Barcelona suffered their first loss of 2023 in domestic competition and wasted the chance of going 10 points clear at the top of the table thanks to an embarrassing 1-0 defeat away to Almería. Barça were awful all night and lost their second game in three days, and they now go into a massive Copa del Rey semi-final against Real Madrid playing their worst football of the season.

Another really bad night for the boss, who selected a lineup that was way too defensive against what was always going to be a parked bus from Almería, and waited 30 minutes in the second half to bring on Torre and Alarcón. He continues his fixation with Marcos Alonso who once again had zero impact on the game, and there were no tactical adjustments at all. It’s ultimately his responsibility even though the players also deserve a ton of blame for this showing, but the boss offered very little solutions on a night full of problems. Again.

Casemiro scored the opener for Erik ten Hag’s side at Wembley and they doubled their lead before the break via a Sven Botman own goal.

It is their first piece of silverware since they won the Europa League under Jose Mourinho in 2017, and it could be the first trophy of a potential quadruple, with United still in the FA Cup, Europa League and still having an outside shot of winning the Premier League.

For Newcastle, their 54-year wait for a trophy – and 68 years for a domestic trophy – goes on.

Newcastle were bright in the early stages but it was Manchester United who took control on 33 minutes, as Casemiro rose to head home from Luke Shaw’s free-kick. There was a VAR check but the Brazilian was ruled to be narrowly onside.

Six minutes later the lead was doubled as Marcus Rashford combined brilliantly with Wout Weghorst before driving into the box and seeing his shot deflect off of Botman before evading Loris Karius in the Newcastle goal.

Eddie Howe threw on Alexander Isak at half-time to try and help turn the tide, but Newcastle could not break down a stubborn and resilient red wall, as Man Utd saw out the win.

Jadon sancho enjoyed a morale-boosting return to the Manchester United score sheet on Wednesday night and Bruno Fernandes says it is confidence that has been the winger’s problem in recent 

The 22-year-old came off the bench and scored the Red Devils’ equaliser in a dramatic 2-2 draw with Leeds at Old Trafford, with the home side needing to bounce back from two goals behind.

It was Sancho’s first goal for his club since September, having been left out of first team activity for some time, working on his fitness and mindset away from his teammates.

He is now back into the first team and will have been buoyed by scoring his third Premier League goal of the season to rescue a point against Manchester United’s old rivals.

Fernandes says that it has been a confidence problem for Sancho and hopefully the midweek goal will be a step towards a return to the kind of form which he was showing for Borussia Dortmund before moving to United in 2021.

‘Hopefully that will give him [Sancho] confidence and a boost for the future because we know how good Jadon can be,’ said Fernandes.

‘We just need him with full confidence to give his best for the team.’

In the end a point was a positive thing for Manchester United as a loss looked likely at one stage, and Fernandes praised the Old Trafford crowd and the spirit of the side to pick up the draw.

‘At this stadium, with the desire and the passion we have, 2-0 can’t happen, but it shouldn’t be a problem,’ he said. ‘Whenever we go down, it will never be a problem to fight back and turn around the result, even more at home, as we saw today.

‘Massive appreciation for the fans, they pushed us at the end and we could have won. I think we deserved that win, but as I said, in this stadium, with these players, it will never be a problem to down in the last minutes because we will always fight.’

Since Monday’s shocking news that the Premier League had charged Manchester City with over 100 breaches of their financial rules, speculation and uncertainty has engulfed the club.

City contest the charges that allege they breached financial regulations over several seasons, following a long-term investigation by the league’s hierarchy, but the assignment to an independent review panel will likely stretch the process out even longer

Among all the drama, there is a lack of clarity as to the exact time-frame, what could happen to City if they are found guilty of some or all of the charges, and what this means for the future of City’s spending, Pep Guardiola’s future of the club as a whole.

In an attempt to provide some clarity, chief City writer Simon Bajkowski was joined by the business of football writer Dave Powell on a live Q&A to answer any questions.

Chelsea have signed midfielder Enzo Fernandez from Benfica for a British-record £106.8m; deal for Argentine surpasses the £100m Manchester City paid for Jack Grealish from Aston Villa 18 months ago; the 22-year-old has signed an eight-and-a-half-year deal at Stamford Bridge

The deal for the Argentine surpasses the £100m Manchester City paid for Jack Grealish from Aston Villa 18 months ago.

The 22-year-old, who only joined Benfica last summer for around £10m, has signed an eight-and-a-half-year deal at Stamford Bridge to keep him at the club until the summer of 2031.

Chelsea had been in talks to sign the World Cup winner throughout January, but Benfica had refused to do business unless the Blues paid his €120m release clause.

