Manchester

Manchester United beat Chelsea in a wild match at Old Trafford, with both sides down to 10 men by half-time.

Manchester United breathed life into their stuttering Premier League season when goals from Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro earned them a thrilling 2-1 home victory over Chelsea.

A frantic first half got off to the worst possible start for Chelsea on Saturday when goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was sent off in the fifth minute for a flying lunge at Bryan Mbeumo, upending the United forward as he was through on goal.

The hosts, with just one victory to their name previously this campaign, made their numerical advantage count, with Fernandes and Casemiro putting United 2-0 in front inside 37 minutes.

Casemiro’s needless dismissal just before halftime evened up the numbers and gave Chelsea a way back into the contest, but Trevoh Chalobah’s late header was all the visitors could muster as a nervy United held on for a vital three points.

The pressure has been mounting on United coach Ruben Amorim after defeat in the Manchester derby last weekend left the Portuguese with a win record of just eight from 31 league games since taking charge last November.

The visit of Chelsea offered Amorim the opportunity to start rectifying that meagre return, with the Blues winless at Old Trafford since 2013. Sanchez’s rash tackle significantly aided the beleaguered United manager’s cause.

Along with the added setback of Cole Palmer being withdrawn through injury, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca was forced into an early reshuffle, making three substitutions in the first 21 minutes, the earliest a side has ever done that in a Premier League game.

It was not long before Fernandes added to Old Trafford’s euphoria in the driving Manchester rain, the skipper nudging home his 100th goal for United in all competitions.

Casemiro then seemingly put United in an unassailable position after determined work from Luke Shaw to keep alive the attack, the veteran Brazilian heading in his first goal of the season.

A second booking soon turned Casemiro from hero to villain as he became the first player to score and be sent off in the first half of a Premier League match since Emmanuel Adebayor for Spurs against Arsenal in November 2012.

Even when chasing the game, Chelsea offered very little attacking threat until Chalobah’s header 10 minutes from time. United looked ragged from there on in, but Altay Bayindir remained largely untroubled in the home goal as the hosts held on.

Amorim praised United’s aggression and urgency in a post-match interview, although he wishes his side could have been more clinical to put the game out of sight.

“I have nothing to say to the critics, and most of the time they are right. Today, we won and it is a good day for us,” he told Sky Sports.

“We can lose against Grimsby, [but] we can beat any team. I’m just thinking about the next one. It is really good to win. We need the urgency to win again, that is really important for us.”

Maresca, meanwhile, lamented Sanchez’s early red card.

“We need to start the game better. We cannot concede a red card at Old Trafford after three minutes,” he said.

Elsewhere in the Premier League on Saturday, Liverpool maintained a perfect start in their campaign after Ryan Gravenberch scored and assisted in a 2-1 win over Everton at Anfield.

In another bad day for West Ham coach Graham Potter, his team lost for the fourth time in five games, going down at home to Crystal Palace 2-1.

Wolves lost at home to Leeds 3-1, leaving Vitor Pereira’s team bottom of the table and still looking for their first points after five games.

Trailing 2-0 at Brighton, Tottenham came back to salvage a 2-2 draw.

And former Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou got his first point as Nottingham Forest coach in a 1-1 draw at Burnley.

Follow the build-up, analyses, and live text commentary of the game as United and Chelsea face-off at Old Trafford.

BRYAN ROBSON has told Manchester United chiefs to back Ruben Amorim for the long haul and slammed the club’s recent history of signing flops.

The United legend says the revolving door of managers since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013 has wrecked any chance of stability, and insists under-fire former Sporting Lisbon boss must be given at least THREE years to fix the mess.

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Speaking to The Telegraph, Robson said: “We’ve changed managers that many times since 2013.

“I feel you have to stick and say, ‘No, we are not sacking the manager. We are not blaming.’

“When you have a little bit of money and the club are going to allow you to change your squad, you need three years to get the team right.

“For me, three years at Manchester United should be enough.”

Amorim, 40, has had a disastrous start to life as United boss, winning just eight of his first 31 games.

But Robson is urging the board to give him more time, despite fans on social media calling for his sacking.

