Category Sports News

In a statement, Tottenham midfielder Yves Bissouma thanked manager Ange Postecoglou for keeping the squad together despite a disappointing season, calling him “a dad or uncle for us.”

With just one game left, Spurs are 17th in the Premier League, their lowest total since 1991-92, and they have lost 25 games in all competitions.

With Wednesday’s Europa League game between Manchester United and Mali, they have a chance to reclaim their season, according to Mali midfielder Bissouma, who claims the players and the manager have maintained a positive relationship throughout the entire campaign.

It has never, ever, ever changed. Bissouma, 28, described Postecoglou as “a good relationship.”

He’s “like our dad or uncle,” he says. He makes an effort to explain what his true desires are.

He’s Ange, he’s him, as we know him. He has a point. Every time he tries to assist us, he makes an effort. He keeps our safety a top priority.

Bissouma added that Postecoglou’s style was difficult to understand at the beginning of his 2023 tenure, but that the Australian has never held the players accountable.

Spurs’ season has been plagued by injuries, but Son Heung-min’s return helped them in the defeat by Aston Villa on Friday.

In the European final, they defeated fellow Premier League strugglers United, Eintracht Frankfurt, and Bodo/Glimt.

Spurs initially suspended Bissouma from the team at the start of the season after footage showed him inhaling laughing gas, a situation he claimed he did not want to discuss but is “still learning from.”

Of course, I have more to come [from you]. I’m still learning, he said, “we are always here for learning.”

I didn’t play much this season, which made it difficult for me.

“You have to work hard, never give up, and be prepared when your team needs you,” I assure you. That’s what I’m attempting to accomplish constantly.

We are aware of our obligations. This cup must be won because it is so crucial to us.

Manager Graham Potter claims West Ham midfielder Lucas Paqueta has experienced both mentally and physically as a result of the investigation into a betting-unlawful behavior.

The Football Association is looking into Paqueta’s alleged self-infliction in four games.

The 27-year-old Brazil international has been charged by the FA in May of last year and has been under investigation since August 2023.

He broke down after being booked against Tottenham two weeks ago, when Potter claimed he was “frustrated” and “given everything and in difficult circumstances” and that he had been “frustrated” by the incident.

Maria Fournier, Paqueta’s wife, later claimed in an Instagram post that they had “been living this nightmare for two years.”

Potter claimed that the game’s 2-0 win over Manchester United at the weekend was caused by a cold, so Paqueta was substituted.

“He has been affected by it,” he said. Potter said that his personal experience during the week was particularly difficult.

Because of that, I didn’t want to risk him and make things worse for him the day before and the day of the game.

Stress and pressure can manifest themselves in various ways, sometimes.

“Generally speaking, he has entered and conducted himself really well. He handled it very well.

Potter expressed his desire for the matter to be settled before the start of the following season.

Rangers vs. Hibernian in the SWPL finale

Where is Ibrox Stadium on Sunday, May 18th, 2012 at 12:00 BST?

It would arguably be the most unexpected title win in Britain this season if Hibernian are able to draw the necessary draw against Rangers on Sunday.

Nobody had anticipated that Grant Scott’s side would be in this position prior to the August match, when they needed only a draw to win the match for the first time since 2007 and for the first time in the professional era.

Hibs finished fifth last term, a significant 36 points behind Celtic, who finished second but lost on goal difference.

However, this year, when faced with better-funded Glasgow teams with more winning and international experience, Hibs have been the most consistent throughout the entire season and surprised everyone with their unwavering resolve.

However, Game 32 is where everything is at stake. Rangers are three points behind, the only team left to stop Hibs, and who can, with a win, claim the title on goal difference.

The final day of the third season in a row will determine the SWPL, and if the current campaign is anything like the previous two, the tension will be in full swing.

Siobhan Hunter, a one-club woman who has supported Hibs all her life, went over to the touchline following Hibs’ 4-2 victory over Celtic on Wednesday.

The small band of supporters at Meadowbank were filmed by the cameras pumping their fists out and yelling to turn up the volume to celebrate having a three-point lead on the last day.

Caley Gibb, Michaela McAlonie, and those two players were like the walking wounded in the final moments of that incredible victory, before being eventually hauled off the field, respectively.

