West Ham fans line streets to toast Europa Conference League champions
West Ham enjoyed a heroes’ welcome as fans lined the streets of east London to celebrate their Europa Conference League glory. The Hammers won their first major trophy since the 1980 FA Cup, and a first European title since 1965, when they beat Italian side Fiorentina 2-1 in Prague on Wednesday night. And their jubilant supporters, decked out in the famous claret and blue on a warm and sunny evening in the capital, packed the pavements as the Hammers paraded the silverware on an open-top bus. The squad’s journey started at the site of their former home at Upton Park and finished at Stratford Town Hall, where they enjoyed a reception. Only West Ham fans of a certain age will ever have seen their side celebrate success like this, with a similar parade being held after that 1965 European Cup Winners’ Cup victory, where the likes of Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters got the taste of winning trophies. But the younger generation made the most of it, climbing on lamp posts and bus stops to get the best vantage point of their heroes while also letting off flares. David Moyes may have joined Ron Greenwood and John Lyall in earning immortality as managers to win a major trophy with the Hammers but he initially endured a lessened role on the bus, taking pictures of his players as they posed together. But he was soon joining in with the celebrations, dancing and jigging with the trophy on his head. Lifting the trophy appears to be a fitting way for captain Declan Rice to bow out, with chairman David Sullivan confirming the England international will be allowed to leave the club this summer, with a bidding war expected to commence soon. Rice was emotional on top of the bus, admitting it does not feel “real”. “This is absolutely incredible, when you’re a kid and you love football as much as I do, and the lads do, you see teams having trophy parades,” he said. “I was once a kid watching teams do trophy parades and now to be doing one and captaining the side is just so, so special, I can’t even put into words. “We knew it would be exciting and the fans would come out, I am just trying to take it all in, we don’t get to experience this ever. These moments don’t come around very often. “I’ve seen top captains over the years lift trophies and it was my time at West Ham to lift the trophy. It doesn’t really feel real. “At 24, captain of West Ham lifting a trophy in a European competition, I don’t think it is going to hit me for a while, but I am going to enjoy it and be as happy for as long as possible. “Bobby Moore, Billy Bonds, I am seeing messages that I am now in that category, I don’t really know what to say. Bizarre.” Moyes spent much of the season under pressure following a disappointing Premier League campaign, but Rice believes he is now the club’s best-ever manager. The England midfielder added on Sky Sports News: “I think he goes down as the best manager West Ham have ever had. The circumstances, when he first came in, kept us twice, European competition, we finished fifth, sixth, a semi-final (Europa League) and now we’ve won this, he deserves all the credit he gets. “He’s a top man and as you can see he is buzzing.” Jarrod Bowen was West Ham’s hero in the final as he scored a 90th-minute winner, capping off a remarkable turnaround in his career having been playing at non-league Hereford nine years ago after being rejected as a youngster by Aston Villa. “I love the game and these moments make it all worth it, the rejections and not going the way you want it,” he said. “You fast forward 10 years and you are on an open-top bus parade for winning a European trophy so from where I have come, my mum was crying on the phone, my dad was there. “It is a bit surreal to say I have won a European trophy from where I have come from. I love it.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Jonny Evans back in Northern Ireland squad for Euro 2024 qualifiers Karolina Muchova stuns Aryna Sabalenka to set up final showdown with Iga Swiatek Erling Haaland on a mission to realise Champions League dream with Man City
1970-01-01 08:00
Jimmy Dunne: Find Me Someone Involved in 9/11 And 'I’ll Kill Them Myself'
An insane interview.
