Premier League: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action

Jordan Pickford’s ‘best save ever’, Antoine Semenyo’s shifting mentality and Liverpool’s set-piece threat grows

• Premier League top scorers: check the latest standings

Arsenal won the battle of set pieces, beating Chelsea 2-1 to keep Manchester City at bay. In a game that offered few clearcut chances from open play, it was a familiar story of Arsenal overpowering their opponents from corner kicks. Gabriel bullied Reece James to set up William Saliba for their first goal and Jur​riën Timber punished a flailing Robert Sánchez for their second. Mikel Arteta’s side have equalled the record for the most goals scored from corners in a Premier League season (16) with nine games still to go. Meanwhile, Chelsea have conceded seven goals from set pieces in Liam Rosenior’s first 13 games in all competitions. Despite posing a threat offensively through Reece James’s delivery for Piero Hincapié’s own goal, they repeatedly failed to match Arsenal’s physicality when defending. Xaymaca Awoyungbo

Match report: Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea

Match report: Manchester United 2-1 Crystal Palace

Match report: Fulham 2-1 Tottenham

Match report: Newcastle 2-3 Everton

Match report: Leeds 0-1 Manchester City

Published: March 2, 2026, 8:00 am

Colorado and Deion Sanders in mourning after QB Dominiq Ponder dies at 23

• Ponder loses control of Tesla on Sunday morning

• Coach Sanders mourns ‘one of my favorites’

Colorado quarterback Dominiq Ponder died early on Sunday morning in a single-car crash in Boulder County, police said. He was 23.

Ponder lost control of his Tesla on a curve and hit a guardrail, according to the Colorado State Patrol. The car then struck an electrical line pole and rolled down an embankment before it caught fire. Ponder was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said a preliminary investigation “shows that speed is suspected as a factor.”

Published: March 2, 2026, 3:22 am

‘We have to take bold decisions’: Williams chief James Vowles on 2026 hopes and F1 title dreams

Williams team principal on pre-season travails, why McLaren are an inspiration and closing the gap to the top

“I didn’t realise it until I saw the notice,” James Vowles says of last month’s third anniversary of his arrival at Williams as their team principal. On a rainy afternoon he smiles wryly in his London office. “I probably should have allowed myself a moment to reflect but you are too caught up in the work. That reality defines Formula One.”

Vowles is one of the most interesting men in F1 and not just because, as the director of strategy, he helped two of his past teams win nine constructors’ championships, including eight drivers’ titles. He will soon reveal a reflective side to his character and touch on the adversity he overcame at the outset of his career. His relish for a challenge in pure racing terms is already obvious because in 2022 he left Mercedes, who had finished second in the championship, for Williams, after they ended that season in 10th and last place.

Published: March 2, 2026, 12:54 pm

MLS weekend wrap: teenagers are taking over, and Messi goes full Florida Man

The days of the retirement league trope appear to be ending, while Inter Miami’s star had an outstanding – and amusing – game against Orlando City

Even before David Beckham swapped Madrid for Los Angeles, MLS has harbored a reputation as a “retirement league.” The notion is well-worn in banter circles. It’s tired, and also at least a little bit true.

Robbie Keane. Kaká. David Villa. Andrea Pirlo. Didier Drogba. Wayne Rooney. Zlatan Ibrahimović. All of them – and many others – enjoyed late-career stops in the United States. Today, three of the 11 players named to Fifa’s Dream Team after the 2014 World Cup play in the league: Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Thomas Müller (Vancouver Whitecaps) and James Rodríguez (Minnesota United). When Son Heung-min (33 years old) arrived in Los Angeles after his decade with Tottenham, he reunited with longtime Spurs teammate Hugo Lloris (39), and ensured derby days against the LA Galaxy’s Marco Reus (36).

Published: March 2, 2026, 12:47 pm

US Half Marathon Championship ends in chaos as lead runners guided in wrong direction

• Lead vehicle takes top-three off main course

• Jess McClain falls from first to ninth

USA Track & Field has denied an appeal after its Half Marathon Championship in Atlanta ended in chaos.

