Roses are red, violets are blue, have we got the perfect Valentine's Day content for you!
Questionable rhymes aside (okay, very questionable), love is in the air as long-standing couples and newly formed relationships celebrate the day of romance on Sunday.
The world of football is certainly no stranger to the language of love, so before you crack open a bottle of red and exchange cheap knock-off gifts with your significant other why not get some inspiration for love with our Valentine's Day facts with some help from Cupid!
(Well not Cupid, Opta – but the team at Opta are full of love!)
MATT LE KISS-IER LOVES TO SCORE ON VALENTINE'S DAY
Valentine's Day is of course a day for love (and overpaying for those last-minute flowers and cards you forgot to buy…).
Two players have been particularly good at spreading the joy on February 14th with Southampton legend Matt Le Tissier and ex-Liverpool striker Michael Owen each scoring three times in the Premier League on this date – the most of all players.
Here's something even more interesting about that stat, though – each man's tally is a result of scoring a Valentine's Day hat-trick.
Le Tissier registered three against the Reds back in 1994, while Owen took home the match ball with a treble versus Sheffield Wednesday four years later.
Owen's three goals are part of 12 Liverpool have tallied on the day of love – comfortably the most by a team. Arsenal follow on seven, with Aston Villa and Southampton on four.
A ROSE FOR THE LADY?
Flowers are synonymous with Valentine's Day but none more so than the rose.
Two players named Rose have plied their trade in the Premier League – Danny (194 appearances) and Matthew (five appearances). The former, of course, is an England international who with his marauding runs from full-back has often been a, ahem, thorn in the side of opponents…
There are other love-themed names to have featured in the top flight. Valentino Lazaro played 13 times in the Premier League for Newcastle United on loan last term, while Valentin Roberge made 10 appearances for north east rivals Sunderland.
The Black Cats also had Donald Love on their books, the defender having previously represented Manchester United once in the top flight.
FOXES RACK UP THE CARDS
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 referee keep their cards in their pockets.
In this regard, Leicester City have not been overly successful – the seven yellow cards representing the most received by a team on Valentine's Day. Arsenal follow closely behind with six, with Manchester City on four.
The Foxes also fare badly when it comes to red cards, having picked up two on February 14th – Danny Simpson and Hamza Choudhury account for those dismissals. The only other player to have been sent off on Valentine's Day is Everton hero Duncan Ferguson ... no, we weren't shocked either.
THE BEST BROMANCES
It goes without saying that we don't need to confine our love sharing to one manufactured day of the year…
No, we should be spreading the joy in our hearts all year round and these strike partnerships certainly succeed in that category.
Going back to the start of the 2015-16 season, no two players have combined for more goals than Spurs duo Harry Kane and Son Heung-min (33).
In fact, Kane features three times in the top-five – also ranking third with Christian Eriksen (19), and sharing 18 with Dele Alli.
Manchester City pairing Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne are second with 20, while Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez (18), who fired Leicester to shock title glory in 2015-16, also feature.
Mauricio Pochettino not expecting a vulnerable Man City in FA Cup semi-final
Mauricio Pochettino warned his Chelsea players not to expect to come up against a vulnerable Manchester City side when the teams meet in Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final.
City go into the game off the back of playing extra time against Real Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday night before eventually being knocked out on penalties, leaving less than 72 hours recovery time ahead of stepping out at Wembley.
Pep Guardiola has had to deal with fatigue amongst his ranks in recent weeks, with midfielder Rodri admitting to needing a rest earlier this month. He was subsequently left out of the team for last weekend’s win over Luton at the Etihad Stadium but returned to the starting XI for the defeat to Real.
They are still in contention to retain two of the three trophies they won last season, holding a two-point lead over Arsenal and Liverpool in the Premier League title race in addition to Saturday’s meeting with Pochettino’s side as they seek a third FA Cup triumph in six seasons.
Chelsea will return to the scene of their Carabao Cup final loss to Liverpool in February, after which they were heavily criticised for failing to overcome a Reds team decimated by injury.
Jurgen Klopp’s side triumphed in extra time despite finishing the game with four highly inexperienced academy graduates aged 21 or under on the pitch.
And Pochettino insisted there will be no easy ride for his players as City lick their European wounds.
“The good example is Liverpool,” he said. “People were talking about too many injured players, how many young kids they had playing. Look what happened after.
“From our point of view, we are going to compete against Manchester City. If you ask me about their situation, I can give my opinion, but we are not talking about that. We are going to compete against them.
“Today we were preparing, doing meetings, about the Manchester City that played against Real Madrid, that played against us in the Premier League.
“We are not talking about playing one (City line-up) or playing another. For me, the strength of Manchester City is that they keep the same idea and the same philosophy.
