She will end her professional career after this season’s WBBL with Sydney Thunder

Andrew McGlashan14-Sep-2022

Rachael Haynes excelled in a number of roles in Australia’s batting order•Getty Images

Australia vice-captain Rachael Haynes has announced her retirement from international and state cricket. She will finish her professional career entirely after this season’s WBBL with Sydney Thunder.Haynes, a left-hand top-order batter, made her Australia debut in an ODI against England at Lord’s in 2009 and a few days later scored 98 on her Test debut at Worcester. In total she scored 3818 international runs with 2585 of them coming in ODIs, which also brought her two centuries.Related

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'In the back of your mind you know what's to come' – Haynes on Australia's journey

Haynes’ career can be divided into two parts: up to 2013 and then after her return in 2017. Having been dropped following the 2013 Ashes in England, Haynes was recalled for a tour of New Zealand nearly four years later and from that point averaged 45.07 in ODIs and 33.00 in T20Is with a strike-rate of 126.15. Her final international match was Australia’s gold-medal victory against India at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.Haynes captained Australia on 14 occasions when filling in for Meg Lanning, most notably during the 2017-18 Ashes when Lanning was ruled out with a shoulder injury.”One of the great things about having a long career is watching those around you develop,” Haynes said. “I’m extremely proud of the way this team has brought players in and nurtured their development. The ability to help players transition smoothly has been instrumental to our team’s success. To be a leader within this environment has been the greatest privilege of my career.”Haynes fell agonisingly short of the century mark three times during her Test career•Getty Images

Haynes filled a variety of batting positions, finishing as an opener in Tests and ODIs – ending her one-day career at the 2022 World Cup where she was the second-highest run-scorer behind Alyssa Healy – and became Australia’s middle-order safety net in T20Is, a role never better exemplified than against Sri Lanka, in Perth, during the 2020 T20 World Cup after Australia’s tournament had been left on a knife-edge following the opening defeat against India.A Test-match century agonisingly eluded her: apart from her 98 on debut, she also made 87 at Taunton in 2019 (ended by a dubious lbw decision) and 86 in Canberra against England earlier this year.She had addressed the retirement question over the past year and during the World Cup in New Zealand said: “At the end of every series I play I ask myself the question, ‘do I still have that passion and desire to continue on’ and ‘am I still playing at a level which is contributing to the team’s success?”On Thursday, she thanked all those who had played a part in her career.”Playing at this level isn’t possible without the support of many people,” she said. “From clubs, states, coaches, family and friends, I’m so grateful to those who helped me along the way. In particular, I want to thank my parents Ian and Jenni, and partner Leah for their unwavering support.”To all the team-mates across my career, you are the reason I’ve played as long as I have. You’ve inspired me to be better every day. I’ve learnt something from all of you, on and off the field. You’ve challenged me as a player, helped me grow as a person and most importantly, made cricket fun.”Haynes captained Australia on 14 occasions when filling in for Meg Lanning•ICC via Getty Images

Healy, who put on 160 with Haynes in the ODI World Cup final earlier this year, paid tribute to her team-mate.”I feel so fortunate to have been able to spend most of my career playing with Rach,” she said. “In the early years I played against her when she was at Victoria, and we have been rivals in the WBBL, but it’s pretty obvious that it’s better being on her team than trying to get her out.”To have the privilege of being at the other end watching some of her greatest innings, and it [is] those times, as well as the times off the field travelling around Australia and the world, that I will always cherish.”Nick Hockley, the Cricket Australia chief executive, said: “On behalf of everyone at Cricket Australia I’d like to congratulate Rachael on an amazing career and also recognise the outstanding contribution she has made off the field.”Rachael’s calm and assured leadership has played a key role in Australia becoming one of the most successful sporting teams in history. She will go down as a great of the game.”Rachael has been an inspirational figure for kids coming into the game and to her many teammates and has played an integral part in the advancement of cricket as a sport for women and girls, both here in Australia and around the world. We look forward to watching Rachael in the WBBL this season and hope she maintains a close connection to the game in coming years.”In the WNCL, where Haynes played for Victoria and New South Wales, she scored 4528 runs at 43.12 with nine centuries. For NSW she sits fourth on the all-time run scoring list behind Alex Blackwell (4788), Lisa Sthalekar (3414) and Lisa Keightly (3081).

