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Manchester City picked up another three points in the Champions League with a 4-1 home win over German side Borussia Dortmund.

Pep Guardiola’s side scored twice in either half to propel themselves up to fourth in the table and maintain their unbeaten record.

City got into their groove pretty quickly at the Etihad Stadium. It took just 22 minutes for them to take the lead, with Phil Foden firing home from outside the penalty area into the bottom left corner.

Just seven minutes later, City had their second, and to nobody’s surprise, it was Erling Haaland who bagged the goal. Criminally, the Norwegian centre-forward was given acres of space in the box by his old side, slamming home his effort after Jeremy Doku pulled the ball back across the box.

Foden had his second goal just before the hour mark, once again tucking his effort into the bottom left corner. Dortmund pulled one back in the 72nd minute, but Rayan Cherki’s stoppage-time goal off the bench sealed the win for the Cityzens.

It was a strong showing from City, with Haaland and Foden two of the standouts for Guardiola’s side.

How Haaland and Foden downed Dortmund

Is there anyone who can stop Haaland? Well, his former side couldn’t, as he scored his 18th goal of the season in just 14 games. The striker, who captained City on the night, has bagged five times in the Champions League already this term.

His performance clearly impressed Simon Bajkowski, chief City journalist for the Manchester Evening News. He gave the Citizens number 9 a post-match rating of 8/10, and said his night’s work was “brilliant again.”

As for Foden, his two goals, which were carbon copies of each other, perfectly encapsulated what makes him so good.

Operating in the right half-space, the England international showed great technical ability to carve out both chances, which he took with great poise.

His stats from the game are a great reflection of how well he played. City’s number 47 was constantly involved, having 71 touches and creating three chances. He also worked hard off the ball, making five recoveries.

The City duo were standouts for Guardiola’s side on Wednesday, but one of their teammates also shone.

Man City star is as important as Foden & Haaland

Guardiola will surely be pleased to see such a big win against an opponent who could have proved to be a tough test. The performances from Haaland, Foden and Cherki off the bench are encouraging signs for the Citizens.

It was not just those three who impressed, though. Midfielder Tijjani Reijnders put in a strong showing at the Etihad Stadium. He set up both of Foden’s goals, pulling the strings from an advanced midfield position.

The Dutchman also has some impressive numbers from the game. Like Foden, Reijnders created three chances and looked after the ball well in midfield with a pass accuracy of 88%. He also won two out of three ground duels and made things tough for the visitors when they had the ball in the centre of the park.

Touches

41

Pass accuracy

88%

Passes completed

28/32

Opposition half passes completed

18/22

Ground duels won

2/3

Chances created

3

Assists

2

It was a superb performance from Reijnders, which stood out to Citizens fan page over on X, City Chief. They described it as a “masterclass” in the midfield, and said it was “easily his best performance in a City shirt so far.”

After a night’s work as good as that from the 27-year-old, it is easy to see why he can be as important as Haaland and Foden. He brings plenty of control and helps City sustain attacks.

On top of that, the Netherlands international has a good relationship with another great technical player, Foden. According to Squawka, it is the first time the England international has bagged twice in the Champions League match, and the first time Reijnders has assisted two in a game in the same competition.

That is surely no coincidence. That relationship, plus the creative influence and technical quality, Reijnders adds to the City side, makes him one of their most important players, as he showed against Dortmund.

Man City "monster" is closest thing Pep's had to Messi & it's not Cherki

Pep Guardiola has found his new Lionel Messi at Manchester City in pure “monster” and it is not Rayan Cherki.

ByBen Gray Oct 30, 2025

Both batters have been good against spin in Pakistan and give South Africa hope ahead of tours to India and Sri Lanka

Firdose Moonda21-Oct-2025International cricket tours are not research trips but if they were, South Africa would mark the Pakistan Tests as a success because of what it has taught them about their batters. Especially Tony de Zorzi.With a century in Lahore and 55 in Rawalpindi, as things stand, de Zorzi is the series’ leading run-scorer and has kept South Africa in the game in both first innings. Remarkably, de Zorzi has a much higher Test average in the subcontinent – 70.50 – than he does on home soil, where he averages just 14.53. Both his Test hundreds and one of his three fifties have come in Asia and one other in the West Indies, where conditions are also slow and low.It’s all a bit of an anomaly given that de Zorzi grew up on the Highveld and spent the early parts of his career playing on pacy, bouncy strips but has developed a game plan that works in Asia and it’s an obvious one: “Tony is a really good player of spin. He sweeps well, reverse sweeps well and uses his feet well,” Ashwell Prince, South Africa’s batting coach, who has also coached de Zorzi at domestic level, said.He is also willing to be patient, as evident from his early engagements in his innings in Rawalpindi. The first ball he faced, from Sajid Khan, whizzed past the shoulder of his bat as he hung back in his crease in defence. From then, de Zorzi tried to get forward to defend as much as possible and scored only five runs off the first 22 balls he faced. In that, was one that should have got him out. Pakistan did not review an Asif Afridi delivery that was shorter in length, kept de Zorzi on his back foot and spun into his pad. They appealed for a catch at short leg but a review on the lbw would have meant this story may have been about something else entirely. But luck is part of the game and what players do with it can be more important than whether they have it. De Zorzi made it work for him.Three overs after the non-dismissal, he saw an opportunity to change tempo, walked across his stumps and hit Sajid through deep backward square for four. South Africa were scoring at the pedestrian rate of 2.35 runs an over before that shot, and they were closer to three runs an over by the end of the day.Related