With less than two miles to go in the women’s race, Jess McClain had a significant lead over Ednah Kurgat and Emma Hurley when the guide vehicle took the trio off course. Molly Born, who had been more than a minute behind the leaders, came through to win the race, with Carrie Ellwood and and Annie Rodenfels in second and third. McClain, Hurley and Kurgat finished in ninth, 12th and 13th respectively around two minutes behind Born. Wesley Kiptoo won the men’s race.

Published: March 1, 2026, 6:08 pm

Formula One’s Australian Grand Prix hit by travel chaos amid Middle East crisis

• Flight disruptions force F1 teams into new arrangements

• But all drivers expected to reach Melbourne for first race

As many as one thousand members of the Formula One circus have been forced into last-minute travel changes to get to Melbourne’s opening round in the wake of the escalating crisis in the Middle East, and some are set to miss the start of the season entirely.

However, a larger logistical headache has been narrowly avoided, after the cars and supporting equipment were already shipped from last month’s testing in Bahrain – one of the countries drawn into the conflict – prior to this week’s widespread aviation disruptions.

Published: March 2, 2026, 12:52 pm

Kane and Bayern effectively end Dortmund’s season in cracking Klassiker | Andy Brassell

Hosts thought they had salvaged an unlikely draw, but title and multiple records now loom for Vincent Kompany’s side

It is not and will not be about the individual records. At least that is what Vincent Kompany has said on more than one occasion and will continue to say, despite Der Klassiker delivering the decisive blow in what was never really a Bundesliga title race on the final day of February. However, in the context of the league campaign, outside the bubble of what was a satisfying spectacle in a standalone sense, there may be little more to say.

Much as Kompany insisted that “prizes are awarded at the end of a season, not in February”, none of the 80,000 fans in Signal Iduna Park or those beyond needed any telling what this all meant. Joshua Kimmich’s beautifully taken late winner, snuffing out a late Borussia Dortmund comeback, gave Bayern Munich a 3-2 victory in an oscillating thriller and extended their lead at the top to 11 points, with 10 games to go. Game, set and match, even if Bayern’s CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen resisted an attempt by the presenters of Bild Sport to ply him with a glass of championship champagne on Sunday.

Published: March 2, 2026, 12:51 pm

US hockey star Hilary Knight hits back at Trump’s joke about women’s team during SNL skit

• Trump quipped about inviting US women to White House

• Knight appears on SNL with Hughes brothers

US ice hockey star Hilary Knight aimed a barb at Donald Trump during an appearance on this weekend’s Saturday Night Live.

Knight led the US women to gold at last month’s Olympics, scoring the Americans’ first goal as they beat Canada in overtime. But after the US men’s team won gold Trump joked that he would have to invite the women’s team to the White House too or risk being impeached. Many of the men’s players laughed at Trump’s comments, and Knight later called them “distasteful and unfortunate.” While the US men visited the White House last week, Knight and her teammates said they were too busy to attend and will instead celebrate at an event in July organized by rapper Flavor Flav.

Published: March 1, 2026, 1:15 pm

Is this really the beautiful game? Well yes, and no … but the panic is fun to watch | Barney Ronay

If every win is going to be painful from here, you may as well just take the painful wins – welcome to Arsenal’s late title stagger

On Thursday night at a swanky London hotel so luxuriously risk‑averse the toilets are equipped with wireless thermostats to control to within half a degree the heat of the seat, the Premier League chief executive, Richard Masters, spoke in detail for the first time about the prospect of “Premflix”, the direct‑to‑consumer model of the future, an app that will sluice this irresistible footballing opiate directly into the eyeballs of 8 billion rapt humans.

In doing so Masters was echoing the words of Todd Boehly on the same stage 12 months earlier, who had talked about the Premier League as a kind of fire stolen from the gods, source of the next great tech platform, an engine of empire, tool of world domination, of lassoing the moon out of the sky.

Published: March 1, 2026, 9:30 pm

Atalanta get knocked down after tubthumping week ‘saving Italian football’ | Nicky Bandini

Raffaele Palladino’s side lacked energy after salvaging Serie A pride last week, when league was written off prematurely

On Wednesday, Atalanta “saved Italian football”. At least, that’s what the headlines said after their sensational 4-1 win over Dortmund that overturned a two-goal first-leg deficit and ensured Serie A representation in the last 16 of the Champions League. Yet on Sunday they could not save themselves from defeat to Sassuolo.

