Scott Murray's Blog, page 128

Chelsea 3-2 Derby, West Ham 1-3 Spurs: Carabao Cup – as it happened

Frank Lampard was unlucky in defeat at Stamford Bridge, Arsenal squeezed past Blackpool, West Ham lost to Spurs and Boro beat Palace

Carabao Cup quarter-final draw:

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur
Leicester City or Southampton v Manchester City or Fulham
Middlesbrough v Burton Albion
Chelsea v Bournemouth

10.15pm GMT

We finish with a reminder of the quarter-final draw of the League Cup. The ties will be played on the week commencing December 17, and there’s an early Christmas present for us all in the shape of that north London derby. It promises to be ... I’m going to have to say it ... a cracker. Thanks for reading tonight’s Clockwatch. Nighty night!

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur
Leicester City or Southampton v Manchester City or Fulham
Middlesbrough v Burton Albion
Chelsea v Bournemouth

10.11pm GMT

And tonight’s final report is from Louise Taylor at the Riverside. Here’s her verdict on a tight affair.

Related: Lewis Wing’s cracker sends Middlesbrough into quarter-finals

10.10pm GMT

Paul Doyle was on hand at the Emirates, to check out how Arsenal squeaked their way past Blackpool. Here’s his take.

Related: Arsenal squeeze past Blackpool after Mattéo Guendouzi’s dismissal

10.09pm GMT

David Hytner was at the London Stadium for the London derby. Tottenham beat West Ham 3-1, and here’s the match report.

Related: Son’s double lifts Tottenham past West Ham and into the last eight

10.07pm GMT

It’s the quarter-final draw!
Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur
Leicester City or Southampton v Manchester City or Fulham
Middlesbrough v Burton Albion
Chelsea v Bournemouth

10.05pm GMT

Back to Tynecastle. It also looked like Hearts goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal took a whack in the face from a fan. What a business. Here’s Neil Lennon upon asked about being hit by the coin. “I’m alright thanks. They must have a few quid up here. Look, it’s no laughing matter, I hope somebody deals with it, and I hope I meet the guy face to face.” He’s then asked about Zlamal incident. “It’s not on, it’s disgraceful. I don’t understand the mentality of the supporter who wants to throw things at people. It’s very unsavoury and needs to be stopped. So if a Hibs fan has done anything to the goalkeeper, he should be punished, he should be banned. We don’t condone that sort of behaviour at all. It’s disgraceful, absolutely disgraceful. But what can a club do about supporters throwing things onto the pitch? God knows what age he is. Hopefully there’ll be punishment for both of these people. And I would like to meet that person in person. They’re giving me plenty, all the time. It’s not humour, some of it’s quite unsavoury. Some people can take it, some can’t, some need to resort to throwing things. A pound coin, like I say, he must have a few quid on him.”

9.56pm GMT

The final full time of the evening, at the Riverside: Middlesbrough 1-0 Crystal Palace. Max Meyer had a late shout for a penalty, his shot hitting Paddy McNair’s arm. McNair’s hand was held high, arguably in an unnatural position, but the lack of distance between the two players probably saved him. The 2004 winners are through to the quarters!

9.52pm GMT

Dominic Fifield was at Stamford Bridge. Here’s his take on a wildly entertaining evening.

Related: Cesc Fàbregas winner lifts Chelsea to deny Frank Lampard’s Derby

9.50pm GMT

More on that Hearts brouhaha. Clévid Dikamona looked to have won it super-late for Hearts, rising highest in a penalty-box melee to loop a header home. But Peter Haring was lurking near the goalline, and there was only one defender ahead of him, the keeper having gone walkabout. Offside. Neil Lennon tells the Hearts fans to pipe down, and he’s brought low by some eejit with a coin. He was soon up and about again, and shook hands warmly with his opposite number Craig Levein, who appeared to be apologising to the Hibs manager. No doubt we’ll hear more of this.

9.46pm GMT

So in the Scottish Premiership, Hearts find their lead cut to four points. They’re on 26 points, while Celtic rise to second ... and they’ve got a game in hand. It’s on! Kilmarnock slip to third, a point behind Celtic on 21 but three ahead of Rangers in fourth. At the bottom, Dundee remain rooted on three points, while St Mirren remain in 11th with four.

9.42pm GMT

The other two full times in Scotland ... and Stevie G’s pep-talk hasn’t done much good, on a great night for the reigning champions Celtic.
Dundee 0-5 Celtic
Rangers 1-1 Kilmarnock

9.41pm GMT

Arsenal have held on against Blackpool. It’s 13 unbeaten for the Gunners, who make it to the quarters. Spurs are also through, gaining revenge on West Ham for that comeback last year.
Arsenal 2-1 Blackpool
West Ham 1-3 Tottenham

9.38pm GMT

Some full times in Scotland:
Aberdeen 3-0 Hamilton Accies
Hearts 0-0 Hibs
Livingston 0-1 St Johnstone
St Mirren 0-2 Motherwell
And one full time in the League Cup:
Chelsea 3-2 Derby

9.37pm GMT

Drama and disgrace at Tynecastle. Hearts bundle the ball into the net in injury time. It’s disallowed. Neil Lennon turns to tell the home support to calm down ... and some bampot pings a coin upside his head. Lennon’s down for a while. He’s up again soon, but dearie me.

9.34pm GMT

Derby have come so close to a late, third equaliser at Stamford Bridge! Mason Mount sends David Nugent scampering into the Chelsea box down the right, then threads a shot across Willy Caballero and onto the base of the left-hand post! The ball bounces back into the keeper’s arms, and Nugent throws his head back, in the Pez dispenser style, in disbelief! Chelsea still lead 3-2.

9.31pm GMT

Paudie O’Conner had hauled Blackpool back into the game at the Emirates against ten-man Arsenal ... but he might just have put it beyond them now. He slides into Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the midfield, using way too much force, and with a scissor movement to boot. It looked clumsy rather than malicious, but the ref had no option.

9.25pm GMT

It’s going to be six defeats in a row for St Mirren. They’re 0-2 down at home to Motherwell, and now a man light as well, Ryan Flynn sent packing for serious foul play. Celtic are also down to ten men at Dundee: they’ve used all their subs, and Daniel Arzani, the 19-year-old winger on loan from Manchester City making his debut, has been carried off injured.

9.21pm GMT

No, it would appear not. Christian Eriksen whips in a corner from the left, and Fernando Llorente smashes a side-footed effort into the top right from ten yards!

9.19pm GMT

A corner from Robert Snodgrass on the right. It’s hit deep. Lucas Perez, at the far post, heads down and in! There’s a pause as the ref consults VAR, given there’s been a bit of grappling in the six-yard box, but it’s nothing. The goal stands. Could the Hammers launch another League Cup comeback against Spurs?

9.15pm GMT

Arsenal are rocking. Petr Cech has done his

Karius
Bambi-on-ice thing again, his legs in knots as Jay Spearing closes him down. The ball breaks right to Nathan Delfouneso, who rolls the ball into the unguarded net ... but he’s offside. Cech is a very, very, very lucky man.

9.11pm GMT

The Seasiders are indeed back in it against ten-man Arsenal! Petr Cech tips a speculative effort over the bar. Then from the right-wing corner, Paudie O’Conner rises at the far post and plants an unstoppable downward header into the bottom right! What a fine goal!

9.09pm GMT

It’s been a bad-tempered affair in the Embra derby at Tynecastle. And the latest stramash has ended in a red card, albeit for a second bookable offence. It’s Florian Kamberi who’s walking, and Hibs are down to ten. Oh, it’s goalless by the way.

9.05pm GMT

Michael Devlin puts the Dons out of sight, scoring against his old club from long range.

9.02pm GMT

Two bookable offences, the second a light tug on an opponent’s shoulder, and the young Arsenal midfielder is heading for an early bath. Blackpool aren’t out of this quite yet!

9.00pm GMT

Dele Alli, quarterbacking from deep, sends Son Heung-Min clear with a fine pass threaded down the middle of the park. Son rounds Adrian on the left and rolls home. Two goals for Son, two assists for Alli.

8.58pm GMT

Though having said that ... Blackpool’s Paudie O’Conner has just hit the woodwork with a fine header from a corner at the Emirates.

8.57pm GMT

Emile Smith-Rowe bundles one in, and Arsenal’s unbeaten run looks likely to stretch to 13 matches.

8.56pm GMT

It’s 16 goals in just over three-and-a-half league matches for the champions. Ryan Christie with the latest, and the bottom team are in real bother here.

8.54pm GMT

Chris Cadden one-twos with the scorer of Motherwell’s opening goal, David Turnbull, and there’s clear daylight between two struggling sides.

8.52pm GMT

And that’s half-time at the Riverside:

Middlesbrough 1-0 Crystal Palace

8.51pm GMT

Apart from the unfortunate MacQueen’s injury, absolutely nothing had happened in the first half at the Riverside. Until the very last knockings, that is, Lewis Wing sending a screamer into the top right from distance!

8.40pm GMT

Half-time reading: Derby County have it all to do in the second half, in more ways than one.

Related: The Knowledge | Which team have scored the most own goals in a single match?

8.38pm GMT

And the half-times in the League Cup ...

Arsenal 1-0 Blackpool
Chelsea 3-2 Derby
Middlesbrough 0-0 Crystal Palace (L)
West Ham 0-1 Tottenham

8.37pm GMT

James Tavernier smashes a dipper off the bar at Ibrox. So close to putting Rangers ahead again. And so here are the half-times in Scotland:

Aberdeen 2-0 Hamilton Accies
Dundee 0-4 Celtic
Hearts 0-0 Hibernian
Livingston 0-1 St Johnstone
Rangers 1-1 Kilmarnock
St Mirren 0-1 Motherwell

8.36pm GMT

James Forrest embarks on a long dribble. Dundee don’t bother to challenge him. Forrest tees up Odsonne Edouard, and it could be a very long second half for Dundee.

8.31pm GMT

Some distressing news at the Riverside, where Middlesbrough’s Sam McQueen has been stretchered off with a knee injury. Fingers crossed that isn’t as serious as it looks. It’s goalless between Boro and Palace.

8.29pm GMT

Loftus-Cheek and Zappacosta work hard, and not without skill, down the right. The ball’s rolled towards Cesc Fabregas, who smacks a shot into the bottom right. Chelsea have finally scored a goal of their own!

8.27pm GMT

James Forrest slams home a Kieran Tierney cut-back, and the bottom side are in all sorts of bother against the champions of Scotland. “As a Derby fan I’d like to strongly object to your assertion that they’re ‘turning into the masters of farce’,” blasts David Hopkins. “We’ve been the masters of farce for years. Tonight is just a new and innovative way of staying ahead of the competition.”

8.25pm GMT

Scott Sinclair doubles Celtic’s lead from the spot, after Mikael Lustig was pointlessly brought down.

8.24pm GMT

Matteo Guendouzi hooks one in from the left. Stephan Lichtsteiner springs the Blackpool trap. He meets the dropping ball, alone, on the penalty spot and guides it into the bottom left. Deft as you like, and Arsenal have the lead in the 1953 Charity Shield rematch. For the record, Arsenal won that 3-1, with goals from Tommy Lawton and Doug Lishman (2). Stan Mortensen scored for Blackpool.

8.20pm GMT

David Turnbull shoots from distance. Craig Samson doesn’t deal with it at all. The 1991 Scottish Cup winners lead the 1987 Scottish Cup winners in Paisley.

8.15pm GMT

Derby have now scored four goals this evening. This is preposterous! Mason Mount rolls a ball across the face of the Chelsea box from the left. With Davide Zappacosta sleeping, Martyn Waghorn taps home, and

Billy Smart’s
Frank Lampard’s Derby County are level again!

8.12pm GMT

The Dons have been struggling in the league so far this campaign. But last season’s runners up look to have found their rhythm tonight; James Wilson doubles their lead.

8.11pm GMT

Davide Zappacosta whips down the right and crosses low. This one comes off Richard Keogh’s heel, and whistles into the bottom right. They’ve now scored two own goals tonight, and three in their last 27 minutes of football when you factor in Jayden Bogle’s effort at Middlesbrough last weekend. Derby are turning into specialists in farce!

8.08pm GMT

The bottom club already up against it versus the champions. Tom Rogic opens the scoring at Dens Park.

8.07pm GMT

Dele Alli flicks Son Heung-Min into the area, straight down the middle. Son aims for the top left, and whistles an unstoppable shot into the net. Wheech! It’s his first in 20, and a belter!

8.06pm GMT

Well that’s answered that question. Greg Stewart levels things up for Killie, curling one in from the right. Ranges full-back Jon Flanagan, who has been struggling, was all over the shop.

8.00pm GMT

Liverpool loanee Ryan Kent tees up the ever-entertaining Alfredo Morelos, whose shot from the left is deflected past Jamie MacDonald. An early sign that Steven Gerrard’s very public squad bollocking might have done the trick?

7.57pm GMT

Derby are back in it immediately! Jack Marriott, bombing down the inside-left channel, pearls a low diagonal shot into the bottom right! There’s the confidence of winning at Old Trafford for you.

7.56pm GMT

Graeme Shinnie meets Niall McGinn’s corner on the edge of the area. After a couple of efforts, he converts to put the League Cup finalists ahead at Pittodrie.

7.54pm GMT

Matty Kennedy converts a right-wing cross from close range to put the Saints ahead.

7.53pm GMT

A horror start on Halloween for Fikayo Tomori. Dealing with a common-or-garden right-wing cross from Ruben Loftus-Cheek, dribbled into the six-yard box, Tomori has a wild hack at the ball, only managing to somehow slice it behind him and into the bottom-left corner. Tomori, on loan at Derby from Chelsea, allows himself a pained smile.

7.51pm GMT

We’re underway. Before kick-off, tributes were paid at Stamford Bridge to the victims of the weekend’s tragic helicopter crash at Leicester City. Club owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha was one of five victims; Claudio Ranieri, the man who masterminded Leicester’s title win along with with Srivaddhanaprabha, looks on sadly from the stand. A poignant moment for former Foxes N’Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwater, now of Chelsea, too.

