Saracens may have broadened their horizons in attack this season but Owen Farrell insists they have always played with greater adventure than given credit for.
One victory separates Saracens from a sixth Gallagher Premiership title after they crushed Northampton 38-15 in Saturday’s semi-final at StoneX Stadium.
Director of rugby Mark McCall described it as “our strongest defensive performance for years”, but it is in their willingness to attack that the club have evolved most significantly.
Frustrated by last season’s defeat to Leicester in the Premiership final, they resolved to show more ambition for 2022-23 and have flourished as a consequence with only Saints scoring more tries in the regular season.
Farrell has been at the heart of the buccaneering with assistance from Alex Goode and Elliot Daly, but England’s captain denies that it is a radical change in direction for Saracens.
“There was always a perception about us before – and at times rightly so – that we were this team that just strangled teams and kicked everything,” Farrell said.
“But if you look back, in some of the finals we had against Exeter and Clermont, we played rugby.
“People were talking as if we didn’t play rugby, as if we just kicked everything and used the driving maul. I don’t know how people thought we won games, but we played rugby.
“We would have patches of it during the season and then go back to fundamentals.
“We were trying to bring more of it out and the bits that we showed in the past before have showed us that we were ready for doing more of it. It felt like we were ready to do it, so that’s why we did.
“We’ve come from a place – and rightly so – that was built on solid foundations: a good kicking game and defence. And attack came off the back of that.
“That started a long time ago, even before I left school. That served us unbelievably well. I just feel we’ve been ready for a bigger jump this year.
“The key thing has been to take that into the bigger games and I’m glad we did that against Northampton.”
Farrell and Goode were the catalysts for Saracens’ dynamism against Saints, pulling the strings in a dazzling start to the play-off.
“It’s about picking our heads up and looking to see if it’s on. There’s obviously a percentage of how on it is. If it’s properly on we want to take it,” Farrell said.
“If we think we can take metres to score a try, get to halfway rather than kick it there, then that’s a chance that we want to take.
“We want to take obvious chances and we don’t want to be half in, half out. We don’t want to be indecisive. We want to be decisive.”
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was unhappy with Everton defender Yerry Mina for what he implied were underhand and unsporting tactics during their 3-0 win at Goodison Park.
The Colombia international was involved in one visible incident with Aymeric Laporte at a corner in the first half in which the City centre-back slapped his opponent in the stomach following an altercation and Mina fell to the floor.
But at the final whistle Guardiola confronted the Everton defender and remonstrated with him as he followed him off the pitch. All City’s players also refused to shake Mina’s hand.
While Guardiola refused to say what Mina had actually done, his unhappiness appeared to centre on the Colombian’s handling of opponents.
“Mina? It’s not necessary what he does. Away from the football, it is not necessary to do what he does every single game,” said Guardiola.
“And I told him, ‘You are a good enough player to avoid these kind of things’.”
Asked to elaborate on his complaints, the City boss added: “He knows. Ask him. This is not physical, this is not mental.
“There are things that are not necessary to do that he does. This time with Aymeric, Jack (Grealish), everybody. Ask him. Invite him to the press conference.”
The row detracted from the ease with which City dealt with Everton, with Ilkay Gundogan scoring twice for the second game running either side of the obligatory goal – his 52nd of the season – from Erling Haaland.
Gundogan is out of contract in the summer and has been linked with a move to Barcelona, but Guardiola is more than happy for him to captain the side, as he did at Goodison where he led from the front with two superbly-taken goals.
“He can show again and again and again the quality and importance and his commitment, to all of us, to the club, not just scoring goals, now he has his momentum,” said Guardiola, who wants the Germany international to extend his stay.
“He doesn’t talk much, but when he talks everyone listens and this is the power of the leader. He show his leadership in every training session – arriving on time, living 24 hours your job and play like he is playing.
