List of All Articles with Tag 'foot'

Arsenal began their quest to wrestle the Premier League title away from Manchester City as Bukayo Saka’s fine strike earned them a narrow victory over Nottingham Forest. After a half-hour delay to kick-off at the Emirates Stadium, Eddie Nketiah and Saka struck in the first-half but the hosts could not build on their lead and were pegged back by Taiwo Awoniyi as they hung on to win 2-1. An issue with the turnstiles meant kick-off was put back by 30 minutes but it did not threaten to dampen the expectant atmosphere as Arsenal aim to go one better than their runners-up spot last season. Defeat at Forest in May ended that title challenge but a repeat never looked likely here from the moment Forest goalkeeper Matt Turner – making his debut after joining from Arsenal earlier in the week – saw a clearance charged down by Nketiah as the ball flashed wide. The visitors had already spurned a great opening, Brennan Johnson unable to hit the target after being slipped in behind. A moment of magic from Gabriel Martinelli freed Nketiah inside the Forest box and his low shot found a way past Turner courtesy of a deflection off Joe Worrall as Arsenal hit the front just after the midway point of the first half. Saka then took centre-stage, collecting a pass from William Saliba and curling home a fine effort to double the lead before half-time. It was not all smiles for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, though, as summer signing Jurrien Timber limped off with what appeared to be a knee injury with just 50 minutes gone. The Dutch defender had gone down in pain having committed a foul on the stroke of half-time but emerged for the second-half, only to be forced off soon after. The second half looked like being played out largely with Arsenal controlling possession, Declan Rice forcing a low stop out of Turner with a deflected drive before the £105million man had another shot turned behind. But, from the resulting corner from the second of Rice’s efforts, Forest broke at pace and substitute Anthony Elanga burst down the left before squaring for Awoniyi to finish. Arsenal ultimately held on for the win, Gabriel Magalhaes replacing Martinelli to sure up the defence as Forest threw on the likes of Chris Wood in a late attempt to salvage a point. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

These college football head coaches could be put onto the hot seat before the end of this year.Just because you are not on the hot seat now does not mean you will not be in the near future.The 2023 college football season kicks off in only a few weeks. Although only a handful of teams have a...

Alessia Russo praised England for “keeping the dream alive” as they reached the semi-finals of the World Cup. Lauren Hemp cancelled out Leicy Santos’ strike for Colombia before Russo scored the winner in a 2-1 win. The Lionesses now face co-hosts Australia on Wednesday in the last four and Arsenal forward Russo was full of praise for her side’s performance. She told ITV: “I’m buzzing, the semi-final of a World Cup, we’re keeping the dream alive. “I’m buzzing, obviously Colombia are a top team and I think they’ve shown more than that this World Cup. It was a really tough test, but so happy to get three points and be in the semis. “We’ve had to dig deep from the first game and that’s what it’s like, they have so many talented players who can cause you trouble within a second. “But I thought our back line were brilliant tonight, we kept it locked down, won and now we’re in the semis.” Hemp echoed her sentiments, saying the team were “really special” against Colombia. “What an amazing feeling. I’m absolutely knackered right now, most of the team are,” Hemp told ITV. “We put in a great performance. I think you saw the resilience in the squad and I’m so proud of this team. “I thought we controlled most of the game to be honest, they had a few counter-attacks and we knew what they were going to bring and I felt we dealt with it quite well. “Whenever we got the ball it looked like we were going to create something, I think the team were really special toady and long may that continue.” However, Russo insists there is still plenty to work on ahead of the semi-final. She said: “What makes this team great is we’re always trying to find ways to improve even after we’ve reached the semis. We’ve got lots to work on. We’ve got to get recovered, rested and go again.” The Arsenal forward is relishing the chance to face Australia. “It’s exciting, what more do you want?” Russo said. “You want to play against the best teams and obviously they’re the hosts. I think Colombia had a great fanbase out tonight, so we’ve had a little taste, but I’m so excited.” Hemp added: “I’m buzzing, it’s where you want to be. I want to play on the world’s biggest stages and obviously we’re here right now in the semi-final, I’m over the moon and can’t wait. “The atmosphere here was incredible, it’s going to be incredible again, but sometimes that’s when you thrive and we thrived again tonight, so hopefully we’ll do the same again.” England manager Sarina Wiegman hailed her team’s resilience. She told ITV: “Again, a tough challenge but we didn’t expect anything else. “Again we showed resilience, I thought the first half we played pretty good, we wanted to find spaces, we did and at moments we were too sloppy on the ball and they were really dangerous on the counter-attack, so we conceded that goal, but before half-time we came back. “The second half, that is hard, trying to push and we know they’re very dangerous up front. “Again I’m so proud of the team to how we found that score, to win those final duels and I just hope we keep the ball a little better, we could’ve finished it a little earlier.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Tara Jones set Saints on way to historic Women’s Challenge Cup win at Wembley Jurgen Klopp wants players to step up as ‘reloaded’ Liverpool look to hit stride Manchester City aiming for quadruple this season, says Rico Lewis

