Erik ten Hag revealed Casemiro is in a “race against the clock” to make the Manchester derby and says the squad is behind Alejandro Garnacho as he faces a potential ban for a social media post.
The eyes of the footballing world will be on Old Trafford this Sunday afternoon as treble winners Manchester City look to end the Red Devils’ unconvincing three-game winning streak in all competitions.
United have stumbled to those victories against Brentford, Sheffield United and Copenhagen, with a vastly improved performance required if they are to lay a glove on Pep Guardiola’s men.
The midfield battle looks key and Ten Hag says his side may be missing Casemiro for a third straight game, with an ankle injury sustained on Brazil duty putting his place in jeopardy.
“Aaron (Wan-Bissaka is back) in training today and Case is a race against the clock,” Ten Hag said. “No, not 100 per cent.”
Casemiro had trained ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League clash against Copenhagen – a group match he was unable to play in due to suspension.
The Red Devils were made to sweat in a narrow 1-0 victory against the Danish champions, with Andre Onana producing a stoppage-time penalty save that saw the under-fire goalkeeper mobbed by team-mates.
Garnacho later uploaded a photo on X, formerly known as Twitter, of the United players celebrating with the Cameroon international with a caption featuring two gorilla emojis.
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The post was quickly deleted and Onana defended his team-mate, who he said was trying to express “power and strength” as he added “this matter should go no further”.
But the Football Association has punished players in the past for making racial references on social networking sites and is understood to have sought Garnacho’s observations.
“Not (concerned about a ban) in this moment,” Ten Hag said. “We are talking with the FA.
“But what you see and I can confirm that and I want to emphasise, we are together, we are United and we have seen that in the post of Andre Onana.”
Former United striker Edinson Cavani was banned for three games and fined £100,000 in 2020 for using the Spanish phrase ‘Gracias negrito’ – which translates as ‘thanks little black’ – below a friend’s Instagram post.
The Uruguay striker also underwent a two-hour face-to-face training course for a comment said to be a term of endearment in his native Uruguay.
The previous year Bernardo Silva was given a one-match ban and fined £50,000 by the FA for his tweet to Manchester City colleague Benjamin Mendy.
The Portuguese tweeted an image of a young Mendy alongside an image of the cartoon brand mascot of Spanish confectionery brand Conguitos, with the caption “Guess who?”
Silva could be lining up at Old Trafford against Garnacho this weekend in the 191st Manchester derby – a match that could define United’s mood at a key stage of the season.
“Definitely you see we are back where we wanted to be in that this is a hard team to beat,” United boss Ten Hag said. “They find a way to win, so we are going in the right direction.
“I think it’s a match above many other derbies. It’s so huge because it’s Manchester, internal.
“But I think it’s also about world football and all the eyes will be on this game global-wide.
“In this moment they’re six points ahead, we’re six points back, so we have to catch up.
“We know we have to progress the team, so we have to make developments.”
Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel has no doubts goalkeeper Manuel Neuer will return stronger as he prepares for a first game in almost a year after breaking his leg while skiing.
Neuer has been out of action since December 2022 following surgery on a lower leg fracture.
After stepping up his rehabilitation, the German World Cup winner is in line to make a comeback against Darmstadt on Saturday and should then be in line for Der Klassiker next weekend.
Tuchel feels Neuer, 37, will not need much reintegration as he takes over from Sven Ulreich between the posts.
“As long as nothing happens today, he’ll play tomorrow. He’s excited, we’re excited. There’s probably a lot of other people excited about it too,” Tuchel said.
“It’s a special situation. I can feel his excitement and his class. He’s got great experience. He’s enjoying things right now and he can he proud of himself.
“He should enjoy it, and that will make him strong. There will be some tension. Now we hope that he can quickly find his rhythm and things are all good.
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“His comeback is very impressive. I notice the difference in his condition. Our whole recovery and physio department and he can be proud.
“I’m almost proud of the fact he’s come back. It’s all far more than a given. I’m very confident he’ll quickly reach his top form.”
Tuchel told a press conference: “I don’t feel he’s tensed up. I think he’ll show everyone again, but there’s some joy in him that he’s done it.
“I see a whole new level in goalkeeper training. He’s in his own league. He should see it as a gift for his work. We trust his experience and intuition.
“He has been match fit for a few weeks, now he is going to get playing time, but he can compensate for it all with his experience.”
Neuer will also have an eye on making it into Germany’s squad for next summer’s Euro 2024 tournament on home soil.
