After receiving a two-match ban and a significant fine for his actions in the Merseyside derby, Liverpool manager Arne Slot will not be on the touchline for Wednesday’s home game against Newcastle.
The Everton 2-2 draw at Goodison Park on February 12 caused chaotic scenes when James Tarkowski scored the equaliser shortly before the break.
Referee Michael Oliver also sent off Slot, his assistant Sipke Hulshoff, and Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure and Liverpool’s Curtis Jones.
The FA issued a statement on Wednesday saying an independent regulatory commission had sanctioned Everton, Liverpool, Slot and Hulshoff.
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After the match was over, it was claimed that the Liverpool head coach had insulted and/or verbally abused both the match referee and an assistant referee.
“Arne Slot admitted the charge, and the Regulatory Commission imposed a two-match touchline suspension and £70, 000 ($89, 000) fine”.
In addition, Everton have been fined £65, 000 and Liverpool £50, 000.
After Oliver reached out in the end, Slot and Hulshoff were both ignored. At a press conference two days later, Slot acknowledged that he had “made the wrong decision” because of the incident and that he had been dealing with emotions.
After the game, the Dutchman said, “I should have acted differently because it’s emotional sport and sometimes people make incorrect decisions, which is definitely what I did.”
After the Everton player celebrated in front of the Liverpool fans, Jones and Doucoure got into a fight, prompting him to confront him before the opposing players and staff raced over.
The ban also applies to Liverpool’s March 8 home game against Southampton, which will take place against Newcastle, and the slot will be in the stands for the game against Newcastle.
He will only be permitted in the technical area when Liverpool travel to Paris Saint-Germain on March 5 for the first leg of their last-16 tie. Because of this, he will only be allowed in domestic games.
On March 16, Liverpool will play Newcastle in the League Cup final at Wembley on March 16. He will also be on the touchline.
Premier League leaders Liverpool are currently 11 points clear of second-placed Arsenal in the table and a formidable favorite to win their 20th top-flight title.
Erik ten Hag, former manager of Manchester United, claims that today’s footballers struggle to accept criticism and that his generation had “much thicker skin.”
The 55-year-old, sacked in October after a poor start to the season, clashed with several high-profile players during his tenure at Old Trafford.
A few months into the Dutchman’s rule, Cristiano Ronaldo declared that he did not respect Ten Hag, leading to his defection from the team in November 2022.
When Ten Hag claimed he had dropped the England winger due to his training, Jadon Sancho, who is now on loan at Chelsea, responded on social media by saying he was being called a “scapegoat.”
Marcus Rashford, who is currently on loan at Aston Villa, was disciplined by Ten Hag after allegedly being spotted in Northern Ireland’s nightclubs after missing training.
The former United boss told SEG Stories,  , a media outlet attached to his , management agency: “This generation usually find it difficult to deal with criticism. They are truly affected by criticism.
“My generation had much thicker skin,” I said. You could be much more direct with that generation. I was approached much more directly. If I would do that with my current group of players, I would demotivate them. “
Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo were among the young players who were overseen by Ten Hag, who took over in Ruben Amorim’s hot seat in Old Trafford.
He said young players require” different words and a different approach”.
” (Former United boss Alex) Ferguson also belonged to the previous generation. With that generation, you could be much more direct in your communication and approach, “he said.
” With this generation, you have to convey your message in a more tactful way to get the same effect. You must reciprocate with the player. That was much more challenging than this generation, according to our generation.
Ten Hag, who previously oversaw Ajax, won the League Cup and FA Cup at Old Trafford, but they finished eighth in the Premier League last season, their lowest top-flight performance in decades.
Despite his difficulties, he claimed the fans had admired him and appreciated his time at the club.
United have struggled badly under Amorim and are currently 15th in the Premier League ahead of Wednesday’s home match against relegation-threatened Ipswich.
As part of a “transformation plan” to improve financial sustainability, the club announced this week that they anticipate cutting up to 200 jobs.
Due to a dental issue, Real Madrid eliminated Kylian Mbappe from their squad for the Copa del Rey semi-final first leg on Wednesday.
Prior to the match, coach Carlo Ancelotti said the striker would travel to San Sebastian despite the fact that the French superstar did not practice with his team-mates on Tuesday.
Mbappe is Madrid’s leading goalscorer with 28 goals in 39 matches across all competitions this season.
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Due to minor fitness issues, the traveling group did not include goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and midfielder Fede Valverde.
Jude Bellingham, an England international, was suspended for Sunday’s La Liga game against Girona, and he was then reinstated.