Robson didn’t hold back when reflecting on the transfer blunders of the Ed Woodward era, suggesting too many signings simply weren’t up to scratch.

He fumed: “Look at the money we spend. It’s up to you to go around the world and get top players who are going to improve you.”

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“I think five years ago some of the players we bought were just not good enough to be Manchester United players. It’s an accumulation of that.”

And Robbo, who captained United through some of their most hard-fought years, believes the club lost its way by ignoring experienced Premier League stars in favour of flashy foreign names.

“The other thing I think we went away from is getting good, experienced Premier League players.

“So when they get to 28, you bring them on board if you can. There have been loads of players who have left clubs.”

And his message to United’s decision-makers couldn’t be clearer.

He added: “When I was in management, I believed that if you bought average players, you got an average team.”

United will get a chance to bounce back from their derby defeat to Manchester City last weekend when they host Chelsea in Saturday’s late Premier League kick-off at Old Trafford.

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A BOY, 15, has been charged with murder after another teen, 15, who was stabbed to death after a ‘disturbance involving a number of people’.

Mohanad Abdullaahi Goobe was found with fatal injuries on Monton Street at around 4.30pm on Monday.

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Greater Manchester Police were called to Moss Side after a “disturbance involving a number of people”.

Paramedics tragically pronounced the teenager dead at the scene.

Cops arrested a boy, aged 15, on suspicion of murder, who has now been charged with the offence.

This comes after Mohanad’s devastated family released a heartbreaking tribute.

In a statement released by the force, they said: “Mohanad was our 15-year-old son, and a younger sibling to his sister and brother.

“Mohanad was the baby of the family, he was quick to laugh, easy to love, with a ready smile.

“Our son had an uncanny ability to make you laugh, making it sometimes difficult to be serious with him.

“Mohanad had many friends, he was loyal and often played the class clown, simply to see them laugh.

“Mohanad’s life has been cut tragically short, it is difficult to comprehend that seeing your son head off for school in the morning, would be the last time that we would see that handsome face.

“Mohanad deserves to be remembered for the young man who was loved by his family, and loved big in return, not as the boy whose life was taken with no thought or reason.

“We will not allow his name to be known as yet another statistic in the rise of knife crime.

“Remember Mohanad with love in your heart and a kind word on your lips.”

A GMP spokesperson said: “A 15-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has been charged with murder following the death of another 15-year-old boy in Manchester earlier this week.

“As part of our investigation, ongoing enquiries have identified a potentially linked prior incident that we responded to at Whitworth Park shortly before 4pm – half an hour before the victim’s death.

“We have referred our response to this incident to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) as a mandatory referral.

“At around 4.30pm on Monday 15 September, officers responded to a disturbance in the area of Moss Lane East and Monton Street. Despite the best efforts of medical professionals, Mohanad Abdullaahi Goobe sadly died later that evening.”

Chief Superintendent David Meeney, from the City of Manchester district, said: “Our thoughts remain with Mohanad’s family at this time and we are focused on getting all the answers for them.

“As a result of prior contact before Mohanad’s death, we have made a mandatory referral to the IOPC. We have kept the family updated and continue to support them.

“Our investigators have been working around the clock and during this investigation we have undertaken several warrants in relation to this incident as part of our commitment to getting justice for Mohanad and his family.

“Our Major Incident Portal remains open and we are keen for anyone who has information relation to this incident to please come forward.”

You can contact police via 101 or our Live Chat service at gmp.police.uk, quoting log 2327 of 16/09/25.

Alternatively, you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

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A MAN has died following an incident at a scrapyard.

Several emergency vehicles attended the scene in the Broadheath area of Altrincham, Manchester, yesterday afternoon.

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Police, paramedics and fire crews all responded to the local firm of J Davidson Scrap.

Craven Road was closed off.

“HE was the heart of Hyde.”

Emily Tunnicliff, 25, laid her simple arrangement of flowers outside Ricky Hatton’s home, called The Heartbreak, to join the hundreds already there.

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For many, the former boxer was the heart not only of Hyde but of Britain.

