EPL
Next six games after Sporting CP draw

Arsenal found it tough going against Sporting CP in the first leg of their Europa League last 16 tie on Thursday night – giving up a first half lead and then having to equalise themselves.
The Gunners will remain narrow favourites to progress to the last eight of the competition thanks to home advantage in the second leg, which effectively now makes the tie a one-off game.
The Europa League could provde Arsenal with their first European trophy in 29 years, but there remains so much else also to play for this season with a first Premier League title in 19 years also very much on the line in the weeks to come.
Here are Arsenal’s next six games, which fall either side of an international break in March.
Arsenal’s next engagement is a trip to London neighbours Fulham, who have shocked the top flight by surging towards the European placings in recent months.
The return fixture provided a stirring early season win for the Gunners. Aleksandar Mitrovic had struck just before the hour mark but Martin Odegaard equalised before Gabriel atoned for an earlier mistake by netting an 86th-minute winner.
Things started well enough for Arsenal in Lisbon in the first leg when William Saliba scored an early header from a corner. But Sporting CP came back into the game in a big way not long after.
Former Tottenham forward Marcus Edwards proved a real pain throughout and was involved heavily as Goncalo Inacio and Paulinho scored either side of half-time. An own goal from Hidemasa Morita ensures the second leg will start on a level playing field.
Crystal Palace have dished out some harsh treatment to Arsenal in recent years. The Eagles are even four games unbeaten at the Emirates, drawing their last three after winning 3-2 in 2019.
Palace beat Arsenal at Selhurst Park last season as the Gunners’ Champions League push began to fade but Mikel Arteta banished those demons earlier this term with a 2-0 away victory thanks to Gabriel Martinelli’s strike and Marc Guehi’s own goal.
Next up on the docket will be Leeds at the start of April. Teams will have recovered players from the March international break before the final few crunch months of the season.
The two teams are battling for alternative goals; Arsenal want the title while Leeds just need to survive. 1-0 proved enough for Arsenal to win at Elland Road in October.
This trip will be much more of an acid test than games against Fulham, Palace and Leeds, all of which Arsenal will be expected to win while still potentially difficult.
Liverpool have handed out some severe beatings to the Gunners in recent times and haven’t lost to them at Anfield in the Premier League since 2012. However, Arsenal won the return fixture and, given the two teams’ contrasting fortunes, will be favourites here.
Arsenal will take on another relegation candidate when they return from Merseyside, though they could have another Europa League game to play before facing West Ham if they get past Sporting.
The Hammers rarely put up a fight against Arsenal, winning just one of the last 14 games against them, but could play with some added intent if they’re still involved in the scrap down at the bottom of the table.
The first legs of the 2022/23 Europa League quarter final ties will be played on 13 April and the return games on 20 April.
Should Arsenal beat Sporting over two legs, they would have two more games to fit into their imminent schedule. The match with West Ham, already on a Sunday, won’t be moved but the Friday night game against Southampton scheduled for 21 April would have to be rearranged.
On this edition of The Chronicles of a Gooner, part of the 90min podcast network, Harry Symeou previews Arsenal’s trip to Sporting CP in the Europa League and reacts to Gabriel Jesus’ return to full training.
If you can’t see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
EPL
Europa League final 2023 tickets: Prices for Budapest decider & where to buy

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.
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
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:
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.
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.
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.
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.
EPL
Tottenham director Fabio Paratici banned from football worldwide by FIFA

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.
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.
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 Saunders, Graeme 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!
EPL
Sir Alex Ferguson & Arsene Wenger inducted into Premier League Hall of Fame

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