Roses are red, violets are blue, have we got the perfect Valentine's Day content for you!
(Very) questionable rhymes aside, love is in the air as long-standing couples and newly formed relationships celebrate the day of romance on Tuesday.
The Premier League is certainly no stranger to the language of love, so while cracking open a bottle of red and exchanging cheap tat with your significant other, why not get some inspiration for love with our Valentine's Day facts with some help from Cupid!
Well, maybe not Cupid, but Opta – and the team at Opta are full of love!
MATT LE KISS-IER'S FOND VALENTINE'S DAY MEMORY
Valentine's Day is of course a day for love (and overpaying for those last-minute flowers and cards you almost forgot to buy…).
Three players who've enjoyed a particularly joyous February 14 in the past are Southampton legend Matt Le Tissier, ex-Liverpool striker Michael Owen, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who have each scored three times in the Premier League on this date – no one has managed more.
All three of those were Valentine's Day hat-tricks as well.
Le Tissier registered three against the Reds back in 1994; Owen took home the match ball with a treble for Liverpool versus Sheffield Wednesday four years later; Aubameyang broke Leeds United hearts in 2021 with Arsenal.
COUPLE GOALS
Sharing's caring, as they say.
Mutual support is a key component of any healthy relationship, particularly the relationship between a striker and their fellow forwards…
If there's any Premier League pairing that sums up "couple goals", it has to be Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.
The Tottenham duo have directly linked up for 44 goals in the league, more than any other pairing in Premier League history.
No couple have ever combined for more than one goal on Valentine's Day, though Philippe Coutinho and the late Jose Antonio Reyes have shared the love on the most romantic day of the year – they have tallied two assists each on February 14, more than anyone else.
CARDS GALORE
Whether from a partner or a secret admirer, it's always nice to receive a card or two on Valentine's Day.
Unless of course you're playing in the Premier League, in which case you want to see the referees keep their cards in their pockets.
In this regard, Leicester City have been the most prolific, their nine yellow cards on Valentine's Day being more than any other team have received. Arsenal follow with six.
The Foxes also fare badly when it comes to red cards, having earned two on February 14 – Danny Simpson (2016) and Hamza Choudhury (2020) account for those dismissals.
The only other player to receive a red card on Valentine's Day is Everton hero Duncan Ferguson ... no, we weren't shocked either.
LOVE IS BLIND'S TEAM-MATE
Donald Love's name gets a good airing all over social media every February 14 given it's ripe for Valentine's Day punnery.
The defender, who now plays for Morecambe in League One, made his Manchester United debut the day before Valentine's Day in 2016, coming on as a substitute in a 2-1 defeat to Sunderland, who he would also go on to play for.
In that game, he slotted in on the right of a back four that also included another pun-magnet in Daley Blind. So, on Valentine's Day 2016, you could have legitimately said Love is Blind...'s team-mate.
Love never went on to play a Premier League game on Valentine's Day, which for obvious reasons is rather regrettable.
SHORT AND SWEET
Valentine's Days come and go, but in football as in life, not every relationship stands the test of time.
In the Premier League, there have been three players to make their only appearance in the competition on February 14.
Neil Cutler's brief fling with Aston Villa resulted in a one-off appearance in 2000; Shay Logan appeared for Manchester City seven years later; and in 2021 the fittingly named Niall Huggins got his sole outing for Leeds United.
It's better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all… and our heart goes out to those in that singles club.
Silva grateful Fulham's dominance was rewarded with late win
Marco Silva believes Fulham claimed a "deserved win" against Brentford, though admits they should have secured the three points much earlier in their 2-1 victory.
It looked like Vitaly Janelt's 24th-minute strike against the run of play was going to wrap up all three points for Brentford, but Harry Wilson proved the Cottagers' hero off the bench, scoring twice in stoppage time to snatch the three points.
Fulham had dominated from the first whistle and had 26 shots, 12 of which were on target, though they struggled to find a way past their opponents' staunch defence until the 92nd minute.
Wilson became just the sixth player to score an equalising and match-winning goal from the 90th minute onwards in the Premier League, while his second goal was Fulham's latest-ever Premier League winner at 96:46.
Silva was delighted with how his team pushed until the final seconds to ensure they came away with a win.
"It was definitely a deserved win. We started on the front foot and dominated all the game. In the first 20 minutes, we had two clear chances to score," Silva told BBC Sport.
"After they scored, we didn't lose the confidence and the trust in ourselves, we kept pushing them back, and we created enough to not be losing at half-time.
"I told the players this is football, it can happen, but we have to keep pushing, working hard and playing our way.
"It was late, it should've been much before, but that's football."
Brentford, meanwhile, have now dropped a league-high 14 points from winning positions in the Premier League as they suffered a fifth consecutive away defeat in the competition.
