Category Sports News

After suffering a shock defeat against Al-Hilal in the last 16 of the United States, Manchester City are returning from the Club World Cup.

The squad will return to Manchester on Tuesday night, abruptly bringing a tournament that had promised so much but ended up with a stunning upset.

We have traveled extensively together and are in good health. Manager Pep Guardiola told BBC Sport, “The vibe was really good.

However, we leave and head home, so we can now unwind and recharge.

Their Club World Cup hopes were shattered on Monday night, but City’s Florida base’s sunny climate gave the impression that the team had been so disappointing this season.

All of the new signings had a significant impact on the tournament, and Tijjani Reijnders, a Dutchman, will certainly bring much-needed enthusiasm and enthusiasm to the midfield.

There are significant issues at the other end of the pitch, but France international Rayan Cherki made a brilliant assist in the group stages against Al-Hilal.

Although Algerian full-back Rayan Ait-Nouri has been criticized for his defensive prowess, there are doubts about his ability to defend the country after being occasionally criticized against the Saudis.

Although City managed to squander it in the group stages, the square peg in a round hole was glaringly obvious once faced with respectable opposition.

Before the tournament, sources had not excluded the possibility of the club making a move for a new right-back, so it’s still to be seen if one is made.

Guardiola also needs to address the defense’s lack of pace, with the two central defenders appearing particularly slow when attempting to retake the speedy Al-Hilal forwards.

The Spanish manager has made it clear that he needs to reduce his squad before the new year, and there may be uncertainty about John Stones’ future, who was the only outfield player to miss the trip.

Meanwhile, it’s still to be seen if midfielder Rodri, who was sidelined most of the season, has suffered a setback.

Even though City lost out on extra prize money with their last-16 exit, the Club World Cup has been a lucrative experience for all those involved.

City, who was the only team to win all three of their games, will leave the US with roughly $ 37.8 million in their bank account. They will also earn the most in the group stage.

That includes “sporting and commercial criteria” and a participation fee, which is thought to be around £27.9 million.

If Guardiola’s team had advanced to the quarter-finals, they would have won an additional $9.5 million in prize money, with an additional $58.8 million in prize money if they had triumphed.

One of those transfers has already been paid for by City, who paid £31 million for Wolves left-back Ait-Nouri and £35 million for Lyon forward Cherki, who scored in their 5-2 victory over Al Ain.

Manchester City’s squad now has a chance to recharge before the new season, if there is any consolation.

City has now won 61 games in a season since Guardiola took over as manager in August, which is their highest total total since then.

In the Conference League from 2024 to 2025, Chelsea had the luxury of fielding significantly different line-ups domestically.

Four of the 15 outfield players currently playing for Premier League clubs have played more than 100 games over the past two seasons, including four from Manchester City, who have a smaller squad.

They are new signing Tijjani Reijnders (107), Ilkay Gundogan (105), Phil Foden (102) and Bernardo Silva (101).

Additionally, that quartet continued to play international football with the exception of Gundogan, who was a regular starter for their country at Euro 2024.

A season that began 325 days ago, with the Community Shield against Manchester United on August, came to an end with Al-Hilal’s defeat.

City’s lowest total since 2008-09, with 17 losses overall, which is at least five more than in any other season since Guardiola’s appointment.

City’s 131 goals were scored in 61 games, but their Club World Cup exit defensive errors have grown more frequent.

Before returning to the club to begin the pre-season, City players will take a four-week break before returning.

After three weeks in the USA, it will be interesting to see what plans are put in place for friendly competitions before the new campaign.

Will City Football Academy play domestic games against it to maintain its lightness? Could they make a quick trip to Europe?

After suffering a shock defeat against Al-Hilal in the last 16 of the United States, Manchester City are returning from the Club World Cup.

The squad will return to Manchester on Tuesday night, abruptly bringing a tournament that had promised so much but ended up with a stunning upset.

We have traveled extensively together and are in good health. Manager Pep Guardiola told BBC Sport, “The vibe was really good.

However, we leave and head home, so we can now unwind and recharge.

