… and that, my dear Clockwatch friends, is your lot. For today, at least. More business-end entertainment will be coming your way soon, in a style that is both thick and fast. Thanks for reading!
Brighton 6-0 Wolves. “We can do better,” says Julen Lopetegui.
Brentford 2-1 Nottm Forest. Ben Bloom was at the Gtech to witness the Bees sting Forest through the heart.
Crystal Palace 4-3 West Ham. John Brewin was at Selhurst Park this afternoon.
Scottish Championship. This sets up next weekend’s winner-takes-all showdown rather nicely: it’s Queen’s Park v Dundee! And while Caley Thistle made the cup final earlier today, they’ve been usurped in the league by Partick and Ayr, and are now in danger of missing the play-offs. Next week’s final fixture? ICT v Ayr! A fun division, this.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dundee | 35 | 24 | 60 |
| 2 | Queen's Park | 35 | 13 | 58 |
| 3 | Partick | 35 | 20 | 56 |
| 4 | Ayr | 35 | 17 | 55 |
| 5 | Inverness CT | 35 | 6 | 55 |
| 6 | Morton | 35 | 9 | 54 |
| 7 | Raith | 35 | -3 | 42 |
| 8 | Arbroath | 35 | -18 | 33 |
| 9 | Cove Rangers | 35 | -36 | 31 |
| 10 | Hamilton | 35 | -32 | 30 |
League Two. Stevenage secured their promotion today, but Northampton fluffed their chance to do likewise, losing at home to Bradford. Stockport and Bradford could still pip them. Mansfield’s defeat means they’re now extremely unlikely to snatch a play-off place, though it’s not yet mathematically impossible. Down at the bottom, Hartlepool’s expected relegation is confirmed.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leyton Orient | 45 | 27 | 90 |
| 2 | Stevenage | 45 | 21 | 82 |
| 3 | Northampton | 45 | 19 | 80 |
| 4 | Stockport County | 45 | 28 | 78 |
| 5 | Carlisle | 45 | 23 | 75 |
| 6 | Salford City | 45 | 19 | 75 |
| 7 | Bradford | 44 | 19 | 75 |
| 8 | Mansfield | 45 | 15 | 72 |
| 9 | Barrow | 45 | -5 | 62 |
| 10 | Swindon | 45 | 5 | 58 |
| 11 | Tranmere | 45 | -2 | 58 |
| 12 | Grimsby | 45 | -8 | 58 |
| 13 | Sutton Utd | 45 | -12 | 57 |
| 14 | Newport County | 45 | -3 | 56 |
| 15 | Doncaster | 45 | -18 | 55 |
| 16 | Crewe | 44 | -13 | 54 |
| 17 | Walsall | 45 | -4 | 52 |
| 18 | Gillingham | 45 | -14 | 52 |
| 19 | Harrogate Town | 45 | -9 | 51 |
| 20 | Colchester | 45 | -5 | 49 |
| 21 | AFC Wimbledon | 45 | -11 | 48 |
| 22 | Crawley Town | 45 | -22 | 46 |
| 23 | Hartlepool | 45 | -26 | 42 |
| 24 | Rochdale | 45 | -24 | 37 |
League One. Plymouth Argyle and Ipswich Town will both play second-tier football next season. Sheffield Wednesday must settle for a place in the play-offs; Bolton secured their spot today. At the bottom, Accrington are as good as relegated thanks to their appalling goal difference, but Oxford are safe.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plymouth | 45 | 33 | 98 |
| 2 | Ipswich | 45 | 66 | 97 |
| 3 | Sheff Wed | 45 | 43 | 93 |
| 4 | Barnsley | 45 | 35 | 86 |
