There is snobbery towards teams from Faroe Islands, but not from us... we'll treat Vikingur with respect: Linfield's David Healy
The Linfield boss accepts his side are firm favourites to sweep past Vikingur in the Uefa Conference League but he insists there will be no complacency or lack of respect shown by his side at Windsor Park on Thursday night.
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The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Chelsea vs Crystal Palace preview: Free betting tips, odds and predictions for Premier League
LONDON rivals Chelsea and Crystal Palace kick-start their 2025/26 Premier League campaigns at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. SunSport betting experts have previewed the contest and selected the best bets, tips and exclusive sign-up bonuses from our leading betting partners. Find The Sun's betting publishing principles here Chelsea vs Crystal Palace preview There's silverware everywhere you look in this one, as London rivals Chelsea and Crystal Palace get the ball rolling on their Premier League campaigns at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea enjoyed a superb end to last season, sealing Champions League qualification on the final day, lifting the UEFA Conference League, and capping it all off with Club World Cup glory after an impressive win over Paris Saint-Germain. And the summer transfer window has only added to the buzz around Stamford Bridge. The Blues have splashed over £250million on eight new signings, including Joao Pedro, Jamie Gittens, Jorrel Hato and Liam Delap - not to mention the headline arrival of Brazilian wonderkid Estevao. Now, the pressure is on manager Enzo Maresca to prove that investment was justified - with Chelsea aiming to re-establish themselves as a dominant European force and genuine Premier League title contenders. Chelsea head into this showdown as clear favourites - and it's easy to see why. The Blues are riding a seven-game winning streak, having scored 20 goals and kept four clean sheets during that run. It's also a fixture they've dominated in recent years, winning eight of their last nine home games against Crystal Palace, with an aggregate score of 20-4 at Stamford Bridge. As for Crystal Palace… it's been a bit of a rollercoaster. The Eagles secured Europa League qualification by lifting the FA Cup last season, only to be demoted to the Conference League due to multi-club ownership rule breaches. That blow appears to have had a knock-on effect in the transfer market, with Oliver Glasner's side spending just £2million on two new arrivals Borna Sosa and Walter Benítez. On the plus side, Palace have so far managed to retain key stars including Jean-Philippe Mateta, Eberechi Eze and Marc Guehi with less than three weeks remaining in the summer window. And just as optimism seemed to fade, it surged again last weekend as they defied the odds to beat Liverpool in a penalty shootout and lift the Community Shield at Wembley. Chelsea vs Crystal Palace preview betting tips and predictions Joao pow It's hard to look past Joao Pedro to get on the scoresheet in Sunday's clash - and 13/10 with William Hill looks a tempting price. The 23-year-old signing from Brighton has made an instant impact at Stamford Bridge, bagging five goals in five appearances for Chelsea - including one in the Club World Cup final. He's full of confidence, already has a goal against Palace to his name, and faces a defence that hasn't kept a clean sheet at Stamford Bridge since 1995 - a run stretching 15 games. Cole assist Cole Palmer has racked up a staggering 43 goals and 29 assists in just 97 appearances for Chelsea since his move from Manchester City. The influential 23-year-old playmaker contributed 14 assists last season - and could easily eclipse that tally this time around given the pace, power and precision now surrounding him in Chelsea's revamped attack. Palmer was sharp in pre-season, registering two goals and two assists in the Club World Cup, and he has a habit of delivering against Crystal Palace with one goal and three assists in just four meetings. 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The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Premier League 2025-26 preview No 19: West Ham United
