Man City's 100-plus charges verdict rumbles on as Anfield takes centre stage

The men's international break is over and the Premier League returns in full this weekend, with Manchester City travelling to Anfield to face Liverpool and a struggling Tottenham heading to Old Trafford — the two most watched fixtures of the round. At the same time, the fallout from the Premier League's ruling that City breached more than 100 financial rules keeps spreading, from managers' comments to talk of a club changing hands, with off-field news no less dense than what happens on the pitch. In Scotland and Africa, the future of Celtic manager O'Neill and changes to the Africa Cup of Nations format are also keeping people watching.

Premier League weekend: Anfield takes centre stage as Spurs head to Old Trafford

The predicted lineups show Manchester City facing Liverpool after a trying international break, while struggling Tottenham go to Old Trafford, the two games falling at Anfield and at United's home ground respectively.^[3][6]

Liverpool have confirmed that Isak and Gakpo are injured and will not play against City, with the team focusing entirely on what they do on the pitch.^[6] That narrows the options in the forward line, and they face an opponent that has just been found in breach by the Premier League and must play under the weight of public scrutiny.

The backdrop at Old Trafford is complicated too. United sit 12th before the game with only one league win, while Tottenham are bottom of the Premier League on 2 points, having spent £300m on a De Zerbi-led rebuild in the summer window — a plan now being tested. For both sides, beating a team in even worse form is close to a must.^[6]

Beyond the headline games, the predicted lineups round-up covers each side's league form, injury list and leading scorer: in Saturday's lunchtime game at the Emirates, the hosts have won four of their past five league matches, with Saka leading their scoring on 3.^[3] The Football Daily podcast also takes a big Premier League weekend as its theme, with Conor McNamara joined by Ian Dennis and John Murray.^[1]

The length of the international break itself has become an issue. Emery said the window is too long and that asking internationals to play four games is too much, praising Klopp for splitting Germany into two groups and calling up 44 players to handle the games against Greece (home and away), the Netherlands and Serbia, which he said is the way to deal with four matches.^[6]

Fallout from the City verdict: Maresca on the stain, Carrick on what cannot be recovered

After City were found by the Premier League to have breached more than 100 financial rules, Enzo Maresca faced the media for the first time. He insisted City's achievements have not been stained as a result, but when asked whether he would carry on as manager if the club's appeal fails, he gave no clear answer. The comments shifted the debate from whether the rules were broken to whether the honours stand.^[6]

Michael Carrick admitted the case affected him personally — as a Manchester United player and coach he missed out on titles several times, and he said those can never be recovered. That points to another knock-on effect: the ruling touches not only the club involved but also the career stories of rivals from the same era.^[6]

In addition, witness protection for Rui Pinto, the whistleblower in the City case, has been extended by the Portuguese authorities.^[6]

Club business: Everton put up for sale, Raphinha out injured

Everton manager Moyes said he was surprised to learn that morning that the club's owners, the Friedkin Group, had put the team up for sale. For a side in the middle of a season, a change of ownership tends to mean uncertainty over winter-window plans and long-term recruitment thinking, and it directly affects how the dressing room judges its short-term targets.^[6]

In La Liga, Barcelona announced that Raphinha will miss the next two matches with a hamstring injury, while Real Madrid manager Mourinho defended Mbappé, calling the recent criticism of him absurd.^[6]

O'Neill stays at Celtic: after three defeats, it did not take long

Martin O'Neill said he was never close to leaving Celtic after a three-game losing streak, stressing his 'great enthusiasm' for the role. The 74-year-old signed a one-year deal after two interim spells last season and led the club to a league and Scottish Cup double.^[2][4]

Last month Celtic lost twice to Rangers, either side of a 3-1 home defeat by Ferencvaros in the Europa League. The 1-0 home loss to Rangers three weeks ago was the team's first dropped points in the league this season. O'Neill admitted he did feel it might be time to wrap it up, but the decision to carry on did not take long.^[4]

He put that reflection down to the international break — had there been no break, he probably would not even have said those things. In his view, leaving at this particular stage would have been poor. On Sunday he takes the side to Motherwell, after which they face nine games in 28 days.^[4]

Speaking about his Celtic career, O'Neill mentioned the 7 trophies won during his first spell in charge from 2000 to 2005, an experience that gives him the spur to go and do it again. He said he believes in this team and that the aim should be to try to win the league title.^[4]

Afcon format: every two years, or every four?

Caf president Patrice Motsepe said at a strategy conference in Cape Verde that the Africa Cup of Nations format is under review, with discussions including a return to a two-year cycle. He said the matter had been discussed over the past few days and that everything is being looked at.^[5]

Since 1968 the Afcon has been held every two years, bar a one-year gap between the 2012 and 2013 editions. But in December 2025 Caf announced it would shift to a four-year cycle after the 2027 Afcon in East Africa and a 2028 edition, a planned change that drew widespread criticism across the continent: national associations raised concerns about the visibility of their teams, the commercial implications and where Africa's biggest competition sits in the international football calendar.^[5]

Meanwhile, Senegal were stripped in January of the Afcon title they thought they had won, and are waiting for the Court of Arbitration for Sport to rule on their appeal.^[5]

Round-up: the off-field variables are multiplying

Taken together, the common thread this round is a growing number of off-field variables: the international break has stretched player workloads, forcing clubs to deal with injuries and rotation; the City appeal and Everton's sale bring compliance and ownership questions directly into the season; and the Afcon format debate and the legal process over the title affect the rhythm of the whole continent's competition.^[6][5]

A few things are worth watching next: how the City appeal shapes the narrative of the title race; whether results at Anfield and Old Trafford further entrench or loosen the picture at both ends of the table; whether the Afcon keeps its two-year cycle or moves to four years, and when Senegal's appeal is decided. In a schedule as dense as nine games in 28 days, decisions like O'Neill's to stay on and surprises like Moyes's could recur through the season.^[3][6][4]