| 5 | Bolton | 45 | 25 | 78 |
| 6 | Derby | 45 | 22 | 76 |
| 7 | Peterborough | 45 | 19 | 74 |
| 8 | Portsmouth | 45 | 11 | 69 |
| 9 | Wycombe | 45 | 8 | 68 |
| 10 | Charlton | 45 | 4 | 61 |
| 11 | Lincoln City | 45 | -1 | 59 |
| 12 | Fleetwood Town | 45 | 2 | 57 |
| 13 | Shrewsbury | 44 | -9 | 56 |
| 14 | Exeter | 45 | -5 | 53 |
| 15 | Bristol Rovers | 44 | -13 | 53 |
| 16 | Cheltenham | 45 | -16 | 53 |
| 17 | Burton Albion | 44 | -23 | 52 |
| 18 | Port Vale | 45 | -21 | 49 |
| 19 | Oxford Utd | 45 | -6 | 47 |
| 20 | Milton Keynes Dons | 45 | -22 | 44 |
| 21 | Morecambe | 45 | -30 | 44 |
| 22 | Cambridge Utd | 44 | -28 | 43 |
| 23 | Accrington Stanley | 45 | -38 | 41 |
| 24 | Forest Green | 45 | -56 | 27 |
Championship. Coventry move up to fifth and while they’re not guaranteed a play-off spot, they’re very close indeed. Sunderland’s late equaliser against Watford kept their chances alive. Swansea and Preston now can’t make it. Wigan meanwhile are down, while Reading only have one chance left to pull themselves out of the mire.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Burnley | 45 | 49 | 98 |
| 2 | Sheff Utd | 44 | 34 | 88 |
| 3 | Luton | 44 | 18 | 78 |
| 4 | Middlesbrough | 44 | 29 | 74 |
| 5 | Coventry | 45 | 12 | 69 |
| 6 | Millwall | 45 | 8 | 68 |
| 7 | Sunderland | 45 | 10 | 66 |
| 8 | Blackburn | 44 | -3 | 65 |
| 9 | West Brom | 44 | 6 | 63 |
| 10 | Swansea | 45 | 3 | 63 |
| 11 | Preston North End | 45 | -11 | 63 |
| 12 | Norwich | 44 | 5 | 62 |
| 13 | Watford | 45 | 1 | 60 |
| 14 | Hull | 45 | -10 | 57 |
| 15 | Bristol City | 45 | -3 | 56 |
| 16 | Stoke | 45 | 3 | 53 |
| 17 | Birmingham | 45 | -10 | 53 |
| 18 | QPR | 45 | -25 | 50 |
| 19 | Cardiff | 44 | -13 | 49 |
| 20 | Rotherham | 44 | -12 | 46 |
| 21 | Huddersfield | 43 | -19 | 44 |
| 22 | Reading | 45 | -20 | 44 |
| 23 | Blackpool | 45 | -25 | 41 |
| 24 | Wigan | 45 | -27 | 41 |
Premier League. It was a good day for the minnows chasing European football, as both Brighton and Brentford won. It was also a good day for the bottom three, whose hopes of survival were boosted as Wolves, West Ham and Nottingham Forest all lost.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 33 | 40 | 75 |
| 2 | Man City | 31 | 53 | 73 |
| 3 | Newcastle | 32 | 32 | 62 |
| 4 | Man Utd | 31 | 9 | 60 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 33 | 7 | 54 |
| 6 | Aston Villa | 33 | 5 | 54 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 32 | 22 | 53 |
| 8 | Brighton | 31 | 21 | 52 |
| 9 | Brentford | 34 | 8 | 50 |
| 10 | Fulham | 32 | 1 | 45 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 34 | -10 | 40 |
| 12 | Chelsea | 32 | -5 | 39 |
| 13 | Wolverhampton | 34 | -21 | 37 |
| 14 | AFC Bournemouth | 33 | -31 | 36 |
| 15 | West Ham | 33 | -10 | 34 |
| 16 | Leeds | 33 | -21 | 30 |
| 17 | Nottm Forest | 34 | -32 | 30 |
| 18 | Leicester | 33 | -13 | 29 |
