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Leeds’ key fixtures in the race against the drop

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Following the failure of the Jesse Marsch experiment, the burden has fallen on Javi Gracia to help Leeds escape the drop.

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Guided to the top flight by Marcelo Bielsa in 2020, it’s been a difficult 18 months for Leeds after taking the league by storm in their first Premier League campaign since 2003/04. Bielsa’s magic faded in year four, and while Marsch showed promise during his year at the helm, Leeds were quickly heading towards the drop under his tutelage.

They were forced into action, and Gracia has enjoyed a promising enough start at the helm. However, the Spaniard’s got plenty of work to do if he’s to steer the Yorkshire outfit to safety.

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Here’s how Leeds’ schedule closes out the season, including their most important upcoming fixtures that could decide their fate.

Wolves vs Leeds

After winning a huge relegation six-pointer against Southampton a couple of weeks ago, the crunch contests continue to roll for Gracia’s Leeds.

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They take on Wolves at Molineux this weekend knowing victory will close the gap between themselves and Saturday’s opponents to just a point. Julen Lopetegui’s functional outfit, one that’s improved under his leadership, have also played a game more than Leeds.

Leeds vs Nottingham Forest

Forest scored just their fourth Premier League goal on the road last weekend as they were beaten 3-1 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. While Steve Cooper’s side have improved massively since the start of the season, their away record remains dire.

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They’ve accumulated just six away points all season, while 17 of Leeds’ 23 points have come at Elland Road. Talk about a must-win for Gracia’s side.

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Leeds vs Crystal Palace

Palace’s lack of a reliable goalscorer has seen them emerge as the Premier League’s poorest outfit in 2023. After a promising first half of the season, the Eagles are now well amongst it in the bottom half of the table.

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Patrick Vieira has got to start winning games soon because he could quickly find himself out of the job despite all the good work he’s done in south London.

Leeds vs Leicester

Harvey Barnes

Leeds lost at Leicester in October / Eddie Keogh/GettyImages

Leeds’ home schedule to close out the season will give many fans hope that survival is within their grasp. They have another winnable fixture at Elland Road in April with a slumping Leicester coming to town.

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The place will be rocking under the lights.

Bournemouth vs Leeds

Gracia’s side are back on the road to close out April as they visit Gary O’Neil’s Bournemouth. The Cherries have surprised many with their competence this season and proven themselves against the Premier League leaders and a Liverpool side fresh off their 7-0 thumping of Man Utd.

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Bournemouth simply aren’t going away in the fight to stay in the top flight.

West Ham vs Leeds

The Hammers seemingly fit into the “they’re too good to go down, surely?” category, but the more you watch them the more you realise just how erroneous that statement is.

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West Ham are in trouble, and their European excursions will not help their domestic cause down the stretch. Should they advance deep into the Europa Conference League, they’ll take on Leeds just days after the second leg of a potential semi-final.

Leeds’ current position may not be pleasant reading for supporters as they sit 19th in the table, but the points differential paints a completely different picture. The Yorkshire outfit have accumulated 23 points so far this season and are just a point adrift from safety.

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Their goal difference, which is pretty respectable at -11 given their position, could aid their bid for survival when it’s all said and done given how tight it is at the bottom.

Position

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Team

Played

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Won

Drawn

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Lost

Goal difference

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Points

12.

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Crystal Palace

26

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6

9

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11

-12

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27

13.

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Wolves

27

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7

6

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14

-17

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27

14.

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Nottingham Forest

26

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6

8

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12

-26

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26

15.

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Everton

27

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6

7

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14

-18

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25

16.

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Leicester

26

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7

3

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16

-9

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24

17.

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West Ham

26

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6

6

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14

-10

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24

18.

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Bournemouth

26

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6

6

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14

-26

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24

19.

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Leeds

26

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5

8

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13

-11

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23

20.

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Southampton

26

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6

4

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16

-21

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22



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EPL

Europa League final 2023 tickets: Prices for Budapest decider & where to buy

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The Europa League final may not be a bucket list event that, say, the Champions League or World Cup finals are, but UEFA’s secondary club competition will mean a whole lot to those supporters whose sides progress into the showpiece event.

Just eight teams remain in this season’s iteration of the competition with several European behemoths of yesteryear still going strong. Manchester United, Juventus, and AS Roma sit among the favourites to at least reach the final in Budapest.

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While the final at the Puskas Arena is still some time away yet, tickets for the event are set to go on sale soon.

Here’s everything you need to know about purchasing tickets for the 2023 Europa League final

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There’s little information to access regarding 2023 Europa League final tickets right now, with more details expected to be released later this month.

Thus, exact ticket prices for the final in Budapest are not yet known. These were the prices for last season’s final between Rangers and Eintracht Frankfurt in Seville:

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A release date has not yet been revealed for 2023 Europa League final tickets. In 2022, tickets went on general sale on 20 April.

Supporters will be able to purchase 2023 Europa League final tickets via UEFA’s ticket portal once they go on general sale.

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There are three different hospitality packages for the 2023 Europa League final, but all are sold out on UEFA’s website.

