FA Cup third round buildup, Macclesfield magic, WSL and a big clash in Serie A – as it happened
News and buildup to today’s FA Cup and WSL action Serie A: Let’s zoom in on the game of the day in Italy as Inter host Napoli at 7.45pm (GMT). These two teams have scooped up four of the last five scudetti between them – with two each – and their rivalry is now among Serie A’s hottest. Inter lead the way this season on 42 points but Napoli, in fourth, are only four points behind. Milan, Roma and Juventus will all think they still have a chance of competing for the title too. Inter and Napoli’s first meeting this season was certainly eventful. Kevin De Bruyne put Antonio Conte’s side ahead from the penalty spot but tore his hamstring in the process. Scott McTominay’s second-half strike was a beauty and set Napoli on their way to a 3-1 win. Can they repeat the feat at San Siro tonight? Continue reading...
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My taste of FA Cup action yesterday came at the Etihad Stadium, where I watched Manchester City thump Exeter 10-1 from the away end. It was a brutal … but at least the 7,800 travelling supporters had something to cheer in 19-year-old George Birch’s peach of a goal late on.
Manchester City paid third-tier Exeter plenty of respect – Erling Haaland and Rodri started the game, with Antoine Semenyo scoring on his full debut. Off the bench came the likes of Jérémy Doku and Bernardo Silva.
[Manchester City’s] behaviours throughout were relentless, their attitude and the respect they showed us I thought was outstanding, and they did what Man City should do to us. That didn’t drop off at 4-0, 5-0, 6-0, 7-0, they kept going and we can take a lot from this game in terms of the behaviours we try and coach into the players every day and the behaviours we try and instil. The team can take a lot from that, because that was a really humbling experience.
With all the respect [to Macclesfield] in a game like this you don’t need a tactic, you don’t need a manager who tells you what to do. You have to do the right things. We have to score five or six against a non-league team, but we didn’t show any kind of quality.
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