One of the oldest sporting rivalries will be played on a new stage, after England overcame yet another new problem. A first comeback of this Women’s World Cup will ensure Sarina Wiegman’s side return to Stadium Australia to play the hosts in Wednesday’s semi-final, in what is set to be the grandest occasion of this thrilling tournament so far. England once more avoided succumbing to a surprise exit, as they began to show the sort of quality everyone has long expected in this tenacious 2-1 victory over Colombia. The invigorating South American side deserve huge credit for bringing that out of the European champions, as they became the first side to take the lead against them at this World Cup. And there was so briefly the possibility they could put them out. Something was different with this England, though, that could well be crucial against Australia. Alessia Russo almost summed it up by offering that huge moment: a fine finish to win it. As good as Nigeria were in that last-16 game, there was a sense of England playing the occasion and letting the tension of a first knockout game get to them. Had they gone behind in that match, it was more doubtful whether they could have hauled it back. Not so here. Hugely influential to that was that so many players looked back to their best. Georgia Stanway offered her own best display of the World Cup, growing into it in the way she did at Euro 2022. Lauren Hemp was winning everything and running the game, having brought England back from defeat with her equaliser. Russo then ensured yet another massive goal and a moment that may prove transformative for her own campaign. The finish was brilliant but the touch to set it up perhaps even better. The manner in which she flicked it was sublime. There was an element of ragged desperation about England at times, but that was inevitable when an opposition side are fighting for the moment of their lives. Colombia had nothing to lose in the last few minutes but had exactly the attackers – especially in the livewire Linda Caicedo – to play like that. They just took the wrong decision too often and England’s defence got their timing just right. That brought relief, and this World Cup has taken so much out of them, but there is suddenly a sense they are in good shape going into the biggest test so far. A lot of this match actually produced England’s best football of the tournament. They were assertive but elaborate, willing to play the ball around in fine patterns. There were a few moves when it looked like they could just pass their way right through Colombia. It all looked so highly controlled… until the moment it wasn’t. That was what made this quarter-final so engaging. Colombia had an edge that constantly disrupted England just as momentum was building, as well as a willingness to try things. The great question will be whether Leicy was actually trying to beat Earps with that first goal, but one argument in favour comes from the fact she wasn’t the first Colombian to attempt such an effort from out wide. Caicedo had done it minutes before. The idea had at least been planted. Either way, the ball ended up in the back of the net from Leicy’s wide effort. It was indicative of the unpredictability of this match. It was also unprecedented. England were behind for the first time in this World Cup and the first time in any tournament match since the quarter-final against Spain in Euro 2022. They responded superbly. There was a sharpness about everything England did, with Stanway bringing real danger at the edge of the Colombian box. That defence quickly buckled. From the kind of cross-field ball that constantly brought opportunity for England, Colombian goalkeeper Catalina Perez fumbled and a deflection allowed Hemp to force the ball home. The conviction could be seen in the celebration. England had an impetus. They could have done with a longer stoppage time. It was half-time at the wrong time. But Russo ensured it didn’t matter. She got her touch absolutely right for that 63rd-minute moment of opportunism and took her chance brilliantly. The ball was drilled into the corner with no doubt or hesitation whatsoever. You couldn’t quite say the same about the last 15 minutes. Colombia went at England with everything. Earps made good for any suggestion she was poor for the goal with one brilliant save from a rasping Lorena Bedoya long shot. She then bought England time in that canny way she does, dropping onto caught balls, disrupting the opposition. It was only a mirror of what Colombia had done to England earlier. Wiegman’s team battled through it. They again showed their fight, but something more. That is going to be essential on Wednesday, because that is going to be a rivalry, a battle, but also so much more. Read More England vs Colombia LIVE: Women’s World Cup latest score and updates after Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo goals Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today Who and when do England play next? Lionesses route to the World Cup final How many games will Lauren James miss at Women’s World Cup after red card? Player ratings from England vs Colombia as Russo scores winning goal Who and when do England play next? Route to the World Cup final