The minute’s applause also remembers Chelsea’s former player and manager Ken Shellito, who died today at the age of 78. Shellito managed Chelsea during the 1977-78 season. He also played right-back for the club, making 123 appearances between 1959 and 1965 before a serious knee injury claimed his career. In a parallel universe, Shellito might be one of England’s 1966 World Cup winners. “Every time I see George Cohen [England’s World Cup-winning right-back] he says ‘thank you Kenny’”, Shellito once reminisced. “It hurts but he does appreciate it. He always says he would not have got in and that is your luck in football. But you can’t feel sorry for yourself too much.”

7.29pm GMT

Aberdeen: Lewis, Logan, Devlin, McKenna, Lowe, Ferguson, Shinnie, Mackay-Steven, Wright, McGinn, Wilson.
Subs: McLennan, Gleeson, Cosgrove, May, Cerny, Ball, Anderson.
Hamilton: Woods, McGowan, Tshiembe, Kilgallon, McMann, Miller, Martin, Gordon, Imrie, Bingham, Brustad.
Subs: Keatings, Marsden, Penny, Want, Kelly, Smith, Sowah.

Dundee: Hamilton, Kerr, Inniss, O’Dea, Kusunga, Deacon, Kamara, Spence, Curran, Kallman, Kenny Miller.
Subs: Nabi, Boyle, Moussa, N’Gwatala, Mendy, Parish, Lambert.
Celtic: Gordon, Lustig, Benkovic, Boyata, Tierney, Forrest, McGregor, Rogic, Sinclair, Christie, Edouard.
Subs: Hendry, Arzani, Hayes, Morgan, Bain, Ajer, Johnston.

7.21pm GMT

Middlesbrough: Konstantopoulos, McNair, Ayala, Batth, Friend, McQueen, Leadbitter, Wing, Tavernier, Braithwaite, Hugill.
Subs: Lonergan, Wood, Stubbs, Saville, Chapman, Fletcher, Gestede.
Crystal Palace: Guaita, Wan-Bissaka, Kelly, Riedewald, Square, Townsend, Meyer, Puncheon, Schlupp, Ayew, Sorloth.
Subs: Speroni, Woods, Milivojevic, Kirby, Williams, Kaikai, Wickham.

Boro make eight changes, Daniel Ayala, George Friend and Paddy McNair the only survivors from the weekend. Eight changes for Palace too, with only Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Jordan Ayew and Andros Townsend keeping their spots. Wilfried Zaha isn’t even on the bench.

7.10pm GMT

West Ham United: Adrian, Fredericks, Diop, Ogbonna, Masuaku, Obiang, Rice, Felipe Anderson, Diangana, Hernandez, Antonio.
Subs: Fabianski, Balbuena, Arnautovic, Snodgrass, Lucas Perez, Powell, Coventry.
Tottenham Hotspur: Gazzaniga, Walker-Peters, Sanchez, Foyth, Aurier, Winks, Wanyama, Alli, Eriksen, Son, Llorente.
Subs: Vorm, Nkoudou, Sissoko, Lucas Moura, Skipp, Eyoma, Marsh.

West Ham must do without suspended skipper Mark Noble. They make five changes with Adrian, Ryan Fredericks, Angelo Ogbonna, Pedro Obiang and Michail Antonio all stepping up. Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen, subs against Manchester City two nights ago, both start for Spurs. But there’s no Harry Kane in the squad as Mauricio Pochettino makes ten changes.

7.03pm GMT

Arsenal: Cech, Jenkinson, Mustafi, Pleguezuelo, Lichtsteiner, Guendouzi, Ramsey, Smith-Rowe, Maitland-Niles, Mkhitaryan, Welbeck.
Subs: Martinez, Holding, Torreira, Willock, Iwobi, Aubameyang, Nketiah.
Blackpool: Howard, Nottingham, Heneghan, O’Connor, Bola, Turton, Spearing, Guy, Thompson, Feeney, Delfouneso.
Subs: Mafoumbi, McLaughlin, Pritchard, O’Sullivan, Taylor, Cullen, Dodoo.

Arsenal make nine changes. Carl Jenkinson starts for the Gunners for the first time in 701 days, while Julio Pleguezuelo makes his debut. Ainsley Maitland-Niles also returns after a leg fracture. Petr Cech reclaims his place in goal. Only Shkodran Mustafi and Matteo Guendouzi remain. Blackpool make three changes, welcoming back Michael Nottingham, Paudie O’Connor and Ollie Turton.

6.59pm GMT

Chelsea: Caballero, Zappacosta, Cahill, Christensen, Emerson Palmieri, Kante, Fabregas, Kovacic, Willian, Morata, Loftus-Cheek.
Subs: Drinkwater, Barkley, Pedro, Hudson-Odoi, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Bulka.
Derby County: Carson, Bogle, Keogh, Tomori, Malone, Mount, Huddlestone, Wilson, Waghorn, Marriott, Lawrence.
Subs: Forsyth, Johnson, Bennett, Roos, Holmes, Nugent, Davies.

Chelsea make eight changes, with only Willian, N’Golo Kante and Alvaro Morata keeping their places. Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori feature for unchanged Derby against their parent club.

1.18pm GMT

It’s a big night in the League Cup - and no, I’m not calling it that - with Frank Lampard returning to his spiritual home, a capital clash at the appropriately named London Stadium, a David-Goliath face-off between the 1953 league champions and 1953 FA Cup winners, and a Pulis-Hodgson showdown at the Riverside. Look!

Arsenal v Blackpool
Chelsea v Frank Lampard’s Derby
Middlesbrough v Crystal Palace
West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur

Continue reading...

The Fiver | Diluting the lunacy of a World Cup in a state smaller than the Falklands

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!

The last World Cup was a lot of fun. Even a miserable old scrote like The Fiver will freely admit that. Actually, the one before it wasn’t too bad either, even though it was only really the group stage that was any good, and all that contemporaneous banging on about it being the Best World Cup Ever gave The Fiver the impulse to chase people around with frenzied determination while waving a pointed stick in baroque patterns.

Related: World Cup expansion to 48 teams could happen at Qatar 2022, says Fifa

Continue reading...

Leicester 1-1 West Ham: Premier League – as it happened

A late Wilfried Ndidi goal denied ten-man West Ham at the King Power.

7.57pm BST

And with that, this MBM comes to its natural end. All that’s left to do is point you in the direction of Jacob Steinberg’s take on tonight’s events at the King Power ... and to thank you for reading. Night night!

Related: Wilfred Ndidi’s lucky strike rescues a point for Leicester City

7.55pm BST

Declan Rice has his say. “It was gutting to concede so late, after the sending off so early in the first half. But we’ll take the point. This is always a hard place to come, and with ten men I thought we were excellent. We said at half-time that we had to fight: the amount of second balls we won, the amount of times we caught them offside, luckily enough we came away with the point. We build on this.” He’s then asked about his international situation. Having been put on the spot, he smiles broadly and says: “I’m just focused on playing for West Ham.”

7.45pm BST

Claude Puel talks. “It was a tough game. We started very well, but after, I don’t know why, we lost control. We played deep and West Ham played well. We came back in the second half with positive desire. It was a good second half with a lot of chances, I don’t know how many. It was important to come back. My first thought is for my player Daniel Amartey, I hope it is not a serious injury. He is playing well and was at his best in this game, so it is difficult. My thought is more about his injury than this game. We need to examine him. I would like to wish Glenn Hoddle all the best, and hope he can have a speedy recovery.”

7.39pm BST

Marc Albrighton talks. “It’s difficult to do much more than we did. We threw everything at them. Balls weren’t dropping for us where we’d like. But in the end we got that slice of luck our performance warranted. We need to work on getting to the second ball in both boxes, we need to be switched on. If we’d got our goal earlier, we’d have gone on to win the game.”

Wilfred Ndidi adds: “It was really difficult in the first half. The second half was OK because they were one man down. I didn’t think it was going to come. I think the red card was a good decision from the ref.”

7.30pm BST

That draw means Leicester stay in the bottom half of the table. They’re in 12th spot, on 13 points. West Ham are just one place below them, though they’re five points worse off. Both teams, for differing reasons, will think they should have taken all three points on offer today. But it wasn’t to be.

7.25pm BST

And that, finally, is that. A draw is the least Leicester deserved after putting West Ham under siege in the second half. But you wonder how West Ham, dominant in the first half, would have done had their captain not got himself so recklessly sent off.

7.24pm BST

90 min +6: Albrighton sees a snapshot blocked from the edge of the area. Antonio romps up the other end but runs out of steam. Then Leicester have another go, Albrighton’s right-wing cross setting up a game of head tennis. Eventually Iborra is caught offside.

7.23pm BST

90 min +5: Chilwell scoops a ball over the West Ham back line. Okazaki is clear, but his header is weak and easily snaffled by Fabianski. And turns out the striker was offside anyway.

7.22pm BST

90 min +4: The board had gone up for four added minutes; we will have a few more after the unfortunate Amartey’s injury. The King Power rises as one to applaud the stricken player as he disappears down the tunnel on a stretcher.

7.21pm BST

90 min +2: Sadly, play has been stopped because Amartey’s left leg buckled as he challenged Antonio. It looks like a bad injury: the physios are on with stretcher, protective boot, and gas.

7.20pm BST

90 min: Antonio bustles with Amartey down the right. He slips the ball to Snodgrass, who reaches the byline and cuts the ball back. Ogbonna is there, clear in the area. He aims for the top left, but leans back too much. A real chance to regain the lead they’d just lost.

7.18pm BST

It’s fair to say this had been coming! But when it does, it’s awful luck for West Ham. Ndidi cuts in from the left and has a shot from 25 yards. It balloons off the backside of Balbuena, curls wide left, then back into the top-left corner!

7.16pm BST

88 min: Antonio bursts down the middle, taking four Leicester hangers-on with him. He’s inexplicably allowed to reach the box and take a shot; Schmeichel saves. Then up the other end, Chilwell breaks down the left and tees up Ndidi, who slams home in the middle. But he’s offside.

7.15pm BST

86 min: Zabaleta had been booked for that aforementioned Hegelian dialectic, it seems. And now he goes in too eagerly on Gray, standing on his ankle. That could be a red in its own right; it’s not even a second yellow. He should be walking.

7.12pm BST

85 min: Albrighton whips a low cross in from the right. Vardy lunges to meet it, but can only poke the ball wide left, all at fast pace. The flag goes up anyway, and turns out he was miles offside, West Ham having held their line on the edge of the box.

7.11pm BST

83 min: A corner for Leicester down the right. It’s wasted. They’ve been relentless in this second half, but just can’t find a way to carve West Ham - defensively resolute West Ham - open.

7.10pm BST

82 min: Chilwell and Zabaleta discuss philosophical concepts, nose to nose, after a common-or-garden coming together down the Leicester left. The referee points out that they’re both grown men, and we carry on.

7.09pm BST

81 min: Before West Ham take the set piece, they replace Felipe Anderson with Ogbonna, who is immediately in the thick of the action: he meets Snodgrass’s free kick with a header, six yards out. He should score, but his effort drifts wide right.

7.08pm BST

80 min: Michelangelo masterpiece Soyuncu departs. He’s replaced by Okazaki. Just before he was hooked, he’d barged into the back of Antonio, conceding a free kick in a dangerous position down the left.

7.07pm BST

78 min: Schmeichel nearly gifts a chance to Antonio, ludicrously rolling a pass in the direction of the striker, who was standing right next to him. Fortunately for the Leicester keeper, the ball somehow whistles between Antonio’s legs and away from danger. Schmeichel breathes again.

7.05pm BST

77 min: Chilwell and Gray combine well down the left. Maguire joins in, and very nearly flicks the ball through a gap down the inside-left channel to set Chilwell free. Zabaleta closes it down just in time.

7.03pm BST

75 min: Cresswell comes on for Diangana.

7.03pm BST

74 min: Albrighton, out on the right, sends a magnificent crossfield pass towards Gray on the other flank. Gray brings it down from the sky and nudges it past Zabaleta in one delicious swish of his boot. He applies too much energy on the ball - about one joule - and he can’t reach it before it runs out for a goal kick. But he so nearly ripped West Ham open there in sensational style. He’s going to be some player, Gray.

7.01pm BST

72 min: Magnificent wingplay by Gray, who diddles Diangana with a saucy spin down the left before dispatching the ball into the centre. Minor bedlam ensues, but nothing that worries West Ham too much. Then Amartey has a shot from distance; it’s very wild. Not sure whether the ball is any longer in ATVLand.

6.58pm BST

71 min: Zabaleta outdoes Maguire for pace on the right touchline. Maguire barges him over in the cynical fashion, and really should go in the book. But he escapes that one.

6.58pm BST

70 min: Good work from Gray out on the left, and it’s another Leicester corner. It’s wasted.

6.57pm BST

68 min: Antonio dribbles in from the left wing and goes over Soyuncu’s marble leg. You’ve seen penalties given for less than that, though the referee clearly thinks it’s nothing more than a tangle of feet. It did look as though Antonio had his leg clipped from behind.

6.55pm BST

67 min: For the second game in a row, Leicester hit the crossbar! Maguire meets a Maddison corner from the right, and his header caroms off the top of the goalframe! To be honest, it wasn’t the greatest effort, looped rather than powered goalwards, but hitting the bar is hitting the bar. Leicester are getting ever closer.

6.54pm BST

66 min: Chilwell blazes down the left and crosses low. Maddison looks to pick up possession just inside the box, but he’s tackled perfectly by Diop. No penalty. The ball breaks to Gray, who can’t work Fabianski.

6.53pm BST

65 min: Maddison drops a shoulder to make some space, 25 yards from goal, and sends a rising shot towards the top left. It’s only just off target. Leicester may soon start wondering what they have to do to score.

