List of All Articles with Tag 'foot'

Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun has switched allegiance from England to the United States, FIFA has confirmed. The New York-born 21-year-old, who is currently on loan at French club Reims, has represented England at Under-21s level but has opted to play his senior international football for the country of his birth. A FIFA spokesperson told the PA news agency said: “The change of association of the player Folarin Jolaoluwa Balogun from England to the USA has been approved.” The news comes just weeks before England are due to launch their European Under-21 Championship finals campaign in Georgia and Romania. Balogun has made 13 appearances for Lee Carsley’s side, but withdrew from the squad in March due to injury. Having been born in America, Balogun moved to England when he was two years old and also qualifies for Nigeria through his parents. Qualifying players are allowed to switch associations before they have played a competitive match for a nation’s senior team. Balogun has made 10 first-team appearances and scored two goals for the Gunners, and spent the second half of the 2021-22 season on loan at Sky Bet Championship Middlesbrough. However, he has made a name for himself in Ligue 1 this season with 19 goals in 34 appearances to date. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

A senior treasurer of the Conservative Party looks set to become one of the biggest investors in football in the US on the brink of buying a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise in a record $500m (£400m) deal. Mohamed Mansour, who has donated £600,000 to the Tories since 2016 and was appointed treasurer by Rishi Sunak last December, is expected to be officially awarded the new franchise, based in San Diego, California, on Thursday. The £400m price tag would be the sixth biggest football deal in the world, behind Chelsea, AC Milan and Manchester United, but less than the £300m Saudi takeover of Newcastle in 2022. He is expected to create the club from scratch by recruiting a full set of players, staff and an academy, which sources suggest could add an extra $200m to the bill. Mansour, a 75-year-old British-Egyptian billionaire Manchester United fan who was an early backer of Facebook and Twitter, has already invested in football with Right to Dream, a group of football academies based in Ghana, Egypt and Denmark. His company Man Capital – the London-based investment group of which he is the founder and chair – became the majority shareholder at Danish Superliga club Nordsjaelland in January 2021. Mansour has previously admitted in an interview with The Daily Telegraph that he was looking to add an English club to his portfolio following the success at Nordsjaelland. “Is England on our radar screen? Definitely,” he explained. The new MLS team in San Diego will be jointly owned by Mansour and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, an indigenous American tribe which is believed to have lived in the San Diego area for more than 12,000 years. According to Forbes, Mansour’s net worth is $3.6bn (£2.9bn). The San Diego franchise look set to join MLS in 2025, ahead of the 2026 World Cup being jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, but the $500m price tag is the most that has ever been paid for a US football franchise. It will take the number of teams in the MLS to 30. The previous record was the $325m for the team based in Charlotte, North Carolina and, by contrast, David Beckham paid just $25m for Inter Miami following a deal he negotiated when signing for LA Galaxy as a player. MLS recently signed a global $2.5bn, 10-year TV deal with Apple TV, which starts this summer, while San Diego plan to rent the 35,000-seat Snapdragon Stadium, owned by San Diego State University, which has previously hosted international matches. Read More Budget 2022: Hunt says UK in recession as he announces huge tax rises Jeremy Hunt increases energy windfall tax in budget Jeremy Hunt freezes tax allowances and hits 45p rate payers Lionel Messi's next move fuels frenzy of speculation Ceferin would not rule out a Champions League final being held in United States Messi the latest pawn in proxy rivalry in Middle East

