Month: May 2023

Gareth Southgate backed Raheem Sterling to recover from his nightmare season – after leaving him out of his latest England squad.

The Chelsea forward will miss the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia next month.

Southgate spoke with Sterling last week with the 28-year-old battling a hamstring problem and admitting he had not hit top form.

But, despite his omission, Southgate expects one of his star players to rediscover his spark.

“I will always back him to respond strongly and have the resilience and tenacity to prove himself,” he said.

“He said himself he’s not been happy with how it’s been but that will be a temporary thing.

“He really wasn’t in consideration. We didn’t get to the point of whether he should be in or out. He doesn’t think he’s operating on the level he needs.

“He’s an important part of our group and that remains the same. But he is in an area of the pitch where players are playing well for their clubs and playing well when they are playing for us.

“The dynamic is different from maybe two-to-three years ago. We had four or five players who were almost guaranteed to be in the team. Now we’ve got competition pretty much everywhere.

“But he has shown time and again for us that he has been an important player. His mental toughness stands out in why I would expect him to come up at a good level.”

Sterling has struggled for form and fitness since a £47.5million move from Manchester City last summer.

He has scored nine goals in 37 appearances in Chelsea’s chaotic season which has seen them sack Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter with Frank Lampard in interim charge since April.

They travel to Manchester United on Thursday and host Newcastle in Sunday’s final game of the season. Chelsea will finish in the bottom half of the Premier League despite owner Todd Boehly spending almost £600million.

“I found him (Sterling) positive, strong and understanding with what’s gone on. It’s been difficult for everyone with all the changes this year. Three different managers, three different ways of training, three different ways of playing,” said Southgate.

“There was a lot of upheaval. Clubs have these moments. There have been a couple of clubs who haven’t been where they want to be this year.

“That will be even more intense next year. They won’t have any European football so will have a game a week. I think they’ll be really strong next season and certainly he’ll be a big part of it.

“I can’t see a scenario where Chelsea aren’t in the top six next year. It has been really difficult for all the managers this year but that will calm down over the summer and they have an outstanding squad. They are going to have a good season and he’ll be fundamental to that.”

Meanwhile, Southgate remains hopeful Jude Bellingham will be fit for the game in Malta on June 16 and against North Macedonia in Manchester on June 19.

The Borussia Dortmund midfielder missed Sunday’s 3-0 victory at Augsburg with a knee problem he suffered in the 5-2 win over Borussia Monchengladbach and is a doubt for Saturday’s final game against Mainz.

Dortmund are two points clear of Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga, hunting their first title since 2012.

Southgate added: “He will be doing everything he can to be available for this weekend. Whether he will win that race we don’t know yet but I would have thought there is enough time for our games but we don’t know for sure.”

Willian has suggested Vinicius Junior may not feel it is worthwhile to stay at Real Madrid after receiving racist abuse, saying the Brazil winger should be “celebrated, not tolerated”.

Vinicius was the victim of racist abuse from some Valencia supporters during Madrid’s 1-0 defeat at Mestalla Stadium on Sunday.

The Brazil international was subsequently sent off – a red card that has since been rescinded – while LaLiga president Javier Tebas caused upset with his reaction to the incident.

Tebas responded to a tweet by Vinicius, writing: “Before you criticise and insult LaLiga, you need to inform yourself well, Vini Jr. Don’t let yourself be manipulated.”

LaLiga’s chief has now apologised for his comments, though Willian believes his fellow Brazilian Vinicius would be within his rights to consider whether his future remains in Spain.

“This is a tough question,” Fulham playmaker Willian said in an exclusive interview with Stats Perform. 

“Only he can answer what he is feeling. I see him going through this and I get a feeling that is a mixture of anger and sadness, all at the same time, for seeing this situation.

“It’s up to each one of us. If he sees that it’s worth it to keep being there, if he has all the support from the club, from the Spanish federation, it’s worth persisting. But if you see that people don’t care about the situation, it might be worth going to another place where you are celebrated, not tolerated.