“I am from Hyde,” Emily added.

“He was proud of where he came from and we were proud of him.

“He has done so much for this city. He never forgot his roots.”

Her friend, boxer Tyler Dolby, 23, trains at Ricky’s brother Matthew’s gym nearby.

He agreed. He said: “He was an estate lad and you could never take that out of him. He was such an inspiration. He said to all the young lads here and in Britain you could all make it.”

In silence, a steady stream of mourners gathered at Ricky’s home to pay their respects.

Fans wearing Manchester United tops laid their tributes next to wreaths adorned with Ricky’s beloved Man City logo.

Charlie, 45, said: “I watched all his fights. I met him once and he was so nice and friendly. He was not a star, just Ricky.”

A grey rainy morning brought strong winds that blew over many of the tributes.

Kirsty Cartwright, 34, said: “I wanted to be here to show how much he was was loved.”

The boxer’s manager Paul Speak was there to look at the tributes.

He told The Sun: “It is just all too much to take in. All of it. I don’t have the words.”

The gates closed, with Ricky’s black Rolls-Royce on the drive.

But the mourners still came.

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With Chelsea visiting Old Trafford on Saturday, a trip to Brentford – where United have conceded four times on each of their last two visits – and encounters with Sunderland and then Liverpool at Anfield follow, making the chances of a significant upturn in fortunes in the short-term unlikely.

Scholes is not alone in believing United have no chance of reversing their fortunes unless Amorim changes his style, with all-time leading scorer Wayne Rooney believing his old side have “got worse” under the Portuguese, who replaced the sacked Erik ten Hag last November.

“He cannot carry on playing this way, he just can’t,” said Scholes, who won 11 Premier League titles and the Champions League twice in a 20-year career with the club.

“At some point there has to be a moment where he thinks, ‘I have to change something because what I am doing now is not working and I am not getting results’. The proof is there.

“I like Amorim, with everything he says, he seems to be a likeable man. But unfortunately results paint a picture.

“At this moment in time it isn’t good enough. At this moment in time if results don’t improve, performances don’t really matter that much. He has to win some games or the pressure is going to come on him massively.”

Following last season’s struggles, where United finished 15th in the league and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham, Amorim worked hard in the summer trying to create a harmonious dressing room culture.

While there are some within the United dressing room who are thought to be uneasy about the 40-year-old’s refusal to change his tactics, there is no sign of widespread discontent as yet.

The optimism around Amorim is not confined to the Old Trafford boardroom.

João Noronha Lopes, favourite to win the Benfica presidential election on 25 October, is thought to be keen on bringing him back to the club where he made his name as a player, making 154 appearances across six seasons.

Lopes was at Etihad Stadium for Sunday’s derby, where he was accompanied by Pedro Ferreira and Nuno Gomes, the former Portugal and Benfica forward, who is one of Amorim’s closest friends.

Speaking to Portuguese media before the group left for Manchester, Gomes spoke about the prospect of hiring him.

“I can’t answer that question,” he said. “Ruben Amorim is the coach of Manchester United.

“But one thing I do know, Ruben Amorim will be the coach of Benfica one day.”

RICKY HATTON’s next opponent has broken his silence following the tragic death of the British boxer.

The former world champion was found dead aged 46 in his Manchester home on Sunday.

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Eisa Al Dah, 46, was due to be the next person to face the Hitman in the ring in Dubai on December 2.

He has now broken his silence following the news of Hatton’s death.

He told The National: “In just a couple of hours, I was [going to see] him here in Dubai.

“We booked the hotel. We booked the [plane] ticket. Everything had been arranged.

“From my side, I was checking everything, and I was so excited to see him over here and visit us here in Dubai.

“And he was also excited. But suddenly, I get this news from his managers. My heart is broken.

“Since knowing I will fight him, I became very close to him, seeing his news, following him on Instagram.

“I follow his life, how he trained, everything. I cannot believe it. I wish somebody told me this is wrong.

“I’ve been through many things in my life in the boxing or business.

“But this is something that I cannot believe.”

More to follow…

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All the updates as City ease past local rivals United at Etihad Stadium with a brace from Haaland and a Foden strike.