Despite having a protective boot on her foot, Tegan Bowie was chosen as a replacement.

Scott has added to the squad of academy graduates from around the SWPL who have excelled at other clubs and built a strong unit. He had cup success during his first spell at Hibs from 2018 to 2019.

Kathleen McGovern, who has been honored with a maiden Scotland call-up, has the most impressive 31 goals in all competitions since her summer move from Hearts.

Eilidh Adams, an alumnus graduate, has given her a solid support throughout the campaign, with 27. The pair have scored 49 goals in the league while Hibs have scored 89.

They have conceded the second-most goals at the other end, which has helped them win the league against the other five professional teams.

Rangers, Glasgow City, Celtic, and Hearts have all yet scored 28 of a possible 45. That’s five more than Rangers have succeeded in.

This season, Hibs have already defeated Rangers twice in the league, but the third meeting ended in a draw.

In the Sky Sports Cup final in March, Rangers defeated Hibs 5-0 to win the match.

The league meetings were held on artificial surfaces, which is the obvious difference from the day before, since almost every game is in the SWPL, played at Fir Park on a large grass pitch.

Rangers have chosen to play their final game at Ibrox in an effort to make the most of both their own fans and the expansive surface.

Rangers can now use their powerful attacking weapons more effectively and to stretch the game even further, according to Potter and Scott, respectively.

They have swatted aside the division’s weaker teams, which has been their strength this season, scoring an astonishing 139 goals in 31 games, which is by far the most in the league.

In addition to the league’s 39, Katie Wilkinson has four SWPL teams as a whole.

Can Rangers make the most of the pitch’s available space for their powerful forwards? Not always as straightforward as that.

Potter claims that they “let themselves down” when they last played at Ibrox on April 30 when Glasgow City lost 1-0.

When City had a chance to win the title on the final day of the season, they were also defeated 1-0 by them two years prior.

In the end, it’s about coping with pressure. When everything is at stake, who can step up and deliver?

Whoever loses the league between Rangers and Hibs will drop to third place in the Champions League qualifiers if Glasgow City defeat Hearts in their final game.

The league is the main target, and Rangers’ hopes of a first-ever Treble are in jeopardy, but Rangers could at least have the consolation of a Scottish Cup final next week.

Oliver Glasner praised Crystal Palace’s FA Cup victory over the fans and predicted that the club’s historic win at Wembley would not come to an end until Sunday.

In a match that spanned 120 years of the club’s history, Palace won the first major trophy and moved them to the top of Europe.

More than 30 000 South London club supporters flocked to the national stadium to celebrate their tireless celebrations at full speed, and Glasner was quick to applaud them for keeping up the team.

In their first eight Premier League games of the year, Palace lost to Newcastle and Manchester City 5-2, respectively, in back-to-back Premier League games in April.

However, they come to an FA Cup final at Selhurst Park, and Glasner, who led Eintracht Frankfurt to glory in the 2021-2020 season, can begin making plans for a second Europa League campaign.

No one anticipated Crystal Palace to win the FA Cup or Frankfurt to win the Europa League, according to Glasner, who is the first Austrian manager to win the competition.

When you are patient, you can see what you can get.

The biggest success for football managers and players isn’t winning the trophy. It’s reviving a moment for our fans, who are tens of thousands of miles away. letting them enjoy themselves.

“We did it for our fans because they might have some issues at home,” he said.

Glasner responded to a question about how he felt after taking over as Palace’s first manager and winning a major trophy, saying, “I feel empty.

Tomorrow or Monday, I’ll start to realize it. The crazy thing is that we have to consider the Wolves game on Tuesday on Monday.

We already had a significant chapter in our history written before the game, and we will do that once more when we play in Europe next year.

Dean Henderson of Palace’s side won, saving Omar Marmoush’s first-half penalty, despite City’s claim that the goalkeeper should have been sent off earlier because he handled outside his area when Erling Haaland had pressed against him.

After the game, Henderson paid a moving tribute to his late father.

The former Manchester United stopper, who made a number of excellent saves to frustrate City, said, “I lost my dad at the beginning of the season, but he was with me today.”

Every second of the game, he was there with me. I give him credit for that victory.

“We were incredible today,” he said. It seemed to be our day, we thought. We put together a game plan for the manager, who had it. This is truly our duty.