6.52pm BST

63 min: And now Vardy misses a sitter! Albrighton makes good down the right, and whips to the near post. Vardy has timed his run brilliantly, losing Diop and Balbuena, and meets the cross with a powerful header. But from six yards, it flashes over the bar. He should have worked Fabianski at the very least; he probably should have scored.

6.50pm BST

62 min: Albrighton gives Fabianski a workout, shooting twice in quick succession for the bottom right. The keeper gets behind both efforts.

6.50pm BST

61 min: Both sides make a change; both sides replace utterly ineffectual strikers. Hernandez makes way for Antonio; Gray comes on for Iheanacho.

6.49pm BST

60 min: Amartey chips Albrighton into space down the right. Albrighton cuts the ball back for Vardy, but he’d run out of pitch. West Ham aren’t exactly comfortable here, but they’re holding on, and Fabianski hasn’t had that much to do.

6.46pm BST

59 min: Diangana has a bash from the best part of 30 yards. Ah the arrogance of youth.

6.45pm BST

57 min: Maguire beckenbauers his way forward and slips the ball wide left for Chilwell, who slips inside for Maddison. Maddison clatters into Balbuena and wants a penalty. He’s not getting it. Then Iheanacho has a snapshot that clatters into Zabaleta’s hanging arm. He’s after a penalty too; like his team-mate, he creates in vain. Both are correct decisions.

6.43pm BST

55 min: There’s nobody other than Schmeichel and Renaissance sculpture Soyuncu in the Leicester half. Albrighton works his way down the right and centres. Vardy rises but his header from 12 yards is weak and drifts off to the left.

6.40pm BST

53 min: It’s one-way traffic at the moment. Ndidi looks for the top-right corner from 25 yards, but the shot is always sailing wide.

6.40pm BST

52 min: Chilwell is a force of nature. He breezes down the left and nearly makes it all the way into the box. Zabaleta is wisely positioned, and intercepts at the last, before Chilwell can get a shot away.

6.39pm BST

51 min: Vardy twists and spins down the left, and hooks a cross to the far post for Albrighton, who sidefoots into the side netting from close range. It wouldn’t have counted anyway, because Vardy - initially set clear by the marauding Chilwell - was caught offside.

6.38pm BST

50 min: The ever-impressive Chilwell bombs down the left and is inches away from setting Vardy clear in the area with his pass inside. Not quite, though the ball nearly finds its way to Iheanacho on the penalty spot. Balbuena gets in the road. This has been a lively start to the second half by Leicester ... though they started brightly in the first, too, and look what happened there.

6.36pm BST

48 min: Chilwell bursts down the left and nearly finds the head of Vardy with his cross. The ball loops up off a defender, and Ndidi is the one who really wants to meet it as it drops. He wins the header but it’s easily claimed by Fabianski.

6.35pm BST

47 min: Michelangelo’s Soyuncu is booked for a clumsy trip on Hernandez.

6.34pm BST

46 min: Leicester are immediately on the attack, Albrighton probing down the right, Chilwell on the left. Maddison chips a pass down the inside-left channel for Vardy, but it’s too strong and Fabianski is out to claim.

6.32pm BST

And we’re back! The second half begins, Leicester getting the ball rolling again. They’ve made a change, hooking Ghezzal in favour of ... no prizes ... Jamie Vardy.

6.25pm BST

Half-time reading:

Related: Playing for the badge: How fashion is ushering in a new age for club crests | Scott Murray

6.18pm BST

West Ham are still leading. But they were also bossing this game. However since Noble’s dismissal, the hosts have enjoyed 80 percent possession. The half-time whistle’s come at exactly the right time for Manuel Pellegrini and his ten men.

6.16pm BST

45 min +1: In the first of two extra first-half minutes, Chilwell leans back and skies a shot from distance.

6.16pm BST

44 min: Ghezzal picks up Diangana’s foolish pass, played across the face of his own box, and flicks Iheanacho free. Iheanacho smashes a low shot towards the bottom right, but it’s blocked, and turns out the striker is offside anyway. “Is it me or is Leicester new boy Caglar Soyuncu a bit of a looker?” asks Rob Hack. “There’s something of Michelangelo’s David about him, not that I notice these things of course.” He certainly has the mobility of Michelangelo’s David, if his part in West Ham’s goal is anything to go by.

6.12pm BST

42 min: Corner for Leicester on the left. Maddison’s delivery causes Fabianski to flap, but somehow West Ham get the ball out of the road. How quickly this game has changed, and it’s all down to the West Ham captain’s recklessness.

6.11pm BST

40 min: Ndidi is thankfully fine to continue. A free kick for Leicester out on the right. It’s hooked towards the far post by Maddison, and Iborra meets it with a powerful downward header. Fabianski does extremely well to parry the ball out, and Masuaku hoicks clear.

6.10pm BST

38 min: Noble slides in on Ndidi. His leads with his studs, high, and sticks them on Ndidi’s shin, bending his planted leg. Noble pleads his innocence, but that’s a no-brainer for the referee, who flourishes red immediately. A dreadful challenge - and also pointless, made in the midfield, Ndidi going nowhere.

6.06pm BST

34 min: The King Power is very quiet now, save the noise being made by the travelling fans. Leicester have been very poor since that early burst of action.

6.03pm BST

32 min: That had been coming. Maddison tries to level things up immediately with a shot from distance. His effort, intended for the top right, isn’t the worst, but it’s a little bit too high, and wide to boot.

6.02pm BST

Chilwell bundles Diangana to the floor. A free kick just right of centre. Anderson dinks it diagonally to Rice, who heads across goal. Balbuena is unmarked, six yards out! His header comes off the inside of the left-hand post, confusing the hell out of Schmeichel who spins, always facing the wrong direction as the ball bounces across the face of goal. Balbuena is first to react, and slams home! A cute free kick, and utterly appalling defending.

5.59pm BST

29 min: Masuaku romps down the left, found by Filipe Anderson on the overlap. He sends a fine looper into the middle, and Chilwell does extremely well to head clear with Snodgrass and Hernandez lurking.

5.58pm BST

28 min: Leicester can’t get anything going up front at all. Maddison and Iheanacho might as well be on the bench with Vardy right now; they’re not seeing any of the ball. West Ham look very comfortable.

5.57pm BST

26 min: Leicester’s defence was all over the show then. Caglar Soyuncu is making his debut, so let’s cut them all some slack.

5.55pm BST

24 min: Snodgrass dribbles down the middle and reaches the edge of the box. He lays off for Hernandez, who can’t get the ball out from under his feet. Filipe Anderson has a go, but he can’t work it out either. Finally Snodgrass takes up possession again - note how the Leicester defence is doing bugger all - and shifts into space to the left before dragging a shot across the face of goal and out for a goal kick. Had anyone in claret anticipated that, they’d have been tapping one home. But no.

5.52pm BST

22 min: Albrighton curls a cross in from the left. Fabianski plucks it from the sky without too much trouble, though Iheanacho was in attendance. At least it got the crowd going a bit; they’d fallen quiet as West Ham established control of the midfield.

5.51pm BST

20 min: Snodgrass has a look from 20 yards, having dropped a shoulder to make a little bit of space for himself. He drags his shot wide left of Schmeichel’s goal; the keeper had it covered. West Ham are totally on top at the minute.

5.50pm BST

19 min: A lot of space for Filipe Anderson down the left. There’s nobody in the box for him to find, though, and a cross blootered to nobody in particular on the other wing represents a howl of frustration.

5.47pm BST

17 min: West Ham pin Leicester back in their final third. They’ve had 66 percent of the possession in the last five minutes. Nothing much comes of it, but it’s all good news for the Hammers after that slow start.

5.45pm BST

15 min: The perky Ghezzal skips past a couple of challenges down the middle, but can’t quite send Ndidi clear down the left with his pass.

5.44pm BST

13 min: Noble has a dig from the edge of the Leicester box. Albrighton slides in bravely to block. This is better from the visitors. It’s been a nice open match so far; not quite end-to-end, more to-and-fro. Both keepers now have warm hands.

5.43pm BST

12 min: West Ham show in attack for the first time. Zabaleta reaches the byline on the right. His cutback finds Snodgrass, who can’t make space to take a shot. There’s a minor melee, then the ball breaks right to Filipe Anderson, who fizzes a low effort goalwards. Schmeichel smothers well.

5.41pm BST

11 min: Albrighton sends a cross into the box from the left. The ball skims off the top of Balbuena’s head, and threatens to loop over Fabianski and into the top right. The keeper arches his back and fingertips over the bar at full stretch. Great save, and though it might have been clearing the bar anyway, he couldn’t take the chance. Nothing comes of the resulting corner.

5.40pm BST

9 min: Maddison pings a perfect crossfield pass towards Chilwell on the left wing. Chilwell nudges it infield first time for Albrighton, who can’t find anyone in the centre with a cross. Then a second phase of attack, as Ghezzal spins down the inside-right and nearly frees Iheanacho with a slide-rule pass down the channel. All very pretty.

5.37pm BST

7 min: A lot of scrappy nonsense in the midfield. It’s a mild improvement for West Ham, who were on the ropes a little for a while there. Top tide-stemming.

5.35pm BST

5 min: Maddison hits this one deep. Maguire’s presence worries Fabianski, who can’t clear his lines. The ball breaks to Albrighton, just to the right of the D. Albrighton sweeps a low shot wide left; the keeper had that covered all the way. This is a bright start by Leicester, and a sluggish one by West Ham.

5.34pm BST

4 min: Maddison’s close-range trickery earns a corner for Leicester on the left. Maddison takes it himself, and whips the ball to the near post. It’s a dangerous delivery. West Ham bundle the ball out for another corner.

5.33pm BST

2 min: Leicester string a few passes together in West Ham territory. Then Albrighton sashays in from the left and curls a glorious ball into the middle. Iheanacho slips in between Diop and Balbuena, and sweeps a glorious first-time shot into the bottom left! But the flag goes up, correctly, as the striker had needlessly gone too early.

5.30pm BST

And we’re off! West Ham get the ball rolling, and immediately hoick it straight out of play down the left. The only way is up!

5.30pm BST

Here come the teams! Leicester City play in their famous blue kit ...

5.20pm BST

Manuel Pellegrini speaks! “It is not easy when you have nine players injured that cannot be involved in this game. Yarmolenko has had surgery during the week, while Arnautovic has a virus, a fever, so it is impossible for him to play. Grady Diangana [the 20-year-old making his first Premier League start tonight] is a footballer, a technical midfielder, he doesn’t lose too many balls. So he should have the option in a big game to show what he can give to our team.”

5.08pm BST

Claude Puel on Jamie Vardy. The striker came off at Arsenal ill, but yesterday posted a picture of himself training, claiming he is fully fit, on some social media site or other. Spat ahoy! Spat ahoy? Best ask the manager. “Of course the player wants to start. But I have to manage the player. We have three games in a week and need to manage all the squad. It is important to play well, at 100 percent, and it will be a good opportunity for Jamie and Demarai Gray to come on in the second half.”

4.43pm BST

The big news for Leicester City: Jamie Vardy has been dropped. That’s one of four changes to the team that lost 3-1 at Arsenal. Jonny Evans, Nampalys Mendy and Ricardo Pereira also drop to the bench. Taking their places: Caglar Soyuncu, Vicente Iborra, Rachid Ghezzal and Marc Albrighton.

West Ham United make three changes to the XI named against Tottenham last weekend. Andriy Yarmolenko is injured, Marko Arnautovic has the flu, and Aaron Cresswell drops to the bench. Javier Hernandez, Grady Diangana and Arthur Masuaku step up.

4.34pm BST

Leicester City: Schmeichel, Amartey, Soyuncu, Maguire, Chilwell, Ndidi, Iborra, Ghezzal, Maddison, Albrighton, Iheanacho.
Subs: Evans, Gray, Vardy, Ward, Ricardo Pereira, Okazaki, Mendy.

West Ham United: Fabianski, Zabaleta, Balbuena, Diop, Masuaku, Rice, Diangana, Noble, Snodgrass, Felipe Anderson, Hernandez.
Subs: Cresswell, Adrian, Ogbonna, Fredericks, Powell, Coventry, Antonio.

2.11pm BST

Welcome to our coverage of the early-evening Premier League offering, a game between two mid-table teams on a two-match losing run. Which admittedly doesn’t sell it very well, but this could be a doozy. There hasn’t been a scoreless draw between these clubs since 2004; since then, they’ve met 12 times, averaging just over three goals a match. It’s on!

The hosts will still be smarting from defeat at Arsenal, who scored three very pretty goals against them at the Emirates on Monday night. Thing is, though, on another night Claude Puel’s men could easily have beaten the Gunners away for the first time since 1973; they took the lead, should have had a penalty, and hit the crossbar. So now the sting of defeat has passed, they shouldn’t be too disheartened.

Continue reading...

Playing for the badge: How fashion is ushering in a new age for club crests | Scott Murray

The 1970s brought a wave of cutting-edge modernist crests, and the trend is starting to make a welcome return

The 1970s are lumbered with a reputation as the decade style forgot. As with most nuggets of received wisdom, there’s a kernel of truth there: bell‑bottom trousers, nylon y-fronts, brown‑and‑orange geometric wallpaper guaranteed to induce cluster headaches from 100 yards.

But there’s also plenty to counterbalance the claim. The glam grooves of Bolan, Bowie and Roxy; the brutal beauty of the Barbican; CBGBs and Studio 54; hotpants; the Atari 2600 with its teak veneer. Yes, even the video-game consoles had tasteful Scandi-style wood panelling. The decade style forgot, apparently. Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?

Related:

Continue reading...

Manchester United 0-1 Juventus: Champions League – as it happened

Paulo Dybala scored the only goal of the evening as the Italian champions dominated at Old Trafford

11.57pm BST

Related: Manchester United 0-1 Juventus: player ratings at Old Trafford

Related: Cristiano Ronaldo lights up Old Trafford with a cross, a smile and a selfie

10.27pm BST

And with that, this MBM reaches its final destination. All that’s left to do is point you in the direction of our man Daniel Taylor’s verdict, and bid you a fond farewell. Nighty night!