Jurgen Klopp accepts change at Liverpool was inevitable as he urged his “reloaded” side to find their own way ahead of the start of their Premier League campaign. Liverpool saw captain Jordan Henderson and fellow midfielder Fabinho leave for the Saudi Pro League for a combined £52million, while Roberto Firmino and James Milner also departed Anfield this summer. Virgil van Dijk will skipper the side this season as Liverpool try to rebound from last season’s fifth-place finish, which left them outside the Champions League places for the first time since 2015-16. The Reds have signed World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister and Hungary captain Dominik Szoboszlai, while Klopp expects a number of youngsters to bloom following the departures of a few big personalities. Klopp said: “We don’t have to always say ‘Milner would have said that and Henderson would have said that and Firmino would have smiled here.’ We should not do it like that. That makes no sense. “We have this kind of new start with this Liverpool FC reloaded, it’s an exciting thing. Everybody was asking for changes, rightly so, because we were together for a long time. “It’s a new chance for everybody, everybody has to step up. We all share responsibility and it’s not that we should give ourselves too much time to grow into it, let’s do it. “Let’s take the responsibility and go from there and don’t try to be like somebody. Be the best version of yourself and then you have a good chance to help the team in the best possible way.” Liverpool have had a British transfer record fee in the region of £110m accepted by Brighton for Moises Caicedo but the Ecuador international’s preference for a move to Chelsea muddies the waters. Chelsea have had a longstanding interest in the 21-year-old midfielder and are reportedly ready to step up with a similar bid, adding an intriguing subplot to Liverpool’s trip to Stamford Bridge on Sunday. The Blues’ 12th-place finish last term – their lowest in almost 30 years – has led to a complete overhaul, with former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino appointed to transform their fortunes. Ahead of both sides’ Premier League opener, Klopp said: “They will want to show up, definitely. Poch is a top manager, so they will show up. We have to be ready. We have to be absolutely ready. “The football they played (in pre-season) you can see it – Poch is there. We played against Mauricio very often when he was at Tottenham, you can see a lot of similarities from that time. “It’s the first really competitive football game for us this season. We don’t want to waste time, we really want to go for it, but we have to see how it goes.” Klopp insisted he has not felt the need to remind his charges of last season’s disappointing outcome and is satisfied by what they have done in pre-season. He added: “The desire, the concentration, the readiness, the openness. I saw a lot of things where my thought was in that moment, ‘OK, they mean business, so let’s give it a go.’ You could see it. “We are not happy. It’s not that I want to remind the boys every day and say ‘by the way, last year was like this and that.’ That makes no sense. We have a lot of targets and we are highly motivated.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Manchester City aiming for quadruple this season, says Rico Lewis Harry Kane hints at future Tottenham return after completing Bayern Munich move Ange Postecoglou backs Richarlison as Tottenham deal with Harry Kane exit

Alessia Russo fired England through to their third World Cup semi-final with a second-half strike to complete a 2-1 comeback over Colombia at a sold-out Stadium Australia. Leicy Santos gave Colombia the lead when she looped an effort over Mary Earps after 44 minutes, but saw her opener cancelled out after Lauren Hemp pounced on an error by Colombian keeper Catalina Perez six minutes into first half stoppage time. Georgia Stanway set up Russo’s low finish to hand the Lionesses the lead after 63 minutes, and while Colombia pushed forward against the European champions an equaliser ultimately proved just out of reach. England will next face tournament co-hosts Australia, who beat France 7-6 on penalties in the early kick-off. Colombia, who had eliminated world number two side Germany with a 2-1 victory in the group stage, looked to complete another giant-killing here. The Lionesses, meanwhile, were without the services of Lauren James, with Ella Toone coming into Sarina Wiegman’s side while the Chelsea forward served the first game of her two-match suspension.

