Eastleigh boss Richard Hill has challenged his players to write their names in the history books and set up an “absolutely massive” FA Cup clash at home to Manchester United.
A visit from the Premier League giants is the mouth-watering reward on offer for the non-league Spitfires when they host Newport in Tuesday’s third-round replay at the Silverlake Stadium.
Eastleigh have never made it to the fourth round before and beating the League Two outfit to secure a glamour tie against United would hugely boost exposure and revenue.
“The prize is absolutely massive,” said boss Hill, whose side fought from back from a man and then a goal down to draw the first meeting 1-1 in south Wales.
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“Forget what it could lead to financially – I don’t know, I don’t get involved in that.
“The financial side could be good, but just to get Manchester United to the Silverlake would just be… I keep saying it’s going to be massive, but it’s massive.”
Eastleigh beat Dover, fellow National League side Boreham Wood and stunned League One strugglers Reading en route to just their third ever appearance in the FA Cup third round.
Progress on Tuesday would secure at least an additional £105,000 in prize money and a £110,000 broadcast fee after the BBC selected United’s fourth-round tie for TV coverage.
“If the players want to dream, let them dream,” Hill said of the prospect of facing the 12-time FA Cup winners.
“My message to the players has been, today it might mean nothing that you got to the fourth round of the FA Cup personally.
“But in another 15, 20 years’ time, when there is a little snippet in the programme, local paper, that filters its way back through, it will mean something.”
Hill recalled the excitement of his son and grandson recently when they read about one of his goals in the programme at Oxford, where he played alongside United assistant Steve McClaren.
“I had a message (from) Steve McClaren,” he said. “He’s a very good mate of mine. We played together at Oxford back in the 80s. He sent me a message of good wishes, so I appreciate that.”
United’s visit to the 5,192-capacity Silverlake Stadium would comfortably be the biggest match in Eastleigh’s history.
The Hampshire side are exploring the possibility of temporary seating and say the game will be played at their home “unless our Safety Advisory Group feels the club cannot stage the match safely, which we feel is extremely unlikely”.
On the prospect of United coming to the Silverlake Stadium, a ground that welcomed just 360 fans for his first game in charge in 2012, Hill said: “It would be unbelievable, wouldn’t it? But I don’t make those decisions.
“If we are successful tomorrow, if it’s decided that the game should be moved, then I have to accept that.
“But I’m sure, knowing (owner) Stewart (Donald), that any remote chance that it can be played here… you’ve got to remember that’d be a massive legacy for him to leave as well.
“The chairman of Eastleigh Football Club, in the fourth round of the FA Cup and got Manchester United to the Silverlake. (Even) Manchester United in a pre-season friendly would be massive at the Silverlake.”
Object thrown at City striker 'Bunny' Shaw in Champions League win over Hammarby sparks UEFA investigation
UEFA has opened an investigation after Manchester City striker Khadija Shaw was hit by an object during their Women’s Champions League win against Swedish side Hammarby on Thursday.
The towering Jamaican striker scored both goals in City’s 2-1 win at the Stockholm Arena to see her side through to the quarterfinal stage.
Her animated celebration in front of the home fans after her first goal saw the 27-year-old being booked, with replays also showing an object seemingly thrown her way from the stands.
“Proceedings have been opened against Hammarby IF for throwing of objects (Article 16(2)(b) of the Disciplinary Regulations),” UEFA said in a statement.
“Manchester City player Khadija Shaw received a yellow card following her goal presentation for unsporting conduct,” the statement added.
Following the game, City captain Alex Greenwood chided match broadcaster DAZN for failing to mention the incident in a social media post.
The post on X, external said Shaw “antagonised” the home fans and received “stick” from them.
Greenwood replied, "Correction. Travel to Stockholm, score a big goal. Celebrates her goal. Gets objects thrown at her.”
Flick: Barcelona need to learn how to win without Yamal
Hansi Flick has urged Barcelona to find a way to win without the absent Lamine Yamal, as he misses a second consecutive match with an ankle injury.
The 17-year-old missed their 1-0 loss at Real Sociedad which halted Barca's seven-match winning streak in all competitions before the international break.
Yamal has only missed two LaLiga matches since the start of last season, while Barcelona have lost both games this campaign in which he has not started, after coming off the bench in a 4-2 loss to Osasuna in September.
Flick said that his players need to show that they can win without their teenage sensation.
"Tomorrow I will put the question to the team, it will be a very good question for them [if they can win without Yamal]," Flick told a press conference on Friday.
"Against Real Sociedad, we didn't play well, and it wasn't because of Lamine's absence. He is a very important player for us, but we have options to also play well without him.
"He won't be able to play tomorrow, we don't know when he will be able to go back from his injury, but what is clear for me is that we want him to be back only when he is 100% recovered."
Yamal played a big role in Spain's European Championship title win earlier this year in Germany, winning the best goal and the Young Player of the Tournament award in his breakthrough campaign.
He continued to thrive this season with five goals and seven assists to help Barca to the top of the LaLiga standings on 33 points, six ahead of rivals Real Madrid, who have a game in hand in second place.
Yamal is also the only player across Europe's big five leagues to complete 25+ dribbles (34), create 25+ chances (26), have 25+ shots (39), score 5+ goals (five) and provide 5+ assists (seven).
Flick suggested that he may have to adjust his system, as it is hard to replace a player with such a mixture of speed, technique and finishing.
"We might be a bit limited by the absence of Lamine," Flick said.
"But we have a lot of players with great quality, and they can play in different positions. We'll see what we'll need and we'll design the game plan.
"It's always important after the international break to come back strong and with confidence. That's our goal for tomorrow."
Moca FC's Baez, Correa sanctioned by Concacaf Disciplinary Committee for violent conduct in Carib Cup semis clash against Cavalier
The Concacaf Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned players Miguel Baez and Jesus Correa of Dominican Republic club Moca FC for incidents that occurred during their Concacaf Caribbean Cup second-leg semi-final match against Jamaica’s Cavalier FC on Thursday, October 30.
After considering the documentation and evidence gathered during its investigation and based on the competition regulations and the applicable disciplinary code, the Disciplinary Committee has imposed Miguel Baez a six-match suspension and Jesus Correa a three-match suspension for violent conduct.
The sanctions include the automatic one-match suspension for the on-field direct red cards given to each player during that 7-0 beating in Kingston.
Both Baez and Correa must serve their suspensions during the upcoming 2024 Concacaf Caribbean Cup third-place matches and future editions of the competition.
Moca FC is scheduled to meet Haiti's Real Hope FC in that home-and-away tie on November 26 and December 3 to determine the next Caribbean representative that will contest next year's Concacaf Champions Cup. Finalists Cavalier and Cibao FC, also of the Dominican Republic, have secured automatic berths.
Meanwhile, the Disciplinary Committee has also warned the players and the club that more severe sanctions could be taken should incidents occur during future matches.
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