This ought to have been so much easier. Their opponents were a man down from the 16th minute, when Andrea Pinamonti was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Berat Djimsiti. Perhaps Atalanta let complacency creep in, multiplied by exhaustion from their midweek exertions. Or maybe Sassuolo deserve all the credit for the resilience they have developed this season under Fabio Grosso.

Published: March 2, 2026, 12:23 pm

Arne Slot admits he does not enjoy watching most Premier League matches

• He points to narrowing gap and reliance on set plays

• Liverpool head coach will not change his team’s style

Arne Slot has admitted he does not enjoy watching most Premier League matches but says he will not change Liverpool’s philosophy. The head coach feels the narrower quality gap between top and bottom and a growing reliance on set plays have reduced the entertainment.

“Most of the games I see in the Premier League are not for me a joy to watch,” Slot said, “but it’s always interesting because it’s so competitive and that is what makes this league great – because there’s so much competitiveness. Everyone can win against everyone, but just as someone who loves to watch football, without being interested in who’s winning or losing it, just to be enjoyed, I think there’s a big difference now between three or four years ago in the Premier League.

Published: March 2, 2026, 10:33 am

Arsenal Women ‘reliant’ on parent club’s £11.9m input despite revenue rise

• Total revenue rises to £21.5m from £15m

• Accounts show £22,000 profit after tax for 2024-25

Arsenal Women experienced huge growth in commercial and matchday revenue last season, but remain reliant on funds from the parent club, their latest accounts show.

In the year to 31 May 2025, during which Arsenal won the Women’s Champions League and finished second in the Women’s Super League, the club nearly trebled their commercial revenue and their matchday revenue increased by 35% to almost £6m, bringing a club record profit of £22,000 after tax.

Published: March 2, 2026, 11:57 am

England keeping close eye on safety before World Cup qualifier in Turkey

• Lionesses face Ukraine in Antalya on Tuesday

• Wiegman says ‘reassurances’ received before trip

Sarina Wiegman says England’s women’s team have had reassurances they are safe in Turkey but remain in close contact with the authorities about the developing conflict in the Middle East, as they prepare to face Ukraine in a Women’s World Cup qualifier.

Tuesday’s match is being played in Antalya, along Turkey’s southern Mediterranean coast, on neutral ground because of the war in Ukraine. The Lionesses travelled to Antalya to begin a training camp last week, landing before the war began in the Middle East.

Published: March 2, 2026, 9:15 am

Tottenham lacking in attack, midfield, defence and ‘brain’, says Igor Tudor

• 2-1 defeat at Fulham was Spurs’ fourth league loss in a row

• ‘We are always late on everything. That’s the problem’

Igor Tudor described the situation Tottenham find themselves in as “amazing” and suggested they have just three major problems as they fight relegation: the attack, the midfield and the defence. Spurs’ 2-1 defeat at Fulham was their fourth in a row in the league and leaves them four points above the relegation zone.

“I cannot tell you anything new,” said a downbeat Tudor. “We need to find the forces inside each of us. I said to the players: ‘It’s always what you’re going to do, what you want to do with yourself,’ you know? More personality, more wish to do before reacting, plenty of things … We are lacking when we attack, we lack the quality to score the goal. We are lacking in the middle to run and we are lacking behind to stay there to suffer and not concede the goal. So, an amazing situation. Amazing.”

Published: March 1, 2026, 6:43 pm

Andrew Dillon reveals AFL’s Olympic-sized ambitions for Brisbane 2032

• Australian rules football ‘should be on that stage’, Dillon says

• Origin and Opening Round here to stay after initial success

On the eve of the 2026 season, the AFL boss, Andrew Dillon, has hinted at Olympic-sized plans for the AFL while emphasising Origin and Opening Round are here to stay.

Dillon was in Sydney on Monday to promote the Opening Round which includes home games for all four NSW and Queensland clubs and just one match in Victoria, a format which he says has resulted in bumper crowds for round one.

