Pep Guardiola has “everything a manager could dream of” at Manchester City and has been re-energised by their continuing success.

The recent decision of Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp to stand down at the end of the season, citing the need for a break, has brought focus on Guardiola’s own position at the Etihad Stadium.

Yet the famously intense Spaniard, who himself took a year out after quitting Barcelona in 2012 and is contracted only until the end of next season, insists he has no plans to follow Klopp’s exit.

“I have everything that a manager could dream of,” said Guardiola, who took charge at City in 2016.

“The hierarchy support me and always have. It’s a good environment.

“I still feel good and, of course, one day it is going to finish but I don’t think about that right now.”

Guardiola’s successes at City include five Premier League titles and the Champions League.

Their crowning glory came as they won the treble last season but Guardiola’s hunger has shown no signs of abating.

Already this season they have lifted the European Super Cup and the Club World Cup and they maintain hope of retaining all three major pieces of silverware they claimed last term.

Guardiola said: “Winning helps you to have more energy. When you are losing games you are more tired but I see the team getting better and playing difficult opponents like at Goodison Park after the Club World Cup or Newcastle or Spurs away.

“Seeing how the team behaved (showed) me, wow, we are still together, we are on the same path. That gives you energy.

“You do not switch energy on or off. You have to bring energy every day. That is what I am living now.”

In keeping with his previous contract extensions, Guardiola insists there is no urgency to agree fresh terms.

He said: “I think we have time. Now I feel really good, like always I have been, but football changes a lot.

“I have my opinion that when you have a year-and-a-half left on your contract it is a lot of time in world football.

“Many things are involved and extending after two years is not the same as extending after nine, it’s completely different. But still I am sitting here and I am OK.”

Guardiola, 53, says he now feels more relaxed than when he was a younger manager and found it difficult to switch off from the pressures of the job.

He said: “When I started in Barcelona I was like that but now I can stay on the sofa watching TV and don’t think about football.

“That helps me because after I have more desire to reconnect. Before I was thinking all the time because I thought I was missing something or not being professional enough.

“I understand that was a mistake and it’s better to have quality (time) for what you want to do.”

Newcastle condemned Aston Villa to their first home defeat in the Premier League for almost a year with a stunning 3-1 win.

Two goals in four first-half minutes from Fabian Schar put the Magpies in control before Alex Moreno’s own goal after the break.

Ollie Watkins grabbed a consolation for the hosts, who lost in the league at Villa Park for the first time since last February.

They remain fourth but have played more games than leaders Liverpool and rivals Manchester City and will be caught by Tottenham if they beat Brentford on Wednesday.

Newcastle had lost six of their previous seven league games to slip away from the top four but victory lifted them to seventh, although still 11 points behind Villa.

They thrashed Villa 5-1 in the opening game of the season but since August the direction of travel for the two sides has been different.

Only Sheffield United had previously taken a point from Villa Park this season as Emery’s side mount a surprise Champions League charge, while the Magpies had won just once away.

Yet it was the visitors who dominated from the start and they conjured the first serious chance after 20 minutes. Jacob Murphy’s sumptuous ball found Anthony Gordon with Ezri Konsa for company and he managed to wriggle clear, but Emi Martinez raced out to save.

The Magpies were slicker, with Villa uncharacteristically timid, and Clement Lenglet needed to block Sean Longstaff’s effort after Martinez spilled Murphy’s strike.

Soon after, Gordon broke only to see his drive deflected over as Eddie Howe’s side began to find the gaps – which they then exploited with two quickfire goals.

Douglas Luiz and Konsa got themselves into a mess trying to defend Kieran Trippier’s resulting corner and Schar nipped in to find the net for a 32nd-minute lead.

Four minutes later only a last-ditch Matty Cash clearance denied Gordon a second but Villa were then undone by a corner again.

It was only half-cleared to Gordon and his volley clipped Lenglet to come off the underside of the bar, Schar following up to fire in his second from close range.

The defender had not scored in the league since August 2022 but now had two goals in four minutes.

