List of All Articles with Tag 'al'

The MLB trade deadline may still be weeks away, but the deliberations of what decisions to make in late July are already happening.The MLB trade deadline officially hits on August 1st, and the rumors are going to start moving quickly long before that. While the deadline is still weeks away, fron...

All eyes will be on the battle for survival and the scrap for the final European place on the final day of Premier League season on Sunday. Here, the PA news agency looks at the main talking points. Everton in the box-seat Everton are one of three clubs in danger, with two making the drop alongside already-relegated Southampton this weekend. But the Toffees at least have control of their own destiny heading into a Goodison Park clash against Bournemouth, knowing that a 70th-successive season in the top-flight awaits if they match the results of Leicester and Leeds. It promises to be a nervous afternoon, though, with Everton’s cause not helped by injury absentees Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Nathan Patterson and Ben Godfrey. Foxes’ future looks bleak Seven years after the charismatic Claudio Ranieri masterminded Leicester’s stunning Premier League title triumph, the Foxes look Championship-bound. They host West Ham knowing that victory over the Hammers might not be enough to keep them in the top division. Dean Smith’s team must win and hope Everton do not collect maximum points against Bournemouth, otherwise their fate will be sealed. It is all a far cry from May 7, 2016, when Ranieri and captain Wes Morgan held aloft the Premier League trophy. Leeds need a minor miracle Sam Allardyce faced mission improbable when he was parachuted in as Leeds manager with just four games of the season left after Javi Gracia was sacked. And so it has proved, with Allardyce overseeing one draw and two defeats so far. Nothing less than a win will do for Leeds against Tottenham at Elland Road and even then they need the results from both the Everton and Leicester matches to go their way. Battle for Europe Tottenham have their own targets to worry about during their trip to West Yorkshire. After spending much of the season battling for a Champions League spot, they could miss out on Europe altogether as they fight Aston Villa and Brentford for seventh and a place in the Europa Conference League. Villa are in pole position and know a win at home to Europa League-bound Brighton will be enough to secure European qualification for the first time since 2010. Anything less would open the door for Spurs, who last did not feature in continental competition in the 2009-10 campaign. Should both slip up, then Brentford can secure European football for the first time in their history if they manage to win at home to champions Manchester City. Pep Guardiola’s balancing act What kind of City side awaits Brentford remains to be seen. With the Premier League title already won, City’s hopes of a trophy treble rest with the FA Cup final against Manchester United on June 3 then the Champions League final versus Inter Milan seven days later. It will be about finding a balance between resting players and avoiding rustiness ahead of those games, so rotation can be expected for Sunday’s trip. Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland could be among those rested, but if Haaland plays, it will be a last chance to extend his remarkable Premier League goalscoring record of 36 this term. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Aston Villa’s final step in European bid will be hardest – Unai Emery Ryan Mason ‘trusts the people making decisions’ at Tottenham ahead of key summer Thomas Frank inspired by ‘best coach’ Pep Guardiola’s work

Boss Unai Emery admits Aston Villa’s final step to return to Europe will be their hardest. Villa host Brighton on Sunday knowing victory would seal a European comeback for the first time since 2010-11. It would book seventh in the Premier League and a Europa Conference League play-off spot but Emery knows it is a tough test. “We have to be very ambitious and I am. I’m here trying to push everybody, to demand from everybody to get better playing and to take European places,” he said. “We have to take each step being strong and being passionate about how to do it. We are in this way. We are progressing very well. “I’m very, very happy with the players and their commitment, their character and they are responding very well. We are also connecting with our supporters. “We are in the first step. If we achieve our objective on Sunday, we will be very, very happy. “It’s the next step because we started by escaping from the bottom (of the table), we got into the top 10 and then we have the objective to be in the European places. “The most difficult step is to get it, but we have our objective. And then if we don’t, it’s not changing our idea or our mind about how we want to improve.” Brighton have already qualified for the Europa League, sealing sixth place with Wednesday’s 1-1 draw against Manchester City. Boss Roberto De Zerbi has impressed since replacing Graham Potter in September and Emery is an admirer. He said: “Football is changing so quickly. I’m 51 years old, I started coaching at 32, so I’ve had 19 years as a coach and manager. “Always I am very focussed on how I can improve each day to be today, better than yesterday, to be tomorrow, better than today. “It’s not only about my work or my experiences or my analysis, it’s about trying to watch other coaches. One of them is Roberto De Zerbi. “I like coaches who can show us something different tactically, offensively and defensively. In football, you have to be in the fast train because it moves so quickly.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live 5 talking points: Three clubs battle for Premier League survival on last day Ryan Mason ‘trusts the people making decisions’ at Tottenham ahead of key summer Thomas Frank inspired by ‘best coach’ Pep Guardiola’s work

