Elliott pays the price for 'silly' knee slide celebrating England U21 goal
Soccer Football - UEFA Under 21 Championship - Semi Final - England v Netherlands - Tehelne pole, Bratislava, Slovakia - June 25, 2025 England's Harvey Elliott scores their second goal REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Harvey Elliott may have to rethink his goal celebrations after the midfielder was left wincing in pain from a knee slide following the first of his two strikes in England's 2-1 win over the Netherlands in the European Under-21 Championship semi-finals.
Elliott's knee got stuck on the pitch at the Tehelne Pole stadium in Bratislava, Slovakia, and he fell over sideways, but got up and continued celebrating as England took the lead after the hour mark on Wednesday.
Netherlands equalised through Noah Ohio 10 minutes later but Elliott delivered the winner in the 86th minute to set up a final against Germany on Saturday.
'I don't know what I've done to my knee, but it's hurting," player of the match Elliott told Channel 4.
"So hopefully it's nothing too silly. It's a silly decision from me, to be honest, but it's just one of them, live in the moment.
'You do these things, but I forgot the pitch was ridiculously dry and it is the price I have to pay.' REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Verstappen would welcome Vettel having a role at Red Bull
Formula One F1 - Austrian Grand Prix - Red Bull Ring, Spielberg, Austria - June 26, 2025 Red Bull's Max Verstappen during the press conference ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix REUTERS/Gintare Karpaviciute Verstappen would welcome Vettel having a role at Red Bull SPIELBERG, Austria - Max Verstappen said he would welcome fellow four-times Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel back to Red Bull after the German spoke of possibly succeeding consultant Helmut Marko at the team. Austrian Marko, 82 and a former racer who was blinded in one eye after a stone pierced his visor during the 1972 French Grand Prix in Clermont-Ferrand, has a contract until the end of next year. Vettel, 37, won consecutive titles with Red Bull from 2010-13 and retired in 2022 after stints at Ferrari and Aston Martin. "It's more than normal that someone that has achieved so much with Red Bull, has been brought up by Red Bull (should return)," Verstappen told reporters at the Austrian Grand Prix on Thursday when asked for his thoughts. "In a sense there's always a spot available, right? "I think also Seb always kept a really good relationship with Helmut anyway, even when he left. I didn't know that of course they were talking but I'm sure that there's always a space for Seb in any kind of form." Marko was a close confidant of the team's late Austrian owner Dietrich Mateschitz, serving as his trusted representative in the paddock as well as also taking charge of the young driver programme. During Vettel's era the outspoken advisor was part of a leading trio with principal Christian Horner and technical ace Adrian Newey, who is now at Aston Martin. "We're in contact about this, though maybe not so intensively or in-depth yet, but it's possible," Vettel told Austria's ORF television recently. "He's already said a few times that he'd stop, but he's still here, and I wish him all the best so that he stays around for a very long time." Marko told Austria's Kleine Zeitung on Wednesday that Vettel was following everything very closely. "The question of succession is also one of the issues," he said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
IOC to take lead in gender eligibility criteria, says Coventry
Olympic rings are pictured outside the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ahead of newly elected President Kirsty Coventry first Executive Board meeting at the Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, June 25, 2025. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse Newly elected President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Kirsty Coventry attends her first Executive Board meeting at the Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, June 25, 2025. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse IOC to take lead in gender eligibility criteria, says Coventry LAUSANNE, Switzerland - The International Olympic Committee will spearhead discussions on gender eligibility criteria in sports, its new President Kirsty Coventry said on Thursday, four years after the ruling body had urged federations to handle the issue independently. Coventry, who officially took over the presidency from Thomas Bach this week following Monday's ceremony in Lausanne as the first woman and first African to hold the position, said she now wanted the IOC to "protect the female category". She announced the formation of a working group to lead these discussions and another to review the election process for future Olympic host cities. The IOC has long refused to apply any universal rule on transgender participation for the Games, instructing international federations in 2021 to come up with their own guidelines. "We're going to actually set up a working group made up of experts and international federations," Coventry told a press conference following the first executive board meeting of her presidency. She had also held a two-day workshop for IOC members this week to discuss key issues with them. "It was agreed by the members that the IOC should take a leading role in this and that we should be the ones to bring together the experts, bring together the international federations and ensure that we find consensus," Coventry said. "We understand that there will be differences depending on the sports. We should make the effort to place emphasis on the protection of the female category and that we should ensure that this is done in consensus with all the stakeholders." Transgender athletes are currently eligible to compete at the Olympics. Some international federations have rules in place but others have not yet reached that stage. U.S. President Donald Trump has banned transgender athletes from competing in sports in schools in the United States, which civil society groups say infringes on the rights of trans people. Trump has said he would not allow transgender athletes to compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. FUTURE HOSTS Coventry said IOC members also wanted to be more involved in the selection process for future Olympic host cities. Under her predecessor, the IOC executive board presented one preferred candidate to IOC members, who then rubber-stamped that choice. "There was overwhelming support from the IOC members for a pause to be done, and a review of the future host election process," Coventry said. "Members want to be engaged more in the process and secondly there was a very big discussion in and around when should the next host be awarded." The next Summer Olympics will be held in Los Angeles in 2028, followed by Brisbane in 2032. The IOC has reported "double-digit" interest for the 2036 Games from countries including India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Germany, Indonesia and Turkey. No date for a decision on those Games has been set. The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place in Italy's Milano-Cortina, with the French Alps hosting the 2030 edition and Salt Lake City organising the 2034 Winter Games. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Ronaldo extends Al Nassr contract until 2027
Cristiano Ronaldo has signed a two-year contract extension with Al Nassr, the Saudi Pro League side said on Thursday, which will keep the Portugal forward at the club past his 42nd birthday. Ronaldo, who joined Al Nassr in 2022 after leaving Manchester United to become a free agent, has scored 93 goals in 105 appearances for them in all competitions. "A new chapter begins. Same passion, same dream. Let's make history together," Ronaldo said in a post on X. Ronaldo arrived in Al Nassr on a two-and-a-half-year contract soon after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. That made him the highest-paid athlete in the world and he has topped the list for the last three years, according to Forbes. At the age of 40, Ronaldo's estimated total earnings are around $275 million. He has shown few signs of slowing down, with the forward leading Portugal to a second UEFA Nations League title this month when they beat neighbours Spain in the final. Ronaldo is also eyeing the 1,000-goal milestone in his career. He has scored 794 goals in club football and 138 for Portugal to take his tally to 932. His arrival in Saudi Arabia opened the floodgates for several high-profile players based in Europe to make the switch to the SPL, such as Ronaldo's former Real Madrid teammate Karim Benzema. Although Ronaldo has won the Arab Club Champions Cup with Al Nassr, he has been unable to guide them to the SPL title, with their best finish being runners-up in 2022-23 and 2023-24. They finished third last season. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
