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The Guardian
08-07-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Tour de France 2025: stage four from Amiens to Rouen
Update: Date: 2025-07-08T13:53:33.000Z Title: 70km to go: Content: Tour updates from the 173km stage to Rouen Stage by stage guide | Email John your thoughts John Brewin Tue 8 Jul 2025 14.53 BST First published on Tue 8 Jul 2025 11.00 BST 2.53pm BST 14:53 A descent splits the peloton, and soon enough they will take that turn into crosswinds. They are heading north, and with the Education Easypost team hoping Asgreen can land a win but with Ben Healy and Nelson Powless to use, too. 2.41pm BST 14:41 80km to go: 'Hi John. We are sitting baking in the sun waiting for the tour just outside Les Andelys. Atmosphere is gentle and there was no fighting over the crap from the Caravan (they were going so fast I got hit by a lump of Brie and have lovely bruise on my thigh!!) More regular updates please, we've no idea what's going on as all the radios around us are in very fast French. Kate and Steve xx' The truth, Kate and Steve, is that this is, like Monday, without much combat, building up to the big bangs that come around from 49km to go.' The talk is of a crosswind at 64km to go. 2.38pm BST 14:38 85km to go: Roland Marshall gets in touch: 'Hello Mister Brewin, I felt Coquard was very unlucky to get a yellow card for his part in the Philipsen crash, or rather to be the only one to be sanctioned thus. Rex was equally if not more culpable and yet got off scot-free. We haven't heard a peep out of him, whereas (a visibly distressed) Coquard had the good grace to show remorse (after having summersaulted off his bike a little earlier, no less) for what even Alpecin-Deceuninck have accepted as an unlucky accident. Cycling's yellow cards look set to become the equivalent of football's VAR/.' The gap is still at two minutes. 2.29pm BST 14:29 88km to go: Mike Gresley gets in touch: 'Hi John – I see you've already dropped the gag once, but how about some love for the 2005 Supergrass album 'Road to Rouen'. A hugely under-appreciated album from a band that should be recognised as one of the greats. In my humble opinion at least.' Saw them live once, at Lansdowne Road, supporting Oasis in 2000. They got blown away by the wind. Not for me, and Oasis weren't any better. My one time seeing them. Updated at 2.31pm BST 2.27pm BST 14:27 90km to go: Education Easy Post, Asgreen's team, is sat up the front here, the team of Jonathan Vaughters. You used to know them as Garmin. Ben Healy is their hope for today. 2.23pm BST 14:23 100km to go: Into breezy, woody territory they head, the gap dropping below two minutes. It's around 50km to go that the climbing truly begins and after that an intermediate sprint. On the TNT coverage, the excellent Jonathan Harris-Bass is regaling us with tales of Josephine Baker, and Charles the Bald, son of Charlemagne. Carlton Kirby – he of the Kirbygasm – is showing some impressive knowledge of Marvin Gaye's lost weekend in Ostend. Having been myself to Ostend, Marvin must have very down in the dumps. 2.09pm BST 14:09 105 km to go: Simon Thomas gets in touch: 'Hi John, 'Miguel Induráin (Spain) also won three consecutive Tours and is at present the only man to win five Tours in a row (1991-95)'. In one of his first Tours (86 I think), his dad turned up halfway through the stage and told him to abandon as he was needed at home to get the harvest in.' Updated at 2.32pm BST 2.05pm BST 14:05 110km to go: No prix de combativité handed out on Monday. That suggests what we thought, not much happened beyond the crashes. Not much combat here today but we have a long way to go. 1.59pm BST 13:59 115 km to go: The gap remains at two minutes, in full control of the Alpecin team. Remember, though, there's plenty of action in the last 50 – four categorised climbs in the last 50 clicks. 1.44pm BST 13:44 125km to go: The four men and true ahead of the pack: Kasper Asgreen (EF Education-EasyPost), Lenny Martinez (Bahrain-Victorious), Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility) and Thomas Gachignard (Team TotalEnergies). 1.34pm BST 13:34 130km to go: A reminder of the GC standings, which could be very different by the end of today. 1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin - Deceuninck 12:55:37 2. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - XRG +4 3. Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) Team Visma - Lease a Bike +6 4. Kévin Vauquelin (FRA) Arkéa - B&B Hotels +10 5. Matteo Jorgenson (USA) Team Visma - Lease a Bike ' 6. Enric Mas (ESP) Movistar Team ' 7. Joe Blackmore (GBR) Israel - Premier Tech +41 8. Tobias Johannessen (NOR) Uno-X Mobility ' 9. Ben O'Connor (AUS) Team Jayco AlUla ' 10. Emanuel Buchmann (GER) Cofidis +49 1.24pm BST 13:24 140 km to go: David Kemp gets in touch: 'Miguel Indurain (Spain) also won three consecutive Tours and is at present the only man to win five Tours in a row (1991-95).' The article below, from 2001, did say that. Froome is the only rider to three in a row since if we're avoiding a certain American podcaster, who probably still thinks he did seven in a row. But any memories of Big Mig are happy ones. His was a golden era. 1.14pm BST 13:14 145 km to go: Alpecin, the team of Mathieu van der Poel, are leading the peloton through le campagne. The bucket hat appears on trend for those at the roadside. Updated at 2.04pm BST 1.06pm BST 13:06 150 km to go: Seems the chasing pack is happy to keep the breakaway at two minutes, and they will pick them up later. 1.01pm BST 13:01 155km to go: Heartwarming story from Reuters on Monday: Eleven bicycles belonging to Cofidis, stolen overnight before the second stage of the Tour de France, have been recovered, the team's general manager Cedric Vasseur said on Monday following the third stage of the race. 'I had Christian Prudhomme (the Tour's director) on the phone during the stage. He was with the prefect to tell us that the bikes had been found in the afternoon', Vasseur told France TV after the conclusion of the third stage. The team had earlier reported that five of the 11 bikes had been recovered. 'Some of the staff combed the area and managed to get their hands on five bicycles, which had been thrown away by the criminals in undergrowth near the hotel', the team said in a press release. The race is going full gas, almost 50km per hour. We are in Macron country here, in the sense that Manu comes from here. Asgreen catches up with the breakaway and they welcome him into their four-man brotherhood. 12.53pm BST 12:53 160 km to go: Van der Poel takes a comfort break as the peloton deigns to the race leader and sits up. Asgreen is giving everything up the hill as he chases that trio of escapees. Huw Morgan gets in touch: 'Just been to Amiens to watch the depart. Always a strange experience 'watching' cycling live. We drove an hour and 10 minutes for our 10 month old baby to basically gawp at a 150 young men on their bikes. Wout and Pogacar stopped right in front of us so we feel lucky. My wife's sense from watching them all at the start was that Jonas looks good and Pogacar looks good. We expect a Royal rumble in Rouen.' Let's hope Mrs Morgan is right. 12.48pm BST 12:48 165 km to go: They leave Amiens behind, the city of Jules Verne, where Federico Fellini made Clowns, having crossed the Somme. Not that the peloton is thinking of such deep culture as Kasper Asgreen, a Classic winner, sets off to join a breakaway that's already go almost two minutes on the pack. No panic just yet, long way to go. 12.40pm BST 12:40 173 km to go: And we have two breakers in the wind, Lenny Martinez and Jonas Abrahamsen, are those taking it up. The word on the radio is that the wind is high. Will we be seeing echelons already? Thomas Gachingnard goes in chase. None of these are GC contenders so the peloton is relaxed enough. There's plenty of battles waiting up the road. Updated at 12.43pm BST 12.36pm BST 12:36 Nick Wayne on Bryan Coquard, culpable, if unluckily, in the exit of Philipsen: 'Out of interest, what about these yellow cards? Was it considered that he didn't merit one? If it was mentioned, I missed it. Not that he deserved it as it seemed accidental.' Coquard: 'Obviously, it wasn't my intention to cause a crash; I didn't want to take any risks. I was clearly thrown off balance, I almost lost my shoe. Even if it wasn't intentional, I want to apologize to Philipsen and Alpecin-Deceuninck. Even if I'm not a bad guy, it's not pleasant.' Alpecin co-manager Phillip Roodhoft: 'Jasper is the victim of something he's totally not involved in, that's clear. To be honest, the two others who collided, I think it's not about blaming. It's just a stupid crash. Things can happen, and the consequences for us as a team, but mainly for Jasper, are very bad, but what can you say? Bad things happen sometimes.' And yet, Coquard is on a yellow. 