“He is a player that when he gets close to the box he has an incredible sense of goal. He can play as a holding midfielder no problem, he proved it years ago when Fernandinho was injured, he played in games like Burnley, long balls, you think you need a physical player, but he is so clever and he is a guy who handles the pressure well.”
Everton manager Sean Dyche said he was unaware of any allegations against Mina and the player had not mentioned anything to him.
“If he did it all the time, I wouldn’t know where he had seen it because he (Mina) hasn’t been on the pitch for weeks,” he said.
City’s 11th successive league victory leaves them requiring a maximum of six points for a fifth title in six seasons.
They inflicted a record 10th home league defeat of the season on Everton, who remain 17th and a point above Leeds, but of equal concern was the withdrawal of striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin at half-time.
While the England international has scored only one goal in five games since returning from two-and-half months out with a hamstring injury, he has provided a much-needed focal point and performances have improved as a result.
Dyche, who realistically has to find one win from their two remaining matches against Wolves and Bournemouth, said he took the injury-prone striker off as a precaution.
“I had to make a call because he felt his groin and tight groins can lead to damaged groins,” he said.
“It would have been harder at 0-0 than 2-0. He wanted to carry on, but I said, ‘Dom, you are coming off’.”
On his side’s display, in which they did not trouble City, he added: “A lot of the performance was right against a top side, but you get punished if you make the slightest mistake.
“We arguably had the best chance with Mason Holgate (who missed a difficult close-range opportunity at 0-0).
“There were some outstanding performances, Dwight (McNeil) was outstanding, Doucs (Abdoulaye Doucoure), Conor (Coady) came on and affected it in a change of shape (to a 5-4-1).”
David Moyes believes West Ham have been on the wrong end of too many strange VAR decisions.
Having been denied penalties for handballs against Liverpool and Manchester United in recent weeks, the Hammers had a goal contentiously ruled out in their 2-0 defeat at Brentford.
When Said Benrahma’s cross came back off a post it hit Divin Mubama, who had put his hand up to prevent himself from crashing into the woodwork.
Manuel Lanzini swept the ball back into the box to leave Dany Ings with a tap-in to halve the deficit with 25 minutes remaining.
But referee Michael Oliver went to the pitchside monitor and ruled that young striker Mubama had handled the ball.
“Very strange,” said Hammers boss Moyes. “The Premier League have come out and called it deliberate handball. I think we need a bit of explanation on that.
“The first thing I would say about it is it is inconclusive. If anything I think it hits his shoulder, right on his collarbone.
“If it’s a handball that leads to a goal we all know that rule, but I certainly don’t see deliberate. If anything he might be protecting himself from going into the post. I’m amazed it was chalked off.
“But, let’s be fair, if this was the first one we were talking about in recent games I would say it can happen, but we’re now talking about three of these.
“It’s getting regular. It really is. I don’t want to get in trouble but we’ve had three real ones that could have altered things, and if you said we’ve had our fair share, I’m saying I don’t think we have.”
In truth Brentford, leading through first-half goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, could have been four or five up by the time Ings’ goal was disallowed.
Moyes’ priorities clearly lie elsewhere despite not being mathematically safe from relegation, with the Hammers boss making nine changes to his side ahead of Thursday night’s Europa Conference League semi-final second leg against AZ Alkmaar.
However, if Moyes was hoping to be given some selection dilemmas for the trip to the Netherlands, he was left sorely disappointed.
Mbeumo pounced after a mistake by Nayef Aguerd and Wissa headed the second after West Ham failed to deal with Mathias Jensen’s long throw.
“I didn’t enjoy the performance. I thought we were soft, easy to play against. It was so poor,” added Moyes.
“We did some work on defending long throws, but you wouldn’t have thought it watching that today. I’m so disappointed the players didn’t deal with it.”
The Bees are now assured of a top-10 finish, proving there is no such thing as second-season syndrome in this corner of west London.
“I was asked before the season about that,” said boss Thomas Frank, “and without sounding too smart we tried to analyse things, looked at the players, the other teams, our performances, our culture, and we thought why shouldn’t we be able to do well in our second season?
