List of All Articles with Tag 'eppersons'

Lennard Kamna completed a trilogy of Grand Tour stage wins in a breakaway victory as he took the ninth stage of the...

Runaway Formula One leader Max Verstappen has secured a record-breaking 10th straight win with victory at the Italian Grand Prix with a Red Bull one-two on Ferrari’s home track

Lewis Hamilton admitted he was at fault for the collision with Oscar Piastri in the latter stages of Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix and has apologised to the Australian driver. Hamilton and Piastri were fighting for eighth position on lap 41 of the 51-lap race and, coming out of the Curva Grande, the two cars were side-by-side and touched with the Mercedes squeezing the McLaren on the outside and both having to take to the escape road. It was an incident which ruined Piastri’s race, having to pit for a new front nose and dropping outside the top-10, with Hamilton promptly receiving a five-second penalty from the stewards. Ultimately, the penalty did not impact Hamilton – who finished sixth – while Piastri finished 12th. “I misjudged the gap I had with Piastri right at the end,” Hamilton said. “It was totally my fault. “I apologised to him straight afterwards and we move on.” Piastri, though disappointed with the race-impacting clash, seemed satisfied with Hamilton’s apology. “He creeped over a bit more than he thought,” Piastri said. “The stewards gave their verdict and Lewis apologised and nothing more I can ask for or do at that point.” Max Verstappen won a record-breaking 10th race in a row in another Red Bull one-two victory, with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz holding off his team-mate for the final podium place.

Mohamed Salah ignored the Saudi Arabian spotlight focused on him with a goal and an impressive all-round performance in Liverpool’s comfortable 3-0 Premier League rout of Aston Villa which showed his commitment and desire has not wavered. A rejected £150million bid from Al-Ittihad on Friday merely sparked reports the Pro League champions would return with a world-record offer – with their transfer window open until Thursday – but while the speculation continues, the Egypt international got on with what he is good at. This was his 188th goal in 308 appearances, 139th in 222 Premier League matches, his seventh in seven games against Villa and the 150th different game in which he had found the target. His close-range poacher’s finish at a corner made the result safe but even with the game won inside an hour, he was still chasing lost causes on an afternoon when scorching temperatures inside Anfield resembled Saudi Arabia on one of its cooler days. But while Salah provided the killer blow with the third goal, the architect of the victory was Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose corner saw Dominki Szoboszlai open the scoring with his first goal for the club and then a clever whipped pass over the top released Salah – which ultimately resulted in a Matty Cash own goal. However, the sight of him limping off and straight down the tunnel with 20 minutes to go will be of some concern as manager Jurgen Klopp has no one else who can do what he currently does. Klopp himself marked his 300th Premier League match with his 188th victory, losing just 43, but as he stressed in his programme notes when urging fans not to sing his song until after the final whistle, the focus was on the players. This was only the second of seven league matches Liverpool had won without Virgil Van Dijk, currently suspended, but wearing the armband in his place, local lad Alexander-Arnold led by example. However, even he could not have anticipated his third-minute corner reaching Szoboszlai untouched by anyone but the Hungary captain, who arrived from RB Leipzig with a reputation for scoring from distance, made sure the right-back got full value for his delivery. As the ball dropped to him on the edge of the box the 22-year-old hit a sweet, controlled left-footed shot which, on its way back also evaded the crowd to nestle inside the returning Emi Martinez’s left-hand post. Alexander-Arnold was the instigator of Liverpool’s second but it was the helping hand from Salah, for whom the Kop sang their first song in the 10th minute, chasing his brilliant pass with greater determination than Pau Torres which presented the chance for Nunez. The Uruguay international scuffed a shot against the post but the rebound went in off the unfortunate Cash. Liverpool’s right-back-cum-playmaker should have had another assist when he opted to cross a free-kick in prime shooting territory only to find the worst possible option in Joel Matip, whose free header never even threatened the target. Villa – who lost Diego Carlos to injury midway through the first half – saw John McGinn and substitute Leon Bailey (twice) miss their best chances but the final 20 minutes of the first half was played in a bizarre atmosphere with the visitors sitting off, Liverpool at walking pace and the crowd subdued. Nunez can always be relied upon to liven things up though and he smashed a shot against the crossbar from the narrowest of angles after the offside Salah’s clever decision not to chase Alexander-Arnold’s ball over the top. Early in the second half, Alisson Becker parried away Cash’s close-range header on the line before Salah broke down the right, leaving the collapsing Lucas Digne in his wake, to produce a sublime outside-of-the-left-foot cross to the far post – which Nunez somehow managed to bundle wide. But Salah was not to be denied and from Andy Roberton’s 55th-minute corner, Nunez flicked on the ball to the far post for the Egyptian to blast home from close range for the biggest cheer of the day. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live England need 203 to beat New Zealand at Edgbaston and wrap up T20 series Michael Beale urges Rangers to ‘dust themselves down’ and be ready after break I have been placed on death watch by the media – Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers

Mamadou Fall signs for Barcelona on loan from LAFC.

