After an epic session of live blogging, it’s time for me to call it a night. It’s 0-0 at the Etihad where Manchester City are doing battle with this season’s giant killers, Plymouth. Join Barry Glendenning for all the latest. I need a lie down.
Bournemouth are through to the FA Cup quarter-finals for the third time in their history, having previously reached the same stage in 1957 and 2021. Doherty had the chance to put the shootout to bed and win it for Wolves despite the lopsided game and Cunha’s red, but he and Traoré fluffed their lines and Sinisterra got the chance to turn the narrative on its head.
Bournemouth beat Wolves 5-4 on penalties!
Luis Sinisterra scores the decisive penalty, lashing past Johnstone to send the Vitality into raptures.
Boubacar Traoré looks nervous … oh wow. He’s hit the underside of the crossbar and the ball has come back out, hitting Kepa in the process but rolling away.
Down the middle! Lewis Cook takes it to sudden death.
Huge miss! It’s a poor penalty from Matt Doherty, who drags wide.
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Save! Johnstone does the business, diving the right way and palming away Huijsen’s effort.
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An excellent penalty from Toti Gomes follows. Dean Huijsen up next …
Marcus Tavernier takes a very dicey penalty which Johnstone gets his hands to but, in a rare lowlight, he fails to keep it out.
Fine margins! Rayan Aït-Nouri hits the bar but, much to his relief, it bounces into the net.
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Dango Ouattara steps up and, with absolute audacity, takes a quick penalty with no run-up which bobbles into the corner. It’s 2-2.
It’s André up next for Wolves. It’s not a great penalty, but Kepa Arrizabalaga fails to get to it.
Kluivert faces off with Johnstone. The Dutchman sends the Wolves keeper the wrong way and rolls the ball nonchalantly into the far corner.
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First up, it’s Jørgen Strand Larsen for Wolves. He steps up and scores with ease.
A fun side narrative from the FA Trophy. Will Jaaskelainen, son of the former Bolton goalkeeper Jussi, made three saves in a penalty shootout against Oxford City this afternoon and then, for good measure, scored the winning spot kick. Over to you, Sam Johnstone …
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Penalties
Wolves seemed to have the game exactly where they wanted it until Cunha’s red card. Their one-man disadvantage has been negated almost immediately but the Brazilian’s untimely exit could be a consequential distraction.
Red card! Matheus Cunha sent off
Late chaos at the Vitality. Cunha suffers a moment of complete headloss, earning a straight red for lashing out at Kerkez.
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Johnstone does it again! This is some performance between the sticks. Lewis Cook pops up inside the six-yard box and looks certain to win it, but the Wolves keeper denies him. Wolves will fancy this on penalties …
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Another great save from Johnstone! Luis Sinisterra directs a header on target, but the Wolves keeper makes a vital intervention.
A few stats to contextualise this game: Bournemouth have had 27 shots to Wolves’ nine, eight on target to Wolves’ three, 67% possession and 15 corners to Wolves’ one.
Penalty to Bournemouth? No! Justin Kluivert is booked for diving after going down in a 50-50 challenge with Johnstone, the Wolves goalkeeper timing his intervention perfectly.
Fancy some additional reading? Here are our reports from the early FA Cup kick-offs.
At the Vitality, the first spell of extra time is over. Bournemouth looked the likelier to score, but Wolves entrenched themselves and held on. There are some seriously tired legs out there. A decisive mistake is a distinct possibility for either side.
A few points of interest from the National League, which has been sadly neglected on account of me being absolutely swamped. Barnet, the frontrunners, won 3-0 at Oldham to retain their six-point lead at the top, second-placed York won 1-0 at Hartlepool and, at the other end of the table, Boston United gave themselves some faint hope of a survival miracle with a 3-1 victory at Dagenham and Redbridge.
