Latest news with #GianlucaMancini
CNA
18-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
Juventus beat Udinese to boost Champions League qualification hopes
Juventus consolidated their hold on fourth spot in Serie A with a 2-0 win at home to Udinese on Sunday, keeping the hosts on track to secure Champions League football for next season. The home side had the better of the first half but were unable to find an opener, with Randal Kolo Muani having a chipped effort saved and a Nicolas Gonzalez shot from distance was pushed onto the post by Udinese keeper Maduka Okoye. Gonzalez put Juventus in front in the 61st minute, collecting a pass in the box from Kenan Yildiz and rifling his shot into the top corner, and Yildiz was the provider for Dusan Vlahovic to secure the win two minutes from time. Igor Tudor's side go to relegation battlers Venezia on the final day of the season. Juventus moved to 67 points, one ahead of AS Roma who beat AC Milan 3-1, with Lazio a point further behind after they held Inter Milan to a 2-2 draw. Roma took the lead at the Stadio Olimpico from a corner kick in the third minute with Gianluca Mancini heading home and Milan were down to 10 men midway through the opening half when Santiago Gimenez was punished for an elbow on Mancini. The hosts failed to make the most of their numerical advantage and Milan levelled six minutes from the break, with Joao Felix guiding his effort into the net after Mile Svilar had saved from Alex Jimenez. Roma were back in front in the 58th minute, Leandro Paredes scoring direct from a free kick, the ball beating keeper Mike Maignan at his near post and Bryan Cristante netted from outside the area three minutes from time to wrap up the win. Claudio Ranieri was emotional before the game, his last in charge of Roma at the Olimpico as the home crowd paid tribute to him with a choreographed display, and takes his side to Torino on the last day, hoping to overtake Juventus in the table. That loss leaves Milan ninth in the table on 60 points and out of the hunt for a European place, which looks likely to spell the end of manager Sergio Conceicao's time in charge when the season ends. Bologna, fresh from their Coppa Italia success, are out of the Champions League race after their 3-2 loss at Fiorentina left them eighth in the standings on 62 points.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Mancini OK to play vs Milan
Mancini OK to play vs Milan Roma can breathe a sigh of relief as Gianluca Mancini's conditions appear to be stable. The Italian defender had reportedly felt pain in his calf on Monday as Roma fell to Atalanta in their first Serie A loss since December. Advertisement Following the team's defeat in Bergamo, Mancini remained questionable for Roma's upcoming match against Milan. However, La Gazzetta dello Sport writes that Mancini is OK and will play regularly on Sunday evening.
BBC News
08-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
'No doubt it's an advantage' - why Bodo's pitch is generating headlines
With Tottenham playing at Bodo/Glimt in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final, the noise around artificial pitches has been the past, Manchester United defender Luke Shaw has called the surfaces "dangerous" and former Spurs manager Jose Mourinho blamed the pitch for an injury to his defender Gianluca Mancini when his then-Roma side lost in a Conference League game in 2022. For his part, Bodo defender Odin Bjortuft believes the pitch will help his side as they try and overturn a 3-1 first-leg deficit."There's no doubt it is an advantage for us," said Bjortuft. "We train on this pitch every day. I don't think a lot of teams are prepared for what's coming."It's a big difference between artificial and grass in many ways but the main one is that the ball goes so fast."Artificial pitches tend to be harder than real grass, which can increase the risk of injury to players as turning is made harder on the knees and ankles because of the tougher ground and falls can lead to heavier, more damaging impacts. These pitches are common in Northern Europe, where cold temperatures mean maintaining true grass surfaces to a high enough standard is very have been banned in the professional game in England since 1998, though there are more than 5,000 across the UK at amateur the criticism from those playing and managing on the surfaces, research in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, external concluded there was no evidence of a greater risk of injury on artificial turf when compared with natural performance issues are not the only concern plastic pitches bring. Artificial surfaces are also considered a significant negative for the more here
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Why are artificial football pitches unpopular?