Pep Guardiola has claimed his legacy at Manchester City is “exceptional” whether or not he wins the Champions League. The Catalan needs one more victory to secure a fifth Premier League trophy in six seasons and became the first manager to do a domestic treble in 2018-19, as well as setting a top-flight points record of 100 the previous year. But this is his seventh attempt to win the Champions League with City, who lost the 2021 final and host Real Madrid on Wednesday after drawing 1-1 in the first leg of their semi-final in what Guardiola accepted is one of the most significant games of his reign. Guardiola believes his side do not need to do anything incredible to beat Carlo Ancelotti’s side but feels he will be remembered more for the quality of football his side have played. “My legacy is already exceptional already,” he said. “We have been here many times, we are not stupid to know how important it is. It is one of the most important [matches], with the competition and the rival. “I’ve told the players to enjoy the moment, we are incredibly lucky to be here. It’s in our hands. It depends on us. We don’t have to do anything exceptional, [just] win one game to reach the final and we’ll do everything. I have incredible feeling about the players: whatever happens, thank you so much to them for getting us here again. “My legacy: there has been a great generation of players that has been here. My legacy: maybe we could have a book about it one day but you won’t be judged on whether we won the Champions League or not. The legacy is we had a great time and played great football and the best legacy you can have is you have performed well and played well.” City will be without the injured Nathan Ake but Kevin De Bruyne, who was an unused substitute for Sunday’s win at Everton, is fit. City beat Real 4-3 in the first leg of last season’s semi-final and Guardiola would happily settle for a repeat scoreline. He added: “We’d like to have the game we had last season, I’d sign for it right now but I don’t think it will happen.” Real have won the Champions League a record 14 times and Guardiola searched for an explanation as to why they are the kings of Europe. “If I knew that I would know the method of beating them,” he said. “Basically the reason is they have always had great quality players, without players of that standard, they would not be able to achieve that.” Read More Man City being driven to title by man of the moment – and it’s not Erling Haaland The no-impact substitute: Kalvin Phillips’ ongoing humiliation gives Man City a problem What do Manchester City need to win the Premier League title? The no-impact substitute: Kalvin Phillips’ humiliation gives Man City a problem Rising stars have chance to emulate footballing greats at FIFA youth tournament ‘A dream come true’: Pep Guardiola elated at position of treble-chasing Man City

Nottingham Forest have been fined over the pitch invasion at the end of their Championship play-off semi-final against Sheffield United almost a year ago. A Forest fan was jailed after headbutting Blades striker Billy Sharp during the incident at the end of the second leg at the City Ground on May 17 last year, while Sheffield United’s Oli McBurnie was cleared last December of stamping on another pitch-invading Forest fan. The Football Association had charged Forest with failing to ensure their supporters conducted themselves in an orderly fashion and refrained from using threatening or violent behaviour while encroaching onto the pitch following the final whistle. The charge was partially admitted by Forest, and a £50,000 fine was imposed by an independent regulatory commission. The FA said half of the fine had been suspended by the panel until the end of next season, provided there were no further breaches of FA rule E20. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Kyle Walker believes Manchester City’s players owe it to Sheikh Mansour to win the Champions League. City host Real Madrid in the second leg of the semi-final after drawing 1-1 in the Bernabeu last week, still looking for a first European trophy since their 2008 takeover. Owner Sheikh Mansour has invested around £1.5 billion in the club in the last 15 years and Walker, one of a host of expensive signings, feels City can still be overshadowed by their neighbours Manchester United until they emulate them by becoming champions of Europe. The right-back said: “You have to just look over the road at Manchester United and what they have accomplished and when we get compared to that team they won countless titles. “We have done five [Premier League titles] in six years if we can cross the line on this one, which still isn’t over, but the club is missing that one [the Champions League] and the owners and the amount of money they have pumped in and the investment they have done we owe that to them.” United have won the European Cup three times, including in 1999 when they did the treble of the Champions League, the Premier League and the FA Cup that City hope to accomplish now. City are in their fourth Champions League semi-final and have reached one final, losing 1-0 to Chelsea in Porto in 2021. And Walker added: “To get to the Champions League final against Chelsea and not perform as well as we can, we owe that to ourselves and get some revenge because we know that was below par on that day.” Read More Inter vs AC Milan line-ups: Team news ahead of Champions League semi-final as Rafael Leao to return The no-impact substitute: Kalvin Phillips’ ongoing humiliation gives Man City a problem What do Manchester City need to win the Premier League title?

West Ham will not entertain any bids for Declan Rice until the season is over, the PA news agency understands. Reports emerged on Monday that Arsenal want to open talks with the Hammers over a £90million move for the England midfielder. West Ham are understood to be resigned to losing their captain this summer and are braced for a bidding war, with Chelsea and Manchester United also in the mix. But the club, and Rice, are focused solely on ending the season on a positive note, both domestically and in Europe. The Hammers are all but safe from relegation and face AZ Alkmaar in the second leg of their Europa Conference League semi-final in the Netherlands on Thursday, leading 2-1 from the first leg. Rice, 24, knows his final act in a West Ham shirt could be lifting a European trophy in Prague on June 7, sealing his place in club folklore. He would become only the third West Ham captain to collect a trophy, along with Bobby Moore and Billy Bonds, who lifted their last piece of silverware, the FA Cup, in 1980. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

In 2019 the gang broke into a museum in Dresden and stole treasures worth €113 million (£98m).

