Champions League
Guardiola documentary revisits City turmoil, Walker clash and private heartbreak
Guardiola’s City crisis, Walker fallout and divorce confession are all revisited in A Beautiful Obsession.
A new documentary, A Beautiful Obsession, revisits one of the most turbulent stretches of Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City tenure, with a confrontation involving Kyle Walker among its most striking scenes.
City entered 2024-25 as history-makers, having become the first side to win four straight league titles. But the season quickly unravelled. From October into December, Guardiola’s team went seven matches without a win in all competitions, losing six of them. By the end of 2024, that poor run had stretched to just one victory in 13 games.
The Walker incident came after City’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield on Dec. 1, 2024. With Arne Slot’s side already top of the Premier League and later crowned champions by a wide margin, the result carried added weight. Guardiola blamed Rúben Dias and Walker for Liverpool’s decisive second goal, prompting a heated exchange.
“You keep saying my name in every meeting and every f—ing thing. Every f—ing meeting, it’s my name,” Walker hit back after blowing his fuse.
When Guardiola pointed out Walker’s role, the player responded: “You didn’t want me to be a captain. I’ve reacted to someone else, I lost the ball, you somehow bring my name into it.”
Guardiola replied: “If you’ve taken it personally, Kyle, I’m sorry, This is my defeat – if I am a problem you have to tell me. I won’t stay here for the money or for the fact just to stay, I don’t want to feel that I have to run away from you.
“If I am a problem, tell me. That is not going to change the love I have for you, not one second.”
Walker would start only three more games before leaving on loan to AC Milan in January, then joining Burnley permanently that summer.
The documentary also shows the wider personal strain around Guardiola, who told his players he was getting divorced. Manuel Estiarte said the squad “were worried because Pep was nervous, sad, different and only I knew the reason.” Guardiola later called it a “confession” after the Juventus defeat on Dec. 11, 2024, telling them: “I am f—ing divorced from the most beautiful woman in your planet, my wife, my ex-wife. I love her unbelievably but we lost the passion. I love her? Yeah, absolutely. She loves me? Yeah, but we lost the passion.
“How do you play football? Because you play, or for something inside? In your lives, whatever you are going to do, do it with passion. I don’t want good players, I want players with passion.”
Kevin De Bruyne also appears in emotional scenes after being told his contract would not be renewed. “It’s really hard,” he said.
Champions League
Finn Jeltsch: the Stuttgart defender drawing attention from Europe’s elite
Jeltsch’s rise at Stuttgart has attracted Barcelona, Inter and Premier League interest.
Finn Jeltsch may still be unfamiliar to many outside Germany, but that is unlikely to last for long. Sky Sports Germany reported that Barcelona and Inter Milan were among the clubs scouting the defender during Stuttgart’s 3-1 Champions League win over Viking FK before the international break. Several top Premier League clubs are also said to be monitoring him closely.
The 6’2" centre back has spent only 18 months at Stuttgart, having joined from Nürnberg in February 2025. Before that move, he had already built valuable experience in Germany’s second division. After arriving at Nürnberg at the age of nine, he went on to captain both the Under-17 and Under-19 sides before breaking into the first team. He made 33 senior appearances before Stuttgart secured his signature for €9.5 million.
Stuttgart manager Sebastian Hoeneß wasted little time in trusting him at Bundesliga level. Jeltsch was immediately placed in the starting line-up and made 12 league appearances before the end of that campaign, while also featuring briefly in the DFB Pokal final win over Arminia Bielefeld. His first full season brought more responsibility, with the defender starting half of Stuttgart’s Bundesliga matches and playing an important role in the Europa League.
This season has brought another step forward. Jeltsch has started all four of Stuttgart’s Bundesliga games so far, and his progress was rewarded with a call-up to Jürgen Klopp’s Germany squad during the current international break.
“I would say I’m an aggressive defender, brave and also attack-minded,” Jeltsch enthused upon being called up for the senior Germany squad.
That self-assessment fits the evidence. He stands out for his physical approach and his work without possession, having ranked joint-first among Stuttgart players for blocks per 90 in the Bundesliga last season. Only three team-mates posted more defensive contributions.
