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• Zidane rules out Bayern move as Bundesliga giants linked with Ten Hag

  Zinedine Zidane has ruled out taking over at Bayern Munich, amid suggestions Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag is also of interest to the Bundesliga giants.

  Bayern have been frustrated in their search for a successor to Thomas Tuchel, who is set to leave the club at the end of the season after overseeing their first failure to win the Bundesliga since 2012.

  Preferred candidate Xabi Alonso – who was also linked with Liverpool – has reaffirmed his commitment to Bayer Leverkusen, while Julian Nagelsmann decided to continue as Germany boss after being linked with a return to the Allianz Arena.

  Ralf Rangnick was the latest coach to be linked with the Bavarian giants last week, only for the Austria boss to follow Alonso and Nagelsmann by saying he will stay in his current role.

  That leaves Bayern back to square one in their bid to find a replacement for Tuchel, who has refused to rule out a dramatic U-turn. One man who will not be taking over, however, is Zidane.

  While attending the Miami Grand Prix, the former Real Madrid coach was asked by Sky Sports Germany if he expected Los Blancos to overcome Bayern in the teams' Champions League semi-final tie.

  Asked who he thought would reach the final, Zidane said: "Hopefully Madrid, but it's going to be a difficult game."

  Zidane was then asked whether he was in contention for the Bayern job, to which he said: "No. I'm just going to watch the game."

  Another man touted as a possible candidate to replace Tuchel, Julen Lopetegui, has reportedly agreed to take charge of West Ham at the end of the season.

  On Sunday, a report from Sky Sports claimed the Bundesliga giants are also considering a surprise move for United boss Ten Hag, who coached Bayern's second team between 2013 and 2015.

  Ten Hag has come under severe pressure this season with United facing a fight to qualify for the Europa League, but the Dutchman is reportedly uninterested in a move. 

• Emery has no complaints after tired Aston Villa lose late on at Brighton

  Unai Emery accepts Aston Villa can have no complaints over their 1-0 loss to Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League.

  The Villans fell to a narrow defeat at the Amex Stadium on Sunday as Joao Pedro converted late on after his initial penalty attempt was saved.

  Villa looked sluggish throughout yet were just minutes away from claiming a point that would have further boosted their top-four prospects.

  John McGinn also had a goal ruled out for a marginal offside, but Emery admits his side were not deserving of a point on their travels.

  "We competed but it was not enough," he told BBC Sport. "We weren't strong enough in 90 minutes to deserve anything more than we achieved.

  "Now the most important thing is to rest, to rest today, rest tomorrow, after the match.

  "We are having an amazing season, brilliant, but of course we are at the last chance and we have to try and give everything."

  Villa remain seven points clear of fifth-place Tottenham, albeit having played a game more, after Spurs' 4-2 loss at Liverpool.

  Before focus can turn to the Villans' home match with Liverpool in a week's time, they first travel to Olympiacos for their Europa Conference League semi-final second leg.

  Emery's men have a major task on their hands if they are to reach the final as they trail 4-2 from last week's first leg at Villa Park.

  "We want to put in a good effort on Thursday [against Olympiakos] and on Monday against Liverpool. Now is time to rest," Emery added.

  "We had a lot of players injured and they are recovering. The most important thing is to get players back for balance and to be competitive."

  Victory for Brighton was much needed after going six without a win in the Premier League, failing to score in four of those matches.

  While Roberto De Zerbi was pleased to get back to winning ways, he accepts Brighton were given a helping hand by Villa's quick turnaround in games.

  "To be honest, Villa were not themselves, maybe a little tired," he said. "They are playing in the Europa Conference League and they have a lot of injuries.

  "I am proud because we played a great game against one of the best teams in the Premier League. Playing against Unai Emery's teams is very tough. 

  "We played well, we deserved to win and we could have scored more goals. I think Robin Olsen was the best player for Villa."

• Declan Rice loss to blame for heavy West Ham defeats - David Moyes

  Declan Rice's absence is to blame for a number of heavy West Ham defeats this season, according to manager David Moyes.

  West Ham sold captain and influential midfielder Rice to Arsenal last July for a club-record fee rising to £105million with add-ons.

  The Hammers have seen results nosedive since the turn of the year, most recently crashing to a 5-0 defeat away at Chelsea on Sunday.

  That was the sixth time West Ham have conceded four or more goals away from home this season, and their fifth loss in six away games overall.

  Asked at his post-match press conference exactly why his side are on the end of heavy losses so frequently of late, Moyes said: "Declan Rice."

  The Scotsman, due to be out of contract next month, added: "You get the best midfield player in the country, protecting, making sure the moments and times you limit maybe 50 per cent of the attacks.

  "It makes you a much better defensive team when you get that. We've lacked protection in front of the back four; we've lacked good enough defending; we've not been good enough on those things in many games.

  "You've got to be careful. You're talking about a team sitting in a really, really strong position. We've had a couple of bad days away from home, which we have to try and eradicate and make better.

  "I'm trying to put a bit of mental toughness when we need it. The teams I normally prepare would normally have it. You could always lose the way you lose."

  West Ham have won just one of their past nine Premier League games, seeing them slip down to ninth place and now out of the top-six running.

  United have also failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their past 16 in the competition - only the second time they have done so in a single Premier League season.

  The poor run of form, which also includes elimination from the Europa League at the hands of a strong Bayer Leverkusen side, has raised doubts over Moyes' future at London Stadium.

  Amid suggestions that former Real Madrid and Spain boss Julen Lopetegui has already been lined up, Moyes reiterated he will wait until after the season to hold talks over his future.

  "I'm going to talk to the board at the end of the season, so we’ll do that then," he said.