Eritrea are one of six nations to reach the group stage of qualification for Afcon 2027, having played their first games in the competition since 2007.
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Tuesday, March 31, 2026
Does McLeish keep his job if he keeps St Mirren up?
Craig McLeish might be a surprise choice to lead St Mirren in a fight against relegation but the interim manager has plans to stick around.
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Why Harry Kane isn’t playing in England’s clash with Japan
Harry Kane will miss England’s friendly with Japan at Wembley after sustaining a minor injury on the eve of the clash.
It’s understood Kane suffered bruising during England’s final training session and the 32-year-old Bayern Munich striker has been left out of Thomas Tuchel’s 25-man matchday party as a precaution.
The issue is not believed to be overly serious but Kane has remained with the rest of the squad to receive further assessment.
Kane – England’s captain and all-time top goalscorer – also played no part in the side’s previous friendly with Uruguay. Tuchel confirmed at the time that he was keen to manage the forward’s workload during the international break.
The Three Lions have made a total of ten changes to the team that drew 1-1 with Uruguay last Friday, with Manchester City’s Phil Foden the only player to keep his place in Thomas Tuchel’s starting XI.
‘A minor injury basically out of nothing, it just happened,’ Tuchel told ITV Sport’s Gabriel Clarke when asked for an update on Kane’s condition ahead of kick-off.
‘He had to step out of training after 15 minutes, no chance to be involved, not even today.
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‘So he’s further assessed now and will be later in the stadium to watch.’
Asked whether he deemed Kane’s injury to be ‘serious’, Tuchel replied: ‘Well it’s serious enough to not be able to play.
‘We have to wait for further assessment.’
A short statement from England confirmed that veteran midfielder Jordan Henderson had returned to his club Brentford prior to this evening’s fixture in the capital.
Marc Guehi wears the captain’s armband in Kane’s absence and starts in new-look defence with Ezri Konsa, Ben White and Nico O’Reilly.
Established number one Jordan Pickford returns in goal for the hosts, coming in for James Trafford, who made his full international debut last time out against Uruguay.
In midfield, Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and Manchester United’s Kobbie Mainoo will be looking to strengthen their respective cases for a place in Tuchel’s World Cup squad, with Cole Palmer set to play in the No.10 position.
Morgan Rogers, Anthony Gordon and Foden have been given the nod in attack, with Dominic Solanke – the only out-and-out centre-forward in Tuchel’s matchday squad – named on the bench.
Having played in the No.10 role previously, Foden is expected to play through the middle as a false nine, with Gordon likely to start on the left flank and Rogers on the right.
‘We need a good performance because we play against a good opponent so we need to be very active and very smart against the ball to get our press right,’ Tuchel said of the challenge posed by Japan.
‘Japan play relentless over the 90 minutes so they will not let us breathe.
‘We need a complete performance to be able to win.’
After tonight’s match, England have just two more friendlies remaining against New Zealand (June 6) and Costa Rica (June 10) before attentions turn to the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The Three Lions kick off this summer’s tournament with a heavyweight Group L match versus Croatia on June 17.
Kane and Co then lock horns with Ghana on June 23 before wrapping up their group-stage campaign against Panama on June 27.
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Monday, March 30, 2026
Man Utd legend Rio Ferdinand sends message to Roberto De Zerbi over Tottenham job offer
Rio Ferdinand says he would turn down Tottenham if he was in Roberto De Zerbi’s position, warning the Italian about the club’s apparent lack of ambition and refusal to ‘spend like a big team’.
De Zerbi has emerged as the clear frontrunner to pick up the pieces following Igor Tudor’s dismissal just 44 days into his disastrous reign in north London.
Relegation-threatened Spurs are keen for De Zerbi to take over on a permanent basis and the former Brighton head coach has reportedly been offered a five-year contract.
According to Sky Sports, talks are progressing at a pace and the 46-year-old is open to the prospect of taking charge despite previously underlining his preference to wait until the summer to consider his options after leaving Marseille.
De Zerbi had been among the leading candidates to manage Tottenham after Ange Postecoglou’s departure at end of the last season, only for Thomas Frank to take over the reins.
The Europa League holders are hovering just one point above the relegation zone following a dismal 3-0 defeat at home to Nottingham Forest before the international break.
Club bosses are determined to tie down a new manager before the side return to Premier League action away to Sunderland on April 12.
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‘Imagine going into a club like Spurs with the stadium, the training ground… imagine the walk-around of the facilities, it’s like the best in class,’ Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel when addressing the messy situation at Spurs.
‘But obviously on the pitch in looks very different.
‘Listen, at the moment I’d be more worried about the hierarchy, I’d be looking into that. Why has it gone so wrong for so many? Big names, new ones… why has this place not been able to kick on?
‘I don’t understand it because they’ve got it all sitting there… are they [the hierarchy] going to be a hinderance to me [Tottenham’s next manager] behind the scenes? Are they going to ruin my reputation even more now? What’s the situation here?’
Though an admirer of De Zerbi, Ferdinand questioned whether taking the Tottenham job would be the right move for the ex-Brighton boss considering the desperate situation the club find themselves in.
‘I’ve always championed De Zerbi, I think he’s a great manager. He’s a thinking manager, he’s always looking for new, innovative ways to build his teams.
‘This might be the perfect time to get him but are Spurs in the right situation for him?’
According to Ferdinand, Tottenham can only be considered a ‘big club’ if they start spending and recruiting on the same scale as their rivals at the opposite end of the Premier League table.
‘I’ve got to be honest, I wouldn’t go to Spurs right now,’ he added.