Guardian writers' predicted position: 15th (NB: this is not necessarily Jacob Steinberg's prediction but the average of our writers' tips) Last season's position: 14th The danger for West Ham is that this is the season when their dysfunction catches up with them. They have regressed since winning the Uefa Conference League two years ago, too many misguided moves preventing them from kicking on, and rebuilding has not been simple. Funds are tight after a series of costly errors in the transfer market and Graham Potter is yet to demonstrate he is capable of silencing the familiar sound of grumbling at the London Stadium. Some fans fear a relegation battle beckons. West Ham underwhelmed last season, attempts to move on from David Moyes's pragmatism by replacing the Scot with Julen Lopetegui proving predictably short-lived. They finished 14th, their improvement marginal after Potter replaced Lopetegui in January, a subsequent run of five wins in 19 games telling its own story. The optimistic reading, though, is that this is the real start of the Potter era. The message was to judge him after a pre-season. Potter, who is expected to favour a 3-4-2-1 system, has worked on improving the team's mentality. He wants more leadership. It is not a surprise that Potter has brought in a sports psychologist. The mood has also been lifted by Lucas Paquetá, the influential Brazilian midfielder, being found innocent of breaking betting regulations. Paquetá has impressed during pre-season. Jarrod Bowen, the captain, continues to deliver in attack and has shown signs of a productive partnership with Niclas Füllkrug. There have been some encouraging additions, El Hadji Malick Diouf in particular catching the eye at left wing-back in pre-season. Potter and Kyle Macaulay, the head of recruitment, won a little battle when they convinced the board to buy the Leicester goalkeeper Mads Hermansen. Callum Wilson, signed on a cheap short-term deal, offers experienced cover up front – if he can stay fit. More signings are required, though. Several veterans have departed, the sale of Mohammed Kudus to Tottenham leaves a creative deficit and Potter's hopes of making West Ham more proactive at home and better in possession will depend on whether the club can deliver a No 6 and a No 8. A lot remains up in the air. The picture will be clearer when the window shuts. Potter's reputation is yet to recover after his brutal, ill-fated stint at Chelsea. Feted as the brightest young English coach around when he was at Brighton, it took only seven traumatic months at Stamford Bridge to throw his promising career off course. Now the challenge is to prove the doubters wrong. West Ham were unsure about hiring Potter but may benefit from his calm, dignity and ability to improve players on the training ground. Patience could be key. Potter is not about instant success. He has tended to build slowly, so West Ham will need to trust him if they start slowly. Concerns over profitability and sustainability rules meant West Ham had to sell to buy at the start of the window. Supporters, though, do not want to hear the club pleading poverty. Many still begrudge the move to the unloved London Stadium which, despite having a capacity of 62,500, has hardly led to a change in West Ham's fortunes. David Sullivan, the largest shareholder, is heavily criticised. The 76-year-old is not popular but remains highly influential. Less is made of the part played by the Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, who bought his stake in 2021. The Gold family put a proportion of their stake up for sale almost two years ago. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion West Ham tracked Diouf for more than a year but decided against moving for him last summer. Tim Steidten, the then technical director, is understood to have felt the Senegal international was not good enough for the Premier League. It is just as well, then, that the overhyped Steidten left last February. West Ham looked at Diouf again – they needed a left-back after releasing Aaron Cresswell and putting Emerson Palmieri up for sale – and took the plunge. They paid £22m for the 20-year-old, who was excellent in Senegal's win over England in June, and are excited about his crossing ability. There were high hopes for George Earthy after a productive season on loan at Bristol City. However the attacking midfielder sustained an ankle ligament injury at the start of pre-season and is still on the mend. Earthy will hope to press his claim once he returns but in the meantime all eyes are on Freddie Potts, who has done well in pre-season. The 21-year-old, the son of the former West Ham defender Steve Potts, is a deep-lying midfielder and has looked comfortable on the ball in recent friendlies. Ollie Scarles, a 19-year-old left-back, will also hope for more minutes after being given opportunities last season. The departure of Kudus means there will be pressure on Crysencio Summerville to step up and nail down a starting spot when he returns from a hamstring injury. The 23-year-old joined from Leeds last summer but the winger is yet to produce his best form for West Ham. He was a bit-part player under Lopetegui, who was reluctant to use the Dutchman's speed and trickery, and has been out since tearing a hamstring during Potter's first game. Surgery eventually followed and has left Summerville, who is expected to return next month, desperate to show what he can do. 'When I'm back, it's going to be showtime,' he said last month.
