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ETIHAD STADIUM — A few weeks ago, I was concerned that Phil Foden and his fabulous talent had hit the buffers. Potentially forever.

Hauled off at Wembley before the hour mark in Manchester City’s FA Cup semi-final tussle with second-tier sleuths Southampton, Foden looked like a beaten man as he trudged off, another nadir amid a second successive season to forget.

This was when this generational talent was supposed to be well on the way to being the greatest midfielder to ever wear the England shirt. Not a benchwarmer in a City side who seemed to be giving up on him.

Since signing a lucrative new contract earlier this month, something that, on the face of it, appeared rather churlish from a slick operational unit like City given Foden’s two-year form struggles, there has been a glimmer of the “Stockport Iniesta” finding his dancing shoes once more.

Against Everton last week, as City’s grasp on the Premier League title slipped away, Foden’s late cameo off the bench was full of the vigour that had been absent for so long.

City were tepid in the extreme at the weekend against Brentford, until Jeremy Doku inspired them to victory. Foden’s introduction also deserved an honourable mention.

The real beacon of hope came last night. Again, City were labouring early on against a Crystal Palace side who were causing more problems than the script suggested they would.

Jean-Philippe Mateta stunned the Etihad into silence early on after finding the net, before a late linesman’s flag caused widespread relief.

A much-changed City, with the FA Cup final to come at the weekend, looked shorn of joie de vivre. What they needed was a moment. The source of that match-defining pass was a welcome one.

A no-look backheel to set up the opener for Antoine Semenyo was not the mark of a midfield maestro on the wane. The fact Foden even tried it was heartening enough, but to pull it off, in such a pressurised situation, could do revolutionary things.

"He's just got that magic!"

Micah Richards analyses Phil Foden's assist against Crystal Palace pic.twitter.com/7YI5xaxIZc

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) May 13, 2026

Another assist shortly followed for Omar Marmoush’s second in the first half, completing the job with time to spare, to at least give Arsenal something to think about ahead of the weekend.

Finding that knack of creating something out of nothing again could not be more timely, with the World Cup on the horizon.

Foden’s woeful form has put him way down the pecking order to even get in the squad. Attacking midfield is one area in which England are not lacking. But there aren’t many who could conjure that kind of backheeled magic on the biggest of stages.

Knockout international football is all about moments. The latter stages are always especially tight, where one piece of incredible skill is enough to settle an entire contest.

Foden hardly warrants a starting berth, but could Bukayo Saka, Cole Palmer or Eberechi Eze come up with something similar in pressurised situations? Remarkably, in this most unflattering campaign, Foden has more Premier League goal contributions than all three.

The smile as he was withdrawn, minutes before Savinho made sure of City’s success late on, said it all. As did the reaction of his manager, who greeted the departing local hero like a son who had just come home from a year abroad.

Guardiola would love nothing more than restoring Foden to his former glories before heading for the hills himself. There’s a long, long way to go, but there have been signs recently that all may not be totally lost yet.

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If there is one thing worse than being disliked, it is being ignored.

For Salford City, the 2014 takeover by the Class of ’92 put a target on their back.

Four promotions in five years, on the back of serious spending by the gang of five former Manchester United players that was led by Gary Neville, made them look like a real threat to the EFL order.

The reaction of rival supporters veered between hostility and hatred.

They were not helped by the perception that Neville, whose business partner and ex-Valencia owner Peter Lim was footing most of the bill for the investment, and company seemed to think that this lower league stuff was all a bit too easy.

At the club’s first post-takeover press conference, Ryan Giggs set them a target of being in the Championship by 2029.

Paul Scholes said the natural target was the Premier League after they escaped the National League.

And then? They got marooned in League Two, toppled by their own hubris.

Successive bosses left or were fired, some of them grumbling about Neville’s tendency to micro-manage his managers.

Richie Wellens, who went on to win promotion to League One with Leyton Orient, bemoaned having to have conversations for conversations’ sake in an interview with The i Paper.

Investment that always felt unsustainable on Salford’s crowds was dialled back and behind the scenes a new ownership model was sought as the club’s financials became frightening.