‘I just think it is a club that’s in such a bad way and there have been far too many managers that have failed there.
‘That’s not the only thing because we can look at lots of clubs like that. But they call themselves a big club or wanting to be a big club, they’re bemused when they’re not mentioned in the big club bracket.
‘But they don’t spend like a big club to attract the biggest players and then they wonder why they’re not in the top echelon of football clubs in that sense, when you look at them on the pitch and their output.’
Asked which members of Tottenham’s current squad could thrive under De Zerbi’s management, Ferdinand replied: ‘I actually couldn’t tell you, I couldn’t tell you.
‘I thought [Micky] van de Ven was going to be a top centre-half. Is it him or is it the lack of stability at the football club or the tactics, the way the team is being set up that’s making him look bad? I don’t know.
‘I can go through so many players… I spoke to Carlo Ancelotti when he was the Everton manager and he had Richarlison there and he said this kid would play for a Real Madrid or a team like that, a category A club in Europe at some point.
‘He couldn’t be further away from it if he tried right now. Is that down to him [Richarlison] or is that down to the environment that he’s in at Spurs?
‘There are far too many players that are underachieving with their quality from what we’ve seen before.’
Ferdinand picked out Xavi Simons as another example of a player who has regressed at Tottenham, saying the Dutchman ‘looks a shadow of himself’ since arriving in English football.
‘Look at Xavi Simons at the Euros, he was brilliant for the Netherlands and his club football, he was flying,’ the ex-Manchester United and England defender went on.
‘He’s gone to Spurs and he looks a shadow of himself, confidence has dropped, the environment is sucking the life out of these players.
‘James Maddison has obviously had a lot of injuries but he wasn’t the Maddison of Leicester, pulling up trees and getting them out of situations consistently all the time.’
POLL
Should De Zerbi take the Tottenham job?
-
Yes
-
No
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Does McLeish keep his job if he keeps St Mirren up?
Craig McLeish might be a surprise choice to lead St Mirren in a fight against relegation but the interim manager has plans to stick around.
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Sunday, March 29, 2026
Chelsea leave it late to win seven-goal thriller over Villa
Chelsea secure a vital three points as they beat Aston Villa 4-3 to go second in the league table and get back on track for Champions League qualification.
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Saturday, March 28, 2026
Man Utd down but not out - Skinner sure Bayern lead can be overturned
Manchester United suffered defeat by Bayern Munich in the home leg of their Champions League quarter-final, but manager Marc Skinner refuses to rule them out.
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Friday, March 27, 2026
What happened between Ben White and Steve Holland? Alleged England dispute explained
Ben White could make his first England appearance in four years tonight following the end of his self-imposed Three Lions exile.
The Arsenal star, who won the last of his four caps against the Ivory Coast in March 2022, was included in the England squad for the World Cup in Qatar later that year.
White, however, left the camp midway through the tournament over what is thought to have been a disagreement with then-assistant manager Steve Holland.
White subsequently made himself unavailable for selection for the rest of Gareth Southgate’s reign as England manager, with his call-up for the Uruguay and Japan friendlies as a replacement for the injured Jarell Quansah the first time he has featured in the squad since the World Cup.
Why did White leave the England camp at the World Cup?
At the time, the official explanation for White’s departure from England’s World Cup squad was given as ‘personal reasons’.
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However, since then, numerous reports have emerged about an incident which took place between White and Holland in Qatar.
According to The Telegraph, it all started when Holland made a ‘barbed comment’ in front of other players and staff about White’s own admission in an interview that he has no interest in football outside of his career as a player.
It is alleged that Holland initially asked fellow right-back Kyle Walker a question about Manchester City’s performances in the previous season.
The same question was then asked of White about Arsenal’s performances, and after replying he did not know the answer, Holland remarked that the Gunners defender was not ‘sufficiently interested’ in football enough to know.
It is said that White did not appreciate the subject being brought up in front of the rest of the England squad and viewed it as a lack of respect.
Despite White’s unease about the situation, there was thought to have been no row between himself and Holland, either in private or in front of teammates.
What has Thomas Tuchel said about White’s return?
The England manager has insisted White deserves a ‘second chance’ with the national team but has suggested the right back might need to ‘clear the air’ with the members of the squad who were also present in Qatar.
‘If you believe it or not, I didn’t hear a story about it,’ Tuchel said when asked about the issue in his pre-match press conference.
‘I asked him and he didn’t want to speak about it. I didn’t want to know about it because I think he deserves a second chance. He has not put a foot wrong with me.
‘Something must have happened, because if a player leaves from a tournament it’s never good and it can never be nothing. I’m not sure if ‘apologise’ is the right word, but maybe just to clear the air with the players who were there.
‘I think he has done and will do with the majority of the players who come now. He trains on a very high level, exceptionally good in training. The reaction to his call-up was very positive.
‘Within seconds, it was a very positive and emotional reaction from him. He made it very clear how delighted he is to be back. This is what he has shown in the last days.
‘Everyone deserves a second chance, but I don’t even know if he did something wrong or what exactly happened. But an explanation among the players who were there, to clear the air, is sure in progress.’
POLL
Was Ben White right to refuse to play for England?
-
Yes - he was correct to stand by his principles
-
No - playing for your country is the ultimate honour
Tuchel is confident England fans at Wembley will not boo White during the clash against Uruguay and hopes the home crowd will instead ‘support’ the 28 year-old.
‘I can imagine there are some strong opinions out there, but not in camp.
‘People have to trust me that he behaves very, very well. He was positive about coming back and was desperate for many months to come back. Hopefully people give him a fair chance.’
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