Scotsman
2 hours ago
- Scotsman
Scotland's No. 9, Smith's steely-eyed resolve and lessons learned in Hibs Euro drama
Doing things the hard way so much more fun for David Gray's men, right? Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... If Hibs are to progress to the league/group stages of European football for the first time since UEFA abandoned the straight knock-out format in favour a more mutually lucrative arrangement, they're not going to make it straightforward. Well, where's the fun in that? Be honest, now. While fans, footballers and finance experts alike may have bemoaned the Easter Road club's ill fortune when Aberdeen snatched away that guarantee of European league phase football with their Scottish Cup upset of Treble-chasing Celtic, there is another way to look at the situation foisted upon David Gray's men. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Can you imagine having missed all of this? One of the most brilliantly barmy nights in Easter Road history? Itself a fitting coda to extra-time heartbreak in the Europa League just a fortnight earlier? If this is what it takes to qualify for the UEFA Conference League proper, bring it on. One more time. One final test of nerve for supporters left breathless but exhilarated by the sort of experience that only elite sport can provide. What a night. What a ballsy performance. What a goal – you know the one. What, exactly, might Hibs muster by way of an encore when Legia Warsaw pitch up in Scotland's capital next week? And what did we learn from this one? Kieron Bowie is Scotland's No. 9 Steve Clarke was at Easter Road last night. And he can't just have been hoping to see Grant Hanley get some minutes off the bench. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad What the Scotland boss saw was Bowie turn in a virtuoso demonstration of centre forward play. A thrilling, thunderous, electrifying and exhilarating performance that had Partizan's defence in a constant spin. Take away the wonder goal, if you like. Although surely it has to be factored into any discussion about what the big lad brings to the party. Even without one of the finest strikes ever seen at Easter Road, Bowie's showing on the night was full of exactly what any international manager would want to see from a prime candidate to lead the line. Physicality. Skill to turn defenders. Vision to play balls around corners or link play. For the second time in a week, his mere presence forced a defender to pick up a costly second booking leading to a red card. He chased every ball, tracked back and tackled brilliantly, and genuinely looked disappointed to be removed after 113 minutes – plus the injury time added on to the 90 already played – of hard graft. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Not only must Bowie be included in the squad for next month's World Cup qualifiers. The 22-year-old should START against Denmark in Copenhagen. Lack of experience be damned, this kid has it all. Jordan Smith is a steely-eyed missile man Character. You can't fake it. The veteran goalie may wear the No. 13 on his jersey. But he's still No. 1 – despite the howler that led to Partizan drawing level on aggregate with their second goal last night. Probably culpable for both of the visitors' first-half goals, the 30-year-old former Nottingham Forest keeper – playing in just his third European game – could easily have crumbled. In all honesty, his nerves looked shot in the moments just before half-time. He also had a couple of nervy moments in the second half. But what a recovery he made, pulling off ever better – and ever more important – saves as the game went on. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As goalie coach, Craig Samson will undoubtedly pick up on any technical areas committed by the guy between the sticks. But Smith's fortitude, his willingness and ability to claw himself back from the abyss, was rightly singled out for praise by David Gray last night. If Hibs are to reach UEFA Conference League proper, they'll need warriors. Smith is certainly that. Football is not a game of perfect Hibs have issues to address, if they want to get past Legia Warsaw in the play-off round. They might even have a few flaws to iron out just to get past Livingston in the last 16 of the Premier Sports Cup on Sunday. Admitting that he'd had to rally his troops ahead of extra-time, with substitute Andrej Kostic's goal in the sixth minute of injury time having sucked all the oxygen out of the home crowd, Gray said: 'I'd like us to have more control. I'd like us to go to the corner at times. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'The game management side we'll analyse, and that's my job, to make sure the players are better in these moments or learn from these moments. You could clearly see every player from both sets of teams giving it absolutely everything. At that point, they're in the moment. They're making decisions. 'It's a bit emotionally led, and their mistakes happen. But I think, as I just said, the character was tested. Over the course of it, I think they deserved to go through, so I'm delighted for them.'
