Category Sports News

Bayern Munich midfielder Jamal Musiala looks set for another prolonged spell on the sidelines after suffering a serious ankle injury in the side’s 2-0 Club World Cup quarter-final defeat by Paris St-Germain.

It was Musiala’s first start in months as, since early April, he had been recovering from a hamstring injury that had kept him out of the final month of Bayern’s Bundesliga campaign.

At the end of an entertaining but goalless first half at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Musiala was caught by PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma while chasing down an overhit Michael Olise pass near the byeline.

Germany international Musiala emerged from the challenge screaming in agony and clutching his left ankle, while several players – including the distraught Donnarumma – had to avert their eyes as the Bayern physios sprinted on to the pitch.

“He has had to go to hospital,” Bayern manager Vincent Kompany told DAZN. “It didn’t look good. The overwhelming feeling is hopefully it’s not as bad as it looks and he gets through this one. “

Kompany added in his post-match news conference: “I’ve rarely been so angry at half-time, not against my players.

“There are many things in life that are much more important than this, but in the end, for these guys, it’s their life. He came back from a setback, and then it happens in the way it happens and you feel powerless.

“You try and get strength out of it because you want to do it for Jamal. The thing that gets my blood still boiling at the moment, it’s not the result.

“I understand this is football, but it’s the fact that it happened to someone that, for one, enjoys the game so much, but also is very important for us. “

German football expert Raphael Honigstein said: “The Bayern Munich players were evidently rattled and you could see maybe it took some time, when they came out from half-time, to readjust and find their focus again.

Despite missing 11 games through injury this season, Musiala was still one of Bayern’s most influential players in 2024-25, registering 29 goal involvements – 21 goals and eight assists – in 44 competitive appearances.

The club recently confirmed he will inherit Bayern’s iconic number 10 shirt from the departing Leroy Sane next term, giving him the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of club legends such as Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Lothar Matthaus and Arjen Robben.

Having scored a hat-trick off the bench in Bayern’s 10-0 thrashing of Auckland City in their opening Club World Cup group game, Musiala was hoping to kick on against PSG in Atlanta – but the 22-year-old’s evening was cruelly cut short.

“It’s important we talk about Musiala,” said PSG and former Dortmund right-back Achraf Hakimi. “I want to give my support to him. We hope to see him back on the pitch soon. “

Ousmane Dembele – who netted PSG’s second goal after Desire Doue’s opener – also said his thoughts are with the Germany international.

“Shout out to Jamal Musiala,” he said. “[The injury] is something you don’t want to see on the field. “

Saturday’s game also marked the end of Thomas Muller’s trophy-laden career with boyhood side Bayern.

The 35-year-old, who made a club-record 756 appearances, won 13 league titles and two Champions Leagues during his time in Bavaria, was due to leave on 30 June but had his contract extended so he could participate at this summer’s Club World Cup.

He scored his 250th and final goal for Bayern – a trademark close-range finish – in the 10-0 victory over Auckland last month.

Muller has yet to decide his next career move, telling US broadcaster CBS Sports recently that he will “figure out” his future “in the next couple of weeks”.

“If there’s no perfect solution for me, maybe I’ll decide to end my career,” he said. “Let’s see what happens. “

Kompany paid tribute to Muller after Saturday’s defeat, saying: “Bayern Munich is a club of so many legends – and he ranks at the very top.

“He got a send-off in front of the fans [at Bayern’s last Bundesliga match] and he lived every moment of this tournament. You see his performances [in games] but also in training. He is a legend.

Women’s Irish Open third-round leaderboard

-17 L Woad (Eng*); -10 M Sagstrom (Swe); -9 K Rudgeley (Aus); -8 C Tamburlini (Swi), C Hull (Eng), B Fernandez (Esp), A Garvey (NZ), A-C Mora (Fra)

Selected others: -7 A Foster (Ire); -6 E Hamilton (Eng); -4 M Rhodes (Eng), H Screen (Eng), A Hewson (Eng), G Hall (Eng), M MacLaren (Eng); -3 D Harry (Wal); -2 L McClymont (Sco*), L Maguire (Ire), C Williams (Wal); Level E Fleming (Ire*)

* denotes amateur

English amateur Lottie Woad fired a bogey-free six under 67 to hold a seven-shot lead going into the final day of the Women’s Irish Open.

The 21-year-old, who is bidding to become the first non-professional to win on the Ladies European Tour since 2022, went into the day three shots ahead.

She made a birdie on the first and third before increasing her advantage with birdies on the sixth, eighth, 15th and 16th. A par save on 17 saw her finish the day six under par, sitting on top of the leaderboard with a score of 17 under par.

The amateur said she was “very happy” with her display and “wants to win” the tournament.