In the first leg of the other semi-final on Tuesday, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid drew a thrilling 4-4 draw.
In a thrilling 4-4 draw with Barcelona in a Copa del Rey semi-final first leg thriller on Tuesday, Atletico Madrid took a two-goal lead before rallying from two down.
After Diego Simeone’s side scored twice in the opening six minutes through Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann, Barca raced through the gears in a high-octane performance.
The Catalan giants rallied with the excellent Pedri Gonzalez who added goals from Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, and Robert Lewandowski.
Lamine Yamal (L) and Conor Gallagher, an English midfielder for Atletico Madrid, square off against Barcelona in the first leg of the Spanish Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) semi-final first leg football match at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Barcelona on February 25, 2025. (Photo by LLUIS GENE / AFP)
Before Alexander Sorloth scored in the 93rd minute to tie the game level before the second leg at the Metropolitano stadium on April 2, Marcos Llorente scored for Atletico.
READ ALSO:  , AFCON Needs More Respect – Rio Ferdinand
“It’s a terrible result when you go 4-2 up… you have to be more careful, these are things we have to learn”, Pedri told Movistar.
“We started badly today, but I’ll pay attention to the team’s reaction.
It will be a challenging second leg, but we will go there to try and win, the saying goes. “When we get in front, we must be calmer.
Inigo Martinez Berridi, a Barcelona defender, celebrates scoring his third goal in the first leg of the Spanish Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) semi-final football match between FC Barcelona and Club Atletico de Madrid at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Barcelona on February 25, 2025. (Photo by LLUIS GENE / AFP)
Simeone praised his team’s grit, which his substitutes have shown themselves to be very effective this season.
” We had an enormous competitive spirit, “said the Atletico coach.
” The changes freshened up the team, it wasn’t an easy game to play, and I love the spirit the lads showed…
As the minutes went on, “the team started to feel more at ease.”
Ferran Torres replaced Lewandowski in a false nine role after Hansi Flick eliminated Barca’s top goalscorer from the starting lineup.
Despite having the first of three matches against Barca and a Champions League last 16 tie against Real Madrid on the horizon, Simeone chose a strong side.
On February 25, 2025, FC Barcelona and Club Atletico de Madrid celebrate the completion of their third goal in the first leg of the Spanish Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) semi-final first leg football game at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Barcelona. (Photo by LLUIS GENE / AFP)
After Griezmann’s cross was headed in, Alvarez snuck into the back post and took the lead right away.
In the sixth minute, Atletico doubled their lead thanks to Alvarez’s stunning release of Griezmann after Jules Kounde had given the ball away.
Alejandro Balde was pressing the French forward, but Wojciech Szczesny was able to sneak a shot that the forward could not avoid.
After Atletico’s opening salvo, Barcelona dominated the rest of the first half.
Juan Musso, the Atletico goalkeeper, should have easily saved the goal, but Ferran Torres’ shot was poor and he should have leveled.
The La Liga leaders scored two goals in two minutes to bring the score level, with Pedri scoring first before Cubarsi headed home from the corner.
Torres wasted another excellent opportunity for Barca’s third, rounding Musso but failing miserably under the pressure of Clement Lenglet, who is currently on loan from the Catalans at Atletico.
 , ‘Too easy ‘
At the start of the second half, Szczesny was successful in getting a good save from Griezmann, with Barca still firmly in charge.
As the visitors searched for an equalizer, Sorloth’s goal was turned down for offside, but Barca won.
On February 25, 2025, Barcelona’s Spanish midfielder Pablo Gavi poses on the field during the first leg of the Spanish Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) semi-final first leg football match between FC Barcelona and Club Atletico de Madrid at the Estadi Olimpico Lluis Companys in Barcelona. (Photo by MANAURE QUINTERO / AFP)
Lamine Yamal, a teen winger, drew inspiration from a brilliant dribble that blared past Reinildo Mandava and fought for Lewandowski to tap home.
Barcelona had a good lead, but Llorente’s 84th-minute strike from the edge of the box gave Sorloth a chance to score late on.
The Norwegian international scored a last-gasp victory for Atletico in December’s La Liga match against Barcelona, and he was in the right place at the right moment to recover from Samuel Lino’s cut-back.
“It was crazy, a lot of goals”, Atletico’s Alvarez summed up the game.
Flick, the coach for Barcelona, was pleased with the performance of his team, but not the final score.
Flick told reporters, “We are really disappointed about the outcome, but the game we played today was really great. I concentrate more on this.”
