Key events
Manchester United and Spurs come back to reality as City saga offers brief distraction
Turning back the clock is impossible. Up in the Stretford End's middle tier, the ticker had returned, a retouching job to “51 years†invoiced for the pertinent sum of £114. The Manchester City that existed before the Abu Dhabi project won their last trophy in 1976. Questionable maths is perhaps not confined to the Etihad's accounts department, though Manchester United's support must get their kicks where they can.
Should City's fall from grace be fully confirmed by the appeals and sanctions process, there is nothing in the way of irrefutable evidence of United's former supremacy being restored. How United fans would love to return to 2008, when Michael Carrick was a key cog in Sir Alex Ferguson's team of European champions. Instead, the autumn of 2026 brings a familiar swell of doubt, another manager dragged towards the meat grinder.
Read John Brewin's take on another gloomy day at Old Trafford:
Savage the panto villain puts scepticism aside to leave Leicester reeling
It felt as though the stars had aligned when Robbie Savage's first League One match in charge of Peterborough – his first EFL managerial role – happened to be at Leicester. He made his name here and forged a divisive and enduring reputation that has kept him a permanent fixture in English football.
Savage has long been a joker figure – an image born in his playing days, when he hurtled around midfields with long blond hair bouncing, launching into challenges that at one point made him the most booked player in Premier League history. A pantomime villain, a prankster and an eccentric who was once fined £10,000 by the Football Association – and two weeks' wages by Leicester – for using referee Graham Poll's toilet before a match (Savage blamed an upset stomach brought on by antibiotics.)
That persona followed him into the media after retirement and it hardly screams management material, yet Savage has quietly built a more serious reputation on the touchline in recent years.
Read Sam Cunningham's full piece from the King Power Stadium:
In the Chamoionship, Swansea strengthened their position at the top of the Championship with a 2-1 comeback win over Norwich. Second-half goals from Moussa Yeo and the Republic of Ireland striker Adam Idah wiped out Jacob Wright's strike just before the half-hour mark.
Middlesbrough celebrated their 150th anniversary game in style as Will Lankshear's second-half header secured a 1-0 victory over Wolves at the Riverside Stadium.
Lamine Cissé and Ben Wilmot were on target as 10-man Stoke extended their unbeaten league run to six games with a 2-1 win over Bolton.
Burnley's first win of the season, and their first away from home since February, sent Watford fans into open revolt as the Clarets cruised home 4-0 at Vicarage Road. Derby are still without a home win after Ollie Rathbone scored late on to earn Wrexham a 1-1 draw at Pride Park.
The full roundup from the second-tier is here:
Portugal suspend Cristiano Ronaldo after walking out on national team
Cristiano Ronaldo has been provisionally suspended as the Portuguese football federation (FPF) opened disciplinary proceedings against the 41-year-old after his decision to walk out on the national team.
Ronaldo apologised to supporters on Tuesday while criticising the Portugal coach, Jorge Jesus, and said he would serve any “suspension that is imposed†on him.
“Disciplinary ​proceedings have been initiated against Cristiano ‌Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, following ‌a decision by the non-professional section on 9 October 2026,†the FPF said in ‌a statement released on Saturday.
North of the border, Rangers went top of the Scottish Premiership with a 3-1 in over Kilmarnock, while Hearts thumped St Mirren 5-0 and are nestled in behind the Old Firm before Celtic go to Motherwell today.
On the continent, Yan Diomandé earned Real Madrid a 1-0 win over Villarreal to keep them six points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona, but in a tight game VinÃcius Júnior was sent off for hair pulling.
Anthony Gordon scored his first goal for Barcelona as they extended their perfect start in La Liga with a 3-0 home win over Getafe. While Rayo Vallecano's match against Athletic Club was abandoned because of home fans at Vallecas stadium throwing objects on to the pitch in a protest against the club president, Raúl Martin Presa.
In Germany, Augsburg's Robin Fellhauer scored the fastest â goal in Bundesliga â history in his side's draw 2-2 with Bayern Munich. The champions trailed twice but Harry Kane earned Bayern a point ten minutes from time.
Inter surged to the top of Serie A thanks to three goals in the first half-hour to defeat an outclassed Parma 3-0 at San Siro. Napoli cruised to a 3-0 victory at home to Frosinone with Scott McTominay making his comeback after heart surgery.
In Ligue 1, Paris Saint-Germain eased to a 3-1 home victory over â Le Mans, played out in a tense atmosphere amid student protests ​across France. Lille sit in second place after beating bottom club Le Havre 1-0.
Before we look ahead to today's games let's have a recap on yesterday's action:
Manchester United 1-1 Tottenham: Dominic Solanke glanced in a late equaliser to earn ten-man Spurs a point at Old Trafford.
Chelsea 5-1 Bournemouth: Jordan Henderson scored twice on Moisés Caicedo's return to Xabi Alonso's first XI. Chelsea looked much more solid with the Ecuadorian in the team.
Arsenal 2-1 Leeds: The Gunners winning machine trundled back on track after falling behind with Bruno Guimarães completing the comeback.
Aston Villa 2-2 Brentford: Each team lead this game but for a cumalative time of only four minutes. Villa are still yet to win at home this season.
Ipswich 2-1 Fulham: Pressure is mounting on Ãlvaro Arbeloa after his side led this one until the 88th minute. The west London club now have no wins in six and are bottom of the table.
Sunderland 0-2 Brighton: Even going down to ten men can't stop Brighton, Maxim De Cuyper continued his excellent form with another goal. Second-season syndrome for Sunderland?
Preamble
It's not an understatement to say the atmosphere at Anfield will be ‘lively' today. Liverpool are arguably the team that has lost out the most to Manchester City in the period covered by the Premier League's rap sheet, so it is a gift from the narrative gods that this is the first game since the verdict dropped. So… City win?
In the meantime, here's this week's Jonathan Wilson column on … why we're stuck with a Premier League in the clutches of the global mega-rich.
