Sports
Euro 2024: Eyes on Saka, Yamal as Spain, England battle for top prize
Euro 2024: Eyes on Saka, Yamal as Spain, England battle for top prize
Eyes are on Nigerian-born sensation Bukayo Saka as England hopes to end its long wait to win a men’s major international tournament when it takes on an outstanding Spain team in the final of Euro 2024 on Sunday.
The Berlin Olympiastadion match kicks off at 9:00 pm (1900 GMT). It will bring the curtain down on a month of football in which Spain—featuring teenage sensation Lamine Yamal—has been comfortably the most impressive side.
Spain has already eliminated several of the continent’s heavyweights while winning all six matches en route to the final. They aim to become European champions for a record fourth time, after 1964, 2008, and 2012.
England, meanwhile, has often struggled against lesser opposition but produced its best performance yet in beating the Netherlands in the semi-finals. Ollie Watkins came off the bench to score and seal a 2-1 victory.
Now they are into their second consecutive European Championship final as they aim to banish the memory of their penalty shoot-out loss to Italy at Wembley in the deciding game of the last edition, three years ago.
If Gareth Southgate’s team can do that, England’s men will have their first title in 58 years since the 1966 World Cup, which they won on home soil.
“I’m not a believer in fairy tales but a believer in dreams,” Southgate said at his pre-match press conference on Saturday.
England has had several near misses in recent years – they were semi-finalists at the 2018 World Cup before losing the Euro 2020 final and going out of the 2022 World Cup in the quarter-finals to France.
A team led by Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham arrived in Germany as one of the leading contenders but won just once against Serbia, scoring only two goals in topping their group.
They then needed Bellingham to come to the rescue at the death against Slovakia in the last 16, a tie they eventually won in extra time. They then prevailed on penalties against Switzerland and edged out the Dutch.
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Spain represents comfortably their biggest test yet, as the sides prepare to meet at a major tournament for the first time since Euro 96, when an England team featuring Southgate as a player won on penalties in the quarter-finals.
Yamal Eyes Birthday Gift
Spain’s exciting new generation under coach Luis de la Fuente has taken the nation to their first men’s major tournament final since their remarkable victories at Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup, and Euro 2012.
With the swaggering Rodri Hernandez in midfield and flying wingers Nico Williams and Yamal – who only turned 17 on Saturday – they have lit up what has otherwise often been a disappointing tournament.
Spain won all their group games without conceding a goal, notably beating 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Croatia and reigning European champions Italy.
They beat hosts Germany in extra time in the quarter-finals in Stuttgart before a stunning Yamal goal helped them come from behind to beat Kylian Mbappe’s France in the semis.
“It’s a brilliant generation; many of them have come through successful youth levels, and that usually bodes well for success,” De la Fuente, 63, told reporters on Saturday.
“We want to start to make history – and we have made history already in the run to (the final)… I trust in a great future.”
Spain can welcome back right-back Dani Carvajal and French-born central defender Robin Le Normand after both missed the semi-final due to suspension.
England will likely be unchanged, with Kane leading the attack and Watkins again on the bench at kick-off despite his match-winning contribution against the Netherlands.
UK media reports have suggested that England fans could account for as much as half the crowd inside the 71,000-capacity Olympiastadion, despite both finalists only receiving an official allocation of 10,000 tickets for the match.
The Olympiastadion was also the venue for the 2006 World Cup final when Italy beat France on penalties.
Euro 2024: Eyes on Saka, Yamal as Spain, England battle for top prize
Sports
Cristiano Ronaldo slams Man U coach Erik ten Hag over attitude
Cristiano Ronaldo slams Man U coach Erik ten Hag over attitude
Portuguese superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo has knocked Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag for his attitude since taking over the club.
Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, the Al-Nassr star again hit out at Ten Hag over his conduct as United boss.
‘As I told you, Manchester, they need to rebuild everything, in my opinion,’ he said
‘The coach, they say they cannot compete to win the League and Champions League.
‘(As) Manchester United coach, you cannot say that you’re not going to fight to win the League or Champions League.
‘You have to be, to mentally say, listen, maybe we don’t have that potential, but I cannot say that. We’re going to try. You have to try.’
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Ronaldo felt that the appointment of the Dutchman was a step in the right direction, but he still lashed out at Ten Hag in the process.
‘If Ten Hag listens to Ruud, maybe he can (help himself),’ he explained. ‘I think it can help a lot because he knows the club and the club should listen (to) the guys who were there.
‘You [Rio] or Roy Keane or Paul Scholes or Gary Neville, whatever, Sir Alex Ferguson. You cannot, you cannot rebuild a club without knowledge. Not guys who work in the office. They understand.
‘The people who understand the football, it was, 99 per cent is the people who were there in the dressing room. They know how to deal with the players. It’s the people who understand these things.
‘So I believe that Ruud is going to help because he was inside the club. He knows the club. He knows the fans. If the coach listens to him, I think they can improve a little bit the club.’
Since Ten Hag took over, United have finished third and eighth in the Premier League. They have also won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in that time.
Ronaldo, who is a legend at Old Trafford scored 145 goals in 326 appearances across two spells, he also won nine trophies with the club.