“I always say this: you have to be where you are celebrated and not tolerated. That is what I believe.

“But Vini is making beautiful history at Real Madrid and has everything to continue making history there. I hope this situation is resolved and the people who do this are punished each time.”

Madrid reported the incident to the Spanish prosecutor’s office as a hate crime, and three arrests have subsequently been made.

The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has ordered a partial closure of Valencia’s stadium for five matches, and Willian hopes that punishment will be a turning point in the battle against racism.

He added: “I hope so. I hope this can be ahead of money, ahead of trophies, an issue like this, a situation like this is far more important than anything else. I hope the authorities, the federations, can take real action from now on.

“We are in 2023 and we see this happening. It’s depressing. It’s exhausting. You enter the pitch to play football, to give joy to the fans, and you end up being insulted, and that is very sad. I hope this can end, end once and for all in football, in everyday life, wherever.

“People need to know that we are all equal, there is no difference because of race or colour.”

Vinicius did not play for Madrid against Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday, watching on from the stands as his compatriot Rodrygo scored a late winner.

The Madrid fans showed their support for the 22-year-old with banners and a minute’s applause.

Willian, who was the recipient of threats during his spell with Corinthians last year, believes the English Football Association (FA) set a good example for other federations to follow when it comes to tackling racism, but more must be done.

“There is [racism] everywhere,” he said. “Here in England, it might happen, but I have never seen, I have never witnessed a situation like the one that has been happening with Vini in Spain.

“In Italy, it happens sometimes too. Here in England, it is more difficult because I think the FA is very strict about these things. I am sure that if this happens here, they will ban the fan immediately, the federation can punish the club, and they can leave them without fans, but it is a complicated situation.

“I’ve said it many times: while the authorities don’t do what has to be done, it’s no use. We players do what we can, which is to expose, post on social media, and talk about it in interviews. But we can’t punish.

“We players have to simply get on the pitch and keep playing, keep going to training. Those who can punish often don’t do what has to be done. We need to have a real rigorous punishment and not just keep running campaigns like ‘no to racism’ or something like that and that’s it.

“I hope that more and more fans can be punished or that whoever does this will be punished.”

Atletico Madrid squandered a three-goal lead in a remarkable 3-3 draw at Espanyol, as Vinicius Souza’s equaliser ensured Los Colchoneros missed the chance to go second in LaLiga.

After seeing rivals Real Madrid leapfrog them with a 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano, Atleti appeared set to move one point clear in the battle to finish as runners-up when they raced into a 3-0 lead.

Saul Niguez struck first with a left-footed finish from a tight angle 21 minutes in, and Antoine Griezmann’s 14th league goal of the season put Diego Simeone’s men in control on the stroke of half-time.

Atleti further extended their lead within 14 seconds of the restart, Yannick Carrasco converting the rebound when Angel Correa’s drive was palmed away by Fernando Pacheco.

But Espanyol, fighting for their lives near the bottom of LaLiga, were in no mood to roll over. Cesar Montes powered a header home from a right-wing corner before Ivo Grbic’s foul on Javier Puado allowed Joselu to convert from the penalty spot.

Vinicius then dented Atleti’s bid for second with a glancing header from Aleix Vidal’s cross 11 minutes from time, but with the hosts three points adrift of safety, it may not be enough to preserve their top-flight status.

Rodrygo’s 89th-minute goal saw Real Madrid return to winning ways with a 2-1 victory over mid-table Rayo Vallecano at the Bernabeu.

Vinicius Junior was absent with a knee problem but his team-mates put on a united show of support for the winger after he was racially abused at Valencia on Sunday, all emerging wearing his shirt and holding up a “racists, out of football” banner.

Karim Benzema put the hosts ahead in the 31st minute but Rayo thought they had snatched a draw when Raul de Tomas equalised six minutes from time, only for Rodrygo to come inside on his right foot and stroke a shot past Stole Dimitrievski from the edge of the area.

Victory moved them back into second place in LaLiga as city rivals Atletico squandered a three-goal lead to draw 3-3 with second-bottom Espanyol.

