LA Galaxy coach Greg Vanney has urged his team to start sharply when they take on the Seattle Sounders on Sunday.
The Galaxy went down 2-0 to Austin FC last time out, and will look to get back to winning ways when they head up the West Coast to face the Sounders, who they beat 1-0 in March.
Vanney’s side found themselves 2-0 down after just 19 minutes against Austin, though, and the Galaxy coach is growing increasingly frustrated with his team’s sloppy starts.
In quotes reported by The Galactic Tribune, Vanney said: “We ve got to do a better job of not starting slow and getting ourselves behind the game one and two goals because then it certainly incentivises the opposition to sit a little bit lower and really kind of protect the face of the goal.”
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German Football League (DFL) president Dr Reinhard Rauball has slammed FIFA s unwillingness to properly resolve their major error of selecting Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup.
Rauball said on Friday that FIFA s confirmation that Qatar 2022 will be held in the European winter had failed to deal with fundamental problems associated with holding the World Cup in the West Asian nation.
FIFA announced on Thursday that Qatar 2022 will be held in November and December, with the final set for December 18.
In a statement on the Bundesliga s website, the former Borussia Dortmund president and German politician highlighted the controversial bidding process and Qatar s human rights record as two major issues FIFA has yet to address.
But Rauball did not stop at crit…
Pep Guardiola says Manchester City s players cannot dine out on their past achievements and must prove themselves all over again in their last four games of the Premier League season, starting against Wolves on Saturday.
The title race remains in City s hands despite Arsenal leading the way by a single point, with Guardiola s men possessing a game in hand as they chase a fourth successive crown.
After welcoming Wolves to the Etihad Stadium, they face back-to-back trips to London to take on Fulham and Tottenham, then host West Ham on the final day.
Guardiola says City – who should have Ederson, Ruben Dias and Phil Foden back on Saturday – cannot assume this title rice will go the same way as others.
We have to prove it tomorrow against Wolves and th…
Cody Gakpo and Ronald Koeman were in agreement that the Netherlands must be more clinical in their remaining group fixtures if they are to progress to the knockout stages of Euro 2024 following their victory over Poland.
The Liverpool forward was on target for the Oranje in the first half to cancel out Adam Buksa s opener, with Wout Weghorst then emerging from the bench to net a late winner and give Koeman s side a winning start to their campaign.
During the encounter in Hamburg, the Dutch registered 21 shots, their most in a game at a major tournament since 2012, but only four of those were on target, while their opponents managed seven from their 12 efforts, with both ending the contest with 1.26 expected goals (xG).
Gakpo was quick to highlight his side s wa…
Borussia Dortmund have not come this far in the Champions League to be mere witnesses to Real Madrid lifting the trophy for a record-extending 15th time, coach Edin Terzic vowed on Friday.
You don t play a final, you win a final and that is our clear goal, Terzic, who will be up against his role model Carlo Ancelotti, told reporters before leading a training session at Wembley Stadium.
We re happy to be here but we have to win at Wembley against Real Madrid, to hold that trophy in our hands.
Dortmund finished a distant fifth in the Bundesliga this season and few would have given them much hope of reaching their first Champions League final since 2013, when Wembley also hosted their defeat against domestic rivals Bayern Munich.
But Terzic s side stunned…
After Leicester City produced quite a coup by lifting the league trophy last season, the top sides all took notice and not only reinforced their respective squads with quality footballers, but also lured some of world’s leading managers to England.
Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola and Antonio Conte will all be looking to lead their sides to the title, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Nolito and Michy Batshuayi just some of the high-profile footballers to have joined Premier League clubs this summer.
And as we get closer to what could be one of the most exciting Premier League seasons yet, it’s time to take a look at some interesting outright markets that could offer good value for money.
Market: Top Newcomer
Bet: Middlesbrough
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The top newcomer market is…
Luciano Spalletti has taken responsibility for Italy s Euro 2024 exit, though the Azzurri boss feels his limited time to prepare the team contributed to their poor displays.
The defending champions crashed out in the last 16 on Saturday, with Remo Freuler and Ruben Vargas scoring as Switzerland claimed a deserved 2-0 victory in Berlin.
Following the Azzurri s defeat, the reigning champions have been eliminated in the round of 16 at three successive editions of the tournament, with Spain going out to Italy in 2016 and Portugal doing so versus Belgium at Euro 2020.
The loss was Italy s first in a knockout game at the Euros since the 2012 final versus Spain (90 minutes only), ending a run of six such matches unbeaten (three wins, three draws).
Spalletti only…
Nigeria beat Honduras 3-2 on Saturday to secure the bronze medal at the Rio Olympics courtesy of two goals from Sadiq Umar and one from Aminu Umar.
The Nigerians Olympic dream came to an abrupt end in the semi-finals as Germany proved to be too strong, whereas Honduras were outclassed by Brazil in the final four as they were thrashed 6-0 by the hosts.
Both sides went all out to make sure they would not leave Brazil empty handed, but it was Nigeria who seemed to have dealt with the disappointment of missing the final the best, going three goals up following an impressive opening hour.
Honduras refused to give up, though, and fought back to within one goal in the closing stages of the match thanks to efforts from Anthony Lozano and Marcelo Pereira, only to see …
Luis de la Fuente says Spain want to start to make history when they face England in the Euro 2024 final on Sunday.
La Roja can become the most successful nation in European Championship history outright by lifting the Henri Delaunay cup for a record-breaking fourth time at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.
De la Fuente s side have undoubtedly been the most impressive side during the tournament, winning all six of their matches while scoring 13 goals for the loss of just three.
The 63-year-old is looking to complete a treble of European Championship triumphs, having also won the tournament at under-19 and under-21 levels.
And the head coach paid tribute to his players ahead of this competition s dramatic climax.
We expect a complicated match because …
It has been one of the best title races in recent seasons in Serie A but, once again, Juventus have proved a cut above the rest.
Massimiliano Allegri s side claimed their seventh Scudetto in a row with Sunday s 0-0 draw at Roma, a result that ensures Maurizio Sarri s Napoli can finish no higher than second, despite a 2-0 win over Sampdoria.
It means Juve have matched Lyon for the longest title-winning streak in Europe s top five leagues, a run that began under Antonio Conte at the new Allianz Stadium in 2011-12 and has now resulted in a fourth triumph in succession with Allegri in charge.
Untouchable domestically, we have a look at how the record run of this Juve generation compares to some of Europe s most prolific champions.
2014/15
2015/16
2016/…