West Ham continued their continental cruise as headers from Lucas Paqueta and Nayef Aguerd secured a 2-1 win at Freiburg and a record 17th match unbeaten in Europe. The Hammers took control of Europa League Group A with a battling display in southern Germany. The match may have taken place on the edge of the Black Forest, but it was never going to be a piece of cake against a side eighth in the Bundesliga. They were also up against 34,000 noisy fans, with no away supporters allowed to attend following incidents during West Ham’s Europa Conference League final triumph in June. That march to Prague contributed to West Ham’s now record unbeaten streak, putting them one ahead of Bill Nicholson’s Tottenham, Don Revie’s Leeds and Pep Guardiola’s current Manchester City. Freiburg’s nickname is the Breisgau Brazilians due to their flamboyant style of play, but it was West Ham’s Samba star Paqueta who put them ahead after only nine minutes. Vladimir Coufal collected the ball from Mohammed Kudus and sent Jarrod Bowen scampering down the right. Bowen, buzzing after his recall to the England squad, drew his marker out before sending in a cross which Paqueta met with a towering header above two defenders at the far post. Moments later a shot from Kudus was spilled by goalkeeper Noah Atubolu, who was mightily relieved to see the ball cannon back off the foot of his post. Then Paqueta had the ball in the net after a surging run into the box from Pablo Fornals, but the goal was ruled out for offside. Freiburg’s cow field of a pitch was making it difficult for both sides to knock the ball around with any confidence. But West Ham had initially adapted better and could have doubled their lead when James Ward-Prowse got through on the stroke of half-time, but his shot was too close to Atubolu. The Hammers should have been further ahead but sat back on their lead, so there was an all-too familiar feeling when Freiburg equalised after the restart. Goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was unfortunate, keeping out Roland Sallai’s shot and the follow-up from Lukas Kubler but Sallai smashed the ball home at the third attempt. West Ham then had an almighty let-off when Kiliann Sildillia’s header bounced off the woodwork and Lucas Holer blazed the rebound over from six yards out. Instead the visitors wrapped up the victory after 66 minutes, Aguerd rising highest to head home Ward-Prowse’s corner. Bowen should have marked his return to the national squad with a sixth goal of the season – only to fire wide when clean through – but West Ham had done enough to sit top of the group with six points from their opening two matches. Read More Brighton rally from two goals down to earn Europa League draw at Marseille Warren Gatland highlights hard work as Wales aim to continue progress Geoge Ford believes partnership with Owen Farrell is ready to deliver Managerless Rangers slip to abject Europa League defeat in Limassol

South Africa captain Siya Kolisi warned the "hard work starts now" after the reigning champions completed their World Cup preparations with a 35-7 win over 14-man New Zealand at Twickenham on Friday, the...

Two done, how many more to go? Ask Liverpool supporters at the end of last season how many new signings they needed to bring in across the summer and not too many would have suggested fewer than four. An upturn in form and fortunes between March and May probably reduced that from a higher number, too. But even with individuals showing better levels and the team looking capable of beating most they came up against, the new shape and certain aging faces - as well as expiring contracts in the squad - meant a renewal, if not an outright overhaul, was required. That was especially the case in midfield and with almost £100 million now spent this summer on two new components, in Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai, the Reds will definitely have a refreshed feel about them, regardless of what else happens. Both are expected to be first-team regulars, and no wonder: one has won the World Cup, the other cost upwards of £60m. But, thus far, no starters from last term have departed, so places will have to be earned if the regular line-up is to indeed alter. Or, given the form of too many in the squad across much of 2022/23 - particularly the middle third - perhaps those jerseys had already been lost. Jurgen Klopp refuted, last year and before, the idea that he keeps too many around for too long, that he has favourites who have a place in the team as long as they are available. James Milner and Roberto Firmino have now exited, two who were go-to lieutenants for so many seasons of the German’s tenure, while fringe pair Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita are likewise out. Three midfielders, one forward; the trio from the centre of the park only contributed 2,261 minutes though across all competitions; throw in departed loanee Arthur Melo too, why not, for an additional 13 on the pitch. Their new No.10, Mac Allister, played far more than that by himself, over 3,300 minutes not including his mid-season international exploits, while his fellow new arrival, who will hope to wear the No.8 with more distinction than Keita managed, tallied over 3,700 for Leipzig. While gametime doesn’t translate to immediacy in the team, the expectation is that they will sooner or later combine as the new more offensive pair in a traditional three or, in the Reds’ more recent shape, the forward-thinking pair ahead of the roving Trent Alexander-Arnold and a holding midfielder. The latter is, at present, still Fabinho. But it is the third area of the centre of the park where Liverpool must surely continue to seek out reinforcements and improvements, with summer rumours suggesting Manu Kone and Romeo Lavia are of significant interest. The additions already made to the squad will help the Reds from the perspective of creativity, build-up play and - over time - with off-the-ball, first lines of defence too. When transitions move behind the midfield line, though, is where the biggest problems arose last season and where improvements must continue to be seen. Fabinho has been a massive pillar of a successful team, but agility and recovery speed deserted him entirely for much of 22/23. Eluding him, attacking midfielders and ball-carriers opened up vast spaces to race toward Liverpool’s back line and threaten Alisson’s goal with. It’s not something the team will be able to offer up with such regularity in 23/24 - at least, not if they want regular success - and especially considering the alteration in Alexander-Arnold’s role still means work to be done in terms of overall cohesion when teams attack that side. A deep midfielder more able to make up that extra ground has to remain priority No.1 now, considering it appears a more defensive option for the right-sided role is not on the agenda. If it does end up being Lavia or a similarly future-proofing signing, the biggest decisions for Klopp may come in games against the best transition teams: does he want the greater experience or the greater athleticism in the side? But this is a Liverpool team being built once more to dominate play, first and foremost, and beat teams by out-playing them, not just by shutting them out. The new recruits will add more guile, more on the ball quality and more speed across the ground than those who played most of the season in midfield last year, up until Curtis Jones forced his way into the team. The big work in pre-season will be getting them to gel with Cody Gakpo, Mo Salah and Luis Diaz on a regular basis - and to find out how to get the best use out of Darwin Nunez, of course. Szoboszlai’s delivery from the channels, his driving runs and set-piece prowess are all expected to be enormous factors there. Liverpool’s squad suddenly looks rather more capable of competing among the top four once more, having looked stale and badly in need of a redesign. Which final touches are put on it across the next eight weeks will determine whether they push even higher across the following ten months.

State Sen. Angela Paxton, the wife of embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, will no longer be allowed to vote in her husband's upcoming impeachment proceedings as a result of new rules the state Senate approved Wednesday night.

As an Arab woman, Ons Jabeur would be happy to see the WTA Finals be played in Saudi Arabia

Carlos Alcaraz said retaining the US Open title was not on his mind as he began the defence of his crown Tuesday with a swift win...

Eleven people abroad a Delta Airlines flight were taken to a hospital on Tuesday, August 29 after experiencing "severe turbulence" before landing in Atlanta, a company spokesperson told CNN.

Matthew Macfadyen, who had said that actors starring in superhero and sci-fi films were 'doing it for the money,' has now been cast in 'Deadpool 3'

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 20, 2023--

Russia's finance ministry said on Wednesday it would sell 1.7 billion roubles' ($18.9 million) worth of foreign currency

Logan Paul responds to concerns that Prime Energy drink is being marketed to children

Two programs enjoying offensive success with transfer quarterbacks will match 3-3 overall records when Boston College visits Georgia Tech. The Eagles are led by former UCF quarterback Thomas Castellanos and will put their two-game winning streak on the line