Javier Siverio’s double strike ensured Jamshedpur FC edge past Punjab FC 2-1 in the Indian Super League (ISL) fixture played at the JRD Tata Sports Complex here on Friday. Pulga Vidal scored for Punjab, who slipped to fifth place in the table with 18 points while Jamshedpur climbed to sixth with the same number of points from 10 matches. Punjab suffered an early jolt as Filip Mrzljak had to be replaced by Asmir Suljic after getting injured. The Red Miners stuck to their game plan of launching long balls into Punjab’s half and troubling the defence with their set pieces. Stephen Eze’s and Javier Siverio’s attempts were blocked by the defence after Jamshedpur kept winning the second ball from long throw-ins by the fullbacks. The home side eventually took the lead in the dying seconds of the first half through a similar play. Eze flicked a throw in ahead of the onrushing goalkeeper Muheet Shabir which was met by Javi Hernandez who diverted it onto the path of Siverio. The Spaniard calmly finished it past the crowd of defenders to give his team the lead. Also Read: ISL: Mohun Bagan SG move to the top of the table with 2-0 win over NorthEast The best chances of the first half did come for the Shers earlier. Nihal Sudeesh found Pulga Vidal with a fine low cross at the end of a good run down the left wing but the forward skied his shot above the crossbar. Luka Majcen hit the post just before injury time with a header from a cross by Vidal down the left wing. Punjab FC levelled the scores in the very first minute of the second half. Asmir Suljic released Luka Majcen inside the box and the Slovenian found Pulga Vidal unmarked at the far post. The Argentinian had no trouble in slotting the ball inside the net for his third goal of the season. Javi Hernandez forced a save out of Muheet with a volley from the edge of the box which was the closest both teams came to scoring. Punjab played high up the pitch winning the battle in the midfield and keeping possession of the ball but chances were hard to come by. Albino Gomes made back-to-back saves from Leon Augustine and a free kick from Pulga Vidal to keep the scores level. Jamshedpur struck the decisive goal six minutes from time again through Javier Siverio. Nikhil Barla put in a perfect cross between the two Punjab centre-backs, which was met with conviction by Siverio who headed it past the outstretched hands of Muheet. The Red Miners saw off the rest of the game to clinch all three points as Punjab suffered their third loss of the season away from home. Punjab FC will travel to Kolkata for their next fixture on December 17 against East Bengal at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
14 December,2024 09:09 AM IST | Jamshedpur | IANSReal Madrid have the chance to go to the top of La Liga all be it for just 24 hours when they make the short trip to play Rayo Vallecano on Saturday. Carlo Ancelotti's side plays after a morale-boosting win away to Italian side, Atalanta in the Champions League on Tuesday night, which eased fears that may not make the knockout phase in that competition. The win came at a price, however, with Kylian Mbappe suffering a hamstring injury, that will stop him from travelling to the Vallecas Stadium and make him a doubt for the Intercontinental Cup final that Madrid plays in Qatar on December 18. Mbappe joins left-back Ferland Mendy, Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal, David Alaba, and Eduardo Camavinga on the injury list. Alaba and Camavinga are back in training, with Ancelotti saying in his pre-game press conference that the French international could return on Saturday. With the Intercontinental Cup on the horizon, Ancelotti will also have to decide whether to rest Jude Bellingham. Bellingham has been vital to Madrid with six goals in his last seven matches, but he has also shown signs of fatigue, such as in last weekend's 3-0 win in Girona. "He is a very important figure, as well as quality, he