Joao Pedro scored in extra time as Chelsea sealed a 4-2 win over Wrexham in the FA Cup (Getty)
Joe Cole has described Joao Pedro as a ‘monster’ for Chelsea after their 4-2 win against Wrexham in the FA Cup on Saturday.
Liam Rosenior’s side survived a scare against their Championship opponents as they needed extra time to secure their place in the FA Cup quarter-final draw.
Wrexham took the lead twice in the game before they were reduced to 10 men in the 90th minute. Chelsea capitalised in extra time as Alejandro Garnacho and Pedro both found the net to seal their victory.
Pedro has now scored 11 goals in his last 12 games for Chelsea and is in sublime form ahead of Chelsea’s Champions League last-16 first leg against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday evening.
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‘He’s a monster, he really is,’ Cole told TNT Sports.
‘I think he’s decided what he’s already doing [for his goal vs Wrexham], he’s playing with them, he takes the centre-half over to the left, drags him back, he actually strikes it into the floor, everything he’s hitting at the moment going in.
Joao Pedro now has 11 goals in his last 12 games for Chelsea (Getty)
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‘He plays that No.9 role, he plays it not like an Erling Haaland where he’s constantly on the shoulder, he will drop in and drift in because he’s got quality.’
Ben Foster, who was a pundit alongside Cole for the FA Cup tie, played with Pedro at Watford and believes the Brazilian’s versatility in attack is what makes him such a threat.
‘I’ve got to say I’m so happy to see Joao doing really well,’ Foster said.
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‘I was with Joao at Watford, you could see all the raw elements were there, he had that real bit of Brazilian flair about him and nastiness as well.
‘But to see him now in the Premier League doing it week in, week out. He played on the left for us, on the right, up top, he could do all of those little positions and I think that’s why he’s scoring so any goals and being so effective, he’s taking positions and defenders don’t know where he’s going to be.
‘I was really surprised he didn’t start tonight, to be honest, because when somebody has just scored a hat-trick, confidence, especially strikers, they feed off this ego and when they score a hat-trick they just want to score more and more. To see him come on I thought, ‘oh no, here we go’.’
North Yorkshire Police has issued a photograph of a woman offers want to speak to about the theft in Kings Street on Monday, February 2.
The force said £117 worth of stock was stolen from the shop, which has not been named.
On Saturday (March 7) police issued the photograph and said the woman pictured may have information to help the investigation.
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“Please contact us if you recognise the woman pictured on CCTV, as she may have information that will assist our investigation,” a police spokesperson said.
On Saturday, March 7, emergency services attended the scene at the junction connecting Mill Street and Cricketers Way, close to Sainsbury’s in Westhoughton.
Just after 6pm, part of Mill Street was reportedly closed by police while officers dealt with the incident, although traffic continued to flow along Cricketers Way.
A photograph taken at 6.10pm shows a white car lying upside down in the road, with three police vehicles present and the area partially cordoned off.
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Around 8pm, a resident said: “Mill Street is still closed in one direction but the overturned car is now being loaded on a truck to take it away.
“The barriers at the pedestrian crossing have been damaged in the crash.”
It is not yet known how the vehicle came to be overturned or whether anyone was injured in the incident.
The Bolton News has contacted Greater Manchester Police for an official statement.
There are long waits for driving tests at test centres right across the country
Learner drivers can expect to wait six months for their driving test at most test centres in Britain, an exclusive Reach Data Unit investigation has found.
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More than half (53 percent) of driving test centres have average waiting times of 24 weeks for car practical tests. That’s a total of 170 of Great Britain’s 319 test centres.
Meanwhile, another 13 percent of centres (43 in total) have average waits of between 21 and 24 weeks, meaning two-thirds of learner drivers can expect to have to wait at least three months for their practical test.
The figures have become available thanks to Freedom of Information requests to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) by the Reach Data Unit. Only six driving test centres in the whole country have an average waiting time of six weeks or less, which works out as two percent of test centres.
Now, using our interactive map, learners can see the average waiting time at their local test centre.
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In Cambridgeshire, both the Cambridge (Brookmount Court) and Peterborough test centres have an average wait of 24 weeks, which is equivalent to six months.
There are some encouraging signs for learner drivers, however. The data obtained via FOI shows that the number of centres with waits of 24 weeks is actually falling.
Back in November, a total of 245 centres, 77 percent of the total, had average waits of six months. That’s down to 53 percent now. A massive 80 percent of centres had average waits of at least 21 weeks, down to 66 percent now.
A DVSA spokesperson said: “DVSA is taking decisive action to reduce driving test waiting times by making more tests available. While there’s still a long way to go, we have conducted over 123,000 extra tests since June 2025.
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“We are also using military driving examiners to support our efforts to supply more tests and following our recent consultation, we’re working at pace to implement the technical changes to the driving test booking system – including introducing limits on changes that can be made to a test, allowing only the learner driver to book a test.”
There are regional differences in driving test waiting times. Wales has the lowest average wait in the country at 17.0 weeks per test centre. In Yorkshire and the Humber, that rises to 18.5 weeks.
In Scotland, the average is 19.1 weeks, in the North East it’s 19.4, and in the South East, 20.5 weeks. The South West has average waits of 20.8 weeks, the North West 21.0 weeks, the West Midlands 21.7 weeks, the East of England 22.2 weeks, the East Midlands 22.9 weeks, and London 23.0 weeks.
The child, his younger brother and mother, Lesly Rodriguez Gutierrez, were detained earlier this week during a routine check-in at Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Intensive Supervision Appearance Program office in San Francisco. The family were asylum seekers from Colombia, and had been living in Hayward, California, for five years.
De Bremaeker said Gutierrez, who works in childcare, had an order of removal but no criminal record and therefore had a legal right to be notified prior to deportation.
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At a news conference, the attorney said that while the mother and two boys were at the ICE center in San Francisco, a relative had gone to give the six-year-old his hearing aid, which he relies on communicate, but was turned away by officials.
Demonstrators in California protest the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration. On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security detained a six-year-old deaf boy in San Francisco and refused to allow a family member to give him his hearing aid before deporting him to Colombia (AFP/Getty)
“This child has been dragged from detention center to detention center, to places that are not meant for children,” Bremaeker said, according to The Los Angeles Times.
“They are definitely not built for children with severe disabilities. It’s inhuman, illegal, and unconstitutional.”
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The six-year-old boy attended California School for the Deaf at Fremont for three years, according to Tony Thurmond, California Superintendent of Public Instruction. He demanded the return of the boy to California at the news conference.
Thurmond said he was “deeply disturbed” that the boy was deported without access to his necessary medical devices. “This unnecessary cruelty must end,” he said.
“No child should be ripped from their home community and hidden in a detention center, especially not a deaf child who is being deprived of the ability to communicate and understand what is happening to him. I am calling on the federal government to return our student to his school community now.”
De Bremaeker said he had spoken Friday to Gutierrez, and that she and her children were traumatized by the ordeal.The Independent has contacted the attorney for further updates.
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In a statement to The Independent, a DHS spokesperson denied that Gutierrez had not received due process.
A man is led away by ICE agents inside a New York immigration court. A mother and her two young children, asylum seekers from Colombia were deported this week, without due process, their lawyer said (Getty)
“She received full due process and was issued a final order of removal by an immigration judge on November 25, 2024,” the statement read.
“ICE does NOT separate families. Parents are given a choice: They can be removed with their children or place them with a safe person they designate. This is consistent with past administration’s immigration enforcement. Gutierrez chose to be removed with her children, and they returned to their home on March 5.”
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The spokesperson added: “Being in detention and in the country illegally is a choice. Parents can avoid detention and receive a free flight and $2,600 with the CBP Home app. By using the CBP Home app illegal aliens reserve the chance to come back the right legal way and live the American dream.”
But Newcastle started this fifth-round tie like a side who recognised that the FA Cup was not only their best chance of winning silverware this season.
It was also their most obvious route back into Europe at a time when Howe’s team lie in 12th place in the Premier League.
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Newcastle quickly got the crowd into the game with their energy and intent.
Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford and defender Matheus Nunes uncharacteristically booted the ball out of play as the hosts pressed high.
