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Prior to a trip to Manchester City on Sunday, Arsenal has a chance to tie Arsenal with the league leaders, but Liverpool’s pursuit of the title has slowed.

If West Ham is defeated at the Emirates, the Gunners can move to within five points of the Reds.

Behind the top two, the race is on for a place in next season’s Champions League.

Nottingham Forest’s rivals will square off at St James’ Park with just six points before they square off against Newcastle in seventh place.

The weekend’s pick of Premier League action looks to be in AFP Sports’ favor:

Liverpool’s title test

Arne Slot’s men appeared to be cruising towards a record-equalling 20th English top-flight title.

However, two 2-2 draws at Everton and Aston Villa in the past 10 days have brought the title race alive again.

Real Madrid, the dominant force in English football for the past ten years, defeated Manchester City in midweek to fall short of them, leaving them out of the Champions League before the final 16 stages for the first time since 2012/13.

Erling Haaland, who was injured but did not play on the bench at the Santiago Bernabeu, may also be out.

However, Pep Guardiola’s men showed what they are still capable of in last week’s 4-0 thrashing of Newcastle, and they are in need of points themselves in the top four.

“They’ve had maybe one or two months in the seven or eight years he’s (Guardiola) there now that weren’t the best, maybe partly because of injuries as well”, said Slot.

“Injuries come back, they’ve signed three or four players, I can see them coming back already if you look at the result against Newcastle”.

When Arsenal take on West Ham in 24 hours, they have a chance to put more pressure on.

Although Mikel Arteta’s side will not have a recognized striker for the rest of the season, they have already won 23 of the possible 27 points to stay in the race.

“If we look at other teams’ efforts or Arsenal constantly,” Slot added.

We already know how challenging it is to play at the Etihad, so Arsenal shouldn’t be even more involved in that.

Chelsea crisis

Chelsea must respond quickly if they want to keep playing in the Champions League for the foreseeable future.

At the end of 2024, the Blues vowed to challenge for the title, but they lost just twice in their last nine league games and were eliminated from the FA Cup.

Enzo Maresca, manager, expressed concern that Cole Palmer could leave without the lure of the Champions League after his side’s mediocre 3-0 defeat by Brighton last weekend as his team’s worst performance to date.

Chelsea travels to Aston Villa on Saturday, with their own hopes starting to wane.

Unai Emery’s men defeated Liverpool 4-0 in a four-goal thriller on Wednesday, but they now sit ninth, five points off the top four, as a result of a lackluster season.

Nottingham Forest’s acid test

With only 13 games left, Nottingham Forest fans couldn’t have imagined sitting third in the table.

However, for the first time in 45 years, they will be put to the test of their credentials to return to elite competition in European football.

Before hosting Arsenal and Manchester City in their next two home league games, Forest travel to Newcastle on Sunday.

Eddie Howe, the manager of Newcastle, was unhappy with his side’s see-saw form after their League Cup semi-final heroics against Arsenal.

When we’re on it, “I believe we have days where we can look a long way from the team that we are,” said Howe. “It’s a real frustration for us because to be an elite team, you’ve got to be consistent”.

EPL Fixtures (all times 1500 GMT unless stated)

Friday

Leicester v Brentford (2000)

Saturday

Everton v Manchester United (1230), Fulham v Crystal Palace, Ipswich v Tottenham, Southampton v Brighton, Bournemouth v Wolves, Arsenal v West Ham, Aston Villa v Chelsea (1730)

Sunday

Newcastle v Nottingham Forest (1400), Man City v Liverpool (1630)

Former football chief Luis Rubiales was found guilty of sexual assault on Thursday in Spain after receiving a forced kiss from star forward Jenni Hermoso. He was also fined, but acquitted of the coercion charge.

For allegedly forcing the player to downplay the incident afterward, the prosecution had requested a two-and-a-half year sentence for Rubiales, who had been sentenced to one year in prison for sexual assault and 18 months for coercion.

Judge Jose Manuel Fernandez-Prieto at Spain’s High Court found Rubiales guilty of sexual assault over the kiss and fined him 10, 800 euros ($11, 300), but spared him a prison sentence.

Additionally, Rubiales was prohibited from communicating with Hermoso for a year and from traveling within a 200-meter radius of her.

READ ALSO: &nbsp, Rubiales Says He Is ‘ Totally Sure ‘ Hermoso Consented To Kiss

Kissing a woman on the mouth “is not the normal way of greeting people with whom one has no sentimental relationship”, the judge wrote in his ruling, saying Rubiales had violated Hermoso’s “sexual freedom” without her consent.