“If Manu remains free from injury until the Euros and takes all his experience, then I don’t think we’ll be asking this question in May,” Tuchel said. “But the most important thing now is that he stays fit and can keep playing.”
Bayern host Darmstadt on the back of a 12-match unbeaten run, which saw them win 3-1 away to Galatasaray in the Champions League on Tuesday might.
With Bayer Leverkusen two points clear of them at the top of the Bundesliga, Tuchel knows there can be no room for complacency from his side against Darmstadt, who have lost five of their eight games back in the top flight.
“I can imagine they will want to surprise us,” Tuchel said. “They are dangerous out wide, have settled in at this level.
“Darmstadt sometimes defend very high, very aggressively, man to man, but sometimes they also defend deep with a back five.
“But we will be ready and will give everything to win the game.”
Darmstadt coach Torsten Lieberknecht is relishing the challenge of a trip to the Allianz Arena.
“We have worked hard for this Bundesliga game, that is why we feel anticipation,” Lieberknecht told a press conference.
“Everyone knows that it is not an easy opponent we face on Saturday. Nevertheless, we want to present ourselves well as a team.
“We know that we will definitely be busy defensively. We prepare the boys so that they can show their best performance on the pitch.”
Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali could be involved in Saturday’s Premier League clash with Wolves despite being handed a 10-month ban.
The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) confirmed on Thursday that the 23-year-old had been suspended until next season after agreeing a plea bargain as part of an investigation into illegal betting activity.
However, Newcastle say they are yet to be officially informed of the ban, which is yet to be ratified by world governing body FIFA and, as it stands, the £55million summer signing from AC Milan was due to travel to the Midlands on Friday afternoon with the rest of the squad.
Magpies head coach Eddie Howe said: “It’s a difficult one because we haven’t had official confirmation as a football club yet.
“We’ve heard the news, the statement, but we haven’t had anything from the Italian authorities at the moment, so we’re in limbo, really, waiting for that official confirmation to come through.”
Asked if there was a chance the Italy international could be involved at Molineux, Howe added: “Yes, I think there’s a high chance again that he could be available for us.
“I still think there are a few things that have to happen before the ban is imposed, so let’s see.”
The Italy international was also fined 20,000 euros and will have to undergo eight months of therapy as well as carrying out a series of public appearances.
Tonali found himself at the centre of a probe during this month’s international break into breaches of betting rules and was alleged to have wagered on games involving former clubs Brescia and Milan during his spells with them.
What the papers say
Newcastle United will look to bolster their midfield with Al Hilal’s former Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves, The Sun reports. The move comes after Newcastle’s Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali was banned for 10 months for betting breaches.
Chelsea are looking to sign teenage midfielder Gavi, who may leave Barcelona due to financial restrictions. The Daily Express says Barcelona could sell the Spaniard for £87million. Gavi has played in two of three Champions League games so far this season and 10 times in La Liga.
Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo is reportedly ready to sign a new long-term deal with the club after boss Marco Silva signed a new contract, according to the Standard.
Social media round-upPlayers to watch
Julian Alvarez: Manchester City would only sell the 23-year-old Argentinian forward for £80million or more, Football Insider reports.
Kevin de Bruyne: Football Insider also says Saudi Pro League clubs are interested in bringing the 32-year-old Manchester City midfielder to the league in 2024.
Jurgen Klopp called his Liverpool team “easy to fall in love with” after watching them ease to a 5-1 win over Toulouse that puts them in complete control of their Europa League group.
Ryan Gravenberch was outstanding in midfield, creating one and scoring another, Diogo Jota got his eighth goal in seven in Europe’s second-tier competition, Wataru Endo opened his Liverpool account and there were also goals for Darwin Nunez and substitute Mo Salah.
But the night also demonstrated the depth in Liverpool’s squad as Klopp made eight changes from the 2-0 win over local rivals Everton, handing a full debut to teenager Luke Chambers while Calum Scanlon and James McConnell both made their bows off the bench.
Klopp had to conduct a significant rebuild of his side this summer after last season’s disappointments and the unexpected exits of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, but the early signs are promising with Liverpool three points off the top of the Premier League and firing on all fronts.
“I think it’s really easy to fall in love with this team,” Klopp said. “There is so much excitement in it. We have to make massive steps, we have to grow, we have to do a lot of things but a lot of the signs are really promising.
“How the team interacts with each other is really nice because when you talk about a rebuild of the team it’s all about the things you see on the pitch, obviously, but to see that there has to be a rebuild off the pitch as well and that’s going really well.”