12.31pm BST 12:31 Jeremy Boyce is in touch: 'As you say, different profile today. With 2 flat stages and a tt to come, but the mountains literally and metaphorically looming, it's maybe a day for the gc teams and contenders to show themselves and put some pressure on their rivals? Will the Vismas have a go, or are they already running scared of UAE/Pogacar ? Or keeping their cards close/powder dry ?' 12.30pm BST 12:30 James Irwin gets in touch: 'Love your football work, both written and on the Football Weekly pod. (Thanks, James, really appreciated). Thought I would say Bonjour from Gournay-en-Bray, about 60km into today's stage of the Tour. On holiday with my family on a campsite about two hours away and we are big cycling fans so decided we had to come along. Plenty of atmosphere in this village for the race. Should be a good ending to the stage today once it reaches Côte Jacques Anquetil. Will enjoy reading your live updates while we sit here for the next few hours. Cheers, James Irwin (with wife Tracey and daughter Charlotte, 13.' Enjoy, team. 12.28pm BST 12:28 Jacques Anquetil, a Rouen native and five-time Tour winner, is remembered with a monument on the Côte Jacques Anquetil climb, which today's route includes. The legend was profiled here in these pages in 2001: Jacques Anquetil (France) 1961, 1962, 1963 Master Jacques came of Norman farming stock, and was a superlative time-trialist whose strength against the clock made him the first man to win five Tours. Famous as a man who liked to live well - champagne, cigars, oysters - he raced up to 230 times a year and made no bones about the fact that in order to do so it was necessary to take drugs. Died of stomach cancer in 1987. Only Chris Froome has won three Tour de France in succession since as we're not counting you know who. Updated at 1.22pm BST 12.24pm BST 12:24 The départ fictif is in session in the city of Amiens, and the road to Rouen begins. Now they know how Joan of Arc felt…the streets are full. The Tour de France has visited Rouen 18 times since 1957, and it's the 14th time for Amiens, though the first since 1977. That year, a finish in Rouen saw Dutchman Fedor den Hertog take the stage, the yellow jersey eventually taken by Bernard Thévenet, a two-time winner with a mixed reputation. Rouen hosted a 2012 stage, won by sprinter supreme Andre Greipel, the GC winner that year was…Bradley Wiggins…yeah, Le Tour is Le Tour. 11.09am BST 11:09 Here's Monday's stage report from Jeremy Whittle. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider had been contesting the intermediate sprint at Isbergues when Coquard moved to the right and touched shoulders with another rider, before swerving across into the Belgian's path, causing him to crash. 'I'm not a bad guy,' a visibly distressed Coquard said at the finish. 'I apologise to Alpecin, even if I didn't mean to do anything. I almost lost my shoe and there was nothing I could do.' 11.00am BST 11:00 Bonjour, tout le monde. Le Tour is Le Tour as we say every year. The casualties pile high, with Jasper Philipsen joining the list yesterday and Remco Evenepoel on the deck, but back up soon as they sped into Dunkirk. These flat stages are often where the pain is sharpest, the speed they rattle along at. Today, still in northern France, will be a bit different, with a Classic-style configuration, with lots of climbs before in the last third, the tough gets going, with repeated nasty climbs. One for the breakaway clubs, and hard work for the team captains, a day of rouleurs and puncheurs. And most probably Tadej Pogacar. Per William Fotheringham's pre-Tour guide. A welter of little hills in the finale including the Rampe Saint-Hilaire, a 750m 'wall' in the city centre, 5km from the finish; there will be huge stress for all the contenders trying to get in place for these. Evocatively, one of the late hills is the Côte de Bonsecours, where Jean Robic staged a final-day heist to win the 1947 Tour, but in the Pogacar era there's not much chance of a repeat.
