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Standout rookie C

Gareth Southgate says there can be no let-up for already-qualified England if they are to win next summer’s Euros and become the top-ranked team in the world. The Euro 2020 runners-up last month sealed their place at the 2024 edition in Germany with two matches to spare and were below par in Friday’s qualifier against Malta. England disappointed in the 2-0 victory at a packed Wembley and will look to end 2023 on a high as they round off Euro 2024 qualification in North Macedonia. Southgate’s side arrived in Skopje all but assured of being among the top seeds in December’s draw in Hamburg, but every moment counts as they seek to be best on the planet. “Qualification’s done,” the England boss said ahead of the Group C finale. “With the games at the weekend, we might be ranked third in the world at the minute, but we’re two places off where we need to be so we can’t waste games. “Some of the players have got three games to get into a squad, some have got maybe three to get into a team, maybe a couple more if we’re talking about the team. “There’s some things we’d like to see. But if we’re going to be a top team, then the level of performance has got to be spot on every time.” Asked if being number one drives him on, Southgate said: “Yeah, because ultimately you achieve that through consistency and you’ve got to play well in the tournaments as well because the ranking points are higher in the tournaments. “Also, it sets behaviours every day on the training pitch, off the training pitch. “If you are going to be the top-ranked team, there’s no room for sloppiness or casualness. That’s got to be our drive.” England currently sit fourth in FIFA’s world rankings, making it five straight years of being in the top five. Their previous best since its launch was six months in the top five across 1997 and 1998, yet there remains plenty of criticism for Southgate and speculation about his future. Monday will be England’s final qualifier before the manager’s contract expires next year and he smiled when it was mentioned that former Football Association executive David Dein had said he should get a new deal. Asked if he anticipated this being his final qualifier in the hotseat, Southgate said: “I haven’t thought about it, really. “I’ve thought about the game tomorrow and the need for a better performance than Friday so that’s what I’ve been focusing on. “I feel almost as if we’ve almost talked too much about the Euros already and I didn’t see our focus in the right place at the weekend. “So, it’s tomorrow, then it’s March, then it’s the summer. And we go from there.” Southgate downplayed suggestions of his future being a distraction but suggested his comments about their Euros ambitions may have been. “Well, I think talk of the summer was a distraction on Friday in its own way,” he added. “Look, in football management, frankly I think you should look no further than three or four games ahead anyway. “But I think when you’ve got a tournament coming up, inevitably, as an international manager, you’re going to be judged on tournaments so everybody before that is pretty futile, really.” England’s final camp of the year has been disrupted by absentees. Five players withdrew from the original squad through injury and two more departed the squad before they flew out to the Balkans. The FA announced Kieran Trippier had gone home due to a personal issue, while injury meant Jarrod Bowen left the camp on Sunday. A soldout Tose Proeski Arena awaits England’s absentee-hit 21-man squad as the Macedonians look to make up for June’s 7-0 hiding at Old Trafford. “We play a team who, although they can’t qualify, have tremendous pride and they’ll be wounded by what happened in Manchester,” Southgate added. “We have to be ready for a really good atmosphere. Full crowd, full stadium. “We’ve had a calendar year where we’ve been very good, so we want to finish well.” Read More Rico Lewis hopes his versatility helps him make late push for Euro 2024 squad Declan Rice putting pressure of price tag behind him to pursue biggest prizes Trevor Lawrence leads Jacksonville Jaguars to victory against Tennessee Titans Scotland sign off on successful Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with six-goal thriller Ludvig Aberg keen to ‘love golf for long time’ after clinching RSM Classic title Luke Humphries continues stunning rise with Grand Slam of Darts success

Zach Wilson trips and falls while jogging out onto the field.

Micah Parsons threw up after taking too much C4.

Rico Lewis is hoping his versatility will work in his favour as he aims to make a late charge to Euro 2024. Gareth Southgate will name a 23-man squad for next summer’s finals in Germany, having been able to pick 26 players for both Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup. That means competition for places will be more fierce than in recent years, with Southgate admitting those who are more adaptable could have the edge. The likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kieran Trippier and Phil Foden can occupy several different positions on the pitch. So too, can Lewis – the 18-year-old having already played in both full-back roles and in midfield for treble-winners Manchester City. He has yet to make his senior England debut but was called up for the first time last week and will be targeting minutes in the final Euro 2024 qualifier away to North Macedonia on Monday. “Obviously, in terms of a tournament, you can only select the amount you can select,” he said. Obviously he (Southgate) has asked me about where I want to play, my favourite position, stuff like that Rico Lewis “It (versatility) can be a key factor in going or not going. But for me, I am not really focusing on that right now but I understand it is a key thing that could contribute to me being picked or not. “Obviously he (Southgate) has asked me about where I want to play, my favourite position, stuff like that.” With Southgate’s defensive options already limited in the current camp, Lewis’ chances of playing in Skopje have been further boosted with Trippier not travelling due to personal reasons. Asked if he would be happy to fill in at left-back, where Southgate is particularly bereft of options, Lewis replied: “Of course. Anywhere I played, I would relish it. Whether it is right-back, midfield, left-back – I am not really bothered. “I just love playing football and at the moment it is going really well. Any opportunity I get, I will do my best to take it. “Obviously, it is not something I expected, especially coming into the international week when I was in the under-21s. Obviously a lot of things happened and fortunately for me I am here now. “I have enjoyed every minute of it so far: meeting everybody, meeting the players, the staff, the training sessions, everything.” Southgate himself hailed Lewis as someone who could fill the void given the number of left-backs who have been forced onto the sidelines. “He is an option. He’s a versatile player,” said the manager. “I’m really pleased with how he’s trained, he’s settled really well. He’s very comfortable with the ball. He’s played there a few times. He’s played everywhere for City.” Lewis admits Alexander-Arnold is someone he will look to learn from, with the Liverpool man playing a very similar hybrid role. “In a sense we are very similar – being full-backs and leaning a little bit more towards midfield, especially with England. and he is somebody I can take a lot of information from,” he added. “I have had a few conversations with him and he is a very nice person. He is somebody I have got to know a little bit.” Read More Gareth Southgate targeting top of the world as England drive for Euros glory Declan Rice putting pressure of price tag behind him to pursue biggest prizes Trevor Lawrence leads Jacksonville Jaguars to victory against Tennessee Titans Scotland sign off on successful Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with six-goal thriller Ludvig Aberg keen to ‘love golf for long time’ after clinching RSM Classic title Luke Humphries continues stunning rise with Grand Slam of Darts success

Ferran Torres scored and had an assist for Spain in its 3-1 home win against Georgia

David Montgomery's go-ahead 1-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left against his former team lifted the Detroit Lions to a 31-26 comeback victory over Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears

DETROIT (AP) — David Montgomery ran for a 1-yard touchdown with 29 seconds left against his former team, and the Detroit Lions rallied for a 31-26 victory over Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Dak Prescott threw for 189 yards and two touchdowns, DaRon Bland tied an NFL record with his fourth pick-6 of the season and the Dallas Cowboys trounced the Carolina Panthers 33-10 Sunday for their fourth win in five games

The New York Giants beat the Washington Commanders 31-19 to snap a three-game losing streak

Mike Tomlin won't be caught speaking bad about Kenny Pickett, Matt Canada, or anyone with an actual responsibility to perform for the Steelers offense.

Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek says football coach Sam Pittman will return next season