Liverpool were not perfect on the night, allowing Thijs Dallinga to cancel out Jota’s early opener when their high line was exposed quarter of an hour in.
They also needed Trent Alexander-Arnold to block a Gabriel Souza shot on the line after a Caoimhin Kelleher mistake, but Klopp was more than happy with what he saw from a team featuring so many changes as others were kept in reserve for Sunday’s visit of Nottingham Forest.
“The result was good, the performance was good,” he said. “There were a lot of really good individual performances which is nice because it’s important for development. Besides the goal we conceded and the chance we gave them when Trent had his spectacular save around that it was everything we expected.”
The 21-year-old Gravenberch, a summer signing from Bayern Munich, was making back-to-back starts at club level for the first time in 18 months, and delivered a stand-out performance, regularly driving forward from midfield and proving a constant menace to Toulouse.
His goal may have come from what Klopp described as a “slapstick” moment – when Nunez rounded the goalkeeper only to hit his shot against the post with Gravenberch picking up the pieces – his performance certainly merited an appearance on the scoresheet.
“I really like him, as a boy, as a player, it’s really nice to see how much he starts believing in himself again,” Klopp said. “That’s obviously very important for a young player especially. There’s lot to improve on still which is good news because everybody sees the potential he has.”
Nunez left the pitch still kicking himself for his miss, but Klopp was delighted with the Uruguayan.
“(Darwin) played incredible,” he said. “Honestly in this moment I couldn’t care less than he hits the post because everything before was super convincing, how he took the defender away, how he went past the goalie it was a perfect situation.
“He played really good, the goal he scored, the situations he was in. He is in a good moment and for us that’s really important. I’m really pleased for him. Yes it’s a bit of slapstick when the ball doesn’t go in but Ryan puts it in and it’s cool.”
Aberdeen manager Barry Robson maintained his pride in his side’s performance after their Europa Conference League defeat at the hands of Group G pacesetters PAOK Salonika, but questioned the purpose of VAR after a controversial evening.
It had all been going according to plan for Robson’s side, who weathered a first-half storm before going 2-0 up by the hour mark thanks to classy finishes from Bojan Miovski and Dante Polvara.
Defensive errors allowed the visitors to find their way back into the game, substitute Kiril Despodov handing his side a lifeline before captain Vieirinha fired home an 84th-minute leveller.
There was further heartbreak as a VAR-awarded penalty was converted by Stefan Schwab to complete the turnaround and seal a 3-2 win.
But what grabbed the ire of Robson was the lack of intervention from VAR Alan Kijas in what looked a stonewall spot-kick for the Dons when Jack MacKenzie was kicked in the penalty area with the score at 2-1.
“We all know the answer,” he said when asked if he felt his side had been denied a penalty. “We all make mistakes. I make mistakes, and we lost the game with players making mistakes.
“When VAR comes in, they’re there to look at things six times, and they still get it wrong? That’s my problem.”
Responding to suggestions there was no check for the incident, Robson fumed: “If that’s the case, what are they doing here? You’re as well taking it away. I’m told they’re supposed to check every incident.
“I don’t want to make it about that though. I want to make it about my players. We’ve lost 3-2 and am I frustrated? Yes. But I’m so proud of them.
“Mistakes happen in football, but I thought tactically they were excellent and we got better as the game went on. We should have had at least a point, and I’m just frustrated that we didn’t take at least a point.”
The first PAOK goal came directly after a triple substitution, and Robson explained the reasoning for the changes, saying: “We had to make them. The players were drained. We were trying to get them on earlier, and we were actually thinking about making more.”
Roberto De Zerbi stressed the importance of changing the mood at Brighton after they beat Ajax 2-0 at the Amex Stadium to claim a first European victory.
It ended a run of five games without a win as the club have struggled with injuries during their debut Europa League campaign, though their European hopes were firmly revived here with a comprehensive triumph over the four-time European champions.
From the first minute Brighton outclassed a poor Ajax side, who just three days after sacking manager Maurice Steijn amidst the club’s worst-ever start to an Eredivisie season, barely mustered an attack.
Joao Pedro tapped in on the rebound after Karou Mitoma’s shot had been parried, breaking the deadlock minutes before half-time and handing Brighton a deserved lead.
The advantage was doubled eight minutes after the break when on-loan Barcelona forward Ansu Fati took a brilliant first touch to come inside his defender and rolled the ball into the corner after being set up by Simon Adingra.
It was a first win in three attempts on the team’s debut European campaign, lifting them to third in Group B and to within a point of leaders Marseille with whom they drew in France three weeks ago.
