Amorim defends Fernandes after Keane criticism | Arsenal and Liverpool interested in Bayern Munich’s Kimmich
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Welcome to Back Pages, bringing you everything you need to know about the biggest sports stories, making the headlines in the morning's newspapers. I'm Teddy Draper and joining me are ESPN senior writer Mark Ogden and Riyadh Al-Samurai, chief sports feature writer at The Daily Mail. Welcome to you both.

So was Aston Villa in action, though, on Friday night against Cardiff? Let's get a story from the Mail Online just to illustrate that. Aston Villa 2, Cardiff 0. Marco Asensio bags another brace as Unai Emery's men reach the FA Cup quarter-finals. Mark, they huffed and puffed a bit, but how important was that for Aston Villa? The hunt for silverware goes on.

Well, obviously with so many big clubs out of the FA Cup this year, Villa have got a real chance of winning something. I can't remember the last time Villa won a trophy. I think we're talking mid-90s. For such a big club to go so long without a trophy, it's a big deal to get into the quarter-finals. You'd have to say that

you know, the path is opening up for Villa because who's the favourites of the FA Cup this year? Probably Man City, but they're not in great form. The holders, Man United, are even worse form. Newcastle are a threat, but again, you know, they've got a tough tie against Brighton. So for Villa to get into the quarterfinals as well as being in the Champions League, you know, knockout stages, there is a real opportunity for Villa to win something this season. And we know that they've got, you know, a pretty substantial wage bill and their turnover to wage bill is,

is quite tight, but you've got to say that their recruitment in January, with certainly Marco Asensio coming in, has been a massive lift. They've done really well. Asensio could be the guy that takes them to a trophy. And obviously we know that Marcus Rashford had an assist tonight. So maybe their January investment in signings on loan could get them over the line for a trophy. Yeah, it's looking pretty good, isn't it? The Asensio signing in particular, Riyadh, clinical again tonight.

Yeah, I was at the Chelsea game last weekend and I think the relationship there with Rashford is going to be quite an interesting one for a number of reasons. We've obviously seen it again tonight. Rashford's sort of teed up the first one for him. I think it kind of came off his heel. You wouldn't describe it as the world's cleanest assist. Two good assists against Chelsea.

for him as well. It's a really interesting dynamic there with Villa because undoubtedly with Asensio in particular, you're talking about a guy who won whatever it was, 15, 17 trophies,

At Real Madrid, I was speaking about him with my colleague Tom Colamossi, and he's never really been the main man anywhere he's been for all the success he's had. And at Aston Villa, there is that opportunity for him to step up and really be this big player for them. But

But if there's a drawback, when I look at Aston Villa, I don't necessarily see too many problems with the attacking players. And when you look at Watkins and Rodgers as well, they have got great players going forward. But particularly when you have Asensio and Rashford in there, I do see a side that's a little bit weaker defensively.

Off the ball, Asensio, quality player as he is, he's never been one you'd readily identify as a guy who's going to close down, who's going to lead a press from the front. So for Emery, that's actually been a big problem this season at Villa. So, yeah,

Whether or not it solves a lot of problems or solves more problems than it creates, that's what we're going to find out. But he looks like a really fantastic signing for them in January. And that relationship with Rashford, they do seem to have this innate understanding very, very quickly, given how many

hours we've spent on this show talking about Marcus Rashford. It's quite, it's quite an exciting thing to see. He looks happy. The fans there are really embracing him. And as Mark, as Mark said as well, this is a great opportunity for Villa. Emery was talking down whether or not they're contenders before the game. I couldn't quite sense the logic in why he's saying that. I think they've got a huge opportunity here. So, you know, it, you know,

They have got their problems. They have got a lot of injuries, particularly at the back. So they've got a lot that they need to fix. But you look at the sort of, even at their bare bones, the quality in that squad, they should be aiming high. Yeah, you just wonder if it's the first year since 1957 Villa could win the FA Cup. We'll see about the draw for the quarterfinals holds on Sunday evening. Will Manchester United be in it? The draw takes place after their game against Fulham.

But it's not Marcus Rashford, it's the current incumbent or sometime incumbent on the left-hand side, Alejandro Garnaccio on the back page of the Sun, Mark. Nachos are on him. I completely missed this earlier. I thought they were talking about Mexican food, but obviously it's a reaction to Alejandro Garnaccio. So I was put correct in the newsroom. Ruben Al will buy dinner for sub-strop. What do you make of the way this has been handled by Garnaccio and Ruben Amarim? It's been done quite well, hasn't it, today, the way it was presented?

