List of All Articles with Tag 'sport'

Victor Wembanyama wasn’t the only young French prospect turning heads overseas this season

Gareth Southgate wants England to retain a relentless winning mentality akin to treble winners Manchester City as the road to Euro 2024 continues. Monday’s Group C encounter against North Macedonia marks the halfway point of qualification for next summer’s tournament in Germany. England already look all but assured of reaching the Euros having won at reigning champions Italy and beaten Ukraine in March before swatting aside Malta 4-0 on Friday night. Southgate’s opposite number Michele Marcolini said the minnows, ranked 172nd in the world, could not get anywhere near the visitors as they had an “amazing attitude on the pitch from the first minute”. That is the product of the impressive mindset cultivated by England, who are also expected to beat 65th-placed North Macedonia as this mammoth season finally comes to a close on Monday. Put to Southgate that progress to date will count for nothing if complacency seeps in at Old Trafford, the England boss said: “Correct, yeah. That’s what we have to be. “We’ve just watched the team win three trophies. Why? Because pretty much every game I saw them play the mentality was spot on. Sometimes you can say things as a coach but the fact that there's somebody sitting ready to take your place that's a good player also has an impact Gareth Southgate “That helps when you’ve got competition for places like we have because also you know that you can’t afford a dip. You’ve got to produce. “So sometimes you can say things as a coach but the fact that there’s somebody sitting ready to take your place that’s a good player also has an impact. “But we have good professionals. Everybody, of course, is excited by our younger players, but our senior players have a big impact on the way they train. “The way they embrace the younger ones coming in and the way they demand in the dressing room, the mentality that they start to set, so it all plays a part.” Southgate utilised an experienced core in Malta, while giving Marc Guehi and James Maddison starts on a night when Trent Alexander-Arnold played in midfield. That experiment worked brilliantly as the Liverpool right-back put in a man-of-the-match display, scoring a fine effort and playing a part in England’s two other first-half goals. Southgate admits England’s performance in Malta has slightly altered his thinking ahead of facing North Macedonia, but suggested it was down to other aspects than Alexander Arnold’s display. “Yep (the performance made me think differently) but not the obvious that you might think!” he said with a smile. “We always have in mind what happens (next). Of course, there’s still training over the next couple of days also to take into account. “But what we saw tonight probably confirmed a couple of things, but also, you know, left one or two things open. “You’ve always got a plan but normally we’re on plan E, F or G by the time we get to matchday because of the players we’ve lost or things that have happened. “So, you always have to be flexible but pleased to get the players off that we got off and nice to give some minutes to some others as well.” Harry Kane – who scored England’s third – Luke Shaw, Jordan Henderson and Maddison were withdrawn in the second half after Bukayo Saka was taken off at the break. The 21-year-old forward had looked in discomfort after a tackle just before half-time, but Southgate moved to allay any injury concerns. “He is good,” the England boss said. “We just thought there’s no point in taking any chances with the scoreline as it was.” In truth, Friday’s straightforward match in Malta will not live long in the memory but it will be forever etched in Eberechi Eze’s memory. Denied a place in England’s provisional Euro 2020 squad by a cruelly timed Achilles injury, the Crystal Palace midfielder finally made his debut as a 70th-minute substitute at the Ta’ Qali National Stadium. “For Eze, nice to dip his toes,” Southgate said. “He’s only had a few days training with us so he’s still getting used to everything. “It’s, of course, a big step coming into a senior camp for the first time, even though he’s been with the Under-21s. “He’s, I think, had his eyes opened to the level, the quality of the players, the intensity every day so a brilliant experience for him. “He’s fabulous boy, I have to say. He really gives a lot of energy every day, which is brilliant.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Josh Cullen admits Republic of Ireland have no excuses after Greece defeat Callum Wilson praises England for being clinical and ruthless in win over Malta Commentator Martin Tyler stepping down from role at Sky Sports after 33 years