Ipswich Town have received a permanent January transfer offer to sell a player who Kieran McKenna has previously called “powerful”.

Ipswich Town transfer rumours

The Tractor Boys have been active in the winter market, making Ben Godfrey the club’s first signing of 2025. The former Norwich City defender joined on loan for the second half of the season from Serie A side Atalanta and made his debut for the club against Bristol Rovers in the FA Cup.

Next to arrive at Portman Road will be winger Jaden Philogene. Ipswich agreed on a permanent transfer to sign Philogene from Aston Villa, who have since bolstered their attacking ranks with the arrival of Donyell Malen from Borussia Dortmund.

After Philogene, attention at Ipswich could be on outgoings, with Mckenna admitting defender Harry Clarke could leave on loan before the deadline.

“There’s a possibility that Harry Clarke will go out on loan. Me and Harry have had those conversations. He’s an important player for us, a very good player. He played through some injury at the back end of last season and had a big surgery in the summer, so he’s missed a few months of football.

“He’s had some minutes now in the Premier League, some exposure. But of course, for his age, as a young defender, it’s important to be getting minutes regularly for his progression and his role at the club. If everything is in a good place in the squad over the next week or two from an availability point of view, then there’s a chance that Harry will go out on loan to get some regular playing time, to keep pushing with his development.

“That’s the only one, really. Other than that, the squad is pretty tight at the moment. Everyone’s got a really clear role in the team and I wouldn’t expect too many changes to that in the next couple of weeks.”

One player already out on loan is centre-back George Edmundson, who is at Middlesbrough. There have been reports that Michael Carrick’s side were plotting a permanent January move for the Ipswich man, and it looks as if that offer has been made.

Middlesbrough make permanent bid to Ipswich Town for George Edmundson

According to Football Insider, Ipswich have received and rejected a permanent offer from Middlesbrough for Edmundson. The 27-year-old has been a regular for Boro under Carrick, and reporter Stuart Watson has provided further details on the bid that was made, claiming it was worth £350,000.

Edmundson is out of contract at Portman Road at the end of the season, and it looks as if Ipswich are open to selling for the right price, so it will be interesting if Boro return with an improved offer before the deadline.

McKenna has previously hailed the defender, who he chose to play against Liam Delap last season against Hull City, saying: “I just wanted to put George in tonight. We thought he’s been training really well, has played really well in the cup competitions and I thought his qualities tonight against Liam Delap would be really important.

“There are not many more powerful runners than George so we thought we’d put him up against one of the more powerful runners in the league.”

The English outfit scored three times in seven minutes in extra-time to secure a thrilling come-from-behind victory

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• Lyon fall to Man United 5-4, 7-6 on aggregate in Europa League
• Tanner Tessmann plays well for french outfit
• Home side scored three goals in seven minutes to secure victory

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• WHAT HAPPENED?

  U.S. international Tanner Tessmann and Olympique Lyon suffered a heartbreaking exit from the UEFA Europa League on Thursday evening, falling 5-4 in extra time (7-6 on aggregate) to Manchester United in a wild quarterfinal second leg.

  After a 2-2 draw in France left the tie level heading into Thursday’s match in Manchester, United seized early control, racing out to a 2-0 lead by halftime. Lyon responded with urgency after the break, with Tessmann and striker Alexandre Lacazette coming off the bench with 35 minutes to go – and nearly turning the tide.

  Corentin Tolisso’s 71st-minute header and a 78th-minute strike from Argentina international Nicolas Tagliafico brought Lyon level, sending the match into extra time tied 4-4 on aggregate.

  The French side surged ahead in the 105th minute through Rayan Cherki, with Tessmann playing the secondary pass in the buildup. Lacazette then converted a penalty to make it 4-2 in extra time, giving Lyon a seemingly commanding 6-4 aggregate lead.

  But the final minutes brought utter chaos.

  United pulled one back from the penalty spot, cutting the deficit to 4-3 (6-5 agg.) with six minutes remaining. Then came a dramatic collapse: England international Kobbie Mainoo leveled the match in the 120th minute, and just two minutes later, Harry Maguire thundered home a header to complete a stunning 5-4 victory (7-6 agg.).

  It was a complete and utter collapse from Tessmann's Lyon, who were in the driver's seat with seven minutes left in the extra-time period.

