City booked their place at Wembley with a 3-1 home win over Newcastle United in Wednesday’s semi-final second leg, completing a 5-1 aggregate victory.

Competition rules make Guehi ineligible for the final because he featured earlier in the tournament for Crystal Palace, and joined City after the first leg of the semi-final.

“Why should he (Guehi) not play? Why not? We pay his salary, he is our player,” Guardiola told reporters.

“You buy a player for a lot of money and he is not able to play, for a rule I don’t understand. Hopefully they can change it.

“I told the club we must ask – hopefully we can convince the Carabao Cup that Marc can play the final.”

The League Cup final between City and Arsenal is scheduled for March 22.

-Reuters

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“It’s the best vitamins we can put in our bodies because we are playing every three days,” Arteta told reporters after Arsenal beat their London rivals 1-0 on Tuesday to seal their place in the final of England’s second domestic cup competition.

The Spaniard said the prospect of a return to Wembley for the first time since he guided his team to victory in the FA Cup final – also against Chelsea – six years ago was magical, before adding: “Now we are going to have to go and win it.”

Arsenal had failed to make it through their previous four major cup semi-finals – two in the League Cup and another two in Europe – before overcoming Chelsea on Tuesday.

With the visitors desperately seeking the goal they needed to level the tie on aggregate, former Chelsea attacker Kai Havertz ran clear to score in the final moments of the semi-final second leg

The German has missed much of this season through injury and Arteta hailed his return to form.

“Today was a special moment for him and I hope that he fully enjoys it,” he said.

The Premier League leaders – who are also competing in the FA Cup and the Champions League – will face either Manchester City or Newcastle United who play their semi-final second leg on Wednesday with City 2-0 ahead from the first leg.

Chelsea coach Liam Rosenior said his players’ disciplined performance showed how much the team had developed since the chaotic 3-2 home loss to Arsenal in last month’s first leg, which was only his second match in charge after replacing Enzo Maresca.

“Ultimately their goal comes when we’re throwing the kitchen sink at the game. That’s going to happen,” Rosenior said. “We can’t let this setback affect our future. There were aspects of our game that I am very happy with.”

He said winger Pedro Neto and club captain Reece James had not made the squad on Tuesday after picking up “small knocks” and he praised 18-year-old Brazil winger Estevao who made a 48-hour round trip to Brazil for compassionate reasons but was back in London to come off the bench for Chelsea in the second half.

-Reuters

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The home side were ruthless in the first half as Tijjani Reijnders also got on the scoresheet and now face Arsenal at Wembley on March 22 in a battle between City manager Pep Guardiola and his protege Mikel Arteta.

“We showed a very good mentality,” Marmoush told Sky Sports. “We were together as a team, from the first minute, we were very focused on the job. We showed our mentality and passion, and are very happy to reach the final.

“We are here to win trophies. We give our best every day to reach these finals and win silverware. Hopefully, we can do it for all the new players and also the players that were here.”

Trailing 2-0 from the first leg, the last thing Newcastle needed was to concede early at the Etihad Stadium, but Marmoush’s shot deflected off defender Dan Burn and into the net inside six minutes.

The Egypt international added a second on the night with a close-range header from Antoine Semenyo’s cross. Marmoush has now scored 12 goals for City and five have come against Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium.

A rampant City scored a third before halftime and Semenyo was involved again as he created the chance for Reijnders to finish.

Newcastle pulled a goal back just past the hour mark when substitute Anthony Elanga showed quick feet to work a shooting chance and curled his effort past James Trafford in the home goal.

Elanga missed two superb chances to reduce the deficit further, one scarcely believable from right in front of the goal, while Erling Haaland brushed the post at the other end.

City won four League Cup titles in a row between 2018 and 2021 and have eight in all; only Liverpool (10) have won it more.

Arsenal have not lifted the trophy in 33 years and have two previous wins.

-Reuters

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After a cagey first hour of the semi-final second leg, with each goalkeeper making only one save, Chelsea coach Liam Rosenior switched to a more attacking formation by bringing Cole Palmer and Brazil winger Estevao off the bench.

