Saturday’s briefing: Lionesses thrash Belgium as De Bruyne announces departure

Back in the Premier League, the farewell tour of Kevin De Bruyne will begin in Sunday’s derby at Old Trafford after the Manchester City playmaker revealed he will leave the club at the end of the season.

Elsewhere, David Moyes expressed his anger at online abuse aimed at Everton defender James Tarkowski following his controversial tackle in Wednesday’s Merseyside derby.

England brush aside Belgium

Sarina Wiegman watched England produce a five-star display at Ashton Gate to claim a resounding 5-0 win over Belgium.

The Lionesses had lost their last encounter with Belgium towards the end of 2023, but first-half efforts by Lucy Bronze and Millie Bright put them in control before Aggie Beever-Jones got off the mark for her country in the 67th minute.

Jess Park and Kiera Walsh – with her first England goal on her 83rd appearance – rounded off the scoring to keep the Lionesses unbeaten in the Nations League ahead of Tuesday’s return meeting in Leuven.

De Bruyne to depart

Question marks over De Bruyne’s future have persisted for months and the Belgian finally put them to bed on Friday when he confirmed via his social media account that he would leave Manchester City this summer.

It brings a trophy-laden spell to an end with De Bruyne having won 16 trophies with City since his £55million transfer in 2015, while 106 goals and 174 assists in 413 appearances only tell a part of the story.

“Whether we like it or not, it’s time to say goodbye. Every story comes to an end, but this has definitely been the best chapter,” De Bruyne wrote.

Moyes calls out Tarkowski abuse

Sticking with social media, its ugly side has reared since Everton’s 1-0 loss at Liverpool on Wednesday where Tarkowski avoided a red card for a poor tackle on Alexis Mac Allister.

Whilst even Toffees boss Moyes conceded his player may have been fortunate to stay on the pitch, what has followed is death threats according to Tarkowski’s wife Samantha.

Asked about the abuse on Friday, Moyes said: “It’s not acceptable for anybody in any walk of life. We have to hold our hands up and, after looking at it again, I believe it could have been a sending-off but I don’t think that means that you get abused online because of that.”

Ange continues to fight

Ange Postecoglou made headlines on Thursday with his cupped ear celebration towards Spurs fans after Pape Sarr’s 69th-minute strike at Chelsea, which was subsequently ruled out and contributed to Tottenham’s 1-0 loss.

Postecoglou did later clarify his gesture had been misinterpreted and on Friday insisted the only mistake he made was not to follow his own rule of not celebrating a goal until a VAR check was complete.

The under-fire Australian has promised to fight on despite mounting pressure at Spurs and some of his sentiments ahead of Sunday’s visit of Southampton echoed predecessor Antonio Conte as he implored the club to “stick to something” to bring about lasting change.

What’s on today?

All eyes will be on the early kick-off at Goodison Park as Everton host Arsenal with the chance to boost Liverpool’s title prospects, while top-four hopefuls Nottingham Forest travel to Champions League quarter-finalists Aston Villa.

Down the bottom, 18th-placed Ipswich have the chance to revive their unlikely survival bid when Wolves visit Portman Road with a nine-point lead over the bottom three.

In the Sky Bet Championship, promotion-chasing rivals Burnley and Leeds are involved in 12.30pm kick-offs at Coventry and Luton respectively, while leaders Sheffield United visit Oxford later on.