| 19 | Everton | 33 | -25 | 28 |
| 20 | Southampton | 33 | -30 | 24 |
League Two full times
AFC Wimbledon 1-1 Tranmere
Carlisle 2-3 Salford
Crawley 0-0 Walsall
Crewe 2-1 Swindon
Doncaster 1-0 Colchester
Gillingham 1-2 Newport
Hartlepool 3-1 Barrow
Leyton Orient 0-3 Stockport
Mansfield 1-2 Harrogate
Northampton 1-2 Bradford
Rochdale 4-1 Sutton
Stevenage 2-0 Grimsby
Stevenage are promoted; Hartlepool are relegated
League One full times
Accrington Stanley 1-2 Cambridge
Bolton 2-0 Fleetwood
Charlton 3-2 Port Vale
Derby 1-1 Portsmouth
Forest Green 0-3 Oxford United
Ipswich 6-0 Exeter
MK Dons 4-4 Barnsley
Morecambe 3-2 Lincoln
Peterborough 0-0 Bristol Rovers
Plymouth 1-0 Burton
Shrewsbury 0-3 Sheffield Wednesday
Wycombe 0-3 Cheltenham
Ipswich and Plymouth are promoted
Championship full times
Bristol City 1-2 Burnley
Coventry City 2-0 Birmingham City
Hull City 1-1 Swansea City
Reading 1-1 Wigan Athletic
Sheffield United 4-1 Preston North End
Stoke City 0-1 QPR
Sunderland 2-2 Watford
Wigan are relegated
Premier League full times
Brentford 2-1 Nottingham Forest
Brighton 6-0 Wolves
Crystal Palace 4-3 West Ham
FULL TIME: Brentford 2-1 Nottingham Forest
Heartbreak for relegation-haunted Forest, who were eight minutes away from victory but go home with nowt. Brentford meanwhile continue to dream of European football!
FULL TIME: Stoke 0-1 QPR. Rangers are safe.
FULL TIME: Reading 1-1 Wigan. Wigan are down.
FULL TIME: Ipswich 6-0 Exeter. Ipswich’s promotion to the Championship is confirmed!
FULL TIME: Plymouth 1-0 Burton. Argyle are up! On come the fans.
FULL TIME: Stevenage 2-0 Grimsby. Stevenage are promoted to League One.
GOAL! Brentford 2-1 Nottingham Forest (Dasilva 90+4)
So close to three precious points for Forest … but so far. Hope for Everton, Leicester and Leeds!
Updated
FULL TIME: Brighton 6-0 Wolves
A scoreline that flatters Wolves, believe it or not.
GOAL! Reading 1-1 Wigan (Meite 90+3). An injury-time equaliser that crumbles Wigan hearts like biscuits. Wigan are going down unless they can somehow hit back.
FULL TIME: Morton 2-1 Queen’s Park. The Spiders will have to beat leaders Dundee next week if they’re to win automatic promotion to the Premiership.
GOALS! Morecambe 3-2 Lincoln (Stockton 86); MK Dons 4-4 Barnsley (Watters 86). Morecambe were 2-0 down; MK Dons 4-1 up. And now look! The League One relegation story is far from over! Wow.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Milton Keynes Dons | 45 | -22 | 44 |
| 21 | Morecambe | 45 | -30 | 44 |
| 22 | Cambridge Utd | 44 | -28 | 43 |
| 23 | Accrington Stanley | 45 | -38 | 41 |
| 24 | Forest Green | 45 | -56 | 27 |
GOAL! Brentford 1-1 Nottingham Forest (Toney 82)
A free kick. Toney whistles it through the wall, as if by magic, and Navas can’t keep the ball out. A huge blow for Forest and succour for Southampton, Everton, Leicester and Leeds!
