Jarrad Branthwaite and Anthony Gordon have received their first England call-ups but there was no place for Kalvin Phillips in Gareth Southgate’s last squad before making his Euro 2024 selection.
Joe Gomez, who won the last of his 11 senior caps in October 2020, has returned from the international wilderness for March’s Wembley friendlies against Belgium and Brazil.
Ivan Toney is back involved at the first opportunity after serving an eight-month Football Association betting ban, but Raheem Sterling was conspicuous by his absence once again.
Phillips has been dropped after a torrid run of form since he joined West Ham on loan in January.
Phillips was at fault for a goal on his debut against Bournemouth before he was sent off at Nottingham Forest last month and hooked at half-time of Sunday’s 2-2 draw at home to Burnley.
England boss Gareth Southgate said: “Well, I think he knows exactly what we think of him. A good version of him is an important player for us and that’s why we’ve supported him as we have.
“Unfortunately his form hasn’t been good enough and I’ve spoken to him about that. He understands.
“He has all the attributes to force his way back in. He just needs to find that rhythm and confidence because there is an outstanding player in there.”
Mohamed Salah scored on his Premier League return as Liverpool eased to a 4-1 win at Brentford.
Coming off the bench for his first appearance since injuring a hamstring on duty with Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations, he netted his side’s third goal moments after making a brilliant assist for Alexis Mac Allister to make it 2-0.
Darwin Nunez had opened the scoring with a superbly-taken chip to cap a wonderful counter attack in the first half as Jurgen Klopp’s league leaders ensure they would finish the weekend still on top.
Ivan Toney continued his goalscoring form since returning from his gambling ban to briefly give Brentford hope at 3-1.
It was a fleeting moment of optimism, quickly extinguished when substitute Cody Gakpo stroked home Liverpool’s fourth in the closing minutes.
What the papers say
Manchester United have reportedly determined their ceiling for Brentford striker Ivan Toney. According to the Daily Star, the Red Devils value the 27-year-old at £70million, and will not be drawn into a bidding war should competition arise for Toney’s signature.
Elsewhere, the Daily Mirror says Arsenal scouts are keeping a close eye on Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams. The Gunners could chase Williams as an option to ease the pressure on Bukayo Saka, however the 21-year-old is also said to be attracting interest from a number of heavyweights including Real Madrid and Liverpool.
The Evening Standard reports AC Milan lead several Serie A sides in expressing interest in 23-year-old Arsenal defender Jakub Kiwior.
Social media round-upPlayers to watch
Thomas Partey: Spanish outlet Fichajes says the Arsenal midfielder is being circled by Juventus.
Alphonso Davies: Real Madrid, Manchester City and Liverpool are all tracking the Bayern Munich left-back, according to the website HITC.
Thomas Frank hinted Ivan Toney could stay at Brentford beyond the end of the season but accepted the striker’s long-term future lies away from the Gtech Stadium.
A magazine in his native Denmark this week quoted Frank saying the 27-year-old is likely to be sold in the summer but he has now clarified that “a couple of scenarios” remain on the table.
Toney, who returned in January from an eight-month ban for breaching FA gambling rules, is out of contract at the end of next season and has stated his desire to play for a club higher up the Premier League table than the Bees.
He scored on his comeback as Brentford beat Nottingham Forest and again in defeat against Tottenham, but the team remain in relegation trouble with just three points separating them from the bottom three.
Frank, who gave his interview to Tipsbladet in Danish, urged caution in relying on translated text but affirmed the point that Toney ultimately will leave.
“You always need to be aware of translation,” he said. “Google Translate is not always the best.
“It’s the same message as the whole time, I would love him to stay forever. The reality is he’s got one more year left on his contract in the summer. I think he’s been pretty open about playing for a top club in the future.
“There’s a couple of scenarios; he leaves in the summer, he leaves in the winter, or he stays until the end.
“If he’s leaving – whatever, summer, winter or the summer after – I think it will be fantastic seeing him playing for a top club.”
Frank would not be drawn on reports that Neal Maupay was threatened by Manchester City’s Kyle Walker during Monday’s meeting, after the Brentford forward allegedly made remarks about Walker’s family.
Maupay, who has scored five goals in his last five games including the one that gave his side the lead against the champions before going on to lose 3-1, has been accused of provoking the England defender.
“I don’t want to go into speculation about that,” said Frank. “For me, it’s done, it’s over. I don’t know what they said.
“I see a player that played a year and a half at another club, didn’t score a goal, now he’s got five on the bounce for us. He’s doing very well for us.
“I understand the question. He can get a little bit in the middle of things sometimes. Life is balance.
