Football news live with Sancho latest, Van Dijk ban reaction and Kane comments

Terry on Mount saga

John Terry believes there's "another side to the story" of how and why Mason Mount chose to leave Chelsea for Manchester United.

The midfielder, who has risen through the ranks at Cobham, opted not to renew his deal with the Blues and moved to a direct rival in the Red Devils. United spent £60m to add the versatile midfielder, who will take on his former club for the first time in early December.

Terry told Knockout Events: "Mase is proper Chels through and through. There's always two sides to a story and I know the other side to it. I'm not going to air that tonight but there's another side to the story. Let's not be too harsh on him when he comes back."

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Valverde on Arsenal trial

Arsenal rejected the chance to sign Federico Valverde before he joined Real Madrid.

The 25-year-old has established himself as one of the best midfielders in Europe in recent years - but it could have been a whole lot different should he have signed for Arsenal. Valverde made the switch to Los Blancos from Penarol in 2016 after having a week-long trial at the Gunners.

But then-manager Arsene Wenger turned down the opportunity to sign Valverde, with Real swooping in to secure his services instead.

When asked about his short stint at Arsenal, Valverde spoke about the impact of Alexis Sanchez and his time with the Gunners. He said: "I have always been grateful to him. When I went to train at Arsenal, Alexis was there and he was one of the few who came up to help me."

Federico Valverde has opened up on his trial at Arsenal (Getty Images)

Two players demanded Pepe swap

Nicolas Pepe has finally secured his Arsenal exit after what was an underwhelming spell for the one-time record signing.

The Gunners captured the Ivorian back in 2019 for £72m after he'd been hugely impressive with Lille. Liverpool were among those keen but it was the north Londoners who stumped up the cash to land the highly thought of winger, but he never regularly delivered.

Everton chiefs face transfer backlash from fans after deadline day disaster

Pepe produced the odd moment of magic but he's previously been loaned out and Arsenal were desperate to get him off their books, eventually taking a massive loss as he moved to Turkish side Trabzonspor for nothing.

It wasn't his Gunners teammates who aired their frustration with him, instead his colleagues with the Ivory Coast. Pepe has picked up 37 caps for his country, scoring on 10 occasions, but the likes of Wilfried Zaha and Salomon Kalou did their best to avoid him.

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Richarlison emotional after sub

Richarlison cut an emotional figure after being substituted in Brazil's 5-1 win over Bolivia.

The 26-year-old, who has scored once in five appearances for Tottenham this season, was named in the starting XI for Brazil's first World Cup qualifier. He was part of a dynamic-looking front four which included Barcelona's Raphinha, Real Madrid winger Rodrygo and Al-Hilal's Neymar.

But as his nation ran riot at Estadio Olimpico do Para, Richarlison drew a blank and was substituted in the 71st minute - moments after missing a gilt-edged chance. He was replaced by Wolves' Matheus Cunha and watched on as Neymar added his second to wrap up a comfortable victory for Fernando Diniz's men.

After being taken off, Richarlison sat down on the substitutes' bench and was pictured in tears alongside his teammates.

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Fernandes hits back to Pepe comparisons

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes was justified in his passionate reply to those comparing him to ex-Arsenal flop Nicolas Pepe.

The Red Devils midfield maestro arrived at Old Trafford in 2020 and many had high expectations for what Fernandes could achieve. They were justified in their stance, as we now know given the level the Portugal international has managed to operate at for the entire duration of his United stay.

However, Fernandes has previously spoken about how some prominent pundits may have expected him to take "one or two years" to adapt to the rigours of the Premier League as that is what they expect of any foreign talent arriving in the English top flight.

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More Arsenal injury woes...

Mikel Arteta will be cursing his luck as Arsenal may have been dealt another injury blow after Gabriel Magalhaes was on the end of a horror tackle while representing Brazil.

The former Lille defender has been an ever-present in the Gunners' starting line-up for the overwhelming majority of his Arsenal career but has found himself starting on the bench for three of the club's opening four Premier League games this term. Gabriel's first start of the campaign came during last Sunday's dramatic home win over Manchester United.

