Weekend Boxset: 1970 and all that

By Graham Sibley April 24, 2026

Weekend Boxset: 1970 and all that

This week, smashing the patriarchy, and quantum mechanics. And that’s all before we even get to the FA Cup semi-finals.

Seven great matches to take you from Friday to Sunday. It’s the Sound of Football Weekend Boxset.

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All times are UK

Friday

Bundesliga: RB Leipzig v Union Berlin

19.30 on BBC iPlayer
Marie-Louise Eta's first game as Union’s interim coach could have gone better. They had the better of their match against second-from-bottom Wolfsburg in most key metrics save the most important: goals scored. That 2-1 defeat means that it’s just one win in seven for the Berlin club whose position in eleventh is less comfortable than it looks, being seven points from the relegation play-off spot. Eta’s appointment has triggered the mouth-breathers online, accusing club president Dirk Zingler of seeking publicity by appointing a woman. This is to misunderstand Eta’s coaching abilities and standing at the club. It also underplays the relegation threat. It’s likely that one more win will be enough but this is the worst possible time for the club to embark on a losing streak and with former coach Steffen Baumgart a busted flush, Eta was the clear choice. Despite the defeat on her maiden voyage, the Bundesliga’s first female head coach can take heart in the performance. Of course, it will require more than heart to get past Leipzig who sit third in the league and have won their last four. Bayer Leverkusen and Hoffenheim are immediately behind Leipzig and Stuttgart, challenging for the third and fourth Champions League spots, a competition that Leipzig had to sit out last year and are anxious to return. TD

Saturday

Championship: West Bromwich Albion v Ipswich Town

12.30 on Sky Sports Football, Main Event & Ultra
West Brom’s late run of form still has yet to spare everyone from a “Schrödinger’s cat” relegation battle in the Championship. Wins against Watford and Preston have stretched the Baggie’s lead over third-from-bottom Oxford United to eight points. Guaranteed safety. But also not. The club has been found guilty of breaching the EFL’s Profit & Sustainability rules and is still awaiting punishment from an independent commission. The punishment is almost certainly going to be handed out in what’s left of this season — the final round of fixtures is next weekend. However, as the breach was caused by interest payment on loans taken out by the previous ownership rather than overspending on transfers and wages, it is felt that the punishment will not be as harsh as that handed to Leicester (-6 points). Of course, what it does mean is that West Brom can’t change into their flip-flops for this match against second-placed Ipswich, which is good news for everyone else in the fight for that automatic promotion place. Ipswich are ahead of Millwall on goal difference and have a three point advantage over Southampton and Middlesbrough. They do have the extra advantage of a game in hand over their three rivals, but that game happens to be against the in-form Saints. GS

FA Cup semi-final: Manchester City v Southampton

17.15 on BBC One & iPlayer, TNT Sports 1 & Ultimate and HBO Max
All the time the headlines were about Arsenal chasing a quadruple there was less focus on City’s chances for a clean sweep. It’s unlikely Pep will be feeling an increase in pressure now that his side are in the box seat for a domestic treble, a feat his club were the first to achieve in 2019. City are, of course, strong favourites to reach a fourth consecutive Cup final, but it may not be that easy against a Southampton side on a run of 20 games without defeat, a run that includes 16 wins. The turnaround in form for the Saints, overseen by rookie head coach Tonda Eckert (who replaced Will Still in November), seems even more remarkable when you consider they sold their top scorer, Adam Armstrong, to Wolves in the January window. His replacement, Canadian international Cyle Larin, joined on loan from Mallorca, and already has seven goals. Also in that transfer window, goalkeeper Daniel Peretz joined on loan from Bayern and has proved extremely reliable despite barely having any game time since leaving Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2023. Another player to shine under Eckert is 22-year-old Kuryo Matsuki. He barely featured in the first half of the season and missed the quarter final win over Arsenal through suspension. Given that City have recent Wembley losses in this competition to an inconsistent Crystal Palace and a United side managed by Erik ten Hag, the possibility of an upset here is, while unlikely, not unthinkable. GS

Alternative viewing: A big game for City’s ambitions is happening at the same time a few miles down the road. Arsenal v Newcastle United kicks off at 17.30 on Sky Sports Premier League, Main Event & Ultra, with the Gunners needing to not only win, but win well. If they drop points it could be a perfect weekend for City.

