
Pep Guardiola hints at willingness to extend Man City contract
Man City manager Pep Guardiola suggested the possibility of extending his contract with the club beyond 2025. After Guardiola guided the team to a Champions League win, he said he was open to having discussions after this upcoming season.
2023-08-06 17:52

Alexandra Popp: Germany and Wolfsburg’s goal-scoring machine in profile
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
2023-07-28 23:19

The cold truth: Tyson Fury was humiliated by a ‘table-tennis champion’
When Tyson Fury claimed, days out from his fight with Francis Ngannou, that it would be like a “table-tennis champion” facing Novak Djokovic in a Wimbledon final, most fans agreed. And in the end, Fury was right – it’s just he’d gotten the labels the wrong way round. Because in the third round, it was Ngannou who clubbed him with all the might of a Djokovic backhand, and Fury’s miniature bat offered no defence whatsoever. As Fury lay on the canvas, the whites of his eyes bulging and outshining even the most ostentatious points of the evening’s opening ceremony in Riyadh, he was utterly humiliated. There really are no two ways about it. On this night in Saudi Arabia, Fury was hurt, disciplined, and embarrassed by Ngannou – the MMA star, the boxing debutant, one of the biggest underdogs in combat-sports history. The ‘Table Tennis champion of the world’, as Ngannou himself wrote on Instagram after this crossover contest. Even Andy Murray had to chime in, as Fury’s words came back to bite him with a little bit more venom. “How many points would the world No 1 squash player win vs the world No 1 tennis player, in a tennis match and vice versa?” tweeted the... well... former world No 1 tennis player. “I’m thinking close to zero for both… bad look for boxing.” In the strangest sense, it would have been better if Fury had been knocked out. At least then, the WBC heavyweight champion could have pointed to the pre-fight narrative that Ngannou’s only hope was that his notoriously hellacious power would conjure a stupefying moment of magic. Instead, the Cameroonian, 37, outboxed the Briton, 35, for phases of this fight – this boxing match, remember – and in the eyes of many in attendance, including legends of the boxing world, won enough rounds to beat Fury. Ultimately, Ngannou was denied on the scorecards, leading many viewers to echo a sentiment that has long sounded within boxing: that the underdog was never going to get the nod on a night like this, no matter how many rounds he’d seemingly taken. Yet the truth is this: As incomprehensibly well as the former UFC champion fought, this bout was razor close. Fury winning via split decision is not necessarily the wrong call. But the fact that those words even exist in that order on any medium, show that Ngannou was a victor – even if he wasn’t named the victor. Ngannou, in reality, was a victor when he escaped the sand quarry where he worked as a 10-year-old in Cameroon. He was a victor when he left prison in Spain after making it to Europe after numerous failed attempts, and when he honed his martial arts skills to the degree that he could finally leave poverty behind him, in Paris. He was a victor when he won the UFC heavyweight title, and an even greater victor when he boldly relinquished that belt and walked away from a contract that would have made him the highest-paid heavyweight in UFC history. He was a victor when he signed to fight Fury and secured a purse that eclipsed his entire UFC earnings, and he was a victor when he sent the lineal boxing heavyweight champion cascading to the canvas in Saudi Arabia – even if he wasn’t a victor when the scorecards were revealed. Fury, meanwhile, was a loser in victory. His undisputed-title clash with Oleksandr Usyk, with whom he shared the ring after ‘beating’ Ngannou, has been mooted for 23 December. It was seemingly Fury pushing for that date, while rumours suggested that Usyk would not be ready in time. But as they spoke to one another in the ring, it was the Ukrainian who demanded that they square off in two months, while Fury and his promoter distanced themselves from the date in question. Earlier this week, Fury suggested that he would “sue” Usyk if the 36-year-old did not fight him on 23 December. Now, Fury’s side are calling for January or February; so, they can expect to be sued, then? Almost certainly not, is the answer of course; there is no public proof that the date is mentioned in their contract, which is why it was silly for Fury to use it against Usyk in the first place. It is at least understandable that Fury’s team are pushing for the fight to take place next year, though. It is hard to imagine this version of Fury beating Usyk in December or at all, as different as the southpaw’s skills are when compared to Ngannou’s. And what was this version of Fury? Alongside his pre-fight table-tennis jibe, he claimed that he could have beaten Ngannou after drinking “25 pints of beer”. Here’s hoping the post-fight drug test included a breathalyzer. Read More Tyson Fury embarrassed by Francis Ngannou and the punch that changed boxing Usyk: ‘I was shouting advice to Tyson Fury’ during poor showing vs Francis Ngannou Francis Ngannou rematch or Oleksandr Usyk showdown? – Tyson Fury’s future plans Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk date in doubt as Francis Ngannou result changes plan Tyson Fury hints at next steps after Francis Ngannou victory Hearn makes bold Fury vs Joshua prediction after Ngannou win
2023-10-30 17:57

FC Cincinatti vs. Nashville SC - MLS preview: TV channel/live stream, team news & prediction
Cincinnati are set to take on Nashville, and here's everything you need to know ahead of the game.
2023-07-16 04:16

Liverpool improves midfield by landing Alexis Mac Allister
Liverpool improves midfield by landing Alexis Mac Allister
2023-06-06 01:20

Inter crash to first defeat as Osimhen boosts Napoli
Inter Milan crashed to their first defeat of the Serie A season on Wednesday, going down 2-1...
2023-09-28 05:22

NFL Rumors: Bears Justin Fields backup plan, Colts PEDs suspension, Packers move
Check out the latest NFL news, including the Chicago Bears adding a quarterback with Justin Fields injured, the Green Bay Packers making a move for a running back, and more.
2023-10-18 07:45

Nick Wright Predicted the Chiefs Would Go 20-0, Got a Tattoo About It, Lost to the Lions in Week 1
Nick Wright got a tattoo to commemorate best 0-1 NFL team ever?
2023-09-08 21:24

Jalen Hurts throws for TD, runs for another as Eagles thump Buccaneers 25-11 to remain unbeaten
Jalen Hurts threw for one touchdown and ran for another to help the Philadelphia Eagles remain unbeaten with a 25-11 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2023-09-26 10:54

Waller could provide the Giants with the big plays they lacked last season
While the New York Giants made the playoffs last season for the first time since 2016, they did it despite finishing tied for last in the NFL in completions of 25 yards or more
2023-07-29 04:15

MLB Rumors: Latest Shohei Ohtani free-agency update could change everything
The latest Shohei Ohtani free agency update could change the outlook of his future in MLB, including where he'll play next season.
2023-10-13 00:46

Browns' Denzel Ward is out of concussion protocol and will play in Sunday's opener against Bengals
Cleveland Browns cornerback Denzel Ward cleared concussion protocol and will start Sunday’s season opener against Cincinnati
2023-09-09 01:55
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