Scott Murray's Blog, page 92

The best and worst moments of Diego Maradona’s turbulent career | Scott Murray

From dazzling as a 16-year-old to shooting football journalists with an air rifle, the Argentinian’s life was like no other

Related: Diego Maradona: the achingly human superstar who embodied Argentina | Marcela Mora y Araujo

Related: 'We felt invincible in those days': Naples pays its respects to Maradona

Related: Child genius Diego Maradona became the fulfilment of a prophecy | Jonathan Wilson

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Olympiakos 0-1 Manchester City: Champions League – as it happened

Phil Foden’s fine goal was enough to settle an otherwise drab encounter and send City into the knockout stage

8.14pm GMT

Jamie Jackson’s verdict is in. Thanks for reading this MBM.

Related: Phil Foden sends Manchester City into last-16 with win over Olympiakos

8.10pm GMT

Pep on Diego. “There are a few incredible players in history, and he is one of them. He was something that makes sport better. What he has done in world football is incredible. It is difficult to find a person or player who loved this game more than him. It is sad news for the world of football.”

8.06pm GMT

Pep on the match. “We played incredibly well. Unfortunately we couldn’t score more goals, but I don’t know how many shots on target we took. We played really well in all departments. We are already in the next round and now we can focus on the Premier League and other competitions. A big compliment for the team.”

7.59pm GMT

The match-winner Phil Foden speaks. “Fair play to them, they came out fighting in the second half and made it hard for us. We did well to dig in and get the result. Raheem is a great player in those areas, and somehow he saw me and pulled the backheel off. Thanks for the assist!” He’s then informed that City never lose when he scores. “Is that true?! Well, it’s good then, innit.”

7.48pm GMT

The whistle goes. That was a truly dreadful match, though the goal that decided it was a beautiful piece of football. City won’t care, because they’re through to the knockout stage without breaking too much of a sweat, or picking up any fresh injuries. A quietly efficient day at the office for Pep and his men.

7.45pm GMT

90 min +2: Cisse goes up with Dias and gives the City man a good old clatter. Dias takes the opportunity to stay down for a bit, in the classic clock-management style.

7.44pm GMT

90 min +1: Camara crosses from the right. Cisse wins a header at the far post but can only send his effort high and wide.

7.43pm GMT

90 min: There will be four added minutes.

7.42pm GMT

88 min: Rafinha drives down the left. His cross is blocked and only half cleared by Fernandinho. From the left of the D, Fortounis traps, flicks and volleys wide right. The hosts have left this very late.

7.39pm GMT

86 min: Gundogan is booked for a cynical tug on Fortounis and immediately replaced by young Thomas Doyle.

7.39pm GMT

84 min: Semedo looks for Fortounis down the right. He belts the ball deep into the stand behind the goal. That is dismal, though Olympiacos are trying to launch the odd sortie now. They’ve taken their time.

7.37pm GMT

82 min: A little space for Soudani out on the right. He drops a shoulder and moves infield, taking a shot as he enters the box. It’s blocked, and the flag goes up for offside. But at least that’s something from Olympiacos. Does it qualify as an attempt at goal? Probably not.

7.34pm GMT

81 min: Sigh.

7.32pm GMT

79 min: This match is in danger of grinding to a complete standstill.

7.31pm GMT

78 min: Jesus and Mendy make way for Aguero and Zinchenko, while the hosts swap Masouras for Soudani.

7.29pm GMT

76 min: Mahrez and Fernandinho come on for Sterling and Rodri.

7.29pm GMT

75 min: Sterling and Foden combine down the inside-right channel to find Silva on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. Silva dribbles a weak shot across the face of goal and out for a goal kick.

7.26pm GMT

73 min: Fortounis crosses from the right. Masouras goes up for a header, but can’t connect. Stones sashays off with the ball, and there goes a great chance for Olympiacos’s first attempt on target!

7.25pm GMT

72 min: Pepe makes way for Bouchalakis.

7.24pm GMT

71 min: Cancelo dribbles exotically down the right then dinks to the far post, where Foden slaps a header wide. A good chance and a poor header.

7.23pm GMT

70 min: To be fair, Olympiacos are missing quite a few players through injury and Covid.

7.21pm GMT

68 min: The hosts are achieving absolutely nothing. No wonder: they’re trying very little and taking few risks. This is painful viewing.

7.20pm GMT

66 min: The first change of the evening, as Drager is replaced by Vrousai.

7.20pm GMT

65 min: A second goal is coming soon, surely. Sterling bustles down the inside right and fires a low cross towards Silva. After some high-octane pinball, Silva tries to flip home from six yards. His effort is straight at Sa, who gathers gratefully.

7.18pm GMT

64 min: Cancelo bursts into the box down the middle, flicked in cutely by Rodri, but blasts his shot straight at Sa.

7.17pm GMT

63 min: Sterling slips a ball into the box for Jesus, who goes over when chasing it. He claims Semedo fouled him, and indeed there’s a light tug on his arm, but neither referee nor VAR are interested. It would have been a soft one, but you’ve seen them given.

7.15pm GMT

62 min: That was City’s 18th attempt on goal, and their ninth on target. Olympiacos’s totals: zero and zero. They have been little short of appalling, a complete non-event.

7.14pm GMT

61 min: ... Cancelo has a whack through a crowded box. Sa gathers without fuss or drama.

7.13pm GMT

60 min: Mendy bursts down the left. His dangerous low cross somehow evades Sterling and Jesus in the middle. City come again, Jesus working his way down the right and earning a corner. From which ...

7.12pm GMT

59 min: See 57 min.

7.11pm GMT

57 min: City are looking for the second goal that would surely seal the deal, but not with any manic urgency. They’re in control, and little is happening.

7.09pm GMT

55 min: Cancelo shoots. The ball takes a huge deflecetion off Jesus, and nearly bobbles into the bottom right, past the wrong-footed Sa. But the ball goes wide of the post, and Jesus was offside anyway.

7.08pm GMT

54 min: Dias is booked for giving Drager a cynical shove on the back of the head, ‘accidentally’ brushing past him as the Olympiacos man prepares to take a throw. He pleads his innocence to no avail.

7.06pm GMT

53 min: Mendy tries his luck from a great distance. Nope.

7.05pm GMT

52 min: Ba clips Foden out on the left. Foden takes the free kick. With a pleasing narrative purity, Ba heads it clear.

7.04pm GMT

50 min: Camara gives away possession in his own box. Foden has a crack but his effort is blocked. The ball breaks to Gundogan, who has time to open his body and sidefoot powerfully towards the top right. He should hit the target from the edge of the area, but slaps the ball wide right. A huge chance.

7.03pm GMT

49 min: Silva glides in from the right and takes a pop. It’s easily gathered by Sa, and Silva would probably have been better laying off to Sterling, in space on the penalty spot to his left.

7.02pm GMT

48 min: City stroke it around casually. No need to fuss and fret, they’ve qualified for the knockout phase as things stand.

7.00pm GMT

46 min: Gundogan comes through the back of Camara. No yellow. Camara isn’t happy about it. So much for everyone calming down.

6.58pm GMT

Olympiacos get the second half underway. No changes.

6.47pm GMT

Half-time entertainment. Here’s our man Rob Smyth on the late, great Diego Maradona, taking on the entire world at Italia 90.

At Italia 90, Diego picked a fight with the entire world - and came *this* close to winning.https://t.co/Y2Jn9xnDK9

6.44pm GMT

Nothing comes of the corner, and that’s the end of the first half. A chance for everyone to calm down, as it was all getting a bit heated and the pot was threatening to boil over.

6.42pm GMT

45 min +1: Sterling whips a wonderful free kick over the wall and towards the top left. Sa does extremely well to stick out a strong arm and tip out for a corner.

6.41pm GMT

45 min: Before the free kick can be taken, Stones and Ba start a shoving match. Play nicely, now.

6.40pm GMT

44 min: Sterling has a shot. Sa parries. City come again through Mendy down the left. Ba takes him down. A free kick just to the left of the D. Can City double their lead just before the break?

6.39pm GMT

43 min: Sterling attempts to dribble his way through the middle. If he goes down, under a couple of flailing challenges, he’s getting a free kick on the edge of the D. But he scrabbles to stay up, and eventually loses possession.

6.38pm GMT

41 min: Tempers are fraying, though. Camara comes through the back of Sterling, who momentarily contemplates throwing hands but wisely gathers himself in time. Rafinha comes across again to have his say, but it all calms down quickly enough. The resulting free kick is hoicked into the box and dealt with easily by Sa.

6.36pm GMT

39 min: Cisse and Sterling tussle for the ball. It’s a hard but fair battle. Then Rafinha comes over to join in, whereupon he and Sterling shove each other in the playground style. Both are booked for their nonsense.

6.35pm GMT

38 min: A suggestion that Rodri had slapped Drager in the mush during the build-up to the goal. It looked accidental, though you’ve seen fouls given for less.

6.33pm GMT

This is a delicious goal. Gundogan sends a ball down the left for Jesus, who shuttles it further on to Sterling. The City stand-in captain backheels from the byline, and Foden sweeps home into the bottom right. Such a lovely flowing move!

6.31pm GMT

35 min: Pepe threatens to dribble into space in the centre circle. Gundogan has two nibbles at his ankles and takes him down. He’s slightly fortunate not to go into the book, as Pepe had a couple of options ahead of him with City again light at the back.

6.29pm GMT

33 min: Some space for Cancelo on the right. He wallops hard towards the near post, but again the keeper handles well. Sa has grown in confidence after a slightly underwhelming start.

6.28pm GMT

31 min: Silva slips a ball down the inside-left channel for Jesus. Camara stops and holds his hand up, claiming offside. But Jesus isn’t, and he dribbles into the box. Sa gets his team-mate out of trouble with a fine block.

6.27pm GMT

30 min: Gundogan plays a quick pass forward down the left, releasing Jesus into space. He drives at the Olympiacos defence then plays a square ball that’s toe-poked back upfield by a defender. Stones tries another quick pass, but his drill down the right flies harmlessly out of play for a goal kick.

6.25pm GMT

29 min: Rodri goes down after crashing into Camara’s shoulder. That will have hurt a lot, a proper crack across the bridge of the nose. After a bit of treatment, he’s up and about, shaking his head in the pained style. No claret, and he’s good to continue.

6.23pm GMT

27 min: Ba clips Jesus and it’s a free kick just to the left of centre, 35 yards out. Foden curls it in. Dias rises, six yards out, but the ball sails an inch or so over his head. Nearly.

6.22pm GMT

25 min: Camara robs a complacent Foden and drives forward. He’s got options either side but the move immediately breaks down. Once again, though, City looked a bit vulnerable with that high line. A better pass, and there was trouble at mill.

6.19pm GMT

23 min: Gundogan passes the ball straight out of play. City have suddenly lost a little momentum.

6.18pm GMT

21 min: Olympiacos string a few passes together. They don’t go anywhere, but that’s not really the point: for the first time in the match, they’ve had a decent period of possession. Baby steps.

6.15pm GMT

19 min: Dias strokes long, hoping to release Jesus down the middle. Cisse reads the play well and heads clear, just in the nick of time.

6.14pm GMT

17 min: Rodri slams the ball straight into Pepe’s coupon. Pepe goes down, in order to grab a breather as much as anything else. Olympiacos are being pulled around all over the shop.

6.12pm GMT

16 min: Ba tries to blast the ball upfield, but falls over and lets it run out of play for a corner instead. Nothing comes of it, but dear me. This is not a confident start by the hosts. A City opener will surely come sooner rather than later.

6.11pm GMT

15 min: Foden is allowed to make smooth progress along the inside-left channel. He eventually reaches the area before fizzing a low diagonal shot inches wide of the right-hand post. Sa might have had that covered, he might not. This is all City, with Olympiacos struggling to get out of their final third.

6.09pm GMT

13 min: Mendy forces a corner out on the left. From the set piece, Foden and Jesus take turns to fail to get sufficient purchase on a header from six yards. Semedo eventually hacks clear.

6.09pm GMT

12 min: Fortounis scampers after a long ball down the middle. He’s caught offside, but there’s the old City high line that was exploited so efficiently by Spurs at the weekend. A better-timed run by the Olympiacos captain and City were in trouble.

6.07pm GMT

10 min: Silva jigs down the left and whips a sudden cross into the box. Jesus attempts to flash a header across Sa and into the right-hand side of goal, but sends it straight at the keeper.