“Now we are 100 per cent in the top 10, which is a brilliant achievement.”
Atletico Madrid missed the chance to leapfrog Real Madrid into second place in LaLiga on Sunday, as Ivo Grbic's error proved costly in a 1-0 defeat to relegated Elche.
Diego Simeone's men had the opportunity to go one point clear of their city rivals at the Estadio Martinez Valero, but their three-match winning run ground to a halt as Fidel Chaves restored some pride for LaLiga's bottom club.
Elche took the lead on the stroke of half-time as Grbic – deputising for the injured Jan Oblak – miscued his punch from Lautaro Blanco's long throw, allowing skipper Fidel to hook his finish into an unguarded net.
Edgar Badia made an excellent one-on-one save to deny Alvaro Morata an equaliser after the break, but Elche went closest to a second goal with both Pere Milla and Lucas Boye missing clear chances.
Though Atleti have all but sealed a top-four finish, they have work to do to overhaul Los Blancos, sitting two points adrift of Carlo Ancelotti's men in third with four games remaining.
Sale Sharks reached their first Gallagher Premiership final for 17 years as they ended Leicester’s hopes of back-to-back titles with a 21-13 victory at the AJ Bell Stadium.
Alex Sanderson’s team will meet his former club Saracens at Twickenham on May 27 in pursuit of a Premiership crown that Sale last claimed when players like Jason Robinson, Charlie Hodgson and Sebastien Chabal ruled the roost.
After finishing 10 points above Leicester during the regular league season, Sale were pushed all the way by Tigers in an absorbing encounter.
Former Leicester fly-half George Ford played a key role in Leicester’s downfall, kicking three penalties and a conversion, while wings Tom Roebuck and Arron Reed claimed tries.
Sale overcame the sight of their captain Ben Curry being carried off injured, and they withstood a resilient Leicester effort that saw a try for wing Harry Potter, plus eight points from the boot of Jimmy Gopperth.
But Leicester will also curse themselves for twice ruining promising late attacking platforms through wayward kicks to touch that prevented attacking lineouts.
Sale showed five changes from their final regular season game against Newcastle, with Gus Warr, Simon McIntyre, Nick Schonert, Akker van der Merwe and Tom Curry all returning for the sold-out clash.
Leicester welcomed back the likes of Freddie Steward and Anthony Watson, but they suffered an injury blow when fly-half Handre Pollard was ruled out, being replaced by 39-year-old Gopperth.
The New Zealander missed a gilt-edged chance to put Leicester ahead when he drifted a close-range penalty wide, but he made amends three minutes later as Tigers moved in front.
Sale’s indiscipline surfaced early on, and Gopperth found his range again, this time from 48 metres to make it 6-0.
The game had a relentless pace to it, and it went up a gear when Sale found their rhythm, probing for gaps through adventurous running from Reed and full-back Joe Carpenter, while England centre Manu Tuilagi also made his presence felt.
Sale were a threat when they were able to put width on their possession, and Roebuck finished off a flowing move before Ford added a touchline conversion as Leicester fell behind.
The Sharks then suffered a major blow when Curry departed the action after suffering a suspected knee injury as Leicester attacked on Sale’s 22. He was replaced by Dan du Preez.
Curry received a standing ovation as he left the action, but he was soon able to watch from the sidelines, with Sharks exerting sustained pressure inside Tigers’ 22.
And Tigers’ cause was not helped when their England prop Dan Cole received a yellow card from Wayne Barnes following a high challenge on Van der Merwe.
Leicester then lost scrum-half Ben Youngs for a head injury assessment after he halted Sale centre Rob du Preez’s charge for the corner, and Tigers’ defence held firm, with Sale taking a 7-6 lead into half-time.
Youngs did not reappear for the second period – fellow England international Jack van Poortvliet took over from him – while Sanderson made early use of the replacements’ bench, sending on props Bevan Rodd and Coenie Oosthuizen.