For all the celebrations, though, the Magpies lost Alexander Isak to injury just before the break and John McGinn nodded over a rare Villa chance in stoppage time.

If Villa thought half-time would ease any woes they were mistaken as they fell further behind six minutes into the second half.

Miguel Almiron, who had replaced Isak, robbed Cash on the halfway line for Gordon to then send him scampering down the right.

The Paraguayan’s delivery found Murphy at the far post and when the winger tried to turn it in, Moreno ultimately bundled it into his own net.

Newcastle should have been cruising but Villa came back fighting and Watkins slipped in Moussa Diaby to round Martin Dubravka only for Schar to mop up.

Dubravka also needed to turn Cash’s shot away before Watkins pulled one back with 19 minutes left when he turned in impressive substitute Leon Bailey’s cross for his 50th Premier League goal.

Two minutes later he was denied by a tight VAR call after slotting in with Newcastle rocking but Villa’s momentum was halted.

Longstaff should have even added a fourth with a minute left, only to be denied by Martinez, as the Magpies held on.

Luton moved out of the Premier League relegation zone as an Elijah Adebayo hat-trick stunned Brighton.

The Hatters leapfrogged Everton with a fantastic 4-0 victory at home to Roberto De Zerbi’s side, who fell behind to Adebayo’s first inside the opening minute.

Kenilworth Road was truly rocking shortly afterwards as Chiedozie Ogbene doubled the lead before Adebayo struck either side of the interval to complete a famous win for Rob Edwards’ men.

Everton slipped into the drop zone after drawing 0-0 in a forgettable contest at Fulham.

At the top of the table, Arsenal ran out 2-1 winners at Nottingham Forest to move up to second behind leaders Liverpool.

After a dull first half, Gabriel Jesus broke the deadlock with a finish from an acute angle before laying on the second for Bukayo Saka.

Substitute Taiwo Awoniyi halved the deficit late on but the Gunners saw out stoppage time to take the three points.

Meanwhile, Aston Villa’s 17-match unbeaten run at home in the league came to a shuddering halt as they were thrashed 3-1 by Newcastle.

A double from defender Fabian Schar had the away side in charge at the break and they extended their lead through an Alex Moreno own goal – with Ollie Watkins hitting a late consolation for Villa.

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An Eberechi Eze brace helped Crystal Palace twice rally from behind to beat bottom club Sheffield United 3-2 at Selhurst Park.

Ben Brereton-Diaz put the Blades ahead in the first minute and they retook the lead through James McAtee after Eze had levelled for the hosts.

England international Eze was again on hand to equalise with Michael Olise, who had provided the two assists for the Palace goals, hitting the winner to take some of the heat off under-pressure Eagles boss Roy Hodgson.

Mohamed Salah will be the Liverpool player to watch as Jurgen Klopp leaves the club, with Stephen Warnock wondering if the superstar winger's sale might represent "an opportunity" in the Anfield rebuild.

Hugely popular Liverpool manager Klopp announced last week this season will be his last at Liverpool, departing after almost nine years on Merseyside.

Klopp's coaching staff are following him out of the club, while sporting director Jorg Schmadtke is to exit at the end of the January transfer window.

The shock announcement of Klopp's decision leaves Liverpool with lots to do before the next campaign, and calls may have to be made around some of the key men who have made the manager's tenure such a success.

For Warnock, who played for the Reds under Rafael Benitez, Salah's situation is particularly interesting.

The prolific winger has previously been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League, and his contract expires in 2025.

"I think more so Salah than anyone," Warnock told Stats Perform. "Just because of the age, the Saudi interest... what does he now do?

"Who comes into the football club as manager? What do they see this position as? Do they think it's an opportunity to cash in and maybe rebuild a little bit more and add more quality to the quality that's already there?"

Liverpool might consider their options, but the same is true of Salah and his team-mates, who Warnock expects to be "absolutely devastated" by Klopp's announcement.

"There's not many more managers that you'd want to work for," he added. "If you could have a choice of managers to pick the phone up, he's in your top five, isn't he? Of managers in world football, arguably your top two.