Their Club World Cup hopes were shattered on Monday night, but City’s Florida base’s sunny climate gave the impression that the team had been so disappointing this season.

All of the new signings had a significant impact on the tournament, and Tijjani Reijnders, a Dutchman, will certainly bring much-needed enthusiasm and enthusiasm to the midfield.

There are significant issues at the other end of the pitch, but France international Rayan Cherki made a brilliant assist in the group stages against Al-Hilal.

Although Algerian full-back Rayan Ait-Nouri has been criticized for his defensive prowess, there are doubts about his ability to defend the country after being occasionally criticized against the Saudis.

Although City managed to squander it in the group stages, the square peg in a round hole was glaringly obvious once faced with respectable opposition.

Before the tournament, sources had not excluded the possibility of the club making a move for a new right-back, so it’s still to be seen if one is made.

Guardiola also needs to address the defense’s lack of pace, with the two central defenders appearing particularly slow when attempting to retake the speedy Al-Hilal forwards.

The Spanish manager has made it clear that he needs to reduce his squad before the new year, and there may be uncertainty about John Stones’ future, who was the only outfield player to miss the trip.

Meanwhile, it’s still to be seen if midfielder Rodri, who was sidelined most of the season, has suffered a setback.

Even though City lost out on extra prize money with their last-16 exit, the Club World Cup has been a lucrative experience for all those involved.

City, who was the only team to win all three of their games, will leave the US with roughly $ 37.8 million in their bank account. They will also earn the most in the group stage.

That includes “sporting and commercial criteria” and a participation fee, which is thought to be around £27.9 million.

If Guardiola’s team had advanced to the quarter-finals, they would have won an additional $9.5 million in prize money, with an additional $58.8 million in prize money if they had triumphed.

One of those transfers has already been paid for by City, who paid £31 million for Wolves left-back Ait-Nouri and £35 million for Lyon forward Cherki, who scored in their 5-2 victory over Al Ain.

Manchester City’s squad now has a chance to recharge before the new season, if there is any consolation.

City has now won 61 games in a season since Guardiola took over as manager in August, which is their highest total total since then.

In the Conference League from 2024 to 2025, Chelsea had the luxury of fielding significantly different line-ups domestically.

Four of the 15 outfield players currently playing for Premier League clubs have played more than 100 games over the past two seasons, including four from Manchester City, who have a smaller squad.

They are new signing Tijjani Reijnders (107), Ilkay Gundogan (105), Phil Foden (102) and Bernardo Silva (101).

Additionally, that quartet continued to play international football with the exception of Gundogan, who was a regular starter for their country at Euro 2024.

A season that began 325 days ago, with the Community Shield against Manchester United on August, came to an end with Al-Hilal’s defeat.

City’s lowest total since 2008-09, with 17 losses overall, which is at least five more than in any other season since Guardiola’s appointment.

City’s 131 goals were scored in 61 games, but their Club World Cup exit defensive errors have grown more frequent.

Before returning to the club to begin the pre-season, City players will take a four-week break before returning.

After three weeks in the USA, it will be interesting to see what plans are put in place for friendly competitions before the new campaign.

Will City Football Academy play domestic games against it to maintain its lightness? Could they make a quick trip to Europe?

Wimbledon 2025

Dates: 30 June-13 July Venue: All England Club

Defending Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova avoided a first-round upset with a hard-fought victory over promising youngster Alexandra Eala.

The Czech had been an injury doubt coming into the tournament but showed her experience to begin her title defence with a 3-6 6-2 6-1 win on Centre Court.

Krejcikova beat Italian Jasmine Paolini in last year’s final to lift the trophy but has been hampered by injury problems this year.

She endured a lengthy lay-off with a back injury, then had to pull out of Eastbourne last week because of a thigh injury.

Seventeenth seed Krejcikova’s preparations for the tournament were not dissimilar last year, when she arrived at the All England Club having played just nine matches and struggling with injury.

Returning to the site of her emotional triumph by opening Tuesday’s play on Centre Court, Krejcikova looked somewhat out of sorts in the opening set against an in-form opponent.

