England captain Harry Kane has questioned whether his critics "really understand football" while addressing concerns over his fitness.

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Kane has been struggling at Euro 2024Critics question his fitness levelsInsisted that he feels "better and sharper"WHAT HAPPENED?

Kane's performances for England at Euro 2024 have been under the spotlight. Although he scored the crucial winner against Slovakia in their last-16 tie and against Denmark in the group stage, the striker's contributions have been questioned by some former players and pundits.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT KANE SAID

In an interview with Kane argued: "If you look over the last couple of major tournaments, there’s always been at some stage question marks over my fitness or my form. I think it is part and parcel of it. I always say I want to score in every game. I want to try and help the team in every game from that sense. But also my role isn’t just scoring goals.

"My role is a lot of work defensively, a lot of work without the ball, a lot of work in leadership. So of course everyone is entitled to their opinion, and I know everyone wants me to score three goals a game and I want to score three goals a game. But it’s not always the case."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Kane believes that the criticisms often come from those who may not fully grasp the complexities of his role on the pitch. Moreover, he has faced scrutiny over his fitness, having suffered a back injury at the end of the season with Bayern Munich. Former England international Ian Wright is among those to have noted that Kane does not appear to be at his sharpest, leading to discussions about whether he should be dropped from England's starting lineup.

“Maybe, sometimes when I don’t score I think the fitness one is an easy one just to throw in now – ‘why? Is there a reason? Is it his fitness? Is it not?’,” Kane stated.

“But like I said before the tournament, I felt like I had a good preparation going into it, I felt like I’m getting better and sharper as the games go along. Ultimately, it’s just down to me performing on the pitch.

“We have a semi-final ahead of us and of course, I’d love nothing more than to score a couple of goals and get through to the final. So that’s what I’m trying to do, as always do my talking on the pitch.”

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KANE ON HIS ROLE FOR ENGLAND

A significant part of the debate around Kane's performance is his positioning on the field. Some, like former England striker Alan Shearer, have suggested that Kane should play higher up the pitch rather than dropping deep. However, Kane has defended his tactical movements, explaining that his deeper positioning is often strategic, designed to create space for his team-mates and disrupt the opposition's defence.

“When I’m dropping deep it might not necessarily be to get the ball,” Kane explained. “It might be to create space for players around me or drag defenders out of their positions and leave space for others. As you’ve seen in my game in recent years I like to get on the ball and turn…I criticise myself as much as anything and I know there have been times in games for sure where I could do better and move better, especially in and around the box.

"Ultimately I do what’s best for the team and I know I’ll always be judged on goals. But if you had said before the tournament I’d have a couple of goals, I’d be in the semi-finals, I’d have bitten your hand off. So there’s a lot of perspective. I understand it. I understand we’re in a major tournament and that at the end of the day, everyone just wants the best for England and wants us to go through. But if you really understand football and analyse football there are different reasons for dropping deep and staying high and that’s what we work on throughout the week, to exploit the other team.”

Celtic are interested in sealing the summer signing of a player compared to Italy and AC Milan legend Paolo Maldini, according to a new transfer rumour.

Celtic to chase defensive additions this summer

The Hoops will no doubt be eyeing a busy summer transfer window, in order to take Brendan Rodgers' squad up another level, and they seem to be targeting defensive additions at the moment.

Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has emerged as a hugely exciting option, with the Republic of Ireland international potentially looking for a fresh challenge away from the Reds. He is enjoying plenty of minutes this season, due to Alisson being injured, but while the Brazilian is around, he is going to find it hard to ever be first choice.

In the same update, Trabzonspor stopper Ugurcan Cakir is seen as an alternative option for Kelleher, should the Liverpool man either stay put or go elsewhere, with the 27-year-old winning 26 caps for Turkey to date.

Rapid Vienna centre-back Leopold Querfeld has been linked with a summer move to Celtic, too, with the tall centre-back considered an exciting young target, along with midfield teammate Matthias Seidl.

