Reweloae

The Guardian - Lord Digby Jones accuses Alex Scott of spoiling Olympics coverage by dropping her ‘g’s The BBC presenter Alex Scott has said she is proud of her accent after she was criticised by a former minister who said she “needs elocution lessons” and “spoils” Olympics coverage. Lord Digby Jones, a crossbench peer who served as a trade minister under Gordon Brown, hit out at the former Arsenal and England footballer in tweets on Friday night, in which he also criticised Sky News political editor Beth Rigby. Continue reading...

The Guardian - The League One club looked in serious trouble but shrewd business in signing hungry talents hints at a brighter future A week after being sacked by West Brom in 2019, Darren Moore arrived at Kenya’s Giotto rubbish mountain. His dismissal had been both hurtful and highly controversial but it also created an opportunity for the suddenly unemployed football manager to visit the giant tip in Nakuru, meet the children who call it home and help the charity, Inspire Afrika, with a school building scheme. “It flipped me round and put everything in context,” said Moore. “Any worries about your life are quickly extinguished when you meet 50 or 60 children living in a rubbish heap with a school in the middle of it.” Continue reading...

The Guardian - Jonathan Morgan has made six new signings as his Championship title-winning side prepare for the big time Jonathan Morgan is proud to occupy the office in which Claudio Ranieri plotted Leicester City’s path to the Premier League title and, more recently, Brendan Rodgers navigated a route to FA Cup final glory. The manager of Leicester City Women could not be more delighted to have moved into the Belvoir Drive training ground which housed the club’s men side from 1964 until their recent relocation to a new, ultra-luxurious countryside base. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Striker to have operation on long-standing shoulder injury * Manchester United confirm surgery in coming days Marcus Rashford will have an operation to resolve his longstanding shoulder injury in the coming days and is set to miss the opening months of the season. The Manchester United forward played with the issue for much of last season and it is understood he wanted surgery straight after featuring for England at Euro 2020. But Ole Gunnar Solskjær said no firm decision had been made, the manager saying on Wednesday that it needed to be decided “what’s best for him and best for the club”. Continue reading...

The Guardian - The Championship club’s manager on his low profile, growing up in Matt Busby’s home town and taking a job he had never craved “I was fortunate enough that I managed to get a management role fairly early.” The accidental football manager is not talking sporting jobs. Decades ago, he had a post that acquainted him with routes; just not, generally, to the helm of Championship clubs or a touchline date with Pep Guardiola this week. “I had a fantastic 19 years with the Royal Mail,” says Frankie McAvoy, now head coach of Preston. By his own admission, his reinvention has come as a happy surprise. “I thought I would always be in Royal Mail,” added the Scot. Not since Alan Johnson went from postman to home secretary, perhaps, has a career in the postal service taken such a left-field turn. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Zardes’ late goal lifts United States into 12th Gold Cup final * US will face Mexico in final on Saturday night in Las Vegas Gyasi Zardes scored in the 86th minute and the United States beat Qatar 1-0 on Thursday night to reach the final of the Concacaf Gold Cup. Zardes, one of the few first-line US players on a mostly junior varsity roster at the tournament, replaced Daryl Dike in the 63rd minute and combined with two other second-half subs, Nicholas Gioacchini and Eryk Williamson. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Gallagher prefers Palace to Leeds or Newcastle * Midfielder spent last season on loan at West Brom Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher is set to sign for Crystal Palace on a season’s loan after turning down interest from Leeds and Newcastle. The England Under-21 midfielder is yet to make a senior appearance for Chelsea and wants to continue his developmentafter spending last season on loan at West Brom. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * References made to ‘Ellie White’ and ‘Abbie Miedema’ * Eurosport commentary done by Olympic Broadcasting Services Team GB’s Kim Little and Rachel Daly have criticised “disappointing” commentary in which players have been misnamed, as they prepared to play in Friday’s quarter-finals of the Tokyo Olympics. The errors came in a broadcast of the women’s football tournament on Eurosport, whose coverage has come in for widespread criticism. During Team GB’s game against Canada their top scorer, Ellen White, was called “Ellie White”, the Arsenal and the Netherlands forward Vivianne Miedema was renamed “Abbie Miedema” and said to play in the “Women’s Soccer League” instead of the Women’s Super League, and the Scotland midfielder Little was described as having “140 caps for England”. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * ‘I made a mistake,’ says Championship club’s manager * Images appeared to show him asleep in room with young women Wayne Rooney has apologised to his family and Derby after images emerged on Sunday appearing to show the former England striker asleep in a hotel room surrounded by a group of young women. “I made a mistake,” the Derby manager Rooney told Sky Sports after the Championship club’s friendly against Real Betis on Wednesday. “I went to a private party with two of my friends and from me, I’d like to apologise to my family and the club for the images which were going round and I want to move forward on this. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! The mavens of the internet have long since dismissed Ole Gunnar Solskjær as a Norwegian PE teacher who knows less about the game than your average journalist – really, Manchester United ought to have appointed [redacted] as manager with [redacted] as coach and [redacted] as his director of football. But for some inexplicable reason they’ve stuck with the man who brought Molde their first league title in 100 years of history, then turned United from a hilarious shower into a club that is once again attractive to some of the world’s best players. It’s an absolute mystery! Continue reading...