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Asif Afridi finally gets his moment

First day in Pindi = first day in Lahore

Whether de Zorzi got it right when it came to his balance between attack and defence is a matter of opinion. Prince’s is that de Zorzi, in just his 15th Test, is still discovering how to do things but is learning fast. “I don’t think with three days to go it’s necessary to go a lot quicker but the important thing is for every batter who goes out there to find his natural rhythm of play,” Prince said. “What we try and emphasise is finding your tempo and marrying strong defence with good scoring opportunities. It’s important for all of them to know where their singles are and to understand which kind of boundary options they may be looking at but as far as time is concerned I don’t think there’s any rush.”De Zorzi main scoring shot is the sweep – and according to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, he has scored 35.1% of his 423 runs in Asia using that shot – and he scores mostly square of the wicket. In this innings, 36 off his 55 runs came between point and covers or short fine and midwicket and he scored them off 21 balls. His is a contrasting wagon wheel to his partner – Tristan Stubbs’ – an off-side dominant batter, who is the other player that has passed on the South African report card.Before this Test, Stubbs had got into double figures only once in his last nine Test innings and appeared completely out of sorts. He had been shifted from No. 3 – a position given to him in August last year and then taken away in December – to No.4 to No.5 and his role was unclear. With Wiaan Mulder left out of his Test to accommodate the left-arm seam-bowling allrounder Marco Jansen, Stubbs was pushed back up to No. 3 and showed determination just to stay there.Can Tristan Stubbs become South Africa’s long-term No. 3?•AFP/Getty ImagesHe scored 13 runs off the first 60 balls he faced before de Zorzi played that shot off Sajid and Stubbs followed shit when he shimmied down the pitch to hit Sajid through the covers. Though he still accumulated at a conservative pace, Stubbs found runs when he moved his feet: lunging forward and lowering one knee to sweep Asif over square leg, and occasionally when he advanced on bowlers. The pillar of this innings, though, was defence. Stubbs faced 140 dot balls, only eight fewer than in the knock he played against Sri Lanka in Durban, when he scored 100. This is already his third-longest Test innings by balls faced, 14 short of his knock in Chattogram, where he also scored a century. There will be pressure on him to convert this into three figures too but that isn’t the only goal.At this stage of his career, Stubbs just needs to make a case for where he should bat in the Test team and why and this could be the innings that does that. “He showed great character,” Prince said. “He was a little clearer in his game plan, understood his scoring opportunities and obviously was strong on defence. He’s also been quite positive in terms of his footwork, back and forth and using the crease and when he wanted to hit the ball in the air, there was commitment in that so he’s gone pretty well.”Prince said Stubbs sees being back at No. 3 as a “great opportunity,” but that it doesn’t mean he has the spot back permanently. “We’ve always seen him as a player who’s got a pretty decent game against spin. Whether he continues in that position in the future will be determined by where we play and the conditions that we face.”And that may be South Africa’s biggest lesson about their batting from this trip. Just as Lungi Ngidi was left out of this series so South Africa could stack their squad with spinners, the same thinking can apply to South Africa’s batting line-up and the way they are talking suggests it could. “The No. 3 position would fluctuate in terms of where we are playing,” Prince said. “We have to marry people in terms of horses for courses approach.”In that case, two of the horses for this kind of course have been identified. Given that between the Chattogram Test last year where de Zorzi scored his first hundred and the Lahore one, he had only crossed 30 once in nine Test innings, there is a case to be made that when South Africa play in the subcontinent, de Zorzi should be in the XI but when they are in SENA countries, he may not be. Instead, someone like David Bedingham, who has sat on the bench this series, could be considered then. The same could apply to Stubbs and the inclusion of captain Temba Bavuma, when he becomes available post-injury could then be another talking point.All this information South Africa can use for future trips to the subcontinent, and there are two more of them in this WTC cycle, which makes it valuable. What they will wish is that is what they already had coming into this contest. For Prince, there is still time for South Africa to show they can apply what they have learnt in this match and maybe, to spring a great surprise. “One more big partnership – something close to 100 runs brings us close to Pakistan’s score and the potential is there to get 40 or 50 runs ahead. It might not sound a lot but under these circumstances it could be a lot.”