“In the last five, six, seven years, even with different players, they play in the same way, they have the structure to dominate and to create chances and to win games and to win trophies.
“I understand the situation is tough for them after playing 120 minutes in the Champions League. Emotionally, you expend a big energy. It’s about how they recover now.
“They are going be competitive and they have an amazing staff that look after the players. They’re going to put 11 players that will play with full energy to try and win the game.”
Pochettino will have Enzo Fernandez available for selection after he missed Monday’s 6-0 demolition of Everton.
The manager said the World Cup winner’s fitness will be carefully managed following reports this week in Argentina that he requires a hernia operation.
“We are not looking for heroes,” said Pochettino.
Pep Guardiola says Cole Palmer is one of the players of the season
Pep Guardiola admits Chelsea’s former Manchester City starlet Cole Palmer has been one of the players of the season.
The City manager has also revealed the 21-year-old England midfielder had been trying to leave the Etihad Stadium for two years prior to his £42.5million switch to Stamford Bridge last summer.
Palmer, who was considered one of City’s brightest Academy products, has been Chelsea’s most influential performer since he moved south in search of more first-team opportunities.
Palmer has scored 25 goals this season, 11 of which have come in his last six appearances.
He heads into Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final showdown with former club City at Wembley fresh from a four-goal salvo against Everton on Monday.
Guardiola said: “Cole has been the decisive player, maybe of the season, in many aspects.
“He’s an exceptional player. We knew that when he was here.
“We know how he’s proving (himself), but he has had a lot of minutes. I said many times, I didn’t give him the minutes when maybe he deserved it. He wanted the minutes he now has at Chelsea.
“I understand completely. I’m happy for him because he’s a lovely guy, a shy guy. He has an incredible potential, otherwise he would not have been here.
“He’s playing good. He’s an incredible threat. He’s playing fantastically.”
Palmer was a member of the City squad that won the treble last season and he began the current campaign strongly with goals for Guardiola’s side in the Community Shield and European Super Cup.
Yet despite attempts to persuade the Wythenshawe-born player to stay with his hometown club, his mind to move on before the end of the summer transfer window had long been made up.
Guardiola said: “So what can I say? The decision has been made for many reasons. He was asking for two seasons to leave.
“I said, ‘No, stay’. At the end, (he said), ‘No, I want to leave’. What can we do? I said in pre-season, ‘Stay because Riyad (Mahrez) has gone’. He said, ‘No, I want to leave’.
“After two seasons, what can you say? So go there. Playing at that level is exceptional. Everybody knows it.”
City’s hopes of winning a second successive treble were dashed on Wednesday as they suffered an agonising penalty shoot-out defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Their focus is now on defending the domestic double, a feat no side has previously achieved, but Guardiola prefers not to view the targets in those terms.
Guardiola said: “We were close again (to the treble) but it didn’t happen.
“So my advice about trebles or doubles or these things is, why are we not focused on Chelsea? It’s enough of a target to think about.
“When you have one or two games left to the end of the Premier League and you are already in the FA Cup final, I can answer you perfectly.
“We’ve felt, two times, how strong Chelsea are. They are really, really difficult.
“So, win that game and see what happens the next three, four, five games in the Premier League and after we will see.”
Man Utd appoint Jason Wilcox as new technical director after leaving Southampton
Jason Wilcox has left Southampton to become Manchester United’s new technical director with immediate effect.
The 53-year-old becomes a key appointment at Old Trafford as part of United’s off-field overhaul following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s arrival at the club.
Wilcox joined Championship side Southampton last summer as their director of football, making the switch from Manchester City where he developed a reputation for nurturing excellent young talent as well as recruiting some of the best prospects in the game.
A United statement read: “Jason Wilcox has joined Manchester United as technical director with immediate effect.
“He will work with all technical areas of the football department to achieve the highest standards of performance.
“Jason was previously director of football at Southampton and before that academy director at Manchester City.
“As a player he won the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers in 1995.”
A Saints statement read: “Southampton Football Club can today confirm that it has reluctantly agreed to allow director of football Jason Wilcox to join Manchester United, having reached an agreement with the Premier League side on an acceptable compensation fee.
“Whilst the club is naturally disappointed that Jason’s stay at Southampton has only lasted nine months, it wishes him well for the future.”
John Murtough stepped down as football director at Old Trafford last week.
United are looking to add Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth to their staff as Ratcliffe continues his off-field rebuild after taking a 27.7 per cent stake in the club.
Wilcox will report to the sporting director, who will have overall responsibility for football performance, recruitment and operations.
The PA news agency understands Darren Fletcher will continue to play a key role in the football leadership team working across the men’s first team and academy.
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