Although Real Betis, inspired by the enigmatic Dani Ceballos, took the game to Barça, a clear, ungiven goal for the champions could have title repercussionsNot so long ago Roger Federer visited Rafael Nadal in Mallorca, where they talked about playing an exhibition match. They weren’t much use for anything else any more, they joked, and as it turned out they couldn’t even do that. “I was on one leg and he had a wrist problem,” Federer said. Yet three months on, there they were walking out for the final of the Australian Open. Three hours, 37 minutes later Federer had won his first tennis Grand Slam in five years – the final, decisive point decided by technology. The ball was...
With the La Liga club struggling, the local-born manager who took them back to the top has departed, saying the team do not reflect him any moreThe revolution ended in tears. “This is hard,” Abelardo Fernández said, voice breaking, fingers rubbing at his eyes and kneading at his temples while the president gently laid a hand on his neck. “I’m not crying because I’m no longer the coach of Sporting Gijón,” he insisted, “I’m crying because of the affection I have for everyone here.” Wednesday morning at Mareo in the green, rolling hills south of Gijón where cowbells ring, and the man who declared “Sporting are revolutionary, like Asturias” , who rescued and represented the club, who often seemed to...
His amazing dribble against Espanyol was my moment of the week, festive season and possibly year, conveying a feeling of goodwill and childish wonderOne of the most remarkable things about Christmas is its basic reach, the layers of ritual and habit, the way this very special time of year manages to smear itself like a basting of goose fat across every one of the vital senses. Overwhelmed by these ruddy-cheeked riches, it can be a tricky choice. We all have our preferences. But in the end it’s really just a personal choice which part of Christmas you hate the most.The list is endless. Motorway gridlock. Men who use the word Chrimbo. Adorable bright-eyed, husky-voiced, bowl-headed American children in family movies...
Real Madrid ought to have too much for Napoli, but there are tough challenges ahead for Arsenal, Leicester and Paris Saint-Germain Related: Champions League final: Ronaldo ‘had feeling’ he would score winner Related: Arsenal better set for deep run in Champions League, says Arsène Wenger Related: Juventus 1-3 Barcelona | Champions League final match report Continue reading...
If the average is maintained it will be the highest-scoring season in 20-team Premier League history, but as usual there is far from a single, simple explanationManchester City have kept two clean sheets all season. Liverpool have kept three. Both sides may have come out of last weekend lamenting defeats that have allowed Chelsea to open a small gap at the top of the table but it could be argued that with defences like they have it is remarkable they are as high up as they are. But this, perhaps, is the modern way: defending in the old-fashioned sense has become unfashionable.“There is no modern generation,” José Mourinho growled in the summer of 2015 after winning the Premier League with...