The Guardian
06-07-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Wimbledon 2025: Norrie wins five-set epic, Alcaraz v Rublev, Kartal bows out
Update: Date: 2025-07-06T18:43:24.000Z Title: Rublev's serve is looking in decent nick Content: Briton's Wimbledon run ended by Pavlyuchenkova Email John | Swiatek stakes claim with victory John Brewin (now), Daniel Harris and Tom Davies (earlier) Sun 6 Jul 2025 19.43 BST First published on Sun 6 Jul 2025 10.26 BST 7.43pm BST 19:43 , Alcaraz struggling until the Russian makes a mess of a volley at the net. Not his specialist subject. Suddenly it's 40-30, but a well-worked point lands a 2-1 lead. 7.40pm BST 19:40 Rublev bites back, winning the first game to love then going 0-30 on the Alcaraz serve. Then there's a break point on offer, two of them in fact. The first is saved, so is the second, and Alcaraz serves out. 7.32pm BST 19:32 And then he finds it, Alcaraz steals in for 5-3, Rublev ruing a second serve he made a mess of. A looping drop shot takes Alcaraz, on his serve, to within two points of levelling. Make that one point. And he does it with a ridiculous stop volley that only he could hit. Rublev needs to keep his cool. 7.24pm BST 19:24 It's 2-1 – going with serve in the second set. Then, 3-2. Rublev is playing very well, lots of speed around the court, and Alcaraz needs to find a way to level the match. He does so, serving to love, closing out with a chopping volley. 7.13pm BST 19:13 Over to Centre, where – what's this? – Rublev just took the first set from Alcaraz. Does this mean we will be here all night? Almost certainly 7.12pm BST 19:12 Cam Norrie speaks to Annabel Croft: 'Credit to Nico, and I didn't want to let his game get the better of me. He said I was a little bit vocal. And I said he was competitive and I enjoyed it. He hung in there, I hung tough when I needed to. The atmosphere was so good. Beginning of this year I was struggling with confidence, I am enjoying the game now. So happy to go through at the best tournament in the world.' 7.08pm BST 19:08 So then, now to serve out. 15-0, 30-0 with a serve to Jarry's kidneys. A big one is non-returnable. Three match points. Surely now, Cam. He does it by winning an amazing rally, the best of the match, sprawling as he does so, and lying flat. Jarry is not happy, and has a go at Norrie. Why? Let's find out. There is a rapprochement as Jarry departs the court to boos. Updated at 7.12pm BST 7.03pm BST 19:03 Will Norrie need to serve this out? Jarry looks tired, and at 30-30, the plucky Brit spies victory. Huge serve, huge roar, ace No. 45, then ace No. 46. Updated at 7.04pm BST 7.00pm BST 19:00 Norrie, at 40-30, faces another big moment, but a serve to the outside line is clanked into the stands. He's one game away, and changes his grip. He's yet to be broken, and it's 5-2 in the final set. 6.54pm BST 18:54 Has the fight gone from Jarry? At 30-40, Norrie has the chance for a break. Second serve, too. Jarry saves that at the net, just guiding the ball over the net. Norrie's return is superb at deuce but the volleyed reply is yet better. Norrie's whipped forehand is the main weapon and has Jarry fighting for his life. He forces another break point by smashing the ball down the line. Big serving, though, deals Jarry out of trouble for now. A huge grunt, and a big serve, and it's a hold for 2-4. 6.44pm BST 18:44 Jarry's next hold is quick, to love. The pressure back to Norrie at 3-1 on his serve. 0-15 is unpromising. 15-15 is better. A sliced drop for 30-15 is brave but timely. Skid serve forces and error, and Norrie looks calm. And calmer as Jarry goes for brute strength and misses his target for 1-4. 6.39pm BST 18:39 Andy Flintoff responds to a comment below: 'If Jack Draper was kicking around the 200 mark on the world rankings, but still somehow got a wildcard into Wimbledon every year (despite not getting further than round 2 every year), then the 'nepo baby' insult would stick, but the rankings are more objective, and being better than 99% of the players on tour negates that completely. It was not until you posted it that I was aware that he was the son of the former head of the LTA.' 6.37pm BST 18:37 Norrie begins with a double fault. Too sloppy. Better as he serves and volleys the next to level. Jarry hits back for 30-30. The 40-30 comes with a punched volley to the back, and then a winner crashed into the abyss. A loose baseline hit is out, and it's deuce. Then a missed forehand. Steadi-Cam this ain't but a break point is saved. Another one comes after some huge hitting from the Chilean. That's saved by a whipped forehand from close in. Jarry's weaponry is impressive. A thrashing forehand, but another save. We go again, and again, and again. Until….huge, huge hold. 3-0 up. 6.27pm BST 18:27 A Jarry wobble. He misses a volley and it's 30-30. Then comes a double fault. There's been one break in this match, and Norrie needs to take it. And he does, as Jarry overcooks a baseline hit…2-0 to Norrie. Now to hold serve. 