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Mikel Arteta assumes responsibility for Arsenal’s FA Cup exit at Southampton

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Mikel Arteta took responsibility for Arsenal’s meek FA Cup quarter-final exit at Southampton as the Premier League leaders blew a glorious chance to return to Wembley.

A fortnight on from the disappointing Carabao Cup final loss to Manchester City, the absentee-hit Gunners lost to Sky Bet Championship opposition at a rocking St Mary’s on Saturday evening.

Ross Stewart fired in-form Saints ahead at the end of a move featuring Martin Odegaard and Ben White errors, with Leo Scienza hitting the crossbar before substitute Viktor Gyokeres equalised for Arsenal.

However, it is Southampton heading to Wembley later this month in the FA Cup semi-finals after Shea Charles came off the bench to seal a famous 2-1 quarter-final victory.

“Really disappointed in the manner that we lost the opportunity to get back to Wembley,” said Arsenal boss Arteta, whose side boast a nine-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

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“I love my players. What they have done for nine months, I’m not going to criticise them because we lost a game here in the manner that they tried and the way they are putting their bodies through everything.

“Some of them probably didn’t even have to be here today. I’m not going to do that, so I’m going to defend them more than ever.

“Someone has to take responsibility. That’s me and we have the most beautiful period of the season ahead of us.

“And now is a moment. In the season, you always have moments, normally two or three. This is the first moment that we have with a certain level of difficulty.

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“We’re going to say difficulty when we’re going to play the Champions League quarter-finals and the run-up for the league.

“If this is a difficult period, I believe there are many other ones that are much more difficult, so let’s stand up, make yourself comfortable and deliver like we’ve been doing all season.”

Arsenal have little time to dust themselves down after Saturday’s loss at Southampton given the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final at Sporting is coming up on Tuesday.

Gabriel Magalhaes looks a doubt for the trip to Lisbon after the centre-back, who withdrew from the Brazil squad with a knee issue, limped off in the second half.

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“I don’t know,” Arteta said of the issue. “I think he felt something. I don’t know exactly what it is. We’re going to have to assess him. But obviously when a player asks him to be substituted, it’s not good news.”

Saints are also back in action on Tuesday, when they head to play-off rivals Wrexham buoyed by an unforgettable evening at St Mary’s.

It was the greatest victory of Tonda Eckert’s nascent coaching career and keeps alive hopes of Saints replicating Lawrie McMenemy’s second-tier side winning the FA Cup 50 years ago.

“I think the club has been craving for a moment like this for a long time,” head coach Eckert, only 33, said.

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“I think that we’ve suffered over a longer spell, and it’s just so important that we get that atmosphere back to St Mary’s how it should be.

“I think today was outstanding. Not just for the generation from ’76, but also for the younger generation to be able to identify themselves with the club, with what we do. I think nights like this help a lot.”

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FA Cup on Sportsnet: West Ham vs. Leeds

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Quarterfinal action of the FA Cup continues on Sunday when West Ham United takes on Leeds United. Catch the action on Sportsnet ONE or Sportsnet+ and follow every play with the live tracker.

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Dave Allen names ‘surprising’ heavyweight who ‘definitely’ hit him hardest: “Pure power”

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Fan-favourite heavyweight Dave Allen has sparred some of boxing’s best, but ‘The White Rhino’ admits that the man who hit him the hardest came as a ‘surprise’ to him.

This era of the heavyweight division has been governed for the most part by Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Oleksandr Usyk and Deontay Wilder, with Wilder hoping that he can return into heavyweight title contention with a victory over Derek Chisora on Saturday.

Of those names, Allen has sparred all apart from ‘The Bronze Bomber’, as well as a host of other top contenders in the division.

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However, on his YouTube channel, when it came to naming the man who hit him the hardest, Allen claimed that Chisora was the biggest puncher that he has faced, much to his surprise.

“I sparred Derek Chisora before the Lucas Browne fight, so probably seven years ago to the week actually. He weren’t in the best shape, I don’t think, and I was fit and I sparred really well.

“But, he hit really hard. I thought he was the powerful puncher that I have ever been in with, just for pure power. Luckily, I could see him coming, because they were wide shots and they were coming from pretty far back and I could brace for them and take a bit off of them.

“In terms of power, he was definitely the biggest puncher that I ever sparred with, really, really heavy-handed. It surprised me because I didn’t think he was a big puncher. I had been watching him and, technically, I thought he didn’t look like he would be a big puncher.”

Chisora will hope to find some of that devastating power when he faces Wilder at the O2 Arena tonight. The Brit says he will retire win, lose or draw, but his 50-fight campaign would be remembered much more favourably if he called time after stopping one of his generation’s biggest names.

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Allen returns to action on home soil in Doncaster against Filip Hrgovic on Saturday, May 16.

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Taylor Fritz & girlfriend Morgan Riddle have broken up, tennis insider makes wild relationship claim

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Taylor Fritz and Morgan Riddle have been a tennis power couple for over half a decade. The two had begun dating in June 2020, but if latest reports are to be believed, they have parted ways after a nearly six-year long relationship.

Tennis insider Craig Shapiro, who hosts an eponymous podcast, on Sunday took to social media to share the news. As per the post on X, he said “reliable sources” had confirmed the break-up to him.

“Reliable sources telling me Fritz and Moorgs are no mas,” The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast wrote on X.

Fans reacting to the post took note of Riddle’s absence from some of the more recent matches featuring Fritz. The social media influencer was otherwise a regular feature in the player’s box, cheering her boyfriend on at major events throughout the tennis season.

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Even though, Riddle and Fritz began dating back in 2020, they did not go public with their relationship until a couple of years later. They have since been spotted at multiple events together even outside of tennis, featured on magazine covers and are frequently seen on each others’ social media handles.


Morgan Riddle credited boyfriend Taylor Fritz for getting her into fashion

Morgan Riddle supports Taylor Fritz from the stands at the 2026 Australian Open. (Source: Getty)Morgan Riddle supports Taylor Fritz from the stands at the 2026 Australian Open. (Source: Getty)
Morgan Riddle supports Taylor Fritz from the stands at the 2026 Australian Open. (Source: Getty)

Morgan Riddle had in an interview with Vogue magazine opened up about her relationship with Taylor Fritz. The social media influencer revealed that she was in fact a very person th first couple of years that she was with the Ameican tennis star.

Before taking on the role of a social media influencer, she worked for non-profit organizations. She even credited Fritz with pushing her into fashion, which has become a big part of her brand today.

“I was very private for the first two years of our relationship,” Morgan Riddle told Vogue in 2025. Work played a large role in her decision. “I was working in nonprofits for children in hospitals.”

“When I met him, I literally did not know one designer. He was like, ‘We’ve got to get you drip,’” she continued.

Riddle also spoke about some of the challenges that come with having a social media presence, especially for those clubbed under the tennis “groupie” label. She said she likes to keep a distance from negativity, has matured over the years and can handle it a lot better now.

“I have friends who have been on YouTube since they were 15 years old. It was kind of nice to have an introduction to it once I was mature and felt like I had a better head on my shoulders,” Morgan Riddle said.

“There’s still a lot of negativity around it, and I know that because I see misogynist comments—always from idiot men,” Morgan Riddle said. “I do think there’s more visibility on what girls are doing outside of just attending their partners’ matches.”

Fritz last played at the Sunshine Double on home soil. He has chosen to delay his start to the clay season, skipping the Monte-Carlo Masters. He will next feature at the clay event in Munich a fortnight later.

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