But Chelsea agreed a deal of €121m at 9.15pm on Deadline Day after 12 hours of talks led by Chelsea’s co-owner Behdad Eghbali from London.

Manchester United have confirmed the signing of Marcel Sabitzer on loan until the end of the season.

The Austrian arrives after Christian Eriksen was ruled out for the next three months with an ankle injury.

The Red Devils have been under severe time pressure to complete the deal making initial contact with 

United’s need for a midfielder has intensified after Christian Eriksen was ruled out with injury until at least April. Chelsea have been working on a move for Benfica’s Enzo Fernandez but that deal has not been fully agreed yet.

Bayern are ready to let Sabitzer leave on loan or permanently and their sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic has been on the phone to both Premier League clubs.

United are waiting on Bayern to decide if they will do business. United’s preference is a loan and that could work for Bayern as Sabitzer still has two-and-a-half years left on his contract.

The fact United and Bayern are in different European competitions and not direct rivals could be one key factor in any possible

Austria international Sabitzer joined Bayern from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2021 but has started just seven games in the Bundesliga so far this season.

Predominantly a central midfielder, the 28-year-old has also played as a defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder, second striker and winger during his career.

Arsenal are considering an improved bid for Moises Caicedo as they try to sign a midfielder before Tuesday’s transfer deadline. (www.standard.co.uk)

The Gunners had a second offer worth £70million for Caicedo rejected by Brighton, who continue to insist that the Ecuador international is not for sale.

But Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi said yesterday that his team was “ready to go forward” without Caicedo and as of Monday morning Arsenal had not walked away from talks.

A fresh offer for Caicedo would likely exceed the club-record £72m they paid to sign winger Nicolas Pepe in 2019.

Arsenal want to sign a new midfielder this month to bolster their title charge. Mikel Arteta’s side are five points clear at the top of the Premier League and have a game in hand on Manchester City in second.

They are short on options in midfield as Mohamed Elneny is currently out with a knee injury. Thomas Partey also suffered an injury scare in Friday’s 1-0 FA Cup defeat at Manchester City when he came off at half-time.

Brighton have been adamant since Arsenal made an opening bid of £60m on Friday that Caicedo is not for sale, but De Zerbi gave some hope on Sunday that their stance could soften.

“I would like that he can finish the season with us, but we are ready to go forward without him,” he said after Brighton beat Liverpool 2-1 in the FA Cup. “We are a good team but we can also improve from the transfer market.”

A bid closer to £80m could test Brighton’s resolve after Caicedo posted on social media on Friday that he wanted to leave the Amex.

“The fans have taken me into their hearts and they will always be in my heart so I hope they can understand why I want to take this magnificent opportunity,” the 21-year-old wrote.

For any chance of Arsenal sealing a deal for Caicedo, it is thought Brighton would have to have a replacement lined up first. Arsenal and Brighton have a good working relationship after completing a number of big deals recently.

The Seagulls sold Leandro Trossard to Arsenal for £26m earlier this month, while Ben White moved to Emirates Stadium for £50m in 2021.

Brighton are notoriously tough negotiators, though, and are under no financial pressure to sell this month as they target a European push in the second half of the season.

Arsenal have also shown in the past that they will not pay what they deem to be over the odds for a player.

Chelsea priced them out of a deal for winger Mykhailo Mudryk earlier this month and last summer they were trumped by Manchester United for Lisandro Martinez.

Arsenal could be forced to look at other midfield targets before the deadline if a deal for Caicedo shows no signs of being completed.

Midfield is a key area for Arsenal in the transfer market this year and they want to sign West Ham captain Declan Rice this summer.

A move for Caicedo now would not impact plans for Rice, and Arteta wants to build a new-look midfield around both players.

Chelsea midfielder jorginho has completed a £12m move to arsenal on January transfer deadline day. Arsenal will pay £10m for Italian midfielder with a further £2m in add-ons.

With jorginho arriving at North London today, it means the gunners midfield is bolstered for the title charge in the second half of the season. And with a deal not yet announced, leaks have already emerged about what number jorginho will wear .

Arsenal supporters in demand to complete record deadline deal to sign Brighton & Hove albion midfielder moises caicedo despite reports that Brighton remain firm of retaining the Ecuadorian.

The winter transfer window is rapidly approaching to an end and teams will financially strengthen their squad before the window closes. Arsenal do not need to panic as the season has favored them to some extent but there is still need for reinforcements in order to keep the shape of the squad till the very end of the season.

It is important that arsenal strengthen the middle of the park before the transfer window slam shut later this evening. Arsenal fans has urged Stan kreonke and edu to Announce the signing of moises caicedo.