Month: May 2023

Carlos Alcaraz’s first-half goal handed Southampton a lifeline as they secured a crucial three points in a 1-0 win over fellow relegation battlers Leicester.

The Saints had gone into the game winless in eight Premier League home games, a run of matches stretching all the way back to the visit of Chelsea to St Mary’s in August.

However, January signing Alcaraz’s second goal in as many starts ended that run and lessened the significance of James Ward-Prowse’s earlier failure to convert a penalty.

Saints boss Ruben Selles made changes and his gamble, including a rare start for Theo Walcott, paid off as they moved off the foot of the table, albeit on goal difference. It also provided a welcome lift after the shock midweek FA Cup defeat to League Two Grimsby.

Leicester were left to rue a number of missed chances, with defeat leaving them just three points above the relegation zone.

Walcott, named in the starting line-up for the first time since before the World Cup, had a half-chance early on after being picked out by Ainsley Maitland-Niles, but his final effort lacked power.

Leicester had a half-chance of their own in the 20th minute as Kelechi Iheanacho got on the end of a Harvey Barnes free-kick but he was unable to direct the header goalwards.

The majority of the first half had been largely devoid of quality and chances but Southampton received a lifeline in the 30th minute when referee Robert Jones pointed to the penalty spot after Walcott’s cross hit Timothy Castagne’s hand.

However, Ward-Prowse had his spot-kick saved by Danny Ward, who guessed the right way. The midfielder, known for his free-kick prowess, has missed both penalties he has taken this season for the Hampshire club.

In the 35th minute however Southampton found the breakthrough, when Che Adams beat the offside trap to pick out Alcaraz and he slotted the ball past Ward.

There was a lengthy VAR check for offside, but the goal was allowed to stand.
Alcaraz also appeared to injury himself in the celebratory slide, but after receiving some treatment was able to continue, although he did not last beyond the 50th minute.

Iheanacho had another headed opportunity fall to him after being picked out at the far post, but he could only guide the ball wide again.

Brendan Rodgers’ men looked to drag themselves back into the game, dominating possession and chances. Another opportunity fell to Iheanacho, who took a touch outside the area before firing over.

The visitors had another opening with almost the final touch of the game, with defender Harry Souttar beating goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu – only to nod the ball over the bar.

Mohamed Salah became Liverpool’s record Premier League scorer as they put the boot into Manchester United’s chances of joining the title race with a humiliating and historic 7-0 mauling at Anfield.

The future of the Reds’ forward line paved the way as Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo scored twice to demolish their arch-rivals with a result which was the largest victory in the fixture’s 211-match history.

Three of their goals came in a seven-minute spell either side of half-time which left the visitors, who have not won on this ground since Jurgen Klopp’s first encounter with them in January 2016, reeling.

The soon-to-be the last man standing of Liverpool’s famed front three Salah then provided a timely reminder of the standards that pair have to meet with two goals of his own – either side of a Nunez header – to go past Robbie Fowler as the club’s record Premier League scorer with his 128th and 129th goals.

Substitute Roberto Firmino, who on Friday told the club he would not be seeking a contract extension and would end his eight-year stay in the summer, applied the finishing touches with the seventh.

World number one Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells this week after failing to secure special permission to enter the United States.

Only international visitors vaccinated against Covid-19 are currently allowed to come into the US and Djokovic has refused to have any of the available jabs.

The restrictions are due to end next month, and Djokovic had hoped an exception would be made, but, with the tournament beginning on Wednesday, he has now admitted defeat.

A statement from the tournament read: “World number one Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the 2023 BNP Paribas Open. With his withdrawal, Nikoloz Basilashvili moves into the field.”

It is the second year in a row Djokovic has missed the tournament, one of the biggest on the ATP Tour, and he is also set to sit out the Miami Open later this month.

The 35-year-old, who won a 22nd grand slam title at the Australian Open in January, had received backing from the US Open and United States Tennis Association.

A statement on the US Open Twitter feed read: “Novak Djokovic is one (of) the greatest champions our sport has ever seen.

“The USTA and US Open are hopeful that Novak is successful in his petition to enter the country, and that the fans will be able to see him back in action at Indian Wells and Miami.”

Djokovic’s opposition to being vaccinated resulted in him missing six significant tournaments last season, including the Australian Open and US Open.

Having suffered a first defeat of the season to Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals of the ATP event in Dubai last week, he is set to return to action on clay at the Monte-Carlo Masters beginning on April 9.

Brentford’s impressive Premier League season continued as they overcame west London derby rivals Fulham at the Gtech Community Stadium to keep their hopes of European football very much alive.

