“‘We will retain Amorim even if we do not win the Big Vase’ (more alarming when they play Spurs) is not a statement that boosts someone’s confidence, does it?” says Krishnamoorthy V. “What must one old Scot be thinking these days? Should he come back for an encore?”
He’s probably thinking: ‘You think this lot are bad, you should have seen my team in 1989-90.’ I can’t get away from the fact that, had modern values prevailed in the late 1980s, Alex Ferguson would have won precisely no trophies at Manchester United, and he’d probably still be plain old Alex Ferguson. We’ve all gone mad. I went mad in 2006 so I can’t really criticise anyone.
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© Photograph: Paul Childs/Action Images/Reuters
© Photograph: Paul Childs/Action Images/Reuters
The pre-match postbag is here!
Jim on what the Spurs line-up tells us about next week’s final:
The front line for Spurs today is interesting. I think Tel may be playing as the striker with Son as a number 10. With Kulusevski out it’s not clear who will fill in for Madison on Wednesday, and any of Tel, Son, or Odobert could be auditioning for that role this evening.
Rashford will not be playing any part in Villa’s last two games this season, just like last season at VeryOld Trafford, but he remains a constant source of fascination for fans and neutrals, an enigma wrapped in clouds of doubt and uncertainty. If only he could deliver on the pitch as he has on the social level, let’s not forget, he shamed a government and became an overnight people-person. We all think of him as a 22-year-old with chin fuzz and great attitude, he’s nearly 28 and should be in the prime of his life, but here he is, struggling for identity, form and a club. We all want him to be brilliant/the new Harry Kane for England, but time may run out on the lad before he gets to realise his potential. Whatever, 3-0 Villa, despite their protests about the game brought forward …
UTV. Hear that Yara? Listen carefully …. Squeaky bum time. In a season of massive games for us this is yet another. Enjoy the match.
Games: 99
Wins: 53
Draws: 21
Defeats: 25
Goal difference: +36
Clean sheets: 25
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© Photograph: Andrew Boyers/Action Images/Reuters
© Photograph: Andrew Boyers/Action Images/Reuters
Rightwing lawmakers say president’s bill – centered on tax cuts and funding deportations – doesn’t make enough cuts
Rightwing lawmakers derailed Donald Trump’s signature legislation in the House of Representatives on Friday, preventing its passage through a key committee and throwing into question whether Republicans can coalesce around the massive bill.
The party has spent weeks negotiating a measure dubbed the “one big, beautiful bill” that would extend tax cuts enacted during Trump’s first term, fund mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, and temporarily make good on his campaign promise to end the taxation of tips and overtime. To offset its costs, Republicans have proposed cuts to the federal safety net, including Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
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© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
© Photograph: Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
Gianni Infantino should account for his trip alongside Donald Trump to the Gulf this week and “detail precisely what it achieved for football and human rights”, according to a leading critic of Fifa’s governance.
Human Rights Watch says that Infantino’s trip, in which he accompanied the US president to Qatar and Saudi Arabia and missed a series of key meeting at Fifa’s annual congress, was indicative of the lack of “meaningful accountability” at the top of football’s global authority.
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© Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters
© Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters
Europe and Kyiv are showing increasing deftness and coordination, but Mr Trump is an unfriendly audience
The first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine for three years should have been a momentous occasion. Since 2022, Russian war crimes have only deepened the chasm between them. Yet Donald Trump, who demanded this meeting, underlined that it was largely a charade when he told reporters: “Nothing’s going to happen until Putin and I get together.” It made plain that Russia felt no pressure to cooperate.
While difficult negotiations often begin on easier terrain, the agreement of a mass prisoner swap looked like a discrete achievement. The real significance of the Istanbul talks lay less in their substance than the messages sent by their existence and attendance list.
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© Photograph: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
© Photograph: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
Everton’s new home at Bramley-Moore dock will be known as Hill Dickinson Stadium, the club has announced, after a naming rights deal with the commercial law firm.
