His season may have been ended by an ACL injury, but Duncan Watmore has heaped praise on Sunderland’s backroom staff medical as his road to recovery continues.

The 22-year-old had enjoyed a bright start to the campaign, making 17 appearances in all competitions as he looked to build on his breakthrough from the year previous.

Yet the forward’s development came to a crashing halt back in December, rupturing his ACL in victory over Premier League champions Leicester City.

But with his bid to return currently a long and laborious process, Watmore has paid tribute to the work of those behind the scenes at the Stadium of Light, hoping to eventually come back a better player.

“It’s frustrating because it’s obviously not what you want to hear (when told your season is over),” he said.

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“It’s an injury you never want but I think the key is accepting it early and just moving on from it and concentrating on the rehab process.

“It’s important now I do everything I can to get back as quickly as I can and make sure I come back a better player.

“The facilities and the staff we have at the club are perfect for me to do that because they all work so hard.

“David Binningsley is my rehab physio and he has been fantastic with myself and Paddy (McNair) because we have both done the same injury.

“We are working hard together so while it’s frustrating we have no choice but to get on with it.

“We have to do the hard work and make sure we come back better players.”

Squad rotation has been the cause of many Premier League casualties from the FA Cup this season, but Fernando is adamant that is not the reason Manchester City were held by Huddersfield Town.

The Brazilian was among seven new faces that came into the side for the trip to the John Smith’s Stadium, with only John Stones, Aleksandar Kolarov, Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho retaining their places.

But Pep Guardiola’s side were unable to break through against resolute Championship opposition, with their 0-0 ensuring a replay will take place, presenting a difficult fixture backlog in the process.

But with the strength in depth the Citizens possess, Fernando believes their approach to the game was not solely based on 11 players.

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“I don’t think that influenced us. We train every day and we listen to what our manager says,” he said.

“That didn’t affect us. Maybe some players didn’t get into the rhythm but we played well. Unfortunately we didn’t score.

“We had chances to score and of course we wanted to score and win. They played well and the result was difficult for us.

“We now must focus on the replay of this game.

“They played very well and knew [we] they were a good team. We watched their games and knew their qualities. They are third in the Championship so we knew they were going to be difficult.”

Burnley defender James Tarkowski gave Lincoln City an extra way to toast their superb Emirates FA Cup shock – by giving the goal-scorer a bottle of champagne.

Tarkowski was awarded the sponsors’ man-of-the-match at Turf Moor, though his excellent display wasn’t enough to stop the Imps becoming the first non-league team to reach the quarter-finals since 1914.

Sean Raggett was the man on target with just moments remaining at the Premier League outfit, with his header continuing the cup dream for the National League side.

And with little of his own to celebrate, Tarskowski handed over his bottle of champagne to Raggett after the Clarets’ Fifth Round shock, citing that his side didn’t deserve to win the tie.

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“Fair play to them. They are a National League team but they are playing way above that at the moment,” said Tarkowski.

“They are knocking teams out from all the leagues above them.

“I just thought they deserved it. They came here and gave their all and have gone away with the result, so I gave the bottle of champagne away to the lad who got the goal and fair play to them.

“They had already knocked out two Championship sides, so we knew it was going to be a tough day. We weren’t expecting them just to roll over.

“But we fully expect to win every game we play in and so it’s disappointing to come away with a defeat and get knocked out of the Cup.”

Arsene Wenger says he cares about Arsenal’s future, and the club must make the right decision about his future at the helm.

The embattled Gunners boss has faced mounting criticism this week after his team’s 5-1 capitulation to Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.

They face non-league Sutton United in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Monday as they look for a third win in the competition in the last four years.

Wenger has said he will decide his next move before the end of the season, and added that criticism from fans was part of the job that managers must accept.

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“That is an eternal debate when you are somewhere for a long time and you have a big disappointment,” Wenger said.

“Even if I go, Arsenal will not win every single game in the future, that is part of it, you have to accept that as much as it hurts to lose games.

“I think what is important is that the club makes the right decision for the future.

“I do not work here for 20 years not to care about this club, because I had many opportunities to go somewhere else during that period and I care about this club and I care about its future.

“It is very important that the club is always in safe hands.”

Leicester City boss Claudio Ranieri has urged the “soldiers and gladiators” in his squad to stand up and save their season.

The Italian is under increasing pressure after the defending Premier League champions were dumped out of the FA Cup at the fifth-round stage by League One Millwall on Saturday.

The Foxes are battling relegation from the top flight after a dismal domestic season, but face Sevilla in Spain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash next week.

Ranieri’s side are currently one point and place above the Premier League drop zone, and have lost five league games on the spin.

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Now, Ranieri wants his players to show their battling qualities and step up to the plate.

“Now we have to fight every match,” said Ranieri. “I need soldiers. I need gladiators. Millwall with 10 men showed they have fantastic gladiators.

“The first half was a good performance from us. We knew that Millwall wanted to counter attack and try to do something at set plays. We created some good chances but we lost in the last parts.

“I think this defeat could be good for us because when you lose against a team who fights like Millwall did, you have to say well done to them, ask why you lost and come back stronger.”

Midfielder James Morrison expressed his pride at reaching 300 appearances for West Brom following a decade at the club.

Morrison moved to the Baggies in 2007 after three years with Middlesbrough where he had come through the youth system.

