List of All Articles with Tag 'tb'

Republic of Ireland defender Louise Quinn is determined to exit the World Cup on a high. The Irish cannot make the knockout stages after defeats to Australia and Canada but still have one group game remaining against Nigeria in Brisbane on Monday. Yet the African side are well on course for the last 16 after their stunning triumph over hosts Australia last time out and Quinn recognises her team have their work cut out. The 33-year-old told Sky Sports: “How they’re even ranked the fourth seed in the group I don’t know, because they are an excellent, excellent team. “We knew that we wanted to be able to come into this game, in terms of progressing through the group, to really have something to play for but, for us, there’s still so much that we want to achieve and that we want to do. “We want to still make the history of getting points, really mixing up this group for us. We’re still fully concentrated on that. “But they’ve been excellent, they’ve proved it in their two games. We have our work cut out with them. “But, at the same time, we’ve shown against the two top sides in this group as well, Australia and Canada, that they’re going to have to beware of us in a lot of ways.” Nigeria go into the game as leaders of Group B, ahead of Canada on goals scored. Australia, who face Canada, are a point behind with the Irish still to register. Ireland have no fresh fitness concerns and are hopeful Heather Payne will be able to return after missing the Canada game with a hamstring problem. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Manchester City defender Nathan Ake has extended his contract with the club to 2027, the European and Premier League champions have announced. The Netherlands international has prolonged his previous deal by two years, committing himself to the Etihad Stadium outfit for a further four seasons. Ake was an integral member of Pep Guardiola’s squad during City’s memorable treble-winning 2022-23 campaign, making 41 appearances in all competitions. The 28-year-old said: “This is the best club in the world, I have no doubts about that. Being a Manchester City player makes me incredibly proud every single day. “It’s a football club that expects excellence in every area, which makes for the perfect environment to improve. It drives me on and makes me better. I am at the stage of my career where I want to keep developing and I can definitely do that here. “Pep is the best manager in football – a genius who has made me see the game differently – so to be able to work with him for longer is a real privilege. I am so grateful to him for everything he has done for me, both personally and professionally.” The former Chelsea player joined City in a £41million deal from Bournemouth three years ago. It’s great news for this football club that he is extending his time with us. Txiki Begiristain He initially had to wait for his opportunity but came of age last term, proving a reliable performer at both centre-back and left-back. Director of football Txiki Begiristain said: “We have been delighted with Nathan’s development, so it’s great news for this football club that he is extending his time with us. “There is no doubt he was a very important part of our treble success last season, but I believe he can be even better.”

France are under pressure already at the Women’s World Cup after their opening draw against Jamaica, and are in need of a result against Brazil in one of the most highly anticipated fixtures of the group stages. Les Bleues were held to a shock goalless draw by the Reggae Girlz in the opening match of Group F, while Brazil turned on the style as they thrashed Panama and Ary Borges scored a hat-trick in the 4-0 win. Jamaica will be without star striker Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw against Panama after she was sent off late on against the French, but a place in the last-16 would be within reach should Brazil make it two wins out of two. Elsewhere at the Women’s World Cup, Sweden and Italy have the chance to book their spot in the knockout stages as they meet in Group F. A victory for either side would be enough, following the draw between Argentina and South Africa on Friday. Meanwhile, Australia captain Sam Kerr confirmed she will be available for the Matildas’ final group stage encounter with Canada after missing their first two Women’s World Cup matches with a calf injury. Follow the latest World Cup scores, updates and news in today’s live blog: Read More Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today Who do England women play next? World Cup fixtures and route to the final Women’s football world rankings: Who could take No 1 at the World Cup?

It's pretty clear college football expansion in the Big 12 is not finished with Colorado in the fold. One Pac-12 program is next on the list to jump ship.The Big 12 went into July with 12 teams for the first time in over a decade. They're coming out of the month with their name no long...

