Today in Football – Things You May Have Missed

Football never sleeps. During any of the 86400 seconds in a 24-hour day, somewhere in the world someone is doing something related to the beautiful game, whether that’s scoring a last-minute winner in a high-profile match, posting their expert take on social media or simply booting a ball against a wall with their mates.

It’s therefore impossible for any human being to keep up with everything that’s going on in the game, and it’s often those little yet most intriguing moments, like a fan’s alternative viewpoint of a penalty save, or a three-second yet incredibly telling interaction between two arch-rivals, or thread on X explaining why N’Golo Kante is the nicest man in professional sport, which make football so great.

GIVEMESPORT have created our live blog to help solve that problem, providing the best social media has to offer and the greatest football mini-stories from the last 24 hours.

25th April: Vincent Kompany Fires Back at Reporter For ‘Unbelievable’ Question

‘It’s the second time this week’

Vincent Kompany is closing in on his first trophy as Bayern Munich manager as the German outfit will be crowned Bundesliga champions with a victory this weekend. The Belgian is set to lift his first top-flight honour as a boss, but refuses to forget his accomplishments before arriving at the Allianz Arena.

When asked about his forthcoming ‘first title’, Kompany decided to correct a reporter by pointing out that he won the EFL Championship at Turf Moor. The 39-year-old said:

The basketball star was caught showing his skills with his feet

Peter Crouch has responded to footage of San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama playing football with a hilarious comment. The Frenchman, who stands at 7’3″, is arguably the biggest rising star in basketball after being selected as the first pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

With the Spurs not qualifying for this season’s play-offs, Wembanyama has been enjoying his downtime by getting involved in another sport – though footage of him playing football is hardly a highlight reel of excellent, as the giant looked relatively uncoordinated in videos captured.

That didn’t stop Crouch, who was known for defying expectations due to his 6’7″ frame, responding to the clips that were being circulated of Wembanyama, with the former England international going as far as to say that the basketball starlet was a ‘baller’ with the ball at his feet too.

24th April: Crystal Palace Tweet Goes Viral

Post on X spreads like wildfire after Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace have caused a stir by tweeting “You’re welcome Liverpool” following Wednesday night’s 2-2 draw against Arsenal. The result at the Emirates Stadium means Liverpool now require one point from their final five fixtures to win the 2024-25 Premier League title.

Arsenal were on course to secure a 2-1 victory until the 83rd minute when Jean-Philippe Mateta scored a sublime equaliser for Palace, leaving Liverpool on the verge of securing their 20th English league title in the process. While many Arsenal fans are less than impressed with Palace’s tweet, it’s fair to say that the post has gone down very well on Merseyside.

“Finally, an instance of Palace coming from behind to draw a game in a title race that I won’t be telling my therapist about,” one Liverpool fan wrote, referring back to ‘Crystanbul’ in 2014. Another wrote: “All forgiven for the 3-3 lads.” While a third supporter posted: “Invite the admin to the parade.”

23rd April: Jean-Philippe Mateta’s Incredible Equaliser Against Arsenal

The Crystal Palace man capitalised on an embarrassing mistake from the Gunners to score a cracker

Liverpool are just one point away from winning the Premier League now as Arsenal gifted Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta a late equaliser in the most embarrassing of fashion during their encounter on Wednesday night. The Gunners were winning 2-1 after goals from Jakub Kiwior and Leandro Trossard canceled out Eberechi Eze’s equaliser, but Oliver Glasner’s side levelled things with just minutes left on the clock through Mateta.

Arsenal were in possession just outside their own penalty area, but they were careless and William Saliba ended up giving the ball to the striker and he proceeded to lob it over David Raya in audacious fashion. It was a shocking way to concede an equaliser so late and there’s no doubt that Mikel Arteta will be very unhappy with his side, but it was an incredible finish from Mateta who fired it off with just a moment’s notice.

