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The January transfer window hasn't reopened in Europe yet, but there are moves in the works and plenty of gossip swirling around. Transfer Talk brings you all the latest buzz on rumours, comings, goings and, of course, done deals!

Soccer

LIVE Transfer Talk: Liverpool eye Wolfsburg defender Lacroix

Welcome to Onside/Offside! Each week, Luis Miguel Echegaray discusses the latest from the soccer world, including standout performances, games you might have missed, what to keep an eye on in the coming days and of course, certain things that probably deserved extra love and criticism. This week, a personal and professional look at Unai Emery's incredible work with Aston Villa, Lionel Scaloni's uncertainty and why it could be a problem for Argentina in 2024, an MLS Cup to celebrate and much more! Hosting Copa America in the U.S comes with a wonderful conundrum because even though the USMNT is the geographical host, the support for other nations is going to be intoxicating. I witnessed this sentiment at Copa America Centenario in 2016.Mexico, for example, is the most popular team in North America. Miami, the Latin American capital of the world, will have a heavy dose of South and Central American fans, while Lionel Messi has galvanized the community that goes beyond Argentina. So unless you're Mexico in Texas or California, throw "home" advantage out the window.From a matchup perspective, I think Marcelo Bielsa's Uruguay is the last opponent Gregg Berhalter's side needed in its group, and La Celeste -- second in World Cup qualifiers -- are favorites to top it, but that will be America's last game. So really, Panama is the USMNT's most important hurdle to overcome in order to advance as Bolívia, with all due respect, will bow out.The biggest issue for me, however, lies in Group B. Mexico has the support and talent, and it's definitely the favorite on paper, but it has not looked as good as we once remembered it. Ecuador's ongoing project with its tremendously dynamic team will be a problem, as will Venezuela, currently fourth in World Cup qualifiers. Then there's Jamaica, which fought hard to get here; yes, it is least favored to get out of the group, but the talent, which includes Leon Bailey, Demarai Gray, Michail Antonio and Andre Blake, might not be as easy to deal with.As for my Peru, don't even get me started. Not only do we have to face Argentina, but bitter rival Chile is also in the group. If Canada makes it through, then the mountain becomes that much steeper. Never mind the fact that manager Juan Reynoso is on his way out after a disastrous start to World Cup qualifiers that have seen Peru score just one goal and get zero wins after six matches.The Columbus Crew are the original gangsters of MLS. Their former stadium was the first soccer-specific ground built by an MLS club, which set off a benchmark for others to follow. They are the representatives of Ohio soccer culture, which is a major component inside America's soccer fandom. Columbus has always been seen as a "small market club" because it is not a New York or LA, but make no mistake about it, the Crew are a huge reason for the sport's growth in the United States.Columbus is making its fourth MLS Cup appearance after winning it twice before (2008 and 2020) and just like its last title, the team is at home again, which makes the club favored to win on Saturday. This is a statistical advantage, not an opinion, as the only time the visiting team has come out victorious in a final hosted by the team with the better regular-season record was in 2021, when NYCFC defeated Portland Timbers on penalties.But here comes LAFC, the present-day kings of the league, looking to win back-to-back championships for the first time since its neighbors and local rivals LA Galaxy did it in 2011 and 2012. LAFC is a tremendous story, not even 10 years old and already looking like a dynasty in the making. If the West Coast club wins on Saturday, it would be an incredible achievement, especially as more and more teams continue to bring star power to their clubs. But LAFC (like Columbus) has a strong sense of identity and its supporters are the undoubted, proverbial fire in every game.On the pitch, it will also be a fun watch as the Crew love to have the ball, while LAFC loves to let you have it before hitting you in transition. Tremendous talent everywhere. In one Columbus corner you have Cucho Hernández, Diego Rossi (formerly at LAFC) and the man everyone loves in Darlington Nagbe, while L.A. possesses MLS' goal-scoring machine in Dénis Bouanga, the Serie A, Champions League, Euro winner Giorgio Chiellini and of course, Carlos Vela -- who is literally the face of the franchise. This could be his last ever game for LAFC as his contract runs out at the end of this month, with no talks of an extension upon the writing of the article.After Aston Villa's magnificent, overwhelming victory against Man City on Wednesday, it's fair to say that I haven't quite calmed down yet, nor descended from the clouds. It is not an exaggeration to state that it was the best performance I have ever seen from my club in the Premier League. Unai Emery finally defeated Pep Guardiola, but it wasn't just a win, it was a knockout punch as the home side outclassed City in almost every department.Villa's 22 shots was the most Pep Guardiola's side has conceded in the league while the treble winners only managed two shots against Villa -- the fewest ever against a Guardiola team from a run of 535 matches. The biggest favor Villa did to City that night was allowing it to stay 1-0.Numbers aside, this journey under Emery is a renaissance for Villa fans. Villa, who were relegated in 2016, nearly faced the reality of liquidation and have never truly received the respect they often ache for, are a totally different club under the Basque manager.As someone who started following this club upon immigrating to England from Peru in the early '90s, helping me create a bridge to acclimatize to my new home, I can't help but romanticize the whole thing. At the final whistle on Wednesday, I cried. It means that much to me and many other Villains who share my sentiment. This sport can bring out the cynic in all of us, but at the core of it all, it's about passion and an emotion that can only happen inside a prosperous football community.But that was Wednesday, and make no mistake about it, Emery has forgotten all about it. In fact, it might as well not exist because Arsenal are coming to town and that is the only thing that matters now. Arsenal, the leaders of the table -- also managed by a Basque man obsessed with perfection and a will to learn -- are a totally different animal. Given City's recent struggles, they are a much harder test.For one, the battle will be in the midfield, and this is the advantage Villa had over City on Wednesday. But Arsenal have Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard to worry about. It's been 25 years since Villa fans saw their club face-to-face and win against the Gunners (two wins in 2020 and 2021 with no fans inside stadiums during COVID) at Villa Park but if this season has taught us anything, it's that anything is possible.When Argentina won Copa America in 2021, it was significant for many reasons. To begin with, it was the end of their 28-year drought without a major trophy. It was also Messi's first ever major title with the senior national team, thus generating a new relationship and sense of trust and belief with national team fans, notably after losing two prior Copa America finals against Chile in 2015 and 2016.Most importantly, however, it was also manager Lionel Scaloni's first commemorative chapter since he took on the role of rebirthing La Albiceleste in 2018, a move that was questioned by many, including Diego Maradona. After coming third in the 2019 tournament, there was an even bigger call to fire Scaloni, but the federation stuck with him. Two years later, they were champions, and as we look ahead to next summer's Copa America edition, Argentina will enter it as World Cup champions and the best team in the world.Scaloni has been completely vindicated and once again, his team will arrive in the U.S next summer as the undoubted favorites. This could also have a poetic narrative as this might just be Messi's final one. The group (Peru, Chile and Canada or Trinidad and Tobago) is relatively easy for them, and the bracket's format points to the fact that -- if everything goes to plan -- they wouldn't even have to face Brazil or Uruguay in the final, which consequently is in Miami -- Messi's home and a cultural haven for Argentinians in the U.S.But at this point, Argentina doesn't even know if Scaloni will be there. After last month's win against Brazil in World Cup qualifiers, the 45-year-old manager added doubt in the postgame presser. "Argentina needs a coach who has all the energy possible and who is well," he said. "I have a lot of things to think about during this time."Then, on Thursday night after the draw, he once again stated an air of uncertainty to Tyc Sports. "I am here because I am still the coach, but I'm still thinking about my decision. I said after the Brazil game that it is a moment to think and I am still in that instance. I am calmly thinking, how everything goes, whether to restart or what," said Scaloni.This has to be rectified sooner rather than later because the last thing Argentin want is to enter this competition with little time to prepare. Yes, they are a formidable force, but what's made them so electric is twofold: the talent and Scaloni's management. It's obviously a monumental task that comes with so much pressure, that's why Scaloni keeps referring to "energy," because to be Argentina's head coach means to deal with an avalanche of expectation as well as earning the trust of the greatest player the game has ever seen.I read an outstandingly good quote from Taylor Swift recently, as she commented on haters and those who have criticized her throughout the years. "There's no point in actively trying to quote-unquote defeat your enemies," said the music icon to Time magazine, as she was named 2023 Person of the Year. "Trash takes itself out every single time."This line should be echoed by all of us, including supporters of women's football. I mention this because of the words from Joey Bartom, a controversial former player and manager who recently came out with one of the most misogynistic comments I've read in a while.Since then, he has doubled and tripled down, including an appearance on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," to defend his laughable point. "You have to be there on merit, not to fit this woke agenda that is going on in society," he said, when discussing female pundits in men's football and going as far as comparing them to him talking about "knitting." "You don't have to have played the game, a lot of managers haven't, a lot of commentators haven't. But they've earned the right with hard work over a prolonged period of time to get into that space."Barton was saying this as images of Alex Scott MBE (Champions League, WSL, FA Cup champion, World Cup runner-up and 140 appearances for England), Karen Carney (four World Cups, four Euros, third-most appearances for England) and Eniola Aluko (Serie A, WSL champion, former sporting director) appeared on the screen.What makes this type of person so angry at seeing a woman in the men's game? I'll tell you the answer: it's jealousy. It's fear. It's ignorance. And sadly, women in football will never stop fighting this battle. Barton represents millions of others who think like this, not because it has any merit, but because the merit lies in their anger, it justifies their agenda. It has nothing to do with "wokeness."I can only imagine how devastating it must be for women all over the globe reading and seeing comments such as Barton's and having to fight 10 times harder than men for their quality to be recognized, never mind accepted. And I'm not even talking about the football industry anymore.So in general, there are a few ways we all can react to Barton's comments. One of them is anger; another is frustration. While understandable, it seems like nothing will change Barton's mind, so in the end, I think the best strategy is self-preservation. Ignorance can't be reversed unless the person committing the act is willing to change, and this is not the case here, so comments like Barton's need to be combated with a collective desire to grow. Collective is the operative word here, and as the fight continues, remember the words of Taylor Swift: In the end, trash takes itself out.Congrats to Lionel Messi for winning Time magazine's Athlete of the Year, becoming the first male soccer player to win the award. I was lucky enough to cover his arrival to South Florida, which included a one-on-one with the man himself, and this isn't hyperbole: The summer completely changed the cultural landscape of sports in America.In fact, the shift of sporting attention in the country is fast gearing towards soccer and Messi's role with Inter Miami and MLS plays the biggest factor. With competitions such as Copa America, Club World Cup and the World Cup in 2026, the train keeps moving and La Pulga acts as conductor.

USMNT's Copa America hurdles; players to watch in MLS Cup

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Frankie Hejduk is in his element. The skies are cloudy, with a late fall chill in the air. But on the corner of North High and East Goodale, he's standing next to a 1,600-pound, 15-foot-high replica of MLS Cup while sporting the colors of his beloved Columbus Crew. Hejduk is so pumped, in fact, that more than once he jumps off the 5-foot-high stand the trophy replica sits on as if he were navigating a half-pipe on a skateboard."As an ex-player, I'm so happy, dude," Hejduk said. "I'm so proud of the guys and just excited for what's about to happen."What's about to happen is Columbus hosting MLS Cup for the third time in nine seasons, with Saturday's tilt set to take place against the reigning champion, LAFC. A win would mark the third time the Crew have prevailed in the title game, joining the 2008 and 2020 teams, with Hejduk a part of the former, even scoring in that year's final.Yet the vibe this time around is distinctly different from that of either of those championship teams, or even the 2015 side that fell in the final to the Portland Timbers. One gets the sense of a soccer town being made whole. This is a club, after all, that in 2017 was about to be relocated to Austin, Texas, only for the grassroots movement, Save the Crew, to sprout up and galvanize local support to the extent that the team stayed put and new ownership was found.Even the 2020 title wasn't as cathartic as one might expect. It was the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and only 1,500 fans were allowed in the stands for the 3-0 win over the Seattle Sounders. Crew players Darlington Nagbe and Pedro Santos had to sit out the final after testing positive for COVID-19. Nagbe watched the game outside with his wife on their patio before resuming his quarantine in his basement. There was no parade afterward."It was a weird day," Nagbe told EasyChamp . "Obviously, familiar teams playing and you can't be a part of it."Since then, a new 22,000-seat stadium, Lower.com Field, has been built. First-year manager Wilfried Nancy has been brought in, with an aesthetically pleasing style to match. The momentum generated has been everything fans had hoped. On Saturday, the stands will be at capacity with mostly Crew fans, with a few LAFC supporters in the mix.One example of the warm embrace between club and team is that every Wednesday since the playoffs started, there's a reverse car wash -- sponsored appropriately by a local car wash chain -- where Crew staffers will decorate fans' cars in the Crew colors of black and gold."We're in the renaissance era of soccer in Columbus right now, and we have everything going for us," said David Miller, who handled communications for the Save the Crew movement. "And it's because the community came through and saved this team and proved that we can sustain it that the future is incredibly bright."We have this roster that is extremely talented. I'm looking for MLS Cup No. 4 and 5 coming in the next couple of years. There's no reason not to expect that with what we have here."Asked to describe the vibe around the Crew these days, Chris LaMacchia, communications director for the Nordecke supporters group, put it succinctly. "It's a lot louder."In terms of the run-up, it hasn't been all sweetness and light in Ohio's capital city. On Monday, Crew season-ticket holders were supposed to have access to a window in which they could buy tickets to Saturday's final. But an access code for sponsors to purchase tickets was leaked on social media, and the tickets were quickly snapped up before the season-ticket holder window could even open. That included the Nordecke, which is the part of the stadium where the team's most die-hard supporters reside."I logged in and [almost] the whole stadium was gray. There were some blue spots, but nothing in the Nordecke," said Luke Johnston, a member of the Nordecke Brass, a group of eight fans who bring their horns into the stadium and play alongside the drum line. "My heart just dropped because it was like if I have to get a ticket somewhere else and I can't get into Nordecke, this isn't going to work. I could bring my trumpet and play in another part of the stadium, but it's not the same thing."Panic set in among supporters and the Crew organization. They were facing the prospect of an MLS Cup final minus the atmosphere that had helped make Lower.com Field a fortress during the season, with the Crew going 12-1-4 at home. There would be no Nordecke. No chanting. No drum line. No Nordecke Brass. No tifo."We've got a 40-foot-by-60-foot piece of art we're going to lift. You can't just do that with one person," LaMacchia said. "It takes a small army to pull off a game-day atmosphere for a normal home game, and here we were looking at doing it with five or 10 people."The Crew front office reached out to MLS, which reached out to Ticketmaster. Ultimately, the transactions bought with the leaked access code were reversed. Some damage had been done, however. LaMacchia noted how one fan bought a $1,200 "ledge seat" -- already one of the pricier seats in the venue -- when it looked as if he wouldn't get in the stadium at all. But on Tuesday another purchase window was created, and season-ticket holders were able to get tickets."It has been stressful -- more stressful than anything that I've been through as a supporter group leader, simply because of all of the uncertainty," LaMacchia said. " People tend to panic and lash out. I think I've been called every name in the book this week somewhere on Twitter or Reddit, but I mean, that comes with the territory. It's just a lot of it is due to the uncertainty from Monday and Tuesday of, 'Are we going to have tickets?'"Almost lost in the shuffle is the fact that LAFC is trying to join some select company. A win on Saturday would make manager Steve Cherundolo's side just the fourth in league history to win back-to-back MLS Cups. It would also serve as another way to needle crosstown rivals the LA Galaxy, given that the Galaxy are the most recent team to win consecutive titles, having done so in 2011 and 2012.To celebrate the occasion, LAFC's ownership is chartering two flights, including all staff, player family members and special guests. (Olly the Falcon is not making the trip, however.) With about 500 members of the 3252 supporters group heading to Columbus, the LAFC contingent will be well represented.In the context of the 2023 season, Cherundolo told EasyChamp the campaign had been "tedious" and "hard work." There have been some bright moments, but also the blows of losing the Concacaf Champions League final to Leon, and the Campeones Cup to Tigres. That said, he views the season as a success and doesn't feel burdened by any added pressure."I don't think we're really caught up in the moment at all. I think we're just focused on trying to win another game and not so much what would it mean and this and that," Cherundolo said. "I think we just look at this as one game and we're going to try to win this game."LAFC has navigated its way through the playoffs featuring an approach opposite to that of the Crew. While Columbus is all possession and crisp combinations, LAFC has taken counterattacking to the extreme, winning the Western Conference final against the Houston Dynamo with just 30.9% possession. It makes sense given the dynamism of Dénis Bouanga and Carlos Vela in the open field, yet the contrast in styles is still jarring. Cherundolo once told EasyChamp that "there are a lot of different ways to win a soccer game," and he seems determined to prove that adage correct."I absolutely stand by those words still, and that's how I coach the teams that I coach," Cherundolo said in an exclusive interview. "And for me, it's great to have a style of play, but it's more important to have solutions in each phase. And for me, I don't need them. The players need them. So my job is to give the players the tools to win games, to defend the goal if need be, but also to score goals if a team is in a lower block."What I think separated us from everybody else last year was I think we were the most complete team, and I think we have shown this year we can also win games in any fashion or manner. And that to me, if you want to put me in a box, would be my style, to be able to win in every way, with the ball and without the ball."LAFC has its own version of Nagbe, at least from an emotional standpoint. Goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau broke his leg in last year's MLS Cup final, and thus missed out on the celebration that took place when the Black and Gold won the subsequent penalty shootout.Crépeau has made it back this season to play a huge role in LAFC's road to the final, especially in the conference semifinal against Seattle. He says he has had "a huge smile" on his face the whole week and is enjoying his football again. The question is then posed about how hard is it to find that enjoyment when each game is packed with pressure and knowing setbacks can pile up."It is very easy because when you have a certain amount of time away from the game -- it took me nine, 10 months-ish -- you tend to forget how fun it is to be with your teammates on the field, to give it your all, how fun it is to win. You miss those feelings. So when I say that, it's just being able to [surround] myself with the players around me and my teammates and really to win games."Yet the Crew are determined to have their moment not only in terms of Saturday but because of where the team has been. And what it could be. That includes Hejduk, the team's No. 1 fan. He says more than once that he has 30,000 friends in the stadium. Given the sheer magnetism and charisma of the man, one is inclined to believe him."Dude, the joy of what I always wanted here in Columbus was for this to be a soccer town, and those fans made it," he said. "I hope we made them proud as players doing the same thing. And I think the players that you're going to see on Saturday are just following our footsteps, man. We're making the city proud and they're making the city proud and it kind of all is a big family."

Why Columbus Crew vs. LAFC promises to be epic MLS Cup clash

Ancelotti has said there are no plans for Jude Bellingham to undergo surgery on his dislocated shoulder but the Real Madrid coach wouldn't rule it out in future if the midfielder continues to suffer with the problem.Bellingham dislocated his shoulder in Madrid's LaLiga match with Rayo Vallecano on Nov. 5, and his recovery saw him miss their games with Braga and Valencia in the week that followed.The England star has since returned to the team, scoring against Cádiz and Napoli, but speaking in a news conference on Friday, Ancelotti admitted that he's still not fully fit."Bellingham has been training individually," Ancelotti said. "He's been recovering after the ankle knock he picked up against Napoli."He has to look after his shoulder. He has to do specific work to strengthen it. But he hasn't had any problems playing, and in that sense, he'll improve with each day that passes."Bellingham has scored 15 goals in 17 games for Madrid since joining from Borussia Dortmund last summer, and his form saw him recognised this week with the 2023 Golden Boy Award for Europe's best under-21 player.When asked again about the shoulder problem, Ancelotti said that surgery wasn't currently one of the options being considered."Not right now, no," he said. "The shoulder is a special joint. If it gets dislocated over and over again, you might need surgery. But right now [Bellingham] is feeling better."Madrid travel to Real Betis in LaLiga on Saturday top of the table, with 38 points from 15 games, level on points with surprise packages Girona, who travel to Barcelona on Sunday.Ancelotti wouldn't confirm who would start in goal at the Estadio Benito Villamarin, with back-up keeper Andriy Lunin having impressed in recent weeks in the absence of on-loan Kepa Arrizabalaga."Kepa is back [from injury], he's trained well," Ancelotti said. "The good thing is we have two keepers we trust. Tomorrow I'll choose. There's competition in goal because Lunin has done very well... We could rotate, we have four games before Christmas."Madrid have been facing an injury crisis with Thibaut Courtois and Éder Militão ruled out since August with ACL tears, and Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga, Vinícius Júnior and Arda Güler also unavailable."With Courtois and Militao, we don't know [when they'll be back]," Ancelotti said. "They're recovering well. Tchouameni and Arda [Guler] are close to being back training with us. With Vinícius and Camavinga, we'll have to wait until next year. I think when we come back [after Christmas] they'll be ready."

No plans for Bellingham to have shoulder surgery - Ancelotti

Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino has said "pressure" is inevitable when results are not forthcoming as his side face an uphill battle to qualify for European football this season.Nearing the midway point of Pochettino's first season in charge at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea are 10th in the Premier League -- four points behind ninth-place West Ham -- and will need to improve their results or face another season in midtable."They know exactly what we expect from them," Pochettino said in a news conference on Friday. "We talk about young players, they need to be in a place where they feel comfortable, where they feel confidence. We cannot forget that we are at a club like Chelsea. The pressure is massive. We need to win, and when you don't win you feel the pressure."We know what we need to do. We know what we are doing, but it is only a matter of time -- that can take a year, that can take six months -- but for sure we are giving something that is going to pay off."Pochettino promised that Chelsea would compete for Champions League qualification in future but refused to put a timeframe on when he expected to do so and seemed to admit it is unlikely to happen this season."We are going to challenge [for Champions League qualification places], yes. Maybe not now, but in the future," he said.Chelsea travel to face Everton on Sunday, who have won two of their three matches since being deducted 10 points for breaching the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules.Forward Christopher Nkunku is unlikely to make his Chelsea debut this weekend, the Argentine boss said, as he continues to recover from a knee injury he sustained in preseason.

Chelsea players feeling pressure of poor results - Pochettino

Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford will get back into the team when he deserves it, manager Erik ten Hag said on Friday.Rashford was dropped for the 2-1 win over Chelsea on Wednesday following a lacklustre display in the defeat at Newcastle four days earlier.The England international has struggled for form all season, scoring just two goals in 19 games, and Ten Hag said he has to earn the right to return to the team while highlighting the way Harry Maguire and Scott McTominay have battled back from the fringes of the squad to play key roles."Rashford is an incredible, good player," Ten Hag told a news conference ahead of their clash against Bournemouth."You can't do it with 11 players. He can't play every game and he's not, in this moment, in the form he was last year but I am sure he will get there."What I said about Scott McTominay and Harry Maguire, it's up to them. The team will always line themselves up and the best players who form the best team will play."Maguire and McTominay were both linked with moves away from Old Trafford in the summer but have since become vital to United's revival under Ten Hag.McTominay scored both goals against Chelsea and is top scorer this season with six, while Maguire was named the Premier League's player of the month for November."I think we have a squad and in the squad there is internal competition," Ten Hag added."If you want a successful season you need more than 11 players. In every season, it will turn and in every season it's what is the best team. They are here, they are great players and played into the team. That's what you expect from every player, there has to be dedication to aim for this."United face Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Saturday ahead of a make-or-break Champions League clash against Bayern Munich on Tuesday.To qualify for the round of 16, they need to beat the German champions and hope Galatasaray and FC Copenhagen draw in the other Group A game but Ten Hag insists his focus is on Bournemouth."As manager, my coaches, with the rest of the staff, we always consider [things] but the next game is always the most important," he said."Especially in the Premier League where everyone is killing everyone, you need a strong team."I think they have very good form, Bournemouth. We have seen them, it's a very good side, very well constructed, capable players. You have to play your best."

Marcus Rashford must earn Man United starting spot - Ten Hag

Ange Postecoglou has said that poor finishing is undermining Tottenham's Champions League qualification hopes after they slumped to a fourth defeat in five matches against West Ham.Spurs made an impressive start to the season, overcoming the departure of star striker Harry Kane to Bayern Munich by topping the table early last month after winning eight of their first 10 Premier League games.However, they have subsequently taken the lead against Chelsea, Wolves, Aston Villa and West Ham only to lose -- Spurs have now lost a league-high 16 points from winning positions this season.And after watching his side suffer a 2-1 defeat to David Moyes' team, Postecoglou said on Friday: "A brilliant start last night would've been taking advantage of the dominance we have in games. But we're not. It's keeping oppositions in the game and especially in the second half we had a couple of defensive lapses and a team like West Ham will always punish us."For the football to be brilliant, it's got to be there in its entirety and I don't how many times I've said, I still think in our front third we've got a lot of work to do."Unfortunately that's costing us at the moment in terms of results. That's the challenge for us, we've got to keep pushing on and try to become better in those areas."For me, I don't have a three or five year plan up my sleeve that's guaranteed for success, what I do have is a plan that I think will get us to where we need to be. How long that takes, I don't know."It depends on how we keep discipline in staying and sticking [to] the path. Ultimately whether it's this challenge there'll be another challenge in six months, there'll be another one, even if you have success there's a challenge there."It's how focused you are and how committed you are to go on the path you've started. I'm not wavering with that, I just will not budge. I just think that's what I believe is the best way forward."Spurs have rejected an approach from Swansea City for assistant coach Chris Davies but Postecoglou suggested there was still a chance he could leave."I've had a brief discussion with Chris and he knows we've got a busy week so we'll focus on that," said Postecoglou. "He's an outstanding individual, he's done some great work with us and great work in the past. It's not surprising to me that Swansea or other clubs would look at him. It's what you want to be honest."You want good people and when you've got good people they're going to attract attention. From my perspective, whatever that transpires to, it's very much in Chris' hands. It's his decision in terms of what he wants to do moving forward and obviously the club will deal with it from there."Son Heung-Min is a doubt to face Newcastle on Sunday due to a back problem sustained against West Ham and Postecoglou admitted his gratitude to Eddie Howe for inadvertently aiding his career.Howe turned down the chance to manage Celtic prior to Postecoglou taking the job, where he thrived in two seasons before succeeding Antonio Conte at Tottenham."Oh [it was] absolutely [a] sliding doors moment," added Postecoglou. "There's probably been no bigger decision in me being here today than Eddie knocking back the Celtic job. I haven't thanked him, I probably should."

Postecoglou blames poor finishing for Spurs' recent struggles

Daley Blind has said Girona are still a small club and the pressure is not on them ahead of Sunday's top of the table clash with Barcelona at the Olympic Stadium (stream live on EasyChamp + at 3 p.m. ET.).Girona go into the fixture joint top of LaLiga with Real Madrid, four points clear of Catalan rivals Barça, who climbed to third with last weekend's win over Atlético Madrid.With just one defeat in 15 games, expectations have risen at Girona, who finished 10th last season. Blind acknowledges it has been a special season so far, but insists the pressure remains on others."We don't want to look too far ahead," the former Ajax, Manchester United and Bayern Munich defender told EasyChamp . "Of course we know that we will probably be in the league next year. It is up to us now to continue like this."We don't want to put pressure on ourselves to aim at something. Of course you talk in the dressing room to be as high as possible, that is what you want."I think if we continue like this, this already is a special season, but it can be something special as well at the end of the season."[But] I think Girona is still a small club which is building, we are in a good build-up now ... We take it game by game and the pressure is not on us. [Against Barcelona the pressure] is not on us."Barça are a great team, they have some great individual players. It will be a very difficult game, but these are the games you want to play as a kid against those teams."Girona's unexpected rise to the top of LaLiga -- in just their fourth season in the Spanish top flight -- could pose an interesting dilemma for Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti, who takes his side to Real Betis on Saturday."Let's ask Ancelotti what he prefers: Barça or Girona to win?" Girona coach Míchel joked in an interview with EasyChamp ahead of the trip to Barcelona, which is an hour south of Girona."We're going to enjoy our game. Barça are big favourites, we have that in mind, and we want to enjoy and compete. If we give our best, we will be satisfied. If we do, we can get a positive result, I am convinced of that."The rest does not bother me so much. Our league is not Madrid, Barça and Atletico. We just want to keep this successful run going as long as possible."Girona's connection with the City Football Group (CFG), who own 47% of the club, has helped facilitate many of the signings the club have made, including exciting Brazilians Sávio and Yan Couto, who are both on loan from CFG clubs.However, Míchel's style of football has also helped persuade players to come. No club has scored more goals than Girona in LaLiga this season, with the Catalan side playing front-foot, attacking football."We had some good talks about how he sees football, how he wants to play football and how he sees me in his way of playing football," Blind added of Míchel's influence in his decision to join Girona."You see how we play. He wants to play attacking football, he wants to dominate the games, to keep ball possession. These are all things I like about football as well."Defender Eric García, who is on loan from Barça, likens the style of play to Manchester City -- the jewel in CFG's portfolio of 13 clubs, -- where he played between 2017 and 2021."The playing philosophy is very similar," García told EasyChamp . "It is clear that we try to play from the back, press as quick as possible when we lose the ball and play attacking football."Obviously, from there, are opponents are going to have chances because it's what we expose ourselves to, although we try to minimise them."Sunday will be a nice occasion for García, who is happy to be getting regular football away from the demands of Barça."I have many friends there, so to play against them after training and playing with them for so long will be special," he added. "But when the game starts, we will all be looking out for our own sides."I am getting what I came here for, which was to play regularly. The demands are obviously another level [at Barça], having Champions League, LaLiga, Champions League, LaLiga every three days."Obviously the demand there is very high. But beyond all that, playing regularly and getting more minutes, which was important, is the big difference for me here."

No pressure on Girona ahead of Barcelona clash - Daley Blind

Jurgen Klopp said Liverpool are unlikely to get another defender in January to replace Joël Matip after he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in their 4-3 win over Fulham last weekend.Klopp has often favoured the 32-year-old as Virgil van Dijk's partner in the middle of Liverpool's defence.Despite his importance in the team, the Liverpool manager said it won't be easy to replace Matip in the January transfer window, as they don't live in a "wonderland.""In eight years here, I just never understand this. You always talk about transfers as if they would be the easiest thing in the world," Klopp told reporters at a news conference on Friday."Just bring in a player, find the money for it, as if we have endless money. I really don't understand it. Everybody, you, the fans, everyone talks about it."They all cost money. It has to be the right player. Tell me a club who wants to sell a top, top centre-half who could play for Liverpool?"Why should we start that process? We've only known for a few days that Joel will be out for a long time, which is really bad for us. We still have four centre-halves which is absolutely alright."If we'd had a fifth one already in before that, then it would have been a completely different team dynamic. He wouldn't have been involved and we wouldn't have seen steps with him or him."It was perfect. Is it perfect now? I'd say as long as we can go with this four then yes. If not then it will be a bit more tricky with the amount of games coming up."It was never wonderland where you bring in a world-class centre-half until the other is fit again. Other clubs don't put them under the Christmas tree for us and say: 'Take it and use it as long as you need it.'"I didn't really think about it [buying a centre-back in January]. I don't think so to be honest."Ibrahima Konaté started alongside Van Dijk in their 2-0 win over Sheffield United on Wednesday, while Joe Gomez has also played there in the past.Matip's Liverpool contract also finishes at the end of the season, meaning he may have played his last game for the club depending on his recovery time.But Klopp said there could be a possibility of a contract extension for Matip."I would say so but it's not my decision. I can't sign the papers," Klopp said."I'm pretty sure the club will show their class. We have to make decisions together with Joel. He deserves all the support and he will get it."

Liverpool unlikely to replace Matip in January - Klopp

This week's eight things I like and dislike include revisiting the 2019 Anthony Davis trade and where the Los Angeles Lakers and New Orleans Pelicans currently stand, how Julius Randle's new decisiveness is helping the New York Knicks and why Giannis Antetokounmpo is as dominant as ever in Milwaukee.It has been almost five years since the Pelicans, amid the low of Anthony Davis' trade request, enjoyed a simultaneous jolt of euphoria: Winning the Zion Williamson lottery. In the afterglow of that moment in a Chicago hotel ballroom, David Griffin, the Pelicans' executive vice president of basketball operations, dreamed that the promise of Williamson might curb Davis' wanderlust."We can be [the Oklahoma City Thunder] with Paul George," Griffin told EasyChamp that night. "We can hold onto [Davis] and let him see what we really are." Griffin likely knew it was a long shot -- that Davis was hellbent on the Lakers. But leverage is leverage.A year earlier, George had re-signed with the Thunder despite years of rumors dating to George's time with the Indiana Pacers that he would head to the Lakers in free agency -- rumblings that played some part in the Lakers opting against going all-in for George via trade before the Thunder swooped in: Why give up assets for someone we can sign later?As the Pelicans celebrated their lottery win, Davis was one year from free agency. The Pelicans were confident the Lakers would not risk waiting again, frittering away another year of LeBron's prime -- that Los Angeles would come with a fat offer even though Davis' representation (Klutch Sports Group) had dissuaded other suitors.One month later, the Lakers traded Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, three first-round picks (including the No. 4 pick in the 2019 draft) and one pick swap to nab Davis.The franchises reconnected on center stage Thursday night in Las Vegas, a blowout 133-89 Lakers win that showed how dangerous this big, smart, ferocious team can be when they make shots.The Lakers have gotten about what they wanted out of the Davis trade: One title (in 2020) and a high enough floor to insulate them from the Brooklyn Nets-style nightmare of coughing up a top-3 pick to New Orleans. (The Pelicans selected Dyson Daniels at No. 8 with the Lakers' 2022 pick.) Winning only two playoff series in the three seasons since that title counts as a disappointment -- one the Lakers hope to rewrite with another deep run.The Pelicans have won zero series since the Davis trade. Williamson has not even appeared in a playoff game.But their in-season tournament run was an announcement: New Orleans is as healthy and deep as it has been at any point since the Davis drama. It is loaded with perimeter talent around Williamson and Ingram, with more flexibility to play Williamson at center. (It still needs Larry Nance Jr. too; he's out with a fractured rib.) It is developing more flow and a clearer hierarchy on offense.The Pelicans have picks to trade -- including one more unprotected Lakers pick from the Davis deal. If they stay healthy, the Pelicans are a threat to make the playoffs and win a round -- and perhaps more.The Lakers are a bit of a Rorschach test: 14-9, but barely a net-positive for the season -- plus-27 total points -- even after destroying New Orleans on Thursday.

Basketball

Lowe: Lakers-Pels intersect again, Julius Randle's new snappiness and why Giannis is as dominant as ever

Remember when everyone was talking about Major League Soccer?It seems like six years ago, or just yesterday, but an actual MLS team was the main storyline across the American-sports landscape for most of the summer. LeBron, Serena Williams, Selena Gomez, and even Owen Wilson all came out to games to watch the greatest soccer player of all time play for what was, at the time, the worst team in America's fifth-most-popular sports league.And then it just ... stopped. Lionel Messi got injured, college and professional football started, European soccer began, Inter Miami missed the playoffs by nine points, and the average American sports fan stopped caring about the league that, briefly, everyone seemed to care about.So, with Messi's first MLS season in the books and the final between LAFC and the Columbus Crew set for Saturday, it feels like the right time to take stock. Twenty-eight years in, just how good is MLS?

Can MLS really become one of the top leagues in the world?

With another week in the books of the 2023-24 NHL season, it's time for an updated set of Power Rankings. As another treat this week, we've brought back EasyChamp fantasy hockey analysts Sean Allen and Victoria Matiash, who have identified the current projected fantasy MVP of each team and offered insights into whether that projection will hold.The projections are determined by each player's fantasy points per game and how many remaining games they are expected to play. For goaltenders, this includes an estimate based on their crease share to date. The projection has modifiers applied that account for recent performance as well as for strength of schedule of upcoming matchups. Note that Sean handled the Eastern teams, while Victoria tackled the West.How we rank: A panel of EasyChamp hockey commentators, analysts, reporters and editors each send in a 1-32 poll based on the games through Wednesday, which generates our master list here.Note: Previous ranking for each team refers to the previous edition, published Dec. 1. Points percentages are through the games of Dec. 7. It's not too late to sign up for EasyChamp antasy Hockey, create your team and play for free today.Previous ranking: 1
Points percentage: 77.08%
Next seven days: @ WSH (Dec. 9), vs. LA (Dec. 10), vs. TOR (Dec. 12)Jacob Trouba, D | Projected fantasy points: 227.19 | Projected overall rank: 13While Trouba does admirable work with counting stats, we shouldn't count out Artemi Panarin from taking the top Rangers spot for fantasy thanks to his shoot-first-ask-questions-later attitude this season. An Igor Shesterkin hot streak could also put him in the mix.Previous ranking: 3
Points percentage: 72.22%
Next seven days: @ DAL (Dec. 9), vs. SJ (Dec. 10), vs. CGY (Dec. 12)Adin Hill, G | Projected fantasy points: 225.09 | Projected overall rank: 14Hill's current injury -- while reportedly not that serious -- is a bother, as is the loss of defensemen Shea Theodore and Alec Martinez. Don't be surprised if Jack Eichel, who has found his productive stride of late, takes over as the Knights' leading fantasy star by season's end.Previous ranking: 4
Points percentage: 76.09%
Next seven days: @ NYI (Dec. 9), @ NYR (Dec. 10), vs. WPG (Dec. 13)Cam Talbot, G | Projected fantasy points: 278.62 | Projected overall rank: 1The 36-year-old hasn't played more than 49 games in a season since 2017-18. Wear and tear could come into play, and backup Pheonix Copley is settling in after a mediocre start. However, considering the Kings' balanced scoring depth -- a good thing altogether -- Talbot is still likely to emerge as the club's fantasy front-runner.Previous ranking: 2
Points percentage: 74.00%
Next seven days: vs. ARI (Dec. 9), @ NJ (Dec. 13)David Pastrnak, RW | Projected fantasy points: 257.36 | Projected overall rank: 4This one was sealed before the season began, as Pastrnak is in a league alone on the Bruins. The race for second is intriguing, though, with Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman projected to finish 43rd and 44th overall.Previous ranking: 5
Points percentage: 65.38%
Next seven days: vs. PHI (Dec. 9), vs. CGY (Dec. 11), vs. BUF (Dec. 13)Cale Makar, D | Projected fantasy points: 278.08 | Projected overall rank: 2Unless his existing lower-body injury is a bigger deal than believed -- he returned Thursday night -- Makar could conceivably finish top-3 in fantasy production by season's end -- ahead of even teammate Nathan MacKinnon. The Avs' star defender is putting up Bobby Orr/Paul Coffey-like numbers.Previous ranking: 7
Points percentage: 66.00%
Next seven days: vs. VGK (Dec. 9), vs. DET (Dec. 11)Joe Pavelski, RW | Projected fantasy points: 211.24 | Projected overall rank: 29Until Pavelski gives us real cause to believe he's running out of gas, there's no reason to believe he doesn't have plenty left. The 39-year-old reigns as Dallas' top fantasy royalty -- with Jason Robertson serving as eventual heir -- particularly with goaltender Jake Oettinger stumbling of late.Previous ranking: 6
Points percentage: 64.81%
Next seven days: vs. CAR (Dec. 9), vs. TB (Dec. 12), vs. FLA (Dec. 14)J.T. Miller, C | Projected fantasy points: 248.76 | Projected overall rank: 6Miller's goal pace has dropped recently, as has his power-play production. That suggests the door is open for Norris Trophy contender Quinn Hughes to overtake the red-hot forward in fantasy supremacy -- if only by a smidge, and in leagues that don't reward faceoff wins.Previous ranking: 12
Points percentage: 64.00%
Next seven days: vs. OTT (Dec. 9), @ DAL (Dec. 11), @ STL (Dec. 12), vs. CAR (Dec. 14)Moritz Seider, D | Projected fantasy points: 213.66 | Projected overall rank: 25Seider is a safe bet to stay as the best of the Red Wings, but Alex DeBrincat is in position to challenge -- especially if the Patrick Kane bump is still as valuable as it was when the pair played together in Chicago just two seasons ago.Previous ranking: 8
Points percentage: 64.00%
Next seven days: vs. PIT (Dec. 8), @ CBJ (Dec. 10), @ SEA (Dec. 12), @ VAN (Dec. 14)Sam Reinhart, RW | Projected fantasy points: 231.99 | Projected overall rank: 12A surprising front-runner for Florida, and his hot start might even be enough to insulate Reinhart's lead when Matthew Tkachuk remembers he's a superstar. Bonus: As linemates, Tkachuk emerging from hibernation will also help Reinhart's totals.Previous ranking: 11
Points percentage: 65.22%
Next seven days: vs. NSH (Dec. 9), @ NYI (Dec. 11), @ NYR (Dec. 12), vs. CBJ (Dec. 14)Auston Matthews, C | Projected fantasy points: 248.13 | Projected overall rank: 7William Nylander is hot on his heels, projected for 235.52 fantasy points. The Leafs had better hope there is no correlation between fantasy stats and average annual value on contracts if Nylander surpasses Matthews.Previous ranking: 10
Points percentage: 64.00%
Next seven days: @ ANA (Dec. 10), @ SJ (Dec. 12), @ LA (Dec. 13)Connor Hellebuyck, G | Projected fantasy points: 215.07 | Projected overall rank: 22Despite the recent lull, Kyle Connor is a prolific goal scorer. He'll surpass 45 by season's conclusion, amassing an impressive shot total in the process. Still, it's tough for the winger to surpass Hellebuyck, even with competent backup Laurent Brossoit available to serve as an occasional substitute.Previous ranking: 9
Points percentage: 55.77%
Next seven days: @ VAN (Dec. 9), @ OTT (Dec. 12), @ DET (Dec. 14)Sebastian Aho, C | Projected fantasy points: 173.51 | Projected overall rank: 82With Aho as top Cane but projected to be only 82nd overall, the door is still open for anyone on the roster to challenge this fantasy crown. I'm probably not alone in wishing Andrei Svechnikov would rediscover his mojo soon enough to do so.Previous ranking: 13
Points percentage: 51.79%
Next seven days: @ SEA (Dec. 9), @ VAN (Dec. 12), @ EDM (Dec. 14)Nikita Kucherov, RW | Projected fantasy points: 274.59 | Projected overall rank: 3It hasn't been the fearsome threesome on offense for the Bolts this season, as Brayden Point and Steven Stamkos both lag well behind Kucherov's production. If anyone can catch him, it would be Andrei Vasilevskiy finding his vintage form in goal.Previous ranking: 15
Points percentage: 53.85%
Next seven days: @ TOR (Dec. 9), @ MTL (Dec. 10), vs. PHI (Dec. 12)Filip Forsberg, LW | Projected fantasy points: 224.96 | Projected overall rank: 15While no other Predator will catch Forsberg in the fantasy race when he's healthy, defenseman Roman Josi can be counted on to give it a good go. Enhanced contributions from both have played a large part in Nashville's recent climb up the standings.Previous ranking: 17
Points percentage: 57.69%
Next seven days: @ COL (Dec. 9), @ NSH (Dec. 12), vs. WSH (Dec. 14)Travis Sanheim, D | Projected fantasy points: 163.8 | Projected overall rank: 105Interestingly, Nick Seeler is projected to finish less than a fantasy point behind Sanheim, so it's arguably a toss-up at this stage. That said, one Travis Konecny hot streak could quickly rewrite this pecking order.Previous ranking: 19
Points percentage: 56.00%
Next seven days: @ BOS (Dec. 9), @ BUF (Dec. 11), @ PIT (Dec. 12)Connor Ingram, G | Projected fantasy points: 223.63 | Projected overall rank: 16Count us as believers in Ingram. He's been too solid all season, for a visibly improved team, to discount as the real deal. Unless the Coyotes' No. 1 stumbles, or gets hurt, there's no other member of André Tourigny's balanced squad to catch him. Not even the impressive Clayton Keller.Previous ranking: 18
Points percentage: 56.25%
Next seven days: @ CGY (Dec. 9), @ EDM (Dec. 10), vs. BOS (Dec. 13)Jack Hughes, C | Projected fantasy points: 242.9 | Projected overall rank: 9Hughes' full arrival as a superstar is on display this campaign, and there isn't any suspense over him leading the Devils for fantasy. What will be interesting to watch is just how high into the top 10 overall he can push by the end of the season.Previous ranking: 14
Points percentage: 58.70%
Next seven days: vs. NYR (Dec. 9), @ CHI (Dec. 10), @ PHI (Dec. 14)John Carlson, D | Projected fantasy points: 182.21 | Projected overall rank: 65It's telling of how "meh" the Capitals are that Carlson is easily leading the pace at a rate that would finish 65th overall. It's unlikely anything will change to make Alex Ovechkin challenge him, but Max Pacioretty returning to the ice could be an X factor.Previous ranking: 22
Points percentage: 58.00%
Next seven days: vs. LA (Dec. 9), vs. TOR (Dec. 11), vs. ANA (Dec. 13)Noah Dobson, D | Projected fantasy points: 244.73 | Projected overall rank: 8Dobson adding physicality to his game in the form of blocks and hits makes him deserving of the fantasy crown for the Isles. It doesn't look as if Ilya Sorokin, his only real competition, will be making a push.Previous ranking: 20
Points percentage: 50.00%
Next seven days: @ FLA (Dec. 8), vs. ARI (Dec. 12), @ MTL (Dec. 13)Tristan Jarry, G | Projected fantasy points: 202.78 | Projected overall rank: 37Jarry is great, but this season won't be a success for the Penguins if he leads the team in fantasy scoring. Sidney Crosby is right behind him (198.79), but Erik Karlsson is way back at 157.67 projected points. The Pens need Karlsson in the mix.Previous ranking: 16
Points percentage: 54.00%
Next seven days: @ CBJ (Dec. 8), @ CHI (Dec. 9), vs. DET (Dec. 12), vs. OTT (Dec. 14)Justin Faulk, D | Projected fantasy points: 161.32 | Projected overall rank: 111Any one of Faulk, Robert Thomas, Pavel Buchnevich, Brayden Schenn or Colton Parayko could finish atop the Blues' fantasy podium. That speaks loudly to St. Louis' lack of star power and mediocre record. In fact, rookie Jake Neighbours has been the team's most exciting player this December.Previous ranking: 24
Points percentage: 45.65%
Next seven days: vs. MIN (Dec. 8), vs. NJ (Dec. 10), vs. CHI (Dec. 12), vs. TB (Dec. 14)Connor McDavid, C | Projected fantasy points: 249.36 | Projected overall rank: 5Without much question, a healthy McDavid will next-level himself into fantasy supremacy on his own team. But let's spare an appreciative moment for the club's other members of the league's projected top 25 fantasy players: Zach Hyman, Evander Kane and Leon Draisaitl, while providing a stick tap to defenseman Evan Bouchard, who is close.Previous ranking: 23
Points percentage: 48.08%
Next seven days: vs. NJ (Dec. 9), @ COL (Dec. 11), @ VGK (Dec. 12), @ MIN (Dec. 14)MacKenzie Weegar, D | Projected fantasy points: 204.19 | Projected overall rank: 35The Flames aren't scoring much. Which essentially cements Weegar -- who contributes nicely across the fantasy board -- as the team's leader by a prairie mile. And probably drives coach Ryan Huska bananas.Previous ranking: 30
Points percentage: 45.83%
Next seven days: @ EDM (Dec. 8), @ SEA (Dec. 10), vs. CGY (Dec. 14)Joel Eriksson Ek, C | Projected fantasy points: 204.38 | Projected overall rank: 34A sustained upswing in scoring by Kirill Kaprizov -- on a team that finally appears headed in the right direction -- could topple Eriksson Ek from Minny's fantasy throne. But take nothing away from everything the big center does, including the fantasy-friendly physical stuff, that makes his club better all around.Previous ranking: 27
Points percentage: 47.62%
Next seven days: @ DET (Dec. 9), vs. CAR (Dec. 12), @ STL (Dec. 14)Brady Tkachuk, LW | Projected fantasy points: 205.2 | Projected overall rank: 33It's going to come down to Tkachuk or Tim Stutzle leading the Sens in fantasy points. They have been playing on separate lines lately and finished last season only eight points apart, so this is an intriguing race.Previous ranking: 25
Points percentage: 48.08%
Next seven days: @ BUF (Dec. 9), vs. NSH (Dec. 10), vs. PIT (Dec. 13)Mike Matheson, D | Projected fantasy points: 201.27 | Projected overall rank: 39The Canadiens probably wish it were Cole Caufield claiming the top spot for fantasy, but Matheson's strong even-strength and power-play work have him well out in front. In fact, his closest competition on the club is sophomore blueliner Kaiden Guhle.Previous ranking: 21
Points percentage: 44.44%
Next seven days: vs. MTL (Dec. 9), vs. ARI (Dec. 11), @ COL (Dec. 13)Rasmus Dahlin, D | Projected fantasy points: 212.66 | Projected overall rank: 27The Sabres are hoping that, with Tage Thompson returning from injury this week, he can have some of his signature big games to close the gap with Dahlin. If anyone can, it's the forward who had four hat tricks last season.Previous ranking: 26
Points percentage: 40.74%
Next seven days: vs. TB (Dec. 9), vs. MIN (Dec. 10), vs. FLA (Dec. 12), vs. CHI (Dec. 14)Eeli Tolvanen, LW | Projected fantasy points: 172.94 | Projected overall rank: 85Good for Tolvanen, who's off to his best season yet. But surely the Kraken would rather another skater lead the fantasy charge, and with greater gusto. Maybe last season's star, Jared McCann, who seems back in a scoring groove?Previous ranking: 29
Points percentage: 37.50%
Next seven days: vs. STL (Dec. 8), vs. FLA (Dec. 10), @ TOR (Dec. 14)Boone Jenner, C | Projected fantasy points: 191.75 | Projected overall rank: 48When the team that has Johnny Gaudreau, Patrik Laine and Adam Fantilli has Jenner easily leading the way for fantasy scoring, you know something isn't going as hoped. Surprisingly, Ivan Provorov is the next best Blue Jacket for fantasy this season.Previous ranking: 28
Points percentage: 38.46%
Next seven days: vs. WPG (Dec. 10), @ NYI (Dec. 13)Frank Vatrano, RW | Projected fantasy points: 216.2 | Projected overall rank: 20Although his scoring is drying up some, Vatrano's proclivity for shooting on net and blocking shots should still carry him through as the Ducks' No. 1 fantasy star. How close rookie Leo Carlsson would've come, if he had played a full first season, is the more pressing question.Previous ranking: 32
Points percentage: 33.33%
Next seven days: @ VGK (Dec. 10), vs. WPG (Dec. 12)Mario Ferraro, D | Projected fantasy points: 165.08 | Projected overall rank: 100After a lackluster first stretch, Tomas Hertl is ramping up his fantasy swagger. That trend should suffice for him to surpass Ferraro, and all others, on a team lacking prominent points-accruers. Getting a healthy Logan Couture back -- eventually -- will also help Hertl in that regard.Previous ranking: 31
Points percentage: 34.00%
Next seven days: vs. STL (Dec. 9), vs. WSH (Dec. 10), @ EDM (Dec. 12), @ SEA (Dec. 14)Connor Bedard, C | Projected fantasy points: 150.64 | Projected overall rank: 139Defender Seth Jones has the long-game fantasy edge on a team where the star forward isn't yet surrounded by a strong enough supporting cast. No doubt, injuries and organizational moves haven't helped.

IceHockey

NHL Power Rankings: 1-32 poll, fantasy MVP for each team

Mikel Arteta has defended David Raya after his errors contributed to two goals for Luton Town in Arsenal's 4-3 win at Kenilworth Road on Tuesday, and added that the goalkeeper's form has been "really impressive" since joining the north London club in the summer.Raya, who has controversially replaced Aaron Ramsdale as Arsenal's No. 1 goalkeeper this season, was at fault for both Elijah Adebayo and Ross Barkley's goals in the second half before Declan Rice's stoppage time goal earned all three points for Arteta's team."If you look at his form and what he has achieved since he's been with us is really really impressive," Arteta said."I have three great goalkeepers and I'm really happy. I have great wingers. Some of them are on the bench but there's no questions related to them."Arsenal travel to Villa Park to face Unai Emery's in-form team on Saturday and Arteta said he is expecting his league leaders to face a tough game.Aston Villa, who put in a dominant performance in their 1-0 victory over champions Manchester City on Wednesday, are up to third in the league. They have won 14 straight Premier League games at Villa Park and have also qualified for the knockout stage of the Europa Conference League.Arteta praised the job that former Arsenal manager Emery is doing at Villa Park in his news conference on Friday."I think you have to give huge credit to them and Unai and the coaching staff," the Arsenal boss said."They are going to be a tough opponent and it is one of my favourite grounds... [It's] no surprise. I have followed him since he was coach of Almería and what he has done at every team is remarkable."He has always improved the players, the team and the club. He is Basque like I am. I really admire him. I am really happy for him."Arteta will not be on the touchline for the match, with the Spaniard serving a ban following his third booking of the season."I think I am in the directors' box, I don't know, it is a discussion we will have later on. But let's see, hopefully I will have a really nice view," Arteta said.Arteta said Thomas Partey would not be available for selection, but added that the midfielder was recovering well from his thigh injury.

Raya's form 'really impressive' since joining Arsenal - Arteta

Unai Emery is enjoying so much success as Aston Villa manager -- most recently with Wednesday's 1-0 win over Manchester City -- that some people are beginning to re-evaluate his previous spell in England at Arsenal, where he was given the difficult task of following Arsene Wenger.In the summer of 2018, the Spanish coach was hired to replace the departing Wenger, who had fallen from legend to lamented in a tenure spanning almost 22 years. What followed was a mixed bag.Emery recorded what stands today as the third-highest win percentage in the club's history (55%) and reached a Europa League final but he left in November 2019 with his reputation in tatters, mocked for his imperfect English and derided as incompatible with the demands of Premier League football.Yet since succeeding Steven Gerrard at Villa Park in October last year, Emery has transformed Aston Villa to a jaw-dropping extent, rehabilitating his reputation and earmarking him as one of the division's top coaches.Only Manchester City (83) and Arsenal (77) have taken more points than Villa's 75 in the calendar year of 2023. Some shrewd transfer business combined with a clear tactical plan and triggering an improvement in several existing players -- most obviously striker Ollie Watkins -- has catapulted Villa into the Champions League places ahead of the visit of Emery's former side to the Midlands on Saturday.Emery facing his successor at Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, in this revived state has led some to speculate whether the 52-year-old was harshly treated at the Emirates. So, was the job too big for him, or did the club let him down in difficult circumstances?Sources have told EasyChamp that Emery impressed the Arsenal hierarchy in his interview to succeed Wenger with an in-depth knowledge of the club's academy players, laying out specific paths to the first team for certain individuals. The level of detail in his presentation was a key factor in getting the job ahead of Arteta, in addition to a track record of Europa League success with Sevilla -- winning the competition in three successive seasons between 2014 and 2016 -- and so it came as something of a surprise in the weeks and months that followed just how poor his communication skills were.Emery conducted his media interviews with a translator who sat alongside him but insisted on trying to speak English to his new squad at all times, often in lengthy video analysis meetings which were a rare occurrence during Wenger's tenure.Initially, the message got through. After starting with two defeats against Manchester City and Chelsea, Emery embarked upon a 22-game unbeaten run. Gunners fans sang "We've got our Arsenal back" during an away win at Fulham as the flowing football returned.There was a momentum that would sustain them until the final five games of the season, where they picked up just four points to miss out on a top-four finish to local rivals Tottenham Hotspur -- a collapse from which Emery ultimately never recovered. A Europa League final clash with Chelsea offered salvation -- and the chance of silverware -- but Arsenal were soundly beaten 4-1.Despite breaking their club record to sign Nicolas Pépé from Lille for £72 million in the summer of 2019, the positive effect Emery had initially created continued to dissipate at an alarming rate, and by November, after no wins in seven games -- their worst run since 1992 -- Emery was dismissed.The atmosphere by the end was toxic. Wenger famously abhorred conflict but that allowed cliques to form in his latter seasons and Emery had to tackle it. Yet they gradually stopped listening. The pitchside gym he had installed to give players the chance to increase the intensity of training sessions was barely used.Sources have told EasyChamp that Emery's English-language skills were mocked by some players around the training ground. Others believed those video analysis sessions were now bordering on tortuous.Inadvertently, Bukayo Saka had revealed Emery's inability to articulate effectively. After making his second senior start against Eintracht Frankfurt in September 2019, Saka revealed coach Freddie Ljungberg had been more influential because "sometimes when I don't understand when the coach is trying to communicate with me, I have a better communication with Freddie sometimes, he speaks better English."Emery spent much of that second season with an English teacher sitting in on his press conferences but to seemingly little effect. And multiple sources suggest he did not make the effort to ingratiate himself to staff. Sources told EasyChamp that six months into the job, he ended a session thanking a colleague by calling him the wrong name. When the fixture list allowed, frequently he would return to his hometown of Hondarribia rather than stay local to the club.The gradual erosion of Emery's authority led him to make endless team selection changes. During his final season at Arsenal, he used more players (35) and made more half-time substitutions (32) than any other Premier League manager as formations and personnel changed alarmingly. It appeared he was scrambling to find the answers as dressing-room power consumed him, much as had been the case in his previous role at Paris Saint-Germain.And yet, subsequent history suggests that the dressing room may well have been part of the problem. Arteta succeeded Emery in December 2019, won the FA Cup final nine months later, and proceeded to ruthlessly dismantle the squad with the club paying up the contracts of multiple players early including Mesut Özil, Willian, and Shkodran Mustafi to rid the team of difficult characters.Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was stripped of the captaincy and allowed to join Barcelona while Arteta was "promoted" from head coach to manager to give him greater influence over the club's future direction. How Emery must wish he had received the same support. Perhaps had he won the Europa League or secured a top-four finish, he would have done. Arteta had the FA Cup as tangible proof he could deliver success.But Emery also suffered from circumstances beyond his control, chiefly the power struggle that existed in the post-Wenger era. Wenger's autonomy had quietly been stripped from him as then-chief executive Ivan Gazidis sought to restructure a club too reliant on one man to a more modern setup, appointing nine department heads to report to a new hierarchy.The number of football operations staff trebled in three years. And then, in September 2018 with Emery barely a month into competitive football at Arsenal, Gazidis announced he was leaving to join AC Milan.With owners the Kroenke family still largely absent, those in newly appointed roles tested the parameters to the limit. Recruitment became an issue with internal tension between those wanting to use data analytics to drive signings and others preferring to lean on longstanding relationships with particular agents.The transfer policy became confused and Emery undermined his influence by pushing for the disastrous January 2019 loan signing of Denis Suárez. By the time he pushed for Wilfried Zaha over Pépé the following summer, his judgment was being questioned.Raul Sanllehi joined as head of football relations in February 2018, became head of football following Gazidis' departure, and left suddenly in August 2020. Sven Mislintat joined as head of recruitment in December 2017 and left in February 2019 amid rows over transfer planning. Arsenal's former midfielder, Edu Gaspar, became technical director in Jul. 2019 and the club quietly returned to a leaner decision-making model with Josh Kroenke now regularly engaged, based in London, and former club captain Per Mertesacker heading up the academy. But it all came too late for Emery, who became a casualty of the instability above and below him."With Arsenal, you first had to knock down the walls, which is hard work, then start to build again," Emery would later tell The Athletic.He arrived at Arsenal as the "King of the Europa League" but left after a 2-1 group-stage defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt. The following season, he won the Europa League for a fourth time, with Villarreal, before returning to England as a better manager for his experiences.Newcastle United wanted to appoint Emery but he said no. Instead, he accepted Villa's call and will stand on the touchline this weekend aiming to dent his former club's title ambitions. At Villa Park, he seems to fit. At Arsenal, he was probably the wrong man at the wrong time.

Unai Emery at Arsenal: a failure or a victim of circumstance?

A new era in Chicago Blackhawks hockey began the moment they won the 2023 NHL draft lottery and, with it, the chance to draft Connor Bedard.Draft him the club did, and his professional career has gotten off to a fast start, with his first goal in Game 2. He currently has 11 goals and 10 assists for the season.Follow along here for the key moments in the phenom's rookie campaign, along with upcoming games on the Blackhawks schedule, a vast majority of which are available to EasyChamp + subscribers at no additional cost via NHL PowerPlay.How to watch the 2023-24 NHL season on EasyChamp networks -- including 100 exclusive games and the out-of-market package (over 1,050 games).Note: Most recent games first.Some may have tuned in to this game anticipating a high-scoring affair between two teams with exciting young players. Those folks would've been disappointed! But, Bedard fans have reason for joy, as he assisted on Philipp Kurashev's second-period, power-play goal which was the only one scored the entire game.No points for Bedard in this one, but a reasonably close game against a division rival portends good things for the future of the team!With the Wild up 4-0 in the third, Bedard earned a secondary assist on Taylor Raddysh's power-play goal.Bedard started the scoring in this tilt, notching his 11th of the season at 4:39 of the first period. The Jets, however, would come back to score three to take the W.The recently signed Patrick Kane wasn't ready to skate against his former team, and this wasn't the greatest night for Bedard and the Blackhawks either. But, the rookie did pick up an assist on Lukas Reichel's power-play tally.No points for Bedard in 15:57 of ice time, but a solid team victory for Chicago over a 2023 playoff team.Bedard had trouble getting any pucks past Jordan Binnington in this one, though he landed three shots on goal in 16:52 of ice time.Bedard didn't have any goals in this one -- his teammate Jason Dickinson had a hat trick -- but he did get the primary assist on fellow rookie Kevin Korchinski's OT game-winner.The fans in Columbus were thankful for all of the offense in this one, and Bedard rang up his 10th goal of the season late in the first period.For the second time in two days, Bedard had an assist on a Philipp Kurashev goal, but the Blackhawks emerge from this one with another loss.Bedard earned a primary assist on Philipp Kurashev's second period goal, but ultimately the Blackhawks could not upend the Preds in this Central Division clash.After a standout performance in Chicago's 5-3 win over the Lightning one week prior, Bedard was held scoreless in 19:17 of ice time in this one, as Tampa Bay got its revenge.Bedard scored two more goals, but the Panthers proved a bit too much in the rematch from Nov. 4.Although the Lightning scored first, Bedard led a furious scoring onslaught for the Blackhawks during the first period, with two goals and an assist, en route to a Chicago win.No points for Bedard in 19:54 of ice time in this one, as the Devils earn a win after learning Jack Hughes would be out "week to week" with an injury.Bedard delighted the home crowd with a second period goal that put the Blackhawks up 4-0 en route to a commanding victory.On a visit to Mullett Arena, it was Bedard striking first with a goal 28 seconds into the proceedings. But then the Yotes took over, scoring eight straight.Bedard & Co. handed the Golden Knights their first loss of the 2023-24 season, and he scored goal No. 3 during the proceedings:Bedard and the rest of the Blackhawks were held off the scoreboard in this one, but it wasn't for lack of trying, as an apparent goal was called off due to a coach's challenge:Ticket prices for Bedard's home debut were through the roof, and the rookie didn't wait long to give the fans what they wanted. He scored his first home goal on the power play 1:30 into the first period. But, Chicago didn't have nearly enough offense to match up with the defending Cup champs this night.As we prognosticated upon Bedard's rookie season, we had a feeling that the Blackhawks would not be among the top Stanley Cup favorites. They faced one a team like that in this game, and the Avs showed Bedard & Co. a glimpse of what that looks like up close. No points (or highlight-reel clips), but a decent 7-for-15 from the faceoff dot for our guy Bedard.In Bedard's final season of junior hockey, he had more games with five points than games with zero points. Chicago's win over Toronto in his fourth game was one of the second type, as he failed to register a point despite a lopsided win for his club:The Canadiens edged the Blackhawks in a game of two teams we expect will be in the draft lottery again in 2024. Bedard picked up an assist on Tyler Johnson's second goal of the game:Bedard & Co. fell short in their second game of the season, but he did score the first regular-season goal of his career:The stories leading into Bedard's first game focused on the matchup with his childhood idol (and fellow No. 1 draft pick) Sidney Crosby. Bedard's night included taking the game's first faceoff against Crosby, and he also had an assist on Ryan Donato's goal:Note: All games not broadcast by NHL Network, TNT or TBS are available on EasyChamp +.

Connor Bedard tracker: Goals, schedule for NHL's top rookie

GIRONA, Spain -- Something special is cooking in Girona, and that doesn't just mean the giant paella served to supporters outside their Montilivi stadium before matches.Last weekend, they came from behind to beat Valencia 2-1 to remain top of LaLiga, level with Real Madrid and four points clear of reigning champions Barcelona, whom they face on Sunday (stream live on EasyChamp + at 3 p.m. ET.) There was an inevitability about the late goals from club legend Cristhian Stuani, the 37-year-old who scored twice in the final eight minutes to cancel out Hugo Duro's opener. The pressure had been growing in the way it often does when big teams chase a game against smaller teams -- except the role of the big team here was played by Girona, in their second season back in LaLiga, against Valencia, the six-time champions of Spain and two-time Champions League finalists.No team has recovered more points from losing positions in Europe's top five leagues, and the three won against Valencia took Girona's total to 19. They wear their opponents down, relentless, and stick to their aggressive, attacking football come-what-may. "They move you around, they play with you," Valencia's Duro said after the defeat. "They are a magnificent team, and there's a reason why they are up [at] the top."What is most is impressive is that this is being done on the back of a summer overhaul. Midfielder Oriol Romeu was signed by Barcelona, loanees Rodrigo Riquelme (Atletico Madrid) and Taty Castellanos (Lazio) returned to their parent clubs, while defender Santiago Bueno was transferred to Wolves. They have not been missed with Daley Blind, Eric García, Sávio and Artem Dovbyk among those to arrive and seamlessly adapt to the requirements of impressive coach Míchel, whose sprint down the touchline after Stuani's winner against Valencia was one of the images of the season so far.With 38 points by December, Girona's preseason objective of LaLiga survival has already been ticked off. Now, there are loftier targets, but with backing from the Abu Dhabi-owned City Football Group (CFG) -- which owns a total of 13 clubs including Manchester City, New York City FC, Melbourne City and Yokohama F. Marinos -- is their story as much of a football fairytale as it appears on first glance? EasyChamp has spoken to a range of people across the Catalan club to learn more about their incredible rise to the top of the Spanish pyramid, and where they go from here.Founded in 1930, this is just Girona's fourth season in the Spanish top flight. As recently as 1999, they were playing in the regionalised fifth tier against local Catalan sides in front of crowds of 200. It was not until 2008 that they returned to the second tier after almost 50 years outside the top two divisions. In 2017, for the first time ever, they were promoted to LaLiga. That same year, after promotion, CFG purchased 44.3% of the club, a portion that's since risen to 47%.Girona Football Group -- led by Pere Guardiola, Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola's brother -- own a 16% stake. Pere originally came into the club in 2015, helping them out of insolvency, and he was involved in the CFG deal. Another 35% has been owned since 2020 by Marcelo Claure, the president of Club Bolivar, a Bolivian side who are also partnered with CFG. Claure was previously involved with Inter Miami, too. In total, 13 clubs are now either owned, part-owned or partnered with CFG -- they have five in Europe, three in South America, and teams in the United States, Australia, Japan, China and India."They have organised things much more," Girona sporting director Quique Cárcel told EasyChamp of what CFG have brought to the table. "Of course, winning promotion to LaLiga [just before they invested] also helped improve many things. The internal infrastructure has grown a lot. The owners are football people. They have knowledge of the game and have built some really good projects."Cárcel, a former professional footballer, has been at the club since 2014; in fact, the majority of the Girona hierarchy pre-date the CFG deal. President Delfi Geli, another ex-pro who represented Girona, Barcelona and was capped by Spain, has held his role since 2015; CEO Ignacio Mas-Bagà joined the same year. However, the expertise from CFG has also enabled their rise -- notably from the group's CEO Ferran Soriano, who is from Catalonia, but also from other executives in the organisation.Despite that, after dropping out of LaLiga in 2019, it took them three years to return. A 10th-placed finished last season was promising, but no one could have predicted what was to follow.A smile spreads across Míchel's face as he looks ahead to a weekend that could have genuine implications on where the LaLiga title does or does not end up this season. Joint-leaders Madrid travel to Real Betis while Girona make the short trip to third-place Barça, who are four points behind the pacesetters after 15 games. "We should ask [Madrid coach Carlo] Ancelotti who he wants to win," Míchel grinned in an interview with EasyChamp this week. "Girona or Barça?"Míchel is laughing, but it is increasingly becoming a legitimate question. With just one defeat and seven points dropped this season, Girona's fast start to the campaign has not slowed down as many predicted. The preseason aim of survival has been replaced by European aspirations; beat Barça, and who knows where their ceiling is.It is quite remarkable, therefore, to think that two years ago, 10 games into his career as Girona coach, Míchel's job was in jeopardy after just two wins in the second division. "I always say the team was transmitting a way of playing that I liked," Cárcel explained to EasyChamp looking back on that period. "Results were not reflecting what we were seeing in every game."I saw the players were growing, developing. We believed that the idea and way of playing we wanted would lead us somewhere. I have got rid of coaches before because I could not see a connection with the players or what I wanted on the pitch. That was not the case with Míchel and, a few months later, we were promoted."Girona are not just co-leaders in LaLiga. They are also the top scorers in the league with 34 goals, ranking highly in nearly every attacking metric. The style of play referenced by Cárcel is often likened to Man City. "The playing philosophy is very similar," defender Eric García, on loan from Barça and a former City player, told EasyChamp . "We try to play out from the back, press as quickly as possible when we lose the ball and play attacking football."Obviously, from there our opponents are going to have chances because it's what we expose ourselves to, although we try to minimise them. In that sense, it's very similar [to City]."The current model of play was made non-negotiable by Cárcel in 2018, when Eusebio Sacristán replaced Pablo Machín. Until now, no one had executed it at Girona to the level of Míchel, who has been able to pick the brains of his City counterpart Guardiola -- and has even been linked as a possible successor at the Etihad Stadium. "[Guardiola] speaks with Michel," CEO Mas-Bagà said to EasyChamp . "They speak about football, of course. When they're not working, they're speaking about football as well because they live for the game, both of them. They have a good relationship and have connected well, they speak the same language."Attempting to play like City is one thing, but as Mas-Bagà adds, there are other requirements, like the size of a club's budget, that often flavour success more. "The objective is to consolidate ourselves in LaLiga in the coming years," he continued. "It is great to be top, we love it, the excitement of writing history ... but it's not an obsession. We are also realistic and [know we] are ahead of where we should be."Budgets are usually a good measure. Whoever invests more usually has better performances on pitch. But also nice stories like ours, a small club, can come around if you dare to play in the same way whether against the bottom side or Madrid or Barça."LaLiga's strict financial rules also ensure Girona don't overspend. Their spending limit for the current season is €52m, 14th-highest in the league between Rayo Vallecano and Cadiz. That may be a better a gauge of their true place in LaLiga, but there are other advantages to being part of CFG that are not strictly financial. That is perhaps why the Alavés coach, Luis García, said you could not compare the Basque side to Girona when asked if the Catalan club's success could serve as inspiration for teams like his.A big hand comes in the form of recruitment. Brazilians Yan Couto and Savio are both on loan from other teams owned by CFG (Man City and Troyes), while they also benefitted from the loan of Castellanos via New York City last season. Yangel Herrera joined the club permanently last summer from City, having previously been on loan. Star midfielder Aleix García is another player whose initial contact with Girona was on loan from City. The list, past and present, goes on and on.The case of 19-year-old forward Savio, who has scored five goals and set up four more this season, is especially interesting, as he was signed by Troyes in 2022 after being spotted by Cárcel. There has been talk he could be the first to make the move in opposite direction one day, from Girona to City, while Barça are also reportedly tracking him."We work 100% internally," Cárcel explained of how recruitment works. "We have had a relationship [with CFG] now for years, which has enabled our knowledge-base to grow. But decisions are made here 100%. Obviously, we have that competitive advantage of knowledge about players in the group, allowing us to think about players, such as in the cases of [Castellanos] or Savio and previously Herrera and Couto. That is one of the competitive advantages, but the budget we have is marked by LaLiga. We can't exceed it and we have been working hard internally to reach where we are today, able to build a really competitive team on a humble budget."Savio ... left a big impression and we took the decision to try and sign him, but no one could have expected the impact he's had. We bet big on him because we believed in him, but he has also surprised us with his performances."Girona have been increasingly successful in fending off competition from bigger European clubs to land transfer targets not connected to CFG, too. Ukraine internationals Artem Dovbyk and Viktor Tsygankov joined for €7.75m and €5m respectively. Netherlands international Blind -- previously of Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Ajax -- also signed in the summer, adding experience alongside the likes of David López and Stuani.Míchel, who previously took hometown Rayo Vallecano and Huesca up to LaLiga before landing the Girona job, was a pull for those players."We had some good talks about how he sees football, how he wants to play and how he sees me in his way of playing football," defender Blind told EasyChamp . "I was intrigued by that, it felt good. [He] showed a lot of confidence in me and this was something I was looking for."You see how we play, [Míchel] wants to play attacking football, he wants to dominate the games, to keep ball possession. These are all things I like about football as well and I think suit me more. The way of thinking about football was similar to how I want to play and the club gave me a lot of confidence by showing their interest over a longer time."Míchel moved into the centre of Girona upon taking the job, impressing locals with his decision to learn Catalan. It is a picturesque city, with the multi-coloured hanging houses over the river Onyar ripe for Instagram. The Jewish Quarter and the cathedral were used as locations in the TV series Game of Thrones, and with the beaches of the Costa Brava close by and Barcelona just an hour to the south, it is a tourist hotspot for many months of the year.However, it's not traditionally been a football city. Cyclists flock there year-round, and the basketball team has always been relatively well supported, but football? Not so much. With a population of around 100,000, it is not an especially big city, either -- two factors that could yet damage Girona's hopes of growing their fan base.Scratch a little deeper, however, and you will see that the province of Girona, which encompasses the northern area of Catalonia, has a population of over 800,000. Aside from Barça and Espanyol -- who were relegated to the second division last season -- there is not a great deal of competition in the region. It all amounts to great potential."Being where we are at the moment, fighting with the big clubs, brings people on board," Cárcel said. "We are achieving that little by little. Now, there are loads of kids on the streets in Girona shirts. Ten years ago, when I arrived, there were none. Everyone was in a Barça shirt. That is where we have to fight to grow. I see Girona shirts in Barcelona, too. That's emotional for me. It is really important and it shows that we are no longer a team on the outskirts."Any Girona-Barcelona loyalties will be put to the test on Sunday when the two teams meet at the Olympic Stadium. Barça coach Xavi Hernández has acknowledged Girona are now "direct rivals" in the title race this season, though Girona's players aren't allowing themselves to make such lofty claims yet."We see it game by game and the pressure is not on us," Blind insisted. "Barça are a great team, they have some great individual players. It will be a very difficult game, but these are the games you want to play as a kid against those teams. It will be a great match against great players, great team and we need to be at our best to get a result, we know that."I think Girona is still a small club which is building, we are in a good build up now. I hope the club can continue like this and we should see where we are playing next season. Up until now, we are enjoying the moment. We work hard every week and we try to do our best at the weekend and win every game."Cárcel admits qualifying for Europe for the first time in the club's history is more of a target. "The objective for the season has changed, evidently," he said. "We could never have expected that we would have 38 points after 15 games. It's historic. it won't happen again because it is so, so difficult."The objective now is try and be in the European places [top seven] because the points we have make us think that we can fight for that. That's where we are, thinking about the next game, Barcelona, but also that the final objective has to be to fight for everything. Right now, we have to think that Europe is an objective."A top-four finish and Champions League qualification could throw up an interesting quandary for CFG. Asked if both Girona and City, under the CFG umbrella, would be allowed to compete in Europe's elite competition should they both qualify, a UEFA spokesman referred EasyChamp to Article 5 of the Champions League regulations. The legislation states "no individual or legal entity may have control or influence over more than one club participating in a UEFA club competition." That would suggest it would not be possible, but both FC Salzburg and RB Leipzig [owned by Red Bull] found a way around the wording and while the cases are different, CFG would perhaps take optimism from that precedent."I am not an expert in that area but obviously if that happens in the end, and we finish in the top four, which will be really difficult, but I think that if Girona achieve that then, yes, we will be playing in the Champions League next season," Cárcel told EasyChamp .While they are very much in the race for Champions League football this season, though, competing on a yearly basis is perhaps impossible with the current infrastructure. They are finally starting to outgrow Montilivi, their 13,000-seater stadium that shakes in the wind, while the first-team training base, as beautiful as the location is with mountain views and neighbouring a PGA golf resort, is effectively one pitch and a few portable cabins. The academy and the club's other teams train elsewhere."When the new owners came in, we marked some objectives," Mas-Bagà detailed. "The first was to be sustainable and profitable as a business. Next, to be a platform for the development of young talent ...Then, to be references commercially and socially ... The last one is improve all the club's infrastructure."Mas-Bagà has a belief that every little helps in the pursuit of excellence, inherited from CFG CEO Soriano, so a new training centre and improved stadium will only add to the personnel already in place."We are all cogs in a machine," he added. "I like to put it like that because we all contribute so that the ball goes in. As Soriano's book is titled, 'The ball does not go in by chance.' We try to increase the probabilities [of success]. From behind the scenes, we push so that the players, the coach, the sporting director all have it a little easier to achieve the objectives. In this case, that is to win each game, which has taken us to a place in the table where we would never have imagined being."

Girona have Champions League dreams, but how far can they go?

In an age where players have social-media highlight reels and are identified, scouted and hyped aged 14 or younger, it feels incredibly rare for a breakout season to occur at 22. But that's exactly what has happened with Bryan Zaragoza, who in the space of just six months has gone from playing a bit-part role with Granada in Spain's second tier to signing for Bayern Munich for €15 million.It's been a staggering rise. In October, the forward scored two stunning goals in a 2-2 draw against Barcelona which led to his first call up for Spain. And when he debuted against Scotland, he became just the fourth Granada player ever to represent La Roja, and the first for almost 50 years.It has all happened so fast, and by modern standards, so late. Last season, in the Spanish second division, a 21-year-old Zaragoza was effectively used as an impact sub; he started just six games across the entire season. In fact, it was only in the final three games of last season -- against Mirandés, Lugo and Leganés -- that something clicked. He started two of those games and scored in all three, playing a major role in leading Granada to the title and promotion back to LaLiga.From then on, he's been a key player and a sure-fire starter -- even in stepping up a division. He's scored five goals and assisted two in 11 starts this term, a phenomenal return for a team that are struggling badly at the bottom end of the table. He's averaging 2.9 successful dribbles per 90, which is joint-second-most with Nico Williams (Athletic Club) and behind only Vinícius Jr. (Real Madrid). Zaragoza has carried the ball into the final third 38 times, the fifth-most in the league; he's carried the ball into penalty area 28 times, also the fifth-most in the league. In both statistical categories, it's largely just Real Madrid and Barcelona players ahead of him.He does everything with searing pace and unnerving directness. He's not just fast, he's lightning fast, and his balance while moving at top speed is exquisite. Watching him change direction, cutting in and out of stride, sending defenders sprawling, is a remarkable experience -- for a taste of it, watch those goals against Barcelona in the October game that led to that Spain callup.To say he's been Granada's Most Valuable Player this season would be an understatement, yet as recently as March, he was having to make do with half an hour off the bench against the likes of Racing Santander and Sporting Gijón. It's an almighty leap in ability and confidence that has confused many, but the reasons behind it are interesting.Firstly, the issue of size. Zaragoza is as diminutive as they come: 5-foot-5 and skinny. Rafa Salguero, a former Granada talent scout watched him bounce around southern Spain, taking on trials at Málaga, Real Betis and Real Valladolid but never sticking. "No one took the step with him," he told Ideal. "I think there were prejudices due to his height and tactical shortcomings."Simply put, Granada took a gamble others weren't willing to when they signed him in 2019, eager to harness obvious natural talent and smooth out his rougher edges. The sheer number of street and pickup games Zaragoza had played up until this point had made him an extraordinary dribbler, but left gaping holes in his tactical knowledge and general understanding of the game."He [Zaragoza] told me that it was Paco López [Granada's promotion-winning manager] and his coaching staff who had taught him to understand football," Salguero added. "Bryan has gone from being a player who only looked for one-vs.-one on the wing to being able to act in intermediate zones and focus more on the team."Granada's then-reserve team manager, Rúben Torrecilla, said much the same to AS: "At a tactical level he had to improve. He liked to attack, but it was difficult for him to defend. Coach López has done a good job with him."It seems as though the penny dropped for Zaragoza somewhere in those final three games of the promotion season, when he ran three defences ragged in must-win scenarios. Now he's the club's leading light as they vie to stay in the top division, switching in and out of different formations comfortably and contributing in every phase of play from the wing. The pressure and attention on him have steadily mounted over the course of 2023 but he hasn't so much as batted an eyelid."He is a player who doesn't care about pressure," Torrecilla said. "He doesn't care about playing in front of 200 people, 500, 2,000, 10,000 or 20,000, he doesn't care. He tries, and tries, and tries."It's little wonder he took his Spain debut so easily in stride, in front of a watching nation, at the famous 57,000-seater La Cartuja stadium in Seville.Bayern fans will have to wait a little while before they see him strut his stuff at the Allianz Arena, as Zaragoza insisted on staying at Granada on loan for the rest of the season in order to try and save them from relegation. Fellow Bundesliga club RB Leipzig activated his release clause but wanted him to move in January, so he turned them down.That gives Bayern the chance to step back and assess over the next six months which, despite already landing his signature, should prove extremely valuable. After all, like the rest of us, the German giants are probably still catching their breath after his whirlwind 2023.

The rise and rise of new Bayern signing Bryan Zaragoza

The Colorado Rapids are in discussions to acquire Manchester City goalkeeper Zack Steffen, sources confirmed to EasyChamp .The teams are negotiating, but no deal has been signed, according to a source.Steffen, 28, has been expected to leave City since last summer and has been prevented from seeing the field -- either for Man City or on loan -- due to a knee injury that required surgery last May.Steffen is motivated to move stateside by a lack of playing time with City, having made just 21 league and cup appearances since securing a move in 2020.Starting in 2014, Steffen has played for Freiburg's second team and the Columbus Crew, a period that included a loan spell with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the USL Championship.Following his $7 million move to Man City in 2019, Steffen also had loan spells with Bundesliga side Fortuna Dusseldorf in 2019-20, as well as a later loan to Middlesbrough in the Championship, which saw him make 45 league and cup appearances during the 2022-23 season.Boro fell just short of getting promoted to the Premier League with Steffen after a loss in the promotion playoffs to Coventry City, 1-0, on aggregate.A move back to the Rapids would mirror a similar move that Tim Howard made back in 2016, though Howard boasted significantly more experience at the time of his transfer to MLS. Colorado finished last in the Western Conference in 2023 and is looking to rebuild under new manager Chris Armas.At international level, Steffen had made 29 appearances for the U.S. men's national team. Despite being a fixture during qualifying for the 2022 World Cup, Steffen was left off the squad that competed in Qatar.The Athletic first reported the talks over a potential deal.

Rapids in talks to sign Man City GK Zack Steffen - sources

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami are headed to Hong Kong.The club revealed plans Thursday for a Feb. 4 match there on its first international tour, part of its preseason before the 2024 Major League Soccer campaign.Messi and Inter Miami will face a team composed of top players from the First Division league in Hong Kong."Hong Kong is a beautiful city with a great sports scene," Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham said in remarks distributed by the team."Throughout my career, I have spent a lot of time in Asia -- I am so pleased to have the opportunity to bring Inter Miami to play our first international tour match in this fantastic city."The match will be hosted at the 40,000-capacity Hong Kong Stadium.Inter Miami previously revealed plans to play in El Salvador on Jan. 19. The team was scheduled to play in China last month but plans for that two-game trip fell through.Inter Miami said additional "preseason matches and destinations will be announced in the coming weeks."

Messi, Inter Miami set for preseason game in Hong Kong

Erik ten Hag said he was warned not to become Manchester United manager before taking over at Old Trafford, with people telling him it was an "impossible" job.The Dutchman joined United from Ajax in the summer of 2022, becoming the sixth manager -- following David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick -- to attempt to emulate the success under Sir Alex Ferguson."Everyone was telling me, 'you can't succeed in that job,'" Ten Hag told the United We Stand fanzine, according to British media reports Thursday."They said it was impossible. Me? I wanted the challenge. I knew it wouldn't be easy, but it was such a great club with such a great fanbase."Ten Hag enjoyed a successful first season, guiding the club back to the Champions League and winning the Carabao Cup.However, the team is enduring a challenging second campaign, currently sitting sixth in the Premier League and bottom of their Champions League group with only an outside chance of making the knockout stage going into the final round of fixtures.One of those who advised Ten Hag against taking the job at the 20-time English champions was former Man United and Netherlands manager Van Gaal."I think Ten Hag is a great coach; I said that multiple times," Van Gaal said in March 2022 when Ten Hag was a reported candidate for the United job."A great coach is good for Man United. But Man United is a commercial club. Those are difficult choices for a coach. As a coach, you should prefer a football club."Man United beat Chelsea 2-1 on Wednesday, after which Ten Hag refuted suggestions the club was in crisis."Crisis? Not for us," Ten Hag said. "We are on a journey, we keep calm and believe in the process. We know what we have to build and we don't get distracted by criticism around us."I don't care about the noise. When we stick together, have the right attitude, we have the performances to collect points."

Ten Hag: I was warned not to take 'impossible' Man United job

LONDON -- Forward Son Heung-Min has said Tottenham are too "soft" after they suffered a 2-1 defeat to West Ham having initially taken an early lead, becoming the first side in Premier League history to drop points from a winning position in five straight games.Spurs took an early lead through a Cristian Romero header on 11 minutes but failed to capitalise further on their first-half dominance, with West Ham netting a pair of counter-attacking goals in the second half through Jarrod Bowen and James Ward-Prowse."We lost the game which is unacceptable," Son told Amazon Prime in a postmatch interview. "You get the lead five times in a row and losing the game I think is unacceptable and as players we should take responsibility."West Ham have always been tough to play against but look we were soft. Especially in the Premier League, even if you are winning 2-0, 3-0, you don't know what will happen in the end."When asked if the side's failure to put teams away was psychological, Son said: "Not at all. But as I said before the players should take responsibility, and the fans don't deserve this. When you go 1-0 up early you should bring even more energy. We didn't and that's why we lost."The result marked the first time since 2008 that Spurs have suffered three straight home defeats.Manager Ange Postecoglou said his side must start grinding out results and made clear his team are more focused on winning than playing an entertaining style of football."It's another game where we dominated a game of football and we didn't turn that into something more... we have a long way to go as a team," Postecoglou told a postmatch news conference."Us being good means us being 3-0 up. This is not about playing good football, this is about winning games of football."I've said that from the start, that all I wish to set up teams to win games. Being 1-0 up at half-time was not a good performance by us. We should have been three, four nil up in the first half.""I think at the moment we're going through this spell where we're so-called playing good football but I don't see that," he added. "What I see is us not showing any real clear conviction in what we're doing."Injury-hit Spurs were without nine first-team players for Thursday's contest, including defender Micky van de Ven and playmaker James Maddison.The result means Tottenham remain fifth in the Premier League on 27 points after 15 games, a marked difference since the end of October when Postecoglou's side were five points clear at the top of the Premier League.

Son blasts 'soft' Spurs after making unwanted PL history

Why soccer star, reluctant role model Jakub Jankto came out as gay

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- As LAFC prepares to defend its MLS Cup title on Saturday, it is also bracing for the possibility it will be the final game in Black and Gold for club icon Carlos Vela and longtime Italy international Giorgio Chiellini.Both players' contracts will expire after Saturday's game against the Columbus Crew."Everybody knows how happy I am in L.A., how happy I am in this team," Vela said. "But it's a job, it's a business. We know sometimes it [doesn't work out] the way you want. We are two different sides and we have to be on the same page. But I'm not thinking about that, I'm thinking just about the final and the big chance we have to win the trophy."After that we will have time to talk and see if something works. If it doesn't, everybody will be on their way and we'll have good memories and good history together."Vela, 34, was the club's first major signing, when he arrived from Spain's Real Sociedad ahead of its debut season in 2018 and is the only player still with the club from that team. Over the last six years, Vela has been instrumental in turning LAFC into the most dominant offensive force in the league.His 78 regular season goals since 2018 rank No. 2 in MLS, and in 2019 he set the single-season league record with 34 goals. This year, playing more centrally as opposed to his preferred right wing, Vela's 21 goal contributions (9 goals, 12 assists) during the regular season ranked No. 10 in the league. He appeared in all 34 games.Chiellini, the longtime Juventus center-back, joined LAFC last summer and has made 44 appearances across all competitions. Though he dealt with some nagging injuries after moving to Major League Soccer, Chiellini has been a key player for LAFC over the final three months of the season. LAFC is unbeaten in Chiellini's 10 appearances since Sept. 17, including clean sheets in the last three playoff games."The club is open with me and has given me the total freedom to decide," Chiellini said. "I still am in doubt. I have to understand what I have to follow if it's my head or if it's my heart.""Next week I will talk with my family and try to understand better what's next and the right decision. Yeah, it could be [my last game], could not be, we'll see. But now I'm really enjoying everything."It is not just about my experience here in the U.S. In the last year, I started to enjoy every day like it was the last day."Both players are expected to start on Saturday against Columbus as LAFC tries to become the first club to win back-to-back MLS Cups since the LA Galaxy in 2011-12.

LAFC's Carlos Vela, Giorgio Chiellini may leave after MLS Cup

Juventus are not interested in rejoining the European Club Association (ECA), the Italian outfit said on Thursday, after ECA chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi opened the door for their return.Al-Khelaifi said on Thursday that the ECA would welcome Juventus back after the club signalled they will pull out of the European Super League project.The ECA represents more than 440 clubs across the continent, although it is dominated by the big teams, including nine of the 12 initially involved in the planned breakaway Super League.Juventus, however, said they were not looking to rejoin."Juventus FC is not assessing the possibility to rejoin ECA at the moment," the club's press office told Reuters in an email.Juve, who along with Real Madrid and Barcelona have not rejoined the ECA after their exclusion in 2021, said in July they had initiated the procedure to pull out of the Super League project."If they stop what they are trying to fight for, which I think is a stupid project, they are always most welcome," Al-Khelaifi told reporters after an ECA board meeting in Copenhagen on Thursday."I spoke to the owner and, you know, he called me and I think they want to be back. They are definitely most welcome," Al-Khelaifi said.Al-Khelaifi, who is also president of French champions Paris Saint-Germain, took over as ECA chairman when former Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli, who had supported the idea of a European Super League, stepped down in 2021.Agnelli and the Juve board resigned in November last year.

Juventus say they won't rejoin European Club Association

Manchester United staff already have concerns about finishing in the top four this season, a source has told EasyChamp , after Manchester City inflicted a fifth Premier League defeat of the season.City's 3-0 win at Old Trafford on Sunday left United eighth in the table, 11 points behind leaders Tottenham and eight points adrift of the Champions League places.It has prompted fears within the club that they are facing another season out of Europe's top club competition after failing to qualify four times in the last 10 years.Sources have told EasyChamp that United still have faith that manager Erik ten Hag can turn things around, although there is an acceptance that form will need to improve drastically if they are to finish in the top four this season.United play Newcastle in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday before back-to-back away games against Fulham and FC Copenhagen. Their last game before the November international break is against Luton Town at Old Trafford.A source has told EasyChamp that United are hopeful of having Aaron Wan-Bissaka available before the break after missing the last nine games with a hamstring injury while Casemiro, who missed the Manchester derby with an ankle problem, is also close to a return.United's list of absentees has numbered 16 first-team players at times this season and, according to a source, club chiefs believe it is an unfortunate factor which has seriously impacted the start to the season.However, there are concerns within the dressing room that the intensity of the training sessions set up by Ten Hag and his staff are contributing to fatigue and, in some cases, injuries.Some senior players have already played more than 20 games for club and country, including a long preseason schedule which included eight matches, and there is a feeling that more time could be dedicated to recovery to better prepare the squad for match days.

Man Utd staff fear missing out on top-four finish - source

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