Tuchel explains Alexander-Arnold and Palmer England recalls; Spain squad revealed in Ceuta: football news - live

From 6h ago

England squad announced for Nations League games

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alex Scott, Cole Palmer and Rio Ngumoha are in. There is no place for Phil Foden.

Full squad to come below.

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, James Trafford, Jason Steele

Defenders: Trent Alexander Arnold, Jarrod Branthwaite, Trevor Chalobah, Marc Guehi, Lewis Hall, Ezri Konsa, Tino Livramento, Nico O’Reilly, Jarrell Quansah

Midfielders: Elliot Anderson, Jude Bellingham, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Kobbie Mainoo, Cole Palmer, Declan Rice, Alex Scott

Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Eberechi Eze, Anthony Gordon, Harry Kane, Rio Ngumoha, Marcus Rashford, Morgan Rogers, Bukayo Saka.

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Updated at 05.13 EDT

Key events

Carrick: 'Ridiculous' to question his future

More Carrick on his future: “In terms of the future and ownership and how long I’ve got, it’s totally nothing. Thinking about it is ridiculous in the position I’m in. It’s just not on the radar. ‌We’ve got to perform and we’ve got a lot of games to plan for.“

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Michael Carrick shared some thoughts on his Manchester United future being questioned – already.

“History tells you that any team that’s successful goes through periods when you have to work through it, come through it and improve. We’ve had a small period, in recent time, when it hasn’t been exactly what we want it to be.

“I was expecting a point when we would go through it, it was going to come. We had such a good spell last season, going into this season.

“It is a week or two, the games haven’t gone our way. It’s tiny margins in some of those games. We will work through it. Winning games is always the answer, it can cover up a lot of things at times as well. Sometimes it’s the small disappointments that lead to something a bit bigger. It’s part of coping and being at this great football club.”

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On the England squad, Martin Jachnik gets in touch: “Adam Wharton, need I say more?”

His continuing omission remains a mystery. Similar goes for Morgan Gibbs-White.

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Get your team news for the weekend’s Premier League fixtures here.

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There are reports that JJ Gabriel, Manchester United’s enfant terrible, is in Barcelona for talks. Confirmation needed but that looks the end of his time in Manchester.

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Leeds have had a fine start to the season, though Daniel Farke, who a year ago was under pressure, is keeping feet on the ground. ““It’s not a coincidence anymore. It’s not just a good period, it’s quality what we are delivering and everyone can be proud of this and take lots of confidence.

“But, in this league nothing is guaranteed. The momentum can change very quickly. If we think we can be big time, it is the first step to failure. We won’t be succesful at all. The table at the moment is not important. What is important is we are on eight points - this is quite good. But not good enough to achieve what we want to achieve.

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This was an unfortunate misjudgement from those at Oxford. Imagine the panic when the mistake came to light.

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This game will be broadcast on ITV, terrestrial TV in the UK, on Saturday. What could possibly go wrong?

double quotation markThere is nothing to glorify here. This will be the 100th competitive meeting, if discontinued, minor tournaments are included, and anyone failing to see the logic behind the rivalry can be forgiven. The sides are not on each other’s doorstep and Millwall are south of the Thames, meaning Crystal Palace and Charlton are more obvious enemies. Yet it is not really about football. The tribalism runs deep, dating back to when the clubs were formed by rival shipbuilding firms at docks on the Isle of Dogs in east London, and is more down to hooligan elements than anything that happens on the pitch.

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Roberto De Zerbi will be glad to hear he has the backing of Unai Emery, whose Aston Villa team play Tottenham on Sunday. “De Zerbi is a fantastic manager. He played fantastic football here and performed fantastic here in Brighton. He did a fantastic job before as well in Italy and Marseille. They are getting better. They compete fantastic, even losing against Liverpool.

“Facing them is a difficult match. Of course, being very demanding defensively for us. Tottenham, I expect them to be in the top four.”

Right, that’s alright then.

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First, David Moyes on Jarrad Branthwaite’s deserved callup to the England squad. Scored a fine goal at Bournemouth the other week. “I’m really pleased for anybody who gets selected for their country. Jarrad even more so because of the injuries that he’s had but I was hearing that he’s only got one England cap and it was only 25 or 27 minutes or something. I hope he doesn’t play four games that’s for sure.”

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John Brewin

Good afternoon, football.

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We’ve still got a good number of Premier League press conferences to come this afternoon. As well as Arbeloa, Daniel Farke, Pierre Sage and others have been facing the media glare in the past hour or so.