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Nottm Forest | 34 | -31 | 31 |
| 17 | Leeds | 33 | -21 | 30 |
| 18 | Leicester | 33 | -13 | 29 |
| 19 | Everton | 33 | -25 | 28 |
| 20 | Southampton | 33 | -30 | 24 |
Updated
Bundesliga news, courtesy of Kári Tulinius. “Sebastian Hoeness is the fourth manager Stuttgart have had this season, a young prospect rather than an established firefighter. That he came into a mess is an understatement, but in the four weeks he’s been in charge he’s yet to lose a match, and Stuttgart’s 2-1 win over Mönchengladbach means they’re out of the relegation zone for the first time in a long time.”
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Hoffenheim | 30 | -12 | 29 |
| 15 | Stuttgart | 30 | -14 | 28 |
| 16 | VfL Bochum | 30 | -34 | 28 |
| 17 | Schalke 04 | 29 | -30 | 24 |
| 18 | Hertha Berlin | 29 | -24 | 22 |
GOAL! Reading 0-1 Wigan (Hughes 81). A late header that gives Wigan a lifeline at the bottom of the Championship … and plunges fellow strugglers Reading into all sorts of bother!
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Rotherham | 44 | -12 | 46 |
| 21 | Huddersfield | 43 | -19 | 44 |
| 22 | Reading | 45 | -21 | 43 |
| 23 | Wigan | 45 | -26 | 43 |
| 24 | Blackpool | 45 | -25 | 41 |
GOAL! Bolton 2-0 Fleetwood (Dempsey 78). Bolton look to have secured their play-off place against a Fleetwood side now down to ten men, Stockley having been given his marching orders earlier in the second half.
GOAL! Sheffield United 3-1 Preston (Ndiaye 75). The Preston dream dies. Bramall Lane back in full Promotion Party mode!
GOALS! MK Dons 4-2 Barnsley (Norwood 73); MK Dons 4-3 Barnsley (Watters 75). Oh dear.
GOAL! Sheffield United 2-1 Preston (Fleck 72). Jebbison crosses for Fleck, and there goes Preston’s play-off dream.
“My head hurts looking at the Scottish Championship ‘as-it-stands’ table,” writes Simon McMahon. “By my reckoning there will be something riding on every game in next Fridays final round of fixtures. Yikes.”
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dundee | 35 | 24 | 60 |
| 2 | Queen's Park | 35 | 13 | 58 |
| 3 | Partick | 35 | 20 | 56 |
| 4 | Ayr | 35 | 17 | 55 |
| 5 | Inverness CT | 35 | 6 | 55 |
| 6 | Morton | 35 | 9 | 54 |
| 7 | Raith | 35 | -3 | 42 |
| 8 | Arbroath | 35 | -18 | 33 |
| 9 | Cove Rangers | 35 | -36 | 31 |
| 10 | Hamilton | 35 | -32 | 30 |
GOALS! Sunderland 0-2 Watford (Porteous 69); Sunderland 1-2 Watford (O’Nien 70). Sunderland’s play-off hopes not quite dead yet.
GOAL! Brighton 6-0 Wolves (Undav 66)
London Buses dept. Deniz Undav waited 14 matches for his first Premier League goal for Brighton; now he’s got two in exactly one hour. Wolves, though, dearie me.
Updated
GOALS! MK Dons 3-1 Barnsley (Eisa 61); Morecambe 2-2 Lincoln (Niasse 66). Morecambe and MK Dons still fighting for those League One lives!
GOAL! Sheffield United 1-1 Preston (Delap 63). Preston need to win if they’re to retain any hope of snatching a play-off spot, and they’re back in it at Bramall Lane.
GOAL! Morton 2-1 Queen’s Park (Crawford 65). A reminder that Queen’s Park can still win promotion to the Premiership next week with a win at home over leaders Dundee.
GOAL! Stevenage 1-0 Grimsby (Reid 57). Jamie Reid eyebrows a header home, and as it stands, Stevenage are going up.