They were followed by Alejandro Garnacho – scorer of both Chelsea’s goals in Arsenal’s 3-2 first-leg win at Stamford Bridge – as the visitors went in search of the goal they needed to level the aggregate score.

But Mikel Arteta’s men held out against the pressure before Havertz scored the only goal of the game in a breakaway move in the dying seconds.

In their first League Cup final since 2018, the Premier League leaders will face either Manchester City or Newcastle United, who play their semi-final second leg on Wednesday with City 2-0 ahead from the first leg.

-Reuters

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The match is now set for December 16, part of a gruelling run of four games in eight days, with Palace facing Manchester City in the Premier League on December 14, KuPS in the Conference League on December 18, and returning to league action on December 21, away at Leeds.

Palace argued that both sides should have equal time to recover before the quarter-final, as Arsenal host Wolverhampton Wanderers on December 13.

The south London club were open to a Christmas Eve game, but that option was ruled out after talks with the Metropolitan Police and Transport for London, who cited limited public transport services.

Arsenal, the home team, were also opposed to playing on Christmas Eve, while Palace later proposed December 23 as an alternative, two days before Arsenal’s trip to Everton (December. 21), kicking off at the same time as Palace’s game at Leeds.

“I don’t think that’s fair, because we have other competitions as well we have to try to accommodate. We knew at the start of the season the competitions that each club is playing in,” Arteta said

“On balance we have to try to accommodate the best possible way for everybody… There are other (options to December 23). Believe me, there are other options much better than this one. We already suggested that.”

The Spaniard warned that fixture congestion must be handled with fairness and player welfare in mind, otherwise clubs might eventually consider withdrawing from competitions.

“I hope we don’t go (that far),” he said. “If we have that big piece of paper with those two principles there in front before making any decision, all of us in our industry, we won’t get there.

“If we don’t and we just ignore that, then anything is possible.

-Reuters

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Ruben Amorim’s future as head coach is no longer whispered speculation—it is now the subject of his own public hints, with the international break looming as a possible inflexion point.

The bluntness of Amorim’s words after United’s humiliating exit at the hands of League Two side Grimsby Town was striking.

 Defeat on penalties after clawing back from two goals down was bad enough, but the symbolism of being outworked and outfought by a rotated fourth-tier team cut deeper.

Amorim’s candour in interviews—telling ITV that “you’re not going to change 22 players again” and that “something has to change”—suggested a man weighing whether to walk away before being pushed.

The optics could hardly have been worse. Amorim trudged back onto the pitch at Blundell Park to the taunts of jubilant home supporters chanting “sacked in the morning.”

The narrow walkways, cramped dugouts, and fans heckling United’s £700m squad offered a setting that underscored how far the club’s prestige has slipped. Even Matthijs de Ligt resorted to sitting on the floor for lack of bench space, a scene that felt like parody.

Behind the scenes, the defeat complicates the delicate power structure reshaping Old Trafford. Chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox, both hired from Manchester City to inject competence, now find their reputations bound to Amorim’s.

They must answer to Sir Jim Ratcliffe, whose firm grip on football matters means he will ultimately decide whether Amorim is worth persisting with. Ratcliffe admires Amorim’s directness, but admiration may not outweigh results.

Amorim’s frustrations are not new. As recently as pre-season, he admitted he had considered his position before recommitting to the project.

 Optimism appeared to return over the summer, but the fragile unity has evaporated quickly. His repeated claim that the players “spoke loudly with their actions” was not so much a critique of effort as an indictment of systemic malaise.

The failings in Grimsby were not limited to individuals, though goalkeeper Andre Onana’s calamitous errors highlighted United’s lack of reliability at key moments. Amorim was quick to deflect blame from his keeper, but his remark that “this is a fourth-division team, Andre should play just with his feet” captured the gulf between expectations and reality.