21st April: Troy Deeney is Sent Off in Baller League Debut

The former Watford star lost his cool

Troy Deeney made a surprise return to football recently, joining the Baller League and his debut erupted in chaos when he was sent off for some serious foul play. The former Watford man didn’t hold back in his first match and played a little rough. There were several incidents where the striker went in late on his opponents, including the two below.

Eventually, it led to tempers flaring and after another late challenge on former Huddersfield man Tareiq Holmes-Dennis, the two men clashed and Deeney was shown a straight red. Not a great start.

21st April: Kai Rooney, 15, Scores Beauty for Man Utd U17s

Wayne Rooney’s son has gone viral on social media

Wayne Rooney’s son, Kai, has gone viral after a goal he scored for Manchester United’s U17s this weekend. The 15-year-old, who has been at United since 2020, lined up against Real Sociedad’s youth side and netted an outstanding strike.

Kai produced a brilliant touch to take down a long-ball. He then drove forward, showing impressive power and pace in the process, before coolly finishing past the opposition goalkeeper with his left-foot. The clip has been viewed by 1.6 million people at the time of writing, with fans making their feelings known. One fan wrote: “Plays exactly like his dad, with aggression and power,” while another stated: “We’re so close to having Rooney in the team again. 2/3 more years.”

One joked: “I’ve seen enough, another striker better than Hojlund,” while another United supporter said: “I know this is the answer, I just know. That number 10 jersey will hit in a few years.”

20th April: Trent Alexander-Arnold’s Wild Celebration at Vital Liverpool Goal vs Leicester

Trent Alexander-Arnold was the hero for Liverpool as he came on to score the winning goal against Leicester City. The right-back may be expected to depart Anfield for Real Madrid at the end of the season, but that didn’t stop him from going all out with his celebration.

The Reds now only need one more victory to secure a 20th English top-flight title and the second for the likes of Alexander-Arnold, Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson. The defender replaced Conor Bradley to salvage all three points for his boyhood club with a left-footed striker. He then proceeded to accept a booking by taking his shirt off and running over to the travelling supporters to celebrate.

19th April: Barcelona Aim Dig at Real Madrid After Comeback vs Celta Vigo

‘Qué remontada’

The buzzword in Spanish football this week has been ‘remontada’ after Real Madrid were hoping to claw back a three-goal deficit in the Champions League vs Arsenal. The Gunners thumped Los Blancos in the first leg and then won 2-1 away in Spain, firmly stamping out any notion of a comeback.

Just a matter of days later, Barcelona found themselves 3-1 down vs Celta Vigo in La Liga with less than 30 minutes on the clock. Unlike Madrid, however, they were able to pull off their own remontada, scoring three unanswered goals to win the match 4-3 and extend their lead a the top of the table.

After the match, which was won with Raphinha’s 98th-minute penalty, the Barcelona social media team carefully chose their words as they wrote: Qué remontada’ – meaning ‘What a comeback.’ The obvious dig at Madrid caused a big stir online.

Lyon star appeared to make crude gesture after goal

Manchester United fans have lost some respect for potential summer transfer target Rayan Cherki after footage emerged showing the Lyon star making a crude gesture following his goal during Thursday night’s dramatic Europa League clash at Old Trafford. Cherki, the 21-year-old rated among the best young players in world football right now, scored Lyon’s third goal of the evening at Old Trafford in extra-time.

Footage that’s now being shared on social media shows the gifted France Under-21 international grabbing his crotch. Needless to say, many United fans are far from impressed. One wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “Not the sort of behaviour someone keen to join your club in the summer would be doing,” while another posted: “Wow, it seems he doesn’t want to join United.” A third commented: “This is why I’ve always doubted his attitude and discipline. No wonder PSG were never interested in him.” And a fourth said: “I really wanted him at my club, but from now on I am his hater.”

Rice was man of the match at the Bernabeu and appeared to inspire players both on and off the pitch

Footage of Declan Rice encouraging his Arsenal teammates in the tunnel ahead of the 2-1 victory over Real Madrid has gone viral. Having scored two stunning free-kicks in the first leg to put the Gunners in command of their Champions League quarter-final tie, Rice was instrumental once again in the Spanish capital, picking up another man of the match award as Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli ensured safe passage through to the final four of Europe’s elite competition.