A successful Ford penalty from just inside’s Leicester’s half opened up a four-point gap, yet the Tigers went back in front seven minutes later when centre Dan Kelly’s long pass sent Potter scampering over, with Gopperth converting.
A Ford penalty then tied the contest at 13-13 with 22 minutes left, and then he turned provider, creating space in midfield, and although his pass to Reed hit the ground, the wing finished brilliantly.
Reed was quickly at it again, breaking clear from inside his own half before firing the ball to replacement scrum-half Raffi Quirke, but the pass was rightly adjudged forward by Barnes.
Ford, who was a dominant figure during the closing quarter, then kicked a long-range penalty that left Tigers eight points behind as their title grip was prised away.
Former Manchester United skipper Roy Keane delivered a withering assessment of England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford following Everton’s Premier League defeat by title-chasing Manchester City.
The 29-year-old was given little chance by Ilkay Gundogan’s stunning first-half strike, but was unable to keep out Erling Haaland’s header seconds later and was well beaten by Gundogan’s second-half free-kick as City won 3-0 at Goodison Park on Sunday afternoon.
Analysing the third goal, Keane, who has questioned Pickford’s credentials in the past, disagreed with fellow pundit Micah Richards’ opinion of Gareth Southgate’s number one.
He told Sky Sports: “Pickford, for the goal…my goodness. He looks so small in there. There’s no spring, he’s not anticipating.
“Micah said before the game he’s a top goalkeeper. He’s not.”
Keane was, however, full of praise for Gundogan and in particular, his improvised 37th-minute finish after he had controlled Riyad Mahrez’s cross on his thigh before flicking the ball home with his back still to goal.
He said: “What an outstanding player. Again, we mentioned (Everton boss) Sean Dyche will be disappointed with the defending, but once it goes in there, his first touch is brilliant; his second one is even better.
“What a player this guy is, absolutely brilliant, the way he times his runs into the box…what a magnificent finish. I’d watch that all day. Brilliant.”
Kevin Sinfield carried Rob Burrow over the finish line at the inaugural Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon after pushing his great friend and former Leeds Rhinos team-mate for 26.2 miles on Sunday.
With just a couple of metres left to go, Sinfield lifted Burrow out of his specially adapted wheelchair and the pair completed the course together in an emotional conclusion at Headingley Stadium.
As a crowd cheered them on, Sinfield gave Burrow, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in late 2019, a kiss of affection after joining 12,500 other runners in Leeds’ first marathon in 20 years.
Sinfield has raised over £8million for MND charities after several other ventures, including an Ultra 7 in 7 Challenge in November when he ran seven back-to-back ultra-marathons.
In late 2020, Sinfield ran seven marathons in seven days and in 2021 he completed a run of 101 miles in 24 hours.
Sunday’s event, plus the Leeds Half Marathon which also take place on Sunday, was held by Leeds City Council in partnership with Jane Tomlinson’s Run For All charity and has already surpassed the £1m fundraising mark.
Sinfield told the PA news agency on Friday: “To raise money for the MND Association and the Leeds Hospitals Charity is really important, but this is also about a celebration of friendship.”
Joe Root was out for 10 off 15 balls in his maiden Indian Premier League innings as Rajasthan Royals were skittled for a woeful 59 in a humbling 112-run defeat to Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Root, who was selected for the Royals’ two previous matches but did not bat, overturned an lbw decision on one before Wayne Parnell’s slower ball thudded into the Yorkshireman’s pads in Jaipur.
He reviewed in vain to become Parnell’s third victim, with the left-armer also snaring Root’s England team-mate Jos Buttler, out for a two-ball duck after slapping a short and wide delivery to cover.
Root’s dismissal left the Royals on 28 for five in response to their opponents’ 171 for five.
While Shimron Hetmyer bludgeoned four sixes in his 35 off 19 balls, the West Indies left-hander could not stop the Royals succumbing to the third lowest total in the IPL’s history – all out in 10.3 overs.
