Football Weekly
In the latest edition of our flagship podcast, Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Nick Ames, and Jordan Jarrett-Bryan to preview the weekend’s football action.
Charles Antaki writes,
“Nick Ames’ piece is indeed a great read – and by nice coincidence, there’s a connection with a football book I’m reading, a tale of a village team reaching the heights of Serie B.”
He continues,
“Lo and behold, Gabriele Gravina, who just resigned as head of the Italian Football Federation, was a top official in that village club all those years ago - and allegedly a fairly dodgy one at that.
“Among other things he was reported to have done was organise a showpiece trial for a Leicester City striker, who proceeded to make a fool of himself, and everyone else, before revealing that he was part of a troop of actors hired as a publicity stunt.
“There’s also a tale about a consignment of, ahem, masculinity-enhancing drugs. And much much more, of a less entertaining kind. A terrific book, maybe one of the best football books ever.”
Friday Quiz
The more detail-oriented match-goers will enjoy this week’s quiz.
The county cricket season begins at 11am sharp. You can follow all the action with the excellent Tanya Aldred.
The Champions League quarter-finals start next week, with Bayern Munich versus Real Madrid the highlight of a strong lineup. However, Bayern face concerns as Harry Kane is doubtful for Tuesday’s first leg in Madrid.
Head coach Vincent Kompany stated,
“Harry trained well until Sunday, then he felt something in his ankle while with the national team. That will have an impact on tomorrow’s game [against Freiburg – he won’t be available]. Nevertheless, I’m positive about Tuesday. It’s not great, I’d like him to play against Freiburg, but as things stand today that won’t be possible.”
Chelsea’s Sam Kerr, regarded as one of the greatest players in WSL history, has been strongly linked with a move to the US club Denver Summit when her Chelsea contract expires this summer.
Japan won last month’s Women’s Asian Cup emphatically: six wins out of six, 29 goals scored, and only one conceded. Yet, yesterday they effectively dismissed Nils Nielsen, the Greenlander who coached them to victory. Contrary to expectations, in football sometimes even success is not enough.
Nielsen’s contract expired at the end of the tournament, and the Japan Football Association decided not to renew it. Norio Sasaki, the women’s national team director, explained Japan could not win next year’s World Cup if Nielsen remained in charge, describing his coaching as
“a little too lax, a little too soft.”
FA Cup: Chelsea v Port Vale (Saturday, 5.15pm)
All things considered, Chelsea are expected to reach the FA Cup semi-finals this weekend. However, tensions are rising in west London.
Spurs, eliminated from the FA Cup in the third round by Aston Villa, have no game this weekend. This allows time for their new manager Roberto De Zerbi, appointed on Tuesday, to focus on training. De Zerbi has apologized for previous comments regarding Mason Greenwood made during his tenure at Marseille.
The ongoing Italian football crisis, mentioned earlier, is worth revisiting with a piece from Nick Ames. It includes a warning from UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin that Italy could lose the right to host the European Championship in six years.
“Euro 2032 is scheduled and will take place, of that there is no doubt. I just hope that the infrastructure [in Italy] will be ready. If that’s not the case, the tournament will not be held in Italy. Maybe Italy’s politicians should ask themselves why the football infrastructure is among the worst in Europe.”
FA Cup: Southampton v Arsenal (Saturday, 8pm)
Eleven Arsenal players withdrew from their respective international squads. It remains to be seen how many will be available for action at St Mary’s tomorrow.
Arsenal will face OL Lyonnes in the semi-finals for the second consecutive season. OL Lyonnes overturned a 1-0 first-leg deficit to defeat Wolfsburg 4-0 after extra time in France.
Last season, OL were strong favourites after winning 2-1 at the Emirates, only for Arsenal to overturn the tie.
EFL Programme
There is a full EFL programme today, beginning with Middlesbrough v Millwall and Doncaster v Walsall at 12.30pm. Rather than listing all fixtures, please refer to our dedicated fixture list. Notably, Boro v Millwall is likely the standout match.
The race for the second automatic promotion spot in the Championship is extremely tight. Fifth-placed Hull City visit Oxford United, while third-placed Ipswich Town have the day off. Ipswich were originally scheduled to face Southampton, who are engaged in the FA Cup.
In other Championship news, Roy Hodgson, aged 78, begins his second spell as Bristol City manager with an away match at Charlton Athletic.
The FA Cup Quarter-Finals
- Manchester City v Liverpool (Saturday, 12.45pm)
- Chelsea v Port Vale (Saturday, 5.15pm)
- Southampton v Arsenal (Saturday, 8pm)
- West Ham v Leeds (Sunday, 4.30pm)
Phil Foden made two starts for England over the international break as Thomas Tuchel experimented with how the Manchester City attacking midfielder could be utilized at the World Cup. He played in a couple of positions during two collectively subpar performances from the Three Lions.
Foden has recorded one assist and no goals in his past 22 appearances for club and country during what has been an underwhelming campaign for the 25-year-old. He has fallen below Rayan Cherki in Pep Guardiola’s pecking order and has not completed a full 90 minutes since January. In the Carabao Cup final, Foden was given a late cameo, and it appears this is the time when he should be making a difference in the final stages of the season.
There are still trophies to be contested, even if winning the Premier League title would require a significant turnaround against Arsenal. This makes the FA Cup the most promising opportunity, and Foden should be eager to start and demonstrate the world-class player he could be, especially against a Liverpool side that often struggles against intelligent No 10s. The next six weeks could be decisive for Foden’s City and international career, so he must capitalize on every chance.
International Football Recap
Hello, good morning, and welcome to our rolling football news blog on Good Friday. Our focus will soon shift to the weekend’s action, including the FA Cup quarter-finals and a full EFL programme today, but first, let’s review the week in international football.
Countries including , , , c, and have completed qualification for this summer’s World Cup.
Italy failed to qualify for the third consecutive World Cup, a
“disaster”that prompted significant reactions.
A largely second-string England team competed during the international break.
Ghana, who are in England’s group, also participated in recent fixtures.
Scotland followed a 1-0 defeat to Japan with a subsequent result.
FIFA raised the entry fee from $1,600 in 2022 to $10,990 in 2026.
Most importantly, France moved to the top of our rankings.
