Palmer shines as Chelsea crushes PSG to win FIFA Club World Cup
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
9 hours ago
- The Star
Twin towers power China past S. Korea at FIBA Women's Asia Cup
SHENZHEN, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Han Xu and Zhang Ziyu combined for 36 points to lead defending champion China to a 91-69 victory over South Korea in a Group B match at the 2025 FIBA Women's Asia Cup on Tuesday. Both teams struggled to find their rhythm offensively in the first half. China missed several early chances under the rim, with Li Yuan, Luo Xinyu and Han all misfiring in the paint. South Korea also failed to capitalize on multiple wide-open opportunities, and the game remained scoreless for nearly two minutes before Park Ji-hyun broke the drought with a basket. With the Chinese squad slow to settle, 23-year-old forward Luo stepped up with several key offensive rebounds and flashy dishes. 18-year-old Zhang, who stands 226cm tall, entered midway through the first quarter and remained a dominant presence in the paint, although South Korea targeted her lack of mobility on offense. An He-ji nailed a stunning long-range buzzer-beater to cut China's lead to just three points at the end of the first period. In the second quarter, South Korea suffered a scare when veteran center Park Ji-su sustained a shoulder injury while defending Zhang. She was forced to the bench but returned for the second half after treatment. China made a crucial tactical adjustment after the break, unveiling the twin-tower lineup of Han and Zhang for the first time in the tournament. The move paid immediate dividends, as the two centers scored in quick succession to extend China's lead to double digits. South Korea kept the margin within striking distance thanks to a flurry of three-pointers, hovering around a 10-point gap. In the final three minutes of the third quarter, China switched to a small-ball lineup with no traditional center. The pace picked up, and sharp drives by Jia Saiqi and Wang Siyu helped China take a 17-point cushion into the final quarter. China's shooting behind the arc, which had been cold through the first three quarters (1-of-12), finally warmed up in the fourth. Huang Sijing, Yang Liwei and Zhai Ruoyun knocked down timely triples, stretching the lead. Meanwhile, South Korea struggled with fatigue down the stretch, and several smart cuts failed to produce points. As the clock ran out, China secured a 91-69 win to remain unbeaten in the group stage. Han and Zhang each scored a team-high 18 points for China, with Han also grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds. For South Korea, Choi I-saem hit four three-pointers to lead her team with 16 points, while An He-ji added 15. "This was the most crucial game of the group stage, and we did a lot of preparation for it," said China's head coach Gong Luming at the post-game press conference. "Our young team was eager to perform well, but they were a bit anxious at the start and didn't play up to their usual level," he noted, adding, "But on the defensive end, the players gave good effort." Speaking about the two key lineup adjustments in the game, Gong said the twin-tower combination of Han and Zhang was effective on offense, but also admitted it had defensive drawbacks. "The twin-tower hasn't been used much in practice. We hope to build better chemistry between them through real-game experience - it will be an important option for us in the future," Gong explained. He also emphasized that China can't rely solely on its advantage in the paint, so he used a smaller lineup at times, aiming for faster transitions and quick scoring after securing rebounds.
Malay Mail
14 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Despite Club World Cup triumph, can Chelsea sustain momentum after 11-month season and just five-week break?