Match Of The Day pundit Danny Murphy believes Manchester United do not have the personnel needed to play Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-3 system, highlighting the performances of Bruno Fernandes and Luke Shaw in their 3-0 loss to rivals Manchester City.

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Manchester City are set to assess forward Omar Marmoush before Sunday’s Manchester derby after he suffered a knee injury while on international duty with Egypt.

The 26-year-old was substituted in the ninth minute of his country’s World Cup qualifier with Burkina Faso – which finished in a goalless draw – in Ouagadougou on Tuesday.

Marmoush, who joined City from Eintracht Frankfurt for £59m in January, was hurt following a robust fourth-minute challenge.

He initially played on after receiving treatment on the field before being replaced by Osama Faisal shortly afterwards.

A picture of the player leaving the pitch with medics was posted on the Egyptian Football Association’s X account with the message: “Omar Marmoush suffers a bruised knee ligament.

A WOMAN killed by a falling tree branch has been named and pictured as her family paid a heartbreaking tribute.

Jen Higgins, 49, died at the scene in Barlow Moor Road, Manchester, on August 30 following the freak incident.

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In a statement, Jen’s family said: “The family of Jen Higgins are heartbroken to confirm she lost her life in a sudden and tragic accident.

“She was a beloved wife, daughter, sister, daughter-in-law, and aunt – a vibrant and supportive friend to many; and a dynamic and widely respected member of the Manchester business community.

“You will no doubt empathise with the deep and profound shock we are feeling at this moment and ask for privacy while we grieve. A further statement will be issued when we feel able.”

Died at the scene

Emergency services rushed to the road following a call at around 7.15pm but Jen died at the scene despite the efforts of paramedics.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said at the time: “At around 7.15pm on Saturday, August 30, we were called to reports a tree had fallen onto a woman on Barlow Moor Road, Didsbury.

“Despite the best efforts of emergency workers, a woman in her 40s was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.

“The death is not being treated as suspicious.”

A member of staff at Barlow Moor petrol station, who asked not to be named, described seeing the tree “snap” moments before the tragedy unfolded.

They said: “The tree just snapped, it was a big branch and just fell. A woman was walking underneath.

“The weather was a bit windy but not strong. A few locals came out and some of them were doctors so they were trying to help her.

“Then the ambulance came and police closed the road.

“It is a big tree and it was a massive branch that fell – blocking off all the road. It was two or three thick branches that fell at once.”

An inquest into Jen’s death is due to open at Manchester Coroners’ Court on September 23.

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GIANLUIGI DONNARUMMA was spared his blushes by the referee following an awful clanger while playing for Italy tonight.

The Manchester City new boy, 26, is in line to make his debut against rivals United this Sunday.

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The 6ft 5in stopper will be hoping to shake off his blunder from tonight, having nearly gifted Israel a shocking opener.

Barely five minutes into tonight’s contest Manor Solomon, who recently joined Villarreal on loan from Tottenham, swung in a corner.

The situation seemed harmless enough, with the ball looking likely to sail into Donnarumma’s grasp.

Inexplicably, however, the former Paris Saint-Germain star punched the ball into his own net.

Donnarumma was bailed out by the referee, however, who deemed Israel defender Stav Lemkin to have fouled him, despite contact appearing to be minimal.

Seeing the incident on social media, one fan branded City’s new boy: “the new Onana of the EPL”.

While a second claimed: “In these situations here in the Premier League, they’ll eat Donnarumma alive.”

A third claimed: “Donarumma doing what Donnarumma does.”

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And another added: “Donnarumma in the premier league will make hatewatching man city 10x funnier.”

Following their let off, Italy did go behind via Manuel Locatelli‘s own goal on 16 minutes.

Gennaro Gattuso’s side levelled through Moise Kean just before half-time, only for Dor Peretz to reclaim Israel’s lead seven minutes after the break.

Italy subsequently turned the game on its head in the following six minutes, courtesy of a second for Kean and a Matteo Politano strike.

City signed Donnarumma in a £26million deal on transfer deadline day.

