Willow Michell

Willow Michell Many people think of prosperity that concerns money only to forget that true prosperity is of the min

Arsenal revelled in a scene of high anticipation when they walked out to face Aston Villa but were left looking at a sea...
04/15/2024

Arsenal revelled in a scene of high anticipation when they walked out to face Aston Villa but were left looking at a sea of empty red seats 90 minutes later as the Premier League title race took a potentially pivotal twist.

Liverpool stumbled first in a shock home defeat by Crystal Palace before Arsenal's supporters, well at least those of them left, departed Emirates Stadium as stunned as their Anfield counterparts after Mikel Arteta's side slumped to a 2-0 loss.

The title pursuit is nowhere near over with only two points separating the top three, but there is an ominously familiar feel to Manchester City's presence at the top of the table when the pressure valve is tightened.

What will be so frustrating for Arsenal and Liverpool is they were both architects of their own downfalls with desperately poor performances just when they needed victory most.

When the heat was on they were both found wanting.

Jeremy Sarmiento's goal in the final seconds gave Ipswich Town a dramatic victory over 10-man Southampton and put them t...
04/02/2024

Jeremy Sarmiento's goal in the final seconds gave Ipswich Town a dramatic victory over 10-man Southampton and put them top of the Championship.

Leif Davis' powerful strike was cancelled out a minute later by Che Adams' equaliser for the visitors.

Adam Armstrong slotted home to give the Saints the lead but Nathan Broadhead levelled in the 68th minute with an instinctive turn and finish.

James Bree was sent off after bringing Davis down with five minutes left, before Sarmiento netted at the death.

The result leaves Ipswich two points in front of Leicester City, having played one game more.

It was also a big blow to Southampton's slim hopes of automatic promotion.

Ipswich got off to the perfect start, with a lethal strike by Davis into the top left-hand corner opening the scoring.

Portman Road erupted as the ball flew into the net, venomously struck by the left-back, beating keeper Gavin Bazunu at his near post.

Russell Martin's side equalised immediately when Adams helped on Joe Aribo's pass into the back of the net.

Stuart Armstrong then made a determined run down the left-hand side before cutting infield and splitting open Ipswich's defence, finding Adam Armstrong, who fired low into the bottom corner of Vaclav Hladky's goal to give Southampton the lead.

Ipswich came close to equalising in the 65th minute when Al-Hamadi struck the post.

Broadhead then scored to level the game again with a first-time finish on the spin to beat Bazunu and trigger a deafening roar from the home crowd.

And with seconds remaining, Davis crossed to the penalty spot where Sarmiento mis-kicked before instinctively lashing out with his right foot, nudging the ball beyond Bazunu.

Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna told BBC Radio Suffolk:

"I feel really proud of the effort everyone put in there. You have to enjoy moments like that. What a game to be a part of.

"There were so many good things in the performance and so much to improve. It was a real step up for us in quality to play a team like that.

"All of the subs had a great impact and it's the sign of our culture. All of our players and staff are joyous in the dressing room. We have to enjoy it."

Southampton head coach Russell Martin told BBC Radio Solent:

"Their (winning) goal came out of nothing. It shouldn't go in and Gavin (Bazunu) should do better. He'll know that.

"At 2-2 I thought we'd be the team that could win it but the red card changed everything. We should score more and can't concede the way we did.

"We came here with so many brilliant performances. It's so disappointing to lose. We were the best team tonight.

"The performance was great but moments have cost us. There's 24 points to play for and we have to win every game now."

Newcastle forward Anthony Gordon says playing for Scotland was "never a thought" after receiving his first call-up to th...
03/21/2024

Newcastle forward Anthony Gordon says playing for Scotland was "never a thought" after receiving his first call-up to the senior England squad.

The in-form 23-year-old has 10 goals and seven assists in all competitions for Newcastle this season.

Scotland had been interested in securing his services as he qualified to play via his grandparents.

Reports suggested they would move for Gordon when he missed out on the last England squad.

Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate said Gordon was "very close" to being selected at that time.

