Category Sports News

Manchester City signed five new players this summer for less than £150m, but Pep Guardiola’s biggest signing did not cost any of that, and he won’t play any football either.

The second-most significant player from Jurgen Klopp’s time, Liverpool, became Guardiola’s right-hand man at Manchester City in early June.

Really, it should have been a bigger story because Guardiola is considering undergoing a significant tactical overhaul with the addition of Pep Lijnders, who is credited with providing the majority of Klopp’s day-to-day training and a significant portion of the German’s tactical evolution post-Borussia Dortmund.

What’s even more impressive is that those tactical adjustments were made with the significant input of a coach who collaborated with Klopp on concepts like counter-pressing and attacking in vertical lines and on ideas that served as Guardiola’s renowned positional play.

Mind, that contrast is frequently overstated. Both Guardiola and Klopp borrowed from one another, and their combined victories at Liverpool and Man City almost seem to converge into one perfect fusion of Guardiola’s dynamism and control.

Guardiola used Klopp’s ideas to adapt to the rough-and-tumble of Premier League life, while Klopp’s “heavy metal” football was tempered by an appreciation of territorial dominance.

Lijnders, like Klopp, is much more concerned with the opportunities that arise when the ball changes hands and the aggressive, high-voltage attacking football than Guardiola.

Guardiola’s territorial suffocation used to sever inferior opponents, but as middle-class teams improved, those who were brave enough to press hard and disrupt the build-up play began to reap rewards.

They literally pushed back until the division was flooded with transitions made in the most effective way, and Guardiola struggled to keep things in check with their slow passing and rigid positioning.

Pep Guardiola once told TNT Sports, “Today, modern football is the way Bournemouth, Newcastle, Brighton, and Liverpool play.” Football in the modern era is not positional. You must follow the rhythm.

That’s a big statement from a man whose tactical philosophy of “positional play” has pretty much defined the sport’s past 15 years, but it’s accurate.

Guardiola was already beginning to experiment with a subtly more direct style of play when he made those remarks about contemporary football.

When City’s possession rate was compared to that of their 2023-24 and 24-25 campaigns, the total number of fast breaks increased by 36%, while City’s possession share decreased from 65.5% to 61.3%.

More notable was Ederson’s use of long balls to obstruct the opposition’s high press and the January signing of Omar Marmoush’s direct dribbling through the lines.

According to what people, Marmoush was Man City 2.0’s first signing, the rebuild that will move Guardiola, Lijnders, and City in a more Klopp-like direction. Since then, more players have followed that type.

Both signings, like Marmoush, point to more passing triangles and more neatly choreographed passing triangles due to the arrivals of Rayan Cherki and Tijjani Reijnders from Lyon and AC Milan, respectively.

To put it another way, Cherki, Reijnders, and Marmoush are the players who like to ride the rhythm.

Because Guardiola has largely deployed central midfielders or centre-backs in the full-back positions over the past two seasons, an obvious nod to control, order, and discipline, the signing of Rayan Ait-Nouri also makes an allusion to Klopp-esque or Lijnders-esque football.

One of Europe’s most vicious fullbacks is Ait-Nouri. He placed second in the Premier League last season (63) and sixth in full-backs for progressive carries (89), which is comparable to the other three 2025 signings we have discussed.

He also placed among the top three defenders in terms of touches in the opposition box (96) and expected assists (5.5%), which was even more impressive.

Ait-Nouri’s arrival indicates that Guardiola has given up on bringing midfielders into the team and is allowing for more urgent, vertical football.

Manchester City fans can stop worrying about their team’s slow, passive football in favor of a dynamic attacking pair like Ait-Nouri and Jeremy Doku working together on the left or how Marmoush and Cherki will fit into the same attacking midfield space.

Before the 2025-26 Premier League campaign kicks off, they will undoubtedly have more questions than answers because the majority of their newcomers, both on and off the pitch, don’t typically fit the Pep mold.

Manchester City signed five new players this summer for less than £150m, but Pep Guardiola’s biggest signing did not cost any of that, and he won’t play any football either.

