Category Sports News

International friendly: Liechtenstein v Scotland

Venue: Rheinpark Stadium, Vaduz Date: Monday, 9 June Kick-off: 17:00 BST

A friendly game against one of international football’s smallest nations and worst teams is always a bit of a no-win.

But after Scotland’s painful defeat by Iceland, the friendly away to Liechtenstein is not just a must-win, but must win well for Steve Clarke before September’s World Cup qualifiers.

The Scotland head coach has come under fire since Friday’s 3-1 loss after fielding a strong side – presumably to build some much-needed confidence – only for things to unravel dramatically with goalkeeper Angus Gunn limping off just a few minutes in.

Cieran Slicker’s unfortunate debut as Gunn’s replacement took the headlines, but as Clarke himself has said, there was much more to the disheartening defeat than that.

Losing a home friendly after a long season against a decent Iceland side was not in itself the issue, but rather the grim nature of the performance from a squad that has shown it can be much better.

The wider picture – Scotland have won just six games since the amazing Oslo comeback in June 2023 – also came into sharper focus after another home humbling.

It leaves Clarke and Scotland needing to build positivity, momentum and confidence on the back of one game against the world’s 205th- ranked side.

For context, only five sides are ranked lower than Liechtenstein in the world.

One of those is San Marino, who beat them home and away in the recent Nations League.

The tiny nation, with a population similar to Greenock, only have a handful of professional players.

They played away to Wales on Friday night in World Cup qualification and lost 3-0, failing to fire a shot, or even get a touch in the Welsh box.

After that defeat in Cardiff, the Liechtenstein players were not afforded a chartered plane, but flew home via Amsterdam to Zurich, mixing and mingling with the Tartan Army in the departure gates and stingy economy class seats.

‘Honestly lads, just shoot from anywhere,’ was the gist of some of the patter, a gallows nod to Scotland’s injury crisis in the goalkeeping department.

The Liechtenstein squad were even hauling massive boxes of kit and luggage from the belts themselves and on to trolleys, wheeling it all out of Zurich airport.

A far cry from the elite end of the game.

The excitement from a Scotland point of view has to mean goals – and perhaps some meaningful minutes for some fresh faces.

At his pre-match media conference, Clarke said he would freshen things up.

With winger Ben Doak absent through injury, Scotland’s attacking spark and width was gone against Iceland as they toiled in a back three formation.

Could Clarke go to a back four again? Play with two strikers?

It is a year since a striker last scored for Scotland, so could Middlesbrough’s Tommy Conway, the joint fourth top scorer in the Championship, get a start?

Although Scotland are well stocked in midfield, Motherwell’s Lennon Miller did not look out of place when he came off the bench in the second half.

More impressive minutes from him or Conway, or Kieron Bowie in a good victory might just bring some positive vibes back.

Regardless, it feels like Scotland need their holidays and Clarke might just want to get a much required win and forget about this window, hitting the reset button for the trip to Copenhagen in September.

This head coach and group of players have recovered from poor summers before to reach major finals. The competitive games are what matter.

Beau Webster is on honeymoon. Sort of.

Married to Maddie in April, the newlyweds only had time for a few days away in Tasmania before Australia all-rounder Webster began his stint at Warwickshire. Maddie joined him in Birmingham.

From there it is this week’s World Test Championship final against South Africa at Lord’s, then three Tests in the West Indies. Webster could be back playing in the UK before the season is out. Only then, and before an Ashes summer back home, might the couple fit in a proper break.

The schedule is an indication of how Webster’s life has changed, and how his career accelerated up to and beyond a Test debut in January at the age of 31.

From club cricket in Cheshire and Birmingham, to T20 leagues in Canada and the Cayman Islands, there was a time when Webster thought he would simply “eke out a steady career”.

As a youngster, Webster was a good enough Australian Rules Football player to have considered entering the draft. He was offered terms to become a professional cricketer with Tasmania at 18, then had to wait almost 11 years after his first-class debut to progress to the highest level.

“There was a period when I thought I was stagnating,” he tells BBC Sport.