Lawyer Olga Tubau Martinez for Rubiales, Olga Tubau Martinez, reported to AFP that Rubiales’ client “has decided to appeal the decision.”

At the 2023 Women’s World Cup medal ceremony in Sydney, former Spanish federation chief Rubiales kissed Hermoso on the lips before letting her go with two slaps on the back during the scandal that rocked Spanish football.

Rubiales was forced to resign in disgrace as a result of the outcry, which also raised awareness of the prevalence of sexism and macho culture in sport.

Hermoso, 34, said on the opening day of the trial on February 3 she felt “disrespected” after a non-consensual kiss that “should not happen in any social or work setting”.

Her teammates gave oaths to her about how she had been “overwhelmed” after the incident, and Rafael Hermoso, her brother, claimed she was under pressure to minimize the incident to protect the federation chief.

But Rubiales, 47, told the court he was “totally sure” Hermoso consented to the kiss as she went up to receive her winner’s medal, which was broadcast live around the world, and denied putting pressure on her after the incident.

She held my hand up against my underarms, lifted me, and when I came down, I asked if I could kiss you, and she responded, “OK.” That’s what happened”, he said, describing it as “an act of affection”.

Rubiales conceded he “made a mistake” in the incident on the podium, saying he should have “been in a more institutional role”, but denied he had committed any offence.

&nbsp, ‘Entitled to celebrate ‘

Hermoso and her teammates were seen shortly after the incident in video, according to Rubiales’ defense team, adding that this evidence supported the player’s claim that the kiss did not cause any upheaval.

However, prosecutor Marta Durantez Gil refuted this line of reasoning in her closing arguments, in which she added that there was “no doubt” that the kiss was “non-consensual”.

How long will it take us to continue demanding heroic deeds from sexual assault victims? Wasn’t she entitled to celebrate such a sporting triumph”? she asked.

The court acquitted the three other accused in the case, ex-women’s national team coach Jorge Vilda and two former federation officials, of the charge of coercion.

&nbsp, ‘Fake feminism ‘

Equality Minister Ana Redondo welcomed the verdict, saying it demonstrated that “when there is no consent, there is aggression”.

Rubiales’ position on the matter was in contrast to Rubiales’ defiance when the scandal first surfaced.

He downplayed the significance of the kiss and refrained from resigning during an “false feminism” at an upcoming federation meeting in August 2023.

FIFA suspended him and Spanish prosecutors opened an investigation into alleged sexual assault, Rubiales resigned in September that year. Since 2018, he has served as the head of the federation.

Hermoso, who currently plays for Mexican club Tigres and is the all-time top scorer for the Spain national women’s team, was not immediately recalled after the World Cup.

Montse Tome, the new coach, stated that she was sorry if she didn’t exclude her from the squad because she wanted to protect the player.

Real Madrid, the perennial champions of the UEFA Champions League, defeated Manchester City 6-3 on aggregate to conclude the play-offs for this year’s competition. &nbsp,

After going into the Santiago Bernabeu with a 3-2 lead, Man City had to face a difficult task of turning things around.

However, Carlos Ancelotti’s side fell 3-1 to their own team after a hat-trick from French forward Kylian Mbappe.

PSV Eindhoven, the Dutch champion, defeated Juventus in a late game to advance to the last 16. Additionally, PSG advanced to the next round of Europe’s elite competition after defeating fellow French side Brest.

In addition, the Champions League play-offs were held on Tuesday.

Knockout phase play-offs ✅#UCL pic. twitter.com/Z3VuK7LjWm

READ ALSO: &nbsp, PSG Hit Seven To Set Up Champions League Clash With Liverpool Or Barcelona

Last 16 UCL Teams

Following the conclusion of the knockout phase playoffs on Wednesday, here is a list of the teams that have qualified for the UEFA Champions League last 16.

Qualified automatically

Round of 16 set ✅#UCL pic. twitter.com/KwvwwRtxUa

Liverpool, Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Lille, Aston Villa

Qualified via knockout phase play-offs

Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, PSV Eindhoven, Paris Saint-Germain, Benfica, Feyenoord, Club Brugge

After being swept aside by a Kylian Mbappe hat-trick to earn Real Madrid a 6-3 aggregate aggregate victory, Pep Guardiola acknowledged that Manchester City needed rebuilding.

The 15-time champions were defeated by Mbappe on Wednesday to win a 3-1 second leg, but City already had suffered as a result from conceding two late goals to lose the home match 3-2 last week.

The Spanish giants have knocked City out for the third time in four seasons, but this is the first time the English champions have never made the last 16 since Guardiola arrived in 2016.

