Man City Beat Salford, Newcastle Knock Out Villa, Mansfield Town Stun Burnley in FA Cup

Mansfield Town's English midfielder #25 Louis Reed (C) celebrates with teammates after scoring their second goal during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Burnley and Mansfield Town at Turf Moor in Burnley, northwest England on February 14, 2026. (AFP)
Mansfield Town's English midfielder #25 Louis Reed (C) celebrates with teammates after scoring their second goal during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Burnley and Mansfield Town at Turf Moor in Burnley, northwest England on February 14, 2026. (AFP)
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Man City Beat Salford, Newcastle Knock Out Villa, Mansfield Town Stun Burnley in FA Cup

Mansfield Town's English midfielder #25 Louis Reed (C) celebrates with teammates after scoring their second goal during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Burnley and Mansfield Town at Turf Moor in Burnley, northwest England on February 14, 2026. (AFP)
Mansfield Town's English midfielder #25 Louis Reed (C) celebrates with teammates after scoring their second goal during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Burnley and Mansfield Town at Turf Moor in Burnley, northwest England on February 14, 2026. (AFP)

Manchester City beat League Two Salford City 2-0 in the FA Cup to move into the fifth round on Saturday as January signing Marc Guehi scored his first goal for the Premier League club while Burnley were stunned 2-1 by League One side Mansfield Town.

Sandro Tonali's double inspired Newcastle United to a 3-1 comeback win over 10-man Aston Villa, while Mohamed Salah scored as Liverpool beat Brighton and Hove Albion 3-0.

West Ham United needed extra time to beat Burton Albion 1-0 while Norwich City claimed a 3-1 win over West Bromwich Albion.

Manchester City had thrashed Salford 8-0 in the third round last year and Pep Guardiola's second-string side did not take long to take the lead as Alfie Dorrington turned in Rayan Ait-Nouri's dangerous cross for an own goal in the sixth minute.

Omar Marmoush thought he had scored City's second, but his celebrations were cut short when the offside flag went up.

Replays showed the Egyptian was onside but Video Assistant Referees and Semi-Automated Offside Technology are not in use until the fifth round of the competition, with Guardiola ‌seen wagging his finger ‌at the linesman.

TRAFFORD TO CITY'S RESCUE

City dominated for most of the half but Salford nearly ‌equalized late ⁠on and the ⁠home side had James Trafford to thank as the keeper denied Ben Woodburn with a sharp save when his shot looked destined for the top corner.

"We had to work really hard. They did really well, defended really well and they had belief that grew through the game. We got there in the end and got the good win," Trafford told the BBC.

Salford continued to probe after the restart as Trafford once again came to the rescue and Guardiola had seen enough, bringing on the cavalry in the form of Antoine Semenyo, Guehi and Nico O'Reilly.

The home side doubled their lead in the 81st minute when Matty Young palmed away Rayan Cherki's cross into the box and the ball fell ⁠to Guehi, who tapped in from close range.

Guehi was with Crystal Palace last month when the ‌holders were knocked out by non-league Macclesfield in one of the FA Cup's greatest ‌upsets, but the new rules meant he was no longer cup-tied and able to play for City.

BURNLEY KNOCKED OUT, WEST HAM THROUGH

Burnley were beaten 2-1 ‌at home by Mansfield thanks to skipper Louis Reed's second-half free kick as the third-tier side eliminated a top-flight club for ‌the first time since 1969.

Josh Laurent had given Burnley the lead in the first half while Rhys Oates equalized early in the second before Reed's glorious free kick sailed into the top corner to spark wild celebrations in the away end.

"Soon as it left my boot, I felt it going in. I have been working on them throughout the week," Reed said.

"The lads said, 'This is your moment, go and take it'. Thankfully, I did!"

In Saturday's ‌early kickoff, West Ham, who are also battling relegation alongside Burnley, needed an extra-time goal from the in-form Crysencio Summerville to see off Burton as they claimed a 1-0 victory at ⁠the Pirelli Stadium.

Summerville made a solo ⁠run from the left wing, cutting in before curling his effort into the top corner for his sixth goal in seven games across all competitions.

But West Ham were made to sweat after Freddie Potts was sent off, with Burton coming close to an equalizer twice in the dying stages.

TONALI INSPIRES NEWCASTLE COMEBACK

Newcastle overcame Villa in an incident-packed encounter at Villa Park.

Tammy Abraham appeared to be offside when he bagged a controversial opener for Villa before home goalkeeper Marco Bizot was sent off for fouling Jacob Murphy before halftime.

The Magpies rallied after the break. Tonali scored twice, including a sublime long-range effort, to turn the tie and substitute Nick Woltemade added a third.

"The officials don't make any decision on purpose, it's just what they think at the time, but without VAR, I thought there were a lot of errors today," Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said.

SALAH PENALTY SEALS LIVERPOOL WIN

Liverpool delivered a commanding win over Brighton as Curtis Jones struck first with a composed finish before Dominik Szoboszlai hammered home a second, capping a slick team move.