6.05pm GMT

9 min: Foden spins his way into space down the inside-left channel and shoots from a tight angle. Sa gathers at his near post.

6.04pm GMT

8 min: Sa shanks a dismal clearance straight at Jesus, who tries to find Foden on the left-hand side of the six-yard box with an instant crossfield pass. Not quite.

6.02pm GMT

6 min: Sterling tries to open the hosts up with a crisp one-two on the edge of the Olympiacos box. He can’t get through. He thinks he’s been illegally checked, but the referee isn’t interested.

6.01pm GMT

5 min: City are enjoying the bulk of possession in these early stages, as they so often do.

6.00pm GMT

3 min: Mendy crosses from the left. Semedo clears. Rodri latches onto the dropping ball and belts a screamer goalwards. It’s hit hard enough to rip the net, and perhaps take the frame of the goal with it, but keeper Sa bravely gets in the way. Lucky he parried that with his gloves, because that could have taken his head off. What a blooter!

5.58pm GMT

2 min: A quiet start to the match. Both teams take turns to string a few passes together and get a touch of the ball.

5.56pm GMT

The show must go on, and so City get the game started. The players take a knee. Black lives matter. There’s no room for racism. And then the ball starts rolling.

5.55pm GMT

Before kick-off, a minute’s silence in memory of Diego Armando Maradona (1960-2020). Adiós Diego, gracias por todo.

5.52pm GMT

The teams are out. Olympiacos wear their first-choice red and white stripes, while City sport second-choice black. A blast of the Champions League anthem, and we’ll be off in a couple of minutes.

5.43pm GMT

Pep Guardiola talks to BT Sport. “It’s a new game with new players. Everyone is ready. Sterling is ready to go. Aguero is not ready for 90 minutes, one step at a time. I have some ideas, but the game dictates substitutions. Walker and De Bruyne are fatigued, many games, mental fatigue. They were a little bit tired. Now we have players back it’s good for them to take a week off.”

The interview was recorded before the news of Maradona’s passing broke.

5.38pm GMT

Christian Karembeu is currently strategic advisor at Olympiacos, and he’s been talking to BT Sport. “We are deeply sad. Our thoughts to the family. Diego is a legend, and we will always remember his spirit and talent. Diego was incredible. We will miss him a lot, we regret his loss. He was unique, he developed his skills as a child and when he became a professional player he never changed himself. He is a galactico.”

Also a little bit about tonight’s match: “We are third in the competition. We will try to fight to gain points. Our people need to understand this competition, and we need to demonstrate it on the pitch.”

5.27pm GMT

A lovely anecdote from Owen Hargreaves on BT Sport. “My first game in professional football was Lothar Matthaus’s testimonial. Diego was supposed to play, but it was late in the day, five minutes before the game, he wasn’t there. So we thought somebody else would have to step in. And then Diego came in the dressing room, got changed, got his gear on real quick, put his Puma Kings on, still untied, had an espresso as he walked out juggling the ball onto the pitch, and everybody was like: Diego Maradona is here! We looked at him as though he wasn’t real. He was larger than life.”

5.09pm GMT

RIP Diego.

We're joining the footballing world in saying farewell to one of the absolute greats.

RIP Diego Maradona pic.twitter.com/n16SGF3KXn

5.05pm GMT

Pep Guardiola makes five changes to the team named for the 2-0 defeat at Tottenham. John Stones, Ilkay Gundogan, Benjamin Mendy, Phil Foden and Raheem Sterling - today’s captain - step up. Ferran Torres, Aymeric Laporte and Riyad Mahrez drop to the bench, while Kyle Walker and Kevin De Bruyne miss out altogether.

5.04pm GMT

Olympiacos: Jose Sa, Semedo, Ba, Cisse, Drager, Camara, M’Vila, Rafinha, Pepe, Fortounis, Masouras.
Subs: Soudani, Bouchalakis, Ruben Vinagre, Androutsos, Vrousai, Papadopoulos, Karargyris, Tzolakis, Sourlis, Nikolis, Kitsos, Tsavos.

Manchester City: Ederson, Joao Cancelo, Stones, Dias, Mendy, Bernardo Silva, Rodri, Gundogan, Foden, Gabriel Jesus, Sterling.
Subs: Aguero, Zinchenko, Steffen, Laporte, Torres, Fernandinho, Mahrez, Carson, Garcia, Nmecha, Doyle, Palmer.

3.52pm GMT

Manchester City have been spluttering in the Premier League, but in Europe they’re flying. It’s three wins out of three for Pep Guardiola’s side in Group C, and if they make it four this evening by beating Olympiacos in Piraeus, they’ll qualify for the knockout stage with a couple of matchdays to spare.

If the meeting between the two sides in Manchester earlier this month is anything to go by, that isn’t too big an ask. City won 3-0, Ferran Torres, Gabriel Jesus and Joao Cancelo scoring the goals. City are strong favourites. But they’ll be mindful of Olympiacos’s home record in Europe: the Greek champions have only lost two of their last 16 continental fixtures at the Stadio Georgios Karaiskakis. Also, Pedro Martins’ side were good enough to bundle Arsenal out of last season’s Europa League. They’ll be desperate to take another English scalp as they chase down second-placed Porto.

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The Fiver | Knock-off gongs out in time for Christmas and Gordon's long goodbye

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It’s less than a month until The Fiver doles out its annual Christmas awards. Inevitably, the market will soon be saturated with cynical shysters offering cheap imitations of the real thing, and sure enough here come Fifa, first out of the blocks. They’ve got some tinpot scheme going called The Best, which we had assumed was the intellectual copyright of Morrisons (UK) and Tina Turner (all other international markets), but clearly not. The shortlists for these Taste the Difference rip-offs have been announced this morning, with voting to take place over the next fortnight ahead of a ceremony just before Christmas. So in the spirit of the season, and not because it’s a very slow news day, we’ll give these knock-off gongs some space.

Related: Leeds' Marcelo Bielsa makes Fifa shortlist for men's manager of the year

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Manchester United 4-1 Istanbul Basaksehir: Champions League – as it happened

Bruno Fernandes was the two-goal hero as United flew out of the blocks, moving to within a point of qualification for the knockout stage

10.26pm GMT

Jamie Jackson’s verdict from Old Trafford is in, bringing this MBM to its natural conclusion. You know what to do: clickity click! Thanks for reading this live blog. Nighty night!

Related: Bruno Fernandes leads Manchester United to Istanbul Basaksehir win

10.25pm GMT

Ole speaks! “First half, you saw the intent straight away. The boys wanted to play, they enjoyed it, it’s a Champions League night at Old Trafford. You expect them to enjoy themselves. We created some great chances, some very nice goals, and I was very pleased. Donny can play in different positions, Edinson is a good old-fashioned number nine, and we haven’t had that for a while, and I was very happy with how Anthony played on the left. Marcus is a very good penalty taker, and Bruno is very confident, so if Bruno wants to give it to Marcus, so be it. They can share them around. When you are 3-0 up you take the foot off the pedal. I think they enjoyed the second half more than the first, but 4-1 in the Champions League, you are happy with. We need one more point but we want to top the group. PSG are coming here and we look forward to that one.”

He also reports that Lindelof has a back problem, Wan-Bissaka some trouble with his ankle, but both should be OK for the weekend.

10.11pm GMT

The brilliant Bruno Fernandes speaks frankly to BT Sport. “I think we played really well, starting the game with the right mentality: stronger, intense. The first half was really important to get the points today. [The first goal] was a really good goal, you need to be ready when you are outside the box to shoot ... or sometimes to stop the game, stop the counter! This time was to shoot, maybe next time I need to take a yellow card, I don’t know! [Huge cheeky smile] After the last Premier League game, I told Rashie he could take the next penalty, so I remembered that. And also he is one of the top scorers in the Champions League, it’s important for him to keep going there and take that confidence. It doesn’t matter who takes. When the team scores, I score too. It is a good position [in the group] but we can’t relax. We need to win the next game on Sunday, but then we have time to think about the next game in the Champions League.”

10.01pm GMT

PSG ended up beating Leipzig 1-0. Both of those teams are now on six points in Group H, three behind leaders United. Basaksehir prop up the table with three points. Next up for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side: PSG at home. Having already done a number on last season’s finalists away, and needing just one more point, they’ll be confident of doing enough to make it through to the knockouts, especially as they’re now on a seven-game winning streak at Old Trafford, running up an aggregate score of 24-2. Mind you, if they give Neymar and Mbappe the chances they gave Basaksehir tonight ... it promises to be a great match, put it that way.

9.56pm GMT

There’s just enough time for Greenwood to shoot and Gunok to save, and that’s the end of a fine evening’s entertainment. United were magnificent in the first half, attacking with verve and panache. Not so good in the second, but then they made a tranche of changes, so that’s understandable. The three points keeps them top of the group, and they now only need a point from their final two matches against PSG and Leipzig to make the knockout stage!

9.53pm GMT

90 min +3: It’s been the dictionary definition of a curate’s egg, this one.

9.52pm GMT

United counter at speed. Van de Beek slips Greenwood into acres on the right. Greenwood reaches the edge of the box and rolls across for James, who ends a long scoring drought by opening his body and sidefooting confidently into the bottom right!

9.51pm GMT

90 min +2: Turuc loops in from the right. De Gea claims. And then ...

9.50pm GMT

90 min +1: The first of four added minutes goes by without any great drama.

9.49pm GMT

90 min: James drives down the left and enters the box, pulling back for Greenwood and nearly teeing up the striker, six yards from goal. Basaksehir swarm and clear.

9.48pm GMT

89 min: Turuc is booked for some minor indiscretion or other.

9.48pm GMT

88 min: Greenwood springs clear and nearly rounds Gunok, but the keeper clears well. He’s out of his area, though, and Cavani tries to dispatch the ball into the empty net from distance. He doesn’t quite get a hold of his ambitious effort, and the keeper can get back to gather.

9.46pm GMT

87 min: Carlos Ponck comes on for Martin Skrtel. Then a little space for Visca just inside the United box on the left. His low shot is weak and straight at De Gea. He should have done much better.

9.45pm GMT

86 min: Maguire is booked for taking his own sweet time over the resulting free kick.

9.44pm GMT

85 min: Tekdemir is booked for a crude block on Fred. United have dampened Basaksehir’s post-goal verve a little.

9.43pm GMT

83 min: Space for Cavani out on the right. His cross nearly clears the Stretford End. Too much wonderfuel gas behind that one.

9.42pm GMT

82 min: Suddenly United are looking very nervous. Tuanzebe and De Gea get in a muddle. Then Rafael bursts down the right and wallops low towards the near post. Ba tries to trap and shoot, but he should have left it for Gulbrandsen behind him. Ba whips into the side netting, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer sends on Nemanja Matic for Anthony Martial.

9.39pm GMT

80 min: Visca drifts in from the right and unleashes a stunning shot towards the top left. De Gea is beaten all ends up. The ball crashes off the crossbar and away to safety.

9.38pm GMT

78 min: Skrtel catches Cavani from behind, clumsily more than aggressively. He deserves his booking though.

9.37pm GMT

77 min: United try to bounce back immediately from a free kick of their own. Telles takes it, curling it from the left flank to the far post. He nearly finds Maguire ... but not quite. Goal kick.

9.36pm GMT

Ba is bundled over by Fred, just to the left of centre, 25 yards from goal. Turuc whips it over the wall and into the top left. For a second it looks like De Gea has clawed it out, but the referee’s watch buzzes. It’s well over the line. That’s a wonderful free kick ... and a wake-up call for United.

9.34pm GMT

73 min: A double change for Basaksehir: Hasan Ali Kaldirim and Giuliano come on for Berkay Ozcan and Boli Bolingoli.

9.33pm GMT

72 min: Basaksehir press United back, Ba and Visca drawing pretty triangles out on the left flank. Maguire is forced to blooter unceremoniously into the stand before screaming at his team-mates to get back up to speed. United have dropped their intensity since making that tranche of subs.

9.30pm GMT

70 min: Greenwood is fed by James down the inside-right channel, and takes a whack when he reaches the area. His effort is blocked, but he’s been lively since coming on.

9.29pm GMT

69 min: Visca continues to probe down the left. Williams hasn’t got up to speed yet, and is fortunate that the Basaksehir winger continues to make some strange decisions.

9.27pm GMT

67 min: Visca wins the ball off a lumbering Williams and scampers off down the left wing. He’s got space and options in the middle, but opts for a weird delivery that’s neither cross nor shot. The ball flies off harmlessly into the stand behind the goal.