A win in the return against Ajax in Amsterdam in November will put them in a commanding position to qualify for the knockout rounds ahead of their final two group games.
“The focus today has been the first win in European competition for Brighton, for our fans, for our club, for our owner and for ourselves,” said De Zerbi. “We didn’t deserve to lose against AEK (Athens), and today we wanted 150 per cent the victory.
“We played a great game with high quality. We could score more goals, but the most important thing is we didn’t concede and we closed the game with a clean sheet.
“For us in this moment, it’s important to change the mood, to start winning games, to start to play better because we (have not been) playing like last season.”
The manager praised the contributions of his two goalscorers, with Pedro out in front as the team’s leading European scorer with four goals in three games, whilst Fati also continued his adaption to life in England after moving from La Liga.
“Both are great players, (but) I think both can play better,” said De Zerbi. “We are helping a lot Ansu because he didn’t play so many games last year, for him he’s started a new football life. He’s an incredible player, Joao Pedro as well.
“They’re very young, we have to help them to progress, but they have to help themselves first of all, working hard during the week, and during the game. But they are both incredible players.”
De Zerbi also reflected on the difficulty of balancing a hectic schedule after Solly March and Danny Welbeck joined a lengthy injury list following Saturday’s loss to Manchester City.
He added: “The level of difficulty is more or less the same (between the Premier League and Europa League), but it’s tougher this season because after 48, 72 hours we have another important game against Fulham.
“This is the challenge that is most difficult for us. We have to accept the honour, because we made history for our club.
“It’s unbelievable and it’s proud for us to be part of this history, but in the same way we have to fight and to adapt, be ready to fight and enjoy and make happy our fans. Playing in Europe for Brighton is a big, big thing.”
Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou is loving his time at the Premier League leaders, but is bullish about what expectations should be despite the club’s lengthy trophy drought.
Spurs have not won silverware since 2008, although fans are dreaming of challenging for the title after winning 23 points from a possible 27 so far this season.
It has taken Tottenham to the top-flight summit and they could move five points clear of Manchester City and Arsenal with victory at Crystal Palace on Friday, ahead of the weekend fixtures.
Postecoglou has relished his dream start to life in England, but eager to point out his new club should be competing for trophies every year.
The former Celtic boss said: “I didn’t come here to not be successful. This club has all the fundamentals to be successful. The expectations should be there.
“Part of the reason why there’s been this real desperation for a trophy is because they feel that’s the space they should be in. That is the expectation, that’s the reality, but what drives me isn’t raising or trying to dampen expectations.
“What drives me is trying to build something that will realise the ambitions that this club has at this particular moment. People’s perceptions don’t concern me too much. This is a big club and should be in a position to challenge for trophies every season in my opinion.
“At Celtic we were on top for a very long time but at the beginning when we weren’t on top, I don’t think people saw anything different in my demeanour. I don’t think they will (here).
“It is one thing I do. It’s not about staying kind of level-headed or getting carried away with either thing. It’s just that, my role in that context is to be the one thing that people can rely upon to be consistent.
“In that I have one objective all the time: how can we be better? When that is your objective, it doesn’t really matter where you are on the table or kind of what the outside noise may or may not be doing.
“It is about the players and the staff and everyone involved with the football club, looking at me. The one thing I do is I come in every day, I am buzzing about doing what I am doing. You know, that’s the kind of demeanour I have consistently.
“It’s just the way I am. I get so much satisfaction from what I do. I really enjoy what I do, on a daily basis. There isn’t a day I don’t get up and I’m not looking forward to the day ahead.
“There’s no other levels of satisfaction in me to get. That’s it. I’m buzzing to do what I do.
“Within that context I also understand that I have a real big responsibility to lead an organisation, players, staff, people to what I hope will be a successful place.
“There’s got to be some reliability there in what they see and what they feel with me so some of it is conscious but the other bits, I’m not skipping about the place but I’m really happy. I love what I do. Just the way I am. I’m very, very happy.”
Postecoglou’s happiness did not extend into the dressing room on Monday night after he criticised his players for a poor second half against Fulham.
It failed to stop the team blaring out Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers’ classic from the 1980s’ of ‘Islands in the Stream’ following the 2-0 win.
But Postecoglou joked: “I stay out of the dressing room partly because of the music choices of the players.
“Most clubs want to turn their grounds into a fortress – ours is becoming a nightclub, mate. I’m all for it, whatever makes people happy that’s my thing.”