West Ham are unlikely to go back in for Manchester United defender Harry Maguire after seeing a £20million bid knocked back, the PA news agency understands. The Old Trafford giants made the England international the most expensive defender in history when bringing him in from Leicester for £80million in 2019. Maguire was swiftly handed the captain’s armband, but a lack of form and game time led Erik ten Hag to this month name Bruno Fernandes as United’s new skipper. Numerous clubs have been linked with a summer move for the out-of-favour defender and West Ham have seen a £20m bid for the 30-year-old rejected. PA understands the Europa Conference League winners are unlikely to make another move for him after seeing that bid rebuffed. Maguire has dropped down the pecking order at United under Ten Hag, yet sources indicate he is still seen as a valuable part of the squad and stressed they are not forcing him out. The defender has remained a key member of the England squad, despite enduring a poor 2022/23 campaign, but his place could come under threat if things do not improve before Euro 2024. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Chelsea have agreed a resolution with UEFA that will see them hand over 10million euros (£8.57million) after owning up to “incomplete financial reporting” under the Roman Abramovich regime. A new ownership group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital completed their takeover of the club in May last year from Abramovich, who was sanctioned over his links to Russia president Vladimir Putin. UEFA, which has also banned Juventus from competing in the Europa Conference League this season due to financial irregularities, confirmed it was approached “proactively” by the Boehly-led consortium. They detected instances of partial financial information being submitted in historical transactions occurring between 2012 and 2019, breaching UEFA Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play regulations. A UEFA statement said: “Following its assessment, including the applicable statute of limitations, the CFCB (Club Financial Control Body) First Chamber entered into a settlement agreement with the club which has agreed to pay a financial contribution of 10million euros to fully resolve the reported matters.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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When Nouhaila Benzina steps onto the field for Morocco’s first match of the Women’s World Cup against Germany, she will make history — and not just as a player for the first Arab or North African nation ever in the tournament. The 25-year-old defender will be the first player to wear the Islamic headscarf at the senior-level Women’s World Cup. She and the Atlas Lionesses face two-time World Cup champions Germany in Melbourne, Australia, on Monday. “Girls will look at Benzina (and think) ‘That could be me,’” said Assmaah Helal, a co-founder of the Muslim Women in Sports Network said of the hijab. “Also the policymakers, the decision-makers, the administrators will say, ‘We need to do more in our country to create these accepting and open and inclusive spaces for women and girls to participate in the game.’” Benzina, who plays professional club soccer for the Association’s Sports of Forces Armed Royal – the eight-time defending champions in Morocco’s top women’s league – hasn’t yet been made available to speak to reporters here at the Women’s World Cup. In recent weeks, she has shared social media posts from others about the history-making nature of her World Cup appearance. “We are honored to be the first Arab country to take part in the Women’s World Cup,” Morocco captain Ghizlane Chebbak said on Sunday, “and we feel that we have to shoulder a big responsibility to give a good image, to show the achievements the Moroccan team has made.” Had Morocco qualified for the Women’s World Cup a decade ago, a player who wanted to wear the hijab during a game might have been forced to choose between that and representing her country. In 2007, a referee barred an 11-year-old Canadian girl from wearing a hijab during a club match. When the issue reached FIFA, the sport's global governing body banned head coverings in competitions it sanctioned, except for coverings that exposed the neck. FIFA cited “health and safety” concerns, some related to possible choking, with regulations forbidding “equipment that is dangerous to himself or another player.” “That really sent a strong message to Muslim women, particularly those who wear hijabs, (that) we don’t belong,” said Helal, an Australia-based operations manager of Creating Chances and Football United. Helal was among the social activists, Muslim athletes, and government and soccer officials who worked to overturn the ban. In 2012, FIFA granted the Asian Football Confederation a two-year trial period during which players would be allowed to wear head coverings at international competitions. No senior-level World Cups, men’s or women’s, were scheduled during the trial period. In 2014, FIFA lifted its ban on head coverings. Two years later, the under-17 Women’s World Cup in Jordan marked the first time Muslim players wore headscarves during an international FIFA event. Maryan Hagi-Hashi, a Melbourne resident who attended Morocco’s public practice session last week, said she is supporting the Atlas Lionesses alongside tournament co-host Australia. She appreciates the representation that the Moroccan team and Benzina provide, she said. Get all the latest Women’s World Cup odds here “There’s a mixture of (Muslim) women that wear hijab and don’t wear a hijab,” Hagi-Hashi said. “I think the world has realized there is diversity.” Helal said that since the ban was lifted, she has seen an increase in Muslim girls and women playing soccer, pursuing coaching pathways and leading their own football clubs. “I think it’s key to understand that the hijab is an essential part of a Muslim woman, should she choose to wear it,” Helal said. “It’s actually part of our identities.” Read More How ‘magic’ Lauren James can lead the new Lionesses at the Women’s World Cup England manager Sarina Wiegman reacts to ‘serious’ Keira Walsh injury As Sarina Wiegman solves one problem - a bigger one presents itself Why Keira Walsh is irreplaceable for England Bethany England: The Lionesses’ overlooked attacking threat in profile BBC pundit slams World Cup pitches after Keira Walsh injury – ‘It’s not good enough’