Michael O’Neill has said trying to qualify for Euro 2024 is no longer his primary concern as Northern Ireland’s injury crisis shows no sign of abating. Craig Cathcart was a late withdrawal ahead of Friday’s 1-0 defeat to Denmark in Copenhagen, taking the number of senior players missing through injury into double figures. A youthful line-up that included teenagers Conor Bradley, Shea Charles and Isaac Price handled the intimidating atmosphere of the Parken Stadium admirably and thought they had a stoppage-time equaliser to cancel out Jonas Wind’s goal, only for debutant Callum Marshall’s strike to be ruled offside by VAR. Defeat leaves Northern Ireland with one win from their opening three qualifiers, albeit still only three points off top spot with Denmark, Finland, Slovenia and Kazakhstan all on six points. When O’Neill, the man who guided Northern Ireland to Euro 2016, returned to the job in December, there was real hope that they could capitalise on what was seen as a favourable draw in Group H. But asked if Friday’s defeat put pressure on Northern Ireland to beat Kazakhstan at Windsor Park on Monday, O’Neill said: “We had six under-21s on the pitch. We’re not thinking about qualification. We’re thinking about putting points on the board. We have 10 senior players out injured. “We’re not in that place that the teams we’re playing against, the likes of Denmark, are. We’re building a team here that’s dealing with a difficult situation with the number of senior players we’ve lost. “We’re not in there before the game talking about qualification, we’re talking about a level of performance, to give a really good account of ourselves, which we did. Obviously if we can take points which we nearly did we’d be delighted but we’re not talking in that vein at the moment.” With the likes of Steven Davis, Stuart Dallas, Corry Evans and Shane Ferguson all out with long-term injuries, O’Neill was already relying on young players during March’s fixtures and was made to do so again for a trip away to the top seeds in the group. Cathcart could return in time for Monday’s fixture, but a huge amount of vital experience is missing from O’Neill’s ranks. “You know the players who are missing and you know the players we’re asking to play at this moment in time,” he said. “They’re not first-team players at their respective clubs on a regular basis and we’re playing against established international players who play at top clubs in Europe. “We have to be realistic with the level we can compete at on a consistent basis. “But the experience the players will have from nights like this, this is a brilliant place to play football, a brilliant stadium, brilliant home support, a fantastic pitch, and they will be better at the start of what is an international journey for a lot of these players. “A number of these players will have long and distinguished international careers, it’s nights like these they will really benefit from.” Northern Ireland left Copenhagen still frustrated by the disallowed goal, with VAR having taken five minutes to decide Jonny Evans’ heel was offside before he headed the ball on for Marshall to finish, but there was pride in a battling display. One mistake proved the difference, with Wind pouncing when Ciaron Brown failed to deal with Joakim Maehle’s cross into the box. “It’s disappointing to lose to a goal of that nature,” O’Neill added. “But we have to look at so much that was positive in our performance. We lost Craig Cathcart overnight with a back injury and I think what we got from our lads was terrific and as a manager you can’t really ask for much more.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Gareth Southgate wants England to retain winning mentality on road to Euro 2024 Josh Cullen admits Republic of Ireland have no excuses after Greece defeat Callum Wilson praises England for being clinical and ruthless in win over Malta

Commentator Martin Tyler is stepping down from his role at Sky Sports ahead of the new season after 33 years. The 77-year-old has been the voice of football on Sky since the launch of the Premier League in 1992. In a statement on the Sky Sports website, Tyler said: “In my humble opinion, the huge corporation Sky is today has stemmed from Sky Sports’ innovative and inspired coverage of the Premier League. “It has been a privilege to play a small part in the broadcasting history of the greatest league in the world. “Along the way I have worked alongside legions of wonderful professionals in all aspects of the television industry. I thank them all for their support and expertise. It has been an honour to be a member of a very gifted team.” Tyler worked for ITV throughout the 1980s as the number two to lead commentator Brian Moore, before joining Sky in 1990. His most famous commentary came when Sergio Aguero scored Manchester City’s title-winning goal against QPR in 2012. Gary Hughes, Sky Sports’ director of football, said: “Everyone at Sky Sports would like to say a heartfelt thank you to Martin for his unparalleled contribution and dedication to our coverage over the last 30 years. “‘The Voice’ will always be synonymous with the Premier League and Sky Sports. When you think of commentary, you think of Martin Tyler. “‘Collymore closing in’ (from Liverpool’s 4-3 win over Newcastle in 1996) and ‘Aguerrrrrroooooooooo’ are two of the greatest moments in Premier League history. We thank him and wish him all the very best for the future.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Sky Sports have confirmed that Martin Tyler has stepped down from his role as their main football commentator ahead of the 2023/24 season. Tyler joined Sky back in 1990 shortly before the inauguration of the Premier League.