A summer takeover by a new investment group, with Neville and David Beckham remaining alongside 21 other investors as part of the AIG consortium, was painted as “saving the club from oblivion”.

On the pitch they flirted perilously with relegation out of the EFL a couple of years ago.

The appointment of the outspoken Karl Robinson, who has led the club to their best ever EFL finish, was just in the nick of time to prevent them returning to the National League in 2024.

While this has been going on, Salford have dropped off the radar.

The familiar refrain of Salford hogging TV coverage as cameras panned for a shot of Beckham in the director’s box has been passed onto Wrexham, whose own starry assault on the lower leagues has made them the new EFL fans’ bete noire.

“The worst thing you can be is an irrelevance and maybe that has happened a little bit,” admits Danny Shepherd, author of One Up Front, a Salford City blog.

“I think we felt some of that hostility over the years in League Two because it was almost an unlimited budget for our level.

“But when that didn’t work I think the perception of us started to change a bit. It’s been a strange journey.”

Whisper it quietly but perhaps there is reason to fear them again.

With fresh funds secured off the back of the AIG takeover, momentum is returning to the project.

The clock has been reset on the goal to get to the Championship and funds have been poured into infrastructure and squad building.

While the Ammies missed out on automatic promotion with a controversial draw at Crawley Town on the final day of the League Two season, they are 90 minutes from a return to Wembley after winning at Grimsby Town on Sunday.

The Peninsula Stadium is sold out for Friday night’s second leg and mistakes made during those brash early years seem to have been turned into lessons learned.

“I will never knock Gary Neville for what he’s done for the club,” Shepherd says.

“Without him we’d still be in the eighth tier being watched by about 150 people. But it is interesting when you see him being challenged over decisions made in the past.

“I’m not sure he’s used to that and there is that prickly side to him. He’s incredibly eloquent but sometimes it comes across like he thinks he’s right about everything when he’s not and maybe that message has started to get through.”

Read more

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Robinson succeeded Neil Wood, a former United Under-23 academy coach, and Salford have benefited from his combative style and knowledge of the lower leagues.

He has largely been left alone and is not backward in pointing out that the club have progressed year-on-year under his stewardship.

The ambitious targets set by Neville and company might finally be a bit more realistic.

“If we had gone up last season, we maybe wouldn’t have been ready,” Robinson says.

“There’s growth behind the scenes, and that’s important. Before you can enjoy success you have to ensure the foundations are in place.

“When I walked in they were getting relegated out of the Football League. I firmly believe that was the case. It was spiralling. Two and a half years on we’re talking about getting into League One – that’s some turnaround.”

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Ben White’s injury shines a light on one of England’s problem positions heading into the World Cup.

The Arsenal defender is among eight players to have started at right-back in Thomas Tuchel’s 12 matches so far as England manager.

Tuchel this week submitted a provisional 55-player squad for the World Cup, although the full make-up has not been released by the Football Association , and it is unclear whether White has been included.

White’s World Cup hopes are in the balance after he was ruled out for the remainder of the season when sustaining a significant medial knee ligament injury against West Ham United on Sunday.

The 28-year-old had only just returned to the England fold, ending his exile after four years when featuring in March’s friendlies against Uruguay – against whom he scored – and Japan.

White’s potential absence therefore opens the door for other contenders, including Trent Alexander-Arnold, who has not made the German’s last four squads.

Tuchel’s starting right-backs

• Reece James: 4
• Kyle Walker*: 2
• Curtis Jones: 1
• Ezri Konsa: 1
• Djed Spence: 1
• Jarell Quansah: 1
• Tino Livramento: 1
• Ben White: 1

*Walker has retired from international duty

Real Madrid right-back Alexander-Arnold has played just 26 minutes for England under Tuchel, against Andorra last summer, but could find his chances of heading to North America have just increased.

But where in the pecking order is he? Many would make him their top pick, but here is where he realistically ranks among the right-backs in contention to start England’s World Cup opener against Croatia on 17 June.