My keyboard is smashed to pieces. My desk is in ruins. Other than extra time at the Vitality, the mid-afternoon results are in. Oh, wait, I’ve missed one: in La Liga, Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla politely litigated a 1-1 draw.
League Two results
Walsall, the faltering league leaders, have another defeat to their name. Results as follows:
Salford 1-2 Bradford
Tranmere 1-1 Port Vale
Wimbledon 0-1 Bromley
Cheltenham 1-1 Grimsby
Chesterfield 1-3 Crewe
Doncaster 3-0 Newport
Fleetwood 2-2 Notts County
Gillingham 1-0 Morecambe
Harrogate 2-1 Accrington
MK Dons 0-1 Colchester
Walsall 0-1 Swindon
League One results
Quite the finish at Leyton Orient, where injury-time goals from Macaulay Gillesphey and Kayne Ramsay gave Charlton a 2-1 comeback win. Results as follows:
Birmingham 1-0 Wycombe
Wrexham 0-0 Bolton
Barnsley 4-3 Lincoln
Bristol Rovers 2-3 Rotherham
Burton 1-1 Mansfield
Crawley 0-2 Cambridge United
Exeter 1-1 Northampton
Leyton Orient 1-2 Charlton
Peterborough 3-1 Shrewsbury
Stevenage 1-2 Huddersfield
Stockport 2-1 Blackpool
Wigan 1-2 Reading
It’s going to extra time at the Vitality. It’s been fun, why not, let’s have at least half an hour more.
Championship results
Sheffield United held on to win at QPR, Luton got a crucial victory in their survival fight, Boro rekindled their playoff hopes, and Stoke and Watford slugged to a stalemate. Results as follows:
Blackburn 1-1 Norwich
Leeds 1-1 West Brom
Oxford 2-3 Coventry
Luton 1-0 Portsmouth
Middlesbrough 1-0 Derby
QPR 1-2 Sheffield United
Stoke 0-0 Watford
Scottish Premiership results
They huffed and they puffed, but Rangers couldn’t find an equaliser against Motherwell. Results as follows:
Dundee 1-1 St Johnstone
Rangers 1-2 Motherwell
Ross County 1-0 Kilmarnock
There are five minutes of added time at the Vitality. Will someone find a late winner to settle it?
In League Two, Colchester have scored late on to lead MK Dons 1-0, while Gillingham are also 1-0 up against Morecambe. Fleetwood and Notts County have seesawed to 2-2, Doncaster have nabbed a third against Newport, Chesterfield have pulled one back against Crewe but still trail, while Bromley lead 1-0 at Wimbledon.
There have been a few late goals in League One. Exeter have levelled against Northampton, Stockport have battled back to lead Blackpool 2-1 and Reading likewise against Wigan.
Wolves are indebted to Johnstone in goal. Semenyo hits a sweet half-volley but the visiting goalkeeper gets down low to keep him out.
Bournemouth are pushing for a winner but, while it feels like they are on top, Cunha is always lurking. It’s finely poised at the Vitality, where the hosts are trying to craft a decisive opening and the visitors are hoping to spring a trap on the counter-attack.
Goal! Middlesbrough 1-0 Derby (Azaz 80)
It’s a scrappy goal, but a great finish. After a series of bobbles and blocks in the box, the ball falls to Finn Azaz who fizzes a shot into the top left corner to give Boro a late lead.
In League One, with 10 minutes to go, Barnsley lead 4-1 against Lincoln, Bristol Rovers have dragged it back to 2-2 against Rotherham, Cambridge United are 2-0 up at Crawley – where both sides are down to 10 men after the dismissals of Rushian Hepburn-Murphy and James Gibbons – and Reading have levelled to make it 1-1 at Wigan.
Goal! QPR 1-2 Sheffield United (Frey 72pen)
Queens Park Rangers have hope against Sheffield United, Michael Frey sending Michael Cooper the wrong way from 12 yards after a handball.
