Category Sports News

Britain’s Dalton Smith announced himself on the global stage with a coming-of-age stoppage of Subriel Matias to claim the WBC light-welterweight world title in New York.

In a fifth round that lit up Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, Smith stood toe-to-toe with the heavy-handed Puerto Rican and dropped him with a looping overhand right.

Matias was left sprawled on the canvas. Although he beat the count, he staggered back to his feet, prompting the referee to wave the fight off.

“Take nothing away from Subriel – he’s a great champion.

“I didn’t really stick to the tactics tonight. I played him at his own game. You can’t hurt me and I knew I’d get to him.”

Smith joined heavyweight Fabio Wardley, welterweight Lewis Crocker, super-featherweight Jazza Dickens and featherweight Nick Ball as the UK’s fifth current male world champion.

Ticket sales were reportedly modest, but there was no shortage of noise from travelling supporters as Smith walked to the ring to ‘When the sun goes down’ by Arctic Monkeys, who are from his home town of Sheffield.

Yet it felt like a home fight for Matias, with New York’s strong Puerto Rican population firmly behind the 33-year-old.

He appeared so relaxed that he stopped for selfies with family members during his ring walk.

Making the first defence of the title he won against Alberto Puello in July, Matias has at times been a slow starter and Smith exploited that by banking the opening round with sharp, crisp punches to head and body.

Matias edged the second, forcing Smith on to the back foot as blood trickled from the Briton’s nose.

After a scrappy third, Smith, remarkably and unexpectedly, chose to trade with the champion.

With 22 knockouts in his 23 wins, Matias entered with a reputation for relentless pressure and heavy hands. Smith, however, also carried stoppage power, having recorded 13 knockouts of his own.

He landed several heavy left hooks to close the fourth round. Then came the career-defining moment that truly announced Smith on the world stage.

After briefly stumbling from a Matias combination, an unfazed Smith came roaring back in a fifth-round firefight.

He landed two straight left-right combinations that snapped Matias’ head back, before the decisive overhand right.

Before the fight promoter Eddie Hearn said “justice shall be served”, a remark widely interpreted as a reference to Matias’ adverse drug-test findings.

Matias tested positive for banned substance ostarine in a Voluntary Anti-Doping Association out-of-competition test in November, with the B-sample also returning an adverse finding.

The New York State Athletic Commission ruled the concentration detected was below the threshold used by major boxing jurisdictions, allowing the bout to proceed.

“This is a message to every kid out there. Do not let anybody tell you can’t achieve your dreams because if you work hard, you can do it,” Smith said.

By winning a first world title in the US, Smith joins an exclusive list of British fighters including Bob Fitzsimmons, Alan Minter, Lloyd Honeyghan, Nigel Benn, Darren Barker, James DeGale and Kell Brook.

Smith can now set his sights on the division’s other top contenders. WBO and Ring Magazine titleholder Teofimo Lopez is set to face Shakur Stevenson on 31 January, while Gary Russell holds the WBA belt and Richardson Hitchins is the IBF champion.

Matchroom boss Hearn has hinted that a homecoming celebration could be next.

“Smith has announced himself as the light-welterweight superstar,” Hearn said.

Tottenham’s new signing Julie Blakstad is aiming to make her mark on the Women’s Super League second time around.

The 24-year-old spent two years at Manchester City from 2022 but only made 36 appearances and left on loan to BK Hacken before eventually joining Hammarby.

Since then, she has gained valuable experience which made her a priority signing for Spurs.

She’s poised to make her debut for Tottenham in Sunday’s game against Leicester (12:00 GMT) and hopes to stamp her mark on the WSL this time around.

“When I first came, I was obviously four years younger. It’s a different move now and I feel like I have much more experience,” Blakstad told BBC Sport.

“I was really ready to come back here. The league has developed a lot since then and it’s super exciting to see how the games are even better now.

The Norway international returns to the WSL in hot form having shone for Hammarby last season, grabbing 15 goals and six assists in 26 games.

