
Tottenham star James Maddison posts heartbreaking statement after 'lowest low I've ever had'
Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison has admitted to being left "heartbroken" after suffering an ACL injury on the eve of the new season. After undergoing surgery, he will miss most if not all of Spurs' Premier League and Champions League campaigns, and faces a battle to get back up to top speed in time for the 2026 World Cup.
Maddison sustained the injury during a pre-season match against Newcastle, and was in visible pain while lying on the turf. He shared a photo on Instagram alongside his three children, opening up on the mental anguish that has followed.
"Lowest low I've ever had," Maddison wrote. "Heartbroken at the fact this injury has occurred at this time in my career. With the Super Cup tomorrow, the Premier League season on the horizon, the exciting Champions League campaign & it being a World Cup year for England it all feels very very cruel but nevertheless the ACL reconstruction surgery was successful.
"To all my close friends and family, your support and love means absolutely everything to me. To those of you who have gone out of your way to message on social media platforms in support of me and my recovery even when we don't know each other personally, I appreciate you all more than you'll ever know so thank you.
"And lastly to those of you who doubt, hate & mock. You truly motivate me to levels I didn't know I had inside of me so again, thank you. See you all on the other side."
Spurs' new manager Thomas Frank will lead the team out in the Premier League for the first time on Saturday, with Burnley visiting North London. Before then, though, there is the small matter of the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain.
Frank's predecessor Ange Postecoglou got them into the game through last season's Europa League triumph. The new boss has strengthened since then, with Mohammed Kudus among the summer arrivals, but Maddison's injury has prompted talk of a move for Crystal Palace star Ebere Eze.
Arsenal have also been linked with Eze, who is likely to cost any club north of £60million if he's to move this summer. Frank was asked about the England international in his press conference ahead of the Super Cup but didn't give much away.
"There are a lot of good players out there, there are also a few from the PSG team but I don't think we can buy them right now," the former Brentford boss told reporters. "In general, players in and players out, I'm only speaking if something is done or not done. I speak only about my own players."
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South Wales Guardian
16 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
Premier League to investigate after Antoine Semenyo reports racist abuse
Match referee Anthony Taylor stopped play in the 29th minute and spoke with managers Arne Slot and Andoni Iraola before respective captains Virgil van Dijk and Adam Smith were called over to the dug-outs. PA Sport understands police officers went into the referee's room at half-time, while an anti-discrimination message was read out to the Anfield crowd. Tonight's match between Liverpool Football Club and AFC Bournemouth was temporarily paused during the first half after a report of discriminatory abuse from the crowd, directed at Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo. This is in line with the Premier League's on-field… — Premier League Match Centre (@PLMatchCentre) August 15, 2025 A Premier League statement read: 'Tonight's match between Liverpool Football Club and AFC Bournemouth was temporarily paused during the first half after a report of discriminatory abuse from the crowd, directed at Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo. 'This is in line with the Premier League's on-field anti-discrimination protocol. 'The incident at Anfield will now be fully investigated. We offer our full support to the player and both clubs. 'Racism has no place in our game, or anywhere in society. We will continue to work with stakeholders and authorities to ensure our stadiums are an inclusive and welcoming environment for all.' Merseyside Police said a 47-year-old man was removed from the ground and an investigation was under way after his identity was confirmed. Chief Inspector Kev Chatterton, the match commander for the game, said: 'Merseyside Police will not tolerate hate crime of any form. 'We take incidents like this very seriously, and in cases like this we will be proactively seeking football banning orders, with the club, against those responsible.' Sky Sports co-commentator Gary Neville said: 'It overshadows what should be an amazing night. First game of the Premier League season, a beautiful day, 62,000 fans in the stadium and that boy (Semenyo) basically has been racially abused and has had to go over to a referee to complain about it. 'I can't even begin to think what would be going through someone's mind, however it's happened and it'll keep on happening and it's a sorry state.' Fellow co-commentator Jamie Carragher added: 'A shocking incident rightly reported to the referee.' The incident comes two days after Tottenham's Mathys Tel received racist abuse online after missing a penalty in his side's UEFA Super Cup win against Paris St Germain. The Football Association said it was 'concerned' about the allegation of racism towards Semenyo and that it would ensure 'appropriate action' would be taken. — FA Spokesperson (@FAspokesperson) August 15, 2025 A statement from the FA read: 'We are very concerned about the allegation of discrimination from an area of the crowd, which was reported to the match officials during the Premier League fixture between Liverpool and Bournemouth. 