And the 30-year-old admitted it had been a tough decision to leave Teeside, but revealed senior players at the Hawthorns had made the transition easy.

“A few games ago I was getting close so it sank in a bit and it’s a good achievement,” he said.

“I’ve seen my mate Chris Brunt do it so I was striving to emulate him and I’m really pleased I’ve done that now. After three hundred games I am sat here ten years later, still enjoying football.

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“To get told that you’re not wanted, it’s not nice; it wasn’t nice when it sunk in. I thought I may be with Middlesbrough all my career.

“Sometimes you’ve got to go out of your depth. I came down here and had a good manager in Tony Mowbray who suited my game.

“And there was the likes of Jonathan Greening, Paul Robinson, Kevin Philips who I knew, which made it easy to settle in and I didn’t look back.”

Watford technical director Filippo Giraldi believes two of the club’s on-loan starlets are destined for great things at Vicarage Road.

Aly Malle and Adalberto Penaranda – just 18 and 19 respectively – have been making waves in Spain with Granada and Malaga.

Striker Malle has started the last four games for Granada, while Penaranda – who Watford are awaiting a work permit for – impressed recently against Real Madrid.

And Giraldi is confident both players can go all the way when they join up with the Hornets’ Premier League squad.

“Aly Malle is a bit of a wonder boy,” said Giraldi. “He was born in 1998, yet is in the first team at Granada in La Liga.

“He’s a very good prospect. He can be a special talent but he needs to work and grow. He is a top talent, for sure.

“I am excited with Penaranda. He’s a regular with the Venezuela national team now so it’s hopefully just a matter of time [before we get a work permit].

“He’s potentially very, very good but it’s about how he can manage the step from being very promising and being a top talent. He’s a special talent, no question.”

Leighton Baines believes Everton’s ability to reflect the style of manager Ronald Koeman has been the key to their rise up the Premier League table.

The Toffees are currently on an eight-game unbeaten run in the top flight, sitting seventh with just 13 games to play in a bid to improve on last season’s bottom-half finish.

The campaign has not always been so fluid on Merseyside though, with a 5-0 hammering at the hand of league leaders Chelsea the start of a five-game winless run across the winter.

But Baines thinks the change in fortunes since those disappointing days has been no coincidence and is delighted his side have adapted to Koeman’s mentality since the new boss’ arrival from Southampton last summer.

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“What we’ve shown comes from the manager. Of course, it takes time but the team starts to reflect the manager out on the pitch,” said Baines. “The manager wants intensity, a bit of aggression and good football as well.

“We can improve in all of those departments – you always can – but I think he has been more pleased in what he is seen in that respect [recently].

“We’re on a good run at the moment and, obviously, we’ve been working hard this week to extend that. We all know they’re all tough games but we’ve had good preparation and there’s a good feeling around the place so we’ll try to keep that momentum going.

“At this level, there are fine lines at times. We work hard every week, we’ve been on a good run, a bad run and now we’re back on another good run – but, generally, the work we’ve done has been the same.”

Marcos Rojo insists the Manchester United supporters have made all the difference in the way they have turned their season around.

After a slow start to life under Jose Mourinho, Rojo and United are in the EFL Cup final, only four points off second spot in the Premier League and looking strong in the knockout stages of the Europa League.

This weekend they continue the defence of their FA Cup crown with a tricky trip to Ewood Park to face Blackburn Rovers and, home or away, Rojo says the fans will lift their charge.

“When the team needs to go all out for the win in the last few minutes of a game, or we need to grab a late goal, it’s great for us to feel that support and you can sense that the opponents feel it too,” he said.

“When the fans really get going and are passionately driving us forward and cheering at full blast, you get the feeling that as we put the pressure on, the other team just appear to shrink a little in the face of all this. And you can tell that’s happening when you’re out there playing.

(Photo by John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images)

“I had the chance to be in the crowd at Liverpool and at Stoke and I really got to feel for myself just what the United supporters live through every week. It was really great to be in there and hear the passion they put into every song they sing and how they chant the players’ names.

“I had the opportunity to be right in among the fans at the ground to experience and see things for myself from a different angle, if you like, and it was a really cool experience.”

Oumar Niasse is convinced that Hull City’s current trip to Portugal can inspire them to Premier League survival.

The Tigers are currently 18^th in the table but only one point behind reigning champions Leicester City in 17^th.

Like most top-flight teams who have been knocked out of the FA Cup early, Hull are using the opportunity of a week off to do some warm-weather training abroad.

Niasse and co. have been whisked off to Portugal but the striker is adamant the trip is not simply a jolly, and instead can be a key turning point in uniting the squad.

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“For me and the other players that joined the club last month, it is be good to spend all of this time together to get to know everybody better,” said Niasse, who is on loan from Everton.

“The spirit amongst us is already good, but this time away can only make it even better.

“We’re going to be in Portugal for a week and this will give us all time to speak with the coach and get to know him better, as well as for him to get to know us better.

“I’m sure the coach will be spelling out the preparation for the rest of the season and it’s a chance for us all to clear our heads and get the focus on the next 13 games, which starts with Burnley when we get back to England.

“We’re going away and leaving everything behind for a week, so we all have to concentrate and work hard to make sure we get out of it what is intended.”