Bees’ striker Ivan Toney was the talisman once more, making it 22 successes out of 22 from the penalty spot for Brentford as they closed to within three points of sixth-placed Newcastle United.

Toney is playing under a cloud as he faces a ban after accepting breaking Football Association betting rules, but he was outstanding here as Brentford secured a deserved three points.

Thomas Frank’s side made a lightning start and could have scored three times even before Ethan Pinnock’s shot deflected off Tim Ream to put Brentford ahead after only six minutes.

Fulham are having an outstanding season of their own, and they finally gained a foothold before drawing level six minutes before the break when Israel forward Manor Solomon continued his rich vein of form, heading in the rebound after Andreas Pereira’s free-kick struck the post.

Brentford regained the momentum, with both Bryan Mbeumo and Toney hitting the woodwork with free-kicks, and were awarded a 53rd-minute penalty when Issa Diop fouled Christian Norgaard.

Toney, as is his custom, beat Bernd Leno with ease.

Mathias Jensen sealed the win from close range five minutes from time following good work by Kevin Schade with Carlos Vinicius’ stoppage-time goal for Fulham nothing more than a consolation.

Brentford’s eyes on Europe

Brentford’s supporters finished this game singing about the prospect of a place in Europe next season and why not as this remarkable story goes on?

Manager Frank has done a superb job, leading a group of players inspired by Toney, who now has 16 goals in 24 appearances across all competitions this season.

Toney’s immediate future is under that cloud after breaking betting rules and there is no doubt any absence would be a huge setback, but such is the spirit, character and ability built by Frank in this side that they could yet take it in their stride.

Brentford started with so much pace and intensity they threatened to blow Fulham away, and then showed their self-belief and resilience to regather their forces after Marco Silva’s side forced their way back into contention with an equaliser.

Those supporters who pack into the Gtech Community Stadium are living the dream and it shows no sign of ending yet.

Asked whether Brentford can make the European places, Frank told BBC Sport: “For me it is very important that we are allowed to dream. I always want to aim as high as possible but it is important to not get too carried away.

“We are in a good place and it is all about continuing.”

Scott Parker has been sacked as Club Brugge head coach after just 12 games in charge of the Belgian club.

Brugge announced the departure of the former Fulham and Bournemouth boss in the wake of their 5-1 defeat to Benfica on Tuesday that saw them crash out of the UEFA Champions League.

In a terse statement posted on their official website, Brugge said: “Scott Parker is no longer head coach of Club Brugge.

“Parker (42) was announced as the new head coach of Club Brugge on December 31 last year. The English ex-international previously worked for Fulham and Bournemouth and replaced Carl Hoefkens at Club. In 12 games, the Briton could only win 2 times.”

Brugge currently sit fourth in the Belgian First Division, the same position as when Parker took over, but 11 points behind third-placed Antwerp.

Chelsea closed the gap to Manchester United at the top of the Women’s Super League to one point after they comfortably ran out 3-1 winners over Brighton.

Guro Reiten and Jess Carter scored twice in nine first-half minutes and Johanna Rytting Kaneryd sealed the three points 19 minutes from time, with Danielle Carter’s late strike for the visitors nothing but a consolation.

Emma Hayes’ defending champions have a game in hand over United and moved two points clear of Manchester City as the WSL title race hots up.

The hosts took the lead from the penalty spot when Sam Kerr was brought down inside the area by Zoe Morse and Reiten stepped up and dispatched from 12 yards

The Blues quickly had a second when Jess Carter swept home at the near post.

Chelsea wrapped up the win on 71 minutes when Kerr unselfishly squared the ball to Kaneryd, who tapped home into an empty net.

Brighton continued to plug away and got a much deserved goal as Danielle Carter rounded off a counter attack two minutes from time.

Arsenal reignited their title hopes by ending a run of three league games without a win with a 2-0 victory over Liverpool thanks to first-half goals from Stina Blackstenius and Caitlin Foord at Meadow Park.

Arsenal, who clinched the League Cup at the weekend, were ahead through Blackstenius’ thumping effort from outside the box and into the roof of the net after 28 minutes.

Foord doubled Arsenal’s lead six minutes later when she was on hand to tap home a rebound after Blackstenius’s powerful shot was parried back into play by Rachael Laws.

Jonas Eidevall’s side are fourth in the table, six points adrift of the leaders but with a game in hand over both Manchester clubs.

Tottenham’s season plunged to new depths after they were dumped out of the Champions League following a 1-0 aggregate defeat to AC Milan.

