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    Man City cult hero set to equal Paolo Maldini’s Champions League record if Pep’s side wins without even kicking a ball

    SCOTT CARSON can go hand in glove with Champions League great Paolo Maldini.Even though the chances are next to nil that Manchester City’s No 3 will even get his fingers on the ball.
    Scott Carson can equal Paolo Maldini’s recordCredit: Getty
    Paolo Maldini won five Champions League titlesCredit: Getty

    CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL – MAN CITY VS INTER MILAN: All you need to know including kick-off time and TV details
    Yet if he ends up celebrating with those who do take on Inter Milan then Carson will bridge an 18-year gap to lift his second winners’ medal.
    Just like Maldini did between his first and fifth triumphs in the competition.
    And the AC Milan legend could not be blamed for thinking, if Carson does climb onto the winners’ podium: ‘Nice work if you can get it’.
    The revered Italian defender had to slog through a Milan career that covered 902 appearances and 25 seasons to gather that handful of precious victories.
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    Carson has had it a lot easier under Pep Guardiola — 900 games easier.
    The 37-year-old has worn the City shirt just twice — and on one of those occasions for only 17 minutes.
    But if he is named among the substitutes, as has happened throughout the European campaign, he could add a second gong to the one he won with Liverpool in 2005 — while also sitting on the bench.
    In the same Ataturk Olympic stadium that stages City’s clash with Inter, he was back–up to Jerzy Dudek as Steven Gerrard inspired Liverpool’s Miracle of Istanbul.
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    By which time he had played a mere five games for Rafa Benitez’s side.
    Maldini’s first taste of glory in the Continent’s elite competition was a 4–0 win over Steaua Bucharest in 1989.
    By 2007, he had his fifth, following a 2–1 victory over Liverpool.Carson’s own 18–year timeline was a lot different.
    After that 2005 final he played only four more times for Liverpool before going on loan to Sheffield Wednesday, Charlton Athletic and Aston Villa.
    In 2008, although an England player, he was sold to West Brom for £3.75million before moving on to Bursaspor for £2m.
    Carson was brought in by  Guardiola from Derby County originally on loan in 2019. And, since then, things have taken a remarkable twist.
    Carson could already have a second winners’ medal having been in his usual spot — on the subs’ bench — as Ederson conceded the Kai Havertz goal that handed Chelsea a 1–0  victory in the 2021 final.

    Only 15 days before the put-down in Porto that brought the Whitehaven–born keeper his consolation prize, Carson started his one and only Prem game for City in a 4–3 win over Newcastle.
    Yet he did save a penalty and, in doing so, bridged a different but equally amazing personal time gap.
    For he had last played in a top-flight game TEN YEARS earlier for the Baggies — also against the Toon,  drawing 3–3 on May 22, 2011.
    No other player has matched that particular record.
    His one appearance for City in the Champions League came in last year’s 0–0 draw with Sporting Lisbon, when he replaced Ederson with City already five up on aggregate in that last-16 tie.
    Sometime stopper or not, Guardiola would never rain on Carson’s parade.
    The keeper infamously dropped the first-goal clanger in England’s 3–2 defeat against Croatia in 2007 that cast Steve McClaren as the Wally with the Brolly and cost him his job after the Three Lions failed to qualify for the following year’s Euro finals.
    And Carson would gain only two more caps after that to take his tally to four.
    But Guardiola, who has just given him another year’s contract, loves his No 3 and views him as an inspirational mentor inside the Etihad.
    The City manager said: “The best advice I could give to the young players is to stay around Scott Carson as much as possible in the locker room and on the pitch.
    “ ‘Listen to him and pay attention’. That is the best advice and learning they can get about their future careers.”
    Read more on The Sun
    In game time, Carson has not really had a City career at all.
    But, amazingly, he can still join Maldini in the record books because for him, when it comes to appearance numbers and Champions League gongs, who’s counting? More

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    Three Man Utd rejects out to destroy Man City dream for Inter Milan as fans wonder why they aren’t still at Old Trafford