However, his second stint ended in acrimony after a falling-out with Ten Hag, with Ronaldo subsequently terminating his contract, before he attacked the Dutchman and said he felt ‘betrayed’ by him.
Cristiano Ronaldo slams Man U coach Erik ten Hag over attitude
Sports
Osimhen deletes Napoli traces from X profile
Osimhen deletes Napoli traces from X profile
Victor Osimhen is once again in the spotlight after the striker deleted all traces of his parent club, Napoli, from his social media page and flaunted pictures and colours of Galatasaray, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
While awaiting his Galatasaray debut after the international break, Osimhen continues to hug the headlines, the latest of them being the striking transformation of his X handle.
Six days ago, an X user, Pink Tony, asked Osimhen to change his bio after the striker posted a picture of himself donning his new No. 45 jersey with his daughter taking to the Rams Park Arena—the home turf of the Turkish giants.
Several X users disagreed with Pink Tony that the Eagles striker couldn’t change his bio because he was still under contract with Napoli.
The former Lille player has changed his bio while erasing all traces of Napoli from his profiles and proudly adorning them with the colours of the Turkish giants.
Osimhen’s updated bio now reads, “Professional football player for Galatasaray and Super Eagles of Nigeria,” accompanied by a new display picture of a player whose face has been cropped out in a Galatasaray jersey.
His banner image features the back of him in the number 45 shirt, carrying his daughter, symbolising a fresh chapter in his career.
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The new move by Osimhen has got many X users talking, as many expressed a desire to make his imminent debut for Galatasaray.
The former Sporting Charleroi player ended his protracted summer transfer saga by joining the Turkish saga on a loan deal from Napoli during the last hours of the window.
His transfer and eventual departure from Italy were one of the most talked about incidents at the time, having requested to leave Napoli despite penning a new contract in December 2023.
Despite helping Napoli to their first Scudetto win in over three decades two seasons ago with 26 goals, which earned him the Serie A top scorer’s award, Osimhen fell out with some fans of the club during last season, pushing the 25-year-old towards the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium’s exit.
The relationship between both parties had speedily gone sour when the Nigerian requested to leave the club and was subsequently left out of their pre-season and their first three Serie A matches of the new season, with new manager Antonio Conte reiterating the reigning African Player of the Year was not in their plans.
Osimhen is expected to play his first match for Galatasaray on September 15, when they take on Rizespor in a Turkish Super Lig fixture.
Osimhen deletes Napoli traces from X profile
Sports
Chelsea will sign Osimhen in January despite Galatasaray move – Mikel Obi
Chelsea will sign Osimhen in January despite Galatasaray move – Mikel Obi
Former Super Eagles captain and Chelsea midfielder, John Obi Mikel, has said he would do everything he can to make Victor Osimhen transfer to Chelsea a reality.
Mikel said he wanted Osimhen at the Stamford Bridge because he was the best striker in the world.
Speaking on the Obi One Podcast, he revealed behind-the-scenes details of the botch move by Chelsea to sign Osimhen.
Obi said, “I want to make sure, I’m not going to rest until I get him to the club. This is not because he’s my friend, a Nigerian or like my younger brother, no. But because he is one of the best strikers in the world right now and Africa’s best player.
“I know what he can bring to the club and I’m sure a lot of Chelsea fans also know that.”
Mikel described as “nonsense” claims that the deal fell through because of Osimhen’s greed.
He said those making such ludicrous allegations were not privy to the details of the deal and what went on behind the scene.
He disclosed that the former Napoli star really wanted the Chelsea move to materialise and did everything on his part to make that happen and was gutted when things did not go the way he envisaged.
“Victor has come under a lot of criticism about these because people don’t know the ins and outs of what happened. You need to know that before you criticise the kid.
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‘Victor really, really wanted to come to the club and he had to compromise a lot to come to the middle because we did reach an agreement in terms of the salary, in terms of what he wants.
“It was just a few minor details here and there that we couldn’t get over the line.”
The Chelsea legend further said, “I know what Victor wanted, I know what the club offered him, both sides had to compromise.
“It was just some little things here and there, paperwork, medical, and a few issues we just couldn’t get over the line and we didn’t have much time.
“Both sides really played their part in getting the deal done, and I commend Chelsea for that because I can see their ambition of where they want to take this club now and also on Victor’s side, how much he really wanted to come to the club.
“I spoke to him when the transfer window shut for 20 minutes. I said ‘listen, I’m always here for you, you need to keep your head down, you need to keep working hard, keep training, I know it’s not the best situation right now but I know you’re strong.”
“You know, Victor’s a strong character, he’s a bit like Didier Drogba and Diego Costa and that’s something we’re missing at the club, strikers who have that edge, who have that bite who can intimidate defenders and Victor definitely has that’, he submitted.
Daily Trust reports that the Premier League club made a late attempt to sign the Nigeria international in the closing stages of the summer transfer window which didn’t materialise.
The 25-year-old had previously rejected an offer to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli, whose €80 million (£67.3m) bid was accepted by Napoli
Chelsea will sign Osimhen in January despite Galatasaray move – Mikel Obi
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