Premier League

The Italian football federation (FIGC) reached an agreement with Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali on a 10-month ban after he gambled on matches.

FIGC president Gabriele Gravina confirmed Tonali's plea agreement includes eight months of rehabilitation. Tonali's agent said the 23-year-old is suffering from a gambling addiction.

"The rules call for a certain number of years of suspension, but the plea bargain and extenuating circumstances have been taken into consideration and the players' collaboration went above and beyond, therefore we must continue to respect the rules we have established for ourselves," Gravina said to Sky Sports Italia (via the BBC).

On Friday, FIFA extended the ban worldwide, making the suspension immediate and ruling him out of Newcastle's match on Saturday against Wolves.

Tonali was implicated in a wider scandal across Italian soccer. Juventus midfielder Nicolò Fagioli already received a seven-month ban, and Aston Villa also confirmed midfielder Nicolò Zaniolo is cooperating with authorities.

Tonali admitted in a hearing before the FIGC to gambling on matches while playing for AC Milan in Serie A. ESPN noted he faced a suspension of up to three years because of the offense.

While he avoided the worst-case scenario, the Italy international will not only miss the remainder of the 2023-24 Premier League season, but he will also be ineligible for Euro 2024. The Azzurri have yet to qualify with two matches remaining.

Newcastle signed Tonali from Milan for £55 million this past summer as the club looks to build on its fourth-place finish last season. He had a bright start for the Magpies, scoring in their 5-1 victory over Aston Villa to open the domestic campaign.

Before the suspension was handed down, manager Eddie Howe said Newcastle will continue to support Tonali as the process unfolded.

"I see the person, I see the human, I see the pain and distress," he told reporters. "That's why my thoughts are always with the player and making sure we look after him. Sandro loves the game and is absolutely devastated.

"His thoughts are with us and our thoughts are with him. Hopefully between us we can make it work. The most important thing is Sandro and his welfare. It's very easy for people to forget how young he is, the changes he's had in his life coming from Italy to England. Footballers are human beings."

Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) released the audio of the conversation between the match officials during Tottenham Hotspur's 2-1 win over Liverpool when a goal by Luis Díaz was ruled out for offside.

In the video published Tuesday, VAR officials can be heard identifying how the call on the field was misidentified in the booth. Darren England, who was running the review, believed he was confirming that Díaz had been onside rather than overturning the original decision. The match had restarted before the mistake was made clear, so nothing could be done at that point.

"As stated shortly after the full-time whistle on Saturday evening, we acknowledged in a statement that a significant human error had occurred during the aforementioned match, which we recognize should have resulted in a goal being awarded through VAR intervention," PGMOL said in a statement.

In its statement, the PGMOL added will emphasize to officials "the need for efficiency, but never at the expense of accuracy." Slight changes to the VAR process will be made as well to improve communication between the match referee and the VAR booth.

As Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp said in his post-match press conference, what's done is done in terms how much the mistake influenced Saturday's match. Maybe Liverpool still winds up losing even if Díaz's goal had stood, but there's no question a first-half goal for the Reds would've changed the proceedings.

The PGMOL's attempt at providing additional transparency may also do little to quell the general criticism that's growing toward the whole premise behind VAR.

Games are slowing down and supporters aren't sure whether they can celebrate a goal, lest an attacker be deemed centimeters ahead of the offside line following a lengthy review.

There are also incidents, like the tackle that garnered a red card for Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones. What looked like a bookable offense in real time rises to the level of a dismissal when it's slowed down and scrutinized second by second.

"This was a very modern kind of red card: a red card that wasn't obviously unfair or incorrect; but which also wasn't obviously correct or fair," the Guardian's Barney Ronay wrote of Jones' sending-off. "It was a red card that happened because the tools exist to call it into being."

The red card was upheld after an appeal.

