Erling Haaland experienced an uncomfortable return match against Arsenal in the Premier League, with two opponents including a teenager teasing him after goals and the crowd at Emirates Stadium reminding the striker of his provocative comments in the teams' last meeting. Resentment clearly lingered more than four months after a 2-2 draw between the teams at City's Etihad Stadium in their first meeting, which ended with Haaland throwing the ball at Arsenal defender Gabriel after a late equalizer and telling Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta to stay humble, eh? It came back to bite Haaland on Sunday as City was thrashed 5-1 by Arsenal. Gabriel didn't waste his chance to get his own back on Haaland, celebrating in the face of his rival immediately after Martin Odegaard gave Arsenal a 1-0 lead inside two minutes. Midway through the second half and after Haaland had equalized for City Lewis-Skelly scored to put Arsenal 3-1 up and marked the goal by sitting down, crossing his legs and ...
Mikel Arteta's men sit in second place, but they know that anything less than a win on Sunday could see them slip further away in the title race, especially with Liverpool holding a game in hand.
Despite their longstanding dominance, both teams have had their struggles in the competition's new format, which expanded to 36 teams this season.
The draw took place at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland and involved teams that finished from ninth to 24th position in the new format of the UEFA Champions League group stage.
England defender Kyle Walker could be forgiven for having some regrets over leaving Manchester City for AC Milan. Especially after seeing close up how his new team is performing, with even Milan coach Srgio Conceio saying his players are lacking footballing basics. Walker joined Milan last week on loan, with the option to make the move permanent at the end of the season. He watched Milan's rollercoaster win over lowly Parma from the stands at San Siro last weekend. The Rossoneri were trailing 2-1 in injury time before two stoppage-time goals. Walker, who was cup tied, was also just an observer on Wednesday for Milan's Champions League match at Dinamo Zagreb, where the 10-man Rossoneri lost 2-1. But Walker, who won six Premier League titles and the Champions League in seven seasons at City, insists he hasn't had any second thoughts even when Milan was 2-0 down at home to Parma. Definitely not. It's football. Things happen in football, he said. But by the end of the game, we won 3
For teams finishing in 9th to 16th place, they will enter the knockout round play-offs, where they are seeded and face unseeded teams from 17th to 24th in a two-legged encounter.
All 18 final matches of the Uefa Champions League will be available to live stream on the Sony LIV app and website in India
Only Liverpool and FC Barcelona have booked their place in the next round so far
If City fails to win, it will mark their first early elimination from the Champions League in 12 years, leaving fans wondering if their once-dominant European campaign is losing steam.
Chelsea have had their own struggles but managed to get back on track with a vital 3-1 win over Wolves on Monday - their first league triumph since Christmas.
Luis Enrique credits Pep Guardiola with inventing arguably the perfect model of attacking soccer. He must now outwit him when Paris Saint-Germain faces Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday, in a match both teams must win to avoid the prospect of early elimination in the new-look format. It's a special game. Not just for the two teams but because I will come across a friend who I shared many great moments with as a player and a person, Enrique said on Tuesday through a translator. What brings us closer is our vision of football: To try and be better than the opponent on the ball, to constantly press the opponent. We can fine-tune our game but we have a similar way of seeing things. Guardiola rose to fame as a coach during a glory era for Barcelona, winning the Champions League twice and multiple other trophies. Guardiola's sides hypnotized opponents with a pulsating brand of attacking soccer led by Lionel Messi that was the envy of Europe. Guardiola then turned City
Erling Haaland's mammoth contract extension with Manchester City took the soccer world by surprise. Which suits him just fine. Of course it's a bit unusual and it's not normal. But it's something I like. In the end it was an easy choice," Haaland said Tuesday. I feel so happy, my family is so happy and in the end that's what I really wanted. One of the most lucrative deals in soccer covers 10 years from the start of this season for the 24-year-old Norway striker, who has scored 111 goals in 125 games since joining the club from Borussia Dortmund in 2022. The deal until 2034 is the longest in the Premier League, with Haaland reportedly earning around 500,000 pounds ($600,000) per week. The sheer size of it also seems to limit the possibility of him joining an even bigger club like Barcelona or Real Madrid in the years to come, unless one is prepared to pay a fortune. He's also fine with that. In the end I really look forward to spending many more years in Manchester. It's going t
Premier League leaders Liverpool are also leading the charts of the Champions League this season with an unbeaten run so far in the competition
Abdukodir Khusanov is set to move to defending Premier League champions Manchester City as they have agreed a deal with Lens for the transfer of the centre back.