"So, when you look at it like that from a player's point of view, they'll be absolutely devastated, because they know they're working with arguably one of the best managers in world football, then who comes in to replace him?"

That is a concern for the end of the season, though, and in the meantime, Liverpool have the opportunity to send Klopp out on a high as they pursue four trophies, including another Premier League title.

"There is a job to be done," Warnock said. "It's not a swansong and just a happy-go-lucky atmosphere. This is you going for a Premier League title.

"But you're also going up against top teams. You're going up against Manchester City, who've got arguably one of the best managers in world football and probably the best squad and team of players.

"So, there's a job at hand to do as well. Whether it inspires the team or not, we'll never know, because they were in the race anyway, but it might just give them that little extra boost that they need."

Substitute James Henry headed a 90th-minute equaliser to earn Oxford a 2-2 draw against Sky Bet League One leaders Portsmouth in a game that burst into life in the second half.

Tyler Goodrham shot the U’s in front in the 45th minute, taking Marcus McGuane’s pass and firing low past goalkeeper Will Norris and into the bottom corner after a pacy break.

Colby Bishop prodded the ball home from a yard to level in the 69th minute after a scramble in Oxford’s box when grounded keeper Simon Eastwood appeared to have the ball under control but then lost it.

It was Bishop’s 15th goal of the season.

Callum Lang, making his Pompey debut after signing from Wigan just three days ago, came off the bench in the 62nd minute – and with 10 minutes to go he flicked the ball past Eastwood from 12 yards after poor defending to put John Mousinho’s team 2-1 up.

But Oxford snatched a draw which takes them back into the play-off places when Norris parried Mark Harris’ shot and Henry nodded in from close range.

Leicester moved 10 points clear at the top of the Championship following a convincing 3-1 victory over Swansea.

Enzo Maresca’s side took the lead through Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall after only three minutes.

Dewsbury-Hall is believed to be a January transfer target for Brighton, but he showed no signs that the speculation was affecting his game.

Leicester then missed a number of opportunities to put the game beyond Swansea’s reach, before Stephy Mavididi scored a 69th-minute penalty and substitute Yunus Akgun added a third, just three minutes later.

Joe Allen scored a stoppage-time consolation goal, but the result left Luke Williams still searching for his first win as Swansea manager.

Leicester took the lead after only three minutes as Dewsbury-Hall scored his 10th goal of the season

Patson Daka played the ball through Nathan Wood’s legs for Dewsbury-Hall, who took his time before picking his spot and putting the ball past Swansea goalkeeper Carl Rushworth.

But Leicester should have added a second after 19 minutes when Dewsbury-Hall crossed from the right for Daka, who was back in the team after returning from the Africa Cup of Nations with Zambia. But he sliced the ball wide from four yards out.

Leicester came close adding a second on the stroke of half-time when Mavididi’s shot from the edge of the area was tipped on to the crossbar by Rushworth.

Dewsbury-Hall then set up Daka for another chance, but he put his effort over.

The hosts had another chance to score – six minutes after half-time – and this time it was Dewsbury-Hall’s turn as he put a Dennis Praet cross wide from close range at the far post.

Swansea defender Harry Darling then went off injured after 61 minutes.

Leicester’s Kasey McAteer saw a long-range effort fly over the bar and Swansea almost hit back straight away when Jamie Paterson went close from 20 yards out.

But the Foxes finally found the net after 69 minutes from the penalty spot.

Daka took the ball off Swansea’s Bashir Humphreys on the halfway line and raced towards goal.

Wood caught up with the Leicester striker but was penalised for a lunging challenge, missed the ball and left Daka falling over in the box. Wood disputed referee Keith Stroud’s decision, but Mavididi stepped up to convert the spot-kick.

Leicester were three up after 72 minutes as substitute Yunus scored for the second-successive game.

Galatasaray loanee Yunus made the most of some hesitancy in the Swans defence to pounce following a poor clearance from Rushworth.

Swansea scored in the fifth minute of stoppage time when Jay Fulton’s cross was headed back into the six-yard area by Ben Cabango and Jerry Yates failed to connect before Allen scored from eight yards out.