The Guardian - The Englishman on being national team coach in a country where boxing and basketball have traditionally ruled the roost Until Lionel Messi, Paulino Alcántara was the top scorer in Barcelona’s history with 357 goals. But until the advent of the internet, many had forgotten that “The Net Buster” had been born in the Philippines and inspired the Asian team to their biggest win, a 15-2 thrashing of Japan in Tokyo in 1917. Alcántata’s history is talked about more these days in Manila and the provinces but it is the future that is really starting to excite. It is not that surprising that his exploits were somewhat overlooked given the fact that the Philippines was an American colony at the time and that influence remains in a sporting sense. Basketball and boxing are still ahead of football but the beautiful game is catching up with a potential that is unparalleled in the region according to the national team’s English coach, Scott Cooper. “We can be competitive in Asia but

The Guardian - * Aim is to make stadium Premier League’s 10th-biggest * Plan also involves building hotel and residential space Leicester have announced plans to expand the King Power Stadium as part of ambitious designs to improve their home. The FA Cup holders will confirm plans next month before a public consultation, with the aim being to add 8,000 seats to the East Stand to take the capacity to 40,000. If the planning is successful, the stadium would become the 10th-largest among current Premier League sides. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Belgium international moves to Qatar after six years * Tottenham and Atalanta negotiating over Romero fee Tottenham have announced that Toby Alderweireld will leave after six years at the club, joining the Qatari side Al-Duhail, with Spurs hoping to sign a replacement centre-back in the next few days. The Premier League club have been in talks with Atalanta over Cristian Romero but at the moment the clubs are quite apart in their valuation of the Argentinian centre-back. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Bettinelli available on free transfer and would be third choice * Chelsea also hunting for players in midfield and attack Chelsea are closing in on the signing of the goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli. The 29-year-old, a free agent after leaving Fulham, is expected to join the European champions on a two-year deal this week. Chelsea need a new third-choice goalkeeper after the departure of Willy Caballero last month and Bettinelli is poised to provide competition for Édouard Mendy and Kepa Arrizabalaga. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Left-footed signing from Sevilla loves dribbling at opponents and has shown he can deal with physicality and adversity The way the story is told at Sevilla, the first time Bryan Gil turned up at the club’s training ground, one November evening when he was 11, they put him up against the biggest, strongest, hardest kid they could find. That would show how good he really was. Tall and blond, they called the kid The Russian, after Dolph Lundgren’s character in Rocky IV. His name actually was Iván too, and although he was Leiva not Drago, from Málaga rather than Siberia, he was an intimidating figure. Bryan took him apart. Sevilla’s academy director, Pablo Blanco, recalls the story, returning later with a team picture, the two boys by then on the same side. There’s something in the legend: The Russian is twice the size of the rest. “He wasn’t the fastest or the most agile,” Blanco admits. But then Bryan, a skinny kid a year below the others did this to everyone and still

The Guardian - * New signing targets Champions League place * Abbie McManus leaves United at end of contract Manchester United Women have announced the signing of Aoife Mannion on a two-year contract on the same day Abbie McManus left the club at the end of her deal. Mannion, a 25-year-old centre-back, joins United after spending two seasons with Manchester City, and has also previously played for Birmingham City. She has represented England at various youth levels and received her first senior call-up in 2019. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Former England captain wants to visit clubs around Europe * Dean Smith: ‘I fully understand and respect his decision’ John Terry has left his role as Aston Villa’s assistant manager, the club have announced. The 40-year-old former England and Chelsea captain joined Villa in the summer of 2017. Terry, who played 32 games for the team in the 2017-18 season before becoming assistant to Dean Smith, told Villa’s official website: “It has been a tremendous honour and privilege to have spent these last three years at Aston Villa, but I feel now is the right time to make the extremely difficult decision to move on. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Former striker will step from role as assistant * Son of Paulo Futre, Fábio, will take over as under-11s coach The former Atlético Madrid striker Fernando Torres has been appointed as the club’s youth-team coach. Torres worked in the Atlético academy set-up last season as an assistant, and will make the step up to head coach for the 2021-22 campaign. Continue reading...

