Reading could have full-backs Andy Yiadom and Baba Rahman back from the Africa Cup of Nations as they host Huddersfield in the Sky Bet Championship.The pair will be returning to their club earlier than expected following Ghana’s surprise elimination at the group stage in Cameroon but it remains to be seen if they will be available this weekend.Liam Moore’s future remains the subject ...Full Story »

Manager Grant McCann remains in the dark about his future at Hull following the takeover by Acun Ilicali – completed just hours after the 2-0 victory against third-placed Blackburn.Ilicali finalised his £20million purchase of the Sky Bet Championship club on Wednesday afternoon, but McCann has yet to meet the Turkish businessman.He said: “All we can do is to try and focus the b...Full Story »

Ryan Lowe rejoiced in his first glimpse of Preston’s true potential as they battled back to claim a late 2-2 draw with Sheffield United.The hosts looked down and out after Jayden Bogle and Billy Sharp scored for the Blades before half-time, while Andrew Hughes was sent off.But Lowe’s 10 men staged a dramatic turnaround late on, grabbing a point thanks to goals from Alan Browne and Em...Full Story »

Chelsea’s unconvincing form continued as their winless run stretched to four Premier League games following an entertaining 1-1 draw at Brighton.Hakim Ziyech fired the European champions into a first-half lead at the Amex Stadium with a low strike against the run of play.But the third-placed Blues were second best for much of the evening and could have few complaints about stand-in Seagull...Full Story »

Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick faces yet another problem after learning that the Old Trafford board might not sanction any transfers this month, according to reports. The German only replaced Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at the end of November but has already suffered several setbacks as he seeks to improve the Red Devils’ performances. United threw away a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with Aston Vil...Full Story »

Boss Ryan Lowe says Preston must develop a killer instinct to succeed this season after Birmingham’s late equaliser in a 1-1 draw ended his 100 per cent league record in charge.North End were two for two in the Championship since Lowe’s appointment in early December and looked on track for a third straight win when Patrick Bauer’s instinctive finish just after the half-hour mar...Full Story »

Mansfield boss Nigel Clough was delighted to see Harry Charsley end the day as a super substitute with a second-half brace that hauled his in-form side into the League Two play-off spots following a 2-0 home win over Walsall.It was a sixth home league win in a row and their ninth in 10, and Clough said: “It was an enforced change unfortunately as Ollie Clarke felt his hamstring, but he cou...Full Story »

Though they are all now stars in their own right, Liverpool’s current attacking quartet all had relatively low-key starts to their careers. Sadio Mane was born in the most remote region of Senegal, Mohamed Salah grew up in a village far from Cairo, Roberto Firmino was basically an unknown in Brazil when playing for Figueirense, and Diogo Jota started out at tiny Pacos Ferreira in Portug...Full Story »

Brighton overcame a missed a penalty and a disallowed goal to salvage a 1-1 draw with rivals Crystal Palace thanks to a late own goal from Joachim Andersen.Albion looked set to slip to a galling loss after Conor Gallagher’s seventh goal of the season gave Palace an undeserved second-half lead.But the Eagles were unable to snatch all three points in Sussex for the third successive season as...Full Story »

Preston boss Ryan Lowe has revealed Izzy Brown is not expected to play again this season.The former Chelsea youngster ruptured his Achilles in the summer and is now likely to miss the rest of the campaign.Declan Rudd and loanee Josh Murphy remain out for the clash against Birmingham but Matthew Olosunde and Tom Barkhuizen hope to return.Connor Wickham has also left the club this week after the e...Full Story »

Referee Janny Sikazwe twice blew his full time whistle prematurely during the closing stages of the match between Tunisia and Mali, with no stoppage time played A referee at the Africa Cup of Nations has infuriated the Tunisian coaching staff after mistakenly blowing his full time whistle early twice in their loss to Mali. Zambian official Janny Sikazwe first blew for full time in the 85th min...Full Story »

Dave Artell said it would have been a “travesty” if Crewe had not beaten Charlton to record a third win in five although the Railwaymen were left to sweat over a stoppage-time strike by Elliot Lee that was eventually ruled out.Referee Rob Lewis and his assistant deliberated for several minutes before agreeing that Jonathan Leko was standing in an offside position and interfering with...Full Story »

Antonio Conte has said he was following the “club line” after he dropped Tanguy Ndombele for the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg with Chelsea.The Frenchman was absent as Antonio Rudiger’s first-half goal gave Chelsea a 1-0 win on the evening and a 3-0 aggregate overall as they booked a place in next month’s Wembley final against Liverpool or Arsenal.Ndombele was booed o...Full Story »

Thomas Frank praised Bryan Mbeumo for his 21-minute hat-trick that earned Brentford a 4-1 victory over Port Vale in the third round of the FA Cup.Mbeumo came off the bench in the 62nd minute and added to Marcus Forss’ first-half opener with three goals at Vale Park.“It’s brilliant I must say,” said Frank. “He’s been brilliant for us this year in the Premier Le...Full Story »

Erling Haaland has told those closest to him that he has made a decision over his future ahead of the summer transfer window, as revealed by the Daily Star. And it does not spell good news for Manchester City or Manchester United after he made Spain his next destination. Real Madrid or Barcelona are now in the lead to sign the Borussia Dortmund star, while the likes of Paris Saint-Germain an...Full Story »

Barnsley are battling a Covid-19 outbreak ahead of the FA Cup third-round tie against Barrow.Tykes boss Poya Asbaghi revealed the squad was “about 10 players light right now”, with their last Sky Bet Championship match against Nottingham Forest having been called off because of coronavirus issues in the opposition camp.Forward Cauley Woodrow is sidelined by a knee problem, while defe...Full Story »

Ryan Lowe praised his Preston side for recovering from conceding a “worldie” goal by fighting back to seal a 2-1 win at Stoke.Brad Potts’ fine equaliser and Andrew Hughes’ 84th-minute header made it two wins out of two for new boss Lowe.Ben Wilmot’s first Stoke goal just after the interval was a goal of the season contender, but Michael O’Neill’s side fe...Full Story »

Shrewsbury manager Steve Cotterill was thankful his side were a goal ahead going into the final 30 minutes as they secured a third win in four over Sheffield Wednesday at Montgomery Waters Meadow.Matthew Pennington met Luke Leahy’s corner in stoppage time at the end of the first half to secure a 1-0 win for the Shrews, condemning Sheffield Wednesday to their second successive defeat.&ldquo...Full Story »

Marcelo Bielsa admitted to a big sense of relief after Leeds eased their Premier League relegation fears with a 3-1 home win against Burnley.Jack Harrison’s first-half opener was cancelled out by Burnley substitute Maxwel Cornet’s superb free-kick early in the second period.But Stuart Dallas’ brilliant 77th-minute strike raised the roof at Elland Road and Bielsa celebrated subs...Full Story »

Gillingham manager Steve Evans was delighted with how his team performed during their goalless draw at MK Dons despite a lack of preparation time.The third-from-bottom Gills had not played for three weeks prior to their trip to Stadium MK and had little time at the training ground since regrouping, following a Covid-19 outbreak at the club.Nevertheless, they defended doggedly and threatened spor...Full Story »