Bottom side Livingston showed fighting spirit to come from behind twice to grab a 2-2 draw against fellow strugglers Ross County at the Tony Macaroni Arena.

Striker Simon Murray’s terrific strike after 28 minutes gave the Staggies the lead but Livi midfielder Scott Pittman poached an equaliser just before the break.

Murray fired in a second in the 85th minute but Livi substitute Dan MacKay levelled with a header three minutes later for a deserved point.

The Lions have gone 15 league games without a win, remain six points adrift of second-bottom County in the table and have played two games more than the Dingwall men, but David Martindale can take some encouragement from his side’s display.

Seeking solutions – and fast – Martindale brought back Joel Nouble, Pittman, Kurtis Guthrie and Jamie Brandon.

Derek Adams took some hope from the narrow 1-0 defeat away to Celtic on Saturday and kept the same team which included six January signings – George Wickens, Loick Ayina, Teddy Jenks, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, Brandon Khela and Eli King.

Midfielder Yan Dhanda, who has agreed a pre-contract with Hearts, captained the side in front of a sparse crowd.

The match took time to warm up.

In the 24th minute a James Penrice cross from wide on the left almost caught out County goalkeeper Wickens, who scooped the ball away from under his crossbar with Livi failing to capitalise on a moment of panic in the visiting box.

Moments later, the Highland club took the lead.

Murray raced onto a searching Dhanda pass and under pressure inside the box from defender Ayo Obiliye he hammered the ball high past keeper Michael McGovern from a tight angle.

The offside flag went up but a VAR check confirmed the goal, allowing Murray to celebrate his 12th of the season.

Obiliye went close with a curling effort from 20 yards as Livi responded and just before the break, Pittman reacted quickly to a Guthrie knockdown inside the box and stabbed the ball past Wickens from six yards.

Livi’s Steven Bradley missed the target with a low drive before the interval and play zipped from end to end when play resumed.

In the 68th minute, McGovern made up for fumbling Dhanda’s cross inside his six-yard box by blocking a close-range drive from Staggies substitute Jordan White.

However, Livingston looked like they could snatch another goal and a series of deliveries into the County box were repelled.

Pittman curled a shot just past a post and then, with the goal gaping, attacker Bruce Anderson missed the target from a cutback from fellow sub MacKay, who may have been offside anyway.

But there was late drama.

County raced up the park and when a cross from substitute Josh Sims arrived at Murray at the back post, he fired past McGovern from 12 yards.

Livi were not to be denied, though, and MacKay headed in a Jason Holt cross to maintain the status quo at the bottom.

Lee Ashcroft’s back-post header earned Dundee a point to move them into the cinch Premiership top six in a Pittodrie draw that will do nothing to ease the pressure on Aberdeen boss Barry Robson.

The Dons’ hopes of matching last term’s third-place finish have been all but extinguished before January is out, with their form being patchy at best.

And while Bojan Miovski’s first-half penalty provided some brief hope of an improvement, Aberdeen ultimately served up the kind of insipid performance that has some sections of the Dons support calling for the manager’s head.

The crowd’s nerves would not have been helped by an early Dundee attack that saw Zach Robinson’s low cross only narrowly missed by the sliding Amadou Bakayoko.

A Kelle Roos clearance would later come off the on-loan Forest Green Rovers man but, fortunately for the Aberdeen keeper, spun away to safety.

Aberdeen had chances of their own in between, Miovski seizing on a short pass from returning Dundee loanee Owen Beck only for Trevor Carson to save well.

Captain Graeme Shinnie should have done better when he latched onto a long ball over the top but, in trying to lift over Carson, put the ball well wide of target with just the keeper to beat.

Miovski gave his side the lead from the spot, stroking into the bottom right corner after former Don Joe Shaughnessy had taken Ester Sokler’s standing leg in attempting to clear a Jack Milne cross.

Another Milne cross saw Sokler this time head into the arms of Carson before the half ended with a late VAR check on Leighton Clarkson’s foul on Lyall Cameron, with no further action taken.