    MANCHESTER UNITED have been waiting 12 years and counting to return to a Champions League final.That 3-1 defeat at Wembley in 2011 by Barcelona was their third appearance in four years after winning it in 2008.
    Ex-Manchester United man Matteo Darmian has turned it around at InterCredit: PA:Empics Sport
    Team-mate Romelu Lukaku is another former Red DevilCredit: PA:Empics Sport
    Henrikh Mkhitaryan won the Europa League with UnitedCredit: Getty – Contributor

    CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL – MAN CITY VS INTER MILAN: All you need to know including kick-off time and TV details
    They have not even been close since with the quarters, twice, as far as they have got.
    So United fans might be wondering how three of their rejects have managed it with Inter Milan today — and if they should have left Old Trafford at all.
    So where did it all go wrong for Romelu Lukaku, 30, Matteo Darmian, 33, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, 34, with the Red Devils?
    Still short of a No 9, United could do with a Lukaku at his best.
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    But the Belgian’s time at the club came to an inauspicious end training on his own at a cricket ground in Perth before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could get him out.
    He arrived from Everton for £75million in July 2017 and had a spectacular start under Jose Mourinho.
    He scored ten goals in his first nine games and beat Sir Bobby Charlton’s 58-year club record of nine in his first nine.
    Lukaku bagged 27 goals in his first season, including 16 in the Prem as United came second.
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    The following season did not go so well as Mourinho’s reign unravelled and Solskjaer’s faster more fluent game did not suit the targetman.
    His second season will be remembered for his double against hosts Paris Saint-Germain as United reached the last eight on the away-goals rule after overcoming a 2-0 first-leg deficit with a 3-1 win.
    But Solskjaer kept him away from the rest of the squad during pre-season training the following summer at the WACA cricket ground before a £73m switch to Inter Milan was agreed.
    A record of 42 goals in 96 appearances still looks good.
    And when he went on to get 64 in 95 games in the next two seasons at Inter, United fans must have wondered what Solskjaer was thinking.
    The on-loan Chelsea striker now stands on the brink of his greatest-ever achievement back at Inter — with boss Simone Inzaghi having to chose between him and former Manchester City frontman Edin Dzeko to start up top.

    Mkhitaryan left many fans just as baffled as the attacking midfielder failed to convince Mourinho right from the start, despite the Special One making him a £30m signing in the summer of 2016.
    He waited until September 10 for his first Prem start and was hooked at half-time for failing to track back for Manchester City’s second goal in a 2-1 defeat.
    Mkhitaryan would start only 15 league games that season but was a hero in the Europa League run.
    He played ten games from the off and scored six goals including one in the 2-0 triumph over Ajax in the final. With that he became the first Armenian to win a European trophy.
    The first three matches of the following campaign saw him assist five goals but he never really fitted in with what Mourinho wanted defensively.
    He did not even figure in the squad for five games before a brief return ahead of his switch to Arsenal in January 2018 as part of a deal to bring Alexis Sanchez to United.
    Now he is heading for a fairytale end to his career.
    Mkhitaryan said: “I want to win because it’s the Champions League — that doesn’t come along every day.”
    He is fit despite being out since May 16 with a thigh injury.
    Full-back Darmian had four years at United after a £12.9m move from Torino in July 2015.
    Again, he had a great start and was named the club’s player of the month for August.
    His 24 league starts that first season under Louis van Gaal would be his best tally.
    Darmian moved to Parma for £1.4m in September 2019 then joined Inter the following season — initially on loan.
    Read more on The Sun
    But he has not forgotten his time at Old Trafford and wants to stop City matching United’s 1999 Treble.
    He said: “Being a former United player is extra motivation.” More

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    I’m a Man Utd Treble winner… Man City are good but not even Erling Haaland would get in our team

