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• Guardiola confident Man City can avoid fourth straight loss

  Pep Guardiola is facing the prospect of losing four consecutive matches for the first time in his career but is confident Manchester City do not need extra reassurance.

  All three of City's recent losses have come in different competitions, first falling to Tottenham in the EFL Cup round of 16 before following it up with defeats to Bournemouth in the Premier League and Sporting CP in the Champions League.

  It is the first time the Citizens have been on such a run since doing so between May and August 2021, while in the same season, it is the first time since April 2018.

  In the Premier League, Guardiola's men were on a 32-match unbeaten run before their defeat to Bournemouth, and they have only lost two consecutive top-flight matches three times under the Spaniard before.

  The Spaniard has been vocal about his team's recent injury struggles, and will once again be without Jack Grealish, despite his recent England call-up, John Stones and Ruben Dias for the trip to Brighton on Saturday.

  Bernardo Silva said the team were in a "dark place" after their game at Sporting on Tuesday, but Guardiola does not believe he needs to provide any extra motivation to help get his players back to winning ways.

  "I don't think [the players need extra reassurance]. Of course, we are not used to losing three games in three different competitions, but it is football, and it has happened," Guardiola said.

  "We know the reason why we struggle, but we are looking forward to this game and after the international break, and after that a few players will be back and recovered. All the little problems we have with players will be solved. I hope.

  "There always is a first time [to lose four straight]. Hopefully, it is not the case.

  "Twenty minutes against Fulham we were not good, against Bournemouth we were not good, but the rest of the games we were good. We are good. We will see what happens."

• Motta expects Juventus to be at '200%' for Turin derby

  Thiago Motta is confident Juventus will be at full intensity for the Turin derby as they looked to close the gap on the Serie A leaders, Napoli. 

  Although Juve are the only team in the Italian top-flight who remain unbeaten, Motta's side lie sixth in the standings with 21 points after six draws in 11 games. Torino are 10th with 14 points.

  A victory on Saturday would give Juventus an advantage, bringing them closer to leaders Napoli and second-placed Inter, who face each other on Sunday.

  Juventus are unbeaten in their last 18 matches against Torino in Serie A (W13 D5), keeping a clean sheet in eight of these matches, including the two most recent. They are also unbeaten in 18 against their rivals on home soil in the league.

  Motta, whose side drew 1-1 at Lille on Tuesday, said he is aware of what the rivalry means to the people of Turin ahead of his first 'Derby della Mole' as Juve coach.

  "There are good feelings because I see the team doing well with the usual right attitude. There is a special atmosphere with our fans, and we want to give our best to play a great match," he told reporters.

  "The importance of a derby is that the city lives it in an intense way, we will have to do our best to play a great game. Derbies, in general, are beautiful matches to play. Here I felt exactly that, and we will try to give great joy to our fans.

  "The team is physically fine. We had three days of recovery and this makes the difference. I see the team and I have faith in everyone's commitment. Tomorrow we will enter the game at 200%."

  However, Juve will be without Douglas Luiz, Nicolas Gonzalez and Vasilije Adzic, who are sidelined with injuries.

  "Douglas Luiz came with us to Lille at my request to speed things up. Yesterday in training he still didn't feel great. So we won't risk him, and we'll see him again after the [international] break," Motta added.

  "Nico Gonzalez won't be there. Adzic also had a problem and will need to be evaluated. He won't be there tomorrow."

• Edu placed on gardening leave by Arsenal and replaced by Jason Ayto

  Edu will spend the next six months on gardening leave, while assistant sporting director Jason Ayto will take up his role during the search for a full-time replacement.

  The news comes after the announcement earlier in the week that Edu was to leave Arsenal to work with Evangelos Marinakis' multi-club group, which includes Nottingham Forest.

  The Gunners are giving themselves a long window to replace their sporting director and are prepared to wait for the right candidate.

  Despite his abrupt departure partway through the season, the feeling towards Edu is of gratitude after installing a robust structure that the club can now work with.

  The Brazilian is known to be a friend of Marinakis, who values the esteem in which Edu is held by his peers.

  The salary offered to him for his move, as reported by Sky Sports News, would mean only Pep Guardiola, Mikel Arteta and Unai Emery earn more than him among Premier League managers.

  The role itself, meanwhile, will see Edu act as the CEO of the group.