VAR isn't even assured of guaranteeing the one thing it's supposed to accomplish, as evidenced by Saturday's error. Earlier this season, Wolverhampton Wanderers received their own apology because Michael Salisbury, the VAR official, failed to award a penalty due a foul by Manchester United goalkeeper André Onana in second-half stoppage time.

It might be only a matter of time before the next major VAR controversy, which will prompt another apology and a series of minor measures in an effort to perfect what may be an irrevocably flawed system.

The Glazer family reportedly will be taking Manchester United off the market after signaling a willingness to sell the iconic club last year, according to Jacob Leeks of the Mirror and Nick Harris and Alex Miller of the Daily Mail.

Per Leeks' report, "The Americans opened up bidding for investment or even a full buy-out of the Red Devils last year, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani quickly emerging as the frontrunners to take over from the much-hated Glazers."

He added that none of the offers came close to the "£6 billion valuation" ($7.55 billion) the family had placed on the club.

Ratcliffe's offer reportedly would have left the Glazers as minority owners, per Harris and Miller, while Qatar's Jassim was seeking to become the exclusive owner.

The reports won't be met with enthusiasm at Old Trafford, with United supporters protesting the Glazer ownership yet again to start the season. Such protests have become a growing theme.

"The Glazers are thick-skinned and won't be influenced by any negative fan reactions," a source close to the Glazers told Harris and Miller.

Per both reports, the family will consider putting United back on the market in 2025, when certain conditions may lead to more favorable bids.

Harris and Miller cited an "uplift in TV rights revenues, the expansion of FIFA's Club World Cup to 32 teams from 2025, which could be very lucrative, and the forthcoming 2026 World Cup" as factors in moving the selling process back to 2025.

That edition of the World Cup will be hosted in North America, with the majority of the games being played in the United States, and could potentially "heighten the interest of American billionaires in football investments. The Glazers think this may help them sell United for between £7 billion ($8.8 billion) and £10 billion ($12.5 billion)."

Since the Glazers takeover in June 2005, United has won five Premier League titles and both the Champions League and Europa League one time apiece.

United hasn't won the league since the 2012-13 season, however, watching as neighbors Manchester City have emerged as England's dominant force, with five of the past six titles and seven total Premier League championships since the 20211-12 campaign.

United's 20 titles in the history of top-flight English football remains the most ever won by a club, one ahead of Liverpool and seven above Arsenal. But in recent years, clubs like City, Liverpool and Chelsea have seen far more success, both domestically and in Europe.

Manchester United had to work hard to knock off 10-man Nottingham Forest, eventually coming out 3-2 winners at Old Trafford.

Forest scored twice in the opening four minutes, but the Red Devils persevered and completed the comeback late in the second half.

Here are some top highlights from Saturday's Premier League showdown.

76' — Man Utd's comeback is complete! Bruno Fernandes fires low into the corner from the spot.

52' — Redemption for Casemiro! The veteran puts away a Bruno Fernandes ball and levels the game at 2-2.

26' — HUGE MISS FROM CASEMIRO! The Brazilian midfielder has the freest of free headers and somehow cannot convert.

17' — Right place, right time for Christian Eriksen. The Dane gets a touch on Marcus Rashford's low cross and halved Man Utd's deficit.

4' — The worst possible start for Man Utd. Taiwo Awoniyi (and then, two minutes later, Willy Boly) capitalize on lax defending for an almost instantaneous 2-0 lead.

Al-Ittihad is making another run at trying to land Mohamed Salah in a transfer from Liverpool.

Per The Athletic's David Ornstein, the Saudi Arabia pro league club has "concrete" interest in signing Salah.

Ornstein added it's "unclear" at this point if a deal will materialize and that Liverpool's stance "remains that Salah is not for sale."

Ramy Abbas Issa, Salah's representative, previously dismissed reporters the 31-year-old superstar was looking to leave Liverpool by noting he wouldn't have re-signed with the club if that were the case.

Salah signed a three-year deal with the Reds in July 2022 that keeps him with the club through 2025 and pays him around $69 million.