    THE arguments will rage this weekend if Manchester City join United in the history books and complete the Treble.Which side is better?
    Erling Haaland would not get into the Manchester United Treble winning teamCredit: EPA
    That is according to Dwight Yorke, who starred alongside Andy Cole in the 1998/99 seasonCredit: Getty
    It may not surprise you what Dwight Yorke thinks when asked to compare Pep Guardiola’s trophy machine to the Red Devils’ 1999 vintage.
    Yorke was top scorer with 29 goals that season, his first at Old Trafford, as they became the only English club to win the title, FA Cup and Champions League in an unforgettable campaign.
    And Yorke would not swap a single player for one of City’s — well, he might try and squeeze Kevin De Bruyne into the midfield.
    Yorke, 51, said: “People try to compare the teams.
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    “We were more physical, we had better players. You can’t tell me they have better than Paul Scholes and Roy Keane.
    “Maybe Kevin De Bruyne would get into our midfield.
    “But no defender on the planet would want to face Ryan Giggs at his very best. He was a class act.
    “Look at David Beckham and his delivery of a ball.
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    “Yes, Erling Haaland is unique but the way we played and the formation we played in, I wouldn’t swap him for what we had.
    “We had a great combination with myself and Andy Cole.
    “Don’t get me wrong, it is an incredible feat what he has done.
    “Scoring 52 goals in 52 appearances with a game still to go is something else. But I still would take my combination with Andy.
    “Also, I would put my money on Jaap Stam handling Haaland and behind him we had the best goalkeeper in the world at the time in Peter Schmeichel.”
    What City are about to achieve does not bother Yorke as it does many in the red half of Manchester.
    He added: “I admire this City team and wish them the best but we will always be the first English team to create history with the Treble — they are just joining us.”
    It brings back some great memories from 24 years ago when United rocked the footballing world with the skill, drama and incredible belief to achieve what they did.

    CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL – MAN CITY VS INTER MILAN: All you need to know including kick-off time and TV details
    Yorke said: “We were just on  a roll.
    “When you have confidence  players high on that confidence, it is a tremendous feeling.
    “Even when our backs were against the wall we believed.
    “We were without Scholes and Keane in that final and it wasn’t a good game.
    “I remember missing a late chance, the chance I wanted to equalise and you just hope someone bails you out — and they did.”
     Yorke will be looking out for £100million man Jack Grealish, who has made that same journey from Aston Villa to a club on the verge of something special.
    The former Trinidad and Tobago striker said: “Obviously there is a connection there with Aston Villa.
    “It was a lot of money to pay and a step up, like it was for me.
    “The demands are different and you have to adjust to that.
    “I was able to immediately as the Treble was my very first season.
    “It has taken time for Jack but the work Pep does with players improves them and he clearly trusts him now.”
    Yorke, like Grealish, will never lose that connection with the club that helped propel him on to the biggest of stages in football.
    Indeed, it was on the eve of the 1999 Champions League final against Bayern Munich that Yorke made sure he thanked his old Villa Park boss.
    It was Graham Taylor who spotted the talent in Yorke on a Villa pre-season tour in the Caribbean.
    Yorke said: “I just wanted to remind him of my gratitude.
    “He gave me that opportunity to come to England.
    “I was at the pinnacle of my career, on the biggest stage, so I rang the person who gave me that opportunity.
    “He just told me to, ‘Go out there and make history’.”
    Yorke made his own bit of history as a manager last year when he lead A-League side Macarthur FC to their first-ever trophy in the Australian Cup final.
    While Yorke would later part company with the club, it has made him even more determined to have a career in management.
    Yorke said: “I really believe I have a lot to give as a manager and I’m just waiting for the next opportunity.”
    He has been impressed with Erik ten Hag’s first season at United but believes there is still some way to go.
    Yorke said: “He has got a platform to build on after coming third and winning the EFL Cup but they are still far away from City.
    “What this United team needs is a No 9, that needs to be resolved.
    “Harry Kane fits that bill. He still has a few more years and he will give you 25 goals.”
    So, finally, what would be his message if he was City boss in Istanbul tonight as they prepare to face Inter Milan.
    Read more on The Sun
    Yorke added: “You go down in legend with the big trophy and Pep knows it
    “So I would say, ‘This is history, make it — you are not going to get another chance’.” More

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    Man City stand 90 mins from unforgettable Treble – here’s why their achievement will always be tainted for rival fans

