Sancho puts Man Utd career in doubt with Ten Hag spat
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2023-06-06 06:58
Who is the Trump-backed new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson?
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Penelope Cruz broke up with Tom Cruise as 'Church of Scientology was the third wheel' in relationship
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Aaron Ramsdale makes his case to remain first choice – as Arsenal make their own one for major trophies
Perhaps David Raya would have saved it. It was a tame penalty, after all. But Aaron Ramsdale did save it, diving to his right, blocking Julian Alvarez’s lacklustre effort, punching the air, just as he had when Kevin de Bruyne thumped the underside of the bar with his spot kick. Whichever, it amounted to a response from Ramsdale. A seeming success story of Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, the goalkeeper signed from relegated Sheffield United, who signed him from relegated Bournemouth, who seemed the spirit animal of a young, hungry side who went on to top the table for 248 days. And who, then, suddenly, brutally, seemed undermined when it emerged Arsenal were bidding for Brentford’s Raya. But Ramsdale brings character. The sense is that he will not surrender his position without a fight, even if the Gunners do land Raya or another potential No 1. A Community Shield triumph and a third trophy of Arteta’s reign came courtesy of two of his saves. The first, stopping Phil Foden from doubling Manchester City’s lead, had a hint of fortune, the ball striking the inside of his leg and then rolling past the post. Fortune may have favoured Arsenal again with the goal that secured a shootout. The 101st-minute strike may become a more frequent phenomenon as the amount of added time mushrooms this season. Two months earlier, City won the Champions League in part because of a save deep into added time; when another trophy beckoned and still later, Stefan Ortega was wrongfooted when Leandro Trossard’s shot took a huge deflection off Manuel Akanji. And then Martin Odegaard, Trossard and Bukayo Saka – who had missed in a more famous shootout at Wembley two years earlier – found the net from 12 yards. De Bruyne’s miss and Ramsdale’s save afforded Fabio Vieira the chance to win it: his namesake, Patrick, had decided a shootout against a Manchester club in the 2005 FA Cup final and history repeated itself. At the end of it, Arteta had just a second win in 10 managerial meetings with Guardiola: on penalties, with the aid of added time and deflections, but after losing three previous games in 2023 and eight in all, any victory was welcome. He may feel he had found a method, too. Kai Havertz has been bought to play as a free eight for Arsenal but his debut came as a false nine, the role in which he frequently flattered to deceive at Chelsea. It was the product of an injury to Gabriel Jesus and a tactical ploy alike. If Arteta was camouflaging his main gameplan for the season, his signings shape the way they will probably play against lesser opponents. But not against City, who had eviscerated them 3-1 and 4-1 in games that could be billed as title deciders: that, though, was with De Bruyne and Erling Haaland in harness and when the Belgian came on, the Norwegian went off. But Arsenal had more restraint, more patience as much of the match had the feel of a phoney war. There was a cautiousness to them, with two defensive midfielders, men behind the ball and a willingness to stand off, rather than pressing. The Arteta blueprint may entail Declan Rice operating on his own at the base of the midfield, but he had Thomas Partey for company, and Havertz debuting alone in attack. Chances were a premium; three of different kinds fell to Champions League final scorers. Rodri tried an audacious attempt to lob Ramsdale from the halfway line: the backpedalling goalkeeper was spared embarrassment when the ball landed on the roof of the net. Havertz, whose Champions League final goal came for Chelsea and against City, had his opportunities when Arsenal allied patience and restraint with hints of a counterattacking menace. Ortega saved twice from Havertz after low passes from the right, with Ben White and Saka picking out the German. It continued a theme that felt all too familiar at Stamford Bridge. It was Havertz in a nutshell, the supposed generational talent with the elusiveness to earn chances and the inability to take them. The great xG underachiever scored too few goals for Chelsea, but found the net in Champions League and Club World Cup finals; perhaps the Community Shield was not a big enough occasion. It did, though, seem Cole Palmer’s day. The 20-year-old came on with De Bruyne and put City ahead in sumptuous style, curling a shot past Ramsdale. It earned him the player of the match award – a sign in itself of how little had happened before his arrival – but the verdict was made before Trossard, Akanji and Ramsdale’s interventions. And so City were denied a fourth trophy in as many months and a third in as many games. With honours scarcer for Arsenal, the Community Shield probably meant more to them. And with his place at threat, it may have had an added importance to Ramsdale. Read More Mikel Arteta benefits from new law changes as Arsenal clinch Community Shield Arsenal vs Man City LIVE: Latest Community Shield updates Can Mikel Arteta become Pep Guardiola’s greatest nemesis – or merely the latest? What time is the Community Shield and how to Arsenal vs Man City today Arsenal will need ‘unheard of’ points tally to win title – Mikel Arteta Pep Guardiola expects Arsenal summer signings to take them to the next level
2023-08-07 08:17
Sunak Opens Rift With Tory Right by Reviving Centrist Cameron
