Southgate cuts Lee from England coaching team

Sammy Lee has left his role as England’s assistant manager following Gareth Southgate’s appointment as permanent manager, the Football Association announced yesterday.
Former Liverpool midfielder Lee, 57, was brought in by Southgate’s predecessor Sam Allardyce, whose tenure lasted just 67 days after he was brought down by a newspaper sting. Lee worked alongside Southgate during the latter’s four-game interim stint at the helm, but having now been awarded a four-year contract, Southgate will look to appoint his own assistant.
“I have great respect for Sammy,” Southgate said. “He is somebody who I worked with as a player and his personality and professionalism were excellent. I felt it was important for me to bring in my own support team and Sammy fully respected that.” Lee said it had been a “great honour” to work with England. Southgate is reported to want Chelsea assistant coach Steve Holland to be his full-time number two.

Sunderland’s Watmore
out for season
Young Sunderland forward Duncan Watmore will miss the rest of the season with a cruciate ligament injury, the Premier League club announced yesterday. Watmore, 22, was stretchered off after a collision with Christian Fuchs during Saturday’s 2-1 win over Leicester City.
He subsequently visited a specialist in London and scans revealed he is facing a long period on the sidelines. Watmore, who has made 17 appearances this season, joins fellow long-term injury victims Paddy McNair, Lynden Gooch and Lee Cattermole in the Sunderland treatment room. Sunderland failed to win in their first 10 league games, but have won three of the last four to move to the brink of safety.

Man United have ability to finish
 in top four, says Guardiola
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has expressed doubts over whether Manchester United can challenge for the Premier League title but believes they have a realistic chance of finishing in the top four.
Sixth-placed United have been held to draws in six of their last eight league games, including consecutive 1-1 results against Arsenal, West Ham United and Everton. Jose Mourinho’s men are 13 points behind league leaders Chelsea, who are on 34 points, three more than Arsenal and four ahead of Liverpool and Manchester City.
“Of course, 13 points is a long distance, especially when one team is winning games with the quality of Chelsea,” Guardiola told reporters. “So it is not easy. But to be in the first four? Of course. I saw the games against Stoke and Burnley, and other ones at Old Trafford. They deserved by far to win the games but football is like this. United have the quality, the history, the manager and the players to be there,” he added.
While no one in Premier League history has gone on to win the league with a 13-point deficit, United did overturn a 12-point gap to Newcastle in 1996. United will hope to break the cycle on Sunday when they host Tottenham Hotspur, who are one place above them in the table.

Old boy Stam set for
United return in FA Cup
Former Manchester United hardman defender Jaap Stam will return to Old Trafford in January after the second tier side he manages Reading were drawn to meet the holders in the third round of the FA Cup on Monday.
The 44-year-old — who won three Premier League titles, an FA Cup and the 1999 Champions League during his three year stay at United — has said he fears for his job if a proposed takeover of the club goes through despite guiding them to the heady heights of third in the table.
In a draw short of the ‘romance of the Cup’ the remaining non league clubs failed to get paired with a Premier League club. There are, though, four all Premier League clashes. The most eyecatching is Everton hosting struggling champions Leicester with both those sides realistic goal of domestic silverware reduced to the Cup.
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City travel to West Ham, who like Leicester are hopelessly out of sorts, and four other relegation battlers are pitched in against each other Hull hosting Swansea and Sunderland at home to Burnley.
Full draw (Third round) Ties will take place between January 6 and January 9
Ipswich vs Lincoln; Barrow vs Rochdale; Manchester United vs Reading; Hull vs Swansea; Sunderland vs Burnley; QPR vs Blackburn; Millwall vs Bournemouth; West Ham vs Manchester City; Brighton vs Charlton or MK Dons; Blackpool vs Barnsley; Wigan vs Nottingham Forest; Birmingham vs Newcastle; Chelsea vs Notts County or Peterborough; Middlesbrough vs Sheffield Wednesday; West Brom vs Derby; Everton vs Leicester; Liverpool vs Newport County or Plymouth; Wycombe vs Stourbridge or Northampton; Watford vs Burton; Preston vs Arsenal; Cardiff vs Fulham; Stoke vs Wolves; Cambridge vs Leeds; Bristol City vs Shrewsbury or Fleetwood; Huddersfield vs Port Vale; Tottenham vs Aston Villa; Brentford vs Halifax or Eastleigh; Bolton vs Crystal Palace; Norwich vs Southampton; Sutton United vs AFC Wimbledon; Accrington Stanley vs Luton; Rotherham vs Oxford or Macclesfield