"It was never a thought for me - that's no disrespect to Scotland at all." said Gordon.

"I've been tunnel vision on playing for England since I was five, six years old and nothing could ever shake that off. I would never forgive myself if I didn't get to this point.

"It's been a dream I've had since I was so young and nothing else has ever entered my mind."

England have a lot of depth in the attacking areas of the pitch and Gordon will be competing for a spot with Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford, Cole Palmer and Jarrod Bowen.

However, Gordon, who won the Under-21 European Championships last summer with England, thinks his call-up has come at the right time for him to break into Southgate's side before this summer's European Championships in Germany.

"I don't think I have ever been as consistent in my career so far," he added.

"If you aren't doing that, you aren't going to get into this team. I'm quite thankful for that as I get to show a great account of myself now.

"Maybe if I'd come in earlier it would have been a bit too early. It's all in good time.

"From the outside trying to break into it, you know you have to be really consistent and on your best form to even get near the squad because of the level that's around me in my positions.

"I've been able to do that this year. Now I'm just relishing it and I get to train and stuff, and the standard is so high and I'm learning from the best players in the country."

England take on Brazil at Wembley on Saturday before hosting Belgium on Tuesday. The matches are the last time Southgate works with his players before he names his training squad in May for the Euros.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says Jack Grealish will return to his starting line-up on a regular basis when his pe...
02/27/2024

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says Jack Grealish will return to his starting line-up on a regular basis when his performances improve.

The England midfielder, 28, started 41 games for City in last season's Treble-winning campaign, including the FA Cup and Champions League finals.

He has started only 19 games this term, including seven in the Premier League.

"He is the same player, he has the same manager, and the way we play has not changed," said Guardiola.

"It's just the way he has performed. That's the difference."

This season, Grealish has had limited top-flight minutes and of his 19 starts, four were in the Community Shield, the European Super Cup, and both ties at the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia.

He last started a league game on 30 December against Sheffield United, when he was replaced by youngster Oscar Bobb after 52 minutes.

Leicester's charge towards the Championship title continued unabated as Jamie Vardy scored against his boyhood club Shef...
02/14/2024

Leicester's charge towards the Championship title continued unabated as Jamie Vardy scored against his boyhood club Sheffield Wednesday.

The 37-year-old veteran, out of contract this summer, notched his first-ever goal against the Owls - and his 11th of the season - after Abdul Fatawu had pounced on a dreadful defensive error to open the scoring early on.

That was enough to secure a fifth straight win in all competitions for the leaders and stretch their cushion at the top of the table to 12 points, despite Wednesday, deep in relegation trouble, rallying after the break.

Danny Rohl's side made a game of it in the second half but still slumped to their 13th away league defeat of the season and they remain five points adrift of safety in 23rd place.

Rangers are "not thinking" about the title race, says Phillipe Clement, despite his side moving level on points with Sco...
02/07/2024

Rangers are "not thinking" about the title race, says Phillipe Clement, despite his side moving level on points with Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic by beating Aberdeen in Neil Warnock's first game in charge.

Much of the pre-match talk revolved around the veteran manager's arrival in Scotland, but that noise was soon silenced when Rabbi Matondo fired home after goalkeeper Kelle Roos spilled the ball into his path.

As they pushed forward in search of the three-goal victory that would have moved them top of the table, Rangers were left stunned as a long ball was finished off brilliantly by Bojan Miovski.

The home crowd grew restless as chances came and went, but another rebound from a Roos save - this time tucked away by Todd Cantwell - was enough to claw back a gap to Celtic that looked overwhelming before Clement's arrival.

A late red card for Dujon Sterling - upheld by referee Don Robertson after a VAR review - gave Aberdeen late hope, but Warnock suffered a rare defeat in a first game in charge of a new club.

"Going to 10 players was another thing that went against us and you need to stick together," Clement said.

"It is a massive thing to win games like this. These are normally the ones where you lose points. If we keep winning games like that, it is good for the rest of the season. We are taking it game by game.

"I believe this team can go a really long way if they stick together and there are no egos. We are still fighting for three competitions."

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