MLS transfer roundup: LA Galaxy waive Sega Coulibaly; Portland Timbers strengthen backline
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2023-07-02 04:00
Eddie Howe has made huge Newcastle improvements – yet even more is needed for his biggest test yet
As the Saudi money rolled in, some might have thought Eddie Howe’s days were numbered. With big-money, marquee player signings coming through the door, an elite, high-profile coach would surely not be too far behind. At the start of this season, it appeared Howe had reached his limitations. Three defeats in Newcastle United’s opening four league games gave credence to claims all that was missing from the PIF Toon revolution was a new figurehead. However, despite having to work with a squad so injury-ravaged, Howe has Newcastle buzzing again. His lack of willingness to be drawn on Newcastle’s Middle Eastern overlords does not make him universally popular, but what Howe is doing with his team, a threadbare one at that, is nothing short of remarkable. A recent uptick in results is no fluke – Howe has accepted having to work with 14 fit players and academy kids as backups and is getting on with it, eking every inch out from his shell of a side, with some innovative thinking and a gameplan his players need not stray too far from. “The gaffer, that’s it. The gaffer,” defender Jamaal Lascelles insisted after Saturday’s win over Chelsea, when asked what the difference between playing for Newcastle before the takeover compared to now was. “Everything he’s done, the philosophy, the culture, the way he gets us working. I could stand here all day and talk about it. He’s improved everyone as a player, he’s improved us as a team, everyone knows what they have to do on the pitch.” That last point was illustrated perfectly in Saturday’s encounter with Chelsea. Newcastle had no right to win that game – against a Blues team on the up, with three goalkeepers and four academy players on the bench – and after Raheem Sterling equalised in the first half, there appeared likely to be only one winner. Yet, somehow, with Mauricio Pochettino able to turn to £300m worth of cavalry, Newcastle dug deep, stuck to their jobs, and ran out rampant 4-1 winners. One was a collection of individuals, the other was a team. And that is down to Howe. He is really trying everything possible to gain an advantage. The full-to-bursting St. James’ treatment room and a crucial clash in Paris leaves him with no alternative. One look at Newcastle’s set pieces tells you all you need to know about the work that is going on at the training ground. The scene is more akin to the NFL. The majority of black and white shirts in the box are “blockers” creating plenty of space for their most lethal options from Kieran Trippier’s excellent deliveries into the penalty area. One particular routine worked out perfectly on Saturday, but Joelinton still somehow headed wide with the goal at his mercy. The results are startling, nonetheless. Having been one of the least threatening teams from set plays previously, Since the start of the 2022-23 Premier League season, no club have a better expected goal (xG) difference per 100 set pieces than Newcastle. No stone is left unturned as Howe tries to find an edge to revive his side’s Champions League campaign. “A change of feel, just a different routine, you never know how these things affect your performance,” Howe said of his side’s decision to train on the Parc des Princes pitch ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Paris Saint-Germain, as opposed to remaining at home on the day of the game as they did in their previous two away group games. “The results you can never guarantee, but performance, we’re looking for an improvement from our two away games. So that’s why we’ve done what we’ve done today.” PSG come into the contest as favourites having hit five past Monaco at the weekend, and a defeat would end Newcastle’s Champions League hopes. Without half of his squad, against one of the best sides in the world, Howe and his side really shouldn’t stand a chance. As Chelsea will testify to, however, count them out at your peril.
2023-11-28 15:55
Boost for Wagner as Mali shuns UN troops, but at what cost?
As it pushes out 12,000 UN peacekeepers, Mali will be relying ever more heavily on Russian mercenaries.
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Tina Turner lost her voice before she died at the age of 83 as she 'could barely whisper' her final farewell
Tina Turner had a famed career as a singer and actress spanning six decades during which she struggled in both her personal and professional life
2023-06-08 01:18
Who is Jermaine Mandley? Illinois man who killed his ex-girlfriend in front of her daughter gets life in prison
Poloce found Maya Smith dead inside the car with bullet wounds in the head and abdomen while her daughter was in the back seat, unhurt
2023-11-08 08:31
Xi Tolerance for Property Pain Nears Limit as Rescue Takes Shape
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2023-11-24 09:26
Iceland’s Top Attraction Shuttered for Week Over Volcanic Threat
Iceland’s main tourist attraction, Blue Lagoon, will close its operations for at least a week as an underground
2023-11-09 18:55
Mourinho downplays Sevilla fear factor ahead of Europa League final
Jose Mourinho said Tuesday that "history does not play" as he prepares his Roma team to face Europa League specialists Sevilla...