And here to guide you through it all is the venerable Mr John Brewin.

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Fulham head coach Alvaro Arbeloa has been asked about Michael Carrick being under pressure ahead of his side’s clash with Manchester United.

double quotation markEvery Premier League manager is under pressure, it’s the same for every manager. It’s not because what comes from outside it’s because you have to be really demanding from yourself.

All the managers, we want to win every weekend and for sure when you are a coach of a big team you are always under pressure, but it’s the same for me because I need to win games.

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Carrick hit back at journalists today by claiming the suggestion his job was under threat was “ridiculous”.

On United’s indifferent start to the season, he said: “It’s not a catastrophe, it’s not a disaster, it’s not the end of the world.” He said he “expected” there would be a spell when results became patchy, after guiding United to 12 wins in 17 games during the second half of last season.

“We’ve got to put things in perspective. We’re not in a place where we have gone on an awful long run of horrific results.”

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Shaw and Baleba could feature for Man Utd against Fulham

Michael Carrick has revealed Luke Shaw could return from injury to play for Manchester United in their game at Fulham on Sunday, while summer signing Carlos Baleba could make his club debut.

Both players have been managing slight fitness issues in recent weeks, with Shaw missing the Manchester derby and the defeat to Brighton. Baleba was a £65m arrival from the Seagulls towards the end of the summer window.

Carrick said “there is a chance” both players play some part against Fulham. “Not totally 100% but there is a chance,” he said.

“It is really short-term to be honest but it is just working towards the game so we will see how he is coming up to the weekend.”

United otherwise have a clean bill of health going into the visit to Craven Cottage, which is being dubbed a must-win for the under-fire Carrick.

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Updated at 09.40 EDT

Oxford United apologise for 'United 93' clothing

Oxford United have abandoned a new range of American style-sportswear after it inadvertently referenced the tragedy of September 11.

The League One club launched its new ‘Campus Collection’ on Friday morning and had removed it from sale by lunchtime, after clothing designs were revealed to bear the slogan ‘United 93’. The U’s immediately published an apology that admitted to a lack of understanding of “the historical context and associations” related to the branding and made “sincere apologies for this error and any offence caused.”

“Inspired by the style and culture of American sports”, the Campus Collection was originally trailed for launch by the club on 11 September of this year, the 25th anniversary of the atrocity that killed nearly 3,000 people. Concerns over sensitivity saw the launch then delayed, but when the online collection was finally made available for sale on Friday, images showed models wearing an NFL-style shirt with ‘United 93’ on the chest, in recognition of Oxford being founded in 1893.

United 93 was one of four domestic passenger jets seized by al-Qaida terrorists on 11 September 2001. A mutiny by passengers prevented hijackers from using the plane to destroy a government building in Washington DC, and it ultimately crashed into a field, killing all 44 people on board. A film titled ‘United 93’ was also made about the tragedy.

Read more from Paul MacInnes below.

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Updated at 10.48 EDT

We’ve had loads of emails today about the England squad and Thomas Tuchel’s position and future in charge of the national team.

Rick Parfett is the latest to weigh in on fan feeling towards the German after the World Cup semi-final exit:

double quotation markThe atmosphere of blame and anger around Tuchel feels reflective of wider societal dynamics – a conversation lacking in nuance, an inability to appreciate positive aspects, and a reflexive default to anger and frustration. The causes are complex, among others: stagnating living standards, social media financially rewarding outrage, and newspapers constantly needing a story.

But it doesn’t feel reflective of reality and it’s deeply tiresome to see it take over our national psyche. Tuchel brought clarity to his selections – no more crowbarring three number 10s into the team alongside Kane – and some really joyful moments. One mistake shouldn’t be allowed to erase that, in my opinion.

I think that’s a very measured email, Rick, with some good points. In my view, however, Tuchel should be not be completely absolved of blame for his in-game management of the Argentina game, especially late on.

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Iraola has also backed Bradley Barcola to come good sooner rather than later, with all the pressure on the £125m signing to produce for Liverpool this season.

He added: “With Bradley, the more time he plays, the better he will become. He’s come in straight away, without pre-season minutes, but in a good shape. Like all the signings coming from other leagues, he will need some time to adjust to the Premier League. But he’s very used to playing high-level games and I see him in a good place, yes.”

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Andoni Iraola is speaking to the press now. The Liverpool boss returns to his old stomping ground of Bournemouth on Sunday, and was particularly pleased to see Alex Scott, his former player, as well as Liverpool youngster Rio Ngumoha named in the England squad this morning.