Reported Manchester City target Omar Marmoush boosted his transfer value with another goal for Eintracht Frankfurt to beat St. Pauli 1-0 in the Bundesliga. The Egypt forward grabbed his 14th league goal in the 32nd minute, taking one touch and another to send the ball inside the far post from a difficult angle. Frankfurt sporting director Markus Krsche acknowledged before the match that a club has expressed interest in the player, though he didn't want to confirm it was Man City. The English champion has been struggling of late under Pep Guardiola. Sky reported that Frankfurt was demanding an 80 million euros ($82 million) fee for Marmoush, but Krsche also declined to confirm that. It doesn't make any sense to talk about prices, Krsche said. Basically, we've said our goal is to keep this team together. Of course, we also said if there are exceptional circumstances, we'd have to think about giving away top performers. We're not there yet. It would be the second big transfer coup fo
While some high-profile names like Marcus Rashford and Kvaratskhelia are in the spotlight, clubs are also trying to fill the gaps left by injuries or poor form.
Erling Haaland missed a penalty as Manchester City was held 1-1 by Everton in the Premier League on Thursday. Haaland had the chance to set the four-time defending champion on course for only its second win in 13 games when stepping up for a 53rd minute spot kick at the Etihad Stadium. But he was denied by Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford as City's woeful recent run was extended. Pep Guardiola's team has lost nine of its last 13 games in all competitions. The draw means City picked up only its fifth point in the league since the end of October. Bernardo Silva's deflected shot gave City the lead in the 14th, but Iliman Ndiaye leveled the score in the 36th. The result leaves City sixth in the standings and 11 points behind leader Liverpool, having played two games more. Haaland missed penalty means the Norway international has only scored one in his last seven games. He headed in from the rebound, but the goal was ruled out for offside. City's grip on its title was further loosen
Center back John Stones sustained a fresh injury setback in Manchester City's 2-1 loss to Aston Villa in the Premier League. The England player was substituted at halftime after his first start in a month due to a foot issue. That injury flared up again, City manager Pep Guardiola said. Guardiola has cited injuries as a factor in the four-time defending champion's alarming slump, which has seen it lose nine of its last 12 games in all competitions. It was confirmed on Friday that Ruben Dias will be out for up to four weeks because of a muscle injury. We have just one central defender fit, that is difficult, Guardiola said on Saturday.
Manchester City's stunning slump continued Saturday with a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa in the Premier League. Goals from Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers at Villa Park consigned the four-time defending champion to a ninth defeat in 12 games in a season that is unravelling. Pep Guardiola's team has won just once during that run. We have to stay positive, even though it's difficult, and we have to keep working hard, City striker Erling Haaland said. Phil Foden pulled a goal back for City in stoppage time, but it wasn't enough to spark a late comeback. City dropped to sixth in the standings nine points below leader Liverpool, having played two games more. Villa climbed to fifth. City's remarkable fall shows little sign of stopping, with Guardiola admitting last week that he had not been good enough to turn his team's form around. Defeat meant the once-dominant City is without a win in any of its last eight away games in all competitions. While it looks unlikely to win a fifth-straight titl
Manchester City's troubled season was dealt another blow Friday with confirmation that defender Ruben Dias will be out for up to four weeks because of a muscle injury. Four-time defending Premier League champion City has lost eight and won just one of its last 11 games in all competitions. Manager Pep Guardiola has cited injuries to key players such as Rodri as a factor in his team's troubles and the loss of Dias compounds his problems. Guardiola said Dias' injury occurred during Sunday's 2-1 loss to Manchester United. After 75 minutes against United he felt something. He's strong and wanted to stay on the pitch, but now he's injured, Guardiola told a news conference. Goalkeeper Ederson is also a doubt for Saturday's game against Aston Villa, he said, but John Stones, Mateo Kovacic and Manuel Akanji could feature. Rico Lewis is available again after suspension. "The more players that come back the better, Guardiola said.