England manager looks ahead to Euro title defense
CNN World Sport's Amanda Davies sits down with England women's national football team head coach Sarina Wiegman ahead of next month's UEFA Women's EURO 2025.
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New York Times
34 minutes ago
- New York Times
Trent Alexander-Arnold's Real Madrid balancing act – and rebrand from Liverpool days
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez read carefully from his speech as he called the club's new signing Trent Alexander-Arnold 'one of the best full-backs in the world' and welcomed 'beloved Trent' to 'the club of the 15 European Cups'. Sitting in the front row alongside his partner and family, Alexander-Arnold watched Thursday's proceedings of his presentation as a Real Madrid player with a shy half-smile on his face. When Perez finished speaking, the arrival from Liverpool got to his feet, exchanged a quick embrace with his new boss, and took to the stage himself. Advertisement 'Thanks to president Florentino Perez and this club for this opportunity,' Alexander-Arnold said, surprising everyone by starting his speech in Spanish. 'To sign for a club like Real Madrid does not happen every day, it's a dream come true,' he continued, in very good Spanish, delivered without reading any notes. 'I'm happy and proud to be here, and really looking forward to showing madridistas how I play. I'm ready to give everything for this club and these fans. I want to win many trophies, and improve among the best players in the world. Thanks, and hala Madrid!' The camera cut to the audience of besuited Madrid figures in the seats at the basketball pavilion at the club's training ground. Those present included venerable club directors and former first-team stars now working for the club. Many of the faces clearly showed their surprise at the England international's unexpected language skills. 🗣️🇪🇸 Señor Alexander-Arnold#WelcomeTrent — Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) June 12, 2025 When Jude Bellingham was presented as a Madrid signing on the same stage back in June 2023, he said one sentence in Spanish ('Hello everyone, hello madridistas') before switching to his native English. In under two minutes, Alexander Arnold had already spoken more Spanish in public than fellow-Brit Gareth Bale did during his nine years at Madrid between 2013 and 2022. It showed a level of preparation and awareness that is quite rare, even at the top level in football. Kylian Mbappe could do his entire presentation and first Madrid press conference in Spanish, but then the Frenchman had over a decade to prepare for his arrival. Just how long Alexander-Arnold has known he would be joining Madrid remains something of a mystery, and a controversial topic for many back at Anfield. The 26-year-old was clearly aware of the sensitivity. Advertisement Asked how long he had been learning Spanish, Alexander-Arnold replied 'a few months' with a smile that showed he knew it was a potential trick question, given some Liverpool fans have felt hurt by him and his camp having spoken to Madrid at least as early as April 2024. When asked by Real Madrid TV for his feelings on arriving at Madrid, he said it had been 'a day I've been waiting for, for a long time now'. The next question was obvious — just exactly how long had he been waiting? Alexander-Arnold was quick to realise the right thing to say. 'To be clear, by waiting a long time I mean a couple of weeks, not years,' he said. 'But I'm very excited to be here. Whether you support the club or not, you have to respect the club's trophies and history. I grew up watching this club win Champions Leagues. A big reason why I joined is to be a part of the amazing history of the club, and its success going forward.' Other Madrid galacticos, including Mbappe and Bale, have been presented along with old family photos of them wearing Real Madrid jerseys as kids. Alexander-Arnold was clear that he had always been a Liverpool fan, and he will also have known that, in a 2021 interview, he told GQ magazine that 'my other favourite team is Barcelona'. There was no attempt to whitewash any of his past. Instead, we got what looked like an honest and straightforward explanation that, while he loved Liverpool, he also believed he had every right to leave to join Madrid, and he was very happy to have made that decision. The impression was an event which had been very carefully stage-managed and planned out. That was also the case as Alexander-Arnold explained why he will use the name 'Trent' on his jersey over his new number 12 at Madrid. 'It's quite easy to be honest,' he said, with another smile. 'In Europe, the double-barrelled name situation confuses people. People call me Arnold, Alexander, Alex, Trent. I thought: let's make it easy, and to be known as Trent — that's my name.' Advertisement That is likely only half the reason. The 'rebrand' to Trent has also taken place on his Instagram account, and will likely help with marketing, both for Madrid and for him. Being able to present yourself well and taking advantage of commercial opportunities is always important at Madrid. Even Perez's speech was aimed at many different audiences — maybe even some players at other clubs who could end up arriving at Madrid in the coming years. 'The Bernabeu is waiting for you,' he said to Alexander-Arnold and everyone watching. 