Liverpool’s hopes of beating Chelsea’s record of 86 unbeaten home league matches has gone up in smoke as they were beaten 1-0 by Burnley. A late penalty from Ashley Barnes was all that separated the two sides, consigning Liverpool to a home defeat in the Premier League for the first time since April 2017. The […]
TalkSport - 21.01.2021 23:32
Midfielder wants to play on more regular basisEverton manager expects Scott to raise standardsJill Scott has joined Everton on loan from Manchester City for the rest of the season in pursuit of more game time. The 33-year-old midfielder has started two of 10 Women’s Super League matches this season and is returning to the club where she played from 2006-13.“I am delighted to be able to bring Jill back to the club,” said Everton’s manager, Willie Kirk. “She was a pivotal figure at Everton when the Women’s Super League was first formed and went on to become a significant part of Manchester City establishing themselves as one of the top clubs in this country. Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 19:05
Club struggling in Championship after losing at home to QPRHarris joined in late 2019 and took club to play-offs last term Cardiff have sacked Neil Harris as manager after a run of six successive defeats. Harris was appointed in November 2019 and leaves with the club 15th in the Sky Bet Championship, 13 points from the play-off places.Vincent Tan, the Cardiff owner, told the club website: “I’d like to thank Neil and David [Livermore, assistant manager] sincerely for their hard work at Cardiff City. Their efforts to propel us towards a fifth-place finish and play-off position last year are recognised and appreciated, although sadly we are in a result-orientated business and our on-field results of late and progress this season has been very poor. Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 17:12
A shock for the ages provided the happiest night in the life of what, right now, might be the saddest city in Spain“Javi Antón is crying,” said Vicente Parras, and he wasn’t the only one. The manager of Club Deportivo Alcoyano looked across the pitch at El Callao with its whitewashed walls, “Morale” splashed alongside the little blue door in the corner and saw his players still on the grass long after the final whistle. Some of them held white shirts, most of them held phones. “They’re all out there calling home,” he said: endless messages and dozens of conversations starting the way his had a few minutes before. Parras’s son couldn’t come to the game; no one could. “I just wanted to make sure he had seen it,” he admitted.Not all of them had. José Juan Figueiras’s wife and his daughter were in tears when he called overwhelmed by it all, but his five-year-old son was in bed, asleep. It was late and he had school tomorrow; he’d have to find out what had happened in the morning, just what...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 16:49
Argentinian striker had been self-isolating32-year-old has started only three matches this seasonSergio Agüero has announced he has tested positive for coronavirus. The Manchester City striker had been self-isolating after being identified as a close contact of another confirmed case.The Argentinian tweeted: “After a close contact, I’ve been self-isolating and the latest test I took was positive for Covid-19. I had some symptoms and I’m following doctor’s orders for recovery. Take care, everyone!” Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 15:32
Fifa and continental confederations issue strong statementTheir competitions would ban any Super League participantsFifa and all six of football’s continental confederations have issued an emphatic joint rejection of any moves towards major clubs forming a breakaway European Super League, saying such a venture would not be ratified by any governing body. The statement, made by the presidents of Fifa and Uefa, Gianni Infantino and Aleksander Ceferin, and those of the other five international confederations, says that because none of them would endorse such a league, any players and clubs that did participate in it would effectively be football outlaws. Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 14:23
Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey insists Manchester City’s controversial opening goal against Aston Villa should NOT have stood. Pep Guardiola’s side beat the Villans 2-0 on Wednesday night, but boss Dean Smith was left fuming over City’s first goal as Bernardo Silva benefitted from a dubious offside call. Rodri came back from an offside […]
TalkSport - 21.01.2021 12:16
