Cremonese striker Jamie Vardy has been named as the Serie A player of the month for November, becoming the first English player to win the award.
The former Leicester City captain played three matches in the Italian top flight last month, scoring one goal against Juventus.
Fellow nominees for the award, which combines fan votes with statistical data, included AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan, Inter Milan’s Lautaro Martinez, Napoli winger David Neres, Genoa’s Leo Ostigard and Nicolo Zaniolo of Udinese.
“Vardy is truly a player from another era,” Serie A chief executive Luigi de Siervo said.
“His arrival at Cremonese was greeted with great enthusiasm by all Serie A fans, and Vardy is repaying them with top-level performances, innate leadership and important goals, the result of the competitive spirit and shooting skills that have always distinguished him.”
In total, Vardy has scored four goals in 10 appearances for promoted Cremonese, who are ninth in Serie A.
He netted nine times in 35 Premier League games last season for Leicester as the Foxes were relegated to the Championship.
The Serie A player of the month award was introduced in 2019, with the winner decided using a rating system that uses data tracking software.
“This makes it possible to analyse crucial aspects such as movement without the ball and thus optimal movements, game choices, and the contribution to the technical and physical efficiency of the team,” a Serie A statement explained.
Other Englishmen to have played in the league since the award was introduced include AC Milan duo Fikayo Tomori and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, former Manchester United captain Ashley Young and Tammy Abraham. (BBC)
Hours after announcing his defection to the Accord Party, Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has been cleared for the gubernatorial primary election.
The Guardian reports that delegates are converging at the Oasis Event Hall in Osogbo for the primary of the Accord Party, of which Adeleke is expected to participate.
On Tuesday night, Adeleke announced his movement to the Accord Party, days after resigning his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party.
Meanwhile, in a statement by Ibe Thankgod, the Chairman, Screening Committee of Accord, on Wednesday, Adeleke was said to have been screened and cleared for its governorship primary that is holding today.
The chairman of the committee, who is also the National Organising Secretary of the party, Thankgod, said the governor has fulfilled all the requisite requirements for nomination and participation at the primary.
“He said the committee subsequently cleared Governor Adeleke as the sole aspirant for the party’s governorship ticket and concluded all required documentations with relevant bodies.
The committee chairman then presented a certificate of clearance to the governor, hailing him as a worthy gubernatorial aspirant of the party.
Responding, Governor Adeleke expressed appreciation to the screening committee and the entire party leadership, noting his preparedness to lead the party to victory in 2026.
“I am ready for the primary and I am ready for the general elections. We are winning by God’s grace”, Governor Adeleke affirmed.
Other members of the committee included Abdurahaman Muhammed, Abdulahi Sani Muhammed and Mrs Awogbade Rachael,” the statement obtained in Osogbo noted.
Similarly, Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara on Tuesday defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
He announced his decision during a stakeholders’ meeting held at the Government House in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.
Fubara joins several governors who have also switched to the APC this year.
Recently, 17 members of the House of Assembly, loyal to former Governor Nyesom Wike and led by Speaker Martin Amaewhule, announced their defection from the PDP to the APC, thereby altering the balance of power in the legislature.
Meanwhile, the Kabiru Turaki-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has reacted to the defection of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), describing the move as a “self-inflicted injury” and a culmination of choices the governor “willingly embraced.”
In a statement issued Tuesday night by National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, the PDP said Fubara’s exit merely affirmed the legal maxim volenti non fit injuria “to one who is willing, no harm is done.” (Guardian)
Liverpool snatched a 1-0 win away to Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday without unsettled star Mohamed Salah, while Chelsea slipped to defeat against Atalanta and Barcelona overcame Eintracht Frankfurt.
Dominik Szoboszlai scored a late penalty as Liverpool snapped Inter’s 18-game unbeaten home run in Europe despite the absence of Salah, who was left out of the squad after his extraordinary public criticism of manager Arne Slot.
Szoboszlai drilled his spot-kick past Yann Sommer two minutes from time at the San Siro after Alessandro Bastoni was punished for tugging the shirt of substitute Florian Wirtz, clinching a much-needed win for the troubled Premier League champions.
“Huge result. We knew we were coming to a tough place, to a team that’s in a good moment. We had to show fight and dig in,” Liverpool defender Andy Robertson told Amazon Prime.
