Prem exec exit shakes club

GM football fans. Route One here, and we’re covering a big blow to Arsenal’s staff, Mourinho’s calls of corruption and much more.

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TONIGHT’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE STATS

Liverpool vs Bayer Leverkusen (20:00 UK / 15:00 ET). Liverpool are only one of two teams to have won all three games in the league phase. Real Madrid vs AC Milan (20:00 UK / 15:00 ET). Madrid and Milan have faced off 15 times, with both sides posting six wins, but this will be their first meeting since the 2010-11 group stage. Sporting CP vs Manchester City (20:00 UK / 15:00 ET). City have lost just one of their 10 European matches against Portuguese opposition, but Sporting’s inform Viktor Gyokeres has been involved in 10 goals in 12 appearances in European competitions.

Plus…

• Premier League MW10 result: Fulham (9th) 2 — 1 Brentford (12th) (Prem table)

• Opta’s updated Champions League predictions (More)

• Son Heung-min to sign Spurs extension (More)

• Neymar buys $26mn Miami property amid Inter Miami speculation (More) / behind paywall

• Bruno Fernandes says he apologised to Erik ten Hag after sacking (More)

• West Ham have told manager Julen Lopetegui that he could be fired if results do not improve (More)

MAJOR ARSENAL BLOW

Arsenal sporting director Edu leaves the club, set to join Marinakis group

Arsenal sporting director Edu, a key ally for Mikel Arteta, has left the club. In what will come as a major blow, the Brazilian’s departure leaves Arsenal in an unwanted mid-season shuffle. This is the third person to have left the club in one month, with the Women’s head coach, Jonas Eidevall, and the U18s coach, Jack Wilshere, both departing.

It’s thought that Edu is leaving because he harboured ambitions to become CEO at Arsenal which the club was unwilling to meet. Multiple sources suggest Edu will take up a more global position (partially behind paywall) in charge of Evangelos Marinakis’s group of clubs. This includes Nottingham Forest, Olympiacos and Rio Ave. One source reports that Edu has already agreed a deal in principle with Marinakis.

Edu joined Arsenal in July 2019 as technical director and led a culture shift at the club that saw Arteta hired as manager. He was key to signing Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard, as well as many others. He also supported Arteta in the removal of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from the squad (analysis of Edu’s recent recruitment).

POLL

HEAD START

🤔 Man Utd players want Van Nistelrooy to stay. Manchester United players want Ruud van Nistelrooy to stay at the club when Ruben Amorim takes charge. The new head coach will likely bring in five colleagues from Sporting. So, it's unclear how Van Nistelrooy would stay on as assistant manager. But the players want him to act as a “connector” between the dressing room and new management.

❌ Lower-league clubs say they already feel the impact of the FA Cup replays being scrapped. The FA agreed to scrap FA Cup replays – fixtures that end in a draw are replayed at the away team venue – from the first round in April. The FA scrapped replays due to a crowded schedule from expanded club competitions. But Premier League clubs don’t enter the Cup until the third round. Clubs like Guiseley, who drew 1-1 with Stevenage, say they’ve already lost up to £50,000 due to the replay not going ahead.

🧑‍⚖️ Harassment probe dropped for former French football Chief. French prosecutors say they have dropped an investigation into sexual and moral harassment allegations against former French Football Federation (FFF) president Noel Le Graet, 82. The inquiry, opened in January 2023, was closed due to insufficient evidence.

MOURINHO CALLS CORRUPTION

Mourinho hits out at VAR in Turkey, insists he would not have joined Fenerbahce if told 'the whole truth'

Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho hinted that corruption was rife in the Turkish top-flight. He believes his side is fighting “the system” and told reporters that he wouldn’t have moved to Turkey if he was told “the whole truth”. Mourinho continued his protest on social media with two posts on Instagram.

The Portuguese coach was critical of the VAR Atilla Karaoglan in a post-match interview, suggesting that the official was “drinking Turkish tea” instead of watching the game. He also said that the referee was “just a little boy” on the pitch. Highlights of Mourinho’s press conference can be found here.

