Vardar Wants to Win in the Boardroom What It Lost to Tikveš on the Pitch, and Alonso Reveals the League Cup Didn't Matter - After Going Out

Tikveš, Vardar and the wrong player's medical

Tikveš beat Vardar 3-1 in Skopje in the Macedonian Cup round of 16, but the champions didn't accept the message from the pitch. Vardar filed a complaint with the Football Federation: in the COMET system, the file of Nigerian player Okere Ebube Wisdom contained a medical certificate for Miloš Spasovski, who hasn't been at the club since 3 September. The red-and-blacks want a 3-0 win by forfeit and the Kavadarci side thrown out of the competition. Tikveš say it was "a technical error, we're not forgers", and the Federation clarifies it hasn't accused anyone of forgery - but also that this isn't the first time the club has entered incorrect data. Unofficially, a tourist visa and another unstamped file are also being mentioned. The decision now lies with the competitions committee - and the open question is how the system accepted that document in the first place.

Liverpool on penalties, Alonso with an excuse

Liverpool knocked Chelsea out of the League Cup fourth round: 1-1 after 90 minutes and 6-5 on penalties at Anfield. Morgan Rogers put his side ahead from the spot in the 38th minute, and Cody Gakpo equalised almost immediately, also from the penalty spot, after a handball by Wesley Fofana. That's his seventh goal in seven games in this competition. Fofana then missed the decisive penalty too. Chelsea coach Xabi Alonso said after the defeat that the League Cup is "the least important competition" for his team. Funny how a trophy becomes unimportant on exactly the night you go out. Liverpool face Bournemouth in the quarter-finals.

Mbappé apologised, China isn't accepting it

Chinese state broadcaster CMG is still refusing to air Kylian Mbappé's matches, even though both he and Real Madrid have apologised. The trigger was a comment on a French podcast in which Mbappé joked about an internet meme showing him as Mao Zedong. CMG says the remark "crossed the line" and that the club also bears responsibility. Two Chinese companies, Dongpeng and Mengniu, have already ended their partnerships with him. La Liga has a broadcasting deal with CMG itself, so its president Javier Tebas is now promising greater cultural awareness. One joke on a podcast and an entire market called into question - who's really apologising here, the player or the cash register?

Šeško out until January

Slovenian Benjamin Šeško won't play for Manchester United until January at the earliest because of an injury to his leg below the knee. He hasn't played since 16 September, and he's been dragging the problem along since last season, when he kept playing after a knock during the race for the Champions League. Back then the club chose rest over surgery - today the result is a new, longer layoff. Šeško scored 12 Premier League goals in his debut season, and this season he has two goals in six games. Michael Carrick is left without a real centre-forward. Was "rest instead of the knife" a time-saver or just a way of postponing the problem?

Elmas starts for Sarri, Fiorentina rock bottom

Elif Elmas was again in Atalanta's starting line-up in the 2-2 draw against Fiorentina at the Artemio Franchi in round nine of Serie A. The Macedonian international was booked in the 12th minute and substituted in the 58th. De Ketelaere put the visitors ahead, Fiorentina turned it around within eight minutes, and Zalewski equalised in the 74th. Atalanta are 12th with 11 points, while Fiorentina, with just five points after nine rounds, are in the relegation zone. A Macedonian in the starting eleven of a big Italian club is no longer news to celebrate but a habit - the next step is a goal that cements his place.