St Mirren agree pre-contract for 'bright spark' Dijksteel
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Daily Mail
2 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
West Ham unlikely to start legal battle with the FA if Lucas Paqueta is cleared of spot-fixing after two-year saga and collapse of dream Man City move
West Ham are unlikely to start a furious legal battle with the FA if Lucas Paqueta is cleared of spot-fixing in a two-year saga that led to the collapse of an £85million move to Manchester City. The bombshell verdict on whether Paqueta deliberately picked up four yellow cards during Premier League matches to influence betting markets is due to land in the coming days with sources suggesting the Brazilian is expected to be cleared. Paqueta was on the verge of a mega move to Manchester City in August 2023 when Mail Sport broke the news that the Brazilian was under investigation by the FA for four suspicious bookings. City pulled the plug as soon as West Ham made them aware of the investigation, costing Paqueta a dream move, potentially his entire career, and West Ham a huge payday. The investigation and trial is believed to have cost the club nearly £2m in fees and it remains to be seen whether the FA will have to stump up the bill, though club insiders believe it unlikely. West Ham will look to sell Paqueta this summer to help fund Graham Potter 's squad overhaul but stand no chance of landing a fee anywhere near as large. Paqueta's potential clearing has led for calls from the fan base to take action against the FA for the club missing out on a huge windfall. They needed to sell players before they could buy this summer to keep in line with PSR rules and they didn't make their first signing until Mohammed Kudus's £55m move to Tottenham. West Ham are furious at how long the trial has taken, and the toll it has taken on Paqueta, however senior Hammers sources told Mail Sport the club would not consider taking action against the FA. It's understood West Ham don't think it would be good for football if they were to sue the game's custodians. An emotional return to hometown club Flamengo is a possibility for Paqueta, though sources say the Hammers would want in way in excess of £25m otherwise will not consider selling him.
The Guardian
4 minutes ago
- The Guardian
England's never-say-die icons take on Spain: a bluffer's guide to the Euros final
The Lionesses, as England's women's football team is known, will defend their Euros crown on Sunday, after Sarina Wiegman's side snatched victory from the jaws of defeat against Italy in the semi-final, scoring the latest of late goals to win 2-1 at the Stade de Genève in Lancy. It is the team's third successive major tournament final – they won Euro 2022 against Germany at Wembley, and reached the World Cup final a year later, where they lost to Spain. But on Sunday they will have the opportunity to rectify two years of hurt, when they face La Roja again. Spain beat an excellent Germany 1-0 in extra time on Wednesday night and will go into Sunday evening's match as favourites. But after a series of last minute victories, England will be hoping to hit their stride and take the trophy home once again. The match at St Jakob-Park in Basel kicks off at 5pm BST and will be shown on BBC one, iPlayer, ITV1 and ITVX. You'll be in good company – the semi-final was watched by a peak audience of 10.2 million, ITV's highest viewing figures of the year. Yes, but the thousands who have travelled to Switzerland to watch the Lionesses have been through the wringer. First came an impressively bad opening performance against France, when they somehow only lost 2-1. Things did get better – England then trounced the Netherlands 4-0, before thrashing Wales 6-1 in their final group game. But the knock-out stages of the tournament have been a white-knuckle ride. In the quarter final against Sweden, England were looking down the barrel of a 2-0 defeat when two English goals in 102 seconds propelled them into extra time and the greatest terrible penalty shootout of all time. Of the 14 penalties taken, only five were scored, with England sneaking home 3-2. The semi-final against Italy was even more dramatic. England were 1-0 down with two minutes of injury time remaining when 19-year-old Michelle Agyemang scored a belter to take the game into extra time. With one minute of that to go, the super sub Chloe Kelly – who you may remember for a shirt-twirling celebration of her match-winning goal in the the Euro 2022 final – pounced on the rebound of her saved penalty in the 119th minute to put England through. It's been exhausting, frankly. England are still one of the best teams in the world, with a depth of world-class players and a ferocious team spirit that only a fool would bet against. They have also proven on multiple occasions this tournament that while they may look like they are down, you can't count on them being out. And while Wiegman has come in for some criticism for making late substitutions and overseeing some lacklustre performances, she is nonetheless making her way to Basel for her fifth major-tournament final in a row. For now at least, fans are keeping the refrain: in Sarina we trust. Yes, although some of the best-known figures are not in Switzerland. There is still plenty of experience in the team, including the captain, Leah Williamson, Georgia Stanway, Alessia Russo and Chloe Kelly. Lucy Bronze, arguably the greatest female player England has ever produced, continues to be a force of nature. As well as burying her penalty against Sweden, the 33-year-old captured the never-say-die mentality of the squad and provided most of the iconic moments of the competition when she strapped her own injured thigh in the quarter-final. The name on everyone's lips before the final is that of the teenager Michelle Agyemang, who has twice come on to score and save England from elimination in this tournament. The Arsenal player spent much of last season on loan to Brighton and only made her international debut in April, when she scored after 40 seconds. With three goals in four games in an England shirt, fans will expect to see her brought on before the dying moments of the match. Chelsea's 24-year-old goalie Hannah Hampton had big gloves to fill at these Euros, but has proved her mettle, saving two penalties in the semi-final shoot out with a bloodied tissue shoved up her right nostril. Are Spain any good by the way? Yes, muy buenas. Realmente buenas, in fact. With a very on-brand love of possession (68% against Switzerland, 67% against Germany), Spain have a habit of simply keeping hold of the ball until they finally manage to pass it into the net. The midfielder Aitana Bonmatí – who was only discharged from hospital after a bout of viral meningitis in June – is probably the best player in the world right now. She won the Ballon d'Or, Fifa's player of the year award, for the second year in succession in December. The midfielder Alèxia Putellas, Barcelona's captain, is a double Ballon d'Or winner. And Patri Guijarro, who plays for, yes you guessed it, Barcelona, is probably a future Ballon d'Or winner. Mariona Caldentey has had a brilliant first season for Arsenal, after a decade with… Barcelona. They're a bunch of golden ballers, basically.
BBC News
4 minutes ago
- BBC News
'No assurances given about number one spot'
Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya has revealed that Mikel Arteta has not given him "any assurances" about remaining his first choice goalkeeper. The 29-year-old has been first choice for Arsenal since signing for the club, taking over from Aaron Ramsdale. However, Arsenal signed Kepa Arrizabalaga this summer and the former Chelsea and Bournemouth goalkeeper saved three penalties in a shoot-out in their pre-season opener against AC Raya says that Arteta has not given him any guarantees about his starting place following Arrizabalaga's £5m signing."[He has said] Nothing - he just came as a new team-mate and to add another goalie to the group," Raya told BBC Sport. "The manager hasn't said anything, so we will see what happens."Raya and Arrizabalaga know each other well as the pair both represent became the most expensive goalkeeper in the world after joining Chelsea for £71m in 2018, but Raya does not think the arrival of another high-profile shot-stopper at Arsenal will add more pressure on him. "No I think it is just a healthy relationship," Raya said. "We are friends. We have been together in the national team and now we are here, so we have that healthy relationship and, let's say, 'healthy partnership' in goal. "We know how tough it is to be a goalkeeper. There is only one goalkeeper playing and we will see what happens. That is the job of the boss and he will decide."