A fourth victory in six Champions League games bumped Liverpool up into the top eight to keep them in the hunt for direct qualification to the last 16 as they contend with the fallout of Salah’s weekend outburst.
The Egyptian forward said he felt like he had been “thrown under the bus” by Liverpool during the club’s dip in form and no longer had a relationship with Slot.
“A tough situation. We’re talking about one of the greatest players to play for this club,” said Robertson. “Whatever has happened, happened. Internally, we’re all together.”
Chelsea lost 2-1 at Atalanta despite taking a first-half lead when Joao Pedro poked in a cross from Reece James.
Gianluca Scamacca headed Atalanta level after half-time and Charles De Ketelaere, who set up the equaliser, smashed in the winner for the Bergamo-based side on 83 minutes.
“We need to learn. We’re disappointed but we have to be focused on the next game,” Joao Pedro told TNT Sports.
“In the Champions League, if you concede one goal, and then another (soon), it is difficult to come back.”
Atalanta are third with 13 points, two adrift of leaders Arsenal and Bayern Munich, while Chelsea dropped down to 11th place.
Bayern came from behind to beat Sporting Lisbon 3-1 as they bounced back from a loss to Arsenal last month.
Hosts Bayern fell behind to a Joshua Kimmich own-goal in the second half but Serge Gnabry and 17-year-old Lennart Karl led the fightback.
Gnabry swept in a corner from close range to equalise and Karl fired Bayern ahead as he controlled a pass and shot past Sporting goalkeeper Rui Silva from a tight angle. Jonathan Tah bagged a third to seal the win.
Jules Kounde emerged as the unlikely hero for Barcelona as the France defender scored a pair of headers in a 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Ansgar Knauff sent the visitors into a surprise lead but Kounde’s brace early in the second half swung the game in favour of Barcelona in their first Champions League match at Camp Nou since 2022.
“We wanted to start at the Camp Nou with a win, it was a tricky game,” Pedri told Movistar.
“We came back in the end, got the three points and we’re happy.”
Tottenham eased to a 3-0 home win against Slavia Prague courtesy of penalties from Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons after David Zima’s 26th-minute own-goal in north London.
Spurs climbed up to ninth and sit just a point behind Liverpool.
Mason Greenwood struck twice as Marseille held on to beat Union Saint-Gilloise 3-2 in Brussels, while Folarin Balogun scored the only goal as Monaco edged Galatasaray 1-0.
Atletico Madrid won 3-2 at PSV Eindhoven with goals from Julian Alvarez, David Hancko and Alexander Sorloth.
Olympiacos earned their first win of the competition as Gelson Martins was on target in a 1-0 victory away to Kairat Almaty, who have just one point in their debut campaign. (JapanToday)
Roma missed the chance to join Inter Milan at the top of Serie A on Sunday after losing 1-0 at Cagliari, as Napoli host Juventus aiming for the summit.
Down to 10 men for most of the second half after Zeki Celik brought down Michael Folorunsho as the Cagliari midfielder bore down on goal, Roma left Sardinia with nothing due to Gianluca Gateano’s neat finish at a corner in the 82nd minute.
A second straight defeat leaves Gian Piero Gasperini’s fourth-placed team three points behind Inter who thumped Como 4-0 on Saturday night, and that gap to top spot could grow before the end of the day.
Napoli take on fierce rivals Juve with the chance to go one point ahead of Inter and deal a blow to former hero Luciano Spalletti.
The reigning champions face Spalletti, now Juve coach, in Naples for the first time since he led Napoli to a first league title in over three decades in 2023. (Guardian)
Iran and Egypt have both objected to plans by local organisers in the United States to brand their 2026 World Cup group-stage match as an event supporting the LGBTQ community.
The organising committee in Seattle, Washington, where the fixture is scheduled to take place next year, had previously announced its intention to hold a “Pride Match” coinciding with the northwestern city’s Pride Weekend in late June.
Following last week’s FIFA tournament draw, Egypt and Iran are now slated to face off in Seattle on June 26, the Friday before.
The head of Iran’s Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, was quoted by local news agency ISNA as saying that Tehran and Cairo had both raised “objections against the issue”, which he labelled an “irrational move that supports a certain group”.
Taj did not mention the specific branding of the fixture.
On Monday, Iranian state television said Tehran would “appeal” to FIFA over the matter.