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• Getty Images Sport
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  An 89th minute second yellow card to Lyon's Tolisso – scorer of their opening goal – reduced them to 10 men, and once United gained momentum, there was nothing Lyon could do to keep up.

  Tessman had a fine showing up until the late surge of goals from the home side, where the entire French side capitulated internally, with no room to point fingers at individually.

  Across the final 35 minutes of regulation and the extra-time period, Tessmann completed 95 percent of his passes and managed 48 touches on the ball. He won 100 percent of three attempted tackles, and all three of attempted ground duels, as well.

  Manchester pulled off the unthinkable, while Lyon crash out of the competition in circumstances nobody would have seen coming.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Lyon were last semifinalists in the Europa League in 2016-17. A win on Thursday would have seen them clinch their first berth in that stage of the competition in nearly a decade's time.

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• WHAT NEXT?

  United have advanced to the semifinals of the competition, where they will now face La Liga side Athletic Club in the semifinals. Leg 1 will be on May 1, and Leg 2 on May 8.

  Lyon, meanwhile, return to Ligue 1 this weekend where they will face Saint-Etienne on Sunday.

Ipswich Town have been busy this transfer window to date as the Tractor Boys attempt everything in their power to save their skin in the Premier League.

Three new signings have joined the building in the form of Jaden Philogene-Bidace, Ben Godfrey and Julio Enciso, with some more fresh faces expected in through the door before Monday’s deadline.

Ipswich could look to boost their numbers in the striker position between now and then, with the Suffolk side lacking in depth up top away from main man Liam Delap.

Ipswich's other striker options

The relegation-threatened outfit only really have George Hirst in reserve in case Delap is having a rare off-day, owing to the fact Ali Al-Hamadi is now out on loan at Stoke City until the end of the campaign.

Hirst isn’t exactly firing on all cylinders either away from Al-Hamadi’s January exit, with the 25-year-old’s bad luck with injuries also a big worry for McKenna.

He did fire home seven goals last season as a reliable source of strikes in tense moments, but the 25-year-old only has one goal next to his name this time around up a league, with 12 clashes already missed through injury.

Therefore, he can’t be the only other option up top away from Delap who does have a stunning eight strikes on his Premier League resume, but has shown in recent games that he can’t be deadly machine all of the time particularly when facing off against some of the division’s elite clubs.

Off the back of this, McKenna could be eyeing up some fresh blood in the striker department with Ipswich now sniffing around for his former top-flight ace.

Ipswich could land dream Hirst upgrade

As reported earlier this week by Turkish outlet Milliyet, Ipswich seemingly made an attempt to land Galatasaray centre-forward Michy Batshuayi.

The ex-Chelsea man is also being looked at by West Ham United according to the report, with a further detail revealing that bids around the £4.1m mark have been fielded by the top-flight clubs to try and land the Belgian.

Whilst Batshuayi would obviously find it difficult to displace Delap as the leading marksman, he would no doubt give the ex-Manchester City star greater competition than Hirst is currently offering up when taking a quick glance at his Super Lig numbers.

The Galatasaray number 44 has bagged a reasonable seven goals in all competitions this season, which is just one off Delap’s Premier League tally, with the 31-year-old an impressive watch in the past when situated on English shores.

Batshuayi’s career goal record by league

League played in

Games played

Goals scored

Super Lig

97

43

Premier League

77

15

Jupiler Pro League

95

38

Ligue 1

62

26

La Liga

15

1

Bundesliga

10

7

Sourced by Transfermarkt

Looking at the table above, the nomadic attacker has often proven himself to be “deadly” – as he was once labelled by football journalist Josh Bunting – wherever he’s jumped ship to, with a promising 15 goals coming his way in the English top-flight previously.

McKenna could, therefore, utilise Batshuayi as an impact option off the bench when Delap is tiring or misfiring with the Ipswich boss perhaps more confident that the former Blues man can cut it at such a high level when compared next to Hirst.

The £80k-per-week forward will also feel there’s unfinished business for him in the Premier League having once been touted for greatness at Stamford Bridge, with the Belgian becoming an instant hero at Portman Road if he can chip in with a key goal or two to help his new team stave off relegation.

