night football experts said the booking was fully justified given the nature of the tackle. Leeds eventually won the game 1-0 with a goal from Alioski.

‘The following day, Coote messaged his friend again to say: “What a day yesterday. I hope you backed as discussed.”

‘The pal tells him that he did not put money on it but he believes another friend “backed it though”. Coote then replies: “Haha he will have to share with you then.”’

In a statement, Coote has “strongly refuted” these “defamatory allegations”.

“I strongly refute these false and defamatory allegations. Whatever issues I may have had in my personal life they have never affected my decision-making on the field.

“I have always held the integrity of the game in the highest regard, refereeing matches impartially and to the best of my ability.”

Artem Stepanov became the youngest Ukrainian to make his debut in the Champions League. In other matches of the Tour, Arsenal defeated Sporting, and Lewandowski reached the 100-goal mark.

Alexander Zinchenko's Arsenal defeat Sporting Lisbon, Daniil Ignatenko's Slovan Bratislava is minimally inferior to Milan, the 17-year – old Ukrainian striker makes his debut for Bayer Leverkusen and sets a new achievement, Pep Guardiola's Manchester City continues to be feverish-this is how the 5th round of the Champions League went, writes UNN.

Details

The 5th round of the Champions League was opened by Slovan Bratislava, for which our compatriot Daniil Ignatenko plays, and Milan of Italy.

In the middle of the first half, AC Milan opened the scoring with Christian Pulisic's goal from Tammy Abraham's pass. In three minutes, Slovan managed to equalize the score. Tigran Barseghyan scored a goal for the Slovak club.

In the 68th minute, Rafael Leao, who came on as a substitute at the beginning of the second half, put Milan ahead with a pass from Yusuf Fofan – 2:1. in the 71st minute, Abraham scored the third goal of Milan after a mistake by defenders. Slovan managed to close the gap in the 88th minute thanks to a goal from Nino Marcella. The final whistle recorded the victory of "Milan" – 3:2.

Daniil Ignatenko entered the field in the 66th minute with the score 1:1. during this time, he made three ball selections and received a score of 6.5.

In another match, Sporting Lisbon and Arsenal London met, for which Ukrainian Alexander Zinchenko plays, who started the match on the bench.

Arsenal made the game already in the first half – in the 7th minute Gabriel Martinelli opened the scoring with a pass from Jurien timber, in the 22nd minute Kai Havertz with a pass from Bakayo Saka doubled the advantage of his team, and at the end of the half, defender Gabriel, scoring with a header from the corner, brought the score to a crushing 3:0.

At the beginning of the second half, Sporting managed to do it – Inaciu did it with Trinkau's feed. In the 65th minute, Bakayo Saka scored 4 goals for his team from the penalty spot, and Leandro Trossard put an end to the match, scoring 5 goals from a pass from Mikel Merino.

Arsenal Ukrainian defender Alexander Zinchenko appeared on the field in the 78th minute instead of Ricardo Calafiori. For 13 minutes, the Ukrainian did not distinguish himself with effective actions. The player scored 8 touches on the ball, 7 accurate passes out of 8 (88%) and 1 loss of the ball. Zinchenko received a score of 6.1 points.

Pep Guardiola's Manchester City, who have not won 5 consecutive matches, and Feyenoord of the Netherlands met in a parallel match.

"Mancity" thanks to a goal from the penalty spot in the 44th minute took the lead-the penalty was executed by Erling Goland. In the 50th minute, Erkay Gundogan doubled the advantage of his team, and 3 minutes later Holland brought the score to a crushing 3:0. The curtain of the match was a real disaster for ManCity.

First, Anis Musa scored the first goal for his team in the 75th minute, 7 minutes later Santiago Jimenez closed the gap, and in the 89th minute Feyenoord equalized-a goal on the account of David Gantzko.