That gulf is the essence of United’s crisis. The infrastructure brought in by Ratcliffe and Berrada is meant to harden the club’s soft underbelly, yet here were United bullied by Grimsby reserves. The culture Berrada spoke about instilling—courage, pride, and resilience—looked like empty rhetoric on a rain-soaked night in Cleethorpes.

Burnley visit Old Trafford on Saturday in what now feels like a precarious fixture. The two-week pause that follows gives space for reflection but also invites speculation. Amorim’s language has ensured that speculation will intensify, whether or not results improve immediately.

In that sense, the Portuguese coach has shifted the spotlight. By acknowledging so openly that “something has to change,” he has forced United’s hierarchy to show their hand.

Either they back him more firmly than ever—or they accelerate a search for alternatives. What is clear is that United’s season, just three games old, already carries the weight of existential questions.

Adapted from The New York Times

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Goals by Charles Vernam and former Manchester United youth player Tyrell Warren put the hosts in charge of the second-round tie by halftime against the six-time winners.

But after thunder and lightning and a torrential rain squall, United finally came to their senses with Bryan Mbeumo’s first goal for his new club offering them an escape route.

Grimsby defended their lead valiantly but Harry Maguire’s 89th-minute header sent the tie to penalties.

A nerve-shredding shootout that lasted 18 minutes saw Matheus Cunha have his effort saved when he had the chance to seal it for United. The next 15 penalties were all scored before Mbeumo struck the crossbar to send the home fans into delirium.

United manager Ruben Amorim watched the penalties hunkered down in the dugout and the Portuguese coach, who replaced Erik ten Hag last season, will now find himself under intense scrutiny after a horror show on the banks of the Humber River.

“I know that the best team won, the only team that was on the pitch, the best players lose,” a cryptic Amorim told Sky Sports. “I think that the team and the players spoke really loud today, so that’s it, we lost, the best team won.”

There were no such problems for the other Premier League sides in action with Brighton and Hove Albion winning 6-0 at Oxford United, Everton beating Mansfield Town 2-0 and Fulham overcoming second-tier Bristol City 2-0.

After picking up one point from their opening two Premier League games, this was supposed to be the night United got their season moving. Instead they suffered embarrassment in the fishing town and the sharks are now circling for Amorim.

BIG-MONEY SIGNINGS

Since being appointed he has taken 28 points from his first 29 Premier League games and steered United to their worst season since 1974. He has been backed in the transfer window with some big-money signings but on the evidence so far he is no closer to reversing the club’s decline.

Amorim gave a first start to 73 million pounds ($99 million) signing Benjamin Sesko and also included Kobbie Mainoo for his first appearance of the season while Andre Onana was back in goal after being left out for the first two games.

United were shambolic in the first half and Grimsby, unbeaten in League Two, deservedly went ahead in the 22nd minute when Darragh Burns picked out Vernam who calmly controlled the ball before rifling a shot that beat Onana at his near post.

Grimsby, facing United for the first time in 77 years, doubled their lead eight minutes later when Onana flapped at a cross and Warren tapped in the loose ball from close range.

Amorim sent on captain Bruno Fernandes and new signing Mbeumo after the break but his side were lucky not to be 3-0 down when the hosts had a goal by Cameron Gardner ruled out harshly for offside.

Mbeumo eventually injected some top-tier quality into United’s display with a silky low finish to set up a nervous finale for the hosts. And when Maguire, so often the scorer of vital goals for United, headed past Christy Pym in the 89th minute it seemed he had got his side out of jail.

Sesko could even have sealed it at the death after a goalmouth scramble.

Onana redeemed his earlier errors with a save from Clarke Oduor in the shoot-out but Brazilian Cunha had his abysmal spot kick saved by Christy Pym.

It seemed like the shootout could go on all night as kicks hit the net but while Grimsby’s players were ice cool, Mbeumo cracked, sending his effort against the crossbar.

“The way we started the game, without any intensity, any idea of pressure, we were completely lost, and it’s hard to explain,” Amorim said.