6.22pm BST 18:22 Rublev takes the first game from Alcaraz but the focus is here, Court No. 1. Both players take a break but are back soon enough. Norrie serves first, and holds, a good start. 6.13pm BST 18:13 John Brewin Good evening. Has anyone done an Ubi Roi gag yet about Jarry? It feels like we're running out of time to do. Jarry blasts into a two-point lead, and Norrie blasts back to win four straight, a mini-break, only to make a mess of a booming forehand. Jarry levels at 4-4, and takes in great gusts of air. Now 5-5, both going for the big shots. Why not? Then Norrie misses from the baseline to the other baseline. Jarry can serve for the set. An ace, and it's done. Oh Norrie. oh no. Updated at 6.20pm BST 6.04pm BST 18:04 Jarry nets a backhand as Alcaraz and Rublev arrive on to Centre, then hooks a forehand wide and we're going to have out third breaker of the match; currently, the players have taken one apiece. Her'es John Brewin to bring it to you. 6.03pm BST 18:03 A tremendous backhand, inside-out to break the sideline, gives Jarry 0-15, but a poor return when offered a slow second serve, wastes a big opportunity. No matter: a fantastic return, down the line from out wide and right into the corner, takes us to 30-all, but when Norrie picks him out with a poor forehand from mid-court, he can't seize the opportunity, hitting long … but nor can Norrie, netting for deuce. This is very tense now, and it's joyous to behold. 6.00pm BST 18:00 Lovely work from Jarry, who holds to love and forces Norrie to serve once more to stay in set four at 5-6. But my watch is over, so here's John Brewin to take you through to the close. Enjoy the rest of the weekend and peace out. 5.55pm BST 17:55 At 40-15, Jarry finds a brutal forehand down the line to give himself a sniff, but just misses the line with a hooked return, and at 5-5 in the fourth we're back level. 5.52pm BST 17:52 Back on No 1, Norrie leads 6-3 7-6 6-7 4-4 with Jarry serving at deuce; he forces through for 5-4 and there's still so little between these two. Both are playing really well, hitting it hard and accurately, and both look in absurd physical condition. Updated at 5.52pm BST 5.49pm BST 17:49 Next on Centre Court: Andrey Rublev (14) v Carlos Alcaraz (2). 5.49pm BST 17:49 Sabalenka says it feels so good to feel all the support and today she got the crowd on her side. Mertens, a great player and person, always brings great tennis and she thinks about the game really well, offering a proper challenge today. Wimbledon is only slam in which she's yet to play a final and believes anything is possible with the support of the fans. She's just trying to give her best, and prompted about her TikTok dances, says she scrolls, finds an easy one, and does that as she's not a great dancer. But she can move! 5.45pm BST 17:45 Sabalenka only needs one, finishing a fine match between two old friends and doubles partners. Merterns can't play much better than that, I don't think; Sabalenka can, and will. Next for her, Laura Siegemund. 5.43pm BST 17:43 Back on Centre, Sabalenka retrieves the mini-break for 3-3, pushes to 5-3, and suddenly she's very close to claiming the match. But a volley into the net – what an oversight that is – invites Mertens back into things, for as long as it takes for a weapons-grade inside-out backhand to raise two match points at 6-4. The first is on return, but if she needs it, she'll have a second go on serve. 5.39pm BST 17:39 Oooh Mertens frames a return and Sabalenka can't flick it back over the net, so that's an immediate mini-break. Then Norrie, down break point and embroiled in the longest rally of the match, 25 strokes, finds a tremendous forehand to save himself. Jarry, though, nails a forehand down the line followed by a backhand down the line … only for Norrie to spirit for forehand of his own cross-court for a winner that brings back to deuce. Both players are at it and letting it all hang out; it's great fun to watch and from there, Norrie secures a vital hold with an ace. Jarry is now 0-5 on break points. 