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From the world of English football updates, a key player was handed a lengthy ban, a head coach has singled out a defender's mistakes to prove a point, and Pep Guardiola has demanded backline betterment following a chaotic victory.

1. Mejbri Handed Four-Match Suspension and Fine

Burnley's player Hannibal Mejbri was issued a four-match ban and a £15,000 fine for misconduct during October's fixture against Leeds United. The Football Association confirmed Mejbri was referred a separate disciplinary panel following allegations of spitting towards visiting supporters at the 67-minute point of a 2-0 win by Burnley.

An FA statement explained: “An independent disciplinary panel has punished the Hannibal Mejbri due to his actions in their Premier League match with Leeds of 18 October. It was alleged that the player behaved in breach of the rules of the game or in a poor way and/or engaging in offensive and/or indecent conduct through spitting towards the direction of Leeds United fans.”

It continued, “Mejbri subsequently accepted the charge, with the Regulatory Commission imposed a four-game suspension and a fine following proceedings. The panel's written reasons for the sanction will be published in due course.” The team, now in 19th place in the standings, visit 12th-placed Newcastle on Saturday.

Maresca Singles Out Tosin's Mistakes to Prove a Point

The Blues' manager Enzo Maresca has stated that not having seasoned players is not an issue for his club, pointing out that defender Tosin Adarabioyo's years did not prevent him from playing poorly during the defeat against Leeds United.

The Italian coach, who manages the most youthful team in the Premier League, rejected the idea that inexperience played a part in the setback. He made his argument by criticising Tosin, the most experienced player in the lineup, after he produced a mistake-riddled display in central defence.

“We always talk about a lack of experience when we fail to win,” the coach stated. “When we beat Barcelona, we drew against Arsenal, nobody was mentioning older personnel. I know that if we lose, people are constantly looking for an explanation, but in my view the reason why we lost against Leeds is not because of inexperience, it was because we were not good enough.”

Maresca continued, “Who was the oldest one on our team on the pitch? It was Tosin. Was he any good? Therefore, it’s not about his age. It's that those 11 players, they were not good enough.”

Guardiola Insists Defence 'Must Get Better'

Pep Guardiola has insisted the champions have taken lessons from a recent scare at Fulham with the game is now in the past. The team survived for a 5-4 win during a incredible encounter at Craven Cottage, after leading 5-1 with almost 60 minutes played.

This followed they fought off a Leeds comeback and won 3-2 in their previous game, it raised further doubts about if City possess resilient enough to sustain a challenge to leaders Arsenal. “It’s behind us,” Guardiola said. “Good learnings, hopefully. At this level, at all the clubs, you have to take onboard both good and bad in the good things and bad things and focus on what's next.”

“Naturally I’m concerned,” he admitted. “We try to understand the cause, so as not to concede so many goals. After conceding three scored against Leeds, and the five goals against Fulham it shows our sides, right? Therefore, always we have done plenty of good things. But how many attempts did Leeds ? Three? They scored two. It’s not good. How many attempts did Fulham have? Five, six? So our ratio of shots conceded we can see too high. We have to be better.”

4. Newcastle Focus on Defenders' Deals

The Magpies' new football chief, Ross Wilson, has placed contract discussions involving key defenders Tino Livramento and Sven Botman the priority on his to-do list for the club. He joined from Nottingham Forest in October and is reassured to learn playmaker Sandro Tonali is on a contract extending to 2029 with an option until 2030.

That has left Wilson free to prioritise talks for Livramento and Botman's representatives. Livramento's agreement set to expire in 2027 and the latter’s a year later, the club's efforts are being treated with a certain importance.

“The initial three or four days in the job is when I discovered that Sandro’s deal was much better than I was expecting,” said Wilson. “However, it is no secret that we wishes to renew Tino’s contract and we wants to renew Sven Botman’s as well. These talks are underway.”

Manager Eddie Howe will be missing Botman for the match against Burnley this Saturday, and he expected to be sidelined for another week.

Nuno Confirms Paquetá Will Start Against Brighton

West Ham head coach Nuno Espírito Santo has confirmed that Lucas Paquetá will return to start when they play Brighton on Sunday, after serving his suspension following a red card against Liverpool.

“That incident is behind us,” Nuno said. “I am positive it won't happen again because he personally acknowledged his mistake. We discussed it in the dressing room. I believe it is over and will not be repeated.”

Nuno also understands the intense strain on his side, who are in the relegation zone ahead of Saturday's matches. “We can't ignore it,” he admitted. “It is a reality. We have to confront it. We're battling for survival. We cannot hide it.”

6. Arteta Pleased with Striker Deputy Merino

Mikel Merino may keep his place as Arsenal’s central striker despite their regular strikers return from injury. The midfielder has been deployed as an emergency No 9 because of injuries to Viktor Gyokeres, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus.

Merino found the net for Arsenal’s opener versus Brentford before assisting Bukayo Saka for their second in a 2-0 win which preserved {their|