Related: Juventus’s Paulo Dybala hands Ronaldo winning return to Manchester United

10.26pm BST

Jose speaks! “The other side was huge quality, and people look for Cristiano, Dybala, Pjanic, but in a top team you have to look for Chiellini, Bonucci, and Juventus is this kind of team when they are in front it’s very difficult to get a goal. Our attacking players were not, what I say in a funny way, with honey in their feet. Things were not coming. But everybody tried, everyone was strong, everyone tried until the end. In the second half Juve defended with an extra central defender to add to the amazing Chiellini and Bonucci. I thought we could take something from the game but it was not possible to score. We had the intention of being positive, so the boys had the feeling from the match we had at Stamford Bridge. But Juve is a different level, and if people don’t want to accept that, it is their problem. I always try to be honest, they are a different level of quality and stability and experience and know-how, and at the base of their team they have Bonucci and Chiellini. That’s the base that allows them to play with the freedom in attack. Lose the ball, no problem, we are here. We deserved a draw but it was not possible. I have no complaints.” BREAKING NEWS: Jose wants some new defenders.

10.15pm BST

On BT Sport, Gary Lineker asks Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes and Owen Hargreaves whether Mourinho’s time is up. There’s a pregnant pause not totally dissimilar to the marvellously timed one at the start of this:

10.07pm BST

Victor Lindelof talks to BT Sport. “It was a tough game, we deserved more than to lose. We have to start games like we play in the second half. We should do it more often. We know Juve are a great team, but we are also a great team.” Meanwhile Luke Shaw admits that United “gave them too much respect in the first half” and that was why they lost. “We should have been pressing higher and be more aggressive, but we weren’t. We have to make it right when we go away to Juve next.”

10.04pm BST

This result puts Juve in total control of Group H. Juve are top with nine points. United trail five points behind in fourth. If Juve beat United in the return fixture in a fortnight’s time, they’ll have won the group with two games to spare. A draw will be enough for the Italian champions to secure qualification for the knockout phase. The good news for United is that Valencia were held at Young Boys earlier today, which means they’ve only got two points; Young Boys prop up the table with one. A fair chance there might be quite a lot riding on the final game in this group between Valencia and United. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

10.00pm BST

A couple of galoots come haring onto the pitch with a view to meeting Ronaldo. The stewards are on hand to catch them before they reach their man; Ronaldo plays peacemaker between the warring factions as everyone grapples on the floor. Then the former United idol takes his leave of Old Trafford - possibly for the last time? - by applauding those still in the Stretford End.

9.57pm BST

Juventus, who are cavorting around in front of the travelling fans, were deserved winners. On BT Sport, Rio Ferdinand describes the game as “men against boys”. Paul Scholes suggests Juve were “a class above, technically and tactically, a step above. And the sad thing is, it feels like there’s some acceptance from the players and the fans. There doesn’t seem to be any improvement.”

9.54pm BST

Ronaldo has a whack from distance. His blooter winds Lindelof, and the whistle goes. Ronaldo smiles and celebrates in reserved fashion. Juve are in total control of Group H.

9.52pm BST

90 min +3: Barzagli lets a ball bounce over his head, allowing Rashford to nip past him and into the area. Barzagli lightly shoves him in the back as Szczesny claims. Tell you what ... you’ve seen them given!

9.51pm BST

90 min +2: Young takes ages over a throw, then flings the ball straight at Sandro. The crowd are not wholly impressed. Costa speeds up the other end and takes on Lindelof out right. Lindelof, who has been impressive this evening, holds his own and puts a stop to Costa’s gallop.

9.50pm BST

90 min +1: One of three additional minutes has already passed.

9.49pm BST

90 min: Martial skedaddles down the left, drifts inside, and looks to dispatch one of his trademark low curlers into the far corner. He doesn’t get enough on the shot, though, and Szczesny snaffles with ease.

9.48pm BST

89 min: From the set piece, some head tennis in the United area. The hosts half clear. Bonucci has a whack from 30 yards. It showed ambition, if little else.

9.47pm BST

88 min: Costa races with great speed at a tattered United back line. He slips a pass right to Ronaldo, who can’t work space to shoot. Ronaldo lays off to Bernardeschi, who earns a corner on the right.

9.46pm BST

87 min: Bernardeschi gifts United possession in the middle of the park. Mata is sent tearing down the right. He crosses once, then gets a second opportunity ... but no, he’s offside this time. Then Juve make their final change, replacing the excellent Cancelo with Douglas Costa.

9.44pm BST

85 min: A free kick in the midfield for United. Mata floats it in. Matic wins the header, but there’s no power on it. Szczesny claims.

9.43pm BST

84 min: Lukaku exchanges passes with Martial down the inside-left channel and has a snapshot from the edge of the box. His effort is deflected over. The resulting corner’s not all that.

9.42pm BST

83 min: Chiellini is booked for faffing around at a free kick. He wastes some more time arguing the toss with the ref.

9.41pm BST

82 min: Young catches Pjanic, a fairly clumsy foul. He argues the point with the referee, which demonstrates conviction if nothing else, given he’s already on a yellow.

9.40pm BST

81 min: London Buses dept. After waiting 78 minutes for a substitution, Juve make two in three minutes. Cuadrado is replaced by Barzagli. A clear sign that Juve want to lock this game down and keep what they have. Meanwhile some details on the other Group H game this evening.

Related: Champions League roundup: Valencia held by Young Boys while Bayern win

9.38pm BST

79 min: Bonucci’s indecision nearly allows Rashford to zip clear down the left. He does just enough to recover the situation with a desperate lunge.

9.37pm BST

78 min: The first change of the evening, with 12 minutes left on the clock. You don’t see this sort of thing so often. The goalscorer Dybala is replaced by Bernardeschi. Dybala isn’t too happy about it.

9.36pm BST

77 min: Young is booked for a cynical clip on Sandro, who was making good down the left.

9.36pm BST

75 min: So having said that, United come close to equalising! So close! Pogba turns and has a shot from 20 yards. A fine effort beats the outstretched Szczesny, but cannons off the base of the left-hand post. It bounces back onto the keeper, smacking him in his startled grid! Nine times out of ten, that rebounds into the goal, but United’s luck isn’t in, and the ball caroms away from danger! A moment of slapstick absurdity. Pogba so unfortunate!

9.34pm BST

74 min: A bit of space for Martial out on the right. He reaches the byline but his low cross is easily snaffled by Szczesny. The hosts haven’t been seriously troubled yet, despite United’s improved performance in this second half.

9.32pm BST

73 min: Bentancur floats a pass down the inside-right channel for Ronaldo, who is clear of the last man but can’t meet the ball with his head before de Gea comes out to claim. In the nick of time.

9.31pm BST

72 min: Martial bursts down the left and runs straight into Cancelo. He wants a free kick, but he’s not getting it, and stops playing. Juve clear their lines as the crowd urge Martial to pick up his feet.

9.29pm BST

70 min: Pogba spins into space in the middle and strokes a glorious pass down the right for Young. Juventus can only half-clear the resulting cross. United pin the visitors back in their box awhile, but never look like working a situation that seriously worries their opponents. Eventually Matic gives the ball away with a poor pass, and the pressure is off.

9.28pm BST

68 min: Cancelo has space and time on the right wing, at the halfway line. Ronaldo is on Lindelof’s shoulder, and screaming to be sent clear down the centre. Cancelo rolls a pass down the channel, but undercooks it and Lindelof is able to intercept. Ronaldo cocks his head back in frustration like a Pez dispenser.

9.26pm BST

67 min: Dybala and Ronaldo one-two their way down the inside-right channel. Some great close control, but they’re a little bit too close to each other to work usefully, and eventually Dybala misjudges a micro-movement and he’s flagged for offside. But United were on the back foot there, one good pass away from being opened up.

9.24pm BST

65 min: Cancelo is found in acres down the right by Cuadrado. He should do much better than the low cross that’s easily hacked clear by Shaw. If there’s to be another goal in this match, it’s not clear which team’s going to score it.

9.23pm BST

64 min: Smalling brushes Ronaldo off the ball and struts down the right. His low cross is a little aimless, and Cancelo is able to clear. But that was a purposeful break by Smalling, who made something out of nothing, and against Juve’s star man to boot. That’s really got the crowd going.

9.22pm BST

62 min: Pogba sweeps a pass wide right for Young, who continues to show down that flank. Mata can’t quite take down the resulting deep cross. But he does manage to whip in another cross from his flank. Lukaku rises high and gets a header goalwards, but there’s no oomph in it, and Szczesny gathers without drama.

9.19pm BST

60 min: Matuidi is booked for a slide on Young, who was hoping to get on the end of a Shaw pass down the right. Another free kick in a dangerous position for United, who have seriously upped the tempo. But Mata’s delivery is poor, and it’s straight out of play for a goal kick.

9.17pm BST

58 min: Martial clips the back of his own man, Mata, but United get the free kick anyway. It’s a chance to load the box and cause Juve some trouble, but Mata takes, and Matic goes too soon. Up goes the offside flag, and United can’t take advantage of their stroke of luck.

9.16pm BST

57 min: Pogba slips a pass down the inside-right channel for Mata, who tries another fancy spin in the hope of getting past Chiellini, but uncharacteristically miscontrols this time. United have been a little bit more positive since the restart.

9.14pm BST

55 min: A little space for Pogba out on the right. His cross isn’t up to much. “I’ve just seen a clip of Mou walking to the stadium - sans hoodie,” reports Peter Crosby. “I genuinely think his pre-match interview was a nod to Squires.”

United bus late to the stadium. Jose walking to the ground from cricket ground. pic.twitter.com/ShoHNiKab0

9.12pm BST

53 min: That was glorious football all round. What a shot! What a save! From the resulting corner, Lindelof takes Chiellini’s boot in the grid, and the pressure on United is relieved.

9.12pm BST

52 min: But Juve are soon coming back at United. Ronaldo has, by his own lofty standards, been a little quiet tonight. Well, this was outstanding: he sprays a ball towards Cuadrado on the right. Cuadrado takes a touch down the wing, then slips the ball back inside for Ronaldo, who hits a first-time rising screamer from the right-hand corner of the box. It’s going into the top right, but de Gea stops it at full stretch with a strong arm.

9.10pm BST

51 min: Matuidi breezes down the left and slips the ball into the six-yard area, hoping to find Ronaldo. Lindelof is on hand to bundle the ball out for a corner. The set piece comes to nothing.

9.09pm BST

49 min: Martial chases a long pass down the left. For a second he looks set to whip a shot goalwards from the edge of the area, but decides to take an extra touch instead. That allows Bonucci to make a superb slide tackle, clattering Martial to the floor. The home crowd scream for a penalty, but the United players don’t; it was a fair challenge. Bonucci had to get it right, and he executed the tackle perfectly.

9.06pm BST

47 min: Mata spins gorgeously round Pjanic, and is in acres down the left. He knocks the ball to Martial, who tries twice to curl one into the bottom right from a position on the left. The ball pinballs around a bit. Lukaku stands still, not doing much. Chiellini has a crafty tug of the striker’s shirt, to be fair, but not enough to interest the referee.

9.05pm BST

Right! The second half! Jose struts up the touchline, back towards the dugout, with great theatrical determination. No changes. Juve get the ball rolling again, after a fashion, having been forced to wait by the tardy Lukaku. Can United perform another second-half escape act? Well, they’re nearly two down immediately, Sandro making ground down the left and hooking towards the near post. Matic steps in ahead of Dybala to chest back to de Gea.

9.00pm BST

Sighing, tutting, head shaking, tongue clacking, etc.

“It’s amazing that Paul Pogba spent four years in Italy surrounded by the likes of Bonucci and Chiellini without learning how to defend a corner kick. He was clueless again midway through the first half as a corner came over and, when the dust settled, there he was, standing all alone on the penalty spot, looking on” - Justin Kavanagh.

8.50pm BST

Half-time reading:

Related: Are Arsenal genuine contenders for the Premier League title?

8.48pm BST

To be fair, Juve are the favourites for this year’s Champions League. But United will still be concerned by the manner in which the visitors dominated. Can Jose inspire his men to yet another second-half revival?

8.47pm BST

45 min: Pogba battles away and the ball breaks to Mata, 20 yards out. Mata takes an age to size up his shot, and he’s dispossessed with ease.

8.46pm BST

43 min: Cancelo brazenly knocks the ball past Lindelof, hoping to beat him in a foot race. He’s given his opponent the best part of ten yards, but nearly wins it on the edge of the area. Lindelof does just enough. What a burst of pace by Cancelo.

8.44pm BST

42 min: Dybala, out on the right, uses Shaw as a shield and tries to curl one past the unsighted de Gea and into the bottom left. It’s wide, but not by much. United could do with hearing the half-time whistle.

8.43pm BST

41 min: Juve continue to knock at the door. A Shaw header upfield is easily intercepted. Suddenly Cancelo is striding into the box. He shoots, but Shaw, having recovered his poise, blocks bravely from close range.

8.42pm BST

40 min: Sandro wins a corner down the left. It develops into a scruffy melee, Martial just about getting enough on the ball to clear. But once again United don’t look comfortable defending set pieces.

8.41pm BST

38 min: An astonishing double save by de Gea! Ronaldo sends a swerving riser not-quite-straight at the keeper, who parries well. The ball breaks to Matuidi, to the left of the goal. Matuidi blasts a shot into the ground. It’s heading into the top right, but de Gea bats that one away too. What a keeper! Like that’s breaking news.

8.39pm BST

37 min: Matuidi is this close to sending Ronaldo clear through the centre. Lindelof does very well to step in and intercept. Then another phase of attack, and Ronaldo has a look down the left. Young comes across and clumsily body-checks him to the ground. A free kick in Ronaldo territory, just to the left of centre, 25 yards out.

8.37pm BST

35 min: Juve knock it around the back awhile, to deprive United the chance to build any momentum. It’s smart game management.