Tottenham Hotspur will look to kick on once the January transfer window opens and could be willing to put their money where their mouth is to sign Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay, but circumstances will need to align.

The Lilywhites have become a thorn in the side of many Premier League outfits this campaign due to their physicality and new-found ability to convert from set-pieces, making them a dangerous opposition to come up against on any given day.

Mohammed Kudus has shone in the forward areas and Spurs have earned a new lease of life after their domestic form last term, with Thomas Frank deserving of credit for managing to solidify the Lilywhites in all areas.

Despite his mixed start to life in North London, the Dane made clear before his side took on Chelsea that Xavi Simons is another figure he expects to come to life in the heart of his side.

He said: “Yes. No doubt about that. I’m not in doubt that Xavi will perform very well for us. That is down to him, to me, to the team, to everyone to get it done. The one thing you don’t have in football is time, but it will take time.

“It’s completely natural. Sometimes we can’t talk about processes and time and all that, but the reality is you need it, everyone needs it. I’m confident. I’m sure it will happen.”

Frank’s outfit appear to be solid from middle to front, that much is true, but there is always room for improvement when you are eyeing a slot in the Champions League places.

With that in mind, Spurs are now plotting a January bid for a star who they may be set to put their large transfer kitty towards.

Tottenham line up Scott McTominay amid huge Napoli demands

According to Football Insider, Tottenham will look to put their sizeable transfer kitty towards signing Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay, who could be at the centre of an intriguing saga involving both parties.

Fabio Paratici has set his sights on the Scotland international and the money on offer could be a lure for the former Manchester United man to return to the Premier League. However, Pete O’Rourke believes it would take a ‘huge’ statement of intent from Spurs to push a deal over the line.

Scott McTominay’s time at Napoli

Appearances

47

Goals

17

Assists

7

He said: “Napoli won’t want to weaken their squad by losing such an important player like Scott McTominay. He’s under contract until 2028, so, to even consider selling him would be a huge fee as well.”

Intriguingly, the same report has floated the idea of Kobbie Mainoo joining Napoli, which could pave the way for movement to take place elsewhere, albeit that remains unlikely for now.

Tottenham are also eyeing another Serie A goalscorer

Still, McTominay has been a titan since joining the reigning Serie A champions in 2024 and has continued that form into this term, placing seven of his 16 shots taken on target, per Fotmob, hence why Frank is keen to do a deal.

Somerset implode despite flying start with the ball, to lose by 90 runs at Hove

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay21-Aug-2025Somerset produced an unlikely victory over Sussex in the Metro Bank One Day Cup at Hove, winning by 90 runs after being bowled out for a modest 243. It was their fourth victory in six matches.On a slow pitch that offered some sharp seam movement on occasions, but was far from unplayable, both sides were guilty of rash strokeplay, especially the Sussex Sharks when they lost four wicket for no runs in the course of eight deliveries.The Sharks were clear favourites at the halfway point of the match. And they reinforced their position when they reached 60 for one at the end of the first 10-over powerplay, almost twice as many as Somerset had scored (33 for 3) at the same stage of their innings. But then Sussex collapsed in a way that made their recent implosion against Lancashire, when they lost six wickets for 27 runs before winning a thrilling contest, look commonplace.From the start of the 11th over Charlie Tear flayed a wide delivery straight to cover. Next ball, Fynn Hudson-Prentice missed a straight one and was lbw. And three balls later captain John Simpson got one that cut back off the pitch and was also lbw. Tom Lammonby, who had made a three-ball duck when he had opened the Somerset innings, had bowled a three-wicket maiden.It got worse. Tom Clark, who had batted impressively, lobbed the second delivery of the 12th over to mid-on and Sussex were 60 for five. Jack Carson, heroic in the recent wins over Kent and Lancashire, hinted at another rescue act with a vigorous 35 before pulling to midwicket, and when Oli Carter was caught in the same area, to make it 128 for eight, it was realistically all over. Lammonby took five wickets for the first time in any competition.The Somerset total had looked insufficient, and they were happy to get there after being 82 for five in the 20th over. Their innings was revived by half-centuries from Josh Thomas and Finley Hill after the Rew brothers James and Thomas had both failed to build on promising starts.Somerset, who continued their rotation policy by bringing in Kian Roberts, Kasey Aldridge and Hill, made a frantic start to their innings. Archie Vaughan was caught down the leg-side first ball and Sussex missed two more chances in the first two overs. But they weren’t made to pay for their profligacy. In the third over Lammonby was caught at slip off Sean Hunt, coming back into the side in place of Bertie Foreman, and it was 21 for three in the sixth over when Lewis Goldsworthy, surprised by the bounce achieved by Hudson-Prentice, could only fend the ball off to Henry Crocombe at square-leg.Once again Somerset were looking to the Rews to pull them round. But captain James, attempting to turn Crocombe to leg, got a leading edge back to the bowler for just 29 and the same bowler jagged one back to bowl his younger brother through the gate for 30.At that stage significant recovery looked beyond an inexperienced Somerset side. But they were transformed by a sixth wicket stand of 59 between Thomas and Hill. Thomas, mixing bludgeoning blows with some sweetly timed drives – on a pitch where timing was difficult – was particularly impressive, stroking Crocombe square on the off-side to raise the hundred in the 24th over. He reached his fifty from 54 balls when he pulled Hunt for six but was caught behind in the same over. A seventh wicket stand of 67 between Hill and Roberts maintained the Somerset recovery.