Everton have been seeking a naming rights partner for their £800m stadium for some time and had hoped to attract a blue-chip company to their impressive development on the banks of the Mersey. They have signed a long-term deal with Hill Dickinson, which was founded in Liverpool in 1810 and has expanded into Europe and Asia in recent years.
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© Photograph: Jason Cairnduff/Action Images/Reuters
© Photograph: Jason Cairnduff/Action Images/Reuters
Tove Jansson’s magical stories provide a message of tolerance, inclusivity and hope amid today’s refugee crisis
All Moomin fans will recognise the turreted blue house that is home to the family of gentle, upright‑hippo‑like creatures. The stove-shaped tower is a symbol of comfort and welcome throughout the nine Moomin novels by the celebrated Nordic writer and artist Tove Jansson. Now the house is the inspiration for a series of art installations in UK cities, in collaboration with Refugee Week, to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the creation of the Moomins.
Taking the motto “The door is always open”, building will begin next week on a 12ft blue house outside London’s Southbank Centre, just a stone’s throw from Westminster. All of the installations, by artists from countries including Afghanistan, Syria and Romania, deal with displacement: in Bradford, the Palestinian artist Basel Zaraa has created a refugee tent in which to imagine life after occupation and war; in Gateshead, natural materials are being foraged to build To Own Both Nothing and the Whole World (a quote from Jansson’s philosophical character Snufkin); and a Moomin raft will launch from Gloucester Docks.
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© Photograph: Publicity image
© Photograph: Publicity image
Latest twist in a contest between iPhone maker and Epic Games over payments for hit game on Apple devices
Epic Games says Fortnite is now unavailable on iPhones and iPads globally because Apple blocked a bid to release the popular video game in the App Store in the US and Europe.
“Apple has blocked our Fortnite submission so we cannot release to the US App Store or to the Epic Games Store for iOS in the European Union,” the X account for Fortnite posted early Friday – claiming that Apple’s move would now prevent the game’s iOS availability around the world.
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© Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images
© Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images
Team principal Fred Vasseur talks of ‘extra pressure’ for Hamilton’s first grand prix in Italy for the Scuderia
On the short walk from the railway station in Imola to the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, the tree-lined streets, scattering dappled spring sunshine, throng with the faithful. They come adorned in the rosso corsa of the Scuderia, heading towards their first home race of the season and the long-awaited chance to see the seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton take to the track for the team they feel are their own.
The anticipation, building for more than a year, is palpable and the passion that comes with it all too striking – as Hamilton is more than aware.
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© Photograph: Andrej Isaković/AFP/Getty Images
© Photograph: Andrej Isaković/AFP/Getty Images
Lawyers hired by Venezuela have been unable to confirm ‘proof of life’ for 252 migrants imprisoned in El Salvador
Lawyers for 252 Venezuelans deported by the Trump administration and imprisoned in El Salvador for two months have alleged that the migrants are victims of physical and emotional “torture”.
A law firm hired by the Venezuelan government said that it had been unable to visit the migrants in the mega-prison where they are locked up.
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© Photograph: Alex Peña/Getty Images
© Photograph: Alex Peña/Getty Images
Path to peace looks as unclear as it was before European leaders’ meeting with Zelenskyy in Kyiv
This week began with four European leaders, standing defiantly in Kyiv alongside Volodymyr Zelenskyy, issuing an ultimatum to Vladimir Putin: sign a ceasefire now, or together with Donald Trump we will force you to do so, with sanctions and other tough measures.
Over the subsequent days, there followed a series of offers, counter-offers, ultimatums and deflections, in a dizzying week of high-stakes diplomacy that often seemed to resemble a geopolitical poker game.
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© Photograph: Gleb Garanich/Reuters
© Photograph: Gleb Garanich/Reuters
Hogg, a Florida activist, presses on importance of strong fighters in face of Trump for ‘isolated’ Democratic base
David Hogg believes the Democratic party not only needs better messengers – it needs stronger fighters.
“The base of the party, they just want us to do anything,” the 25-year-old Florida activist and Democratic National Committee (DNC) vice-chair said in an interview last week. “They feel alone, they feel isolated, they feel unheard, and they feel like they’re not being fought for.”
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© Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty Images
© Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty Images
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