Eddie Howe’s Newcastle took a huge step towards qualifying for the Champions League as Sandro Tonali inspired them to a vital 2-0 victory over top five rivals Chelsea on Sunday. Tonali put the Magpies ahead after just two minutes of their Premier League clash at St James’ Park following a devastating counter-attack before Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson was sent off for an elbow on centre-back Sven Botman in the 35th minute. Also Read: Clasico kings: Barca beat Real for the fourth time this season Bruno Guimaraes then struck in stoppage-time to secure Newcastle’s seventh win from their last nine league games, lifting them to third place in the EPL. Eddie Howe’s side — aiming to feature in the Champions League for the second time in three seasons — are one point above fourth-placed Manchester City and three points clear of fifth-placed Chelsea and sixth-placed Aston Villa. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
12 May,2025 08:44 AM IST | Newcastle | AFPLionel Messi suffered the heaviest defeat of his MLS career as Inter Miami crashed to a 1-4 loss against Minnesota United on Saturday. Also Read: Newcastle climb to 3rd spot with 2-0 win over Chelsea The Argentine scored in the second-half, but Miami’s defence was once again exposed as they fell to a fourth defeat in their last five games — a run which has seen them concede 14 goals. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
12 May,2025 08:25 AM IST | Washington | AFPBarcelona mounted a spectacular comeback to beat Real Madrid 4-3 on Sunday and move to the brink of the La Liga title. Mbappe nets hat-trick Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick for Los Blancos but Raphinha’s double and goals from Lamine Yamal, Eric Garcia gave Barcelona a seven-point lead on the reigning champs. This was the fourth time Hansi Flick’s side outclassed Real this season. They beat them 4-0 at the Bernabeu earlier in the league, 5-2 in the Spanish Super Cup Final in Riyadh, and 3-2 in the Copa del Rey Final. Also Read: Gujarat Titans set the pace as first IPL team back in training after India-Pakistan ceasefire Real had made the perfect start to the match as Mbappe earned a penalty when he was scythed down by Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. The striker stepped up and beat Szczesny. In the 14th minute Mbappe doubled Madrid’s advantage with a lethal finish after Vinicius Junior played him through. Just as they have done on so many occasions this season, Flick’s spirited team fought their way back in front with a stirring comeback. Garcia (19th min) headed home Ferran Torres’ flick-on to kick-start the ‘Remontada’ before Yamal bent one past the outstretched Courtois to equalise (32nd min). Raphinha two good Two minutes later, Raphinha sent Barca ahead, with Pedri threading a pass through for the Brazilian winger to drill home. He then netted his second just before half-time, picking Lucas Vazquez’s pocket on the edge of the area, exchanging passes with Torres before beating Courtois. Not to be outdone by his Barcelona counterpart, Mbappe stepped up once more, slotting home his hat-trick to cap a roller-coaster of a match. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
12 May,2025 08:20 AM IST | Barcelona | AFPBayern Munich sealed its Bundesliga title celebrations with a 2-0 home win over Borussia Monchengladbach in the 33rd round match on an emotional night that marked Thomas Muller's final game in red on Saturday. All eyes were on Muller as he led the team out for his 750th and final appearance at the Allianz Arena. The veteran, who has won 13 Bundesliga titles and two Champions Leagues with the club, received a roaring ovation and was honoured with a fan choreography. After a quiet start, Michael Olise brought Bayern to life in the 31st minute. Cutting inside from the right, he curled a shot past Monchengladbach goalkeeper Jonas Omlin for Harry Kane to open the scoring. The goal was Kane's 25th of the season, making him the first Bayern player to reach that mark in each of his first two Bundesliga campaigns, reports Xinhua. Monchengladbach had its moments, with Tim Kleindienst, Rocco Reitz and Tomas Cvancara all testing Manuel Neuer, who returned from injury to put in an impeccable performance. The Bayern captain made several fine saves from close range to keep his clean sheet intact. Muller came close to scoring himself on several occasions but was unable to find the net on his special night. He was taken off in the 84th minute to a standing ovation from all sides of the stadium as his teammates lined up for a guard of honor. In the dying moments of the game, Olise capped a remarkable evening by finishing off a slick move involving Leroy Sane to make it 2-0. "I'm not sure who felt the emotions more, Thomas or the Bayern fans. In the years to come, we'll truly realize just how important he was for this club," said Bayern coach Vincent Kompany. Elsewhere, bottom club Holstein Kiel was relegated to the second tier after a 2-1 defeat at fourth-placed Freiburg. Bochum was also relegated as Mainz moved into the top six with a 4-1 win. Leipzig shared the spoils with Werder Bremen and has no chance of qualifying for the Champions League. Heidenheim shocked Union Berlin 3-0 to move into the relegation play-off zone, while Hoffenheim was held to a 2-2 draw by Wolfsburg. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 May,2025 08:00 PM IST | Berlin | IANSThe long-awaited return of Erling Haaland couldn't stop Manchester City from tumbling to another poor result in a season to forget for the deposed Premier League champion. Indeed, after a dire 0-0 draw at already-relegated Southampton on Saturday, even qualification for the lucrative Champions League " something taken for granted by City for so many seasons " is still far from certain with two games left. Failing to beat the Premier League's last-placed team, and one of the worst to ever play in England's top flight, threw City's ambitions of a top-five finish back into doubt. Even more so with Aston Villa, one of a raft of clubs battling with City to get into the Champions League, beating Bournemouth 1-0 thanks to Ollie Watkins' first-half goal. It could barely be tighter in that race. Third-placed City moved two points clear of Newcastle and Chelsea " who meet at St. James' Park on Sunday " and also sixth-placed Villa. Nottingham Forest is two points further back but also has a game in hand, at home to already-relegated Leicester on Sunday. Six points separate Arsenal in second place and Forest in seventh. It seemed as if City turned the corner after a terrible run of results from November to February that knocked Pep Guardiola's team out of contention for a fifth straight Premier League title as well as the Champions League. Indeed, arriving at Southampton on the back of four straight victories and with star striker Haaland back after six weeks out with an ankle injury, City was even looking good to jump above Arsenal and finish second behind already-crowned champion Liverpool. Yet City was sluggish, Haaland barely got a chance and the recalled Phil Foden continued to look a shadow of the guy who was English soccer's player of the year last season. This draw will revive the concerns about Guardiola's team ahead of games to close its Premier League campaign, at home to Bournemouth " a club chasing a first ever qualification for European competition " and away to Fulham. Before that, there is an FA Cup final against Crystal Palace next weekend. For Guardiola, whose team failed to beat an opponent on the bottom of the standings for the first time since joining City in 2016, it will be a "fight until the end" to qualify for the Champions League. "We take that point still," Guardiola said. "It's in our hands." Southampton avoid unwanted record Southampton was able to celebrate no longer being at threat of earning the label of the worst ever Premier League team. The draw moved the Saints onto 12 points " one more than the lowest ever points haul in a single Premier League season, set by Derby County in 2007-08. Watkins' milestone Watkins stretched out his boot and glanced home Morgan Rogers' cross for Villa's winner that also marked a milestone for the striker. The England international moved into the outright lead as Villa's record scorer in the Premier League with 75 goals, one more than Gabby Agbonlahor. Villa finished with 10 men after Jacob Ramsey's 80th-minute sending off for two yellow cards but hung on to stay in contention to qualify for the Champions League for a second straight season. The chase for Europe Finishing in eighth place could secure qualification for next season's Conference League " Europe's third-tier competition " and that remains the carrot for Brentford and Brighton after wins on Saturday. Brentford beat already-relegated Ipswich 1-0 thanks to Kevin Schade's glancing header from a corner in the 18th minute. Brighton won at Wolverhampton 2-0 after a 10th goal of the season by Danny Welbeck " a penalty in the 28th " and Brajan Gruda, who chipped the goalkeeper in the 85th for his first goal for the south-coast club. Eighth-placed Brentford and ninth-placed Brighton were tied for points, two more than Bournemouth and four more than Fulham, which lost at home to Everton 3-1. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 May,2025 08:00 PM IST | London | AP | PTIFC Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick claims his side will not be concerned about winning the title just yet, preferring to claim the bragging rights over rivals Real Madrid when the two teams clash on Sunday. ”When you ask the players, they want to win the El Clásico. It does not matter what effects it has on the table. The only focus is to give everything for the three points,” Flick said. The Catalan giants have dominated Los Blancos this season, beating them 4-0 at the Bernabeu earlier in the league, 5-2 in the Spanish Super Cup Final in Riyadh, and 3-2 at La Cartuja in the Copa del Rey Final. Having been dumped out of the Champions League semi-final by Inter Milan, who won 4-3 on aggregate — Barcelona will want to get back to winning ways, and what better cure for their European wounds than a fourth win over Madrid in a single season? However, despite their dominance over Carlo Ancelotti’s side this season, Flick is wary of the threat they possess, as they sit in second-place — four points behind league leaders Barcelona. “Everyone knows that in the El Clásico, you have to be at your highest level. This is what the team has to do tomorrow. I want to see our intensity and dominance on the pitch. We all know Real is a fantastic team, but we play at home. I am really appreciative of our fans, and they support us a lot,” said Flick. Barcelona were handed a boost as Alejandro Balde and Marc Casado were passed fit to play on Saturday after injury. Midfielder Casado has been missing for almost two months after a knee ligament injury, while Balde missed the last month with a hamstring problem. Meanwhile, star striker Robert Lewandowski returned from his injury to play as a substitute against Inter on Tuesday. Flick said all three players were more likely to feature on the bench than as starters. 