    MANCHESTER City stand 90 minutes from greatness, a football Treble that will never be forgotten.Yet for rival fans, no matter what Pep Guardiola’s side do against Inter Milan in Istanbul’s Champions League Final tonight, their achievement will ALWAYS be tainted.
    Manchester City are only one win away from winning a historic trebleCredit: Getty
    Rival fans will always see City’s domination as tainted after years of bankrolling by Sheikh Mansour and the limitless riches of Abu Dhabi’s oil wellsCredit: Getty
    City are brilliant.
    No question.
    A team you love to watch.
    Glorious in possession.
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    Furious in regaining the ball.
    Deadly as a ­stiletto.
    The ultimate modern side.
    But they are also a club whose willingness to push financial regulations to the absolute limit — and allegedly far beyond them — means many will always want an asterisk next to the list of trophies by their name.
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    Bankrolled by Sheikh Mansour and the limitless riches of Abu Dhabi’s oil wells, able to attract the greatest manager and best players, City’s ambition is clear.
    Not just in this country either, with the club the pinnacle of a 12-team structure that spans the globe from China and Japan, through India, to the US, Uruguay, Brazil and ­Australia.
    It is City, though, a club that was once a byword for catastrophe and one that lived for two decades in the shadow of Sir Alex Ferguson’s achievements on the other side of the city, that takes the attention.
    Both on the field, where they are the Prem’s dominant force and red-hot favourites to finally land the “Cup with the Big Ears” tonight.
    And, controversially, off it as well.
    In February, following a four-year probe, the Premier League announced City were accused of 115 breaches of league rules.
    A staggering number of allegations, slipped out in a simple press release on the League’s website — but which still saw City bemoaning it had been “leaked”.
    Relentless art form
    Charges included claims that the ­Etihad outfit hid the true source of the club’s funding.
    Also that City had only partially declared the salaries of players and former manager Roberto Mancini, broke Uefa AND Prem financial rules and deliberately and repeatedly obstructed the League’s investigation.
    Just as when Uefa charged and initially banned them for similar alleged offences, City did what they always do on the pitch, attack.
    First of all was the claim the allegations had been “leaked”.
    Exactly the same complaint they made about Uefa’s process.
    The charges, insisted City, would be met with a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” that would “put this matter to rest once and for all”.
    That approach worked when the sport’s Court of Arbitration threw out the Uefa sanctions in 2020, ruling by a 2-1 majority that many of the ­charges were time-barred and others “not proven” — although it judged that City had failed to co-operate with the initial inquiry.
    Manager Guardiola last month demanded the Prem commission sit to hear the case imminently.
    The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich boss, whose obsession with winning the Champions League in a team WITHOUT Lionel Messi is unquestioned, said: “We would like this done as soon as possible.
    “We would love it tomorrow, this afternoon. Let’s go. Don’t wait two years. Why don’t we do it quicker?
    “In 24 hours, sit down with the lawyers present. Then, if the club has done something wrong, everybody will know.
    “But if, as we believed as a club for many years, we have done things in the right way, then the people will stop talking about it.”
    Yet for all that bluster, Pep Guardiola must have known about the club’s demand that the Arsenal-supporting barrister likely to lead the panel should stand down.
    And of their complaints about the validity of the charges, arguing about recent changes in the Prem rulebook that mandate clubs and officials to answer questions and provide all information when requested to by League officers.
    City’s hierarchy have not only hired the best manager and team.
    They are willing to pay for the best lawyers, too.
    Lord Pannick KC, recently spotted next to Boris Johnson during his uncomfortable grilling by MPs who could suspend him from the ­Commons, charges a minimum £5,000 per day.
    He will be willing to do whatever it takes, within the law, to ensure a ­victory for his client.
    The charges saw City’s Prem rivals unite in furious indignation, demanding consequences well before the case ever comes to determination, which could still be another three or four years away.
    With unprecedented fines and even the prospect of a points deduction, stripped titles and relegation hanging over them, the City players might have been excused for losing their focus.