Webster had thoughts of what life after cricket might look like. His father was once a builder, so Webster dabbled with an apprenticeship “on the tools”. He started and failed to finish university courses in journalism and business, then had more success with mortgage broking. He may do a diploma in the next year or so.

His immediate task is to hold down a place in the Australia team at number six, a role that revealed itself when Webster learnt to use his 6ft 6in frame to become a more than handy seamer.

Previously a batter who had been everywhere from one to eight in the Tasmania order, Webster would send down some part-time off-breaks if needed. From a young age he messed around in the nets attempting to bowl pace, but found the resulting back soreness had a negative impact on his batting.

It was only during the Covid pandemic, when ‘Tassie’ needed a seam-bowling all-rounder, that Webster took it seriously and was helped by renowned pace-bowling coach Adam Griffith.

“It was just lack of technique, feet and arms everywhere,” says Webster. “Unless you get the right run-up, technique and your back and legs are used to it, you can have some soreness.

“I never had a run-up. Until you have a run-up, you do it in the nets and stutter in until you feel like you can hit the crease. You probably bowl at about 50% without a run-up. Once I sorted a run-up with Griffo and was able to focus on the other end, rather than the end where I was landing, it grew from there.”

When Webster was ready to unleash his new skill in the middle, there was the issue of being taken seriously.

“When you bowl off-spin for long enough, then you start coming off the long run, everyone starts looking at it as a bit of a gimmick,” he says.

“I spoke to Usman Khawaja about it. We played Queensland, I got the ball and came off the long run and Uzzy thought, ‘What’s going on here?’

Webster was developing into anything but a gimmick. Like a host of all-rounders, success in one discipline fed the other.

In the 2023-24 season, his 938 runs were by far the most in the Sheffield Shield, supplemented by 30 wickets. Only one other player in Shield history had managed 900 runs and 30 wickets in a single season: the greatest all-rounder of them all, Sir Garfield Sobers.

Webster was getting noticed, but from a recognition point of view, his timing was horrific. Australia have not historically been blessed with seam-bowling all-rounders, but were in a bountiful period with Cameron Green and Mitchell Marsh.

It took a back injury to Green and a dip in form by Marsh for Webster to get his chance in the fifth Test against India at the beginning of this year. His parents, Rod and Tina, were so caught off guard by his selection that they had to make a short-notice trip to Sydney and their plea for a house-sitter in Tasmania hit the headlines.

With the series still alive, he top-scored with 57 out of 181 in the Australia first innings and followed up with an unbeaten 39, including the winning runs, in the second. He also took a wicket and two smart slip catches. In the two Tests that followed in Sri Lanka, Webster dusted down his off-spin to show his versatility.

Green is fit again, albeit only as a specialist batter. Webster is hoping there’s space in the Australian XI for both of them at Lord’s, then in the Caribbean and the Ashes.

“It breeds the best in me when I’m up against guys and competing,” he says. “I’d welcome the challenge. I can only keep scoring runs and taking wickets to keep my place in that XI, but no doubt it will only become harder and harder.”

The marriage to Maddie came after the Sri Lanka tour.

“Coincidentally with the seam-bowling stuff, Maddie came into my life at the same time as my career took off, so she’ll probably claim some credit,” says Webster.

“Everything that goes with being a professional cricketer – there are more bad days than good – she’s my biggest fan.

“I’m sure we’ll do something for a honeymoon. We’ll find a window at some point in the next few months.”

Webster has already ticked off an Australia debut and a wedding. Now there is a World Test Championship final to win and an Ashes urn to retain.

World Cup qualifier: Belgium v Wales

Venue: King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels Date: Monday, 9 June Kick off: 19:45 BST

Kevin de Bruyne once said he was “bored” with facing Wales, such was the regularity of their games against Belgium.

The Manchester City midfielder made the comment in 2022 as Belgium were preparing to take on Wales for the ninth time in 10 years.

Tongue in cheek as the quip perhaps seemed, De Bruyne might have added that these meetings also carry a sense of dread for Belgians.

Despite Belgium’s lofty world ranking and galaxy of stellar talents, at one stage during their decade-long rivalry Wales enjoyed a four-match unbeaten run against their illustrious opponents, including two wins that rank among the greatest in their history.