The second-most significant coach of Jurgen Klopp’s time, Liverpool, became Guardiola’s right-hand man at Manchester City in early June.

Really, it should have been a bigger story because Guardiola is considering undergoing a significant tactical overhaul with the addition of Pep Lijnders, who is credited with providing the majority of Klopp’s day-to-day training and a significant portion of the German’s tactical evolution post-Borussia Dortmund.

What’s even more impressive is that those tactical adjustments were made with the significant input of a coach who collaborated with Klopp on concepts like counter-pressing and attacking in vertical lines and on ideas that served as Guardiola’s renowned positional play.

Mind, that contrast is frequently overstated. Both Guardiola and Klopp borrowed from one another, and their combined victories at Liverpool and Man City almost seem to converge into one perfect fusion of Guardiola’s dynamism and control.

Guardiola used Klopp’s ideas to adapt to the rough-and-tumble of Premier League life, while Klopp’s “heavy metal” football was tempered by an appreciation of territorial dominance.

Lijnders, like Klopp, is much more concerned with the opportunities that arise when the ball changes hands and the aggressive, high-voltage attacking football than Guardiola.

Guardiola’s territorial suffocation used to sever inferior opponents, but as middle-class teams improved, those who were brave enough to press hard and disrupt the build-up play began to reap rewards.

They literally pushed back until the division was flooded with transitions made in the most effective way, and Guardiola struggled to keep things in check with their slow passing and rigid positioning.

Pep Guardiola once told TNT Sports, “Today, modern football is the way Bournemouth, Newcastle, Brighton, and Liverpool play.” Football in the modern era is not positional. You must follow the rhythm.

That’s a big statement from a man whose tactical philosophy of “positional play” has pretty much defined the sport’s past 15 years, but it’s accurate.

Guardiola was already beginning to experiment with a subtly more direct style of play when he made those remarks about contemporary football.

When City’s possession rate was compared to that of their 2023-24 and 24-25 campaigns, the total number of fast breaks increased by 36%, while City’s possession share decreased from 65.5% to 61.3%.

More notable was Ederson’s use of long balls to obstruct the opposition’s high press and the January signing of Omar Marmoush’s direct dribbling through the lines.

According to what people, Marmoush was Man City 2.0’s first signing, the rebuild that will move Guardiola, Lijnders, and City in a more Klopp-like direction. Since then, more players have followed that type.

Both signings, like Marmoush, point to more passing triangles and more neatly choreographed passing triangles due to the arrivals of Rayan Cherki and Tijjani Reijnders from Lyon and AC Milan, respectively.

To put it another way, Cherki, Reijnders, and Marmoush are the players who like to ride the rhythm.

Because Guardiola has largely deployed central midfielders or centre-backs in the full-back positions over the past two seasons, an obvious nod to control, order, and discipline, the signing of Rayan Ait-Nouri also makes an allusion to Klopp-esque or Lijnders-esque football.

One of Europe’s most vicious fullbacks is Ait-Nouri. He placed second in the Premier League last season (63) and sixth in full-backs for progressive carries (89), which is comparable to the other three 2025 signings we have discussed.

He also placed among the top three defenders in terms of touches in the opposition box (96) and expected assists (5.5%), which was even more impressive.

Ait-Nouri’s arrival indicates that Guardiola has given up on bringing midfielders into the team and is allowing for more urgent, vertical football.

Manchester City fans can stop worrying about their team’s slow, passive football in favor of a dynamic attacking pair like Ait-Nouri and Jeremy Doku working together on the left or how Marmoush and Cherki will fit into the same attacking midfield space.

Before the 2025-26 Premier League campaign kicks off, they will undoubtedly have more questions than answers because the majority of their newcomers, both on and off the pitch, don’t typically fit the Pep mold.

Wyndham Championship – final leaderboard

-22 Young (US), -16 Meissner (US), -15 Noren (Swe), Hubbard (US), -14 Rai (Eng), Koivun (US), Kirk (US).

