Premier League and FA Cup: 10 talking points from the weekend action

Manchester United need to improve to stop City in final, Spurs are proving Antonio Conte right and Arsenal are missing William Saliba

Premier League and FA Cup: 10 talking points from the weekend action

1) Ten Hag hopes to stop City’s treble tilt 

For many Wembley minutes and until Solly March’s tears, the credibility of Erik ten Hag’s regime was on a knife-edge. In recent weeks, a previously wide acceptance that Manchester United had finally found the right manager has loosened. Both Louis van Gaal and José Mourinho delivered fleeting spells of success. Both won trophies, too. Even Ole Gunnar Solskjær brought the smiles back for a while. Heavy defeats by Liverpool and Sevilla had hastened dark thoughts of a false dawn but now Ten Hag has the chance to augment United’s football heritage. By 3 June and the FA Cup final, Manchester City could be set fair for a treble to equal United’s in 1999, the club’s greatest ever achievement. To deny City and pull off such a heist, United will need far greater attacking potency than against Brighton, though the grit shown by lesser-starred names like Victor Lindelöf, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Diogo Dalot and even Antony will also be welcome. John Brewin 

Brighton 0-0 Manchester United (6-7 on pens) 

2) Wembley semi attracts woeful numbers 

Manchester City against Sheffield United did not feel like an FA Cup semi-final. In fact it did not really feel like anything in particular, despite Riyad Mahrez’s well-taken hat-trick. It did not help that City’s all-engulfing dominance meant the outcome was more or less a foregone conclusion. It was hardly a ringing endorsement of the affair, either, that the Blades would have traded their presence at Wembley for the three points that would guarantee promotion against West Brom on Wednesday. Neither set of fans seemed especially into the occasion and the number of empty seats among both allocations was noticeable. Which brings us to perhaps the most devaluing factor of all: the idea that, in a cost of living crisis, tens of thousands of supporters from these northern cities should be obliged to pay top dollar for an evening fixture several hours away. A venue closer to home would have been pumping, notwithstanding the game’s likely lack of jeopardy. Instead we were subjected to an occasion devoid of anything resembling the Cup spirit. Nick Ames 

Manchester City 3-0 Sheffield United

The official attendance of Manchester City v Sheffield United was 69,602, well short of Wembley’s capacity of 90,000. Pic: Thomas Ash

3) Was Conte right about Spurs players?

He may have burned through much of his managerial cachet at Tottenham, but Antonio Conte’s tirade after last month’s 3-3 draw with Southampton rings truer with each passing week. “I see selfish players, players that don’t want to help each other and don’t put their heart [into it],” he said after that particular collapse. “They don’t want to play under pressure, they don’t want to play under stress.” Even those who felt Conte was making a cynical attempt to absolve himself of responsibility would have to admit that, having fallen to pieces barely a minute into a crucial game against Newcastle, the team had none of the focus, cohesion and hunger of their opponents and showed little sign of fighting for one another. While fans are directing their anger towards the club’s hierarchy, the players will have to salvage some pride in difficult games against Manchester United and Liverpool or it could be a truly excruciating end to the season. Will Magee 

Newcastle 6-1 Tottenham

Tottenham were thrashed at Newcastle thanks to a dreadful performance. Pic: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire.

4) Arteta must solve Saliba problem 

“If we want to be champions we have to go there and win the game, that is all.” Gabriel Jesus laid it on the line for Arsenal after what was, for all their rousing efforts late on, a hugely damaging draw against Southampton. They will have to do this the hard way now and that means taking three points on Wednesday against a Manchester City side that shows little sign of dropping the kinds of defensive blooper that have helped Arsenal’s opponents on their way over the last fortnight. Mikel Arteta will pray his players have got those errors out of their system but, beyond that, he will need to devise something that knocks City off their stride. Without William Saliba, Arsenal lose something at the back but also in their buildup play: they are slower in possession and the issue spreads into their midfield. Perhaps the Frenchman will make a miracle recovery but, if he is not fit enough to be gambled on, Arteta must find a way to get his team moving quickly again. Could a temporary return to the middle for Ben White be a potential solution? NA 

Arsenal 3-3 Southampton 

5) Consistency key to Liverpool push 

“Hopefully it’s not too late,” reflected Jürgen Klopp as he praised the counterpressing quality and cohesion that brought Liverpool a second successive victory over a relegation-threatened opponent. His team have won back-to-back league games six times this season but have extended the winning streak further only once, when recording four consecutive league wins either side of the World Cup interruption. With Tottenham and Aston Villa among four remaining home games, and Klopp’s attacking options enhanced by Diogo Jota rediscovering his finishing touch and Luis Díaz’s availability, European qualification of some form remains Liverpool’s to determine. But, first, some overdue consistency. “Let’s just focus on West Ham [on Wednesday],” said Virgil van Dijk, rightly refusing to get carried away. “After everything we’ve gone through this season, that’s the key. It’s been a very difficult season so far” Andy Hunter 

