Latest news with #AdrianChiles
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
The magic of the Nations League
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE GAME In common with the fiendishly complicated lunchtime TV quiz show Turnabout that was broadcast on the BBC during the 1990s, it is possible to watch and thoroughly enjoy the Nations League without having the foggiest idea what on earth is going on. Dreamed up by Uefa several years ago to eliminate the need for the kind of pointless international friendlies that – [Football Daily checks fixture list] – are taking place across Europe this weekend, the Nations League has managed to inveigle its way into the subconscious of most football fans to the extent that they know it is A Thing, even if the vast majority of them remain completely baffled by its format and are at a loss to explain why it exists. Advertisement Of course, like an entertaining Adrian Chiles Big Website column about the wisdom of purchasing mustard shorts when you know everyone will hate them or doing a naked forward roll, not everything has to be of the weightiest significance for us purists to consider it worthwhile. And in Thursday night's Nations League semi-final between Spain and France, we were served up a bona fide treat. Described in many quarters as a nine-goal 'thriller' despite Spain having enjoyed a 4-0 and 5-1 lead, it was still a close and important enough game to prompt complaints from Kylian Mbappé about the referee's timekeeping when the official blew his final whistle seconds after France had pulled the score back to 5-4, three minutes into added time. 'When two great teams like this play you sometimes see a lot of goals,' explained Lamine Yamal who, along with the France substitute and Manchester City target Rayan Cherki, was the standout player on the pitch. 'They will make you suffer until the end but we went to the final despite the mistakes we made. We were aware of what we wanted to do. We wanted to make history. The greatest thing when you are winning is to keep winning.' Having qualified for their third successive Nations League final, Spain can look forward to an all-Iberian showdown against Portugal on Sunday night, when Lamine Yamal will come up against Cristiano Ronaldo, who won his first Premier League title with Manchester United a couple of months before the 17-year-old Spaniard was born. 'He's a football legend,' added Lamine Yamal of Ronaldo before the final at Munich's Allianz Arena. 'I have huge respect for Cristiano but I will do my job, which is to try to win.' Whether he knows what the prize is that's up for grabs in Sunday's Sphere Game remains to be seen. QUOTE OF THE DAY 'I think he went over there with a point to prove. I think he wanted to prove Manchester United wrong and prove people in the Premier League wrong. He has gone over there and done that pretty successfully. That's credit to him, credit to his attitude and his determination to be the best version of himself. Now he is a king over there' – Scotland skipper Andy Robertson hails teammate Scott McTominay after his year for the ages with Napoli. FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS I can't be doing with the Club World Cup, and I've never had much time for narcissism's favourite goalhanger Cristiano Ronaldo (yesterday's Football Daily). But I would love it, absolutely love it, if Gianni Infantino had no option but force him to sign for Auckland City to try and wrench those coins for the bloody competition. Apologies to Auckland City goal machine Ryan De Vries for suggesting it, but sometimes annoying Ronaldo must prevail. And apologies to New Zealand if Ronaldo then has to sod off down there for a bit, but it is time for another continent to take its turn to support the weight of his ego' – Jon Millard. Re: Eberechi Eze on England's preparations (yesterday's News, Bits and Bobs, full email edition). Taking tablets and getting on a bike? Thomas Tuchel's training methods remind me of many nights out in Amsterdam a few years back' – Gerry Rickard. It has been mentioned that Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne is leaving Manchester City and being replaced by a Dutch midfielder. Is that really the case or does KDB just not want to play in any Reijnders games?' – Michael Glogower. Advertisement If you do have any, please send letters to Today's winner of our prizeless letter o' the day is … Gerry Rickard. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here. SOMETHING TO CHEW ON O Globo marked the start of the Carlo Ancelotti era with Brazil by assigning a reporter to watch the new manager's mastication during the dull 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw in Ecuador. 'During the first half, Ancelotti chewed five pieces of gum,' it declared. 'In the second half, the new coach of the national team chewed three more pieces of gum. In total, he chewed eight pieces of gum.' More as we get it. NEWS, BITS AND BOBS Lyon defender Nemanja Matic and Le Havre striker Ahmed Hassan have been handed two-game bans with a further two matches suspended after they concealed Ligue 1's anti-homophobia insignia on their shirts. Advertisement Tottenham have met with intermediaries to discuss a potential move for Brentford's Thomas Frank, as they weigh up Ange Postecoglou's future. Dreams can come true … Gabriel has signed a new long-term deal with Arsenal. 