Key events
GOAL! Luton 0-3 Brentford (Pinnock 62)
Looks like it’s all over at Kenilworth Road.
GOAL! Sheffield United 1-3 Burnley (Foster 58)
Sheffield United’s resurgence is short. Lyle Foster has a silly amount of space in the box for a comfy first-time strike after Lorenz Assignon cuts in from the right to find the South African forward.
“Relegation brings out the worst in the human condition,” writes Mary Waltz. “Normally I would be rooting for tiny underdog Luton Town. One problem. My Everton squad is in a relegation situation themselves. So not only am I rooting for the Hatters to lose, I want them dragged across the pitch and to give up 5 to 7 goals in case goal difference comes into play. I feel ashamed of my cruel nature.” I admire your honesty, Mary.
GOAL! Sheffield United 1-2 Burnley (Hamer 52)
Here’s a twist. It’s a lovely goal from Gustavo Hamer, who shapes up to shoot inside the box with his left foot … before flooring the Burnley man in front of him with the feint. Instead, he curls it into the net with his right.
And here’s Suzanne Wrack on Chelsea’s victory over the defending champions in the Women’s Champions League.
From earlier in the piece: here’s Morgan Ofori’s view from the King Power.
GOAL! Luton 0-2 Brentford (Wissa 45+1)
Oh dear, this ain’t looking good for Luton. It’s Yoane Wissa again, poking in from close range after Luton fail to properly deal with a low ball in from the right.
GOAL! Cambridge United 0-1 Derby County (Mendez-Laing 39)
Derby edge closer to a Championship return, taking the lead through Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, who, once upon a time, had a loan spell at Cambridge.
GOAL! Sheffield United 0-2 Burnley (Assignon 40)
One brings two! Lorenz Assignon picks the ball up on the right, jinks into the box through two men in red-and-white and then pokes a low finish that is deflected into the net.
GOAL! Sheffield United 0-1 Burnley (Bruun Larsen 38)
Burnley are up and running. Wilson Odobert’s shot is blocked and the ball flies high into the sky … Jacob Bruun Larsen’s volley inside the box is scuffed, but does enough to trickle in.
Celtic are through to the Scottish Cup final!
What a moment for Joe Hart! He misses his own penalty but then saves low to his left to give Celtic a 6-5 win on penalties over Aberdeen. All this, in his last season as a pro.
GOAL! Luton 0-1 Brentford (Wissa 24)
A huge blow for the Kenilworth Road faithful – it’s a stunner from Yoane Wissa to give Brentford the lead, curling into the top corner from the edge of the box with a first-time hit. A gorgeous wallop.
Play has been stopped at Rotherham v Birmingham due to a medical emergency. Hope all is OK.
GOAL! Cardiff 0-1 Southampton (Aribo 12)
The Saints, who have won three on the bounce, still believe; they’ve nabbed an early goal, with Joe Aribo the goalscorer.
GOAL! Aberdeen 3-3 Celtic (MacDonald 119)
What a humdinger this Scottish Cup semi-final is: Aberdeen have equalised late in extra-time with a fine Angus MacDonald header. That looks set for penalties …
Tough thing to get round all of the promotion/relegation permutations but this is one to keep an eye on at the top of League One: Derby (2nd) will go up if they trump the results of Bolton (3rd) and Peterborough (4th). Derby face Cambridge United, Bolton host Port Vale, and Peterborough are at Bristol Rovers. Who will join Portsmouth who went up earlier this week? Excuse the self-indulgence, but I wrote a little something on Pompey a few days ago. Give it a read.
Sheffield United v Burnley – the teams
Here’s the picture at Bramall Lane:
Luton v Brentford – the teams
The lineups at Kenilworth Road. Ivan Toney is missing for the visitors.
Elsewhere, there’s been a big result in Barcelona. Erin Cuthbert is Chelsea’s match-winner, and a dream European farewell for Emma Hayes is still very much on.
FULL-TIME: Leicester 2-1 West Brom
And the King Power can breathe. After back-to-back losses, Leicester cling on at home to nab the three points. They’re back on top of the Championship thanks to goals from Wilfred Ndidi and the old-timer Jamie Vardy. Despite their recent wobbles, a return to the Premier League beckons.
GOAL! Leicester 2-1 West Brom (Wallace 76)
Ooooooh, a bit of late drama at Leicester in the Championship. The hosts were 2-0 up but Jed Wallace has equalised for West Brom with a calm finish after gorgeous through ball from Cédric Kipré. You can feel the nerviness at the King Power.
Preamble
Hello, hello, hello and welcome to the latest episode of The Clockwatch. Now, yes, we’re just a warmup for the big one at Wembley, but let’s hope we’re a tough act to follow. There’s two 3pm Premier League kick-offs to watch out for, both dealing with matters at the bottom-end of the table: Luton host Brentford, while Burnley are off to Sheffield United. The Bees appear safe, Rob Edwards’ boys are still very much in it, the Turf Moor outfit are still clinging on to some hope, but the Blades are staring directly at the second tier. Don’t fear; we’ll keep an eye on things in the leagues below, too.
I’ll be here to guide you through it. Keep me posted with your thoughts, queries, concerns, wisdom, song requests and more. Go well!
