Latest news with #Evertonians
The Irish Sun
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Heimir Hallgrimsson provides update on Seamus Coleman's Ireland future after captain forced to withdraw from squad
HEIMIR HALLGRÍMSSON has said that it will be Séamus Coleman's call on his Ireland future. The Everton man has been forced to withdraw from the Ireland squad for 2 Hallgrimsson didn't want to speak for Coleman as regards his future with Ireland 2 The 36-year-old has earned 73 caps since making his debut in 2011 Now 36, he is set to sign a new deal at Everton that will likely combine some coaching. But Hallgrímsson insisted he has a future with Ireland - once he wants to continue. Hallgrímsson said: 'That's for him to decide, not me. 'It's his decision, but I'm hoping – and I know the Evertonians are hoping - he will continue playing. 'I know he's going to be at Everton in whatever role, maybe a little bit more of a leadership role, but it's for him to answer if he's going to continue playing or not. Read More On Irish Football 'He is a leader in this squad and you cannot have his experience in many players. 'His experience, his leadership skills are one thing, but his quality as a player is another thing as well. 'He's been playing at the highest level for such a long time, so it's a shame for me and, of course the national team, not to have him around. 'But hopefully there will come another time for him, hopefully it will be just the off-season and he'll come fit and flying.' Most read in Football Coleman's thigh problem is not serious with Hallgrímsson saying he will recover in three weeks, though that ruled him out of the Ireland games. And the Boys in Green gaffer has also lost Ipswich Town striker Sammie Szmodics as he suffered a minor setback on his return from ankle surgery. Painful moment cheeky Chelsea star grabs team-mate's privates in X-rated celebration after Conference League triumph Hallgrímsson said: 'He played, I think, 10, 15 minutes in the last game for Ipswich, but the ankle got swollen afterwards. 'So we decided it's not worth the risk to have him in our squad now. Hopefully he will have a good pre-season and come in flying in September.' MORE MORAN The two withdrawals have meant Hallgrímsson has called up midfielder Andrew Moran of Brighton. He spent last season on loan at Stoke and saw just two minutes of action since March, though Hallgrímsson is confident that he is fit for the friendlies. The Ireland boss continued: 'I talked to him three or four days ago, he is fit, he's just that kind of player, he is light and it's not like he's overweight if he's not playing. 'He has been training really well and it's less risk to bring in a player that stopped playing in early May as he's young, he's that kind of player, fit and light so he can come in. 'His playing time at Stoke got less and less, maybe because it was a loan but we know his qualities, we see him as a part of the squad in the future. 'He is still young but he has qualities to play more position than one, he made a good impression with the minutes he played against England when he came in. In a tough game, he really impressed us." Squad: Kelleher (Liverpool), O'Leary (Bristol City), Keeley (Leyton Orient, on loan from Tottenham Hotspur), Doherty (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Collins (Brentford), O'Shea (Ipswich Town), O'Brien (Everton), Omobamidele (Strasbourg, on loan from Nottingham Forest), Scales (Celtic), Brady (Preston North End), Honohan (Shamrock Rovers), Knight (Bristol City), Phillips (St. Mirren, on loan from Crystal Palace), Smallbone (Southampton), Taylor (Ipswich Town), Finn (Stade De Reims), Parrott (AZ Alkmaar), Moran (Brighton), Ferguson (West Ham United, on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion), Idah (Celtic), McAteer (Leicester City), Ebosele (Istanbul Basaksehir), Manning (Southampton)
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Chiedozie Ogbene to be fit and flying for start of Ireland's World Cup qualifying campaign
Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson has confirmed that Ipswich Town's Chiedozie Ogbene will be fit and raring to go when the national team's 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign gets underway in September. The former Cork City man hasn't played since rupturing his Achilles tendon during his club's Premier League 4-3 defeat to Brentford in late October but the news is positive in time for Ireland's Group F openers at home to Hungary and away to Armenia. 'Yeah, he will be available,' said Hallgrimsson as he prepares his current squad for two June friendlies against Senegal and Luxembourg. 'According to him, he is going to be the fittest player in pre-season so definitely in September he will be ready for us.' Chiedozie Ogbene of Ipswich Town arrives prior to the Premier League match between Ipswich Town and Fulham. Pic:The news on Seamus Coleman is less clear. The Everton skipper had been named in the initial Ireland squad released three years ago but he has since dropped out having injured his ankle just 18 minutes into the club's last game at Goodison Park earlier this month. The Donegal man has been sidelined for three weeks. One of 17 players out of contract at the Premier League club this season, he has been reassured by manager David Moyes that he has a role to play next season. It appears that this will be something of a player-coach hybrid role and Hallgrimsson was also asked on Thursday whether the 36-year-old would be a part of Ireland's plans come the autumn and, if so, in what guise. 'He is a leader in this squad and you cannot have his experience in many players,' said the Irish boss. 'His experience, his leadership skills are one thing, but his quality as a player is another thing as well. 'He's been playing at the highest level for such a long time, so it's a shame for me and, of course the national team, not to have him around, but hopefully there will come another time for him. Hopefully, it will be just the off-season and he'll come fit and flying. 'I know he's going to be at Everton in whatever role, maybe a little bit more leadership role, but it's for him to answer if he's going to continue playing or not. It's his decision, but I'm hoping – and I know the Evertonians are hoping - he will continue playing.' The only other changes to the squad Hallgrimsson put out three weeks ago is the absence of Sammie Szmodics, whose ankle swelled up after Ipswich Town's last league game at the weekend, and the inclusion of Stoke City's Andy Moran. Hallgrimsson has deliberately omitted a whole clutch of Championship players due to the gap between the end of that league season in early May and the first of the summer friendlies, against Senegal next week. There is, he admitted, risk in this in that it could cost Ireland some of the momentum built up in the last window, with a flipside that it allows fresher faces to show what they can offer. Whatever the pros and cons there, he is more than happy to have been handed a four-team qualifying group for the 2026 World Cup given it has delayed Ireland's start and avoided competitive games in a June window which has historically been problematic. 'It would have been tough having a similar squad to Bulgaria when we played them [in March] to have a lot of players who finished a month ago, keeping them fit for an important game. We couldn't have done what we did, given them an extended holiday and off-season so they will be fit in September so they will be rested when it comes to the new season. 'These guys we left out now and that's because the June window has not been successful for Ireland in the past. It's been a tricky window, not playing for a month and then coming into the national team camp for a game that's maybe on a higher level than you play on a regular basis. You are never 100% physically fit or mentally focused after a holiday period. 'So, yes, I am happy we are not playing World Cup group stage at this time.'