Willy Adames was hospitalized after being struck by a foul ball in the Brewers dugout on Friday night. Here is everything to know on his health.Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Willy Adames was struck in the dugout by a foul ball in the bottom of the second inning on Friday night against the San Fran...

Bethenny Frankel shared recently in an interview that there's nothing that works as well as 'a good night’s sleep' and when anyone is hydrated enough

Erling Haaland has been named the 2022/23 Premier League Player of the Season.

Attacks on Palestinians by Israeli settlers in the West Bank on Friday have left a man in critical condition and drawn international condemnation, including from the US government.

Real Madrid are close to finalising an agreement to sign Borussia Dortmund's Jude Bellingham.

The final day of the Bundesliga on Saturday is set to be a thrilling one with the title race going down to the wire.

It's been dubbed soccer's "richest game," but for Luton Town and Coventry City, Saturday's Championship play-off final means much more than just money.

Planning on squirting some ketchup on your hot dog at a barbecue this weekend? You may be seeing red. Inflation has caught up to ketchup.

Ryan Mason has trust in the key decision-makers at Tottenham to get the big calls right this summer. Spurs’ acting head coach Mason will take his squad to relegation-threatened Leeds on the final day in what is set to be his last fixture in charge. Eighth-placed Tottenham remain without a permanent manager or managing director of football and could miss out on Europe for the first time since the 2009-10 campaign unless they better Aston Villa’s result and match Brentford’s on Sunday. Crunch decisions are required by chairman Daniel Levy and the board, with a promise already made to supporters over the style Spurs will try to play next season. Last Saturday’s programme notes from Levy pledged the team will go back to “football you will love to come and watch” after the recent pragmatism and counter-attacking of Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte. Mason feels a stable brand of football will help, and he said: “We’ve probably had two or three different styles of football in the last two or three years and I don’t think that is good for any squad of players or for fans. “When you lose people, lose coaches, lose players, lose members of staff, the impact is huge if you keep going from different things. “Like I say, going forward it really is important and we see it in the Premier League, we see it across the leagues, I want people to know who Tottenham are, know what a Tottenham team looks like and certainly know what a Tottenham player looks like. “This is just how I view the situation as it is. Obviously there will be loads of conversations in the summer about going forward. “There is a lot of people here who really care and want the club to get back to where we want, where we expect and where we hope to be. “Them conversations and decisions I am sure will be made in the summer. I trust the people making them decisions.” Quizzed about how the managerial search could impact Spurs’ transfer business, Mason admitted the club need a new man in place before they can go after targets. If you want to be successful on the pitch then everyone working for the organisation within the football club has to be on board with what we are and who we are. Ryan Mason “There is work because we have a big squad, a lot of players on loan and decisions to make,” he said. “The most important work is probably away from the transfer window right now because you need a manager in place, you need commitment, you need an idea to know where you go. “You can’t do transfer business without a manager because it might not fit his idea. At the moment I believe we need an idea of what we want to do, who we want to be and stick to it. Recruit people for that and ultimately recruit players for that.” There remains uncertainty over the future of Harry Kane, who is approaching the final year of his Spurs contract. Mason would not be drawn on what next for the Tottenham forward but insisted it is imperative every club has a long-term plans in place. He added: “For any player, manager, member of staff at this football club, when one leaves it’s important to have a succession plan in place. “So, when people do leave, the next one comes in and the impact isn’t so big. That’s not just speaking about Harry. That’s speaking about other players. “For me, it’s really important that there’s an identity in all departments. “If you want to be successful on the pitch then everyone working for the organisation within the football club has to be on board with what we are and who we are. “I hope going forward that’s definitely the case.”