Mar 06, 2026
3 min read
Current Report: Join our writers for the latest news and reactions as we head into the weekend's action
I will leave this place now.
It's time for Barry Glendenning to step in and take you through the Friday afternoon rush, or lack thereof.
⚽ All the latest news for the weekend's action
|Ten things forFootball DailyEmail dom
Now I will leave this seat.
It's time for Barry Glendenning to step in and take you through your Friday lunch, or lack thereof.
Is Igor Tudor known as 'Freeman' because of his ability to avoid relegation or because he once had a career that lasted more than a year and 50 games?
And here he is the first manager at Hajduk Spalato.
Since then: PAOK, Karabükspor, Galatasaray, Udinese (twice), Hajduk Split (again), Hellas Verona, Marseille, Lazio, Juventus and now Spurs have taken short punts at Tudor.
Matthew Guitt got in touch to analyze Igor Tudor's insistence that Tottenham Hotspur's boat is heading in the right direction...
Interesting, Igor doesn't seem to say exactly where he thinks the "ship" is going? Since his nickname is "the ferryman", maybe he thinks he should move teams from the Premier League to the Championship?
It would be like Spurs reaching the Champions League final and being relegated.
Wolves playing Liverpool twice in three days at the same venue is a huge concern.Newcastle's 12th appearance at Manchester City this season could also fall into the same category.The "magic" of the FA Cup draw...
MUST - The Manchester United Supporters' Trust - issued the following statement following the release of ticket prices:
It is disappointing that the club ignored our request, as part of the FSA's campaign, to freeze ticket prices.Fans pay more and more to see their team and, as the FSA campaign says: enough.
We also learned that 600 loyal fans are being changed forever.They will be very angry and the club needs to treat them better than those who did the same thing last year.
That said, we are pleased that the club has listened to some of our concerns and there are no further restrictions on season ticket holders giving up their tickets and no increase in the minimum usage rules.
Football clubs make better decisions when they listen to fans – they should do more!
Messi meeting Trump (or vice versa) is not on my 2026 bingo card.But then I'm not sure what parody is.
Zach Neeley is an email to me.
As an Arsenal fan I would like to see Wenger manage Spurs without embarrassing himself with FIFA, it happened.
Don't want to see other people?
You heard Gareth Bale earlier.Bale, of course, is famous for having never tasted a winning game for Spurs (in a short period of time).To be exact, it's a 24-game streak that ended in 2009 under Redknapp.
Will Conor Gallagher begin to replicate this run?Since his £34.6m move to Tottenham from Atletico Madrid last January, Gallagher has made eight appearances for Spurs, drawing two and losing six, but has never played the full 90 minutes.
Former boss Thomas Frank said upon signing Gallagher that the England international would "bring leadership, maturity, character and personality to our dressing room, while his running power, pressing ability and eye for goal will give us strength in a key area of the pitch."
The former Chelsea midfielder has yet to do so - and is currently alienating a section of fans who see him as an ineffective signing.It would be a surprise if he turned his fortunes on Spurs like Bale did.
I'm sure Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be smitten after the above news, but to be honest, it's not a huge price increase.In my humble opinion, it's best to give Big Jim some flack for his political commentary.
United, of course, have the weekend off as they have been knocked out of every non-Premier competition this season.
Manchester United has announced a 5% increase in ticket prices for next season.
The club stressed that the aim of the increase was to increase revenue to "reinvest in football and our facilities".In real terms, this averages out to just over £2 per game for adult season ticket holders and £1 per game for under 16s.
The lowest price for an adult season at Old Trafford next season will be £646. That's £34 per game over 19 league games.
United will also relocate a number of general tickets in the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand to accommodate more hospitality seats, and are also renovating the bathrooms ahead of next season's anticipated European football season.
Marlon Andre Seton weighs up this week's potential FA Cup shocks with tongue firmly in cheek…
My prediction for the strike is Liverpool, who lost in the league against them and won at Wolves.