    Instead, they have turned winning into a relentless art form.
    Since the charges were laid, City have played 27 games in three ­competitions.
    They have won 21 and lost just one — a Prem match at Brentford after the title had already been sealed, scoring 72 and conceding just 15 in the process.
    But City under Guardiola are more than just an uncompromising victory machine.
    Far more.
    Man City lifted the FA Cup, the second trophy of three, last weekCredit: Getty
    The powers in Abu Dhabi have pumped vast sums of money into the club, from training grounds to on-pitch talentCredit: Alamy
    They are truly football’s version of shock and awe, a mesmerising, bewildering, mind-spinning fusion of power and glory.
    Guardiola has taken John Stones, England’s best central defender, and turned him into a ball-playing ­midfield superstar.
    Yorkshire grit but Catalan majesty.
    Look, too, at the development of Jack Grealish, who has gone from being a foppish outsider, struggling for game time and to justify his £100million transfer fee from Aston Villa, into an integral part of City’s starting side.
    The smile of delight when he sees the ball is shared by every Sky Blue fan.
    Belgian Kevin de Bruyne, ­Germany’s Ilkay Gundogan and ­Portuguese schemer Bernardo Silva offer menace and magic.
    Gundogan broke an all-time FA Cup Final record when he scored after just 12 seconds in last weekend’s Wembley win over Manchester United, the second leg of that longed-for Treble.
    And for sheer explosive, frightening attacking intensity, allied to a goal sense that few in the history of the game possess, striker Erling ­Haaland has proved he is a true force of nature.
    Although, plenty are less sure about those silk pyjamas he wore for City’s title celebrations.
    Much of that is down to the man who embodies managerial majesty.
    Guardiola’s Barcelona side were the hallmark of the beautiful game a decade ago, the Nou Camp necromancers weaving spell after spell.
    They won the Champions League — beating Manchester United both times — in 2009 and 2011.
    And they were defeated only by a combination of Jose Mourinho, Inter Milan and the Icelandic volcano that meant they had to take the coach to Italy rather than fly, in 2010.
    England’s greatest
    Yet, perhaps, irrespective of the huge sums laid out since the Abu Dhabi takeover in 2008, this team is his greatest — the ultimate example of a tactician ­putting the pieces together to create something truly extraordinary.
    Pep is more than demanding, even if his focus is occasionally so complete that he does not even see people when he walks past them in the City corridors.
    He insists that it is about ­“making people happy” rather than his “legacy”.
    But if the two things mutually co-exist, then that is an acceptable compromise.
    The club’s success has cemented Manchester’s status as one of the most famous footballing cities in the world — and has helped transform the post-industrial wasteland of East Manchester.
    The owners have built around 6,000 affordable homes in the area in a £1billion redevelopment deal.
    And the Manchester Evening News reported in 2021 how almost 30 new hotels were expected to be built by the end of this year to accommodate the growth in tourism.
    Earlier this year, the club also submitted a £300million planning application that includes expanding the Etihad stadium capacity above 60,000, and adding a hotel, sky bar and stadium roof walk experience.
    There will also be space for some businesses to work at the stadium, which is still owned by the council, with City paying rent of at least £4million a year.
    If all that matters is the football, then there is no doubt who you should be backing in Istanbul.
    England’s greatest, City are now the gold standard.
    Technically outstanding.
    Innovative.
    Compelling viewing.
    The creme of the Prem creme.
    And four of England manager Gareth Southgate’s preferred players are critical elements in Guardiola’s masterplan, even if Phil Foden has played a lesser role this season.
    Others, though, will never be won over by what happens on the pitch.
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    Tonight, they will be “black and blue”, the colours of Inter.
    If they feel similarly bruised by a Guardiola triumph, nobody at City will care.
    City ran out comfortable winners of the Premier League last season, after a dazzling run of fixtures forced Arsenal off their comfy leadCredit: Getty
    Man City displaced local rivals Man United 2-1 at Wembley to lift this year’s FA Cup
    Tonight Man City will fight it out v Inter Milan for the elusive Champions League Trophy’It will be long night but we’ll be champs’