Spurs will assess Destiny Udogie ahead of the trip to south London after the left-back struggled with muscle tightness during the victory over Fulham.
Brighton enjoyed a comprehensive first victory in Europe as a goal in either half from Joao Pedro and Ansu Fati eased them to a 2-0 win against Ajax at the Amex Stadium.
It took until the final minutes of a first half that Brighton had dominated for the breakthrough to arrive, Pedro tapping home on the rebound, as Ajax – second-bottom of the Eredivisie – did little more than look to preserve parity in the Europa League clash.
The Dutch side have endured their worst start to a league season and, after sacking manager Maurice Steijn on Monday, they went down with barely a whimper as Fati’s goal early in the second half showed the gulf between Roberto De Zerbi’s team and the four-time European champions.
It was a first half that Brighton controlled but were for the most part frustrated by an organised, obdurate Ajax. Pedro wanted a penalty for a shove in the back inside of three minutes, waved away by the referee with barely a glance, before Brighton’s top scorer on their European campaign tucked the only real chance of the opening exchanges wide of the near post from Karou Mitoma’s cut-back.
Pedro appealed again for a spot-kick, this time with more gusto, when he appeared to be bundled to the ground by Jorrel Hato. The defender was adjudged narrowly to have reached Mitoma’s through-ball ahead of the Brighton striker as the Amex howled for a penalty.
The hosts’ central-defensive pair spent much of the first half 10 yards inside the Ajax half. The plan to lure out the visitors and exploit the resulting space was resisted by caretaker boss Hedwiges Maduro’s team, who seemed content to sacrifice attacking ambition for the sake of clogging the gaps in between their lines.
Simon Adingra had the best chance of the opening half-hour when he lashed a right-footed effort over the bar from Lewis Dunk’s header back across goal, as Brighton’s threat was stymied by Ajax in what was a ponderous first half from De Zerbi’s side.
Mitoma and Pedro’s partnership looked the most likely avenue of success. The pair carved out the clearest opening yet when Pedro dashed into a channel down the right to reach his team-mate’s threaded ball and drove low at goal, only for goalkeeper Diant Ramaj to beat it away with a strong right hand.
The breakthrough came three minutes before the break. Dunk’s pass was weighted into the path of Mitoma who dashed into the box and dragged the ball inside Josip Sutalo to make space to shoot. His effort was pushed out by Ramaj, but only to the feet of the onrushing Pedro who continued his fine European scoring run to end a frustrating half for Brighton on a high.
Fati’s goal, slotted home brilliantly eight minutes after the break, cemented Brighton’s superiority. Adingra began the move from midfield, patiently stewarding the ball until Fati’s run was made, checking inside and feeding the on-loan Barcelona forward who beat his man with a devastating first touch and dispatched deftly beyond Ramaj.
The game had sprung suddenly to life. Fati was inches from making it three and burying Ajax, his driven effort licking inches wide of the post, before Steven Berghuis at the other end struck the upright with Jason Steele beaten, a rare foray forward from the visitors.
It was to be the closest the 2019 Champions League semi-finalists came, as Brighton’s debut European season finally got going in earnest.
Liverpool seized control of Europa League Group E as they breezed to a 5-1 win over Toulouse at Anfield to go five points clear after three games.
Diogo Jota continued his love affair with Europe’s second competition, scoring his eighth goal in seven appearances, and although Thijs Dallinga levelled for the visitors, Wataru Endo got off the mark in Liverpool colours and Darwin Nunez added another to put Jurgen Klopp’s men in charge before half-time.
Nunez then hit the post of an open goal just after the hour, but Ryan Gravenberch tucked in the rebound and substitute Mohamed Salah added a fifth in stoppage time to leave Liverpool – three points off the top of the Premier League – looking strong on all fronts as they face an intense run of fixtures.
Klopp had promised to make “not too many” changes to his side following Saturday’s 2-0 win over Everton in the Merseyside derby, but there were only three survivors in the starting line-up – Jota, Gravenberch and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Klopp had also said he wanted to ensure Toulouse, who lost 4-0 on their only previous visit to Anfield in 2007, did not enjoy their evening and all three of those players had a big say in making sure they did not.
Jota got the opening goal, Alexander-Arnold the assist for the second and Gravenberch, a driving force throughout in Liverpool’s midfield, creating the third before scoring the fourth, but this was also a show of the depth in Klopp’s squad.
Jota opened the scoring with only nine minutes gone. Joe Gomez prodded the ball forward to the Portugal international, who turned on the edge of the centre circle and ran at goal, holding off two opponents and skipping past Logan Costa before beating Guillaume Restes with a low shot.