Curtis Jones

Wait, what? Well, we are counting down after all, and Liverpool’s Curtis Jones made a surprise start at right-back – ahead of Alexander-Arnold – in the game against Andorra last June.

Jones’s versatility makes him a strong squad option, but after making Tuchel’s first two squads in 2025 he has missed out on the last four.

Joe Gomez

Jones’ club teammate Joe Gomez can play across the defensive line, but he has not earned a call-up since the Gareth Southgate days. Intriguingly, there has not been a Liverpool player in any of Tuchel’s last four squads.

Jarell Quansah

Former Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah is predominantly a centre-back but his one and only England cap to date came at right-back away to Albania in November.

The Bayer Leverkusen star is therefore on Tuchel’s radar and only withdrew from the March squad due to a thigh injury he has since recovered from.

Nico O’Reilly

Why not? The Pep Guardiola pet project of the season has left us wondering if there is anything the Manchester City player cannot do, and though mainly a left-back – where he has started three of the last four England games – the 21-year-old would no doubt be comfortable making the switch if required.

Djed Spence

Also contending with O’Reilly for the left-back role, Djed Spence has played both sides under Tuchel.

The Tottenham Hotspur defender has had a niggling calf injury this year, starting infrequently for Spurs, but is probably on the World Cup plane thanks to his versatility.

Tino Livramento

Newcastle United right-back Tino Livramento has been plagued by injuries this season, missing more matches than he has played due to knee, hamstring and thigh problems.

Livramento started for England against Uruguay in March, and though back in training, Newcastle boss Eddie Howe is reluctant to rush him back.

“That would feel silly,” Howe said. “We will let him recover and get a good summer behind him.”

Livramento is therefore an unknown, and should he and White miss out it could mean…

Trent Alexander-Arnold

Enter Alexander-Arnold? He has reportedly made the 55-player cut but whether he survives the final cull – well, he certainly won’t be holding his breath.

“I know what Trent can give us,” Tuchel said after omitting Alexander-Arnold in March, and when asked what the other right-backs offer he replied: “A slightly different profile.”

In short: he does not fit tactically, and his only hope of going to the World Cup is if Tuchel overlooks the, arguably exaggerated, defensive frailties and sees value in taking one of England’s best passers since David Beckham. Yes, I’m an Alexander-Arnold fan, why do you ask?

Ezri Konsa

A shoo-in for the plane and perhaps even a starting role at centre-back next to Marc Guehi, Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa has played on the right for Tuchel and could make way in the centre if John Stones is preferred to partner his Manchester City teammate.

Konsa would be a safe pair of hands at right-back, if not entirely exciting.

Read more

• Kevin Garside: Thomas Tuchel is undoing all of Gareth Southgate’s good work with England
• Kat Lucas: Eberechi Eze has to go to the World Cup ahead of Phil Foden

Reece James

Few doubt Reece James is Tuchel’s starting right-back of choice this summer, but plenty will have doubts over his fitness.

The Chelsea captain recently returned from a hamstring injury to face Liverpool on Saturday, and provided he navigates the next month without a hitch – no guarantee – he will be in the starting XI against Croatia.

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Welcome to the summer of the asterisk.

Manchester City remain alive and kicking in the Premier League title race but if whispers in the game of a June resolution to their “115” charges case prove to be true, that will soon be overshadowed by events elsewhere.

Ditto the so-called “richest game in football”, the Championship play-off final, which has been rocked by a “Spygate”‘ row that leaves a bitter taste in the mouth.

It is alleged and has not yet been denied by Southampton that a spy from the South Coast club was spotted at Middlesbrough’s training ground last week, collecting details on their rivals’ final preparations for the play-off semi-finals.

The details feel like a James Bond movie – the perpetrator hurriedly changing clothes before dashing off amid incredulity in the Teessiders’ camp – but this could be one where the “bad guys” end up winning.

Boro will not let the matter go, with owner Steve Gibson ready to vigorously pursue the case. They want a chance to present their findings to the EFL, which includes CCTV footage and a dossier with other explosive claims. Nick De Marco, the “Lionel Messi” of sports lawyers, has been retained by Boro, who are pushing for expulsion.