Artificial football pitches - made primarily of plastic - have several significant drawbacks that make them widely unpopular at elite level. Though the surfaces have improved dramatically since the 1980s, there is a perception of increased risk of injury, plus an impact on a team's style of play and - more broadly - the environment. Artificial pitches tend to be harder than real grass, which can increase the risk of injury to players. Turning is made harder on the knees and ankles by the tougher ground, and falls can lead to heavier, more damaging impacts. In 2022, then Roma manager Jose Mourinho blamed the surface after defender Gianluca Mancini was injured during a Europa Conference League match with Bodo/Glimt. Tottenham visit the Norwegian side in the Europa League on Thursday. "The thing that worries me the most is the injury for Mancini," Mourinho said after a 2-1 defeat. "It's something caused by playing on plastic turf." Manchester United defender Luke Shaw has also gone public with his criticism of artificial surfaces. Speaking after a Champions League defeat by Young Boys in 2021, he told TNT Sport: "These pitches, they shouldn't be possible. It's dangerous. It's hard to turn on. "It's artificial grass... you can't turn properly... it's not good for the knees." Despite the criticism from those playing and managing on the surfaces, research in the British Journal of Sports Medicine concluded there was no evidence of a greater risk of injury on artificial turf when compared with natural grass. However, the pitches can lead to differences in the way the ball moves, typically rendering play slower because of increased friction. Teams who usually play on grass pitches can have their style of play badly compromised when travelling to face a team with an artificial surface. Why do some teams use plastic pitches? Plastic pitches are common in Northern Europe, where cold temperatures mean maintaining true grass surfaces to a high enough standard is very difficult. They have been banned in the professional game in England since 1998, though there are more than 5,000 across the UK at amateur level. In Scotland they are allowed throughout the leagues, though they will be banned in the Scottish top flight from the 2026-27 season. National League South side Dorking Wanderers have played on an artificial pitch since 2018. And manager Marc White feels the surface has impacted on their home form. This season they won 12 matches at their Meadowbank Stadium - the same amount as they won away. "Our home form was particularly poor this year," White told BBC Sport. "The surface has quite a big impact on the style of football. "The problem is the pitches have a varying degree of quality. No-one has quite worked out what a good one is. "They are still playing around with different manufacturers and different countries. Some artificial pitches play really quickly and some really slowly. It can have a big impact on football. You don't get the natural ball movement that you get on grass. "We sustained a lot more injuries on the artificial pitch than we do grass. Purley down to the movement of players." So why do Dorking have one? "It's not just financial," he said. "It's to do with the community. There are a lack of resources across the UK for kids' football, especially now that girls' and ladies' football has taken off so much. "These artificial pitches allow for far more participation." Co-founder Marc White has been manager throughout Dorking Wanderers' 25-year history [Getty Images] What are plastic pitches made of? Artificial surfaces are often called '3G pitches' - referencing the third generation of the technology. The false 'grass' is made of stitched-together plastic fibres, typically polyethylene or polypropylene, placed on top of a base layer of rubber for shock absorption. Sand or small crumbs of rubber made from old tyres are added between the fibres to improve grip. In 2024, a report called for the development of plastic pitches to be halted over concerns some of the chemicals used in rubber crumbs could be cancerous. The European Commission set a target of 2031 for a ban on use of the rubber crumbs, but the UK government has made no announcement. Professor Andrew Waterson - public health researcher at Stirling University's faculty of Health Sciences and Sport - told the BBC: "There are so many chemicals now recognised in plastics, many unregulated, that this renders individual health and environmental risk assessments of known hazards too slow, complicated and impractical." Plastic pitches have faced backlash for decades in top-level football [Getty Images] Why are plastic football pitches bad for the environment? Performance issues are not the only concern plastic pitches bring. Artificial surfaces are also considered a significant negative for the environment. Those rubber crumbs are easily lodged in the clothing and footwear of players, as any amateur five-a-side player will attest. Those crumbs often end up either in landfill after being thrown out with household waste, or in the waterways after being flushed down drains. There is also a significant amount of fossil fuel involved in the creation of artificial pitches, given they are made almost entirely of plastic. Changing rooms across the country are left strewn with small black rubber crumbs after amateur matches [Getty Images] This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. More questions answered…
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Why are artificial football pitches unpopular?
