MANCHESTER CITY have reportedly cancelled their Christmas party.Pep Guardiola and his side travel to Saudi Arabia next week for the Club World Cup.
Manchester City have cancelled their christmas partyCredit: Reuters
And their busy schedule with matches against Red Star Belgrade and Crystal Palace means there is no time for a festive bash.
City host a big Christmas party for staff every year where players often make an appearance.
But this year departments have been given £50 a head to arrange for their own food and drink at their own party.
The Citizens are preparing to take part in the Club World Cup for the first time after winning the Champions League.
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They are the favourites to win the competition and will take on either Urawa Red Diamonds or Club Leon in the semi-final next week.
City will hope they have a bit of momentum after coming from behind to beat Luton on Sunday.
Prior to that they were winless in four matches and were outplayed by Aston Villa last week.
They were dealt a blow ahead of kick-off against Luton after Erling Haaland was ruled out of the clash.
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Haaland has a stress fracture in his foot and Guardiola said the striker will be assessed day by day.
The Spaniard said: “Bone stress reaction in his foot. After the last game against Aston VIlla, he felt like this and he cannot play.
“I don’t know [if it’s bad]. Week by week, day by day, let’s see what happens.” More

ARSENAL have been accused of ‘double standards’ and ‘discriminating’ against outcast Mesut Ozil.
The Council of Turkish Cypriot Associations wrote an open letter to the Prem club on Wednesday.

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Arsenal have been accused of ‘discriminating’ against Mesut Ozil in open letter from Turkish Cypriot leadersCredit: Getty
And it criticised their treatment of Germany’s Muslim World Cup winner.
The letter also accused Arsenal of ‘overtly discriminating against our community.’
The organisation represents the UK’s 300,00 Turkish Cypriot population.

Chairman Ertugrul Mehmet claims the club have treated Ozil ‘differently from other non-British players making a stand against injustice.’
Arsenal distanced themselves from Ozil’s criticism of the Chinese government over the plight of Uighur Turks back in December.
Yet the letter claims the Gunners did not do the same when team-mate Hector Bellerin called for people to vote in the UK’s general election under the hashtag: F***Boris.
The club also supported skipper Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and their Nigerian fans in last month’s protests against police brutality.

Mehmet warned the club is in danger of damaging its relationship with its north London Turkish fan base.

He stated: “This action taken by the club has compounded the sense in our community that Arsenal is overtly discriminating against our community.”
Ozil has continued to collect £350,000 a week in wages despite failing to play a minute of competitive football since March 7.
He has vowed to see out his contract at the Emirates despite being left out of Mikel Arteta’s European and Premier League squads.

Mesut Ozil shares workout videos as Arsenal outcast keeps in tip-top shape despite exile and fans want him back More

DAVID DE GEA met up with Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes and trolled their former team-mate.The unemployed goalkeeper has been clubless since his contract at Old Trafford expired last summer after 12 years at the club. David de Gea met up with Bruno FernandesCredit: X formerly Twitter / @D_DeGeaDe Gea captioned the post ‘Dumb and Dumber’Credit: X formerly Twitter / @D_DeGeaBruno Fernandes revealed which old team-mate is the ‘dumbest’Credit: X formerly Twitter / @D_DeGeaWhile back in Manchester, De Gea hung out with his old pal Fernandes.The duo posed for snaps as they sat with their arms crossed before the Spaniard put his hand around the Red Devils captain.De Gea uploaded the photos to social media and captioned the post: “Dumb and Dumber.”Fernandes then hilariously commented: “Is missing the biggest dumbest Juan Mata.”READ MORE ON MAN UTDHaving been called out, the ex-Chelsea and Man Utd midfielder joined in with the fun by replying with a GIF from the Dumb and Dumber movie.De Gea has been linked with a return to football, with reports suggesting Barcelona, Nottingham Forest and Saudi Arabian clubs have all approached him with offers.However, none of these moves have materialised and the 33-year-old remains a free agent.De Gea has been enjoying his time away from the game – going on holidays with his wife and singer Edurne, 38, and daughter Yanay, 3.Most read in FootballBEST FREE BET SIGN UP OFFERS FOR UK BOOKMAKERAnd he has occasionally hung out with his old Man Utd team-mates.Back in October, De Gea went to dinner with Fernandes, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane and Tom Heaton.Unemployed David de Gea smiles on family bike ride with wife Edurne after ex-Man Utd star makes huge transfer decisionAs for Mata, 35, he is also a free agent after leaving Japanese side Vissel Kobe at the beginning of the year.Juan Mata joined in the banter with De Gea and FernandesCredit: Getty More

ARSENAL are interested in signing Marseille left-back Jordan Amavi, according to reports.
Boss Mikel Arteta recently admitted that his side are ‘short’ in the position, having let Sead Kolasinac return to Schalke on loan.