Celtic want player compared to Paolo Maldini

According to 1908.nl [via Sport Witness], Celtic are interested in signing FC Twente left-back Gijs Smal this summer, with a free transfer in the offing. That's because the 26-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, and it looks unlikely that he will sign an extension at his current club.

Rangers are mentioned as suitors in the report, too, but the Hoops' rivals will have to sell either Borna Barisic or Ridvan Yilmaz before they consider sealing a move for him.

Celtic are believed to have already told Smal "what they can offer", suggesting that talks have already taken place with him, and it looks like a signing that would tick plenty of boxes.

The 26-year-old is at a brilliant age to come in and make an immediate impression at Parkhead, having picked up so much experience in his career, but also still having plenty of years ahead of him at a high level.

Appearances

16

26

Goal contributions

1

7

Tackles per game

1.3

1.6

Clearances per game

1.3

0.9

Key passes per game

1.1

1.8

Pass completion rate

79.7%

82.5%

This season, Smal has made 16 appearances for Twente in the Eredivisie, also enjoying two outings in the UEFA Europa Conference League. Perhaps the biggest compliment he can be paid is that he has been nicknamed 'Smaldini' in his homeland in the past, drawing comparisons to the Italy icon.

The Dutchman could provide strong competition at left-back for Greg Taylor at Celtic, giving Rodgers two excellent options there, assuming the current Hoops ace stays put at the club ahead of his contract expiring in the summer of 2025.

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Smal has the pedigree and quality to be a big success at Parkhead, and if the Hoops were to beat Rangers to his signature, it would feel even sweeter.

MatériaMais Notícias

da prosport bet： O Juventude está na semifinal do Gaúcho. Após bater o Brasil de Pelotas por 2 a 1, o Jaconero contou com o tropeço do Ypiranga-RS para avançar.

+ Chelsea pensa em opções para o ataque, Sancho atrai o interesse de gigante inglês… O Dia do Mercado

Quem comemorou e muito a classificação foi o zagueiro Cleberson, que marcou um dos gols em cima do Xavante.

‘Primeiro objetivo foi conquistado, a classificação. Feliz pelo primeiro gol. Crescemos no campeonato e merecemos a classificação. Foi um jogo difícil, teve alguns erros. Mas tínhamos a cabeça no lugar. Sabíamos que dos resultados, um iria vacilar’, afirmou ao Premiere.

Agora, na próxima fase do estadual, o Juventude de Cleberson mede forças contra o Internacional. O primeiro jogo é na Montanha dos Vinhedos e a volta será no Beira-Rio.

RelacionadasHumor EsportivoVeja os melhores memes da derrota do PSG para o Manchester CityHumor Esportivo28/04/2021FlamengoArão exalta vitória do Flamengo na Libertadores: ‘Resultado fundamental pra nossas pretensões’Flamengo28/04/2021Futebol InternacionalEleito o craque da partida, De Bruyne comemora segundo tempo do Manchester City: ‘Foi muito melhor’Futebol Internacional28/04/2021

Kate Cross heard the crack and felt the pain in her leg, but it’s where her mind went racing to next that was hardest to take. Suddenly, lying on the Sydney Showground Stadium turf, she saw the 2021 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand and she wasn’t there.Cross, the England seamer, suffered a severe sprain and multiple torn ligaments in her right ankle when she landed on the boundary rope attempting a catch during the warm-up for her side’s final T20 World Cup group match, against West Indies in March.”My first thought was, ‘I’ve snapped my leg in two here’. I thought my shin was facing the wrong way and my foot was off on all sorts of angles so I then got myself into a big panic about it and I think made the whole situation worse because then I was screaming, ” Cross tells ESPNcricinfo.ALSO READ: England women could return to training in weeks“They gave me the green whistle [pain relief inhaler] in Oz, which is quite a big deal, and everyone saw the pictures and thought, ‘God she must have snapped her shin bone or something,’ but I think they gave me that to try and help me breathe because I think I got into a bit of a panic attack about what was going on.”My brain immediately went to the 2021 World Cup in New Zealand and I thought, ‘That’s it, i’m not going to play in this, it’s going to be that bad an injury.’ When I was laying on the floor, that’s where I got to, in the space of probably 20 seconds. Obviously I’m really lucky that it’s nothing as serious as that.”It will likely be another five to six months before her ankle is completely pain free, plenty of time before England are scheduled to begin their 50-over world title defence in New Zealand in February. But it is telling just how much Cross wants it that her first thought upon suffering the injury was that it might all be taken away – again.Kate Cross receives treatment after injuring her leg during the warm up ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup match between England and West Indies•Getty Images