Liverpool, dominant on the ball and winning the midfield battle, looked poised for a comfortable night, but Toulouse then gave their noisy travelling support a moment to savour, hitting their hosts on the break with quarter of an hour gone.
Aron Donnum turned on the halfway line to play in Dallinga, being kept onside by Alexander-Arnold and he had space to run at goal before slotting a shot under Caoimhin Kelleher.
Liverpool soon regained their composure. Gravenberch almost scored a remarkable goal in the 28th minute, controlling a raking pass from Alexander-Arnold, breaking into the box and then – having seemingly run into traffic – twisting his way through to test the 18-year-old Restes with a low shot.
Moments later, Endo’s moment arrived as the Japan international got in front of his man to direct Alexander-Arnold’s cross into the corner of the net.
Toulouse were rocked and soon fell further behind. Gravenberch drove at goal from his own half, laying the ball off for Curtis Jones to shoot from a central position. His effort was charged down but the ricochet fell for Nunez, whose emphatic finish found the roof of the net.
There was a scare at the start of the first half as Kelleher got a clearance all wrong, leaving Gabriel Suazo with what should have been an easy chance, but he shot straight at Alexander-Arnold on the line.
Liverpool’s fourth came about in almost comical circumstances in the 65th minute. Jota’s pass found the run of Nunez, who had done the hard work by rounding Restes, only to see his shot come back off the post.
Nunez still had his head in his hands as Gravenberch picked up the pieces to get the goal his performance deserved.
Cody Gakpo then replaced Nunez in a flurry of substitutions, making a welcome return from a knee injury, while there was also a late cameo for Salah, who scored his ninth goal in 12 appearances for Liverpool with almost the last kick of the game.
Brighton enjoyed a comprehensive first victory in the Europa League as a goal in either half from Joao Pedro and Ansu Fati eased them to a 2-0 win against Ajax at the Amex Stadium.
It took until the final minutes of a first half that Brighton had dominated for the breakthrough to arrive, Pedro tapping home on the rebound after an opening period in which Ajax – second bottom of the Eredivisie – did little more than look to preserve parity, as Brighton dictated things from the first minute.
The Dutch side have endured their worst-ever start to a league season, and after sacking manager Maurice Steijn on Monday they went down with barely a whimper, Fati’s goal early in the second half laying bare the gulf between Roberto De Zerbi’s team and the four-time European champions.
It was a first half that Brighton controlled but were for the most part frustrated by an organised, obdurate Ajax. Pedro wanted a penalty for a shove in the back inside of three minutes, waved away by the referee with barely a glance, before Brighton’s top scorer on their European campaign tucked the only real chance of the opening exchanges wide of the near post from Karou Mitoma’s cut-back.
Pedro appealed again for a spot-kick, this time with more gusto, when he appeared to be bundled to the ground by Jorrel Hato. The defender was adjudged narrowly to have reached Mitoma’s through-ball ahead of the Brighton striker as the Amex howled for a penalty.
The hosts’ central-defensive pair spent much of the first half 10 yards inside the Ajax half. The plan to lure out the visitors and exploit the resulting space was resisted by caretaker boss Hedwiges Maduro’s team, who seemed content to sacrifice attacking ambition for the sake of clogging the gaps in between their lines.
Simon Adingra had the best chance of the opening half-hour when he lashed a right-footed effort over the bar from Lewis Dunk’s header back across goal, as Brighton’s threat was stymied by Ajax in what was a ponderous first half from De Zerbi’s side.
Mitoma and Pedro’s partnership looked the most likely avenue of success. The pair carved out the clearest opening yet when Pedro dashed into a channel down the right to reach his team-mate’s threaded ball and drove low at goal, only for goalkeeper Diant Ramaj to beat it away with a strong right hand.
The breakthrough came three minutes before the break. Dunk’s pass was weighted into the path of Mitoma who dashed into the box and dragged the ball inside Josip Sutalo to make space to shoot. His effort was pushed out by Ramaj, but only to the feet of the onrushing Pedro who continued his fine European scoring run to end a frustrating half for Brighton on a high.
Fati’s goal, slotted home brilliantly eight minutes after the break, cemented Brighton’s superiority. Adingra began the move from midfield, patiently stewarding the ball until Fati’s run was made, checking inside and feeding the on-loan Barcelona forward who beat his man with a devastating first touch and dispatched deftly beyond Ramaj.