The giant keeper is set to replace James Trafford as No1, following the ex-Burnley ace’s difficult start to the campaign.

After Donnarumma’s arrival, City allowed long-term stalwart Ederson to depart for Fenerbahce.

The Etihad new boy is set to make his debut against Man Utd this weekend.

Ruben Amorim‘s side could also have a new man between the sticks, following Senne Lammens’ £18m arrival from Royal Antwerp.

Andre Onana is set to join Turkish side Trabzonspor on loan, although Altay Bayindir could potentially keep his place ahead of Lammens this weekend.

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A TEENAGER who stabbed a 16-year-old boy to death in a street attack can now be pictured for the first time.

L’Avian Peniston was just 14 when he killed 16-year-old Kennie Carter by stabbing him in the chest in Stretford, Greater Manchester, just over three years ago.

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The teen was found guilty in July last year for the “act of revenge” that killed Kennie.

Manchester Crown Court handed Peniston the equivalent of a life sentence, required to serve a minimum of 17 years in prison.

The boy could not be named due reporting restrictions at the time of the murder case as he was still 16.

However, as he has now turned 18, Peniston can be named for the first time.

This is despite applications to lift reporting restrictions following his conviction, which was rejected by the judge.

Young Kennie was walking home while on the phone to his older brother when Peniston – who was with a group of boys – pounced on him.

The boys had travelled three miles ‘looking for revenge’ after an argument with Kennie’s friends the day before.

Four teens reportedly travelled by tram to the block of flats they knew Kennie and his friends typically hang out.

They stole three bikes, where a witness heard them shout: “This is revenge.”

Kennie was inside the block of flats and headed home after hearing the boys were nearby, but passed by them on the road.

One of the boys in the group was heard shouting to Kennie: “You’re the one who had backed that pole innit.”

“Nah nah it weren’t me bro,” Kennie was heard to reply.

Peniston then killed the 16-year-old boy with a single stab wound to the chest, before running away from the scene with the group.

They did not give Kennie medical assistance or call an ambulance, and later abandoned the stolen bikes.

Kennie was found lying face down at 7pm after calling his brother to say: “Oh, they’ve stabbed me in the heart bro.”

Paramedics raced Kennie to Manchester Royal Infirmary but he was pronounced dead at 8.27pm on January 22, 2022.

During the sentencing last year, the judge Mr Justice Goose, said: “This was yet another killing of a young person with a knife against the backdrop of gang violence.

“Young males carrying knives in public in readiness to threaten and kill others is becoming all too common in our cities.

“The tragedy is that not only does it destroy the lives of the victims and their families, but also those who commit the offence.”

Kennie’s mum Joan said she had seen the boy “laugh and smirk” throughout a court hearing.

She said: “This shows me he had absolutely no remorse and broke my heart even more.

“No penalty or what the court can award will ever be enough in my eyes.

A heartbreaking statement was also read out on Joan’s behalf by her sister in court: “My son was chased down in the street and killed on his way home.

“At the time of his death he was just 16.

“For the last seven weeks we have had to listen to evidence of what happened to our son in graphic detail.

“How can we put into words how his death and the last two and a half years has affected us?”

“It is not just Kennie that died on 22 January 2022.

“Our whole family has been destroyed by this mindless violence.”

She added: “They have taken away our Kennie from his loving family and our lives are destroyed forever.”

Three other teens were also jailed after being found guilty of manslaughter.

Latif Ferguson, who already turned 18 but was 15 at the time, was sentenced to five years’ detention in a young offenders’ institution.

Two 16-year-olds were sentenced to four years’ detention following a lengthy trial at Manchester Crown Court.

Six other teenagers, then aged between 15 and 19, were found not guilty of charges related to Kennie’s death

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A FLIGHT heading to a popular holiday spot made an emergency landing after a Brit tourist allegedly punched a fellow passenger.

It happened on a flight from Manchester heading towards the Turkish city of Antalya.

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But the plane had to make an emergency landing in Thessaloniki, Greece on Monday following the reported incident.

A 35-year-old Brit is alleged to have hit a 41-year-old Turkish passenger on board, according to the Manchester Evening News.

