List of All Articles with Tag 'sport'

Grinding out a low-scoring win is just fine for Borussia Dortmund

Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton has another strong recruiting class

Joe Willock is convinced Newcastle can “beat any team in the world” as they look to bounce back from their first Champions League setback. The Magpies went down 1-0 to Borussia Dortmund in torrential rain at St James’ Park on Wednesday evening on a night when they learned just how fine the margins can be at the elite level of club football. After a hard-fought draw at AC Milan and a stunning 4-1 win over Paris St Germain, they now sit in joint second place with the Germans in Group F at the halfway stage, with both on four points, two behind leaders PSG, but facing back-to-back trips to Dortmund and Paris next month. However, asked if they could thrive in those two intensely difficult fixtures, Willock said: “Yes, 100 per cent. We can beat any team in the world when we’re at our best, I actually believe that. “We’re going to analyse this game and we’re going to look to go there and win the game. “This is where we want to be. We want to compete at this level. This is Newcastle United and we have to compete at this level. “We set out our targets at the start of the season and we want to reach them. We have a really tight group and a brilliant manager who will put us on the straight and narrow and we’ll continue pushing.” Felix Nmecha’s goal on the stroke of half-time ultimately settled a pulsating encounter which Dortmund perhaps shaded, although they were indebted to both keeper Gregor Kobel, who made a vital second-half save from Callum Wilson, and the woodwork, which denied both Wilson and Anthony Gordon in a rousing conclusion. Willock said: “We were just a bit disappointed that we couldn’t tuck away those chances. We’re competing at the highest level now. We’re going to analyse it, we’re going to look back at it and we’re not going to let it set us back too much.” If dropped points were painful for Eddie Howe’s men, so too were injuries to striker Alexander Isak, who aggravated a groin problem he picked up on international duty with Sweden, and Jacob Murphy, who suffered a suspected dislocated shoulder just minutes after being introduced as a substitute. With midfielder Sandro Tonali awaiting the outcome of an investigation into alleged breaches of betting rules which reports from Italy have suggested could see him banned for 10 months, Howe could be facing a selection crisis. In the circumstances, Willock’s surprise return from the bench against Dortmund after hamstring and Achilles problems was a welcome boost. The 24-year-old tore his hamstring during a 4-1 victory over Brighton on May 18 and was a frustrated bystander as Newcastle clinched a first Champions League campaign for 20 years after a 0-0 draw with Leicester four days later. He said: “It was very hard to deal with. On one side, I was very happy for the team and I was over the moon that we achieved what we set out to do last season, and now we’re competing in the Champions League. “But at the same time, I was disappointed to get injured. Even so, I’m back now and I’m looking to push on. I’m really happy to be back and I can help the team a lot.” Read More Manuel Akanji: Manchester City are ready to win the derby at Old Trafford RFU ‘deeply disappointed’ as World Rugby closes case against Mbongeni Mbonambi World Rugby finds insufficient evidence to pursue Tom Curry racism allegation Dallas Mavericks spoil top draft pick Victor Wembanyama’s NBA debut Wimbledon expansion plans face key hurdle One of those nights – Eddie Howe bemoans fine margins after Newcastle defeat

By Shrivathsa Sridhar BENGALURU England captain Jos Buttler won the toss and opted to bat first against Sri

Mauricio Pochettino will have final say on Chelsea transfers as the club hone a more collaborative approach going forward. While there are set to be more signings in January despite a £1bn-plus outlay over the last three windows, the aim is to be far more targeted in the new year. The club's much-discussed American owners felt a total overhaul of the squad was due on arriving, as they sought to reshape it to have a much younger and leaner profile. That create a bloated group for a period of time that sometimes felt too large for the dressing room, but the feeling is that gradual trading has left them closer to an ideal profile. The target now is to fill any remaining positional gaps or depth to the team, so as to maximise Pochettino's tactics. It is within that process that the Argentine will have a final say on any purchases, after a collaborative process with the recruitment team, which includes co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart and co-director of recruitment and talent Joe Shields. The model is described as more like Manchester City's, where the manager will identify the type of tactical profile he needs, then the staff come up with suitable names, and the manager then decides on who to go for. Chelsea are expected to be one of the clubs that go for Brentford's Ivan Toney in the window, as a number nine would still be preferred, with Nicolas Jackson and Armando Broja yet to fully convince as a long-term option. Although there is still a sense of seeing how the squad settles after one more international window. Chelsea enjoyed one of their brightest performances yet under Pochettino in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal, with Brentford visiting Stamford Bridge this weekend as the Blues look to rebuild after a slow start to the season. Read More Gary O’Neil unpacks Wolves secrets on MNF to show the future of football punditry Mikel Arteta showing he is ‘one of best in world’, says Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino Mikel Arteta, Mauricio Pochettino and the ‘love’ at the heart of a fractious rivalry