In 2015, Gareth Bale’s goal secured a seismic European Championship qualifying victory in Cardiff which propelled Wales towards their first major tournament for more than half a century.

Then a year later, at Euro 2016 itself, Belgium – among the pre-tournament favourites – were blown away in Lille as Wales stormed to an historic and euphoric 3-1 quarter-final win which took them to stratospheric new heights.

“For me it was one of the greatest games in Welsh football,” says Joe Ledley, who played in both victories.

“I don’t know what it is, they’re just one of those teams. Wales are a bogey team for Belgium.”

Welsh football had known hope before. Now there was expectation.

Wales had not played at a major tournament since the 1958 World Cup but, with world-class players such as Bale and Aaron Ramsey in their prime, there was growing belief that the wait could soon be over.

And after years of hype and hypotheticals about this golden generation, Wales started their qualifying campaign for Euro 2016 in a manner that suggested, this time, this was real.

Unbeaten in their opening five matches, in June 2015 Wales hosted a Belgian side ranked second in the world – and featuring the likes of Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and De Bruyne – having already held them to a goalless draw in Brussels.

“We were going into that game not expected to win, but we worked so hard,” says Ledley. “You want to play against the best players in the world and, for me, Belgium was that team.

“Fitness levels were all over the place. A few of our players in the Championship and League One were finished three weeks before. You could see the ones who’d been away on a lads’ holiday!”

If preparations were not ideal, Wales hid it well with a ferociously energetic and disciplined display.

Manager Chris Coleman had sprung a surprise with his team selection as he started fringe Swansea City defender Jazz Richards at right-wing-back. Chris Gunter, who usually played there, shifted to the right of a back three for the first time in his international career.

It proved to be an inspired move as together they stifled the threat of that year’s Premier League player of the season, Hazard, on Belgium’s left.

“The whole defensive unit and team, all our roles and responsibilities were really clear. We had trust in whoever was playing in each position,” Gunter recalls.

“The aim before any campaign was to qualify and we always said we needed to start one well and get some momentum, so we had done that. Then it was ‘right, if we’re serious about this, we have to take points off the best team in the group’.

“It had all the ingredients of a really special football night in Wales. It was a Friday night, there was rain, but it was warm and the atmosphere was incredible.”

Wales delivered a performance to match the occasion, as Bale fired past Thibaut Courtois in the first half to send a heaving Cardiff City Stadium into raptures.

Belgium pressed for an equaliser but, inspired by the home crowd’s spellbinding, impromptu rendition of the Welsh national anthem, Wales clung on for a heroic victory.

“The belief after that result, you could feel it, not just with us players, but with the fans as well, and you could sense we were on the verge of qualifying,” says Ledley.

“Fans play a massive part. I think at Cardiff City Stadium that night they carried us over that finish line.”

More than possible, this result made qualification probable.

Even with their team three points clear at the top of the qualifying group, some Wales fans still needed some convincing.

After all, it had been 57 years since Wales had been to a major tournament and that barren period was littered with agonising tales of near misses.

But this time was different.

“There was a real belief inside the changing room and the squad, and maybe for the fans it was more hope and desperation for us to do it,” says Gunter.

“I think definitely after that win, everybody really believed.”

Victory in Cyprus the following September put Wales in touching distance, only for a goalless draw at home to Israel to delay the celebrations.

Once you have waited 57 years, though, a month does not seem so long. Wales finally sealed qualification in Bosnia-Herzegovina when they suffered their only defeat of the campaign, but had their place in France confirmed by Cyprus’ win in Israel.

To be Welsh in France during Euro 2016 was to live a dreamlike existence.

Simply seeing the country play at a major tournament was enough for many. The opening win over Slovakia in Bordeaux was glorious, and the dismantling of Russia in Toulouse brought joy that few thought was possible.

After those group-stage victories and a tense second-round triumph over Northern Ireland, they were reunited with Belgium for a quarter-final in Lille.

“Euro 2016 is still seen as the major opportunity for the golden generation to win a trophy,” says Bart Lagae, a journalist for Belgian newspaper De Standaard.