Goals from Cesar Montes, Joselu and Vinicius Souza cancelled out strikes from Saul Niguez, Antoine Griezmann and Yannick Carrasco and left Espanyol three points from safety with two matches remaining and still in danger of suffering a second top-flight relegation in four seasons.

Two goals from Nicolas Jackson secured a 2-0 win over Cadiz which guaranteed Villarreal fifth place, after Real Betis lost 1-0 to struggling Getafe who in turn boosted their survival chances, while already-relegated Elche drew 1-1 at home to Sevilla.

Inter Milan warmed up for their Champions League final with Manchester City by retaining the Coppa Italia courtesy of two goals from Lautaro Martinez in a 2-1 win over Fiorentina in Rome.

Nicolas Gonzalez had given Fiorentina a third-minute lead but Inter’s Argentina international struck twice before half-time to secure the club’s ninth victory in the competition.

Ross County came from two goals down to keep their cinch Premiership survival hopes alive despite being denied three points by Ryan McGowan’s last-gasp equaliser in a 3-3 draw with St Johnstone.

Stevie May scored either side of half-time, first with a curling effort and then from the penalty spot, to give the visitors a commanding lead in Dingwall.

But County came roaring back with Yan Dhanda netting a spot-kick, Jordan White breaking the offside trap to level things up and Jack Baldwin’s stunner at the death.

However, McGowan had the final say to claim a point.

The point all but saved County from automatic relegation – Dundee United would need an eight-goal swing even if they beat Motherwell and the Dingwall side lose at Rugby Park.

And Malky Mackay’s side will stay up without a play-off if they win at Rugby Park.

The Staggies’ best chance early on came courtesy of St Johnstone’s goalkeeper, as Ross Sinclair punched the ball straight to White before recovering well to smother the shot.

It was the visitors who took the lead through May, whose shot beat Ross Laidlaw and found the far corner.

St Johnstone maintained the upper hand into the second half, where May turned and shot from 25 yards, forcing Laidlaw to tip the ball on to the bar.

Shortly afterwards he made it 2-0 from the penalty spot after Nohan Kenneh had taken down Adam Montgomery.

That daylight between the sides did not last long though, as County went up the pitch and won a penalty of their own courtesy of a handball by Cameron Ballantyne.

Dhanda stepped up to take it and powered his spot-kick past Sinclair and into the top corner to cut the deficit in half.

That got the Staggies’ tails up and they began to pin St Johnstone deep into their own half as they tried to find an equaliser.

Eventually that pressure told as, in the 69th minute, Kenneh mis-hit a shot into the path of White who converted from close range and, after a VAR check for offside, the goal was allowed to stand.

In the 90th minute, an unlikely source popped up with what looked like a winner, with Baldwin smashing the ball into the bottom corner from 25 yards.

However, St Johnstone fought back deep into five minutes of stoppage time and Andy Considine thought he had an equaliser when his header at a corner hit the bar, only for McGowan to follow up and find the net.

Aberdeen sealed third spot in the cinch Premiership and a place in Europe next season as their 3-0 win over 10-man St Mirren allied to Hearts’ draw at Ibrox put the Dons four points clear of the Edinburgh side.

On-loan midfield duo Leighton Clarkson and Graeme Shinnie had the Dons on easy street with first-half goals either side of Thierry Small’s red card, and Shinnie added a third early in the second half.

The Dons will now be guaranteed European group stage football if Celtic beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final.

After a cagey opening, Clarkson opened the scoring from 20 yards as he curled an unstoppable free-kick past Trevor Carson at the near post after Greg Kiltie had bundled over Jonny Hayes.

Much of the play was in midfield, but St Mirren’s Curtis Main and Alex Gogic both went close with headers in the space of 60 seconds midway through the first half.

But the Buddies were reduced to 10 men on the half-hour as Small’s wild challenge on Dons striker Bojan Miovski left the North Macedonian striker stricken, and after a yellow card was initially brandished by referee Don Robertson, a VAR check saw that upgraded to red.