Related Hutchinson 2.0: Ipswich lodge enquiry to sign a "superstar in the making"

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Posts ByKelan Sarson Jan 28, 2025

MatériaMais Notícias

Além do episódio envolvendo Diego Alves, Paulo Sousa comentou sobre as vaias dadas ao Flamengo logo após a vitória por 1 a 0 sobre o Goiás, neste sábado, em duelo pela sétima rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro. A torcida no Maracanã não saiu satisfeita, e o técnico, que viu Marcos Braz ratificar apoio ao seu trabalho, acredita que o torcedor é “soberano”.

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– O torcedor é sempre soberano. Ele decide estar contente ou não estar contente. Da minha parte, é trabalhar, com muita honestidade e conhecimento, e ter sempre o Flamengo a frente de tudo para fazer eles felizes. Tenho visto nossa equipe cada vez mais consistente, defendendo melhor, com boa intensidade e dinâmicas extraordinárias. Podemos marcar mais gols e vamos ter dificuldade em alguns jogos, mas a atitude que temos tido leva-me a crer que, muito em breve, vamos ter nosso torcedor muito feliz.

O Mister também afirmou estar “satisfeitíssimo” com o resultado e vê o seu time no “caminho certo”. O Flamengo chegou a nove pontos no Brasileirão, agora com duas vitórias na competição.

-Acho que a equipe teve muito bem na primeira parte. Na segunda parte, baixamos a intensidade, sobretudo os homens da frente, o que é normal.O time está de parabéns. Estou super contente com a equipe. Muito controle de jogo. Estou satisfeitíssimo com o resultado. Estamos no caminho certo.

BRAZ DEU O RECADO

Ao lado de Paulo Sousa, o vice-presidente de futebol do Flamengo, Marcos Braz, encerrou a entrevista coletiva desta noite reforçando o apoio ao técnico português.

– Desde sempre ele (Paulo Sousa) quis estar aqui. Respaldo se dá no dia a dia.Temos um treinador que a gente acredita. E estamos com ele – salientou o VP.

> Veja a tabela do Brasileirão

Agora, o Flamengo volta a campo por outra competição. O próximo compromisso será pela última rodada da fase de grupos da Libertadores, contra o Sporting Cristal, nesta terça, no Maracanã. O clube já está classificado às oitavas de final do torneio.

Anderson, Broad call for common sense to prevail after openers motor towards victory target

Andrew Miller11-Sep-2022James Anderson and Stuart Broad admitted to a mixture of frustration and sympathy for the umpires at the close of another captivating day’s play in the third and final Test against South Africa, after a capacity crowd was denied the prospect of witnessing an England victory march by the onset of bad light.After being set a target of 130 for victory, England’s openers Zak Crawley and Alex Lees had rattled off 97 runs in 17 overs, and needed just 33 more to seal both the match and the series. However, shortly after the scheduled close of 6.30pm, umpires Richard Kettleborough and Nitin Menon led the teams from the field, having deemed that the light had diminished too much to continue.The decision cause immediate uproar on the England balcony, where the captain Ben Stokes was seen gesticulating in disbelief, and the crowd booed loudly as the players left the field. However, having taken a light-meter reading at a similar time at the close of Saturday’s play, the umpires were obliged to take that as the precedent for the match, irrespective of the match situation – a point that England’s senior bowlers both acknowledged at the close.”It’s obviously frustrating from our point of view,” Anderson told Sky Sports. “The rate that we were scoring, it might only have needed another five or six overs. The guys were obviously seeing the ball pretty well, and with a good crowd in here tonight, it would have been nice to finish it.”But we understand what the point of view of the umpires is,” he said. “They’ve taken a reading yesterday. That’s the precedent for the whole game. And I think their message is, if it rains all day tomorrow, it would be unfair on South Africa if they just tried to get the game done tonight. But I’d like to think that common sense could prevail every now and then.”Broad also acknowledged that the umpires could not be faulted for having to follow the letter of the law as it stands.”If you’re a neutral making decisions, it was probably a fair call,” Broad said. “The umpires communicated it very clearly with Zak and Leesy out there. They were saying, look, we’re running out of time here … we don’t have long left. It’s not as if they said, right we’re coming off.”But we’re naturally disappointed and frustrated, particularly as the guys were going so well. Leesy hit the last ball of the day through the covers for four and was seeing it fine. I can see that side of it but as a changing room, we’re frustrated that we didn’t get to finish it in front of the crowd that have been with us all day.”It was a point of view backed up by the former England captain Nasser Hussain on Sky Sports, who called on the authorities to adjust to the prevailing late-season conditions.”You cannot be cross with the umpires, they are doing their job,” Hussain said. “The people who set the rules need to take a look. Do they think that suddenly, in September, it’s going to get bright at 6.45pm? It’s not. If you have to make up half an hour, start half an hour early, rather than adding on at the end of the day. But you’ve got a full house here. Cricket can’t just shoot itself in the foot, by picking up the bails and walking off.”Either way, the decision ran counter to the entertainment-first ethos that Stokes and Brendon McCullum have instilled to such good effect in their side this summer, with England now all but assured of finishing the summer with six victories in seven Tests, all of them achieved in a similar vein after batting second and letting their bowlers focus on taking 20 wickets.”It’s been amazing,” Anderson added. “Baz has been a breath of fresh air, it just feels like a positive atmosphere in that dressing room. The message he sends about going out there and trying to entertain, everyone’s bought into it.”Yes, some days it hasn’t come off, but when it does, it’s spectacular. And I think it’s really changed the way, not just the players think about Test cricket, but a lot of the world will think about Test cricket. It’s been an incredible summer, and hopefully we can get over the line and seal the deal tomorrow.”Marco Jansen, South Africa’s allrounder, was phlegmatic about the light situation, admitting that the game was already as good as up for his team, who are now resigned to a 2-1 series loss, having won so emphatically by an innings in the first Test at Lord’s last month.”I feel it would have not mattered whether we played another 20 minutes or we start again tomorrow,” Jansen said. “If the game was more in the balance, it probably would have affected us a bit more. But the situation that the game was in, I don’t feel it would have mattered. As bowlers we are always happy to play on, but it’s all up to the umpires.”