Selected others: -13 Fitzpatrick (Eng), -11 Hall (Eng), -8 Wallace (Eng)

The first PGA title of his career was won by American Cameron Young, who won by six shots at the Wyndham Championship.

The 28-year-old, who has seven previous runner-up finishes on the tour at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina, shot a two-under-par 68 in the final round.

Sweden’s Alex Noren came third, one stroke further back, while compatriot Mac Meissner came second.

“I never really believed I would feel that way.” Today, I decided not to let it get away from me.

After the third round, Young, who had a lead by five shots, birdied the next five holes and had the opportunity to shoot the 16th and 17th, both by birdie.

He is the PGA Tour winner for the thousandth time.

Young expressed his desire to compete in the Ryder Cup against Europe in September in New York.

Many of us have a goal of supporting that team, he said.

The final event of the regular season for the PGA Tour is the Wyndham Championship.

Naomi Osaka defeated Anastasija Sevastova to reach the Canadian Open quarter-finals in Montreal, losing just one game.

The 35-year-old Latvian, who had defeated defending champion Jessica Pegula in the previous round, defeated the four-time Grand Slam champion in the final round of just 49 minutes to claim a 6-1, 6-0 victory.

Osaka, a Japanese Open champion who has won both the US and Australian Opens, is aiming for her first title since taking maternity leave in early 2024.

After less than a year, the 27-year-old parted ways with former Iga Swiatek coach Tomasz Wiktorowski and left with coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

Osaka, who is currently ranked 49 in the world, said, “I had a solid plan coming in here and it just happened to work out pretty well.”

The Australian Open champion will next face Clara Tauson or Swiatek in the final eight after saving two match points from herspirited success.

Australian seventh seed Frances Tiafoe defeated Australian Alex de Minaur 6-2, 4 and 6 to advance to the quarter-finals in Toronto.

De Minaur, who won the Washington Open a week ago, is hoping to do better than he did in 2023.

By one-hundredth of a second, American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson was unable to reach the 200-meter final at the US Track and Field Championships in Oregon.

Madison Whyte, who had already qualified for the final qualifying spot, came in fourth with a time of 22.56 seconds, which is 0.01 more than Madison’s.

As the defending champion, she is denied entry to the 100-meter World Championships in September, but her chances of winning are over.

After being detained over a domestic violence rumor, Richardson, a 100-meter silver medalist at the Paris 2024 Olympics, wraps up a contentious week.

According to a police report, video showed Coleman being shoved into a wall before Richardson threw an object at him.

Following the incident, she was let go on Monday.

Coleman “declined to be a victim” and “did not want to participate in the investigation,” according to the police officer’s report.

After her heat in Eugene, Richardson resisted speaking to the waiting reporters and instead wished them a “blessed day.”

USA Track and Field responded to her arrest by saying it was aware of the reports but would not “comment on this matter.”

World champion Noah Lyles took the lead with a time of 19.63 seconds in the 200-meter men’s final on Sunday, placing Coleman sixth.

After the most difficult weekend of his Ferrari career so far at the Hungarian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton insisted he still “loves” Formula 1.

After qualifying 12th on the grid, Hamilton, the seven-time champion, had declared himself “just useless,” while Charles Leclerc, Ferrari’s first grand prix pole position of the season, took his place on Saturday.

Hamilton finished in the same position on Sunday, while Leclerc, who had fought for the first two-thirds of the race with the race-winning McLarens, lost to fourth place, his car apparently suffering from a problem in the final stint.

Hamilton claimed that after qualifying, he felt “the same.” He continued, “There’s a lot going on in the background that’s not great, so.” He added, “I’m sure there are lessons to be learned from the weekend.”

Hamilton frequently finds himself struggling, and the F1 rumor mill spins into a frenzy as well.

Some people questioned after qualifying whether Hamilton had overridden the hill. At the end of the year, or perhaps even before the season’s end, would he even leave Ferrari?