'There, you will experience unique moments that will sometimes be difficult to understand. It's magic and its mystique will excite you.' Perez also highlighted the importance to Madrid of winning the upcoming Club World Cup, which is seen as an important priority. That might not be easy. Madrid have a new coach in Xabi Alonso, new signings (including Alexander-Arnold) to fit in, and are coming off a 2024-25 domestic and European campaign that went badly off the rails and resulted in an acrimonious exit for former coach Carlo Ancelotti. But Alexander-Arnold's arrival is part of what Perez is presenting as a fresh start, and he did not put a foot wrong on his first day as a Real Madrid player. He was also respectful and intelligent when speaking about his team-mates, playing down the idea he saw himself as a Ballon d'Or candidate ahead of Mbappe, Vinicius Jr or Bellingham, while also showing respect for Madrid's long-serving first-choice right-back Dani Carvajal, the club captain who is soon returning from injury. It was not easy to balance two different messages to two different audiences, and Liverpool supporters may still have some grievances over his exit. But Madrid fans should be excited that, off the pitch at least, they are getting a player who understands the Bernabeu club very, very well. While Alexander-Arnold's amazing level of Spanish speaking will have left some Liverpool fans scratching their heads at just how long he has been preparing for his move to Madrid, the former Anfield favourite did speak highly of his former club and said the right things, even if not everyone wants to hear it. It won't hurt that he said Liverpool are 'the biggest team in England'. That line alone will not undo the hurt some fans feel at his low-fee departure with his peak years ahead of him. But saying it on such a massive stage as his Madrid presentation felt like a bit of a flag plant. He stepped into 'Brit abroad territory' when comparing Liverpool and Madrid's weather but didn't get bogged down in that cliché too much. Overall, listening to him speak, you could clearly see how much of a big moment this was for him and his family. He was well prepared and his Spanish showed that, but I'm not sure the reality of his achievement has actually hit him yet. Maybe winning the Club World Cup will be the thing that does it. Advertisement The fact that he is now using 'Trent' on the back of his shirt and as his new Instagram handle feels like an outstanding branding move as much as an ode to Liverpool. During his Liverpool career, he was referred to as Alexander-Arnold but most of the time when fans discussed him, they simply said 'Trent'. It was like they knew him personally — which is why, depending on who you ask, it feels surreal to some and hurtful to others that the lad from West Derby who felt like their mate has moved to sunny Madrid. Caoimhe O'Neill Aside from pitch-sweeping passes and unrivalled creativity from out wide, Alexander-Arnold opens up more options for new coach Xabi Alonso's Madrid team. He is equally happy to play a marauding wing-back role, jump into midfield or even tuck into a wide centre-back role, where he can get on the ball and create from deep, allowing the full-back on the opposite flank to push on. He will not replace Toni Kroos, but his desire to fire long passes out to the wing will help recoup some of what Madrid lost when the German retired last summer. The visualisation below — curling crosses into the box, probing passes down the line, and raking switches of play — shows how he could help get the most out of Madrid's rapid wide players and clinical finishers by finding the spaces in behind defences. While there may be lingering concerns surrounding his defensive capabilities, Alexander-Arnold will only help to level up Madrid's in-possession play. Expect the super-flexible Alonso to blur positional boundaries even more as he looks to get the most from this remarkable passer of a football. Thom Harris
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Euro 2025 host Switzerland loses veteran forward Ramona Bachmann to knee injury
BERN, Switzerland — Veteran Switzerland forward Ramona Bachmann will miss the Women's European Championship in her home country next month after suffering a serious knee injury in training. Bachmann was injured on Wednesday without contact from another player. Tests on Thursday showed an ACL rupture in her left knee, the Swiss soccer federation said.
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Tennis player calls opponent 'little pig' and 'piece of s---' after losing heated match in Germany
A back-and-forth tennis match in Germany had some extracurricular activity afterward earlier this week. Corentin Moutet took down Fabio Fognini, 6-4, 6-7, 6-3 in the first round of the Stuttgart Open on Tuesday, and he was clearly hyped up after his victory. Fognini could not keep his return in bounds, and Moutet fist-pumped after his grueling win. Moutet then took one of the balls in his pocket and launched it into the crowd. The two players then met at the net for their handshake, as is standard following the match. But things took a turn when Fognini took offense to Moutet looking away from him. After the two initially greeted, they both walked over to the chair umpire, with Fognini trying to speak to Moutet, who was walking forward, no longer engaging in the conversation. Fognini then dropped quite the insult, according to the New York Post. "Look at me, you little pig. You're a piece of s---," Fognini said to Moutet in his native French. Moutet then cut Fognini off as the latter was trying to shake hands with the chair umpire. Moutet found himself in another skirmish earlier this year when he and Alexander Bublik had to be separated by an official during the Arizona Tennis Classic. With the victory, Moutet's grand prize is a meeting with Alexander Zverev, the third-ranked player in the world, behind only Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who just had a classic French Open final this past weekend. Fognini lost in qualifying at Roland Garros, while Moutet fell to Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the round of 64. Fognini was once ranked as high as ninth in the world rankings – he currently ranks 117th, while Moutet is 91st. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