gives a lot of commitment to the team and that is something that the players value in a leader - the commitment he has," commented Ancelotti, who added that Mbappe would travel to the Intercontinental Cup in case he recovers in time. Vinicius Jr forced his recovery from a hamstring to play in Italy on Tuesday and Ancelotti also has to decide whether to risk another player, who is vital for the cause, with Brahim Diaz and Arda Guler both offering reliable alternatives, although the coach didn't seem to be in favour of making changes. "I can rotate the team if I have players, but with a squad of 14 or 15, it's complicated, we have some very young players and it's not always positive to put them in the team," said Ancelotti. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
14 December,2024 09:06 AM IST | Madrid | IANSArne Slot insisted Darwin Nunez is still an important part of Liverpool’s plans despite the struggling striker falling below the “standard” in the Champions League win against Girona. Mired in a lengthy slump, Nunez has scored only one goal in his last 10 appearances and three in total all season. In Liverpool’s victory in Girona on Tuesday, the Uruguay international cut an increasingly frustrated figure after missing several chances. Slot admitted he kept Nunez on for an extended period, before eventually replacing him in the 71st minute, in the hope he would score a confidence-boosting goal. “All our players feel the support of our fans but he is definitely one of them,” Slot told reporters on Friday. “We all saw they did something with him when he missed a few chances on Tuesday and everyone needs an arm around you, either from a team-mate, the fans or your manager. But I also made it clear to him that he is not only judged on the goals he scores, he is also judged on the team performance and he adds something to the team performance as well with his work-rate and how much he does winning the ball back high up the pitch,” Slot said. Nunez’s position will come under increasing pressure with Diogo Jota and long-term absentee Federico Chiesa set to return to the squad for the visit of Fulham on Saturday. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
14 December,2024 06:40 AM IST | London | AFPRasmus Hojlund fired Manchester United to a late 2-1 win at Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday, while Tottenham were held to a stalemate at Rangers. Matej Vydra opened the scoring three minutes after half-time to stun United, before substitute Hojlund scored twice in the last half-hour to seize a vital three points for the English club. A top-eight finish will see United qualify for the round of 16, while finishing ninth to 24th will earn them a playoff tie to reach that stage. Spurs drew 1-1 with Rangers in Glasgow. Hamza Igamane struck for Rangers, while Dejan Kulusevski brought Spurs back level. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
14 December,2024 06:40 AM IST | Paris | AFPDon Bosco High School (Matunga) got the better of St Anne’s High School (Malad) 5-3 via a thrilling tie-breaker to claim the boys U-10 MSSA inter-school football title at Azad Maidan on Friday. St Anne’s took the lead in the 11th minute when Jovin Gomes essayed a brilliant chip into the top left corner of the Don Bosco goal. However, after the break, Unman Chothe equalised for Don Bosco with a tap-in from close range with eight minutes remaining to take the game into the shootout. Also Read: St Anthony’s boys make it count! In the decisive tie-breaker, Don Bosco displayed remarkable composure, with Unman, Uzair Chawda, Swayam Churmure, and Daksh Rane converting from the spot. For St Anne’s, only Safwan Duduke and Manthan Jagtap were successful from the spot while Ian John and Lakshya Rajurohit missed the target. Don Bosco coach Shangreithem Chiphang was all praise for his wards. “The boys showed great determination and teamwork to secure this hard-fought victory,” he said.