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.

Rico Lewis says winning the treble once “isn’t good enough” as Manchester City look to repeat the feat and eye an unprecedented quadruple. Pep Guardiola’s perennial Premier League champions added the FA Cup in June before beating Inter Milan to win the club’s first ever Champions League crown. City joined Manchester United’s 1999 side as the only English teams in history to complete the treble, but there appears little chance of them stopping there. Erling Haaland’s brace saw them open up their league campaign with a 3-0 win at promoted Burnley on Friday, after which teenage star Lewis outlined his ambitions. “The objective is to win the treble again, to win the quadruple,” the homegrown 18-year-old talent said. “You know, winning it once isn’t good enough, so we have to keep on going and try and win it again.” You would not back against City winning the European crown on top of claiming the three main domestic trophies given their quality, cohesion and strength. However, Guardiola’s men have already missed out on one piece of silverware this season having lost the Community Shield to Arsenal on penalties. This week, though, offers another chance at a trophy as City seek to win the UEFA Super Cup for the first time against Sevilla in Athens. “Obviously it’s a new competition for us,” Lewis said. “We’ve never won it, the club’s never won it, so, again, it’s another trophy that we want to go and win. “It’s another competition and an important thing we need to go and take on.” City make the trip buoyed by a solid start to the Premier League season, with Rodri adding to Haaland’s double on a night that also saw Lewis struck by an object. Burnley quickly confirmed the individual responsible for the first-half incident had been identified, removed from the ground by police and now faces a banning order. “Obviously when you’re in the game you can’t really focus on that,” Lewis said. “But it was just something I had to deal with at the time. “It’s just an incident that’s unfortunate it’s happened to me but, you know, it happens to a lot of players, which is not a good thing. “But there’s nothing really much you can do about it. You’ve just got to ignore it and then it’ll get sorted at the end of the game.” Another issue City’s players could not let distract them was the injury to skipper Kevin De Bruyne. The 32-year-old has only recently returned from a hamstring issue and Guardiola says he faces weeks on the sidelines after suffering a recurrence of the issue. “Well, you know, injuries happen to everyone,” Lewis said. “Every team suffers with injuries and it’s something that you’ve just got to deal with. “There’s enough quality in the squad where if someone gets injured someone can slot in and just carry on playing in the same way that the last person did. “Obviously there’s going to be certain positions where we’ll be more hurt than others just because of squad depth, but it’s something that happens to everyone and everyone has to deal with it.” While City return to action on Wednesday, the Clarets have an extended wait until they play again. Next weekend’s trip to Luton was postponed due to ongoing stadium works at Kenilworth Road, meaning Vincent Kompany’s side are next in action at home to Aston Villa on August 27. That fortnight will give promoted Burnley an invaluable opportunity to work with their new-look squad after showing signs of promise against City. Summer signing Luca Koleosho, 18, said after making his debut: “I think we had our moments in the game but obviously we were playing against the best team in the world right now. “So, I just think that every game we’re going to get better and just improve. “The mentality is just to win, there’s 37 games (to go), it’s a long season but just take it one at a time and just go out there and try and win.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Harry Kane hints at future Tottenham return after completing Bayern Munich move Ange Postecoglou backs Richarlison as Tottenham deal with Harry Kane exit Harry Kane’s highs and lows at Tottenham as he signs with Bayern Munich

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.

The 2023/24 Premier League season is under way and you can follow every game and every goal right here with The Independent. This year sees Manchester City try to defend their crown and claim a historic fourth title in succession. Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering City, who also won the Champions League and FA Cup last season, will have to see off Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and the rest to claim an unprecedented sixth league title in seven years. Meanwhile Luton Town are making their first appearance in the Premier League, having risen from non-league in an incredible decade of progress. They followed Championship winners Burnley and second-placed Sheffield United in earning promotion to the top flight. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below.