A smart near-post finish by Sokler seemed to have put the Dons 2-0 up five minutes after the interval only to be denied by the offside flag, and that lifted Dundee.

Roos saved Ashcroft’s back-post header from a left-wing corner but after Beck trudged across the park to take from the other flank, his delivery found the same man who this time turned home to level the scores.

From there the match descended into a bore draw; neither keeper was threatened and the main route forward was the long ball, a tactic that has long fed into the criticism of Robson.

With matches against both halves of the Old Firm up next, he will fear the chants of “sacked in the morning” doing the rounds at Pittodrie – as Cameron flashed a late Dundee chance wide – may not be far off the mark.

Luton scored twice in the opening two minutes and 17 seconds en route to a stunning 4-0 win against Brighton at Kenilworth Road.

Aided by a superb hat-trick from striker Elijah Adebayo, this was comfortably the hosts’ biggest Premier League win and their most commanding performance.

It was earned in swashbuckling style as they dismissed an insipid Brighton to move out of the relegation zone for the first time in nearly two months.

Chiedozie Ogbene also netted during a first half in which Roberto De Zerbi’s side simply could not cope with what came their way, a shadow of the team that won the corresponding fixture 4-1 on the opening weekend.

Luton made a start beyond manager Rob Edwards’ most rose-tinted expectations.

Adebayo headed his first after 19 seconds. Ogbene received the ball on the edge of the box and crossed to the far post towards Carlton Morris.

The Hatters captain, leaping determinedly above his marker, nodded back across goal to Adebayo, who got there before goalkeeper Jason Steele to convert.

Brighton barely had time to draw breath before it was two.

Albert Sambi Lokonga’s pinpoint pass dropped in behind the visitors’ defence, which had pushed up, leaving a straight race to the ball between Ogbene and Steele.

It was won comfortably by the fleet-footed Luton winger who toed it beyond the keeper and, with 137 seconds on the clock, poked into an empty goal to cap a breathtaking start.

Rarely, if ever, have Brighton under De Zerbi been so blown away as they were in the opening 25 minutes.

Jordan Clark came close to inflicting further damage when he cut in on his left foot and had a shot blocked by the legs of Steele.

By then, De Zerbi had already lost James Milner to injury, with any pre-game ploy to stymie Luton sinking into disarray.

The stats said Brighton had enjoyed 60 per cent possession but almost all of it had been in their own half, passing themselves in circles in a bid to navigate Luton’s ravenous high pressing.

Pascal Gross scooped a shot more in hope than expectation from outside the box as the Seagulls struggled to come to terms with their predicament.

Lewis Dunk stopped Adebayo with a finely-timed last-ditch slide inside the six-yard box as the striker bore down threatening to wrap the game up after 35 minutes, before Clark had his second good try of the night deflect inches wide.

It was a momentary reprieve.

Adebayo’s second and Luton’s third was a gem and owed everything to the timing of the striker’s run, hanging just behind Brighton’s defensive line until Ross Barkley released his pass.

The finish ripped past Steele at his near post.

Brighton had won three of their previous 15 league games, success this season season being propped up by progress in Europe and in the FA Cup.

Here, they showed nothing of the form that saw them start the campaign with five wins out of six.

Luton’s goals were getting easier to come by.

In the 55th minute Adebayo completed his hat-trick, heading in Alfie Doughty’s corner from amongst a static Brighton defence, the only movement towards the ball coming from striker Joao Pedro who inadvertently flicked it into his opposite number’s path.

Thomas Kaminski made a late save from Danny Welbeck which was worthy of his outfield team-mates’ efforts.

For Brighton, it had been a chastening night.

Fulham’s scoring woes continued as their missed opportunities saw them held to a goalless Premier League draw with Everton at Craven Cottage.

After last week’s exit from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup, the west Londoners failed to bounce back with a win over an Everton side, who now sit in the bottom three following Luton’s 4-0 victory over Brighton.

Raul Jimenez, who scored four goals in December, could not replicate last month’s success before Rodrigo Muniz was largely anonymous when called upon in the second half.

