Getting lucky

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Head Start

Chelsea vs Manchester United

Tonight @ 20:15 BST - TNT Sports

We’ve all heard about this story before. 

Julius Caesar, Napoleon and Nero… once unstoppable but eventually hit a roadblock.

That rings true for Chelsea and Manchester United. And both will be disappointed with their current positions - 12th and 6th.

But there’s still a lot to play for…

United (more so) as they’ll want to secure Champions League football, or risk losing out on the £2.1bn prize pot.

And… Chelsea want to build momentum before next season.

Anyway, who’s going to win tonight? It’s a hard one to call but both managers will feel uneasy. 

Starting with Poch’s side, The Blues…

• … are winless in 12 league matches against United.

• … have only won one of their last 10 at home. 

And for United? 

Well, Ten Hag will be worried that his side have won just one of their last nine Premier League games away against London sides.

It’s the perfect mixture of chaos and unpredictability… exactly what’s needed after last night’s games.

• Chelsea quick-hit 💉: Cole Palmer has been involved in 21 Premier League goals for his side this season, only Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbank (32) and Diego Costa (23) have been involved in more in their debut season for the Blues. 

• Manchester United quick-hit 💉: United have won more games (80) and have a higher win percentage (59.7%) in April than any other side in Premier League history.

Liverpool also host Sheffield United tonight at 19:30 BST on TNT Sports.

Plus…

Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy confirms he is in discussions with investors about selling a stake in the club (More)

Women’s Super League secures £9m-a-season sponsorship deal with Barclays, doubling the value of the current arrangement (More)

Luis Rubiales arrested at Madrid airport in corruption investigation (More)

Stats Summary

Arsenal 2 - 0 Luton

→ Arsenal are unbeaten in their last 39 Premier League matches under Mikel Arteta in which they have been ahead at half-time.

→ Man of the Match Emile Smith Rowe won 100% of his tackles in midfield and achieved an 89% pass accuracy.

→ Luton's 38 away goals conceded is the most of any team in the top flight, with the Hatters conceding an average of 2.4 goals per away match (38 in 16).

Brentford 0 - 0 Brighton

→ Brentford are winless in their past eight Premier League games (D3 L5). They last went on a longer streak without a win between February to April 2007 in League One (run of 11).

→ Brighton took 24 shots but had no goals for their efforts.

Manchester City 4 - 1 Aston Villa

→ Phil Foden has 21 goals for the season in all competitions and has now scored as many Premier League hat-tricks (3) as Frank Lampard, Cristiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba. 

→ Aston Villa’s Jhon Durán is the youngest visiting player to score away to Manchester City at 20 years 112 days since Marcus Rashford scored in 2016 (18y 141d).

For full Matchday 31 results click here.

Love In The Air

Do big football wins increase birth rates?

In February, ex-goalkeeper Ben Foster made a big claim. He believes that he single-handedly raised Wrexham’s birth rate by 25%.

And no. He doesn’t have that much time on his hands.

He thinks that his 97th-minute promotion-securing save resulted in - well - lots of candles being lit and wine being poured in Wrexham that night… if you catch my drift.

It’s an interesting theory… and The Athletic have looked into whether birth rates actually go up after big wins. 

They found a few studies which suggest they do…

• A study in the British Medical Journal found that, in 2010, there was a 16% increase in births in Barcelona exactly nine months after the club’s Champions League win.

• Other statistics show that births in Spain increased following Iniesta’s World Cup-winning goal.

But, for anyone looking to try their luck, you might be disappointed. 

• A wider-reaching study in 2021 - which looked at birth rates in 50 countries going back to 1965 and correlated them with major tournaments - found that birth rates went down. 

Either way, you know what they say… if you don’t shoot, you don’t score.

Off The Pitch

🏠 UAE President buys one of London’s most expensive mansions (More)

🇹🇼 Taiwan experienced its biggest earthquake in at least 25 years (More)

🎟️ Lottery ticket gift from dad earns man $4 million (More)

🌝 The White House has directed NASA to establish a unified standard of time for the moon (More) 

😓 Three British aid workers have been killed in an Israeli strike in Gaza (More)

🏀 Irish basketball team has been ordered to replay the last 0.3 seconds of their quarter-final tie (More)

Around The Football World

🇹🇷 Trabzonspor have been given a six-game spectator stadium ban after their fans attacked Fenerbahce players. The club’s official response… “f*** your justice” (More)

🇪🇸 Athletic Club and Mallorca will face each other in the Copa del Rey final on Saturday 6 April at 21:00 BST on TNT Sports 1 (More)

🇫🇷 Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique has denied claims that Kylian Mbappé insulted him after he was substituted in Sunday’s league win at Marseille (More)

🇮🇹 Manchester United target Weston McKennie has 10 assists for Juventus this season in all competitions after they beat Lazio in the one-legged Coppa Italia semifinal (More)

🇺🇸 Messi and Suárez’s sons win the Easter International Cup by Rayados with Inter Miami’s under-12 team (More)

Extra Time

What is Muset Özil training for? He is looking seriously big. 

CBS presenter Kate Abdo is rumoured to make her boxing debut soon. Her boyfriend has trained some of the best and she’s already looking sharp on the pads. 

Which city produces the most football talent? TransferMarkt has worked it out. 

We promise this is the last Pep video this week. This time he confronts Roy Keane’s claim that Haaland plays like a League Two player.

With the Euros fast approaching… is anyone in favour of this style of penalty shootout?

Cristiano Ronaldo’s iconic bicycle kick was 6 years ago. And it’s still just as special years on.

Game Face On

Question: Who is the oldest outfield player to have appeared in a Premier League match?

Hint: He started his career at Millwall before signing for Nottingham Forest.

Scroll below for the answer.

On Today

FOOTBALL

Premier League: Liverpool v Sheffield United (19:30 BST, TNT Sport 2)

Premier League: Chelsea v Manchester United (20:15 BST, TNT Sport 2)

Eredivisie: Ajax v Go Ahead Eagles (20:00 BST, Discovery+)

Eredivisie: Ajax v Go Ahead Eagles (20:00 BST, Discovery+)

GOLF

PGA Tour: Valero Texas Open (13:15 and 20:30 BST, Sky Sports Golf)

SNOOKER

Tour: Championship (13:00 and 19:00 BST, ITV 4)

BASKETBALL

NBA: Dallas Mavericks v Atlanta Hawks (00:30 BST, TNT Sports 1)

NBA: L.A. Clippers v Denver Nuggets (03:00 BST, TNT Sports 1)

*EST -5. PST -8. CET +1. CST +8. JST +9.

Answer: Teddy Sheringham (40 years and 272 days in December 2006 for West Ham)

“One accusation you can’t throw at me is that I’ve always done my best.”

-Alan Shearer