1970-01-01 08:00
Jonny Evans back in Northern Ireland squad for Euro 2024 qualifiers
Jonny Evans is back in the Northern Ireland squad for next week’s Euro 2024 qualifiers but Michael O’Neill will once again be relying on youth with a long list of senior players still injured. Evans – out of contract at relegated Leicester this summer – was unable to add to his 100 caps in March when he was forced to pull out of O’Neill’s first games back in charge of the national team due to a hamstring injury, but is in a 28-man squad to play Denmark away and Kazakhstan at home. But with Steven Davis, Stuart Dallas, Corry Evans, Liam Boyce, Josh Magennis, Conor Washington and Shane Ferguson all still sidelined, O’Neill has included five uncapped players, with 15 of the 28 having fewer than 10 caps. Nottingham Forest defender Aaron Donnelly, West Ham teenager Callum Marshall and Larne forward Lee Bonis have all received their first call-ups, with the uncapped Sean Goss and Eoin Toal again included after not featuring in March’s fixtures. Blackpool striker Shayne Lavery returns after a hamstring injury kept him out of the last squad, although there will be a question over his fitness levels as he has managed only one appearance, as a substitute away to Norwich on the final day, since being sidelined in February. There is also a return for Ethan Galbraith, who earned the last of his two international caps back in 2020. The 22-year-old is a free agent this summer after leaving Manchester United, having spent last season on loan at Salford. O’Neill has been working with several players from both the senior ranks and the under-21s at a series of training camps in recent weeks, aiming to keep his players sharp following the end of their domestic campaigns. Northern Ireland travel to Copenhagen to face Denmark on Friday June 16 before taking on Kazakhstan at Windsor Park the following Monday. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live
1970-01-01 08:00
Clayton Kershaw strikes out 9 in Dodgers' 6-0 win over Reds
Clayton Kershaw pitched seven scoreless innings, Chris Taylor hit his 10th home run of the season and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Cincinnati Reds 6-0 on Thursday afternoon
1970-01-01 08:00
Noah Gragson to miss NASCAR race at Sonoma with concussion-like symptoms
Noah Gragson will miss Sunday’s NASCAR race at Sonoma Raceway with concussion-like symptoms from a crash last weekend outside St. Louis
1970-01-01 08:00
Unseeded Karolina Muchova to face No. 1 Iga Swiatek in French Open women's final
No. 1 Iga Swiatek has moved closer to a second consecutive French Open championship by defeating Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-2, 7-6 (7) in the semifinals
1970-01-01 08:00
South Florida: Heat and Panthers play for titles, plus arrival of soccer star Lionel Messi
South Florida has suddenly become the center of the sports universe
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NCAA made a 'big mistake' by not setting up framework for NIL compensation, new president says
NCAA President Charlie Baker wants a federal law to regulate the way college athletes can be compensated for name, image and likeness that creates a registry of deals, agent certification and uniform contract standards
1970-01-01 08:00
With Arcangelo, Jena Antonucci to become the 11th female trainer to have a horse in Belmont Stakes
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Erling Haaland on a mission to realise Champions League dream with Man City
Erling Haaland is well aware he was brought to Manchester City to help them win the Champions League. City are just one victory away from claiming the prize they covet most but has eluded them time after time with several near misses in recent years. Haaland has been key to their latest charge to the final, where they face Inter Milan in Istanbul on Saturday, after a prolific first season at the Etihad Stadium. The Norwegian has plundered 52 goals in all competitions since City identified him as the potential final piece in their jigsaw last year and paid £51million to recruit him from Borussia Dortmund. “The Premier League, they won it two times in a row before I came here,” said Haaland. “So they know how to win the Premier League. “The only thing they miss now is the Champions League. You can think and read between the words and the lines – I have been coming here for a reason.” Haaland scored a record 36 Premier League goals as he helped City make it three titles in a row. They followed up that success by winning the FA Cup last weekend. Now City are bidding to join rivals Manchester United in the history books by becoming only the second side to win the treble. I have been dreaming and thinking of it my whole life... as long as I can remember Erling Haaland on winning the Champions League Doing so would see Haaland fulfil a long-held dream of winning the Champions League. “I have been dreaming and thinking of it my whole life,” said the 22-year-old. “It has been my dream as long as I can remember, so a long time. “Of course I have been thinking of this. There is one game left we have to perform at our best in. We have been doing it now for so many games in a row. It’s about keeping going.” Such is Haaland’s love of the Champions League, that he even used to play the competition’s theme music in his car during his younger days. “Yes, there is a video of me doing that,” he said. “You can search it up. It’s true.” Haaland feels his game has improved at City under the guidance of Pep Guardiola – someone he describes as a “detail freak” – but is convinced there is more to come. He said: “I am really enjoying every single day with him, with the intense Pep. I like it. “I am still young, I can improve a lot and I am at the perfect place to work with the best coach and players in the world.”
1970-01-01 08:00
Appeals court skeptical of Ángel Hernández lawsuit vs Major League Baseball
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals expressed skepticism of umpire Ángel Hernández’s attempt to reinstate his race discrimination lawsuit against Major League Baseball
1970-01-01 08:00
Arizona president says realignment talk premature until Pac-12 has hard numbers on TV deal
University of Arizona President Bobby Robbins says until Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff gives the conference’s leaders hard numbers on a future media rights deal, any talk about schools leaving the league is premature
1970-01-01 08:00
