Premier League

MANCHESTER UNITED star Harry Maguire has been accused of “hiding” against Newcastle by former Premier League defender Ashley Williams.United were outplayed by Eddie Howe’s side and lost 1-0 at St James’ Park.
Harry Maguire was accused of hiding and telling his team-mates to pass to Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Ashley Williams said Maguire used a ‘sneaky tactic’Credit: Getty
Williams accepted Maguire defended well but was shocked by what he saw from the England star when the Red Devils were in possession.
He said Maguire failed to show for the ball when goalkeeper Andre Onana was in possession and accused him of using a sneaky tactic to get away with shirking his responsibilities.
Williams said on the Vibe with Five podcast: “Do you know how many times he put himself in a position where he knew ‘I know that he knows that I can’t get this ball of Onana, so I’m leaving him.
“I can’t deal with this sneaky, kind of ‘ah I’m going to look like’ – so how many times did you go inside and point to [Aaron] Wan-Bissaka? Like as if ‘Onana give it to Wan-Bissaka and I’ll get it on the next one’.
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“He’s hiding! There are so many accounts of it. That’s why my melon was going when I was watching it, because everyone’s had their say about him, he’s turned the corner – no you haven’t!
“They’re saying he defended well fair enough but what about when your playing Newcastle and they press high, you’ve got no target man so you can’t bypass the press, you have got to have at least the bottom six getting on the ball trying to help.”

Maguire, 30, also came under fire from fans after he deflected Anthony’s last-gasp strike into the net from an offside position.
The defender was in the wrong place at the wrong time but fans felt it exemplified his lack of luck at the moment.
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However former United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer praised Maguire for the way he has dealt with the criticism he has faced.
He said: “I think he has dealt with it in a fantastic way. It has not been easy. I have kept in touch with him and I have nothing but praise for the guy.
“He has been in it. It’s not easy to leave Manchester United because you know there’s a downturn almost everywhere you go. You get paid for your efforts when you are that type, when you are a good footballer and show that you have a heart for the club.” More

JAMES MADDISON has revealed he received some light-hearted stick from his Tottenham team-mates over his shirt number.The England star was given Harry Kane’s No10 shirt following the striker’s move to Bayern Munich.
James Maddison took Harry Kane’s No10 shirt at Tottenham
He wore No71 during pre-season while Kane was still at the club
Prior to that Maddison occupied No71 for the duration of pre-season, leading his Spurs pals to joke he was always waiting for Kane’s departure.
Maddison, 27, said he and Kane joked about the number too and the midfielder revealed he is enjoying the pressure of fulfilling the England captain’s boots.
Asked about taking Kane’s No10 shirt, Maddison told Amazon Prime: “It all happened so quick. Me and H had a bit of banter to be fair. I was wearing No71 in pre-season, I was getting a bit of stick.”
“We wanted to see and weigh up which number I was going to wear, who leaves. There was a bit of banter ‘oh Madders are you waiting for Harry to go?’ in the changing room and I would have stayed 71 believe me, to keep him.
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“Harry left on the eve of the first game. The club wanted me to have No10 because it’s such a big number and it’s quite an iconic number for shirt sales and stuff and I’m never going to say no, I love that pressure and I love the No10.”
Maddison had picked up where Kane left off for Tottenham with three goals and five assists in 11 Premier League games before suffering an ankle injury.
He is expected to be sidelined until the new year but he was able to issue a positive update on his recovery.
The former Leicester star added: “It’s healing well, it’s a bit of a slow burner which is obviously frustrating because like you said, I started the season so well. But it’s healing, slowly but surely.”
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Maddison also discussed his love of Harry Potter after interviewer Ben Foster spotted some merchandise on his walls.
The Spurs talisman said: “Massive Harry Potter fan. It was my birthday the other day so (my) missus got me an authentic signed Daniel Radcliffe signature with his wand and nice picture so that’ll go in the games room nicely.
“I’m a little geek when it comes to Harry Potter.” More