The heavy loss has dented the Royals’ hopes of a top-four play-off finish after falling to sixth with just one game remaining. RCB, meanwhile, have climbed to fifth and have two matches left in the regular season.
Royal Challengers Bangalore subjected Rajasthan Royals to a humiliating 112-run thrashing in Jaipur on Sunday, despite brief resistance from Shimron Hetmyer.
The Guyanese batsman made a 19-ball 35 that included a four and four sixes as he tried to get Royals back into the game after crashing to 31-6 after seven overs, chasing RCB’s 171-5. Former England captain Joe Root, who made 10 was the only other batter in double figures for Royals, who were skittled out for 59 in 10.3 overs.
Wayne Parnell was responsible for much of the destruction taking 3-10 from three overs. Michael Bracewell, 2-16, Karn Sharma 2-19 and Glen Maxwell 1-3 provided useful support in the rout.
Earlier, Maxwell scored 54 and Faf du Plessis 55 and Anuj Rawat provided the bulk of the scoring for RCB, who were recording their second win in their last five matches to be fifth in the league table.
Adam Zampa 2-25 and KM Asif 2-42 were the primary wicket-takers for Royals, who were losing their fourth in their last five matches.
Rory McIlroy was right to take a break after his miserable Masters experience in order to avoid a destructive trip down a “rabbit hole”, according to double US Open champion Curtis Strange.
McIlroy did not speak to waiting reporters after a second round of 77 at Augusta National brought a premature end to his latest bid to win a green jacket and complete the career grand slam.
The world number three then withdrew from the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head, meaning he missed his second ‘designated event’ of the year on the PGA Tour and lost 25 per cent of his Player Impact Program bonus (£2.4million).
McIlroy felt the break was necessary for his “mental and emotional wellbeing” after a taxing 12 months in which he juggled on-course competition with his role as an unofficial spokesman for the PGA Tour in its battle against LIV Golf.
Strange, who won the second of his back-to-back US Open titles at Oak Hill, venue for the 105th US PGA Championship, said: “I wouldn’t try to advise him on anything because I’m not privy to what he’s feeling right now, but I can only imagine.
“You put in so much energy to try to peak for a tournament like in April, the Masters, and you don’t play well. Why that is, I don’t know.
“Then frustration sets in, and you want to get away for a week or so, so you withdraw the next week. We’ve all gone through that.
“As much as you might love Harbour Town and Hilton Head, you withdraw because you’ve got to get yourself together and you know you’re starting to go down a rabbit hole that you don’t want to go very far down because it’s tough to climb back out.
“I feel for him because I think this LIV conversation the last year and a half, maybe two years, with him being somewhat of the voice and being involved in the schedule and the meetings and the phone calls, I think it’s taken a lot away from his golf.
“I think exhausted is the wrong word, but it’s fatigued him a bit.
“When you leave this game just a little bit focus-wise, it will affect you. He said after the Masters he’s looking forward to just getting back to playing golf, and hopefully that’s the case.”
McIlroy was defending champion the last time the US PGA was played at Oak Hill in 2013 and finished in a tie for eighth, but has since become a member of the club as his wife Erica grew up in Rochester.
Asked if that could work to his advantage, ESPN analyst Strange added: “Oh, I think you look for anything.
“The entire family will be there in more a comfortable atmosphere. It certainly won’t hurt him, put it that way.”
Sam Allardyce refused to criticise Patrick Bamford after the Leeds striker’s saved penalty proved costly in Saturday’s 2-2 Premier League draw against Newcastle.
Bamford had the chance to atone for his glaring miss in last month’s home draw against Leicester and put relegation battlers Leeds 2-0 up at Elland Road.
Luke Ayling had given Allardyce’s side an early lead, but after Joelinton had hauled down Junior Firpo, Bamford’s weak spot-kick was comfortably saved by Nick Pope.