General manager A

Manuel Akanji is confident his Manchester City team-mates will deliver in this weekend’s derby at Old Trafford. The Switzerland defender, who scored as City beat Young Boys 3-1 in his home country on Wednesday, will miss Sunday’s Premier League clash against Manchester United through suspension. Akanji picked up a one-match domestic ban after being sent off in the closing stages of last weekend’s victory over Brighton but he is backing those who do feature to cut down their rivals. “It is going to be a big game, it is going to be tough, but I trust in our guys,” said the 28-year-old, who started in City’s 2-1 FA Cup final triumph over United in June. “I think we are ready for this game and we are going to get the three points on an away game again.” City go into the derby with confidence now restored after their blip prior to the recent international break. After hanging on to see off Brighton, the holders took another step towards the Champions League knockout stages as they beat Young Boys on their artificial pitch at the Wankdorf Stadium. Akanji put them ahead early in the second half when he reacted quickly to turn in after a Ruben Dias header had been touched onto the bar. Meschack Elia responded with a sublime lobbed equaliser moments later but Erling Haaland eased nerves from the penalty spot before making victory certain with a fine finish four minutes from time. “Yes it was special,” said Akanji of his goal on his Swiss return. “I think we had already had a lot of chances in the first half and if we’d used them we would have scored three or four goals. “We tried to go again in the second half. Obviously Young Boys had their chances too but we went up 1-0 and shortly afterwards we conceded. “I think (the equaliser) was a little bit too easy but then we reacted to that and scored two goals, so I am really happy we got the three points.” City now have nine points after victories over Red Star Belgrade, RB Leipzig and Young Boys in their opening three Group G matches. They could secure their place in the last 16 for an 11th successive season with a follow-up win over the Swiss side at the Etihad Stadium in a fortnight. Akanji said: “That was really good from us, two away wins, two tough ones. I think if we can manage to win the next game then it looks really good. “I don’t say we are going to be through because you never know what happens, but I think with 12 points we’re looking really good for the next round.” Read More RFU ‘deeply disappointed’ as World Rugby closes case against Mbongeni Mbonambi World Rugby finds insufficient evidence to pursue Tom Curry racism allegation Dallas Mavericks spoil top draft pick Victor Wembanyama’s NBA debut Wimbledon expansion plans face key hurdle One of those nights – Eddie Howe bemoans fine margins after Newcastle defeat Brendan Rodgers believes Celtic proved they can match ‘top-level’ team

Celtic fans defied a club appeal and waved Palestinian flags before Wednesday’s Champions League fixture. The Green Brigade, a supporter group which occupies the north curve of Celtic Park, traditionally organise a tifo - a choreographed display involving a large banner - for major games. But as the teams emerged from the tunnel for their Group E match against Atletico Madrid, they instead held up Palestinian flags. Celtic have already banned the group from away games after they displayed the flags at recent matches in the wake of the attacks in Israel and Gaza. It is expected the Scottish club will now receive a fine from Uefa. Read More Moment Gerard Pique falls into huge hole as he’s distracted by phone Bobby Charlton’s football was ‘poetry in motion’, says former teammate Ten Hag lays flowers in centre circle as Man United pay tribute to Bobby Charlton

Special prosecutors in Switzerland have closed criminal proceedings against FIFA President Gianni Infantino relating to undisclosed meetings with the country’s former attorney general