Aberdeen were undeterred by Miovski’s injury and after Carson parried a Luis Lopes strike, Ross McCrorie just failed to get enough on the follow-up to beat the St Mirren keeper.

But they doubled their lead two minutes from the break as Carson inexplicably scooped a Marley Watkins cross into the air and Shinnie gratefully accepted the gift to nod home from close range.

Shinnie was at it again four minutes after the interval as he netted his second, a rare right-footed strike after Ylber Ramadani’s cutback, but again Carson should have done much better in his attempt to block the effort.

St Mirren threatened from a set-piece of their own 20 yards out but Ryan Strain’s whipped effort was well held by Kelle Roos.

And Roos again stood firm after a mix-up between Angus MacDonald and Liam Scales let Main in behind the Dons defence, but there was no way past the Dutch goalkeeper.

Aberdeen were getting lax at the back against the 10 men and with 15 minutes left Roos was again called into action, this time to beat away Mark O’Hara’s curled effort from the edge of the area.

Watkins and McCrorie passed up late chances to add a fourth for the Dons, but the hosts sent their fans home happy with European football next season guaranteed.

Hibernian came from behind to defeat 10-man Celtic 4-2 at Easter Road and set up a final-day shootout with city rivals Hearts for fourth place in the cinch Premiership.

The champions led 2-1 before substitute Daizen Maeda’s red card midway through the second half paved the way for Lee Johnson’s side to fight back and claim a crucial victory in their quest for European football, with Hoops keeper Scott Bain badly at fault for the hosts’ last two goals.

The win ensures Hibs can finish no lower than fifth place – which will be enough for a crack at continental competition if Celtic beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final – and they now have the opportunity to end the campaign on the ultimate high by pipping Hearts to fourth if they win at Tynecastle on Saturday.

For Celtic, it was a third game in a row without a victory since they secured the title earlier this month.

There were two changes to the Hibs side that started Sunday’s defeat by Rangers as Josh Campbell and Chris Cadden were replaced by Jake Doyle-Hayes and Lewis Miller.

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou opted to make six changes to the team that was held 2-2 by St Mirren at the weekend as goalkeeper Bain, Yuki Kobayashi, Alexandro Bernabei, Sead Haksabanovic, Hyeongyu Oh and Liel Abada all came into the starting line-up.

The first half was a lively affair with plenty chances at both ends. But it was Celtic who went in a goal ahead at the break when Reo Hatate calmly converted a 41st minute penalty after Callum McGregor was wiped out by a late challenge from Lewis Stevenson moments after the Celtic captain had failed to get a clean connection on a cut-back from substitute Maeda, who had replaced the injured Haksabanovic in the 22nd minute.

Hibs sent on Campbell for James Jeggo at the start of the second half and they got themselves back into the game.

They signalled their intent when Kevin Nisbet saw a firm low angled shot blocked by Bain in the 50th minute. And two minutes later Elie Youan volleyed home a stunning equaliser from just inside the box after Campbell’s cross from the right was headed out by Anthony Ralston.

Parity lasted only six minutes, however, as Oh capitalised on some slack defending from the hosts to fire home a loose ball from close range.

Celtic suffered a game-changing blow in the 67th minute when Maeda was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Will Fish.

It looked like the hosts were also going to be reduced to 10 men just three minutes later when Doyle-Hayes was red carded for a cynical trip on Oh but it was downgraded to a yellow following a VAR review.

The Hibees took full advantage of this reprieve and Nisbet equalised with a penalty in the 75th minute after Miller was grappled in the box by Ralston following a Doyle-Hayes corner.

Youan then put the Edinburgh side ahead in the 80th minute when he stepped inside Oh and unleashed a 25-yard strike which was fumbled into the net by Bain.

The Celtic keeper was badly at fault again six minutes later when he allowed Paul Hanlon’s header at the back post from a Miller cross to squirm past him.

Dundee United stand on the brink of relegation from the cinch Premiership after Kyle Vassell’s double sent Kilmarnock on their way to a 3-0 victory at Tannadice which keeps them in pole position in the battle for survival.

