Ezri Konsa: I couldn’t watch deadline day as financial rules have ‘killed’ Villa
Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa could not watch any of Monday’s transfer deadline day action as he believes financial rules have “killed” his club.
England Sport News
Spurs’ second-half collapse against Newcastle shows size of De Zerbi’s task
LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur’s initially improved performance against Newcastle United gave way once again to familiar failings in Saturday’s limp 2-0 loss, leaving coach Roberto De Zerbi’s attempt to establish a connection with their fans in tatters.
Pakistan captain Babar in injury scare ahead of England opener
LONDON: Pakistan captain Babar Azam suffered an injury during the second day of a warm-up match ahead of next week’s first Test against England. Babar was forced to retire hurt on five during Friday’s second day of three against a Professional County Club Select XI after being hit on the right hand. A Pakistan spokesman said Babar will take no further part in the fixture, but added: “Babar will participate in Pakistan team’s practice session on Monday at Headingley Cricket Ground.” The first of a three-Test series against England begins at Headingley on Wednesday, with top-order batsman Babar having led Pakistan to a 1-1 draw in a two-match clash away to the West Indies earlier this month. Pakistan made 238 in reply to the PCC team’s first-innings 305, with England off-spinner Shoaib Bashir taking 4-76 and 17-year-old Manny Lumsden 2-24 at the Beckenham ground in Kent, southeast England. England opening batsman Emilio Gay, meanwhile, is set to arrive at Headingley on the back of a pair, having made his second nought of the match. Gay, looking to prove his fitness after suffering a shoulder injury playing for Durham in the One-Day Cup last week, faced just seven balls Friday in an innings that ended when he edged behind off Mohammad Ali. The PCC side were 128-3 in their second innings at stumps, a lead of 195 runs.
England edge France 6-4 in chaotic World Cup bronze match
MIAMI: England beat France 6-4 in a chaotic World Cup third-place playoff on Saturday as Kylian Mbappe became the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history. Both teams had higher aspirations at the 2026 tournament but suffered painful semifinal exits — France were outplayed by Spain while England suffered a late collapse against Argentina. Both coaches made multiple changes for the match in the oppressive heat of Miami, with a host of stars on the bench at the start. England boss Thomas Tuchel left out Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham from his starting line-up while Deschamps, stepping down after 14 years at the helm, omitted Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele. Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice put England ahead with a goal from distance in the third minute and Ezri Konsa headed home to make it 2-0. Kylian Mbappe and Michael Olise were a threat as France searched for a way back into the game but they found England’s second-choice goalkeeper Dean Henderson in top form. The game threatened to become embarrassing for France when Bukayo Saka made it 3-0 after a swift break. And it was 4-0 in first-half stoppage time when Saka scored his second goal of the game, celebrated with a fist pump by Tuchel. France coach Didier Deschamps told French TV channel M6 that the first-half display had been “catastrophic,” urging his men to show pride. He made four changes, bringing on Dembele, Dayot Upamecano, Lucas Digne and Barcola and was rewarded almost instantly when Mbappe scored his ninth goal of the tournament to move clear of Lionel Messi at the top of the Golden Boot standings. The game had now totally changed complexion and Barcola pulled another goal back, with Deschamps clenching his fist on the bench. Mbappe then netted his
France, England prepare for gloomy World Cup send-off
MIAMI: France and England will bid a gloomy farewell to the World Cup on Saturday when they face each other in the dreaded third-place play-off in Miami. Both teams head to Florida still raw from semifinal defeats that have left both footballing nations licking wounds, which, in the eyes of many, were largely self-inflicted. France, the tournament’s outstanding team en route to the last four, were anonymous in the face of a tactical masterclass by Spain on Tuesday and slumped to a 2-0 defeat. England added another chapter to their long history of World Cup heartache on Wednesday when they surrendered the initiative and a lead to lose 2-1 to Argentina in Atlanta. France and England must now attempt to summon the remnants of their competitive will and physical reserves for a game that is widely disliked throughout football. “None of our players and none of the French players want to play this match,” England manager Thomas Tuchel said after his team’s agonizing semifinal defeat. “They want to play the final. We gave everything to achieve that. Everyone plays to win the World Cup, but that’s how it is. “We have one less day of recovery than France, but we will do it with professionalism.”