9.24pm GMT

65 min: Tekdemir brazenly wrestles Martial to the ground as the United striker looks to break. A free kick, but for some reason not a yellow card.

9.22pm GMT

63 min: A change for Basaksehir, as Nacer Chadli makes way for Fredrik Gulbrandsen, who scored twice at the weekend.

9.21pm GMT

62 min: Greenwood’s first act is to dribble with great purpose down the right and consider shooting upon entering the box. He leaves it too late. He settles for a corner, and gets on the end of it at the near post. Deflection. Another corner, this time on the right. Maguire gets a free header from that one, and sends it miles over the bar.

9.19pm GMT

60 min: United make a triple substitution. On come Mason Greenwood, Brandon Williams and Daniel James; Marcus Rashford, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Bruno Fernandes are the lads getting a rest. Wan-Bissaka is the only one of the three to head straight down the tunnel; coupled with the frown on his face, he may have picked up a problem.

9.17pm GMT

58 min: Turuc drives at Martial down the right and cuts back for Rafael, who attempts a dream curler into the top left on his return to his old stomping ground. Full marks for ambition.

9.16pm GMT

57 min: A simple pass down the middle nearly opens United up. Ba threatens to latch onto the ball and break clear ... but Maguire comes across and wins a tough tussle.

9.14pm GMT

55 min: Tuanzebe is booked for flapping his arm across Ba’s face as the pair contest a high ball. That means he won’t be available for selection next week against PSG.

9.13pm GMT

53 min: From the corner, Visca is this close to breaking away a la Ba in the first game. Rashford does extremely well to shepherd him to the wing, then hold him up, eventually forcing him to turn tail. Lightning doesn’t strike twice.

9.11pm GMT

52 min: Telles continues to patrol the left wing with sassy confidence. He pings a cross to win a corner, which he takes himself. He nearly finds Cavani at the far post, but the ball sails all the way through the six-yard box. Fernandes does well to retrieve the situation, gathering the loose ball and winning a corner on the other side.

9.10pm GMT

50 min: Visca has been Basaksehir’s best player by some distance, and here he drops a shoulder before cracking a fine low drive towards the bottom left. De Gea is unsighted, so does brilliantly to stick out a late, strong hand to turn the ball around for a corner. Great football all round ... until the corner’s taken. That’s a waste of time.

9.09pm GMT

49 min: Bolingoli carelessly gives the ball away to Fernandes out on the United right. Fernandes drifts infield, considers shooting, but slips Cavani in down the channel instead. Cavani should score, but over-elaborates, gets the ball stuck under his feet, and can only force a corner. Nothing comes of the set piece.

9.07pm GMT

48 min: Ba spins Tuanzebe and threatens to burst into the United box. Maguire steps in to intercept and clear.

9.06pm GMT

46 min: Easy to forget that Basaksehir were romping into the United box after 15 seconds or so. They try the front-foot gambit again, but Wan-Bissaka is having none of it and clears his lines.

9.04pm GMT

United get the second half underway. They’ll be looking to whistle a few more goals past the uncertain Mert Gunok’s lugs. But they also need to conserve energy, with a big game at Southampton coming up on Sunday, so Axel Tuanzebe replaces Victor Lindelof, who has been struggling recently with a bad back. Meanwhile Basaksehir replace Irfan Can Kahveci with Mahmut Tekdemir.

8.53pm GMT

Half-time entertainment. Chelsea ensured their place in the knockout stage next year. Here’s Tumaini Carayol’s verdict.

Related: Giroud strikes late against Rennes to seal Chelsea's spot knockout stages

8.50pm GMT

Elsewhere in the multiverse, United lead 7-0, while another parallel dimension has the score at 3-3. It’s been that sort of game. More please!

8.47pm GMT

45 min: A free kick of Basaksehir out on the left. They make an absolute balls of it, and suddenly United are four on two! Rashford, skittering down the right, tries to chip across for Cavani, who is totally free on the left. Bolingoli gets a head in the way. Then a long clearance nearly releases Ba, only for Lindelof to make a last-man intervention. This is ludicrously wonderful.

8.45pm GMT

43 min: Turuc slips a pass down the left for Bolingoli, who reaches the corner of the six-yard box and backheels for Ba. The striker shoots towards the top right, but it’s not a clean whack and Maguire is able to deflect it out for a corner. Fine defending, but he should never have been given the chance. Ba has now missed two sitters. Nothing comes of the corner.

8.42pm GMT

41 min: This match is absurdly open, and being played out at 101 miles per hour. It is excellent entertainment.

8.41pm GMT

39 min: Visca whips in from the right. Maguire loses Ba, who should score from six yards ... but sends a dismal header miles over the bar. United stream up the other end, five on three, Martial setting up Fernandes who tries to poke under Gunok from the edge of the box. The keeper does well to block.

8.39pm GMT

38 min: Fred clatters into Visca out on the right. Free kick, and a chance for the visitors to load the box.

8.38pm GMT

37 min: There’s no way this is going to end 3-0.

8.38pm GMT

Rashford takes a worrying stuttering run-up ... Fernandes has missed a couple this season with these antics ... but there’s no need to fret! Rashford gives the keeper eyes, sending him one way and rolling his penalty into the bottom right! What ice-cool brilliance.

8.36pm GMT

35 min: Yep, it’s a penalty. But here’s what being a team-mate is all about: Fernandes, on a first-half hat-trick, gives the ball to Rashford. There’s generosity!

8.35pm GMT

34 min: There’s no question that Bolingoli has conceded a penalty ... but was Rashford offside as he sprung away from Bolingoli on the halfway line? VAR is checking.

8.34pm GMT

33 min: Lindelof rakes a glorious long pass down the right. Rashford gets ahead of Bolingoli, and races towards the box. Once in the area, Bolingoli barges Rashford in the back. Rashford goes over, and the referee points to the spot.

8.33pm GMT

31 min: Ba dribbles a shot on the turn towards the bottom right. De Gea gathers with a yawn. But Basaksehir are attacking with confidence, despite it all.

8.31pm GMT

29 min: Fred belts an appalling blind pass that crashes into Ba’s midriff. With United light at the back, and Visca ready to help his team-mate launch an attack, Fred is very lucky that the referee blows for handball. It did hit Ba’s arm, but there was bugger all he could do about it.

8.30pm GMT

28 min: Visca has been Basaksehir’s biggest threat so far. He takes charge of the set piece, and whistles a respectable effort over the wall and inches wide and high of the top-left corner. But De Gea has it covered all the way and watches calmly as it sails over.

8.28pm GMT

27 min: Ba bustles down the middle and is tripped by Wan-Bissaka, who gets the ball but a big chunk of the man too. A free kick in a dangerous position, though it’s right on the limit for a direct shot.

8.26pm GMT

25 min: A free kick for Basaksehir out on the right. They play it short, then Kahveci sends a long diagonal pass towards Skrtel, making a nuisance of himself in the box. The cross is no good and sails apologetically out for a goal kick.

8.25pm GMT

24 min: Another half-chance for Basaksehir, as Visca rolls a pass across the face of the United box from the right. Kahveci shoots, but he’s falling backwards, and Maguire is able to close him down and block.

8.24pm GMT

23 min: Telles has been superb so far. He breezes down the left at warp speed, before finding Rashford on the opposite wing with a raking pass. Nothing comes of the move, but the new left-back is causing all sorts of bother out on his wing.

8.23pm GMT

21 min: Gunok had the good grace to look embarrassed. That’s about the best you can say. What an abysmal error, just as his team were beginning to ask a couple of questions up the other end.

8.21pm GMT

Bruno Fernandes’s first goal was sensational; this one is a fiasco. Telles crosses from the left. Cavani goes up but is never going to get it. Gunok should catch, but lets the ball spring off his fingertips, the ball dropping to Fernandes, six yards out, in front of an open goal. In it rolls.

8.19pm GMT

17 min: Ozcan dribbles across the face of the United box, left to right, in the George Best versus Sheffield United style, before teeing up Visca. The resulting shot from 20 yards finds the top-right corner ... of the Stretford End. He should have done much better. United have been effervescent in attack, but Basaksehir have worried the defence on a couple of occasions now.

8.17pm GMT

16 min: Neymar has put PSG one up at home against Leipzig. Everything matters in this tight group.

8.16pm GMT

14 min: I can exclusively reveal that this isn’t going to end 1-0 either. Within the space of 60 seconds, Fernandes fizzes a speculative shot wide left of goal, then Ba takes a fresh-air swipe at a decent chance from 12 yards, Basaksehir having put their first decent attacking move together down the right. Breathless stuff!

8.14pm GMT

12 min: Van de Beek finds Fernandes in the middle. He immediately shuttles the ball down the inside-right channel for Rashford, who shouldn’t get to the ball before the out-rushing Gunok, but somehow toe-pokes through the hesitant keeper’s legs and in from a tight angle! But the flag goes up for offside.

8.13pm GMT

11 min: Martial and Rashford combine at pace down the left. Martial drives into the box and whips infield. His cross is too high for Cavani. Only just, though.

8.11pm GMT

9 min: It’s not often you can say a goal had been coming after seven minutes. But here we are. United started magnificently, and this is their reward.

8.09pm GMT

Wow! Maguire slips a pass down the left for Telles, who wins a corner off Rafael. Telles takes himself. Epureanu heads clear. The ball drops to Fernandes, just to the right of the D. Fernandes meets it on the half-volley, sending a rising net-ripper into the top right! Gunok had no chance at all. That was a blistering strike!

8.06pm GMT

5 min: Telles has a burst down the left, but can’t quite find anyone infield. United come again through Martial, who dribbles down the same wing and along the byline. He tries to find Rashford with a cutback, but the national treasure is closed down. Great start by United. This isn’t going to end 0-0.

8.05pm GMT

2 min: Now United stream forward. A cute Fernandes flick out on the right, infield between two defenders, sends Rashford dribbling with elegance down the middle. A sashay on the edge of the box, and suddenly he’s got space to shoot. His effort is blocked by Gunok, who spills, instigating a flurry of fevered activity. The rebound doesn’t quite drop for Rashford, who cocks his head back in annoyance. That move deserved a goal.

8.02pm GMT

1 min: Basaksehir start very much on the front foot, Turuc bustling into the area from the left. He’s never in control and De Gea is able to clear. The visitors are shooting towards the Stretford End in this first half.

8.01pm GMT

And we’re off! Basaksehir get the ball rolling ... but not before all players take a knee. Black lives matter. There’s no room for racism.

8.00pm GMT

The teams are out! Manchester United are in their famous red shirts; Basaksehir sport second-choice blue. United wear black armbands in honour of their former midfielder Maurice Setters, part of their 1963 FA Cup final winning team, who passed away earlier this week. We’ll be off in a minute.

Related: Maurice Setters, Republic of Ireland assistant to Jack Charlton, dies aged 83

7.45pm GMT

BT Sport have a word with Ole. “The group is very open. We opened the group up with the performance we had last time, so tonight is about getting that performance right. Hopefully that’s enough to get the result. Donny has been a very good addition to the squad, a fantastic lad. He started well in Turkey but we had to change towards the end to try to get a goal. The balance of the team meant we took him off. But tonight I’m sure we are going to see him enjoy himself again. Cavani has scored a good goal against Everton, has been away with Uruguay and scored, getting his fitness, and for us he’s a different striker. He gets in where it hurts, gets his head on the ball, so hopefully we can provide some crosses and feed him with chances. You know when you give a team a two-goal lead, they have something to hang onto, it’s always hard and they hung onto it. We had a goalline clearance towards the end but we just didn’t create enough. We want the first goal tonight, that’s important in games like this.”

7.39pm GMT

Pre-match pessimism / brazen fate-tempting. “This should be straightforward but United will most likely labour and make a meal out of it as per lately,” sighs Neil Carter. “Henderson should have started and Lindelof should have been rested as he’s been struggling with his back. Tuanzabe should have gotten some minutes. But what do I know eh. Shame there are no fans in the stadium to welcome back Rafael.”

7.10pm GMT

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer names an attacking team. Donny van de Beek gets a rare run out, while Edinson Cavani makes his first start for United. Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata drop to the bench, the two sacrifices in the wake of the uninspiring win over West Bromwich Albion at the weekend. David de Gea is selected ahead of Dean Henderson, who played in Istanbul.