    SINGER and City fan Noel Gallagher is rooting for Man City to take the Treble.
    The 56-year-old says: “We’ve taken it step by step, but this is it now, it’s just about this one game. In Italy, where getting beaten is sacrilege, Inter lost 12 times in the league, so they’re used to losing, which bodes well for City.
    “The Italian mindset is ‘don’t lose’ and they will be very proud of forgetting their usual style and playing for penalties from the first minute if that’s the way they think they can win.
    “If they do that, it is up to City to come up with the answers.
    “If we play like we did against Real Madrid then there is not a team in the world that can get near us. I think it will be a long night, but City will win in end.” More

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    I’ll be beaming with Brummie pride as Grealish plays in Champions League final… and Bellingham may be next

    THERE will be a great deal of Brummie pride for me in seeing Jack Grealish playing in a Champions League final.Even though Jack is an Aston Villa man — and their former captain to boot — and I’m a lifelong Birmingham City fan, it’s great to see him thriving at the very highest level.
    Jack Grealish is on the verge of winning the TrebleCredit: Getty
    Jude Bellingham could be next as he nears a transfer to Real MadridCredit: AP
    In Grealish and Jude Bellingham — ‘one of our own’ for us Bluenoses — my home city has two genuine world-class players and that is wonderful to see.
    Jack has really come alive in his second season at Manchester City.
    I kept hearing about him being overpriced last season. His £100million price tag was repeatedly used as a stick to bash him with — but that has all gone quiet now.
    It looks as if Jack feels he belongs at City now and I can see him being a regular starter for the club and England for three or four years at least.
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    At Villa, he was the main man. Everything went through him but now he has learned how to be a real team player.
    He makes goals, scores goals and tracks back to put in a defensive shift too.
    You can see when he celebrates goals how much he is a part of it, how he has bought into that team ethic.
    I know Jack well, he’s a cracking kid from a nice family and he has worked hard to get to the top of the game.
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    You used to hear about him getting into scrapes off the field but, at 27, he’s grown up and learned lessons. You don’t hear those stories about him any more.
    He is clearly a lad who still likes to enjoy himself — but he is doing that in the right way and at the right times now.
    City chief Pep Guardiola has really developed him — much like he has done with other English talents, like John Stones and Kyle Walker.
    They have all improved and become so adaptable under him.
    Phil Foden is the one who is missing out on starts now.
    A few months ago, at the World Cup, the nation was crying out for Phil to start but now he can’t get a regular game for City and that is largely because Jack’s form has been so good, he’s become undroppable.
    I can’t see any other outcome other than a City win against Inter in Istanbul — it would be a massive shock if Guardiola’s men do not complete the Treble.
    Inter are a decent team but they are simply not at the same level and their route to the final was a bit freakish, they haven’t beaten any of the really major teams.
    I’d love to see Grealish play a starring role in the biggest game of his life so far.
    He’s got the sort of crowd-pleasing quality where you can imagine him playing for Real Madrid one day.
    And 19-year-old starlet Bellingham is likely to be heading just there this summer. Can you imagine two Brummies at the Bernabeu?
    Read more on The Sun
    For now, though, there is nowhere better to be than City.
    They’re the best team in the world and I expect them to prove it in Istanbul. More

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    Patrick Vieira makes rare appearance in Champions League legends game as he reveals why he repeatedly snubs invites

    PATRICK VIEIRA made a rare appearance in a Champions League legends match – and revealed why he repeatedly snubs invites.The Arsenal icon, 46, has turned down the chance to play in a number of games showcasing the sport’s all-time greats over the years.
    Patrick Vieira takes part in a Champions League legends matchCredit: Getty
    Patrick Vieira was speaking at the launch of Expedia Live
    But ahead of the Champions League final in Istanbul, the tough-tackling ex-Inter Milan and Manchester City star laced up his boots again.
    Vieira, speaking at the launch of Expedia Live, said: “I normally don’t play these kind of games because I’m too competitive.
    “They play a bit more friendly and I don’t know how to.
    “I turned down a few because the game is competitive and you play to win and if you don’t, for me, the game is pointless.
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    “I don’t have that in my locker so it’s not for me.”
    Vieira’s team won a dramatic penalty shootout against the likes of Kaka, Luis Figo and Diego Milito.
    He lined up with ex-Arsenal team-mate Robert Pires, as well as Julio Cesar, Cafu, Marco Materazzi, Esteban Cambiasso, Gaizka Mendieta, Vladimir Smicer and Patrick Kluivert.
    But it is the touchline he would rather return to.
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    Vieira rejected an immediate management comeback after he was sacked by Crystal Palace in March.
    He admits he is now desperate to get back into the dugout.
    Vieira said: “I’ve had time to reflect on what will be my next challenge but I definitely want to go back.
    “I had talks straight away after I left Palace but it wasn’t the right time. I needed time to reflect and digest and now I’m feeling good.
    “I’m passionate about it and I love doing it. I had a really good experience with Palace.
    “If it doesn’t come I have plans about different things that I would like to do, but my priority is football.”
    Expedia Live is an official supplier of the UEFA Champions League and is the destination for fans to book travel and experiences, plus access expert advice on where to explore after the final whistle
    Patrick Vieira and Esteban Cambiasso combine to take down Diego MilitoCredit: Getty
    Patrick Vieira is desperate to return to management More