GOAL! Shrewsbury 0-2 Sheffield Wed (Smith 48). A second goal for Michael Smith … though it’s currently all in vain for the Owls, with Ipswich and Plymouth both winning. As things stand, Wednesday will have to settle for a play-off place.
GOALS! Morecambe 0-2 Lincoln (Virtue 48); Morecambe 1-2 Lincoln (Stockton 50); MK Dons 2-1 Barnsley (Leko 52). Morecambe and MK Dons fighting for their League One lives.
GOAL! Stoke 0-1 QPR (Adomah 48). Rangers flirted with relegation for a while, but they’ve come good at the death, and as things stand, they’ll be safe.
GOAL! Ipswich 6-0 Exeter (Burns 47). … and in other as-you-were news …
GOAL! Brighton 5-0 Wolves (Welbeck 48)
Julen Lopetegui made changes at half time … but it’s the same old story at the Amex. This is now officially a rout. This is Brighton’s second string!
Updated
GOAL! MK Dons 1-1 Barnsley (Eisa pen 48). Milton Keynes are back in it … though not yet out of the League One relegation scramble. Meanwhile Rob Wolf Petersen would like to reassess De Zerbi’s team selection. “Fair to say that any lingering doubts I was nurturing about Brighton’s team selection before kick-off have been thoroughly dispelled. If there was any intent on RDZ’s part to highlight a lack of squad depth, it’s backfired in the best possible way!”
Scottish Championship half-time
Morton 1-1 Queen’s Park
League Two half-times
AFC Wimbledon 0-0 Tranmere
Carlisle 0-2 Salford
Crawley 0-0 Walsall
Crewe 0-1 Swindon
Doncaster 1-0 Colchester
Gillingham 1-1 Newport
Hartlepool 1-1 Barrow
Leyton Orient 0-2 Stockport
Mansfield 0-2 Harrogate
Northampton 0-1 Bradford
Rochdale 2-1 Sutton
Stevenage 0-0 Grimsby
League One half-times
Accrington Stanley 0-1 Cambridge
Bolton 1-0 Fleetwood
Charlton 1-0 Port Vale
Derby 0-1 Portsmouth
Forest Green 0-1 Oxford United
Ipswich 5-0 Exeter
MK Dons 0-1 Barnsley
Morecambe 0-1 Lincoln
Peterborough 0-0 Bristol Rovers
Plymouth 1-0 Burton
Shrewsbury 0-1 Sheffield Wednesday
Wycombe 0-1 Cheltenham
Championship half-times
Bristol City 0-1 Burnley
Coventry City 2-0 Birmingham City
Hull City 1-1 Swansea City
Reading 0-0 Wigan Athletic
Sheffield United 1-0 Preston North End
Stoke City 0-0 QPR
Sunderland 0-1 Watford
Premier League half-times
Brentford 0-1 Nottingham Forest
Brighton & Hove Albion 4-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Crystal Palace 4-3 West Ham United (FT)
GOAL! Brentford 0-1 Nottm Forest (Danilo 45+1)
A brouhaha in the Brentford box … then a swipe of quality as Danilo whistles a shot into the top bin. A huge goal in Forest’s fight to avoid relegation … and awful news for fellow strugglers Leeds, Leicester and Everton! The game at the King Power on Monday night between Leicester and Everton is going to be an absolute belter, isn’t it?
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Nottm Forest | 34 | -30 | 33 |
| 17 | Leeds | 33 | -21 | 30 |
| 18 | Leicester | 33 | -13 | 29 |
| 19 | Everton | 33 | -25 | 28 |
| 20 | Southampton | 33 | -30 | 24 |
Updated
GOAL! Coventry 2-0 Birmingham (Gyokeres 42 pen). Cov take one step closer to securing a play-off place.
GOAL! Plymouth 1-0 Burton (Ennis 45). As it stands, Plymouth are going up!
