WNBA GM survey: Aâja Wilsonâs Aces rule, while Paige Bueckers passes Caitlin Clark as franchise cornerstone
WNBA GM survey shows Aces as favorites; Bueckers tops Clark as cornerstone

Jérémy Doku's late equalizer for Manchester City leaves the Premier League title race in Arsenal's hands, needing three wins to secure their first title in 22 years. Pep Guardiola acknowledges the shift in control, while Phil Foden is set to sign a new four-year deal with City.
When JĂ©rĂ©my Doku wheeled away in celebration with his finger to his lips after curling home a last-gasp equaliser for Manchester City at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Monday night, it was difficult to know who he was trying to shush. If the gesture was intended to mute the celebrations of Arsenal fans who had just witnessed their team seize the upper hand in the stumble toward this yearâs title, it is unlikely to have had much effect. Dokuâs second goal of the night was little more than an exercise in damage limitation that ensured his side blunderbussed themselves in just one foot, instead of both. At the front of the away end, âbottle manâ was far less performative, even if a telltale bulge about his person suggested he had come prepared for victory. Was that an unopened, Arsenal-branded bottle of salty tears in his pocket or was he just pleased to see his side come from 3-1 down to salvage a potentially useless point from the wreckage of an evening that started so promisingly?
âItâs better than losing,â sniffed Pep Guardiola of the draw, his incisive analysis going some way toward explaining why he gets the big bucks. â[The title is] not in our hands. Before it was, now itâs not. We have games left. We will see what happens.â Not for the first time this season, the big ball oâdestiny is firmly back in Arsenalâs court and the title is very much in their hands. They need three wins from three to guarantee their first title in 22 years and could scarcely have handpicked easier opposition: 18th and 19th in the table, followed by a side who will almost certainly be distracted by a looming Tin Pot final in Leipzig. Already renowned for a lack of mental fortitude that doesnât necessarily stand up to serious scrutiny, it seems utterly inconceivable that Arsenal can Devon Loch the title race from here. Should they contrive to mess this up with just three of the easiest fixtures imaginable to go, their status as elite-level âbottle jobsâ will be as set in stone as it is thoroughly deserved.
âI am going to stay in my lane,â va-va-voomed Thierry Henry on Monday Night Football. âI am not going to celebrate too early. Nothing is done.â And while Henry is unlikely to be alone among Arsenal fans who refuse to jump the Gunnersaurus, those crying foul over Manchester Cityâs ability to draft in Marc GuĂ©hi during the January window will have been offering up silent prayers of thanks after seeing the defender gift Everton the first of their three goals. While Guardiolaâs future at the Etihad remains shrouded in uncertainty, that of Phil Foden seems more assured. The midfielder has reached an agreement in principle over a new four-year deal at the club. Now aged 25, Foden has come a long way since the days when pundits bickered over whether or not he might be better served going on loan to Preston than staying at City. Given his paucity of game time this season, there is still an argument to be made that he might be better off going on loan to Preston than staying at City.
The draw means Arsenal now controls the title race, needing three wins from their remaining matches to secure the championship.
Arsenal needs three wins from their last three matches to guarantee their first Premier League title in 22 years.
Pep Guardiola stated that the title is no longer in Manchester City's hands and emphasized the importance of the remaining games.
Phil Foden has reached an agreement in principle for a new four-year contract with Manchester City.
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Join Scott Murray from 8pm BST for hot Bigger Cup semi-final second leg updates from Arsenal 1-0 Atlético Madrid (agg: 2-1).
âIâm not here to get a pat on the back for a good old Hearts putting up a fight. Itâs way beyond that now. Weâve got to try and go and win it nowâ â Derek McInnes reflects on the Jambosâ huge 2-1 victory over Rangers, surely making a three-horse race for the Scottish Premiership title into a two-runner affair. Hearts lead Celtic by three points at the top ⊠with three games to play.

Hearts fans after the game. Photograph: Russell Cheyne/Reuters

A rollercoaster for home fans at Tynecastle. Photograph: Andy Buchanan/AFP/Getty Images
double quotation markFridayâs Football Daily wondered if Jeff Winter would be travelling with Middlesbrough to their big game at Wrexham on Saturday. Well, if he had, he would merely have been jumping on the Boro bandwagon, as heâd already headed to Hednesford Town last Tuesday for the even bigger Northern Premier League playoff semi-final, where his beloved Stockton Town were beaten 2-0. It would be a brave man who followed one such disappointment with the prospect of anotherâ â Glyn Berrington.
double quotation markAfter the latest hair-pulling red card over the weekend, RĂ©gis le Bris made the suggestion that he would adjust his teamâs playing style to adapt to the opposition strikerâs tonsorial arrangements (âif he has long hair, we have a problemâ). This got me thinking: surely there is a more proactive marginal gain to be had here, if teams look at how to manage their playersâ barnets to maximise the chance of hair-tugging offences against them? Are we about to witness the rise of the hair-piece coach?â â Phil Taverner.
double quotation markWhy would the Watford chairman have been useless as William Tellâs assistant? He wouldnât keep his âEd Stillâ â Rob Burton.
If you have any, please send letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Todayâs letter oâ the day winner is ⊠Rob Burton, who gets a copy of Classic Football Shirts. Itâs out now and the Guardian Bookshop is offering discounted copies here if youâre not successful. The are loads of other top reads on their website, too. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, are here.

Illustration: Classic Football Shirts
Hereâs David Squires on ⊠an unexpected cameo amid all the latest Premier League drama.

Illustration: David Squires/The Guardian