However, any momentum the Brazilian may have gained as a result of his stellar performance against the Red Devils could have been scuppered after Gabriel was the victim of an eye-watering challenge against Bolivia. The Selecao ran out 5-1 winners, but the Arsenal ace failed to last the full 90 minutes and was pictured with ice on his thigh after the game.

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Ronaldo dodges red card after nasty collision

Cristiano Ronaldo was fortunate to avoid a straight red card after catching Martin Dubravka with his studs during Portugal's Euro 2024 qualifier against Slovakia.

Ronaldo lunged for a loose ball in the second half of the match and accidentally caught Dubravka in the face. The veteran striker protested his innocence and apologised to Dubrvaka and was shown a yellow card by the referee.

VAR did check the incident for a possible red, but Ronaldo escaped further punishment after indicating that his foot had slid up from Dubravka's chest to his face. Ronaldo briefly played alongside Dubravka at Manchester United last season, but there was no love lost between the pair on Friday night.

Giggs issues challenge to Sancho

Ryan Giggs has told Jadon Sancho not to sulk if he wants to change Erik ten Hag's opinion of him and win back his Manchester United place.

Sancho was left out of United's squad for last Sunday's 3-1 defeat at Arsenal, with Ten Hag claiming afterwards the 23-year-old had been omitted because of poor performances in training.

Winger Sancho took to social media to counter his manager's version of events, claiming what he said was “completely untrue” and that he had been made “a scapegoat for a long time”.

United legend Giggs, 49, said Ten Hag's public calling out of Sancho was a last desperate effort to get the best out of a player who has under-performed since joining from Borussia Dortmund for £72million two years ago.

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Saudi chief makes Salah stance clear

Mohamed Salah remains a Liverpool player for the time being – but the club have been warned that Saudi Pro League clubs won’t give up trying to sign him.

Liverpool breathed a sigh of relief on Thursday night after the Saudi transfer window closed. Al-Ittihad had coveted Salah all summer and the Reds were forced to reject an offer worth £150million for the star forward.

Jurgen Klopp remained steadfast in his view that Salah was not for sale at any price and Liverpool’s success in keeping him came as a boost to the club’s manager. But with the January transfer window just 115 days away, Saudi Pro League director of football Michael Emenalo – the man who has to approve all the league’s transfers – has hinted that the efforts will be renewed at the first opportunity.

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England squad ALL believe Euros win is on the cards

Gareth Southgate insists his England players have shown a huge mentality shift - and they all believe they WILL win the Euros next

England boss Southgate can clinch qualification in this camp if they beat Ukraine on Saturday night and other results go their way next Tuesday. That means they can then book their hotel in Germany but Southgate says the whole squad have gone from thinking they are contenders to believing their name is on the trophy.

Southgate, who has led England to a World Cup semi final and Euros final, has been drumming that message into his players and said: “The whole group are determined on that. We were finalists last time, and we felt that in the World Cup we played very well, lost to one of the best two teams in the world and we know that there’s the possibility for this team to get better as well."

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Sancho fallout latest

The Manchester United dressing room have "had enough" of Jadon Sancho following his angry outburst to being dropped on Sunday, it has been claimed.

Sancho was not even named on the bench to take on Arsenal, with Erik ten Hag admitting in his post-match press conference that the 23-year-old had been left out because of his performances in training.

Find out the full story here

Kane risks wrath of Tottenham fans

England captain Harry Kane has risked the wrath of Spurs fans after speaking out about his opening few weeks at Bayern Munich.

Speaking in a press conference, the striker said: “It’s a different pressure to what I felt at Spurs. Of course we wanted to win things but if you went a couple of games without winning, it wasn’t a disaster. The feeling at Bayern is that you have to win every game. That’s part and parcel of being at one of the biggest clubs in the world."

Van Dijk reacts to ban

Virgil van Dijk has claimed he "accepts" the extended ban handed to him by the FA after his Newcastle red card.

He said: "Following the announcement today I'd just like to make clear I totally accept the panel's decision. It was the first red card of my Liverpool career and I let my frustrations get the better of me in an intense and heated moment.

"I apologised immediately after the game to the match officials and take full responsibilty. Time to move forward now. I will continue supporting the team in every way I can."

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