Gareth Southgate has left Trent Alexander-Arnold out of his England squad for Monday s Nations League dead rubber against Germany, citing a need to pick players he believes in.
England have already been relegated from League A after failing to win any of their five matches, which have also only yielded a single goal.
The Three Lions form has been especially alarming given the World Cup starts in less than two months, with the Germany game essentially their final warm-up match.
With very little riding on the match at Wembley, it was assumed Southgate might take the chance to give opportunities to those who have been used sparingly.
But Southgate has instead given an indication as to who he does not appear to have complete faith in, with Alexander-Arnold �…
Alvaro Morata s late goal gave Spain a 1-0 victory over Portugal and snatched a place at the Nations League Finals from their hosts in Braga.
Spain needed to win to leapfrog Fernando Santos side atop Group A2 but had looked set to be frustrated, with Portugal enjoying the better of the first-half opportunities.
However, substitutions from Luis Enrique after the break changed the game, and Nico Williams header across goal was smashed in by Morata to steal a precious victory.
The dramatic win means Spain will join Croatia, Italy and the Netherlands at next year s tournament, with Portugal left to rue missed chances and sloppy defending in the closing stages.
Who s on top in Braga?
— UEFA Nations League (@EURO2024)
Although Spain dominat…
Sone Aluko returns to the Hull City squad for Saturday s Premier League clash at Sunderland following a long injury lay-off.
The Nigerian forward has been sidelined since October due to an Achilles problem he sustained in a 2-1 defeat at Everton.
Aluko featured in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Tuesday and Hull manager Steve Bruce has revealed the former Rangers man will be in contention to face Gus Poyet s side this weekend.
Bruce said: We think he s ready and Sone, certainly in his mind, thinks he s ready so he ll be a part of the squad for Saturday.
When we saw Sone in the team at the start of the season, we realised what a good player he is.
We hope that he can stay injury free. We ve tried to do everything we can in terms of nursing him back to wher…
US football coach Bob Bradley was named national coach of the year for 2009 by the US Olympic Committee on Wednesday for guiding the Americans into the 2010 South Africa World Cup.
In 2009, Bradley s squad finished first in North American qualifying for the global showdown that opens in June and also reached the finals of the Gold Cup and Confederations Cup.
Bradley became the first football coach to receive the award since its 1996 inception.
I m honored to accept this award on behalf of our team as recognition for their outstanding performance in 2009, Bradley said.
Qualifying for the 2010 World Cup and reaching the finals of two major international tournaments were certainly important achievements and represent the collective effort of this group fo…
Frank Lampard has no doubts over Jose Mourinho s elite credentials as he prepares to face his old boss in Derby County s EFL Cup trip to Manchester United.
United s mixed start to the season continued at the weekend as Wolves claimed a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.
Mourinho s capacity to rouse a Premier League title challenge and his relationship with key players, such as Paul Pogba, have come under the microscope.
But Lampard, who is taking his first steps in management with Derby having starred under Mourinho during his Chelsea days, believes United s two trophies under the Portuguese in 2016-17 show his enduring capabilities.
When you’re the manager of Manchester United, when you have the CV and the background of Jose Mourinho – and this is not anci…
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Arsenal will be looking to maintain the momentum after securing their first points of the Premier League season last weekend as they prepare to visit newly-promoted Cardiff on Sunday.
Cardiff
Cardiff did well to secure automatic Premier League promotion with Wolves last season with Neil Warnock’s side emerging as one of the most exciting sides in the Championship during the 2017/18 campaign.
The Bluebirds have gone through a difficult summer in terms of transfer activity and the likes of Josh Murphy, Bobby Reid, Alex Smithies, Greg Cunningham, Victor Camarasa and Harry Arter are deemed insufficient to help Cardiff maintain their status in the elite tier of English football. Cardiff attempt…
Erik ten Hag fears winger Antony suffered a “serious” injury as Manchester United fulfilled the “main objective” of Champions League qualification by thrashing Chelsea.
The Red Devils sealed their return to European football’s top table with a game to spare by thrashing Frank Lampard’s wasteful Blues 4-1 at Old Trafford on Thursday evening.
Casemiro, Anthony Martial, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford scored before Joao Felix struck a late consolation on a night that saw Antony leave on a stretcher in the first half.
The boss has issued an update on and . ||
— Manchester United (@ManUtd)
Asked for an update on the Brazil international, Ten Hag said: “I don’t know. Everyone has seen he came off.
“I can tell you that…
Tottenham head coach Nuno Espirito Santo took responsibility for his side s damaging 3-1 defeat to Arsenal in the north London derby.
Emile Smith Rowe, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Bukayo Saka dismantled Spurs in a thrilling first-half display from Arsenal at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Son Heung-min pulled back a late consolation, but Spurs have now lost their last three league games by an aggregate score of 9-1. Tottenham are only the second team in Premier League history to win their first three games of a season and then lose the next three, after Everton in 1993-94, who went on to finish 17th.
Nuno s team were top of the table at the end of August, but they will head into October below Arsenal in the standings for the first time in almost 12 months.
Spain coach Vicente del Bosque admitted his side were poor and deserved to lose to South Africa on Tuesday.
The world and European champions suffered a surprise 1-0 reverse at Soccer City in Johannesburg, the scene of their 2010 FIFA World Cup final triumph over the Netherlands.
Bernard Parker scored the only goal of the game in the 56th minute, dinking over Spain goalkeeper Victor Valdes, who was forced off with a serious-looking right knee injury later in the match.
Del Bosque s men nearly mustered an equaliser, with Raul Albiol only denied by an outstanding Itumeleng Khune save late on, but South Africa held on for a famous win.
It could be (our worst recent performance), Del Bosque told Spanish television station Cuatro.
I think we can even say the def…
Mexican captain and two-time Champions League winning defender Rafael Marquez signed a multi-year deal on Monday with the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer, the team announced.
Marquez was released two days earlier by the Spanish club and joins another former Barcelona star and former French captain Thierry Henry and Colombian forward Juan Pablo Angel as the Red Bulls designated players, ones whose salaries are exempt from the MLS s salary cap.
I m excited to be joining the Red Bulls, Marquez said. Despite having the opportunity to fulfil my contract with Barcelona, coming to New York and playing in Major League Soccer was a chance that I could not refuse.
I m completely committed to doing my very best to help the Red Bulls in the playoff push this yea…