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It was the Champions League but not as Guardiola used to know it | Paul Wilson

Manchester City’s manager went through the full range of emotions on a night when reckless defending by his side and Monaco produced a thrillerIt is perhaps a measure of how uncomfortable Manchester City still are on the European stage that Pep Guardiola chose life and death imagery in his pre-match assessment. While relaxed insouciance is what the manager generally aims for, he hardly struck that tone when observing Monaco had “killers” in the box in Radamel Falcao and Valère Germain, or noting glumly that critics would “kill” his City side if they did not succeed.This is almost certainly not the can-do, positive approach City thought they would be getting when employing the former coach of Barcelona and Bayern Munich, although...

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Football transfer rumours: Arsenal to sign Kylian Mbappé from Monaco?

Today’s fluff is considering upping its salt intakeIt’s February and the season is hotting up: this week sees the resumption of the Champions League and the FA Cup, the League Cup final is next week, and the Premier League is also racing towards a climax. Naturally, all keen footballing minds are therefore focused on the summer transfer window, which is going to be great! Avoid the rush and book the 31 August off work now!One player who might be on the move is Alexis Sánchez: amazingly, it’s turned out that having his career ruined by team-mates who do not share his talent, focus and desire cannot be mitigated by a pair of twee dog banners. And, in any event, he’s...

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Champions League last 16: tie-by-tie analysis | Michael Cox

Real Madrid ought to have too much for Napoli, but there are tough challenges ahead for Arsenal, Leicester and Paris Saint-Germain Related: Champions League final: Ronaldo ‘had feeling’ he would score winner Related: Arsenal better set for deep run in Champions League, says Arsène Wenger Related: Juventus 1-3 Barcelona | Champions League final match report Continue reading...

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