Europa League place 'a welcome distraction from transfer woes'
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BBC News
13 minutes ago
- BBC News
Key Hornets duo near returns
Watford boss Paulo Pezzolano hopes Kwadwo Baah and Giorgi Chakvetadze are nearing a return to action after 22, came off with a hamstring injury against Preston in January and after missing 10 matches, played a total of just 46 minutes across two games before suffering a recurrence of the injury after starting brightly at Bristol City in April and sat out the final six matches of the has been given a bespoke fitness programme this summer, joining the main group and doing extra individual sessions and is in line to feature in the pre-season friendly at Leyton Orient on 26 midfielder Chakvetadze, 25, also limped off in the game at Ashton Gate with a foot injury, having played 39 of Watford's first 40 Championship matches.A club statement, external said he was 'making daily progress' and could feature in the friendly at Brisbane Road or the final warm-up match at home to Deportivo La Coruna four days later."Both players have been working on their recovery for some time," said Pezzolano."Baah will be able to return to full training with the squad this week, and Chakvetadze is another asset to the club. We look forward to him being fully recovered before he can return to action."
Leader Live
13 minutes ago
- Leader Live
Borthwick enjoying back row selection headache for England Tests
England travelled to Argentina this summer deprived of three back-rowers on British & Irish Lions duty – Tom Curry, Ben Earl and Henry Pollock. But their absence was barely felt with the performances of those given chances in their stead, as Ben Curry and Sam Underhill shone in starting roles in the 2-0 series victory over Los Pumas, while Guy Pepper enjoyed a stunning cameo to help seal the second Test success. In an era where teams are experimenting more and more, with Borthwick having played Earl in the centres at times during the Six Nations, this embarrassment of riches is set to lead to even more innovation with two years to go until the World Cup in Australia. The England coach said: 'You can see depth. Look at the back row in particular, look at the performance of Ben Curry, Tom Willis, Sam Underhill, look at the bench, Guy Pepper, Dommers (Alex Dombrandt), the way he has come onto the field. 'You've got people like Henry Pollock and how he has been performing for the Lions, Tom Curry, Ben Earl, those guys, it's tremendous competition in the back row. 'It's (selection) always on your mind about where we are going and what we need to develop. You can see that we have a number of world-class flankers and we have got to have them in the team because of how much they add in terms of breakdown speed, how much they add in attack, so I think they have to be in the team. So for me, selection is always about how we find the right combination and what does it mean tactically for us.' Given the 13 England players initially called up for the Lions, England headed to Argentina as underdogs. Wrapping up our two-match series against Argentina in style 🏆 Relive the thrilling second Test in San Juan ⬇️ Los Pumas were fresh from a win over the Lions in Dublin and while they were missing a few players of their own, it was still asking a lot for England to pull off a whitewash. What has been evident over their time together is that this squad has become particularly close, led by George Ford and Jamie George – who admitted to finding it hard to say goodbye to his teammates as he headed off to link up with the Lions. And while there will inevitably be turnover when the team gathers in November – with one match on this tour against the USA still to come – Borthwick is keen to maintain the level of camaraderie that has developed in South America. He added: 'Argentina had nearly 400 caps more than us. I couldn't be more proud of these players and the spirit that they have, which is incredible. 'I want to bottle the spirit of La Plata, the spirit of San Juan, and take it with us wherever we go. This group have been brilliant. They have trained with great intensity, they play with great intensity. They run hard for each other and I think an England team runs, everyone can see that. 'They work for each other and with that kind of attitude, we'll keep getting better.' Purchase your tickets to the Autumn Nations Series at Allianz Stadium
BBC News
22 minutes ago
- BBC News
Crewe sign Aston Villa midfielder O'Reilly on loan
Crewe Alexandra have signed Aston Villa midfielder Tommi O'Reilly on loan for the 2025-26 21-year old came through the academy at the Premier League club and made his Villa debut in the Europa Conference League in December spent the first half of last season on loan at Shrewsbury Town in League One before joining MK Dons in League Two for the second part of the campaign.O'Reilly is the Alex's fourth signing of the summer after striker Josh March, full-back Reece Hutchinson and goalkeeper Sam finished last season in 13th place in League Two, eight points off the play-off open the new campaign at Salford City on 2 August.