There’s a new look about a key area of the team for Liverpool, a changing of the guard enforced by recent events, a previous zone of consistency now faced with uncertainty. No, we’re not talking about midfield - that particular switch-up already looks a definite upgrade, even early as it is for such conclusions. Instead it’s at left-back the unexpected alteration has occurred, a consequence of Andy Robertson’s need for surgery which means the Scot is out for the rest of the year. Having averaged over 44 appearances a season for the Reds since signing in 2017, he’ll now miss at least 17 matches, if best estimates of his return are to be believed. That leaves not just a gap for Kostas Tsimikas or an untested youngster to fill tactically, but a void which cannot be accounted for: that of a partnership, of understanding, of the natural, unthinking knowing which comes with playing hundreds of matches alongside a teammate. It can be argued that such a changeable nature can be applied not just to the midfield, not even just to left-back, but to the entire defensive structure this term at Anfield: injuries have already hit on the right and centrally too, to go along with the altered personnel ahead of them in the middle third of the pitch. All that simply means one truth must be constant if the Reds are to translate early season promise into longer-term capacity to challenge for major honours: Virgil van Dijk must once again prove himself to be among the very best, not just individually as a defender but as a force to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts. There cannot be much debate that the Dutchman, now club captain at Anfield, has not quite reached the same levels of authoritative performances as he did pre-ACL injury, or at least not on as regular a basis. The period which saw Liverpool win both Premier League and Champions League saw Van Dijk at the pinnacle of the game, a central defender without peer, a worthy recipient of the Ballon d’Or itself, had he been handed it instead of a runner-up spot, pipped by seven votes in 2019 by Lionel Messi. Perhaps that in itself was a noteworthy award. In any case, he’s not quite there these days, not quite the automatic choice among fan or pundit asked to name the world’s finest. It’s arguable that there isn’t a single stand-out candidate right now for that particularly subjective title. But in asking whether Van Dijk is capable of being the world’s best defender again, part of the answer has to be that it doesn’t really matter. He might want to be of course, might already believe he is, but from a team perspective what they really need is Van Dijk’s ability to stabilise the team, to foresee and forestall danger, to order those around him to bring forth resilience from chaos. Because chaotic is, still, a little too close to the truth when it comes to spells of defending for Liverpool. The midfield is far more creative, far more offensive and energetic, far less reliant on Trent Alexander-Arnold always being at his best. But all that comes at a cost: it’s not always the most agile and defensive-first in either recovery or positional terms. It’s still new as a group, still needs time to become as cohesive as the best central trios are, on and off the ball. And in the meantime, the result can often be large gaps, lost runners, moments of inexplicable choices in possession. That leaves a hefty weight on the defence to counteract such moments - the defence and, of course, the still-magnificent Alisson Becker behind them. But before that one-man last line, it’s Van Dijk who must rise once more to ensure unity, if not always outright unison. Acting in perfect harmony is difficult enough with four constant selections; as it is this season, Jurgen Klopp has already utilised Jarell Quansah as a fifth-choice, following injuries. Alexander-Arnold missed pitch time and is not yet back to his peak physical or technical best. Ibrahima Konate and Joel Matip have dovetailed, and now there’s Tsimikas present on a more regular basis - which also means either Joe Gomez will see minutes on the left, or an untried youngster will, with Calum Scanlon and Luke Chambers first in line. They presently tally one senior minute between them. They will all four need guiding for different reasons, all need time, all occasionally get things wrong and need the left-sided centre-back beside them to bail them out. No prizes for guessing who that is on a week-to-week basis. Because for Liverpool, there are prizes at stake. Three points off the top of the Premier League table after a fine opening quarter of the campaign; rolling along nicely in Europe and domestic cups alike. Between now and the next international break, the opportunities for victory across all competitions are as immense as the potential cost of dropped points: Toulouse twice, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Luton, Brentford. A modern title-competing team would take six wins with very little fuss, in truth. Then, beyond, it’s Manchester City away. The most true barometer of where Liverpool are this season, even coming after an international break and in the infamous 12:30pm kick-off spot. The margin for error remains almost nil, but with the reigning champions perhaps not quite at their own peak yet, and Klopp’s side having improved more than might have been thought possible at this early stage, thoughts of a title challenge will not be far away - if the defence is kept on-point, even with altered personnel. It all means Van Dijk must be as close to his own 100 percent as possible, even if his 2023/24 maximum level is a little lower than in 19/20. As far as transformative figures go, Van Dijk was one after signing. He, as much as anyone else and more than most, sent Liverpool from challengers to champions, in every competition across the board. Now once again he must be the leader - literally, given the armband - who enables the Reds to do so, not so much the new figurehead this time but as the standard-bearer, the supplier of consistency, the model of outperformance which can give Liverpool the extra edge they’ll need, both in the Premier League and beyond. Read More Build from the front? Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp are repeating an old trick England’s Euro 2024 squad: Who’s on the plane, who’s in contention and who has work to do? Virgil van Dijk will show he is Premier League’s best once more – Sami Hyypia Virgil van Dijk will show he is Premier League’s best once more – Sami Hyypia Virgil van Dijk: Liverpool finally had some luck go our way against Everton Euro 2024 qualifying – who has reached Germany and who still has work to do?

England captain Jos Buttler won the toss and opted to bat in a must-win game for the defending champions against Sri Lanka on Thursday at the Cricket World Cup

South Africa has selected Handre Pollard to start at flyhalf in the Rugby World Cup final against New Zealand and has packed its bench with forwards in a high-risk 7-1 split