England
Champions League: Jurgen Klopp backed by Rafa Benitez to repeat Liverpool’s ‘Miracle of Istanbul’
Jurgen Klopp has been backed by Rafa Benitez to repeat his feat from 2004-05 and win the Champions League despite a disappointing Premier League campaign. Liverpool, who sit five points outside the top four with nine games to play, face Real Madrid in the quarter-finals and could play Chelsea, their semi-final opponents in 2005, in the following round. With the final set to be played at Istanbul’s Ataturk Stadium, the venue for Benitez’s side’s miracle comeback against AC Milan, there is plenty of talk of destiny for Liverpool. Asked if Liverpool could go all the way again in Europe, Benitez told the Daily Mail: “For sure. Liverpool has the potential and the manager, it’s not a problem. “People talk about Istanbul like we were lucky. But we were not lucky to win the Champions League becaus...
Gareth Southgate names 26-man squad for World Cup qualifiers
The latest England squad has been released ahead of the upcoming international break. The Three Lions are set to begin their qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in the closing days of March. They begin by welcoming San Marino to Wembley before a trip to Albania. Finally, they’ll face Poland at home. Several players miss out on the squad through injury. Leicester City duo James Maddison and Harvey Barnes have been sidelined in recent weeks, while wingers Jadon Sancho and Jack Grealish are also unavailable. Regular number one Jordan Pickford misses out after being substituted early against Burnley, while Jordan Henderson and Joe Gomez remain long-term absentees. Jesse Lingard has earned a recall to the England setup following an impressive loan spell at West Ham United. John ...
‘So happy’, ‘Well deserved’: Some Man United fans react as duo earn England call-ups
A selection of Manchester United fans have expressed their delight after Luke Shaw and Jesse Lingard returned to the England squad under Gareth Southgate. Shaw has not played for the Three Lions since September 2018, and he previously pulled out of the squad in March 2019 due to injury. He has since been out of the fray due to injuries and competition for places, but his form this season has not gone unnoticed by Southgate. Shaw has been one of United’s best-performing players this season, bagging one goal and six assists from 34 appearances. He was recently named the Red Devils’ Player of the Month for February. Alongside Shaw, Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell is the other left-back/left wing-back option in the England squad. The duo are set to compete for places in the upcoming World Cup qualifier...
‘Shame’, ‘Absolute joke’: Some Leeds fans react after England squad announced
The latest England squad has been announced for the upcoming World Cup qualifying games. Leeds United fans are absolutely furious with Gareth Southgate’s decision to leave out Patrick Bamford for their upcoming games. The Three Lions are set to begin their qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in the closing days of March. They will face San Marino first at Wembley before a trip to Albania. Finally, they’ll play Poland at home. David Anderson of The Mirror claimed yesterday that Southgate was considering giving Bamford his senior national team debut. Luke Ayling was also in line for a call-up, with Anderson claiming that Southgate is impressed by the right-back. However, apart from Kalvin Phillips, who retains his place, neither Bamford nor Ayling managed to find th...
Former England skipper wants brain tested for dementia signs
Former England striker Gary Lineker says he will get extra checks on his brain for signs of dementia. Research has found that former professional footballers are three and a half times more likely to die from a brain disorder than the general population. Already, an inquiry was launched by the UK parliament this month into sport’s link to dementia. Lineker, who has previously suggested a complete ban on heading in training, joined a radio programme for a Dementia in Football documentary. He revealed he and colleagues Alan Shearer and Ian Wright fear they could end up with a brain disorder. “I’ve had conversations with Alan Shearer and Ian Wright and others about the worry that, come 10, 15 years, that it might happen to one of us,” said the 60-year-old former England captain turned broadca...
Jordan Pickford to miss World Cup qualifiers due to injury
Jordan Pickford is set to miss England’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers due to an injury, Everton have confirmed via their official website. The goalkeeper was forced to come off in the first half of Everton’s defeat at home to Burnley, having sustained an injury to his oblique abdominal muscle. Pickford receives treatment before going off early He underwent a scan on the injury on Monday to determine its extent. It has now been confirmed that he will miss the rest of March’s fixtures, ruling him out of at least four games for club and country. On Saturday, the Toffees face runaway Premier League leaders Manchester City in an FA Cup quarter-final tie. Portuguese goalkeeper Joao Virginia is expected to be the one to fill in for Pickford, having replaced the 27-year-old on Saturday. However, ...
Mason Greenwood called up to Young Lions squad
Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood has been selected in the latest England Under 21’s national squad ahead of the UEFA Euro Finals group stage next week. Of the 23 players selected by Young Lions manager Aidy Boothroyd, he is one of just two to have a senior international appearance to their name, alongside Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi. This came in May 2020 as Gareth Southgate brought the youngster on from the bench in a UEFA Nations League game against Iceland, after which Greenwood was sent home following a breach of COVID protocols. As well as his one senior appearance, the striker has also played four times previously for the Under 21’s including a goal in a 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands. Prior to this, he had also earned caps at both Under 18 and Under 19 levels respectively. ...
Manchester United linked with Nick Pope with club concerned Dean Henderson is ‘too inexperienced’
Manchester United are being linked with Burnley stopper Nick Pope this summer, with the club concerned that Dean Henderson is not ready to be the club’s number one. Following Henderson’s return from two seasons on-loan at Sheffield United in the summer, there has been constant debate over who should be the Red Devils starting goalkeeper, particularly with David De Gea having been inconsistent in the last 18 months or so. The majority of this campaign has seen the Spaniard remain as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first-choice, with the younger Englishman largely having been deployed in domestic cup competitions. With De Gea granted leave to return to Spain for the birth of his first child last week, the 24-year-old has been handed the chance to impress with a run of games, although after a strong p...
Paper Talk: Man Utd star to reject England, Arsenal latest, Alaba issues demands
Our Paper Talk feature takes a look at the latest news and rumours from some of the top media outlets in the business. Keep up-to-speed with what is happening around football right here at Sportslens. Aaron Wan-Bissaka is set to commit his international future to DR Congo. According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, the Manchester United defender is frustrated at being overlooked by England manager Gareth Southgate. Wan-Bissaka has represented both nations at youth level, but he is yet to be capped on the senior stage. The 23-year-old will decide his fate later this month when England announce their squad for three World Cup qualifiers. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier are amongst the options at Southgate’s disposal. While Wan-Bissaka has performed well with United, ...
Super Eagles boss wants Ahmed Musa to sort out his career before Afcon qualifiers
Nigeria national team coach Gernot Rohr hopes to see his captain Ahmed Musa back to action ahead of their 2022 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in March. The three-time African champions will take on the Republic of Benin and Lesotho in their last Afcon qualifying games next month. Musa has been without a club since October when he left Saudi Arabian side Al Nass by mutual agreement. The forward starred for Russian Premier League club CSKA Moscow before moving to England to team up with Leicester City. The Super Eagles winger struggled to establish himself at the King Power Stadium and in an effort to enjoy more playing time, he left for Saudi in 2018. The forward is now looking to returning to Europe and has been heavily linked to Premier League club West Bromwich Albion. Rohr is hopeful ...
Ex-Golden Eaglet defender Joins Georgian club Saburtalo Tbilisi
Former Nigerian Under-17 international left-back, Ogaga Oduko, has completed a winter transfer to FC Saburtalo Tbilisi, one of the elite football club-sides in Georgia. Saburtalo, league champions in 2018, Georgian Cup winners in 2019 and also Georgian Supercup winners in 2020 snapped up Oduko on a two-year contract until January 2023. Ese Oduko, the adoptive father of the ex-Golden Eaglets player said his son “signed a two-year deal and might go to Belgium in the summer before moving to England.” England-based football scout, Ese Oduko who is also the CEO of Fresh Talents Football club/academy further said: “But we are hopeful for the future for him (Ogaga).” The 18-year-old who played for Nigeria at the U-17 African Cup of Nations hosted by Tanzania in 2019 has already played a friendly ...
Wayne Rooney: One of England’s greatest
6,727 days. That is how long ago Wayne Rooney made his senior debut as a footballer. In his long and illustrious career, Wazza pretty much did and won it all (except an international trophy). Now, ‘Roonaldo’ has decided to hang up his boots in favour of smoother patent leather shoes, so let’s take a look back at the last 18-odd years when he has graced football pitches all around the world. An early introduction Rooney joined the Everton youth set-up aged nine after scoring 99 goals in one season in a local junior league – ninety-nine. That was a sign of things to come, and they started on July 15, 2002, when Rooney netted for Everton in a friendly against SC Weiz, an Austrian club. About a month later, the teenager made his Premier League debut when he started in Everton’s match against T...
