Ireland put their World Cup disappointment firmly behind them as kicked off their Grand Slam defence in style with a 38-17 win against France in Marseille. The defending Guinness Six Nations champions looked right back to their best as they pulled the French apart on home soil, with bonus-point win just Ireland’s fourth victory away to the French in 40 years.
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Manchester United survived a real FA Cup fourth-round scare at Newport County before finally seeing off the League Two side’s brave attempt at a giant-killing. United made a flying start and looked to have wrapped the tie up when a smooth finish from Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo’s first senior goal gave them a 2-0 lead inside 13 minutes but found themselves level early in the second half.
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Liverpool “can never take these things for granted” after they saw off Fulham to set up a Carabao Cup final with Chelsea, says manager Jurgen Klopp. The Reds led 2-1 from the first leg and their draw at Craven Cottage was enough to get the job done and set up a Wembley final on 25 February.
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Chelsea blew away Middlesbrough with a rampant first-half display to record a 6-2 aggregate victory and clinch their place against either Liverpool or Fulham in the Carabao Cup final. Boro stunned the Blues with a 1-0 win at the Riverside Stadium in the first leg but failed to hold on to their lead shipping four goals in the first half.
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Barcelona secured a last-gasp 4-2 win at Real Betis on Sunday, as stoppage-time goals from substitute Joao Felix and striker Ferran Torres, who completed his hat trick, helped to ease the pressure on manager Xavi Hernandez in a stuttering season. Barcelona are third in the La Liga standings on 44 points, seven behind leaders Real Madrid.
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