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    Erling Haaland tells Man Utd legend Rio Ferdinand he was frustrated by Pep Guardiola’s Man City last season

    ERLING HAALAND has admitted to feeling frustrated while watching Manchester City games last season.The Norwegian joined Pep Guardiola’s side last summer in a £51million deal ahead of this campaign.
    Erling Haaland chatted to BT Sport’s Rio Ferdinand
    Haaland, 22, has been a revelation in England, scoring 36 Premier League goals and helping his side reach the Champions League final.
    Ahead of City’s Istanbul date with Inter Milan this weekend, Haaland chatted to Rio Ferdinand about how he has helped to transform his side’s attack.
    Speaking on BT Sport’s Between The Lines, the former Borussia Dortmund star said: “It’s a good thing to be good at tapping balls in.
    “Last season, I watched so many times when crosses would go through the whole box and no-one was there. I was imagining myself being there and thinking I’d slide that in.
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    “I was thinking of that when I came here. I’m not the one that’s going to create chances but I have my role in the team.
    “And that’s this (tap-ins). My job is to help the team put the ball in the back of the net.”
    When it comes to improving his game, Haaland doesn’t like to watch film.
    He added: “I don’t watch my games back at all, actually.
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    “I try to think of the next game, not too much about how I did and what I did wrong.
    “I try to attack the next game. I did that a bit when I was younger but I was overthinking a lot so I stopped. I don’t watch anyone else’s (game tapes) as well.”
    In addition to banging Prem goals in, Haaland has been in astonishing form in the Champions League.
    He has scored 12 goals in 10 European appearances this season – including a stunning five-goal haul against RB Leipzig in the round of 16.
    Haaland also bagged home and away against former Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.
    Haaland, 22, is hoping to fire City to their first ever Champions League triumphCredit: Getty More

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    New Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou won Champions League with SOUTHEND on Football Manager… before they sacked him

    NEW Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has claimed that he won the Champions League with Southend on football manager.The Australian, 57, was named the new boss at Spurs after winning back-to-back Scottish championships with Celtic.
    Ange Postecoglou won the Champions League with Southend on Football ManagerCredit: Kenny Ramsay
    Southend currently play in the National LeagueCredit: Getty
    Despite winning 21 major titles at previous clubs, Postecoglou has managed, there have been concerns from supporters that he lacks experience at the top level.
    However, not many managers can say they have taken a club from non-league to the pinnacle of European football.
    But this is exactly what Postecoglou can say as he revealed that he took Southend on an amazing journey in the game, Football Manager.
    In 2020, he told The Sydney Morning Herald: “I had to knock back some big clubs to stay the course.
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    “I used journeymen and loaners to get out of the lower divisions, then bought young unknowns from Italy and South America.
    “I didn’t mess about with tactics – I just wheeled and dealed. Harry Redknapp on steroids.”
    However, despite helping the club rise through the cyber ranks, his journey ended in heartbreak as he was sacked by the Southend board less than a year after winning the Champions League.
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    He added: “I got sacked six months after winning the Champions League.
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    “I’d knocked back Juventus, Real Madrid and the England national team before then.
    “No loyalty after everything I did for them. I was gutted. Hopefully got a statue there.”
    Despite the achievement only being on a computer game, Football Manager is used by real clubs to scout players using its extensive player database.
    Sports Interactive, the game’s developers, have been praised in the past for the level of detail that is in the annual game.
    Postecoglou, however, can not do the same at Spurs next season as the club failed to qualify for any European football. More