The most expensive of these packages – Private Suite Gold – costs €890 per person. UEFA’s Private Suite Silver package is €200 cheaper at €690, with the main difference between these two options being where the suites are located. Silver suites are behind the goal, while gold suites are in the main or opposite stand.

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Customers in both suites will also receive a match ball.

The Club package also costs €690 per person which grants access to UEFA’s Sky Club lounge.

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All packages include prolonged hospitality service before and after the match, world-class catering, a live TV feed, a parking pass, and, most importantly, a match programme.

The 2022/23 Europa League final is scheduled for 31 May and will be held at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary.

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Tottenham director Fabio Paratici banned from football worldwide by FIFA

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Tottenham managing director of football Fabio Paratici has been banned from football worldwide after FIFA extended the punishment imposed in Italy following his involvement in Juventus’ penalised accounting practices.

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In January, the Italian giants suffered a shock 15-point deduction after the club was deemed to have inflated player transfer values in swap deals among other financial offences.

Paratici joined the Juventus hierarchy in 2010 and was the club’s sporting director between November 2018 and the summer of 2021, before he took up a similar role at Tottenham. The investigation into Juve’s accounts scrutinised transactions between 2019 and 2021 – when Paratici was at the heart of the club’s dealings.

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At the start of the year, Paratici was one of several former Juventus board members that were banned from football following the conclusion of the investigation by the Italian Football Federation. Initially, Paratici was handed a 30-month ban from just Italian football, although the threat of extending the scope of that punishment internationally always loomed.

On Wednesday, FIFA released a statement confirming that they had indeed taken up that option, extending the ban handed out to Paratici and the other Juventus board members – including former owner Andrea Agnelli – worldwide.

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The statement read: “FIFA can confirm that following a request by the Italian FA (FIGC), the chairperson of FIFA disciplinary committee has decided to extend the sanctions imposed by FIGC on several football officials to have worldwide effect.”

Paratici was due to be in court this week for a a preliminary committal hearing regarding a portion of the charges levelled at Juve, but the date for those proceedings have been shunted back to 10 May. Juve appealed their 15-point penalty – which the prosecution only recommended as a nine-point punishment – and will hear the ruling of which on 19 April.

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On this edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott SaundersGraeme Bailey & Toby Cudworth discuss Julian Nagelsmann’s future and links to the vacant Tottenham head coach role, Barcelona’s ambition to bring Lionel Messi ‘home’, Brighton teenager Evan Ferguson, Florian Wirtz, Kalvin Phillips and more!

If you can’t see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!

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Sir Alex Ferguson & Arsene Wenger inducted into Premier League Hall of Fame

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Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have become the first managers to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame.

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The duo won 16 Premier League titles between them across respective long-term spells with Manchester United and Arsenal.

With 13 of those championships, Ferguson is the most decorated manager in the history of the competition. He is the only coach to have won the Premier League three times in a row, doing so on two different occasions.

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Ferguson said: “I’m truly delighted to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame. It’s an honour when you receive recognition like this. However, it’s not just about me as a person. It’s about the job at Manchester United and the bond we had over many years, so I’m also proud for the club, the staff and my players.

“My job was to send the fans home happy. United’s history and my own expectations were the things that drove me, and I then had to try and develop all my players with the same expectations and make sure we could go out and achieve them.

“I feel Arsene is a very worthy inductee as he transformed Arsenal Football Club fantastically. They became a tough team to compete with and we both wanted to win, which motivated us further. Through the years since retirement, we’d go for dinner together in a little restaurant he knows well in Switzerland. He is a really interesting man and I enjoy his company, but it is still my job to pick the wine!”

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Wenger arrived in England in 1996 as one of the Premier League’s first foreign coaches, and quickly proved sceptics wrong, transforming Arsenal into title winners and changing English football’s culture with his scouting and dietary expertise.

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The Frenchman won three Premier League titles with Arsenal, including an unbeaten ‘Invincibles’ season in 2003/04.

Wenger said: “I am very grateful to have been selected for the Premier League Hall of Fame. We always wanted to give something special to the fans and when you have players capable of remarkable things, the most important thing for me is the obligation of perfection.

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“I’d like to be known as someone who loved Arsenal, who respected the values of the club and left it in a position where it can grow and become even bigger.

“To share this with Sir Alex is a great honour for me. It’s like two boxers, you fight like mad and go the distance together. At the end of the day, you have respect and it will be a great opportunity to meet with him, share a good bottle of wine and memories of our old battles.”

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In addition to Ferguson and Wenger, there are 16 other inductees in the Premier League Hall of Fame.

Alan Shearer and Thierry Henry were the first two people inducted when the Hall of Fame was created in 2021. They were followed later that year by Eric Cantona, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard, Dennis Bergkamp, Steven Gerrard and David Beckham.

In 2022, Wayne Rooney, Patrick Vieira, Sergio Aguero, Didier Drogba, Vincent Kompany, Peter Schmeichel, Paul Scholes and Ian Wright were inducted.

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