Liverpool fire four past Leicester in Singapore friendly
Liverpool geared up for the start of their new Premier League campaign with an impressive display in Singapore on Sunday as they thumped English rivals Leicester...
2023-07-30 20:48
Did Sinead O’Connor finish her final album? Producer David Holmes says late singer's last work is 'emotional and really personal'
Sinead O'Connor's management company, 67 Management, revealed that she had been actively working on completing her new album
2023-07-30 20:29
Why Republicans can't get out of their climate bind, even as extreme heat overwhelms the US
Deadly heatwaves are baking the US. Scientists just reported that July will be the hottest month on record. And now, after years of skepticism and denial in the GOP ranks, a small number of Republicans are urging their party to get proactive on the climate crisis.
2023-07-30 20:20
Is Amanda Bynes OK? Troubled star reportedly checks herself into a facility, will receive residential care 24/7
Soruces said that Amanda Bynes chose this facility herself and preferred being there rather than alone in her LA apartment
2023-07-30 20:19
Russia's Medvedev: We'd have to use a nuclear weapon if Ukrainian offensive was a success
By Andrew Osborn MOSCOW Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who has sometimes raised the spectre of a nuclear
2023-07-30 20:18
Coach Vera Pauw asks Ireland FA for clarity on her Republic of Ireland future
Vera Pauw has called on the Football Association of Ireland to reach a decision on her future as Republic of Ireland coach ahead of the team’s final World Cup match against Nigeria. Pauw’s contract is up at the end of the tournament, with Ireland having already been eliminated following defeats to Australia and Canada in their first two games. That means Monday’s final Group B fixture in Brisbane could be her last game in charge if a decision is made not to keep her on. She has repeatedly stated that she hopes to continue in the role to try to lead them to the European Championship finals in Switzerland in 2015. The 60-year-old, who was appointed in 2019 and has led the Republic to their first major tournament finals in Australia and New Zealand, has been the subject of allegations of misconduct dating back to her time managing Houston Dash in the National Women’s Soccer League. “Yes,” she replied when asked whether the players deserved to know whether their coach would be staying. “My situation has not changed. “I think we have a fantastic bond in our team. That has been shown all over the four years.” Opponents Nigeria were conquerors of co-hosts Australia in their previous game and will advance to the last-16 if they avoid defeat against Pauw’s side. Ireland need to win and hope that Australia lose to Canada if they are to have any hope of finishing their debut tournament off the bottom of the group. “We have a fantastic game tomorrow to play,” she added. “Nigeria are ranked 52 (by FIFA) but we all agree now that they are so, so strong. “They are physically strong, they are skilful and extremely fast so there is a huge task on our plate. I want to concentrate on the game. “That game is crucial for us, for our feeling, our pride and for the tournament.” What we have achieved in the past two or three years under Vera has been amazing defender Megan Connolly Defender Megan Connolly praised the strides made by the team during Pauw’s four-year tenure, but said ultimately the decision on whether or not she remained in the job was outside of the players’ control. “Obviously, it’s not my decision,” she said. “What we have achieved in the past two or three years under Vera has been amazing. “I think she helped us get to this point and I can only speak from my own personal experience and Vera has been great for me, but it’s not my decision.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Saudi Arabia’s spending not a problem for Premier League, says Erik ten Hag Erik ten Hag: Manchester United must leap forward in coming year Former Wales captain and coach Clive Rowlands dies aged 85
2023-07-30 20:18
Who's in, who's out: A look at which candidates have qualified for the 1st GOP presidential debate
In a few weeks, Republicans will hold their first presidential debate of the 2024 campaign
2023-07-30 20:18
Inside the phone calls that made Spence vs Crawford – a generational fight
Errol Spence Jr knew this time would be different. For the best part of five years, fans had debated what a fight between the two best welterweights of their generation would look like. Promoters had spoken in public and in private about whether fans would get a look at that fight at all. On more than one occasion, the contest seemed to be within grasp before drifting out of reach. But when Terence Crawford texted him, Spence Jr knew this time would be different. “I think it really took us just getting on the phone, and talking to each other,” Spence told The Independent over Zoom, a week out from their fight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on 29 July. “It took us relaying different messages to each other about the negotiations, and basically me just giving him stuff that he wanted to make the fight happen. I didn’t really want much. The big obstacles were the [purse] split and the ring walk.” Such obstacles could not have been overcome without Spence and his fellow American sharing a mutual respect, both fighters told The Independent, with Crawford saying on a call with other reporters: “You’ve got a lot of people that put on a little circus act and start going about things the wrong way – being disrespectful, taking it to another level that it doesn’t need to be taken to. Sometimes, you can’t come back from that.” There was no such problem when Crawford and Spence picked up the phone, initially bypassing promoters, agents and handlers to try to hash out a deal for a historic fight – one between two unbeaten title holders, to crown an undisputed welterweight champion. “There’s definitely a respect between us, I respect him a lot,” Spence acknowledged, while Crawford said: “It was never nothing [antagonistic], it was all business and respect [on the phone]. “I hit him up on 1 January,” Crawford added. “I sent him a text, just telling him that we need to