04No. of points that separate league leaders Barca from Real Madrid This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 May,2025 09:33 AM IST | Barcelona | AgenciesAhead of their clash with Premier League champions Liverpool, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta conceded that his side has regressed this season. However, he remains adamant that they will end their 21 year Premier League title drought soon. “In the Premier League we’ve done a step backwards. But with the amount of points we have generated in the last few seasons, we could have two Premier Leagues. So, we know how close [we are to winning the title],” said Arteta. Mikel Arteta “We are providing the numbers that win titles, but [we have to] still do better to make sure that nobody has a season better than us,” he added. The Spanish coach also urged his side to use the frustration of having to give Liverpool a guard of honour on Sunday as fuel to win the league next season. “Something has to drive you, motivate you. The pain [of losing the title] is a good motivation for next season,” Arteta said. He also said that Slot’s team have set a benchmark for the rest to follow. “They’ve been the best team, they’ve been the most consistent, and what Arne and the coaching staff have done has been fascinating, it’s been really good. They fully deserve it. If somebody is better, you have to accept it and try to reach that level,” he added. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 May,2025 09:33 AM IST | London | AFPManchester City were held to a shock goalless draw by relegated Southampton on Saturday, slowing their charge for a Champions League spot. Pep Guardiola’s men were expected to waltz to three points on England’s south coast and pull level with second-placed Arsenal on 67 points. But although they dominated possession, they could not break the deadlock, despite the return to action of star striker Erling Haaland. The point for Southampton takes them to 12 for the season, meaning they have avoided the tag of being the joint-worst team in Premier League history. They are now one point clear of Derby County’s tally of 11 points which they accrued in the 2007-08 campaign. Despite the draw, third-placed City remain well-placed to finish in the Premier League top five, which would secure qualification for the Champions League next season. With two games to play, City are four points clear of sixth-placed Nottingham Forest, though their rivals all have a game in hand. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 May,2025 09:33 AM IST | London | AFPRuben Amorim’s Manchester United are one match away from qualifying for next season’s Champions League after a 4-1 (7-1 agg) win over Athletic Bilbao to set up a Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur. The Red Devils came into Thursday’s second leg at Old Trafford with a comfortable 3-0 cushion. But the 4-1 scoreline gives a misleading impression of the match as the nervy home side struggled to gain a foothold after falling behind to a superb Mikel Jauregizar strike in the 31st minute. However, Amorim’s decision to bring on attacking midfielder Mason Mount and winger Amad Diallo shortly after the hour mark changed the game. Mount, who has been a peripheral figure since joining United in 2023 due to injuries, scored the equaliser after pirouetting and shooting in one swift motion in the 72nd minute. Also Read: Critics want to ‘tear down’ our achievement: Postecoglou Ruben Amorim Veteran midfielder Casemiro then gave Amorim’s team the lead with a 79th minute header via a cross from Bruno Fernandes. Six minutes later, off-colour striker Rasmus Hojlund netted from close range following a cut-back from Diallo, who was causing mayhem down the right flank. Mount then doubled his tally for the night with a lofted shot from 30 yards out to create a party atmosphere at Old Trafford. “I think if you look at both games, it was so much tougher than if you look just at the result,” said Amorim. “We have so many weaknesses, but we are fighting and we managed to pass [through to the final]. I think we deserve it,” he added. Amorim admitted the title clash in Bilbao, on May 22, would be his biggest match so far at the club. “To win a title as a coach gives the feeling that we can do good things, the feeling to give something to our fans, especially in this kind of [turbulent] season. I’m stressed already because of the final. If we don’t do it [win the title], it means nothing,” Amorim concluded. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
10 May,2025 08:44 AM IST | Manchester | AFPLiverpool boss Arne Slot is optimistic of finding a replacement for the outgoing Trent Alexander-Arnold from within the club. The right-back announced on Monday he would be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season and is widely tipped to join Real Madrid. Also Read: IPL 2025 | "Everyone felt we should stand united as a nation": Chairman Arun Dhumal His exit leaves the Reds short of cover in his position, with Conor Bradley, 21, their only other right-back. However, Slot expressed full faith in Liverpool unearthing the next talent from within their team. “The experience I have is that if a very good player is leaving, the next very good player will step up and that probably will happen now,” said Slot. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
10 May,2025 08:38 AM IST | London | AFPThe Indian senior women’s team will play two FIFA international friendly matches against Uzbekistan in the May-June window, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) said on Thursday. Also Read: Precise PSG shoot down Gunners The two games against Uzbekistan will be played on May 30 and June 3 at the Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence in Bangalore. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
09 May,2025 07:44 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIADVERTISEMENT
