Saturday
8am (all times BST)
Matchday live
Football
Ease into the football weekend with our essential rolling blog. Dominic Booth buckles up to bring you breaking news and insights from around the grounds with seven Premier League fixtures, kicking off at lunchtime with the Manchester derby. Jamie Jackson will be online at Old Trafford for a live Q&A before the match, so post your questions to matchday.live@theguardian.com. There’s a full Championship programme, with an enticing clash as pacesetters Coventry face Leicester, plus two games in the fourth round of the Women’s FA Cup, troubled Real Madrid facing Levante at 1pm and Hearts going up against Falkirk in the Scottish Cup on Saturday evening. Talking points galore, so why not join the conversation.
12.30pm
Manchester United v Manchester City live
Premier League
Michael Carrick steps into the dugout as Manchester United’s interim manager for the Manchester derby at Old Trafford, tasked with steadying a side that have wobbled through another bleak winter. United are seventh in the table with one win in their last six Premier League matches and last week’s FA Cup exit underlined their parlous state, but Carrick’s arrival, in the wake of Ruben Amorim’s sacking, brings a flicker of hope. His first challenge? Attempt to outwit Pep Guardiola, whose City team are six points behind Arsenal and second in the table, despite three consecutive draws. Rob Smyth helms our live blog with Jamie Jackson and John Brewin reporting.
3pm
Clockwatch
Premier League
Xaymaca Awoyungbo keeps the updates flowing from the 3pm kick-offs as well as sweeping up the lunchtime results, with his attention firmly fixed on two intriguing clashes. Tottenham v West Ham features two managers under unremitting pressure – El Sackico. Spurs’ Thomas Frank may not last the weekend in post should their relegation-bound London rivals pull off a shock away win. Frank could call on his new signing Conor Gallagher following his arrival from Atlético Madrid, while Nuno Espírito Santo and the Hammers, seven points adrift of safety in 18th, are winless in their last 10 Premier League games. David Hytner and Jacob Steinberg report. Liverpool host Burnley unbeaten in their last 11 matches in all competitions, but they will be keen to end their run of three straight league draws. Andy Hunter is our man at Anfield.
5.30pm
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal live
Premier League
Barry Glendenning hosts our minute-by-minute coverage and Peter Lansley reports on the big game. Mikel Arteta’s pacesetters travel to the City Ground after a testing midweek win over Chelsea in the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-finals. However, Forest’s home form is grim reading for Sean Dyche – his side have lost six of their 10 Premier League home games this season, one more than they lost at the City Ground in the whole of last season. With a Champions League meeting with Inter looming, Arteta may look to rotate his squad, and he said on Friday: “We have more players back now, we have better options. That’s very helpful. We are giving game time to almost every player.”
Sunday
7.30am
Australian Open live
Tennis
Up with the lark is Daniel Harris to cover all the action from day one in Melbourne. The women’s draw sees Aryna Sabalenka and Emma Raducanu fire up their campaigns. The world No 1 faces the French player Titi Rakotomanga Rajaonah, ranked 118 in the world, while the British hope meets the Thai Mananchaya Sawangkaew (195), although rankings count little when it comes to the capricious Raducanu. A shock quarter-final loss to the world No 204 Taylah Preston at the Hobart International was hardly encouraging. In the men’s draw, Carlos Alcaraz meets the local hope Adam Walton. The 22-year-old world No 1 would eclipse Don Budge as the youngest man to achieve the career grand slam by winning at Melbourne Park. There’s also British interest with Cameron Norrie and Arthur Fery on court. Tumaini Carayol reports.
8am
Matchday live
Football
Emillia Hawkins and Billy Munday also rise early to focus on the wash-up from Saturday’s games, as well as looking forward to Sunday’s fixtures with all the breaking news and the latest from around the grounds. As well as two Premier League games, Celtic are in action in the Scottish Cup against rank outsiders Auchinleck Talbot and there’s European interest with Milan, Roma and Barcelona all playing, not forgetting 12 Women’s FA Cup fourth round ties.
2pm
Wolves v Newcastle live
Premier League
There have been signs of life at Molineux of late, but Wolves’ awakening under Rob Edwards may have come too late. His side are unbeaten in three league games and have earned more points from those – five – than they did from their previous 22 (three). The visitors are on something of an upward tick too in the league, and a victory against the bottom club means the Magpies – beaten by Manchester City in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg – would have won their first three league games of a calendar year for the first time since 1996. John Brewin steers our live blog with Will Unwin at the ground.
4.30pm
Aston Villa v Everton live
Premier League
Aston Villa’s seemingly unstoppable surge lost some of its momentum last week as a goalless draw at Crystal Palace stalled their march on Arsenal’s top spot. But after dumping Tottenham out of the FA Cup, they approach Sunday’s late game against Everton with energy restored. Unai Emery’s side are unbeaten in 11 home games in all competitions but face an Everton team who have won nine of their 19 league away games in David Moyes’ second spell. Billy Munday helms our live blog, with Ben Fisher at Villa Park.
7pm
Senegal v Morocco live
Africa Cup of Nations final
The rankings proved spot-on as Africa’s top two teams advanced to the final, with Morocco and Senegal setting up a heavyweight clash. But while Senegal overcame Egypt 1-0 in 90 minutes in Tangier on Wednesday, Morocco needed Youssef En-Nesyri’s calm spot-kick in a penalty shootout before disposing of Nigeria after a goalless draw in Rabat to book their place in Sunday’s decider. Morocco, whose only Cup of Nations triumph came half a century ago, are one of several underachievers, notably in recent years when the quality of their squad suggested they could win the trophy, but are now on the verge of success after going 26 matches unbeaten. At this Cup of Nations as hosts they looked nervy initially under the burden of expectation but in their last two matches have shown the form that has seen them ranked top on the continent since their World Cup exploits in Qatar in 2022, when they became the first African country to reach a semi-final. Rob Smyth keeps the updates coming with Jonathan Wilson reporting.
8pm
Patriots v Texans live
NFL playoffs
Graham Searles straps in for our unmissable NFL live blog as the Houston Texans face the New England Patriots in the AFC divisional round on Sunday night at Foxborough when an immovable force meets an unstoppable object. The Patriots coach, Mike Vrabel, says of the Texans’ defense: “They chase the football and they get a lot of hats to the football. They create turnovers. They play physical.” His Texans counterpart DeMeco Ryans rates the Patriots’ QB Drake Maye as the key threat. “I think it really doesn’t get talked about much, but his athletic ability, his ability to escape the pocket has been really clutch for them. He’s made some big runs to really hurt a lot of defenses, so we have to be conscious of that,” the former two-time Pro Bowl linebacker says.