The pressure on Andrea Pirlo’s team to deliver in the Supercoppa had been intense. Juve’s talisman carried out the delivery Andrea Pirlo used to love winding up Gennaro Gattuso. In his autobiography, the now Juventus manager described his former teammate as “my favourite target … despite the fact that he tried on numerous occasions to kill me with a fork”. Pirlo recalled bursting out of Gattuso’s wardrobe to scare him in the middle of the night and stealing his phone to message a Milan director with an offer to swap his sister for an improved contract.It is one thing to tease, though, and another to defeat. If Pirlo derived any additional pleasure from claiming the first trophy of his managerial career at Gattuso’s expense on Wednesday night, then he did a good job of hiding it. “I feel sorry for him,” Pirlo confessed after steering Juventus to a 2-0 victory over Napoli in Italy’s Supercoppa. “But we are doing a different job now to the one that we had before. It was important for me t...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 11:42
Wolves fans will be hoping their tie with Chorley this weekend goes better than their last meeting in 1986By Steven Pye for That 1980s Sports BlogThe 1980s had started well for Wolves. They won the League Cup at Wembley in March 1980, with £1.49m record signing Andy Gray scoring the winner against Nottingham Forest, and went on to finish sixth in the First Division that season. The future was looking bright under manager John Barnwell. Yet the foundations for a decade of decay had already been established.The club had spent as much as £3m on the new John Ireland Stand at Molineux – more than twice the British transfer record when it opened in 1979 – and debts started to mount when they were relegated in 1982. A consortium fronted by club legend Derek Dougan stepped in to save the day. Enter the Bhatti brothers, Mahmud and Mohammad Bhatti, who were the “financial muscle” behind the takeover deal. The mere mention of the siblings probably brings Wolves fans out in a cold sweat. The Saudi...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 10:51
Crystal Palace have completed the signing of Mainz frontman Jean-Philippe Mateta on an 18-month loan deal, with an option to make the move permanent. Christian Benteke, Michy Batshuayi and Jordan Ayew have only mustered four goals this season, which has forced boss Roy Hodgson into action with his side also the second-lowest scorers in the […]
TalkSport - 21.01.2021 10:41
Fulham defeated as United return to top with 2-1 victory‘He’s very happy and physically in very good shape’Ole Gunnar Solskjær paid tribute to Paul Pogba after the France midfielder helped restore Manchester United to the top of the Premier League at Fulham. Related: Paul Pogba pummels Manchester United to pinnacle after Fulham fright Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 00:34
The playmaker left home at the age of 12 to pursue her soccer career. Now she has signed with the most successful club in the women’s gameIt has been a week to remember for Catarina Macario, the Brazilian-born, San Diego-bred midfielder who for years has been touted as the future of the US women’s national team but at the moment appears increasingly bound to its present.Three months after receiving her American citizenship, the 21-year-old playmaker wept tears of joy with her family last Wednesday after receiving confirmation from Fifa of her approval to represent the four-time world champions in international play. The paperwork was finalised a day after Macario signed a contract to start her professional career with European champions Lyon, forgoing her senior season at Stanford University. Then on Monday night, she cut the figure of a polished veteran while making her USA debut in a 4-0 friendly win over Colombia at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium. Continue reading...
Guardian - 20.01.2021 12:00
Plus: the tallest strike partnership ever, father and son (refs) and a knockout follow-upMail us your questions or tweet @TheKnowledge_GU“Udinese have a player named Kevin Lasagna,” notes Yuval Hyman. “Do you know of any other players with a tasty dish as a surname?”Finding specific delicious meals in a footballer’s surname is no easy feat (or treat) but Tim Postins jumped at the opportunity to combine a few ingredients and serve up some choice dishes on the back of this question. “Adam Curry (currently on loan to Alfreton Town from Hull) would operate well with Declan Rice (West Ham 2016-present). And then there’s Mark Fish (ex-Bolton and Charlton) but only if Worthing’s striker James Lemon is putting the squeeze on. Plus the former Margate defender Paul Lamb who’d go well with a dash of Scott Mint(o). Or maybe you’d prefer a Patrick Berger with a portion of Jonas Fries?” Continue reading...