Cross missed England’s victorious 2017 World Cup campaign amid a two-year absence from the international scene, during which time she grappled with anxiety and depression.”Seeing the girls win the trophy in 2017 and missing out on that squad and having to sit in the crowd whilst the girls played in front of 25,000 people and lifted a World Cup on home soil, that was heartbreaking for me but at the same time it was one of the best days that I’ve been involved in cricket,” Cross says.”I remember thinking on that day, ‘Right, 2021, that’s going to be my year and I’m going to push really hard to get into that squad.’ I think that’s why when I had the injury my first thought went to the World Cup. It certainly showed me how important that World Cup is for me.”Cross enjoyed a fruitful 2019, forming a key part of England’s one-day attack alongside Katherine Brunt and Anya Shrubsole in away series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan and a home summer against West Indies and Australia. While she was part of the T20 World Cup squad in Australia, she did not play a match in the tournament.”In terms of confidence, last summer gave me such a boost because I realised that I could be part of that team and help them win,” Cross says. “So hopefully that 2021 World Cup would be something that I could really thrive in.”Cross admits that the Covid-19 crisis has changed her outlook somewhat so that a return to any form of cricket in a safe environment would be welcome. There is no guarantee the World Cup will go ahead in light of the pandemic, and while Cross has let go some of the anxiety she felt over cricket’s uncertain near future, she admits the current lockdown has been tough.But there have been upsides, including the help of friends like former England team-mate Alex Hartley, temporarily moving back in with her parents and being able to find a focus in her ankle rehab.”Honestly, some of my worst days that I’ve had in probably two years have happened in the last eight weeks, particularly around when I wasn’t seeing any progress with my ankle and I was getting really fed up with that,” Cross says. “This is where Hartley was really good for me because I had a day where I think I stayed in bed pretty much all day and I must have watched, I think it was 10 episodes of on Netflix back-to-back.”I just said to her, ‘I’ve written today off, I’ve had a shocker.’ She said, ‘Look, you would probably have this day if we weren’t in lockdown, it’s fine to have these days, just don’t let those days become a habit, don’t then have the same day the following day, make sure you get up and go for a walk or whatever.'”So I’ve found that when I’ve had a bad day, then the next day I’ve been a bit more motivated because I’ve not wanted to fall into the trap of getting into those bad habits.”Cross spoke openly about her mental health struggles after returning to the England side in a one-dayer against New Zealand in July 2018. And, as difficult as it can be to revisit the topic at times, she is glad she put it out there.”I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to talk about it because I knew as soon as I’d done it, there was no taking it back,” she says. “I’m a talker anyway but I just thought, if I’ve got the ability to do something as powerful as helping one person get through a bad week or stop them from doing something silly, whatever it could have been, then I couldn’t believe that I didn’t want to do that interview.”It’s made me almost feel like it was worth going through what I went through because it’s just normal, everyone goes through it and everyone I speak to has said as soon as they started talking about what they were going through, things started changing. It just goes to show the power of talking.”

It just hasn't been Chelsea's season this year.

Mauricio Pochettino's side have been underwhelming in the Premier League – to put it mildly – and they blew their best chance at silverware on Sunday afternoon as they fell to a painful 1-0 defeat at the hands of Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool in the League Cup final.

Given the Reds' lineup, it was a game that the Blues probably should have won, and while they did have their fair share of chances, it just wasn't meant to be.