She added: “The front nine I played really nicely and it was stress-free, the back nine I had to make a few par saves, but I chipped in pretty well and made some up and downs, which kept the momentum.

“I want to win it. I’m going to keep playing my game and see where it puts me and keep playing well. I think you can still be pretty aggressive on this golf course. “

Seven-time champion Novak Djokovic said he is “blessed” to have sealed his 100th victory at Wimbledon with a statement third-round win over compatriot Miomir Kecmanovic.

Serb Djokovic was in no mood to delay his near-fated ton at the All England Club and secured the 6-3 6-0 6-4 victory in just one hour and 50 minutes.

It is a feat achieved only by Martina Navratilova and eight-time champion Roger Federer, who holds the record with 105.

If Djokovic wins the trophy at the end of the fortnight, he will still be one shy of the record.

But it would land him an even bigger accomplishment – the record 25th Grand Slam title he has been chasing since last winning a major at the 2023 US Open.

“Wimbledon is a favourite and a dream tournament of not just myself but the majority of players,” he said.

“Growing up, most kids dream of winning here and I’ve been blessed to do that many times here. Any history I make in my favourite tournament… I’m blessed. “

Djokovic celebrated the milestone by performing a ‘pumping’ dance which has become a tradition between him and his children after each win this tournament.

He demonstrated the dance with his daughter – who was sitting in his coaching box – during his on-court speech after the match.

As Centre Court’s Royal Box hosted ‘Sporting Saturday’ with a plethora of stars in attendance, it was perhaps fitting that Djokovic continued his pursuit of a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title in such devastating fashion.

Djokovic was brimming with confidence after his second-round victory over Briton Dan Evans, saying he played “almost flawless tennis” with his serve in particular impressing.

It was the serve that was once again the focal point as he breezed to victory, facing just one break point all match.

World number 49 Kecmanovic knows only too well what his Davis Cup team-mate is capable of and was largely unable to stem the flow from a free-hitting Djokovic.

Numerous rallies were met with gasps from the crowd as Djokovic demonstrated his still-sublime movement and prowess as one of the best returners in the sport.

A lengthy point which ended with Djokovic sat on the turf having fired down a brilliant backhand winner while off balance was met with a standing ovation from a crowd enthralled by the veteran’s capabilities.

Having needed just one break of serve to seal the opener, Djokovic immediately put his opponent on the backfoot in set two and swiftly wrapped up a triple break without giving Kecmanovic a sniff.

The only blemish on a near-flawless performance from Djokovic came as he tried to serve out the win.

One fan shouted “Don’t panic Novak! ” as he went 15-30 down on serve, ironically poking fun at what had largely been a demolition.

Sure of the inevitable outcome, the crowd began to get under his skin in an attempt to prolong the match and Djokovic suffered his only break of the match.

But it was not enough to turn the tide and Djokovic served out at the second opportunity, delivering a message to his peers that he remains someone to beat here.

If he continues on this trajectory, a semi-final meeting with Italian top seed Jannik Sinner feels inevitable, with the world number one producing an equally dominant performance on Centre Court earlier on Saturday.

Not since 2017 has Djokovic suffered defeat by someone other than Carlos Alcaraz at SW19, losing to the defending champion in the past two finals having won the previous four.

Georgia (5) 5

Tries: Jalagonia

Ireland (14) 34

Tries from debutant Tommy O’Brien and first-time captain Craig Casey helped an inexperienced Ireland earn an ultimately comfortable Test victory over Georgia in Tbilisi.

O’Brien crossed twice early to put the Irish in the ascendancy before back row Tornike Jalagonia’s try brought Georgia back into the contest before half-time.

However, Casey’s tidy finish within a minute of the restart and Nick Timoney’s try pushed Ireland beyond Georgia’s reach and handed Paul O’Connell victory in his first game as interim head coach.

There will be concerns over Jacob Stockdale’s fitness, however, after the Ulster wing was forced off in the first half with a shoulder injury.

Persistent rain in the Georgian capital could have made life difficult for an inexperienced Ireland side which featured debutants O’Brien and Darragh Murray in the starting line-up and just 12 caps worth of experience in the front row.

But having scored tries in two Champions Cup knockout games for Leinster in the latter stages of the 2024-25 season, Test rookie O’Brien showed no signs of nerve while crossing twice in the opening eight minutes.

In the second minute, the 27-year-old latched on to Sam Prendergast’s chip over the Georgian defence to cross unchallenged before finishing in the corner on eight minutes after an Irish scrum five metres out from the home side’s tryline.

While O’Brien’s early double had Ireland smiling in the Georgian rain, the hosts shook off a shaky start and thought they had scored through Akaki Tabutsadze, who dove over the line despite Jamie Osborne’s last-ditch tackle.