Yeah, I think so. I think, you know, obviously in recent weeks, Hammerham has been quite firm with how he's dealt with players, maybe over the top a little bit, certainly with people like Marcus Rashford. Some of the things he said were quite critical and quite heavy-handed to the point where you thought, well, is there any way back? And it could have gone that way with Garnaccio because obviously he's dropped Garnaccio for the Manchester derby, obviously when Rashford has dropped.

he's been in and out of the team. So he could have used today to say, you know, bad display of petulance. I'm not happy with that. I'm going to drop him for a game or whatever. But he turned it around to make quite a funny story. It's almost like Garnaccio's having to do a forfeit to pay for what apparently was just changing his clothes. So I think he's handled it well, Amber. And his mood today did seem a little bit more upbeat than it has been in recent weeks. Obviously, there's been a lot of negativity around United recently on the pitch, off the pitch. You know, like you said, we talk about United recently.

not just every week but every day and it's usually a bad story so I think today at least there's a bit of fun there there's a bit of kind of a smile on Amrim's face and

Let's see how long it lasts. But like you said, they've got Fulham at the weekend and that's not going to be an easy game. So smile while they can is probably the best advice. Makes for some fun headlines in the tabloids, doesn't it as well? Riyath Mirror here. We can go to Man Utd apology fits the bill. Garnaccio to pay for dinner to say sorry after sulking when subbed. Fed devils is the headline. What's your assessment of it? There is a contrast with Rashford, isn't it? Garnaccio seems times a combustible character, but one that seems to be winning Ruben Amarim over.

I think so. Look, it's one of those we've gone at, Joe. If you go back to him sort of sulking off the pitch against Ipswich, there is this parallel conversation that Roy Keane has breathed a certain amount of fire into in the past few days about the personality, the character and the makeup of that team. And, you know, look,

Did Garnaccio commit some cardinal sin? I wouldn't say that. But is it also symptomatic of a team and a squad that isn't necessarily made up of the right stuff? My instinct upon it happening was it looked a little bit sulky. I didn't particularly like it. I think Graeme Souness has had his view changed.

in the mail as well now going into this weekend about young players. It taps in with what Eric Ten Haag was saying as well about you have to be very careful with the modern player. What can you say to them? With that conversation in mind, I think Amarim's

handled it well. I find him quite fascinating as a manager. Clearly, in our line of work, we like someone who is honest, someone who

a close shot when you have a conversation with him. I do wonder, and it goes to Mark's point a moment ago with Rashford, I thought he said far too much, not least for the fact he might have knocked a substantial amount of money off the resale value of Marcus Rashford. I think he contributed to him being in that corner. Now,

Now, with Garnaccio, we're a long way from having that kind of conversation, but he did probably say far more about that scenario than we would necessarily expect. So it's an interesting situation. I think this current thing, I think it's a bit of fun. It's probably going to be good for team bonding. So from United's point of view, it's taking something positive out of something that was

possibly could have been drummed into a negative. And they always make the headlines, don't they, Manchester United in the Express and Star as well, wine and dine, the headlines are there, wine spelt with an H for those people listening and not able to see those graphics. Mark, what's your take on the broader cultural conversation this week? Of course,

Ruben Amarim saying to the cameras today that his opinion is more important than Roy Keane after Roy Keane's assessment of the apparent lack of passion of Bruno Fernandes. Is there a cultural kind of clash there or is there a deeper point that Keane's made about the players and desire? Well, I mean, first of all, obviously Amarim, his appointment, his kind of

He is right in what he's saying, that he's more important than Roy Keane right now in the world of Manchester United, and his opinion matters most. But I think Roy Keane had a point. I think a lot of the fans will kind of share the point that a lot of the players at United...

They're not good enough, they're playing for themselves, they kind of hide behind certain players. And I think the point was making that Bruno Fernandes was that he's not the sort of captain that will lead players. But I think if you look around that squad, I kind of agree with Roy Keane in that one, but who else would you give the captaincy to? Because it's not a squad that's full of people with character or leadership skills or even ability to be in the team. So I think the reality is that that Man United squad and the team is nothing...

close to where it was 10, 20 years ago but that's the reality of the modern day Manchester United Bruno Fernandes is their best player so he's the captain but he's not a natural leader but I think if you could clear out the Man United team and say which of these players are worth keeping you'd probably have about 2 or 3 standing and the rest would have gone and that's not feasible in the modern game so you have to make do with what you've got and Bruno Fernandes is the best captain possible for Man United right now within that squad

OK, we'll see how United get on against Fulham. Manchester City, meanwhile, Riath up against Plymouth Saturday evening. Arguably the last thing really standing for the champions of the Premier League up against the shock artists of the last round of the FA Cup. The headline to the side of the Garnaccio picture in the mirror. Pep biding his time to fight back. Jeremy Cross recording...

reporting that Pep Guardiola has vowed to hit back at the Manchester City, quote, haters when the time is right. This is in the wake of Javier Tebas accusing City of financial deception, which Manchester City deny, along with all the other allegations against them. Riyad, what do you make of this and the way Guardiola has handled it again? He seems, again, a guy quite beleaguered. Is that fair? Yeah, I think that's absolutely fair. That's been...