Mohamed Salah sealed the result by converting a penalty after being fouled by Pascal Gross.

"It's very nice to have him on the scoresheet again (Salah), but he also helps the team a lot defensively, and that is something very positive," Liverpool coach Arne Slot told reporters.

The FA Cup fifth round draw is on Monday.



‘Incredible Situation’: Spurs Coach Tudor on Subbing Kinsky After Errors

 Tottenham's goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky leaves the field after substitution during the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Tottenham in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (AP)
Tottenham's goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky leaves the field after substitution during the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Tottenham in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (AP)
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‘Incredible Situation’: Spurs Coach Tudor on Subbing Kinsky After Errors

 Tottenham's goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky leaves the field after substitution during the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Tottenham in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (AP)
Tottenham's goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky leaves the field after substitution during the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Tottenham in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (AP)

Tottenham's interim coach Igor Tudor bemoaned an "incredible situation" which led him to withdraw goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky after just 17 minutes of Tuesday's 5-2 Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid.

The 22-year-old Czech stopper made two errors leading to goals as Spurs fell three behind inside the first 15 minutes of the last 16 first-leg clash at the Metropolitano stadium.

Tudor selected Kinsky, who had not played since October, over Guglielmo Vicario after five straight Premier League defeats before the game.

"(The situation was) very rare. I've been coaching for 15 years, I've never done this. It was necessary to preserve the guy, preserve the team," Tudor told reporters.

The Croatian coach defended his decision to start Kinsky.

"It was, before the game, the right choice to do in the moment like we are. With pressure on Vicario, in another competition... 'Tony' is a very good goalkeeper. It was, for me, the right decision.

"After this, of course, it's easy to say that it was not the right decision."

Kinsky slipped and gave the ball away in the sixth minute for Marcos Llorente to open the scoring.

After Micky van de Ven fell over allowing Antoine Griezmann to score the second, Kinsky erred again.

The goalkeeper bungled a pass and Julian Alvarez was able to walk the ball into the net.

Tudor sent on Vicario to replace Kinsky, who was applauded off by Atletico's fans.

"Unfortunately, it happened in this big game, these mistakes. So we paid this start of the game, it was too much for us," continued Tudor.

"(Kinsky) was sorry... the team is with him, me too. I was speaking with him. He understands the moment, he understands why he goes out.

"As I said before, he's a very good goalkeeper. We are with him, we are all together. It's never about one player."

Tudor, who has lost all four matches at the helm since replacing Thomas Frank in February, refused to say whether he should still be at the helm.

Tottenham, 16th in the Premier League, are facing a fight against relegation.

"I need to keep working. Not speaking too much, stay focused on the things we can do," Tudor added on TNT Sports.

"It's unbelievably difficult to explain all these things, the first time in my career that I saw these things, 15 years.

"I'm focused on the problems, the players also. We need to stay positive."


China Sprint Race Presents ‘Huge Challenge’ in F1’s New Era

 Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 8, 2026 Drivers in action during the race. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 8, 2026 Drivers in action during the race. (Reuters)
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China Sprint Race Presents ‘Huge Challenge’ in F1’s New Era

 Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 8, 2026 Drivers in action during the race. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 8, 2026 Drivers in action during the race. (Reuters)

Formula One's new era heads into its first sprint in Shanghai this weekend, with the Chinese Grand Prix promising a very different test to Melbourne, where George Russell led home a Mercedes one-two.

The Silver Arrows dominated the season-opener, Russell winning from Kimi Antonelli and followed home by the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in the first race under sweeping new regulations.

Lando Norris and McLaren struggled, the British world champion trailing home fifth and teammate Oscar Piastri failing to even start after crashing on his way to the grid.

Red Bull's four-time champion Max Verstappen carved his way through the field to sixth after starting 20th on the grid following a qualifying crash.

The Shanghai International Circuit, unlike the Albert Park track in Melbourne, has one long straight and several complexes of turns.

It will require a different approach to battery deployment and energy harvesting in the new cars, which have a 50-50 split between conventional and electrical power.

But with only one practice session before sprint qualifying on Friday, the teams will have little time to hone their set-ups and strategies.

Saturday morning will see the sprint race over 19 laps of the 5.451km circuit and grand prix qualifying in the afternoon.

Sunday's grand prix will be over 56 laps, and if the race in Melbourne is anything to go by, it could be very eventful.

"Shanghai is going to be important to be straight on point with deployment, with everything, because obviously we get only one practice and then we go into qualifying," said Antonelli.

"The rate of development is going to be massive and it's going to be important to not put any wrong step because the situation can flip very quickly."

Leclerc agreed: "To have a sprint race so early on in a season like this will be a huge challenge for everybody. It's going to be very tricky."

Race-winner Russell said his only reservation about the 2026 cars was a lack of control when the active front wing was opened up under the new "straight mode".

