Archive September 1, 2025

For Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, Wayne Rooney believes it could be “now or never” and that he is “expected” to win silverware.

Dominik Szoboszlai scored a stunning free-kick to give Liverpool a 1-0 lead over Arsenal on Sunday.

When asked on The Wayne Rooney Show if he thought Arsenal might benefit from it now or never, Rooney responded, “Maybe not for Arsenal, but I think it might be for Arteta, possibly.

“I believe they allowed him to sign a lot of players and spend a lot of money,” he said. I imagine that he will have a chance to win the league, both on the board and in the fans. Therefore, I believe he might enjoy a significant year.

However, the former England and Manchester United player believes Liverpool will still be the favorite to win the Premier League this year.

“Liverpool are a very good team,” Rooney said. They have the experience and the know-how to have won the league twice in recent years. When you win games, it demonstrates a good team spirit.

Rooney continued, “Arsenal should have displayed more bravery at Anfield than they should have,” noting that he believed they should have won.”

I believe they could win that if they were just a little bit braver and went to Liverpool and actually won the game,” he said.

That’s a real chance, in my opinion, Arsenal have today. However, I believe Liverpool have done what the champions do: they have stayed in the game.

Rooney, who was born in Liverpool and started his career at Everton, said he “detested going to Anfield when he played for Manchester United because it was just awful to think he would lose the game.”

You’re probably thinking about how good the outcome will be if you win. You win, and the feeling you get is incredible, just like when we played Chelsea in the Champions League final. But he continued, “I just got to know that the thought of losing at Anfield emotionally hit me quite a lot.”

Rooney continued, “It’s always a good feeling to win against Liverpool.”

I was a Liverpool fan when I first met Everton. I then moved to United and disliked Liverpool. He claimed that losing to Liverpool was a “good feeling.”

In the]2008 Champions League final, I believe we could have won them. I was so happy it wasn’t Liverpool in the semi-final because it was Chelsea-Letterman. I believe that watching Liverpool win the Champions League final would have been too much.

Rooney recalls that Ferguson, the manager of Manchester United, had told him he wouldn’t play him at Goodison Park or Anfield.

Novak Djokovic defeated Jan-Lennard Struff to reach the US Open quarter-finals, continuing his quest for the record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title in style.

The Serb raced to a dominant 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 victory in less than two hours despite receiving medical attention twice.

Questions remain about the 38-year-old’s physical condition despite the win as further proof of his pedigree.

Djokovic skipped the ATP Masters events in Toronto and Cincinnati for his first tournament since July when he lost in the Wimbledon semi-finals.

In his third-round victory over Britain’s Cameron Norrie, he struggled with a lower back injury and appeared worn out in his opening two matches in New York.

As he demanded a physical to treat a neck condition before experiencing a problem with his right forearm against German Struff, there were signs of wear and tear.

The seven-time world champion praised his serve for preventing trouble for him at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

“Serving well is undoubtedly helpful. Djokovic said, “I think I had a great serving performance tonight as well as in the final round.”

I just saw the statistics, and I out-served one of the players this year with the most aces, so that’s a great stat.

That obviously makes my day-to-day on the court easier. Perhaps I shouldn’t put in as much effort or overtime than I should.

Djokovic said his daughter Tara was upset that the quarter-final will take place on the same day as her birthday.

She complained that I was unable to attend the birthday party because she was upset. Please don’t remind me of that, Djokovic, who dedicates his violin performance to his daughter at the conclusion of each win.

If I’m here, I’ll try to win. At least I’m going to try to win her over and give her that kind of gift.

For her birthday party, I’m going to send some lovely presents as well as some lovely surprises.

Djokovic became the oldest player to reach the quarter-finals of all four Grand Slam events in a single season at the age of 94 days and 38 years old.

Djokovic responded, “I don’t know how many more I am going to have, so each one is very special,” when asked about the night session being played at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

There is less room for error in his quest for a stand-alone 25th major title as the years pass.

Before his opponent made a first impression on the scoreboard, he raced to a 4-0 lead with a double break before making the best of the first impression against Struff.

Djokovic called for the physio right away after winning the opening set 6-3, but his momentum seemed to have slowed down slightly as he appeared to struggle with his neck.

However, Djokovic persevered without real issues, winning four games in a row to take the lead in the second set after a slow start.

The four-time US Open champion was treated once more for a problem with his right forearm at the end of the set.

A consultation period on the future of rugby in Wales will begin in September.

This week, all four professional clubs will have a chance to explain why the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) shouldn’t cut two teams.