While the home players celebrated, the winger’s try was ruled out after he was adjudged to have lost control of the ball before touching it down.

From there, the first half descended into a series of scrums, one of which led to an altercation between the two sets of players after Georgia won a scrum penalty.

When Ireland did get moving again, they looked dangerous, with O’Brien turning provider for Prendergast to finish athletically in the corner. The fly-half’s joy at scoring his first international try was short-lived, however, as his foot was correctly ruled to have been in touch before he grounded the ball.

Jalagonia’s score perhaps should have jolted the home side into life, but instead their challenge faded as Ireland pulled clear.

Within a minute of the restart, Calvin Nash – who replaced Stockdale – sent Ryan Baird through the Georgian defence and the back row’s clever offload to the onrushing Casey gave Ireland their third try.

It was a satisfying way for Munster scrum-half Casey to mark his first game as an Ireland captain, with regular skipper Caelan Doris out injured and several experienced campaigners with the Lions in Australia.

Prendergast, preferred to Jack Crowley in the number 10 jersey, converted Casey’s try and slotted over two penalties to extend Ireland’s advantage before Timoney chipped in with the game’s final try when he collected a Prendergast kick and bulldozed his way beyond two Georgian bodies.

Timoney’s score survived a television match official check for a double movement, but O’Brien was unable to complete his hat-trick when he let the ball slip through his grasp in the corner.

In the build-up to the game, O’Connell warned that Ireland would not deliver a “perfect” performance.

Replacements: I Kvatadze, G Tetrashvili, B Gigashvili, G Ganiashvili, I Spanderashvili, T Abzhandadze, T Kakhoidze

Ireland: J O’Brien; T O’Brien; J Osborne, S McCloskey; J Stockdale; S Prendergast, C Casey (capt); J Boyle, G McCarthy, T Clarkson; C Izuchukwu, D Murray; R Baird, N Timoney, G Coombes.

Replacements: T Stewart, M Milne, J Aungier, T Ahern, M Deegan, B Murphy, J Crowley, C Nash.

Sin-bin: McCloskey (77)

British Grand Prix

Venue: Silverstone Date: 6 July Race start: 15:00 BST on Sunday

McLaren’s Lando Norris predicts that Sunday’s British Grand Prix could be a “great race” with six cars in with a chance of victory.

Norris qualified third, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri on the front row, and Mercedes’ George Russell and the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc behind.

Piastri, who leads Norris by 15 points in the world championship, said it “could well be a six-car fight for the win” between all those cars, and Russell, Norris and Verstappen all agreed.

But the way the teams have prepared their cars for the race adds extra potential for variability.

Verstappen grabbed pole with the final lap of qualifying after he and Red Bull decided to take some rear downforce off his car.

Partly that was to cure understeer – a lack of front grip – in his handling balance. It gives him an advantage on the straights but will make the car slower in the corners.

Verstappen said: “All the cars have quite different speed traces. We are very fast on the straights and slower in the corners.

“Ferrari is quick in the corners so the slowest on the straights, and McLaren is in the middle of all that.

“It depends on who can keep their tyres alive. This year that has been a bit of a struggle for us, but hopefully with what we did to the car that will help at least.

“For sure, I can see a proper battle. Even in the long runs, there were a lot of cars that were quick. Even in qualifying, it was all quite tight. “

Norris said: “I’m looking forward to it because I think it can be a great race with Mercedes, Ferrari, Max and us. There is opportunity for everyone.

“It can be exciting because everyone is on quite different downforce levels and has their strengths and weaknesses in different places so it should be good to watch.

“The weather can play a part. It might rain. Red Bull are incredibly quick in the straight, which means to pass them will be pretty tough. But they paid the price by being a little slower in the high-speed corners. Its difficult to know, people are quick and slow in different places. We have to wait and see. “

In such a tight qualifying battle, the grid order was defined by small details.

Piastri did not improve on his second lap after damaging his car – “significantly”, McLaren said – at Stowe on his first lap.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said: “Looking at the lap times that Ferrari have been able to pull off in every single session, Ferrari seem to be the strongest team. Probably they still are the strongest team.

“The gaps are very small. And Max also went out for the final lap in Q3 relatively a few minutes later or a minute later. And here there could be a slight variation of wind that can affect 0. 1secs here and there. “

Stella also said that Verstappen was able to get away with such a relatively small rear wing because the corners at Silverstone are so fast and there is so much time spent at full throttle or close to it.

Red Bull have been at their most competitive compared with McLaren at high-speed circuits such as Silverstone this year – Verstappen’s wins have been at Suzuka and Imola.

Their biggest weakness has been that they are tougher on their tyres, but Stella said that he did not expect Verstappen’s low downforce set-up necessarily to result in higher tyre wear on Sunday.