Perhaps, most crucially, Newcastle grabbed the opening goal as Harvey Barnes fired his side in front with a fine curling effort.
It felt like a familiar script for Guardiola, who had previously seen Barnes score twice in a 2-1 win against his side at this very stadium back in November.
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“The first 15, 20 minutes always happens,” he said. “We talk about that. We could not control.”
Just as the visitors rallied, though, Newcastle dropped deeper and deeper, and could not get out of their half.
The Magpies were pinned back by City, who dominated possession and repeatedly played their way through the hosts’ midfield.
“The way they play and how good they are technically, they took a stranglehold of the ball,” Howe said.
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“When we got it back, we gave it away too easily, maybe looking too vertical and not horizontal enough at times.
“As soon as you make a technical mistake, you’re not seeing the ball for long periods and then your energy just drains away. That’s why they have been the best team for so long.”
But.Gonzalo Quesada’s side broke new ground with a superb win at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome to pile more misery on a visiting side already reeling after back-to-back defeats to Scotland and Ireland.
Two delightful tries from Tommaso Menoncello and Leonardo Marin took the hosts to a famous 23-18 win, conquering a sloppy visiting team that squandered an eight-point lead in the second half.
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A third successive loss makes the 12-match winning run that came beforehand feel even more distant for Steve Borthwick and his squad, who are left facing huge questions about their direction with their Six Nations campaign in tatters.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney watched from the stands at the Racecourse Ground as Wrexham gave Chelsea one almighty scare in the FA Cup fifth-round
21:59, 07 Mar 2026Updated 22:46, 07 Mar 2026
Ryan Reynolds was incredibly proud of Wrexham’s performance against Chelsea even though his side were beaten at the Racecourse Ground.
Reynolds and Rob McElhenney watched on from the stands as the Red Dragons saw their FA Cup hopes end against Liam Rosenior’s side, but only after they had given the reigning world champions one almighty scare. A fortuitous own goal allowed the Stamford Bridge club to draw level just before the break after Sam Smith had given the hosts an early lead.
An upset then looked on the cards when Callum Doyle restored Phil Parkinson’s side’s lead 12 minutes from time. However, it wasn’t to be for Reynolds’ side as Josh Acheampong levelled for a second time and Alejandro Garnacho and Joao Pedro secured Chelsea’s quarter-final spot in extra time after the hosts had George Dobson sent off.
But taking to X on Saturday night, the Wrexham co-owner wrote: “Three years ago this week, we battled Maidenhead United to a draw. Today we pushed Chelsea to extra time. So incredibly proud of Wrexham’s performance today.”
And a proud Parkinson said post-match: “The lads have been immense. Of course the dressing room is quiet, which you’d expect after a defeat, but when we wake up tomorrow the lads can be immensely proud – and the supporters will be – of the way we’ve played.
“Everybody knows that 11 v 10 in extra time, when so much energy has been used, is a difficult ask. But we said there would be a moment and there nearly was with the disallowed goal.
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“I think we deserved, at the very least, to go to penalties, but some big calls went against us.”
While Chelsea boss Rosenior admitted his side got lucky, saying: “‘That was every reason why the FA Cup is what it is
“Wrexham were magnificent in their energy and how brave they were with their press and how they played. We had to be at a high level.
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“We were pushed all the way by a very good team. We need to find a way to manage games better, but in these cup ties you can feel the emotion of the game. They’re very difficult games to play in.
“We went 1-0 down early against Aston Villa, we were 2-0 down at half-time against West Ham, we have to find a way not to be in that position, but what the players are showing me, no matter who is on the pitch, is a really good spirit and belief and a determination to win games of football.
“Now we need to keep working, we need to recover because we’ve got a big game on Wednesday and we need to start preparing for that.”
Watch the FA Cup on TNT Sports
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What’s in store for you today? (Picture: Metro.co.uk)
Venus is aligned with Neptune in Saturn today, creating fruitful ground for truths to be revealed. Approach the day with patience.
Gemini, Aries and Scorpio, focus on staying grounded. Something may try to shake you, but you have the power to be still.
While you may not hear exactly what you want to today, it will almost certainly be what you need. Take deep breaths and practice gratitude for what the cosmos offers.