“Very happy for both [players],” he said. “They both absolutely deserve it. They also went to help the national team before the tournament and I’m sure they did a good job. I can only speak well about both. Very deserved, very ready. And I hope they both enjoy it.”

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Surely De Zerbi can get some kind of tune from Spurs’s attacking players. When Kulusevski comes back, and assuming all can stay fit, these will be the forward-thinking players at his disposal:

Dejan Kulusevski

James Maddison

Savio

Omar Marmoush

Mathys Tel

Mohammed Kudus

Xavi Simons

Dominic Solanke

Wilson Odobert

Mykhailo Mudryk

That’s not including Matheus Fernandes, who is classed as more of a midfielder, or Richarlison, who has been left out of Tottenham’s Premier League squad altogether this season. It’s still 10 players for a maximum of four positions. Is it simply a case of having too many options and not knowing your best attack?

The Mudryk and Savio signings in the summer were particularly puzzling, given their limited returns in the Premier League previously.

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De Zerbi admits Spurs must improve 'in all areas'

Here’s what Roberto De Zerbi said when quizzed about Tottenham’s struggles so far this season, despite a bumper transfer spend of around £300m in the summer.

double quotation markWe still need to improve in all areas really. I have enough experience as a manager to understand that you have to stay calm and have confidence in what you’re doing. The players have my full confidence. We move on and we keep trying to be better day by day - not by words but by facts.

We have to accept it - nothing more. I would work every day if I could, but if we have to stop then we have to stop. The most important thing right now is our game against Aston Villa. It will be a tough game but we have the quality and the players to play well. If we don’t play well, we won’t win against them. Let’s hope for a good performance.

De Zerbi also revealed Pedro Porro, Sandro Tonali and James Maddison are all available to face Villa tomorrow lunchtime (12.30pm KO BST), while Dejan Kulusevski is back in training after a long layoff, since May 2025, with a knee injury.

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Press conferences: We’ve got Michael Carrick of Manchester United and Liverpool’s Andoni Iraola due to speak to the media shortly.

But first … let’s hear from Roberto De Zerbi next. Lots of questions for him to answer, most pertinently on how Spurs go about trying to win a game of football.

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Manchester City have room to improve, says Maresca

Jamie Jackson

Manchester City’s 5-0 Carabao Cup victory against Norwich on Thursday was a sixth win from their opening six competitive games, yet Enzo Maresca is sure his team can be far better - possibly by 50%.

“Always room to improve,” the manager said. “[Now] we can prepare for Sunderland [on Sunday] – this is the only thing that I have in my mind. Then if we have 40% or 50% [to improve] I don’t know.”

Erling Haaland, Enzo Fernández, Marc Guéhi, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Josko Gvardiol and Antoine Semenyo were rested for Norwich’s visit, with a view to freshening them for Sunderland.

Maresca said: “It was very important. We gave rest to the ones that played back-to-back 90 minutes against Porto and United. Hopefully they can be full of energy for Sunday’s game – that will be a strong [difficult] game.”

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Ronaldo included in Portugal's squad for Nations League

Cristiano Ronaldo has been included in Portugal’s squad by new coach Jorge Jesus for their upcoming Nations League games.

The 41-year-old Ronaldo said that this summer’s World Cup was his last, but the superstar striker has yet to say when he plans to retire from international play. He will be 43 by the time the 2028 European Championship, the next major tournament, is held.

This was the first squad named by Jesus, who was hired to replace Spaniard Roberto Martinez after Portugal lost 1-0 to Spain in the World Cup last 16. Jesus’ previous coaching job was with Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, where they won the league together last season.

Regarding Ronaldo’s role, Jesus said “all the called-up players are at my disposal.”

“If he performs well, he plays. If he doesn’t perform well, he doesn’t play. That’s how I treat everyone,” Jesus said.

“Now, does Cris have a different status? Yes. His career is different. He has five Ballon d’Or awards. But does that influence my decisions? No. It doesn’t influence anything, zero, but he is different from the others.” AP

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New Belgium coach Mark van Bommel was told his son Ruben had earned a first ⁠Netherlands call-up while holding a press conference on Friday to announce his own maiden squad.

On a busy day for ⁠the Van Bommel ⁠household, PSV ​winger Ruben van Bommel was included in new Netherlands coach Xavi’s first squad for Nations League ⁠matches later this month.