It is unknown how the incident started, but the captain made the emergency stop at 11pm local time.

The Brit was arrested after landing, according to the Greek outlet Ekathimerini.

Meanwhile, the alleged victim was examined by a doctor before continuing on to Antalya, the Mirror has reported.

According to reports, the Brit was due to face a prosecutor on Tuesday.

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The discrepancy in his strong crosses-stopped numbers and what is seen when watching him at corners is made clearer knowing he conceded eight goals from 85 corners faced last season, according to Opta.

Conceding 9% of all corners faced, when compared to all Premier League keepers who faced more than 20 corners last season, places 15 keepers as having a better percentage and 12 as having worse.

Interestingly, Aston Villa’s Martinez ranked second best, only conceding two goals from corners having faced 60. Lammens’ 9%, however, is a big improvement on United’s first-choice keeper last season, Andre Onana, who conceded 17.2%.

It is key to note these numbers are influenced by the quality of the league, opposition faced, and the defending team’s ability to defend corners. United’s team-wide defending of corners has been questionable at times and the Premier League’s physicality, inventive corner routines and use of individuals to apply physical contact on keepers, may cause Lammens’ numbers to become slightly worse as he learns to adapt to the league.

His confidence, aggression and height do give him useful raw tools to improve in these situations if coached around when to come and how to position himself.

A MUM is ho-ho-home and dry for Christmas already — with £2,000 of gifts all set to go under the tree.

Charlotte Chandler started buying presents for her children Harley, 14, Evie, 13, and six-year-old Myles in June.

The 36-year-old says stocking up early takes off the pressure during the festive period.

She said: “Getting organised early makes a massive difference.

“I usually start in June but sometimes I start earlier.

“This way, I can spread the cost but also be less stressed nearer Christmas and have spare money for activities.

“Going through a busy shopping centre in December and fighting for a parking space is a no thank you.”

And she resists any urge to keep adding to her stockpile.

Charlotte said: “I don’t keep going until Christmas. I’m done now.”

The well-organised content creator, from Stockport, Greater Manchester, hides the presents in two 7ft cupboards with locks on them.

Besides the £2,000 on gifts, single mum Charlotte will add about £10 a week to her food shop to buy festive treats such as crisps, nuts, chocolates and fizzy drinks.

She said: “Anything to keep those stress levels down and enjoy Christmas.”

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Guardiola’s best teams have been built on control, patterns of play and attacking incision.

When City beat Wolves 4-0 on the opening weekend of the season, it was natural to think the troubles that had plagued them last term had been erased over the summer.

But Sunday’s defeat on the south coast was a repeat of the inconsistency City displayed throughout last season.

Guardiola’s side stifled Brighton in the first half, limiting the Seagulls to a single opportunity through Kaoru Mitoma.

Erling Haaland, making his 100th Premier League appearance for City, opened the scoring with his 88th league goal for the club.

But a quadruple substitution by Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler after an hour changed the course of the game, with James Milner, Brajan Gruda, Georgino Rutter and Yasin Ayari entering the fray.

Brighton dominated from there on, equalising from the penalty spot through Milner, before a last-gasp winner from Gruda.

“We conceded two goals. We were excellent for one hour,” Guardiola told BBC Sport.

“After the goal we forgot to play. We were thinking of the consequences.

“I like many, many things we are doing. Like against Tottenham, we started well. I like many things the team has done here today but we were unable to win. When we conceded the goal, we stopped playing.

“It’s one game. The season has just started. There is a long, long season ahead of us. We will see what happens.”

Only Manchester United’s 1992-1993 title-winning team have recovered from losing two of their first three league matches to be crowned champions, and that came during a 42-game season.

“It’s back to the drawing board for Man City,” former Middlesbrough goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer said.

“There are a lot of questions still about this team and Pep Guardiola. Is he going to turn it around? He has never been in a situation quite like this before and the hole keeps getting deeper and deeper.”

Carabao Cup holders Newcastle will start the defence of their crown at home to League One Bradford in the third round.