The Guardian - New manager was not first choice and has the tough task of implementing attacking style after pragmatism under Hodgson ‘Of course, I spoke with Arsène on the phone,” Patrick Vieira recalled in an interview with L’Équipe in April. “And one of the first things that he said to me was: ‘You are not a real manager until you get sacked.’” On 14 August, it will be 25 years to the day since the France midfielder born in Senegal – one of the Premier League’s greatest players – signed for Arsenal. By quirk of fate, that date happens to be when Vieira will follow in the footsteps of his mentor, Arsène Wenger, and take charge of his first league match in English football as a manager. A day after Arsenal kick off their campaign at promoted Brentford, Vieira will be in the dugout at Stamford Bridge to face old rivals and European champions Chelsea in quite the baptism of fire. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Attacker’s signing sparked more talk about the Asian market but even he succeeds few Japanese will rush to buy a club shirt The idea that Asian players are signed for commercial reasons should be a bit noughties. There was much talk of Junichi Inamoto making millions for Arsenal when the Japanese midfielder arrived in 2001 but whereas his signing was big news in east Asian football circles, his departure after making no league appearances was barely noticed. These days most in Europe surely recognise that imports from the east are usually pretty good (like players of all nationalities who make big moves overseas, some fail to settle while others thrive) yet the notion that they also have in their proverbial lockers equally impressive abilities to sell shirts and turn a hefty percentage of those four billion or so Asians into fans of their new club seems to persist. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Former Manchester City midfielder who is now Bristol Rovers boss will appear in court on Monday Former footballer Joey Barton has been charged with assault by beating after a woman suffered a head injury at a residential address in London. Barton, who is currently manager of League Two club Bristol Rovers, will appear at Wimbledon magistrates court on Monday. It follows an incident at a house in Kew, south-west London, on 2 June. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Before covering the Olympics, the BBC sports presenter talks about racist abuse as a child, rediscovering his faith, and taking pride in being a role model Jason Mohammad wants to talk, which will come as no surprise to observers of this most ubiquitous of broadcasters. After all, this is a man who as well as being the main presenter of BBC’s Final Score and occasional host of Match of the Day 2, has long been involved in the corporation’s coverage of snooker, rugby league, rugby union and athletics, among other sports. His voice, it is fair to say, is a frequently heard one. Which is no bad thing. Mohammad is as engaging and eloquent as he is versatile and prolific, and those qualities are firmly on show as we speak via Zoom. But it is not sport that is up for discussion, or at least that is not the principal subject on Mohammad’s mind. Instead he wants to delve into religion, race and identity, weighty topics that have been fundamental to his life since childhood bu

The Guardian - * The Norwegian’s new deal offers an option of an extra year * United finished second in the Premier League last season Ole Gunnar Solskær has signed a new three-year contract to extend his stay as Manchester United manager until at least 2024. The new deal contains the further option of an extra year for the Norwegian, 48, who led United to second in last season’s Premier League and a losing appearance in the Europa League final. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Sweden come from behind to win 4-2 in Saitama * Sam Kerr scores twice and misses a penalty 11.43am BST A breathless game of football that will keep Australia up at night but in the end there can be no argument that Sweden deserved to win. They had to do it the hard way, however, coming from 2-1 down early in the second half to secure the three points that consolidates their position atop Group G - and likely guarantees their progression to the knockouts. The Matildas had looked set for a memorable win when Sam Kerr scored her second goal to hand her side the lead after 48 minutes, having themselves come back from being 1-0 down, but this Sweden outfit is as ruthless as it is classy. A tough loss for @TheMatildas despite two goals from Sam Kerr #Tokyo2020 | #7Olympics pic.twitter.com/7f47A1yNei 11.30am BST Missed this earlier, but Björn Isaksson weighs in on Kerr’s claim for a penalty in the first half: “Hej, Björn from Sweden here. Might be a bit partial

The Guardian - Defensive midfielder on dealing with criticism, why she is enjoying Hege Riise’s management and the hotel ‘corridor club’ in Japan After the World Cup in 2019, Manchester City’s Keira Walsh was hit so hard by the criticism she faced that she thought about stepping away from football. In France Walsh did not look like the player who had become so integral to City’s midfield and defensive strategy until the semi-final against USA, where she played her best game of the tournament, with England’s underdog status perhaps lifting the pressure. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Sports Interactive: work has started on ‘multi-year project’ * It states it will cost millions but is ‘the right thing to do’ The maker of Football Manager has announced that it will be adding women’s leagues to the simulation video game. Sports Interactive, which launched the Football Manager series in 2004, said the move would “cost millions” for “minimal” short-term return but that it was “the right thing to do”. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Work on community football clubhouse in Manchester will link to archive of messages left on his portrait in nearby Withington Marcus Rashford has spoken of how a Manchester mural and its “outpouring of support really lifted” him at one of his “lowest points”, as a new tribute was painted on the wall of a community football clubhouse reading: “Hope Beats Hate”. The new mural in south Manchester links to a digitised archive of the messages left on the one showing the footballer’s face a couple of miles away in Withington. Continue reading...