Per a recent report from Al Riyadh (h/t Jeorge Bird of the Daily Mail), Al-Ittihad was prepared to make Salah an offer of around $195.9 million for two years.

The Saudi Pro League is becoming a major player on the world football stage thanks to several marquee player additions this summer. Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante, Jota and Fabinho have already joined Al-Ittihad on massive deals.

Fabinho spent five seasons as Salah's teammate with Liverpool before making the move to Al-Ittihad. The Reds also lost Jordan Henderson when he agreed to a transfer deal with another Saudi Pro League club, Al-Ettifaq, on July 27.

This doesn't even include Cristiano Ronaldo's move to Al Nassr on a two-year deal estimated to be worth $220.2 million.

Salah has been with Liverpool since 2017 when he agreed to a transfer from Roma. The club has finished in the top five in the Premier League table in each of his first six seasons, including a title in 2019-20.

In 220 career Premier League games with the Reds, Salah has scored 138 goals. He notched his first goal of the 2023-24 season in Saturday's 3-1 win over AFC Bournemouth.

Pep Guardiola will miss Manchester City's next two matches after undergoing successful surgery on his back.

The club announced on Tuesday that Guardiola had a routine procedure to address "severe back pain" and he is "expected" back after the international break on Sept. 16:

"The Manchester City boss has been suffering with severe back pain for some time lately, and flew out to Barcelona for emergency surgery performed by Dr Mireia Illueca. The surgery was a success, and Pep will now recover and rehabilitate in Barcelona.

"In his absence, assistant manager Juanma Lillo will oversee coaching of the first team on the training field and will assume duties on the touchline until Pep's return. He is expected to return after the forthcoming international break.

"Everyone at Manchester City wishes Pep a speedy recovery, and look forward to seeing him back in Manchester soon."

Guardiola will miss the upcoming fixtures against Sheffield United on Aug. 27 and Fulham on Sept. 2 before the international break.

Lillo returned to Manchester City as part of Guardiola's staff earlier this month. He previously spent two seasons as an assistant with the club from 2022 to '22.

The 57-year-old spent the 2022-23 season as head coach of Al Sadd in the Qatar Stars League. Al Sadd finished third in the league and had a runner-up finish in the Amir Cup.

Guardiola is in his seventh year as City's manager. He has a 302-57-58 record with the club and led them to five Premier League titles, including each of the last three, the latter of which was part of a historic treble including the Champions League and FA Cup.

Manchester City has opened the 2023-24 Premier League season with wins over Newcastle United and Burnley. It also defeated Sevilla on penalty kicks in the UEFA Super Cup on Aug. 16.

Barring any setbacks in his recovery, Guardiola is expected back for the Sept. 16 match against West Ham United at London Stadium.

Manchester United announced Monday they mutually agreed to work toward ending Mason Greenwood's tenure at the club.

"All those involved, including Mason, recognize the difficulties with him recommencing his career at Manchester United," United said. "It has therefore been mutually agreed that it would be most appropriate for him to do so away from Old Trafford, and we will now work with Mason to achieve that outcome."

In February, prosecutors dropped attempted rape and assault charges against Greenwood due to new evidence and "the withdrawal of key witnesses."

The 21-year-old continued to deny the allegations in connection to the charges in a statement confirming his departure from Manchester United:

I want to start by saying I understand that people will judge me because of what they have seen and heard on social media, and I know people will think the worst.

I was brought up to know that violence or abuse in any relationship is wrong, I did not do the things I was accused of, and in February I was cleared of all charges. However, I fully accept I made mistakes in my relationship, and I take my share of responsibility for the situations which led to the social media post.

I am learning to understand my responsibilities to set a good example as a professional footballer, and I'm focused on the big responsibility of being a father, as well as a good partner. Today's decision has been part of a collaborative process between Manchester United, my family and me.

There was a large outcry for United to sever ties with Greenwood after photos and audio surfaced on social media that allegedly documented the abuse and sexual assault.

