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No Writer
May 19
Bournemouth vs Man City: Mikel Arteta says he's going to be the biggest Cherries fan ever as Arsenal can win title on Tuesday

The Gunners' 1-0 win over Burnley on Monday Night Football means Arteta's Arsenal will be crowned champions if Manchester City do not win at Bournemouth, live on Sky Sports. In City's way is Bournemouth head coach and Arteta's childhood friend Andoni Iraola - who grew up with and played in the same youth team as the Arsenal manager in the Basque Country. And after City boss Pep Guardiola supported West Ham against Arsenal last week, Arteta has shown his support for Bournemouth, who are currently on a 16-game unbeaten run, the longest of its kind in Europe's top five leagues. Live Premier League table | Watch FREE PL highlightsGot Sky? Watch Premier League games LIVE on your phone📱Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺 "The biggest ever!" said Arteta if he's going to be a Bournemouth fan on Tuesday. "For Andoni, and all the players and all the supporters of Bournemouth, I think we are all [Bournemouth fans] because we know what it means if they get a result." Asked if he will send Iraola any message or advice, Arteta said: "I don't think it's needed. "What he's done in that football club, the transformation, what they are playing for, I don't think they need anything else. "When you look at how Burnley played today, the spirit that they show, how difficult they made it, imagine [Bournemouth]." Arteta has admitted he will not watch the game with the Arsenal players tomorrow, but he will have it on at home while spending the evening with his family "I don't know how long I am going to watch it," he said. "I will be there in front of the TV but I don't know how much I am going to be able to watch it, that is the reality." Arteta: This job is going to test how much hair I have! Arteta's Arsenal had another nervy night at the Emirates. Kai Havertz put Arsenal in front on the stroke of half-time - but the German forward then avoided a red card for a high challenge on Lesley Ugochukwu. "Well I was certainly worried when they were checking it," said Arteta about the call. "When I looked at the bench they said it wasn't, but I haven't had a look at the action." Arsenal produced their eighth 1-0 win of this Premier League season - with 'One Nil to the Arsenal' being the second-most common scoreline in the top-flight this term. Asked how he handles the nerves, Arteta replied: "I don't know. I thought that the amount of hair that I have, it is never going to go away. But I think this job is going to test it to the limit." Analysis: This was the story of Arsenal's season Sky Sports' Sam Blitz at the Emirates Stadium: It was a match that sums up Arsenal's entire Premier League season. Set-piece goal, clean sheet, a little bit nervy. But they came out with a win. Now they have Manchester City where they want them. On Tuesday night, Arsenal will sit back in their homes and see if Pep Guardiola can break the longest unbeaten run in Europe at Bournemouth. Andoni Iraola's side have not lost in the last 16 matches - ahead of his final home game in charge of the Cherries. What a difference a month makes for Arsenal. On April 19 they had been beaten by Manchester City. Erling Haaland was in a singing mood about City's title chances - and a banner branded 'Panic on the Streets of London' was unveiled by the City fans. On May 19, they could be crowned champions. As Arsenal fans unveiled before the game, it's actually 'Party on the Streets of London'. Arsenal have not conceded a goal from open play since that City game. The defensive solidity is set to get the Gunners over the line. They are 180 minutes - or possibly just 90 - away from glory. Neville and Carragher on if the title will be decided on Tuesday Sky Sports' Gary Neville: "From a Man City side, that result can hurt them because it is just two games to go for them and one for Arsenal now. "They may go to the game tomorrow feeling a little bit disappointed with the result today." Sky Sports' Jamie Carragher on Arsenal's final day game at Crystal Palace: "You think of the Aston Villa situation, if they win the Europa League and celebrate what are they then like against Man City? "The last time Oliver Glasner was in a European final, the game before, four days before, he only changed one player. "Palace don't have a huge squad, so if you go back on what Oliver Glasner's done in the past, he played pretty much a full-strength team. "The nerves will really kick in for Arsenal this week if Man City win tomorrow. You saw tonight - it was a little bit edgy. "It might do them a little bit of good being away from home. You can feel the tension in the stadium."

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No Writer
May 19
Premier League title race: I don't see how Arsenal waste this opportunity, says Gary Neville