14 December,2024 06:40 AM IST | Mumbai | Rufus VedanayagamJerry Mawihmingthanga and Hugo Boumous 81 scored a goal each in the second half as Odisha FC overcame a 10-man East Bengal FC 2-1 in the Indian Super League (ISL) 2024-25 at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan Stadium, here on Thursday. With this win, the Juggernauts extended their unbeaten streak this season to five games. All three goals of the match came in the second half, with Mawihmingthanga and Boumous netting in the 55th and the 81st minutes of the game respectively, after the Red & Gold Brigade found their only strike through Lal Chungnunga in the 53rd minute. East Bengal FC were reduced to 10 men in the 43rd minute due to Jeakson Singh’s sending-off. The two sides shared the honours in the opening moments of the match. Nandhakumar Sekar embarked on an ambitious solo run from the right flank in the 23rd minute, dazzling into the box and holding his shape before making a terrific effort at goal, but was denied by an outstretched Amrinder Singh. Seven minutes later, Ahmed Jahouh’s free-kick inside the East Bengal FC box, directed to Mourtada Fall, reached the towering defender, but he ended up heading the ball off-target. Odisha FC continued exerting attack and a passage of end-to-end action unfolded with both teams offering each other abundant space at the back. Also Read: Resilient East Bengal edge past NorthEast United FC for first win of season One such move saw the trio of Isak Vanlalruatfela, Boumous, and Jerry interlink seamlessly inside the East Bengal FC penalty area in the 36th minute. Isak surged ahead on the wing and found Boumous ahead of him. The attacking midfielder crossed the ball to Jerry whose shot was kept at bay by Prabhsukhan Singh Gill. East Bengal FC were dealt with a blow in the 43rd minute when Jeakson Singh was sent off for accumulating his second yellow card of the game. He fouled Diego Mauricio and the home side was thus reduced to 10 men, handing a numerical advantage to the Juggernauts. To their credit, East Bengal FC grabbed the first lead in the contest despite that, as Lal Chungnunga pounced upon a crowded Odisha FC box following a corner kick to smash the ball into the centre of the net in the 53rd minute, as the Juggernauts’ defence was unable to clear their lines in time. They, however, got back in shape especially in their offensive movements thereafter, as Isak switched flanks to operate from the right briefly and helped his side discover a breakthrough. His run wasn’t stopped by the East Bengal FC defence and that resulted in him delivering a decisive pass to Jerry, who was positioned on the right side of the box and sliced the ball into the top right corner of the net with a sublime finish to equalise the scores. Odisha FC resumed operating on the offence as a consequence of this and got their hands on the second goal with a joint effort by Mauricio and Boumous. Mauricio had donned a free-flowing role upfront and that meant he shifted slightly on the left, drawing defenders towards him and opening up space in the middle. In one such move, he made his way into the box, before squaring up a timely pass for the onrushing Boumous, who hammered the ball home to get the visitors the important lead and sealed the three points in their favour. East Bengal FC will play their next game against Punjab FC on December 17, whereas Odisha FC will feature against Mohammedan SC on December 27. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 December,2024 08:40 AM IST | Kolkata | IANSAn investigation into alleged rape and sexual assault in Stockholm which Swedish media said targeted Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe has been closed due to insufficient evidence, the Swedish prosecutor said Thursday. The 25-year-old French star visited the Swedish capital October 9-11. Sweden’s prosecution authority announced on October 15 that it was investigating an incident that occurred at an upscale Stockholm hotel on October 10, without mentioning the suspect by name. Several Swedish media outlets identified Mbappe as the suspect. Also Read: That's a 'Real' relief! “My assessment is that the evidence is not sufficient to proceed and the investigation is therefore closed,” prosecutor Marina Chirakova said in a statement. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 December,2024 08:38 AM IST | Stockholm | AFPCristiano Ronaldo led the celebrations after Portugal and five other countries were officially announced as hosts of the 2030 men’s World Cup, with the player saying the unique tournament will be the “most special” yet. The 2030 tournament will be the first World Cup played in six different counties, with Spain, Portugal and Morocco as the main hosts while South American nations Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will each get one game. The format will help FIFA mark the centenary of Uruguay hosting the first World Cup in 1930. “A dream come true,” the 39-year-old Ronaldo wrote in an Instagram post that had a photo of him celebrating while wearing Portugal’s jersey and featured the words: “The Most Special World Cup ever.” Also Read: Cristiano Ronaldo thanks head coach Luis Castro following Al-Nassr sacking Ronaldo is the only man to have scored at five World Cup tournaments, but he is unlikely to still be playing in 2030. “Portugal will host the 2030 World Cup and make us proud,” he wrote. The approval of the six-nation bid was mostly a formality at FIFA’s online meeting on Wednesday, with Saudi Arabia also officially confirmed as the 2034 World Cup host. South American governing body CONMEBOL celebrated a day that its president Alejandro Dominguez said “will go down in the history of South American football.”