GOAL! Morton 1-1 Queen’s Park (Gillespie 44 pen). Queen’s Park drop back to second in the as-it-stands Scottish Championship table, though here’s a reminder that automatic promotion will still be possible even if they lose today. Next week’s showdown with Dundee will be a big one all right.
No goals yet in the other Premier League match … but Awoniyi has just missed a sitter for Forest at Brentford.
GOAL! Brighton 4-0 Wolves (Welbeck 39)
It’s probably just as well that Wolves are currently eight points clear of the relegation zone, because this is the sort of performance that could really affect morale during any scrap to stay safe.
Updated
GOAL! Sheffield United 1-0 Preston (Ahmedhodzic 36). The Blades, who are already playing Premier League football next season, get the party started at Bramall Lane.
GOAL! Ipswich 5-0 Exeter (Chaplin 32). It’s not even news any more.
GOAL! Morton 0-1 Queen’s Park (Boateng 32). Queen’s Park will leapfrog Dundee at the top of the Scottish Championship with a win … so just look at this! They host Dundee next week for the right to play Premiership football next year.
GOALS! Morecambe 0-1 Lincoln (Sorensen 30); MK Dons 0-1 Barnsley (Kane 30). At the bottom, Morecambe need to win to avoid relegation, and hope MK Dons lose. Well, it’s all happening.
GOAL! Ipswich 4-0 Exeter (Broadhead 28 pen). That’s Ipswich’s 97th goal of their League One campaign. They way this is going, they’ll make the ton up today.
GOAL! Brighton 3-0 Wolves (Gross 26)
Party time at the Amex as well! Another goal for Pascal Gross, this one a crisp volley. Europe is very much on the agenda now. Brighton are wonderful. Crystal Palace fans are permitted to demur, but does anyone else seriously disagree? Nope, is the answer to that.
Updated
GOAL! Ipswich 3-0 Exeter (Hirst 22). Party time at Portman Road.
GOAL! Bolton 1-0 Fleetwood (Omochere 18 og). Bolton are involved in a two-from-three tussle with Derby and Peterborough for the remaining League One play-off spots. They’ll take anything right now, and they’ll happily take Promise Omochere’s own goal.
GOAL! Ipswich 2-0 Exeter (Luongo 16). Massimo Luongo makes it two, and Ipswich’s four-year exile in the third tier looks ever more likely to end this afternoon.
GOAL! Sunderland 0-1 Watford (Kabasele 17). The Black Cats are one of the teams hoping to snatch a play-off place at the death, but it’s not going so well for them at the moment as Christian Kabasele crashes a header home.
GOAL! Brighton 2-0 Wolves (Gross 13)
Wolves attack, Brighton counter, Pascal Gross lifts the ball over Jose Sa, and this really is justification for Roberto De Zerbi’s five-change gambit!
Updated
GOAL! Ipswich 1-0 Exeter (Chaplin 8). A win for Ipswich will secure their promotion back to the Championship. Conor Chaplin puts the Tractor Boys ahead early doors … and sends them to the top of the division as things stand. Third-placed Sheffield Wednesday are winning at Shrewsbury, meanwhile, keeping Plymouth, now in second and drawing 0-0 with Burton, looking over their shoulder.
GOAL! Coventry 1-0 Birmingham (Eccles 3). An early goal for Cov as they look to consolidate their play-off spot.
GOAL! Brighton 1-0 Wolves (Undav 6)
Veltman crosses, Undav taps in. VAR checks for offside, but the goal stands! That’s Undav’s first Premier League goal for Brighton. Early justification for what Rob Wolf Petersen describes as “a bit of a maverick starting line-up that from RDZ. Seems like a combination of resting key players, giving some second-stringers a chance to shine, and possibly demonstrating the limited squad depth!”
Updated
Some breaking broadcasting news. Jeff Stelling will leave Sky Sports Soccer Saturday at the end of the season … and he really means it this time. He’ll be missed all right.