It’s full time in the Bundesliga’s 2.30pm kick-offs. Wolfsburg held on to beat Bremen 2-1, but otherwise the scores remained unchanged: RB Leipzig 1-2 Mainz, Bochum 0-1 Hoffenheim, Heidenheim 0-3 Gladbach, St Pauli 0-2 Dortmund.
Goal! Bournemouth 1-1 Wolves (Cunha 60)
Oooosh. What a finish. From nowhere, Matheus Cunha takes a touch and, 35 yards out, floats a beautiful effort into the top corner. Wolves are level. Peter Higginson, take a bow.
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In League Two, Grimsby have equalised to make it 1-1 at Cheltenham. Doncaster have doubled their lead against Newport, Harrogate are now 2-1 up against Accrington and Swindon have the lead at Walsall.
Goal! Rangers 1-2 Motherwell (Dessers 54)
Rangers have clawed their way back into the game against Motherwell, Cyriel Dessers halving the visitors’ advantage.
In League One, Rotherham are on the comeback trail against Bristol Rovers having gone 2-1 up via Zak Jules. Barnsley are 3-0 up against Lincoln, Georgie Gent netting the third, Mansfield have levelled against Burton, Leyton Orient lead Charlton 1-0 and Wigan are beating Reading by the same scoreline.
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Goal! QPR 0-2 Sheffield United (Campbell 54)
Sheffield United have doubled their lead at Loftus Road, Tyrese Campbell turning on his heel and curling in a long-range screamer.
It’s time for the second halves of the 3pm kick-offs. No rest for the wicked.
What else is going on, then? It’s goalless between Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla in La Liga at half-time. In the Bundesliga, where there’s about 10 minutes to go in the 2.30pm kick-offs, Wolfsburg are 2-0 up against Bremen, Mainz have turned it around to lead RB Leipzig 2-1, Hoffenheim are 1-0 up at Bochum, Gladbach are beating Hoffenheim 3-0 and Dortmund are two goals to the good against St Pauli. In Serie A, Atalanta and Venezia have played out a 0-0 draw. I even teased some Eredivisie and Ligue 1 updates, didn’t I? Utrecht and NAC Breda are deadlocked, while Nice hold a one-goal advantage at Saint-Étienne.
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Some unusual football-adjacent data analysis from L Json here. “Regarding the curious name of Evanilson, there are about 190,000 people in Sweden with the name Eva, and over 170,000 people with the surname Nilsson. There is no statistic of how many are named Eva Nilsson but my own estimate is about 15,000.”
Peter Higginson is feeling confident again. “We’re just letting Bournemouth feel like they’re the better team as part of our cunning plan to storm back with a Cunha hat-trick. Not drunk.”
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Jeremy Boyce has emailed in. “STFC fan here. The mighty Shrews as you said are currently 2-1 down at Posh: worse, they’ve had a man sent off, are enjoying 22% possession, and will be bottom of League One tonight, barring miracles. It’s not looking good, I’m already checking out the GPS for the long trip to Barrow next season.”
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The half-time whistle is going around the grounds. In League One, Rotherham have levelled against Bristol Rovers via Sam Nombe. In League Two, Doncaster lead Newport 1-0. Otherwise, things are unchanged. There’s smoke coming off my keyboard. Nothing to worry about.
It’s half-time at the Vitality. Bournemouth lead 1-0 but will be seriously frustrated that it isn’t more. Inevitably, there has been a VAR drama. Wolves are down but not out.
Another goal chalked off for Bournemouth. Alex Scott has the ball in the back of the net, but only after scuffing his shot on to his own hand. It’s ruled out for handball.
Time for another League One roundup. Cambridge United lead 1-0 at Crawley, Northampton are 1-0 up at Exeter, Barnsley are now 2-0 up against Lincoln, while Peterborough and Huddersfield have restored their leads against Shrewsbury and Stevenage respectively.
There have been more goals in Scotland, where Dundee and St Johnstone are level at 1-1 after two goals in three minutes and Ross County lead Kilmarnock 1-0.
No goal! Bournemouth 1-0 Wolves
There’s VAR and semi-automated offside in the FA Cup fifth round and, as it turns out, both are getting interminably prolonged use. Milos Kerkez bundles in at a corner, but it brushes Dean Huijsen’s upper shoulder right on the line as it goes in. After a ridiculously long deliberation, it’s decided that the shoulder isn’t the issue, but there has been a very marginal offside. The Bournemouth fans let the referee, Sam Barrott, know how they feel in no uncertain terms.
Goal! Rangers 0-2 Motherwell (Sparrow 30)
It’s all gone pear-shaped for Rangers. Tom Sparrow gets in behind on the right and leathers a shot into the far corner beyond Butland’s outstretched leg.
Goal! Bournemouth 1-0 Wolves (Evanilson 30)
The deadlock is broken at the Vitality. James Hill sends up a dangerous long ball from the back, Antoine Semenyo latches on to it and curls in a shot. Sam Johnstone, the Wolves goalkeeper, makes an initial fingertip save, but the rebound falls for Evanilson who fires into an empty net.
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Goal! Luton 1-0 Portsmouth (Clark 25)
Are Luton finally ready to turn around their fortunes? The Championship’s surprise relegation strugglers lead against Portsmouth, Jordan Clark rounding off a counter-attack to put them 1-0 up at Kenilworth Road.
There are more goals trickling through in League Two, too. Crewe have doubled their lead at Chesterfield, Notts County lead 1-0 at Fleetwood, Harrogate are 1-0 up against Accrington and Cheltenham have opened the scoring against Grimsby.
It’s all go in League One. Barnsley are 1-0 up against Lincoln, Burton lead Mansfield, Shrewsbury have equalised at Peterborough and Stevenage have drawn level with Huddersfield. And breathe.
Peter Higginson writes in. “Wolves are looking good for the last four. Unfortunately it’s the last four of the league!” Badum tish.
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Goal! Rangers 0-1 Motherwell (Armstrong 9)
It’s been a good start for Motherwell at Ibrox. The visitors are 1-0 up through Luke Armstrong, a bizarre dispossession from a failed counter-attack allowing him to score on the rebound after a fumble by Jack Butland.
It remains goalless at the Vitality Stadium, though Bournemouth and Wolves have traded a few early efforts. Any more thoughts on who’s joining Aston Villa, Palace and Preston in the FA Cup last eight?
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There’s only been one goal from League Two’s 3pm kick-offs so far, with Crewe leading 1-0 at Chesterfield through Shilow Tracey.
Goal! QPR 0-1 Sheffield United (Brereton 10)
Ben Brereton Díaz has his third goal since returning to Sheffield United in January on loan from Southampton, nodding in a scooped cross from Vinícius Souza to give the visitors the lead at Loftus Road.
We’ve got some early goals around the grounds in League One. Bristol Rovers lead Rotherham 1-0 thanks to an early goal from Ruel Sotiriou, Huddersfield are 1-0 up at Stevenage, Peterborough have put one past Shrewsbury and Blackpool lead at Stockport.
Another email, this time from Simon McMahon regarding the Scottish Premiership. “There’s a six pointer at Dens today where the bottom two clubs meet. Dundee haven’t won in the league since they beat today’s opponents on 5 January, at which stage they were 8th, and 10 points off the bottom. Another defeat today would see St Johnstone move level with Dundee and increase the pressure on Tony ‘The Doc’ Docherty.”
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Before the afternoon goes full goalmania, an update on the Bundesliga action. Borussia Mönchengladbach are 2-0 up at Heidenheim, RB Leipzig lead Mainz 1-0 and Wolfsburg are winning 1-0 at Werder Bremen, while it’s goalless between St Pauli and Dortmund and likewise between Bochum and Hoffenheim.
Kick-offs! Kick-offs everywhere!
Man the barricades. It’s 3pm and centre circles across the country are getting a well-deserved shoeing.
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Here’s an email from Paul Baxter. “‘Frank Lampard’s Coventry fans’ sounds like a cult. We are Coventry fans. Please stop with the FLC business.” Apologies, it was intended as a self-referential joke about how columnists, commentators and pundits are hopelessly addicted to what grammarians are calling the Lampardian prefix. Just a bit of fun.
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Full time, Girona 2-2 Celta Vigo
It’s honours even after the mid-table mayhem at Montilivi. Celta Vigo bobble along, 10th in La Liga, with Girona bibbling just behind them in 11th.
Goal! Girona 2-2 Celta Vigo (Herrera 68)
It’s turning into quite a slugfest at Montilivi. Yangel Herrera has equalised for the hosts, glacing in from a corner.
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We’ve got some correspondence! Peter Higginson writes in: “Discovered this week I was deficient in vitamin C so just bought eight oranges to avoid scurvy. Can this disease explain Wolves’ instability in the league or is it just narcolepsy at the back? Predicting a 3-1 win today and a good pop at the Holy Grail of the FA Cup as we slide into Championship oblivion. Not drunk.” Well, that makes one of us.
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Full time, Birmingham 1-0 Wycombe
Last but not least for the Football League’s early kick-offs, Birmingham’s 1-0 win against Wycombe extends their lead at the top of League One and all but wraps up the title. Taylor Gardner-Hickman got the only goal of the game, while the visitors ended up a man down after Xavier Simons was sent off in first-half stoppage time for a scything challenge on Ethan Laird.
Full time, Wrexham 0-0 Bolton
There were plenty of chances at the Racecourse Ground, with Wrexham registering 15 shots and Bolton 14, but no goals. Finishing, it’s a fine art. The League One promotion rivals only had one shot on target each.
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Full time, Tranmere 1-1 Port Vale
No change at Tranmere, where both sides will have to be satisfied with a point. The hosts are still 22nd and in serious relegation danger, while the visitors are sixth and relatively secure in their League Two playoff berth.
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Full time, Salford 1-2 Bradford
Bradford are now within four points of Walsall at the top of League Two, albeit having played a game more than their rivals. Salford remain ninth after a third defeat on the spin.
Goal! Salford 1-2 Bradford (Mellon 90+4)
There’s been another late goal, this time at Moor Lane. Bradford have taken all three points thanks to an injury-time strike from Michael Mellon.
Full time, Oxford 2-3 Coventry
The Frank Lampard revival continues. Coventry are up to fifth in the Championship, climbing above West Brom and Blackburn to put themselves firmly in playoff contention.
Full time, Blackburn 1-1 Norwich
What a point for Blackburn that is. A draw with all the heady elation of a win.
Goal! Blackburn 1-1 Norwich (Weimann 90+6)
Near-certain winner? Nothing is near certain in football. Blackburn are, amazingly, back level, the substitute Andreas Weimann nodding in a header to send Ewood Park absolutely ballistic.
Full time, Leeds 1-1 West Brom
Leeds, the Championship leaders, have had to settle for a draw against West Brom at Elland Road. Junior Firpo put the hosts ahead in the ninth minute, but Darnell Furlong levelled towards the end of the first half and nobody could find a winner in the second.
Goal! Blackburn 0-1 Norwich (Crnac 90)
Drama at Ewood Park. Emmanuel Dennis was sent off for a second yellow card in the 85th minute and, right at the death, the 10-man hosts have conceded, Ante Crnac smashing in a near-certain winner after a neat pass from Emiliano Marcondes.
It’s full time at Selhurst Park, Palace joining Preston in the last eight of the FA Cup. Join Emillia Hawkins for live reaction:
Goal! Girona 1-2 Celta Vigo (Alonso 51pen)
Back to La Liga we go. Marcos Alonso, formerly of Bolton and Chelsea, has just put Celta Vigo 2-1 up from the spot with a rifled finish into the bottom-left corner.