Basaksehir name ten of the 11 players who started the reverse fixture three weeks ago. Nacer Chadli, formerly of West Bromwich Albion, takes the place of Danijel Aleksic on the left wing. Demba Ba, who scored that goal, spearheads the Turkish champions again. Chadli and Ba aren’t the only erstwhile Premier League stars in the Basaksehir XI: Martin Skrtel, once of Liverpool, marshals their defence alongside former United favourite Rafael.

7.02pm GMT

Manchester United: de Gea, Wan Bissaka, Lindelof, Maguire, Telles, van de Beek, Fred, Martial, Fernandes, Rashford, Cavani.
Subs: Mata, Greenwood, Grant, James, Fosu-Mensah, Ighalo, Henderson, Pellistri, Matic, Williams, Tuanzebe, Mengi.

Istanbul Basaksehir: Gunok, Da Silva, Skrtel, Epureanu, Bolingoli Mbombo, Ozcan, Visca, Chadli, Kahveci, Turuc, Ba.
Subs: Babacan, Kaldirim, Kivanc, Giuliano, Tekdemir, Gulbrandsen, Ponck, Kaplan, Karakus.

3.50pm GMT

On the face of it, this shouldn’t be a particularly difficult assignment for Manchester United. İstanbul Başakşehir have lost their last three European away games, conceding eight goals in the process. They’ve lost ten of their 16 away matches in Europe, letting in 33 goals and keeping just one clean sheet. And their five-match unbeaten run in the Turkish Super Lig came to an end at the weekend, two late Fredrik Gulbrandsen goals putting a flattering sheen on a 3-2 defeat at city rivals Beşiktaş.

However United’s form at Old Trafford is nothing short of downright weird. The narrow win over West Bromwich Albion at the weekend was their first victory at home in the Premier League this season. They’ve lost four of their last seven home Champions League fixtures, and three of their last four games against Turkish opponents. On the flip side, they won all five of their home games in last season’s Europa League, scoring 15 times and conceding just the one. They’re currently on a six-game winning streak in Europe at Old Trafford; the aggregate score is 20-1. They recently routed last season’s semi-finalists Leipzig 5-0. Good luck sifting through all this evidence.

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The Fiver | Reaching the Phase of Missed Sitters, Embarrassment and Recrimination

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The busy 2020-21 season continues to hurtle along at breakneck speed. Big Cup returns this evening after a two-minute hiatus, and three of England’s representatives have the opportunity to make it through to the knockout stage in short order, giving themselves a little breathing space. Chelsea are on a five-game winning tear and, if they make it six tonight in Rennes, they’ll progress providing Euro Vase champions Sevilla don’t lose at Krasnodar. Frank Lampard will be praying it all works out, so he can effectively sack off the visit to Seville, which is sandwiched between next weekend’s annual donnybrook with Tottenham, and the visit of Marcelo Bielsa, Leeds and history (recent, ancient and personal). There’s a fair chance Chelsea won’t have a full complement of legs after that lot, so every little helps.

Related: Pep Guardiola claims Manchester City's goal problems are his fault

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Tottenham 2-0 Manchester City: Premier League – as it happened

Spurs went top of the Premier League as City’s sluggish start to the campaign continued

8.10pm GMT

David Hytner was in situ to take it all in. Here’s his match report. Click, enjoy ... and thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night!

Related: Son and Lo Celso take Tottenham top with win over Manchester City

8.09pm GMT

Pep’s verdict. “The perfect scenario for them. We conceded a goal after five minutes. After that they defended so deep. They had two shots on target. The spaces were minimal. We tried to find solutions but we couldn’t do it. We created chances but the reality is we are struggling to score goals. I think we have the ability and quality to score goals. I don’t have the feeling we are playing bad. We come here away, we have more shots on target, we concede less shots on target, we have more possession, but football is the details in the boxes. We are further away than we want to be, and we have to start to win. We want to be there, it is a weird season and I must start to lift the players.”

8.01pm GMT

Jose Mourinho talks. “I prefer the players to speak, because they are the ones. They gave everything, they followed a strategy, and they were amazing. It was very important to respect them, and not forget who they are. People are speaking about them being not as good as before, following the fake table, because they have one match in hand. So super congratulations to the players. City is a fantastic team that lost against a team that was strategically good. City is still City. Everything was very good.” He also reports that Toby Alderweireld has an “important” injury, a “fatigue one”. When asked if it will be a long-term injury, he grimaces: “I would say so.”

7.50pm GMT

A clearly frustrated Kevin De Bruyne has his say. “We played well but missed that cutting edge. To keep Tottenham to three or four chances, that’s quite good, but if you’re not sharp it’s tough. There have been a lot of changes, it’s difficult to find the consistency. The first two thirds of the pitch we’re playing really well. I don’t know the rules any more, honestly. They change. I’ve been playing professional football for 12 years and the first nine there was no rule changes. And the last few years there has been a lot. I don’t know why, football is such a nice game. But the guys who make the rules should be people in the game. Just so inconsistent. We had about seven days of pre-season. So what do people expect of us? It’s the same for everybody, but sometimes we’re tired.”

7.37pm GMT

The sensational Harry Kane speaks to Sky. “A fantastic performance. We knew it would be a tough game. We had a game-plan to defend as a unit in a mid block, sometimes as a low block, and everyone worked their socks off. We knew in the second half chances would be available, and we took one towards the end. We knew if I dropped deep the centre halves would come quite tight and Sonny and Stevie could get in behind, and the first goal is the perfect example. You’ve got to do all it takes to win games. Part of my job is to work hard and win tackles as well as goals and assists, I enjoy defending, the feeling after putting in a great shift, there’s none better. We’re doing well but there are parts we can improve on and there are a lot of tough games to go. Whoever can put a good spell together will have a chance. Hopefully we’ll keep it up.”

7.27pm GMT

That’s a magnificent display by Tottenham, who go top of the Premier League table. Harry Kane, Tanguy Ndombele and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg were all outstanding this evening. Jose Mourinho - after shaking hands with a drained Pep Guardiola - walks off the pitch with the springy step of a man who knows a title challenge is a very realistic possibility. They’re on 20 points, eight ahead of City, stuck in tenth albeit with a game in hand. City were good in the first half, but the less said about the second the better, and while the Premier League is far from a pipe dream, they’re already in a position where they can’t afford too many more mistakes. This is going to be one hell of a title race.

7.22pm GMT

Jose Mourinho has done a number on his arch-rival Pep Guardiola.

7.21pm GMT

90 min +1: Cancelo tries a curler into the top right, but it’s no good. “Perhaps too early to say this but I really can’t see City winning the title this season,” begins Rick Harris. “If it stays like this and United beat the Baggies later in then they will go above their neighbours and City will drop into the bottom half of the table. That is crisis territory surely?” It’s certainly the worst start to a season in Pep’s managerial career: 12 points from the first eight games. His previous low was 16, something that happened twice at Barcelona, and once at City, last year.

7.19pm GMT

90 min: Now Kane goes in the book for a fairly agricultural slide through the back of Dias. De Bruyne takes the free kick, to the right of centre, 30 yards out. He floats it to the far post, where Dias must score, but heads straight at Lloris from six yards.

7.17pm GMT

89 min: Nothing comes of the free kick.

7.17pm GMT

88 min: Lo Celso snatches the ball off Jesus and begins a run down the left towards the City box. Torres clips him cynically and goes in the book as well.

7.16pm GMT

87 min: Kane breezes down the left and draws a cynical foul from Dias. The City defender goes into the book. Kane really has done a number on the City centre-backs tonight. He’s been fantastic.

7.13pm GMT

85 min: Moura floats in from the left, draws a couple of defenders, and is this close to releasing Son free down the inside-right channel.

7.11pm GMT

83 min: Reguilon and Jesus clash heads. A free kick for City, 30 yards out, just to the right of centre. De Bruyne wedges it in, but Sterling can’t get on the end of it close to the left-hand post. Goal kick.

7.10pm GMT

81 min: Alderweireld limps off. Joe Rodon, who has played one minute of football so far for Spurs since joining from Swansea, takes his place.

7.08pm GMT

80 min: Mourinho was preparing to send on Gareth Bale, probably in place of Son. But suddenly Alderweireld goes down holding his groin. He won’t be able to continue. Jose alters his plans.

7.06pm GMT

78 min: Jesus dribbles with purpose down the inside-right channel, making it as far as the box. He shoots. It’s blocked. He grimaces.

7.04pm GMT

76 min: Dier blooters the free kick straight into the City wall, though it nearly squeaks through to Son. That would have been an outrageous stroke of luck. Laporte clears.

7.04pm GMT

75 min: Kane brings down a high ball and glides towards the City box from deep. He’s pulling Laporte and Dias all over the shop. Dias is panicked into bringing him down, 25 yards out. “Harry Kane is the best 8, 9 and 10 in the Premier League,” suggests Gary Naylor.

7.01pm GMT

73 min: Bergwijn is replaced by Lucas Moura.

7.00pm GMT

72 min: Pep rolls the dice. Silva and Mahrez make way for Foden and Sterling.

7.00pm GMT

71 min: Laporte has looked shaky against Kane all evening. Kane nearly spins him with absurd ease. Laporte does just enough to get back and nibble at the ball, but for a second the Spurs captain looked ready to burst clear on goal.

6.59pm GMT

69 min: As things stand, Spurs will be going top with 20 points. City will be stuck in tenth, eight points back, albeit with a game in hand.

6.56pm GMT

67 min: City look visibly deflated. Spurs were proving difficult enough to break down, and now they’ve got a cushion. A big 25 minutes coming up here. Can City respond?

6.55pm GMT

Kane spins in the centre circle and races into the City half. He spots Lo Celso scampering down the inside-left channel. Lo Celso’s got the lead over the desperately backtracking De Bruyne. He enters the box, then slips the ball between the legs of the out-rushing Ederson. He’s been on the field for 35 seconds! This is turning into another Mourinho Masterclass.

6.53pm GMT

64 min: Ndombele is replaced by Lo Celso. Mourinho throws an arm around his shoulder, a relationship repaired. And what a substitution this is! Because ...

6.52pm GMT

63 min: Kane slips Son free down the inside left. Ederson comes haring out of his box. It’s a rash decision, but he gets way with it, because Son takes a heavy touch as he tries to round him on the left. Son scampers off to retrieve the ball by the corner flag, with the net gaping but tantalisingly out of reach. For a split second, City were in a world of trouble.

6.50pm GMT

61 min: Dier’s clearing header rolls along the nearby Sissoko’s arm. Nobody in a City shirt complains, and VAR doesn’t seem that interested either. A few Spurs hearts in mouths when that one was being replayed, I’ll be bound.

6.48pm GMT

60 min: ... De Bruyne tries to thread a shot into the bottom right from the edge of the box. Dier blocks that out for another corner.

6.48pm GMT

59 min: Spurs commit a few men in attack for once. Son nearly gets a snapshot away from 15 yards; Kane and Sissoko nearly open City up with a cute one-two down the right. Not quite, and City break upfield, winning a corner on the right. From which ...

6.45pm GMT

57 min: Walker drives hard at Spurs, then slips the ball wide for Torres, who opts to turn tail rather than heading towards goal. He’s forced to lay off to Silva, who crosses deep in the hope of finding Jesus at the far post. Too much. Goal kick.

6.43pm GMT

55 min: De Bruyne latches onto a loose ball on the right-hand corner of the Spurs box, then harmlessly floats it over the bar from a tight angle. A chip? A cross? Not sure.

6.42pm GMT

54 min: Some more space for De Bruyne, but an uncharacteristically loose pass as he tries to release Jesus down the inside-right channel. Lloris comes out to gather.

6.41pm GMT

53 min: Mahrez cuts in from the right and whistles a diagonal daisycutter towards the bottom left. It’s an easy enough snaffle for Lloris.

6.40pm GMT

51 min: Space for De Bruyne 30 yards out. He turns and advances on the Spurs box. He curls low towards the bottom right ... but the ball’s always flying a couple of feet wide. That’s the first time he’s been afforded so much time and space today. More chances to come as hard-working Spurs become tired?

6.37pm GMT

49 min: Bergwijn drives down the left and slides in Reguilon on the overlap. The full-back fizzes a ball through the City box, but there’s nobody in lilywhite to take a shot.

6.35pm GMT

47 min: City press the hosts back immediately. More of the same. Rodri shifts the ball to make space, 25 yards out, but his low shot is blocked easily enough.

6.33pm GMT

City get the second half underway. No changes.