Gareth Bale appeared with Gary Neville and the rest of the boys recently, and was asked - easy question beware! - to try to put his finger on why everything has fallen apart at Tottenham since the Pochettino era.
Overcoming the constant challenges of competing for trophies and finishing in the top four to finish in 17th place and now the battle for control...
I would say money.Look at the wage bill - it's lower [than other top six clubs.They always seem to buy youngsters and hope they become something big, which once worked with me and a few other players, but now the club is stable.
They have the stadium.They have the training ground.They have the fan base.They have to buy big players, and maybe pay a little more.
It's a bit of a gamble that maybe they should just take.But from a business point of view, they are not ready to accept it.
Let's look at Tottenham and...oh, "Poch", "Romero" and "Arsene Wenger" are trending on X Twitter, so it's all normal there.With Igor Tudor's future as manager (already) being whispered about, could there really be another change in the Spurs squad this season?
If so, who the hell is coming?Ryan Mason is not a firefighter.Did they run back and take 79-year-old Harry Redknapp?Thinking about who would come in, it would be impossible to immediately get him out and keep him safe.
Real Madrid have been fined and face a partial stadium closure after a supporter was filmed giving a Nazi salute at the Bernabeu.
The incident happened just before last month's Champions League match against Benfica.
Real then announced that the fan had been ejected from the ground after being identified by stadium security, and the club condemned the gesture.
Real have been charged by UEFA and have now been fined €15,000 (around £13,000) and ordered to cover the lower right 500 seats at their next European match, with the ban suspended for one year.
Stephen Pye had a great read on Rackham's game against Chelsea, which was flooded on Friday morning:
Here is an email from Stephen Milward, who answered my question "Where will the horrors take place in the FA Cup this weekend?"
Manfield and Arsenal.In 1969 Mansfield played West Ham in the 5th round.Moore at West Ham;RedknappPeters,Brooking,There's Bonds [and] Hurst.Mansfield faced the World Cup champions.Mansfield won 3-0.Never write a minnow in a cup.Mansfield can win this.
I admire your optimism, Stephen, what about the mug.
VAR: Wrexham's STōK Cae Ras (aka the Racecourse Ground), Mansfield's One Call Stadium (AKA Field Mill) and Port Vale's Vale Park will use VAR for the first time in their history this weekend, with the technology being used across all FA Round Cup grounds from round five.It was previously only used in the Premier League area.
In fact, Wrexham v Chelsea looks the best for the club this weekend.Mansfield v Arsenal is a huge long shot and although Norwich's win at Leeds was a surprise, both teams have played in the same division in recent years.
Maybe Port Vale v Sunderland?Another long shot, perhaps considering Vale are rooted to the bottom of League One.
Email me your thoughts on where a shock could happen in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Wrexham captain Dominick Hyam called Saturday's FA Cup fifth-round tie with Chelsea a "fantastic distraction" as he took to the stands.
Phil Parkinson's men have won three Championship games in a row to strengthen their grip on the top six as they aim for what would be a stunning fourth promotion in a row, but will call time to welcome the club world champions to North Wales this weekend.Here's what Hyam had to say:
It can be annoying, but annoying is great.You want to play with the best team and the best player.This is what you try to do against the Premier League team in the FA Cup.
Hopefully one day we can be a Premier League team that goes there and plays someone in the FA Cup as well.
Before the Forest game, the gaffer showed us the history of Wrexham and some of the big games that took place here many years ago.Hopefully, we can use it today and make another example of beating the forest, so it's another chance to make our own history.
Is the region 'lost'?
The three minute water break that will take place after 22 minutes of each half, despite the heat during the World Cup, seems like a good idea.But some ads?The transition from football to the NFL is coming.
Spurs aside, is there ever a quiet week at Nottingham Forest?Reports from the BBC claim that Ed - former Arsenal director of football and now head of football at the City Ground - has been ordered to stay away from the games.The 47-year-old was conspicuously absent from Forest's recent games against Fenerbahce, Brighton and Manchester City.
After sacking three managers in one season, can anyone get the boot in the Forest outfit?The club told the BBC that Edu is business as usual.