Manchester City have not won in 6 consecutive games, which has already become an anti-record for Pep Guardiola. The last time the" Citizens "won was at the end of October, beating" Southampton " – 1:0. During the match, the broadcast directors recorded Guardiola with a scratched face.

Yes, I did it with my finger, with my fingernail. I want to hurt myself, right

– Pep said at a press conferenceexplaining the episode.

Bayer Leverkusen and Salzburg of Austria met in another match, knocking Dynamo Kyiv out of the Champions League. By the 30th minute, Bayer Leverkusen was already leading 3-0. Florian Wirtz scored from the penalty spot in the 8th minute, Alejandro Grimaldo doubled the lead in 3 minutes, and Wirtz scored a double in the 30th minute. Patrick Schick scored 4 goals in the 61st minute, and 10 minutes later Aleix Garcia set up the final score-5:0.

In the 73rd minute, Shik was replaced by Ukrainian Artem Stepanov, who became the youngest Ukrainian (17 years, 3 months) to make his debut in the Champions League – surpassing the record of Dmitry Chygrinsky (18 years, 1 month). During his time on the pitch, the 17-year-old striker touched the ball twice, made 2 accurate passes out of 2 (100%) and fouled once.

Stepanov's game was rated by two statistical portals: WhoScored – at 6.0, – at 6.5.the native of Lutsk is a graduate of the Shakhtar Donetsk Academy. In the summer of 2022, he moved to Bayer Leverkusen, where he played for the U-17 team. in January of this year, he signed a contract with the club, which runs until June 30, 2027.

They will remember this game in the future. Today they got their chance, and it's important to give them a good feeling when they first enter the field

head coach Xabi Alonso commented on the debut of Stepanov and Oneka.

In another match on Tuesday, Catalan "Barcelona" and French "Brest"met.

Barcelona managed to score in the 10th minute of the match-Robert Lewandowski converted a penalty. In the 66th minute, Dani Olmo doubled the Catalans ' lead, and at the end of the match, Lewandowski scored a double, scoring his 100th and 101st goals in the Champions League.

The Polish striker took the 3rd place of the top scorers of the Champions League. Only Lionel Messi is ahead with 129 goals and Cristiano Ronaldo with 140 goals.

I am very happy, I never believed that I would achieve such indicators in the Champions League. I am currently in the company of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Our goal is to win every game. At times we played too slowly, but thanks to patience we managed to score

Lewandowski said after the match.

We started to collate the astonishing stats that made Erling Haaland’s start to life in the Premier League utterly extraordinary a long time ago.

The concern is that his numbers are, if anything, getting more ridiculous.

* Haaland has become the first Premier League player in history about whom formerly-good football website Football365.com has started doing a Ridiculous Stats piece and then realised to their horror is going to have to be updated enormously often.

* Haaland’s goal in the 2-2 draw against Arsenal was his 100th for Manchester City in just his 105th appearance.

* Haaland was the quickest player ever to reach 50 Premier League goals, taking just 48 matches to hit the half-century and beat Andy Cole (65 games, Alan Shearer (66), Ruud van Nistelrooy (68), Mo Salah and Fernando Torres (both 72).

* Haaland was the quickest player ever to reach 75 Premier League goals, taking just 77 matches to beat Alan Shearer (93), Harry Kane (115), Ruud van Nistelrooy (116), Mo Salah (117) and Sergio Aguero (118).

* No player had ever scored the first two goals of a Premier League season before Haaland managed it against Burnley in 2023/24.

* Haaland has scored against all 23 opponents he has faced in the Premier League, the most recent newcomer to that wildly unexclusive club being Ipswich.

* Haaland has scored in 19 of the 21 stadiums he’s played at in the Premier League, missing only Anfield and the Gtech Community Stadium from his collection.

* Haaland broke the record for most goals in a single Premier League season in his debut campaign for Manchester City, scoring 36 goals in his 35 appearances, to beat Andy Cole and Alan Shearer (who both set the 34-goal record in 42-game campaigns).

