News is not available yet.
Borussia Dortmund lifted the Emirates Cup after an impressive victory over Premier League champions Arsenal, drawing praise from Niko Kovac. The post ‘We played beautifully’ – Kovac sees Arsenal win as a sign of progress for Dortmund appeared first on SoccerNews.
Niko Kovac masterminded Borussia Dortmund’s 3-2 win over Arsenal (Credits: Sportimage) Borussia Dortmund head coach Niko Kovac offered one struggling Arsenal star a surprising vote of confidence following Sunday’s 3-2 win. Mikel Arteta’s side slumped to a second consecutive pre-season defeat, this time in front of their own fans at Emirates Stadium. Although he got on the scoresheet with a second half penalty, it was another disappointing afternoon for Viktor Gyokeres. The Sweden international looked well off the pace against Real Betis last week in his first outing since his World Cup exploits against Sweden and was again the focus of much criticism in the aftermath of yesterday’s reversal. Get the latest transfer news every morning Sign up to our daily football newsletter for personalised updates on who your team is trying to sign and who won't be around next season. Despite another poor showing, Kovac singled out the former Sporting Lisbon star for surprise praise when asked if any Arsenal players caught his eye. He said: ‘There are a lot of top players when you see Gyokeres he is strong, he is quick, he is fast he is very direct. ‘We know him very well but I can mention all the players.’ Viktor Gyokeres struggled in Arsenal’s defeat against Borussia Dortmund (Credits: Alamy Live News.) Arteta, meanwhile, has backed ‘warrior’ Bruno Guimaraes to ‘ignite something different’ in the Premier League champions. Brazil midfielder Guimaraes was introduced to Gunners fans ahead of Sunday’s 3-2 defeat after completing his £75million move from Newcastle. The 28-year-old, who has signed a four-year deal, bolsters a star-studded midfield which already boasts the likes of Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, Martin Zubimendi and Eberechi Eze. Bruno Guimaraes was unveiled ahead of the game against Dortmund (Credits: Alamy Live News.) ‘You can see the immediate reaction,” Arteta told the club website after Guimaraes was given a warm reception by supporters. ‘I think he describes himself as a warrior. I think he’s a warrior with a tremendous quality as well and intuition and leadership and charisma that is going to help us, that is going to really ignite something different in the team. ‘I think he’s going to push everybody inside the team as well and that’s the type of player that we need.’ Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
Mexico are entering the final stretch of their preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and will face Ghana in an international friendly. This Friday, Mexico will play another international friendly as they continue building match fitness ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where they will serve as one of the three host nations. Their opponent will be Ghana at Estadio Cuauhtemoc in Puebla. [Watch Mexico vs Ghana live in the US on Fubo] For head coach Javier Aguirre, the match represents another opportunity to evaluate his players and gather enough information before selecting the final 26-man roster. FIFA set June 1 as the deadline for all participating nations to submit their squads. That means Mexico will have one more friendly, in addition to this match against Ghana, before Aguirre must finalize the squad. On Saturday, May 30, they will face Australia at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Then, with the 26-player roster already confirmed, they will play one final warmup match against Serbia on June 4. After that, Mexico will have just one week left to prepare for their World Cup opener. On June 11, they will play in the opening match of the tournament at Estadio Azteca against South Africa in Group A, which also includes the Czech Republic and South Korea. Javier Aguirre, Head Coach of Mexico. Projected Mexico lineup vs Ghana Javier Aguirre will not have all of his players available this Friday, considering that several of Mexico’s top stars who play abroad are still committed to their club schedules. That is the case for Raul Jimenez at Fulham, who will play their final Premier League match of the season this Sunday against Newcastle. Given that situation, the projected XI to face Ghana is: Raul Rangel; Jorge Sanchez, Israel Reyes, Alejandro Gomez, Jesus Gallardo; Edson Alvarez, Brian Gutierrez, Gilberto Mora; Alexis Vega, Roberto Alvarado, Armando Gonzalez. Projected Ghana lineup For Ghana, the match against Mexico is also a valuable test ahead of the World Cup. Their challenge will be advancing out of Group L, which they share with England, Croatia and Panama. The latter will be their opponent in the opener on June 17 at BMO Field in Toronto. Head coach Carlos Queiroz’s projected XI to face Mexico this Friday is: Benjamin Asare; Dacosta Antwi, Nathaniel Adjei, Terry Yegbe, Jan Kwasi Gyamerah; Majeed Ashimeru, Salim Adams, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, Aziz Issah, Ibrahim Osman, Felix Afena-Gyan.
Tap a headline to view metadata and excerpt fields in Sportra, then use the article website button to continue on the original publisher page.