The game had sprung suddenly to life. Fati was inches from making it three and burying Ajax, his driven effort licking inches wide of the post, before Steven Berghuis at the other end struck the upright with Jason Steele beaten, a rare foray forward from the visitors.
It was to be the closest the 2019 Champions League semi-finalists came, as Brighton’s debut European season finally got going in earnest.
Aberdeen’s hopes of navigating a route through the Europa Conference League Group stage suffered a major blow as they threw away a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 against PAOK Salonika on a rollercoaster night at Pittodrie.
Having weathered heavy pressure in a goalless first half, Barry Robson’s men found themselves two goals to the good by the hour mark thanks to Bojan Miovski and Dante Polvara.
But a stunning comeback saw the Greek side take three points after goals from substitutes Kiril Despodov and captain Vieirinha, and a stoppage-time penalty, awarded after a VAR check, from Stefan Schwab.
The Dons started brightly and after nine minutes, a free-kick earned by Graeme Shinnie 25 yards out gave Connor Barron the chance to fire towards goal, but his effort was over the crossbar.
That seemed to awaken the visitors, who had eased their way into the game. A moment of brilliance from Ioannis Konstantelias saw the forward dance through the Dons defence before rolling a low shot off the base of the left-hand post.
The Dons were getting some joy on the left though, and Jamie McGrath’s industry saw him win the ball high up before being unceremoniously dumped by Schwab who picked up a yellow card for his troubles.
As time elapsed, the away side started to find openings, and a counter led by Konstantelias saw Kelle Roos come off his line to block the striker’s attempted chip.
The Dutch keeper was again well-placed just two minutes later to hold Schwab’s back-post header from a corner as the Dons held out for the half-time whistle.
But the home side came out all guns blazing after the break, with Barron claiming for a penalty after a kick to the head almost straight after the restart. The same man then swung in a free-kick that was headed by Polvara, forcing Dominik Kotarski into a first save of the game.
And two minutes later, the Dons were in front.
Again, it came from the left with McGrath and Jack MacKenzie exchanging passes before the latter drilled in a low cross which Miovski was able to swivel on before placing low into the bottom-left corner.
Soon after, it was two.
Barron picked up the ball in his own half and drove forward, finding Miovski who in turn released Polvara one-on-one with the keeper. The American kept his cool and dinked beyond Kotarski to send the Red Shed behind the goal into ecstasy.
The Greek side, however, pulled a goal back after 74 minutes, and it was an easy finish for substitute Despodov who stroked home with his first touch after being played in by Konstantelias, who took full advantage of Richard Jensen’s untimely slip.
Aberdeen could have had a penalty almost instantly as MacKenzie took a tumble in the box, but there was no award forthcoming.
The visitors took full advantage to draw level as Jonny Hayes’ clearing header proved wayward, falling for Vieirinha to smash an angled drive past a helpless Roos, with the aid of a deflection.
Aberdeen suddenly sprung back to life with chances for Jensen and McGrath late in the game and looked like holding on for a point before a late VAR award against Slobodan Rubezic allowed Schwab to complete the comeback.
Boss Unai Emery believes Aston Villa proved their European credentials after an emphatic 4-1 win at AZ Alkmaar.
Leon Bailey, Youri Tielemans, Ollie Watkins and John McGinn struck as dominant Villa cruised to victory in the Europa Conference League.
It was a second 4-1 win in two games – following Sunday’s victory over West Ham – and Villa earned successive Group E triumphs after dispatching last year’s beaten semi-finalists.
“If we want to be a contender we have to show every day and when we are playing those matches, we have to show everybody our wishes. I think we did it,” Emery told a press conference.
“We are respecting them because they played in the semi-final last year against West Ham. They won last year against Lazio, they won last year against Anderlecht and it’s because they have experiences in European competitions.
“I am very happy with the players because I think they have to be mature, responsible and demanding themselves, not only when I’m pushing them. They have to try to increase their own individual and collective level.”
Bailey opened the scoring when Villa cashed in on wasteful play from AZ and Tielemans doubled the lead 10 minutes later.
Watkins made it 3-0 six minutes after the restart when Bailey’s shot was saved by former Brighton goalkeeper Mat Ryan.
Just five minutes later, McGinn added a fourth when he turned Bailey’s cross in at the near post.
AZ improved and pulled a goal back through Ibrahim Sadiq’s fine drive from the edge of the box with 25 minutes left.
Home defender David Moller-Wolfe said: “I can only speak for myself, but I’ve never played against such a good team.