* No player has scored more goals in an English top-flight league season than Haaland’s 36 in 2022/23 since Ron Davies netted 37 times for Southampton in 1966/67.

* Haaland also broke the record for most goals in one season in all competitions by a Premier League player (52), comfortably surpassing Mo Salah in 2017/18 and Ruud van Nistelrooy in 2002/03 (both 44).

* The only player in the history of top-flight English football to score more goals in all competitions in a single season than Haaland’s 52 in 2022/23 is Dixie Dean (63 for Everton in 1927/28).

* Haaland has scored 75 Premier League goals – more than the career totals of Gabriel Agbonlahor, Gabriel Jesus, Danny Ings, Brian Deane, Chris Armstrong, Eric Cantona, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Kevin De Bruyne, Luis Suarez, Danny Welbeck, Duncan Ferguson, Wilfried Zaha, Michail Antonio, Anthony Martial, Alexis Sanchez, David Beckham, Yaya Toure, Robert Pires, Stan Collymore, David Silva, Gianfranco Zola, Clint Dempsey, Tim Cahill, Eidur Gudjohnsen, John Hartson, James Milner, James Ward-Prowse, Andy Carroll, Damien Duff, Christian Eriksen, Kanu, Gus Poyet, Gareth Bale, Diego Costa, Javier Hernandez, Juan Mata, Darius Vassell, Dele Alli, Dirk Kuyt, Edin Dzeko, Cesc Fabregas, Paulo Wanchope, Nolberto Solano, Freddie Ljungberg, Bruno Fernandes, Philippe Coutinho, Paul Merson, Gary McAllister, Nobby Solano, Ashley Young, Ilkay Gundogan, Willian, Juan Pablo Angel, Shola Ameobi, Demba Ba, Willian, Freddie Kanoute, Ashley Barnes, Kelechi Iheanacho, Steve McManaman, Steffen Iversen, Raul Jimenez, Kenwyne Jones, John Carew, Tore Andre Flo, Darren Huckerby, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Dean Sturridge, Darren Anderton, Papiss Cisse, Benni McCarthy, Kevin Doyle, Peter Odemwingie, Salomon Kalou, Paul Dickov, Florent Malouda, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, Mesut Ozil, Jurgen Klinsmann, Nicky Butt, Juninho, Jesse Lingard, Savo Milosevic, Paul Rideout, Paul Pogba, Tammy Abraham, Nani, Victor Anichebe, Benjani, Roque Santa Cruz, Marcus Stewart, Mick Quinn, Stephane Sessegnon, Lomano Lua Lua, Tony Yeboah, Andrey Arshavin, Xherdan Shaqiri, Divock Origi, Mario Balotelli, Patrick Bamford, David Ginola, Michael Ricketts, Gianluca Vialli, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Michael Ballack, Erik Lamela, Alvaro Morata, Jose Antonio Reyes, Michy Batshuayi, Arjen Robben, Joe Allen, Fabio Borini, Demarai Gray, Odion Ighalo, Alex Iwobi, Robinho, Kai Havertz, Andre Schurrle, Luka Modric, David Platt, Gareth Southgate, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Edinson Cavani, Mousa Dembele, Samuel Eto’o, Dimitri Payet, Ademola Lookman, Harry Maguire, Emmanuel Petit, Granit Xhaka, Daniel Amokachi, Diego Forlan, Serhiy Rebrov, Andriy Shevchenko, Ronnie Rosenthal, Peter Beagrie, Gavin Peacock, Timo Werner, Jack Grealish, Luis Garcia and Alf-Inge Haaland.

* Haaland has also scored more Premier League goals than seven Premier League clubs: Bradford (68), Cardiff (66), Blackpool (55), Huddersfield Town (50), Luton (49), Swindon (47) and Barnsley (37).

* Haaland has more Premier League goals (75) than Premier League starts (72).

* Haaland scored more Premier League goals than Everton and Wolves in his debut season. So far this season, Newcastle, Manchester United, Everton, Crystal Palace, Ipswich and Southampton all lag behind his 12-goal tally.

