Rice and Havertz make mark as Arsenal crush MLS All Stars
Declan Rice made his Arsenal debut and Kai Havertz scored his first goal for the Gunners as Mikel Arteta's side hammered the Major League Soccer All Star team 5-0 in...
2023-07-20 11:59
Cricket helps us feel at home in Scottish Borders - refugees
Teenagers who fled Afghanistan have told the BBC playing the sport in Galashiels has made their time easier.
2023-06-12 13:29
Scheffler hooks up with putting coach and believes he's back on track for Ryder Cup
Scottie Scheffler has been the best player in the world this year, even with a poor stretch of putting
2023-09-28 02:23
Remaining Pac-12 schools throw Hail Mary to stop conference from dissolving
Washington State and Oregon State are seeking a restraining order to stop the rest of the Pac-12 from officially signing the conference's death warrant.
2023-09-09 03:45
Eddie Howe’s tactical move exposes glaring Newcastle weakness in Dortmund ‘lesson’
The Champions League has seen Newcastle at its finest, complete with the surreal vision of Sean Longstaff upstaging Kylian Mbappe. There is a temptation to imagine Dan Burn is still somewhere in the Tyneside sky, soaring above Milan Skriniar to head in against Paris Saint-Germain. There is a similar temptation to say that Newcastle were brought down to earth by Borussia Dortmund. It may be more accurate to say Eddie Howe never left it. He met one of his most celebrated predecessors, Kevin Keegan, on Monday. The former Magpies boss was a dreamer. “You have to be,” said Howe, with Keegan’s example leading him to entertain the prospect of winning the Champions League. But Howe isn’t a dreamer, not really, anyway. A day, a defeat and a downpour later, he reflected: “We have to be at our best to win and if you dip below that it is tough to get results at this level.” And in this pool, the most competitive of all, Newcastle have to be at their best to claim victory in a match, let alone the entire competition. They were against Paris Saint-Germain; they were not against Dortmund. At a stroke – the right boot of Felix Nmecha, replacing Jude Bellingham this season, or of bad luck, as Callum Wilson and Anthony Gordon both struck the woodwork – they may have been rebranded: potential winners, the team who tore PSG apart, could instead exit early. They now have successive away games, with the evidence that Dortmund are well equipped to play against them ahead of a trip to Germany next. “We're up against elite teams,” Howe said. “You make half a mistake and get punished.” If there is a truth to that – and Nmecha’s winner was scarcely the consequence of a glaring error – the greater issue was that Newcastle did not reach their heights. “We probably weren’t at our best and in this competition we have to be.” Howe said. They have days when they overwhelm opponents: 4-1 against PSG, 6-1 against Tottenham. But their quality is most evident when allied with a blur of energy. And when there isn’t that synergy of physical and technical that makes them appear unstoppable, they are a fundamentally workmanlike side who betray their origins. Which, as they spent much of a 1-0 loss to Dortmund with six players on the pitch who Howe inherited, is a group who have overachieved: look beyond the £400m spend, the concept of Saudi Arabian sportswashing and the grandiose ambitions, and some of them were in a relegation battle two years ago. A Champions League loss represented progress in that context. But if there were symbolic substitutions of the locals Longstaff and Burn, stripped of the superhuman powers they somehow possessed against PSG, perhaps the reality is that they could have been beaten twice in three games. Nick Pope’s heroics brought a point in Milan; he was similarly good against Dortmund but in vain. They have drawn a blank twice in three matches. They had a lone, late shot on target in San Siro. While they hit the woodwork twice, they only actually had three on target against Dortmund, and just one in the last 80 minutes. “In the second half the ball just wouldn’t go in for us,” Howe said. It was a legitimate lament, yet there are days when a shortage of natural creativity, of game-changing flair, of a natural No 10 can threaten to be their undoing. Edin Terzic arrowed in on Newcastle’s strengths. “A team that was pressing high with a very intense approach,” the Dortmund manager noted. It is a strategy that can serve Newcastle well but running alone did not unlock the Bundesliga’s runners-up. Moving Kieran Trippier into midfield in the second half was an attempt to get United’s best creator into a more advanced role. He may be required there more often. Sandro Tonali was not hired as a fantasista but he was designed to bring an injection of class. But his season seems over: not officially yet, but a ban beckons. Elliot Anderson has joined the injury list. In the forward line, Newcastle, already without Harvey Barnes for months, seem to be losing Jacob Murphy for a similar time with a dislocated shoulder. For Alexander Isak, a recurrence of a groin strain means he will play again soonest, but be out for a while. They are starting to look short of players. “There are some tired bodies,” Howe said. And Newcastle can require a physical edge, especially in meetings of evenly-matched teams. “A lesson in how fine the margins are going to be,” Howe rued. Particularly in Group F: this pool, of pedigree and money, of former winners and clubs who aspire to join them in that select group, may be the most intriguing. It is a product of circumstances. Newcastle’s lack of a recent record in Europe meant they were fourth seeds. Now they are plunged into peril. “The table looks very, very tight,” Howe said; his side kicked off in first, finished the night in third and could be out of the competition before they host AC Milan in it. They will always have Paris, but now the danger is their Champions League campaign in effect ends in the French capital. Read More Newcastle given Champions League reality check as summer decision returns to haunt them Eddie Howe provides update on Alexander Isak and Jacob Murphy injuries after Borussia Dortmund defeat England’s Euro 2024 squad: Who’s on the plane, who’s in contention and who has work to do?
2023-10-26 15:22
Toulouse: French soccer club excludes players after they refuse to participate in anti-homophobia campaign
French soccer team Toulouse did not select several players for its Ligue 1 game against Nantes on Sunday after they refused to participate in a league wide anti-homophobia campaign.
2023-05-15 17:59
Who is going to be on Hard Knocks in 2023? Candidates and prediction
NFL training camp is not far away, which means that one team will be covered by HBO on "Hard Knocks." Here are the four candidates to appear on the show.The start of the 2023 NFL regular season is not far off. Mandatory minicamps have begun for some teams as of this writing, which mean...
2023-06-11 11:52
Braves Rumors: Surprise reunion, Morton's problem, Sonny Gray latest
Braves Rumors: Sonny Gray was given a qualifying offer, Charlie Morton complicates things, and Jason Heyward could return.
2023-11-08 01:54
League of Legends, other esports join Asian Games in competition for the first time
The world of online gaming takes its place this year at the Asian Games as an official event for the first time, with gold medals in play across seven top titles
2023-09-23 13:24
Own goal hands Napoli late Champions League win at Braga
Napoli escaped Sporting Braga with a 2-1 win in their Champions League opener on Wednesday after a Sikou Niakate own goal handed the Italians the...
2023-09-21 05:21
Davante Adams has blunt response to speculation over happiness with Raiders
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams shut down any talk of his comments being construed by others that he's unhappy with the team.Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams has been the talk of the team's offseason, due in part to his comments about the team.In an inter...
2023-05-26 09:15
S Javon Bullard of top-ranked Georgia sits out practice with an ankle injury
Georgia safety Javon Bullard did not practice Monday after injuring his ankle in a victory over Ball State
2023-09-12 02:59
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