“FIFA decided to honour history. The World Cup returns home,” Dominguez said at the CONMEBOL headquarters in Paraguay. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 December,2024 08:37 AM IST | Madrid | AP | PTIPep Guardiola admitted that he is questioning himself as his Manchester City team slumped to yet another defeat at Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday. City fell 2-0 in a freezing Turin, their seventh defeat in 10 matches in all competitions putting their qualification for the last 16 at risk. Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic celebrates his goal against Man City on Wednesday. Pic/AFP Asked by reporters whether he was questioning his management, Guardiola replied: “Yeah, of course.” “Of course, I question myself in the good moments and the bad moments,” said Guardiola. Pep Guardiola The 2023 European champions succumbed in Turin as Dusan Vlahovic put Juventus ahead early in the second half when goalkeeper Ederson was unable to keep out his header. Ilkay Gundogan was denied an equaliser by a fine Michele Di Gregorio save, before Weston McKennie made it 2-0 with a fine acrobatic finish in the 75th minute. The result leaves Juventus on 11 points with two games left, a tally that is expected to be enough to guarantee them at least a place in the knockout phase playoffs. “I was stable in the good moments and I’m stable in the bad moments... My biggest challenge is when they give me the opportunity to be a manager and get results to continue to work. “If I would miss the big challenge in the first season, the second season, I wouldn’t be here,” he added. English champions City are just one point above the bottom 12 places which bring elimination from the Champions League. Five points separate City from the top eight places and automatic qualification for the last 16, with matches against Paris Saint-Germain and Club Brugge remaining in their league phase campaign. City face local rivals Manchester United on Sunday in the Premier League, where Guardiola’s team trail leaders Liverpool by eight points. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 December,2024 08:32 AM IST | Turin | AFPMikel Arteta praised Bukayo Saka’s “incredible talent” after the Arsenal forward’s double inspired a 3-0 win over Monaco that moved his side closer to the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday. Saka struck late in each half at the Emirates Stadium before Kai Havertz wrapped up Arsenal’s fourth win in six games in the revamped league phase of Europe’s elite club competition. The Gunners sit third in the table with two games remaining as they chase automatic qualification for the last 16 via a top-eight finish. Mikel Arteta With matches against Dinamo Zagreb and Girona to come in January that should be a simple task for Arsenal. But if Arteta’s team are to win the Champions League for the first time, they will need England star Saka to maintain his superb form. Saka, 23, has five goals in his last six games in all competitions and nine for the season, as well as a hatful of assists. Also Read: Arsenal’s title bid dented by 1-1 Fulham draw Even those impressive statistics don’t do justice to Saka’s influence on Arsenal. Arteta knows better than anyone just how much Saka has developed since the Spaniard took charge in 2019. “He looks really mature. What he has already done in the game at his age is incredible. Very humble, a great guy to have around and an incredible talent,” Arteta said. “He’s a special person. In his role his leadership is increasing. With the young kids he is amazing, with the seniors he is amazing. He is loved by everybody and he makes the difference on the pitch,” he added. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 December,2024 08:32 AM IST | London | AFPSaudi Arabia will host the 2034 FIFA World Cup, world football’s governing body FIFA confirmed on Wednesday. At a virtual FIFA Congress which needed a vote to award the hosting rights for the quadrennial showpiece event, a joint bid by Morocco, Spain and Portugal was accepted for the 2030 edition of the competition. Also Read: World Cup hosting decisions set to kick off decade of scrutiny on Saudi, FIFA Interestingly, Saudi Arabia was the sole candidate for the 2034 edition of the World Cup. Qatar had hosted the event in 2022. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
12 December,2024 06:36 AM IST | Lausanne | AgenciesADVERTISEMENT
