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FA Cup recap: Arsenal, Man City cruise; Four PL clubs bounced; Almost for Eastleigh

By Nicholas MendolaJan 9, 2016, 12:20 PM EST
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There were scares a-plenty for Premier League clubs in Saturday’s third round of the FA Cup, though all actual ousters came at the hands of fellow top-flight clubs.

After Exeter City and Wycombe Wanderers set the stage for the 10 a.m. ET matches by drawing Liverpool and Aston Villa, a wild slate of 22 matches kicked off.

[ VIDEO: Micah Richards argues with pitchside Villa fans ].

WEST BROMWICH, ENGLAND - JANUARY 09: Jonathan Kodjia (2nd R) of Bristol City scores his team's first goal during the Emirates FA Cup Third Round match between West Bromwich Albion and Bristol City at The Hawthorns on January 9, 2016 in West Bromwich, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Jonathan Kodjia (2nd R) of Bristol City scores his team’s first goal (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

West Bromwich Albion were seconds away from being upset by Bristol City, but James Morrison scored in the fourth minute of stoppage to make it 2-2 and force a replay.

Manchester United needed every single minute at Old Trafford to knock off a game Sheffield United side, as Memphis Depay won a late PK and Wayne Rooney converted it to push a sad-looking Red Devils side past the Blades.

West Ham United also scored late, with Nikica Jelavic finishing a chance in the 85th minute to push the Irons past Wolverhampton.

Stoke City got an early scare from hosts Doncaster Rovers, but won 2-1. Bournemouth had a similar situation before topping Birmingham City 2-1.

Arsenal’s quest to threepeat improved as they beat Sunderland 3-1, with USMNT back DeAndre Yedlin playing right back for the Black Cats in a game that was 1-1 at the break. Everton handled Dagenham & Redbridge 2-0.

[ MORE: Four players join USMNT camp ]

Wasteful Newcastle gave precious few chances to Watford, but allowed one past Rob Elliot, as Troy Deeney boosted the Hornets into the fourth round with a 1-0 home win.

In another All-PL tie, Crystal Palace overcame blowing a lead to beat Southampton 2-1 at St. Mary’s.

Manchester City cruised past Norwich City, with Sergio Aguero netting off a fun dribble well inside the 18 and Kelechi Iheanacho making it 2-0 before halftime. Kevin De Bruyne rounded out the scoring at 3-0.

The only non-league side, Eastleigh United, came within a whisper of the fourth round after an own goal from Bolton’s Dorian Dervite. The horrific home pitch didn’t help either side, but the visitors found a late equalizer from Darren Pratley off a scrum in the box to force a replay.

Nearly correct, JPW. Nearly correct!

EASTLEIGH, HAMPSHIRE - JANUARY 09: Ben Amos of Bolton Wanderers fails to stop the Eastleigh's first goal scored by Dorian Dervite (L) of Bolton Wanderers during the Emirates FA Cup third round match between Eastleigh and Bolton Wanderers at Silverlake Stadium on January 9, 2016 in Eastleigh, Hampshire. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
EASTLEIGH, HAMPSHIRE – JANUARY 09: Ben Amos of Bolton Wanderers fails to prevent an own goal (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images).

Full schedule
Exeter City 2-2 Liverpool
Wycombe Wanderers 1-1 Aston Villa
Arsenal 3-1 Sunderland
Birmingham City 1-2 Bournemouth
Brentford 0-1 Walsall
Bury 0-0 Bradford
Colchester United 2-1 Charlton Athletic
Doncaster Rovers 1-2 Stoke City
Eastleigh 1-1 Bolton
Everton 2-0 Dagenham & Redbridge
Hartlepool United 1-2 Derby County
Huddersfield Town 2-2 Reading
Hull City 1-0 Brighton and Hove Albion
Leeds United 2-0 Rotherham United
Middlesbrough 1-2 Burnley
Newport – Blackburn — Postponed (waterlogged pitch)
Northampton 2-2 MK Dons
Norwich City 0-3 Manchester City
Nottingham Forest 1-0 Queens Park Rangers
Peterborough 2-0 Preston North End
Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 Fulham
Southampton 1-2 Crystal Palace
Watford 1-0 Newcastle United
West Ham United 0-0 Wolverhampton
Manchester United 1-0 Sheffield United
Oxford United vs. Swansea City – 7 a.m. ET Sunday
Carlisle vs. Yeovil Town — 9 a.m. ET Sunday
Chelsea vs. Scunthorpe United — 9 a.m. ET Sunday
Tottenham Hotspur vs. Leicester City — 11 a.m. ET Sunday
Cardiff City vs. Shrewsbury Town — 1 p.m. Et Sunday

MLS hopes to put 30th team in Charlotte, North Carolina

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Associated PressDec 6, 2019, 7:54 AM EST
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NEW YORK (AP) Major League Soccer will try to reach an agreement for its 30th team to be Charlotte, North Carolina.