Dominic Booth is here to monitor the Spurs' sack-o-meter for a while longer.
According to Arne Slot, the winger is "the most difficult position to play" in modern football and Liverpool's players will find it difficult to get used to it.Most of the problems Liverpool are facing this season have come because of their lack of attacking spirit and the champions have a 19-point gap between them and Arsenal who are leading the Premier League.
Liverpool return to Molineux on Friday, three days after an injury-time defeat to Wolves in the league.The FA Cup fifth round clash will be an opportunity for Slott to test his winger side and see if they can do better.Liverpool have scored 48 goals in 29 league games, an average of 1.66 per game, far less than 2.26 in last season's title win.
Is your club still in the hat after the fifth round of the FA Cup?
Here are some things to watch out for over the weekend - starting with Wolves' game against Liverpool, which kicks off in less than 12 hours.
"Who would have thought that in mid-March Wolves would be the Midlands team - at least in the Premier League - with the most excitement? Aston Villa, while fourth and still able to secure a Champions League place, are struggling. Nottingham Forest are fighting for relegation. For the second time in four days Rob Edwards' side won on Tuesday and made some changes in the Championship, while losing in stoppage time on Friday. lies Edwards said "No, so we willtry to win them both.It's going to be a great night."Ben Fisher
Dominic Solanke has urged his Tottenham teammates to take responsibility and realize the situation they find themselves in after the club's relegation fears intensified on Thursday.
Solanke's 34th-minute opener against Crystal Palace put Spurs four points ahead of three, but Micky van de Ven replaced Ismaïla Sarr in the match.
Sarr scored the ensuing penalty and Palace struck twice more in the first half to hand Tottenham a fifth consecutive defeat, extending their Premier League winless run to a club record 11.
Just a point above 18th-placed West Ham, Solanke acknowledged the critical situation and revealed a post-match meeting with the team.
Spurs turn their attention to the Champions League with a last-16 first leg at Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, but Solanke has called on a missing squad of 10 players to step up their efforts in the Premier League.
"It's another tough task. We looked at the game before the game and thought we had to win for sure, but now it's another game that's over and we have to realize where we are," Solanke told SpursPlay.
"It was a difficult situation (with 10 men) but we talked to each other and we have to understand that we have to improve now and we have to improve now. It's harder and harder to say in words, it has to show on the field, but we have to do it as soon as possible."
"Obviously we have to know the situation we are in, we know it has been very difficult this season with injuries, but we cannot change now, our players on the pitch have to take responsibility and finally change as soon as possible.
"It's hard to say, but we have to feel where we are, we have to fight for every game. We fight for every result, there aren't many games, so we have to start (winning) soon.
"I think we need to look ahead to the next game. We need to see what's wrong on the pitch, report it and change it. But right now we're not in a position to think about anything. We need to see what we can do in the next game, see what we can improve and see what we can do to change this form."PA Media
Leeds boss Daniel Farke has been handed a one-match ban for clashing with the referee following last weekend's defeat to Manchester City.
Farke was shown a red card after marching onto the pitch to confront Peter Bankes after the 1-0 defeat.The German decided to accept the £8,000 fine, which would have meant he had not swore violently or behaved violently, but risked a two-match suspension by fighting it out.
He will sit out Sunday's FA Cup fifth round game against Norwich.and will return to action in the Premier League against Crystal Palace on March 15. Farke previously played without receiving his red card in the way he came onto the field, saying: "I'm not like a butterfly or incredibly cute when I run.I have learned my lesson - I will never jog again.”
"Daniel Farke has been fined for misconduct following Leeds United's Premier League clash with Manchester City on Saturday 28 February, the FA wrote in a statement.
"It is alleged that the manager entered the pitch at full-time to confront the match officials, breaching Law 12 of the Laws of the Game. Daniel Farke subsequently admitted the charge against him and received the standard one-match suspension and a £8,000 fine."AU Media
The Crucible Theater is known for hosting snooker, but also claims a place in football history.A blue cap on its outer wall is where the rules of the game were adopted in Sheffield in 1858, while it was the Adelphi Hotel.Therefore, it is a good place to start this month a new game about the construction and opening of women's football at the end of the 20th century.