“When you have the tyre wear that we expect to have at this circuit and in these conditions,” he said, “our belief is that there is not a great relationship between the downforce level and the tyre wear.

“Because you will be fast in the straights, which means actually you have to push, if anything, a little bit less in the corners.

“If you rely on lap time generated in the corners, then you do have to push the corners, you may stress your tyres even more. So it’s not clear that the rear-wing solution that Red Bull adopted will necessarily cause a worse situation from a tyre point of view. “

How will all this play out in the race between the top four teams? Will they all be in play? Can Hamilton grab a first podium of his Ferrari career? Or will it come down to Verstappen v McLaren in the end, as it so often has this year.

“I don’t think we will see a big difference between Max, the two McLarens, the two Ferraris and potentially even George,” Stella said.

“We’ll have to see if the (Mercedes) lap in qualifying was a one-off because up until that point in Q3, it seemed like they were not as competitive as the others for the top positions of the grid. “

Second Rothesay Test, Edgbaston (day four of five)

India 587 & 427-6 dec: Gill 161, Jadeja 69*; Tongue 2-93

England 407 & 72-3: Pope 24*, Deep 2-36

England need 536 more runs to win

England lost three top-order wickets before the close as India surged towards victory in the second Test after their captain Shubman Gill’s run-fest continued at Edgbaston.

Faced with the choice of batting for a draw or going after a chase of a near-impossible 608, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett and Joe Root all fell to leave the hosts 72-3 at the end of day four.

Crawley played a wild drive in the second over to be caught for a duck and Duckett hit five boundaries before being bowled by Akash Deep for a 15-ball 25.

The electric Deep, who has thrilled with the new-ball in his first Test in England, then struck the crucial blow by sensationally bowling Root for six.

England had been kept in the field until 90 minutes before the finish as Gill followed his epic 269 in the first innings with a dismissive 161 which allowed India to declare on 427-6.

He is the first player to record scores in excess of 250 and 150 in the same Test while his overall haul of 430 this week is the second-highest in Test history.

England, meanwhile, have an intriguing day ahead. That they do not play for draws has been one of the pillars of their cricket under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.

But now, for the first time under this regime, they are faced with a situation where a successful chase is almost certainly out of the question.

They have made 378, 373, 299, 296, 279 in the fourth innings to win under Stokes but the highest chase in Test history is 418.

That leaves the draw as their most likely way of preserving their series lead going to Lord’s next week.

Gill’s declaration came later than it could have – perhaps fearing England’s ability to chase – but the tourists have still left themselves the option of the new ball after tea on day four.

While that weapon allowed Deep to find significant movement late on, when the ball has gone soft batting has looked far easier.

It had looked like Crawley was going to be more circumspect when he played three leaves through the first over, which was a maiden.

In the next, he slashed at a wide ball from Mohammed Siraj and was caught at backward point.

Duckett hit his first two deliveries for four and slashed two more boundaries on the cut. He was well beaten by the ball from Deep, which nipped in to flick the inside edge before rattling the stumps.

If that delivery was good, his to dismiss Root was great.

From wide on the crease, he angled the ball in and found movement away to beat the bat of the Yorkshireman who was turned around in his stance.

Ollie Pope ended the day 24 not out, again looking far more edgy than last week in Leeds when he began the series with a century. Harry Brook, who scored 158 in the first innings, is alongside him on 15 not out.

India’s lead was 244 when play resumed under cloudy skies with the floodlights on. Brydon Carse began with a good spell and, having seen one edge fly through the slips, eventually nicked off Karun Nair for 26.

But that only brought in Gill, who is in the form of his life.

Admittedly England were tired and the situation free of any pressure after he got himself in, but he batted in similarly controlled fashion to his epic 269 in the first innings.

When KL Rahul had his middle stump uprooted by Josh Tongue, Gill was joined by Pant who played extraordinary scoops and cuts with the ball, and his bat, flying to all parts.

Crawley dropped Pant when the left-hander drilled to mid-on on 11 but it may not have mattered. India were already 321 ahead.

On 31 he swung so hard the bat flew from his hand. The same happened on 65 and, while the bat landed at mid-wicket, the ball ended up in the hands of long-off.

Throughout it all, Gill remained serene, adding a further 175 with Jadeja. He hardly offered a chance, reached his third hundred of the tour in 129 deliveries and his 150 by hitting a towering leg-side six.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan: “If you want to win the big series against the likes of India at home in five matches and you want to go to Australia, I think it’s impossible to have a mindset that we just win, that’s all we go for. We don’t play for draws.

“A draw for England from this position, it’s almost better than last week’s win because it’s completely against their natural instinct. “

Ex-England bowler Steven Finn: “England have been thoroughly outplayed by India outside of that partnership [between Harry Brook and Jamie Smith] where the wicket did go flat.