“I think some players need it more than others to get going, and we need him to get going. But I think there’s a balance where you don’t cross the line.
“It’s important he does enough so he can be firing but also maybe not attract so much attention.”
Frank confirmed midfielder Josh Dasilva will undergo surgery on a knee injury sustained in training and will be out for a significant period.
“I feel for Josh massively,” he said. “He has been very unlucky and he’s a player I’ve been working with for a long time, so our relationship has grown.
“He’s a lovely person so it’s tough to take. We will give him the best support”
Brentford are expecting to sell Ivan Toney this summer – manager Thomas Frank has revealed.
Toney was linked with a January move away from west London but Frank insisted no bids were received for the England striker.
The 27-year-old has recently returned to action after an eight-month ban for breaching Football Association gambling guidelines.
Frank had maintained throughout January that Toney, who made his England debut in 2023 and has hit 34 goals in 71 Premier League appearances, would stay put.
But now he seems to be bracing to lose one of his key men at the end of the season.
“It is relatively obvious that Ivan Toney will probably be sold this summer,” Frank told Danish magazine Tipsbladet.
“It can be ‘expensive’ to sell your best player, but conversely I also know that this summer he only has one year left on his contract with us.
“We also know what he is worth. I don’t think there are many strikers in the world who are better than him right now.”
Asked on transfer deadline day whether keeping Toney in January proved Brentford have grown as a club, Frank said: “I think with any player we have a contract in general so at the end of the day we decide if they leave or not.
“Of course money talks and we also know that we are a ‘selling’ club as you could call it – we know that is part of the strategy.”
Frank doubled down on that outlook in his Tipsbladet interview, adding: “I would prefer to keep Toney but one day it could be fun to see him in a top team.
“This winter, we actually had no bids for him, but it would surprise me if there aren’t a lot of clubs interested in him.”
Meanwhile, Brentford also confirmed Josh Dasilva has suffered another serious injury setback.
The 25-year-old has struggled with a number of issues in recent seasons and will now go back under the knife.
“Unfortunately, Josh suffered an injury in training over the weekend, while preparing for the Man City game,” head of medical Neil Greig told the club’s official website.
“Subsequent imaging has shown a significant injury to ligaments in his right knee, which will require surgery to repair.
“He’s previously shown an outstanding attitude to adversity and injury recovery, and we have absolute confidence in his capability to fully recovery from this setback.”
Brentford have condemned the “vile harassment” of Ivan Toney after the England striker was the target of online racist abuse.
The Premier League club also labelled the response of social media companies to such incidents as “underwhelming”.
Toney, 27, has previously received racist comments on Instagram posts and Brentford are now calling for more to be done after another case occurred.
“We are angered and frustrated to report that Ivan Toney has been subjected to racist abuse on Instagram once more,” a club statement read.
“We have initiated investigations into this vile harassment which we condemn in the strongest terms.
“Sadly, this isn’t the first time Ivan has had to deal with this. A similar incident occurred just four weeks ago, leading us to identify an alleged perpetrator whom we reported to the authorities. To date, we have yet to see any action taken against that individual.”
The Bees called for anyone found to have posted racist comments to be prosecuted and help bring an end to such incidents in the future.
“In general, the response from social media platforms to these ongoing issues has been underwhelming,” the statement continued.
“Their solutions, such as filters to simply hide the abuse may safeguard the players, miss the mark entirely and do not discourage the offenders. Without real consequences for those responsible, the cycle is doomed to repeat.
“We do have faith that things can change. We appreciate the dialogue that we have with the likes of Meta but we call for more decisive and urgent action to combat online hate. We call for prompt investigations, and importantly, we call for criminal prosecutions.
“We will continue to work with the authorities and the Premier League and to support our players as we tackle this awful online abuse.”
Pep Guardiola believes Manchester City are coming up against an “exceptional player” in Ivan Toney as they travel to Brentford on Monday.
Toney, who scored twice when the Bees won at the Etihad Stadium last season, recently returned to action after serving an eight-month ban for breaching betting regulations.
The 27-year-old forward has struck in both appearances since completing his suspension and Guardiola is pleased to see such talent back on the field.
The City manager said: “He’s an exceptional player. Not just with the long balls, with keeping (the ball) and set-pieces, with the penalties as a guarantee.
“For many things they can link with him and he’s an extraordinary player.
“I’m so happy he is back and hopefully that period is forgotten in his life and for his family. Exceptional players always are more than welcome in the Premier League.”
Brentford beat champions City home and away in the Premier League last season.
The Toney-inspired first of those victories came in the final game before the World Cup break, as City endured an indifferent spell in the autumn.