5.35pm BST 17:35 Sabalenka chases, making Mertens play more balls, and eventually the error comes for 30-15. Then, at 40-15, the crowd, keen to see a decider, get behind the Belgian, Saba goes long on the return, and a second-set tiebreaker it is. 5.31pm BST 17:31 Again, Sabalenka holds; again, Mertens must hold to stay in the match, but this time the reward tantalising her is a second-set breaker. She's playing well enough to earn it and take it, though the sense remains that the world no 1 will find a way. 5.30pm BST 17:30 Now then. Offered a look at a second serve, Norrie hits a deep return, Jarry errs, and at 15-40, here come two break points, the first in over an hour. One vaporised with an ace and a big serve plus one takes us to deuce, whereupon the Chilean powers to the hold which gives him 3-2 in the third. 5.28pm BST 17:28 Back with Nozza, he and Jarry are now 2-2 in set four; Mertens makes 40-0 then, when beaten by a murderous forehand, finds a first serve, plays a lovely point, and we're back level in the second, Sabalenka leading 6-4 5-5. Updated at 5.41pm BST 5.24pm BST 17:24 But Mertens clouts a forehand return wide, unable to force her nose in front, and Sabalenka secures her hold through deuce to lead 6-4 5-4. Pressure for the Belgian, who must now serve to stay in the match. She's given a really good account of herself so far – I'm just typing this is the best I've seen her play when Martina says the same, which might be the best thing that's happened to me today. 5.21pm BST 17:21 Three aces on the spin give Mertens 4-4 in the second, but can she hold herself together as we reach the business end of the set? A decent return, attacking Sabalenka's second serve, makes her 15-all, and she's in the game … all the more so at 30-all. 5.16pm BST 17:16 'The nation may have gone into this years Wimbledon with growing belief in a genuine title-tilt from Jack Draper, the son of the former head of the LTA,' writes Samuel Bates, 'but in the end it was Sonay Kartal, daughter of a kebab vendor, whose spirited efforts won the nations heart. Less silver spoon, more plastic fork. All the salad, all the sauce.' I'm not sure why we need to denigrate Draper to praise Kartal – both are great, and we can hardly diss the fourth-best player in the world for being a nepo-baby. Also, he's fought through dreadful grief with injury to get to where he is, well ahead of schedule, and is, by all accounts, really sound lad. But yup, Kartal is developing nicely and though I doubt she bothers the top-10 in the world, she's great fun to watch and will, I'm sure, give us loads of joy over the next decade. 5.12pm BST 17:12 Jarry's played too well to lose in straights, and he's not going to. This is intensifying. 5.10pm BST 17:10 Sabalenka does indeed snatch back that break to lead 6-4 3-3, and that might be Mertens' last chance. 5.10pm BST 17:10 Brilliant from Jarry, a destructive backhand cross earning him set point and on his own serve; he thunders down a mahoosvie delivery but it's out, just … then goes long! What an oversight that is! To 7-7 we go! 5.08pm BST 17:08 Jarry dives desperately to block back a Norrie forehand after doing too little at the net, leaves a big space, Norrie fires the ball through it and at 6-5 in the third-set breaker, he has match point … which Jarry, again at the net, saves well. Meantime, back in Centre, Sbalenka is hunting the break-back, at deuce on the Mertens serve trailing 3-2 in the second. 5.05pm BST 17:05 Twenty-two bounces before Norrie's next service-point, and Jarry nets, but he can't blame his opponent for missing a short ball. More bounces follow and this time Nozza interferes with his own rhythm, a double returning the mini-break and we wind up at 5-5. Updated at 5.17pm BST 5.03pm BST 17:03 Norrie nabs the first mini-break for 4-2, and he's three holds away from the last eight. He looks so confident out there now. 5.01pm BST 17:01 Back on No 1, we're playing a third-set breaker while, on Centre, Mertens breaks Sabalenka, then converts for 3-1 in the second. This is a proper match now. 5.00pm BST 17:00 Siegemund says this was her toughest match so far as she'd not previously felt she had to win. But this time she was the favourite, against a great player not much more than half her age. She and her team are doing the same thing they always do, staying with a family who've become friends – which is better than yet another hotel. She thinks she's changed, deciding she can do better than lose second round, came with no pressure or expectation, and now is the oldest player left in the draw. Asked about the usefulness of her psychology degree on court, she laughs it's of none whatsoever. She's just focusing on herself and says if you're ready to accept a good match and a defeat, you're ready to win. I'd love to hear more from her, and I'm looking forward to seeing her play again. Updated at 5.02pm BST 4.56pm BST 16:56 Squeals and shrieks from a delighted Siegemund, into her first Wimbledon quarter at the age of 37; lovely stuff, problem being her likely opponent is Sabalenka, though Mertens is still fighting. Sierra has had a great tournament, announcing herself to the tennis world in the process, but she must now go home. Updated at 5.10pm BST
