Football Blog (Page 210)

[ad_1] Frank Lampard called on Premier League managers to be given more time to implement their styles and philosophies after former England teammate Steven Gerrard was sacked by Aston Villa. Gerrard took over from Dean Smith last year but a poor start this season – the Villans sit 17th in the table with only two wins so far – saw him sacked after their latest defeat at Fulham. Lampard has been under pressure himself at Everton since being appointed as Rafa Benitez’s successor earlier this year, but his side ended a run of three consecutive league defeats with a 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace onRead More →

[ad_1] Clement Lenglet has spoken out about his time at Barcelona, claiming he is “not finished” at the club despite spending this season on loan at Tottenham Hotspur. The French defender was loaned to Spurs this summer, having lost the trust of Barça manager Xavi following a series of erratic displays during his four years at the club. Lenglet never truly established himself during his time at Barcelona and gained notoriety in 2021 with a poor performance in the Champions League thrashing by Bayern Munich. However, Lenglet’s loan to Spurs has largely been a success thus far, with the centre-back impressing during his few gamesRead More →

[ad_1] Carlo Ancelotti has hail his current Real Madrid squad as ‘one of the best squads I’ve ever had, if not the best’ after they beat Sevilla 3-1 on Saturday night to equal their best-ever start to a league campaign. Los Merengues took the lead at the Bernabeu after five minutes via Luka Modric, only to be pulled back by another former Spurs man when Erik Lamela levelled for the visitors after 54 minutes. However, late goals from Lucas Vazquez and Fede Valverde sealed the win for Madrid, meaning they now sit on 31 points after 11 games. Speaking in his post-match press conference afterRead More →

[ad_1] Real Madrid have piled more early pressure on Barcelona in La Liga’s developing title race with a 3-1 win over a surprisingly resilient but injury-plagued Sevilla to open up a six-point at the top of the table – the Catalans have chance to respond when they face Athletic Bilbao on Sunday. An early goal from Luka Modric was cancelled out by Erik Lamela, before substitute Lucas Vazquez restored Real’s lead late on and Federico Valverde quickly made sure there would be no further comeback with a rocket of a strike for his seventh goal of the season. Los Blancos were missing Karim Benzema, whoRead More →

[ad_1] Chelsea and Manchester United could not be separated at Stamford Bridge, with Casemiro’s stoppage time header cancelling out Jorginho’s late penalty in an enthralling encounter. Both sides went into this fixture on the back of a positive run of form, with Chelsea looking for a sixth consecutive clean sheet while United were still buzzing from their midweek victory over Spurs. The game had the makings of a crucial battle in the race for the Premier League’s top four, and perhaps this was playing on the minds of both teams as they both opted for a somewhat risk-averse approach. United had the better of theRead More →

[ad_1] Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has challenged Kevin De Bruyne to play even better, despite the Belgian giving an impressive performance that included a goal and three chances created during Saturday’s Premier League win over Brighton. De Bruyne already has nine Premier League assists to his name so far this season and leads the league in that category by some distance. 90min rated De Bruyne 8/10 against Brighton, the same as Erling Haaland and Bernardo Silva. But Guardiola hasn’t won everything that he has done by settling for anything less than perfection and is adamant there is still room for improvement from his captain.Read More →

[ad_1] Manchester City are beginning to ‘find their feet’ following a summer of high squad turnover, after their second successive WSL victory of the season on Saturday. City brought in seven new faces during the transfer window, while eight players departed the club on a permanent basis – five of whom had been key members of the first team during the 2021/22 campaign. Gareth Taylor’s side lost their opening two matches of the 2022/23 season, but have taken six points from six following the international break. Having beaten basement side Leicester 4-0 to record their first win of the campaign last weekend, City got theRead More →

[ad_1] Tottenham manager Rehanne Skinner described Chioma Ubogagu as ‘flying’ upon her return to football, after the forward made her first appearance following her nine-month suspension for unintentionally using a banned substance. Ubogagu was serving a ban for the consumption of Canrenone, which she had been using as medication for skin acne after initially being prescribed it whilst based in the United States. The suspension had been in place since the start of 2022, and was announced in May. The 30-year-old was restricted to 10 WSL appearances during her debut season with Spurs because of the suspension, and made her return to action as anRead More →

[ad_1] NYCFC interim head coach Nick Cushing has revealed his side should receive a double fitness boost with the returns of Talles Magno and Tayvon Gray for their MLS Cup Playoffs clash with CF Montreal. The reigning champions made a successful start to the defense of their title with a comfortable 3-0 win over Inter Miami in Round One. However, Sunday’s clash away in Montreal will be a whole new test, facing a side that finished one place and 10 points ahead of them in the Eastern Conference standings. NYCFC had to battle past Miami without key forward Talles Magno – who scored seven goalsRead More →

[ad_1] Bunny Shaw continued her magnificent scoring form as she hit a brace to see Manchester City to a 3-0 win over Tottenham at Brisbane Road on Saturday. The City striker took her WSL tally to five for the season with her double either side of half time, while Lauren Hemp was also on the scoresheet with a terrific solo effort. The game was marred by an injury suffered by Ellie Brazil after just two minutes. Making her first WSL start for the club, the summer signing was stretched off with her left leg in a brace following a 50:50 challenge with Ellie Roebuck. InRead More →