AI adoption calls for complete overhaul of digital and energy infrastructure

LONDON: Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma sent Chelsea crashing out of the FA Cup as the Japan star sealed a 2-1 win in the fourth round, while Kevin De Bruyne spared Manchester City’s blushes in their 2-1 victory at third-tier Leyton Orient on Saturday.

Chelsea haven’t won a domestic trophy since lifting the FA Cup in 2018 and their wait will go on for another season after they blew the lead at the Amex Stadium.

Enzo Maresca’s side were gifted the lead in the fifth minute when Brighton keeper Bart Verbruggen fumbled Cole Palmer’s cross into his own net.

It was a horrendous mistake but Chelsea failed to press home their advantage.

Thrashed 7-0 at Nottingham Forest in the Premier League last weekend, Brighton bounced back impressively from the second worst defeat in the club’s 123-year history.

They equalized in the 12th minute as Joel Veltman’s cross reached Georginio Rutter, who found space between Chelsea defenders Trevoh Chalobah and Tosin Adarabioyo to flick a header into the far corner.

And Brighton completed their fightback in the 57th minute when Mitoma clipped a deft finish past Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez despite the visitors’ claim for handball.

“I think the handball is quite clear. Without VAR it’s complicated,” Maresca said.

“The second half the only shots they had we conceded a goal from. We had a few chances at 2-1. But you have to take the consequence of the result.”

At Brisbane Road, Manchester City were rocked when Jamie Donley’s long-range effort came back off the bar and rebounded in off City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega to give Orient an early lead.

The English champions finally drew level after 56 minutes when Uzbekistan defender Abdukodir Khusanov deflected in Rico Lewis’s shot for his first goal since signing for City from Lens in the January transfer window.

City boss Pep Guardiola had to turn to his bench more than he would have liked just four days before a mammoth Champions League play-off round first leg against Real Madrid.

But the introduction of De Bruyne made the difference as the Belgian midfielder scored 11 minutes from time.

“It was a typical FA Cup game, that is why this competition is unbelievable. For the fans, how the crowd support and we knew they are strong,” said Guardiola, who saw deadline day signing Nico Gonzalez hobble off injured in the first half of his debut.

Newcastle came from behind to win 3-2 against Birmingham at St. Andrew’s.

Birmingham led after 42 seconds through Ethan Laird’s deflected strike.

A quickfire double from Joe Willock and Callum Wilson turned the tie in Newcastle’s favor, but Tomoki Iwata’s blistering strike levelled before half-time for the League One leaders.

Newcastle, though, rounded off a fine week after reaching the League Cup final on Wednesday as Willock restored their lead on 82 minutes.

Bottom of the Premier League and seemingly destined for relegation, Southampton got no respite in the FA Cup as Burnley won 1-0 at St. Mary’s.

Scott Parker’s team went in front after 77 minutes when Marcus Edwards scored from close range on his debut after signing on loan from Sporting Lisbon.

It is almost 600 minutes since Championship promotion chasers Burnley last conceded a goal, with 10 clean sheets in their last 11 games.

“We were unlucky to lose to a scrappy goal. We did lots of good things and created lots of opportunities,” Southampton boss Ivan Juric said.

In the last FA Cup tie at Goodison Park, Everton, who are moving to a new stadium next season, were beaten 2-0 by Bournemouth thanks to goals from Antoine Semenyo and Dan Jebbison.

Rodrigo Muniz scored twice as Fulham won 2-1 at League One Wigan.

Ipswich, second bottom of the Premier League, swept to a 4-1 win against Frank Lampard’s Coventry.

Millwall reached the fifth round for the first time since 2018-19 thanks to Femi Azeez’s double in a 2-0 win at Championship leaders Leeds.

NEW ORLEANS: If Patrick Mahomes can lead the Kansas City Chiefs to an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl victory when they face the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, expect the debate over the NFL’s greatest-ever dynasty to heat up.

On the face of it, the Chiefs still have some way to go to catch what is widely recognized as the greatest dynasty — the New England Patriots in the era of quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick.

That pairing delivered six Super Bowl titles while the partnership of head coach Andy Reid and Mahomes will claim their fourth if they can overcome the Eagles and their powerful running game.

But a case can be made that the Patriots dynasty was in fact two separate periods, given there was a decade gap between their 2004 triumph over the Eagles in Jacksonville and their 2014 victory against Seattle in Arizona.

However, even in the 10 years without a Super Bowl win, the Patriots were a near-constant challenger — reaching the Super Bowl twice and never missing out on the playoffs.

For Rob Gronkowski, the former Patriots tight end who won four Super Bowls with Brady and Belichick, there is no question that the Chiefs still have some way to go to better New England’s legacy.

“I don’t think they’re closing in on everything we’ve accomplished in our dynasty because it was over two decades. You had that first dynasty decade, from like 2002-2010... then it trickled into the second decade,” he told the Rich Eisen Show.

Gronkowski, though, generously acknowledged that the Chiefs have done something unique.

“What they’ve done over the last 10 years, I believe, (is) the best decade of dominance from a dynasty, especially if they get the three-peat,” he said.

There is, however, a tendency for recency bias in such evaluations and it’s worth remembering that while the NFL may be set up to avoid long-lasting dynasties, via the NFL Draft and roster rules, there were several dynasties before Belichick and Reid came along.

The Dallas Cowboys with quarterback Troy Aikman won three Super Bowls in four years in the early 1990s and the 1980s belonged to the San Francisco 49ers, who won four titles over nine years.

Before that, from the mid-1970s, the Pittsburgh Steelers led by quarterback Terry Bradshaw twice won back-to-back Super Bowls.

The Green Bay Packers under legendary coach Vince Lombardi in the 1960s won the NFL crown five times, but because only the last two of those wins are counted as Super Bowls, the achievements of the Wisconsin club appear to be forgotten or undervalued by some.

The Packers actually achieved a ‘three-peat’ winning three straight, pre-Super Bowl NFL championships from 1965 to 1967.

What is beyond discussion is that a Chiefs victory will make them the first team to win three Super Bowls in a row.

But all the talk of dynasties and ‘three-peats’ will simply be fuel to fire up an Eagles team who are in no mood to just become a statistic.

Former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has sensed a determination among the Philadelphia players.

“The Chiefs are going for the three-peat but I will say this: There’s definitely a chip on the shoulder of the Eagles. They lost this game two years ago. I don’t think that sits very well with them right now.

“And I think they’re a better team this year than they were two years ago.”