In a week that saw them knocked out of the FA Cup to Championship side Sheffield United and then lose ground in the Premier League top-four race with defeat to relegation-threatened Wolves, Spurs were unable to overturn their first-leg deficit after a limp 0-0 second-leg draw at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Their exit heaped further doubt over boss Antonio Conte’s future and the Italian’s likely exit might well be expedited after the atmosphere turned toxic with the fans angrily voicing their disapproval at full-time.

This was as bad a performance as Spurs could have put in and never looked like turning the tie around, managing just two efforts on target. Cristian Romero only made matters worse with the unprofessional way he was sent off in the final 15 minutes.

Conte has a poor record in the Champions League and although Milan, currently fifth in Serie A, were nothing special, the way they coasted to victory is a damning indictment on Spurs and their tactics.

Heavy traffic around the north London area led to a 10-minute delay to kick-off, with both teams arriving to the stadium late.

It helped build the atmosphere, but Spurs did not respond with a strong start as Milan were composed in possession and pressed the hosts well.

And it was the visitors who had the chance to extend their lead as they opened Spurs up with a well-worked free-kick in the 19th minute.

Three players were involved in feeding Junior Messias on the right but after he made space for himself, he dragged a shot wide.

In wet conditions and with a whistle-happy referee, it was a damaging opening 21 minutes as Romero and Clement Lenglet were both booked, which would have ruled them out of the next match. But that proved inconsequential.

Tottenham’s performance was not out of the ordinary for this season – they have regularly been lethargic in first halves – but they lacked the urgency and spark that was befitting of a game of this stake.

The second half promised to be a different affair, but it was again the Italian side that forged a real opening.

Brahim Diaz burst into the box and was fortunate that a loose ball fell to him, but his low shot was saved well by Fraser Forster’s feet and Spurs breathed again.

An injury to Ivan Perisic saw the introduction of Pedro Porro and that finally altered the complexion of the game as the Spaniard showed the attacking intent that had been otherwise absent.

That finally translated into a goal threat and Spurs’ first meaningful effort came in the 64th minute when Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg worked his way into the box and tested Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan with a fierce effort which was tipped over the bar.

The game was being played in Milan’s half, but that made the visitors a threat on the break and they had two good chances.

First after pinball in the penalty area the ball fell to Olivier Giroud, whose hooked shot was saved by Forster, before Rafael Leao could not keep his shot down after being sent clear.

Spurs were getting more and more frustrated and their task got even harder when Romero was shown a second yellow card for a reckless foul on Theo Hernandez.

Milan could easily have gone on to win by a more convincing margin had they showed more composure with Diaz and Ismael Bennacer being denied by Forster.

Harry Kane, who will surely be thinking about his future now more than ever, almost sent it into extra-time but his powerful header was well saved by Maignan before Divock Origi hit the post at the death.

Alex Iwobi rescued a point for Everton in a pulsating 2-2 draw at drop rivals Leicester.

The forward capitalised on Jordan Pickford’s crucial penalty save when he stopped James Maddison making it 3-1 just before the break.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s spot-kick opened the scoring, his first goal since October, before it was cancelled out by Caglar Soyuncu.

Jamie Vardy’s goal sent Leicester ahead and Maddison missed the chance to put the hosts in control, with Iwobi levelling soon after the re-start.

Everton also lost captain Seamus Coleman to a serious injury to further add to their problems.

Realistically, a point did little to aid either side’s Premier League survival hopes in the short-term, although it did lift Leicester out of the bottom three on goal difference. Everton remain second bottom, a point from safety, with four games left.

May 2 marks the seventh anniversary of the Foxes’ Premier League triumph in 2016.

Five days later, basking in the glory, Leicester battered a disinterested Everton 3-1 before lifting the title to complete their fairy tale.

Andrea Bocelli had already sung an emotive Nessun Dorma and the Toffees had given the hosts a guard of honour at an electric King Power Stadium.

Fast-forward and after two fifth-place finishes, FA Cup win, a Champions League quarter-final and a Europa Conference League semi-final, the class of 2023 faced a different game against the visitors.

Everton, protecting a top-flight status which stretched back to 1954, were winless in their previous six outings.

Sean Dyche’s impact, which earned two wins from his opening three games, has waned and just one further victory since has left the Toffees staring into the abyss.

If there were any nerves, the visitors hid them well and only Daniel Iversen’s fabulous save denied Iwobi an opener following Abdoulaye Doucoure’s driving run.