Artificial football pitches - made primarily of plastic - have several significant drawbacks that make them widely unpopular at elite level. Though the surfaces have improved dramatically since the 1980s, there is a perception of increased risk of injury, plus an impact on a team's style of play and - more broadly - the environment. Advertisement Artificial pitches tend to be harder than real grass, which can increase the risk of injury to players. Turning is made harder on the knees and ankles by the tougher ground, and falls can lead to heavier, more damaging impacts. In 2022, then Roma manager Jose Mourinho blamed the surface after defender Gianluca Mancini was injured during a Europa Conference League match with Bodo/Glimt. Tottenham visit the Norwegian side in the Europa League on Thursday. "The thing that worries me the most is the injury for Mancini," Mourinho said after a 2-1 defeat. "It's something caused by playing on plastic turf." Advertisement Manchester United defender Luke Shaw has also gone public with his criticism of artificial surfaces. Speaking after a Champions League defeat by Young Boys in 2021, he told TNT Sport: "These pitches, they shouldn't be possible. It's dangerous. It's hard to turn on. "It's artificial grass... you can't turn properly... it's not good for the knees." Despite the criticism from those playing and managing on the surfaces, research in the British Journal of Sports Medicine concluded there was no evidence of a greater risk of injury on artificial turf when compared with natural grass. Advertisement However, the pitches can lead to differences in the way the ball moves, typically rendering play slower because of increased friction. Teams who usually play on grass pitches can have their style of play badly compromised when travelling to face a team with an artificial surface. Why do some teams use plastic pitches? Plastic pitches are common in Northern Europe, where cold temperatures mean maintaining true grass surfaces to a high enough standard is very difficult. They have been banned in the professional game in England since 1998, though there are more than 5,000 across the UK at amateur level. Advertisement In Scotland they are allowed throughout the leagues, though they will be banned in the Scottish top flight from the 2026-27 season. National League South side Dorking Wanderers have played on an artificial pitch since 2018. And manager Marc White feels the surface has impacted on their home form. This season they won 12 matches at their Meadowbank Stadium - the same amount as they won away. "Our home form was particularly poor this year," White told BBC Sport. "The surface has quite a big impact on the style of football. "The problem is the pitches have a varying degree of quality. No-one has quite worked out what a good one is. Advertisement "They are still playing around with different manufacturers and different countries. Some artificial pitches play really quickly and some really slowly. It can have a big impact on football. You don't get the natural ball movement that you get on grass. "We sustained a lot more injuries on the artificial pitch than we do grass. Purley down to the movement of players." So why do Dorking have one? "It's not just financial," he said. "It's to do with the community. There are a lack of resources across the UK for kids' football, especially now that girls' and ladies' football has taken off so much. Advertisement "These artificial pitches allow for far more participation." Co-founder Marc White has been manager throughout Dorking Wanderers' 25-year history [Getty Images] What are plastic pitches made of? Artificial surfaces are often called '3G pitches' - referencing the third generation of the technology. The false 'grass' is made of stitched-together plastic fibres, typically polyethylene or polypropylene, placed on top of a base layer of rubber for shock absorption. Sand or small crumbs of rubber made from old tyres are added between the fibres to improve grip. In 2024, a report called for the development of plastic pitches to be halted over concerns some of the chemicals used in rubber crumbs could be cancerous. The European Commission set a target of 2031 for a ban on use of the rubber crumbs, but the UK government has made no announcement. Advertisement Professor Andrew Waterson - public health researcher at Stirling University's faculty of Health Sciences and Sport - told the BBC: "There are so many chemicals now recognised in plastics, many unregulated, that this renders individual health and environmental risk assessments of known hazards too slow, complicated and impractical." Plastic pitches have faced backlash for decades in top-level football [Getty Images] Why are plastic football pitches bad for the environment? Performance issues are not the only concern plastic pitches bring. Artificial surfaces are also considered a significant negative for the environment. Those rubber crumbs are easily lodged in the clothing and footwear of players, as any amateur five-a-side player will attest. Those crumbs often end up either in landfill after being thrown out with household waste, or in the waterways after being flushed down drains. Advertisement There is also a significant amount of fossil fuel involved in the creation of artificial pitches, given they are made almost entirely of plastic. Changing rooms across the country are left strewn with small black rubber crumbs after amateur matches [Getty Images] This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. More questions answered…