Jack Grealish recently made headlines with his wild celebrations after winning the treble with Manchester City and now an iconic photo from this time has been hung up in the Louvre... well, kind of. The footballer shared a photo of himself celebrating with players as they toured Manchester in an open-top bus parade. In the photo, Grealish can be seen topless with his eyes closed and arms stretched out, taking in the euphoric atmosphere. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Clearly, the 27-year-old is a fan of the snap as he shared it on Twitter and declared: "Hang it in the Loooouvre," with a blue heart and laughing emoji. Grealish's spelling of the famous museum in Paris is in reference to team-mate Erling Haaland's entertaining (and uncanny) impression of John Stones who has got a Yorkshire accent. Now, it looks like Grealish's wish has come true thanks to Paddy Power as they went to the French capital to put the photo up in the Louvre, where the famous Mona Lisa is also on display. However, they were ultimately told by confused staff members that their unusual request was not possible. So it was time to decide to think outside the box, and Grealish didn't technically say exactly where in the Louvre the photo should be hung, right? Instead, the bookmakers were able to put the photo up somewhere else inside the Louvre - or Loo-vre as they put it on display inside the museum toilets. The stunt clearly amused City fans who praised Paddy Power's commitment to the bit. Elsewhere, Ruben Dias threw up in Jack Grealish's mum's handbag during Man City's boozy celebrations and Troy Hawke reconciles with a very drunk Jack Grealish at Man City's open-top bus parade. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

University of Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders is at risk of having his left foot amputated due to poor circulation, according to doctors at the school.

Teoscar Hernández hit a go-ahead home run in the seventh inning, rookie Bryan Woo struck out nine and the Seattle Mariners beat Chicago 3-2 for their third win in four games

Manchester United announced they had accepted a £25million bid from Real Madrid for David Beckham on this day in 2003. Starting in United’s academy, the England captain went on to make 394 appearances for the team, lifting six Premier League titles, two FA Cups and the 1999 Champions League in a hugely successful era for the club. He helped United win the Premier League title in 2003 but his future had been under intense speculation, with plenty of sides interested in signing the midfielder. Initially it looked like Barcelona would be the preferred option, and Beckham had been the central figure in Joan Laporta’s successful campaign to become president of the Catalan club, but the midfielder opted for rivals Real instead. A statement from Manchester United confirmed the move, saying: “Manchester United today reached agreement for the transfer of David Beckham to Real Madrid for a fee of 35million euros (approximately £25m). “The deal is expected to be completed in July, conditional upon approval by the boards of Manchester United and Real Madrid, and on the provision of satisfactory payment guarantees. “David Beckham has agreed personal terms with Real Madrid and expects to sign his new contract with the club on completion.” Beckham spent four seasons at the Bernabeu, where he won the 2006-07 LaLiga title before going on to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy, AC Milan and Paris St Germain. He eventually retired in 2013, calling time on a playing career spanning just over 20 years. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Chris Christie made millions of dollars in lobbying and consultancy fees in the past six years after leaving

Kyle Schwarber homered on the first pitch of the game, J

Zac Gallen struck out seven in six effective innings and the Arizona Diamondbacks ended a three-game losing streak by beating the Cleveland Guardians 5-1