She also scored three goals in the Champions League and has transitioned into the left wing-back poisiton from a midfield.

Her versatility and “attacking edge” attracted Tottenham – and Blakstad said manager Martin Ho was a big reason as to why she agreed to join.

“I’ve been following Martin in the league in Norway, playing against him and seeing how he coached Brann,” said Blakstad.

“I think he brings a lot of the same principles to Tottenham. What we’re seeing from the summer until now has been really positive work.

“He’s really engaged in the game and gives a lot of feedback. I really like how he sees the tactical parts of the game. He can help every individual player to develop.

“That’s a big part of why I chose Tottenham because in my mind, it’s important for me to become an even better player, not only to win games.”

Blakstad is one of five players to join Tottenham so far in the January transfer window as they hope to build on a successful start to the season.

Ho’s side sit fifth in the table with six wins from their opening 11 WSL matches and are just two points adrift of Manchester United.

“We can just keep building on that. Obviously there are a lot of good teams in the WSL and the competition is really high, but I think we have a good mix of players,” added Blakstad.

“Tottenham is a big club with great ambitions and want to be competing to reach the top three now and then in the long run, get into Europe and play well.

The Chicago Bears produced a stunning fightback to beat divisional rivals Green Bay and claim their first play-off win in 15 years.

The Bears managed a record six comebacks in the regular season having trailed inside the final two minutes and they pulled off another escape act to beat the Packers 31-27 in Chicago.

Green Bay led for most of Saturday’s Wildcard Weekend game but Chicago scored 25 points in the fourth quarter to recover from an 18-point deficit – a franchise record for the post-season.

The rivalry between Chicago and Green Bay is the oldest and most-played rivalry in the NFL, with this the 213th meeting between the divisional rivals – and just the third in the play-offs, with the others coming in 1941 and 2011.

The Bears surpassed expectations this season to win the NFC North division in Ben Johnson’s first year as head coach and claim the NFC’s second seed.

Green Bay claimed the seventh so had to visit a snowy Chicago for the first play-off game at Soldier Field since 2019, and during the first half it seemed the occasion may be too much for the Bears.

The Packers charged into a 21-3 lead, with quarterback Jordan Love throwing touchdown passes to Christian Watson, Jayden Reed and Romeo Doubs on his return after two games out following a concussion.

But the Bears’ defence stepped up in the second half to stifle Love and two field goals made it 21-9 heading into the final quarter.

Chicago added another before second-year quarterback Caleb Williams showed why he has been nicknamed ‘the Iceman’ by leading his team to touchdowns on three straight possessions, with the latter by DJ Moore putting the Bears in front with 1:43 remaining.

The NFL play-offs have got off to a thrilling start with the Los Angeles Rams needing a late touchdown to escape a huge upset at the Carolina Panthers.

The Rams were not only heavy favourites to win on Wildcard Weekend but are among the Super Bowl favourites.

But they needed a touchdown by tight end Colby Parkinson with 38 seconds remaining to claim a 34-31 win in Charlotte.

Despite coming into the post-season with a losing 8-9 record, Carolina had home advantage having stumbled to the NFC South division title.

The Rams, who finished the regular season 12-5, looked on course for a straightforward passage to the Divisional Round after Puka Nacua scored the opening two touchdowns.

But the Panthers regrouped and rushing touchdowns by Chuba Hubbard and quarterback Bryce Young cut the score to 17-14 at half-time, before the hosts tied the game in the third quarter.

New Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior says he did “nothing tactical, nothing technical” before his first match against Charlton – a sign of the likely direction of travel under his leadership.

That is not to say the 41-year-old lacks innovation or the ability to nullify opponents, but his similarities to predecessor Enzo Maresca mean he does not need to reinvent the wheel.

When asked by BBC Sport why he had not made any noticeable tactical changes before Chelsea’s 5-1 victory in the FA Cup third round, Rosenior said: “This is a team that won the Club World Cup. That was five months ago. This is a team that won the Conference League last year. We’re a good team.