The Dutch announcement was issued at noon, just as the elder Van Bommel began unveiling his Belgium squad ⁠in Tubize. After explaining his selections, he was asked by reporters about his ​son’s call-up.

“Is the squad already ‌known?” Van Bommel replied. “Do ‌you think I already knew? I’m very proud of ‌him, just as every father would be very proud of his son when he is called up for the Dutch national team. I played for the national team myself. That is the highest level you can achieve.“

Van Bommel said the call-up was particularly significant after his son’s recovery ‌from a cruciate ligament injury. “It has been a difficult year for him,” he said. “To come back in that way is a ​great achievement by him.“

The 22-year-old has made a strong start to the season at Dutch champions PSV and becomes the third generation of his family to be involved with the Dutch team. His grandfather Bert van Marwijk, 74, coached the ⁠Netherlands to the 2010 World Cup final and his father ​Mark, 49, won 79 ​caps and captained the national ​team. Mark also played in the 2010 final, which the ​Netherlands lost to ‌Spain in Johannesburg.

Van ​Bommel’s first ​game in charge of Belgium is away against Italy in Rome on September 25, a day after the Dutch play their first game of the new Nations League campaign against Germany in Amsterdam. Reuters

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Let’s pivot to some Premier League press conferences. Brighton boss Fabian Hürzeler has seen his team begin the season impressively and reserved special praise for Pascal Gross, who is thriving in his second spell with the Seagulls, now at the age of 35. He loves scoring against Manchester United in particular.

With Brighton locking horns with in-form Arsenal tomorrow, Hürzeler said of his veteran German: “We have to be aware that Martin Ødegaard can create that many chances, that will be so important. Hopefully we can bring Pascal Gross into the kind of positions where he can be make such an impact on our game.

“I’m pleased with how he is performing at the moment, not only in possession but also out of possession. It is nice to see how he is leading on and off the pitch. It is a joy to watch him play at the moment, hopefully he can carry on like this.”

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Thanks Yara. It’s been a busy one, hasn’t it?

My two-penneth on the Nations League is that it’s far better than the drudgery of international friendlies, and I actually think one longer international break is better than the more disruptive multiple autumn breaks. Maybe people will get into international football over the next couple of weeks, who knows?

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Some emails have come in regarding the nature of the Nations League and Gareth Southgate.

Krishna Moorthy writes:

double quotation markDoes anyone even follow Nations League? I have still not understood the format of this tournament. This is probably the European equivalent of a Carabao cup.

You, Barry Glendenning (see first paragraph in yesterday’s Football Daily) and the rest of Europe.

And Joshua Keeling laments an earlier reader’s thoughts:

double quotation markReally disappointed by Dan Pressland’s criticism of Southgate (see blog post at 11:06am BST)

To recap:

More knockout wins than every other England manager since 1966 combined.

Won a knockout game at four tournaments in a row – the first time England have done that.

Reached at least the quarter-finals at four tournaments in a row – the first time England have done that.

More final appearances than all other England managers combined.

The first England manager to get to a tournament final in another country.

The man should be a national hero, not spoken about in the way he is.

And with that I hand the blog over back to Dominic Booth. Send any of your Nations League and England thoughts his way.

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Russia to return to Fifa competition in boys' Under-15 World Cup

Russia are poised to compete in a Fifa event for the first time since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The country was listed on Friday among the entrants for the boys’ Under-15 World Cup and Festival which is being hosted in Azerbaijan next month.

Russian national teams and club sides were banned from Fifa and Uefa competitions in the wake of the invasion. Though Fifa lifted the ban on Russia’s under-17s in 2023, this under-15 tournament marks the first time they will have actually played. Russia have been drawn in a group alongside Turkey, as well as Afghanistan, Djibouti, Sierra Leone and Sudan.

The FIFA U-15 World Cup & Festival is a new festival-style competitions for boys (2026), girls (2027) and both (2028 onwards) be open to all 211 Fifa Member Associations, regardless of size or footballing tradition. To align with the development needs of U-15 players, the matches are shorter in duration, played on smaller pitches, with teams comprising – for the 2026 edition at least – eight players.

The Fifa council agreed last December that the under-15 event would be open to teams from all of its 211 member associations. In July, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) dropped its recommendation for global sports federations like Fifa to ban Russia.

In February, the Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, told Sky News the Russia ban had “not achieved anything” and had just created “more frustration and hatred”.