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faced months of right-wing pressure to take more risks to rescue his flailing Conservative
2023-11-14 17:49
Putin’s power ‘ebbing away’ after Wagner mutiny as Russian president vanishes from public view
An attempted uprising by Russian mercenary fighters has revealed cracks in Vladimir Putin's authority, a top US official has said. The mutiny by the Wagner Group, which saw its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin order his troops to march on Moscow, left the Russian president hiding from public view on Sunday after being forced into an amnesty deal. Though the astonishing revolt was short-lived, with mercenary fighters withdrawing under the agreement that saw Mr Prigozhin exiled to Belarus, it has raised questions about Mr Putin’s grip on power. Mr Putin has not commented publicly since the deal was struck to de-escalate one of the biggest challenges since he rose to power more than two decades ago. He said he was giving top priority to the conflict in Ukraine in excerpts from an interview aired by state television on Sunday, but it appeared to have been recorded before the mutiny. Speaking on Sunday, US secretary of state Anthony Blinken said the revolt was a “direct challenge of Putin’s authority”. Mr Blinken said the turmoil has weakened Mr Putin in ways that could aid Ukraine’s counteroffensive. Mr Blinken told US media: “We’ve seen more cracks emerge in the Russian façade. It is too soon to tell exactly where they go... but certainly, we have all sorts of new questions that Putin is going to have to address in the weeks and months ahead.” The Wagner Group’s forces were just 120 miles from Moscow before the rebellion was called off to avoid shedding Russian blood. Mr Prigozhin had said his “march” on Moscow was intended to remove corrupt and incompetent Russian commanders he blames for botching the war in Ukraine. Mr Prigozhin has for months accused Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu and the chief of the general staff, Valery Gerasimov, of incompetence and of withholding ammunition from his fighters as they battled to take Bakhmut in Ukraine. This month, Mr Prigozhin defied orders to place his troops under defence ministry command. He launched the rebellion on Friday after alleging the military had killed some of his men in an air strike - a claim denied by the defence ministry. Mr Prigozhin, 62, was seen leaving the district military headquarters in Rostov, hundreds of miles south of Moscow, late on Saturday in a sport utility vehicle. His whereabouts on Sunday were not known. The deal brokered by Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko also means Wagner fighters who joined the “march for justice” will face no action. In an earlier televised address on Saturday, Mr Putin said the rebellion put Russia‘s very existence under threat. “We are fighting for the lives and security of our people, for our sovereignty and independence, for the right to remain Russia, a state with a thousand-year history,” Mr Putin said, vowing punishment for those behind “an armed insurrection”. In his daily address on Sunday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Mr Putin is “obviously very afraid” and is “probably hiding”, while his defence minister Oleksii Reznikov said the 36-hour mutiny shows Russian authorities are “weak”. Mr Reznikov said: “Had a phone conversation with my friend and colleague Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III “We talked about recent events in Russia. We agree that the Russian authorities are weak and that withdrawing Russian troops from Ukraine is the best choice for the Kremlin. Russia would be better served to address its own issues.” He added: “We also discussed the #UAarmy‘s counteroffensive and the next steps in strengthening our Defence Forces. Things are moving in the right direction. Ukraine will win.” Meanwhile, the Institute for the Study of War said Russia struggled to respond clearly and coherently to the threat from the Wagner Group. It said the incident has highlighted “internal security weaknesses likely due to surprise and the impact of heavy losses in Ukraine” Commons defence committee chair Tobias Ellwood told the i newspaper: “Putin’s days are clearly numbered, he might survive the initial wound for a period of time but as Russian history shows, often it triggers a series of subsequent events that lead to the leader’s downfall. “Power is ebbing away. The Wagner Group may be neutered, Prighozin exiled, but Putin is definitely weaker and the hawks are now circling.” Read More Ukraine says Wagner’s mutiny proves Putin’s fragility – but this war ends on the battlefield US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says ‘we haven’t seen the last act’ in Russia’s Wagner rebellion Russia-Ukraine war live: Wagner rebellion shows Putin’s power is finally cracking, US says The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary
2023-06-26 06:57
Twitter threatens to sue Meta over 'copycat' Threads platform, claims app was created by poaching fired employees
Threads, a text-based conversation app was launched by Meta with the intention of competing with Twitter
2023-07-07 06:23
Look who's talking: Biden goes quiet in debt-limit talks, while McCarthy can't stop chatting
President Joe Biden has made a deliberate decision to go quiet as his team gets down to the wire in the debt-limit talks, according to White House officials
2023-05-25 12:19
'Harry Jowsey should go home': 'DWTS' Season 32 judges under fire for 'unfair' elimination of Lele Pons
Lele Pons and Brandon Armstrong performed salsa on Shakira's song. 'Wherever, Whenever'
2023-11-08 13:45
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