* By scoring nine goals in his first five Premier League games in 2022/23, Haaland finally knocked Micky Quinn’s name out of the record books. The former Coventry forward jointly held the previous record for most goals in his first five Premier League games with eight in the year football was invented. Sergio Aguero matched that in 2011/12.

* In 2024/25, Haaland set a new record for the most goals scored in the first three games of a Premier League season (seven, beating Edin Dzeko in 2011/12), the first four games of a Premier League season (nine, beating Wayne Rooney in 2011/12), and the first five games of a Premier League season (10, beating… himself from two years ago).

* Haaland was already one of only six players to score back-to-back Premier League hat-tricks and has now done it twice. But he hasn’t yet matched Harry Kane in this particular field of excellence. Kane has not only done it twice, but did so in the same year (if not the same season) after scoring seven goals across the final two games of 2016/17 against Leicester and Hull before netting hat-tricks in successive games against Burnley and Southampton either side of Christmas Day seven months later. Hard as it is to credit, incidentally, that Boxing Day treble against Southampton in 2017 is Kane’s most recent Premier League hat-trick and will now remain so for quite some time.

* Haaland has scored eight Premier League hat-tricks – the same number as Harry Kane, Thierry Henry and Michael Owen and more than absolutely everyone else bar Sergio Aguero (12), Alan Shearer (11) and Robbie Fowler (9).

* Four Premier League hat-tricks in a single season (2022/23) is more than any player has managed bar Alan Shearer, who scored five for Blackburn in 1995/96.

* Haaland has surpassed Dion Dublin’s three Premier League hat-tricks. But how many episodes of Homes Under the Hammer has Haaland presented? Exactly.

* Haaland’s eight hat-tricks have taken Norway fifth above Spain on the list of countries to have produced the most Premier League trebles with 18, Haaland standing on the shoulders of such giants as Solskjaer, Steffen Iversen and Joshua King (two each), John Carew, Tore Andre Flo and Jan Age Fjortoft (one each). Argentina, France and Netherlands are joint-second with 19, which frankly shouldn’t take too long to topple, but even Haaland will have to hang around a few years to knock England’s 171 hat-tricks off top spot.

* Haaland is the first player in the Premier League to score hat-tricks in three successive home games, and was the first Manchester City player to score a Manchester derby hat-trick since 1970 before Phil Foden almost immediately joined him.

* Haaland is unsurprisingly the quickest player ever to reach three Premier League hat-tricks after getting there in eight(!) games. The previous record holder was Michael Owen, who managed it in a sluggish 48 games. Next best are Ruud van Nistelrooy (59 games), Fernando Torres (64) and Andy Cole (65).

* Haaland is also by definition the quickest player ever to reach four Premier League hat-tricks after getting there in 19(!) games. The previous record holder was Ruud van Nistelrooy, who managed it in a laborious 65 games. Next best are Luis Suarez (81), Alan Shearer (86) and Robbie Fowler (89).

* Haaland was the fastest player to ever score 25 goals under Pep Guardiola, doing so in 20 games to beat Lionel Messi (28), Samuel Eto’o (30), Sergio Aguero (35) and Thierry Henry (41).

* No player has ever scored more goals in a season for Manchester City than Haaland. Tommy Johnson’s mark of 38 goals stood since 1929 before Haaland broke it by mid-March of his debut campaign.

* Haaland was both the fastest and youngest player to reach 20 Champions League goals, obliterating Harry Kane’s really quite impressive previous benchmark of 24 games by 10 when reaching the landmark in just 14 games for Salzburg and Dortmund. At 20 years and 231 days old, Haaland was over a year younger than previous record-holder Kylian Mbappe as the youngest player to reach 20 Champions League goals.

* Haaland was also the fastest and youngest player to reach 30 Champions League goals, reaching the mark in 25 games and thus shattering Ruud van Nistelrooy’s previous 34-match haul, while beating Kylian Mbappe by 116 days.

