
Napoli banking on Kevin de Bruyne to avoid repeat of last season's title collapse
"We have worked hard to tailor ourselves. It is inevitable that this year will be very challenging."But there is a very recent past that we must never forget. We must learn lessons even from negative things. What happened two years ago must be a lesson, especially to the environment. We are on the field and we work, there will never be any flights of fancy. We will be very humble."Napoli have strengthened their title-winning squad with the addition of Belgian playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, Dutch winger Noa Lang and Italian centre back Luca Marianucci, among others.De Bruyne, regarded as one of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history, lifted 19 trophies at Manchester City since his 2015 move from German side VfL Wolfsburg — a haul that includes six Premier League titles and one Champions League crown.Conte hopes the 34-year-old can help Napoli take that extra step."He comes to us to take on a new challenge, it is a different situation for him too: he has already reached very high levels in his career and has a lot more to give to football," Conte added.Napoli begin their pre-season with a friendly match against Arezzo on Tuesday.- EndsTrending Reel
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United News of India
2 hours ago
- United News of India
AC Milan sign Brighton defender Estupinan for £17m
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The Hindu
4 hours ago
- The Hindu
All-India Affair: Koneru Humpy to meet Divya Deshmukh in FIDE Women''s World Cup final
Grandmaster Koneru Humpy held her nerves to score a come-from-behind victory over China'sTIngjie Lei in the tiebreaker to set up an all-Indian summit clash against Divya Deshmukh at the FIDE Women's World Cup here on Thursday (July 24, 2025). Humpy will clash with Divya Deshmukh in the final starting after a day's rest starting on Saturday. With Humpy winning, both she and Divya have now qualified for the Women's candidates' tournament next year. Having drawn the first two games in the normal time control Humpy had to settle up with another 1-1 draw in the tiebreaker that comprised two games with 15 minutes for both players with an increment. After two draws here, Humpy had to really work hard in the next set of tiebreak games that had 10 minutes for both players with another increment. Lei got in the lad early in the set of these two games and Humpy erred in the middle game to lose a pawn and get in to a difficult endgame. What followed was pretty logical as Lei got in command and even thought the position was closer to a draw Humpy did not find the best defensive resources to equalize. Humpy lost another pawn on the queen side and despite the presence of opposite coloured Bishops in the endgame, white's influence on both flanks tilted things decisively in her favour. It was a win on demand wherein Humpy dominated the next game. The Queen pawn opening was good enough wherein Humpy was in command right from the word go. Humpy won with her superior technique and also her absolute determination to turn the tide in her favour from any given position. In the third set of tie-break games Humpy drew white in the first game and crushed Lei in all departments of the game. Winning this game meant that just a draw was needed for her to get in to the final and in the return game Humpy was at her technical best as she won again out of an Italian opening. If there is one title that has eluded Humpy it's the World Cup and world championship. Apart that Humpy has won everything under the sun.


Hindustan Times
6 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Soccer-Liverpool spending backed by title win and long-term plan, says CEO
July 24 (Reuters) - Liverpool's big-money investment on transfers is the result of long-term planning, club CEO Billy Hogan said, adding that winning a record-equalling 20th English top-flight title convinced the club it was time to act like a modern powerhouse. HT Image Liverpool's latest acquisition, French striker Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt in a deal worth 79 million pounds ($106.84 million), including add-ons, has taken the club's transfer expenditure this window to nearly 300 million pounds. Outgoings, six players including Trent Alexander-Arnold, have so far generated around 64 million pounds. The outlay marks a sharp departure from Liverpool's traditionally measured approach in the market. However, Hogan insists the club has not deviated from the club's policy of financial sustainability. "It doesn't just happen; it's been years in the making," Hogan told The Athletic in an interview. "One of the things we're constantly focused on is that 'virtuous circle'. Trying to run the club in the right way to ensure that we can generate as much revenue as we possibly can. That obviously helps in terms of being able to put more back into the team. "The difficulty is if you just look at one individual summer. That probably skews the data. There were a lot of comments made last summer that we didn't spend enough..." Hogan explained the approach reflects the ambitions of American-led Fenway Sports Group (FSG), who are seeking to build on last season's Premier League title under manager Arne Slot. "We also recognise, having won the English league title for the 20th time, that this is one of the biggest clubs in the world. We want to make sure that we are behaving like one," he added. "Having massive global stars come and play at Anfield, filling out stadiums in Hong Kong and Japan, those are things we expect and want to do." Liverpool face AC Milan in Kowloon, Hong Kong on Saturday, before taking on Yokohama FM in the J League World Challenge in Yokohama on Wednesday. They begin their Premier League title defence at home against Bournemouth on August 15. ($1 = 0.7394 pounds) (Reporting by Shifa Jahan in Bengaluru)