Football Blog (Page 248)

[ad_1] The 2022/23 WSL season kicks off on Friday evening as Arsenal welcome Brighton to Borehamwood. The Gunners narrowly missed out on the title by a single point last term, and – buoyed by boasting three members of England’s Euro 2022 winning squad – will be attempting to end Chelsea’s run of domestic dominance and finish top of the pile for the first time since 2019. Arsenal face a Brighton side who have comfortably established themselves in the WSL after years of shrewd investment, but have lost a number of key players during the summer transfer window. When is kick off? Friday 16 September, 19:30 (BST)WhereRead More →

[ad_1] Raheem Sterling stated he enjoyed playing as a wing-back in Graham Potter’s first match as Chelsea manager. After joining Chelsea at the start of the season, Sterling played in the forward line under Thomas Tuchel, either as a winger or a false 9, but Potter gave him a new role for the match against Red Bull Salzburg, deploying him as a left wing-back. The 27-year-old was able to make an impact, being given a license to get forward and scoring his side’s only goal of the night. Sterling was asked about his new position after the match, explaining to BT Sport: “I played inRead More →

[ad_1] Gareth Southgate has named his 28-player squad for England’s September internationals, with Ivan Toney receiving a maiden call-up. The Brentford striker has not represented the Three Lions at any level before but will have a chance to in their upcoming Nations League fixtures away to Italy and at home to Germany – any appearance would make him just the third player in Bees history to play for the England senior side. Jarrod Bowen has started the season slowly at West Ham but retains his place in the squad after making his senior England debut over the summer, while Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi returns too.Read More →

[ad_1] Brentford striker Ivan Toney is expected to be named in England’s squad for the first time ahead of the September internationals. The 26-year-old is yet to represent the Three Lions in any capacity, having been a relatively late bloomer at the highest level, but is set to be rewarded for a terrific start to the 2022/23 Premier League season. Toney has scored five goals and contributed two assists in six outings to date, following on from a strong first season in the Premier League that saw him bag 12 goals for Brentford – helping them stay up in the process – and set upRead More →

[ad_1] Erling Haaland has praised Borussia Dortmund for how they defended against Manchester City, but was keen to point out that they still couldn’t find a way to stop him. Man City struggled to break the Bundesliga side down in what was an eventual 2-1 Champions League win on Wednesday, not having a single shot on target until John Stones’ 80th minute effort. That shot on target was also their first goal, and their second one was the winner, with Haaland volleying his team to victory. The Norwegian praised the way his former team played and defended but issued a reminder that it wasn’t enoughRead More →

[ad_1] Pep Guardiola was full of praise for the “exceptional” Jude Bellingham after he impressed in Borussia Dortmund’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester City in the Champions League. The 19-year-old had put Dortmund on course for a surprise win at the Etihad Stadium when he headed home Marco Reus’ centre just before the hour mark, but the Bundesliga giants were unable to hold on as late goals from John Stones and Erling Haaland turned the tide in City’s favour. Nevertheless, Dortmund were impressive in their defensive shape throughout the 90 minutes, as well as causing problems on the counter, and Bellingham was one of the moreRead More →

[ad_1] Manchester United will look to bring Kylian Mbappe in from Paris Saint-Germain in 2024 if the forward chooses to walk away from the final year of his contract. Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has warned Mbappe that he has missed his chance to move to the Santiago Bernabeu and has privately told those close to him that he does not want the Frenchman anymore. Before that, however, United and PSG may do business over Marcus Rashford. The Red Devils are confident of extending the striker’s contract but PSG continue to push with his representatives over a future transfer. Manchester City are keen to joinRead More →

[ad_1] Atlanta United kept their MLS Cup Playoffs hopes alive with a vital 1-0 win away at rivals Orlando City on Wednesday evening. After an hour-long weather delay, we were treated to a tepid first 45 minutes by two sides who usually offer us so many fireworks. Even so, both sides still traded some decent chances, with the visitors missing the best opportunities through Andrew Gutman and Luiz Araujo. Orlando took the game to their opponents more at the start of the second half with the likes of Ercan Kara and Mauricio Pereyra flashing efforts just off target. But it was Atlanta United who finallyRead More →

[ad_1] For all of Chelsea’s defensive structure and solidity under Thomas Tuchel, the German was given his marching orders at least in part due to his inability to make the Blues a formidable attacking side. He had a plethora of forward options at his disposal, but even after the near-£100m re-signing of Romelu Lukaku last summer, Chelsea still couldn’t blow teams away on a regular basis. In the second half of Tuchel’s reign, they could barely squeak past them either. Todd Boehly’s desire to build an all-conquering football team has since led him to appointing his first new head coach in the shape of Brighton’sRead More →

[ad_1] Graham Potter began life at Chelsea with a 1-1 draw with Salzburg in the Champions League group stages. The Blues displayed a formidable intensity and structure in their first game under their new boss but were undone by a late Salzburg sucker-punch at Stamford Bridge. After a pre-match period of remembrance for the late Queen Elizabeth II, Chelsea came flying out of the traps and their first half-chances of the evening came through Kai Havertz and Pierre-Emerick Aubamayeng, but neither could keep their successive shots from the edge of the area on target. Havertz then had a goal-bound header blocked by Benjamin Sesko asRead More →