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper made a presentation to MLS owners Thursday when they met in a hotel near the Brooklyn Bridge. Tepper would own the team, which would play at Bank of America Stadium, home of his NFL franchise. MLS Commissioner Don Garber all but confirmed the expansion fee will be $300 million.

“The MLS board authorized the MLS expansion committee to enter into what I expect to be final negotiations with David to have Charlotte be our 30th team,” Garber said. “No formal approval was granted today. What was approved was the expansion committee to now meet with David and his his staff to try to finalize an agreement.”

Charlotte would be the third MLS team to share a stadium in a long-term relationship with the NFL, joining Seattle and Atlanta.

“The remaining issues with Charlotte are related to their stadium and ensuring that we’re going to be able to put together a dynamic in that stadium that will be up to the standards of all of our current soccer stadiums,” Garber said.

He would not say whether MLS hoped to announce the team at a news conference in Charlotte on Dec. 17.

Tepper is attempting to obtain city funding for alterations at Bank of America Stadium.

“I don’t know that I’m confident, but I’m hopeful.” Garber said.

Asked about the expansion fee, Garber said: I’ve heard some of those numbers. They wouldn’t be wrong.”

—

More AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

USMNT striker Sargent out for rest of 2019

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By Nicholas MendolaDec 5, 2019, 10:12 PM EST
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American forward Josh Sargent will be shut down for the rest of 2019 thanks to a groin injury.

Werder Bremen said the injury first arose during USMNT duty and has bothered the 19-year-old in recent weeks.

[ MORE: Premier League schedule ]

Sargent has two goals and three assists in 13 matches this season, playing mostly a center forward or primary striker role.

Here’s Bremen head coach Florian Kohfeldt:

“Since this is a small, deep-set muscle, the problems only occur at certain, very specific loads, which is why he was able to play and train for so long with problems. We will now give Josh’s injury time to properly heal, then he will get back to training in January.”

There are four more match days in the Bundesliga before the league goes on holiday break until mid-January.

PL Club Power Rankings: Week 15

By Nicholas MendolaDec 5, 2019, 9:28 PM EST
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The congested schedule means we’ve had two match days since we last took stock of the Premier League.

[ MORE: Premier League schedule ]

We’ve got a brand new Top Five (well, in terms of the four behind eventual champions Liverpool) and two teams dipping to season lows on our ol’ litmus test.

Green: New season-high ranking
Red: New season-low

[ MORE: PL Club Power Rankings archive ]

20. Watford — As many losses as goals (9), and that figure is one more than the Hornets’ total points. Perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise to see them on the verge of full-time manager No. 3, as full-time manager of Watford is a bit more like seasonal help.
Last week: 18
Season high: 17
Season low: 20
Last match: Lost 3-0 v. Burnley
Up next: 12:30 p.m. ET Saturday at Southampton

19. Everton — A top half team in terms of talent seeks the manager who can organize its way out of the drop zone. Might it be this guy? Better than the alternatives.
Last week: 17
Season high: 5
Season low: 19
Last match: Lost 2-0 v. Norwich City
Up next: 11:30 a.m. ET Sunday at Leicester City

18. Norwich City — The first team to 10 losses is four points shy of 17th.
Last week: 16
Season high: 10
Season low: 20
Last match: Won 2-0 at Everton
Up next: 9 a.m. ET Sunday v. Arsenal

17. West Ham United — A gigantic ball of “blah.” Should thank Everton for existing so people aren’t more focused on this particular collection of currently squandered talent.
Last week: 20
Season high: 5
Season low: 20
Last match: Lost 3-2 v. Spurs
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday at Chelsea

16. Bournemouth — It’s just not good enough, is it? To have held onto Callum Wilson and get another step up in class from Philip Billing and still be so wildly inconsistent.
Last week: 11
Season high: 6
Season low: 17
Last match: Lost 2-1 v. Wolves
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday at Spurs

15. Southampton — It really feels like the Danny Ings revival show could rival any story for the best individual one in the league this season. Happy to see Ralph Hasenhuttl get some good performances, as he was being scapegoated in a hurry.
Last week: 19
Season high: 13
Season low: 20
Last match: Drew 2-2 at Arsenal
Up next: 12:30 p.m. ET Saturday v. Watford

14. Aston Villa — Allowing a league-worst 18.8 shots per game, but staying in the mix thanks to Tom Heaton and Tyrone Mings.
Last week: 13
Season high: 8
Season low: 15
Last match: Won 2-0 v. Newcastle United
Up next: 11 a.m. ET Sunday at Manchester United

13. Arsenal — The Gunners back line gets a lot of heat, and rightly so, but maybe a little help from the midfield would be nice considering Sokratis Papastathopoulos and David Luiz have combined for 39 blocks. Sokratis is third in the PL and Luiz fourth.
Last week: 12
Season high: 4
Season low: 12
Last match: Drew 2-2 v. Southampton
Up next: 9 a.m. ET Sunday at Norwich City


12. Brighton and Hove Albion — First win ever away to Arsenal is another feather in the cap of Graham Potter, especially nice considering they had lost four on the bounce.
Last week: 14
Season high: 6
Season low: 18
Last match: Lost 2-0 v. Leicester City
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday at Liverpool

11. Newcastle United — No one is punching above its weight more than Steve Bruce‘s Magpies, and they’ve been aided in a big way by Martin Dubravka. The Slovakian goalkeeper has a league-best 44 saves from shots inside the 18.