* Haaland was indeed also both the fastest and youngest player to reach 40 Champions League goals.

* Only Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo (both 8), Robert Lewandowski (6), Karim Benzema (4), Mario Gomez, Filippo Inzaghi, Luiz Adriano and Neymar (3) have scored more career Champions League hat-tricks than Haaland’s two.

* Only 12 players have ever scored more European Cup goals than Haaland. In the Champions League, that number is reduced to just 11.

* Haaland has more European Cup goals than Mo Salah, Didier Drogba, Neymar, Sergio Aguero, Ferenc Puskas, Edinson Cavani, Gerd Muller, Fernando Morientes, Arjen Robben, Samuel Eto’o, Paco Gento, Antoine Griezmann, Kaka, Wayne Rooney, Patrick Kluivert, David Trezeguet, Ryan Giggs, Sadio Mane, Rivaldo, Luis Suarez and a couple of others.

* Haaland scored 12 goals in Manchester City’s 2022/23 Champions League campaign to claim the competition’s Golden Boot for the second time. Only 12 players have ever finished multiple European Cup seasons as top scorer – and just Ronaldo, Messi, Van Nistelrooy, Raul and Andriy Shevchenko have done it in the Champions League era.

* Haaland has only played 17 games in the Champions League knockout stages but just 11 players have more goals in such matches.

* Haaland has more Champions League knockout stage goals (14) than Neymar (13) managed in 32 games.

* Haaland has more Champions League knockout stage goals than Neymar, Luis Suarez, Thierry Henry, Kaka, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Fernando Torres, Samuel Eto’o and Mo Salah.

* Haaland and Lionel Messi are the only players to score a first-half hat-trick in a Champions League knockout game.

* Haaland, Messi and Luiz Adriano are the only players to score five goals in a Champions League game.

* At the age of just 24 and winning only his 36th cap for Norway, Haaland’s brace in a 3-0 Nations League win over Slovenia took him to 34 goals and beyond Jorgen Juve’s national record of 33 which had stood since before World War Two.

* Haaland is the first player to score five goals in a single Champions League match and a single FA Cup match.

* With his five-goal FA Cup haul against Luton, Haaland also became the first player to score five or more goals in a single game for Manchester City twice, the first Manchester City player to score five or more goals in an FA Cup match since Frank Roberts did so in 1926, the first Manchester City player to score seven goals in their first five FA Cup appearances, and the first player to score five or more goals in an FA Cup game against a top-flight club since George Best’s six against Northampton in 1970.

Erling Haaland honours
Austrian Bundesliga: 2018/19, 2019/20
DFB-Pokal: 2020/21
Bundesliga Player of the Season: 2020/21
Bundesliga Player of the Month: January 2020, November 2020, April 2021, August 2021
Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2020/21, 2021/22
UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2020/21
UEFA Champions League Forward of the Season: 2020/21
UEFA Champions League Top Goalscorer: 2020/21
UEFA Nations League Top Goalscorer: 2020/21
FIFA FIFPro World 11: 2021
Premier League Player of the Month: August 2022, April 2023
Premier League: 2022/23, 2023/24
FA Cup: 2022/23
Champions League: 2022/23
Super Cup: 2023
Community Shield: 2024
European Golden Shot: 2022/23
Premier League Golden Boot: 2022/23
Premier League Player of the Year: 2022/23
Premier League Young Player of the Year: 2022/23
Gerd Muller Trophy (Striker of the Year award, or the ‘sorry you didn’t win the Ballon d’Or’ trophy): 2023

Erling Haaland top-flight league goals record
Molde (Eliteserien) 2017-2018: 39 games, 14 goals

Red Bull Salzburg (Austrian Bundesliga) 2018-2020: 16 games, 17 goals

Borussia Dortmund (Bundesliga) 2020-22: 67 games, 62 goals

Manchester City (Premier League) 2022-24: 77 games, 75 goals

Total: 194 games, 166 goals

Erling Haaland Champions League record
Red Bull Salzburg 2019-20: 6 games, 8 goals

