Category News

Carlos Alcaraz, who injured himself while missing Spain’s Davis Cup Finals team, claims to be “heartbroken.”

World No. 22 Alcaraz, 22, claims he has been told to avoid competing because of swelling in his right hamstring after being defeated by Jannik Sinner at the ATP Finals on Sunday.

On Thursday in Bologna, Italy, Spain will face the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup quarter-finals.

Spaniard Alcaraz, who won six Grand Slams this year, claimed playing for his country was the “greatest thing there is,” adding, “I’m going home heartbroken.”

Italy’s top-ranked teammate Lorenzo Musetti and world-ranked Sinner, who is the four-time Slam champion, are both missing, leaving only the top-10 players at the eight-team finals, including world number three Alexander Zverev, who is the world number three.

Alcaraz lost to 24-year-old Sinner in the 7-6 (7-4) 7-5 final defeat in Turin, according to the Spanish tennis federation, who claimed the Spaniard had experienced “physical discomfort” in the back of his thigh during the first set.

Alcaraz traveled to Spain’s training camp on Monday, but medical tests revealed a “significant muscle strain with marked oedema” in his hamstring.

Carlos Alcaraz says he is “heartbroken” after withdrawing from Spain’s Davis Cup Finals team because of injury.

World number one Alcaraz, 22, who was beaten by Jannik Sinner at the ATP Finals on Sunday, says he has been advised not to compete because of swelling in his right hamstring.

Spain face the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup quarter-finals in Bologna, Italy on Thursday.

Spaniard Alcaraz, who won the French and US Open titles this year to take his career Grand Slam tally to six, wrote on Instagram that playing for his country was the “greatest thing there is”, adding: “I’m going home heartbroken..”.

World number two Sinner – the four-time Slam winner – and team-mate Lorenzo Musetti are both missing from Italy’s team, leaving Germany’s Alexander Zverev, the world number three, as the only top-10 ranked player at the eight-team finals.

The Spanish tennis federation said Alcaraz felt “physical discomfort” in the back of his thigh during the first set of his 7-6 (7-4) 7-5 final defeat in Turin by 24-year-old Sinner.

Alcaraz travelled to Spain’s training camp on Monday but medical tests revealed “significant muscle strain with marked oedema” in his hamstring.

Football is littered with fathers and sons who have pulled on the same shirts for the same clubs during their playing careers, or sons who have played under their manager fathers professionally.

But how many father-son duos can claim to have managed a team together?

It is what helps make Craig and his son Scott Laird, co-managers of ninth-tier outfit Street FC, unique.

The pair were appointed last month by the Western League Premier Division side following the departure of former manager Ben Watson.

“For Scott and I to be able to do this is fantastic, it’s a dream come true,” Craig told BBC Radio Somerset.

Former Preston and Stevenage left-back Scott has been at the club for the past 18 months as a player and assistant manager under Watson.

And when Watson left earlier in the autumn, Scott knew just the person to bring in to work alongside him in the dugout.

“We wanted someone to come in who believed [in] what we were doing, understood how we wanted to play, the same philosophy, the same mindset and this man [his father] was the only guy who could offer what we wanted,” Scott, 37, said.

Football is very much in the Laird family.

Craig began his career working at Plymouth Argyle and has managed non-league clubs including Weston-super-Mare and Bridgwater Town.

Scott, one of four brothers, had a prolific career across the EFL, most notably with Preston, who he won promotion to the Championship with in 2015.

His brothers Callum and Jamie have played at non-league level, while another brother, also called Craig, has played at university level in the United States.

Craig Sr and Scott are early into their managerial tenure together – with one win, one draw and one loss from the past three league games – but they are working in “sync”.

“I’m sure we’ll have some disagreements,” Scott said. “At the moment, we do see the game the same way, we try to recruit the same players we believe in – we’re having to do it at the moment to bring a few players in.

For Craig, the job is a chance for a role reversal to learn from his son as well.

“Probably growing up Scott listened to me, how I felt football should be played and that’s probably embedded itself in him,” Craig said.

“He’s gone off and had other experiences which he now brings and I can learn from as well.”

As for Scott, the poignancy of starting his journey into football management alongside his father is not lost on him.