The second, at the Gtech Community Stadium, was on the last day of the campaign as City, having already wrapped up the title, were preparing for the FA Cup and Champions League finals.
Nevertheless, Guardiola sees them as a serious threat as City look to maintain their recent momentum after eight successive wins.
He said: “We know in the past how difficult they have been. Even when we won it was always tight and we lost the two games we played last season.
“So we know the difficulty for the way they play, the standards that they have. They are clear and they believe it and they apply really well.
“It’s another game to face, a new challenge.”
City have a full-strength squad available with defender Manuel Akanji back in contention after a knee injury.
Erling Haaland could make his first start in two months after returning from a foot problem as a substitute against Burnley in midweek.
Brentford head coach Thomas Frank says that Ivan Toney will not be leaving the Bees on transfer deadline day.
England striker Toney has been linked with Premier League rivals such as Arsenal and Chelsea in the January window.
The 27-year-old has scored 34 goals in 68 top-flight games for Brentford and Frank insists Toney will stay put after a month of speculation.
“This will be breaking news, OK – but Ivan will stay,” Frank said at his press conference previewing Monday’s clash with Manchester City.
Elsewhere, there were few big early moves from top-flight clubs – although Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa and Newcastle all completed deals to strengthen their squads.
Forest signed 18-year-old striker Rodrigo Ribeiro on loan from Sporting Lisbon until the end of the season, while Morgan Rogers swapped Middlesbrough for Villa Park in a reported £8million switch and Newcastle brought in teenage midfielder Alfie Harrison from Manchester City.
Brighton midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud has, meanwhile, joined Stuttgart on loan. More transfers are expected to be completed ahead of the 11pm deadline, with Pablo Fornals expected to leave West Ham to join Real Betis.
But Brentford head coach Thomas Frank has said there is no chance Ivan Toney will make a late deadline day move away from the club.
Ribeiro came through the ranks in Lisbon and made his professional debut for the club as a late substitute in a Champions League tie against Manchester City in March 2022.
The 18-year-old’s move to Forest could become permanent. He told the club’s YouTube channel: “It is a great opportunity for me.
“It is the best league in the world. For me, it is a dream to play in this league and for this club.
“I promise to work every day and to keep going with the work and help the team.”
Rogers, 21, signed for Boro last summer and scored seven goals this season, including against Chelsea in the Carabao Cup semi-final.
Villa also later announced the signing of England Under-19 international Lino Sousa from Arsenal, who is set to immediately join up with Plymouth on loan for the remainder of the campaign.
Newcastle also made a move for the future with the signing of 18-year-old Manchester City midfielder Harrison for an undisclosed fee.
“The size of the club and what it has got going for it is massive for me,” Harrison told Newcastle’s website.
“It has got a huge, passionate fanbase and I’m looking to really push on with my career now.”
In the Sky Bet Championship, midfielder Alex Pritchard completed his move from Sunderland to Birmingham for an undisclosed fee.
The 30-year-old has signed a two-and-a-half-year contract to reunite with former Black Cats boss Tony Mowbray.
“I am happy,” Pritchard told BluesTV.
“My future has been well speculated for a while now and I am just glad to get everything done and just settled and, hopefully, I can just crack on with football.”
Sunderland reacted quickly to fill the gap in their squad, signing winger Romaine Mundle from Standard Liege for an undisclosed fee.
The 20-year-old former Tottenham player has signed a four-and-a-half-year contract at the Stadium of Light.
Hull have been one of the most active Championship clubs on deadline day, with midfielder Abdulkadir Omur joining from Trabzonspor.
Turkish international Omur has signed a three-and-a-half-year deal after he joined for an undisclosed fee, while Dogukan Sinik has been allowed to make a loan move to Hatayspor.
“The fans will love watching him (Omur),” Hull boss Liam Rosenior said on the club website.
“He is someone who can unlock the door, create and score goals, and has a great final pass and shot.
“He is an outstanding technical footballer who can go past players, has a low centre of gravity and works hard out of possession. I love his football personality.”
Swansea have brought in young forward Charles Sagoe Jr depart on a six-month loan from Arsenal.
Brentford head coach Thomas Frank believes refusing to sell Ivan Toney in January proves how far the club has come in recent years – but admits eventually “money talks” when it comes to holding on to his stars.
England striker Toney was reportedly a target for the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea during the transfer window.
The 27-year-old has recently returned to action for the Bees having served an eight-month ban after breaching Football Association gambling laws.
Toney has scored 34 goals in 68 top-flight games for the Bees and Frank insists the player will stay put after a month of speculation.