Manchester United said Monday that "the material posted online did not provide a full picture and that Mason did not commit the offenses in respect of which he was originally charged" following its own investigation.

Still, scrutiny toward Greenwood and the club remained long after his legal case was resolved.

The Athletic's Adam Crafton also reported how Manchester United officials were fully aware of how Greenwood's return would be received. To that end, they "prepared documents outlining the type of images that should be taken of the player during training sessions and planned how manager Erik ten Hag should handle questions during an anticipated media storm."

Per Crafton, United also attempted to gauge how individual outside figures would react to the situation and "divided these people into categories to the effect of 'supportive,' 'open-minded' or 'hostile.'"

Manchester United was poised to experience some pushback from within the club as well. Crafton reported some employees were "ashamed" of the expected return of Greenwood.

"Some staff members have discussed resigning in the event United continue to pursue the plan laid out by [chief executive Richard Arnold], while others have considered coordinated action, with some staff even exploring a strike," the report read.

Greenwood's last appearance for Manchester United came in a 1-0 victory over West Ham in January 2022.

It's unclear whether United is moving to reach a negotiated settlement with Greenwood or will terminate his contract altogether.

Tottenham Hotspur defeated Manchester United 2-0 on Saturday in its first home match since Harry Kane signed with Bayern Munich.

A Pape Sarr goal and an own goal from Lisandro Martinez were the difference as manager Ange Postecoglou got his first victory as Tottenham manager after last week's 2-2 draw with Brentford.

Manchester United, meanwhile, have had a shaky start to the campaign despite prevailing 1-0 over Wolverhampton Wanderers thanks to a 76th-minute goal from Raphaël Varane. Controversy surrounded the victory, though, as Wolves were denied a penalty from a foul by United goalkeeper André Onana.

Here's how the highly anticipated match unfolded.

83' - Spurs extend their lead to 2-0 after Ben Davies slight touch gets deflected by Lisandro Martinez and into the net. Man Utd in big trouble.

49' - Pape Matar Sarr pounces on the loose ball and is able to fire past Andre Onana for the second half 1-0 lead.

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Manchester United and Wolves will open their 2023-24 campaigns at Old Trafford on Monday.

The Red Devils enter the season with optimism after finishing third in the Premier League a season ago behind only Manchester City and Arsenal. United wasted little time in bolstering the squad, adding versatile midfielder and attacker Mason Mount, goalkeeper André Onana and striker Rasmus Højlund.

Whether those deals are enough to propel United past its Manchester rivals and Mikel Arteta's Gunners remains to be seen. Certainly, staying in a Champions League place will be no easy task with a new-look Chelsea, Newcastle and Tottenham lurking. But there are positive vibes surrounding the club after Erik ten Hag's promising first season as manager.

There's far more uncertainty at Wolverhampton.

Manger Julen Lopetegui shockingly departed the club last week amid frustrations about the club's financial restraints and the losses of Rúben Neves (Al-Hilal), Nathan Collins (Brentford), Raúl Jiménez (Fulham) and Conor Coady (Leicester City) in the transfer market.

João Moutinho and Adama Traoré also left after their contracts ran out, with the latter joining Jiménez at Fulham.

Lopetegui reportedly targeted players like Bristol City's Alex Scott, Borussia Mönchengladbach's Nico Elvedi and West Ham's Aaron Cresswell. But the club missed out on all three, with right-back Matt Doherty and goalkeeper Tom King the only summer signings.

So out went Lopetegui, who only lasted nine months on the job but helped stave off relegation a year ago, replaced by Gary O'Neil. He'll be tasked with keeping the club in the Premier League after six straight years in the top flight, with Monday a huge first test.

Follow below for updates and highlights from the final match of Weekday 1.

90+7' - Huge call from ref denies Wolves a penalty right at the death

76' - Bruno's pass finds Wan-Bissaka, who then finds Varane for simple header and 1-0 to Man Utd

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