League Two Grimsby Town will travel to Championship Sheffield Wednesday after shocking Manchester United in a spectacular penalty shootout win at Blundell Park.

Manchester City will take on League One Huddersfield Town at the Accu Stadium while Arsenal will travel to Port Vale.

Reigning Premier League champions Liverpool, who were beaten in last season’s final, will host Championship Southampton, while Chelsea have been handed a trip to Lincoln City.

Brentford will host Aston Villa and Wolves will welcome Everton in the two all-Premier League ties.

The eight teams in the Champions League and Europa League – Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, Tottenham, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa – were seeded to avoid scheduling clashes.

Crystal Palace were not included in the seeding because the Conference League league phase does not get under way until October.

The third round fixtures will take place across two weeks, beginning on 15 and 22 September with Champions League and Europa League fixtures also scheduled during this period.

FAILED asylum seekers and foreign offenders are being left in Britain for up to a year because their governments are dragging their feet over travel papers, a Home Office file reveals.

The official guide, published by the department, shows deportations are crippled by delays from overseas embassies.

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Egypt, Guinea and Burkina Faso are among the worst offenders — taking six to 12 months to issue the documents needed to put its citizens on a plane home.

By contrast, Italy, Belgium and Sri Lanka can turn the paperwork around in less than two weeks, while India averages one month.

But the file also shows no reliable timescale is available at all for dozens of countries — leaving removals at the mercy of slow or unpredictable foreign bureaucracies.

The delays mean some migrants remain in Britain long after their claims have failed, with taxpayers footing the bill for hotel rooms, benefits and legal fees while they wait.

Yesterday, fed-up protesters raised St George’s Cross and Union flags outside some of the 210 hotels being used to house migrants — as PM Sir Keir Starmer announced plans to overhaul the failing asylum system.

Among those targeted was the Castle Bromwich Holiday Inn in Birmingham.

Outside the Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf, East London, a group of protesters gathered with one holding a banner that read: “Enough is enough protect our women and girls.”

Another said: “Tower Hamlets council house homeless Brits first.”

There were also protests outside the Holiday Inn in Solihull, West Midlands, and the Manchester South Hotel.

At least 15 people were arrested at protests relating to migrant hotels on Saturday.

Following the release of the Home Office file, Reform UK demanded ministers get tough.

Deputy party leader Richard Tice said: “Foreign countries know Starmer’s Britain is a pushover, so it’s no wonder they are dragging their feet when it comes to accepting deportations.

“Britain needs to start using its diplomatic and economic power.

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“Countries that refuse to take their criminals back should not get off scot-free but instead face serious sanctions.

“Unfortunately, with this meek Labour Government, we will continue to be seen as a meek nation on the global stage.”

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp also hit out, saying: “Countries that do not fully and promptly co-operate should suffer visa sanctions — where we don’t give visas to citizens of those countries to come here.

‘TOO WEAK’

“Then, they would pretty soon fall into line.

“The legal power exists to do that but this Labour Government is too weak to use it.”

There is currently a 106,000-strong backlog of asylum claim cases, including at least 51,000 appeals.

Last week, official statistics showed a record 111,000 people applied for asylum in the UK during the first year of Labour coming to power.

The Government has said its latest plans would introduce independent panels to hear appeal cases to speed up the process and deport failed asylum seekers quicker.

A new commission will prioritise cases of those living in costly asylum hotels and foreign national offenders.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “We cannot carry on with these completely unacceptable delays in appeals as a result of the system we have inherited, which mean that failed asylum seekers stay in the system for years on end at huge cost to the taxpayer.”

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She added: “Overhauling the appeals system so that it is swift, fair and independent, with high standards in place, is a central part of our Plan for Change.”

But the new scheme could take months to implement and record numbers of people continue to cross the Channel on small boats.

Tory Mr Philp said: “The Government is too weak to do what’s really needed — such as repeal the Human Rights Act for all immigration matters and deport all illegal immigrants immediately upon arrival.”

The Home Office said: “For some countries receiving returnees from the UK, establishing their identities and nationalities can take time.

“Where that is the case, we work with their respective governments closely to drive timings down to the minimum possible.”