“This will be breaking news, OK – but Ivan will stay,” Frank said at his press conference previewing Monday’s clash with Manchester City.
Asked if he was happy that the window was closing just hours after his media duties would conclude, Frank replied: “Happy? Yes, but I was pretty sure as I said from the beginning that Ivan will stay with us so I was not worried about that.
“In general, it is nice to know what you are working with so in that situation, yes (I am happy).”
Despite rumours of a big-money move during the window, Frank and the club as a whole were steadfast throughout January that Toney would not be sold.
The former Newcastle forward is out of contract at the end of next season but Frank feels Brentford showed their strength in keeping hold of their sought-after striker, even if their transfer strategy dictates otherwise.
“Yes, I think with any player we have a contract in general so at the end of the day we decide if they leave or not,” he added when asked if rebuffing any interest in Toney showed the progress Brentford have made.
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“Of course money talks and we also know that we are a ‘selling’ club as you could call it – we know that is part of the strategy.
“We want to have young, talented players in, develop them and make them better. Be on a journey with us, improve and hopefully do some fantastic stuff in the league and maybe one day win something.
“But at the end of the day, after some years if they are good enough they will progress to the next level.”
James Maddison and Neal Maupay were embroiled in a war of words after the Brentford forward mocked the Tottenham midfielder’s goal celebration.
Maupay opened the scoring in the 15th minute at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday night and celebrated by throwing a dart alongside Ivan Toney, mimicking the move Maddison and Spurs team-mate Son Heung-min have done this season.
That annoyed big darts fan Maddison, who had a heated exchange with Maupay on the goalscorer’s way back to the centre circle.
The England international had the last laugh though, with goals from Destiny Udogie, Brennan Johnson and Richarlison securing a 3-2 win for Spurs.
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Maddison told TNT Sports: “He’s not scored enough goals of his own to have his own celebration so he’s copied mine.”
Maddison’s comments irked Maupay, who responded on Instagram after the game mocking his opponent’s relegation with Leicester last season.
View this post on Instagram
The Frenchman wrote: “Went a bit early with that one.
“Gutted we couldn’t get the win. More goals and less relegations in my career than James Maddison. We go again monday bees.”
Youngster Conor Bradley registered his first Liverpool goal and two assists as the Premier League leaders thumped Chelsea 4-1 at Anfield to go five points clear at the top.
The 20-year-old right-back fired into the bottom corner in the 39th minute to double the Reds’ lead having earlier provided the pass that led to Diogo Jota’s opener midway through the first half.
After Darwin Nunez sent a penalty against the post in first-half stoppage-time – one of four times he hit the woodwork – the advantage was extended in the 65th minute when Dominik Szoboszlai headed in from Bradley’s cross.
Christopher Nkunku replied before Luis Diaz wrapped things up for Jurgen Klopp’s men as they made it 15 league matches unbeaten, and four successive wins, in their first top-flight outing since the German’s announcement that he is to step down as boss at the end of the season.
A miserable evening for Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea ended a three-match winning run as they stayed 10th.
Manchester City, who have played a game fewer than Liverpool, returned to second place with their fourth league victory on the bounce, beating struggling Burnley 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium.
Julian Alvarez netted twice on his 24th birthday and Rodri also got on the scoresheet before top-scorer Erling Haaland make his comeback from injury as a 71st-minute substitute.
Ameen Al-Dakhil netted a stoppage-time consolation for second-bottom Burnley, managed by ex-City captain Vincent Kompany, as Pep Guardiola’s treble-winners went above Arsenal on goal difference.
Tottenham moved into the top four after a flurry of goals early in the second half helped them come from behind to beat Brentford 3-2 at home.
Neal Maupay’s effort for the Bees on the quarter-hour mark was cancelled out three minutes into the second half by Destiny Udogie.
Brennan Johnson then put Spurs ahead a minute later, with Richarlison adding a further goal for the hosts seven minutes on from that.
Ivan Toney subsequently reduced the deficit in the 67th minute but Ange Postecoglou’s team emerged with the three points to leapfrog Aston Villa in the table.
Nottingham Forest have been told by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) that VAR did not have power to disallow Brentford’s controversial free-kick for Brentford last week.
Forest wrote to the match officials’ governing body as well as the Premier League after Toney scored when he moved the ball from the spot designated in vanishing spray by referee Darren England and even moved some of the spray to the new spot.
Forest wanted answers, including whether VAR could intervene and why the referee did not spot it.
“We have received a response from the incident, it is clear that the law says VAR cannot do anything about ball displacement,” boss Nuno Espirito Santo said.
“I think that is something they should look at because it changes the reality of the game. But at the same time, we also have responsibility because we should have said something and avoided the free-kick to be taken.