Ukraine’s sports minister Matvii Bidnyi described Infantino’s remarks as “irresponsible” and “infantile”. He said: “They detach football from the reality in which children are being killed.” Press Association

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The Netherlands’ record scorer Memphis Depay was left out, but the captain Virgil van Dijk continues ⁠his international career as new coach Xavi Hernandez named his first squad on Friday for the upcoming ⁠Nations League matches.

Depay ​played only as a substitute at the World Cup earlier this year and remained on a national-record ⁠of 55 goals. The 32-year-old striker is expected to retire after ⁠112 national team appearances. Van Dijk said last month that he would consider his ​international future after speaking to ‌the new coach but ‌has decided to hold off on hanging up his boots.

The Netherlands face Germany, Greece and Serbia ‌twice in four Nations League matches during the extended three-week international window.

Xavi handed a first call-up to Ruben van Bommel and Gjivai Zechiel and brought back the midfielder Joey Veerman but must do without talisman Frenkie de Jong, who is still suffering from a ‌knee injury sustained at the World Cup. Marten de Roon and Wout Weghorst are also not included in the ​26-man squad, along with Guus Til and the injured Brighton midfielder Mats Wieffer. Jeremie Frimpong, Kenneth Taylor and Jurrien Timber, who missed the World Cup, return to the squad.

Full squad:

Goalkeepers: Mark Flekken (Bayer Leverkusen), Robin Roefs (Sunderland), Bart ⁠Verbruggen (Brighton).

Defenders: Nathan Ake (Fenerbahce), Denzel Dumfries (Real Madrid), Jeremie Frimpong (Liverpool), ​Lutsharel Geertruida (PSV Eindhoven), ​Jorrel Hato (Chelsea), Jurrien Timber (Arsenal), Micky ​van de Ven (Tottenham Hotspur), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Jan Paul ​van Hecke (Tottenham Hotspur).

Midfielders: ‌Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool), ​Teun Koopmeiners (Juventus), Tijjani ​Reijnders (Al-Qadsiah), Kenneth Taylor (Lazio), Quinten Timber (Crystal Palace), Joey Veerman (Borussia Dortmund), Gjivai Zechiel (Feyenoord).

Forwards: Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth), Ruben van Bommel (PSV Eindhoven), Brian Brobbey (Sunderland), Cody Gakpo (Liverpool), Noa Lang (Napoli), Donyell Malen (Roma), Crysencio Summerville (Al Hilal).

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Updated at 08.44 EDT

Spurs are bad. I know that, you know that. But why? They are getting into attacking areas but are failing to make or take chances. Our data visual journalist Andrew Beasley breaks it down.

double quotation markSeveral metrics illustrate their attacking problems. Spurs are capable of getting the ball into dangerous areas, before the next step trips them up.

Their total of 46 completed take-ons leads the Premier League. Only five of these successful dribbles ended with the player creating a chance or taking a shot though. Manchester United have completed 17 fewer take-ons than Tottenham yet have produced tangible output with almost twice as many (nine) chances or shots.

It is similar for high turnovers, which occur when the ball is recovered within 40 metres of the opposition goal to begin a new possession sequence. Spurs have recorded the fourth-most in 2026-27 (34), but only Coventry (one) have ended fewer of them with a shot (two). Tottenham have produced a goal attempt from 5.9% of their high turnovers when the league average is 19.9%. Nothing is flowing smoothly.

Read the full analysis, with graphics, below.

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Gianni Infantino must leave the Fifa presidency “no ifs or buts”, according to Hans-Joachim Watzke, one of the vice-presidents of the German Football Association (DFB), as he spoke at a festival dedicated to artificial intelligence in Berlin on Thursday.

The DFB was one of the few federations not to sign a letter of support for Infantino’s re-election as Fifa president in six months’ time. “He has to go, no ifs or buts,” said Watzke, who said that three points in particular counted against the Swiss.

The first was the Fifa Peace Prize, launched by Infantino and awarded in December 2025 to the US president, Donald Trump, to whom Infantino is close, during the draw for the 2026 World Cup. Infantino “created this prize himself, and he decided on it himself,” said Watzke. “You can’t just invent something on your own and then announce it, it’s madness,” said Watzke.

Watzke also condemned the controversial handling of the Folarin Balogun red card during this year’s World Cup which was hosted in the US, Canada and Mexico. The American forward was sent off in the last 32 but his automatic one-match suspension was lifted after a phone call from Trump to Infantino. “It can’t be that when someone gets sent off, the head of state calls the Fifa president, and, remarkably, the whole thing is immediately overturned. That’s madness,” said Watzke.