Allardyce said: “I thought he was good today. He held the ball up, he caused a few problems. He got the cross in for the (opening) goal. We were doing OK with him.
“Hopefully, like everybody needs to do when it gets a little bit better next week and better again, he scores goals when he gets a chance.
“We need goal-scorers on the pitch and also, we’ve not got that many.”
Four minutes after Bamford’s effort, Callum Wilson converted the first of his two penalties following Max Wober’s reckless challenge on Alexander Isak.
Wilson then struck his 17th league goal of the season from the spot early in the second half after VAR had referred referee Simon Hooper to the pitch-side monitor to check Firpo’s handball.
Rasmus Kristensen’s 79th-minute equaliser rescued a point for Leeds, but some fans were left angry that Bamford, low on confidence, had taken the penalty instead of leading goalscorer Rodrigo.
Allardyce added: “Well, I left it how it used to be like before I got here. I mean, I haven’t seen them take many penalties.
“It is what it is. I would have thought if Rodrigo really wanted it he’d have gone and snatched it off Patrick and said ‘I’m taking this’.
“So you miss it, it can happen to anybody. It happened to us today, but at the worst possible time. And that’s very unfortunate for us.”
Newcastle’s point ensured them a top-six finish and they remain on course for Champions League football next season with back-to-back home games against Brighton and Leicester to come before a last-day visit to Chelsea.
Magpies boss Eddie Howe said: “We can wait a few more days if we achieve it. It is the toughest league in the world and we knew how difficult it would be today.”
Nerves frayed on and off the pitch in a highly-charged clash at Elland Road. Firpo was sent off in the closing stages after his lunge on Anthony Gordon earned him a second yellow card.
And before the subsequent free-kick was taken a Leeds fan leapt from the crowd to confront Howe before being dragged clear by match stewards.
“I’m struggling to make sense of it all,” Howe added. “We hadn’t created clear-cut chances. I thought we played well at times without hitting our best form and we were rushed around the box.”
Leeds issued a statement shortly after the match to confirm the fan who confronted Howe had been arrested and issued with a lifetime ban.
West Yorkshire Police added in a statement on Sunday: “Police have charged a man with assault and entering the field of play following an incident at Elland Road football stadium during the Leeds United versus Newcastle United football match yesterday. The man has been bailed to appear before magistrates on July 21.”
The P.H.A.S.E 1 Academy is set to commence try-outs for Jamaican men’s and women’s tour teams on today, Sunday, May 14, from 12 pm-3 pm and 3 pm-6 pm respectively, at the GC Foster College in Spanish Town, St Catherine.
The try-outs are open to all aspiring basketball players seeking to take their game to the next level and pave a path towards professional basketball careers.
The women will be participating in the upcoming H.E.R. Time is Now Pro Tour and the Men in the Elite 1 Caribbean Basketball League (E1CBL) Men’s Pro Showcase. Both events with be held on August 1-6 at Montego Bay Community College in St. James.
This extraordinary opportunity serves as a gateway to success by offering participants the ability to compete against other local talents in an effort secure professional contracts with E1CBL teams for the upcoming fall season.
"We believe in the power of basketball to transform lives and provide a pathway to success," said Dave Black, director at P.H.A.S.E. 1 Academy, while expressing the team's vision for the tryouts.
"P.H.A.S.E. 1 Academy is committed to nurturing talent and providing young players with the opportunity to develop their skills, compete against other basketball talent and potentially secure professional contracts. This is an exciting moment for Jamaican basketball, and we can't wait to witness the remarkable talent that will emerge from these try-outs.
The E1CBL is dedicated to nurturing talent and providing a platform for aspiring male and female basketball players to play professionally on a global stage. With a robust travel schedule that spans from June to October this year, chosen players will have the unique opportunity to go head-to-head with top-tier local and international opponents, gaining invaluable experience and exposure in the process.
