Rambo’s travelled – injured captain Aaron Ramsey joins Wales for Armenia trip
Rob Page hopes the presence of Aaron Ramsey can help Wales realise their Euro 2024 dream after the injured captain joined them on their long trek to Armenia. Midfielder Ramsey has not played since mid-September after damaging a knee tendon, missing last month’s stunning victory over World Cup semi-finalists Croatia that has left automatic qualification in Wales’ own hands entering the final two games. The 32-year-old, however, has taken the unusual step of an injured player being present for Wales’ 4,600-round mile trip to Yerevan, one of European football’s most remote outposts. “Rambo’s travelled with the lads, which is brilliant,” Page said ahead of Saturday’s penultimate qualifier at the Republican Stadium, scene of their only previous visit to this corner of Eastern Europe in 2001 – a game the manager played in. “It’s the presence around the changing room. I used to say it with Gareth Bale. Aaron falls into the same category for me. “The wealth of experience he’s got. Just being around young JJ (Jordan James), who can pick his brains on just about anything. He’s the captain and he’s been wanting to travel. He’s been with the group all week. “He’s done his little bits of work that he’s needed to for Cardiff. He’s got a plan and gone off and done his own bits. “We’ve had to find a training ground for him, but he wants to be around the boys and I think that speaks volumes about what we’ve got as a group.” Wales know two closing victories – already-qualified Turkey are the visitors to Cardiff on Tuesday – will see them secure qualification for a fourth tournament out of five. Dropped points will need them relying on favourable results elsewhere and the prospect of avoiding the play-offs in March where the likes of Norway, Poland and Ukraine could be lurking. “The camp has been great all week. The positivity has been incredible,” said Page, who has a difficult selection call to make with Tottenham forward Brennan Johnson available after missing the Croatia win through injury. “There’s enough experience in that changing room of big games, when you need big players to step up for big games – and this is a big game for us. “Our full focus is on this game. We’re not even talking about Tuesday’s game. We’ve got enough experience to cope with this. “We haven’t got anything where you need that siege mentality (like Wales did in October) but we’re coming off the back of one of the best performances we’ve ever had, certainly of my tenure. “We can’t be complacent, we need consistency when it comes to that level of performance. If we do that the result will look after itself.” Ben Davies, as he did against Croatia, will lead Wales in the absence of Ramsey and playing at Euro 2024 would represent the Tottenham defender’s fourth major tournament – three European Championships and the 2022 World Cup. Davies said: “This is the dream for us and it doesn’t matter if you’ve done it once or three or four times. “We’re confident as a group that on the day we can beat anybody. We’ve done that in the last two and we want to show that again. “We’re a good group, a tight-knit group, and it’s nice to see the same faces every time you come. “You end up playing as a family and I think that where our success has been gained, being a band of brothers out there.” Read More Everton hit with 10-point deduction for breaching Premier League financial rules Carlos Alcaraz sets up Novak Djokovic clash with win at ATP Tour Finals Fine finish hands Nicolai Hojgaard two-shot lead at halfway stage in Dubai Exeter captain Poppy Leitch hoping for more progress during inaugural PWR season Street Child Cricket World Cup gives youngsters chance to shine Wales v Armenia: Key talking points as Rob Page’s side face crunch qualifier
2023-11-18 00:22
Afghanistan wins the toss, sends Sri Lanka in to bat at Cricket World Cup
Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi has won the toss and sent Sri Lanka in to bat first in a Cricket World Cup game between two teams level on competition points
2023-10-30 17:26
Son Heung-min looking forward to seeing what Brennan Johnson can do at Tottenham
Tottenham captain Son Heung-min says he cannot wait to play with £47.5million deadline-day signing Brennan Johnson. The two players could be in direct opposition on Thursday when Johnson’s Wales host Son’s South Korea in a Cardiff friendly. After international duty, the pair are set to line up in the same side for the first time as Spurs seek to build on their promising start under Ange Postecoglou at home to Sheffield United on September 16. “Brennan is another new player. He showed his quality last year at Nottingham Forest and I can’t wait to see him with my eyes,” Son said of his new team-mate who will be expected to fill some of the goals void left by Harry Kane’s summer exit. “He’s a very good player and he has a very good talent. Welcome to Spurs! I can’t wait to play with him. “It’s only been four games and we’re looking to keep going in a positive way with our new signing Brennan. “When he comes to Spurs he wants to improve and go to the next step. He will feel the pressure but I can’t wait to have him in our team playing even better fast and attacking football.” Son became captain of his country in 2019 and guided them to the last 16 of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. He was handed the same role at Spurs following Kane’s departure