Icardi has been the chief victim of Messi’s arrival, with Mbappe now occupying the 29-year-old's role through the centre of the attack.
That’s what happened against Aston Villa, Wolves, and Newcastle United, and although Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold have taken the plaudits for their more glamorous contributions, the difference from West Ham to now is almost entirely down to the Spain international in their midfield.
It took the hosts a while to find their rhythm in this new formation and in the first-half, Motherwell almost made them pay.
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Questions were rightly asked after the defeats at Old Trafford and Goodison Park about their top-four credentials and whilst they haven’t answered them all in the last week, they have at the very least shown they are up for the fight.
How to follow on Sky Sports: Follow Braga vs Rangers with our dedicated live blog. Luuk de Jong is a doubt having tested positive for Covid late last week.
VAR had judged that Thiago Silva had handled the ball and after a review, the referee Christopher Beath pointed to spot and Viega made no mistake.
There were times you'd get a couple of days off from football and I would actually lock myself away and just drink, to try to take all that away from my mind.
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Swedish champions Rosengard didn't reach the group stages of the Champions League this year, while second-placed only Hacken got their first points on Wednesday, against a Benfica side that is just four years old.
But when Martin Dubravka failed to grasp Gundogan's fierce shot from distance, being beaten to the rebound by Ruben Dias before Laporte forced home, the result felt inevitable.
The Blues captain's situation relates more to the length of the contract and how valued he is in the squad, having increasingly found himself on the bench when all the club's defenders are fit.
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel: It was a totally wild and open game in the first half, already at 2-2 after we came back twice.
If I was at another team I would have gone for him, he said. Just because you are not playing for Liverpool does not mean you are not good.
It's taken an incredible effort from the players, staff and supporters to lift us into the position we are.
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City are currently two points behind Brighton in the WSL table after a disappointing first half of the season.
Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani and Juan Mata may leave in the summer, while Marcus Rashford's future is uncertain.
Please stop looking for divides. And in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports on Thursday, midfielder Fred also spoke out against suggestions of a divided dressing room.
Mohamed Salah finds himself at the centre of a long-running saga regarding his future intentions at Liverpool, with the Egyptian’s agent doing little to curb the endless rounds of speculation with his activity on social media.
If there had been the offer of a new contract from Inter last summer as I wanted... we would not be doing this interview now here from London, but quietly from Milano!
Endrick has admitted that Cristiano Ronaldo is his idol, with a €45 million (£38m/$51m)-rated wonderkid describing the Manchester United striker as a phenomenon, while also addressing Real Madrid's reported interest in him and how he compares with Kylian Mbappe.
Jones Knows' predictionMy aim through these prediction/betting snippets is to try and guide you towards a potential angle of profit that is drenched with value - but I'm really struggling with this one.
Sky Sports News last week revealed Iraq were set to follow up on that by drafting the 18-year-old into their squad for their forthcoming World Cup qualifiers, with Iqbal joined by Wycombe forward Ali Al-Hamadi as the only other English-based player.
Jorginho scored two penalties – the second in injury-time – to rescue Chelsea an important and dramatic 3-2 win over a spirited Leeds.
That backing means PSG operate in a vastly different financial world and serve a largely contrasting audience to Red Star, as well as the city's third professional side Paris FC, who finished fifth in Ligue 2 last season and are beginning a new chapter of their own following recent investment from the Kingdom of Bahrain.
If they can avoid any red cards on Wednesday, the visitors to the Wanda Metropolitano will feel they have a great chance of finding the back of the net with Milan scoring in 17 of their 18 competitive fixtures this season.
United hadn't had a single touch in the Atletico box. And yet, there were no changes at the restart.
In 10 of Moss' last 13 Premier League matches the game has produced under 40 booking points and I'd be surprised if this one is any different.
I know Coventry are a rival, but I have a lot of respect for the way they play and the way they have stuck to that, over the years.
Lescott said: You can see what Carlo Ancelotti does for this group of players. A remarkable manager.
Rodgers was speaking at a news conference to preview Thursday’s Europa League tie against Legia Warsaw, and the vacant Manchester United job was unsurprisingly one of the subjects raised by reporters.
UPCOMING EVENTS ... baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and Oakland Athletics affiliate. Aviators vs. Reno Aces (Arizona Diamondbacks).
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