… and if that’s not enough Scotsoccer to whet your palate, a report on Caley Thistle’s superb win over Falkirk has just dropped. Here ‘tis!
Back again to Scotland, and here comes Simon McMahon. “What with those Scottish Cup semis this weekend, there are no Scottish Premier fixtures today, so attention switches to the Scottish Championship and in particular the match between Morton and Queens Park. A win for the Spiders will take them above Dundee, who could only draw with relegation-threatened Cove Rangers at Dens last night, and ensure that a draw in their final game - at home to Dundee - will mean the league title and promotion to the Scottish Premier. Even defeat to Morton, who themselves are still in with a chance of making the play-offs, will set things up for a winner takes all match between the top two next week. It’s also the first leg of the play-off between The Spartans and Brechin, Lowland and Highland league winners respectively, to see who will go forward to play for a place in the Scottish League against the team finishing at the bottom of Scottish League Two (currently Albion Rovers). So all to play for. They don’t call it the business end of the season for nothing, I suppose.”
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dundee | 35 | 24 | 60 |
| 2 | Queen's Park | 34 | 14 | 58 |
| 3 | Inverness CT | 35 | 6 | 55 |
| 4 | Partick | 34 | 18 | 53 |
| 5 | Ayr | 34 | 16 | 52 |
… so the Premier League table now looks like this, for the next couple of hours anyway. If Palace had any lingering relegation fears, they’re conclusively gone now. Mr Roy’s done quite the job there. West Ham will still be looking over their shoulder, and though their run-in isn’t the easiest, with games against both Manchester clubs and trips to Brentford and Leicester coming up, the fact they’re not shy of scoring goals should see them all right: they’ve now scored 14 in their last five matches.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 33 | 40 | 75 |
| 2 | Man City | 31 | 53 | 73 |
| 3 | Newcastle | 32 | 32 | 62 |
| 4 | Man Utd | 31 | 9 | 60 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 33 | 7 | 54 |
| 6 | Aston Villa | 33 | 5 | 54 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 32 | 22 | 53 |
| 8 | Brighton | 30 | 15 | 49 |
| 9 | Brentford | 33 | 7 | 47 |
| 10 | Fulham | 32 | 1 | 45 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 34 | -10 | 40 |
| 12 | Chelsea | 32 | -5 | 39 |
| 13 | Wolverhampton | 33 | -15 | 37 |
| 14 | AFC Bournemouth | 33 | -31 | 36 |
| 15 | West Ham | 33 | -10 | 34 |
| 16 | Leeds | 33 | -21 | 30 |
| 17 | Nottm Forest | 33 | -31 | 30 |
| 18 | Leicester | 33 | -13 | 29 |
| 19 | Everton | 33 | -25 | 28 |
| 20 | Southampton | 33 | -30 | 24 |
It’s all over at Selhurst Park, where Crystal Palace have beaten West Ham United by the odd goal in seven. Barry Glendenning is your only man.
Back to the Scottish Cup for a second, and with tomorrow’s Old Firm semi-final stramash in mind, this is worthy of your time. The book it comes from – Revolution, by Martyn Ramsay – evokes wonderfully the glorious tumult that was Scottish football in the late 80s and early 90s. Extremely enjoyable and highly recommended to all fans, not just the denizens of Ibrox.
Those 3pm teams, then. Brighton have made a raft of changes, their squad knackered and dejected after defeats in the FA Cup semi-final and away at Nottingham Forest. Alexis Mac Allister, Kaoru Mitoma, Moises Caicedo, Levi Colwill and Facundo Buonanotte all start on the bench, with Danny Welbeck, Adam Webster, Joel Veltman, Deniz Undav and the lesser-spotted Billy Gilmour stepping up. Wolves just make two tweaks to the side that started the 2-0 won over Crystal Palace during the week: Joao Gomes and Pedro Neto step up, Hwang Hee-Chan and Matheus Cunha step down.
