Category Sports News

England’s friendly against Senegal on Tuesday is taking place at the City Ground in Nottingham as Wembley enters concert season.

The Three Lions traditionally play their home matches at the national stadium, but their final match of this season will be staged at Nottingham Forest’s home ground.

Wembley will host seven concerts in the next month, then another 19 – plus Oleksandr Usyk v Daniel Dubois – before England’s next match there, which is against Wales on 9 October.

The World Cup qualifier against Andorra in September will be held at Villa Park.

The last time the City Ground hosted England’s first team was in March 1909, when they were 2-0 winners over Wales in a Home Championship match.

Speaking after the announcement of the friendly, England boss Thomas Tuchel said: “Facing a strong African team in a passionate city with rich football heritage can only help us on the road to the World Cup.

Last June, England played Bosnia and Herzegovina at Newcastle’s St James’ Park.

Since 2018, they have also played home matches at Old Trafford, Molineux, the Riverside Stadium, St Mary’s, the King Power Stadium and Elland Road.

Stadiums selected must comply with Uefa’s regulations, have suitable training complexes nearby, and availability.

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Greenland’s application for membership of Concacaf has been unanimously rejected.

The world’s largest island, which has never played competitive international football, has a population of 57,000 and is a sovereign territory of Denmark but is geographically part of North America.

It is unable to join Uefa because the European governing body only admits countries recognised by the United Nations, but there is no such requirement for Concacaf, which governs North and Central America and the Caribbean.

Greenland plays non-Fifa sanctioned friendlies but hopes of competitive international football for the first time were dashed at a meeting in Miami before the Gold Cup.

“Based on a thorough assessment conducted by the Concacaf administration and Council, and in accordance with the Concacaf Statutes, the Member Associations reviewed the membership application submitted by the Greenlandic Football Association and unanimously rejected it,” said a Concacaf statement.

President Donald Trump has made repeated calls for the US to take control of the territory, which has caused outrage in both Denmark and Greenland.

Greenland covers an area greater than the size of western Europe, but 81% of its land mass is covered by sheet ice.

According to the country’s tourism website, Greenland has 76 football clubs and 5,500 registered players, around 10% of the population.

However, the harsh Arctic climate means football can only be played outside for five months of the year and on gravel pitches or artificial turf.

If all eyes were not already on Scotland’s first World Cup qualifier against Denmark on 5 September, they certainly are now.

While Steve Clarke would have been running scenarios in his head after Friday’s defeat by Iceland, Monday night’s win over in Liechtenstein presented no such problems.

Well, besides his team and formation. Big decisions, in truth.

Will the Scotland head coach stick with the back four he played in Vaduz or shift to his trusty back three/five?

In midfield, who does he start after 18-year-old Lennon Miller impressed on his full debut?

And after hat-trick hero Che Adams and George Hirst linked up for the latter’s first international goal, will Clarke commit to two up top?

When possible, Clarke always opts for Kieran Tierney and Andy Robertson down the left. They are his tried and tested and they have served him well.

There has been a little discourse around whether that is still what we should be going with, but I don’t see why not.

I think they’re still two of the best left-sided partnerships that we’ve got and it works really well.

Tierney as left-sided centre-back and Robertson at left wing-back offers such pace, which also brings quality going forward and the end product of ball in the box.

I think that’s our strength. They have done it fantastically in the past couple of years, which is why I think going away from home, in Copenhagen, I see Clarke going with the five.

On his first Scotland start, I think Miller has done himself absolutely millions of favours with his performance.

He is very, very calm – quite chilled actually. That’s due to his family, his dad [former Scotland striker Lee] keeping him grounded!

His composure and quality is top notch and he expresses himself in the game.

It is like he is not bothered by being on the big stage. His attitude is, ‘I’m playing with my mates here’. That’s top mentality.