“Too bad that the referee didn’t spot it or the linesman. The referee should have seen it because there is a mark and there is clear ball displacement. It is finished, we move forward.”
Forest are back in action on Friday night when they head to Bristol City in the FA Cup fourth round.
They still have a raft of injuries with Taiwo Awoniyi, Anthony Elanga, Morgan Gibbs-White, Divock Origi and Felipe all out while six players are at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Three of those could be returning imminently, depending on results elsewhere, as Ivory Coast did not quality automatically from their group.
Either way, they will not be involved at Ashton Gate.
“We have to wait, the decision is today, it could happen,” Nuno said. “There are a couple of scenarios that could happen. Let’s wait and then we will decide the moment they will return. Friday is very difficult I think.
“Nothing has changed with injuries. Let’s see, but nothing has changed. The scenario is the same, there is no hiding we are short on offensive options because the players that are out are offensive players.
“We will see, we will decide tomorrow the team and gameplan.”
VAR could not intervene to disallow Ivan Toney’s free-kick for Brentford against Nottingham Forest on Saturday because the protocol for using the technology does not cover restarts.
Forest are understood to have written to Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) and the Premier League asking for clarification regarding Toney’s goal.
The Brentford forward moved the ball to the right of the spot designated in vanishing spray by referee Darren England before he took the set-piece, and even moved some of the spray to the new spot.
Toney’s actions could have been deemed as unsporting behaviour and worthy of a yellow card if the officials had spotted it, but the VAR Michael Salisbury was unable to intervene under the protocol laid down by the International Football Association Board (IFAB), which sets the laws of the game.
Under the VAR protocols published on the IFAB website, it states that VAR may only consider clear and obvious errors in relation to goals, the awarding of penalties, straight red cards and mistaken identity.
When a goal is scored or disallowed, the IFAB protocol states that only the following can be considered: an “attacking team offence in the build-up to or scoring of the goal (handball, foul, offside etc)”, and the ball being out of play prior to the goal.
Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo said after the match: “The law is clear – every situation that leads to a goal must be checked. It’s not even a matter of inches, it’s almost a yard.”
Toney’s goal was his first since his return from an eight-month gambling ban and helped Thomas Frank’s men leapfrog their opponents in the Premier League table.
PGMOL has not yet commented on the incident.
Nottingham Forest have asked for an explanation from the Premier League and referees’ body PGMOL over Ivan Toney’s controversial free-kick that helped Brentford to a 3-2 win in west London on Saturday.
Toney moved the referee’s vanishing foam and shifted the ball to a more advantageous position before scoring from the set-piece, leading to complaints from Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo after the game.
The PA news agency understands that Forest have now written to both bodies demanding to know whether Toney’s actions, which the player himself insisted were legal, actually constituted foul play.
Forest want clarification on whether players are allowed to move the ball in such a manner prior to a set-piece and, if not, why VAR officials were not able to intervene.
Nuno rejected Toney’s claim after the game and added: “The law is clear – every situation that leads to a goal must be checked. It’s not even a matter of inches, it’s almost a yard.”
Toney’s goal was his first since his return from an eight-month gambling ban and helped Thomas Frank’s men leapfrog their opponents in the Premier League table.
Ivan Toney may have been the centre of attention for Brentford but boss Thomas Frank was eager to single out another striker after the 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest.
Toney’s cheeky free-kick, on his return from an eight-month ban for breaching betting rules, set the Bees on their way to a first win in five matches.
But it was Neal Maupay’s well-taken turn and shot which secured a much-needed three points after Forest had made it 2-2.
“No one can do anything on their own in life, if you want to achieve something big, you can’t be alone,” said Frank.
“Ivan is one 11th of the team and if the 10 others are not performing, it doesn’t help. We need them all to perform together.
“Another one to highlight is Neal Maupay. The way he took his winning goal was very good. And the way he has come into the club is fantastic. We know what he is capable of, but five goals and three assists is impressive.
“It’s clear that they have got an eye for each other and they connect well. I like it.”
Toney’s strike, after rolling the ball from its original spot to find a gap between the wall and the near post, cancelled out a fine volley from Danilo.
Ben Mee then headed Brentford in front and Chris Wood responded in kind for Forest before Maupay’s 68th-minute winner.
Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo, who felt Toney’s goal should have been disallowed, said: “The boys were organised, we scored and had good momentum. The attitude was excellent, with fighting spirit and togetherness.
“But mistakes dictate the result. The result is frustrating, but the performance was good.
“I think we played well. We must be proud of the way we did things, even though we lost the game. We are short of offensive options.”
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