“They should have gone through and beaten Wales, probably beaten Portugal [the eventual champions]. Most feelings Belgians have about Wales are based on that night in Lille.”

Among the pre-tournament favourites, Belgium thought they were about to rid themselves of their nuisance opponents when Radja Nainggolan put them in front with a stunning long-range strike.

“I think the reason we started a bit slowly is because a lot of us were probably still hungover from the Northern Ireland game,” Ledley jokes.

“Maybe the pressure and the hype got to us. But once we conceded, you could see the pressure release and then we just came out of our shells and absolutely destroyed them.”

Ashley Williams headed Wales level shortly before half-time, haring over to celebrate with his team-mates and coaches on the bench so quickly that he clocked his fastest running speed of the tournament.

This was no fluke, though. Wales missed several chances to take the lead before Hal Robson-Kanu, without a club having been released by Reading, scored a goal to rank among the finest in European Championship history, bamboozling Belgian defenders with a Cruyff turn and finishing with a flourish.

In the 85th minute, Gunter received the ball on the right wing. Manager Chris Coleman was on the opposite touchline, screaming – with some amusingly industrial language, a documentary later revealed – for the wing-back to take the ball to the corner to waste time.

Gunter, a pragmatic defender by nature, could not hear those instructions, and it was just as well because he delivered the cross of his life for Sam Vokes to head in Wales’ third goal.

“For sure, that was my best cross,” Gunter says with a bashful smile. “There weren’t many other good ones!

“It’s funny, even now when you bump into different people from Wales, the more the years go by, the more I’ve heard it [Coleman’s quote].

“He was spot on to tell me not to cross it. If that happened another 100 times, it’s definitely not going on Vokesy’s head. It was just meant to be.”

Since those landmark Welsh wins, the teams have met four times, with two draws in Wales and two wins for Belgium on home soil.

While Belgium have been widely regarded as underachievers during that period, perhaps unfairly when they finished third at the 2018 World Cup, Wales built on their 2016 success by qualifying for the next European Championships as well as their first World Cup for 64 years.

By now, the teams look very different; only a few players remain from their respective golden eras.

Bale and Hazard may no longer be around, but both sides have gradually ushered in a new age.

Belgium still boast a squad of enviable depth and quality, with Manchester City’s Jeremy Doku among the emerging stars of recent years.

Their evolution has been uncomfortable at times, as Friday night’s draw in North Macedonia demonstrated, a result that made it one win in eight games for the Red Devils.

Belgium are six points behind Wales with two games in hand, and Craig Bellamy has made it clear his side will be going all out for victory in Brussels, refusing to sit back and settle for a draw.

“Sometimes when you play a team a lot, it can actually be more challenging because you have a shorter distance of analysis in between matches, and you know each other,” says Luke Benstead, Belgium’s head analyst under previous managers Roberto Martinez and Domenico Tedesco.

“With the introduction of Craig Bellamy, you see they’ve gone to another level, and you can see this is the type of coach that is forward-thinking, wants to be on the front foot.

“Belgium also have huge talent, great young players coming through, and I think no team underestimates each other, no matter how much they play, and it’ll be a great contest with both teams going for it.”

Iffy as their recent form might be, Belgium will still be favourites to win but, as history has shown, that offers no guarantees when they play Wales.

“Most people think Belgium should be able to win the game,” says Lagae. “There’s still a feeling of Wales as a bit of a bogey team, they certainly seem to make us play worse than we should be able to.

A first major final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, the two best players in the world, always promised to deliver.

But even the most optimistic could not have anticipated it would reach the heights it did during a breathtaking five hours and 29 minutes.

The two generational talents played out an instant classic at Roland Garros, in which Spain’s Alcaraz recovered from two sets down – and saved three championship points – to retain his French Open title after a fifth set match tie-break.

Alcaraz is only the third man to win a major final after saving a championship point since the Open era began in 1968.

It was a fifth major triumph for Alcaraz, 22, who has now shared the sport’s past six major titles with Italy’s world number one Sinner, 23.

Sunday’s blockbuster, which broke the record for the longest French Open final in history, was the first Grand Slam men’s final to feature two players born in the 2000s.