Legal experts contacted by The i Paper this morning feel talk of a final resolution in time for next week’s Wembley date is unrealistic though.

While the EFL want the process expedited, shortening Southampton’s usual 14 days to respond to Friday’s charges in order to get the matter dealt with, it is now in the hands of an independent commission. And they do not move quickly: just ask the Premier League and City.

Can a hearing be convened, Southampton and the EFL’s counsel heard, and a verdict delivered that is legally watertight in 10 days? “No chance,” said one source who has worked on these matters before.

He points out that even with three members of the panel working day and night, there are procedures to go through to ensure everyone is fairly treated. If it is rushed it leaves them open to losing an appeal and then what? Southampton reinstated to a play-off final that they were thrown out of sometime in July? It’s a mess.

In reality the timeline is tighter: it’s understood Boro want to know by the end of the weekend where they stand. This Thursday is a long-scheduled end of season debrief for their players which will take place as planned. But beyond that?

The club have players with a World Cup to prepare for, the logistics of selling and distributing Wembley tickets to take on and training plans to sort out. The timeline feels far too tight to get all of this ticked off.

There is also the small matter of Hull City, who are currently planning to play Southampton. Is it fair on them if they are suddenly faced with a very different challenge just a few days out from Wembley? Tigers sources are keeping their counsel at the moment but expect them to have something to say if it is left too late.

The most likely scenario at this stage is that Southampton play Hull on 23 May with the cloud of suspicion still hanging over the South Coast club and a possible punishment lingering into next season. That would leave Boro licking their wounds and surely contemplating further legal action.

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None of it is good enough. If time was on their side, Southampton might be in a lot more trouble. Discovering top secret information in the days before a game is clearly a huge advantage, and they should be thrown out if it is proved.

But with the clock ticking, the only thing certain is that the Championship play-offs will have a massive asterisk next to them.

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Bryan Mbeumo appears agitated. He is sitting on a sofa in Manchester United’s plush new Carrington training complex. While young forward JJ Gabriel is lying flat on his back outside, basking in some rare Manchester sunshine, the Cameroon international doesn’t seem quite so at peace.

“There have been some good bits this season,” Mbeumo tells The i Paper in an exclusive interview near the end of his first season at Old Trafford. “But there are some bits to improve.

“I had a good start, I would say. But every year in my career I have always come back better than I was before. Every season I want to improve. If it hasn’t been enough, it can only be better. I always wanted more, even if it was going really well. I always tried to beat records.

“I’m still happy because obviously it’s been a top season, especially collectively, so I think with hard work, it can only get better.”

Mbeumo’s arrival from Brentford is regarded as a rare transfer success story at United, following numerous mistakes and hundreds of millions wasted on ill-fitting stars who came before.

Nine league goals, including at Anfield, the Emirates, and a fine finish against Manchester City, is a decent return for a first term in United’s unrelenting spotlight.

The 26-year-old has formed partnerships with Matheus Cunha and Amad Diallo to devastating effect, provided an outlet for Bruno Fernandes he doesn’t often get, while offering versatility that is every manager’s dream.

No goals since early February, however, explains the agitation. Mbeumo is not about to waste the opportunity that finally came his way.

‘Chess with Luke Shaw helps me trap opponents’

Mbeumo can play the piano, and rather than turn to computer games to unwind, he also finds solace, and some footballing inspiration, in the black and white of a chess board.

“I have got Luke [Shaw] into it, actually,” Mbeumo says, smiling for the first time. “He is actually good. I think we’ve got the same ranking in the game and it’s really exciting to play against him.

“It can be useful in football because when you move a chess piece, you create something for your opponent to react to. In football it is a bit the same. When you have got the ball, when you make a pass, you tell the opponent to do something, maybe open a space, or get them trapped in a position and it’s a bit advantageous.”

The determination of this quiet, unassuming forward from rural Burgundy to succeed is reflected in how long he had to wait for a shot at Champions League football at a club like United.