There were several lacklustre performers for the west Londoners on the day who should find themselves on the bench against Leeds United in the FA Cup tonight, with Raheem Sterling being one of them.

Raheem Sterling's game in numbers at Wembley

It was a game to forget for the Blues' most experienced attacker, as Sterling failed to make any real impact on the affair whatsoever.

This general ineffectiveness was noted by the Standard's Dan Kilpatrick, who awarded the former Manchester City ace a 5/10 for his performance, claiming that he 'wasted a couple of decent openings with poor control.'

However, it was more than just wasted chances and poor control that made Sterling's performance stand out, as according to his individual numbers, he was a passenger.

For example, in his 67 minutes of action, the 29-year-old attempted zero crosses, had zero shots, failed in all three of his attempted dribbles, won none of his seven duels, lost the ball seven times – once every 9.5 minutes – and completed a paltry eight passes.

Minutes

67'

Goals + Assists

0

Accurate Passes

8/10 (80%)

Crosses

0

Shots

0

Dribbles Attempted (Successful)

3 (0)

Duels (won)

7 (0)

Possession Lost

7

Nevertheless, football is a game of such fine margins, and if Nicolas Jackson had just remained onside in the 34th minute, Sterling could have been the matchwinner.

With that said, there was another player who started on Chelsea's left-hand side who could have a claim to being just as disappointing as the Kingston-born dynamo.

Ben Chilwell's game in numbers vs Liverpool

Yes, while Sterling has received a significant amount of criticism for his woeful display against Liverpool on Sunday, his teammate behind him, Ben Chilwell, was arguably just as poor.

The former Leicester City man received a slightly higher match rating of 6/10 from the Standard's Kilpatrick.

However, the journalist was still unimpressed and claimed that 'several attacks broke down at his feet and he looked a bit rusty defensively in the face of Liverpool's press.'

If anything, the extra mark may be too generous as that assessment seems more damning than Sterling's, which is backed up by the left-back's terrible numbers from the game.

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In his 113 minutes of action, the 27-year-old won just two of his four aerial duels, maintained a passing accuracy of 69%, completed just one of his five attempted crosses, just two of his eight attempted long balls, failed in his one dribble and, worst of all, lost possession 27 times, which equates to once every four minutes.

Minutes

113'

Goals + Assists

0

Aerial Duels (won)

4 (2)

Possession Lost

23

Fouls

1

Accurate Passes

29/42 (69%)

Crosses (Accurate)

5 (1)

Long Balls (Accurate)

8 (2)

Dribbles (Successful)

1 (0)

It was a truly shocking performance from the Blues' stand-in captain, with perhaps his most notable contribution being his tussle with Conor Bradley in the first half – which was undignified in and of itself.

Ultimately, it's a result that Pochettino must put behind the team as quickly as possible, and with the mouthwatering meeting with high-flying Championship side, Leeds to come this evening, he must drop both Sterling and Chilwell.

King and Russell tore into the SL attack to chase down a modest 155 with three overs to spare