Mohamed Salah has put aside intense speculation about his future by scoring again for Liverpool in its dominant 3-0 win over Aston Villa that made it three straight victories in the Premier League for Jürgen Klopp's team

The teams with the biggest chance of winning the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League using Opta's analytics.

Player ratings from Liverpool's comfortable 3-0 win over Aston Villa at Anfield in the Premier League.

Max Verstappen drove his way into the Formula One history books by taking his 10th-consecutive victory at Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix. Verstappen sat behind Carlos Sainz for 14 of the 51 laps at Monza’s Temple of Speed before fighting his way past the Ferrari pole-sitter at the second chicane. From there, the commanding Dutchman never looked back to better the mark he shared with Sebastian Vettel and become the first driver in Formula One to reach double figures for straight victories. Sergio Perez finished second in the other Red Bull, while Sainz held off team-mate Charles Leclerc in a tantalising late battle between the Ferrari drivers to take the final spot on the podium. George Russell finished fifth with Lewis Hamilton, who served a five-second penalty for colliding with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, sixth. “That is history,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner to his superstar driver. “Unbelievable.” Verstappen’s 12th win from the 14 rounds so far moves him 145 points clear in the championship. Unbeaten since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on April 30, there remains an outside chance the 25-year-old could be crowned champion of the world for a third time as early as the Japanese Grand Prix in three weeks with half-a-dozen rounds still remaining. Sainz lit up Ferrari’s home track by taking pole position and kept the dream alive of a victory in front of the Italian team’s 80,000-strong crowd by holding off Verstappen on the 500-metre drag to the opening Variante del Rettifilo. Verstappen was the filling in a Ferrari sandwich with Leclerc maintaining third spot ahead of Mercedes’ Russell and Perez. Hamilton started eighth but dropped one position on the first lap. Such has been the superiority of Verstappen’s Red Bull machine this year, Sainz was expected to be easy prey for the all-conquering Dutchman. But to Verstappen’s surprise, Sainz was not prepared to make life easy for the double world champion. On lap six, Verstappen was handed his first opportunity, drawing alongside Sainz on the 220mph run to the first chicane, only for the Spaniard to slam the door in his face. “That was naughty,” said Verstappen. Three laps later, Verstappen was back on the intercom. “They have a lot of top speed, for f*** sake,” he said. Further back and Russell’s mirrors were occupied by the other Red Bull of Perez. Asked to manage his rubber, the Englishman replied: “I don’t know if you can see, but I have got a car right up my a***.” Up front and Verstappen sensed another chance to take the lead on lap 15. A defensive Sainz locked up at the Variante del Rettifilo, handing Verstappen the exit speed on the 200mph charge to the Variante della Roggia. The Red Bull and Ferrari machines were separated by mere centimetres as they went toe-to-toe into the second chicane before Verstappen, benefiting from the inside line, emerged in the lead. Remarkably, Sainz’s 14 laps in the lead was the highest in any event this season by a non-Red Bull driver. The team from Milton Keynes could yet become the first team to go an entire campaign unbeaten with eight races to run. On lap 16, Perez moved up to fourth with Russell – struggling for top-line speed in his Mercedes – unable to keep the Red Bull behind. With Verstappen cruising imperiously to victory, Perez moved up third after seeing off Leclerc. The Mexican set about passing Sainz, and, after a number of failed attempts, he finally blasted past the Ferrari with five laps remaining to ensure a one-two for Red Bull. After emerging from his tyre stop in 10th, Hamilton moved ahead of Fernando Alonso before banging wheels with Piastri in the battle for eighth. Hamilton was hit with a penalty for the incident at the Variante della Roggia as Piastri pitted for a new front wing. “He just turned across me under braking,” bemoaned the Australian rookie. Undeterred by his sanction, Hamilton then raced ahead of Lando Norris before moving past Alex Albon’s Williams to take sixth, finishing 7.4 seconds clear to ensure his penalty had no impact on his result. Albon finished seventh ahead of Norris, with Alonso ninth. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz gets goosebumps after landing pole for Italian Grand Prix Carlos Sainz’s pace in practice gives Ferrari fans hope for Italian Grand Prix How Max Verstappen equalled Sebastien Vettel’s record for consecutive race wins