8.36pm BST

33 min: Of course, the problem with going gung-ho in attack, is the increased risk of being hit on the break. Dybala tears down the right and is about to pull the trigger just inside the area when he’s stopped by a marvellous tackle from Smalling.

8.35pm BST

32 min: Rashford has been United’s one bright light so far. He dribbles in from the right, skipping past a couple of challenges and nearly breaking clear into the area. That’s got the home support energised again, and Young has another ramble down the right wing. He earns a corner, which comes to nothing, but that’s not really the point: that’s better from United, who have upped the tempo.

8.33pm BST

30 min: From the set piece, Bentancur wins a header on the penalty spot but sends his effort over the bar. United are holding on here. Maybe they’re planning a third amazing second-half comeback in a row.

8.32pm BST

29 min: The Old Trafford faithful make themselves heard again, whistling with great feeling as United give up possession with ease. They’re not happy with the way Juve are sashaying about their manor. Dybala wins a corner down the right.

8.30pm BST

27 min: Cancelo flicks a pass down the right and sends Dybala into acres of space. Not sure where Shaw is. United are fortunate that Dybala decides early to look for a team-mate in the middle, instead of powering into the box and having a shot himself. Smalling hooks the ball away again. But United were ripped open with incredible ease there.

8.28pm BST

26 min: Juve have enjoyed just over 70% possession so far, and have now quietened the crowd a little bit. The away fans making the most noise. Their heroes are passing it around quite a lot, and in pretty triangles to boot.

8.26pm BST

24 min: Bonucci, of all people, romps down the right and curls a cross into the centre. This is total football. Smalling manages to hook that one clear.

8.25pm BST

22 min: United are rocking here. First Dybala nearly wriggles clear into the box down the left. Then Cancelo exchanges passes with Dybala down the right and sends a pearler towards the bottom left; de Gea saves spectacularly at full stretch.

8.24pm BST

21 min: Juve are hogging the ball again. “If the Juve bus was also held up in traffic and their number 5 decided to Jose it in on foot, would it have been Pjanic on the streets of Manchester?” Robin Hazelhurst everyone. He’s here all week. Try the hotpot.

8.22pm BST

19 min: A defiant roar from the Old Trafford faithful. Pogba is bundled over in the centre circle by Cuadrado. He nearly sets Rashford away on an attack anyway, but the striker miscontrols. The referee brings things back for a free kick, much to the annoyance of the home crowd, but the move had broken down. Still some atmosphere at Old Trafford, despite that early blow.

8.20pm BST

This happened all of a sudden. Ronaldo is sent scampering down the right. He whips a cross into the six-yard box. There’s a slight deflection off Martial, and the ball breaks to Cuadrado, sliding in. Cuadrado’s effort is blocked by Smalling, but breaks to Dybala who has the simple task of slamming home into the bottom right from close range. So simple.

8.18pm BST

16 min: Mata sends an outswinger onto the head of Pogba, standing on the penalty spot. Pogba tries to guide the ball into the top left, but there’s neither power nor direction on it, and it’s an easy catch for Szczesny.

8.17pm BST

15 min: Matuidi clatters into Pogba as United probe in the Juve final third. Another free kick for the hosts in a good position, 30 yards from goal, just right of centre.

8.16pm BST

13 min: Dybala runs at the United back line. He slips the ball wide right for Cuadrado, and keeps on running. Cuadrado hooks the ball into the area, and Dybala meets it with his head, ten yards out, while standing in a huge gap between Matic and Smalling. Fortunately for United, Dybala’s header is weak and wafts wide left. But that was a big chance for Juve, and further sign that this United defence isn’t exactly watertight.

8.14pm BST

12 min: Pjanic hoicks a dreadful free kick out of play for a goal kick. Nobody in black and white anywhere near it.

8.13pm BST

11 min: Ronaldo is brought down by Smalling, 35 yards from goal. Pjanic, Cuadrado and Dybala are over it. Juve load the United box.

8.12pm BST

10 min: Cancelo, tight on the right, loops long for Ronaldo at the far post. The ball’s a little bit overcooked, and Ronaldo doesn’t have a chance to connect, but United, having started brightly, suddenly look a little bit shaky.

8.12pm BST

9 min: An absurd cross-field pass by Lukaku, from the right wing to nobody on the left, allows Bentancur to burst upfield. The move breaks down, but Shaw is soon nervously giving up possession as well, and Dybala very nearly breaks clear into the area down the right channel. Smalling closes the door just in time.

8.10pm BST

7 min: Bonucci quarterbacks from deep, sending a pass towards Ronaldo down the inside-left channel. Smalling does very well to get the ball out for a goal kick, with Ronaldo desperate to latch onto the pass and have a dig from inside the area. The resulting corner is a non-event.

8.08pm BST

6 min: Dybala shins the ball miles into the sky. Another moment enjoyed by the crowd, who are in party mode right now. A proper big-match atmosphere at Old Trafford tonight.

8.07pm BST

5 min: But this is a bright start for United, and now Shaw’s tripped up by Cancelo on the left wing. Another set piece in a promising position. Rashford takes this one, but it’s a poor effort and doesn’t beat the first man Pjanic.

8.06pm BST

4 min: Before Mata can take the free kick, an eejit romps onto the field of play, and evades a couple of stewards to the amusement of both the crowd and Mourinho on the touchline. Eventually Mata swings the set piece long, and Szczesny plucks the ball from the sky at the far post.

8.05pm BST

3 min: Rashford has been in the thick of it from the get-go, and he’s brought down by Pjanic as he dribbles down the right. A free kick in a dangerous position, with United able to load the box. Mata stands over the set piece.

8.04pm BST

2 min: Juventus, having taken possession of the ball, don’t give it back. Sandro has a probe down the left, but this time Rashford wins the duel, shepherding him back upfield.

8.03pm BST

And we’re off! The hosts get the ball rolling amid bedlam at Old Trafford. Rashford has a drive down the right, but he clumsily barges into Sandro and that’s the first free kick of the evening.

8.01pm BST

The teams are out! United are in their famous red shirts, Juve sport their storied black and white stripes. A huge reception for the two teams, though of course all eyes are on the return of the prodigal son Ronaldo. Easy to forget that Pogba is playing against his old side for the first time tonight. Meanwhile here’s Ian Burch: “As Eamon Dunphy relates in his brilliant book Only A Game, Gordon Hill was once pranked into playing an imaginary game of tennis in a hotel lobby with Millwall teammate and legendary hardman Harry Cripps, he was also keen on impersonating Norman Wisdom and shouting ‘Mr Grimsdale’ on TV every now and then. For all his accomplishments, I doubt Ronaldo can boast about anything like that on his CV.” It’s also not certain that Ronaldo is as big a star in Albania as Wisdom. Anyway, we’ll be off in a minute!

7.51pm BST

Great news for United, and indeed Juventus, in the other Group H match tonight. Valencia have been held 1-1 at Young Boys. Whatever happens at Old Trafford tonight, Juve and United will occupy the top two spots in the group at the halfway stage.

7.49pm BST

More from Jose, who is now off the traffic-news beat. “We played really well in the last match. We had no new injuries in that starting line-up. We don’t have many other options, with lots of players injured from their national teams. And we believed the way we played was really positive and is the way we want to try to play today. I don’t think we can stop Ronaldo individually, because his movement is huge and it is very difficult to do it. You have to try to do it in a collective way. So if we manage to have the ball, and manage to be offensive, and manage to scare them too, they will have less chances to make Ronaldo play. But you know if Cristiano touches the ball twice, he can score a hat-trick!” A sparkle in his eye as he made that last quip. He’s in the mood for this.

7.32pm BST

♫ Memories light the corners of my mind / Misty water-coloured memories of the way we werrrrrrre ... ♬ “I was in the crowd in 1977 when Juventus could have been 4-0 up in the first 20 minutes at Old Trafford, before a volley from Gordon Hill gave United a 1-0 first-leg lead,” writes Duncan Edwards. “I doubt Ronaldo can be kept off the scoresheet tonight but hope springs and all that jazz!” For those not in attendance that night, here’s the match Duncan’s talking about, including a fine Alex Stepney save that the legendary Barry Davies compares to the one made in the 1968 European Cup final from Eusebio.

7.22pm BST

Panic over. Both team buses have finally arrived. It’s on! Hold on, though ... Mourinho walking to the game in a hoodie ... is this a self-aware riff on the work of David Squires?

7.13pm BST

United rocked up late for the game against Valencia, and they appear to be cutting it fine again tonight. The manager’s in situ, though, and here he is explaining what’s going on. They’re stuck in traffic again! “We change hotel, it’s just around the corner. The players are in the bus for 45 minutes. I walked, with a hoodie, in the middle of the fans, nobody recognised me. I took two minutes! What I do in two minutes walking, the players cannot do in 45 minutes on the bus. But Juventus is having the same kind of problem. I have informed the Uefa delegate about the situation, because we don’t want to be punished again.”

7.08pm BST

If it ain’t broke, etc. Manchester United name the same XI who were seconds away from a fine victory at Stamford Bridge last weekend. The 18-year-old Dutch winger Tahith Chong is named in the matchday squad for the first time.

As for Juve, they make two changes to the team that drew 1-1 at home to Genoa on Saturday. The captain Giorgio Chiellini returns, as does Paulo Dybala. Mario Mandzukic is injured, while Medhi Benatia drops to the bench. Oh, and someone’s completed his European suspension ...

6.55pm BST

Manchester United: de Gea, Young, Lindelof, Smalling, Shaw, Pogba, Matic, Rashford, Mata, Martial, Lukaku.
Subs: Romero, Bailly, Andreas Pereira, Fred, Ander Herrera, Darmian, Chong.

Juventus: Szczesny, Joao Cancelo, Bonucci, Chiellini, Alex Sandro, Bentancur, Pjanic, Matuidi, Cuadrado, Dybala, Ronaldo.
Subs: Perin, De Sciglio, Benatia, Douglas Costa, Barzagli, Kean, Bernardeschi.

6.54pm BST

Juve have a very good Champions League record against English sides of late. They dispatched Tottenham Hotspur from last year’s Champions League in the Round of 16; beat Manchester City home and away in the 2015-16 groups; and knocked reigning champs Chelsea out at the group stage in 2012-13. In the Europa League, however, they’ve been not so great: Manchester City saw them off in the group stage in 2010-11, while the season before saw their famous evisceration at the hands of Roy Hodgson’s Fulham in the Round of 16 of the same competition. So the champions of Italy may be arriving in Blighty with mixed emotions. Or they may not give two hoots about history, who knows.

5.30pm BST

Never mind Cristiano Ronaldo or Paul Pogba; Manchester United versus Juventus can only mean one thing. That night in Turin, the second leg of the 1998-99 semi-final. Juve looked for all the world to be heading to Barcelona when Pippo Inzaghi put them two up after 11 minutes. But then Roy Keane decided to take a grip on proceedings, and his performance of a generation drove United to a 3-2 comeback win that might just be the most famous result in this grand old club’s history.

These famous clubs have met just twice since then, in the second group stage of the 2002-03 tournament. United prevailed both home and away, Wes Brown and Ruud van Nistelrooy setting up a 2-1 win at Old Trafford; van Nistelrooy and two-goal Ryan Giggs doing the damage in a 3-0 trashing of the Old Lady’s house. So United are three wins on the bounce against the Bianconeri.

Continue reading...

The Fiver | Whenever someone cues up Zadok the Priest on Spotify

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!

It’s Matchday Tum-te-tum in Group Whatever Dude of Big Cup, and thoughts naturally turn to Manchester City’s fractious relationship with the continent’s biggest tournament. It’s been like this pretty much from the get-go: when City first qualified in 1968, their coach Malcolm Allison announced that “a lot of these foreign people are cowards” and that his team would “attack these people like they’ve never been attacked since the old Real Madrid”. Sure enough, Fenerbahce knocked them out in the first round, instantly turning the whole affair into the biggest metaphor for hubris since Captain Lawrie McMenemy took the Titanic out of Southampton docks in 1912 (subs please check). But say what you like about Big Mal, and the concepts of fate-tempting conceit and spirit-crushing inevitability, at least he went into battle in a positive frame of mind.

Related: ‘Truth comes first’ – Cristiano Ronaldo defiant on Old Trafford return

Continue reading...

Huddersfield 0-1 Liverpool: Premier League – as it happened

Mo Salah’s goal was the difference between nervous Liverpool and battling Huddersfield.

7.53pm BST

And with that, this MBM comes to its natural end. All that’s left to do is point you in the direction of Jamie Jackson’s match report ... and thank you for reading. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. Nighty night!

Related: Mohamed Salah strike settles nervy Liverpool win over Huddersfield

7.52pm BST

Jurgen Klopp and David Wagner are being interviewed together. Here goes, then.

KLOPP: It is strange [to face Wagner] in the preparation, but only on a private level, as it’s the only week of the year when we don’t speak. But it’s not the day for a funny interview. It was a good game of Huddersfield, not so good from us. We will take it.
WAGNER: It is more or less business as usual, we take our personal emotions out of the game.
KLOPP: We could have scored in five, six, seven situations with one easy pass. The last pass was so often not good. We’ll have to watch it again. We were not fresh. But mostly Huddersfield did really well and we had to fight; we did that really well and I am proud. I said sorry, because it feels like that to be honest. I expect us to do better, and we will do.
WAGNER: I have seen this game before, against Tottenham and Burnley. We have played well, with passion and aggression, we pressed high and caused panic. The players have done well but without results. I would lie if I said it isn’t a problem, but at the end it is a challenge, and the experience of turning performances into results will be exciting. If we perform consistently, the results will come.
KLOPP: I have watched all the games of Huddersfield, and in their first nine games they have played us, Manchester City, Tottenham, Leicester, Everton ... it’s not a fixture list when you think “oh good, we’ll get 24 points” here.
WAGNER [grinning]: He is my friend!

7.37pm BST

Mo Salah speaks! “It was a tough game, but we got the three points. We had to fight, but we knew we would have to. It is a good feeling [to score his 50th goal in England], but as I said last season, the most important thing is to help the team. I’m not worried [about form].”