Jordan Amavi has built a decent reputation at MarseilleCredit: AFP or Licensors

Ryan Bertrand has been mentioned as a potential target, although Southampton are ‘confident’ that the England international will put pen to paper on a new contract at St Mary’s.
In Bertrand’s place, another former Aston Villa left-back has emerged as a genuine target.
According to L’Equipe, Arsenal are among a trio of clubs hoping to lure Amavi away from Marseille in the summer on a free transfer.
To do so they will have to beat off competition from Crystal Palace and Napoli, with the former believed to have shown ‘the most interest’.

Marseille’s head of football Pablo Longoria has been trying to persuade Amavi to renew his deal at Stade Velodrome.
But talks have hit a dead end.
Amavi, 26, joined Villa in 2015 as a promising 21-year-old from Nice.
In November of that year, however, he suffered an ACL injury while on France Under-21 duty.

Amavi, 26, played for Aston Villa between 2015 and 2017Credit: PA:Press Association
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By the time he returned to fitness, Villa had been relegated to the Championship in woeful fashion.
He’d make 34 appearances in England’s second tier upon his comeback, before joining Marseille in 2017.
Amavi helped Andre Villas-Boas’ side to an impressive second place finish last season, but is now considering his options.
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LIVERPOOL will visit Manchester City in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup. Manchester United have been handed an easier tie as they take on Championship outfit Burnley at home.
Gillingham face a trip to Wolves while Newcastle host Bournemouth.

Start time: Approx 10.30pm GMT
TV/Live stream: Sky Sports Football

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Follow ALL the action with our live blog below…
Carabao Cup fourth round draw
Let’s take a look at those ties to be played on December 21 and December 22…

Wolves vs Gillingham
Southampton vs Lincoln
Blackburn vs Nottingham Forest
Newcastle vs Bournemouth
Man City vs Liverpool
Man Utd vs Burnley
MK Dons vs Leicester
Charlton vs Brighton

And so we have it
The tie of the round is definitely Man City vs Liverpool.
Pep Guardiola’s men have already had to see off Chelsea.
And their reward for that win is a clash against current holders and fierce rivals Liverpool.
Elsewhere, Man Utd will welcome City legend Vincent Kompany to Old Trafford.
Draw 8
Charlton vs Brighton
Draw 7
MK Dons vs Leicester
Draw 6
Man Utd vs Burnley
Draw 5
Man City vs Liverpool
Draw 4
Newcastle vs Bournemouth
Draw 3
Blackburn vs Nottingham Forest
Draw 2
Southampton vs Lincoln
Draw 1
Wolves vs Gillingham
Carabao draw – here we go
The presenters are ready.
The balls are in the pot.
And the draw for the Carabao Cup fourth round is set to commence.
Here we go!
Fourth round draw coming up
With United in the pot, the draw is set to commence shortly.
Here are the ball numbers:

1 – AFC Bournemouth
2 – Blackburn Rovers
3 – Brighton & Hove Albion
4 – Burnley
5 – Charlton Athletic
6 – Gillingham
7 – Leicester City
8 – Lincoln City
9 – Liverpool
10 – Manchester City
11 – Milton Keynes Dons
12 – Newcastle United
13 – Nottingham Forest
14 – Southampton
15 – Wolverhampton Wanderers
16 – Manchester United