New ground, even for Max Verstappen. A 10th Formula 1 victory in a row – breaking Sebastian Vettel’s record from 10 years ago – and another win at the home of Ferrari. But the Monza crowd were treated under the blazing Italian sunshine on Sunday to some brilliant racing at the front of the field throughout. To the end, the battles ensued. While Sergio Perez close to the end came home to take second and secure a Red Bull one-two, Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc continued to squabble for that final podium spot. In the end, pole-sitter Sainz kept hold of a very much deserved third position. The Spaniard’s first podium of the season. Mercedes were the next-best of the rest in fifth and sixth for George Russell and Lewis Hamilton respectively, while Alex Albon drove one of the defensive races of his life to keep hold of P7 from the McLaren of Lando Norris. This one wasn’t as comfortable as many that have gone by for the Dutchman. At the home of Ferrari, the opening 45 minutes was enthralling. Amid the red smoke of the excitable tifosi at Monza, out of nowhere a delay. Yuki Tsunoda’s AlphaTauri car broke down on the formation lap, resulting in a 20-minute delay to the start of the race. But when the lights eventually went out, it was clean and tidy throughout the pack. Sainz – leading race laps for the first time in 2023 – did well to hold off Verstappen, first after a surge down the outside from the Dutchman in lap six, and then continuously down the home straight. “They have a lot of top speed down the straights!” noted Verstappen. A sense of shock in the Dutchman’s cockpit. But by lap 15, coming out of turn 1 and around the Curva Grande, Sainz could not hold no more. To the disappointment of the thousands in the stands, despite a valiant fight, the route for Verstappen to history was no longer obscured. The battle, as it so often has been this season, was then behind the champion-in-waiting. All the pack – bar Hamilton – pitted onto hard tyres from mediums and the order was largely restored. The question now was, could the Ferraris hold off Sergio Perez, storming around in the second Red Bull? In the end, the answer was no. Of course it was no. Red Bull have been peerless this season and – with a 15th win in a row overall, a 14th win this season – are still on track for an unprecedented faultless campaign. The common theme prevailed, with Perez first taking Leclerc down the home straight into turn one before Sainz – despite once more defending brilliantly, positioning his car exquisitely in the right spot – eventually had to concede with 10 laps to go. But this final race of the European stint remained intoxicating. Squabbles between the two McLarens for position saw Norris clip team-mate Oscar Piastri, while both Russell and Hamilton received five-second penalties; at fault for two separate incidents. Hamilton’s overtake late on of Albon means it was, in the end, irrelevant. What is not irrelevant is the significance of Red Bull’s and Verstappen’s achievement. Race-by-race, tearing up the record books. The route back for the rest remains some way away. Read More F1 Italian Grand Prix LIVE: Race updates and times at Monza F1 Italian Grand Prix: When is practice on Friday in Monza? Alonso makes Hamilton claim: ‘I’d stay with him until he’s 80 years old’

Kyogo Furuhashi’s late first-half strike gave Celtic a crucial 1-0 Scottish Premiership win over Rangers in the Old Firm derby at Ibrox to heap pressure on Gers boss Michael Beale. The Light Blues had the ball in the net twice in the first half but on both occasions the ‘goals’ were not allowed to stand – offside and a foul picked up by VAR – but Furuhashi could have scored twice before he fired the visitors in front just before the break. There were no travelling supporters – Celtic rejected the offer of around 700 tickets, citing safety concerns – but that seemed to hinder rather than help the home side at times as they tried in vain to get back on level terms. After just four league fixtures, leaders Celtic are already four points ahead of their Old Firm rivals going into the international break and the spotlight will be on Beale, who must have heard the boos ring out at the final whistle. For Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers, who was under some pressure himself after his team lost to Kilmarnock in the Viaplay Cup and then drew at home to St Johnstone, it was a return to the overwhelmingly positive derby results he enjoyed in his first spell as Parkhead boss. Rangers had been knocked out of the Champions League qualifiers by PSV Eindhoven in midweek on a 7-3 aggregate, a result which brought the doom-mongers back to Beale’s door. Dujon Sterling took over from the injured left-back Borna Barisic in Rangers’ line-up while midfielder Ryan Jack and striker Kemar Roofe returned with Jose Cifuentes and John Lundstram dropping out, while winger Liel Abada replaced Yang Hyun-Jun in Celtic’s XI. There were only seconds on the clock when Rangers striker Cyriel Dessers set up Rabbi Matondo to knock the ball into the Celtic net, but the former was offside. An expected Rangers onslaught failed to materialise. Celtic were calmer in possession and in the 16th minute Hoops skipper Callum McGregor sent Abada down the right and his cross could not bring a clean connection from Furuhashi just yards from goal. When home defender John Souttar lost possession, Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley sent Furuhashi clear but his angled drive was blocked by a combination of Ibrox goalkeeper Jack Butland and Light Blues centre-back Connor Goldson. Moments later, Rangers had the ball in the net again. When Celtic defender Gustaf Lagerbielke was challenged by Dessers just inside the Hoops half the ball broke clear for the Rangers attacker and he raced on before squaring the ball for Roofe, who took a touch before firing past Celtic keeper Joe Hart. When referee Don Robertson checked the pitchside monitor at the behest of the VAR, he ruled the goal out for a foul on the Parkhead defender, albeit it looked soft. Furuhashi eventually got on target seconds before the interval when O’Riley returned a Goldson header into the path of the Japan striker who confidently drove the ball past Butland to silence Ibrox. An early second-half mistake by Goldson gifted the ball to Abada and his angled shot was just missed at the back post by Daizen Maeda. Amid some huffing and puffing from Rangers, Butland had to save a decent drive from Holm on a Celtic break. As the Govan side kept pressing, Hart raced out to foil Sam Lammers before denying Danilo twice from close range as Celtic held on for the win. Read More Arsenal vs Man Utd LIVE: Latest Premier League updates Erling Haaland admits Man City’s controversial second goal against Fulham was offside Mason Greenwood can ‘recover his professional status’ in Spain, says Getafe boss Arsenal vs Man Utd LIVE: Latest Premier League updates Erling Haaland admits Man City’s controversial second goal against Fulham was offside Mason Greenwood can ‘recover his professional status’ in Spain, says Getafe boss

