LONDON — Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold earned a recall in a 33-man provisional England squad for Euro 2020 on Tuesday as manager Gareth Southgate played for time before whittling the numbers down.
The right-back was dropped in March for World Cup qualifiers but he made the cut in a squad that will be reduced to 26 players ahead of a June 1 UEFA deadline.
A steady rain fell in Nailsworth, England on Sunday afternoon for the second leg of the League Two playoff semifinal between Forest Green Rovers and Newport County. The deluge began well before the opening kickoff and continued after the sky darkened and the floodlights illuminated the New Lawn Stadium.
At times, the constant downpour obscured the television camera lens with magnified droplets of water, giving viewers at home the impression that they were wearing a rain poncho alongside the 1,200 home supporters in the partially-covered stands.
MANCHESTER, England — Sergio Agüero said goodbye to Manchester City in style as his double off the bench in his final match for the club helped them celebrate the Premier League title in style with a 5-0 thrashing of Everton at the Etihad on Sunday.
Agüero started on the bench as Pep Guardiola named a surprisingly strong starting team given they are playing in the Champions League final next week, but the Argentine could not be held back, helping condemn Everton to a 10th-placed finish.
Needing a win to be absolutely sure of being one of four Premier League Champions League qualifiers, Chelsea was garbage against Aston Villa on Sunday. But thanks to London rival Tottenham, the Blues clinched UCL qualification, backing into the top four to ensure Christian Pulisic will return to Europe’s premier club competition next season.
The 2020-21 season was a banner year for Americans abroad. USMNT players have been winning trophies all over Europe, including regulars at Barcelona, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund; in a week, we’ll see an American win the Champions League for either Chelsea or Manchester City. But Saturday was not a great day for keeping U.S. internationals in Europe’s top flights, with a number of Americans relegated to lower tiers or unable to gain promotion.
WOLVERHAMPTON — Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Nuno Espirito Santo is to leave at the end of the season, the club said on Friday.
The 47-year-old has been in charge since 2017, guiding Wolves back to the Premier League in his first season at the helm and then enjoyed consecutive seventh-placed finishes.
TAKE A BOW, NUNO
Paul Riley is the most successful head coach in National Women’s Soccer League history. With three championships and three more NWSL Shields, the opinion of the Liverpool native carries a lot of weight in women’s soccer. And his opinion on the differences between his current league and the top flight in England highlight how far the FA Women’s Super League still has to go.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, two of the funniest dudes around, have no shortage of career options. For some reason, they’re using their talents to create a documentary series on the Welsh soccer club the actors recently bought. “Welcome to Wrexham” will follow the comedic actors as co-chairs of Wrexham AFC, a club currently in England’s fifth tier.
In the lower reaches of the English Football League, teams are largely comprised of journeymen. Squad turnover at this level is high, and with shorter contracts and higher financial volatility, players often play on different teams from season to season.
But few footballing nomads have ever reached the migratory magnitude that goalkeeper Josef Bursik has achieved this season. Thanks to numerous injury dilemmas at the Championship and League One level, the 20-year-old Stoke City goalkeeper has played for four different clubs in the 2020-21 campaign alone.