
Your Aston Villa player of the season
We asked you to select your Aston Villa player of the season from the four candidates chosen by our fan contributor.And with the poll now closed, we can reveal the winner is... Youri Tielemans!Here's what David Michael from My Old Man Said, external said about him: After taking almost half a season to start a league game last season, the Belgium midfielder has been Villa's only ever-present starter this time around.A revelation under Unai Emery, he is now very much the heartbeat of the team. His deeper role limits headline stats, but his influence has been essential for Villa.See the final poll breakdown
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Sky News
25 minutes ago
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Ultimate guide to the FIFA Club World Cup: How it works, how to watch - and why some footballers are upset about it
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Here is the full list of clubs that will feature this year, along with the group they are in: Group A: Palmeiras (Brz), Porto (Por), Al Ahly (Egy), Inter Miami (USA) Group B: Paris Saint-Germain (Fra), Atletico Madrid (Esp), Botafogo (Brz), Seattle Sounders (USA) Group C: Bayern Munich (Ger), Benfica (Por), Boca Juniors (Arg), Auckland City (Nzl) Group D: Flamengo (Brz), Chelsea (Eng), Esperance Sportive de Tunis (Tun), fourth club TBC Group E: River Plate (Arg), Inter Milan (Ita), CF Monterrey (Mex), Urawa Red Diamonds (Jpn) Group F: Fluminense (Brz), Borussia Dortmund (Ger), Ulsan HD (Kor), Mamelodi Sundowns (Rsa) How does the competition work? Each team plays each other once in the group stages, with the top two teams in each group going through to the knockout stage. The last-16 stage - the first single knockout round - then moves to the quarter-final, semi-final and then final. There is no third-placed play-off between the two losing semi-final teams. 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Critics of the new format say it will further congest the football calendar and risk the health of players, especially because the featured teams are some of the most successful in the world, meaning they often remain in other knockout competitions until the latter stages. Players themselves have regularly spoken out against fixture congestion. Real Madrid star Kylian Mpappe said: "We play like already, 60 games in the year... you have so many competitions. And we are happy to play, but when it's too much, it's too much. "I think we have to respect the health of the players," the Frenchman continued. Top Premier League stars including Manchester City's Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne, Liverpool's goalkeeper Alisson Becker and Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min have echoed Mpappe's sentiment in press conferences. They have taken issue not just with the Club World Cup, but with other changes FIFA has made, such as increasing the number of teams in the Champions League and World Cup. All of FIFA's changes mean that if squads that play in a 20-team league like the Premier League qualify for all the new competitions, some players could be on the pitch for more than 85 matches in some years for club and country. Major football groups such as the global players' union FIFPRO, European Leagues and the World Leagues Association have been campaigning against the Club World Cup since the new format was announced. FIFA has maintained that expanding the World Cup and Club World Cup is about growing the game globally and it has agreement within football from the European Club Association, with whom it has a commercial partnership. De Bruyne critical of cup's timing Manchester City legend Kevin De Bruyne, who has confirmed he is leaving the club in the summer, says he "probably won't play" at the Club World Cup because his contract is set to expire. Most footballers' contracts, if left to expire, run out at the end of June as each season comes to an end. For players like De Bruyne, it means they are likely to become free agents after the group stages of the Club World Cup. The 33-year-old midfielder says he will most likely avoid it altogether. "It makes no sense," he said after his side lost in the FA Cup final to Crystal Palace, in quotes reported by The Athletic. "I think in a way I have to take care of myself because if I get injured in the Club World Cup, what am I going to do? Nobody's going to take care of me at that point. So there's a big chance probably that I won't play it, but I don't know." Transfer window to open early While squads may be left short due to contract situations like De Bruyne's, they will be able to sign new players ahead of the cup's opening fixtures thanks to a mini transfer window. The window will be open between 1 June and 10 June, giving signings a chance to register with their new teams before the cup starts on 15 June. FIFA opened the mini window to teams in the competition, but all Premier League and EFL clubs will be free to do business too, not just Chelsea and Manchester City. The window will then open again as normal on 16 June until 1 September. How can I watch Club World Cup matches? Frequent football broadcasters the BBC and ITV reportedly declined the opportunity to televise the competition on their free-to-air channels, with Sky Sports and TNT also opting not to show an interest. Instead, Channel 5 is set to show 23 of the 63 matches: 15 group games, four last-16 ties, two quarter-finals, one semi-final and the final. All remaining matches will be aired by DAZN, the official worldwide broadcaster for the competition. While Channel 5's coverage is free for those with a TV license, DAZN requires a subscription starting at £14.99 per month. Messi's Inter Miami will take on Egyptian side Al Ahly at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium in the opening match on 15 June, with kick-off at 1am UK time. 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