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jordan Pickford opens up on 'mega' Everton song, Newcastle gauntlet and Sunderland promotion
Jordan Pickford believes that Everton fans drowning out Newcastle United's Champions League qualification celebrations by singing their new song for him following the full-time whistle at St James' Park was the perfect way to end the season. After supporters debuted the chant at Craven Cottage in their previous away game against Fulham, the Blues have now finished the campaign strongly with a hat-trick of lyrics of the ditty go: 'He hates Newcastle, he hates the s***e, Jordan Pickford is dynamite,' and the tune has certainly got the approval of England's number one. The 31-year-old, who was captaining the Blues, made a string of impressive saves to thwart Alexander Isak and Co. in the 1-0 victory. READ MORE: 'They know' - National media expose real reason behind Newcastle Jordan Pickford hate after Everton win READ MORE: What Jordan Pickford did quietly before kick off as Everton star has Newcastle on strings again And asked if he enjoyed the scenes at the end, Pickford said: 'Yeah, the fans are brilliant. They know what a passionate lad I am, they know how much I love the club and how much I do my best for the club. 'To repay me with that song, 4,000 Evertonians right up in the gods, it's a great moment and a great way to end the season. 'It's a really good song, it's got a good bounce to it shall we say. Finally as a football fan to have your own chant is mega. 'It's what football is all about, you're doing something right if the fans are buzzing off you.' Pickford's rapport with Blues fans was demonstrated in a video shared online before kick-off of him speaking on a video call to his friend with a pub full of Evertonians. He said: 'Cole, one of the lads I know, FaceTimed me when I was getting ready in the hotel and I just answered and didn't know what it was. They're just singing away in a pub down the road I think. 'They know how much I care and how much passion I show so it's always nice to get that recognition.' Unlike trips to Newcastle earlier in his career, when he would let the barracking from the stands get to him, Pickford produced another sparkling and mature display in the St James' Park cauldron to frustrate his opponents as his combined a string of spectacular stops with a controlled demeanour. And he said: 'I was all right. I made some good saves and I was in the moment. It's a big game for me and I always step up. That's the level I set myself and that's what I drive every day and train to be the best version of myself and I think I showed it today. 'That's when I'm at my best (when in control) and that's something I've been working on and something I'm improving all the time, maturing as well. 'That's my standard that I set myself and that's what I need to continue to do and that's what will bring a performance out of me.' In terms of the hot reception that he receives from the Newcastle fans, Pickford added: 'It's another game of football on a big stage in the Premier League and I've just got to be at my best. I know I'm going to get the stick, it's about how you control your emotions. 'I think my mentality is really high, I think one of the strongest mentalities I know in football and that's what I thrive off, that's what I put in those performances for.' Of course, the North East region will have a second team in the Premier League next season with Sunderland returning to the top flight for the first time since Pickford left them to join Everton for £25million in 2017, after coming from behind to defeat Sheffield United 2-1 in the Championship play-off final at Wembley. The Washington-born player revealed that he watched the match before travelling to Tyneside for this fixture. Pickford said: 'Fortunately our plane was a bit delayed so we just sat in the lounge watching it. It was a great win and all my mates were down there. 'I don't think the gaffer would have dared let me go down. I wouldn't have been here today! 'It's great for a club the size it is and how big it is as a club to see them back in the Premier League is going to be amazing, I can't wait to get up there and play them at the Stadium of Light, it's going to be a great moment for me.' Pickford is now back playing under Moyes, the manager who first elevated him to being a Premier League number one at Sunderland but also the boss who steered Everton to nine top-eight placings, including a highest-ever Premier League position of fourth in 2004/05, during his first spell at the club. Reflecting upon the second half of the campaign since the Scot's return to Goodison Park, Pickford said: 'It's been a great end to the season. For me, it's about next season, it's about pre-season, getting ready for that and setting that standard early. 'It's all about setting that standard early and not bouncing back at Christmas time and getting results, it is about sustaining it. You're going to get knocks, you're going to get beat, you can't be invincible. 'We'd love to be invincible as every team in the Premier League would be but it's about when you take those setbacks, how do you bounce back as a team? 'How do you work hard and train all week to get that performance on a Saturday? I think the manager will drill into us throughout the season and the manager has already said that.'