Revamped England bowl in 2nd ODI against India
CARDIFF: England captain Harry Brook won the toss and elected to field in the second one-day international against India in Cardiff as the hosts bolstered their pace attack in a bid to level the three-match series. Spin-bowling all-rounder Liam Dawson, despite making an ODI best 68 during India’s six-wicket win in the first of a three-match series at Edgbaston on Tuesday, was dropped as was paceman Josh Tongue. Their places were taken by the seam-bowling duo of Gus Atkinson and Saqib Mahmood, with England on a run of 14 defeats in their last 20 ODIs. India, top of the ODI rankings, made one enforced change with Ishan Kishan replacing unwell wicket-keeper KL Rahul.
Harry Kane ‘gutted’ after England crash out of World Cup
ATLANTA: Harry Kane said he was “gutted” for England and their fans after his team were beaten 2-1 by defending champions Argentina in the World Cup semifinals on Wednesday. Anthony Gordon’s strike had put the Three Lions on the cusp of a first men’s World Cup final since they lifted the 1966 trophy but Lionel Messi inspired a dramatic turnaround in Atlanta. He set up Enzo Fernandez, who blasted home from outside the area, and provided an inch-perfect cross for Lautaro Martinez’s winner in stoppage time. “Gutted for the boys, gutted for everyone — the team, the staff, the fans,” England captain Kane told the BBC. “We played a good game, the large majority of it.
Argentina beat England 2-1 to reach World Cup final
ATLANTA: Reigning champions Argentina came from behind to beat England 2-1 on Wednesday and reach their second World Cup final in a row, where they will face Spain. Anthony Gordon put England ahead in the 55th minute but Enzo Fernandez equalized 30 minutes later and Lautaro Martinez headed in the winner in stoppage time from Lionel Messi’s cross. Argentina will have a chance to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups after Messi, 39, once again dragged his team to victory. The South Americans will face a Spain team in the final who beat France 2-0 in Tuesday’s semifinal.
Local ‘hero’: Bellingham’s hometown buzzing ahead of semifinal clash
STOURBRIDGE, UK: As England gears up for the World Cup semifinal Wednesday, there will be one name on everyone’s lips: Jude Bellingham, the star midfielder who powered the Three Lions through to the marquee clash against Argentina. In packed stadiums in North America and pubs back home, people belt out the Beatles’ “Hey Jude” and don t-shirts with slogans like “Bend it like Bellingham” — a play on the iconic 2000s film “Bend it like Beckham.” But nowhere is the 23-year-old midfielder more feted than his hometown of Stourbridge, a quiet market town in central England, west of Birmingham. Wheeling his bike past the town’s shopping center, retiree Keith Hall blows a kiss toward a superhero comic-style mural of Bellingham. “He’s a local lad,” Hall told AFP, adding Bellingham “keeps in touch with his roots” despite now playing for Real Madrid. Bellingham launched his football career playing for the Stourbridge Juniors, before joining Birmingham City’s youth side and becoming the club’s youngest first-team player. “It doesn’t surprise me that he’s become an international sensation because he’s the coolest man currently living,” gushed grocery store worker Sam Holden, 21. “Harry Kane obviously can kind of save us in our time of need, but Jude Bellingham can just take us to the heights that England absolutely are capable of reaching.” A regional railway company is offering passengers named “Jude” free travel in Stourbridge this week. “We look forward to inviting Judes from across the region for a free ride on the Stourbridge Shuttle,” said Jonny Wiseman from the West Midlands Railway. The fever has spread beyond the area, known as Black Country, with a railway station in southeast London briefly renamed to “Jude Bellingham”