List of All Articles with Tag 'son'

Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland and his Hibernian counterpart Kevin Nisbet have both been included in the Scotland squad for the next month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers against Norway and Georgia. The Edinburgh-based pair take the places of Stoke’s Jacob Brown, who missed the end of the Championship season with a hamstring issue, and Southampton forward Che Adams, who recently suffered a recurrence of the ankle injury he sustained in Scotland’s win over Cyprus. Shankland, who previously made four appearances in 2019 and 2020, was called back into the fold for the Spain game in March and he has kept his place at the end of a season in which he has scored 28 goals for Hearts. Nisbet, who won all of his 10 caps in 2021, is recalled for the first time since damaging his anterior cruciate ligament in February 2022. The 26-year-old has scored 12 goals for Hibs since returning to action in December. Rangers defender John Souttar is recalled after missing much of the season through injury. The 26-year-old, who has not played for the national team since last summer’s Nations League defeat in Ireland, takes the place of Norwich City centre-back Grant Hanley, who has been sidelined with an Achilles problem since early April. Blackburn centre-back Dom Hyam has retained his place after earning a late call-up for the last camp in March, while Steve Clarke has opted for consistency in the goalkeeping department with Angus Gunn, Zander Clark and Liam Kelly again called up in the absence of Craig Gordon, who remains sidelined as he tries to fight back from a double leg-break sustained on Christmas Eve. Scotland, who are top of Group A with two wins from their two games so far, face Norway in Oslo on Saturday, June 17 before welcoming Georgia to Hampden three days later. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Ghana international Kamaldeen Sulemana scored a stunning goal for relegated Southampton as they bowed out of the Premier League after a thrilling 4-4 draw with...

Alexis Mac Allister was overcome with emotion after a potential farewell to Brighton on the final day of the Premier League season. Brighton secured sixth spot and a place in next season’s Europa League despite a defeat to Aston Villa as they closed an excellent season. The club overcame significant upheaval early in the campaign after Graham Potter was lured to Chelsea, with Roberto De Zerbi’s installation as manager proving inspired as he led the club into Europe for the first time. Mac Allister, also a key part of Argentina’s World Cup triumph in December, has proved influential in midfield, and has now been heavily linked with a move away from the club. And the midfielder was left in tears after featuring for perhaps the final time in a Brighton shirt, embracing his manager De Zerbi and saluting the supporters. The 24-year-old has been particularly connected with a switch to Liverpool, who are on the hunt for a midfield refresh with Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain among those leaving the Merseyside club this summer. Manchester United and Chelsea are also said to be monitoring the talented Mac Allister. De Zerbi indicated after the Aston Villa defeat that he expected to lose both the Argentinian and his midfield colleague Moises Caicedo. “I think that can be the last game of Alexis and Moises, I’m really sorry,” said De Zerbi. “They are two great people and two great players. “The policy of Brighton is like this,” added De Zerbi. “I think it’s right they can leave, can change teams and play in a level higher. “We are ready. We have to find others big players to play without Alexis and Moises.” Read More Everton’s season – and future – was saved by Sean Dyche’s own brand of creativity James Ward-Prowse, James Maddison and 16 Premier League transfer targets after relegation Premier League 2022/23 season awards: Best player, manager, transfer flop and breakthrough act Unai Emery toasts ‘champagne moment’ as Aston Villa book European adventure Aston Villa end European exile as victory over Brighton secures seventh place Roberto De Zerbi preparing for busy summer building competitive Brighton squad

Newcastle are confident Bruno Guimaraes will sign a new contract despite interest from Barcelona.

Mason Mount has sent a message to Chelsea fans after the 1-1 draw with Newcastle.

As Memorial Day arrives, some of the weaker teams in baseball are still very much within striking distance in the postseason race

Are there two better words in professional sports than Game 7?That’s what we have in the Eastern Conference Finals with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line on Monday night.The Boston Celtics need a win to become the first team in NBA history to come back from a 3-0 series deficit, and...

Kylian Mbappe confirmed he is staying at PSG next season despite interest from Real Madrid.