Fulham started with purpose. After Andreas Pereira’s earlier strike sailed over the crossbar, Antonee Robinson forced Jordan Pickford into action when he cut onto his weaker right foot and won a corner for the hosts with a driven effort from range.

After last week’s poor showing in front of goal during both cup defeats, the Cottagers’ lack of cutting edge seemed to continue when Jimenez’s shot managed to go out for a throw-in instead of hitting the target.

And they almost rued their missed opportunities when Everton failed to convert the chance of the match in the 24th minute.

Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno parried Ashley Young’s curling free-kick into the path of James Tarkowski, who looked set to tap the Toffees ahead.

Towering defender Issa Diop had other ideas, positioning himself perfectly and nodding Tarkowski’s rebounded effort onto the crossbar before a herd of white shirts swarmed the six-yard area and kept the scores level.

Pereira continued to bombard the Everton goal with pot shots but it was Jimenez who would be the most frustrated after another glaring miss.

Pickford’s save from a Timothy Castagne shot gave the Mexico international a golden opportunity to score into an open net but he opened his body up too much and missed the target from close range.

Jimenez’s first-half display saw him substituted at the break and it was Everton’s striker who looked the most dangerous when Dominic Calvert-Lewin rose highest from a corner and clipped the crossbar, nearly edging the visitors ahead.

On the hour mark, Castagne won a flick-on from a set-piece and was also denied by the woodwork as both sides’ frustrations began to grow.

The momentum continued in the hosts’ favour but a remarkable save from England number one Pickford kept it even.

Willian – who had been a shadow of his usual self – jinked past his man and delivered a well-weighted cross to Tosin Adarabioyo, whose header looked destined for the top corner but was denied by Pickford’s acrobatic fingertip stop.

Ellis Simms scored a late equaliser but Coventry’s three-match winning run came to an end with a 2-2 draw against Bristol City.

Tatsuhiro Sakamoto’s seventh goal of the season put the Sky Blues ahead with a rare foray forward in the first half before Rob Dickie equalised on the stroke of half-time.

Nahki Wells put the Robins ahead for the first time with a smart finish with seven minutes remaining but Simms was on hand to tap home an equaliser just two minutes later.

The visitors were without a win in four Championship outings but started the evening on the front foot when Jason Knight tested Brad Collins from distance inside the opening minutes.

Taylor Gardner-Hickman made his loan move from West Brom a permanent one earlier this month and Collins was forced into action once again to beat the midfielder’s swerving long-range effort to safety.

Coventry had barely threatened the Robins’ goal in the opening half an hour but when Sakamoto took the ball down inside the box and created an angle to squeeze his shot into the far corner, the Sky Blues had an unlikely lead.

It was a first half Bristol City had at the very least deserved to end on level terms and they did so through Dickie, who glanced a header in off the far post after a wicked ball in from Gardner-Hickman.

It was the second time this season the defender had scored against the Sky Blues after the former QPR man netted the winner against Mark Robins’ men back in October.

Both Coventry and Bristol City face replays if they are to progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup, and both sides cancelled each other out during a quiet start to the second half.

A potential tie with Maidstone awaits Coventry if they beat Sheffield Wednesday, whilst Bristol City could host Manchester United if they beat Nottingham Forest.

Callum O’Hare flashed a shot wide for the Sky Blues before substitute Ross McCrorie blazed his effort over at the other end, while Dickie was inches away from poking the visitors ahead with 15 minutes to go.

Wells thought he had given Bristol City a fifth away win of the season when he latched onto a loose ball in the box and fired home his first goal since September.

But the hosts were back level when Max O’Leary spilled Liam Kitching’s piledriver into the path of Simms, who tapped home an immediate leveller.

Simms could have snatched all three points for Coventry after Milan van Ewijk’s tantalising cross flashed across the face of goal.

There was still a chance for Liam Manning’s men to earn all three points, but Collins’ smart reaction save preserved Coventry’s 10-match unbeaten run in the league as he denied Harry Cornick.