The tryouts will be overseen by a panel of seasoned coaching staff with extensive experience in the basketball world. Participants are encouraged to bring their A-game, showcase their talent, athleticism, and teamwork to impress the panel. Registration for the try-outs is will be onsite at GC Foster College. Interested players are encouraged to arrive early to secure their spots, as availability is limited.
Participants may also contact Wayne Dawkins at (876)-289-3912 for more information.
Christian Eriksen was pleased by the way Manchester United dealt with the “extra pressure” and bounced back from the back-to-back defeats that jeopardised their top-four ambitions.
This has been a promising first season under Erik ten Hag, who has won the Carabao Cup and taken the Red Devils to June’s FA Cup final against Manchester City.
United have also improved markedly on last year’s Premier League performances and have long looked set to secure a return to Champions League football.
Back-to-back defeats at Brighton and West Ham allowed Liverpool to close the gap, but Ten Hag’s men got back to winning ways by triumphing 2-0 against Wolves on Saturday afternoon.
“Of course, when you lose two games the extra pressure is on,” midfielder Eriksen said.
“But we have shown the character and the quality to be where we are.
“We’re just going to focus on us. For us, it has to be three wins in the last three games.”
United travel to Bournemouth next weekend, before finishing the league campaign with home matches against Chelsea and Fulham.
Ten Hag’s men have won 25 matches at Old Trafford in all competitions and could match the club record 27 home triumphs in a single campaign.
“It’s definitely something that we need to first of all finish the season strong with a perfect home record,” Eriksen told MUTV.
“But, in the end, of course, for next season we need to be as good at home, but also away and then it’s going to be a fun season.
“We know where we can pick up extra points because at home at the moment we’re feeling very, very secure.”
United never looked in danger against Wolves, with Anthony Martial finally opening the scoring from a smart Antony pass.
It looked to be the winning goal until Alejandro Garnacho struck in stoppage time as the substitute returned from a two-month injury lay-off with a bang.
“It’s very good (to have him back),” Eriksen said of the teenager.
“You can see the quality he will bring back and the confidence of how he’s playing.
“I’m pleased for him. To be out for a while and then come back and score, it’s the perfect return.”
Wolves failed to muster a shot on target at Old Trafford and are now looking to end the season on a high as Julen Lopetegui’s men round things off at home to Everton and at Arsenal.
Skipper Ruben Neves said: “We’re going game by game. We want to have as many points as we can in the Premier League. That’s our main goal.
“We’re playing at Old Trafford which is big motivation.
“It doesn’t matter the table, it doesn’t matter the points and just playing here is fantastic for us as players, it’s a dream to play in these kinds of pitches, so we just want to get as many points as we can until the end of the season.
“We have two games to go and next week is our last game at home so we will do everything to get the three points with the atmosphere being fantastic at home.
“Our fans in here today were fantastic again, so we will try to get as many points as we can for them as well.”
The Leeds fan who confronted Newcastle manager Eddie Howe late in Saturday’s 2-2 Premier League draw has been charged with assault by West Yorkshire Police.
Leeds have banned the supporter for life after he climbed out of the stands at Elland Road and entered the technical area where the altercation with Howe took place, before he was quickly led away.
West Yorkshire Police have confirmed that the man has been charged with assault and will appear before magistrates in July.
A statement from the force read: “Police have charged a man with assault and entering the field of play following an incident at Elland Road football stadium during the Leeds United versus Newcastle United football match yesterday.
“The man has been bailed to appear before magistrates on 21 July.”
While Howe said he was unhurt during the incident, he views it as a wake-up call for the game.
“I actually can’t remember whether he pushed me or not, I’ve got no idea. It’s such a strange thing because you’re concentrating on the game and you don’t expect it to happen,” Howe said.
“He confronted me, said something that I can’t repeat and was then led away. I’m OK.
“I don’t know if I had time to be fearful because it was over in a flash but it certainly makes you think ‘what if?’.
“No one should have to face that, playing a sport we love and trying to entertain the country, no one should feel like their own personal safety is violated. It is something for us to reflect on.”
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