Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill understands the excitement around teenage striker Callum Marshall but is eager not to put pressure on the West Ham prospect.
Marshall is expected to feature in Saturday’s Euro 2024 qualifier against San Marino after returning to O’Neill’s squad this month, and fans are keen to get another glimpse of a player who has already drawn comparisons to Northern Ireland’s record goalscorer David Healy.
Marshall was denied a dream international debut in June when his late equaliser against Denmark in Copenhagen was ruled out by the VAR for offside, but the 18-year-old will hope for another opportunity against San Marino and in Tuesday’s match against Slovenia.
“I don’t want to put any added pressure on a young lad wh…
As the countdown to the 2018 World Cup in Russia continues the is reaching its peak.
After a piece detailing in on the you should watch during the showpiece tournament in Russia now is time to rank the best strikers that we believe will keep us all entertained.
Kicking it off in style albeit an unusual one here is a tribute to two of world’s greatest football stars at the moment. Without any intention to fuel the ever-going Messi vs Ronaldo debate, here is a compromise to start with.
Leo Messi + Cristiano Ronaldo
Barcelona and Real Madrid superstars Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have scored the total of 93 goals across all competitions combined during the 2017/18 season. The La Liga champion and Champions League winner are the absolute best the world has …
Harry Kane acknowledged England have fallen short of expectations so far at Euro 2024 but insisted there is no need for panic as he likened their start to that of a boxer or major golfer.
Gareth Southgate s side edged past Serbia in their Group C opener before being held to a disappointing 1-1 draw with Denmark on Thursday.
The Three Lions are still top of their pool and in pole position to qualify as group winners, so long as Southgate s men overcome Slovenia in Cologne on Tuesday.
Yet frustration has been growing from some quarters of supporters and pundits, with Gary Lineker and a host of former players questioning England s underwhelming performances and line-up selection.
England captain Kane understands parts of the scrutiny, though sees no need for…
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Turning their attention back to Premier League duties on Saturday afternoon, Manchester City will welcome Fulham to the Etihad.
Manchester City
Starting with the hosts, while Manchester City might have still not suffered a single defeat across any competition so far this season, it does feel that Pep Guardiola’s squad are seeking a recent domestic boost. Left frustrated last weekend as they eventually had to settle for a 1-1 stalemate away at Newcastle, the former Barcelona boss has seen his superstar squad drop back-to-back points. Nevertheless, putting in a rampant Champions League performance earlier in the week as they stormed their way to a 4-0 romp away at Slovan Bratislava, the Sky Blues are looking to smash more domestic rec…
Sven-Goran Eriksson heaped praise on perfectionist Roberto Mancini as the Italy head coach continues to oversee the stunning transformation of the Azzurri at Euro 2020.
Italy will face Belgium in the quarter-finals on Friday after setting a new national record by extending their unbeaten streak to 31 games thanks to a last-16 triumph over Austria.
A proud football country but a national team on their knees after failing to qualify for Russia 2018, their first World Cup absence since 1958, Mancini is the mastermind behind a drastic recovery following his appointment more than three years ago.
Banishing the nightmares of Gian Piero Ventura s dismal tenure, Italy have only conceded more than once in one of their past 18 matches at major tournaments, dating back to t…
I witnessed two of the best saves I ve ever seen in my career, were the words of Mikel Arteta following David Raya s heroics in Arsenal s 1-1 draw with Atalanta.
The Gunners kickstarted their Champions League campaign with a point, but the result could have been much different if not for Raya s stunning intervention.
Atalanta had the opportunity to take the lead six minutes into the second half when Ederson was brought down by Thomas Partey inside the area.
Mateo Retegui assumed responsibility from 12 yards, only to see Raya dive to his right to save before springing back to his feet to deny the Italian s header on the follow-up.
I witnessed two of the best saves I ve ever seen in my career from David in that moment, Arteta said.
If you can t…
Can Paris Saint-Germain get back on track? Are champions Lille in contention again? Could any top French sides face the drop?
Stats Perform aims to answer all of these questions and more as the new Ligue 1 season gets under way.
The Stats Perform League Prediction Model, created by Stats Perform AI using Opta data, has analysed the division ahead of the new season to assign percentages to potential outcomes for each club.
The model estimates the probability of each match outcome (win, draw or loss) based on teams attacking and defensive qualities, which considers four years worth of results, with weighting based on recency and the quality of opposition. The season is then simulated 10,000 times to calculate the likelihood of each outcome.
What does that …
Italy and England combined to produce a nail-biting finale to Euro 2020, which was enjoyed by an average audience of 6.4 million viewers in the United States.
Those staggering viewership numbers meant the 2020 showpiece became the most-watched European Championship final in the USA, surpassing the previous record from the Euro 2012 final (4.5 million for Spain v Italy). Viewership increased 43 per cent on the 2016 final.
Even the first two games of the NBA Finals failed to produce better viewing figures, with the USA appearing to have savoured a memorable European Championship.
In fact, as Gianluigi Donnarumma s shoot-out heroics clinched Italy s first European Championship title since 1968, the audience in the United States peaked at 8.1 million, according…
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is elated with how his year went, and is aiming for even more success in 2013.
The goalkeeper was a crucial member of the Serie A-winning Juve team under Antonio Conte and helped Italy reach the final of Euro 2012, where they were beaten comfortably by Spain.
The 34-year-old wrote on his Facebook page: 2012 gave me a lot of joy.
Juventus bounced back to win the Scudetto, I had a beautiful European adventure with the national team, I lifted my first trophy as captain and then (Juve had) a really superb beginning to this season.
This group aims higher in every competition. In 2013 I hope to convey all my determination and confidence so that the team keep being able to fight on every front.
Juve currently sit …
It’s the final week of NFL preseason, which means very few starters will be suiting up, and it could be the last chance to get a look at some of these Day 3 and undrafted rookies before they’re potentially thrown into the fire due to injury during the season.
One of those such rookies is Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell, who has been arguably the preseason MVP through two games and is looking to continue his hot play against the Dallas Cowboys backups at AT&T Stadium.
Find out where my best bets lie in our NFL preseason picks and predictions for Raiders vs. Cowboys on Saturday, August 26.
Raiders vs Cowboys odds
Raiders vs Cowboys predictions
By all accounts it sounds li…