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Goal! Salford 1-1 Bradford (Halliday 71)
There’s been a goal in the clash between League Two promotion chasers, Bradley Halliday levelling for second-placed Bradford against their ninth-placed opponents.
There’s been another goal at Selhurst Park. Palace are now 3-1 up, Eddie Nketiah getting his fourth goal of the season.
Full time, Preston 3-0 Burnley
It’s official: Preston are through to the FA Cup quarters for the first time in 59 years. There’s bound to be considerable fallout from the match but, on the field, there’s little doubt the hosts were the dominant team.
Goal! Oxford 2-3 Coventry (Sakamoto 71)
But wait a minute, Frank Lampard’s Coventry fans! Tatsuhiro Sakamoto has just lashed in a third goal for the visitors after collecting a raking cross from Jake Bidwell.
In La Liga, there’s an early kick-off between Girona and Celta Vigo that I overlooked earlier. It’s 1-1 at half-time, Viktor Tsygankov having put Girona ahead only for the visitors to hit back through Iker Losada.
Goal! Oxford 2-2 Coventry (Moore 62)
Sorry, Frank Lampard’s Coventry fans. It’s all square at Oxford now, Elliott Moore equalising with a bouncing header at a corner.
In the Championship’s early kick-offs, it’s goalless between Blackburn and Norwich, Leeds and West Brom are locked at 1-1 and Coventry lead 2-1 at Oxford. In League One, Birmingham lead Wycombe 1-0 while Wrexham and Bolton are at a stalemate. What about League Two, you ask? I’m getting to League Two, OK? Salford are 1-0 up against Bradford, while Port Vale have pegged back Tranmere at 1-1.
Goal! Preston 3-0 Burnley (Keane 73)
It’s all over at Deepdale, with Preston set for the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1966. Will Keane has nabbed the third goal, poking home from close range after a sweeping cross from Andrew Hughes.
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In the other early FA Cup match, Crystal Palace are leading Millwall 2-1. Emillia Hawkins is helming our dedicated live blog for that one. You can follow along here:
There’s been a fair bit of acrimony at Deepdale, where Burnley players refused to shake Milutin Osmajic’s hand after Hannibal Mejbri accused him of racist abuse during their Championship meeting in mid-February. Preston now lead 2-0, with Osmajic scoring their second goal and celebrating loudly in front of the Burnley fans.
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Preamble
Is it that time of the week again? The clock of mortality ticks for us all but, thankfully, this clockwatch is fully focused on football, which is one of the best distractions. There’s FA Cup action under way, with Preston hosting Burnley in a match evoking sepia-tinted Pathé reels and postwar ding-dongs. After taking in the latter stages of the action at Deepdale, it’ll be time for Bournemouth’s Cup clash with Wolves at 3pm (all times GMT).
There’s also Scottish Premiership action, with a post-Clement Rangers sizing up Motherwell, and the usual Football League melee. The early Championship kick-offs involving Blackburn and Norwich, Leeds and West Brom, and Oxford and Coventry are in motion, as are the League One tussles between Birmingham and Wycombe and Wrexham and Bolton. Down in League Two, Salford and Bradford are at it, as are Tranmere and Port Vale. There’ll be a full slate of 3pm kick-offs to follow.
There’s also a buzz of activity across Europe, with Rayo Vallecano taking on Sevilla in La Liga at 3.15pm, five Bundesliga matches kicking off at 2.30pm and Atalanta, Serie A title outsiders, gunning for lowly Venezia at 2pm.
Who knows, we might even get around to the Eredivisie and Ligue 1 action. Let’s see how we get on. The minute hand waits for no one, not least live bloggers trying to keep up with upwards of 30 games in multiple different countries all at once. But that’s part of the fun.
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