Hamilton, at least, refrained from saying he would return to the car at the end of August after F1’s summer break, saying he did.

He declared, “I’m looking forward to coming back.” “I’ll be back, yeah”.

Anyone who has heard about Hamilton’s resolve and unwavering resolve knows the answers to the other future questions.

Leclerc’s performance at least gives him some room to grow optimistic in the wake of some improvements to the Ferrari.

There have definitely been some improvements made to the upgrades, Hamilton said. It’s unfortunate that we’re not as competitive as the front-running competitors, but Charles has shown promise in his previous two races.

Hamilton’s situation was given some perspective by team principal Frederic Vasseur.

When your team-mate is in pole position and you are out of Q2, according to Vasseur, “it’s a tough situation.”

Vasseur criticized Ferrari for using a one-stop strategy on a track where overtaking is infamously challenging, and that it “didn’t work” in terms of the race result.

Lewis’ “I can understand your frustration,” he said, “but this is normal and he will come back.”

Vasseur, who played a key role in convincing Hamilton to leave Mercedes and join Ferrari this season, argued that the results in Hungary made his driver’s weekend appear worse than it actually was.

Yes, after the second session, Hamilton was 0.247 seconds slower than Leclerc. However, Leclerc himself had struggled to advance, and Hamilton was only 0.155secs behind his team-mate in the opening session.

After a difficult start to his Ferrari career, Hamilton’s positive momentum has stalled over the past two races.

There hasn’t been much choice between the two drivers since Miami in early May, and Hamilton outqualified Leclerc in three of the four races before Belgium, which came a week before Hungary.

Hamilton appeared uncompetitive when he was anything but due to two different kinds of errors in the qualifying sessions for the sprint and grand prix at Spa.

Hamilton was pace in Belgium, but he lost in the first session of sprint qualifying after an off-start and a spin brought on by a combination of factors involving a new braking material. The same happened when he erred when he evaded the 180-mph+ swerves at Eau Rouge and slightly exceeded the track’s restrictions while qualifying for the grand prix.

Hamilton’s average qualifying deficit to Leclerc is 0.146 seconds this year, even with the issues in Belgium and Hungary and the need to adapt to a new car with very different characteristics at the start of the season.

Hamilton might not expect that from himself, but it should be taken into account when Leclerc is regarded by Ferrari and many other F1 drivers as the fastest driver in the world after a single lap.

Hamilton’s critics criticize his struggles with George Russell during his final year at Mercedes.

The 40-year-old discovered that the ground-effect cars that were introduced into Formula One in 2022 do not fit both his late-braking style and those of the previous generation. And it continues to be a mystery whether or not he has been able to adapt as well as he should have, or perhaps even better than other drivers.

Vasseur, however, refuted any suggestion that Hamilton’s circumstances might concern him.

Hamilton’s former team boss at Mercedes, Toto Wolff, was questioned about his depressing self-assessment.

Lewis allegedly wore his heart on the sleeve, he claimed. He expressed his thoughts on the subject when he was questioned after the session. It was very raw.

He has been that emotionally sensitive since he was a young boy or young adult, and we have it in the past when he felt that his team-mate is on top of his own expectations.

Wolff stated that Hamilton’s general performances were the result of “nobody’s going to take that away.” “He’s the GOAT, and he’ll always be the GOAT.” He must always remember that he is the greatest of all time, something that needs to be repeated.

Lewis’ Formula 1 work has been finished. We’ve never been happy with ground-effect cars, much like Mercedes has since underperformed with this most recent set of regulations since 2022. And it bit him in the same way.

It might be related to driving style. Therefore, he shouldn’t leave. Next year will bring brand-new, entirely new power-units that require an intelligent energy management strategy.

Wolff was pressed to confirm that Hamilton would still be able to capture the elusive eighth title.

He responded, “Yes, if he has a car underneath him that gives him confidence and does what he wants.”

“If he has a car that doesn’t give him the feedback he wants, and that’s the Mercedes from the past few years, and that seems to be the Ferrari, and even worse, then not,” he said.