Brentford, on a high after winning at Chelsea, switch things around a bit too. Aaron Hickey, Mikkel Damsgaard, Kevin Schade and Bryan Mbeumo replace Mads Roerslev, Mathias Jorgensen, Frank Onyeka and Yoane Wissa. Forest make one change after their win against Brighton, and it’s forced upon them: Joe Worrall deputises for Neco Williams, who suffered a broken jaw during the midweek game.
Back in the land of the Premier League, it’s all going off at Selhurst Park, where a seventh goal has just gone in. Pity poor Barry Glendenning’s fingers!
There’s already been one big result today, and it’s come in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup: Falkirk 0-3 Inverness Caledonian Thistle. It was a repeat of the 2015 final, which the Caley Jags won 2-1, but this match wasn’t as close. Billy Mckay opened the scoring with a seventh-minute penalty, and closed it on 57 with a fine cushioned volley that took his all-time ICT tally to 100. In between times, Daniel MacKay steered in a fine header. Caley Thistle will face either Celtic or Rangers in the final. Sub-editors across the land will be dusting down that headline, just in case, as we speak.
Brighton v Wolves teams
Brighton & Hove Albion: Steele, Gross, Dunk, Webster, Estupinan, Veltman, Gilmour, March, Enciso, Undav, Welbeck.
Subs: Sanchez, Colwill, Mac Allister, Mitoma, Caicedo, Ayari, Van Hecke, Buonanotte, Offiah.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Sa, Semedo, Dawson, Kilman, Bueno, Gomes, Neves, Lemina, Nunes, Neto, Costa.
Subs: Bentley, Collins, Podence, Hwang, Cunha, Sarabia, Toti, Moutinho, Traore.
Come on Albion! 💪 Here's our starting XI to face @Wolves today. 📝
— Brighton & Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC) April 29, 2023
📲 https://t.co/S3j1TIeLz3 // #BHAFC 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/BCpPCF0WuL
✌️ changes
— Wolves (@Wolves) April 29, 2023
➡️ Neto and J. Gomes start
How we line-up to face @OfficialBHAFC.
🐺📋 @AstroPay_OK pic.twitter.com/kGB3qrDNYs
Brentford v Forest teams
Brentford: Raya, Hickey, Pinnock, Mee, Henry, Jensen, Damsgaard, Janelt, Mbeumo, Toney, Schade.
Subs: Cox, Roerslev, Stevens, Jorgensen, Onyeka, Baptiste, Dasilva, Wissa, Ghoddos.
Nottingham Forest: Navas, Aurier, Felipe, Niakhaté, Worrall, Mangala, Danilo, Lodi, Johnson, Gibbs-White, Awoniyi.
Subs: Hennessey, Toffolo, Kouyate, Lingard, Yates, Freuler, Ayew, Surridge, Dennis.
🐝 Your Bees to take on Nottingham Forest#BREFOR | #BrentfordFC | @BlueJeansNet pic.twitter.com/1B3awqBcbf
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) April 29, 2023
☝️ One change from #NFOBHA.
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) April 29, 2023
🇸🇳 Moussa starts in defence.
💪 Yatesy returns to the squad.
How #NFFC line up for #BRENFO 📋 pic.twitter.com/bqjjnWCVv6
Updated
Preamble
The Premier League calendar is all over the shop right now. So much so that we only have two Saturday 3pm fixtures in the Premier League this week.
Brentford v Nottingham Forest
Brighton & Hove Albion v Wolverhampton Wanderers
They’re both biggies, though. Can Brighton and Brentford maintain their push for European football? Will Forest haul themselves further clear of the drop zone? Can Wolves conclusively put any lingering relegation worries to bed? We’ll find out soon enough … while keeping eyes peeled on the divisions below, where it’s business time and issues a-plenty are set to be resolved. It’s on!
