logo
Gabbiadini names team-mate Gates as most skilled Sunderland player

Gabbiadini names team-mate Gates as most skilled Sunderland player

BBC News3 days ago

Throughout Wednesday, we have been revealing who Sunderland legend Marco Gabbiadini believes are the club's most skilful players ever.And finally we have reached top spot.He awards first place to Eric Gates, with whom he forged a formidable strike partnership dubbed the G-force during their time together in the 1980s.While his time with the club did include a relegation, Gates is still considered one of the cleverest forwards of his time. "I can remember watching Eric when I wasa kid at a caravan on a black-and-white TV," Gabbiadini told BBC Radio Newcastle. "I was watching him play European football matches [for Ipswich], and then I got to play with him a few years later. "In an era when pitches weren't great, he wasn't a silky winger, but he had a really clever, deft touch in the way that he played. "Every time he got the ball, he was always looking to play through people and around people. Defenders didn't know whether he was going to keep it or lay it off, which was also a great skill. He would flick it with his first touch around the corner." So, there it is, the top five most skilful players in Sunderland's history, according to Gabbiadini. Eric GatesSebastian LarssonStephane Sessegnon Michael BridgesBilly HughesHow would you rank these five? Have a go over hereAnd who did Gabbiadini miss out? Tell us here Listen back on BBC Sounds

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Qualifier Tatjana Maria shocks Madison Keys to set up Queen's final against Amanda Anisimova
Qualifier Tatjana Maria shocks Madison Keys to set up Queen's final against Amanda Anisimova

The Independent

time36 minutes ago

  • The Independent

Qualifier Tatjana Maria shocks Madison Keys to set up Queen's final against Amanda Anisimova

Veteran qualifier Tatjana Maria continued her remarkable run at Queen's Club with victory over Australian Open champion Madison Keys to reach the final of the HSBC Championships. The 37-year-old mother of two arrived in London on a nine-match losing run but, after coming through qualifying, she is now unbeaten in six contests and will take on American Amanda Anisimova for the trophy on Sunday. Maria's latest victim was American second seed Keys, who was unable to cope with the German's unusual, slice-heavy game, falling to a 6-3 7-6 (3) defeat. After sealing the victory, Maria celebrated with her husband and coach Charles-Edouard and elder daughter Charlotte courtside, while younger daughter Cecilia slept in a pushchair. Saturday's win followed a quarter-final victory over former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, and Maria, a semi-finalist at the All England Club in 2022, told the BBC: 'Really, to be honest, I cannot believe it's true. 'It's such a special place. I could not wish a better tournament to be in the final and I'm so, so proud. I had my ups and downs but you always have to keep going. I love to play tennis, I love the sport. We live for these special moments.' Now the world number 86 – the oldest player to make a WTA 500 singles final – will take on eighth seed Anisimova, who prevailed in a topsy-turvy battle against top seed Zheng Qinwen, winning 6-2 4-6 6-4. Anisimova faltered having three times led by a break of serve in the second set, with both players finding the windy conditions difficult. The turning point came after Olympic champion Zheng had recovered from another poor start to a set to lead 3-2 in the decider. The Chinese star had three chances to make it four games in a row but Anisimova withstood the pressure and broke serve in the next game on her way to a first grass-court final. 'I'm so happy to be through this match,' said the 23-year-old. 'I've never gotten a win over her. 'Every time we've played we've had some really tough battles and I was just really relieved at the end there. The conditions were very tricky but we still managed to play some really good tennis.' On facing Maria, Anisimova added: 'I'm super happy to see her in the final. It's incredible what she's doing and her family is so cute. It's really special for her and it's going to be a great final.' Meanwhile, there was a career-best victory in qualifying for the men's event next week for Britain's former Wimbledon junior champion Henry Searle. The 19-year-old claimed a 7-6 (0) 7-6 (6) win over top seed Bu Yunchaokete and will take on American Mackenzie McDonald for a place in the main draw.

World Cup misery for England as Littler and Humphries are knocked out in Germany
World Cup misery for England as Littler and Humphries are knocked out in Germany