Eala memorably stunned Iga Swiatek at the Miami Open in March, then made more history by becoming the first Filipina to reach the final of a WTA Tour event at Eastbourne last week, where she lost to Australian teenager Maya Joint.

That has catapulted her to 56th in the rankings, and all of that talent was on display on day two at the Championships.

The pair traded breaks early on as Krejcikova’s exquisite lob to take Eala’s serve was cancelled out by a double fault to put the match back on serve.

Mistakes from the reigning champion and an impressive range of shots from Eala secured a second break, and this time Krejcikova could not convert her break-back opportunity, missing the forehand on break point.

She seemed to be struggling on serve, uncomfortable with her ball toss and hit five double faults in the first set – perhaps an indication she is still battling that back injury.

After a lengthy game at 5-2 where Krejcikova saved a set point, Eala held her nerve to brilliantly serve out the set.

Krejcikova came back in the second set and, while she still looked uncomfortable on serve – frequently redoing her ball toss – she motored to a 5-0 lead.

Looking somewhat disappointed and desperate to avoid a second-set bagel, Eala rallied to hold her serve, then overturned one of the breaks, but could not prevent Krejcikova levelling the match.

A more comfortable third set followed as Krejcikova tidied up the errors and finally showed her emotion as she put herself on the brink of victory by securing the double break for 5-1, letting out a roar after her passing winner.

Wales striker Elise Hughes says the worry of missing out on Euro 2025 kept her motivated during the “bad times”, as she recovered from anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery.

The 24-year-old Crystal Palace striker returned to action in February after missing nine months of football following the knee injury.

Wales cap centurion Sophie Ingle has also returned to the squad after suffering the same injury, while goalkeeper Laura O’Sullivan, defender Mayzee Davies and midfielder Megan Wynne have all been ruled out of the tournament in Switzerland after ACL surgery.

World governing body Fifa is funding research into whether hormonal fluctuations during menstrual cycles could be contributing to the rise in ACL injuries in women’s football.

The year-long study at Kingston University London began in June.

Research suggests female footballers are two to six times more likely to suffer the injuries than their male counterparts.

Hughes had just sealed promotion with Palace when she suffered her ACL injury, but attention quickly turned to Wales.

“Obviously the injury at the time was really bad. It came in a season for me that I thought I did really well in,” Hughes told BBC Sport Wales.

“I returned in February already knowing that the girls had qualified for us, and so then it was just an added motivation to be back and to be better and to be ready for the stage this summer.

“I was out for nine months. I fought every day to try and make it shorter but that’s just not safe. “

Hughes says the road to recovery from an ACL injury is tougher than people realise, but she found the hardest thing was not being able to immediately return to play at the same standard.

“Obviously, at the start, you strip it right back to obviously learning to walk again, and you just never think that’s going to be you,” she said.

“You obviously know that an ACL injury plagues the women’s game in particular, but you just never think it’s going to be you until it’s you.

“But I feel like I didn’t really understand it, I didn’t really accept it until like three or four months in.

“Everyone is different. For me the hardest part for me was returning because I didn’t return the same as when I left. And that was hard for me because I just thought I was going to come back in and be fit and firing, but I had just spent the best part of a season out of the game.

Hughes says she made it a priority to try and help her international team-mate when she suffered the same injury during pre-season in 2024.

Ingle’s timeline always meant she would be touch and go to be fit for Euro 2025 and although she has been named in Wales’ squad, the former Chelsea midfielder has not played a competitive game in more than a year.

“It was the first time I was more experienced than Soph at something, because I was obviously a few months ahead,” Hughes said.

“I just said to her, like, listen, it’s obviously awful.

“I reached out to Soph at the start, like once a week. She probably thought I was annoying at times! And then after that every month, just to make sure that she was feeling good, and you know that she was feeling positive, because sometimes you can slip away from the positivity.

Now fully fit, Hughes says she is desperate to make her mark in Wales’ first major tournament experience.

Rhian Wilkinson’s side have been drawn in a daunting group with England, France and the Netherlands, but Hughes says the Wales squad are already feeling at home in Switzerland and are ready to compete.