Henderson’s ex-teammate George Baldock, who he was close to, passed away last October, which also affected him.

Eberechi Eze scored the winning goal in Palace’s opening meaningful attack of the game.

The England-born forward, who grew up in a Christian household and regularly attends church, declared, “This is special, I don’t even know what to say.”

“Thank you, God.” Only God could accomplish this.

Faceing a team that has been the best in the world for years, demonstrates that spirit and drive.

Eze continued, “I couldn’t breathe!,” about the decision that gave him the lead to his winner, his fourth goal of the FA Cup this season. You have to work so hard to get anything from City because they keep the ball so well. You must make the chance count when you enter their box.

Before becoming famous, Eze had to work hard to achieve a breakthrough.

Before landing his big break at Queens Park Rangers, he faced rejection from a number of clubs, including Arsenal, Fulham, Reading, Bristol City, Sunderland, and Millwall.

He joined the England squad after leaving Palace in 2020. Eze has now won the FA Cup.

The moment Crystal Palace emerged from a crisis that threatened to overtake manager Oliver Glasner, and it was their greatest day and the highlight of their FA Cup victory over Manchester City.

In the Wembley sunshine, Palace celebrated their first major success in their history with a victory over Tottenham in their ninth game on October 27, making their worst start to a season since 1992-1993.

This was the only justification for chairman Steve Parish and the Selhurst Park hierarchy to keep their nerve as the 50-year-old Austrian gathered around the chant “Glad All Over” as Glasner and his triumphant Palace side celebrated in front of their ecstatic support.

After saying during those troubled times in October, “It’s time to hug my players, not kick them,” it was also vindication of Glasner’s own approach.

At Wembley, Palace paraded the FA Cup, the crowning glory of Glasner’s recovery, in brilliant execution by his players, and there was plenty of hugs going on.

When history was made, Glasner reacted calmly and measuredly as he marched over to Pep Guardiola, a lost city rival.

When Jurgen Klopp won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022, Glasner’s intensity and positive attitude drew comparisons to those qualities.

When Glasner and Palace struggled to win the first game of the season, it was effective.

When Palace’s first eight games of the season ended with just three points, Glasner never lost faith in himself. He never lost faith in Palace’s players, which is even more impressive.

After finishing the previous campaign with 19 points out of a possible 21, he thought Palace’s slow start was due to real causes.

After Palace lost arguably their most gifted forward to Bayern Munich in a £50m deal, this meticulous and strict person was overseeing a major change. Joachim Andersen, a key defender, left for £30 million with Fulham.

Eddie Nketiah joined Arsenal for £30 million, but he had not practiced, and his squad’s other key components were lacking.

At Euro 2024, Eberechi Eze, Adam Wharton, Marc Guehi, and goalkeeper Dean Henderson were with England, and Jean-Philippe Mateta was an Olympic finalist for France. Colombia and Jefferson Lerma attended the Copa America with Daniel Munoz and Jefferson Lerma.

Glasner was confident that Palace would be a force once they were back up, but he also had to take into account four deadline-day signings, including Matt Turner from Nottingham Forest, Maxence Lacroix from Wolfsburg, and Trevoh Chalobah, who is currently on loan from Chelsea.

Parish insists that because of his efforts and upbeat personality on the training ground, Glasner’s position was never in doubt. The payback for that display of faith comes today, when a new chapter of Palace’s history is written.

Eze, Ismaila Sarr, and Mateta, the attacking trio, are spearhead and focal point, while the others are stumbling and in danger.

In other areas, Palace have strengths, with Pedro Porro and Sergio Munoz scoring the most assists of any Premier League defender in 2024-25, with six goals and seven assists, the highest total of any defender for any Premier League team this year.

Even though Palace lost influential captain Guehi after 61 minutes at Wembley following a head injury, the Eagles’ back three of Chris Richards, Lacroix, and Guehi have been solid.

And Palace also has an X-factor, which is crucial on big events when margins are good.

Throughout the FA Cup campaign, Glasner’s big players, who he believed would recover from that early-season slump, have delivered and defeated City once more.

Eze’s sharp 16th-minute strike ended a classic Palace counter-attack with a deft finish past City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.