After six seasons at Brentford, most assumed that the chance of a move to a top team was dwindling.

In three previous Premier League seasons, Mbeumo didn’t even reach double figures for goals, before 20 last term alerted a host of suitors to this late bloomer.

His early form has helped convince Ineos and the United hierarchy that a policy of preferring options with Premier League experience is the way forward this summer.

“I think six years at Brentford was really, really important for me,” Mbeumo says. “To grow as a player, and as a person as well. I can only be thankful for everything to them.

“I’ve been working to that point [joining United] all my life. I knew something like this could happen to me. I added my own chef, personal trainers, everything like this to make sure my body was good.

“Nobody can really know how it is to play for Manchester United, unless you play there. It is such a big club with big demands. But I had this chance to spend a few years in the Premier League before, so it was easier.”

‘A lot of people would like Carrick to stay’

The focus now turns to who will be manager next season, when fans assume the squad will finally be good enough to at least compete for the Premier League title again.

With third place all but secured, Michael Carrick is the frontrunner – a popular move with every player you speak to around Carrington. The future of skipper Fernandes is also up in the air – two key elements in Mbeumo’s strategy to reach greater heights next season.

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“He [Fernandes] is one of the first guys I met here. Really smiley, happy, welcoming. He said to me that he was happy I had joined which is a big praise, knowing what he achieved in this club. He is a great captain, even if sometimes he likes to moan!

“I work a lot with the Trav [coach Travis Binnion], the video analysis team, but obviously sometimes with [assistant manager] Steve [Holland] and the gaffer.

“It’s a good staff. They’ve done really well. A lot of people would like him [Carrick] to stay, but obviously that’s not my decision.”

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Leaving a legacy to be proud of is ultimately the true essence of life, and fundamental to turning career achievements into memories that stand the test of time is knowing when you have done all you can.

Sport is littered with stories of players or coaches who carried on too long, doing more harm than good to all they had accomplished previously. Muhammad Ali just could not walk away, Michael Jordan at the Washington Wizards didn’t sit right, while the final Arsene Wenger Arsenal years became a painful experience.

Stockport County director of football and chef executive Simon Wilson, who is one step away from overseeing a remarkable rise from non-league football to the Championship, is aware that the time is right to step aside.

Wilson will leave after Stockport hope to have succeeded in the League One play-offs, six years into an outrageously ambitious seven-year plan to get County – a team initially without a training ground and with part-time players competing in regional football – to the English second tier. All in a sustainable way.

“This never happens does it, really?” Wilson tells The i Paper. “To be able to leave on good terms like this. That’s the most important thing.

“Everything is there for the club to carry on growing, sustainably, from the practices we have put in place.”

When Wilson joined Stockport in 2020, it seemed like an odd career move. After 10 years in various roles at the now global footballing behemoth Manchester City, he became chief football officer at Sunderland to work with David Moyes.

Taking charge of a historically chaotic fifth-tier club under new ownership was certainly a gamble. One, however, that has paid off in ways Wilson could never have imagined.

“The fifth tier was never on my radar,” Wilson says. “But meeting Mark [Stott, owner] and this journey at County is the best thing I’ve ever done,” he continues.

“I loved my time at City. The first period was when the Abu Dhabi takeover happened, and that was really exciting. Then the second half, moving to a role in the City Football Group, taking City to the world, that was also exciting. But you are just one of many at somewhere as slick as City.

“This is more real. When you are on open-top buses and there are grandmas with their grandchildren in Stockport shirts you see how much this matters, what we do here. Hopefully we get one more celebration, but if we don’t we have everything in place to carry on.”

Stockport club president Steve Bellis holds court like no other. One of the tales he loves to recount is the story of just how far the club fell.

Tales like how this once second-tier staple had matches delayed because smoke from a local allotment on an away match had drifted onto the pitch. Or how Stockport’s first team were kicked off the training pitch they shared with a local Under-11s side.

Stockport, the town, is massively on the up. Dubbed the “new Berlin” for its quirky vibe and burgeoning food scene, Stockport is amid a £56m development project to revamp its central area, the largest-ever town regeneration project of its kind.

