Champions League

ENGLAND could have five representatives in the Champions’ League next season – yet no one appears to believe Aston Villa could be one of them.Current holders Manchester City’s impressive start to the season has already marked Pep Guardiola’s men out as red hot favourites to win a fourth successive title.
Unai emery can lead Aston Villa to the Champions LeagueCredit: Getty
Behind them, Arsenal look to be the main challengers again as they continue to progress under Mikel Arteta.
Jurgen Klopp has managed to help Liverpool rediscover their mojo and there are signs that if City do slip up and take their eye off the ball, the Anfield club could realistically mount a title challenge.
A few years ago the idea of Brighton playing in Europe would have seemed far-fetched. But now Roberto De Zerbi’s team are EVERYONE’S favourite ‘other team,’ and are being widely tipped for a top four finish.
A rejuvenated Spurs will fancy their chances of grabbing a Champions’ League place too under Ange Postecoglou and they will look to make a statement in the North London derby this weekend.

Meanwhile, Newcastle have proved they can put together a run and will be in no mood to relinquish the fourth place they fought so hard to achieve last season under Eddie Howe.
And we haven’t even mentioned Manchester United yet!
Erik ten Hag led the Red Devils to a respectable third place finish last season and two cup finals – beating Newcastle United to win the Carabao Cup.
Ten Hag doesn’t have his problems to seek right now as his squad continues to crumble around him but once Raphael Verane returns from injury, United fans will hope their team starts to climb the table again.
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However, Unai Emery’s Villa continue to go under the radar and that could make them a major threat to the rest if they take their eye off the ball.
Here’s why our Midlands reporter Graeme Bryce believes Emery’s men are good enough to finish in the top five this season – despite facing the distraction of competing in Europe.
THE MANAGER 
Emery has won four Europa League titlesCredit: Getty
Unai Emery is the real deal. 
Arsenal may not remember his time at the Emirates with any particular fondness.
But the Spaniard has improved every other club he’s ever been at and Villa fans adore their workaholic boss.
He took charge of a shambles last season yet won 15 out of 25 league games as Villa clinched European football on the last day of the season – by beating De Zerbi’s Brighton.
Emery has every player in his squad believing they are capable of beating anyone on their day – including in Europe where Emery’s record is exceptional.
In the last 16 years Emery has competed in Europe every season, reaching eight quarter-finals in that time, seven semi-finals and five finals.
Remarkably, he has won four Europa Leagues, only failing to beat Chelsea during his unhappy time at Arsenal.
His attention to detail is legendary and he has transformed Villa into a slick passing outfit, capable of beating most opponents on their day. 
THE GOALKEEPER 
Emiliano Martinez was one of the world’s best goalkeepers last yearCredit: Rex
Emi Martinez was already a Villa favourite when he performed heroics during an impressive debut season following his £20million move from Arsenal in September 2020.
However, the ‘keeper took his game to a new level when he helped Argentina capture the World Cup in Qatar last year.
Now widely regarded as one of the top goalkeepers in world football, the 31-year-old was even nominated for this season’s Ballon D’Or award.
He rarely makes a blunder and his big saves have had Villa fans singing his praises since he arrived from the Gunners.
HOME FORM 
Villa Park has becoem a fortressCredit: Getty
Any team with ambitions of qualifying for the Champions’ League has to be able to win in front of their own fans.
Emery has transformed Villa’s home form with Saturday’s stunning three-goal comeback to beat Crystal Palace the latest example of Villa’s power on home turf.
Villa have won 10 consecutive home games in all competitions for the first time since a run of 11 from October 1989 to January 1990.
Douglas Luiz is loving life at Villa Park after scoring in four home matches on the spin with his penalty against Palace.
Villa will attempt to match that 33-year record in midweek when they host Everton in the Carabao Cup.
Sean Dyche’s men are likely to discover no-one finds it easy to come away from Villa Park with anything other than disappointment these days under Emery.
THE OWNERS
Nassef Sawiris and Wes Eden are both billionairesCredit: Aston Villa
Aston Villa are in the fortunate position when it comes to billionaire owners.
They don’t have just one – they have TWO!
Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens took over the club after they failed to win promotion in the Play-Off final of 2018 against Fulham.
They took Villa from the brink of administration under Dr Tony Xia and ploughed in the necessary cash to solve Villa’s financial woes.
The pair are big-time operators who are hugely ambitious and have carried out extensive work on and off the park at Villa Park.
They took Villa into Europe ahead of schedule and won’t rest until the Champions’ League anthem is being played at Villa Park.  
RESULTS 
The Villans have started the season very wellCredit: Getty
The stats don’t lie.
Only Manchester City and Arsenal have collected more points than Villa’s 52 in 2023.
Yes, despite Brighton being brilliant under De Zerbi.
And despite Newcastle and Liverpool stuffing Villa this season, overall Villa have the third-best points tally in the Prem this year.
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That makes them too dangerous to write off in my opinion as Emery continues his impressive work at Villa Park.
No one is talking about Villa as potential Champions’ League qualifiers and I suspect wily old fox Emery hopes it stays that way until the final weeks of the season! More