2023-05-31 01:06
Soccer star Ashlyn Harris denies cheating on ex-wife Ali Krieger with Sophia Bush as she breaks silence on divorce
Taking to social media, Ashlyn Harris issued a statement regarding her divorce from Ali Krieger and addressed the online hate she has received
2023-11-19 20:29
The 100 greatest World Cup goals ever
The 2022 World Cup will possibly go down as the most controversial in history. Hosts Qatar have an appalling human rights record and more than 6,000 migrant workers have died during construction on the stadiums due to the country's extreme heat - which is why the tournament is being held in the winter as opposed to the summer. Given the gigantic elephant in the room and the very awkward political situation surrounding the tournament it's going to be very hard to try and enjoy the tournament but we'll try our best. Rather than dwell on what's to come we've instead decided to have a trip down memory lane and revel in some true football nostalgia because after all, that's kinda what the World Cup is all about. Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter Every four years we are greeted with images of Pele, Maradona, Zidane, Moore, Beckenbauer and other greats who all achieved immortality thanks to their exploits at the Word Cup and a few of them scored some decent goals too. Brazilian screamers, mazy Argentine dribbles, well-worked German team goals and the odd sprinkling of Italian audacity is what we watch the World Cup for, so it now seems like no better time to rank, in our opinion, the 100 greatest World Cup goals ever. We'll be releasing the list slowly - 10 a day until the tournament starts on November 20th so naturally we're starting at the bottom with numbers 100-90. 100. Maicon, Brazil vs North Korea 2010 The classic 'did or didn't he mean it' goal. Maicon, perhaps best known beyond this goal for being given the run around by a young Gareth Bale, struck this seemingly impossible strike to break the deadlock against a very stubborn North Korean team in one of the better games of the 2010 group stages. Maicon Amazing goal vs North Korea - HD www.youtube.com 99. Kieran Trippier, England vs Croatia 2018 Before he was the talismanic Newcastle captain causing the Toon Army to have dreams beyond their wildest reckoning, Kieran Trippier briefly had the entirety of England dreaming of a first World Cup final since 1966 when he scored this sumptuous free kick against Croatia in the opening minutes of the 2018 semi-final against Croatia. Kieran Trippier Goal In The World Cup Semi Finals!!! www.youtube.com 98. Andreas Ogris, Austria vs USA 1990 Austria had a pretty miserable Italia 90 and had already been eliminated by the time they played the United States in their final group game. Thankfully for them they did have something to cheer about when striker Andreas Ogris found a burst of energy to score sublime solo counterattack goal as part of a 2-1 win. Ogris austria 1990.avi www.youtube.com 97. Philippe Albert, Belgium vs Germany 1994 Newcastle fans will remember Albert, the great Belgian defender capable of scoring some gorgeous goals, and wouldn't you know it? He could score them for Belgium too. This neat little give-and-go was just a consolation though in an otherwise excellent second-round game against Germany which ended 3-2. 02/07/1994 Belgium v Germany youtu.be 96. Zinedine Zidane, France vs Italy 2006 You won't see many penalties on this list mostly because few of them are panenkas that rattle off the bar in a World Cup final. This is Zidane we are talking about who had the arrogance and confidence to pull this off in his last ever match as a player which ended in disgrace following his infamous head butt on Marco Materazzi. Zinedine Zidane Penalty Kick France V Italy FIFA World Cup Final 2006 www.youtube.com 95. Jared Borgetti, Mexico v Italy 2002 Headers are usually straightforward affairs with little flamboyance. That wasn't the case when journeyman Mexican striker Jared Borgetti got his bonnet on the end of this cross and seemingly defied the laws of physics and the English language we're not quite sure how to describe this goal so you'll just have to watch it. Jared Borgetti Mexico vs Italy 1-0 First Round World Cup 2002 Dutch commentary www.youtube.com 94. Keisuke Honda, Japan vs Denmark 2010 Ahh, the Jabulani. One of the most unpredictable and derided World Cup balls ever created which seemingly had a mind of its own. A perfect example of this would be the free kick that Japan legend Keisuke Honda scored against Denmark in 2010 which dipped and swerved all over the place. Keisuke Honda 'Magical Goal' Vs Denmark www.youtube.com 93. Eric Wynalda, USA vs Switzerland 1994 USA's first goal of the first World Cup that they ever hosted (they'll return as co-hosts in 2026 along with Mexico and Canada) was one to remember as one of their most celebrated players Eric Wynalda scored a textbook curling free-kick in the opening game against Switzerland which ended 1-1. The kits weren't bad either. Eric Wynalda Goal - World Cup 1994 - Group A | USA - Switzerland 1:1 | 45' www.youtube.com 92. Hwangbo Kwan, South Korea v Spain 1990 This South Korean thunderbolt from Kwan was one of the few things the Koreans could celebrate as it was the only goal they scored. The strike was so ferocious that it reportedly registered at 114 km/h. It didn't bother Spain's Michel too much who scored a hat-trick in this game, with all three strikes deserving a shoutout too. 1990 (June 17) Spain 3-South Korea 1 (World Cup).mpg www.youtube.com 91. Ilie Dumitrescu, Romania vs Argentina 1994 Romania's 1994 squad were a wonderful team full of mercurial players capable of divine pieces of individual brilliance. One of them was former Tottenham star Ilie Dumistrescu who scored this brilliantly simple goal as Romania knocked Argentina out of the USA 94. DUMITRESCU - against argentina 1994 www.youtube.com 90. Robbie Keane, Ireland vs Germany 2002 Not the prettiest goal this and is as route one as they come but there was something special about this Ireland team who really punched above their weight in 2002, with this strike by the great Robbie Keane summing up the dogged determination from Mick McCarthy's team. Just a shame the other Keane wasn't there to see it. (HQ) Robbie Keane Last Minute Goal Republic of Ireland v Germany 2002 World Cup www.youtube.com Click for goals 89-80 Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-06-08 16:08
Can You Pre-load Warhammer 40,000: Darktide?
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is coming to Xbox Game Pass and players wonder if they can pre-load it onto their consoles.
2023-10-04 06:11
Call of Duty League Get Farmed Calling Card: How to Get
Here's a breakdown of how to claim the Get Farmed Calling Card for use in Call of Duty: Warzone and Vanguard.
1970-01-01 08:00
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