That's been the theme of his season. It's been the theme of their season. And even longer, they're under siege on the pitch. I don't think they've been much better than an absolute shambles this season. And off the pitch, they're facing this absolutely monstrous threat, which, you know, sounds like it could come to a head in the next few weeks. It's...

I think this is possibly the biggest moment in the recent and not even too recent history of the Premier League. What happens next with Manchester City? I think it's going to define Guardiola's time at the club. It's going to define everything that we say about Manchester City. Did they win by playing fair? Was it done within the rules or wasn't it? Hopefully we'll get something definitive and

not another five years or so of appeals and counter appeals, which I half suspect will be the case. But when we look at it now, the FA Cup, they do need to do something, anything this season. Champions League going out to Real Madrid, it was embarrassing the way that second leg went.

played out the way they've rolled over even this season when you balance it against Rodri's injury players getting older it's been a footballing disaster for them so this is that one glimmer of light I think from Guardiola's point of view there's only so much he can even say

At this stage, this week, the latest allegations, these matters going to the European Commission, it's just one uppercut after another for Manchester City. They need to find some level of sustained form. I would still back them to be top four in the Premier League come the end of the season. But as far as trophies go, it's the FA Cup or bust.

Yeah, and it's against Plymouth, Mark, albeit at home, who shocked Liverpool in the past round. The Guardian, we can have a story here. They've got a feature with Plymouth's Maxim Talavirov, pitched there with his Ukraine flag. Big six foot four inch Ukrainian centre half impressed against Liverpool. I mean, how disastrous would it be if Plymouth somehow, fighting relegation to the championship, could overturn City tomorrow evening?

I mean, there's been a few shocks with Man City this season, but that would be the top of the list, wouldn't it? And, you know, I know Plymouth are taking 8,000 fans to City tomorrow. It'll be a great occasion. But, you know, beating Liverpool was a massive shock. But to win at City, I think, I just don't see that happening. But if it did happen, wow, I mean, where do you go from that? I mean, City then with no trophy this season. So, wait and see. But I do think City will win this game. And they're probably the favourites to win the FA Cup. But, yeah, Plymouth...

They deserve the day out and who knows, they might take it to extra time on penalties maybe. You never know. Let's come to the Express. Mark, for you, the end of the road for Joss. Resigning as England skipper is right move all round, says Butler. This after they crashed out the Champions Trophy after defeat to Afghanistan. Mark, just as one as a mainly football writer, what you make of the emphasis on the captaincy and the fact that this isn't unusual for a skipper to fall on his sword after such a low moment?

No, it's like a manager going in football, isn't it? It has been a succession of bad results. But I thought it was really interesting to listen to Brendan McCullum on Sky earlier on today just reacting to it. And he was making the point that, you know, the England squad and Josh Butler himself, that they take everything so seriously. There's not a lot of enjoyment there, not a lot of freedom within the players. And he says that maybe sometimes they need to kind of loosen up a little bit. And I think Josh Butler was kind of

that kind of sense that they're a little bit too tight and uptight at the moment in the England squad and they're worrying about the minor details rather than playing cricket. So it's probably a good thing for Josh Butler from his personal game but also for the cricket team in general to move on and change the captaincy because the captaincy has a lot more influence

on the cricket team than on the football team. So I guess a change of figurehead will help the team, maybe a different personality, a bit lighter on the squad and the focus of the game. It might just help. But that seems to be Brendan McCollum's view that it might not be a bad thing for Butler or the team that the change has happened now. It might be interesting to get Roy Keane's thoughts on it. We probably won't get them on Josper.

and the England captain's team. Riyad, let's get yours. Time sports supplements. Quote-unquote, sad butler resigns as captain. Do you think he's the fool guy here? Does it just reflect maybe that England have gone off the boil in terms of player quality, that maybe the emphasis is on other formats? What's your read on it?

I think where we talk about kind of captaincy in different sports, it's kind of hard to understate just how important it is within cricket far more so possibly even than when we're talking and hyperventilating about Bruno Fernandes at United. I mean, these guys are

They are front and centre, calling the tactics on the field. And, you know, you flashed the Times. I was reading Mike Atherton earlier this evening describing he was looking overwhelmed and out of ideas. I think that's a fair reflection. We're talking about...

one of the great England batsmen in white ball cricket who has been a pale impression of himself with the bat. Results have been dire. They've flopped in three tournaments in 18 months to very poor World Cup results.

