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• Shaw reveals how advice from former Man City stalwarts Bronze, Sterling assisted her to settle at the club

  After struggling to find her footing when she just arrived at Manchester City, Jamaica international Khadija 'Bunny' Shaw, revealed that it was the advice of Lucy Bronze and Raheem Sterling, coupled with hard work, that assisted in her now being the club's record goalscorer.

  Since her transfer from Bordeaux in 2021, Shaw has cemented her status as one of the game’s most clinical strikers during her spell with Gareth Taylor's side so far. In the process, she smashed a number of records, including most goals scored by a Manchester City women’s player in a single season -31 in the 2022-23 campaign -before becoming the club's all-time leading goalscorer with 72 goals overall.

  However, she wasn't always confident that she would have accomplished those feats, as she pointed out how guidance from former Manchester City pair Bronze and Sterling put her on the path to history in sky blue, after a difficult early period at the Joie Stadium.

  “When I came here initially, I was struggling a bit,” Shaw revealed on The Women's Game Podcast with Sam Mewis.

  “One day I was coming in from training and Lucy [Bronze] was coming in as well and she asked, ‘are you okay?’ and I said ‘I just can’t get the way they play, I can’t get it right’. City play a specific type of way and I was saying when we were walking in from training ‘I cannot get this right’. I didn’t know if here was for me.

  “She started laughing and she was like ‘you focus on what got you here, the bits you do well that got you here, there’s something they saw in you that got you here’. At that moment I was like ‘wow’. I then called Raheem [Sterling] and I said the same thing to him. He was just laughing and said, ‘when I came from Liverpool I struggled a bit, they play a certain way so trust the process, believe in what you’re doing and believe in yourself’," she added.

  From there, the 26-year-old Shaw said she continued to put in the work, both on and off the field until her performances came together.

  “I put the comments from both Lucy and Raheem together and it made sense. I told myself to continue working and watching the videos, see how I could improve my game and seeing how best I can help the team. By doing that, it helped a little better day-by-day. Couple of weeks later I called Raheem and said, ‘it’s working!’ He was laughing and said, ‘I told you, you’ve just got to believe in yourself and do all the right things and focus on you first and foremost before you can focus on anything else’," Shaw shared.

  Although her 2023/24 campaign was cut short due to a broken foot, Shaw will finish the campaign with 22 goals and five assists. And she credits her sparkling City success to her dedication on the City Football Academy training pitch.

  “I just kept at it and believing in myself. The confidence comes from scoring goals and as the games come, I’m thriving," she ended.

• Real Madrid's LaLiga joy must be 'contained' ahead of Bayern meeting

  Carlo Ancelotti knows Real Madrid's LaLiga title celebrations must be "contained" as they prepare to take on Bayern Munich.

  Madrid were crowned LaLiga champions for a record-extending 36th time on Saturday, after Barcelona lost 4-2 to Girona.

  The Blaugrana's defeat followed on from Madrid beating Cadiz 3-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu.

  Brahim Diaz, Jude Bellingham and Joselu were on target for Los Blancos, whose coach Ancelotti knows restraint is needed in his team's celebrations, with the Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern coming up on Wednesday.

  "It's obviously a contained joy, because the most important game of the season is also very close, but we have to be happy," Ancelotti told Movistar Plus+ before the Barca game had been played.

  "These games are difficult to prepare for, because you have Wednesday on your mind. But so far it's been spectacular, our team was steady, with hardly any mistakes. The advantage we have is well deserved.

  "A big part [of Madrid's success] was achieved when we started to defend better, with a collective commitment.

  "The effort put by the players up front was great, but the injuries early in the season helped us to realise that it wasn't about individuals but putting on a collective effort, and we did great."

  Speaking to reporters in the mixed zone, Ancelotti said: "We are very good. It is the seventh victory in a row in the League, a spectacular one as a whole.

  "We are very close to winning it and I think we are going to do it with merit.

  "It is a celebration taking into account what has to happen on Wednesday. We are all happy with the match, but let's think about Bayern."

  Thibaut Courtois, meanwhile, returned from his long injury lay-off to feature for the first time this season.

  Ancelotti added: "Thibaut is a very important piece for this team, although [Andriy] Lunin has had a spectacular season and that is a lot of credit to Andriy. But Courtois has returned very well and was decisive. He is doing very well."

• Haaland 'back to business' as Guardiola lauds four-goal Man City star in Wolves win

  Pep Guardiola says Erling Haaland is "back to business" after his four-goal demolition of Wolves that kept Manchester City in touch of Premier League leaders Arsenal.

  The Gunner dispatched Bournemouth 3-0 earlier on Saturday but Haaland's first-half hat-trick – including two penalties – started a roaring response from City at Etihad Stadium.

  Haaland added his fourth after the interval before Julian Alvarez wrapped up the scoring, with Hwang Hee-Chan's second-half strike a mere consolation in a 5-1 hammering of Wolves.

  Victory extended Man City's unbeaten run in the Premier League to 20 games (W16 D4), while they have won each of the last six in a row, netting 4+ goals on five occasions in that run.

  Moving just a point with Arsenal and still boasting a game in hand, Guardiola was relieved to see a firing return to form for Haaland, whose April was hampered by injury issues.

  "It looks comfortable but it was not," the City manager told Sky Sports. "In the end we created more chances but in the transition we were not precise in the last pass.

  "But Erling is back to business. Penalties are a guarantee but the second and fourth [goals] were unbelievable.

  "The 20 minutes he [Haaland] played against Nottingham Forest was really good and today as well. We won, but it was so long an injury.

  "It is welcome he arrived in the right moment, but we arrive together because Erling and Kevin [De Bruyne] have been out."

  Having scored a hat-trick in this exact fixture last season, Haaland became just the third player to score a home treble against the same opponent in consecutive Premier League campaigns.

  The Norway talisman also became the third player to score multiple first-half hat-tricks in Premier League history (also against Forest last season), along with Andrew Cole and Michael Owen (two each).

  Yet the City forward appeared somewhat annoyed with his late substitution for Alvarez.

  "He's a little bit frustrated, but I understand," Guardiola added. "He was frustrated with the referee. With the long balls sometimes they push him and he is pulled. Yes, it is like that."

  City will play their game in hand against Tottenham on May 14, with that their chance to move clear of Mikel Arteta's side.

  Guardiola insists his team must win all their remaining fixtures to lift the top-flight trophy once more.

  "Goal difference is not possible, we cannot draw," he added. "The way Arsenal have been playing has been so good and consistent.

  "It's three games, hopefully we win the first and the second and arrive to the third with our destiny in our own hands."