“We are a good team. They’ve been well coached. I’ve made no secret of that.”

Rosenior was appointed to build on Maresca’s work, knowing the way Chelsea play, having been part of their multi-club model at French club Strasbourg.

By design, the two clubs play almost the same way, allowing players and now a head coach to move freely between the two. On Saturday, Chelsea played in the same 4-2-3-1 shape used by Maresca but built up in a 3-2-2-3 system used by Rosenior at Strasbourg.

However, that is not to say there have been no changes. Chelsea have struggled to retain leads this season, dropping 15 points from winning positions in the Premier League, winning just one of their past nine league matches.

“No, I think the biggest thing I challenged the players on was our reactions to setbacks, our intensity. I was very happy with the togetherness and the spirit of the group today,” Rosenior added.

“I was very happy with the intensity that they ran at – winning duels, winning headers, all of the basics. And that’s where you get your joy from.”

Sources involved in Rosenior’s first sessions say intensity was a key theme, one of the principles he hammered home in his first media conference, and something that has, at times, been a failing for Chelsea during long spells of ponderous possession.

They have also been vulnerable at set-pieces and again conceded when Miles Leaburn made it 2-1 in the second half at The Valley, before running out comfortable winners.

“We need to improve in that aspect as well – long throws, wide free-kicks, corners going into our box. They are the basics that I talk about in football,” Rosenior explained.

In truth, Chelsea’s 5-1 win flattered them on Saturday, but substitutes Liam Delap, Pedro Neto, Enzo Fernandez and Estevao Willian proved too much for a tired Charlton side to cope with.

Rosenior is the first Chelsea manager to win his opening game since Antonio Conte in August 2016, enjoying the biggest winning margin since Luiz Felipe Scolari in August 2008.

“I have to say I was delighted with the starting XI,” Rosenior said. “I was delighted with the front three. I felt Ale [Garnacho] kept going in his one-v-ones.

“Marc Guiu was magnificent, deserved his goal. Jamie [Gittens] looked like he was going at the defenders. He looked like he could create in a lot of moments. So a lot of real positives and a good start.”

The most impressive performer was defender Jorrel Hato, who scored the opening goal and playing in a role filled by Marc Cucurella last season.

Hato, 19, made inverted runs into attacking midfield positions when Chelsea were on the front foot, found himself in dangerous areas and ultimately capitalised.

The £37m summer signing from Ajax has previously struggled at Stamford Bridge, but since Maresca left the club, he has produced arguably his three best performances, playing significant minutes against Manchester City and Fulham in recent league matches.

“I saw him play at Fulham,” Rosenior said. “I was so impressed with him then. He’s taken that form on to another level today. Not just in terms of his goal – I felt his defensive attributes were top.”

There was concern when Rosenior explained Cole Palmer, Reece James and Malo Gusto were left out because of to knocks sustained in defeat at Fulham last Wednesday – particularly with tougher tests to come.

Arsenal are next in the Carabao Cup semi-final on Wednesday, while Chelsea welcome Brentford to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

“He is going to be judged on how he does against decent teams in the Champions League, against Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Aston Villa – those are the teams he will be judged against, so we will have to see,” former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin told 5 Live.

“He has got a great month with a lot of games where he can see a lot of players. Four home league games, two away league games – and one of them is Wolves, who haven’t had a great season so far.

“There’s no easy route, but this is as friendly as it could be. He will have learned which of his players are fringe players. There are quite a few he will be pleased with.”

It wasn’t all happiness, though: Chelsea supporters continued their protest against the ownership throughout the match and even chanted “attack, attack, attack” as their team waited until the brink of half-time for the breakthrough.

The atmosphere among fans remains febrile amid distrust of the ownership. It is a potential pitfall for Rosenior to be wary of given that, as a recruit from Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital’s other club Strasbourg, he could easily be labelled a yes-man.