There is also real quality on the ball. Jeltsch is comfortable passing short or long, and only Angelo Stiller has averaged more accurate passes per 90 for Stuttgart in the Bundesliga this season. His former Germany youth coach Christian Wück said: “For two or three years we’ve needed players in the defense who can win back possession and make tackles. Finn Jeltsch was the perfect player for this,”
Jeltsch has named Manchester United’s Matthijs de Ligt as a player he watches closely. “He is a player who I always watch,” Jeltsch admitted. “I always try to copy one or two things from him. His physicality and the way he defends is something that I really like.”
Stuttgart are expected to resist offers in the short term, particularly with Champions League football again on the agenda. But with major clubs already tracking him, the long-term picture points towards another move at the highest level.
Arsenal
Saliba edging towards November return as Arsenal weigh key fixture run
Saliba could return in November as Arsenal prepare for a difficult run of fixtures without rushing him back.
William Saliba is increasingly being viewed as a possible November return for Arsenal, a development that would hand Mikel Arteta a major defensive boost ahead of a demanding winter schedule.
The centre back has not played since the pain from a long-running back problem became too much to manage. Over the summer, he pushed through Arsenal’s Premier League run-in and their progress to the Champions League final, before eventually being forced off in the World Cup semifinal loss to Spain. Since then, the wait for a clear update has continued, with Arteta only previously describing the issue as “long-term”.
Concerns that Saliba could be out until 2027 now appear to have eased. According to L’Équipe, the France international could be back on the pitch “sometime in November.” That remains a loose timeline, but it is still a more encouraging picture than the one Arsenal feared not long ago.
The report adds that Saliba knows he must not rush himself back. A source said: “He knows he has to take his time. He’s suffered too much and wants to return at 100%” even if Saliba “misses it terribly.”
That caution matters. Saliba has already spent more than two months on the sidelines, and an early return could risk a setback that sends him back into treatment. Arsenal’s upcoming schedule gives little room for error.
Their first major test after the November international break is away to Newcastle United, a ground that has caused them problems in the past. Before last season’s dramatic win there, Arsenal had lost three straight trips to St James’ Park. That match could be followed by a run containing Borussia Dortmund, Man City, Brentford, Tottenham, Real Madrid, Bournemouth and Man Utd, plus Carabao Cup quarterfinals.
Whether Saliba is ready for that stretch or not, Arsenal will be hoping the wait ends soon, but only when he is truly fit.
Champions League
Iraola sets out Ekitiké recovery outlook after Champions League call
Iraola says Ekitiké could return by January 2027, after a surprise Champions League squad call.
Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola says there is hope that Hugo Ekitiké can return to action by the end of January 2027, despite the forward still being some way from full fitness.
His inclusion in Liverpool’s Champions League roster for the league phase raised eyebrows, especially with Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endō left out, but Iraola explained that the decision was made with the medical department after assessing the squad list for Europe.
“I think it’s difficult with these long-term injuries, I think he’s still far [away],” Iraola revealed.
“But we had a meeting with the medical department to analyze when we completed the [squad] list for the European games. There is a reasonable chance that he could help us in the last two games of the group stages.
“But it’s still very early to say. It’s very early because it’s a long-term injury [and] a big part of the rehab [he] is still to meet. But if we decide to put him there, it is because there is a hope and there is a realistic chance that he could help us in January.”
The issue of how to fit Ekitiké and Alexander Isak into the same side has been discussed for more than a year. Liverpool had already spent $106 million (£79 million) on Ekitiké when Isak became the most expensive player in Premier League history.
Former boss Arne Slot was left to solve the problem, although Isak’s early fitness issues and later leg break meant the pair only shared the pitch for 186 minutes across eight appearances.
When Ekitiké does return, he is expected to be eased back as Isak’s deputy. Even so, once fully fit, the 24-year-old is unlikely to be content with a backup role for long.
Slot also suggested another route, saying Ekitiké could operate as a winger alongside Isak. The Frenchman made one appearance on the right side of Liverpool’s attack last season.