Also, according to Understat’s xG numbers, they should’ve lost to the Blades. In fat, the xG table says they should be dead last. Life’s funny like that. It’s Steve Bruce’s world and we’re living in it.
Last week: 15
Season high: 11
Season low: 20
Last match: Lost 2-0 at Aston Villa
Up next: 7:30 a.m. ET Saturday v. Man City

https://understat.com/match/11786

10. Sheffield United — Just lost for the first time since September. That’s amazing.
Last week: 6
Season high: 5
Season low: 17
Last match: Drew 3-3 v. Manchester United
Up next: 9 a.m. ET Sunday v. Wolves

9. Burnley — Striker Chris Wood has been credited with 12 “big chances missed” by Sofascore, more than any player in the league.
Last week: 7
Season high: 5
Season low: 15
Last match: Won 3-0 at Watford
Up next: 10 a.m. Saturday v. Crystal Palace

8. Spurs — Jose Mourinho learned Wednesday that Moussa Sissoko is nice for the squad, but not to be leaned on.
Last week: 9
Season high: 2
Season low: 16
Last match: Won 3-2 at West Ham United
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday v. Bournemouth

7. Crystal Palace — Wilfried Zaha‘s 68 dribbles are 13 more than anyone else in the league.
Last week: 10
Season high: 5
Season low: 18
Last match: Lost 2-1 v. Liverpool
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday at Burnley

6. Manchester United — Ole had himself a moment in outfoxing Mourinho without Pogba or Martial.
Last week: 8
Season high: 2
Season low: 16
Last match: Drew 3-3 at Sheffield United
Up next: 11:30 a.m. Sunday v. Aston Villa

5. Chelsea — We told you, Frank. WE TOLD YOU.
Last week: 4
Season high: 2
Season low: 12
Last match: Lost 2-1 at Man City
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday v. West Ham United

4. Manchester City — Aymeric Laporte is still two months away and that’s two months too long.
Last week: 2
Season high: 1
Season low: 3
Last match: Won 2-1 v. Chelsea
Up next: 7:30 a.m. ET Saturday at Newcastle United

3. Wolves — This is going to sound nuts, but there are days I’d rather see Liverpool on my schedule than Wolves. The Reds are obviously better weaponized, but Wolves come at you in waves, man, and Nuno Espirito Santo is doing it without his best center back.
Last week: 5
Season high: 3
Season low: 17
Last match: Won 2-1 at Bournemouth
Up next: 9 a.m. ET Sunday v. Sheffield United

2. Leicester City — How’s this for an unsustainable stat? Wilfred Ndidi and Ricardo Pereira rank first and second in the league in tackles, with 67 and 62.
Last week: 3
Season high: 2
Season low: 10
Last match: Won 2-0 at Brighton and Hove Albion
Up next: 11:30 a.m. ET Sunday v. Everton1. Liverpool — Big Virgil Van Dijk is on track to become the first Premier League player to complete 1000 passes this season, currently at 953.
Last week: 1
Season high: 1
Season low: 3
Last match: Won 2-1 at Crystal Palace
Up next: 10 a.m. ET Saturday v. Brighton and Hove Albion

Report: Everton targeting former Porto, Fener boss Pereira

Photo by Visual China Group via Getty Images
By Nicholas MendolaDec 5, 2019, 8:15 PM EST
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Everton might be looking to the Chinese Super League for its next manager.

Vitor Pereira is the top target for the Merseyside set, report our partners at Sky Sports, as the Toffees begin life after Thursday’s firing of Marco Silva.

Pereira, 51, has been in management since 2002, leading Porto, Olympiacos, Fenerbahce, and current club Shanghai SIPG amongst others.

[ MORE: Premier League schedule ]

He’s won titles in Greece, China, Saudi Arabia, and his native Portugal, but there are suitors beyond the Toffees’ reported interest.

The 51-year-old is currently one of the highest paid coaches in the world and was recently offered the job of managing the Chinese national team.

It is understood he is currently considering a new contract offer from Shanghai, which will guarantee he earns £30m a year.

Duncan Ferguson is the interim boss as Everton hosts Chelsea this weekend.