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Mar-2020

It rained sixes with Andre Russell at his destructive best•Associated Press

Sri Lanka limped their way to 155 for 6 on a good track in Pallekele, as West Indies put in a strong collective bowling effort. The target was no match for West Indies’ batting might, as the visitors flew at over 10 an over in the Powerplay, before the middle order kept the score ticking, and Andre Russell then finished the game in a hail of sixes. They needed only 17 overs to complete the chase and complete a 2-0 whitewash of the T20I series.Sri Lanka stutter through the early/middle oversNone of Sri Lanka’s first six partnerships were worth more than 33. That would almost be passable, if they had managed to score quickly. But they didn’t. Against West Indies’ varied and canny attack, most in the top order could not consistently find timing, with no one in the top five breaching 25.Just as a partnership seemed to be developing, and it would be time for the pair to raise the tempo, the attempted big shot would go awry. Avishka Fernando was bowled by Oshane Thomas, swinging across the line. Kusal Perera holed out to point trying to cut Fabian Allen. Shehan Jayasuriya was caught at deep midwicket, and Kusal Mendis sent a legside flick straight down the throat of deep square leg.Despite a good final partnership between Thisara Perera and Dasun Shanaka, Sri Lanka had ceded too much ground earlier in their innings. Their total of 155 always seemed at least 15 short. Against this West Indies batting line up, it was probably 30 short.King of the PowerplayWest Indies hit 61 in the Powerplay, getting themselves well ahead of the rate. Of those runs, Brandon King had made 43. He’d also hit every single one of the boundaries. He started with a flick of the wrists to send a wayward Lasith Malinga ball skimming away behind deep square leg for four, before busting out the big power shots. He blasted Angelo Mathews’ first ball through the covers, then clipped him beautifully behind square for a four later in that over.Malinga bowled the final over of the Powerplay, and it was here that King really put West Indies well ahead of the required rate. He edged the third ball past the keeper for four, but later, launched Malinga over long on for six, before clobbering him over cow corner for another one. He faced each of the balls in that over and reaped 19 runs. He’d be out in the eighth over for 43 off 21, but by then, West Indies were flying.Cyclone RussellAt the other end of West Indies’ chase, an even more devastating innings. From who else, but Andre Russell? He came to the crease in the 13th over, when West Indies needed only 53 off 44 balls, but man, did he make sure this good chance of victory was emphatically grasped. He hit six sixes in his 40 off 14 balls – that’s a strike rate of 286.71, by the way, if you’re struggling with the maths. No fours, because why bother? The third six, off Thisara Perera, flew high over cow corner, and out of the Milky Way, probably.Malinga’s bowling plans get messed upFirst of all, Malinga himself was having an off night, conceding 12 runs off his first over, and eventually finishing at none for 46 off 3 – an economy rate of 15.33, thanks to Messrs King and Russell. Then, his prize spin-bowling asset, Wanindu Hasaranga, pulled up lame chasing a ball at deep square leg in the second over and had to be rushed off to hospital for scans. This meant Sri Lanka’s best wicket-taking weapon of the tour didn’t get to bowl a single delivery, and Malinga had to make up those overs with others, with predictable results.

ردت الحكومة الإسبانية على تصريحات جناح الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي ريال مدريد، فينيسيوس جونيور، والتي هاجم فيها وجود العنصرية قبل كأس العالم 2030.

وتستضيف إسبانيا النسخة بعد القادمة من المونديال رفقة البرتغال والمغرب، ولكن مشاكل العنصرية التي يواجها فينيسيوس جعلته يهاجم الجميع في تصريحات تلفزيونية.

وطالب فينيسيوس خلال تصريحاته التلفزيونية بسحب تنظيم كأس العالم من إسبانيا إذا استمرت العنصرية في الملاعب تجاه أصحاب البشرة السمراء.

اقرأ أيضًا.. عمدة مدريد يطالب فينيسيوس بالاعتذار: ما قاله غير مقبول

ورد وزير الداخلية على تصريحات فينيسيوس في تصريحات نقلتها صحيفة “موندو ديبورتيفو” الكتالونية، وقال: “الشيء الوحيد الذي علي قوله هو أن بلدنا تحترم التنوع”.

وتابع: “هذا جزء من حمضنا النووي في إسبانيا، وبالتالي، فإن معركتنا الفعالة والمباشرة ضد كل السلوكيات التمييزية”.

واستمر: “مهمتنا هي مكافحة جرائم الكراهية ونعمل على زيادة الوعي بين الجميع بشأن العنصرية، لأننا نشعر بالقلق خاصة في مجال الرياضة ولدينا تعليمات جديدة دائمًا نسير على خطاها”.

MatériaMais Notícias

da bet7： O Vasco prestou uma homenagem a um dos maiores ídolos de sua centenária história. Trata-se de Ademir Menezes, que faleceu há 25 anos, vítima de um câncer de medula, no Rio de Janeiro. O eterno craque foi um dos principais nomes do Expresso da Vitória, considerado por muitos torcedores como a maior equipe de todos os tempos do Gigante da Colina.