'I hope I win some trophies with this club, because I love this club and my family loves the club, too,' he cheered. Luis Díaz is shopping himself around in a bid to get a better deal from Liverpool. 'We're talking to clubs, it's normal in the market and we're looking at what's best for us,' he cooed. 'I'm waiting to see what happens. I'm very happy at Liverpool, I've always said so. They've welcomed me very well from day one. If they give us a good renewal or I stay there for two years, I'll be happy. Now it's up to them.' Despite the World Cup's expansion to 48 teams, China won't be one of them after they crashed to a 1-0 defeat against Indonesia. 'This team has been fighting for this goal for over 20 years,' tooted coach Branko Ivankovic. 'But we didn't succeed, and as head coach, I definitely bear significant responsibility.' Advertisement Jordan and Uzbekistan are off to the finals for the first time, though, while South Korea's spot has also been confirmed. Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe … Gennaro Gattuso has done one from his role as coach of Hajduk Split. Some recent events: Nathan Jones gets Charlton promoted to the Championship … speculation links Jones with the vacant job at Cardiff … now Jones signs new five-year deal with Charlton. 'We've just taken one big step, but that's only one big step, we still have a long way to go to achieve our goals and I'm glad that I'll continue to work towards that,' he roared. And it looks like David Beckham could become Sir David Beckham in the King's Birthday Honours next week. There's even a timeline too. STILL WANT MORE? The Rumour Mill has you covered for all the latest gossip. Advertisement Jonathan Wilson on Thomas Tuchel. Here's the Ligue 1 season review, courtesy of Luke Entwistle and Eric Devin. It's a fair bet that you've never heard of TGP Europe. But Philippe Auclair explains why the company behind numerous online gambling websites has left a host of Premier League clubs with an income gap to fill after its exit from the British market. As mentioned, Uzbekistan have qualified for their first World Cup. John Duerden explains how 'Asia's chokers' finally made it. England have announced their 23 for Euro 2025, but questions remain over squad harmony, strength in depth and player welfare, writes Suzanne Wrack. Advertisement And get these bookmarked if you haven't already: our men's and women's summer transfer interactives. MEMORY LANE Pelé is stuck in goal at a Brazil training session in Bolton [what a sentence that is, by the way – Football Daily Ed] during the World Cup in July 1966. NEED THAT DROSOSTALIA
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
The magic of the Nations League
In common with the fiendishly complicated lunchtime TV quiz show Turnabout that was broadcast on the BBC during the 1990s, it is possible to watch and thoroughly enjoy the Nations League without having the foggiest idea what on earth is going on. Dreamed up by Uefa several years ago to eliminate the need for the kind of pointless international friendlies that – [Football Daily checks fixture list] – are taking place across Europe this weekend, the Nations League has managed to inveigle its way into the subconscious of most football fans to the extent that they know it is A Thing, even if the vast majority of them remain completely baffled by its format and are at a loss to explain why it exists. Of course, like an entertaining Adrian Chiles Big Website column about the wisdom of purchasing mustard shorts when you know everyone will hate them or doing a naked forward roll, not everything has to be of the weightiest significance for us purists to consider it worthwhile. And in Thursday night's Nations League semi-final between Spain and France, we were served up a bona fide treat. Described in many quarters as a nine-goal 'thriller' despite Spain having enjoyed a 4-0 and 5-1 lead, it was still a close and important enough game to prompt complaints from Kylian Mbappé about the referee's timekeeping when the official blew his final whistle seconds after France had pulled the score back to 5-4, three minutes into added time. 'When two great teams like this play you sometimes see a lot of goals,' explained Lamine Yamal who, along with the France substitute and Manchester City target Rayan Cherki, was the standout player on the pitch. 'They will make you suffer until the end but we went to the final despite the mistakes we made. We were aware of what we wanted to do. We wanted to make history. The greatest thing when you are winning is to keep winning.' Having qualified for their third successive Nations League final, Spain can look forward to an all-Iberian showdown against Portugal on Sunday night, when Lamine Yamal will come up against Cristiano Ronaldo, who won his first Premier League title with Manchester United a couple of months before the 17-year-old Spaniard was born. 'He's a football legend,' added Lamine Yamal of Ronaldo before the final at Munich's Allianz Arena. 