Introduced this season to reduce drag and give a boost of speed akin to the now-defunct DRS system, Russell said it made the cars skittish.

- 'Pretty big gap' -

"The only thing I would request from the FIA is that the front wing doesn't drop as aggressively," said Russell.

"When we open 'straight mode' we will have lots of understeer, and when I was behind Charles and I was trying to duck out of his slipstream it was like my front wing wasn't working.

"So, I think from a safety aspect that would make the racing safer, better. I don't see a downside of doing it."

Norris was highly critical of the new cars.

McLaren, so dominant last season, were off the pace all weekend in Australia.

"The gap to the guys ahead is pretty big and we clearly have a lot of work to do," said the world champion.

Verstappen admitted Red Bull also have problems to address.

"I had some issues at the start with the battery so as soon as the clutch was dropped, I had no power, so that is something we need to understand," said the Dutchman.

"It was a decent comeback from P20 and we will work as a team to close the gap further."

New to the grid, Cadillac were encouraged by Sergio Perez finishing 16th on the team's much-anticipated debut.

"It was great to see the Cadillac Formula 1 Team bring its first car home," said team principal Graeme Lowdon.


Sinner Edges Into Indian Wells Quarters, Sabalenka Powers Past Osaka

Sinner Edges Into Indian Wells Quarters, Sabalenka Powers Past Osaka
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Sinner Edges Into Indian Wells Quarters, Sabalenka Powers Past Osaka

Sinner Edges Into Indian Wells Quarters, Sabalenka Powers Past Osaka

World number two Jannik Sinner survived a stern test from Joao Fonseca on Tuesday to reach the Indian Wells quarter-finals, while women's world number one Aryna Sabalenka eased past 16th seed Naomi Osaka 6-2 6-4 to progress to the women's last eight.

Sinner was pushed hard by the 19-year-old Brazilian, trailing 6-3 in the first set before rallying to close out the match 7-6(6) 7-6(4).

"I am very happy winning this match," Reuters quoted Sinner as saying.

"Joao is an incredible talent. He was serving really well. I was trying to be as aggressive as possible and that was the key to get through against the incredible talent."

The Italian will now meet the home favorite Learner Tien on Friday for a place in the last four.

"I feel he is a very consistent player and I am very happy to face him again. He has improved a lot since the last time we met," Sinner said of his American opponent.

Meanwhile, in the ⁠first meeting between ⁠the two four-time Grand Slam champions since 2018 - when Osaka beat Sabalenka at the US Open en route to her maiden major title - the Belarusian's power proved too much for the former world No. 1 on Tuesday.

"Yeah that's crazy, for so many years we only played once. I'm pretty sure we are playing many more matches, she's coming back playing great tennis," Sabalenka said in her on-court interview. "I'm pretty happy for the result today, much better than last time."

Mar 10, 2026; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Naomi Osaka (JPN) and Aryna Sabalenka (BEL) embrace after their fourth round match in the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Osaka began confidently with a strong opening service game, but top seed Sabalenka soon found her rhythm and capitalized on a brief ⁠dip from the Japanese, breaking for 2-1 after two double faults.

The Belarusian tightened her grip with a barrage of powerful backhands to lead 5-2, then served out the set comfortably with an ace.

After a series of solid holds from both players early in the second, Sabalenka again used her firepower to take control, breaking again for a 4-2 lead that proved decisive in closing out the win and continuing her run in the tournament without dropping a set.

"I'm happy that I put so much pressure on her today, that I brought variety to the court," Sabalenka said. "My serve worked well. On the return I played really great tennis. Happy with my performance for sure."

Last year's runner-up Sabalenka will continue her quest for a first title in the California desert against Canada's Victoria Mboko, who sailed past higher-ranked American Amanda Anisimova 6-4 6-1.

It will be a rematch of an Australian Open round-of-16 between ⁠the two, which Sabalenka won ⁠in straight sets.

Elsewhere, Australia's Talia Gibson enjoyed the biggest win of her career, beating Italy's world No. 7 Jasmine Paolini 7-5 2-6 6-1 in her first match against a top-10 player.

The 21-year-old, playing her first WTA 1000 main draw, also became the first qualifier in 11 years to reach the quarter-finals of the tournament.

"I just have a confidence in the way I'm playing," Gibson said. "I'm in shock."

Czech Republic's Linda Noskova, the 14th seed, sailed past Alexandra Eala in just 55 minutes with a 6-2 6-0 win to book a quarter-final meeting with Gibson.

In the men's draw, Alexander Zverev saw off Frances Tiafoe 6-3 6-4, converting two of three break points and firing 14 aces to seal his ninth win over the 21st-seeded American.

He will next face France's Arthur Fils as he looks to reach his first Indian Wells semi-final.

Fils earlier produced a stunning 6-3 7-6(9) win over Canadian ninth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, saving five set points and rallying from 0-5 down in the second-set tiebreak to book a place in the quarter-finals for the second consecutive year.