'Incidents of this nature have no place in our game and we will work closely with the match officials, the clubs and the relevant authorities to establish the facts and ensure the appropriate action is taken.' After the incident, Semenyo scored twice in the second half to help bring Bournemouth back from two goals down at Anfield before Liverpool went on to eventually win the contest 4-2. Cherries' Adam Smith told Sky Sports News afterwards: 'It shouldn't be happening. I don't know how Ant's played on to be honest and come up with those goals. It's totally unacceptable. 'Something needs to be done. Taking the knee isn't having an effect. We're supporting him and hopefully he'll be OK. 'I wanted him to react because that's what I would have done, but this shows what type of man he is…to come up with those goals showed the type of guy he is. 'To be fair the Liverpool players were very supportive as well towards Antoine and the rest of the team. It was handled in the right way but…so angry. 'I don't know what else we can do. No one's getting it. I don't know what to say anymore. I just feel for Ant…shocking.' Liverpool issued a statement which read: 'Liverpool Football Club is aware of an allegation of racist abuse made during our Premier League game against AFC Bournemouth. 'We condemn racism and discrimination in all forms, it has no place in society or football. 'The club is unable to comment further as tonight's alleged incident is the subject of an ongoing police investigation, which we will support fully.'


Sky News
27 minutes ago
- Sky News
Premiere League opener halted after Antoine Semenyo reports racist abuse
A man was ejected from Anfield Stadium after reports of racial abuse directed at Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo during the season's opening Premier League game against Liverpool. Match referee Anthony Taylor paused play in the 29th minute after Semenyo accused a spectator of racist abuse. An anti-discrimination message was read out to the Anfield crowd, and it is understood that police officers went into the referee's room at half-time. Merseyside Police said an investigation is under way after the 47-year-old man's identity was confirmed and he was removed from the ground. Chief Inspector Kev Chatterton, the match commander for the Liverpool v Bournemouth game, said: "Merseyside Police will not tolerate hate crime of any form. "We take incidents like this very seriously, and in cases like this we will be proactively seeking football banning orders, with the club, against those responsible." He added: "There is no place for racism and it is vital that anyone who witnesses such an offence reports it to stewards, or the police immediately, so we can take the necessary action like we did this evening. "As with all matches, we work very closely with both Liverpool and Everton FC to ensure the safety of the public, and the players." A spokesperson for Liverpool said the club was "aware of an allegation of racist abuse made during our Premier League game against Bournemouth". The Liverpool spokesperson said: "We condemn racism and discrimination in all forms, it has no place in society, or football. "The club is unable to comment further as tonight's alleged is incident is the subject of an ongoing police investigation, which we will support fully." After the incident, Semenyo scored twice in the second half to help bring Bournemouth back from two goals down at Anfield before Liverpool went on to eventually win the contest 4-2. Bournemouth captain Adam Smith told Sky Sports News afterwards: "It shouldn't be happening. I don't know how Ant's played on to be honest and come up with those goals. It's totally unacceptable. "Something needs to be done. Taking the knee isn't having an effect. We're supporting him and hopefully he'll be OK. "I wanted him to react because that's what I would have done, but this shows what type of man he come up with those goals showed the type of guy he is. "To be fair the Liverpool players were very supportive as well towards Antoine and the rest of the team. It was handled in the right way but... so angry. "I don't know what else we can do. No one's getting it. I don't know what to say anymore. I just feel for Ant... shocking." The Premier League said in a statement that its "on-field anti-discrimination protocol" had been followed and the incident "will now be fully investigated". "We offer our full support to the player and both clubs," it added. "Racism has no place in our game, or anywhere in society. We will continue to work with stakeholders and authorities to ensure our stadiums are an inclusive and welcoming environment for all." The Football Association said it was "concerned" about the allegation of racism towards Semenyo and that it would ensure "appropriate action" would be taken. The incident comes two days after Tottenham Hotspur player Mathys Tel faced racist abuse online following a missed penalty in his team's UEFA Super Cup victory over Paris Saint-Germain.


South Wales Guardian
43 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
Dane Murray celebrates contract with goal as Celtic ease past Falkirk
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