Adam Lallana adds: “It was nice to contribute, it’s been so long. On that form, Huddersfield have a right good chance to stay in the league and do well. But it’s a huge three points for us. It’s been tough, just constant setbacks, but I feel I’m in a really good place now, I just want to play games. Everyone’s going to have to contribute if we’re going to achieve something special.”

7.29pm BST

A warm embrace between Wagner and Klopp on the touchline. Wagner surely won’t be too upset; his team will take great heart from their performance, once the sting of defeat subsides. It should serve them well in the coming weeks. Klopp meanwhile will know his side dodged a bullet today; Salah still looks a little short on confidence, while there’s a big drop-off in the potency of their attack when Mane doesn’t play. They’re still struggling to locate their mojo. On the other hand, they’re joint top of the Premier League with Manchester City, having yet to click into anything approaching top gear! There are worse states to be in.

7.24pm BST

The final whistle goes. Liverpool survive. It’s not entirely clear how Huddersfield didn’t score this evening. Liverpool were poor, and rode their luck. But it’s three points for the Reds. They go joint top, though if they keep playing like that, they can forget about the title. On the other hand, if Huddersfield keep playing like that, they’ll have a good chance of staying up.

7.21pm BST

90 min +3: Diakhaby crosses again from a tight spot on the left. Jorgensen, on the left-hand corner of the six-yard box, flicks the ball high to the far post, but it sails out for a goal kick.

7.20pm BST

90 min +2: Diakhaby - a former team-mate of Fabinho at Monaco - comes on for Hogg. He nearly makes an instant impact, steaming past Lovren down the left and crossing from the byline. Alisson and van Dijk just about manage to smother and clear.

7.19pm BST

90 min +1: Salah has an opportunity to set Firmino clear down the left. He plays the ball straight at Durm. Some of Liverpool’s passing today has been risible.

7.18pm BST

90 min: There will be at least four added minutes.

7.17pm BST

89 min: Salah and Sturridge combine well down the inside-right channel. Then the ball’s rolled across the face of the box for Firmino, who has time to size things up ... but blooters wildly over the crossbar.

7.16pm BST

88 min: Sturridge flicks a pass down the right for Gomez, who has time to pick a pass. He pulls back for Salah, who squirms into a little space down the inside-right channel and tries to dink a finish past Lossl from a tight angle. But the keeper smothers.

7.15pm BST

87 min: Liverpool are struggling to keep hold of the ball. That’s giving Huddersfield and their vocal support hope.

7.15pm BST

85 min: Then the ball’s launched long from the left, and Depoitre wins a corner on the right. The set piece is cleared by van Dijk, and suddenly Liverpool are tearing clear on the break! Firmino has Shaqiri to his left, but opts to lay off to Salah on his right. And he undercooks the pass, allowing Lowe to slide in and intercept. Liverpool should have put the game to bed then. They at least should have got a shot on target. On the touchline, Klopp is going spare, throwing semaphore shapes that spell U-N-H-A-P-P-Y, as well as E-F-F and C-E-E.

7.13pm BST

84 min: Firmino handles the ball out on the left. That gives Pritchard a couple of chances to dribble into the box from that wing. Gomez sticks out a leg to stop him, just as he threatens to break through on goal.

7.11pm BST

82 min: Mbenza tears down the right and curls in a cross. Van Dijk fresh-air kicks his attempted clearance. The ball clanks off the back of a panicked Lovren, who is trying ... I’m not sure what he’s trying. A donkey kick? Anyway, the ball drops to Mounie, who also panics, and shins a hopeless effort over the bar from eight yards. Huddersfield should be level. Liverpool are hanging on by their fingertips.

7.09pm BST

80 min: Salah shimmies into the Huddersfield area from the right, and there’s space for a shot, but he looks to slip Shaqiri in on goal instead. His pass inside is easily intercepted by Jorgensen, who clears.

7.08pm BST

79 min: Huddersfield stroke it around the back awhile, and Liverpool seem happy enough to let them do it. Eventually they come forward and Fabinho takes up possession. He runs at the hosts but eventually has to turn back. Liverpool are utterly disjointed in attack.

7.06pm BST

77 min: Firmino replaces Milner. Then Lossl launches long, Depoitre flicks past van Dijk, and Mounie blazes recklessly high and wide from an ambitious position.

7.05pm BST

76 min: Shaqiri’s delivery goes out of play before it reaches the box. Sturridge blasts the ball away in frustration and is booked for his sauce.

7.04pm BST

75 min: The corner’s shuttled to Wijnaldum on the edge of the box. He considers shooting but indecision overwhelms him. But then Shaqiri comes again down the left and wins another corner.

7.02pm BST

74 min: Sturridge finds a little pocket of space in the Huddersfield box, and dribbles into it, down the inside-right. But his attempt to cross for Salah is blocked. Then another phase of Liverpool attack, as Shaqiri slips a pass down the left for Robertson on the overlap. Schindler slides in at the near post to concede the corner, with Sturridge lurking.

7.00pm BST

72 min: It’s all very scrappy again, as the subs find their feet and both teams recalibrate.

6.59pm BST

70 min: Billing is replaced by Mounie. Huddersfield now have two strikers on the pitch. They also swap a defender in Hadergjonaj for the winger Mbenza. They’re going for it, with Liverpool looking increasingly uncertain of themselves.

6.58pm BST

69 min: Lallana, who hasn’t started a game for yonks, is down with cramp. He gets up, then limps off to be replaced by Fabinho.

6.56pm BST

67 min: Liverpool are preparing a change. It looks as though the lesser-spotted Fabinho will be coming on soon.

6.54pm BST

65 min: Space for Pritchard down the right. His ball inside finds Durm, coming in from the other wing, but the wing-back can’t control the ball to get an effort on target. Liverpool are holding firm, but there’s a sense that Huddersfield could get something if they keep this up.

6.53pm BST

63 min: Sturridge, deep on the left, curls a pass inside for Salah, who chests down and powers down the inside-left channel. He enters the box and whistles a shot across Lossl and inches wide of the right-hand post. A suggestion Salah might have brought that down with his upper arm instead of his chest, so the miss nips that controversy in the bud.

6.49pm BST

61 min: The corner’s launched deep. At the far post, van Dijk tries to guide a volley into the net from a tight angle, but can only cushion it into the arms of Lossl.

6.48pm BST

60 min: Gomez strolls forward down the right. He lays off for Salah, who drifts inside and has a whack from distance. It’s blocked for a corner on the left.

6.47pm BST

59 min: Lallana and Salah combine down the inside-right channel, forcing a corner. Salah takes. Schindler clears with van Dijk lurking in the six-yard box.

6.45pm BST

57 min: Huddersfield have enjoyed 63% possession since the restart. Liverpool are making a habit of giving the ball away in the midfield.

6.44pm BST

55 min: Hadergjonaj scoops a cross into the Liverpool box from the left. Depoitre rises highest, and guides a header towards the bottom right, but Alisson reads it well and smothers. Depoitre didn’t quite catch that; a bit more oomph and Liverpool might have been in trouble.

6.43pm BST

54 min: Shaqiri hugs the right touchline and slides a pass down the wing for Salah, who turns on the jets but runs down a cul-de-sac. Liverpool aren’t firing up front at all; like that’s breaking news.

6.40pm BST

52 min: A throw for Huddersfield deep on the left. Billing flings it in. Milner stoops bravely to head clear from a thicket of flailing legs.

6.39pm BST

51 min: Henderson was taken off as a precautionary measure, as he was feeling a tight hamstring.

6.38pm BST

50 min: Wijnaldum spins out of a tackle and into space down the left. He’s dragged back by Hogg. Liverpool get the foul, but Hogg escapes a yellow. That’s a pretty generous decision, and Klopp engages the fourth official in debate accordingly.

6.37pm BST

48 min: Liverpool appear to be trying to up the tempo a little. Milner makes ground down the left. His cross is only half cleared, and drops to Sturridge, who tries to curl one into the top left. Too high and wide. Sturridge is cutting a frustrated figure right now.

6.35pm BST

46 min: Robertson spins infield from the left wing and exchanges passes with Sturridge. Robertson has a shot from just inside the area, but it’s blocked pretty much at source. Sturridge hesitated before playing the return ball, and it probably cost Robertson there.

6.33pm BST

And we’re off again! Liverpool have made a change: Wijnaldum has come on for Henderson. Huddersfield get the ball rolling once more.

6.24pm BST

Half-time entertainment: Some fine work here.

Related: Why the lies, Boris? The best banners from the People's Vote march

6.20pm BST

Liverpool will be happy to hear the half-time whistle. Huddersfield were coming at them in waves. The hosts will wonder how they’ve not managed to score; they’ve been very lively in attack. It’s going to be a very interesting second half. Liverpool need to change something, because their midfield is being over-run.

6.16pm BST

45 min: Pritchard whips in dangerously from the left. The Liverpool box is loaded but Alisson reads it well to claim.

6.16pm BST

43 min: Huddersfield have a goal disallowed! The ball’s headed down the inside-left channel, and Pritchard is clear into the area! He flicks the ball past the outrushing, star-jumping Alisson ... but the flag goes up for offside. It’s the correct decision, but there was only an inch or so in it.

6.15pm BST

42 min: Van Dijk and Lovren get into all sorts of bother trying to play out from the back. Hogg heads back into the box. The ball strokes Milner’s hip and the inside of his arm. Hot shouts for a penalty, but it’s not awarded. You’ve certainly seen those given, though Milner will argue he was too close to Hogg and his arm was in a natural position.

6.11pm BST

40 min: A lovely flowing move by Huddersfield. Pritchard slips a pass down the right for Hadergjonaj, who rolls infield for Depoitre. Billing is free on the left, and eventually gets the ball, but the hesitation by Depoitre allows Gomez to get over and block the shot. Liverpool were all over the place at the back there.

6.09pm BST

38 min: Billing takes the free kick, and sends it screeching inches wide of the right-hand post. A few inches inside, and that was going into the top corner. Alisson might have got over to it, had that been the case, but it wasn’t certain.

6.08pm BST

37 min: They’ve showed the Hogg shot again. It took a little nick off Lovren on the way through, which took it past Alisson’s fingers and onto the post. Meanwhile a free kick for Huddersfield, as Gomez goes into an aerial challenge with Depoitre, high-kicking like billy-o.

6.07pm BST

35 min: Lallana nicks the ball off Mooy, but then clatters into Lowe as he chases it, and is quite rightly booked.

6.04pm BST

33 min: Salah and Sturridge try to one-two their way through the centre of the Huddersfield defence, but their flicks don’t come off.

6.03pm BST

31 min: Huddersfield haven’t scored at home yet this season. But it’s not for the want of trying. Hogg unleashes a rising shot towards the top left from 30 yards. It beats Alisson at full stretch, but hits the left-hand post flush, and away from danger. Such a magnificent effort, and so unlucky!

6.00pm BST

29 min: Huddersfield enjoy a little bit of possession in Liverpool’s final third. Hadergjonaj crosses twice from the right; van Dijk swipes the first one clear, the second goes out for a goal kick.

5.59pm BST

27 min: Liverpool claim a penalty, Shaqiri’s cross from the right hitting Billing on the arm. But the players were so close together, and Billing’s arms were down by his side. The visitors are never getting that. Up the other end, Depoitre has a shot that’s blocked, the ball ballooning into Alisson’s arms.

5.57pm BST

25 min: Huddersfield nearly strike back immediately, Mooy rolling a pass wide left for Durm, who is in acres. But Gomez reads the danger, coming across to block-tackle. The ball clanks out of play for a throw.

5.55pm BST

So having said that, Liverpool score a magnificent goal! Gomez takes down a high crossfield Milner pass on the right. He then fires a pass down the inside-right for Shaqiri, who drifts a little inside before rolling further down the channel for Salah. Salah takes a touch and slips a trademark shot across Lossl and into the bottom left! Liverpool picked up the pace, and they’ve been rewarded.

5.53pm BST

22 min: Liverpool are very ponderous in attack. Short of ideas. Sturridge and Salah try to up the tempo with a quick one-two down the left, but the move doesn’t come off.

5.51pm BST

20 min: Billing strides forward, then slips over and loses the ball. Henderson picks it up and storms into the space left by the marauding defender, but then wastes the opportunity by playing a poor ball down the inside-right channel, intended for Lallana but nowhere near him.

5.49pm BST

18 min: Neither team has worked their way into a groove yet. It’s all a bit hurried and shapeless. Salah demonstrates this by playing a simple pass left for Sturridge behind his team-mate and out of play.

5.48pm BST

16 min: Now it’s Liverpool’s turn to throw long. Gomez launches it. It’s half cleared. Shaqiri shapes to volley from the edge of the box, but he’s closed down quickly.

5.47pm BST

15 min: Huddersfield make a proper balls of the corner, allowing Liverpool to break upfield en masse. Robertson swings in a cross from the left. It’s only half cleared, and Gomez latches onto the loose ball. He gives it one hell of a blooter, and hit hits Lowe flush in his startled grid. Oof. The ball pings out for a throw, but before it can be taken, the Huddersfield left-back will get a nice mop down with the magic sponge.

5.45pm BST

14 min: Billing, deep on the right, sends a glorious crossfield pass to Durm, tight on the left touchline. He wins a throw, and it’s another chance for Billing to hoick one of his long throws into the mixer. In goes the throw, and it earns a corner.

5.43pm BST

12 min: Milner launches long for Shaqiri, who looks to take the ball down and spin clear on the edge of the area. But Schindler is stuck to him like glue, and wins the ball. Fine last-man defending.

5.41pm BST

10 min: Van Dijk passes back to Alisson, who faffs around with the ball at his feet. He allows Depoitre to close him down, and his attempted pass right for Gomez is charged out for a goal kick. Shades of Leicester, but the goalie got away with this one.

5.40pm BST

9 min: Shaqiri crosses deep from the right. Milner tries to get on the end of it, but has no chance. It’s still a bit scrappy, but both teams are going forward with purpose; it should make for an entertaining game.