Do I think he will start in Denmark? I don’t. But will he be one of the ones that’s in Clarke’s mind to automatically come on if you’re looking for a goal or a forward pass? I’d say so.

There are so many possibilities, though.

The pairing of Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay is one that’s got to flourish. You know what you’re getting with John McGinn. Clarke likes Kenny McLean because of his experience. Ryan Christie is favoured as a 10, too, so there are plenty of legs in there.

But the perfect scenario is to get Callum McGregor back.

Alhough two strikers are not Clarke’s usual call, he has gone with the Che Adams-Lyndon Dykes partnership before.

I was on punditry duties with the big man while we watched Adams and Hirst strike up a partnership and I reckon he will be phoning Clarke now saying he can play in the two.

I think the head coach likes Dykes’ running power. He’s a great worker off the ball, but also holds it well and causes problems in the box.

Adams will be flying high while Hirst has just opened his Scotland account.

There is, finally, great competition up there now for us. We’ve not had three goal-scoring strikers for the national team for a long, long time.

Can Clarke use all three, though? I don’t think he will.

If he goes defensively, I don’t see him playing two strikers.

Getting it right in Copenhagen is paramount.

If Scotland can get a point away to Denmark and then beat them at home – while beating everybody else – that’ll do it. Easier said, mind you.

But the first game is the big one.

You don’t want to go away on matchday one and lose, because it puts the Danes on the front foot early doors with belief. Scotland then start to overthink everything, so the opener will be hugely important for us.

Clarke just has to do what he does.

He has had a fantastic career as a manager. I actually look at him and the style he plays – I try and steal stuff from him.

He has got a lot of experience, doesn’t differ too much from what he usually does and it has served him very well so far.

The new Madrid Grand Prix will be held as the final race of an uninterrupted European section of the Formula 1 season next year.

Madrid, to be held on 11-13 September, will be a second race in Spain and replaces the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola in Italy in a schedule that remains at 24 races.

Madrid’s debut is one of a number of changes, most of which have been made in an attempt to streamline transport and reduce carbon emissions.

Canada, traditionally held in early June, has moved to 22-24 May, the date that would have been expected to be filled by Monaco, which will now be held on 5-7 June.

Every race from Monaco on the first weekend in June to Madrid is then in Europe, before the Azerbaijan event on 25-27 September kicks off the final intercontinental part of the season.

The moves are in line with F1’s new rules, in which revised engines run on 100% sustainable fuels.

The season starts in Melbourne, Australia, on 6-8 March. The Bahrain Grand Prix, which has become the most common opening race, is again in April as a result of the timing of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Bahrain and the Saudi Arabian race will be held a week apart, but unlike this year there is a two-week gap between the Chinese and Japanese Grands Prix in March after Australia, rather than the one of this season.

The British Grand Prix will be held on 3-5 July, and the season will mark the final appearance of the Dutch Grand Prix. It will be held at Zandvoort on 21-23 August.

The traditional Spanish race at Barcelona retains its place on 12-14 June as it fulfils the last year of its existing contract.

Australia – 6-8 March

China – 13-15 March

Japan – 27-29 March

Bahrain – 10-12 April

Saudi Arabia – 17-19 April

Miami – 1-3 May

Canada – 22-24 May

Monaco – 5-7 June

Spain (Barcelona) – 12-14 June

Austria – 26-28 June

Great Britain – 3-5 July

Belgium – 17-19 July

Hungary – 24-26 July

Netherlands – 21-23 August

Italy – 4-6 September

Spain (Madrid) – 11-13 September

Azerbaijan – 25-27 September

Singapore – 9-11 October

United States (Austin) – 23-25 October

Mexico – 30 October-1 November

Brazil – 6-8 November

Las Vegas – 19-21 November

Qatar – 27-29 November

Craig Bellamy had been waiting for this moment. What he might have struggled to envisage was the sheer chaos of his first defeat as Wales head coach.