Mikel Arteta’s men entered a hostile atmosphere at the Bernabeu as the defending looked to become just the fifth team to overturn a three-goal deficit from the first leg in Champions League history. However, in footage that has been posted to social media, Rice could be seen telling teammates that they had: “Nothing to fear. Let’s go!”

Manchester United pulled off a heroic comeback against Lyon, scoring three goals in the last seven minutes of their Europa League match to come from behind and advance to the semi-final. The Red Devils were trailing 4-2 in extra time, before Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire scored to flip the game on its head. It was an incredible result for the Red Devils and Peter Drury summed up the emotions in incredible fashion.

The commentator, known for his almost poetic monologues, said:

Incredible commentary for an incredible moment.

18th April: Amad Diallo’s Bizarre Post After Man Utd Comeback Win Goes Viral

The injured winger insulted his teammates as he celebrated the dramatic victory

Amad Diallo may have been on the sidelines since picking up an ankle injury in March, but the forward still managed to leave an impression on Manchester United fans after the dramatic comeback win vs Lyon. Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire scored dramatic late goals to secure a historic triumph as the Red Devils advanced to the Europa League semi-final.

Manuel Ugarte scored the opening goal on the night, and Alejandro Garnacho set up the central midfielder. The pair then posed for a post-game selfie with Amad, who posted it to X. The caption was bizarre and has gone viral as the United attacker congratulated Ugarte on his ‘s***’ goal before having a go at Garnacho for a high-profile miss.

17th April: Andre Onana Celebrates Goal In Front of Lyon Fans

The goalkeeper returned to the starting XI after his horror show last week

Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana was spotted celebrating his side’s opening goal against Lyon in front of the away supporters following his return to the starting line-up for Thursday’s all-important Europa League tie. The Cameroonian had a horror show in the first leg, making two costly mistakes amid a war of words with opposition midfielder Nemanja Matic.

Onana was dropped for the 4-1 defeat to Newcastle over the weekend but was back in between the sticks at Old Trafford looking for some redemption. The hosts made a blistering start to proceedings, and were rewarded when Manuel Ugarte finished off a well-worked move.

While the United players celebrated further up the pitch, cameras panned to Onana down the other end as he celebrated in front of the Lyon fans, who had already given him stick in the early stages of the game.

17th April: Paul Scholes Reveals Nemanja Matic Chat Before Man Utd vs Lyon

The pair had a light-hearted chat after Matic’s Onana feud

Nemanja Matic returned to Old Trafford to face his former club, Manchester United, in the UEFA Europa League. The midfielder was previously involved in a war of words with United goalkeeper Andre Onana ahead of the first leg last week.

Onana dropped two howlers in that game, which ended 2-2, with the decisive clash coming in Manchester. Red Devils legends Rio Ferdinand and Paul Scholes were at the pitchside as TNT Sports pundits and were both spotted having chats with Matic. Scholes joked about what was said in his brief meeting with the Serbian: “I just told him to leave our goalkeeper alone.”

17th April: Myles Lewis-Skelly Has the Last Laugh at Antonio Rudiger

Real Madrid ace stamped on Arsenal youngster

Arsenal’s Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid was full of drama with the Gunners ultimately thrashing their opponents 5-1 across two legs. Not used to defeat of such a humiliating manner, it could be said that some Madrid players lost their heads.

An example of this was when Antonio Rudiger appeared to deliberately stamp on Myles Lewis-Skelly – with fans calling it ‘disgusting’. Although he escaped any punishment from VAR, it seems as though the Arsenal youngster would not quickly forget the incident.

Indeed, as shown in his social media post above, when sharing some images from the game, the left-back deliberately included a screenshot of the horror challenge. It seems no coincidence that he then shared a picture of himself laughing in the very next photo. Fans in the comments noticed this, with one writing: “Posting the Rudiger thing is hilarious.’ Another said: ‘Not the Rudiger [image] stepping on you. That’s cold.’