When will ties be played?
The Carabao Cup fourth round draw is nearly here.
But the games will be played after the World Cup.
The precise dates are December 21 and December 22.
That means Carabao teams will be back in action BEFORE the Premier League resumes.
FT – Utd 4 Villa 2
Man Utd are the final team through to the Carabao Cup fourth round after a comeback win against Villa.
The visitors went ahead twice at Old Trafford during a whirlwind second half.
But Bruno Fernandes finally put United ahead late on.
And Scott McTominay’s last-gasp effort sealed the Red Devils’ revenge.
Latest – Utd 3 Villa 2
The time has almost come for the balls to be drawn.
But we are still waiting on the result between Man Utd and Aston Villa.
The Red Devils are leading 3-2 with less than 10 minutes to go following a strike from Bruno Fernandes.
Can United hold on after taking the lead for the first time?
Latest – Utd 2 Villa 2
Still 20 minutes left of normal time and both sides have found the back of the net.
Ollie Watkins fired the visitors ahead in the 48th minute.
Anthony Martial then levelled for United straight from the kick-off.
Villa went back ahead through a Diogo Dalot own goal in the 62nd minute.
But Marcus Rashford levelled for 2-2 five minutes later.
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Nottingham Forest 2-0 Tottenham
Spurs torrid form continued as they were knocked out of the competition by lowly Forest.
Goals from Renan Lodi and Jesse Lingard won the game for the home side.
Spurs had Harry Kane up front, with Antonio Conte admitting after the game that he needed to play the England star because he had no-one else in his squad who could do the same job due to injuries.
Arsenal 1-3 Brighton
The Gunners have been in fine form this season but were undone by Brighton last night at the Emirates.
Eddie Nketiah put Arsenal ahead early with a curled finish but Danny Welbeck came back to haunt his old side by equalising with a penalty.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side produced some excellent football in the second half, with both Karol Mitoma and Tariq Lamptey getting on the scoresheet.
The Seagulls are ball number three and will be hoping for an easier draw in the last-16.
Martiel equalises for Man Utd
Thanks to a frantic start to the second half at Old Trafford, the game is now 1-1!
Ollie Watkins opened the scoring with a chip over Martin Dubravka.
But Anthony Martial tapped home just moments after the restart.

Man City 2-0 Chelsea
Manchester City beat Chelsea last night at the Etihad thanks to goals from Riyad Mahrez and Julian Alvarez.
The Blues carved City open on numerous occasions but were unable to finish their chances, with youngster Lewis Hall missing a couple of opportunities.
The 18-year-old was insrusmental throughout, but lacked killer instinct in the box.
Christian Pulisic also missed a couple of chances for Chelsea, who were eventually punished for their mishaps in front of goal.
Mahrez scored a free-kick to break the deadlock in the second half before Alvarez tapped in a second moments later.
Chelse had the ball in the net late, but the goal was ruled out for offside.
Who won it last season?
Last season’s Carabao Cup final was played between Liverpool and Chelsea in what was an entertaining clash at Wembley.
The game finished 0-0, but it wasn’t devoid of chances or disallowed goals.
The Blues had three goals chalked off and were largely the better side throughout the clash.
Eventually, the game went to penalties and Liverpool won 11-10, with Kepa Arrizabalaga skying his penalty to gift the Reds a famous win.

Man Utd vs Aston Villa
The two sides are currently playing out a very drab 0-0 at Old Trafford.
Neither side have had any major chances and both keepers are yet to be tested.

Third round results
There were certainly some shocks in the third round this year, including Arsenal’s 3-1 home defeat to Brighton.
But Gillingham also stunend Premier League side Brentford, beating them on penalties.

Bournemouth 4-1 Everton
Bristol City 1-3 Lincoln City
Burnley 3-1 Crawley
Leicester 3-0 Newport
MK Dons 2-0 Morecambe
Stevenage 1-1 Charlton*
Brentford 1-1 Gillingham*
Arsenal 1-3 Brighton
Man City 2-0 Chelsea
Newcastle* 0-0 Crystal Palace
Nottginham Forest 2-0 Tottenham
Southampton* 1-1 Sheffield Wednesday
West Ham 2-2 Blackburn*
Wolves 1-0 Leeds

*Won on penalties.

Ball numbers confirmed
Here are the numbers to look out for tonight. Number six for all of you Gillingham fans out there.

1 – AFC Bournemouth
2 – Blackburn Rovers
3 – Brighton & Hove Albion
4 – Burnley
5 – Charlton Athletic
6 – Gillingham
7 – Leicester City
8 – Lincoln City
9 – Liverpool
10 – Manchester City
11 – Milton Keynes Dons
12 – Newcastle United
13 – Nottingham Forest
14 – Southampton
15 – Wolverhampton Wanderers
16 – Manchester United/Aston Villa

Welcome to the Carabao Cup 4th round draw
Hello and welcome to SunSport’s live coverage of the EFL Carabao Cup fourth round draw!
The next stage of the competition is upon us with ties expected to be played in the week commencing December 19, after the World Cup.
The big news heading into tonight’s draw is the lack of presence from London-based teams.
Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham were all knocked out of the competition on Wednesday night in their respective ties with Manchester City, Brighton and Nottingham Forest.
Liverpool beat Derby on penalties to book their spot, and Manchester United take on Aston Villa tonight.
Follow along on SunSport for updates from that game, as well as all the build-up to tonight’s draw!
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