Published: March 2, 2026, 6:15 am

European football: Late fightback at Roma keeps Juventus in hunt for top-four spot

• Visitors score twice in last 12 minutes to draw 3-3 in Rome

• Sevilla come from 2-0 down to draw derby at Real Betis

Juventus maintained their hopes of reaching next season’s Champions League after bouncing back from two goals down to draw 3-3 at their top-four rivals Roma with nearly the last kick of the game. Federico Gatti lashed in Juve’s leveller in the third minute of stoppage time to give the visitors a point in Rome that keeps them four points behind their opponents in fourth.

Juve were trailing 3-1 with 12 minutes remaining after goals from Wesley França, Evan Ndicka and Donyell Malen gave the hosts a commanding lead in front of more than 65,000 delighted fans. But Jérémie Boga volleyed Juventus back into the game and just as Roma looked as if they would hold out for the win Gatti pounced on a poorly defended free-kick to snatch an unlikely point.

Published: March 1, 2026, 10:29 pm

Infantino suggests players covering mouths when addressing opponents could be sent off

• Fifa president wants more intervention in battle against racism

• Mouth covering in focus after Vinícius Júnior’s allegation of abuse

The Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, has suggested players who cover their mouths while addressing opponents could be sent off as part of the governing body’s battle against racism.

The practice, which has long been deployed to prevent cameras picking up conversations between teammates and opposition, has been put in focus after Vinícius Júnior’s allegations of discriminatory abuse by Gianluca Prestianni. The Benfica player denies doing so but was suspended for his side’s Champions League playoff second leg against Vinícius’s Real Madrid pending the outcome of a formal investigation.

Published: March 1, 2026, 9:25 pm

‘My heart almost stopped’: Arteta praises David Raya for vital saves in Arsenal win

• Goalkeeper made last-ditch save to deny Garnacho

• ‘David’s hand brought my heart back to life’

Mikel Arteta said his heart almost stopped before David Raya kept ­Arsenal’s title challenge on track with a stunning late save to deny 10‑man Chelsea a late equaliser at the Emirates Stadium.

Raya was in exceptional form ­during a crucial 2-1 win, making a series of excellent stops during a tense encounter, and the Spaniard was alert when a cross from Alejandro Garnacho threatened to drift inside his near post as full time approached. The goalkeeper pushed the ball wide, ensuring that goals from William Saliba and Jurriën Timber enabled Arsenal to restore their five-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.

Published: March 1, 2026, 8:58 pm

Iranian football association unsure if national team will play at World Cup in US

• ‘We cannot look forward with hope,’ says FFIRI president

• England Lions match in Abu Dhabi cancelled due to war

The president of Iran’s football federation says he does not know if the national team can play World Cup matches in the US after the US and Israeli bombardment of the country.

“What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope,” Mehdi Taj said to the sports portal Varzesh3 as Iran traded strikes with Israel as part of a widening war prompted by the bombardment.

Published: March 1, 2026, 7:59 pm

Brennan becomes first Briton since Cavendish to win Flemish classic in sprint finish

• 20-year-old claims victory in Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne

• ‘I’m always there in these kind of races’

The 20-year-old British sprinter Matthew Brennan rocketed out of an accelerating pack to win the Flemish classic Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne for team Visma-Lease-a-bike on Sunday.

Brennan, from Darlington, is the first Briton to win the race since Mark Cavendish in 2012 and 2015, whose finishing sprint was similar to the burgeoning star. Brennan avoided the Cavendish comparison after the race.

Published: March 1, 2026, 7:47 pm

USWNT top Argentina 2-0 as Trinity Rodman goes down with back injury

• Lindsey Heaps and Jaedyn Shaw score for US

• US continue SheBelieves Cup v Canada on Wednesday

• Rodman has dealt with back problems

Lindsey Heaps and Jaedyn Shaw scored as the US women’s national team defeated Argentina 2-0 in their opening match of the SheBelieves Cup in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday.

Heaps made it 1-0 in the 19th minute, and Shaw doubled the count in the 56th.

Published: March 2, 2026, 1:06 am