6.21pm GMT

Half-time entertainment. In case you missed it earlier this week, John Ashdown’s retelling of the 1954 World Cup final is a must-read.

Related: Hungary's Golden Squad: the greatest team never to win it all? | John Ashdown

6.20pm GMT

The whistle goes. De Bruyne and Jesus argue with the referee about the disallowed goal, before trooping off with faces on. It’s been all City in terms of possession ... but Spurs are halfway to a classic Mourinho rope-a-dope. As things stand, Spurs are going top, and City are dropping more points in an uncharacteristically slow start to the season. A big second half coming up for both teams in the context of this season’s Premier League, for very different reasons.

6.16pm GMT

45 min: De Bruyne, perhaps getting a little frustrated at City’s inability to open Spurs up, takes a shot from distance. It pings off Hojbjerg and out for a corner. De Bruyne takes, and it’s easy meat for Lloris, who claims and sends Bergwijn scampering off down the left. Walker comes across to run the ball out for a throw, as he had to. Bergwijn would otherwise have been one on one with Ederson.

6.14pm GMT

44 min: Sissoko is booked for delaying the restart after a Spurs foul, a few minutes go.

6.14pm GMT

43 min: Walker sashays down the right and nearly opens Spurs up. But some determined work by Hojbjerg puts a stop to his gallop.

6.12pm GMT

41 min: Cancelo busies himself down the inside-left channel again. He enters the box and lets Torres take over. A tangle of bodies, but no fouls. The ball breaks to Jesus, who whips over the bar from a tight angle, ten yards out.

6.11pm GMT

39 min: Lloris takes his sweet time over a goal kick. The Mourinho masterclass continues. City betray their agitation.

6.08pm GMT

37 min: Spurs hold their shape. City can’t work any space. It’s more intriguing than exciting right now.

6.06pm GMT

35 min: Laporte comes through the back of Kane. Again, another referee on another day would have flashed a yellow card for that one, but it’s just a free kick. City are showing a few signs of frustration, despite playing pretty well, regardless of the score.

6.05pm GMT

34 min: Now it’s Tottenham’s turn to look fairly comfortable for a couple of minutes. Mourinho will be beyond pleased with how this match has panned out for him so far.

6.03pm GMT

32 min: Kane spins away from two City shirts in the centre circle. He’s planning to launch a counter, but Silva sticks out an arm, then a boot, to stop him in his tracks. A clever if sneaky foul that could have got Silva booked on another day, but the referee’s not of a mind to make too much of it.

6.01pm GMT

31 min: Cancelo powers his way down the inside-left channel and into the Spurs box. Aurier does extremely well to stay shoulder to shoulder and eventually overcome his opponent.

6.00pm GMT

Referee Mike Dean goes over to the VAR screen, spots the ball brushing the arm of Jesus, and changes his decision. Rodri is incensed and hops about in theatrical fashion with his head in his hands, but the ref waves his protest away.

5.58pm GMT

Mahrez crosses deep from the right. Jesus jumps to chest down on the left-hand corner of the six-yard box. He pulls back to Laporte, who sidefoots powerfully into the bottom left. Brilliant finish ... but did the ball hit Jesus on the arm when he took it down? Here comes VAR.

5.57pm GMT

25 min: Spurs snaffle possession and counter again. It’s four on three! Kane slips the ball wide for Hojbjerg on the left. Hojbjerg pulls back for Bergwijn, free just inside the box. He dithers, though, allowing Rodri to come from behind and poke away. Bergwijn falls, and wants a penalty, but the referee is quite rightly not interested.

5.54pm GMT

23 min: They’ve just shown a replay of the Spurs goal. Kane’s role in it was subtle and quite brilliant. As Ndombele prepared to play the defence-splitting pass, Kane dropped deep, taking both Laporte and Dias with him. Bingo: space for Son to race into. He’s an incredibly intelligent footballer.

5.52pm GMT

21 min: City are certainly dominating. They’re pushing Spurs right back. They win a succession of corners: one, two, three. Aurier battles Torres on the edge of the six-yard box, just about winning the duel. City are knocking at the door.

5.50pm GMT

19 min: City have enjoyed 67% possession so far, and taken five attempts at goal. Spurs have had just the one. But look at the score.

5.49pm GMT

17 min: De Bruyne dazzles his way down the right and whips towards the near post. Dier is forced to stick out a leg and deflect away for a corner. The set piece is mainly notable for Bergwijn getting as close to the taker Mahrez as the law allows. Mahrez shouts in frustration as Bergwijn grabs a cheeky extra yard or two. The corner is subsequently wasted.

5.45pm GMT

15 min: Free kick for City out on the right. De Bruyne lifts it in. Rodri powers a header straight at Lloris. Either side of the keeper and that could have caused the keeper serious problems.

5.45pm GMT

13 min: Spurs have the ball in City’s net again. Bergwijn works the ball wide to Son, who rolls across the face of the City goal for Kane to tap in. But Kane is well offside, and he clearly knew it, apologetically poking home. The flag goes up.

5.43pm GMT

12 min: Torres bustles down the left and into the Spurs box, then falls to the floor when Sissoko comes over to usher him away from goal. The referee isn’t interested in awarding a penalty, and rightly so.

5.42pm GMT

11 min: Spurs continue to sit back and let City do their worst. Again they eventually break up play, and Bergwijn romps down the left on the counter. His low cross looks for Son, but the striker can’t control and the move breaks down. City were wide open there, though.

5.40pm GMT

9 min: Jesus dribbles into the Spurs box from the left at great speed. His twinkle toes prepare to shoot on the six-yard line. Alderweireld sticks out a brave leg to block. What a challenge! That’s saved a goal ... although the ball balloons to De Bruyne, who has another dig. That one smacks into the prone Jesus, and out for a goal kick. It’s fair to say this has been an eventful start.

5.38pm GMT

7 min: City look to respond immediately. Cancelo and De Bruyne probe down the left. Mahrez has a look down the right. Then De Bruyne comes over and nearly powers his way past Reguilon, but is penalised for barging into the back of the Spurs left-back.

5.36pm GMT

This is absurdly easy. Ndombele has the ball in the centre circle. He rolls a pass down the middle to find Son in acres of space. Ederson has come to the edge of his box, making Son’s mind up for him. Son slides it under the keeper, and once again he’s scored at home against City. What a start!

5.35pm GMT

4 min: Some room for Silva just inside the Spurs box on the left. Alderweireld blocks. Spurs counter through Son and Kane, the latter sweeping the ball left for Reguilon, who decides to take on Walker in a foot race. Bad choice. Walker wins that one.

5.33pm GMT

3 min: Spurs seem happy to sit back and let City have the ball. The visitors stroke it around at the back. Everyone gets a touch.

5.32pm GMT

2 min: An early touch for the in-form Torres, who zips past Son on the left, drifts inside, and whistles a rising shot straight at Lloris. An exciting run.

5.30pm GMT

Spurs get the ball rolling ... but only after the players take a knee of love and solidarity. There’s no room for racism. Black lives matter.

5.30pm GMT

Before kick-off, a moment of applause in memory of the great Ray Clemence, who spent seven years in the Tottenham goal during the 1980s.

Related: Ray Clemence obituary

5.28pm GMT

The teams are on the pitch. Spurs in their lilywhite, City in second-choice black. We’ll be off in a couple of minutes. “Of course real football fans only care about the players on the pitch, all this Jose v Pep drama is media-generated melodrama. Who’s kidding who? This is the best kind of water cooler gossip and we all love it so!” Mary Waltz can speak for me. Meanwhile Tony Barr wonders if Pep has fallen for a classic Mourinho double bluff. “Surely, master of mind games that he is, Jose stated that Sterling would start knowing this would force Pep to bench him, thus weakening City’s attack? Or did you already get to that? I’m finding it hard to keep track.” He’s got you exactly where he wants you.

5.20pm GMT

Pep isn’t in the mood to take any nonsense, and there’s an edge to his pre-match interview. “Sterling trained one day in the last week, but he has special physicality. It’s not perfect-perfect. It is important Aguero is back. All clubs need their players, and Sergio ... what can I say as a striker? He is amazing. [Cracks huge face-covering grin] Team is perfect, so good! We score 100 in the last two seasons. Team is so good, we are going to try to do it again! Go out there, let them play, and try to do their best.” He sounds really up for this one. A fair bit of needle in the air tonight. Rise above it if you like, but there’s good old-fashioned fun to be had scrabbling around down here.

5.14pm GMT

Jose talks to Sky with that twinkle in his eye. “Progress is a process. An isolated match doesn’t tell us much. But of course this is an important match against a team for the last ten years is always champion or trying to be champion. So it is going to be very difficult. We are not as ready as Sterling because he was resting the whole week, but we are fine. We are ready for the game. Bale was with his international team, playing 90 minutes plus 75, which at this moment for him in his evolution is quite a lot. Bergwijn was with us recovering and training. We have a lot of matches to play.” A couple of early salvoes there. The jibe about Sterling keeps that particular plate spinning, but there’s also the passive-aggressive reference to City being a championship-chasing team for the last decade, i.e. long before Pep. You know exactly which buttons he’s attempting to press here. A maestro of the form.

5.07pm GMT

Pre-match yada-yada. “What do you think the chances are that Pep isn’t starting Sterling just so he can stick it to Jose who insisted that he ‘knew’ Sterling would start?” asks a man who is clearly going to answer his own question. JR in Illinois replies: “I would put my guess at right around 100%.” JR would also like to illustrate his point via the medium of Seinfeld:

4.39pm GMT

Tottenham make two changes to the XI named for the last-gasp victory at West Bromwich Albion. They’re without Matt Doherty, who has tested positive for coronavirus, while Gareth Bale drops to the bench. Serge Aurier and Steven Bergwijn take their places.

Manchester City also make two changes, from the side that drew 1-1 with Liverpool. Riyad Mahrez and Bernardo Silva are in; Ilkay Gundogan and the much-discussed Raheem Sterling are benched. Sergio Aguero is back from injury and named as a sub, but Fernandinho is still out.

4.32pm GMT

Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Aurier, Alderweireld, Dier, Reguilon, Sissoko, Hojbjerg, Bergwijn, Ndombele, Son, Kane.
Subs: Bale, Hart, Rodon, Lo Celso, Lucas Moura, Davies, Vinicius.

Manchester City: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Laporte, Joao Cancelo, De Bruyne, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus, Torres.
Subs: Stones, Sterling, Gundogan, Aguero, Steffen, Foden, Garcia.

11.06am GMT

One of the best things about the 2020-21 Great League of Unpredictability is the sheer amount of summit meetings it’s throwing up. Before the international break we had Manchester City versus Liverpool. Tomorrow evening Liverpool take on Leicester City; the day after that, Wolves play Saints. And right now we have Tottenham Hotspur versus Manchester City, which on its own terms is a monster match, but is even more combustible when you throw in Jose and Pep. This one really is on!

Good luck calling it. Had they not shipped those three late dramatic goals against West Ham, Spurs would be on a five-match Premier League winning streak. As it is, they’ve taken 13 points from the last 15 and will go top with another win here today. They’ve beaten City on their last two visits to N17, 2-0 in the league back in February, 1-0 in the Champions League the previous April. The way Son Heung-min and Harry Kane are carrying on, a hat-trick of victories is far from beyond them.

Related: Pep Guardiola renews José Mourinho feud over Sterling's England withdrawal

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Newcastle United 0-2 Chelsea: Premier League – as it happened

Newcastle barely laid a glove on Chelsea, who move serenely to the top of the Premier League table, for a few hours at least

2.50pm GMT

Louise Taylor was at St James’ Park, and her verdict has landed. You know what to do: clickety click. Thanks for reading this MBM.

Related: Tammy Abraham strike seals victory at Newcastle and sends Chelsea to the top

2.45pm GMT

Steve Bruce talks. “We got off to an awful start ... first half in particular maybe we were a bit too passive ... second half was much better but you open up and they can pick you off ... our best spell in the game was unfortunately when we conceded the second one ... we had one or two opportunities but didn’t quite take them ... maybe we were too deep in the first half and gave them a bit too much respect ... they’re a very good side and can expose you ... there’s always grumbles ... it was a difficult afternoon.” He also reports that Lascelles’ injury is “a strange one ... he ran out to test his knee then felt his thigh ... but we hope he’s not too bad”.