Pat Cummins has conceded it’s unrealistic for him to be Australia’s sole captain across all three formats, as he again called for David Warner’s lifetime leadership ban to be lifted.Cricket Australia officials have the next two months to decide who will replace Aaron Finch as the country’s ODI skipper, after the opener announced his retirement from the format.A call on the captaincy of Australia’s T20 team is also likely to follow soon, with Finch revealing last weekend he would consider his future in that format after this summer.Related

• Finch sees no barriers for Smith or Warner captaincy

• Smith, Cummins, Warner or someone else – who will be Australia's next ODI captain?

• Smith's perfectly-paced hundred gives Finch winning finish

Cummins, Warner, Steven Smith and Alex Carey remain the likely front-runners to fill the roles between them, as a mix of the new and old of Australia’s leadership brigade.Cummins has made an impressive start as Test captain with an Ashes series win, victory in Pakistan and a drawn series in Sri Lanka, but the fact he has missed 28 of the past 66 ODIs makes that decision far trickier. After initially claiming he did not want to juggle all three roles when he took over the Test team last summer, Cummins signalled his interest on Tuesday with some caveats.”I think if you were going to do all the formats and every game, I don’t think that’s realistic,” Cummins told reporters at Kayo’s cricket launch. “Especially as a fast bowler I think you do need to find windows to rest. But I think you can manage that as well.Pat Cummins did not rule out taking on more captaincy duties, but said it would need to be carefully managed•AFP

“It’s not something I have really thought about. I am really happy with captaining the Test side … I don’t think they need to rush into any decision.”Cummins’ suggestion would likely include something along the lines of co-captains, something not pursued in Australian cricket so far.Meanwhile Cummins also backed Warner’s leadership capabilities, pointing out that the opening batter had assisted in making the start to Test captain easier in the past year.Warner remains banned from leading any Australian team following the 2018 ball-tampering scandal, but stated on Tuesday he would be “privileged” to lead Australia’s one-day team.Cricket Australia chair Lachlan Henderson has also indicated he would like the board to meet with Warner, with the 35-year-old having long been keen to speak with officials about lifting the ban.”Obviously [Pat] is the key [on whether he wants lead the ODI team], he is the Test captain and gets the first opportunity,” Warner said. “But any opportunity you get asked to captain, it’s a privilege.”For my circumstances that’s in Cricket Australia’s hands. I can only concentrate on what I have to do, and that’s using the bat and scoring as many runs as I can.”My phone is here [if CA want to talk]. At the end of the day what is done is done in the past. The good thing is there is a new board. I am always happy to sit down and have a chat and talk about whatever they need to talk about.”Warner is not part of Australia’s upcoming brief T20I tour of India next week, meaning there is a potential window for him to meet with CA ahead of the AGM in October.