MLS: Minnesota United v Los Angeles

21.45 on Apple TV
The World Cup is now just seven weeks away so here’s a chance to get yourself acclimatised to post-watershed kick-offs. After nine games these sides are sat third and fourth in the Western Conference, with LAFC enjoying a goal-difference advantage over Minnesota. That advantage was helped by Hugo Lloris keeping clean sheets in each of their first six games of the season. That perfect start came off the rails with defeats to Fizzer’s Portland and table-leaders San Jose, but in between LAFC qualified for the semi-finals of the Concacaf Champions Cup, having knocked out the holders Cruz Azul. After a shaky start to the season, Minnesota are hitting form with a run of five straight wins, with Kelvin Yeboah (nephew of Tony) top scoring with five. Someone who hasn’t had much of an impact for United yet is James Rodriguez, who since signing to gain fitness for the World Cup has made just three league appearances off the bench. He has recovered from his recent “severe dehydration” that saw him hospitalised after coming off in Columbia’s friendly against France. He’s since played an hour for United in their round of 16 US Open Cup win but time is running out for the 34-year-old to be in any kind of shape for the summer. GS

Sunday

FA Cup semi-final: Chelsea v Leeds United

15.00 on TNT Sports 1 & Ultimate and HBO Max
We talked, on this week’s podcast, about the cozy nostalgia of this fixture; like one of those AI TikTok videos about the seventies intended to turn boomers into fascists. Leeds United are looking to reach their first FA Cup final since 1973 and until a few days ago I would have said that their chances of returning to Wembley next month are pretty good given how wretched the opposition are. Chelsea have lost their last five league games without scoring a goal. This hasn’t happened to Chelsea since 1912. With their last chance of silverware hanging by a thread, and the prospect of the Conference League looming, Liam Rosenior was fired as manager after just short of four months in charge. Rosenior was clearly not up to the job but blame for Chelsea’s situation falls squarely on the owners, for overpromoting a coach who seemed happy enough at Chelsea’s vassal club, Strasbourg. If Champions League football is so vital to the club (and it really is) then they surely should have hired a more experienced coach to replace Enzo Maresca or managed their relationship with him better. Whyteleafe FC alumni Calum McFarlane returns as interim coach until the end of the season while his employers find enough money to throw at the next coach willing to destroy his reputation. Cheatsea may be a truly awful football club but we can allow ourselves to be pleased for Calum as he takes his place in the Wembley dugout. If he gets a new manager bounce out of his demoralised players then Leeds could be waiting a while longer for their next final. TD

Scottish Premiership: Hibernian v Hearts

16.30 on Sky Sports Football, Main Event & Ultra
People south of border this week have been talking like the Premier League’s just invented a five-game race to the title. The end of season split has been a thing in the Scottish top flight for 25 years now, but this is the first season it’s had three sides with genuine title ambitions. Rangers start this final run as favourites, they’ve been in astonishing form since Danny Röhl took charge in October and are on an unbeaten run that stretches back to before Christmas. But it’s Hearts who top the table, albeit by just a point from Rangers and three from Celtic. If Hearts are to win their first championship since 1960, and become the first non-Old Firm side to win it since 1985, they will need to start with a win here in their local derby. But Hibs aren’t here just to make up the numbers: should Celtic fail to beat Dunfermline in the narrative-laden O’Neill v Lennon Scottish Cup final, Hibs’ current position of fifth won’t be enough to secure one of the two Conference League places on offer. They are, however, just three points behind Motherwell, who are struggling for form right now. GS

Serie A: Milan v Juventus

19.45 on TNT Sports 1, HBO Max and DAZN
You wonder if the Tottenham Hotspur hierarchy have given a wistful glance or two in the direction of Turin recently. When under Igor Tudor, Juventus were struggling for form and at serious risk of missing out on Champions League football. But since sacking Tudor and replacing the Croat with the wily, experienced Luciano Spalletti, the Old Lady has become one of the form teams in Serie A in 2026. It’s still a bit of a stretch to say we’ll see Juve in next season’s Champions League — Como and Roma are still close enough to catch them — but I Bianconeri would have to do something monumentally impressively bad to stuff up a top four finish from this position, given Spalletti’s side are a team who’ve forgotten how to lose. That’s definitely not the case for Milan. Champions League football is all but guaranteed but even second would come as scant consolation for the red and black side of Milan given they were in the title hunt against Internazionale for so long. And, to be frank, Massimilliano Allegri’s team are one that occasionally remember to win, which is ludicrous given the talent at their disposal. Juve will fancy their chances at overhauling Milan for second place, a position that looked impossible under Tudor. Still, if either Allegri or Spalletti get the boot from their notoriously impatient club owners, there’s bound to be a vacancy in N17 in the near future. GA

Whatever you watch, have a great weekend.

Graham, Terry and Gary