Arsenal overcame a sluggish first-half performance to cut the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to two points after a 2-1 win at Nottingham Forest.

The Gunners looked toothless in the first half, but rallied to register three big points thanks to goals from Gabriel Jesus and Bukayo Saka.

The result leaves them on the coattails of Liverpool, who can extend their lead back to five points against Chelsea on Wednesday night.

Forest had no intention of going for the win in a pragmatic approach deployed by Nuno Espirito Santo, but they made a game of it late on as Taiwo Awoniyi slammed home in the 89th minute.

Arsenal saw it out to end a three-game losing streak at the City Ground and exorcise the ghosts of last season’s defeat, which saw their title challenge come to an end.

Forest’s situation at the foot of the Premier League is looking precarious, as they sit two points above the relegation zone with the threat of a points deduction for breaking financial rules hanging over them.

It is not in Nuno’s make-up to play an expansive game and his plan was to put men behind the ball and ask Arsenal the question of whether they could break them down.

The first half provided an answer of a resounding no, as for all their possession and territorial advantage the Gunners lacked a cutting edge to trouble Forest.

They had seven shots on target but none of them tested their former team-mate Matt Turner in the Forest goal, with Saka’s snapshot which deflected off Murillo and just wide the nearest they came to breaking the deadlock in the opening 45 minutes.

Forest offered next to nothing as an attacking force, registering just one pass in the final third in the opening half-hour, with Danilo’s drive over the crossbar from distance their only real foray forward.

The Gunners began to turn the screw after the second half and put Forest’s goal under serious threat for the first time.

Turner was forced into his first save when he palmed away Saka’s deflected effort with a strong hand before their best moment came four minutes later.

An intricate move involving Saka and Martin Odegaard led to Jesus being played in but he smashed his effort from a narrow angle into a post.

Eventually Arsenal’s pressure told as they took the lead in the 65th minute, though Turner will not want to see it again.

Forest switched off from Zinchenko’s throw-in and Jesus burst to the byline where his toe-poked shot went through Turner’s legs and into the back of the net.

Turner has come under scrutiny in recent weeks after a number of high-profile mistakes, but has been backed by Nuno, himself a former goalkeeper, though this may change things.

It was 2-0 seven minutes later after a breakaway goal. Gonzalo Montiel fluffed a clearance on the halfway line, skewing straight to Odegaard, who set Jesus free and he picked out Saka at the far post, with the England international making no mistake.

Forest had rarely threatened but Awoniyi, making his first appearance since November, converted after William Saliba’s mistake late on, though they could find a leveller.

While pleased with aspects of their team’s display in the first warm-up contest, Trinidad and Tobago’s Under-20 Men’s Head coach Brian Haynes and his Jamaican counterpart John Wall are optimistic of a more efficient display from their respective units when the two teams meet again on Thursday.

The young Soca Warriors edged the young Reggae Boyz 3-2 in the first contest at the University of TT, O'Meara Campus recently, with Lindell Sween, Levi Jones and Michael Chaves on target for the hosts, while Jahmani Bell and Demarion Harris, pulled things back for Jamaica.

That contest, both coaches believe, not only provided the impetus needed to finalize selection of their respective squads for next month’s Caribbean phase of the Concacaf Under-20 Men’s Championships, as they only had a few training sessions prior, which doesn’t necessarily assist in highlighting the true competitive nature and, by extension, cohesiveness of the teams.

Haynes expressed satisfaction with the progress of his players, especially as he explored different combinations.

"As far as I am concerned the exercise was good. Nobody's hurt, thank God. The guys worked hard and the main group, the group that started, they did what we wanted them to do, and I thought the guys that came in did a good job as well,” Haynes said.

"I commend the Jamaica team for coming down and giving us a good game, because this is what we need and this is what they need and hopefully this propels us to keep playing at the level I know we can,” he added.

Still, no performance is ever perfect, and as such, Haynes said the objective remains to strengthen their flaws in all areas to ensure that the young Soca Warriors not only prove more formidable in the next game, but also against their more illustrious opponents in future fixtures.

Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica will lock horns in the second warm-up encounter on Thursday at Larry Gomes Stadium at 4:00 pm.

For the upcoming tournament, Haynes’s side will host Group D which includes Canada, Dominica and St Vincent and the Grenadines with only the group winner set to progress.

"There are things we have to work on, but right now I am really happy with the result for the boys,” Haynes noted.

Wall echoed similar sentiments, even as the young Reggae Boyz held Police FC’s youth team to a goalless stalemate in another encounter.

"The whole idea of these games is to create relationships and a common understanding on our game model. So, there are instances where we are kind of pleased with what we saw and for me it’s the bigger picture of getting ourselves ready and competitive for the tournament,” Wall shared.

"One of the core non-negotiables that we have is that no matter what, we don’t give up because we are playing for our nation which is a big responsibility.  So, there are areas we need to improve on with regards to our pressing, counter-pressing and some other technical things in that region,” he reasoned.

Wall’s side will contest Group F with Bermuda, Grenada and Martinique in St Kitts and Nevis in the upcoming tournament.

After round-robin play in the Concacaf qualifying opening round between February 23 and March 2, the group winners will progress to the Championship round to join the six pre-seeded nations – United States, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic –ranked in that order.

Jurgen Klinsmann overcame Roberto Mancini as South Korea advanced to the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup on penalties after a dramatic draw against Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.

South Korea won 4-2 in the shoot-out after the round-of-16 match had ended 1-1 after extra time.

Defeat will be particularly hard for Mancini to take as Saudi Arabia led 1-0 deep into stoppage time at Education City Stadium through Abdullah Radif's 46th-minute strike.

Cho Gue-sung levelled the game in the 99th minute to send it into an additional period, then South Korea goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo was the hero in the shoot-out when saving penalties from Sami Al Naji and Abdulrahman Ghareeb.

Hwang Hee-chan converted the winner from the spot to send his country through to the last eight and a match against Australia on Friday.

Uzbekistan are also into the quarter-finals after beating Thailand 2-1, setting up a clash with hosts and defending champions Qatar.

Azizbek Turgunboev put Uzbekistan ahead in the 37th minute, controlling Diyor Kholmatov's diagonal pass on his chest and volleying low past Patiwat Khammai.

Thailand equalised through Supachok Sarachat's curling effort from outside the box 13 minutes after half-time, but it took just seven more minutes for Uzbekistan to regain the lead with what proved to be the decisive goal from Abbosbek Fayzullayev, who struck from distance to beat Khammai.

A much-changed Chelsea side eased to victory at Paris FC to end their Women’s Champions League group stage undefeated.

First-half headers from Fran Kirby and Mia Fishel before late efforts from Guro Reiten and Maren Mjelde secured a comfortable 4-0 victory in the French capital for the Blues.

Emma Hayes’ side had already guaranteed themselves a quarter-final spot and she took the opportunity to shuffle her pack.

After an even opening, it was England international Kirby who broke the deadlock with the visitors’ first clear opportunity.

Jelena Cankovic crossed to the back post where Kirby arrived unmarked to head home for her first Champions League goal of the campaign.

The hosts, making their group-stage debut – having knocked Arsenal out earlier in the tournament – responded well as Chelsea goalkeeper Zecira Musovic was forced into a smart save, courtesy of an acute Mathilde Bourdieu.

Paris, though, had not learnt their lesson from Kirby’s opener and were caught out in startlingly-similar fashion later in the half as Cankovic this time crossed for Fishel to head home.

With the hosts needing victory to keep alive their hopes of reaching the last eight, Julie Dufour missed a sitter after the restart, leaning back and firing over the crossbar from close range.

A number of defensive mix-ups allowed Chelsea to wrap up the win as Reiten was the beneficiary, tapping home after miscommunication on the edge of the Paris box.

There was more questionable defending as Mjelde flicked home a corner with goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie poorly positioned.

Chelsea were good value for their win and will be seeded for the quarter-final draw on February 6 – avoiding some of Europe’s big-hitters.