For more than two decades the men’s game was dominated by Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

But Djokovic, the only remaining active member of the trio, admitted he could have played his last French Open after his latest bid for a standalone record 25th Grand Slam title was ended by Sinner in the semi-finals.

As the excitement surrounding Alcaraz and Sinner’s rivalry entered the stratosphere in Paris on Sunday, the question of who could rise up and fill the void at the end of the ‘Big Three’ era has been answered.

Seven-time major winner Mats Wilander, who won the previous longest Roland Garros final in 1982, said on TNT Sports: “Federer and Nadal played a couple of good finals, but nothing comes close to this.

“I thought ‘this is not possible – they’re playing at a pace that is not human.’

This was the first meeting in a major final between two familiar foes who have become the standout performers on the ATP Tour.

Italy’s Sinner, who served a three-month doping suspension between February and May, has shown remarkable consistency over the past 20 months, losing just 10 of 121 matches since the Beijing Open in September 2023.

But half of those defeats have come in his past five meetings with Alcaraz. In fact, Sinner has lost just three of his past 50 matches – all to the Spaniard.

“I think every rivalry is different,” said Sinner.

“Back in the days, they played different tennis. Now it’s very physical, but you cannot compare.

“I was lucky enough to play against Novak and Rafa. Beating these guys, it takes a lot.

Alcaraz, who will begin his Wimbledon title defence in just three weeks, now leads the head-to-head with Sinner 8-4.

In becoming the first man to win his first five Grand Slam singles finals in the Open era, Alcaraz ended Sinner’s perfect record in major finals and his pursuit of a third-straight slam.

“Every match I’m playing against him is important,” Alcaraz said.

“This is the first match in a Grand Slam final. Hopefully not the last because every time we face each other, we raise our level to the top.

“If you want to win Grand Slams, you have to beat the best tennis players in the world.”

Alcaraz emulated his childhood hero Rafael Nadal – a record 14-time champion at Roland Garros – by winning his fifth major at the exact same age of 22 years, one month and three days.

Sinner, meanwhile, is the youngest man to reach three consecutive Grand Slam singles finals since 14-time major winner Pete Sampras in 1994.

Such statistics offer a strong indication of the trajectory they both find themselves on.

So, where does their rivalry go from here?

The pair both have titles to defend at the two remaining slams in 2025 – Alcaraz at Wimbledon and Sinner at the US Open.

Alcaraz, who leads Sinner 20-19 in career titles, has reduced Sinner’s lead at the top of the world rankings to 2,030 points.

But the reigning champion has 2,000 points to defend at Wimbledon, compared to just 400 for Sinner after his quarter-final exit last year.

“I’m sure he will learn from this match and come back stronger next time we face each other,” Alcaraz added.

“I’m sure he’s going to do his homework. I’m going to try to learn how I can be better [and] tactically hurt his game.

Revenues for Women’s Super League (WSL) clubs soared by 34% during a record-breaking 2023-24 season, despite a drop in attendances.

The 12 teams in the WSL amassed a combined revenue of £65m, with each club generating more than £1m for the first time.

Analysis from the Deloitte Sports Business Group found revenues grew from £48m in the 2022-23 season to £65m the following campaign.

The increase was driven by growth in commercial revenue, which increased by 53% from the previous season and now accounts for 40% of WSL clubs’ total revenue.

Matchday revenue increased, despite a 10% drop in attendances from the previous year.

The average league attendance dropped to 6,642.

The drop, which followed England reaching the 2023 Women’s World Cup final, contributed to pre-tax losses of £28m – up from £21m in 2022-23.

However, Deloitte is forecasting revenues to top £100m across the league at the end of the 2025-26 campaign, helped by the upcoming Euros in Switzerland,

“Women’s football in England is evolving rapidly,” said Tim Bridge, lead partner in the Deloitte Sports Business Group.

“While challenges remain, it is clear there is potential for a passionate and engaged fanbase to drive the game’s development.

“Capitalising on major international tournaments is important at specific points in time, but sustainable growth hinges on the domestic league’s organic development.”