actually fight, to make history. He was in agreement about us fighting. And at that particular time, I reached out to [promoter] Al Haymon and started back up the conversation. Errol got back on a phone call and started talking about the structure of the fight, the deal. That’s how the fight was made.” “The conversations were just us talking about what was going on with the negotiations, and seeing if we could get to the middle of it – the meat of it,” Spence explained. “Basically there was some stuff that he wanted, which me and my team didn’t agree to [at first].” Eventually, however, agreements were reached. It had been a year of mixed results in terms of talks over marquee fights. Tyson Fury’s prospective clash with Oleksandr Usyk collapsed, despite the latter agreeing to a 70-30 purse split in the Briton’s favour. The Ukrainian made that concession in spite of holding three of the four major heavyweight belts, compared to Fury’s one, and holding an unbeaten record like his potential opponent. A long-awaited bout between Fury and compatriot Anthony Joshua also crashed and burned before it got off the ground, and not for the first time. However, a highly-anticipated showdown between Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Ryan Garcia did materialise, as did huge title fights between Vasiliy Lomachenko and Devin Haney and Josh Taylor and Teofimo Lopez. So, should more fighters take the approach that Spence and Crawford did? “If they’re mature enough, they definitely need to get on the phone with each other and talk,” Spence said. “But I don’t know if they’re as level-headed as me and Terence are, talking and having disagreements but trying to make the fight happen. You’ve got to have a level head to talk to another fighter and just come up with the same scenario. [It was me] talking to my people, and then at some points we had my team and his team, himself and myself. We were always on a call with each other, trying to figure out how to make the fight happen.” Crawford then told The Independent: “If you have two grown men that are willing to set aside their pride and put the hype to the side and come together and both want the same thing, then yes,” before telling another reporter: “I can’t speak on other people’s situations, because I’m not the one trying to make the fight happen with them, but boxers are the ones in charge. “Once a fighter realises that, the advisers, promoters and managers go to work. They’ve got to give the fighter what he wants. You’ve had two cases recently: ‘Tank’ and Garcia wanted to fight each other, and they made sure that deal got done, just like you have Terence Crawford and Errol Spence wanting to fight each other. We both went to our people and got the fight done, so it all comes down to the fighters at the end of the day. “Yeah, our handlers want to look out for our best interests and make sure we make the best business decision at the right time, but it’s up to us as fighters to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’. There’s a lot of fighters that can say, ‘No, I don’t wanna fight this guy; I want him, give me him,’ and if the opposing fighter is saying the same thing, there’s nothing anyone can do but to make the fight happen.” And so, one of the most-anticipated fights of a generation did happen, as Spence carried the WBC, WBA and IBF welterweight titles into the T-Mobile Arena, while Crawford brought the WBO belt. On a shocking evening, it was not the ‘50-50’ fight that most expected it would be. Crawford produced a masterclass to dismantle Spence, dropping him once in the second round and twice in the seventh, before overwhelming his rival to force a TKO in Round 9. And while Spence will have been devastated by the result and the manner in which it came about, he deserves immense credit for ensuring that this fight, which so many fans craved for so many years, came together. He deserves credit for taking the risk. “I definitely think it’s something that would’ve been hanging over our heads for our whole careers, if we didn’t make this fight happen,” Spence admitted to The Independent, ahead of the fight. “It’d have been tied to us all the time. ‘Man, Spence, I wish he would’ve fought Terence.’ Or, ‘Man, I wish Terence would’ve fought Spence.’ It would’ve been that super-fight that didn’t happen.” Meanwhile, Crawford said before the bout: “It means a lot, but at the same time, there are a lot of other fights in the history of boxing that didn’t happen. So, if the fight with Errol didn’t happen, I wouldn’t be the first and I wouldn’t be the last to have people talking about them like that. It’d just be another fight on the list.” Thankfully, the fight did not belong on such a list. Rather, it belongs on a list of all-time great performances in boxing super-fights. Read More Terence Crawford dismantles Errol Spence Jr to become undisputed welterweight king What time does Spence vs Crawford start tonight? How to watch Spence vs Crawford online and on TV tonight Exclusive look at Terence Crawford’s ring gear ahead of clash with Errol Spence Jr The meaning behind Terence Crawford’s ring gear in Errol Spence Jr clash Terence Crawford wins coin toss with Errol Spence to make key fight-night decision
2023-07-30 20:16
Israeli deputy says normalisation with Saudis does not appear imminent
By Dan Williams JERUSALEM A top Israeli lawmaker said on Sunday that any forging of relations with Saudi
2023-07-30 19:55
Kamala Harris takes center stage in Biden reelection campaign's rapid response to GOP
Gathered at the vice president's residence at the Naval Observatory last weekend, a group of aides and advisers to Kamala Harris marveled at what they had just pulled off.
2023-07-30 19:54
The case for a soft landing is slowly but surely building
After months of uncertainty about the economy's health and whether bank stresses from this past spring would weigh too heavily on credit conditions, the possibility of the Federal Reserve pulling off a soft landing is looking brighter.
2023-07-30 19:51
How many children does Mark Zuckerberg have? Meta CEO takes family to Taylor Swift's Eras tour concert
Mark Zuckerberg was seen sporting rhinestones on his face as he took photos with his family at the concert
2023-07-30 19:46