Unbeaten in his first nine games, Bellamy would have equalled a national record had his team avoided defeat in Belgium – and they almost did it in the most dramatic fashion imaginable.

Brussels is a city Bellamy knows well, having lived there during his time as a coach with Anderlecht.

But the first half was an alien experience for him on the touchline, watching on as his Wales team were cut to shreds by a Belgian side who had rediscovered their verve.

This is a team Bellamy has built in his image. They are daring, adventurous, unafraid to lose in the pursuit of glory.

To sit back and play for a draw is not in their make-up, Bellamy said beforehand, and Wales backed that up with a momentous performance to roar back from 3-0 down to level.

Harry Wilson’s penalty, Sorba Thomas’ composed low strike and Brennan Johnson’s header had Belgium rattled and Wales dreaming.

Kevin de Bruyne had the final say to secure a 4-3 win for Belgium, but Bellamy could not help but smile when he was asked for his thoughts.

“I don’t like losing. I understand the game, but how you lose is more important,” he said.

“Who are you as a person? Who is your team? I see that and I’m beyond proud. We’re a good team.

Neither Bellamy nor his players are shackled by the fear of losing. That is why they have enjoyed such a positive start to his tenure.

To briefly leave the spiritual aspect of the game and to deal with cold, hard practical facts, this first defeat under Bellamy knocked Wales off the top of their World Cup qualifying group.

North Macedonia are the new leaders with eight points from four games, Wales are second with seven from four, while Belgium lurk menacingly with four points from two.

Wales and Belgium will meet again in Cardiff in October, renewing a rivalry which has provided Welsh football with some of its greatest moments over the past decade.

“To come to a top-eight team [in the world rankings] and can we play the way we want to play? I think the Belgium players saw it as well,” Bellamy said.

“Think I read something from the Belgium media – ‘an easy way to the USA’? There’s a lot of life in this group and today I saw a lot of life in this team.

Craig Bellamy had been waiting for this moment. What he might have struggled to envisage was the sheer chaos of his first defeat as Wales head coach.

Unbeaten in his first nine games, Bellamy would have equalled a national record had his team avoided defeat in Belgium – and they almost did it in the most dramatic fashion imaginable.

Brussels is a city Bellamy knows well, having lived there during his time as a coach with Anderlecht.

But the first half was an alien experience for him on the touchline, watching on as his Wales team were cut to shreds by a Belgian side who had rediscovered their verve.

This is a team Bellamy has built in his image. They are daring, adventurous, unafraid to lose in the pursuit of glory.

To sit back and play for a draw is not in their make-up, Bellamy said beforehand, and Wales backed that up with a momentous performance to roar back from 3-0 down to level.

Harry Wilson’s penalty, Sorba Thomas’ composed low strike and Brennan Johnson’s header had Belgium rattled and Wales dreaming.

Kevin de Bruyne had the final say to secure a 4-3 win for Belgium, but Bellamy could not help but smile when he was asked for his thoughts.

“I don’t like losing. I understand the game, but how you lose is more important,” he said.

“Who are you as a person? Who is your team? I see that and I’m beyond proud. We’re a good team.

Neither Bellamy nor his players are shackled by the fear of losing. That is why they have enjoyed such a positive start to his tenure.

To briefly leave the spiritual aspect of the game and to deal with cold, hard practical facts, this first defeat under Bellamy knocked Wales off the top of their World Cup qualifying group.

North Macedonia are the new leaders with eight points from four games, Wales are second with seven from four, while Belgium lurk menacingly with four points from two.

Wales and Belgium will meet again in Cardiff in October, renewing a rivalry which has provided Welsh football with some of its greatest moments over the past decade.

“To come to a top-eight team [in the world rankings] and can we play the way we want to play? I think the Belgium players saw it as well,” Bellamy said.

“Think I read something from the Belgium media – ‘an easy way to the USA’? There’s a lot of life in this group and today I saw a lot of life in this team.