Ahead, you’ll find all star signs’ horoscopes for today: Sunday March 8, 2026.
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One moment you may feel head-over-heels in love with a person or idea, the next you question its longevity. It can last if you anchor the dream in reality. Today’s rare planetary alignment invites you to blend beauty with structure and love with boundaries. You are not just dreaming, you are designing. Trust your wisdom but stay grounded.
Venus aligns with Neptune and Saturn, blending mysticism with grounding influence. Your inner world is stirred, encouraging healing through beauty, reflection and spiritual structure. You may feel drawn to forgive, release or revisit a long-hidden hope. Trust the unseen but move gently Taurus. Something from your past can come up.
Dreams of collaboration and shared purpose feel inspired, yet practicality reminds you to choose quality over quantity. A creative vision or group effort can become lasting with organisation. Romance may grow through friendship or teamwork. Keep one foot on the ground, even when the story feels magical.
Career ambitions come into focus, asking for strategy as well as vision. Inspirational roles are possible, but they’ll likely require planning and follow-through. Your instincts can be strong, but structure brings the most lasting and enduring success. So look to construct a key hope rather than simply imagining it.
You seek meaning through travel, learning or soulful experiences, yet you are also asked to create something enduring from them. A spiritual or creative path may feel destined, but discipline is needed. If you are seeking any kind of advice today, but conscious of the subtleties in what you are told. They can contain a key piece of information.
Venus aligns with Neptune and Saturn, deepening your intimate world. You are exploring trust, vulnerability and shared resources. Avoid romanticising warning signs but allow love and creativity to reshape you. Release what no longer serves and nurture what is true. However, when it comes to your long-term finances, the nuances can be important.
Cosmic messages for Cosmic messages for Virgo today
Libra
September 24 to October 23
A relationship could feel enchanted, but it asks for effort and honesty. Whether deepening commitment or reassessing connection, today’s special alignment encourages insight and emotional maturity. Romantic visions can become real with mutual investment. Boundaries are acts of love now. If you are looking to book a trip or holiday, today can be key.
You are seeking deeper meaning in work, wellness and daily routines. Creative projects or compassionate service can bring fulfilment if made sustainable. This is not about burnout but about joy through commitment. Collaboration or romance may blossom but must be grounded. Intriguingly, a work based platonic relationship can thrive.
You feel inspired to dream big in love, creativity or personal pursuits. This is a wonderful time to commit to something meaningful. Whether it is through using your array of personal talents and flair more actively, and meeting up and mixing and mingling socially, a unique skyscape can inspire some really helpful outcomes.
Home and emotional foundations take centre stage as Venus, Neptune and Saturn align. Sentiment meets structure, encouraging healing, beautifying and rebuilding. Whether renovating space or spirit, create something sacred as well as stylish. If you have felt a little inhibited the last two weeks, now you can feel more in tune with what feel at ease with.
Communication flows with compassion and charm, but discipline refines your message. Inspired ideas or meaningful conversations may surface. Edit thoughtfully and let words become both art and blueprint. Speak from the soul, but polish the delivery. And today is also going to see your happy knack for sharing ideas that people warm to, amplified.
Money and values are illuminated as Venus links with Neptune and Saturn. You are dreaming of abundance, but ready to build it realistically. A project may gain momentum or a gesture boost confidence. You are claiming more, step by step, with intention and trust. And there is a very strong chance that your life foundations can become more solid.
Your daily Metro.co.uk horoscope is here every morning, seven days a week (yes, including weekends!). To check your forecast, head to our dedicated horoscopes page.
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Flights were briefly suspended on Saturday morning and passengers were taken into tunnels at Dubai airport, which is normally the busiest global hub in the world, following fresh drone strikes in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) city.
Flight VS400 had taken off from Heathrow at 10.22pm on Friday night for the seven-hour flight to Dubai. But after six hours in the air, while the Airbus A350 was flying over eastern Saudi Arabia, airspace was closed due to the latest attack.
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The pilots turned around to fly back to London, but they landed at Budapest at 11am on Saturday to refuel. After 90 minutes on the ground, the aircraft took off again for a two-hour flight to Heathrow and landed shortly before 2pm.