'I have huge respect for Cristiano but I will do my job, which is to try to win.' Whether he knows what the prize is that's up for grabs in Sunday's Sphere Game remains to be seen. 'I think he went over there with a point to prove. I think he wanted to prove Manchester United wrong and prove people in the Premier League wrong. He has gone over there and done that pretty successfully. That's credit to him, credit to his attitude and his determination to be the best version of himself. Now he is a king over there' – Scotland skipper Andy Robertson hails teammate Scott McTominay after his year for the ages with Napoli. I can't be doing with the Club World Cup, and I've never had much time for narcissism's favourite goalhanger Cristiano Ronaldo (yesterday's Football Daily). But I would love it, absolutely love it, if Gianni Infantino had no option but force him to sign for Auckland City to try and wrench those coins for the bloody competition. Apologies to Auckland City goal machine Ryan De Vries for suggesting it, but sometimes annoying Ronaldo must prevail. And apologies to New Zealand if Ronaldo then has to sod off down there for a bit, but it is time for another continent to take its turn to support the weight of his ego' – Jon Millard. Re: Eberechi Eze on England's preparations (yesterday's News, Bits and Bobs, full email edition). Taking tablets and getting on a bike? Thomas Tuchel's training methods remind me of many nights out in Amsterdam a few years back' – Gerry Rickard. It has been mentioned that Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne is leaving Manchester City and being replaced by a Dutch midfielder. Is that really the case or does KDB just not want to play in any Reijnders games?' – Michael Glogower. If you do have any, please send letters to Today's winner of our prizeless letter o' the day is … Gerry Rickard. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here. O Globo marked the start of the Carlo Ancelotti era with Brazil by assigning a reporter to watch the new manager's mastication during the dull 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw in Ecuador. 'During the first half, Ancelotti chewed five pieces of gum,' it declared. 'In the second half, the new coach of the national team chewed three more pieces of gum. In total, he chewed eight pieces of gum.' More as we get it. Lyon defender Nemanja Matic and Le Havre striker Ahmed Hassan have been handed two-game bans with a further two matches suspended after they concealed Ligue 1's anti-homophobia insignia on their shirts. Tottenham have met with intermediaries to discuss a potential move for Brentford's Thomas Frank, as they weigh up Ange Postecoglou's future. Dreams can come true … Gabriel has signed a new long-term deal with Arsenal. 'I hope I win some trophies with this club, because I love this club and my family loves the club, too,' he cheered. Luis Díaz is shopping himself around in a bid to get a better deal from Liverpool. 'We're talking to clubs, it's normal in the market and we're looking at what's best for us,' he cooed. 'I'm waiting to see what happens. I'm very happy at Liverpool, I've always said so. They've welcomed me very well from day one. If they give us a good renewal or I stay there for two years, I'll be happy. Now it's up to them.' Despite the World Cup's expansion to 48 teams, China won't be one of them after they crashed to a 1-0 defeat against Indonesia. 'This team has been fighting for this goal for over 20 years,' tooted coach Branko Ivankovic. 'But we didn't succeed, and as head coach, I definitely bear significant responsibility.' Jordan and Uzbekistan are off to the finals for the first time, though, while South Korea's spot has also been confirmed. Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe … Gennaro Gattuso has done one from his role as coach of Hajduk Split. Some recent events: Nathan Jones gets Charlton promoted to the Championship … speculation links Jones with the vacant job at Cardiff … now Jones signs new five-year deal with Charlton. 'We've just taken one big step, but that's only one big step, we still have a long way to go to achieve our goals and I'm glad that I'll continue to work towards that,' he roared. And it looks like David Beckham could become Sir David Beckham in the King's Birthday Honours next week. There's even a timeline too. The Rumour Mill has you covered for all the latest gossip. Jonathan Wilson on Thomas Tuchel. Here's the Ligue 1 season review, courtesy of Luke Entwistle and Eric Devin. It's a fair bet that you've never heard of TGP Europe. But Philippe Auclair explains why the company behind numerous online gambling websites has left a host of Premier League clubs with an income gap to fill after its exit from the British market. As mentioned, Uzbekistan have qualified for their first World Cup. John Duerden explains how 'Asia's chokers' finally made it. England have announced their 23 for Euro 2025, but questions remain over squad harmony, strength in depth and player welfare, writes Suzanne Wrack. And get these bookmarked if you haven't already: our men's and women's summer transfer interactives. Pelé is stuck in goal at a Brazil training session in Bolton [what a sentence that is, by the way – Football Daily Ed] during the World Cup in July 1966.