The Turkish Super Lig is at boiling point when it comes to referees. Last season, the Turkish Football Federation (FFF) suspended all leagues after one referee was punched by a then-club president on the pitch after a game. In another incident, Istanbulspor’s president withdrew his team in protest at a refereeing decision.

AROUND THE FOOTBALL WORLD

Top Five European Leagues

> Real Madrid reportedly knew that Vinicius Jr was not going to win the Ballon d’Or before the El Classico, but kept it a secret to not distract him (More) 

> Carlo Ancelotti is concerned by Kylian Mbappe’s lack of pressing after the Frenchman ran just 8km (around 2km less than average) against Barca, according to Spanish outlet Revelo (More)

Rest of the World

> Neymar played just 29 minutes in Al Hilal’s AFC Champions League game before picking up a thigh injury just two weeks after making his return from ACL tear (More)

> Wrexham have been eliminated from the FA Cup in the first round, losing 1 – 0 away at lower-league Harrogate Town (More)

Women’s Football

> Chelsea have maintained their 100% winning start under new manager Sonia Bompastor after a 5 – 0 win over Everton (WSL round-up)

> The FA has launched a new initiative to improve diversity in women’s football by offering placements to six aspiring coaches from marginalised communities (More)

ROUTER’S VOICE

Yesterday, we asked you: Which team has been the most unexpected standout in this Premier League season?

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🌲 Nottingham Forest (79%)

⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 🐦 Brighton (3%)

🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 🍒 Bournemouth (14%)

🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other…  (4%)

Your punditry takes:

• 🌲 G.B: “I still think they’ll be relegated along with Wolves and Southampton, but they’ve made a surprisingly excellent start”.

• 🌲 T.S: “With due respect to other teams, it's not even close. If anyone outside of Nottingham would have said they'd be in the Top 4 at any point this season, they'd have been ridiculed. And they beat Liverpool AT ANFIELD in the process. WOW!”

• 🍒 B.S: “A solid start to the season and that win over Man City was the cherry on top – mind the pun.”

EXTRA TIME

Leaked Barcelona 25/26 kit returns to iconic orange.

Why are Nottingham Forest so good this season?

Stats behind the striker who has rejected a move to Manchester United.

Ranking the best football academies in the world.

The journalist awkwardly probes Amorim to speak English. / via X

Goal disallowed after the referee thought the ball hit the side netting.

Diego Simeone’s son scores for his father’s side.

A red card for spitting next to the referee.

The 130-year-old league where every game is at home.

GAME FACE ON

Question: Which Premier League player scored the most goals (73) before scoring a header?

Clue: He’s scored the 7th most goals in Premier League history.

Scroll below for the answer.

ON TODAY

Champions League league stage

• PSV vs Girona (17:45)

• Slovan vs Dinamo Zagreb (17:45)

• Bologna vs Monaco (20:00)

• Dortmund vs Sturm (20:00)

• Celtic vs Leipzig (20:00)

• Lille vs Juventus (20:00)

• Liverpool vs Leverkusen (20:00)

• Real Madrid vs AC Milan (20:00)

• Sporting vs Manchester City (20:00)

Championship

• Bristol City vs Sheff Utd (19:45)

• Oxford vs Hull (19:45)

• QPR vs Middlesbrough (19:45)

• Sheffield Wednesday vs Norwich (19:45)

• Plymouth vs Portsmouth (20:00)

• Swansea vs Watford (20:00)

*All time in UK. EST -5. PST -8. CET +1. CST +8. JST +9.

Answer

Thierry Henry.

Goal of the Day

Today’s Goal of the Day is from P.O: Alvaro Negredo, City 6-0 Spurs, November 2013. Still one of the greatest goals I've ever seen live (and I was there for Agueroooo), the first touch, the strength to make Michael Dawson look like a child, the power and placement of the shot. What a goal, what a result, what a day.

P.O’s favourite goal can be seen here. Submit your entry for Goal of the Day here.