2.36pm GMT

Frank Lampard talks to BT Sport. “We played well ... the second goal was so important and we hand chances to score it earlier ... but you can’t have it all your own way ... we put the game away very well in a professional performance ... in the first half we were great ... we had control and penetration ... the result is key because the Premier League is tough and relentless ... I’m very pleased ... I’m not going to get excited about going top for five minutes, it’s time to stay humble ... it’s a long race.”

2.26pm GMT

Tammy Abraham speaks. “It’s a fantastic result. We dug deep. It’s never an easy place to come and get three points, but we did that today. We didn’t let the international break distract us. We had to come out all guns blazing and that’s what we did. We kept our confidence and kept going. Obviously top is where we want to be. We need to keep getting the three points and hopefully we’ll stay there.”

2.22pm GMT

Newcastle usually give Chelsea a hard time at St James’ Park. Not today. They were utterly impotent. Chelsea didn’t have to get out of third gear to cruise to the top of the Premier League. Frank Lampard has turned his side, seven games unbeaten now, into genuine title contenders.

2.21pm GMT

90 min +2: Carroll romps down the left. He hasn’t scored in the Premier League for two-and-a-half years ... and the wait goes on as his low shot is deflected into the side netting. Nothing comes of the resulting corner.

2.18pm GMT

90 min: There will be three extra minutes ... but this has been over for a long while now.

2.17pm GMT

89 min: James loops in from a deep position on the right. Giroud sticks out a leg, hoping to steer a volley into the bottom right, but it’s always screwing wide and the flag goes up in any case.

2.16pm GMT

88 min: James stands on Longstaff’s toe. Free kick to the left of the Chelsea box. Longstaff stays down a while, grimacing with pain. But eventually he springs back up again. Newcastle load the box. Almiron looks for Carroll but James gets in the road and nuts clear.

2.15pm GMT

87 min: Ziyech comes off, in his own sweet time, to be replaced by Giroud. Meanwhile corner for Newcastle on the left ... but it’s a complete non-event.

2.14pm GMT

86 min: Newcastle ping it around in Chelsea’s half, but don’t really build any pressure.

2.13pm GMT

84 min: Lewis crosses from the left, but the ball flies high above Carroll. Newcastle have barely threatened Chelsea today.

2.11pm GMT

83 min: James slips Ziyech into space on the right. Corner. Zouma tries to get another header away but can’t connect properly this time.

2.09pm GMT

82 min: Emerson comes on for Chilwell.

2.08pm GMT

80 min: Nothing comes from the set piece.

2.07pm GMT

79 min: Almiron opens his legs down the left and batters a rising shot towards the top left. The ball takes a nick off Zouma, forcing Mendy to turn around the post for a corner.

2.06pm GMT

78 min: A long Kovacic pass down the right. Mount spins Fernandez with absurd ease, and should make it three, clear in the box. But he scuffs his shot across Darlow and wide left. Chelsea have passed up some chances today.

2.04pm GMT

76 min: That’s Werner’s last act of the afternoon. He’s replaced by Hudson-Odoi.

2.04pm GMT

75 min: Ziyech draws three players before slipping a pass down the inside-left channel to release Werner. The striker rounds Darlow on the left and slots home. But he’d gone too early, and the flag correctly goes up for offside.

2.02pm GMT

74 min: Saint-Maximin has been uncharacteristically quiet today. He’s replaced by Carroll.

2.01pm GMT

72 min: Sean Longstaff nearly scores one of the goals of the season. A corner on the right is worked back up the flank. Longstaff takes a touch, 30 yards out, and sends a fierce short-backlift riser towards the top left. Mendy is beaten all ends up, but the ball pings off the top of the crossbar. So close to an absolute stunner.

1.59pm GMT

71 min: Schar romps down the middle and trips over his own feet. The ref gives him a free kick. There haven’t been any hugely controversial calls today ... but there have been some strange decisions.

1.57pm GMT

69 min: Almiron’s first act is a saucy dummy that sends Joelinton romping down the right wing. Joelinton wins a corner off Zouma, but the flag goes up for an absurd offside decision - the striker was clearly on - and it’s a free kick to Chelsea.

1.55pm GMT

67 min: Chelsea are heading for the top of the table, for a few hours at least. It’s not all great news, though, because James is down again. Once more, he decides he’s good to continue, but let’s see how much longer he lasts. No point taking risks. Meanwhile Newcastle replace Manquillo with Almiron.

1.54pm GMT

Chelsea counter at lightning speed. Werner drives with extreme prejudice at Schar, eating up the yards down the left channel. He’s got Schar on toast, scooting past him, then rolling to his right for Abraham, who batters a shot off the base of the right-hand post and in. What a scintillating break!

1.52pm GMT

64 min: Manquillo drives at Chelsea but can’t find Saint-Maximin in acres of space on the left. A big mistake, because ...

1.51pm GMT

62 min: Abraham glides down the inside-left channel. He’s got Werner in the middle, but opts to continue probing himself. Not the correct decision, as it pans out.

1.49pm GMT

61 min: James goes down holding the back of his leg. He springs back up and gets on with it, but doesn’t look totally comfortable.

1.49pm GMT

60 min: Saint-Maximin comes in from the left and tees up Joelinton, on the edge of the D. Joelinton has time to sort his feet and open his body up, but his attempted curler towards the top right is high and wide. Chelsea are beginning to ship chances here.

1.48pm GMT

58 min: Hayden bustles down the middle and loses control. Rudiger attempts to boot clear, but slams the ball straight at Hayden, who suddenly breaks free into the box! He must score, but leans back and hoicks over. No matter, as the referee had blown for hand ball. That might give Newcastle some heart, though.

1.45pm GMT

57 min: Chilwell whips from the left to the far post. Ziyech is romping in, planning to meet it with his head. Lewis gets there first, though, eyebrowing the ball away from the Chelsea man just in time.

1.43pm GMT

55 min: James wins a corner down the right. Zouma rises to win a header, flashing wide right from eight yards. Had that been on target, Darlow was rooted and beaten. Chelsea should be out of sight by now.

1.42pm GMT

53 min: Schar takes receipt of a poor long Chelsea punt. He dallies and dallies, and allows Werner to steal it away. Werner enters the box from the left. He’s one on one with Darlow, and scoring looks a simple job, but he decides to roll across to tee up Ziyech, allowing Clark is able to intercept and clear. What a chance! Not the first time Werner’s decision-making has been a bit suspect today. He should really have two.

1.39pm GMT

51 min: Newcastle have enjoyed 56% possession since the restart. Incremental improvements. Chelsea seem fairly comfortable, mind.

1.37pm GMT

49 min: Stop. Start. Stop. Start. Neither team has found any rhythm yet. A series of petty fouls not helping.

1.35pm GMT

47 min: A slow start to the half. Fernandez breaks the space-time continuum to take half an hour over a throw.

1.33pm GMT

Newcastle get the second half underway. Just before the restart, Lascelles took to the pitch but quickly decided he wasn’t fit to continue. Schar comes on in his place.

1.24pm GMT

Half-time entertainment courtesy of Oliver Lewis. “Apologies to go on a bit of a rant, but can you answer me, watching Steve Bruce’s football, why Newcastle fans are constantly called entitled for daring to suggest the absolute garbage he serves up regularly is not what we want to watch? It is effective, we get enough points to stay up but it is dreadful.

“It is constantly brought up that we were no more attacking under Rafa. Yes we were fairly negative the majority of Rafa’s time. However for his last six months, Rafa had finally found a more exciting system that may have been counter attacking but led to us scoring plenty of goals and playing the best football we have for years.

1.17pm GMT

Chelsea have been dominant and deserve their lead ... but they got a little bit sloppy towards the end of that half, giving up possession and a couple of half-chances that’ll give Newcastle a little succour. More soon!

1.16pm GMT

45 min +1: Lascelles is down again, feeling the back of his knee. Don’t bank on him coming back out for the second half.

1.15pm GMT

45 min: Murphy is booked for barging into the back of Mount. There wasn’t too much in that one, either, but the referee is in an uncompromising mood this afternoon.

1.14pm GMT

44 min: Saint-Maximin slides Lewis into space down the left. Lewis crosses deep. Murphy heads down to nobody in particular. Chelsea clear.

1.13pm GMT

43 min: All a bit scrappy now, as both teams take turns to give the ball away.

1.11pm GMT

41 min: Ziyech curls it towards the far post. Too high, too floaty. Easy for Darlow.

1.11pm GMT

40 min: Hayden is booked for getting both ball and man as he slides in on Kovacic. He’s not happy. That looked nothing more than a garden-variety foul. Free kick, anyway. A dangerous position for Chelsea out on the right.

1.10pm GMT

39 min: Ziyech is shoved over in the playground style by Clark. He jumps up and takes a quick free kick, wedging down the middle and nearly finding Werner, just inside the Newcastle box. Darlow comes out to claim. Some fine proactive keeping.

1.08pm GMT

38 min: On comes the doctor, and Lascelles is good to go again it seems. He’s still trotting around rather gingerly, though.

1.07pm GMT

36 min: The corner is useless. Chelsea zip up the other end through Werner, who drives at Lascelles down the left. Lascelles stretches a leg and pokes away just in time. Ziyech shoots harmlessly over. Lascelles goes down, holding the back of his left knee.

1.06pm GMT

35 min: And now another chance for the Toon, as Abraham ships possession, allowing Joelinton to go on a tear up the other end. He slips the ball wide left for Saint-Maximin, who cuts inside and looks for the top right. Kante deflects out for a corner.

1.04pm GMT

32 min: All of a sudden, there’s some space for Saint-Maximin, just inside the Chelsea box on the left. He considers a curler towards the top right. Instead, he cuts inside and looks for space to shoot. Chelsea close ranks, so he backheels towards Murphy on the left. Clever idea, but Mendy comes out to snaffle, and Newcastle’s most promising position so far comes to nought.

1.01pm GMT

30 min: Chelsea should be two up. Chilwell snaffles possession out on the left and shuttles the ball forward for Abraham. The striker has his back to goal, so lays off to Werner on the penalty spot. He’s one on one with Darlow! He must score, but tries to guide a cute reverse shot into the bottom left and sends it wide of the post.

12.59pm GMT

28 min: Kovacic plays a lazy ball straight to Murphy, who slips forward for Joelinton. Mendy is on the edge of his box, so Joelinton tries to beat him from the centre circle. A good idea, poorly executed. His long punt bounces harmlessly to the left of goal. That would have been some way to ending his long Premier League drought.

12.58pm GMT

27 min: Newcastle have slowed Chelsea down a little. Baby steps.

12.56pm GMT

25 min: Murphy blazes down the right and looks to have won a corner off Chilwell. The pair clatter into each other as the ball flies out of play, and the referee gives Chelsea the benefit of the doubt and a free kick. A generous decision. A rare chance for Newcastle to test Chelsea is lost.

12.54pm GMT

23 min: Chelsea stroke it around some more. Then James suddenly gains a yard down the right and curls low. Werner can’t quite get to it in the middle. Werner might have been just offside had he connected, but it’s immaterial now.

12.52pm GMT

21 min: Chelsea continue to dominate. A long passing sequence ends when Rudiger and Chilwell confuse each other and the ball rolls out of play. Right now, only Chelsea can stop Chelsea.

12.50pm GMT

19 min: Manquillo has the opportunity to launch a Newcastle attack, with Chelsea committed upfield and players available on both wings. He hesitates and opts to play it backwards instead. Newcastle’s early ambition didn’t last long.

12.48pm GMT

17 min: Chelsea stroke it around in a very pretty manner. Newcastle eventually get it off them, Hayden attempting to spring Saint-Maximin clear down the left. It’s all too agricultural and a heavy pass flies out of play.

12.46pm GMT

15 min: The gambit doesn’t work. Werner is sent scampering down the inside-left channel again, and fires across the face of goal. Abraham is one size of boot away from converting in the middle. The ball continues harmlessly through.

12.45pm GMT

14 min: Newcastle string a few passes together but don’t go anywhere in particular. An attempt to nix Chelsea’s momentum more than anything else.

12.44pm GMT

12 min: Chelsea look extremely dangerous every time they go forward. They’ve pretty much taken up where they left off against Sheffield United a fortnight ago. Here’s Mary Waltz: “My pre-season thoughts on Chelsea: wild offensive output, sieve-like defensive, lots of 4-3 games. Reality: a disciplined title-contending squad. Lampard has morphed in to Jose without the psycho drama.” Yep, they’re looking good. There’s still plenty of time for a Mourinho-style meltdown, though. Leeds and Bielsa come to Stamford Bridge in a couple of weeks. Let’s see where we are after that.