Guardian - 20.01.2021 11:00
Badosa was in hard quarantine after arriving on one of three Australian Open charter flights where passengers tested positive on arrivalSpanish tennis player Paula Badosa has become the first player to test positive to Covid-19 while in hard quarantine ahead of the Australian Open.The world No 67 was one of 72 players forced to isolate in their hotel rooms after passengers on three separate charter flights to Melbourne tested positive.pic.twitter.com/9SLzW46HuZ Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 22:10
Barty to make competitive return in A Day at the DriveDjokovic leads men’s line-up alongside Nadal, ThiemAustralian world No 1 Ashleigh Barty will make her long-awaited return to the court when she gets her summer started at the star-studded exhibition in Adelaide next week.Barty has not played in 11 months but is a confirmed starter alongside world No 2 Simona Halep, third-ranked Naomi Osaka and 23-time grand slam champion Serena Williams. Related: Tennis Australia confirms it will pay for players' quarantine as cases linked to Australian Open rise Continue reading...
Guardian - 21.01.2021 06:18
World No 1 criticised for suggesting Covid protocol changes‘I use my position of privilege to be of service as much as I can’Novak Djokovic has defended his “good intentions” after receiving intense criticism for providing Tennis Australia with suggestions on how to improve player conditions and ease some of the protocols in their hotel quarantine.After the complaints from players in the first days of their hotel quarantine in Melbourne, Djokovic addressed players in their WhatsApp group before sending a list of suggestions to Tennis Australia’s CEO, Craig Tiley. Related: Nick Kyrgios calls Djokovic 'a tool' over Covid demands before Australian Open Been trying to change the room for a 2 hours already ! And no one came to help due to quarantine situation♀️ pic.twitter.com/LAowgWqw58 Continue reading...
Guardian - 20.01.2021 16:21
The ATP has issued updates to the 2021 ATP Tour calendar alongside measures to create increased playing opportunities, in the face of scheduling challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. The updates are headlined by the addition of two new ATP 250 events, granted as single-year licenses for the 2021 season, in Singapore, following the conclusion of the Australian Open, and Marbella, following the Miami Open presented by Itau, from 5 April. View 2021 Calendar Other measures to create additional playing opportunities include the expansion of the Singles Main Draw/Qualifying Draw size at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships from 32/16 to 48/24, while the Qualifying Draw size at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel will increase from 16 to 32. In addition, qualifying draw sizes at ATP 250 Cordoba Open, Argentina Open (Buenos Aires) and Chile Dove Men+Care Open (Santiago) are also to be expanded from 16 to 32. Elsewhere, the Hungarian Open, the ATP 250 clay-court tournament typically held i...
ATP - 20.01.2021 15:59
Daniel Andrews hints at reprieve for tennis stars who were placed in strict quarantine and deemed close contacts of four cases on flights to MelbourneNSW hotspots; Queensland hotspotsFollow the Australia coronavirus liveblogAustralian Open player quarantine likened to ‘prison’State by state coronavirus restrictions explainsAustralian Open tennis players under the strictest quarantine conditions may have their restrictions eased after the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, said the positive Covid-19 test results that sparked the hard lockdown may be reclassified as cases of viral shedding.All passengers, including 47 players on two planes which arrived in Melbourne from Los Angeles and Abu Dhabi on the weekend, were deemed close contacts of four positive cases on the flights. It meant unlike other players who are quarantining, the players on those two flights are not allowed to leave their hotels for five hours a day to train, sparking complaints of unfair treatment. Related: Coronaviru...
Guardian - 19.01.2021 04:53
World No 1 has called for easing of quarantine restrictions‘Djokovic is a tool’, Kyrgios posts on TwitterNick Kyrgios has joined the former Davis Cup player Sam Groth in criticising Novak Djokovic after the world No 1 reportedly wrote to Australian Open organisers asking them to ease quarantine restrictions for players.Passengers who arrived on three charter flights have been placed into quarantine, including more than 70 players who are unable to train outside their rooms for 14 days before the year’s first grand slam tournament starts on 8 February. Related: Some Victorians in Sydney allowed to return home as Daniel Andrews rejects tennis players' demands Continue reading...
Guardian - 18.01.2021 17:24