The Independent

timean hour ago

  • The Independent

World Cup misery for England as Littler and Humphries are knocked out in Germany

Luke Littler and Luke Humphries suffered World Cup misery as England's hopes of retaining the World Cup were torn apart by Germany. The world's top two players slipped to an 8-4 second round defeat at the Eissporthalle in Frankfurt, where Martin Schindler and Ricardo Pietreczko made the most of the backing of a partisan home crowd to seal a comprehensive victory. Littler and Humphries, who both received MBEs in the King's Birthday Honours, were made to pay for missed doubles with the 18-year-old in particular turning in an off-colour display in a country where he has endured previous disappointments. A delighted Schindler, who had insisted in advance that the English duo were 'beatable', told Sky Sports: 'I was right because we believed in ourselves. 'We have been putting in a solid performance, and obviously the double 16s from Ricardo just went in, so we are very happy to go through. 'Today was one step and tomorrow is the other. That's it.' Booed by the home crowd, Littler started nervously and the Germans took the first two legs, but his 123 check-out got England on the board before a 64 finish levelled it up at 2-2. However, the the teenager missed three darts at a double in the fifth leg to allow Pietreczko to win it with a 106 out-shot and another in the sixth as the Germans restored their advantage, and after Humphries had hit 25 rather than bull going for 122, they went in at the break 5-2 ahead. Pietreczko took out 101 after the resumption before Germany went 7-2 up and although Littler and Humphries took the next two, they eventually succumbed as a return of just four doubles from the 11 chances they created ultimately proved costly. Germany's reward is a quarter-final tie against Australia, who routed Argentina 8-1 with Damon Heta and Simon Whitlock proving too strong for Jesus Salate and Victor Guillin despite missing 21 of their 29 attempts at doubles. Twice-winners Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton secured Wales' passage with a resounding 8-2 win over the Philippines. The Welsh pair, who claimed the crown in 2020 and 2023, powered their way through to a last eight clash with Hong Kong with the minimum of fuss despite the first three legs going against the darts. However, Scotland's Peter Wright and Gary Anderson found themselves on the wrong end of a demolition job as they went down 8-0 to the Netherlands in just 15 minutes. Danny Noppert and world youth champion Gian Van Veen, who took out 130 to claim the fourth leg on Scotland's throw, were in inspired form, averaging 100.2 and converting eight of the 12 darts they had at doubles to breeze through to a meeting with the Czech Republic. William O'Connor and Keane Barry eased the Republic of Ireland to a showdown with neighbours Northern Ireland after an 8-3 victory over Switzerland in which they were always in control. Northern Ireland were comfortable winners over South Africa as Josh Rock and Daryl Gurney eased them to an 8-2 success. Elsewhere, there were wins for the Czechs over Malaysia and Hong Kong against Sweden.

Darts ace Luke Littler, 18, ‘films ad for McDonald's' at his local branch in front of ‘cheering' fans
Darts ace Luke Littler, 18, ‘films ad for McDonald's' at his local branch in front of ‘cheering' fans

The Sun

timean hour ago

  • The Sun

Darts ace Luke Littler, 18, ‘films ad for McDonald's' at his local branch in front of ‘cheering' fans

TEEN darts world champ Luke Littler was spotted filming at a McDonald's - sparking rumours he's added the fast food brand to his growing list of multi-million pound sponsorship deals. The arrows prodigy, 18, was seen with a camera crew appearing to shoot an ad at his local Golden Arches in Warrington on Thursday. 3 On Friday it was announced that the boy wonder had been made an MBE in the King's Birthday Honours list after being crowned the youngest ever darts world champion in January. An onlooker who saw Luke at McDonald's said: 'We heard that it was an advert and that he may have signed some sort of deal with McDonald's. "There were extras who cheered when he walked in the door and they closed the place down for three or four hours while they were shooting. "They had a close protection security guy there with him too. 'There was just one camera crew there and security made sure no one had phones inside." The Nuke was decked out in casual clothes with a polo shirt, blue jeans and black and white trainers for the shoot. He has previously bagged sponsorship agreements with the likes of Xbox, KP Nuts, fashion retailer BoohooMAN and YouTube group The Sidemen. Since erupting on the darts scene during the 2024 World Championships, Luke has been outspoken about his love of kebabs. But he made headlines when he swapped his usual post-match doner for a McDonald's in December 2023. Aged just 16 at the time, he said after booking his place in the round of 16 in the competition: 'I did say to the fans, do you want to see me getting a kebab? "But I just thought, 'Nah, McDonald's.'" Luke went on to become the youngest player ever to reach the final of the World Championships that year, aged 16 years and 347 days. This year he was crowned the competition's youngest ever champion at 17 years and 347 days old. McDonald's UK piggy-backed on Luke's success in January 2024, posting that its Double 10 McNuggets Sharebox was the 'perfect food' for watching him at the PDC World Championship. Luke has also spoken proudly about still having mates who work at McDonald's. The avid Manchester United fan revealed that legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson had advised him to stay grounded. He added: "My mum and dad told me to keep the friends I have. Give it a few years and I may meet someone along the way. "I have a couple of good friends from school and a few friends from different schools. "They are doing well. They have apprenticeships, at Asda or McDonald's, or want to be plumbers or electricians. "All have good jobs and are trying to make money for themselves." McDonald's gave no response when the Sun on Sunday asked if it had signed a new sponsorship with Luke. The Sun on Sunday also asked Luke's rep for comment.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store