Curtis Jones insisted he never lost faith he would earn a Liverpool revival after coming through a “tough time” to establish himself as a first-team regular. The 22-year-old midfielder’s quickfire double helped the in-form Reds to a comfortable 3-0 win at relegation-threatened Leicester on Monday. Jones has now started the Reds’ last nine Premier League games having previously only made two starts all season, with a shin injury sidelining him until mid-October. He has also scored three goals in his last four appearances – ending an 18-month drought – to help Liverpool in their late Champions League charge with Jurgen Klopp’s side fifth and a point behind the top four. The England Under-21 international told the club’s official site: “In terms of confidence, I’ve always been the same lad. I’ve always had the belief in myself but it’s been a tough time, I’ve had the injuries and stuff so I’ve not really had a full run of games in the past. “But I came in against Chelsea and I kept my shirt and I’ve still got the shirt now. I’m enjoying it, I’m being humble and keeping my feet on the ground and I know what it takes, so that’s what I’m doing. “Being a kid in the academy days I’ve always scored goals and I wouldn’t say I’ve been the star kid but I’ve always been the kid who has jumped up the age groups. I’m enjoying it, I’m being humble and keeping my feet on the ground and I know what it takes, so that’s what I’m doing. Curtis Jones “Then I came around the first team and it was kind of a shock where the whole of the game changes, so I’ve had to make a change to the whole of my game. But I’m adapting well and I think it’s the best run I’ve had for a while.” Jones struck twice in three first-half minutes against Leicester before Trent Alexander-Arnold’s 25-yard effort added the gloss. It left Leicester two points from safety with two games left and Jamie Vardy admitted they need to win at Newcastle on Monday and in the final-day visit of West Ham to stand a chance of surviving. “We’ve got to put it straight to the back of our minds now,” the striker told the club’s official site. “We’ve got to focus on the next two games and we’ve got to pick two wins up. It’ll be tough but we know we’ve got the talent in that dressing room. It needs to click. “We’ve got two games left and the minimum we can have is two wins just to give ourselves a chance. “So, we’ll get back on that training pitch, spend all week looking at Newcastle, how we can exploit the weaknesses and how we stop, obviously, their strengths. “We’ve got to make sure that we put the 90-minute effort in next week to pick up a win.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Jofra Archer ‘distraught’ after being ruled out of Ashes summer Coventry’s Mark Robins feels pressure is on Middlesbrough in play-off second leg A closer look at the battle to beat the drop in the Premier League

Coventry boss Mark Robins moved to pile the pressure on Middlesbrough ahead of their crunch play-off semi-final second leg. The Sky Blues go to the Riverside on Wednesday locked at 0-0 from Sunday’s first leg. Boro finished fourth in the Championship, five points and a place ahead of Coventry, and at the Riverside Robins feels Michael Carrick’s side hold the advantage. He said: “They’re the favourites to go through so the pressure is on them. There’s no doubt about it. We’ll go out there and really give a good account of ourselves. “For us, it’s about our preparation and what we can do. The betting companies have made them favourites to win promotion. So, by definition, that makes us least favourites so it is what it is. We just go and deal with what we’ve got in front of us.” Coventry were not expected to make the play-offs this season, especially after playing seven of their first nine games away from home following the Rugby Sevens at the Commonwealth Games destroying the CBS Arena pitch. Robins recognises their progress this term but still wants the glory at the end. “It’s not really a great time to reflect because that time will be whenever this season comes to an end and we can sit back and have a look,” said the manager, who could be without Gustavo Hamer after he suffered a knee injury in the first leg. “I say sit back, we’re not because we’ve got a busy period of recruitment coming up. “Regardless of anything, I was asked at the start this season what success would look like and for us, really, you talk about finishing in the Championship, whatever happens. “If you’re in the Championship it always gives you a chance of doing what we’ve done so far this season. “Our season was blighted at the start with well-known factors and one of our players (Dominic Hyam to Blackburn) was sold early on which made things very difficult for us. “Regardless of what happened, the players have responded unbelievably well to get us to this point so they’ve earned the right to go head-to-head against Middlesbrough. “Whatever happens, yes, it’s been a brilliant progression for us but ultimately you want to try and come out successfully at the other end.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live A closer look at the battle to beat the drop in the Premier League Football rumours: Arsenal preparing £90million swoop for West Ham’s Declan Rice On this day in 2010: Dominant England beat Australia to win World Twenty20 final