BBC News
08-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Ferguson 'upset and sad' about Everton leaving Goodison Park
Former Everton forward Duncan Ferguson has said he hates the fact that the Toffees are moving from Goodison Blues' final competitive game at their home of 133 years is against Southampton on Sunday, 18 May before shifting to the new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock in the summer. "I am upset - very sad about it," Ferguson told Adrian Chiles on BBC Radio 5 Live. "I didn't want us to leave and most of the fans don't want us to leave. I am very sad about that - much preferred us to stay there. All the memories are there, aren't they? "What I want to happen is, if you took the stadium and stands down, that's fine but turn it into a park or some memorial park where you can put Rupert's Tower in the middle. "I don't think it'll happen." Listen to more from Ferguson from 02'35'00 on BBC Sounds
The Irish Sun
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Ex-Match of the Day star spotted in crowd watching Zhao Xintong vs Mark Williams in World Snooker Championship final
ADRIAN CHILES enjoyed a front row seat at this evening's World Snooker Championship final. Zhao Xintong took on Mark Williams in the Crucible showpiece. Advertisement 3 Adrian Chiles could be seen in the front row behind Mark Williams Credit: BBC 3 Chiles, 58, had a brilliant view of the action Credit: Getty The Chinese star, 28, went into the evening session leading 17-8, needing just one more frame to clinch victory. Three-time world champion Williams, however, refused to give up without a fight - winning four consecutive frames to go into the interval 17-12 down. Watching on from the front row was Match of the Day legend Chiles. The 58-year-old presented MOTD2 from 2004 to 2010. Advertisement READ MORE IN SPORT The huge Chiles' appearance sparked plenty of chatter on social media. As Williams, 50, began to launch a comeback, one X user wrote: "Mark Williams doing it for Adrian Chiles there. Making sure his money wasn't wasted. What a man. What a men." While a second commented: "lol at Adrian chiles being in the background of every low camera shot." Advertisement Most read in Snooker Exclusive CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS 3 Zhao Xintong hoists aloft the trophy at the Crucible Credit: Getty A third posted: "You can keep your global sports stars, Hollywood A-listers and YouTube influencers front row at the boxing. Give me Adrian Chiles, Reverend & The Maker and Steve Bracknall any day." With Chiles watching on, Zhao Advertisement Mark Williams apologises for swearing in live TV interview on the BBC after reaching World Snooker Championship final The Cyclone held his nerve to complete an 18-12 victory, becoming China's first ever world champion in the process. Following his historic triumph, Zhao said: "I can't believe this. Yes, I can't believe what I have done in this match. I'm very excited. Thank you. "I have been so nervous. Mark is a top player and gave me so much pressure. He's the best. "I'm not tired. I will celebrate, maybe have a good drink tonight. I need to say thank you to everybody coming here. Thank you everybody. Advertisement "I can't believe this. I think I am dreaming. Maybe it's true. Thank you to my parents, manager Victoria and girlfriend, WST and CBSA academy." 'UNBELIEVABLE' Williams, who has been "The support I have had from the crowd over the last two weeks have been unbelievable. "What a potter he is over there, I'm glad I will be too old when he's dominating the game. Advertisement "I have nothing but admiration for what he has done, having come through the qualifiers. "He hasn't played for two years, bashed Ronnie up, bashed me up, bashed everybody up. "There's a new superstar of the game and here's over there. "Let's see where I am in the rankings at 60. I am still playing quite good stuff. Even though it's a bit blurry. What I can say, the night belongs to him and congratulations. Advertisement "It was unbelievable, the reception I have had all week, but tonight it was special. Everybody was on their feet and it was like a tear to the eye." World Snooker Championship 2025 THE World Snooker Championship has concluded after a thrilling final! Follow all the reaction with SunSport's live blog of the World Snooker Championship Latest News Snooker Explained FULL results for 2025 How much prize money was won? Who were the BBC snooker presenters and pundits? What is on Zhao Xintong's bow tie?
The Guardian
27-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ruffling feathers on the allotment
Adrian Chiles has my sympathy when it comes to pigeons (I loathe pigeons. You wouldn't believe what they do to my downpipe, 23 April). They are everywhere. I have had an allotment for more than 40 years. At first, the pigeons came for a few brassicas – so we netted them. Then they came for the swedes, lettuce, kale and broccoli – so we netted them. Then they came for the peas and beans – so we netted them. Now they are going for the currants and berries. I'm thinking of turning the allotment into a bowling green and buying shares in a company that makes netting. Barry Norman Drighlington, Leeds According to Simon Tisdall, tyrants like Donald Trump always fall (Opinion, 27 April). But there are plenty of dictators – the nastiest being Vladimir Putin – whose continuing reigns suggest Tisdall's confidence is CornerSouth Fremantle, Perth, Australia Polly Llwynfedwen from Brecon shouldn't have let on about the prices of pints and coffees in her locality (Letters, 25 April). We will all be trying to move there now that the secret is SandersAnnandale, NSW, Australia Whenever I pick up the phone to call a customer service number (Letters, 23 April), I can already hear the earworm for Cliff Richard's We Don't Talk Anymore establish McNelisSmethwick, West Midlands Might I suggest 'Take me to your leader' for Andrew Dailey's response to 'How can I digitally help you' (Letters, 23 April)?Colin Prower Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