Due to City’s 22-team table finishing in the middle of the competition, the teams were drawn to a fight much earlier in the competition.

READ ALSO:  PSG Hit Seven To Set Up Champions League Playoff With Barcelona Or Liverpool

“The better team won,” Guardiola told Spanish TV station Movistar.

“We have had a bad year in the competition. If you finish 22nd, it is because we haven’t been right. Our worst year has come to an end. ”

This season, City’s struggles have been largely caused by injuries.

Due to a knee problem, Erling Haaland was unable to play for the Santiago Bernabeu, and John Stones was forced to start inside the first ten minutes.

City’s opening goal came from Nico Gonzalez after Omar Marmoush’s free-kick rebounded off the crossbar, thanks to two of their January signings.

Guardiola said the rebuild had already begun as City spent £170 million ($214 million) on bringing Marmoush, Gonzalez, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis to the club during the mid-season transfer window.

“It is normal. Nothing endures forever, and there are some players in the group who have inaugurated a new era,” Guardiola said.

Given how difficult the competition is, we cannot dispute what this group of players have accomplished by winning six Premier Leagues in seven years.

“In Europe always getting to the quarter-finals, semi-finals, final. It contains a lot about our actions. ”

Guardiola thinks this is the best he has ever faced because Madrid have won the competition every time they have defeated City in the last four years.

“This year we faced the best Madrid. In the previous ones, going through or not, we were very good,” he said.

They are better because they can run for long periods of time, defend well against a high line, and also defend well against men who are behind the ball. You must congratulate them. ”

Real Madrid moved into the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday with a hat-trick from Kylian Mbappe, who also has a new high in Los Blancos.

The French superstar had dreams of this night, both as a boy sleeping in his room with Cristiano Ronaldo posters and during his earlier seasons at Paris Saint-Germain.

Mbappe watched as Madrid continued to dominate the European game, winning 15 European Cups in a record time as PSG struggled year after year in Europe.

The Spanish and European champions needed the forward to deliver as Madrid’s poor start to the current campaign was partially a result of Mbappe’s teething issues.

With three deadly finishes, he managed to help Madrid’s swarm of superstars seal a 3-1 nightcap and 6-3 overall record.

“This is the type of game we want to play”, said Mbappe.

“I want to live through many more of these nights,” someone said to me after they first learned about them.

Mbappe finally arrived in the Spanish capital last summer after years of speculation and unsuccessful attempts to sign him.

However, his initial months were troublesome, with an improbable lack of confidence, and erratic behavior.

Missed penalties against Liverpool and Athletic Bilbao raised concerns for him, but Mbappe drew a line under it and pledged to show his character.

His best performance in a Madrid shirt came against City, where he scored 18 goals in his last 18 games.

After scoring a stunning treble against City, Mbappe told Movistar, “I knew I couldn’t have done worse than I was doing.”

“I had to play with personality, my adaptation time was over and I have to show my quality”.

READ ALSO: PSG Hits Seven To Face Liverpool Or Barcelona In Champions League Game

&nbsp, ‘Sign with my blood ‘

Mbappe claimed that signing for Madrid would not help him reach his long-term goals.

“Making my dream come true is one thing, but I want to play well here, mark an era and write history at Real Madrid”, he explained.

“I’ve always said I have no limit, if I can score 50 goals I will score them, if I can score more, I’ll score more, but the important thing is winning titles.

” In my career I’ve scored a lot of goals but we have to see if they mean something, because in the end we didn’t always win titles… if I can score a lot of goals and we win the trophies, I’ll sign for that with my blood. “

Mbappe has scored 28 goals in 38 games for Real Madrid, and despite only starting out with Los Blancos, he has drawn comparisons to the team’s all-time greats.

” He has the quality to reach the level of Cristiano (at Madrid), “Ancelotti told reporters.

” He has to work because Cristiano set the bar very high, (Mbappe) has just started at this club.

“For the quality he has, and the excitement he has to play here, he can reach Ronaldo’s level but it won’t be easy for him, he has to work”.

Portuguese veteran Ronaldo scored 450 goals in 438 games for Madrid after joining from Manchester United in 2009, becoming the team’s all-time top goalscorer.

Although Vinicius Junior became the team’s key player in the years since, Mbappe’s childhood idol left Madrid in 2018, his ability to score goals makes him the most likely performer on a similar scale.

In the upcoming round, Mbappe said he would prefer a derby fight to face either Bayer Leverkusen or Atletico Madrid, the city rivals.

Mbappe, who is looking forward to the last 16 and more opportunities to shine for his dream club, said, “Both games would be difficult, so it’s better to have a difficult game without traveling.”