Maddison’s tame shot was gathered by Pickford in a rare Leicester attack before the Toffees grabbed a deserved 15th-minute lead.

It was a gift from the hosts, though, as Timothy Castagne’s moment of madness saw him unnecessarily barge Calvert-Lewin over in the box.

The striker kept his composure from the spot to score just his second goal of an injury-ravaged season.

Leicester boss Dean Smith had criticised the schedule which, starting against Everton, will see the Foxes play four Monday night games – after all their rivals.

But defeats for Leeds and Nottingham Forest had given them the platform to escape the bottom three, one they were in danger of losing until levelling out of the blue after 22 minutes.

Maddison’s free-kick was only half-cleared and Wout Faes nodded back Harvey Barnes’ cross for Soyuncu to turn in from 10 yards – his first goal for the Foxes since October 2021.

It changed the direction of the game as Leicester found their rhythm to go ahead after 33 minutes.

As much as the Foxes had found theirs, Everton had lost any composure and Iwobi’s poor pass was intercepted by Youri Tielemans for Maddison to find Vardy.

The striker dashed clear of Michael Keane to round Pickford and score. It is the first time in a year he has scored in successive games.

It sparked a madcap finish to the half and only Iversen’s fine stop from Dwight McNeil kept the hosts ahead.

Leicester survived again when Calvert-Lewin could only direct McNeil’s ball at Iversen from two yards – with Soyuncu’s touch on the cross denying the striker a simple tap-in.

Leicester immediately broke and Vardy bamboozled Keane only to chip onto the bar from eight yards.

The Toffees then lost their skipper when Coleman was carried off with a serious injury after Boubakary Soumare’s strong but innocuous challenge.

It almost got worse when Keane handled Barnes’ cross in the box but Pickford stood up to save Maddison’s poor penalty. The notes for Maddison’s penalty technique on the goalkeeper’s water bottle said ‘stay’.

It was a lifeline Everton grabbed as they levelled nine minutes after the re-start.

Iversen had already saved from Calvert-Lewin but he was powerless to stop Iwobi from drilling in after Faes had touched on McNeil’s delivery.

Parity restored, the game continued at a relentless pace with James Tarkowski blocking Vardy’s goal-bound header.

A frantic finish then saw Iversen turn Doucoure’s drive wide to preserve a result neither side really wanted.

Novak Djokovic will be able to play at this year’s US Open after the United States announced it is lifting its vaccine mandate on international travellers.

The world number one is not vaccinated against Covid-19 and had previously been unable to enter America.

But US policy will change on May 12th, allowing the 22-time grand slam winner to return to Flushing Meadows in August.

A White House statement said: “Today, we are announcing that the Administration will end the Covid-19 vaccine requirements for Federal employees, Federal contractors, and international air travellers at the end of the day on May 11, the same day that the Covid-19 public health emergency ends.”

Djokovic (35) missed both Australian Open and the US Open tournaments in 2022 because of his vaccination status.

The Serbian had applied for special permission to play in the US last month at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and the Miami Open but did not receive dispensation to do so.

With vaccination against Covid-19 no longer required to enter Australia, Djokovic competed at this year’s Australian Open in January and won his latest major singles title.

Djokovic has won the US Open title three times with his victories coming in 2011, 2015 and 2018.

Leeds are considering sacking Javi Gracia after just two months in charge, according to reports, with Sam Allardyce said to be among the names in the frame to replace him.

Gracia was appointed as Jesse Marsch’s successor in February, on a deal until the end of the season, with Leeds in the bottom three at the time.

Former Watford boss Gracia won three of his first six games in charge as Leeds climbed to 13th.

But Leeds’ terrible April – which saw them lose successive home games to Crystal Palace and Liverpool 5-1 and 6-1 and concede 23 goals – has left them perilously close to the relegation zone.

After Sunday’s 4-1 defeat at Bournemouth, Leeds are now 17th and just outside the bottom three on goal difference ahead of Saturday’s visit to leaders Manchester City.

A daunting run-in also includes home games against Newcastle and Tottenham and a trip to West Ham.

Former England manager Allardyce has emerged as a strong contender to succeed Gracia at Elland Road should the Spaniard be sacked.

The 68-year-old has been out of football since leaving West Brom in May 2021 following his first top-flight relegation.

Lee Bowyer, who made 265 appearances for Leeds between 1996 and 2003 and has managed Charlton and Birmingham, has also been mentioned as a possible short-term replacement.

Director of football Victor Orta, who joined the club from Middlesbrough in 2017, is also reportedly set to leave Elland Road.