Kyogo Furuhashi’s late first-half strike gave Celtic a crucial 1-0 cinch Premiership win over Rangers at Ibrox to heap pressure on Gers boss Michael Beale. The Light Blues had the ball in the net twice in the first half but on both occasions the ‘goals’ were not allowed to stand – offside and a foul picked up by VAR – but Furuhashi could have scored twice before he fired the visitors in front just before the break. There were no travelling supporters – Celtic rejected the offer of around 700 tickets, citing safety concerns – but that seemed to hinder rather than help the home side at times as they tried in vain to get back on level terms. After just four league fixtures, leaders Celtic are already four points ahead of their Old Firm rivals going into the international break and the spotlight will be on Beale, who must have heard the boos ring out at the final whistle. For Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers, who was under some pressure himself after his team lost to Kilmarnock in the Viaplay Cup and then drew at home to St Johnstone, it was a return to the overwhelmingly positive derby results he enjoyed in his first spell as Parkhead boss. Rangers had been knocked out of the Champions League qualifiers by PSV Eindhoven in midweek on a 7-3 aggregate, a result which brought the doom-mongers back to Beale’s door. Dujon Sterling took over from the injured left-back Borna Barisic in Rangers’ line-up while midfielder Ryan Jack and striker Kemar Roofe returned with Jose Cifuentes and John Lundstram dropping out, while winger Liel Abada replaced Yang Hyun-Jun in Celtic’s XI. There were only seconds on the clock when Rangers striker Cyriel Dessers set up Rabbi Matondo to knock the ball into the Celtic net, but the former was offside. An expected Rangers onslaught failed to materialise. Celtic were calmer in possession and in the 16th minute Hoops skipper Callum McGregor sent Abada down the right and his cross could not bring a clean connection from Furuhashi just yards from goal. When home defender John Souttar lost possession, Celtic midfielder Matt O’Riley sent Furuhashi clear but his angled drive was blocked by a combination of Ibrox goalkeeper Jack Butland and Light Blues centre-back Connor Goldson. Moments later, Rangers had the ball in the net again. When Celtic defender Gustaf Lagerbielke was challenged by Dessers just inside the Hoops half the ball broke clear for the Rangers attacker and he raced on before squaring the ball for Roofe, who took a touch before firing past Celtic keeper Joe Hart. When referee Don Robertson checked the pitchside monitor at the behest of the VAR, he ruled the goal out for a foul on the Parkhead defender, albeit it looked soft. Furuhashi eventually got on target seconds before the interval when O’Riley returned a Goldson header into the path of the Japan striker who confidently drove the ball past Butland to silence Ibrox. An early second-half mistake by Goldson gifted the ball to Abada and his angled shot was just missed at the back post by Daizen Maeda. Amid some huffing and puffing from Rangers, Butland had to save a decent drive from Holm on a Celtic break. As the Govan side kept pressing, Hart raced out to foil Sam Lammers before denying Danilo twice from close range as Celtic held on for the win. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Prop, scrum-half and full-back – the World Cup selection dilemmas facing England Wales centre Mason Grady has tough family act to follow at first Rugby World Cup Tributes paid to former Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak after his death aged 49