Bill Kenwright would proudly regale anyone who cared to listen about his tales from the Boys’ Pen at Goodison Park, how he took two buses and a tram to watch his hero Dave Hickson, of eating soggy meat pies.

And, even though he graduated from the terraces to the boardroom, he never lost his love for the club. He was a chairman who remained a fan at heart.

It was, however, a stick used to beat him with when money became the driving force in football and the Toffees fell behind the Premier League’s big guns.

Nevertheless, his death at the age of 78 after suffering from cancer will be felt keenly by all associated with Everton.

Born on September 4, 1945 in Liverpool, the son of a bricklayer-turned-builder, his own journey was something considerably more …

Erik ten Hag told doubters to look at his record as the under-fire boss spoke with conviction about being the right man to help stumbling Manchester United fulfil their ambitions.

Having won the Carabao Cup, reached the FA Cup final and finished third in the Premier League during a promising first season in charge, things have gone awry during his second campaign.

Saturday evening’s lifeless 1-0 loss at Newcastle was their 10th defeat in just 21 matches in all competitions, leading criticism, scrutiny and pressure to mount on manager Ten Hag.

Reports emerged that the Dutchman had lost the confidence of some players, with concerns over style and tactics mentioned in stories that led to four media outlets being banned from Tuesday’s press conference.

Un…

Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk will not entertain talk of a Premier League title race unless the team can get to March in a similarly-strong position.

A 4-2 victory over Newcastle extended their advantage at the top of the table to three points over Aston Villa but, more significantly, ensured they stayed out of reach of Manchester City five points back, with their match in hand.

January is a significant month for Jurgen Klopp’s side as they do battle on three fronts, starting with an FA Cup third-round tie at Arsenal at the weekend followed by the first tie in a two-legged Carabao Cup semi-final at home to Fulham.

Kicking off 2024 three points clear at the

How does that feel, fans?

— Premier League (@premierleague)

Due to the …

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp admits his side “were around when miracles happened”, but accepts their destiny is not in their hands this time when it comes to Champions League qualification.

A month ago the club were in eighth, 10 points adrift of fourth-placed Manchester United, but six successive victories have propelled them to fifth and only a point behind their rivals, who have a match in hand.

It was suggested to Klopp his squad have performed remarkable comebacks before, not least when overturning a 3-0 first-leg deficit to beat Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Champions League they won in 2019.

They also came from a seemingly impossible position in the Premier League in 2021 when they they made a late run into the top four, registering eight wins …

England s second day of the final Test against South Africa has been postponed and tributes continue to flood in as the sporting world reacts to the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

Buckingham Palace confirmed on Thursday Her Majesty had passed away peacefully at the age of 96, with members of the Royal Family travelling to Balmoral to be by her side.

The Queen was the UK s longest reigning monarch. 

Here, Stats Perform wraps up what impact her death has had on sporting events and picks out tributes from some of the biggest names in sport.

Postponements announced, with weekend fixtures likely to be impacted

The England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed the second day of the third Test against South Africa will not take place on Friday.

…

Inter suffered their first setback of the Serie A season as substitutes Luis Alberto and Pedro earned Lazio a 3-1 win at the Stadio Olimpico.

The Nerazzurri had been one of three teams to take six points from a possible six at the start of the campaign, but a trip to the capital on Friday represented their first real test.

And it was not one Simone Inzaghi s side passed at their coach s former home, despite initially recovering from Felipe Anderson s first-half header.

Lautaro Martinez took one of very few Inter opportunities to equalise, yet Romelu Lukaku had already been substituted by the time Luis Alberto restored Lazio s lead with a deflected strike, and there was no response second time around as Pedro added a late third.

1 Luis Alberto is the firs…

Manchester City and Manchester United face off for the 188th time this weekend, yet for respective managers Pep Guardiola and Erik ten Hag the contest at the Etihad Stadium will be their first ever meeting.

That is not to say the pair are unacquainted with one another, though. In fact, that could not be further from the truth, with the two men sharing very similar philosophies and having previously worked closely at Bayern Munich.

While Ten Hag may be a year older than his counterpart at 52, the Dutchman was the apprentice and Guardiola the master during that overlapping period in Bavaria between 2013 and 2015.

That time was enormously valuable for me. I remember it well, Ten Hag told Bild in 2018. Many people in Holland shook their heads when I left the Eredivi…

Barcelona are interested in signing Carney Chukwuemeka from Chelsea in the summer transfer window, according to . The report in the British tabloid has claimed that Crystal Palace are also interested in Chukwuemeka, who can operate as an attacking midfielder or as a winger.

Chukwuemeka has been on the books of Chelsea since the summer of 2022 when he joined from Aston Villa. The 20-year-old is a very talented and promising young player, but he has failed to make a huge impact at the Blues. Chukwuemeka scored one goal and provided one assist in two starts and seven substitute appearances in the Premier League for the London club last season.

The Sun has claimed that Chelsea may accept less than £40 million for Chukwuemeka, but the problem is that he is on around £115,0…

Eric Garcia believes Spain s spectacular blend of exuberant youngsters and experienced veterans could see them beat any team at the World Cup in Qatar.

Between 2008 and 2012, Spain lifted two European Championship titles and also won their first World Cup as they dominated international football, boasting stars such as Andres Iniesta, Iker Casillas and David Villa.

However, since that Euro 2012 triumph, Spain have not made it back to a major tournament final and the majority of their key players from those glory years have retired.

Just Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba remain from that Euro 2012 squad, but the emergence of exciting young talent such as Ansu Fati and Pedri has reignited hopes of success returning under the stewardship of Luis Enrique.

Defend…

If Manchester United could bottle their end-of-year form, perhaps their struggles over the past decade would have long been consigned to history.

Substitute Marcus Rashford s goal gave United a 1-0 victory over Wolves on Saturday, continuing a theme of strong form at this time of year.

The Red Devils have not lost their final league game in a calendar year since suffering a 3-2 defeat to Blackburn Rovers in 2011, winning eight and drawing three of their 11 matches since.

Here, Stats Perform looks at United s impressive run, as Erik ten Hag aims to mastermind a resurgence for the team who were last champions of England in the 2012-13 season.

Blackburn s birthday blues for Ferguson

Alex Ferguson turned 70 on December 31, 2011. His team neglected …