Captain of the German national team since 2019, Alexandra Popp has established herself as one of the stalwarts of the women’s game and the German national side since making her debut in 2010. A full-back-turned-forward, the 32-year-old will be carrying her nation’s hopes on her shoulders at the Women’s World Cup as she looks to avenge their heartbreaking defeat to England in Euro 2022 final last summer. Born in Witten, in western Germany, Popp began her fledgling football career as a student at Gesamtschule Berger Feld in Gelsenkirchen. The elite footballing school trains players for the men’s Bundesliga side, Schalke, with Popp the only female student to attend the school courtesy of a special permit. Having also played for mixed-gender teams at FC Silschede, Popp eventually got her first taste of senior football at Recklinghausen in the fourth tier of German football. Her stay there would last just one year with the then 17-year-old joining top-flight Duisburg in 2008 under the tutelage of the current national team manager, Martina Voss-Tecklenburg. Popp would enjoy a hugely successful first season, winning the UEFA Women’s Champions League and German Cup with Duisburg. She would follow that up the following season by retaining the German Cup with the season culminating in Popp making her debut for the senior national team in 2010. After two further years, Popp transferred to Wolfsburg in 2012 where she remains today. Much like her debut season at Duisburg, Popp would hit the ground running at Wolfsburg with a famous treble-winning campaign that saw her side capture the UEFA Women’s Champions League, Frauen-Bundesliga and German Cup. Her career at Wolfsburg went from strength to strength as Popp guided her side to a successful defence of the UEFA Women’s Champions League and Frauen-Bundesliga in the 2013-14 season. Whilst her Wolfsburg side may not have tasted European glory since that 2014 season, they have been the dominant force in domestic German women’s football with her side winning the German Cup for nine-straight seasons while also winning the Frauen-Bundesliga on five occasions. For the national team, Popp has also been a stalwart since her debut in 2010, scoring 62 goals in 128 appearances. Despite missing the final through injury, Popp scored eight goals as Germany went on to retain the Euros in 2013. Get all the latest Women’s World Cup odds here Having lost in the semi-finals of the 2015 World Cup, the national side would go on to claim gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics. In 2019, Popp would become captain of the national side ahead of the World Cup where they fell to Sweeden in the quarter-finals. A heartbreaking injury in the warm-up for last year’s Euros finals prevented Popp from playing as England defeated Germany in extra time. Read More FIFA Women’s World Cup fixtures and full schedule Women’s football world rankings: Who could take No 1 at the World Cup? Germany and Alexandra Popp are out for revenge - the World Cup is the perfect chance

Already one of the true legends of the women’s game, Lucy Bronze has been a regular for England since making her debut in 2013 and has played all across the park, although she is best known as a marauding right-back, overlapping Beth Mead in the Euros to often devastating effect. Born into a bilingual Portuguese-English family in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Bronze, now 31, played for Alnwick Town until she turned 12, when FA regulations prevented her from continuing to play for the boys’ team, a matter about which her coach felt so strongly he launched an unsuccessful discrimination case to challenge the rules, reluctant to lose his best player to an outmoded technicality. A multi-talented athlete in secondary school, she played at youth level for Blyth Town and Sunderland, graduating to the latter’s senior squad and winning the FA Women’s Premier League Northern Division in 2008/09 before relocating to the US to enrol at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to play for the Tar Heels, a path future LionessesAlessia Russo and Lotte Wubben-Moy would later follow. Get all the latest Women’s World Cup odds here Returning to England to complete her sports science degree at Leeds Metropolitan University, playing for the institution’s women’s team while supporting herself by working at Domino’s Pizza, Bronze then commenced her senior career in earnest with Everton in 2010. After two years, she transferred to city rivals Liverpool where she won back-to-back Women’s Super Leagues, before moving to Manchester City in 2014, where she again won the title and the FA Cup in 2016. She then moved on to France to play for all-conquering Lyon in 2017, winning the Champions League, three successive league titles, two domestic cups and finishing second in the running for the 2019 Ballon d’Or before returning to City for further cup success. A final switch to Barcelona alongside long-time teammate Keira Walsh followed last summer and the Catalans duly won the title and Champions League in Bronze’s debut season. A hugely popular and respected member of the England set up with 105 caps to her name and counting, and an Instagram account for her West Highland Terrier Narla, it could all have been so different for Lucy Bronze. As the daughter of a maths teacher, she had reportedly planned to become an accountant had football not worked out. Read More How to watch England vs Haiti: TV channel and start time for Women’s World Cup opener Women’s football world rankings: Who could take No 1 at the World Cup? FIFA Women’s World Cup fixtures and full schedule

England goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, who has just signed for Chelsea, may only be 22 but she has already packed plenty of unusual experiences into her young life. As a small child in Birmingham, Hampton was diagnosed with a strabismus, an eye condition that affects depth perception and which she underwent three surgeries to correct by the time she turned three. Then, at five, her teacher parents relocated to Spain, where she joined the Villareal youth academy, quickly learning Spanish and playing as a striker over a five-year spell. When the family returned to Britain, she transferred to Stoke City’s junior ranks and began to play in goal. After six years at Stoke, she joined Birmingham City in 2016 where she broke into the first team by proving herself a natural replacement for the German veteran Ann-Katrin Berger, becoming a first-team regular upon the latter’s retirement. Two years followed with another Midlands club, Aston Villa, before her transfer earlier this month to the West London side. She made her England debut last year in the 2022 Arnold Clark Cup draw against Spain, in which she kept a clean sheet, as she would again in her second international appearance: a 10-0 mauling of North Macedonia in April 2022. Get all the latest Women’s World Cup odds here A hugely promising keeper, Hampton will nevertheless have a major task on her hands if she hopes to usurp the mighty Mary Earps between the sticks at this World Cup. Read More How to watch England vs Haiti: TV channel and start time for Women’s World Cup opener Women’s football world rankings: Who could take No 1 at the World Cup? FIFA Women’s World Cup fixtures and full schedule