NEW YORK, July 15 — For Chelsea, victory in Sunday's Club World Cup decider completed a fine first season under Enzo Maresca, and also finally brought the curtain down on a marathon campaign that they must hope does not catch up with them down the line. The Cole Palmer-inspired 3-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain at the MetLife Stadium outside New York was Chelsea's 64th game of a season which lasted 11 months. By any measure it was one of Chelsea's best ever campaigns, with their Club World Cup triumph — placed on a par by Maresca to winning the Champions League — following victory in the UEFA Conference League and a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League. Maresca, an ex-assistant to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, could not have asked for much more after arriving off the back of leading Leicester City to promotion. 'It has been a fantastic season but I am especially happy for the players,' said the Italian, who has succeeded in putting together a coherent team out of the endless line of new signings being brought in by the club's owners. 'We have said many times that talent alone is not enough. You need to find a way for them to all fit together.' It all represents considerable progress from just two years ago, when the Stamford Bridge side finished in the bottom half of the Premier League. Maresca incorporated more new faces during the Club World Cup, with Joao Pedro making a remarkable impact — the Brazilian forward cut short a holiday to complete a £60 million (RM336 million) transfer from Brighton and Hove Albion, and went on to score twice in the semi-final against Fluminense and once in the final. Liam Delap, Dario Essugo, Mamadou Sarr and Andrey Santos all joined up ahead of the month in the United States, while Jamie Gittens has since arrived from Borussia Dortmund and fellow winger Estevao Willian now joins from Palmeiras in Brazil. Chelsea will hope those signings, added to a squad led by the likes of Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, can make a real push for the Premier League title off the back of their impressive triumph at FIFA's new tournament. 'It's a big statement,' captain Reece James told English media shortly after lifting the trophy alongside US President Donald Trump. 'I'm happy with how much the club has progressed and how next season you know we'll be competing in the Premier League, to win the title and compete, and to go far in the Champions League as well.' Cole Palmer of Chelsea FC celebrates scoring his team's second goal with Joao Pedro and Reece James during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Final match. — AFP pic Drastically reduced off-season Chelsea have also pocketed a stunning US$115 million in prize money from the Club World Cup, but what if there comes a point in 2025/26 when their exploits of this season catch up with them? While Chelsea have been competing at the Club World Cup in draining weather conditions, Premier League champions Liverpool and runners-up Arsenal have enjoyed extended off-season breaks. Manchester City were also at the Club World Cup but they went out over a week earlier. Global players' union FIFPro has been the leading voices expressing concerns about the demands on the game's biggest stars in an ever-expanding calendar. One of the safeguards it proposed in a study published before the tournament was a mandatory four-week off-season break, along with four-week retraining periods before returning to competition. Chelsea's off-season is drastically reduced, with their first match of the next Premier League campaign against Crystal Palace slated for August 17, exactly five weeks after the Club World Cup final. They have a friendly against Bayer Leverkusen on August 8. 'Tomorrow I have three weeks of holiay which is all I want right now because I have not stopped in 15 months,' said Maresca on Sunday. It remains to be seen if Maresca and his players come back sufficiently refreshed before attacking a season in which they hope to go far in the Champions League, and which will end with the World Cup in North America. PSG face an even tighter squeeze after a historic campaign for Luis Enrique's team, capped by their triumph in the Champions League final. Their first competitive match of next season will be the UEFA Super Cup against Tottenham Hotspur in Italy on August 13, exactly one month after their defeat in New York — a chance to win more silverware, but at what cost? — AFP
The Star
14 hours ago
- The Star
Soccer-Man City and Puma sign record long-term kit deal
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - FIFA Club World Cup - Round of 16 - Manchester City v Al Hilal - Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida, U.S. - June 30, 2025 Manchester City's Erling Haaland during the warm up before the match IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Nathan Ray Seebeck/File Photo (Reuters) -Manchester City have extended their kit partnership with Puma on a long-term deal, the club announced on Tuesday, with British media reports saying the deal is worth around 1 billion pounds ($1.35 billion), making it the largest in the Premier League. The new contract runs for at least another 10 years, reports said, worth a record 100 million pounds a year to the club. City previously signed a 65 million pounds per year deal with the German kit manufacturer in 2019. The agreement is expected to set a new benchmark for kit manufacturer deals among English clubs, surpassing Manchester United's 900 million pounds 10-year contract with Adidas, signed in 2023. City have enjoyed an exceptional run since 2020, winning four consecutive Premier League titles and securing the treble in the 2022‑23 season. However, they did not win a major trophy last season. City will begin their 2025-26 Premier League campaign on August 16 with a trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers. ($1 = 0.7435 pounds) (Reporting by Shifa Jahan in BengaluruEditing by Christian Radnedge)