Borussia Dortmund 2019-22: 13 games, 15 goals

Manchester City 2022-24: 25 games, 23 goals

Total: 44 games, 46 goals

Erling Haaland international record
Norway 2019-24: 37 caps, 34 goals

Liverpool will be giddy after Josko Gvardiol and Ederson’s latest disasterclass. Not even Pep Guardiola can save this sh*t and Sunday will be ugly.

Manchester City were the beneficiaries of a desperately needed gift from the footballing gods shortly before half-time against Feyenoord; a rash swipe from Quinten Timber on Erling Haaland saw referee Radu Petrescu point to the penalty spot.

Like Pep Guardiola, Haaland had cut a frustrated figure for much of the opening half, though he made no mistake with his penalty.

He ignored the Emi Martinez-esque mind games played by Timon Wellenreuther to send the Feyenoord goalkeeper the wrong way and score a goal everyone associated with Man City had been crying out for in the 43 minutes that came prior.

City’s latest Champions League group match started similarly to the harrowing weekend defeat against Tottenham. They dominated possession and created a couple of openings with an inferior opponent penned in their defensive half.

Haaland had an early sight of goal as his header struck the post, but this was not an early sign of things to come as Man City swiftly ran out of ideas and reverted to their new flat type.

The increasingly common sound of groans reverberated around the Etihad once more as Man City’s discouraged supporters became more vocal in airing their grievances as the opening half wore on.

Jamie Carragher pointed out following that 4-0 defeat that Man City’s “legs had gone” and the first half reinforced the view that Guardioala’s weary players need a mini-retirement or 20.

READ: Man City are officially rubbish: Rodri, Spurs, FIFA and old lags to blame

Devoid of anything resembling confidence, Guardiola’s once-robotic winning machine looked alarmingly human as there was no intensity or flow to their play.

This was particularly worrying considering opponents Feyenoord did not have the same level of quality possessed by City’s recent conquerors and were often sloppy in possession when working an opportunity on the counter-attack.

Even then, a misfunctioning City made the opening to the game needlessly comfortable for their opponents, who gradually grew in confidence and made home supporters wince at a couple of nervy moments.

Before this game, Feyenoord were earmarked as the ideal opponent to be the victim in a confidence-building Man City result/performance and the hosts (for a little bit) looked far more assured after Haaland’s penalty saved them from being booed off at the break.

Their vibes were boosted by another fortunate moment shortly after the restart: Ilkay Gundogan’s deflected volley – which would have normally been saved – ricocheted into the net for their second of the night.

Moments later, Haaland – whose penalty saw him become the youngest player to score 45 Champions League goals – added his second and City’s third, converting from close range following a cross from Matheus Nunes on the right flank.

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A 3-0 scoreline would have flattered Man City and a visibly dismayed Guardiola had an awful poker face when his side needlessly threw away a simple enough opportunity at a clean sheet.

Following the Spurs shambles, it was somewhat surprising that Guardiola *only* made three changes, though this is largely down to his lack of options in central midfield and defence.

For all his brilliance in attack, Josko Gvardiol was fortunate to keep his place after his errors contributed to two of Tottenham’s goals. His loose pass allowed Anis Hadj-Moussa in on goal before he rounded Ederson to make it 3-1.

Guardiola had his head in his hands for an awkwardly long time after this setback and his mood worsened when more careless play from his side allowed Feyenoord their second, which was comically bad from Man City’s perspective.

Another misplaced pass by Gvardiol prevented Man City from clearing to safety and Ederson made a mess of Jordan Lotomba’s pullback, which substitute Santiago Gimenez tapped home from a couple of yards out.

Man City are usually known for their immense ability to ride out pressure and see out matches, but their dire game management gave Feyenoord hope that they didn’t deserve after they very much looked their distinctly average fourth-best team in the Eredivisie selves.