The third issue was the project, unveiled on 28 July and dropped four days later, to create a commercial company that would have been open to private investors and became a focal point of the rebellion against Infantino. “It’s completely insane,” said Watzke. “Nobody knew about it, his vice-presidents in Fifa knew nothing, the [Fifa] council knew nothing.”

The DFB president Bernd Neuendorf said earlier in the week that it was also time for Infantino to depart. “The relationship of trust with Gianni Infantino, under this FIFA leadership, has of course been completely shattered,” he said in an interview with RTL/ntv television. “It’s important that this Infantino system comes to an end.”

For now, Infantino is the only candidate for the FIFA presidency in the election scheduled for 18 March 2027, with candidacies open until 18 November.

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This time tomorrow we will be 8 minutes away from kick-off at The Den where West Ham and Millwall will renew their rivalry. The Metropolitan police have been granted special powers to tackle violence as the south and east London teams meet again for the first time in 14 years.

double quotation markThere is nothing to glorify here. This will be the 100th competitive meeting, if discontinued, minor tournaments are included, and anyone failing to see the logic behind the rivalry can be forgiven. The sides are not on each other’s doorstep and Millwall are south of the Thames, meaning Crystal Palace and Charlton are more obvious enemies. Yet it is not really about football. The tribalism runs deep, dating back to when the clubs were formed by rival shipbuilding firms at docks on the Isle of Dogs in east London, and is more down to hooligan elements than anything that happens on the pitch.

There have been many occasions when the nastiness has spiralled out of control. Hooliganism was rife in English football during the 1970s and 1980s and Millwall and West Ham had fearsome firms. Trouble erupted when the sides met at the Den for a testimonial for the Millwall defender Harry Cripps in 1972. The toxicity grew and a Millwall fan, Ian Pratt, died after a clash with West Ham fans at New Cross station in 1976. It is worth keeping in mind when people try to hype up this fixture. Stories about who was top dog on the terraces back in the day are not that interesting.

Read more from Jacob Steinberg below.

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Updated at 07.22 EDT

The new Belgium coach Mark van Bommel on named his first ⁠squad for their four Nations League matches, retaining the core of the World Cup selection.

Van ⁠Bommel, who has ⁠replaced ​Rudi Garcia, added eight players who did not take part in the tournament in Canada, Mexico ⁠and the US as he named a 28-man squad for matches against Italy, France (twice), and Turkey between 25 September and 5 October.

Belgium must do without first-choice goalkeeper ​Thibaut Courtois, who asked to ‌be excused from ‌the Nations League campaign to regulate his playing time at the ‌age of 34. Jérémy Doku, who was seen as a key player for the World Cup campaign but had a disappointing tournament, misses out due to injury, as does Amadou Onana.

Attacker Alexis Saelemaekers and veteran defender Thomas Meunier have been ‌dropped while Axel Witsel has retired from international football. The uncapped players in the squad include goalkeepers ​Jari De Busser, Mike Penders and Maarten Vandevoordt and the 21-year-old full-back Kyriani Sabbe.

At the World Cup, Belgium reached the quarter-finals, being eliminated after a 2–1 defeat to eventual champions Spain. Belgium were ultimately the only team to score a goal against Spain throughout the latter’s victorious World Cup campaign.

Full squad:

Goalkeepers: Jari De Busser (AZ Alkmaar), Senne Lammens (Manchester United), Mike Penders (Chelsea), Maarten Vandevoordt (RB Leipzig).

Defenders: Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Zeno Debast (Sporting Lisbon), Maxim De Cuyper (Brighton), Koni De Winter (Milan), Brandon Mechele (Club Brugge), ​Nathan Ngoy (Lille), Kyriani ​Sabbe (Club ​Brugge), Joaquin Seys (Club ​Brugge), Arthur Theate (Bologna).

Midfielders: Kevin De Bruyne (Napoli), Mandela Keita (Parma), Romeo ​Lavia (Chelsea), Nicolas ‌Raskin (Rangers), Youri Tielemans (Manchester ​United), Hans ​Vanaken (Club Brugge).

Forwards: Charles De Ketelaere (Atalanta), Matias Fernandez-Pardo (Newcastle), Malick Fofana (Sunderland), Mika Godts (Paris Saint-Germain), Romelu Lukaku (Fenerbahce), Dodi Lukebakio (Benfica), Diego Moreira (Milan), Lois Openda (Olympique Lyonnais), Leandro Trossard (Besiktas).

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Updated at 07.08 EDT

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