“He was [there] at the start of my career, now at the end of my playing career and start of my coaching career – it’s a nice full circle moment to come round,” Scott said.

Football is littered with fathers and sons who have pulled on the same shirts for the same clubs during their playing careers, or sons who have played under their manager fathers professionally.

But how many father-son duos can claim to have managed a team together?

It is what helps make Craig and his son Scott Laird, co-managers of ninth-tier outfit Street FC, unique.

The pair were appointed last month by the Western League Premier Division side following the departure of former manager Ben Watson.

“For Scott and I to be able to do this is fantastic, it’s a dream come true”, Craig told BBC Radio Somerset.

Former Preston and Stevenage left-back Scott has been at the club for the past 18 months as a player and assistant manager under Watson.

And when Watson left earlier in the autumn, Scott knew just the person to bring in to work alongside him in the dugout.

“We wanted someone to come in who believed]in] what we were doing, understood how we wanted to play, the same philosophy, the same mindset and this man]his father] was the only guy who could offer what we wanted”, Scott, 37, said.

Football is very much in the Laird family.

Craig began his career working at Plymouth Argyle and has managed non-league clubs including Weston-super-Mare and Bridgwater Town.

Scott, one of four brothers, had a prolific career across the EFL, most notably with Preston, who he won promotion to the Championship with in 2015.

His brothers Callum and Jamie have played at non-league level, while another brother, also called Craig, has played at university level in the United States.

Craig Sr and Scott are early into their managerial tenure together – with one win, one draw and one loss from the past three league games – but they are working in “sync”.

“I’m sure we’ll have some disagreements”, Scott said. “At the moment, we do see the game the same way, we try to recruit the same players we believe in – we’re having to do it at the moment to bring a few players in.

For Craig, the position offers a chance for his son to learn as well as a role reversal.

According to Craig, “Scott probably listened to me growing up, how I felt football should be played, and that’s probably embedded in him.”

He left and had other experiences that he now brings with him, which I can take away as well.

Scott is aware of the poignancy of starting his football management career alongside his father.

It’s a nice full circle moment to come round, Scott said, “He was]there at the beginning of my career, and now I’m at the end of my playing career and beginning my coaching career.”

Football is littered with fathers and sons who have pulled on the same shirts for the same clubs during their playing careers, or sons who have played under their manager fathers professionally.

But how many father-son duos can claim to have managed a team together?

It is what helps make Craig and his son Scott Laird, co-managers of ninth-tier outfit Street FC, unique.

The pair were appointed last month by the Western League Premier Division side following the departure of former manager Ben Watson.

“For Scott and I to be able to do this is fantastic, it’s a dream come true,” Craig told BBC Radio Somerset.

Former Preston and Stevenage left-back Scott has been at the club for the past 18 months as a player and assistant manager under Watson.

And when Watson left earlier in the autumn, Scott knew just the person to bring in to work alongside him in the dugout.

“We wanted someone to come in who believed [in] what we were doing, understood how we wanted to play, the same philosophy, the same mindset and this man [his father] was the only guy who could offer what we wanted,” Scott, 37, said.

Football is very much in the Laird family.

Craig began his career working at Plymouth Argyle and has managed non-league clubs including Weston-super-Mare and Bridgwater Town.

Scott, one of four brothers, had a prolific career across the EFL, most notably with Preston, who he won promotion to the Championship with in 2015.

His brothers Callum and Jamie have played at non-league level, while another brother, also called Craig, has played at university level in the United States.

Craig Sr and Scott are early into their managerial tenure together – with one win, one draw and one loss from the past three league games – but they are working in “sync”.

“I’m sure we’ll have some disagreements,” Scott said. “At the moment, we do see the game the same way, we try to recruit the same players we believe in – we’re having to do it at the moment to bring a few players in.

For Craig, the job is a chance for a role reversal to learn from his son as well.

“Probably growing up Scott listened to me, how I felt football should be played and that’s probably embedded itself in him,” Craig said.

“He’s gone off and had other experiences which he now brings and I can learn from as well.”

As for Scott, the poignancy of starting his journey into football management alongside his father is not lost on him.

“He was [there] at the start of my career, now at the end of my playing career and start of my coaching career – it’s a nice full circle moment to come round,” Scott said.