Liverpool 3-2 Nottingham Forest 

6) Leeds are stuck in post-Bielsa slump 

Javi Gracia was not targeted by Leeds fans as their team slumped to a damaging defeat at Fulham. Neither were his players. There was no lack of effort on show. Leeds played hard and came up against a Fulham team nothing like the soft touch of their previous promoted teams. Instead, Victor Orta was the name ringing out. Orta is the sporting director who tempted Marcelo Bielsa to West Yorkshire but he also dismissed the sainted former manager, whose name was sung amid calls to “sack the board”. Even if Bielsa’s alchemy had stopped working by February last year, it is the failure of the succession plan from Orta and owner Andrea Radrizzani that enrages Leeds fans. Jesse Marsch was a bust; Gracia is left to pick up the pieces of a squad short on quality and confidence. Illan Meslier’s goalkeeping mistakes took the headlines but his loss of nerve speaks to a club unhappy within itself. J 

Fulham 2-1 Leeds

7) Soyuncu reborn as Smith steels Foxes 

Who is this ponytailed centre-back at the heart of Leicester’s defence? Caglar Soyuncu was frozen out by Brendan Rodgers but has started both Leicester games since Dean Smith took the reins until the end of the season. Soyuncu was excellent in Saturday’s vital win over Wolves, making a couple of key blocks as Leicester tasted victory for the first time since February. Rodgers felt Soyuncu’s performances in training often did not merit inclusion in his squads, let alone his starting lineups, but the Turkey defender has been reinstated by Smith and has helped breathe new life into Leicester’s flagging season. “I don’t know what’s gone on before I got here,” Smith said. “I’ve seen a player who is committed to the club, trains really well and I think his performances have shown that.” Ben Fisher 

Leicester 2-1 Wolves 

8) Moyes deserves to go out with a bang 

West Ham’s rampant win at Bournemouth made it 10 goals in a week for David Moyes, who started the month a game away from the sack. Whether recent displays will be enough to persuade West Ham’s hierarchy to stick with the Scot appears unlikely but he could yet bow out with a trip to Prague for the Europa Conference League final if AZ Alkmaar are seen off next month. Few would begrudge a proud exit for the manager who guided West Ham to sixth place and a record points total after an unheralded return in 2019 that was described – with reason – in these pages as “not an appointment likely to inspire disillusioned fans”. Moyes has always been known as a man of decency but his second stint in east London has helped restore his reputation as a canny training-ground manager who instils his teams with grit, wit and tenacity. Almost all managerial stints end in rancour; this one might just finish on a hard-earned high. Alex Hess 

Bournemouth 0-4 West Ham 

9) Villa show grit as purple patch ends 

Aston Villa’s surge for the Champions League is probably at its end, but the determined qualities that have revived the club were on show in the fightback at Brentford. Ollie Watkins failed to score for a first away game since 21 January, losing out to Ivan Toney in the battle of England hopefuls. It was left to Douglas Luiz to stab in a late equaliser, redeeming a performance Unai Emery described as being “very, very bad” in spells. An unbeaten run of over two months was eventually extended despite losing Emiliano Martínez to a stomach bug at half-time. His replacement, Robin Olsen, was left exposed at his back post for Toney’s goal and clearly suffers from a lack of confidence from his defenders. It is hoped Martínez can return for the visit of Fulham on Tuesday but despite his exit, and Watkins’ blank, Villa still managed to get a result from a match that previously might have got away from them. JB 

Brentford 1-1 Aston Villa

Unai Emery’s escaped from Brentford with a point despite what Unai Emery described as a ‘very, very bad’ performance in spells

10) Calvert-Lewin back for Toffees’ run-in 

Sean Dyche has insisted Everton are not pinning their hopes of survival on Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s fitness after the 26-year-old came through his latest return from injury against Crystal Palace. Calvert-Lewin has scored only one of his side’s paltry 24 goals so far this season – the lowest in the Premier League – but showed signs of his old self at Selhurst Park. Dyche is hoping the striker can find some more sharpness in time for Newcastle’s trip to Goodison Park on Thursday before next Monday’s big showdown at Leicester, although he admitted coaxing more goals from the rest of his goal-starved squad remains a work in progress. “I haven’t got any magic dust,” said the Everton manager. “We have a way of working that can help change that but it’s up to the players to take ownership. It’s not just about one player. It’s about the rest of the players stepping up as well.” Ed Aarons 

Crystal Palace 0-0 Everton