> Confira a tabela do Campeonato Brasileiro – Série B

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da bet7k： Com uma história de muitos gols e feitos memoráveis, Ademir nasceu em 8 de novembro de 1921e ao longo da carreira tornou-se o maior artilheiro do Brasil em uma edição de Copa do Mundo. Foram nove gols no Mundial de 1950. Ele faleceu no dia11 de maio de 1996 aos 74 anos, e em 2021 completaria 100 anos.

> Confira mais notícias sobre o Vasco da Gama

Além disso, o craque marcou 301 gols pelo Cruz-Maltino em 429 partidas. Elefoi campeão Carioca em 1945, de forma invicta, em 1949 também sem perder um jogo sequer, em 1950, com o primeiro Estadual disputado na era Maracanã e 1952. Em 1948, o jogador ergueu a taça do Campeonato Sul-Americano de Campeões, no Chile, competição de onde surgiu a atual Copa Libertadores.

– Sou um homem dominado pelo coração e meu coração é dominado pelo Vasco – twitter do Vasco reproduz fala de Ademir Menezes, o famosoQueixada.

Eterno. ❤️💢#VascoDaGama pic.twitter.com/6xcLzvZTDP

— Vasco da Gama (@VascodaGama) May 11, 2021

A maior instituição do futebol mundial, a FIFA, também prestou homenagem a Ademir de Menezes, em sua página oficial no Twitter. Pela Seleção Brasileira, o ex-jogador tem números impressionantes sendoo terceiro maior artilheiro da Copa América, com 13 gols marcados. Ao todo, foram41 jogos, com 30 vitórias, 5 empates e 6 derrotas, um rendimento de 77,20%.

– Ademir de Menezestornou-se o primeiro campeão de clubes da América do Sul, enquanto ele inspirava o Brasil em seu primeiro troféu em 15 edições e artilheiro da Copa do Mundo de 1950. Há 25 anos um excepcional artilheiro falecia – escreveu a entidade.

💢 Ademir de Menezes helped @VascodaGama become South America's maiden club champions, while he inspired Brazil to their first @CopaAmerica trophy in 15 editions and finished top scorer at the 1950 #WorldCup ⚽️

🇧🇷 25 years ago today an exceptional marksman passed away 😢 pic.twitter.com/Bw8wl8tt9B

— FIFA.com (@FIFAcom) May 11, 2021

Manchester United have reportedly agreed to personal terms with Paris Saint-Germain's Manuel Ugarte after wrapping up a deal for Leny Yoro.

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Man Utd reach agreement with UgarteYet to settle on transfer fee with PSGJorge Mendes working on dealWHAT HAPPENED?

According to the Uruguayan midfielder, who shares the same agent, Jorge Mendes, as Yoro, is eager to join the Red Devils despite the club's inability to offer Champions League football. However, the deal is far from being closed as United and PSG have not yet reached a consensus on the transfer fee.

Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The reports that PSG are firm in their valuation and have set a price tag of £59 million ($76m)for Ugarte. The midfielder, who joined the Ligue 1 champions from Sporting CP for £42 million ($54m) just last summer, fits the club's strategy of building a younger team without high-profile superstars and they are not keen to sell him at a discounted rate.

DID YOU KNOW?

United's pursuit of Ugarte faces stiff competition from other top European clubs. Bayern Munich have shown interest and inquiries have been made by two Italian sides as well as by another Premier League club. This heightened interest from multiple clubs strengthens PSG's stance on their valuation which further complicate United's efforts to secure the midfielder's services.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?

If United are to snap up Ugarte, they must then offload one of their current midfielders. Scott McTominay, who scored 10 goals in all competitions last season, is a potential candidate to leave. Additionally, veteran Brazilian midfielder Casemiro might depart following a challenging second season at Old Trafford.

We’ll bring you the best of the action and the colour from the Bushfire Bash in this live blog

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Feb-2020