12.42pm GMT

Werner and Mount work a short corner on the right. Mount gets some space and fires across the face of goal. At the far post, Fernández can’t sort his feet out and bundles into his own net. He claims a push from Chilwell, but he wasn’t touched before he met the ball, so the goal stands.

12.40pm GMT

9 min: Ziyech curls dangerously from the right. Abraham probably should score from eight yards, but allows Darlow to tip over. Corner. From which ...

12.38pm GMT

7 min: Abraham holds up for Kovacic, who rushes in from the right and tries to steer a shot goalwards. It’s high and handsome. Chelsea are beginning to dominate after Newcastle’s early flurry.

12.36pm GMT

5 min: Ziyech pulls back for James, who volleys into a thicket. Blocked. Nice attempt at the classic Beckham-Scholes corner, though. Full marks for ambition and a pretty high score for execution too.

12.35pm GMT

4 min: Werner makes his first run down the inside-left channel. He shoots low, hard and diagonally. It’s going into the bottom right, but Darlow spectacularly tips around the post. Corner.

12.34pm GMT

3 min: Mendy flaps a bit at the corner, but does enough to guide it clear.

12.32pm GMT

2 min: From the corner, Saint-Maximin probes down the right and wins another corner. Good start by Newcastle, this.

12.32pm GMT

1 min: Some early Newcastle verve, as Joelinton wins a couple of free kicks by putting himself about. From the second, Fernandez is afforded a free header out on the right and Chilwell is forced to put behind for a corner.

12.31pm GMT

And we’re off! Chelsea get the ball rolling, but only after the players take a knee. No room for racism. Black lives matter.

12.28pm GMT

Here come the teams! Chelsea arrive first, sporting third-choice pink and purple. Newcastle then rock up in their famous black and white stripes. A snatch of the best running-out music in the league, and we’ll be off in a minute.

12.17pm GMT

The managers have been speaking to BT Sport. Steve Bruce says he “couldn’t risk Wilson with the amount of games coming up ... Almiron [as sub] has nothing to do with his agent, he’s been halfway around the world so it’s only right he starts on the bench ... Chelsea are a very good side so we’re in for a very difficult game.”

Meanwhile here’s Frank Lampard on his defence: “Thiago travelled back from South America and with his age I have to look after him ... some people would say they’d like to have five centre-backs of our quality, but to deal with it week to week and get them the game time, probably one or two of them don’t like me very much ... it depends on how you train, how you are, and how you take your chance, so those are the rules.”

Related: Newcastle's Steve Bruce labels Miguel Almirón's agent a 'two-bob amateur'

11.38am GMT

Callum Wilson hasn’t made it. Newcastle had hoped the striker would recover from his hamstring injury, but he hasn’t even made the bench. He’s one of four changes to the team that went down 2-0 at Southampton, with Fabian Schar, Jeff Hendrick and Miguel Almiron dropping to the bench. Ciaran Clark, Javi Manquillo, Isaac Hayden and Joelinton are the men taking their place.

Chelsea are in If It Ain’t Broke mode. Only one change to the team that saw off Sheffield United with ease: Antonio Rudiger replaces Thiago Silva, who is rested in the wake of international duty with Brazil.

11.32am GMT

Newcastle United: Darlow, Manquillo, Fernandez, Lascelles, Clark, Lewis, Murphy, Hayden, Sean Longstaff, Saint-Maximin, Joelinton.
Subs: Schar, Carroll, Shelvey, Hendrick, Krafth, Almiron, Gillespie.

Chelsea: Mendy, James, Zouma, Rudiger, Chilwell, Kovacic, Kante, Mount, Ziyech, Abraham, Werner.
Subs: Arrizabalaga, Christensen, Jorginho, Giroud, Hudson-Odoi, Azpilicueta, Emerson Palmieri.

11.04am GMT

The international break came at the wrong time for Chelsea, who were beginning to finally click under Frank Lampard. They would have surely played on, given the chance, having won their last four games to an aggregate tune of 13-1. Timo Werner scored five goals in his last four appearances; Hakim Ziyech was working his way into a groove; Edouard Mendy and Thiago Silva were sorting out the mess at the back in short order. They’d have happily kept going.

They could quite easily pick up where they left off. Today’s opponents Newcastle United have suffered a couple of heavy defeats at home already this season: 0-3 to Brighton and 1-4 to Manchester United. Another three-goal shellacking could be on the cards if Newcastle play like they did in those games, and Chelsea create the sheer number of chances they did against Sheffield United.

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The Fiver | Intriguing attempts to whip players into a nationalistic frenzy

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After what seems like two months [subs please check, it really does feel like two months, it could actually be two months], the international break is finally over. Looking back, it’s hard to say who enjoyed it the least. You? Us? Or maybe Republic 0’Ireland boss Stephen Kenny, whose intriguing but as-yet-unspecified attempts to whip his players into a nationalistic frenzy – a symposium on the later work of WB Yeats? A screening of the 1967 film adaptation of Ulysses? An acoustic performance of the theme to Wanderly Wagon? – backfired with a three-goal loss to England and subsequent brouhaha.

Related: Ireland manager Stephen Kenny faces FAI hearing after 'anti-English' video

Catania coach Giuseppe Raffaele gets a four-match ban in Serie C after the 2-1 win over Vibonese, for tackling an opposition player about to counter-attack deep in added-time pic.twitter.com/VlELo7jR7r

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England 4-0 Iceland: Nations League – as it happened

A youthful England swatted aside ten-man Iceland at Wembley

11.55pm GMT

Phil Foden is good.

Related: Phil Foden will be 'fabulous for England for years', says Gareth Southgate

11.41pm GMT

Some Barney Ronay for you ...

Related: Grealish, Foden and Saka offer Anglo tiki-taka that Southgate can build on

10.21pm GMT

And that, dear readers brings this MBM to its graceful conclusion. Happily, David Hytner’s match report has landed. Here it is. Click and enjoy ... and thanks for reading this live blog. Nighty night!

Related: Foden's sparkling double sinks Iceland and completes return from England cold

10.20pm GMT

Gareth Southgate’s verdict. “For the last three days their mentality has been outstanding. Whenever you play for England there is something to play for. We’re trying to build and improve all the time. Our football was good to watch and for the young ones to get the goals was special. Most of our squad will peak in three to five years time. We think it’s worth investing the time in them. We’re still working on the balance of profiles of players for the system. It was good to see Bukayo again, he has had three excellent performances this week, especially for someone so young. It was good to see Mason in that central area again. Our attacking play was good, right from the back they built so well. [Some young players] are still growing physically, they’re still light. Wonderful technicians but they can get overpowered and you play Portugal or France and it’s land of the giants and you have to cope with that. They’re going to have another five months with their clubs where they’ll play big games and learn even more. I’m really pleased for Foden, he’s such an exciting player.”

10.05pm GMT

A sweet sub-plot to this match: Declan Rice and Mason Mount have been besties since they were eight years old ... and now they’ve just played for their country, next to each other in midfield, both getting on the scoresheet. Both young men with smiles as wide as Wembley as they explain all this to Sky. A lovely interview that’ll no doubt get played once or twice again.

9.52pm GMT

Here’s a stat that bodes well for the future: this is the first time since February 1883 that England have had three scorers aged 21 or under in the same game. One of those lads, two-goal Phil Foden, speaks to Sky: “I enjoyed that a lot. Obviously to score my first goal for England means a lot to me. I couldn’t stop smiling after it. it’s an unbelievable feeling, and I’m just going to try and enjoy it as much as I can tonight! When you score your confidence is high, and I took my goal well from outside the box, which is something I have to improve on. I’m just proud to be a part of this. [The recent behavioural brouhaha in Iceland] was one of the hardest moments of my life, and that’s when you need the trust of your manager. Gareth had a lot of respect for me and I’m just happy to repay him with goals and play well.”

9.43pm GMT

In the other Group A2 match, Belgium beat Denmark 4-2. That means they finish top of the group with 15 points. They go through to next year’s Nations League finals with Italy, France and Spain. That’ll be some event. Denmark pip England to second spot in A2; both have 10 points, but the Danes beat the English on the head-to-head. Iceland are relegated to League B.

9.38pm GMT

And that’s that! England put ten-man Iceland to the sword with goals from youngsters Declan Rice, Mason Mount and Phil Foden. It’s a toss-up between Foden and Jack Grealish for man of the match. Both were magnificent, so take your pick.

9.37pm GMT

90 min +2: The second features an England corner that leads to nothing.

9.36pm GMT

90 min +1: The first of three added minutes passes without drama.

9.36pm GMT

90 min: Foden makes space out on the right with an outrageous reimagining of the Cruyff Turn. The move peters out, but that’s not the point. What skill! Anything Big Bird can do, he can do even better.

9.35pm GMT

89 min: Big Bird cuts in from the right and shoots low. Saved. Mings heads over. Saka heads wide. England really want a fifth.

9.33pm GMT

88 min: Johannesson, making his debut for Iceland at 17, replaces Bjornsson.

9.32pm GMT

86 min: Let the record state that, moments before Foden’s second, Harry ‘Garrincha’ Maguire - who had been probing down the left during the first half - was this time patrolling the touchline on the right. The Big Bird?

9.30pm GMT

85 min: Maitland-Niles comes on for Trippier.

9.29pm GMT

Winks picks up a loose ball in the midfield. He lays off down the inside right to Foden, who takes a touch inside before whipping a low drive into the bottom right. Halldorsson had no chance.

9.28pm GMT

82 min: That’s hard luck on Iceland, who had been restricting England fairly comfortably in the second half. But the scoreline doesn’t flatter the hosts in any way.

9.26pm GMT

Apologies to all our Icelandic readers for saying that, then. Sancho skitters in from the left. He draws Arnason, creating a gap in the middle filled by Foden. Sancho rolls the ball to his team-mate, who sweeps into the bottom right. Simple but effective.

9.24pm GMT

79 min: A wry smile from Erik Hamren on the touchline. He’s very close to the end of his reign as Iceland boss; his players are doing him proud in this second half.

9.22pm GMT

77 min: Mings steers a weak header wide right amid a penalty-box stramash. Halldorsson had it covered all the way.

9.21pm GMT

76 min: That’s the end of Kane, who is replaced by Abraham. Grealish makes way for Sancho.

9.20pm GMT

75 min: Kane’s shot clatters into the wall. In fact it hits Ingason on the forearm, and England want a penalty, but they’re not getting it, the Icelander’s arm right by the side of his body.

9.19pm GMT

74 min: Now Grealish is bowled over by Eyjolfsson. A free kick to England, just to the right of the D. England want to sub Kane, but the captain wants one last go at scoring.

9.18pm GMT

73 min: Before the free kick - which comes to nothing - Iceland make a double switch. Off go Bodvarsson and Gudmundsson; on come Sigthorsson and Thorsteinsson.

9.17pm GMT

72 min: Arnason is booked for toe-poking Grealish in the shin.

9.15pm GMT

70 min: England looked like scoring with every attack in the first half. They’ve not been half as exciting in this second period. Iceland will be very pleased with their gritty display since the restart ... so far.

9.13pm GMT

68 min: Dier gets hand-on with Bodvarsson out on the right, and it’s a free kick to Iceland. Another chance to load the England box. But Bodvarsson’s delivery is poor, and an easy gather for Pickford.

9.11pm GMT

67 min: England have had 16 attempts to Iceland’s sole effort, which was that off-target Arnason header.

9.10pm GMT

65 min: Maguire piles forward, living out some Beckenbauer fantasies as he one-twos in front of the Iceland box. He can’t work space to shoot, and suddenly there’s a gap at the back when Iceland clear their lines. But there’s only Bodvarsson up front, and though he tries to graft his way down the middle, he’s always going to be crowded out.

9.08pm GMT

64 min: Two changes for England: Mings and Winks come on for Walker and Mount.

9.08pm GMT

63 min: Before the corner can be taken, Eyjolfsson comes on for Sigurjonsson. Some extra defensive cover for Iceland.

9.07pm GMT

62 min: Maguire threads a pass down the left for Grealish, who slides immediately across for Kane. The England captain is waiting to sidefoot home when Arnason intercepts and steers out for a corner.

9.05pm GMT

61 min: Foden crosses from the right. Kane swivels and shoots from 12 yards, but Arnason is right behind him to block. That’s fine play all round.