Blackburn Rovers are ready to make a move to sign a 25-year-old striker in what remains of this January transfer window, according to a new report.

Blackburn Rovers news and updates

John Eustace’s side fell to back-to-back defeats on Tuesday evening, as they were beaten 2-0 at Ewood Park by Coventry City. Despite the two losses, Rovers remain in the play-off places, but given they have lost 10 games, the most of any top six side this season, Eustace will have his eyes on ways of improving his team in the transfer market.

Blackburn now offer £1.75m to sign new forward instead of Brereton Diaz

Rovers are keen to add more attacking firepower to their ranks this month.

ByBen Browning Jan 15, 2025

One player that Blackburn are interested in signing is Lewis O’Brien from Nottingham Forest. The 26-year-old has been playing in the MLS but has now returned to the City Ground and is expected to leave on loan once again before the window closes on February 3rd. But Blackburn are not alone in their pursuit, as Hull City have joined the race to sign O’Brien and are planning to make a move soon.

Signing a new midfielder may have just become even more important for Rovers, as Eustace confirmed this week that Sondre Tronstad is facing up to six weeks on the sidelines due to picking up a significant hamstring injury: “We have had Sonny [Tronstad] scanned, and he’s going to be out for six weeks, unfortunately. He has been a magnificent performer for us, and he’ll be a big miss.”

Blackburn to make move for striker who has 44 career goals

But a new midfielder isn’t all that Eustace wants, as according to TuttoMercatoWeb, Blackburn are looking to rekindle their interest in striker Augustus Kargbo in the remaining days of this transfer window.

Rovers made contact with the 25-year-old during the summer transfer window, but a deal never worked out. This report states that interest has remained from the Lancashire side, and they are now ready to make a fresh move this month.

Kargbo, who has won 17 caps for Sierra Leone, currently plays for Serie B side Cesena and has done so since August 2023. The forward has spent the majority of his career in Italy and has done well since moving to Cesena, as he scored nine goals and recorded 10 assists last season, taking his tally to 44 career goals in senior football.

Apps

53

Goals

15

Assists

14

It is unclear how much Kargbo could cost Rovers in this transfer window, but the striker is only under contract until 2026, meaning there shouldn’t be a massive price tag.

Blackburn currently have Makhtar Gueye, Yuki Ohashi, Andreas Weimann, and Harry Leonard as their forward options. Weimann and Gueye are their top goalscorers with five goals, but if Rovers are going to last the distance in the play-off race, there is going to be a need for more goals in the team.

Kargbo’s flexibility in the sense that he can play on the left as well as behind the striker means his arrival may not guarantee he replaces one of the current ranks but instead partners them at the top end of the pitch.

A 'Misery Index' has calculated that Manchester United is one of the most heartbreaking clubs to support despite their success over the years.

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Man Utd ranks highly on Misery IndexCrystal Palace top the listRed Devils going through rough patchFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

New research from OLBG has put together the Premier League Misery Index, a data-led ranking based on trophy droughts, managerial turnover, time in the relegation zone and even penalty shootout failures. This index puts Crystal Palace at the top of the list as they have never won a major trophy, have had 21 managerial changes, and 23.3% of their Premier League life has been spent in the relegation zone. United are third, behind Everton, due to their fans’ historically sky-high expectations, with 17 league runners-up finishes and a chaotic recent period.

AdvertisementTHE 'MISERY INDEX'

Below is the Misery Index in full.

Club

Last Trophy

Trophy drought (days)