“It’s really surreal to be here. We got here. The staff that came out the week before we were here have made it a home away from Wales. Where we are, in particular, is very Welsh scenery, so we feel right at home already,” she added.

“Honestly, walking in is just everything we’ve ever wanted. And now that we’re here, we’re ready to go. We’re really excited.

“Being at a major tournament is amazing. It’s honestly once in a lifetime and you can just tell as soon as we got here, it was a real pinch-me moment.

Wimbledon 2025

Venue: All England Club Dates: 30 June-13 July

World number one Jannik Sinner cruised into the second round at Wimbledon with a dominant straight-set win over fellow Italian Luca Nardi.

Contesting his first Grand Slam match since losing one of the all-time great French Open finals to Carlos Alcaraz last month, the top seed lost just seven games as he dismissed 95th-ranked Nardi.

The 23-year-old, a three-time major winner, comprehensively outclassed his opponent in a 6-4 6-3 6-0 victory on Court One.

After completing an efficient victory in one hour and 48 minutes on the UK’s hottest day of the year, Sinner will face Australian Aleksandar Vukic next.

“New tournament, new chances, new challenges,” Sinner said, reflecting on his French Open loss.

“You have one opponent at a time, so obviously I try to keep going and enjoy playing here.

Nardi, 21, offered resistance in the first set and managed to escape the first five break points he faced.

But it was not long before Sinner asserted himself.

Eventually taking his seventh opportunity to clinch the breakthrough and capture the first set, Sinner carried that momentum into the second as he raced into a 3-0 lead.

The gulf between the players became increasingly apparent as the match wore on, with Nardi unable to live with Sinner’s devastating combination of pace, power and precision hitting.

While the second set lasted less than 40 minutes, the third barely stretched beyond 20 as Sinner sealed victory with a third-set whitewash.

Sinner ended the match with 28 winners compared with just 17 unforced errors as he demonstrated why he has reached at least the quarter-finals at Wimbledon for the past three years.

This performance was achieved despite his only pre-Wimbledon grass-court tournament at the Halle Open being cut short by a surprise second-round loss to Alexander Bublik.

Also in the men’s draw, Italian seventh seed Lorenzo Musetti suffered a surprise first-round loss to qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili, of Georgia.

Musetti, a Wimbledon semi-finalist last year, was beaten 6-2 4-6 7-5 6-1 on court two.

He becomes the third top-10 seed to fall at the All England Club, after Danish eighth seed Holger Rune and Russian ninth seed Daniil Medvedev both exited the tournament on Monday.

American fifth seed Taylor Fritz returned to complete a five-set comeback victory after his match against Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard was suspended late on Monday.

Arsenal have completed the £5m signing of goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga from Chelsea.

Spain international Kepa joins the Gunners on a three-year deal after spending last term on loan at Bournemouth, where he made 35 appearances in all competitions.

“I’m really, really happy to be here, really excited and looking forward to what is coming,” he said.

“The ambition that is shown in this club, when I talk with Mikel [Arteta] and Inaki [Cana], how much they show me their desire to win… I think we are so close to winning and, hopefully, altogether, we can achieve it. “

The 30-year-old is still the world’s most expensive goalkeeper, having moved to the Blues in 2018 from boyhood club Athletic Bilbao for £71m.

His arrival at the Emirates will provide competition for his compatriot David Raya.

Neto was on loan at Arsenal from the Cherries during the 2024-25 campaign but they elected not to sign the Brazilian on a permanent basis.

Kepa played 163 times for Chelsea and was in the squads that lifted the Champions League, Europa League and Club World Cup.

Kepa was a victim of his £71m price tag at Chelsea.

He was deemed the best possible option when Thibaut Courtois forced his exit from the Blues in 2018 and Alisson turned down Chelsea to join Liverpool.

Athletic Club then forced the Blues to pay Kepa’s full release clause.

After his wobble early in his Chelsea career, Kepa quickly proved he was not worth either the fee nor his previous £190,000-a-week wages.

However, he was still highly respected behind the scenes. He was rated as a top professional, a good squad member and a positive character – despite his strange episode in refusing to be substituted in the Carabao Cup final in 2019.