“We have to speak about the goals, it was maybe too easy (for Atletico), but we played against a fantastic team… we dominated for 75 to 80 minutes”.
Real Sociedad will play Real Madrid in the other semifinal first leg on Wednesday.
Rio Ferdinand, a former defender for Manchester United, believes that the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) needs to enjoy the same level of prestige as the World Cup and other significant trophy competitions.
Ferdinand said in a Monday podcast that “it should be respected more than it is” that “the lack of resources put into it” is the media’s claim that it is a Mickey Mouse tournament.
The 46-year-old’s comments come after fellow Englishman and pundit, Jamie Carragher speaking after Liverpool‘s 2-0 victory over , Manchester City on Sunday, felt that Mohamed Salah playing in AFCON was a drawback in his becoming the best player in the world.
According to , the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) shattered viewership records, reaching a total of 2.2 billion viewers worldwide
Burkinabe and Burundi cheer during the AF 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying football game that took place on October 10, 2024 at the Alassane Ouattara stadium in Ebimpe, in Anyama. (Photo by Issouf SANOGO / AFP)
This surpassed the viewership of the Super Bowl in the United States, which averaged 123.4 million viewers that same year, a 1.8 billion gap.
The competition also saw a significant increase in digital engagement, with 2.1 billion digital interactions, 3.1 billion TikTok video views, and 12.5 million Instagram views.
Despite these impressive stats, the six-time Premier League champion claimed that ignorance is to blame for the cup competition’s lack of recognition despite the existence of players who have excelled in Europe.
“That comment is representative of the majority of the people out there, I don’t think that is right, that is ignorant. Because of the Africa Cup of Nations, that process is somewhat exhausting. If you go to Abedi Pele, Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto’o all these players Riyad Mahrez, Mo Salah and Sadio Mane, we have to win this, it is a demand in their country to win this”
On January 9, 2022, Burkinabe football supporters can be seen awaiting the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) 2021 football tournament’s opening ceremony at Stade d’Olembé in Yaounde. KENZO TRIBOUILLARD / AFP
“Yes, it doesn’t get back resources-wise like the Euros etc but that doesn’t mean you have to devalue it. It is a continent with enormous power, one that contributes to European football incalculably, just like the African continent’s player population, which is a ridiculous number, he claimed.
FIFA, according to Ferdinand, has a significant role to play in changing this narrative and positioning the cup competition alongside the Euros and COPA America.
“I agree with what Jamie is saying, but I don’t agree with it because the majority of people in the world don’t,” and I believe FIFA should develop a language that translates to Euris and COPA America. That’s the point.
Jamie was trying to say something, and I believe he was correct when he said that because that is what happens, Mo Salah winning the Africa Cup of Nations would not affect people’s ability to cast ballots for the Ballon d’Or, which he was incorrectly claiming one of his points was.
Salah hasn’t yet won the African continent title, but he did so twice in 2017 and 2021.
“If Mane finished second in 2022, that has no bearing on anyone’s vote, in the captains, media and all the managers, I don’t think they would go (oh before I make an adjustment on who made the top three, where did , Mo Salah finish in the Africa Cup of Nations)”.
Following a 0-0 draw between the tense Istanbul rivals, Galatasaray have accused Fenerbahce manager Jose Mourinho of making “racist statements.”
Galatasaray’s comments were not immediately understood, and former Real Madrid, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Spurs coach Mourinho hasn’t publicly refuted the claim.
Speaking after Monday’s league draw at Galatasaray, the Portuguese coach said the home bench had been “jumping like monkeys”.
He also criticized Turkish referees once more.
Slovenian Slavko Vincic, who was reportedly appointed after both clubs requested that a foreign official oversee the highly public encounter, refereed the game.
Fenerbahce, who are second in the Super Lig six points behind Galatasaray, said Mourinho’s comments were “taken out of context” and “deliberately distorted”, in a message on X.
The club argued that any attempt to label the statement as racist “is a completely malicious approach” and that they would exercise their legal rights in the event of “slander.”
In its statement, Galatasaray said it would launch criminal proceedings against the 62-year-old Mourinho.
Jose Mourinho, the club’s manager, has been consistently making disparaging statements toward the Turkish people since taking over as manager in Turkey, according to the club.
His discourse has since gone beyond “merely immoral comments” to “absolutely inhumane rhetoric.”
We hereby formally inform UEFA and FIFA that we intend to launch criminal prosecution in response to Jose Mourinho’s racist statements.
Further, in response to the reproachable behavior exhibited by their manager, Fenerbahce, an institution that claims to uphold “exemplary moral values.”