Football fans and theatergoers may not always notice the obvious Venn diagram overlap, but the past decade has been a banner one for the beautiful game on stage.We've had a 2018 World Cup contender (The Three Lions), a royal court drama about homophobia (The Pass), a Pulitzer Prize-nominated teen exploration (Wolves) and even a farce about 16th-century folk horror (The Limit).Dear England, the blockbuster tour that tells the story of Gareth Southgate's time in charge of the men's national team.
An Iranian state television host called the women's soccer team war traitors after the players failed to sing the national anthem ahead of their Asian Cup opening match against South Korea in Australia this week.
Iran is playing in the continental tournament as the military conflict at home continues to escalate after the United States and Israel launched airstrikes over the weekend that killed the Islamic Republic's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Players remained silent during the Iranian national anthem on the Gold Coast before Monday's 3-0 opening game against South Korea, but sang and saluted before a 4-0 loss to hosts Australia three days later.
Mohammad Reza Shahbazi, a broadcaster from the Islamic Republic of Iran, said in a video that the players showed a lack of patriotism and that their actions were "the height of shame" in footage widely circulated on social media.
“Let me say one thing: traitors will be dealt with more severely in times of war,” Shahbaji said.
"Anyone who takes a step against the country under war conditions must be dealt with more severely. Just like the issue of our women's soccer team not singing the national anthem... these people must be dealt with more severely."
Reuters has contacted the Asian Football Confederation for comment.Reuters has also contacted the Iran Football Association and the Asian Cup squad for comment.
Iran striker Sara Dedar fights back tears and talks about the battle ahead of the match against Australia, while coach Marzieh Jafari says her players are worried about their families back home but are doing their best to focus on the tournament.
On Sunday, Iran will face the Philippines in the final group game.Reuters
The birds are singing and the rain has subsided.Nigel Clough and his wife, Margaret, take their dog, Bobby, for a long peaceful walk around Derbyshire's lovely reservoir, Cressington Water.On the horizon for the Mansfield manager is an FA Cup fifth round game at home to Arsenal, but Clough knows the importance of staying, as he says, in "the real world".
Igor Tudor insisted "the boat is going in the direction I want it to go" despite Crystal Palace's 3-1 defeat, furthering fears of a Tottenham relegation.
Despite the poisonous atmosphere on another night at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Tudor is confident he can lead his new side to safety.Tottenham have lost each of their three games under their interim manager since Mickey van de Went's red card against Palace and are three points clear.
Spurs have four Premier League games in May: Aston Villa (away), Leeds (home), Chelsea (away) and Everton on final day, Sunday 24 May.
You said that Leeds and Everton at home are looking to win, but the conditions at Tottenham Stadium are not good.What league position will they be in May?
Tottenham are drowning in a sea of poison.Relegation is no longer a distant prospect for the owners of the best and most expensive stadium in the country.On the contrary, everything is becoming real.Tottenham falter, replacing a bedraggled Thomas Frank with a bewildered Igor Tudor, but are just a point above the bottom three and have absolutely no evidence of being able to arrest the slide during the chaotic defeat at Crystal Palace.
Tottenham is in crisis.Tottenham are almost always in crisis, but last night's 3-1 loss at home to Crystal Palace in the Premier League made matters worse. They now sit just one point above 18th-placed Wolves and 17th-placed Nottingham Forest, with 29 points to their 28. While Tottenham's management survey the damage of another season - and wonder if recently appointed Igor Tudor is the right man.
This weekend, among other things, the F Cup is also eagerly awaited, with Wolves vs Liverpool fifth round match kicking off at Molineux today at 8pm.Then there's Mansfield Town v Arsenal tomorrow, Wrexham v Chelsea and Newcastle v Manchester City; just three of them.
First, Barney Ronay won't miss a Tottenham club in crisis:
