Bochum II · U19 Bundesliga · Midfielder · #0 · Germany · 24 yrs
There was nothing too complicated about the Bournemouth man’s performance but he took the fight to Haiti in a historic World Cup winThe game was about 15 minutes in and a familiar script appeared to be taking shape. After an initial flurry, Scotland were under the pump, struggling to deal with the intensity and physicality of a determined Haiti team. Passes were going astray and tackles were being missed. It seemed only a matter of time before calamity became manifest, but there was one route of escape, summarised eloquently by a cry from the crowd: “Hit it long for the wee man!”Ben Gannon-Doak, the wee man in question, did what was required of him. The balls did indeed start going long to the Bournemouth winger and, when they did, he took the fight to the opposition. In the 17th minute he surged to the byline to square the ball for a Scott McTominay effort that came back off a post. Twelve minutes later, after great hold up play from Ché Adams, he again went deep, then nipped past the full-back Martin Expérience to tee up Adams for a shot that was parried away from close range. The loose ball came to John McGinn, and a deflected effort from Scotland’s No 7 found the back of the net to ultimately decide the outcome of the match. Continue reading...
Houston is a host city but those gathered there for a GOP convention are far more concerned with contentious politics – and an elephantGreg Abbott, the governor of Texas, has just finished a 25-minute address and most of the hits have been played. The radical Democrats must be destroyed in November’s midterms; an Austin-style woke agenda should be avoided at all costs; it is essential the Lone Star State remains the most conservative in the US. He has provided ample fodder for about 5,000 delegates but, as the applause subsides, they have a more weighty subject matter to absorb.There is an elephant in the room. A real live elephant in the form of Paige, who is wearing a white cloak bearing the slogan “Unity drives victory”. It has long been an in-joke at the Texas Republican party convention that, one day, a pachydermal visitor might drop in; the animal has been a symbol of the GOP for 150 years. Now, at the George R Brown Convention Center on Friday afternoon, the fantasy has been made flesh. To intakes of breath, Paige is led up the vast conference hall’s central aisle, taking a break halfway up. The exit is 100 metres away but will have to wait; unfortunately for those who have rushed to marvel at her, it turns out Paige needs to urinate. Continue reading...
Alex: I like Rohl but if his heart isn't in the Rangers job then he should leave because we want people at our club who are committed. James: Rohl can go if he wants, we were very poor when it really mattered last season and it was unforgivable how he treated James Tavernier on a dead rubber game.
Platini among former players to accuse captain of creating distraction as Deschamps defends captain’s right to speak“If there’s one wish I have, it’s for you to ask my players about the opponents, about football,” Didier Deschamps told journalists after announcing France’s World Cup squad. “I understand that you might feel obliged to ask other questions, but they’re not there to answer them.”Deschamps has found himself batting away questions about off-pitch matters beyond his scope before his final tournament as head coach. He has sought to protect his players from media scrutiny while insisting they are anything but sheltered from the wider political issues surrounding this tournament. Continue reading...
National League sides write to FA as backlash intensifiesPlans viewed as ‘a disaster waiting to happen’An alliance of 52 Women’s National League clubs who oppose plans for Women’s Super League’s academy sides to be added to the third tier of the English pyramid have written to the Football Association to call for a vote on the matter.The clubs, which represent a more than two-thirds majority of the 72 FAWNL clubs that compete in tiers three and four of the pyramid, believe the competition’s rules dictate that they are entitled to call for a special general meeting about the proposals. Continue reading...