The decisive moment was set for Palace’s first shot and first touch inside the penalty box, but with such a sparse and ruthless stance came.

The talented forward helped Palace advance to the quarter-finals of Fulham, the quarter-final, and the semi-final at Wembley for Aston Villa.

Henderson has also decorated Palace’s success, first as a villain against Villa and then as both a hero and villain.

Henderson only made a mistake when he stumbling over a long ball from Erling Haaland and getting too close to Josko Gvardiol’s goal when the video assistant referee determined the city’s striker had been moving away from goal and had been given a clear chance to score.

Henderson was flawless in both this incident, saving from Jeremy Doku, Gvardiol, and Jeremy Doku in the opening half, before City’s late substitute Claudio Echeverri.

While the keeper may have to go through some lengths to justify the chants “England’s number one” from Palace fans, England head coach Thomas Tuchel, who is a fan of Henderson, was watching, there is no doubt he has strengthened his claims.

Palace has no issues with this. Everyone who was involved in this was filled with joy, especially the supporters who were so passionately and loudly supporting the Eagles and were desperate to end the heartache of their FA Cup final defeats against Manchester United in 1990 and 2016!

Before Palace made this FA Cup run, Glasner’s three previous Wembley appearances included a Taylor Swift concert and a visit to England twice.

After a comprehensive 3-0 win over Villa in the semi-final, he has now made his own Wembley memories, with Palace fans chanting their entire victory playlist as soon as referee Stuart Attwell signaled the end of 10 tortuous extra-time.

Before the FA Cup final, Glasner warned against talking about history until the hen had laid the egg.

When laid, the egg was golden.

Rugby World Cup:

Leinster: (7) 13

Try: J O’Brien Con: Prendergast Pens: Frawley, Prendergast

Glasgow: (0) 5

Leinster’s hard-fought 13-5 victory over the Glasgow Warriors at Aviva Stadium marked the end of their United Rugby Championship (URC) regular season.

After being denied a try earlier in the match, Jimmy O’Brien scored the only try for Leo Cullen’s side in the first 26 minutes.

After the visitors responded with George Horne’s try, Sam Prendergast’s penalty extended the lead, but Ciaran Frawley’s late penalty secured the win.

Following the Welsh side’s disappointing defeat against the Sharks on Saturday, Leinster will now face the Scarlets in the quarter-finals on Saturday, May 31 (15:00 BST).

Sione Tuipulotu, a centre for Scotland, returned from injury after a long absence from the team, who enjoyed the majority of the ground in the Aviva Stadium’s opening period without really putting a strain on.

With Adam Hastings’ penalty kick wide, they wasted a good chance to take the lead on nine minutes.

O’Brien believed he had scored the opening try in Leinster’s first real attack after 21 minutes.

O’Brien gathered and scored as a result of Prendergast’s quick penalty, which was disallowed because Prendergast was too far ahead of the penalty’s recipient.

Five minutes later, however, O’Brien was not denied as Glasgow conceded a free-kick at the scrum, and Fintan Gunne chose to tap and go, handing the ball to Jordie Barrett, who later found Prendergast.

Tuipulotu was replaced at half-time as he recovers from a stellar performance.

After the restart, Cullen’s side were sloppy and had a number of accuracy errors, but they did advance even further thanks to a Prendergast penalty.

After Sebastian Cancelliere had poked the ball through him, but Hastings missed the conversion, Glasgow responded with their first points of the evening when substitute Horne grounded the ball.

After Glasgow were found guilty of offside, Leinster replacement Frawley kicked a late penalty to ensure the victory.

Keenan, T O’Brien, Henshaw, Barrett, J O’Brien, Prendergast, Gunne, Porter, Sheehan, Clarkson, Snyman, Ryan, Baird, Penny, Conan (capt.), Leinster Rugby.

Replacements: Boyle, Furlong, Mangan, Deegan, McGrath, Frawley, Osborne, Boyle, Boyle, Boyle.

Rowe, Cancelliere, Jones, Tuipulotu, Steyn, Hastings, Afshar, Bhatti, Stephen Richardson, Oguntibeju, Samuel, Duncan, Duncan, Darge, Ferrie, and others are the Glasgow Warriors.

Hiddleston, McBeth, Walker, Du Preez, Cummings, McDowall, Horne, Jordan, and others.