Long haul: flight path of Virgin Atlantic jet that was unable to land in Dubai and diverted to Budapest to refuel (FlightRadar24)
A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said: “The safety and security of our customers and our people is always our top priority.
“We have strict criteria that must be met for a flight to continue into the region, and even though Dubai airport reopened shortly after its closure, our criteria for proceeding had not yet been met.”
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Hundreds of passengers who were waiting in Dubai to be flown back to London now have to wait for another opportunity to leave.
“We’d like to thank our customers for their patience and understanding and will contact affected customers,” the spokesperson added.
“Our flights have been repatriating as many of our customers and people who were in Dubai and Riyadh as possible, and we will continue our remaining rotations if deemed safe to do so.”
Virgin Atlantic has now decided to cancel all flights to and from Dubai for the rest of the winter season, apart from a single round-trip departing on Monday and returning the following day.
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Virgin Atlantic has now decided to cancel all flights to and from Dubai for the rest of the winter season (Matt Carter)
The airline’s spokesperson said: “Following airport and airspace closures in Dubai early this morning, we made the decision to cancel a number of our London Heathrow and Dubai rotations – the VS400 on Friday 6 March, VS401 on Saturday 7 March, VS400 on Saturday 7 March and VS401 Sunday 8 March.
“We continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East with ongoing dynamic assessments and active changes to our flight routings based on the latest information and guidance, where required.”
The relatively new Virgin Atlantic link between London Heathrow and Riyadh has also been “paused”.
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Each airline makes its own risk assessment and has specific criteria for deciding whether or not to operate a flight.
British Airways, which is known for being particularly risk-averse, has decided to concentrate its efforts on flights to and from Muscat in Oman, which is regarded as a safe airport.
The three giant airlines of the Gulf – Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways – are all seeking to increase the number of repatriation flights from the region, particularly to the UK and India. Thousands of passengers are seeking to leave for these key long-haul destinations.
But other carriers are reducing their prospective flying programmes to the region, not least because of a collapse in demand and significantly higher operating costs, especially insurance.
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Insurers are demanding much higher premiums as civilian airports come under attack from Iran.
Wendy Chamberlain said the figures gave a “terrifying” sense of the scale of the issue, as she urged the Scottish Government to act.
Craig Paton, Press Association Scotland Deputy Political Editor and Gemma Ryder Reporter
00:01, 08 Mar 2026
Scottish cops were called to domestic abuse incidents almost 6,000 times over the Christmas 2024 period, new figures suggest.
Between December 1, 2024 and January 3, 2025, Police Scotland were called to 5,945 domestic incidents, according to figures released to the Scottish Lib Dems.
Scottish Lib Dem deputy leader and former police officer Wendy Chamberlain said the figures gave a “terrifying” sense of the scale of the issue, as she urged the Scottish Government to act.
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The Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act was passed in 2021 and created domestic abuse protection notices and domestic abuse protection orders, which would allow for an abuser to be removed from the victim’s home immediately after an incident. The two provisions have yet to be implemented.
Ms Chamberlain said: “These figures reflect just how prevalent violence against women and girls is across Scotland. Around 6,000 incidents in the Christmas period alone gives a terrifying sense of the scale of domestic abuse.
“Five years since the Domestic Abuse Act passed and the SNP are still dragging their heels over the crucial protections within it. The Government have failed to give any good reason for the persistence of these delays.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats recently passed a motion at our conference calling for an end to these delays, so we can remove abusers from the family home and keep women out of harm’s way.
“We would also take steps in a range of areas, from health to education to justice, to tackle the root misogyny often underlying this violence.”
Siobhian Brown, Minister for Victims and Community Safety, said: “We are committed to fully implementing Part 1 of the 2021 Act. This is a complex piece of legislation with recognised operational challenges identified by justice partners and stakeholders.
“To address these, a short-life working group was established to consider possible legislative changes to ensure the Act can be implemented as intended. We are focused on preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls.
“That’s why we are increasing the delivering equally safe fund by 5 per cent, bringing total investment to almost £46 million over 2026-2028, to ensure organisations continue their vital work to prevent violence and support survivors.”
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