Pep Guardiola's side need to win at the Vitality Stadium, live on Sky Sports, to take the Premier League title race to the final day. If they drop points, the Gunners will be crowned champions after their own 1-0 win against Burnley on Monday Night Football. Potentially winning the Premier League title has been long in the making for Arsenal, and former defender Neville says being able to overcome Guardiola's Man City side to finally claim the trophy will be huge. Speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast from the Emirates on Monday, he said: "The momentum that they've got, the excitement and anticipation, this has been five, six years in the making. "This is not about just this season. This team and this coach have been waiting and waiting for this moment where it's in their hands with one game to go. "They've had it pulled back from them two or three times in the last four seasons where they've just fallen short and the big question that I've been asking is can they get over the line because if they don't, trust me, it becomes a big problem. Arsenal 1-0 Burnley - Match report and highlightsMikel Arteta: I'm going to be the biggest Bournemouth fan ever!Live Premier League table | Watch FREE PL highlightsGot Sky? Watch Premier League games LIVE on your phone📱Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW 📺 "It'll define you. If Mikel Arteta becomes a champion manager, it's a game changer. "All of a sudden, the authority that they have, the fact that they can go the distance and they can beat a Guardiola Manchester City team to a title, that is no mean feat. "They're on the brink now, and I can't see how they're going to waste this opportunity." Kai Havertz's first half strike was enough for Arsenal to beat already-relegated Burnley, giving them a five point lead at the top of the Premier League table. Discussing the game, Neville said: "They got the job done in a typical Arsenal way this season, with what they put themselves through, but they seemed calm right the way to the end. "They're very comfortable defending a 1-0 lead... they are really patient, they're solid, they're reliable defensively, they trust the goalkeeper, their centre-backs, Declan Rice in front of them - and right now they're a very strong defensive unit that are difficult to break down. "It's really difficult to play that way, so there is admiration that I've got for them but they don't half make it hard for themselves. They're playing Burnley at home and the urgency and the ability to play forward quicker and make sure that you drive outcomes towards being 2-0 up. Then you can start to play and relax, but 1-0 I think that you're asking for trouble. "Burnley weren't able to cause them a problem and that will be enough to get them over the line. Arsenal got the job done and they can now relax and watch Man City go to Bournemouth, and that's tough for Man City. Tough because they're coming off the back of the cup final, but Bournemouth are a very good side. "It's [Andoni] Iraola's last game at Bournemouth at home and they can still qualify for the Champions League, so it's a game where they've got a lot on it. I think we could be seeing the champions out there tonight and they may already be champions when we get to Selhurst Park on Sunday." Of course, Man City are no strangers to winning a Premier League title on the final day of the season, and Neville thinks they should keep Arsenal "honest" in the ongoing race. He added: "I've got huge respect for Man City and what they've achieved over the last 10 years, what Pep Guardiola's done. If they were to go tomorrow night to Bournemouth and win, that would be that would be really big, because they must be thinking that it's slipped away from them. "But we always used to say, keep the opposition honest. Keep Arsenal honest. Pep Guardiola will be saying, 'you've seen them against Burnley, when they go to Crystal Palace on Sunday, there'll be no favours there'. "If it's 1-0 at Crystal Palace with five minutes to go and those home fans are there and there's a corner, before you know, it the league can just come away from you. "Man City have won it in that way in the past, so it's about them doing their job [on Tuesday] and that's a big ask because even at their best, Bournemouth is a tough place to go. "They can win there. They've got fantastic players, but that's the big one. I see both teams winning on Sunday, I really do, but the big question is whether it goes to Sunday - and whether City can beat Bournemouth."

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No Writer
May 19
Ryan Garcia announces he will be fighting Conor Benn in a blockbuster encounter in Las Vegas this September

Speaking on Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show on Monday, Garcia said his next opponent was "from the other side," drawing a puzzled look from Fallon, who wondered aloud if the foe was an alien from a UFO. "No, he's from across the pond. I'll just say his name: Conor Benn," Garcia said. "He's talking a lot". Rozicki faces Billam-Smith: 'Scars will show what side he's vulnerable on'Jack Massey will fight Cheavon Clarke on Sky Sports Bournemouth billGet Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW Garcia recounted a story of when Benn grabbed him at an awards show two years ago: "He pressed up on me, grabbed me, so it's a little personal. "I'm going to really put a whopping on this man, and we will send him back to the UK sipping on some tea." Garcia, 27, claimed his belt in February, dethroning Mario Barrios with a wide unanimous decision victory after flooring his man in the opening round. Benn will return to the ring following consecutive main-event bouts against Chris Eubank Jnr at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - the first clash was the 2025 fight of the year before Benn avenged defeat in the rematch. Benn, 25-1 (14 KOs), returned to defeat former 140lbs champion Regis Prograis by unanimous decision on April 26 after signing a multi-year, multi-fight deal with Zuffa Boxing. The British star is the mandatory challenger for Garcia, the WBC welterweight champion, but speaking last month, he said he is in contention to fight an array of elite opponents. "Of course, it is the priority to get that Garcia fight done, but I am not short of options," Benn told Sky Sports. "There are a lot of fighters calling me out, big names calling me out. "God willing, we get the Garcia fight done for the title. I am in the No 1 position for that belt and I have worked extremely hard to get to that position. "If Ryan doesn't want it, there are plenty of fish out there." Dana White, head of Zuffa Boxing, said he was open to making a 'fun' fight between Benn and Garcia. White told Sky Sports: "All the guys that have signed with us - we say what have you dreamed about, what do you want to do, what have been the plans with your career? "We like to hear all those things. "Obviously, I am about making the biggest fights you can possibly make. "All these kids that are fighting with us see it the same way." Don't miss Chris Billam-Smith vs Ryan Rozicki live on Sky Sports on June 6.