In fact, they are the first side in the competition's history to score the first goal in four consecutive away games and lose all four.
They had defended resolutely until their late lapse in concentration, and even had a chance to win it, only for Bernd Leno's impressive save to keep out Fabio Carvalho in the 95th minute.
Thomas Frank, though, admitted he was not yet ready to take the positives from the performance after the disappointment of their late defeat.
"It was tough. It is emotionally very tough right now," Frank told Sky Sports.
"When you are leading in the 92nd minute, and you lose, it is tough. I don't think we hit our highest level. I think on the day Fulham were better.
"There was a lot of good defending and effort, and I thought that would have given us the win. We could have won it with the chance for Fabio Carvalho and then we lost.
"When we look at the game back, and we are more cool-headed, we will probably be very happy with the defensive standard. I thought there were unbelievable blocks, and recovery runs and all that we did well. On the ball, we didn't do enough."
Guardiola expecting challenging season for injury-hit Man City
Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City's current injury problems will make it harder for them to repeat the success of recent years.
Depleted by a number of injuries to key players, the Premier League champions saw a 32-game unbeaten league run ended by a loss at Bournemouth on Saturday after a midweek reverse at Tottenham in the EFL Cup fourth round, marking the first time City have lost successive matches in all competitions since September 2023.
While Guardiola says he is aware of the expectations surrounding his team, he knew they were likely to suffer more defeats due to injuries and the increasing level of their opponents.
"I know our standards, but we've lost just one game. Maybe we are going to lose again in the Premier League against Brighton and against Tottenham and against Liverpool," Guardiola told reporters, referring to their next three Premier League games.
"We are just two points behind Liverpool, who are a top-class team. We've started well in the Champions League, but I know people expect us to win 38 league games and win the treble every season as these are our standards.
"The reason it is difficult is because we have had a lot of absentees, which can happen in some seasons.
"Sometimes, to win the treble, everything has to be on the same page with injuries, but this is not possible this time. The teams are very strong and everything is more difficult, and we have to accept that. That is the challenge."
City will be without Ballon d'Or winner Rodrigo and Oscar Bobb for most of the campaign, while John Stones, Jack Grealish and Ruben Dias remain sidelined and have not travelled to Portugal.
Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake and Kyle Walker still have problems despite being in the squad, Guardiola said, and Kevin De Bruyne and Savinho are improving, while Erling Haaland is fit.
City sit third in the Champions League standings after two wins and a draw and are looking for a third consecutive European win at Portuguese champions Sporting CP, who are eighth but also have seven points and are unbeaten across all competitions this season.
Guardiola's side claimed a resounding 5-0 win at Sporting when they met in the 2022 Champions League last 16, and are looking to extend their record run of unbeaten games to 27 in the competition.
"They play quite similar like we faced two seasons ago, the pattern is so clear," Guardiola added.
"They have changed players but have the same manager and same mentality," he said, referring to Sporting boss Ruben Amorim, who will take over at Manchester United at the start of the international break.
Returning fan favourite Alonso calls Liverpool 'one of Europe's best'
Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso hailed his former club Liverpool as "one of Europe's best" as he prepares for his Anfield return.
Alonso, who spent five successful years at Anfield and helped Liverpool win the Champions League in 2005, returns to his former stomping ground when Leverkusen take on the Reds on Tuesday.
Arne Slot has won 12 of his first 14 matches in charge of Liverpool, including all three in the Champions League so far.
Leverkusen have only won one of their 11 away major European matches in England (D3 L7), and have lost their last two visits to Anfield, and Alonso is under no illusion as to the scale of the task that awaits the reigning Bundesliga champions.
"For us, it is a big challenge," he said.
"Liverpool at the moment are one of the best, if not the best, in Europe, they are showing that in the Premier League and Champions League, a good squad, great coach. We're looking forward to it. Let's see what happens.
"You can play 70 minutes great but in 20 minutes it [the game] is gone, so it is mentally and emotionally we need to be ready.
"In all areas, they are really strong, so the process works really well. [Slot] has done a fantastic job in three months."
Alonso played 210 times across all competitions for Liverpool between 2004 and 2009, scoring 18 goals and providing 20 assists.
After winning the Champions League with the Reds in 2005, he helped them reach the final in 2007, though they lost to Milan on that occasion.
However, the Spaniard does not think he will have too much time for a trip down memory lane.
"Unfortunately, there is no time for tourism – maybe a little run or walk," he said.
"I know the city very well, I love it, but tomorrow I will focus on the game and only the game.
"It feels great to be back here after a few years. It's always special. You notice the development of the club; the new stand looks amazing.
"It is a big game against Liverpool, it cannot get much better than that."
The omens are not great for Leverkusen, though.
Liverpool have lost one of their last 21 European meetings with German opponents (W14 D6), albeit that one defeat came against Leverkusen in 2002.
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