READ: Is Pep Guardiola a fraud? Man City boss has glaring ‘inability’ to get results without Rodri

It would have been embarrassing enough for Man City had it finished 3-2, but any remaining confidence they had built earlier in the game evaporated instantly as Feyenoord miraculously scored an equaliser with a minute of normal time to spare.

A simple lofted ball over the top of Man City’s defence was all that was required to leave the home players in no man’s land; a panicked Ederson sprinted out of his goal to meet Igor Paixao only to have the ball nipped away and the winger’s cross was expertly converted at the back post by David Hancko.

It was bedlam at the Etihad. As mentioned, their uninspiring performance did not warrant a 3-0 win and the home team was deservedly punished for criminal play in the latter stages as they insisted on shooting themselves in the foot time and time again.

It was not a sixth consecutive defeat for Man City and Guardiola, but they will be feeling worse after this draw than they would have had it been a narrow loss.

Guardiola, his players and Man City’s supporters are on the floor, so it’s a good job for them that there is only the small matter of a trip to Anfield in a vital Premier League title six-pointer against Liverpool on Sunday. Gulp.

Arne Slot’s side – especially Mohamed Salah braced with the prospect of facing a wounded Gvardiol – will be licking their lips ahead of playing this broken Man City, who are at serious risk of being eaten alive by their rivals in the dragons’ den at Anfield.

If Man City supporters thought this was bad, they better get ready for what’s to come at the weekend if Guardiola doesn’t suddenly magic up a formula for their current ineptitude. It could get very, very ugly.

Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy expects new Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim to snub England international Kobbie Mainoo.

The 19-year-old was sensational for his boyhood club during the 2023/24 campaign as he was one of the breakout starts in the Premier League.

Mainoo made a huge impact as he broke onto the scene, shining for Man Utd and England in difficult situations.

The teenager has not played for Man Utd since last month’s goalless draw against Aston Villa as he’s picked up a muscle injury. He was an unused substitute on Sunday afternoon as his side were held to a 1-1 statemate at Ipswich Town in Amorim’s first game in charge.

Circumstances meant Amorim had to select Casemiro and Christian Eriksen in centre-midfield, but they are likely to be replaced by Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte in the coming weeks.

A recent report from Fabrizio Romano revealed Amorim “loves” Mainoo, but Murphy has indicated that he cannot see the head coach playing him alongside Ugarte.

“To play that role well, United’s midfielders will need to be more than just mobile, too,” Murphy told BBC Sport.

READ: Eight Man Utd kneejerk predictions on player exits after Amorim’s first game include Rashford leaving

“They will both have to love the defensive side of the game and be able to spot danger and then be fast enough to stop it. In the long run, I think Manuel Ugarte will be one of them.

“He needs a run of games to get his sharpness back, but we have seen glimpses of how good he is, for example, in the Europa League against Fenerbahce last month, and he has flourished under Amorim at Sporting before.

“As for who Ugarte will have alongside him, well, it will probably be someone who is not at the club at the moment.

“There is going to have to be activity in the next couple of transfer windows for them to get the type of player Amorim requires.”

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Murphy has also explained why he would be “amazed” if Man Utd are “still playing 3-4-3 in a year’s time”.

“I would be amazed if they are still playing a 3-4-3 in a year’s time,” Murphy added.

“This league is very, very different than continental leagues. We have only had Chelsea in recent years win playing that system. And, let’s be honest, they had Kante and Matic – two wonderful midfielders in the middle of the pitch, plus Costa up top with Hazard supporting him and helping them as well.

“They [Manchester United] don’t have those players yet and how do you find them? It costs hundreds of millions to get the best players in the world.

“When you play three at the back against the majority of good teams in our league who play three high, you end up being a five and that is really difficult.

“If Manchester United are going to become much better and be competitive, I think that 3-4-3 will evolve into something else.”