The Guardian
09-03-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Manchester United v Arsenal: Premier League
Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature This story reflects the general state of Manchester United. Share 'I will not have the time Arteta had – I feel that. It's a different club. So we just need to survive with the players [available] on Sunday. I think it's a different club – in that aspect, the way Arteta dealt with that is an inspiration for everybody but I will not have the time like Arteta had.' Share 'I'm very used to people speaking about me, judging my performances and I do that myself,' said the 26-year-old. 'I'm harder on myself and I know that I have not been good enough, especially in front of goal. I work hard every day to improve it and I know I have the ability and the talent to do it. PSV Eindhoven was good and hopefully now I can do more towards the end of the season.' Share Pre-match reading ii) Me, John Brewin on the Manchester United pundit class. Thanks to our picture desk, unsung heroes, for that snazzy composite. Share Pre-match reading i) Barney Ronay on the Gunners still being good. Share Another afternoon edition of the black comedy that is Manchester United in 2025. The visitors this time are Arsenal, for whom the chase for the Premier League may be dwindling. When Darwin Nunez is scoring vital goals in the race, the goose is probably cooked. Nevertheless, Arsenal must push on and on, and if they show anything like their form in Eindhoven – winning 7-1 – then it's going to get ugly for United. Uglier, at least. Ruben Amorim has an idea up his sleeve, it just happens to be the same one as the last. He's confident it will come off one day. It couldn't be today, could it? Kick-off at 4.30pm. Join me. Share
The Guardian
21-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Football Daily: Bigger Cup's Bigger Draw serves up a buffet of possibilities
A Bigger Cup needs a Bigger Draw. Last year Uefa set out the tournament brackets from the quarter-final onwards, showing Real Madrid which particular jails they might need to escape to win the competition for the 15th time. This year Uefa have gone one better by doing the draw for the rest of the tournament at the last-16 stage. It's a punch up the bracket for Manchester City, who can now empathise with every failed Bullseye contestant. Look what they could have won: Atlético Madrid in the last 16, then Arsenal or PSV Eindhoven in the quarter-finals, then maybe Liverpool in the semis. Despite the frankly weird absence of City, who if you're into the whole coefficient thing have been Europe's second-best team over the last five years, the draw appears custom-designed to cause an increased flow of saliva in the mouths of football fans. Let's start with the matches that will definitely happen. Plum last-16 ties include a Madrid derby, PSG v Liverpool, Bayern Munich v Bayer Leverkusen – who may be trailing in the title race but have never lost to Bayern under Xabi Alonso – and Club Brugge v Aston Villa. Yep, one of those clubs will play in the quarter-finals of Bigger Cup for the first time since either 1978 (Brugge) or 1983 (Villa). No matter how despicably unequal football becomes, an underdog story always finds a way to emerge. It's the romance of Bigger Cup (yes, yes, we know Brugge reached the last eight in 1992-93 but they didn't play in the quarter-finals. You're ruining the moment with this pedantry)! Then there are the fantasy match-ups, the ones that could happen – or, in the case of Feyenoord v Internazionale, might have happened had Milan not been such a shower the other night. Like those World Cup wallcharts that were among Football Daily's best friends in childhood, the Bigger Cup bracket is an all-you-can-eat buffet for the imagination. Potential ties include Arsenal v Real Madrid in the quarter-finals; the winner of that tie facing Liverpool in the semis; Bayern or Leverkusen v Dortmund in the other semi-final. And, best of all, in the final, Club Brugge v Lille Real Madrid v Barcelona. They've never met in the final of a European competition. Chances are they won't this season, but right now – all thanks to Bigger Draw – it's a live possibility. Join John Brewin for live Women's Nations League coverage of Portugal 2-3 England (7.45pm GMT) and Dominic Booth for Premier League action from Leicester 0-0 Brentford (8pm GMT). 'Loco, loco. It was a mad derby, a crazy match. We were ahead, we were behind and then we managed to get a draw at the end of a pulsating game. To say that was my first derby wearing this shirt is fantastic. I really enjoyed it.' – Carlos Alcaraz (not that one) gets his chat on with Andy Hunter about the Merseyside derby and why he hopes to settle down at Everton. 