Mikel Arteta has challenged Arsenal to improve and show they are the real deal again next season. The Gunners ended a campaign of obvious progress with a 5-0 thrashing of Wolves on the final day, which meant they finished only five points behind champions Manchester City. Arsenal had been top of the Premier League for 248 days before a run of two wins in eight fixtures during the closing weeks of the season saw their title quest end on the penultimate weekend. Finishing as runners-up behind City means Champions League football will return to the Emirates for the first time since 2017 and, while Arteta was delighted to achieve their initial goal this season, he is well aware of the work required to kick on this summer. “We wanted to bring the club back to the Champions League, that was the main target,” he said. “That was obviously a big demand in the summer before we did certain things and before we managed to keep some of our players. “Then the journey started and day by day, you start to have a feeling that the team is moving in the right direction and the energy and spirit is really good. Then you start to generate some belief. “We didn’t expect to finish where we are. I think it’s the third best record in the club, with the history of the club, the most wins ever. “It’s a lot but it’s still not enough to win it. We understand where the level is. If we want to be the real deal, we can’t be happy with what we have, and we have to be next season much better. “I think we have some great foundations, that is true but in sport you have to prove it again. I think we have some great foundations, that is true but in sport you have to prove it again Mikel Arteta “You have to be back in the first day of pre-season and look at each other and I don’t want to see any complacency or, ‘we’ve done really well and its OK’. “We are going to have to be much better. It will be a challenging season but a season with plenty of opportunities and one of those opportunities is to be consistent, to do it again and be better. This is what we have to demand from each other.” Gabriel Jesus was on target against Wolves with Bukayo Saka, Jakub Kiwior and Granit Xhaka also scoring, the latter netting twice in what is expected to be his final appearance for Arsenal. Jesus’ second-half header ensured he finished his debut campaign for the Gunners with 11 goals and he is excited about the direction the club are heading. He told the official club website: “It was good. Unfortunately, we didn’t win a trophy which was our target, but I think we had a good season, very good. “We are building a good atmosphere from inside and outside, the fans coming with us always supporting, pushing us. “I am so excited (for next season). I was a little bit unlucky about my injury, I missed a big part of the season but my mentality has always been my fitness and then to help my team, so next my main target is to be fit all season and help my team.” There remains a large degree of uncertainty for Wolves ahead of next season with boss Julen Lopetegui revealing Joao Moutinho, Adama Traore and Diego Costa could leave on free transfers due to the club’s financial problems. “This is a problem. You have players that you want to re-sign but you can’t because it is like a new signing in the financial terms,” the Spaniard explained. “I am not a financial adviser, I am a coach. We will see. “I know the sporting directors, they have to work very, very hard these five months and they have different targets for the squad but to execute any target, you need to know how much money you have. If not, it is impossible.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Jude Bellingham named Bundesliga player of the season I am full of energy – Jurgen Klopp says he does not need break from management Budapest gold is ‘pipe dream’ as Eilish McColgan bids to break 30-minute barrier

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

Jude Bellingham has been named the Bundesliga’s player of the season. The England midfielder won the award just two days after his club Borussia Dortmund missed out on the Bundesliga title to Bayern Munich on goal difference. Bellingham has made more than 130 appearances since joining Dortmund from Birmingham for just over £20million three years ago. “Every year or half year that I’ve played at the club, my responsibility in the team has increased,” Bellingham was quoted as saying on the official Bundesliga website. “I have to continue to be everywhere on the pitch and try my best to contribute going forwards and backwards and try and control games, try to dominate the midfield. “My teammates, the coaches and the staff have helped me to develop. “I came to the club as a talented lad, but I have added elements to my game that have taken it to the next level and I think that’s down to them, mainly.” Bellingham, who turns 20 next month, captained Dortmund this season to become the club’s youngest-ever skipper and scored 14 goals in all competitions. He has been strongly linked to a move away from Germany this summer, with Real Madrid reportedly leading the race for his signature. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Jurgen Klopp insists he does not need a break from Premier League management following a disappointing campaign with Liverpool. The Reds missed out on Champions League qualification after finishing outside the top four for the first time in a full season under the German. Sunday’s thrilling 4-4 draw at relegated Southampton stretched Liverpool’s unbeaten top-flight run to 11 games but the late resurgence was not enough to make up for earlier poor results. Klopp, the division’s longest-serving manager, maintains he is “full of energy” and ready to revive the club’s fortunes going into the summer. Asked if he needs time off, the Reds boss replied: “No, no, no, not at all. Honestly, I’m completely fine. “If you’d asked me 11 games ago, ‘do you want to have a break?’, I would have thought about it, to be honest. “But I’m absolutely fine, full of energy. “I have a break – I don’t have training and these kind of things. But a really busy period hopefully starts now in a different area of the game. I’m more than happy to do that. “I will find time to reenergise and then we start again in July.” Liverpool’s fifth-placed finish was their lowest since they finished eighth in 2015-16 – the season during which Klopp replaced Brendan Rodgers at Anfield. The Reds looked destined to sign off this term in style following early strikes from Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino at St Mary’s. But quick-fire second-half finishes from substitute Cody Gakpo and Jota were required to avoid a major shock after Kamaldeen Sulemana’s double and goals from James Ward-Prowse and Adam Armstrong turned a chaotic contest in Southampton’s favour. Klopp believes his club has stuck together during some difficult moments and is determined that they regain a fear factor for rival sides. “There is not a lot to learn (from the season) but a lot of clubs when the expectations are as high as ours when things don’t go well pretty quickly you start blaming each other,” he said. “That didn’t happen here. I'm absolutely fine, full of energy Jurgen Klopp “The better you behave in a crisis, the better you get out of it – and I really thought that was the case for us. “We’re really, really not happy about it and for a club like us it’s massive not to qualify for the Champions League. “If we improve, we are all of a sudden again a team nobody wants to play against and that’s what we have to become again. “There were a lot of games in the season where I think teams were happy to face us. That’s actually the worst thing that can happen to you and I hated these moments. But that’s over and now let’s start again.” Southampton are preparing for life in the Sky Bet Championship following an exhilarating end to a dismal season. Saints manager Ruben Selles, who will leave the club and is likely be replaced by Swansea boss Russell Martin, conducted a performance review ahead of his departure. “We discussed the points we can do better, the points we need to hold,” said the Spaniard. “We needed to end in a professional way and that’s not a discussion because it’s not about us as a technical staff, it’s about Southampton and the information we can pass to the future people working here is key in not repeating the same mistakes. “If they find themselves in the same situations that we did, at least they have this footage and experience of what we did. “We did our review as a technical staff together. We got some conclusions for us and somebody will present it in the proper place to present it. “It’s not for us to decide for the future but it is for us to say what we think can be different next season.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Budapest gold is ‘pipe dream’ as Eilish McColgan bids to break 30-minute barrier Sean Dyche outlines vision for Everton’s future and calls for realism Everton’s great escape will not automatically solve problems – leading academic