“I felt when we tried to press them high, they just went in behind us and when we stayed they played in between us. That said, I don’t see why we can’t go to Villa Park in a few weeks and beat them.”
Philippe Clement praised his revamped Rangers side for their second-half response against Sparta Prague which earned a valuable Europa League point.
With Borna Barisic and Dujon Sterling injured and Ridvan Yilmaz not in the European squad, the new Gers boss had no natural left-back available which meant a change to a back-three with prolific attacker Abdallah Sima playing left wing-back.
The visitors were fortunate to go into the break with their goal intact as Sparta dominated but there was a gradual improvement in the second half with substitute Danilo having a shot tipped on to the bar by Peter Vindahl late in the game which ended goalless.
Clement said: “The second half was much better. In the end it was a game that was in the balance, the first half for Sparta, the second half for us.
“But I am happy with the reaction in the second half. It has been a very special week, losing three left full-backs and because of that we had to change the system and doing that with two training sessions is very difficult for any team in the world.
“If you have time to prepare on those things it is different but that was not the case.
“So I am really happy after showing images at half-time, where the spaces were and what we had to do, that it was much better in the second half where we dominated in the chances and in the end we could say we could win the game because there were two really great saves from the goalkeeper.
“It is a very important point. Getting points away from home is really important but I am a winner, I want to win always and I want the team to have the same mentality.
“I saw it after the game, they were disappointed that they didn’t win and that is the mentality we need in the next couple of months but in the circumstances we can be happy with a point against a team that plays really good football, a team with a lot of quality.
“The reaction in the second half was good and we need to build on that.”
Rangers are now on four points from three Group C fixtures ahead of Sparta Prague’s visit to Ibrox on November 9 albeit Clement’s focus is on the visit of Hearts in the cinch Premiership on Sunday.
The Belgian, whose tenure at Ibrox began with a 4-0 cinch Premiership win over Hibernian at the weekend, highlighted the performance of Sima, on loan from Brighton, saying: “Sima played a really important role as wing-back, which he is not used to playing and he did a great job defensively for the team.
“We want to see a team fight for each other until the edge and over the edge to keep clean sheets and that is two clean sheets in a row and if you do that you take a lot of points in the season but I don’t want a team that only play for clean sheets and only defends to keep clean sheets.
“I want a team that plays good football and creates chances like they showed in the second half.”
David Moyes defended his team selection after West Ham’s unbeaten European record was reduced to ruins in Athens.
The Hammers came a cropper in the shadow of the Acropolis as they crashed 2-1 at Olympiacos, their first loss in continental competition in 18 matches.
Moyes, who led his side to the Europa Conference League title last season, made seven changes for their Europa League Group A clash in the Greek capital with one eye on Sunday’s visit of Everton.
But his tinkering backfired as a soft goal from Olympiacos captain Kostas Fortounis and an own goal from stand-in Hammers skipper Angelo Ogbonna brought their undefeated run to a halt despite Lucas Paqueta’s late volley.
“Look, we changed a lot of players tonight, we’ve got the Premier League coming up and we’ve got a League Cup game next week and we’d won the first two games in the group, which gave us leeway to make changes tonight,” Moyes told whufc.com.
“But maybe I have to recognise that while we didn’t win the Conference League games easily, as they were all tough games, coming to Olympiacos after winning away in Freiburg – which was a good result – this wasn’t a good result and wasn’t a good performance.
“In our heads we certainly had a bigger picture in our heads and that was going into Sunday.
“I don’t think anybody could say the team we started with wasn’t a good team and wasn’t a team capable of winning or performing.
“Many of them have been very good players for us over the years and still are.”
The local ‘ultras’ welcomed West Ham on to the pitch with a huge banner reading “tonight you dine in hell”, and the Hammers’ first-half display was certainly hard to stomach.
The hosts took the lead in the 34th minute when Fortounis launched an old-fashioned toe poke from the edge of the box which flew past the flat-footed Alphonse Areola in the West Ham goal.
On the stroke of half-time the Hammers found themselves two behind when Ogbonna suffered his own personal Greek tragedy.
The Italian veteran stuck out a foot to block a cross from Brazilian full-back Rodinei, only to help it past Areola into his own net.
Moyes sent on Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio before the hour mark but the Brazilian’s strike, albeit spectacular, was all West Ham had to show for a late flurry.
Fortounis admitted his goal was a shade fortuitous. He told reporters: “To be honest, it all seems like a haze.
“I turned and ran towards goal, the ball was right in front of me and I couldn’t do anything else. It was literally a strike with the tip of my toe.”
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