Top Flight Runners Up

% of Time in EPL Relegation Zone

Losing Cup finalists

Penalty Shoot-Out Win %

EPL Manager Changes

Score

Crystal Palace

Never won a trophy

50,031

0

23.3%

2

30.0%

21

79.3

Everton

FA Cup

10,918

7

8.0%

10

33.3%

23

78.4

Manchester United

FA Cup

320

17

0.3%

13

45.5%

9

75.8

Chelsea

Champions League

1,412

4

0.4%

13

41.4%

24

75.0

Wolves

League Cup

16,462

5

29.2%

4

31.3%

7

74.0

Southampton

FA Cup

17,876

1

25.4%

5

63.6%

26

74.0

Newcastle

EFL Cup

25

2

9.5%

9

35.7%

24

73.8

Tottenham

League Cup

6,255

5

3.6%

6

31.3%

24

73.8

Aston Villa

League Cup

10,609

10

7.5%

8

71.4%

22

73.1

Liverpool

League Cup

410

15

0.6%

12

66.7%

8

71.2

Arsenal

FA Cup

1,713

11

0.6%

13

59.1%

8

71.0

Fulham

Never won a trophy

50,031

0

18.3%

1

60.0%

12

70.8

Ipswich Town

UEFA Cup

16,031

2

37.3%

0

28.6%

2

70.3

Leicester City

FA Cup

1,426

1

22.8%

6

66.7%

19

68.7

West Ham

Conference League

673

0

16.1%

4

44.4%

13

66.4

Bournemouth

Never won a trophy

50,031

0

14.8%

0

60.0%

2

66.3

Manchester City

Premier League

326

6

5.6%

7

62.5%

11

66.1

Brighton

Never won a trophy

50,031

0

0.3%

1

53.8%

4

65.3

Nottingham Forest

League Cup

12,765

2

40.3%

3

92.3%

6

65.3

Brentford

Never won a trophy

50,031

0

0.0%

0

71.4%

0

61.1

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Head coach Ruben Amorim is enduring a tough start to life at United since taking over last November. They are on course to have their worst ever Premier League season, are out of both domestic cups, and all their hopes lie in the Europa League. If results don't improve, the Portuguese could be sacked in not too long as the Red Devils search for their first league title since 2013.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?

Yet more misery could be heaped on United if they fail to reach the semi-finals of the Europa League when they host Lyon on Thursday at Old Trafford.

The former Real Madrid player thinks Mexican football is far from its best moment, even with a World Cup coming to home soil.

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• Sánchez was dismissed as El Tri coach after failing to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics
• He played in the 1978, 1986, and 1994 World Cups
• The former striker said that this Mexico National Team is not well prepared

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• AFP
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Just over a year before the 2026 World Cup kicks off in Mexico, the United States, and Canada, the atmosphere around the tournament isn’t quite what many had hoped – at least not for Hugo Sánchez. The former Real Madrid striker and World Cup veteran from 1978, 1986, and 1994 didn’t miss the chance to point out that Mexican soccer is far from its best, even with a World Cup coming to home soil.

  “No, sadly not. There’s enthusiasm, there’s hope, there’s excitement… but it feels more like setting out on an adventure,” said the five-time Pichichi winner during a tribute in his honor at the Sports Summit in Mexico City. “There’s just not as much excitement as in other World Cups when we had more quality, more talent, and when things were taken more seriously. Right now, the national team isn’t as prepared as it was in past editions – especially not like in '86. I feel that the golden years for the national team were from '86 to '94. And 1993, no doubt – we showed back then that Mexico was operating at a high level and we were close to the footballing giants.”

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• Getty
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  It’s not unusual for Sánchez to make bold statements when it comes to the Mexican national team – after all, the former coach still feels he was never truly given a fair shot during his stint at the helm of from 2006 to 2008. He was ultimately dismissed after failing to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics through the CONCACAF Pre-Olympic tournament.

  While it’s true that this current generation may not be among Mexico’s most talented, the recent Nations League title did help bring back some joy and hope to the fans.

  The next big test – and one that could either validate or challenge Sánchez’s claims – will come this summer, as Mexico defend their Gold Cup crown.

• AFP
  

  WHAT HUGO SÁNCHEZ SAID

  “I don’t feel the same excitement anymore. Not as much. But I’ll still support my country in that sporting sense.”

  Sánchez also took the opportunity to reflect on his brief tenure as head coach of the Mexican national team back in 2008. He made it clear that, had he received full support from the federation, Mexico could have already lifted a World Cup trophy.

  “I was fully committed back then for 2010, but I didn’t get the support I needed. It would have been a pleasure to be backed the way I asked to be – my plan was to lead the team through three World Cup cycles: South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014, and Russia 2018. That’s when I truly committed to making Mexico world champion.”

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MEXICO NATIONAL TEAM?

  Mexico prepare to defend their Gold Cup crown. Before that, will play two friendly matches – facing Switzerland on June 7 in Utah, followed by a match against Turkey on June 10 in North Carolina. The Gold Cup campaign kicks off on June 14, when Mexico takes on the Dominican Republic.