ALAN SHEARER has blasted his own son after finding out what he did in Milan.Newcastle made their return to the Champions League by paying a visit to AC Milan after a two-decade absence from the competition.
Alan Shearer blasted him son after being sent a video of his son in MilanCredit: Getty
Shearer revealed his son was goading AC Milan fansCredit: Rex
Newcastle drew the Champions League clash 0-0Credit: Getty
Eddie Howe’s side managed to draw the match 0-0 despite being under intense pressure from the home side throughout.
However, what caught the eye of the Toon legend was an incident away from the San Siro involving his son.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Shearer said he had received a video of his son goading Milan fans outside of the club’s official hotel while wearing a Newcastle shirt.
Shearer, 53, revealed: “I said to my son as I always do when he goes to away games, ‘just don’t do anything stupid, be sensible, go and have a laugh with your mates and enjoy the atmosphere’.
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“His mate sent me a video, they were outside of the Milan players’ hotel, all the Milan players were coming out and getting onto the bus ready to go to the game.
“You can imagine there are 700-800 Milan fans.”
He jokingly, continued: “There’s my stupid f***ing son with his Newcastle shirt on. Him and his three mates.
“I said: ‘What on earth are you playing at? I told you to just be sensible’.
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“My god honestly. He’s 23 the bloody idiot.
“He was fine, he had a great time.”
On the game itself, Shearer said he was happy with the Magpies and praised them for earning an “unbelievable point”.
He added: “Newcastle went to Milan on Tuesday and it was hard work for them. You could tell the last 20 minutes, they were absolutely shattered.
“I get and understand that, because it’s the mentality, it’s the travelling and it can get to you.
“Certainly looking at Newcastle it was hard work for them. It was an unbelievable point.
“They’d have snapped your hand off if you’d have said that to them before the game. I don’t think they played particularly well.” More

ARTURO VIDAL has claimed he watched the worst match in the history of the Champions League this week as he labelled it “disgusting”. With 83 Champions League appearances it’s safe to say Arturo Vidal know a lot about playing amongst Europe’s elite.
Arturo Vidal has slammed one specific Champions League matchCredit: AFP
He claimed that Newcastle’s 0-0 draw with AC Milan is the worst Champions League game he’s ever seenCredit: Getty
And the Chilean international slammed Newcastle’s clash with AC Milan on Tuesday night.
The game, which ended 0-0, was lambasted by Vidal during a live stream on Twitch for Red Gol.
He said: “I saw the worst match in the history of the Champions League, the one between Milan and Newcastle.
“But those idiots from Milan against Newcastle left me disappointed. They are lucky because they only know how to run, otherwise they wouldn’t be there.”
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The former Inter Milan star was less than impressed with Newcastle’s performance, especially given their success in the Premier League last term.
And it appeared he wanted to see more ambition from the Magpies as they lined up for their first Champions League game in over 20 years.
“I don’t understand Newcastle, they finish fourth in the league, but it doesn’t matter, it’s disgusting.” He explained.
“They have to risk their lives, if it’s their first match, show something more, they made me mad as hell.”
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Vidal also took issue with Man City’s win over Red Star Belgrade, labelling the Champions League holders as “boring”Credit: PA
And it wasn’t just Newcastle that Vidal took aim at with the ex-Bayern Munich midfielder slamming Pep Guardiola’s Man City side for being “boring”.
He said: “Porto vs Shakhtar was great . [Man] City, on the other hand, are boring, as always.
“And that [game] between PSG and Borussia [Dortmund], I only liked the second half but in the first one I fell asleep.”
The Cityzens fought back from a one goal deficit at half time against Red Star Belgrade to wind up as 3-1 victors.
Vidal has played in some memorable Champions League nights across his career with spells at Inter, Bayern, Barcelona and Juventus.
And he suffered the ultimate heartbreak in 2015 when The Old Lady got all the way to the final, only to fall at the last hurdle losing 3-1 to his future employers Barcelona.
He now plies his trade in the Brazilian first division where he plays for Athletico Paranaense after joining the side this summer.
Vidal and Juventus lost out in the Champions League final against Barcelona in 2015Credit: Getty More

MANCHESTER UNITED legends Rio Ferdinand and Paul Scholes have criticised Erik ten Hag’s transfer business.The Dutchman spent over £180million this summer in a bid to improve his squad.
Rio Ferdinand (L) and Paul Scholes (R) criticised Erik ten Hag’s (C) recruitmentCredit: Getty
Man Utd have now lost three consecutive gamesCredit: Getty
Rasmus Hojlund, Mason Mount, Andre Onana, Altay Bayindir and Jonny Evans all signed permanent deals before deadline day, while Sergio Reguilon and Sofyan Amrabat joined on loan.
However, Ferdinand and Scholes are not convinced that United’s seven new additions have made the squad better.
Speaking on TNT Sports ahead of Man Utd’s Champions League opener against Bayern Munich on Wednesday, Scholes, 48, said: “I think they are on a very similar path to last season. They had a really bad start (last term) and a poor start this season.
“I thought after last year they were going in a different direction and were starting to take this club somewhere.
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“He (Ten Hag) sorted the discipline and then I thought in the summer, he was going to spend £200million to take this club to the next level.
“I don’t think the signings have done that. I think he has made his squad stronger, but I don’t think he has made it better.
“I don’t think he has made a team that can challenge for the Premier League title or for the competition they are in tonight.”
Ferdinand, 44, then urged the Red Devils to be smarter when recruiting players – much like Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton.
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The ex-United defender added: “When you look at Brighton, they are a team over the last three or four years that have been building in terms of a structure and foundation at a football club, and you can see the way it’s playing out with their recruitment, and even their manager.
“We talk about rotation and changing of players. I think they changed five or six players against them, the player that scored a hat-trick the week before (Evan Ferguson) was on the bench.
“So, they are getting the best out of every single player in their squad, whereas at Manchester United, that’s not happening.”
Ten Hag’s side suffered a 3-1 defeat to Brighton at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Speaking after the match, the Man Utd manager bizarrely suggested that the Seagulls had spent just as much money as any other top team in the Premier League.
However, De Zerbi’s starting line-up cost just £16m – a small fraction of United’s squad value. More