JAMES MADDISON has admitted that he had never heard of Guglielmo Vicario before joining Tottenham in the summer.Ange Postecoglou’s side swooped for the Italian in a £16million deal from Empoli back in June.
James Maddison looked up his future team-mate Guglielmo VicarioCredit: Rex
The Italian has impressed for Spurs since signing from EmpoliCredit: Rex
Spurs announced Maddison’s arrival the following day, with the attacking midfielder going on to admit that he had to search for Vicario highlights on YouTube.
Chatting to the England star on Amazon Prime Video, former stopper Ben Foster claimed that Vicario has been the “best goalkeeper in the Premier League this season”.
Responding, Maddison said: “That’s a fair statement to make.
“We signed him. I hadn’t obviously signed yet. I was like ‘who is he?’ kind of thing. I’d never heard of him.
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“I’m in the back of the car on his YouTube Vicario highlights to see if he was any good.”
Foster then laughed before asking: “Were they decent at least?”
Maddison, 27, replied: “They were alright to be fair. Brilliant shot stopper.
“That’s the one thing… I think he’s hard to score past.
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“Sometimes we’ll practice penalties and shooting in training, I want him in goal because he’s the hardest to score past.”
In 2017, then-Spurs star Danny Rose called on the North Londoners to sign players that he “didn’t have to Google”.
He told SunSport: “I am not saying buy ten players, I’d love to see two or three — and not players you have to Google and say, ‘Who’s that?’ I mean well-known players.”
Vicario has impressed since succeeding former Spurs skipper Hugo Lloris as their first choice goalkeeper this season.
He has been ever-present in the Premier League thus far and has also been called by Italy.
In the summer Vicario revealed the nickname given to him for his fiery temperament.
He said: “It’s by two guys from broadcaster DAZN in Italy.
“They told me, ‘When you play sometimes you get angry, you feel angry, so you feel like Venom’.
“Also Venom starts with V, Vicario starts with V.”
Danny Rose called on Spurs to sign players he didn’t have ‘to Google’Credit: Getty More

GARY O’NEIL has slammed Arsenal’s tactics during their 2-1 win against Wolves at the Emirates Stadium.The Wanderers boss accused the Gunners of deliberately wasting time in the closing stages of his team’s defeat on Saturday.
Wolves boss Gary O’Neil slammed Arsenal’s tactics on SaturdayCredit: Getty
O’Neil accused Arsenal of cynical delaying tactics during added timeCredit: Getty
Mikel Arteta’s side started strong as they were 2-0 ahead in the first 20 minutes of the game thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard.
With the Gunners thinking they had secured the three points, Matheus Cunha’s late 84th-minute goal forced Arteta’s men to fight until the end.
And an extra six minutes in added time gave Wolves further hope that they could find a late equaliser.
But much to O’Neil’s frustration, some cynical delaying tactics from Arsenal prevented that.
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After their loss, O’Neil hit out at the officials for failing to punish the Gunners ‘time-wasting’.
He told beIN Sport: “I just thought Arsenal took ages over the restarts at the end.
“I was told we were going to 98 because there was a long stoppage in added time but they had three restarts and they took 45 seconds with each.
“I felt at the time it could have been extended slightly because we’re trying to clamp down on timewasting.
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“Sometimes you don’t expect Arsenal to be time-wasting but I am sure if we had taken as long over some of the throws and restarts away at the Emirates we would have been receiving yellow cards.
“No criticism of Arsenal, if it was me I would’ve had my team taking their time at that moment as well.
“We’re seeing a lot of people booked for delaying restarts and didn’t feel like we got the time we thought we should’ve had.”
Time wasting prevented Wolves from being able to secure a point and allowed Arsenal to move three points clear of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.
Meanwhile, O’Neil’s Wolves’ side sit 13th in the table with only four wins in 14 league games this term.
The West Midlands side hopes to turn things around in their clash against Burnley on Tuesday night. More

ERLING HAALAND will NOT face any action for his post-match ref rage after the draw with Spurs.But Manchester City are likely to be hit with a five-figure fine for venting their spleen at ref Simon Hooper.
Erling Haaland responded furiously to referee Simon HooperCredit: Rex
The Norwegian couldn’t believe the official’s callCredit: Rex
City stars remonstrate with HooperCredit: Rex
The Prem official was surrounded by furious City playersCredit: Rex
Hooper enraged the Etihad when he initially played on when Haaland was fouled by Tottenham’s Brazilian defender Emerson Royal only to then blow for a free-kick when the Norwegian striker sent Jack Grealish in on goal.
Haaland was the first to surround the referee in indignation, with Ruben Dias, Mateo Kovacic and keeper Ederson all rushing to the official.
Strike ace Haaland was still seething at the final whistle which brought a verbal altercation with Spurs’ Giovani Lo Celso.
The City man then posted on X, formerly Twitter, showing the clip with the message “WTF?”
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But despite some calls for action the FA will not be taking the matter any further.
Haaland was booked for his protests by Hooper which means the on-field issue was dealt with by the referee.
His social media posting did not abuse the official, only marking his frustration at the decision but without spilling over beyond acceptable bounds.
That means no action will follow against the City striker.
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Pep Guardiola’s club, though “have been charged with a breach of FA Rule E20.1” for “surrounding the match official”.
City were charged with “failing to ensure their players do not behave in a way which is improper” and have until Thursday of next week to answer the allegation, which will bring a significant fine of potentially £40,000 or more.
Haaland was transformed into a meme on social media after the game following his reaction.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Guardiola refused to slam referee Hooper.
Asked about the controversial decision, he said: “Next question.”
With a smirk he then poked fun at Arsenal boss and former assistant Mikel Arteta, adding: “I will not do a Mikel Arteta [style] comment.”
Pep Guardiola refused to slam the referee’s decisionCredit: Sky Sports More