'Beverley James [Thursday's letters] seems to have confused Football Daily with someone able to get something satisfactory and worthwhile out of a keyboard' – Simon Mazier. 'May I be the first of 1,057 pedants to point out the Union Jack defaced in yesterday's Memory Lane [full email edition] was being displayed upside down. Never mind, the Bollocks was spelt correctly' – John Lydon Lawton. 'Chapeau Football Daily for coming up with the most brilliant new description for a team suffering a beating [News, bits and bobs in full email edition]. I'm now looking back on my schoolboy, amateur and five-a-side days, reminiscing about some of the worst splatterings my various pitiful outfits endured' – Martin Fisher. Send letters to Today's prizeless letter o' the day winner is … Rollover. Terms and conditions for our competitions can be viewed here. Manchester United will face Real Sociedad, Tottenham take on AZ Alkmaar in the Troy Parrott Derby and Rangers have a blockbuster tie with José Mourinho's Fenerbahce in the Bigger Vase last 16. In Tin Pot, Chelsea face Copenhagen on their inevitable trudge to the trophy. Staying with United, and CEO Omar Berrada has warned staff they could face the sack for leaking information in an email that (somewhat amusingly) was leaked. Enzo Maresca will be without Noni Madueke for that tie, with the Chelsea winger out until the next international break with hamstring-twang. 'Now it's a bad run. We need to deal with that,' Maresca sighed. 'The target for us is to finish top four.' Jacob Steinberg has some transfer news. West Ham are keen on pinching Jonathan David on a free from Lille when his contract expires in the summer, although Juventus and Inter are also sniffing around. 'We are always looking for happiness' – Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor has revealed she is in a long-term relationship with her assistant, Camille Abily. Nathan Aké isn't happy with Manchester City's resilience. Up next? Only Liverpool. John Stones is expected to miss that game with leg-ouch, while Erling Haaland's participation is in the balance. And Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola has neatly sidestepped speculation linking him with the Real Madrid job. 'You cannot control things that are spoken outside here,' Iraola trilled. 'I definitely don't pay any attention to these things.' England play world champions Spain at Wembley next Wednesday but will start their Nations League campaign against Portugal on Friday. Sarina Wiegman is boosted by the return of Ella Toone after her calf-twang. The midfielder has also had to process the death of her father in September. 'I was putting too much pressure on myself,' Toone explained. 'When I put pressure on myself, I can't play my best football. I didn't know that until I got the injury – a blessing in disguise – and I stepped away from the pitch for a bit. It made me realise that was what I was doing and I needed help. I needed to ask for it.' Wales also kick-off on Friday against Italy and face a daunting League A group also featuring Sweden and Denmark. 'If you aren't excited by the challenge, you are in the wrong environment,' roared Ceri Holland. 'This is a challenge we are really excited for and we will learn some lessons that will be really crucial for Euro 2025.' Meanwhile, interim manager Michael McArdle will take charge of his first game for Scotland, against Austria, but will have to do so without Erin Cuthbert, who has rib-ouch! Having been relegated from their League A campaign in 2023, the Scots are back in the Nations League top tier after an unbeaten campaign last time out. You know the drill by now. It's 10 things to look out for in the Premier League this weekend. David Moyes is reunited with Manchester United at Goodison Park, and is currently faring slightly better than Ruben Amorim, as Ben McAleer writes. Zambian football is being overshadowed by corruption allegations. Ed Aarons has all the details. Newcastle United face a big decision – rebuild St James' Park or move elsewhere? Louise Taylor looks at the £1.6bn question. Can Pep Guardiola rebuild Manchester City? Possibly. Barney Ronay asks whether he can actually be bothered. And MLS is back this weekend. To pique your interest, here's Aaron Timms on the state of the game across the pond. On this day in 1972, more than 50,000 fans turned out at Villa Park for a friendly – although in fairness, it was against Santos, who had Pelé in their team. Here we can see the Brazilian legend on the ball in a match Villa won 2-1.