5.39pm BST

8 min: Alisson passes long. Salah cushions a header down to Sturridge, who is in a lot of space in the Huddersfield half. Lallana is ahead, ready to spring clear into the box, but perpetual motion is his downfall; as Sturridge plays the pass forward, he’s inexplicably spun round the wrong way, and hasn’t a clue where the ball is.

5.36pm BST

6 min: Depoitre romps down the right and centres. Billing shuttles the ball to the left for Durm, who has space but hesitates. He’s closed down by Gomez and the chance of getting a shot on goal is lost.

5.35pm BST

4 min: A throw for Huddersfield down the left. Billing will launch it long. In a packed area, Lovren gets his head on it and clears.

5.34pm BST

3 min: Sturridge embarks on a power dribble down the middle. He evades a couple of challenges then rolls a pass to the left for Salah. There’s too much juice on it, and though Salah manages to retain possession, he’s forced miles to the wing and the move breaks down.

5.33pm BST

2 min: Still super-hectic. Nobody’s managed to control the ball yet, never mind string a few passes together.

5.32pm BST

And we’re off! Liverpool get the party started. A hug between Wanger and Klopp on the touchline; a thundering atmosphere in the stands. All very scrappy at the start in the midfield; a couple of misdirected throws, a couple of misplaced headers. The only way is up!

5.26pm BST

No pre-match word with David Wagner, which is a shame. He was caught on camera earlier sharing smiles and high fives with his old buddy Jurgen, so at least we know he’s in high spirits. Anyway, the teams are on the pitch, Huddersfield in their grand old blue and white stripes, Liverpool sporting their equally storied red. We’ll be off in two shakes of a Terrier’s tail. “Call me paranoid,” adds suspicion’s Hubert O’Hearn, “but I’m incredibly nervous about this match. It’s just the sort of away fixture that Liverpool have stumbled over in the past. Post-international break, motivated opponents, assorted injuries, Dejan Lovren starting ... Dejan Lovren starting!?!? I hope we hold it to a draw.”

5.18pm BST

Jurgen Klopp speaks! “Keita and Mane’s injuries are not too serious, they shouldn’t be out too long. But I am happy with the line-up, we have a strong bench. We are aware that this will be a difficult game. Huddersfield are only not in a good moment results-wise; all the rest was good in the last few weeks. We need to be ready. Lallana has trained good, he was quite impressive all week. If he could take that onto the pitch it would be good!”

5.10pm BST

Pre-match reading. If you missed this, you missed out. Rob Smyth on one of the greatest goals ever scored at Anfield.

Related: Golden Goal: John Barnes for Liverpool v QPR (1987)

4.40pm BST

Huddersfield make one change to the team sent out for the 1-1 draw at Burnley a fortnight ago. Rajiv van La Parra makes way so Florent Hadergjonaj can bolster the defence.

Liverpool make three changes to the side named against Manchester City before the break. Like his half-brother van La Parra, Georginio Wijnaldum drops to the bench, along with Roberto Firmino. Sadio Mane is injured. Taking their places: Adam Lallana, Daniel Sturridge and Xherdan Shaqiri.

4.32pm BST

Huddersfield Town: Lossl, Jorgensen, Schindler, Lowe, Hadergjonaj, Mooy, Hogg, Billing, Durm, Pritchard, Depoitre.
Subs: Bacuna, Diakhaby, Hamer, van La Parra, Mbenza, Mounie, Stankovic.

Liverpool: Alisson, Gomez, Lovren, van Dijk, Robertson, Lallana, Henderson, Milner, Salah, Sturridge, Shaqiri.
Subs: Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Firmino, Mignolet, Origi, Matip, Alexander-Arnold.

4.04pm BST

You could argue that the international break came at the wrong time for Huddersfield Town. A fortnight ago, David Wagner’s troops drew at Burnley, and on the balance of play they should have registered their first win of the season. It was a “brave and confident” display, according to Wagner. Slim pickings, admittedly, but when you’re struggling at the wrong end of the table, you grab any positives going with both hands. However a chance to build some precious momentum was scuppered by the quirks of the calendar.

The break probably came at the right time for Liverpool. After opening the season with seven straight wins, they’ve not won in four, a run that’s seen them knocked out of the League Cup and pitched into a real dogfight in the Champions League. Given that winless streak comprised of games against Chelsea (twice), Napoli and Manchester City, and they’re still in the mix at the top of the Premier League, this hardly constitutes a full-blown crisis. But they’ve not been at their freewheeling best, so the opportunity to stop and take stock will have been welcomed by Jurgen Klopp.

Continue reading...

Chelsea 2-2 Manchester United: Premier League – as it happened

Four goals, some last-minute drama, and a dugout brouhaha that threatened to spill down the tunnel. Welcome back, Premier League!

5.42pm BST

Some post-match reaction for you:

Related: Sarri says Chelsea to blame for sparking scuffle as Mourinho accepts apology

3.08pm BST

So all that’s left is to usher you towards Daniel Taylor’s take on a wonderfully entertaining afternoon at Stamford Bridge. Thanks for reading this MBM. See you later for Huddersfield-Liverpool.

Related: Chelsea’s late leveller against Manchester United sparks touchline chaos around Mourinho

Related: Chelsea 2-2 Manchester United: how the players rated at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea 2-2 Manchester United: our video report of the game pic.twitter.com/rYSOjvV73d

3.07pm BST

Sarri speaks, with refreshing grace and honesty. “We have done a very good first half, but we were not very good in the second. We didn’t play our football. In a physical match, United is better than us. Tactically, the match was the same in both halves, but I need to study the second half. I don’t know why. The match after the international break is always very difficult, it’s no easy. But it was a fantastic match. In the second half, it was a physical match, it was not for us. Sincerely, I did not see what happened at the end of the match. But I have spoken to Jose, then a couple of members of our staff. We were on the wrong side. I cannot tell everything, but I am not really happy. I understood that we were on the wrong side.”

2.52pm BST

And then he’s asked whether, having promised before the game to respect Chelsea, he got that respect back: “No I don’t think so. But that is not my responsibility. I have a certain level of education, socially and in sport. What I did here today I would do in Porto and Madrid and Milan, try to behave always the same way, which I did. The reaction of the fans is up to them. I am not annoyed with anything. What happened was with Sarri’s assistant, and Sarri came to me and said he would resolve the problem internally. Then Sarri’s assistant came to me in Sarri’s office and apologised, and I said if you really feel that way and want to apologise, of course I accept it, and forget it because I have made lots of mistakes in my career and I’m not going to kill you because of one. It is over, he apologised, and I accepted it!”

2.46pm BST

Jose speaks! “I can tell you that the 97-minutes game was so good that you have to focus on that. We were the best team on the pitch. If you say before the match, one point at Stamford Bridge is always a good result. But after it, the way the game was, it was an awful result for us, and a phenomenal result for them. It is different from the Newcastle match, because in the first half of that, we were not there. But in this game we were there. We were in the game. We controlled Hazard, Jorginho, we were in complete control. We had positions to score the third goal, we were the best team. The referee gave six minutes; normally when I am losing I never get six minutes. I do not know where the extra time came from. We always tried to play, even in extra time. But that is football.”

2.40pm BST

Zen master Antonio Rudiger speaks. “To bounce back at the end, we can be happy to take the point. I saw the benches were standing up, but there are emotions, this is football. I didn’t see anything. But it’s OK, at the end of the day we shake hands. At least everything is calmed down now, everyone can go home.”

2.32pm BST

More on that last-gasp equaliser, then. Azpilicueta swung in a deep cross from the right. Luiz, out on the left, rose magnificently and planted a downwards header across a rooted de Gea and off the right-hand post. The ball broke to Rudiger, who headed down from six yards. De Gea stuck an arm out to parry brilliantly, but Barkley was on hand to slam home. At which point Sarri lifted his arms in jubilation, a member of his backroom team cavorted in front of the United box, and the red mist consumed Mourinho. To be fair to the United manager, he embraced Sarri at the final whistle, and the two seemed to part on good terms. But there was still time for him to reply to dismissive chants from the Chelsea faithful with three fingers, one for each Premier League title he won at Stamford Bridge.

2.28pm BST

Oh yes, and the full-time whistle’s just gone. There had been a football match going on. Remember that?

2.27pm BST

90 min +8: This is madness. We’ve not restarted on the pitch yet, but the players nearly erupt into a brawl as well. On the touchline, a rerun of the Mourinho incident: a member of the Chelsea staff got right up in Mourinho’s grille, celebrating in front of the United boss, who jumped up and tried to run after him down the tunnel. A steward got into the road and stopped things escalating further.

2.25pm BST

A melee in the United box. The ball pings off the right-hand post and falls to Barkley, who slams home from close range! And then a melee on the touchline, as a member of the Chelsea staff runs close to a fuming Mourinho, who looks to engage him in earnest dialogue! This is out of control.

2.23pm BST

90 min +5: Pereira is booked for a time-wasting challenge, 30 yards from goal. It allows Chelsea to send the ball into the mixer. It’s sent out of play on the right. A chance for Azpilicueta to fling in a throw. From which ...

2.22pm BST

90 min +4: Sanchez is booked for a clip on Jorginho’s ankles as Chelsea look to attack. Hazard dribbles down the left and tries to score an outrageous goal from a tight angle. Nope.

2.20pm BST

90 min +2: Lukaku - who has been much improved in the second half - storms down the right and looks for Pogba, marauding down the middle. Rudiger sticks out a telescopic leg and guides the ball back to Kepa. Chelsea go up the other end, through Pedro on the left. Pedro whips a low cross to the near post; Giroud clanks it out of play under pressure from Lindelof behind. There’s a claim for a penalty but there didn’t seem to be much contact. The referee’s not having it, anyway.

2.18pm BST

90 min: Alonso crosses from the left. Azpilicueta blams over from the edge of the box. There will be six added minutes; it was always going to be like this, wasn’t it.

2.15pm BST

88 min: United spend a little time in Chelsea’s half. They go nowhere, but that’s not really the point: the clock is their friend now.

2.14pm BST

86 min: Alonso swings one in from the left. Pedro tries to meet it acrobatically, coming in from the other wing. But no. United - who appear to be battling for their manager, what’s that everyone’s been saying again? - launch clear.

2.12pm BST

85 min: Chelsea win a corner down the right, and waste it. Then Sanchez finally comes on for Rashford. All that faffing around has certainly raised the temperature around Stamford Bridge; the fans are howling with rage, and Sarri’s still on a rolling boil. Welcome back, Premier League!

2.11pm BST

83 min: United prepare to send Sanchez and Pereira on. But for who? Rashford goes down injured and United have a good old think about it. On the touchline, Sarri goes spare at what he considers to be brazen timewasting. Eventually Pereira comes on for Martial, but the other switch isn’t made yet.

2.09pm BST

81 min: Herrera, hoping to latch onto a Pogba cut-back from the right, goes over Kante’s leg in the Chelsea area. Screams for a penalty, but it looked a fair tackle.

2.08pm BST

80 min: Lukaku flicks on a long ball, and suddenly Herrera’s free in the Chelsea box! Kepa comes out to close down the angle. Not particularly convincingly, and Herrera is given the chance to guide the ball past him and into the empty net. But he doesn’t connect properly.

2.06pm BST

79 min: Giroud comes on for the ineffectual Morata. Meanwhile the travelling United fans sing their support for Jose Mourinho.

2.06pm BST

78 min: Chelsea are the league leaders in late goals. Nobody’s scored more in the final 15 minutes of matches than Sarri’s side: eight to Arsenal’s six. They’ll be desperate to find another. But they’ll have to do better than this: Hazard flings a free kick from the right into the area; Alonso takes a fresh-air swipe by the far post. Goal kick.

2.04pm BST

76 min: Rashford goes sliding in on Barkley, who wants a free kick on the edge of the United box. He’s not getting it.

2.02pm BST

75 min: And now Herrera comes on for Mata, as United presumably look to lock it down.

2.02pm BST

74 min: Pedro comes on for Willian.

2.01pm BST

Mata bursts past Luiz on the right. He shuttles the ball inside to Rashford, on the right-hand edge of the D. Rashford keeps the ball moving left, for Martial, in space in the left of the area. Martial takes a touch back inside, then curls an unstoppable effort into the bottom right! Kepa had no chance! And Jose Mourinho’s comeback kings are at it again!

1.59pm BST

71 min: Hazard drifts down the inside-right channel, then cuts the ball back for Kante, who is in acres on the edge of the box. Kante takes a touch to the right, then pearls a shot towards the bottom left. It’s on target, a fine effort, but de Gea’s save, made at full stretch, is even better! Alonso tries to meet the rebound, but nothing’s doing.

1.57pm BST

69 min: Barkley comes on for Kovacic.

1.57pm BST

68 min: Lukaku finds a bit of time and space down the left. He dinks a cross into the middle. Fine work, but there’s nobody there to take advantage and Luiz clears. After a poor first half, United are giving as good as they’re getting. Where have we heard this before?

1.55pm BST

67 min: Mata bustles down the middle. For a second he threatens to break into the area, but Azpilicueta comes across to blast clear. Mata keeps going and takes out his former team-mate. Oof, ooyah, that’s gotta hurt. Mata’s booked, and the pair embrace with a smile when Azpilicueta finally picks himself up.

1.53pm BST

66 min: A free kick for Chelsea out on the right. Willian swings it in. And once again, United’s defending is beyond parody; they allow Luiz a free header from ten yards. Unlike Rudiger in the first half, Luiz can’t take advantage, and sends a lame effort wide left. What a chance spurned!

1.52pm BST

65 min: This is set up nicely now. Chelsea have recovered a little from the blow of the equaliser; United meanwhile look a totally different proposition now. A reminder that, for all United’s travails this season, they’d be only four points behind Chelsea tonight if they were to find a winner.

1.51pm BST

63 min: Pogba drops deep and sends one of his low diagonal fizzers, left to right, towards Lukaku, who powers off down the wing. Luiz, the last man, does very well to stop him getting a shot away, limiting the damage to a corner. The set piece leads to nothing.