9.05pm GMT

60 min: Skulason whips the corner to the near post. Arnason ghosts in to flash a header wide right. England were fast asleep there.

9.04pm GMT

59 min: Gudmundsson bursts away from a couple of challenges and scoops a dainty pass down the right for Bodvarsson, who powers off along the touchline and earns a corner. Iceland load the box. Before it can be taken, Arnason and Dier are told to stop shoving each other in the playground style.

9.02pm GMT

57 min: This was hard enough for Iceland when they had 11 men. It’s going to be real backs-to-the-wall stuff now.

9.01pm GMT

55 min: Nothing comes of the resulting free kick, to the left of the D, other than some over-elaborate English faff.

9.00pm GMT

54 min: A light tug on Saka’s arm, and that’s a second yellow for a man on his 99th cap. He’s far from happy. There wasn’t much in that, but this referee isn’t messing around this evening, and in that respect the result was inevitable.

8.59pm GMT

53 min: Gudmundsson turns on the jets and threatens to burst into the England box on the left. Dier does extremely well to stick by him as he looks to work space for a shot. None arrives, and Trippier turns up to clear.

8.57pm GMT

52 min: England have quelled Iceland’s early second-half energy. They indulge in some of the sterile midfield passing.

8.55pm GMT

50 min: Arnason gives the ball away cheaply in midfield. That allows Grealish to attack down the left with great purpose. He glides into the box and tries a curler towards the top right. His effort is blocked. For a second, that had goal written all over it.

8.53pm GMT

49 min: Grealish again finds himself in the never-ending foul. This time Ingason charges him in the back, picking up a yellow card for his trouble.

8.53pm GMT

47 min: Erik Hamren’s last half-time team-talk as Iceland coach may have been a passionate one. His team have come out for the second half with renewed vigour. Some space for Gudmundsson down the right. He whips in low. Dier is forced to hack clear of the six-yard box with blue shirts lurking.

8.51pm GMT

Iceland get the ball rolling for the second half. As planned, they’re giving 36-year-old Hannes Þór Halldórsson one last run-out in goal. He replaces Kristinsson for a valedictory 45 minutes. How happy England will be to see him is moot, given his heroics against them at Euro 2016.

8.35pm GMT

Half-time entertainment ... from the archives.

Related: Bjarni Fel: the legend who brought football to warm the heart of Iceland

8.34pm GMT

There’s just enough time for Kane to flash a header wide left when it was easier to score, and that’s the end of the first half. Both teams will be happy: England, because they have been wonderful in attack; Iceland, because they’re somehow only two goals down.

8.33pm GMT

45 min: There will be one extra minute at the end of an excellent half for England.

8.32pm GMT

44 min: Sigurjonsson rakes his foot down Maguire’s shin. That looked nasty, if possibly accidental. Either way, it’s surprising the referee takes no action at all. Maguire isn’t particularly happy about it, and who could blame him.

8.30pm GMT

42 min: Grealish, seemingly forever on the end of one long cosmic foul, is grounded by Bodvarsson 30 yards out. Trippier wedges a surprising pass down the left for Saka, who attempts a Van Bastenesque volley from a tight angle but is blocked bravely by Gudmundsson.

8.27pm GMT

40 min: England drop the tempo, stroking some sterile stuff around the middle of the park.

8.25pm GMT

38 min: Kane wants in on the act. He barrels down the middle before curling powerfully towards the top right. Just off target, though Kristinsson may have had that one covered.

8.24pm GMT

36 min: Foden grealishes right to left, then sends Saka into space down the wing. Saka rolls inside for Kane, who drops a shoulder to move infield, then whips a low reverse shot millimetres wide of the bottom left. Kristinsson was rooted to the spot. So close to number three, which is surely coming soon.

8.23pm GMT

35 min: Foden comes again, this time down the middle, sent scampering into space by Kane. Foden fizzes a forensic shot towards the bottom right, and it would be in were it not for Kristinsson’s fingertips. Nothing comes of this latest corner. It’s all England.

8.22pm GMT

34 min: England revert to a more traditional shape, and it’s Saka who makes good on the left to win a corner. Some head tennis follows, Foden trying to guide home from a tight angle on the right, Kristinsson blocking well.

8.20pm GMT

33 min: An illustration of how much England are currently on top: Maguire is currently playing as a touchline-hugging left winger.

8.19pm GMT

31 min: Nothing comes of the resulting corner. After a slow start, England have been very entertaining in attack.

8.18pm GMT

30 min: England should be three up. Maguire, of all people, sashays across the face of the Iceland box, left to right, and picks out Foden with a perfectly weighted pass. Foden hits his shot straight at Kristinsson when one on one with the keeper. A great save, but one he should never have been allowed to make.

8.17pm GMT

29 min: A slinky Gudmundsson backflick opens England up down the left. But Bodvarsson went a split second too early, and the flag goes up for offside.

8.15pm GMT

27 min: Kane conjures up some space out of very little, lashing a riser towards the top right from 20 yards. If it’s on target, it’s in, with Kristinsson surprised by the sheer power of the strike, but it’s inches wide and high. That would have been a picture.

8.14pm GMT

26 min: Iceland had been holding their shape pretty well, too, but a couple of Grealish bursts down the left unnerved them, and now look. This has been a pretty good international break for the Aston Villa midfielder, huh.

8.13pm GMT

Grealish gazzas his way down the inside left, not so much avoiding challenges as ignoring them. The blistering run puts Iceland on the back foot. Saka crosses for Kane who can’t get the ball under control. But Mount can. He drops a shoulder to send Bjarnason off to the wrong fire, then guides a cute shot into the bottom right.

8.10pm GMT

22 min: England nearly make it two in a matter of minutes. Mount slips a ball down the left for the livewire Grealish, who rolls infield to tee up Saka. The Arsenal youngster sends a first-time snapshot towards the top left, but Kristinsson sticks out a strong arm and claws it away. Lovely football all round.

8.08pm GMT

Grealish does what he does better than anyone else: drawing a foul from a clumsy galoot. He’s clipped by Palsson as he dribbles infield from the left. Foden curls the free kick in. Rice eyebrows it across Kristinsson and into the bottom right. A lovely flicked header, and that’s his first goal in an England shirt!

8.06pm GMT

18 min: Maguire switches play with a gorgeous crossfield pass towards Foden and Trippier on the right. Trippier battles hard and nearly gets the better of Skulason, but Iceland close the door just in time. Shame nothing more came of that expansive pass.

8.04pm GMT

16 min: Maguire sends Bodvarsson clattering into the hoardings. He seeks out the striker to make a genuine apology when he returns to the field of play. There’s nice.

8.02pm GMT

14 min: Foden bursts down the right and is gently tugged back by Sigurjonsson. Foden wriggles free and plays on, but the momentum is lost. A slight surprise that Sigurjonsson doesn’t go in the book when play stops, but there we have it.

8.00pm GMT

12 min: Now Walker goes in the book for an overly aggressive slide on Sigurjonsson. There’s absolutely nothing riding on this match!

7.58pm GMT

11 min: Saevarsson is booked for a late clip on Saka. Mistimed more than malicious.

7.58pm GMT

10 min: A period of nondescript England possession.

7.56pm GMT

8 min: From the corner, Bjarnason flashes a header wide left. It wouldn’t have counted, because the referee considers Pickford to have been unfairly ushered away from the action by a ring of blue shirts.

7.55pm GMT

7 min: England play a high line and are sprung by a simple long pass down the right. Bodvarsson gets on the end of it and wins a corner off a hastily backtracking Dier.

7.54pm GMT

6 min: Grealish and Mount combine again down the left, the former then sliding Saka into space. Saka whips across the face of goal. Kane somehow manages to fresh-air swipe at a simple tap-in, but his blushes are spared when the flag goes up for offside.

7.53pm GMT

5 min: Saevarsson hoicks a high cross into the England mixer from the right. Pickford does well to hare off his line and punch clear under pressure from Bodvarsson.

7.52pm GMT

4 min: Mount earns the first corner of the evening. The ball’s eventually worked out to Grealish on the left. He dances into the area in the confident style, pinging a pass infield for Mount, who spins and shoots, but tamely, an easy pick-up for Kristinsson.

7.50pm GMT

2 min: England hog the ball, making sure most of their team get an early feel. “I was perusing the MBM while on the phone to my dad, so watched the video of fate-tempting’s Steve McClaren without sound,” reports Jon Collin. “It’s absolutely marvellous. Mr McClaren has the tragicomic expressiveness of the finest silent movie stars. Quick, somebody chuck him some forks and bread rolls to mime the goal!” McClaren as hapless silent-movie star sounds about right. Here’s a picture of him leaving the house earlier this morning ...

7.47pm GMT

England get the ball rolling ... but only after taking the knee. Black lives matter. There’s no room for racism.

7.46pm GMT

Here come the teams! England wear their famous white; Iceland play in their first-choice blue. The Nations League theme is followed by a blast of Lofsöngur, which is a bugger to sing on account of spanning a minor 14th. Even the notoriously hard Star Spangled Banner spans just a 12th. God Save the Queen follows. We’ll be off in a minute, following a moment of applause in memory of Ray Clemence.

7.32pm GMT

The players will wear black armbands tonight in honour of Ray Clemence, who passed away on Sunday. Jordan Pickford has laid a shirt with Clemence’s name on the back behind the goal, where it will stay for the entirety of the game. The former Liverpool, Spurs and Scunthorpe goalie played 61 times for England during the 1970s and early 1980s.

Related: Ray Clemence obituary

7.08pm GMT

Gareth Southgate talks to Sky Sports. “We don’t have many opportunities to play and can never be sure when we’ll get all the players. So we felt it was important to build on the games we’ve had this autumn, with an opportunity to look at some young players again, which is exciting. There’s a message there: every game is important. And I was very impressed with the approach of the players for the last few days. It would be very easy for them to pull out, there’s a lot of pressure on them to pull out, they haven’t and that says a lot about them as a group. We’re looking at the whole, but this is another chance to see Mason a little bit deeper, another chance to see Phil in his first start between September, and the interplay between him and Harry and Jack in particular. They’ll have some freedom to move off of the shape. It’s a nice balance.”

6.36pm GMT

So much for wholesale experimentation. England are unable to progress from Group A2, Iceland are already relegated, and there are no more fixtures until some World Cup qualifiers in March. However Gareth Southgate names eight of the team that started in Belgium. The injured Ben Chilwell and Jordan Henderson are replaced by Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden, while Harry Maguire returns from suspension and replaces Tyrone Mings at the back. Wayne Rooney’s record as youngest-ever player to start a game for England remains intact, with 17-year-old Jude Bellingham on the bench.

6.31pm GMT

England: Pickford, Trippier, Walker, Maguire, Dier, Saka, Rice, Mount, Grealish, Kane, Foden.
Subs: Keane, Sancho, Mings, Pope, Winks, Chilwell, Maitland-Niles, Calvert-Lewin, Abraham, D Henderson, Bellingham.

Iceland: Kristinsson, Hermannsson, Arnason, Ingason, Skulason, Bjarnason, Palsson, Saevarsson, Gudmundsson, Sigurjonsson, Bodvarsson.
Subs: Halldorsson, Runarsson, Eyjolfsson, Sampsted, Johannesson, Þorsteinsson, Baldursson, Gudjohnsen, Sigurdsson.

3.03pm GMT

Welcome to the dictionary definition of football dystopia: a match with absolutely nothing riding on it, being played in front of an empty stadium, and televised to an audience who are now jonesing real hard for the Premier League and Championship. But hey, any excuse to trot out this old classic, huh.

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The Fiver | Is this all part of Germany's elaborate rope-a-dope masterplan?

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It’s about time The Fiver started seriously planning for the future. Time to grow up, identify prudent investment opportunities, build a portfolio, make our money work for us. So this morning we put our entire life’s savings on Germany winning either the Euros next year or the World Cup the one after. It’s a shoo-in, quite frankly, if Tuesday night’s fiasco in Seville is anything to go by. Joachim Löw’s rabble had the back seat of their trousers handed to them by Spain, a team who hadn’t won in three and didn’t fancy their chances of getting the victory that would send them to the semi-finals of the Confected Importance League. Germany’s 6-0 defeat is being framed in some quarters as a humiliation, but The Fiver knows it’s as good as a written guarantee of silverware. Pints of Germany’s answer to Purple Tin, das Föamingshaafft, all round!

Related: Ferran Torres's treble helps Spain humble Germany in Nations League

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