to Bayern Munich last month. “It’s a great honour and privilege to be captain for club and country,” said Son, who scored a hat-trick in Tottenham’s 5-2 weekend win at Burnley. “Being a captain is not about words. It’s by actions. “I have to prove it and show to my team-mates and the team that I can be the leader of the team on and off the pitch. Being a captain is not about words. It's by actions Son Heung-min “I have great players around me with my country and at Tottenham. It was great to score at the weekend. “But I’m always calm and I never rush when I’m not scoring for a few games because I have 10 players behind me and that’s why we all love football. They help me to become a better person, player and captain.” South Korea are managed by former Tottenham hero Jurgen Klinsmann and the World Cup winner believes they can end their trophy drought under new boss Postecoglou. Spurs have not won a trophy since the 2008 League Cup. The former Germany striker said: “We all know what’s happening in the league and how dominant Man City is at the moment and how difficult it is. “I look at last year and Arsenal were amazing but I see a team that is not less quality than Arsenal in this Spurs side. “They have a fantastic coach now, a manager who is a good people person and why can’t they surprise a lot of people this year? “Son’s goal and his team-mates’ goal is to win trophies. It’s been a long time for Spurs but you start every year with this goal and ambition in mind. The players and coach have that. “I’m a follower and I keep my fingers crossed as one of their biggest fans. I hope they are successful and win something.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Arsenal beat Linkoping in Champions League qualifying John Dalziel urges Scotland not to allow South Africa to bully them Jonny Bairstow does not expect England to lack cohesion in World Cup defence
2023-09-07 02:24
3 Florida Gators to blame for season-opening loss to Utah
Despite out-gaining Utah by nearly 100 yards, the Florida Gators never really stood a chance against the Utes, losing their first game of the season.
2023-09-01 23:50
LSU stars Angel Reese and Olivia Dunne steal the spotlight at SI Swimsuit launch in New York City
Angel Reese and Olivia Dunne have made their debut in this year's issue, becoming the first college athletes ever to be featured in SI Swimsuit
2023-05-23 05:49
Washington, Michael Penix Jr. win final Pac-12 championship: Best memes and tweets
One spot in the College Football Playoff is locked up thanks to Michael Penix Jr and the Washington Huskies.
2023-12-03 05:50
Farce amid the failure: How 2023 saw Leeds fall apart
The taunts came from 40 miles apart, some from a different game altogether. Perhaps it is a sign of Leeds’ prominence and of their size that their failings bring such schadenfreude. The chorus from Old Trafford was familiar, but it has rarely been truer. “Leeds are falling apart again,” sang the Manchester United fans. And so, at Elland Road, chanted the Tottenham supporters. They weren’t wrong. In 2023, Leeds have lost two managers, their director of football and their Premier League status. They may yet lose prospective owners if the San Francisco 49ers decide they do not want a Championship club. They may be stripped of a host of players, if some of Rodrigo, Jack Harrison, Wilfried Gnonto, Tyler Adams, Luis Sinisterra and Robin Koch are poached by top-flight clubs; each is good enough to remain in the division. Leeds were not. Majority shareholder Andrea Radrizzani had called relegation “impossible” at the start of the season; it became inevitable by the end. Radrizzani had said in 2021 he wanted European football within three years and Leeds face a lengthy journey next season: it is 322 miles to Plymouth. Whether Radrizzani, who has just bought a stake in Sampdoria, is still at the helm remains to be seen. Leeds are falling apart off the pitch. They fell apart on it, too. In 13th place when they won their 29th game of the season, they took a mere two points from the remaining nine. They conceded 29 goals in that time. They fell apart defensively, letting in 18 goals in their last five matches under Javi Gracia and 11 in four under Sam Allardyce, the supposed defensive strategist. Scroll back a couple of years and Leeds were the neutrals’ favourites. Marcelo Bielsa’s team were cavaliers. Allardyce approached a must-win game with six defenders in his starting 11. Leeds still conceded four times to Tottenham. It summed up the shift in identity, or indeed the loss of one. Under Bielsa, Leeds had the clearest, most idiosyncratic philosophy of all: ultra attacking, very high tempo, man-marking all over the pitch. Jesse Marsch was Bielsa’s successor but not his heir; under Gracia and Allardyce, they abandoned many of their pressing principles but without replacing them with anything coherent. “What is the strategy of the club?” Allardyce asked after relegation. In its own way, his own appointment confirmed there is none now, beyond pressing the panic button. There was an element of farce amid the failures. A strategy? Two of Leeds’ coaching staff, Allardyce and Robbie Keane, met at Soccer Aid. Allardyce’s four weeks have included the suggestion no manager is better than him, which he hailed as a masterly deflection strategy, complaints about jury duty and the revelations of his concerns about climate change and AI. He picked up a £5 note from the touchline at West Ham and £500,000 for four weeks’ work; it worked out at £500,000 per point. Some at Leeds had laughed when Allardyce put himself forward for the job in February; they weren’t laughing in early May when they turned to him out of desperation. Chief executive Angus Kinnear wanted him, director of football Victor Orta did not. The season was a hubristic fiasco for both, for Radrizzani, for Leeds in general. Allardyce was a symptom as much as a cause, a four-game exercise in wishful thinking. Leeds had lined up Marsch to succeed Bielsa, perhaps overlooking better candidates, and no one to replace the American; neither Andoni Iraola nor Arne Slot wanted to be parachuted into a relegation battle mid-season, each perhaps thinking he had better options. They can count the cost of two terrible striking decisions: Jean-Kevin Agustin’s 48 minutes of football in a loan spell in 2020 will cost around £40mn while January’s £35m signing Georginio Rutter made one league start and did not register a shot on target. So Leeds spent £150m to regress this season. They did so with several signings who did not work – Weston McKennie, Brenden Aaronson, Rasmus Kristensen, Rutter - and it in different ways: losing 25 points from winning positions reflected badly on Marsch and his inability to bring any kind of control. It was also a sign of defensive ineptitude: after conceding 79 goals last season, Leeds let in a further 78. A mere five clean sheets, none in the last 14 games, suggested Orta was a poor judge of a defender – Junior Firpo, a disaster of a left-back, is a particular indictment – and showed what a troubled season Illan Meslier had. “Professional suicide,” said Allardyce and if he was talking about the Spurs game, the comment applied to much of the season. Leeds can wonder if it would have been different but for Patrick Bamford’s missed penalty against Newcastle. The real turning point of the season felt Crystal Palace’s burst of five goals in 32 minutes. Yet problems multiplied: Allardyce said they lacked strength in depth while Luke Ayling questioned their fitness after defeat to West Ham. They were running machines under Bielsa, perhaps burnt out by the end of his reign, while struggling to turn kick and rush into a winning strategy under Marsch. Sporadically, it looked brilliant: August’s demolition of Chelsea was emphatic, October’s win at Anfield historic. But Chelsea finished their own worst season for decades by retrieving Leeds’ messages from last summer to quote-tweet them; schadenfreude abounded at Stamford Bridge, too. Leeds should have more serious concerns. The last time they dropped out of the Premier League, it took them 16 years to return. Unlike in 2004, they are not in financial peril now. But, after a season when Leeds’ plans went horribly wrong, they need an owner, a manager, a director of football and a strategy. Read More Leeds’ relegation confirmed as Harry Kane hits double in Tottenham win How the final day played out as Everton survive and Leicester relegated with Leeds Premier League 2022/23 season awards: Best player, manager, transfer flop and breakthrough act
2023-05-29 17:48
Football rumours: Roma make approach for Youri Tielemans
What the papers say Leicester have reportedly been approached over a potential transfer for Youri Tielemans. According to the Leicester Mercury, citing a report from La Gazetta dello Sport, Roma have made enquiries about the 26-year-old midfielder’s potential availability come the end of the season. Several other clubs, including Paris St Germain and Arsenal, have also shown interest in the out-of-contract Belgian. Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves is off to the Camp Nou, according to The Sun. Via Spanish outlet Sport, the paper says the 26-year-old has agreed to a four-year deal with Barcelona, with Wolves’ sign off on the deal contingent on getting forward Ansu Fati in return. The 20-year-old is reportedly yet to agree to the move. The Telegraph reports Nottingham Forest are set to pursue a permanent deal for on-loan Manchester United goalkeeper Dean Henderson. The 26-year-old is believed to be keen on the idea, but the situation will ultimately be determined by David de Gea‘s future at Old Trafford. And The Sun says Crystal Palace are keen on making a move for Bournemouth midfielder Jefferson Lerma. Social media round-up Players to watch Dusan Vlahovic: Chelsea have made a £70m offer for the Juventus striker, according to ESPN. Habib Diarra: The Sun reports Wolves and Aston Villa are both in the running to sign the Strasbourg midfielder. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live
2023-05-22 14:54
Dodgers' Freddie Freeman reaches 200 hits for first time in his career
Freddie Freeman reached 200 hits for the first time in his career with a single in the first inning
2023-09-23 11:26
Nigerian hero denies Canada but no Philippines World Cup fairytale
Goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie was the hero for Nigeria to earn them a point against Canada at the Women's World Cup on Friday but there was to be...
2023-07-21 15:21
Black Friday for Jets as Dolphins triumph in New York
The Miami Dolphins won the first ever NFL game played on "Black Friday" with a convincing 34-13 victory at...
2023-11-25 07:59
Dodgers capitalize on Giants' physical and mental blunders to win 7-2
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2023-09-22 13:17
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