Before September 26th, representatives from the teams of Cardiff, Dragons, Scarlets, and Ospreys will have their say at separate meetings.

However, it remains to be seen whether anyone can divert the government’s “optimal” strategy.

The WRU board is scheduled to make a decision in late October, but the union insists nothing has been finalized and is ready to listen.

Additionally, there would be jobs.

All members of the backroom team, operations, and administration staff are subject to uncertainty.

In their most recent accounts, Cardiff listed 247 workers, including Scarlets, Ospreys, 119, and Dragons, but there will also be more in-house work in the clubs’ supply chains.

According to Llanelli Council, Scarlets alone account for more than 400 jobs.

The mess was caused by Cardiff’s collapse in many ways.

A new professional rugby agreement (PRA) had been put in place by all four regions, but everything changed when Cardiff went into administration in April.

Scarlets and Ospreys renounced the agreement after the WRU intervened to save the capital city club.

Their adversaries’ skepticism may have been justified by WRU CEO Abi Tierney’s comments.

She said in August that “we didn’t make the decision when Cardiff became a government.”

I claimed that this was one of the factors we chose to bring Cardiff in-house due to “a lot of factual reasons, populations, pathways, number of clubs, etc..”

Therefore, it’s difficult to see a model in Cardiff where rugby is not practiced, but other people can.

The largest population base in Wales is in Cardiff, with an average attendance of 8,694 last season, which was the largest among the Welsh regions. They also have a lease with Cardiff Athletic Club, which they have until 2028.

Rodney Parade hasn’t had much of Polish talent recently; the only trophy the club has ever won was the Premiership Rugby 7s despite two European semi-finals.

Due to their performance, Dragons would be in trouble because they finished 17 out of 22 years as the worst Welsh team, and they also came in behind by a small margin with just one win.

However, the club, under the leadership of owners David Buttress, David Wright, and Hoyoung Huh, believes they are in a strong position off the field. They’ve signed a new 10-year lease for Ystrad Mynach and are hiring a lot this summer.

The northern end of Rodney Parade is being planned with the goal of developing it. The football club Newport County also pays rent to the area, and there are other sporting events that Rodney Parade makes money off of.

The WRU has also recognized that Dragons have a number of well-known clubs in their area.

There are 73 clubs in Gwent, they have a rich history and have produced some amazing players, so there is no way I would be able to stand here and not have a professional club in Gwent without knowing I had done everything I could.

Ospreys have won four league titles and the Anglo-Welsh Cup, making them the most successful Welsh side since regional rugby was first introduced in 2003.

In his first Wales team, Warren Gatland in 2008, he is renowned for naming 13 Ospreys players.

However, those star-studded “Galacticos,” along with All Blacks Justin Marshall, Marty Holah, and Jerry Collins, should have accomplished more.

Alun Wyn Jones, Shane Williams, Dan Biggar, Adam Jones, and James Hook are just a few of the stars that the area has produced. One of only two Welsh Lions players, Jac Morgan, and Gloucester’s Tomos Williams, flew to Australia this summer.

Ospreys also have a population in Wales’ second-largest city, and they have chosen to spend this 2025-26 season in Bridgend while renovating St Helen’s.

However, Swansea council has options if the WRU decision affects the city’s professional rugby program.

The Scarlets and the region, which were taken over by Y11 Sport &amp, Media in 2020, were on the verge of merging in 2019, but Cardiff and the region’s potential merger in 2023 was ruled out.

Scarlets have so far been the most vocal opponents of the WRU plans, with politicians joining the protests from House of Luxury new investors and club fans.

This week, Llanelli Council will vote on a motion challenging the Union to save Scarlets, which “contributes millions of pounds” to the local economy.

The topic of discussion also relates to heritage and history, which includes two league titles, though the last one was in 2017, back in 2017.

Scarlets will be Wales’ only Champions Cup representative this year, winning averaging crowd of 6 666 in the previous year to reach the URC play-offs.

They have produced many players, including Stephen Jones, George North, and Jonathan Davies, but this summer was the first time in the region that they did not.

Part-timers Llanelli controversially withdrew from Premiership play in 2023, but the Scarlets’ path has been strengthened by their performances in Llandovery’s Super Rygbi Cymru and Carmarthen Quins.

The WRU’s formal consultation document did not specify the names of the two elite clubs that would be founded or what they would be called.

That leaves the possibility of creating two entirely new entities on the table.

Four clubs staying, with two receiving more funding and two being development sides, is one option, albeit the worst, in the union’s opinion.

Would a “smaller” pair’s supporters, owners, and players agree to do that in exchange for survival?