1.49pm BST

62 min: Another corner for Chelsea, out on the left again. The ball drops to Kovacic, who takes a fresh-air swipe. United clear.

1.48pm BST

60 min: Hazard probes once more down the left. He drops a shoulder to cut into the area, and sees his low, slightly scuffed, shot deflected wide for a corner. From which nothing occurs.

1.46pm BST

59 min: So much for Chelsea’s early second-half confidence. Their balloon has been thoroughly deflated. They can hardly string two passes together. Now it’s the hosts who have to clear their heads.

1.45pm BST

57 min: Pogba takes up possession 30 yards from goal, turns and curls powerfully towards the top right. Kepa’s got it covered, just about, and it’s high and wide. But suddenly the visitors have their tails up! Chelsea, meanwhile, were annoyed that Alonso was lying on the floor as the ball pinged around their penalty area during the build-up to United’s equaliser, and they addressed the ref accordingly. But the whistler wasn’t having a bar of it.

1.43pm BST

United suddenly come alive, and push Chelsea back. Shaw swings a cross in from the left. Mata shoots, but Kepa parries. The ball breaks right. Young pearls a first-time cross-cum-shot back into the mixer. The ball defects off Jorginho, and drops kindly to Martial, who slams home from six yards!

1.41pm BST

53 min: Pogba, deep inside his own half on the left, tries to fizz a low, diagonal pass to the feet of Rashford, in a lot of space in Chelsea’s half on the right. It’s absurdly ambitious, but there’s nothing wrong with that. However there’s just a little bit too much on the pass, and it flies through to Kepa. Still, what vision!

1.39pm BST

52 min: Luiz beckenbauers his way up the pitch, and then one-twos with Hazard on the edge of the area. Hazard’s cheeky backheel sends Luiz striding into the box down the inside-left channel. He shoots, but it’s blocked. The resulting corner comes to nothing. Chelsea have come out looking very confident.

1.38pm BST

50 min: Hazard’s back up. He’s fine to continue. Young’s challenge was deemed hard but fair, hence no penalty or second yellow. Hazard’s not making a song and dance about it.

1.37pm BST

48 min: Hazard goes at Young down the left, then turns on the jets. He fires a fierce shot goalwards from a tight angle, but it’s safely gathered at his near post by de Gea. Young slides in a couple of milliseconds later, and catches Hazard, who goes down in pain, clutching his ankle.

1.35pm BST

47 min: A glorious, bustling burst from Jorginho, straight down the middle, past Smalling, on walkabout, with ease. He feeds Morata on the edge of the United box. Morata miscontrols, but is still able to spin and get a shot away. It’s not much of an effort, a dribbler towards the bottom left that’s easily snaffled by de Gea.

1.32pm BST

And we’re off again! No changes. Mourinho takes his seat in the dugout looking pretty relaxed. His team get the ball rolling once more.

1.19pm BST

Half-time reading:

Related: Paul Scholes should turn fire to those behind Manchester United’s demise | Barney Ronay

Related: ‘It’s changed their lives’ – England amputee footballers target World Cup glory

1.18pm BST

Mata hoists a cross in from the left. Luiz clears. Then Martial pointlessly clatters into the back of Rudiger, releasing the pressure. Chelsea go up the other end, Willian not able to get the better of Shaw down the right. And that’s it for the first half. Chelsea have dominated, but needed Pogba to fall asleep in order to get their goal. They’ll hope to improve in the second half; United need to.

1.15pm BST

45 min: A rare United attack finds Pogba free down the left. He reaches the byline, but his pullback is to nobody in particular and easily cleared by Azpilicueta.

1.13pm BST

43 min: Chelsea knock the ball around in pretty triangles for an age. United can’t get a sniff of it at all.

1.11pm BST

41 min: Jorginho, out on the left, nearly releases Willian into the United area with a glorious crossfield pass. Not quite, but the crowd appreciated the effort and ambition.

1.10pm BST

40 min: Morata tries to curl one into the top right from distance, but it doesn’t go well. He’s been poor so far this afternoon; Giroud will have itchy feet right now.

1.09pm BST

39 min: Chelsea continue to push United back. But the visitors are looking a little more secure right now, holding their shape. Willian can’t open them up down the right.

1.07pm BST

37 min: Matic is robbed in the midfield. Chelsea stream forward. Alonso crosses from the left, hoping to find Morata, but Lindelof does very well to hold off the striker and head clear.

1.06pm BST

36 min: Chelsea with more of the passing.

1.04pm BST

34 min: Mata sends an uncharacteristically unimaginative free kick into the mixer; Morata heads clear without drama.

1.04pm BST

33 min: Chelsea hog the ball awhile. But then a fortunate ricochet finds Rashford out on the right. He races into acres of space, and is cynically brought down by Hazard on the right-hand edge of the box. A yellow card for Hazard, and a free kick in a very interesting position for United.

1.02pm BST

31 min: United’s defence goes AWOL again as Kante loops a pass down the inside-left channel. Alonso is totally free in the area! But he can’t take the balll down and United escape. If that had been Hazard, United would have been in all sorts of bother.

1.01pm BST

30 min: Rudiger is booked for contesting an aerial challenge with Pogba a little bit too roughly. A moment of concern for United as Pogba holds his shoulder and grimaces, but he’ll be OK by the looks of it.

12.59pm BST

28 min: Rashford and Luiz come together in the Chelsea box as the former cuts in from the right. It’s deemed a fair shoulder charge, and a goal kick. A couple of United players claimed a penalty, but Rashford wasn’t particularly annoyed about it.

12.58pm BST

27 min: United really do need to clear their heads. Young, who has already irritated the ref by chatting back, goes in the book for clattering into Hazard from behind.

12.57pm BST

26 min: They’ve just shown a replay of the goal. Pogba was certainly stationed to pick up Rudiger, but fell asleep as the defender span off from the left-hand corner of the box to meet the ball in the middle. Pogba then showcased his frustration in the super-animated style.

12.54pm BST

24 min: Hazard skedaddles down the left, drifts inside, and nearly breaks clear into the box. United need to clear their heads, and quickly.

12.53pm BST

23 min: Willian has a little look down the right, but can’t get anything going and eventually swings the ball out of play for a goal kick. United look a little stunned; they had started promisingly, only for their defence to let them down yet again.

12.52pm BST

United’s defence goes off on holiday. Rudiger is allowed a free header from a central position, ten yards out. Into the bottom left it goes! De Gea had no chance. Rudiger was Pogba’s man, by the looks of it. A great header, but there was no resistance whatsoever!

12.50pm BST

20 min: Hazard probes down the left. He reaches the byline, pauses, and pulls one back for Kante, whose shot is blocked. Then another phase, as Kovacic slips a pass down the inside-left channel for Hazard, whose fizzer through the six-yard box forces Lindeof to hack out of play for a corner. From which ...

12.48pm BST

18 min: The corner is all the way back at de Gea’s feet in a matter of seconds.

12.47pm BST

17 min: But United come back at Chelsea again, Mata slipping the ball to Martial down the left. A corner.

12.46pm BST

16 min: Chelsea only half-clear the resulting free kick. Shaw, out on the left, curls a fine cross onto Lukaku’s head. The big striker sends a weak header wide left; he should have done much better.

12.45pm BST

15 min: Matic strides down the right and is upended by Kovacic. It’s a free kick, nothing more, but Young and his manager Mourinho are both incensed at the non-decision. Mourinho jigs and gesticulates on the touchline; Young harangues the ref so much he earns a good talking to.

12.43pm BST

13 min: Lukaku and Rashford cause a little bother down the right, but Jorginho intercepts and lays off to Hazard, who is manhandled from behind by Matic. The United player - who was lucky to escape censure a couple of minutes ago - goes in the book.

12.41pm BST

11 min: After taking an age to work out what to do, Willian leans back and sends a dismal free kick miles over the bar, and wide right to boot. He’s driven his manager to tabs: on the touchline, Sarri sucks pensively on a cigarette butt.

12.40pm BST

9 min: Young crashes into Hazard. It’s a clumsy barge in the back. The crowd want a yellow card, but it’s just a free kick, and Hazard doesn’t complain, winking at Young when he gets back up. From the free kick, Hazard dribbles across the front of the United box, left to right, forcing Matic to cynically bring him down just to the left of the D. This is going to cause United a little concern, as Willian, Luiz and Hazard stand over it.

12.38pm BST

7 min: A couple of promising bursts down the inside-left by Mata. He’s crowded out both times, but his ball-glued-to-toe bustling causes Chelsea some concern. Their former man is seeing plenty of the ball in the early exchanges.

12.35pm BST

5 min: Kante has a dig from 25 yards, and blooters it straight into his France team-mate Pogba’s startled coupon. Then some space for Alonso out on the right; he swings one in for Morata, who climbs all over Smalling and concedes a free kick. It’s been a brisk, promising start to the match.

12.33pm BST

3 min: But Chelsea are on the front foot too. Willian bursts down the right and swans past Shaw. He pulls the ball back for Hazard, but it’s bouncing and the Premier League’s hottest player can’t connect properly. He scuffs a shot, and the danger is gone.

12.32pm BST

2 min: Young slips a ball down the right and nearly releases Rashford. Luiz comes across to slide the ball into touch. From the resulting throw, Mata earns a corner. United pack the box, but Azpilicueta heads the set piece clear without much fuss. A bright start by United, though.

12.30pm BST

And we’re off! Alvaro Morata gets the ball rolling! Luiz launches it long ... and straight out of play. A fine atmosphere at Stamford Bridge, as you’d expect for such a big match.

12.28pm BST

A blast of Parklife, then the Liquidator, and the teams are out! And it’s quite a picture on a crisp autumn afternoon; you can’t beat blue versus red. “A human zip file? Yeah, quite obsolete but hanging on, for now.” Ladies and gentlemen, please give it up for IT/sport satirist Arvid Gerge.

12.12pm BST

“I like the way Jose praises Mata for being without ego and a team player, before referring to himself seven times in his last two sentences,” writes Ian Copestake. Yes, it was a great little interview, wasn’t it. Two minutes, and he’s registered his displeasure with Belgium and Chile, praised one player while possibly sending a shot across the bow of another, heaped pressure on Chelsea and Juventus, and done a PR number on the home fans. So much to decode and unpack from such a brief chat; he’s like a human zip file. A masterclass in communications, and entertaining to boot. We’ll miss him when he’s gone, you know.

11.58am BST

Sarri talks! “Morata has trained very well in the last three days. Giroud played 90 minutes on Tuesday, while Morata played on Monday for only 20 minutes. Kovacic is very fresh; Ross has played two matches in four days so I thought it better to go with Kovacic. United’s starting XI is very offensive. But we want to perform with our philosophy and control the match, and avoid their counter-attacks. Hazard knows what to do; I want him to be absolutely free in the last 35 metres.”

11.49am BST

Jose speaks; the world listens. “We have had a couple of training sessions, not at high intensity, but we have done some tactical work to try to prepare the team. We have lost a lot of players in the internationals, especially Fellaini, who was injured Thursday last week but we only realised he was injured Wednesday this week. Alexis come direct from Mexico to London, he didn’t even go to Manchester, we didn’t know his condition, but that’s international football. Mata is Mata, one of our, I like to call them, team players. He thinks about the team, he is not selfish or egocentric, he just wants to help. He is what I like to call a proper professional. This is a big match, in three days we play the best team in the country and, in Juventus, the best team in Europe. It gives to me a sense of happiness, to see the distance between them and us. These are fantastic matches, the feeling to play against the best teams is a great feeling. I cannot promise, but I hope if my team scores a goal, I will try to behave. If my team wins, I will try to be respectful, because that’s the way they were with me.”

11.38am BST

Both teams make two changes to the starting XIs selected before the international break. Chelsea recall Mateo Kovacic and Alvaro Morata, dropping Ross Barkley and Olivier Giroud, who started the 3-0 win at Southampton, to the bench.

Manchester United reinstate Victor Lindelof and Juan Mata, while benching Eric Bailly. Scott McTominay, who was played all over the place in that 3-2 whirlwind affair with Newcastle, doesn’t feature at all.

11.31am BST

Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Alonso, Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic, Willian, Morata, Hazard.
Subs: Fabregas, Barkley, Pedro, Caballero, Giroud, Zappacosta, Cahill.

Manchester United: de Gea, Young, Lindelof, Smalling, Shaw, Pogba, Matic, Rashford, Mata, Martial, Lukaku.
Subs: Bailly, Sanchez, Andreas Pereira, Fred, Ander Herrera, Romero, Darmian.

10.44am BST

The annoyingly protracted international break is over, and the Premier League returns with a bang. It’s one of the greatest rivalries in English football! It’s Chelsea versus Manchester United! It’s on!

Suffice to say there’s no real need to big this one up. But hey, let’s do so anyway.

Continue reading...

The Fiver | Sergio Ramos and a masterclass in deflection

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!

Who’d have thought it? A couple of months in and the Uefa Nations League can almost be considered a qualified success! England have finally found something they’re a little bit better at than Germany; Raheem Sterling’s goals have piqued £100m interest from Real Madrid, good news for anyone less than excited by the prospect of Manchester City doing a Juventus/Bayern/Queen’s Celtic over the next 17 years, which let’s face it, is very much on the cards; and this type of list works best rhythmically in threes, but this is all we’ve got. Two reasons are more than enough, though, when you consider expectations going into this thing were significantly less than zero.

Related: David Squires on … England's travels in the Nations League

Continue reading...

Football transfer rumours: Raheem Sterling to Real Madrid?

Today’s rumours have got the oven gloves out

Manchester City will have been delighted to see their man Raheem Sterling silence his England doubters by breaking his international goalscoring drought the other night. The only problem is, having done so in Spain, his superb performance was staged right under the noses of increasingly fidgety Real Madrid officials. And now they’re preparing a £100m bid. How’s that for timing?

Related: Next Generation 2018: 60 of the best young talents in world football

Continue reading...