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No Writer
May 19
England Women: Ella Toone and Aggie Beever-Jones return to squad for June World Cup Qualifiers against Spain and Ukraine

Manchester United midfielder Toone has not played for the Lionesses since November due to an ongoing knee injury. She returned after four months out on April 26 and started in the final two games of the season against Brighton and Chelsea. Chelsea striker Beever-Jones is also back after injury kept her out of the April camp, while her club team-mate Niamh Charles is also included after being called up as an injury replacement last month. There is also a spot for London City Lionesses forward Freya Godfrey. She has previously been called up by Sarina Wiegman for camps in November 2025 and March this year, although is yet to earn her first senior cap, having come through England's youth ranks. She scored six WSL goals with four assists for her club this season. However, there is not a second call-up for 18-year-old Erica Meg Parkinson, who was a surprise inclusion in the previous squad. Group A3 table | WCQ fixtures and resultsNot got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW📺 England face their final two World Cup qualifiers next month. They face Spain away on June 5, and it is likely to be a showdown for the first place in Group A3, which will automatically guarantee a place at next summer's tournament in Brazil. Second place will go into the World Cup play-offs. The Lionesses are currently three points clear at the top and beat the current world champions in the reverse fixture at Wembley in March. They will play their final qualifier against Ukraine on June 9 at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. England squad in full Goalkeepers: Hannah Hampton (Chelsea), Anna Moorhouse (Orlando Pride), Ellie Roebuck (Aston Villa) Defenders: Lucy Bronze (Chelsea), Jess Carter (Gotham), Niamh Charles (Chelsea), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City), Taylor Hinds (Arsenal), Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United), Esme Morgan (Washington Spirit), Leah Williamson (Arsenal), Lotte Wubben-Moy (Arsenal). Midfielders: Laura Blindkilde Brown (Manchester City), Lucia Kendall (Aston Villa), Jess Park (Manchester United), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), Ella Toone (Manchester United), Keira Walsh (Chelsea). Forwards: Aggie Beever-Jones (Chelsea), Freya Godfrey (London City Lionesses), Lauren Hemp (Manchester City), Lauren James (Chelsea), Chloe Kelly (Arsenal), Beth Mead (Arsenal), Alessia Russo (Arsenal).

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Nick Wright and Adam Smith
May 19
Pep Guardiola will leave Man City having transformed English football from the top down - Between the Lines