Southampton have already been relegated from the Premier League, but the race to avoid joining them looks set to go down to the wire. Two of West Ham, Nottingham Forest, Everton, Leeds and Leicester will play alongside the Saints in the Championship next season. Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the relegation battle with two games to go. West Ham (Leeds H, Leicester A) Given their own plight and their opposition in the final two rounds of fixtures, West Ham will play a deciding role in who goes down. It will take an extraordinary set of results for them to be relegated as they are six points clear of Leeds with a significantly better goal difference, so would need to lose both games heavily and see a number of other results go against them. Their only concern will be how their European exertions affect them, with their match against Leeds coming days after a Europa Conference League semi-final second leg against AZ Alkmaar. Nottingham Forest (Arsenal H, Crystal Palace A) Seven points from the last four games has hauled Forest out of the bottom three and they now could stay up even if they lose their remaining fixtures. Safety will be assured if they draw with Arsenal at the City Ground and then Leeds lose at West Ham and Leicester fail to beat Newcastle. However, two defeats, including on the final day at Crystal Palace, and results going against them elsewhere would see them drop back into the Championship. Everton (Wolves A, Bournemouth H) Everton, on paper, have the kindest fixtures of those in the fight and they will fancy their chances of staying up, with their Bank Holiday win at Brighton last week looking pivotal. They will confirm their survival if they win at Wolves and then Leeds lose at West Ham and Leicester fail to beat Newcastle. Two defeats could be enough for Leeds to overtake them by drawing just one of their two games, although that will be dependent on a minor goal difference swing. Leeds (West Ham A, Tottenham H) Leeds are relying on other teams to lose, but they also have to do their own business under Sam Allardyce, with so many permutations still possible. The most worrying one is they will be sent back to the Championship if they lose at West Ham, Everton win at Wolves and Forest pick up a positive result against Arsenal. But, as mentioned, they could stay up by drawing just one game, if Everton and Leicester lose both of their matches. They will be hoping to take advantage of West Ham’s European distraction as Allardyce visits his old club on Sunday before a vital home game against Tottenham. Leicester (Newcastle A, West Ham H) Leicester, Premier League champions seven years ago, could be relegated if they fail to beat Newcastle on Monday night, Forest pick up a point against Arsenal and Everton beat Wolves. Defeat at St James’ Park would also mean Everton would only need two points from their final two games. To stay up, Leicester realistically need to win at least one of their remaining games at Newcastle or at home to West Ham, although it is possible two draws could be enough. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Jofra Archer to miss Ashes summer with fresh stress fracture in his elbow Football rumours: Arsenal preparing £90million swoop for West Ham’s Declan Rice On this day in 2010: Dominant England beat Australia to win World Twenty20 final