-Reuters

Carabao Cup – Second Round – Grimsby Town v Manchester United – Blundell Park, Grimsby, Britain – August 27, 2025 Manchester United’s Bryan Mbeumo looks dejected after he misses a penalty as Grimsby Town players celebrate after winning the shoot-out Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith.

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Newcastle United Victory Parade – Newcastle, Britain – March 29, 2025 General view of Newcastle United fans during the victory parade REUTERS/Scott Heppel

About 150,000 people were expected to catch a glimpse of the League Cup that Newcastle lifted on March 16, after a 2-1 victory over Liverpool in the final at Wembley Stadium.

For manager Eddie Howe, Saturday’s event was an emotional moment as the city honoured him with a massive banner, unfurled outside St James’ Park.

“I can’t thank everyone enough, from Newcastle, the way they’ve embraced me and my family and I’m glad to have given them some joy,” he said atop the bus that carried the team around the city.

As the bus and crowd approached the Town Moor site, white smoke blanketed the area as the crowd sang Hey Jude, replacing ‘Jude’ with ‘Geordies’, and ABBA music was played over the speakers for a party expected to last long into the night.

-Reuters

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Ange Postecoglou’s side were cruising against a lacklustre United with Dominic Solanke’s double and a goal for Dejan Kulusevski putting them 3-0 up after 54 minutes.

But the home crowd were left chewing their fingernails as two terrible mistakes by their keeper Fraser Forster allowed substitutes Joshua Zirkzee and Amad Diallo to give United hope.

There were still 20 minutes left when Diallo made it 3-2 and United were close to equalising on several occasions before Son Heung-min appeared to have sealed it in odd fashion, deceiving United keeper Altay Bayindir directly from a corner.

There was still time for Jonny Evans to head a third for United in stoppage time but a relieved Tottenham hung on.

Tottenham are seeking a first trophy since 2008 when they won the League Cup for the fourth time.

Postecoglou’s side let a 2-0 lead slip to lose 4-3 at home to Chelsea in their last home game and for a while it looked as though their innate ability to shoot themselves in the foot was coming back to bite them.

This time, however, the fans went home happy and Postecoglou moves a step closer to making good on his reputation for securing silverware in his second season at clubs.

Tottenham are at full stretch because of injuries but still dominated Ruben Amorim’s side which showed five changes to the starting lineup that stunned Manchester City on Sunday.

Solanke put the hosts in front in the 15th minute when Bayindir fumbled a well-hit shot by Pedro and the striker fired in the rebound off the post.

Bruno Fernandes had a couple of efforts and Rasmus Hojlund volleyed wide but Tottenham were comfortable and in cruise control straight after the interval when Lisandro Martinez could only turn a James Maddison cut-back into the path of Kulusevski who made no mistake.

Solanke was then allowed to dribble across the area before sliding a shot inside the post in the 54th minute and the tie looked over as a contest.

But Forster then played a casual pass out of his area and Fernandes intercepted and the ball reached Zirkzee to tap in.

Forster then compounded that error by taking an age to make a routine clearance and Diallo slid in to charge down his kick and divert the ball into the net.

Tottenham looked a bundle of nerves as United swept forward but captain Son restored calm with an inswinging corner that went over the head of Bayindir to ripple the net.

Substitute Evans’ riposte came too late to save United who will regret the way they started the tie.

-Reuters

Those were the first goals of the 17-year old for the club. 

He made his English Premier League debut against Brentford  in September 2022, becoming the youngest ever Arsenal player, and the youngest player to appear in the top flight of English football aged just 15.

In Tuesday’s League Cup match, Declan Rice opened scoring for Arsenal with a goal from 18 yards out in the 16th minute before Nwaneri made his presence felt in the 37th, latching onto a cross from Sterling to finish into an empty net from close range.

Nwaneri netted his second of the night soon after the break when West Ham were caught trying to play out from the back and Rice found the teenager who finished from just inside the penalty area.

Sterling, on loan from Chelsea, and Havertz put the game out of reach with goals in the 64th and 77th minutes.