The 55-year-old will depart as the second-most decorated manager in Premier League history, his total of six titles, so far, putting him behind only former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson. Stylistically, though, no manager in the modern era can claim to have made a bigger impact than Guardiola. Between the Lines explains how his influence shaped the English game as we now know it. Got Sky? Watch Premier League games LIVE on your phone📱No Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW📺Pep's immediate impact Guardiola's first game in charge of Manchester City, a 2-1 win over Sunderland sealed by a Paddy McNair own goal at the Etihad Stadium in August 2016, was not an especially memorable one. But even then there was evidence of the transformation to come. Joe Hart was benched, deemed a poor fit for Guardiola's approach. There was the novel sight of full-backs Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna inverting into midfield. City's 77.7 per cent share of possession was their fourth highest on record in a Premier League game. "That is the first step," the new manager said afterwards. It certainly showed his intentions. Guardiola would of course end up trophyless for the first time in his career that season. But the shift towards his favoured, possession-dominant approach was immediate. City went from averaging 55 per cent possession and 487 short passes per game during Manuel Pellegrini's final campaign in charge, to 65 per cent possession and 584 short passes per game in Guardiola's first as he set about overhauling their style. Some costly individual errors caused scepticism about his commitment to playing out from the back. Guardiola provided fuel for his critics when he said "I don't train tackles" after a 4-2 loss to eventual champions Leicester in December of that season. But the issues around Manchester City's build-up were ironed out in his first Premier League title-winning campaign in 2017/18, helped by a raft of signings which included that of goalkeeper Ederson, whose outstanding ball-playing ability proved transformative. With Ederson able to orchestrate Guardiola's build-up play with a level of composure similar to Manuel Neuer at Bayern Munich and Victor Valdes at Barcelona, Manchester City's numbers for passes, sequences of 10 or more passes and build-up attacks shot up. His excellent distribution over longer distances also provided an invaluable method of bypassing opposition pressing structures. City were able to prove the effectiveness of Guardiola's approach beyond all doubt in that second season, breezing to the Premier League title with record-breaking totals of 100 points and 106 goals scored in an emphatic vindication of their manager's methods. Premier League clubs follow his example Some Premier League teams, such as Brendan Rodgers' Swansea and Mauricio Pochettino's Southampton and Spurs sides, had begun to implement Guardiola-inspired short-passing principles before his arrival in the Premier League with Manchester City. But playing out from the back only began to become prevalent in the years afterwards. The average number of passes being played by Premier League sides in their own halves began to rise steadily with his appointment, having previously been on the decline. As per the interactive graphic above, the same trend could be seen in the averages for passing sequences of 10 or more passes, and for build-up attacks, underlining how Premier League teams gradually embraced Guardiola's way of playing before the competition's shift towards directness in the last two seasons. Influence trickles down to EFL Guardiola's influence soon became apparent further down the English football pyramid as well as in the Premier League. The trend was slower to materialise, but it wasn't long before the average number of passes being made by teams in their own halves in the Championship, League One and League Two began to follow the direction of travel in the Premier League. The numbers peaked across all four divisions simultaneously in 2023/24, following City's treble-winning campaign in 2022/23, showing the extent of Guardiola's impact on the English game. Role of the goalkeeper transformed The shift towards Guardiola's way of playing impacted players in all positions. None more than goalkeepers, who were required to effectively act as additional outfield players in possession, able to play passes under pressure in and around their penalty box. Hart was a two-time title-winner with nearly 350 Manchester City appearances behind him. But he lacked the technical security to play for Guardiola. His removal for Claudio Bravo, and subsequently Ederson, highlighted changing priorities in his position. Under Guardiola, the number of successful goalkeeper passes in Manchester City's half trebled in the space of two seasons, from seven per game under Pellegrini, to 19 in Guardiola's first campaign in charge, and 21 per game in his second. Their average climbed to a high of 27 per game in 2023/24. The wider uptake was not immediate. There was only a small increase in goalkeeper passes in the defensive half across the rest of the Premier League from 2015/16 to 2017/18. But the average rose incrementally after that as clubs sought ball-playing goalkeepers. The Premier League average for goalkeeper passes in the defensive half peaked in the same season as Manchester City's, at 19 per game in 2023/24, a 140 per cent increase from the average of eight per game in 2016/17. The interactive graphic above shows goalkeeper passing accuracy rates followed a similar trajectory. Hart was the first high-profile casualty but there were plenty more to come, including Manchester United's David De Gea, whose perceived inability to play out from the back, in the style popularised by Guardiola, eventually saw him replaced by Andre Onana, whose distribution was cited as being key to his appeal. Pressing matters Guardiola had an immense influence on how teams in England set up off the ball as well as on it. Co-ordinated, man-to-man pressing high up the pitch was key to his philosophy and became crucial up and down the Premier League as a means of disrupting build-up play. By 2019/20, Manchester City were averaging just under 10 high turnovers per game, up from under eight in Pellegrini's final season. Again, the Premier League average trended in the same direction. A high press requires a high line in order to restrict the space available to opponents between the lines. Manchester City immediately started playing higher up the pitch under Guardiola, as shown by their start distance, which measures how far a team's passing sequences begin from their own goal on average. The graphic above shows the steady increase to Premier League start distances as well as high turnovers during Guardiola's tenure as clubs embraced pressing to counteract the growing popularity of playing out from the back, before the subsequent shift that saw the tactical landscape move again. Embracing directness and physicality Guardiola has always seen himself as a pragmatist rather than an idealist. "My tactics adapt to the qualities of my players," he said at his unveiling as Manchester City manager in 2016. That pragmatism has come to the fore in the latter years of his tenure. Manchester City remain a primarily possession-based side capable of using short passing combinations to play through opponents. But they have also developed other ways of beating man-to-man marking systems, their threat diversified. The signing of Erling Haaland marked a dramatic shift from the false nine model Guardiola previously favoured and gave Manchester City an invaluable outlet for direct play and fast breaks as the physicality of the Premier League, and the sophistication of opposition man-to-man marking systems, began to ramp up. City have averaged less possession, and fewer passing sequences, than in any previous season under Guardiola this term. Meanwhile, their numbers for quick attacks have trended upwards as Guardiola emphasises transitions over intricate build-up play, and one-v-one specialists such as Antoine Semenyo and Jeremy Doku over passers. There is little doubt that Guardiola's arrival at Manchester City prompted a wider shift towards his way of playing in England, but more recent move away from those principles appears reactive. "You can complain, or you have to adapt," as Guardiola put it recently. Guardiola's willingness to adapt may have encouraged others to do the same, but it is difficult to be sure. What is certain, as he brings down the curtain on his Manchester City tenure, is that his arrival inspired change in English football like no other manager.

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