• Final: Birmingham 0-2 Peterborough
• Mills and Kyprianou strike to sink League One champions

A relative newcomer to English football, Tom Brady would admit he has much to learn. The Vertu Trophy final rolled out a not-yet lost tradition, a Ferguson Clan Wembley heist as Darren Ferguson, in his fourth spell with Peterborough, collected the lower league trophy for the third time.

If ambitions are set far higher at big-spending Birmingham, failure to collect the trophy to accompany promotion was a dark disappointment for their fans. League One’s champions were beaten by two superb Posh goals, and an opponent who appeared ready for a team previously far too good all season for the rest of the division.

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It would be wrong to suggest there has been a seismic shift in momentum in Manchester, but United’s 2-0 defeat of a beleaguered City to set up an FA Cup final against Chelsea showed a maturity and composure that has sometimes proved elusive in the fixture.

City bowed out of the tournament with, ultimately, a whimper, their last hope of a trophy over within 22 minutes but written off by many before a ball was kicked at a windswept Academy stadium. Nick Cushing’s squad has been torn apart by injuries, their squad so threadbare that just four outfield players were named on the bench, including 17-year-old Sacha Lewis, who joined Derby on a dual registration in January to get playing minutes in the National League Northern Premier Division.

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‘I’ve been called worse,’ says top trade adviser after Musk said he was a ‘moron’ and ‘dumber than a sack of bricks’

Peter Navarro, a top trade adviser to Donald Trump, said he and Elon Musk are “great” after the president’s multi-billionaire business adviser publicly called him “a moron” who was “dumber than a sack of bricks”.

“I’ve been called worse,” Navarro said Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press in some of his most extensive remarks about the insults Musk directed at him days earlier. Praising Musk’s role in the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge), Navarro added: “Everything’s fine with Elon.”

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Chair of prison workers body says copycat incidents must be prevented after attack by convicted terrorist

The union representing prison officers has said inmates should be banned from cooking in jail, with staff fearing copycat incidents after the brother of the Manchester Arena bomber attacked three officers at HMP Frankland .

Hashem Abedi, a convicted terrorist who was jailed for life after helping his suicide bomber brother Salman Abedi carry out the Manchester Arena attack in 2017 , is alleged to have set upon staff with hot cooking oil and improvised blades.

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Dr Catherine Davies celebrates government funding for nurseries in England’s schools

It was a rare sunny week for the early education sector ( Editorial, 7 April ). The first wave of 300 new school-based nurseries was announced – with the majority in this phase in cold spots, supporting the communities that need it most. A quick scan of the distribution had me smiling over my cornflakes in recognition of policy, practice and provision coming together in my own north Leeds neighbourhood, offering an average of 20 places per site.

Joy also that the Guardian is reporting on the expansion’s benefits, not just for helping parents to work but, crucially, for supporting children’s development. A raft of research shows that high-quality, group-based care outside the home can improve children’s physical, cognitive, communication and socio-emotional skills. Our research during Covid showed that children attending nursery grew stronger vocabularies as the country went in and out of lockdowns. This effect was especially strong in children living with disadvantage.

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Society would rather we stay out of sight, out of mind, says Karen Edmunds

Hurrah for Frances Ryan ( ‘I’m still sick. I’m still disabled. But I’m proud of my body’: Frances Ryan’s manifesto for disabled women, 9 April )! As a disabled woman of 60 who has lived with a visible disability since I was 12, seeing Frances’s article just made me want to shout “Hell, yes”.

I’ve spent my life sanitising my experience of disability and several long-term health conditions, hiding the less palatable aspects. Working twice as hard as my non-disabled peers. Achieving a senior position at the cost of my own health and wellbeing.

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Exclusive: Government is weighing up security concerns against economic benefits of closer ties with Beijing

The government could target parts of China’s security apparatus under new foreign influence rules, the Guardian has learnt.

Ministers are considering including parts of the Chinese state accused of interference activities on the enhanced tier of the foreign influence registration scheme (Firs).

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When Liverpool fans next congregate at Anfield in two Sundays’ time it should be for an occasion they have craved for 35 years: to celebrate a league title triumph in person. A dramatic late victory over West Ham, secured by Virgil van Dijk’s 89th-minute winner, left Arne Slot’s side needing a maximum of six points to claim a record-equalling 20th league championship.

The destiny of the Premier League title will be confirmed next Sunday should Arsenal lose at Ipswich and Liverpool win at Leicester. If not, two more wins will make sure for the Anfield club. Leicester and Tottenham come next. They can feel it. Liverpool were second best for much of the second half against Graham Potter’s visitors and indebted to Alisson for delaying an equaliser until a Van Dijk error forced Andy Robertson to concede an own goal in the 86th minute. But the Liverpool captain atoned in style and celebrated a precious winner by kissing the Liver bird on his chest. A new two-year contract to follow that of Mohamed Salah should be confirmed soon.

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As Tottenham’s preparation for, by some distance, the biggest game of their season goes, this was an ominous if not pathetic performance. If it did not already for Ange Postecoglou, it increasingly feels like win or bust in the Europa League. After this defeat, a sixth in seven matches on the road, it is plausible to think Spurs could finish as low as 17th in the Premier League.

Spurs did not recover from conceding after just 85 seconds and a comical own goal by Djed Spence and a Jørgen Strand Larsen tap-in, after an error by their captain, Cristian Romero, were in keeping with a dreadful display.

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