Glasgow Times
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure to leave club this summer
The 32-year-old, whose current deal runs out this summer, joined the Toffees from Watford in 2020. He memorably struck the winner when Everton beat Bournemouth 1-0 at Goodison Park as they avoided relegation on the final day of the 2022-23 Premier League season. ONCE A BLUE , ALWAYS A BLUE 💙 — Abdoulaye Doucouré (@abdoudoucoure16) May 20, 2025 Speaking in a video posted on social media, Doucoure said: 'Hi Evertonians – just wanted to share this message with you that I'm going to leave the football club at the end of the season. After five wonderful years, my time at Everton came to an end. 'Everton means a lot for me. Obviously the past five years it's been hard but I will always remember my time as a dream for me, to play for Everton Football Club. 'Obviously I'm sad to leave the club but I think the time has come for a new chapter for me and for the club as well and I will always be grateful for what the club did for me. 'My best memory, I will say it will be the goal I scored against Bournemouth to keep the club in the Premier League. Doucoure scored Everton's winner against Bourmouth as they stayed up on the final day of the 2022-23 Premier League season (Peter Byrne/PA) 'I think this is something I will always be proud (of). It was a wonderful moment for me and my family and for the club as well. 'I will miss the fans. I will miss the football club. I just wanted to let them know that I gave everything every single time in training, in games, I was always proud to wear the shirts, always proud to play at Goodison Park. 'I gave everything to win the most games I could and I will just miss the place and I wish them all the best in the new stadium. 'Everton will always be part of my life now. I will be forever a Blue. I will always support Everton and I hope they're going to have a bright future.' Abdoulaye Doucoure will leave Everton when his current contract expires at the end of next month. — Everton (@Everton) May 20, 2025 Everton said in a statement they had offered Doucoure – who has made 165 appearances for the club, scoring 21 goals – a new contract but he had decided to 'pursue opportunities elsewhere'. Boss David Moyes said of the Mali international: 'Doucs has been an influential player throughout his time at the club, including since I returned as manager (in January), and Evertonians will always be grateful for his dedication and crucial goals. 'Everyone at Everton thanks Doucs for his service and wishes him all the best for the future.' Doucoure was part of the team on Sunday when they beat Southampton 2-0 in their final match at Goodison. While Everton's men's side are relocating to Bramley-Moore Dock, Goodison is to become the new home of their women's team.
Rhyl Journal
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Rhyl Journal
Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure to leave club this summer
The 32-year-old, whose current deal runs out this summer, joined the Toffees from Watford in 2020. He memorably struck the winner when Everton beat Bournemouth 1-0 at Goodison Park as they avoided relegation on the final day of the 2022-23 Premier League season. ONCE A BLUE , ALWAYS A BLUE 💙 — Abdoulaye Doucouré (@abdoudoucoure16) May 20, 2025 Speaking in a video posted on social media, Doucoure said: 'Hi Evertonians – just wanted to share this message with you that I'm going to leave the football club at the end of the season. After five wonderful years, my time at Everton came to an end. 'Everton means a lot for me. Obviously the past five years it's been hard but I will always remember my time as a dream for me, to play for Everton Football Club. 'Obviously I'm sad to leave the club but I think the time has come for a new chapter for me and for the club as well and I will always be grateful for what the club did for me. 'My best memory, I will say it will be the goal I scored against Bournemouth to keep the club in the Premier League. 'I think this is something I will always be proud (of). It was a wonderful moment for me and my family and for the club as well. 'I will miss the fans. I will miss the football club. I just wanted to let them know that I gave everything every single time in training, in games, I was always proud to wear the shirts, always proud to play at Goodison Park. 'I gave everything to win the most games I could and I will just miss the place and I wish them all the best in the new stadium. 'Everton will always be part of my life now. I will be forever a Blue. I will always support Everton and I hope they're going to have a bright future.' Abdoulaye Doucoure will leave Everton when his current contract expires at the end of next month. — Everton (@Everton) May 20, 2025 Everton said in a statement they had offered Doucoure – who has made 165 appearances for the club, scoring 21 goals – a new contract but he had decided to 'pursue opportunities elsewhere'. Boss David Moyes said of the Mali international: 'Doucs has been an influential player throughout his time at the club, including since I returned as manager (in January), and Evertonians will always be grateful for his dedication and crucial goals. 'Everyone at Everton thanks Doucs for his service and wishes him all the best for the future.' Doucoure was part of the team on Sunday when they beat Southampton 2-0 in their final match at Goodison. While Everton's men's side are relocating to Bramley-Moore Dock, Goodison is to become the new home of their women's team.