Germany midfielder Sjoeke Nusken will join Chelsea from Eintracht Frankfurt on a three-year deal from July 1, the Women’s Super League side have announced. The versatile 22-year-old has already appeared for the Frauen-Bundesliga side close to 100 times and will complete her move at the conclusion of the current campaign. Nusken, who has also won 15 caps for Germany and scored two goals, said: “I wanted to move to the Women’s Super League because it’s a good league, English football is very cool to play in and it’s the right thing to do now. “I’m very excited and happy to be at Chelsea and I’m looking forward to next season. “It’s a big club with such good players. I hope to improve my football skills. I’m very excited to meet my new team-mates and I can learn a lot from them.” Chelsea manager Emma Hayes said: “Sjoeke is a fantastic young midfield player whose ability to play the ball deep into the opponents’ half is not her only standout strength, there is everything from her interceptions, her reading of the game and her overall presence. She’s dynamic, she’s good aerially and she’s going to be a fantastic signing for this club.” Chelsea won the Women’s FA Cup for the third successive year on Sunday, beating Manchester United 1-0 in the final, and are in the running to claim a fourth consecutive WSL title. They can move two points clear of current leaders United at the top of the table if they beat West Ham in their game in hand on Wednesday, with only two rounds of the season left after that. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Confronted by their own ultras, AC Milan have encountered issue after issue in the build-up to Tuesday’s monumental return leg, but one problem is a lot more longstanding. It is also so immediate, since it is precisely the challenge against Internazionale. Milan might be the second most successful club in Champions League history, having played in the very first European Cup season in 1955-56, but that distinguished record has never seen them come back from more than a goal behind from a knock-out first leg. All that grand glory, and nothing to really inspire for this biggest of games against their greatest rivals. That might seem somewhat superficial but the profound potential effect should not be dismissed. You only have to look at last season, and this year's possible final opponent, for the greatest illustration of how it works. Real Madrid are the European champions in large part because their stadium had seen so many great comebacks, fostering this belief within the team as well as an aura around it. Milan have none of that. The only tie that comes close was a 1985-86 Uefa Cup first round against Auxerre but it’s hardly of the same scale, and would almost seem small-time to mention. Stefano Pioli has consequently been unable to inspire his players with any footage of the past. “We only talked about the derby,” the Milan manager said. That’s possibly just as well, because any look to history would mostly show Milan suffering from such comebacks. You don’t even have to go to the extreme of Istanbul, which is of course where this final is set to be held. There was Deportivo La Coruna in 2004 and Barcelona in 2013. Duly, this tie might also be decided by comebacks on the other side, albeit of a different nature. There is the return to prominence of some former Premier League stars, some of them well into their 30s. This entire tie was after all set in motion by Edin Dzeko’s soaring goal for Inter Milan in the opening minutes of the first leg. It may now be shaped by Simone Inzaghi’s use of those players. One of the reasons that Milan were so unprepared for Inter’s onslaught was because it was so difficult to second-guess what Inzaghi might do. One of the strengths of this season - if also, in the league, one of the weaknesses - has been how the coach can alternate his forward line. So it was in the first leg that he initially had the energy of Lauturo Martinez with the calculation of Dzeko. The Inter squad remain in awe of how intelligent the Bosnian is as a player, in that way that occasionally happens with senior pros who go onto a different level as they get older. Part of that has been how he conserves energy and visibly manages himself, though, which is why one of Inzaghi’s main relays up front has been between Dzeko and Romelu Lukaku. There is another comeback of sorts there, though. It could be glimpsed in the Belgian’s livewire introduction to the second half of the first leg. The Inter squad are now talking about Lukaku being back at the level he was when he left Inter in the summer of 2021 in the first place - when he was being hailed as the new “king of Serie A”. One reason is he was discomfited by a difficult adjustment period at Chelsea under Thomas Tuchel, and was then intent on getting 100% ready for the World Cup. That rush probably set him back, as the displays in Qatar showed. Lukaku has really only been back to full fitness since February and that has helped generate “great momentum”. He has the feel back. He has the finishing back, as the weekend’s brace showed. That gives Inzaghi a satisfying sort of dilemma. It is increasingly difficult to leave Lukaku on the bench. He could tear at Pioli’s side. The one caveat to all of this, as well as to the first leg, is that Milan will have a comeback of their own. Rafael Leao will return to the line-up, which makes them a very different proposition. It was so conspicuously what was missing from their display on Wednesday - if also some proper defending at the back. Milan had so much process, but no product. It looked like they couldn’t really hurt Inter. Leao changes that. It should force a change in Inzaghi’s approach. Whether it changes this to the level that it changes Milan’s history remains to be seen. “Those who play football know that the matches are never finished until the end,” Pioli also said. “And we believe in it.” Inter, however, have the reality of that two-goal lead. It’s a lot to come back from. Read More Glorious Milan derby proves football does not need Super League False 9? Edin Dzeko shows the value of an old-fashioned centre-forward AC Milan are back – but not as you remember them Inter vs AC Milan team news and predicted line-ups Is Inter vs AC Milan on TV? Kick-off time, channel and how to watch Bundesliga title battle continues as Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund ease to wins