Guardiola bows out with defeat as Watkins double stuns City; Oliver set for World Cup return

Pep Guardiola's 593rd and final game in charge of Manchester City ended in an emotional Premier League defeat as Ollie Watkins scored a double for Aston Villa. The result marked a sombre farewell for the manager who led City to multiple titles. Meanwhile, in World Cup news, English referee Michael Oliver will return to action this week after being forced to pull out of his first scheduled match through injury. Oliver was due to officiate the clash between Ecuador and Ivory Coast in the early hours of Monday morning but was replaced by French referee Francois Letexier. FIFA have confirmed that he will be available for selection again 'in the coming days', and he has now been selected for the Group F clash between the Netherlands and Sweden on Saturday at Houston Stadium in Houston, USA. Oliver will be assisted by fellow Premier League officials Stuart Burt and James Mainwaring, with South African officials Abongile Tom and Zakhele Siwela serving as fourth official and reserve assistant referee. This is not the first World Cup for Oliver, having been appointed for the 2022 tournament in Qatar where he oversaw the quarter-final clash between Croatia and Brazil. He has been an international referee since 2012 and part of UEFA's elite group of officials since 2018. Oliver is one of six English FA on-field officials at the World Cup, with Anthony Taylor the other referee. He will also be in charge of the group stage clash between Uzbekistan and Colombia in the early hours of Thursday morning at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. Gary Beswick and Adam Nunn will be assistant referees for that game, while fellow Premier League official Jarred Gillett has been appointed as Video Match official, in what will be his third match of the tournament so far.