Matheus Cunha recalled his tunnel conversation with Ruben Amorim last season after starring in Wolves' 1-0 win at Old Trafford in April. Cunha eventually went on to sign for Manchester United in the summer transfer window after the English giants triggered his £62.5million ($85m) release clause. Cunha, along with Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko, was brought in at Old Trafford as part of Amorim's squad overhaul.

Cunha's impressive start

Cunha has quickly established himself as one of United’s standout performers this season so far following his big-money summer move from Wolves. The 26-year-old Brazilian has become a fan favourite at Old Trafford, with his blend of flair, aggression, and creativity earning him comparisons to former club legend Eric Cantona. While his goalscoring numbers remain modest, with one goal in 10 games so far across all competitions, his influence on matches has been undeniable, sparking the Red Devils’ offensive setup. 

Amorim has built his front line around Cunha and fellow new arrival Bryan Mbeumo. The Red Devils boss' tactical setup has given Cunha the freedom to roam between the lines, link play with midfielders, and exploit gaps between the defensive line. 

AdvertisementGetty Images SportCunha recalls conversation with Amorim

In April this year, Cunha visited Old Trafford with the Wolves side for a Premier League clash and starred in his club's 1-0 win over the hosts as Pablo Sarabia scored the only goal of the match. After the full-time whistle, as the Brazilian was about to enter the tunnel, Amorim grabbed him and had a conversation. 

Recalling the discussion with the Portuguese manager, Cunha told : "He said, ‘Hey, take care today. What do you feel about the stadium? After the first game, Wolves against United [on Boxing Day], it was a good moment to feel like we have this connection. Wolves is very passionate. We discussed a little bit in the game and he [said] something to me. 

"And then I said: 'Hey, take care of that thing!' or something like that. He’s someone that pushes us forward. This is the most important thing to be a coach in this big environment. The results start to come much more now. But personally, he’s someone that can show you the energy and then the passion to be part of his team and do the things for him, for the club and to show what you can do to be better. He’s someone who’s very passionate about his job. Someone who I feel is privileged to be the manager of one of the biggest clubs in the world and he shows us this. He shows us our responsibility to use this shirt and then show everyone what is to be part of Manchester United. Every single day he’s with me is a little bit more intense! But I know 100 per cent it’s because he wants to get out my best and then show everyone what I think he knows I can do."

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Cunha responds to comparison with Cantona

Last month, former Premier League defender Stephen Warnock said Cunha has "got the aura of Cantona". Responding to the comparison with a club great, the Brazil international said: "Wow, what a player. I need to do much more things to be compared to him. When someone says something like this to me, I try to see the good part of this. To be someone who has a lot of passion to play for this club, to play football – and then try to represent everyone inside of the pitch. I feel privileged to be associated with these kind of things and with Cantona also. He made history. And if I can do a little percentage of what he did already, I’ll be very happy and then try to build my way to the guys to remember me also. I’m new at the club. I’m new in terms of the look, all the other performances from the past. Everything for me is new. So I have only my mind in bringing back the United glory days."

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Getty Images SportUnited's Tottenham test

United saw a sudden surge in form since October as they have remained unbeaten in their last four league matches, including three back-to-back wins against Sunderland, Liverpool and Brighton. They faltered against Nottingham Forest last weekend after being held to a 2-2 draw. Amorim's side will aim to get back to winning ways this Saturday as they take on Tottenham in a key away fixture.