Arvind Sriram
Fabio Capello: Real Madrid’s Eden Hazard has sunk under weight of expectations
Eden Hazard has struggled to deal with the weight of the Real Madrid shirt following his high-profile move from Chelsea, former Real manager Fabio Capello has said. Hazard joined the Spanish club from Chelsea on a five-year contract for a reported 100 million euros ($116.54 million) ahead of the 2019-20 season. The Belgium international inspired Chelsea to two Premier League trophies during his time at Stamford Bridge but has failed to hit similar heights in Spain, with injuries limiting him to 21 appearances in all competitions this season. “He hasn’t been the player he was at Chelsea and he was injured for a long time, he hasn’t adapted,” Capello told Marca. “I’ve always thought of him as a great player but the Real shirt weighs heavily and Hazard has sunk this year. It’s clear that he’l...
Liverpool reiterate need for safe celebrations ahead of Villa clash
Liverpool have again urged their supporters to avoid mass gatherings in the city and to celebrate their Premier League triumph safely at home in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, chief executive Peter Moore said on Friday. Liverpool’s 30-year wait for their 19th English top-flight crown ended last week when Manchester City lost at Chelsea and thousands of fans turned up at their Anfield stadium to celebrate. Local media reported that fans launched fireworks at the Royal Liver Building, with a fire breaking out on the balcony of the landmark owned by Farhad Moshiri, the majority shareholder of the side’s local rivals Everton. Liverpool, Merseyside police and the City Council issued a statement condemning the “wholly unacceptable” behaviour, while manager Juergen Klopp requeste...
Timo Werner bids Leipzig farewell with double in victory over Augsburg
German striker Timo Werner marked his RB Leipzig swansong with two well-taken goals to guide his side to a 2-1 victory at Augsburg in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Leipzig full back Nordi Mukiele and midfielder Emil Forsberg spurned glorious opportunities before Werner, who will depart for Chelsea at the end of the season, put his side in front in the 28th minute. The 24-year-old latched on to a defence-splitting pass from Amadou Haidara before rounding Augsburg goalkeeper Tomas Koubek for his 27th league goal of the season. Augsburg, who had a red card for Philipp Max overturned by VAR in the second half, hit back through Ruben Vargas, whose long-range effort proved too powerful for Yvon Mvogo to keep out. Werner added a second eight minutes from time, latching on to Angelino’s cross-field ...
Naomi Osaka using lockdown to conquer inner demons
Two-times Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka is using the novel coronavirus shutdown as one of self reflection to try and overcome her crippling shyness. The tennis season was suspended in early March due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and the hiatus will continue until at least mid-July with many countries in lockdown to contain the virus. Japan’s Osaka, who trains in the United States, the country worst affected by the flu-like virus with over 1.4 million infections and more than 83,000 deaths, is taking advantage of the extended break to do some soul searching. “I think people know me as being really shy… I want to take the quarantine time to just think about everything, and for me, I have a lot of regrets before I go to sleep,” Osaka told CNN Sport. Petra Kvitova said last year Osaka would hav...