United suffered a fourth consecutive defeat which, coupled with Ross County’s draw against St Johnstone, left them needing a hugely unlikely turn of events on the final day on Sunday to avoid a second relegation in seven years.

United need to beat in-form Motherwell at Fir Park and hope Killie beat Ross County and somehow engineer an eight-goal swing along the way.

Killie are three points ahead of County but will need to get at least a point against the Dingwall side on Sunday to stay out of the play-off spot.

United boss Jim Goodwin admitted after his side’s third consecutive defeat on Saturday against Livingston that they “keep shooting ourselves in the foot” with defensive errors, and the two goals they conceded in the first half to Vassell were textbook examples.

The home side went down with a whimper and Innes Cameron came off the bench to net a late third on the counter-attack.

Goodwin had made some major decisions in his team selection. Mark Birighitti was dropped after the goalkeeper’s latest blunder in a difficult season and 21-year-old Jack Newman was handed his second start for the club. His first ended in a 4-0 defeat by Ross County. Steven Fletcher started after missing Saturday’s game with a groin injury and Peter Pawlett made his fourth start of the season.

Defenders Chris Stokes and Ash Taylor returned from injury for Killie and, with David Watson and Liam Donnelly dropping out through suspension and injury respectively, Liam Polworth and Brad Lyons came into their midfield.

The opener came in the 14th minute after Loick Ayina tried to dribble past a third opponent on his way out of his own penalty box. The United centre-back overran the ball, lunged into a strong tackle which went unpunished by referee Alan Muir, but the ball was in the corner of the net two seconds later after ultimately falling for Vassell 18 yards out.

Vassell soon came close to an extraordinary second goal. The striker chested the ball down inside the centre circle with his back to goal and turned and lobbed Newman, who did well to backtrack and push the ball over his bar almost on the line.

The Northern Ireland international did net again in the 44th minute after more sloppy play in possession from the hosts.

Ilmari Niskanen played a slack pass towards Ayina, Christian Doidge won the ball and lifted it over Newman before being cleaned out by the goalkeeper. Vassell made sure there was no need for a penalty by knocking the ball home.

United were booed off at half-time after an unconvincing attacking display. Fletcher and Pawlett both fluffed good chances before being flagged offside anyway, and the former volleyed over first time.

Goodwin brought on Dylan Levitt and Glenn Middleton for the second half but there was little sign of improvement.

Vassell went off injured following a foul by Charlie Mulgrew but his replacement, Cameron, marked his return from nine months out with injury by converting following Rory McKenzie’s break forward in the 83rd minute.

Rory McLeod hit the post for United before Sam Walker saved from another sub, Miller Thomson, but most of the home fans had already left.

A late goal for Ross County was set to put United down until former United player Ryan McGowan levelled for St Johnstone, but their fate is all but sealed.

Andrew Shinnie scored a late equaliser as 10-man Livingston fought back at home against Motherwell to secure a 1-1 draw in the cinch Premiership.

Shinnie’s 84th-minute strike, after being set up by skipper Nicky Devlin, capped off a resilient second-half display for the hosts.

Kevin van Veen scored the game’s opening goal just two minutes into the contest from close range, equalling the club record set by Hugh Ferguson 103 years ago by scoring in his 10th consecutive match.

Livingston’s goalkeeper Shamal George was sent off after 43 minutes following a collision with Van Veen outside of the area, but the hosts rallied to secure a late point.

Mikael Mandron cushioned the ball down and Van Veen fired home from inside the box to give Motherwell an early lead.

Despite both sides’ safety guaranteed and seventh place being all that was on the line, the game developed into an end-to-end affair.

David Martindale’s side showed their attacking impetus as they pushed for an equaliser before the interval, with two strikes from Stephen Kelly going close.

A whipped delivery from Paul McGinn failed to find Mandron but the attempted clearance fell kindly for Van Veen, whose powerful strike was blocked before Kelly again went close at the other end, only for his attempt to narrowly fizz over the bar.

