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Sheffield Wednesday deny stewarding shortage as FA investigates Hillsborough overcrowding reports

Newcastle's FA Cup campaign was cut short by a surprise 2-1 defeat to the League One side, with Josh Windass' brace eliminating the Champions League-chasing Magpies.

However, the game was marred by reports of away fans experiencing overcrowding in the Leppings Lane End – the site of 1989's Hillsborough disaster, which led to the deaths of 97 fans after a crush at an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.

The FA and the Sports Grounds Safety Authority have since pledged to review the reports, and the club said they would cooperate with those investigations via a statement on Wednesday.

"Further to a request from the Football Association on the afternoon of Monday January 9, Sheffield Wednesday has now submitted its comprehensive observations to the governing body following last weekend's Emirates FA Cup third-round tie with Newcastle United," the statement began.

"Whilst it is inappropriate to outline in full the details of the submission at this time, the club feels it is important to emphasise that the stewarding numbers in place within the visitors' section of the stadium exceeded the requirements of the safety certificate. 

"The allocation of tickets issued to Newcastle supporters also complied absolutely with the safety certificate.

"In addition, fewer supporters entered the visitors' turnstiles when aligned to the number of tickets allocated and sold.

"There were no reports of injuries or medical assistance required on the West Stand logged with the club's first aid operations manager before, during or after the game.

"Whilst we continue to assist and engage with the FA and explore all options, the club will be making no further comment at this time."

The Queen: The FA 'join the nation' in mourning Her Majesty

Buckingham Palace confirmed  on Thursday that Her Majesty had passed away peacefully at the age of 96, with members of the Royal Family travelling to Balmoral to be by her side.

The Queen famously handed over the Jules Rimet Trophy to Bobby Moore after England's World Cup final triumph over West Germany at Wembley in 1966.

Meanwhile, she recently told the women's football team – the Lionesses – that their home triumph at Euro 2022 would serve as "an inspiration for girls and women today, and for future generations".

The FA released a statement on Twitter, reading: "We have sent our deepest condolences to our president, HRH The Duke of Cambridge and the whole of the Royal Family following the passing of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.

"We join our nation in mourning her loss."

UEFA receives three preliminary bids to host Euro tournaments in 2028 and 2032

A joint bid from the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland was submitted for the 2028 tournament, while Turkey also threw its hat in the ring having never hosted a major tournament.

Football associations from England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland put forward a proposal and promised to organise an "unrivalled" tournament.

The bid from the English FA comes after much criticism over its handling of fan disorder at the Euro 2020 final at Wembley Stadium, with an independent review describing it as a "day of national shame".

Turkey also bid for the 2032 edition, as well as Italy, which has not been chosen as a sole host of a major tournament since the World Cup in 1990.

The deadline for submitting final dossiers is April 12 2023, before the hosts will be chosen in the European autumn of that year.

Wiegman surpassed England's 'wildest dreams', now set for new contract

Former Netherlands coach Wiegman took charge of England just 11 months ago but inspired groundbreaking success at her first major tournament in the job.

England's women's side had never previously won a major title, while the last success for either of their senior teams saw the men win the 1966 World Cup.

Incredibly, Wiegman defended the European title she won with the Oranje, becoming the first coach to achieve this success with two different nations.

After a 2-1 final triumph against Germany in Sunday's Wembley final, she has won all 12 of her Women's Euros finals matches across the two roles.

Wiegman is under contract for another three years, in which time England will travel to Australia and New Zealand for the 2023 Women's World Cup before defending their title at the Women's Euro 2025.

But the Football Association (FA) is eager to further tie Wiegman down while she remains unbeaten in her 20 matches as manager. The Lionesses have won 18 of those, scoring 106 goals.

"She is incredible," said FA chief executive Mark Bullingham. "She was our number one target when we were going out to look for a manager, and she was just brilliant all through that process.

"We were delighted to secure her, even though, in our wildest dreams, we thought that this tournament might be too early.

"So, we weren't sure we'd win this one, we were hoping we would win one in the future, so she achieved brilliant results earlier than we could have ever hoped."

He added: "She only signed in September, but we would love her to be with us for a long time. I think she's a really special person and a really special talent."

Sue Campbell, the FA's director of women's football, said of Wiegman: "She'll have a couple of weeks off and then when she gets back we'll have a conversation. She's done an incredible job."

Campbell, quoted by ESPN, added: "When we interviewed her, we knew we were getting the best tactical and technical coach in the world; what we didn't know was that we were getting this exceptional human being.

"The first words she said to me when I walked to her on the pitch [on Sunday] was, 'What have we done?'. She really didn't know. There's a humility there and a passion for the game."