The team’s rise has mirrored the town’s growth. Only, on the football side, they have done it without splashing record amounts, the anti-Wrexham way.

Owner Mark Stott is a local businessman, one who cares about the community impact Stockport’s football club has on its town – a sadly all-too-rare personality in the modern era.

What Stott needed was someone who could oversee promotion after promotion, while building a club to be proud of.

“Mark said to me ‘I want to get this team to the Championship, how much will it take to get there?’,” Wilson adds. “I then gave a figure, based on football spend and said, ‘with a bit of luck we will get there’. The football spend is not much over that initial planned figure, and we could end up ahead of schedule on timescale.

“We always wanted to put something in place where if we didn’t win, it could all carry on. We have an academy that is doing really, really well. We have a community programme in place where every £1 spent means £6 in social value. We have restored local pride. Kids have Stockport shirts on, not [Manchester] City and United. It has just been so worthwhile.

“Wrexham has become that, but certainly initially it wasn’t. They obviously smashed the revenue streams for League One, but still lost £17m, whereas we lost £9m and finished a place below them. £9m is still a lot of money, but we are giving a lot of wider benefits to the community for the money. It is all about creating an environment where people can grow – that is what I am most proud of.”

Read more

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Stockport have already announced Damien Allen as Wilson’s successor in the director of football role, someone Stott identified and Wilson helped nurture from being a PE teacher to academy director, in the hope that the most solid of foundations laid by the outgoing chief won’t go to waste.

As for Wilson himself, he will consider his next role carefully. For now, after Stockport hopefully see his ambitious plans come to fruition one year early over the next week, it is time to reflect on all he has achieved. Something he, more than most, has earned the right to do.

“I am a fixer-upper,” Wilson adds. “I like growth opportunities. There aren’t many football clubs who are genuinely in a position to do that.

“For now, I am enjoying my final moments here, doing all the things I like – watching training, being around the team. Get this season done and support the transition.

“We are desperate to get to Wembley, that’s the Disney ending. Either way, I am lucky that I have this story to tell of what we have achieved here, and people I can call friends for the rest of my life.”

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Chelsea want Xabi Alonso as their next manager but the Spaniard is yet to make a decision in case his preferred destination becomes available.

It is widely understood that Arne Slot will remain as Liverpool head coach next season, but sources close to Alonso say the former Reds midfielder wants to wait and see if that situation changes.

As The i Paper reported on Tuesday, Alonso is the front-runner for the Chelsea job.

“The job is his if he wants it,” a source said.

The Blues have other candidates on their radar with Fulham’s Marco Silva and Bournemouth’s soon-to-be free agent Andoni Iraola both of interest, but it is Alonso who they really want.

The Spaniard has some high-profile backing inside the ownership group and will almost certainly be snapped up by someone soon, given what he achieved at Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid, where he retains admirers.

It is understood that Chelsea and Alonso’s representatives have been in contact for weeks.

While they do have other options, and do not want to make it look like they have all their eggs in one basket, the club are hopeful that he will accept their offer.

Chelsea want to move fast and have a new boss in place before the World Cup.

Alonso is keen to return to management so will not take too much longer to deliberate.

But as one source puts it, he would have “taken the Chelsea job by now if Liverpool was not still in his thinking”.

A growing number of Liverpool supporters have called for Slot to be sacked after a season where they went from Premier League champions to fighting for Champions League qualification, despite an enormous transfer outlay.

Boos greeted the final whistle of their tepid draw with Chelsea at Anfield on Sunday, such is the growing discontent.

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• Pete Hall: Man Utd’s £100m cash injection – and the 13 players on their radar

The club’s hierarchy are understood to be willing to give Slot more time to turn things around, given he won the title in his first season.

A big summer rebuild lies ahead with Mohamed Salah departing and reinforcements needed in various positions.

Alonso is not put off by difficulties Liam Rosenior and Enzo Maresca had dealing with the politics at Chelsea, or the size of the task at Liverpool for that matter.

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