As Motherwell tried to double their advantage, Van Veen raced onto a looping through ball and was clattered by the onrushing George.

After initially being shown a yellow card and the flag being raised for offside, a lengthy VAR check resulted in referee Chris Graham consulting the pitch-side monitor before dismissing the keeper.

After the interval Livingston continued to push for a leveller despite their numerical disadvantage, with Anderson’s deflected effort falling kindly for Luiyi De Lucas, but the defender’s strike was well defended.

Much of the second half failed to match the first 45’s back and forth despite the man advantage for the visitors never becoming overly apparent as the hosts dug deep to find a route back into the game.

Their persistence paid off late on when Devlin slid the ball across the box for Shinnie to thump in the equaliser in what is set to be his final home appearance as the club’s captain.

A late shot from Blair Spittal was dragged wide as both sides were left ruing missed opportunities throughout the 90 minutes.

Lautaro Martinez was Inter’s hero as his two goals saw them retain the Coppa Italia with a 2-1 victory over Fiorentina.

Martinez produced two fine first-half finishes – the first for his 100th Inter goal – as the Nerazzurri rallied following Nicolas Gonzalez’s third-minute opener at a raucous Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday.

Vincenzo Italiano’s Viola piled on the pressure after the break, but Inter captain Samir Handanovic made a string of crucial saves, the most impressive of them to deny Luka Jovic.

That rear-guard action from Inter ensured they clung on to retain the trophy, and with a Champions League final against Manchester City to come next month, the Nerazzurri are in the hunt for a double.

It was a dream start for Fiorentina. Jonathan Ikone found space to send in a low cross from the left, allowing his opposite winger Gonzalez to tap home at the far post.

Edin Dzeko missed two chances to level for Inter, but it was his partner-in-crime Martinez who stepped up just before the half-hour mark, latching onto Marcelo Brozovic’s pass to finish low across goal.

Martinez doubled up just eight minutes later, volleying Nicolo Barella’s delicate cross beyond Pietro Terracciano.

Arthur Cabral headed straight at Handanovic from close range, before Inter substitute Romelu Lukaku tested Terracciano at the other end.

Handanovic remained alert to deny Gonzalez a double of his own from a tight angle, while Robin Gosens somehow failed to prod Lukaku’s cross into a gaping net to kill the contest.

Jovic had two chances to send the game to extra time after entering the fray, but Handanovic thwarted the former Real Madrid striker with a brilliant one-on-one save before watching a header from the Serbian spin just wide as Inter claimed a ninth Coppa crown.

What does it mean? Cup king Inzaghi reigns again

Simone Inzaghi’s reputation as a master of knockout football has been further enhanced.

Having won Italy’s domestic cup three times as a Lazio player, he has matched that tally since moving into the dugout, leading the Biancocelesti to glory in 2018-19 and repeating the trick with Inter in each of the last two seasons.

Inter have now matched Roma’s tally of nine Coppa Italia triumphs. Only Juventus (14) have lifted the trophy on more occasions.

Lautaro’s name up in lights

Gonzalez has been in superb form as of late and he gave Fiorentina a brilliant start, but another Argentine stole the headlines with a terrific display.

Having brought up a century of Inter goals with his leveller, Martinez decided the destination of the trophy with a predatory second.

Martinez now has 27 goals across all competitions this season, the best tally of his Inter career, and he could yet add the Champions League trophy to his World Cup and Coppa Italia triumphs.

Handanovic still handy

Handanovic has been ousted as Inter’s first-choice goalkeeper by Andre Onana this term, but the 38-year-old returned between the sticks for Wednesday’s final.

The Slovenian certainly repaid Inzaghi’s faith. Fiorentina managed 19 attempts to Inter’s 11, but Handanovic proved unflappable.

What’s next?

Inter will secure a top-four finish in Serie A if they overcome Atalanta at San Siro on Saturday. Fiorentina host Roma, another Champions League-chasing side who also have a European final to look forward to, on the same day.