The Guardian - * Argentina 0-2 Australia (Group C) * Francisco Ortega sent off before half-time for Argentina A first-half goal from Lachlan Wales and a second in the 80th minute from the substitute Marco Tilio stunned 10-man Argentina as Australia seized top spot in Group C at the Tokyo Olympics. Australia’s head coach, Graham Arnold – an Olympian at Seoul in 1988 – had promised that his team would “shock the world” and his charges delivered in the evening heat of the Sapporo Dome. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Analysis: Despite escaping criticism in Nigel Boardman’s report, other inquiries will ensure affair rumbles on The appointment of Nigel Boardman to head an inquiry into how Lex Greensill lobbied for access to public loan schemes in Downing Street came at an acutely embarrassing moment for Boris Johnson. The stench of sleaze had reached some of his most senior ministers. David Cameron, Johnson’s Etonian rival and political sparring partner, had been disclosed as a paid lobbyist for a firm whose collapse threatened thousands of jobs in the steel industry. Continue reading... Read More »

BBC News - What started as a light-hearted response to her "haters" is now an official Simone Biles emoji. Read More »

BBC News - From Simone Biles to Bruce Springsteen’s daughter Jessica - who are the athletes to follow at the Tokyo Olympics? Read More »

NYTimes - Among those facing the human rights sanctions are Cuba’s defense minister and special forces troops who swept up protesters in a wave of arrests larger than any other crackdown over the last few years, if not decades. Read More »

NYTimes - A powerful legislator, he became chairman of the House Appropriations Committee in 2005 but faced scrutiny from the Justice Department for his ties to a lobbyist. Read More »

NYTimes - Abby Finkenauer, a 32-year-old former congresswoman, is jumping into next year’s race against Senator Charles E. Grassley, the Republican incumbent. Read More »

NBC News - Food supply chains are "right on the edge of failing," one meat industry body said Read More »

NBC News - The news follows Prime Minister Boris Johnson's announcement that as restrictions on social gatherings lift, nightclubs must require guests to show a Covid Pass from the U.K.'s National Health Service. Read More »

NBC News - Argentina rolled out identification cards on Wednesday for non-binary citizens. Read More »

CBC News - Thousands of websites and digital services around the world were unavailable on Thursday after cloud computing company Akamai said it has been experiencing a "service incident." Read More »

CBC News - A priest told mourners at a memorial service Thursday for slain Haitian President Jovenel Moïse that too much blood is being shed in Haiti as authorities warned of more violence ahead of his funeral. Read More »

CNN - Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez announced a new National Identity Document (DNI) for nonbinary people on Wednesday. Read More »

CNN - "Did you miss me?" Kristen Bell's voice asks, almost threateningly, in the trailer of the new "Gossip Girl." "I know I have missed you." Read More »

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NYTimes - We have no plan. Read More »

NYTimes - Anne Arundel County police officers found Dasan Jones, 15, “unresponsive” in an attic crawl space, authorities said. The cause of death was asphyxiation. Read More »

CBC News - Harvey Weinstein pleaded not guilty in a Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday to four counts of rape and seven other sexual assault counts.  Read More »

CBC News - The British government said Wednesday that post-Brexit trade rules it negotiated with the European Union "cannot go on" and need a major rewrite, especially around checks on some goods moving between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K., straining already tense U.K.-EU relations. Read More »

NBC News - "If the League thinks that carrying weapons brings security, then that is really worrying," said centre-left politician Vinicio Peluffo. Read More »

NBC News - Hungary's prime minister on Wednesday announced a referendum on legislation that limits schools' teaching about homosexuality and transgender issues. Read More »

CNN - The UK government's decision to lift almost all remaining coronavirus restrictions in England on Monday was expected to deliver a windfall for businesses that have been hampered by social distancing rules. Read More »

CNN - Decades-long research into Leonardo da Vinci's purported remains has revealed how many people currently alive can claim to be descendants of the family of the Renaissance genius and "Mona Lisa" painter: It's 14. Read More »