And it is time. And I look at it when we talk about the captaincy, just how much it actually can take out of a player.

And the appeal, therefore, of playing without that burden of leadership as well. It's why when we talk about the successor, the overwhelming favourite is going to be Harry Brook. I'd be looking at that saying, do you really want to do that to such a talented player? Isn't he going to be a far more benefit to have him out there and doing his bread and butter rather than

adapting to this leadership, taking on that added responsibility. And that's whether that's calling field positions, whether that's fronting up to the press every day. You can see it grinding someone down. My hope for Butler would be that we'd see something a little bit like Joe Root in the test arena where

given that little bit of extra freedom, having that lifted off his shoulders, he comes back into, he came back into that sort of better version of himself, immediately starts smashing centuries. So, you know, you'd hope, you'd hope, you'd hope for that with Butler, but certainly this, this, this, this sort of step today, it's actually felt a long time in coming. It's been, you know, I think you go back six months and people were talking about,

whether or not they're needed to be a change. And that's, you know, that's going a long way back. You know, they've made a very poor start to this season. Champions Trophy has been a shambles. They're out of that already. So it's, you know, this, no one would say they didn't see this coming, but personal hope would be, is this really something they want to go and thrust onto Harry Brook next? Because you could just see how much it reduces a player. Yeah.

Strange as the ultimate honour, isn't it? But then it does seem to have an effect on the players. The captaincy weighs heavy. Let's go to football and transfers. I know it's early, but the Sun have gun and cop Kim Scrapp. Jordan Davis and Charlie Wyatt reporting. Arsenal and Liverpool are set for a tug-of-war battle over Joshua Kimmich, the Bayern Munich player. We can also play it right back sometimes. Carney Mark, what do you make of this and those links to those clubs?

Well, obviously Kimmich at 30 years old, they have contacts in the summer. He's going to have a lot of people that are interested. I know that Man City have had a tentative interest in Kimmich as well. And I think any decent club out there that's got ambition would look at Kimmich because he can play different roles. I know Arsenal are looking at Martin Zubimendi as well. So again, they seem to be looking at midfielders rather than the big obvious part of the pitch they need to find a player which is up front. But yeah, Kimmich would be a great signing for a lot of teams, but there is a suggestion that he might end up staying at Bayern Munich as well. And this might just be

agents trying to get clubs to put a bid in to make him get a better deal out of Bayern Munich. But he's a great player, Kimmich, and he's certainly a player that would benefit a club in the Premier League. Where do you think he might go out of those two, Liverpool and Arsenal, Riyadh? What would make the most sense, I suppose, particularly if Alexander-Arnold leaves Liverpool? You could have him as cover for centre-mid and right-back?

I think he can play for almost any club. He's a superb player. He's incredibly intelligent. He's a brilliant passer of the ball. He's composed. He's versatile. I can't see why anyone wouldn't want him in that side. Arsenal's need is going to be pretty pressing. Partey, our contract in the summer, I think the same goes for Jorginho as well. So,

They need him there. The fact that he can cover it right back as well is a massive bonus. As Mark's saying, the position they really need is striker. But that midfield need is also very pressing as well, depending on what those other contracts are going to do at the end of the season.

Yeah, we'll keep across that situation with Joshua Kimmich, then big win for Bayern Munich to go 11 points clear in Bundesliga. Meanwhile, let's talk, saving the best to last, about Mark's piece on ESPN.com. Donald Trump has expressed an interest in Greenland, well documented on a day he's made the headlines elsewhere. On that though, CONCACAF will not Greenland just want to play soccer, Mark. So tell us about this piece and why we shouldn't read too much into them maybe wanting to play against America.

Yeah, well, I went to Greenland about two weeks ago just to do a piece on that. Their football team is desperate to play somebody somewhere because they can't join UEFA because they're not a member of the United Nations, despite being a part of Denmark. So they're trying to join CONCACAF and they applied in May last year to join CONCACAF, so well before Donald Trump was elected as President of the US. But since then, obviously, Donald Trump has been elected and he wants to buy Greenland or acquire Greenland. So...

the Greenland FA was supposed to meet CONCACAF in Miami yesterday but that was cancelled because there's a bit too much political heat on them right now but listen it's a country of 50 000 people but they're very passionate about football though Man United fans Arsenal fans Liverpool fans all over the place they just want to play so they're hoping that CONCACAF will give them the green light to play against the Caribbean islands Mexico US hopefully in the future so we're waiting to find out what happens but they need to find a home because they don't have a home to play at the moment they don't have anyone to play

Well, it's a brilliant feature. We definitely direct people there to watch it. We hope you enjoy the football over the weekend. Mark Riaz, great to speak to you. May the FA Cup magic live on. And we'll speak to you again soon on Back Pages tonight.