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GM football fans. It’s Tuesday, Mar. 3 - The FA wants to trial coach’s challenges for subjective VAR decisions, Champions League favourites, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURES
Premier League MD29 (Mar 3): AFC Bournemouth vs. Brenford, 19:30 GMT / 14:30 ET. Bournemouth have never won in seven attempts in the Premier League against Brentford, the only side they’ve faced without winning in the top-flight. Leeds United vs. Sunderland, 19:30 GMT / 14:30 ET. Five of the last six Premier League matches between two newly promoted sides have been won by the home team. Plus, Sunderland are winless in their last 17 Premier League games played in March since beating QPR 3-1 in 2012. Wolves vs. Liverpool, 20:15 GMT / 15:15 ET. Liverpool have won 83% of their Premier League games against Wolves, winning 19 of 23 games (D2 L2), the best win ratio of any side to face another 20+ times in the competition’s history. See every Premier League Matchday 29 fixture here.
Results…
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TOP TALKING POINTS
FA Supports New VAR Trials
The English FA supports trialling "Football Video Support" (FVS), a simplified, low-cost alternative to VAR that introduces a challenge system for managers. Much like in cricket or tennis, coaches would be granted two unsuccessful appeals per match, with a successful challenge allowing them to retain their allocation. This model is specifically designed for leagues with limited resources, requiring as few as four cameras and no dedicated video assistant referee.
By shifting the responsibility to the team benches, the FA aims to reduce constant interventions and reserve technology for clear and obvious errors. Mark Bullingham, chief executive of the FA, noted that the system "effectively puts the onus on the coach" to decide when a review is truly necessary. He believes the upcoming trials will help officials learn if this model can better protect the flow of the game compared to the current top-flight system.
While the FA considers its local options, Fifa’s refereeing chief Pierluigi Collina is already driving these trials elsewhere. Collina has overseen the system’s expansion into various senior and youth tournaments globally, arguing that it is essential to "democratise" technology for countries that cannot afford VAR.
Set-Piece Spotlight
Liverpool manager Arne Slot says most Premier League games are no longer a "joy to watch" and his "football heart doesn't like" the emphasis on set-pieces this season. These comments follow Liverpool scoring three goals from corners in their 5-2 victory over West Ham on Saturday, with his side leading the league in set-piece goals this year.
Leaders Arsenal have already equalled the record for most corners (16) scored in a single season following the two scored in their 2-1 win against Chelsea on Sunday. It was also the ninth time in the Premier League this season that Arsenal have scored a match-winning goal from a corner, and the ninth time they’ve gone 1-0 up from a corner. Overall, the Gunners have scored 21 set-piece goals, with Manchester United the next highest with 15.
The importance of set-pieces is demonstrated by reports that Arsenal’s set-piece coach Nicolas Jover has a contract (paywalled) with the club that contains a bonus clause for goals from dead-ball situations.
Dive deeper into how football’s lawmakers can fix the ‘corner chaos’ here.
Champions League Favourites
Arsenal are 27% favourites to win the Champions League following Friday’s last-16 draw (see here), according to Opta’s prediction model. Mikel Arteta’s side, who drew Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16, have a comparatively favourable run on paper as they potentially face two of the three lowest-ranked teams in Opta’s Power Rankings.
Bayern Munich are the next most likely to win the competition with a 14.3% chance. While Vincent Kompany’s side face Atalanta in the last 16, they could then play either Real Madrid or Manchester City in the quarter-finals. Liverpool (12.8%), Man City (10.8%), and Barcelona (7.7%) make up the rest of the top five. Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain are eighth-favourites with just a 4.6% chance of retaining their title, slightly below Newcastle’s 4.7%.
The Round of 16 first-leg fixtures take place on March 10 and 11, with the second legs kicking off the following week. See all the fixtures here.
POLL
Is the growing emphasis on set pieces making football less enjoyable to watch?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> The Premier League have deleted a social media post that appeared to mock Guglielmo Vicario following a complaint from Tottenham (More)
> Barcelona and Atletico Madrid will compete in the second leg of the Spanish Copa Del Rey semi-final on Tuesday (Mar 3), with Atletico 4-0 up on aggregate (More)
> The Women’s European Qualifiers for the 2027 Women’s World Cup begin on Tuesday (Mar 3); see all the fixtures (More) and understand how the qualifiers work (More)
> Jose Mourinho has said Gianluca Prestianni’s Benfica career will be “over” if he is found to have racially abused Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior (More)
> Como and Inter Milan face each other in the Coppa Italia semi-final on Tuesday (Mar 3) (More) | USMNT midfielder Weston McKennie has agreed a new Juventus contract through to 2030 (More)
> Borussia Dortmund captain Emre Can will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL in his left knee (More)
Americas
> Lionel Messi scored twice in Inter Miami’s 4-2 away win over Orlando City in the MLS, with the Argentine two away from 900 career goals (More); watch Messi’s first goal this season (Watch); read a full MLS gameweek round-up (More)
> The MLS All-Star match vs Liga MX All-Stars has been confirmed for Wednesday, July 29, at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina (More)
> The United States and Canadian women’s national teams won their respective opening SheBelieves Cup matches (More); see the upcoming fixtures (More)
> A prospective ownership group from Columbus, Ohio, is seriously exploring a National Women's Soccer League expansion franchise (More)
Rest of the World
> The "Finalissima" match between Spain and Argentina in Doha, scheduled for March 27, is in doubt after the Qatar Football Association suspended football tournaments indefinitely following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran (More)
> Four Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League fixtures have been postponed following the U.S. and Israeli military attack on Iran, including a tie involving Cristiano Ronaldo (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Is it right for domestic leagues to cancel matches when clubs are playing in the Champions League?
🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ 👍 Yes (43%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🙅♂️ Nope (54%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 T.M: “It makes total sense for leagues to accommodate their clubs playing in the Champions League. Reaching the latter stages has positive effects for the whole league: more money for that team, more exposure for that league, and the increased chance of maintaining or adding another qualifying spot in the competition.”
🙅♂️ K.S.B: “Part of what makes the Champions League fun and competitive is having to compete in it alongside domestic league games. If a club isn't strong enough to play two games per week, once or twice a month, they aren't really champions, are they?”
🙅♂️ N.M: “A team that is competing deep in European competition (or other domestic cups, etc) needs to be able to handle their workload. Shifting a game by a day or two to not have matches too close is fine, but completely postponing is too far.”
EXTRA TIME
What's going on with Premier League's 115 charges against Man City?
Mexico sets Guinness World Record with human football shirt.
The different scenarios if Iran does not play at the World Cup.
What can players and clubs do about 'AI slop'?
Analysing the age profile of every Premier League team.
The best stats from every league over the weekend.
GAME FACE ON
Question: How many Women’s Champions League-winning clubs have also won the men’s equivalent trophy?
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
Most of the [Premier League] games I see are not a joy to watch.
Answer
Just one — Barcelona.