Homosexuality is illegal in Iran under Islamic law and can be punishable by death.
In a statement, the Egyptian Football Association said it had sent a formal letter to FIFA secretary-general Mattias Grafstrom, rejecting “in absolute terms” any activities linked to LGBTQ support during the match.
The EFA said such initiatives would clash with “the cultural, religious and social values” of both Egypt and Iran and urged FIFA to ensure the match would remain focused solely on football.
In Egypt, homosexuality is not expressly outlawed, but is often punished under loosely worded laws prohibiting “debauchery”.
The EFA cited FIFA’s statutes on political and social neutrality, arguing that matches should not be used to promote causes that are “sensitive or of a contentious nature”.
The 2026 World Cup will mark Iran’s seventh participation in the tournament, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Iran and the United States have had no diplomatic relations since 1980, following a hostage crisis in the wake of the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Iran had initially opted out of Friday’s draw to protest the US refusal to grant visas to several members of its delegation but eventually reversed the decision.
On Tuesday, Taj said some Iranian players might face visa problems over their service in the Iranian military, which includes the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) — designated a “terrorist organisation” by the US in 2019.
“For the World Cup, we must work on having replacement options, and we have already started that,” he said. (Punch)
Iran will play at least one of its World Cup matches in the United States though the tournament draw on Friday avoided a group-stage clash between the geopolitical rivals.
The Iranian team, representing a country targeted by U.S. airstrikes in June and whose citizens are subject to a travel ban imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration, will open its World Cup campaign against New Zealand in Seattle or Inglewood, California, on June 15.
Iran’s next two games could be played across the Canadian border in Vancouver or in Inglewood and Seattle. FIFA will confirm the detailed game schedule Saturday.
The United States was drawn to play Australia, Paraguay and a third team to be determined in the European playoffs in March.
Iran’s participation in the tournament, co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, has already presented diplomatic challenges.
Last week Iran said it would boycott the draw after several officials including soccer federation president Mehdi Taj and general secretary Hedayat Momebeni were denied U.S. travel visas. The federation later modified its stance saying Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei would attend the event at the Kennedy Center in Washington.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether Ghalenoei was present at Friday’s draw.
Iran was among 12 countries subject to a travel ban ordered by Trump’s administration on June 5. A second World Cup nation, Haiti, also is on it.
Exemptions were promised for teams and support staff traveling for the World Cup, but not for fans.
The Trump administration called Iran a “state sponsor of terrorism” and barred visitors except for those already holding visas or coming special visas issued for minorities facing persecution.
Later in June, Trump ordered a bombardment of Iran by so-called “bunker buster” bombs and cruise missiles targeting underground uranium enrichment plants. Within days he declared a ceasefire in a 12-day war between U.S. ally Israel and Iran.
Iran is an established force in soccer, ranked No. 20 in the world by FIFA and second only to Japan among Asian national teams.
Team Melli, as the squad is popularly known, is preparing to play at its seventh World Cup. Its best known player is forward Mehdi Taremi, who has played for Inter Milan, Porto and now Olympiakos.
Iran’s most problematic diplomatic relations among its future World Cup opponents are with Egypt.
Their diplomatic ties were severed in 1979 after Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel and remained strained until recent years.
New Zealand’s government condemned the death in September 2022 of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of the country’s morality police.
Amini’s death just a few weeks before the last World Cup played in nearby Qatar brought domestic politics into the stadiums where Iran played.
The team refused to sign Iran’s national anthem before its opening game in Doha against England, and there were clashes between fans and pro-government supporters at its second game against Wales.
Many fans displayed the “Woman, Life, Freedom” slogan to protest the government before Iran’s World Cup campaign ended with a 1-0 loss to the U.S. (JapanToday)
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher labelled Mohamed Salah “a disgrace” on Monday after the Egypt star’s stunning outburst at Reds boss Arne Slot.
Salah said he had been “thrown under a bus” and had no relationship with Slot after he was left on the bench for last Saturday’s 3-3 draw at Leeds.
It was the third successive game that Salah had been kept out of the starting line-up by Slot amid the forward’s loss of form this season.
In response to Salah’s astonishing rant to reporters, Liverpool axed the 33-year-old from the squad for Tuesday’s Champions League clash at Inter Milan.
Speaking on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, Carragher, a 2005 Champions League winner with Liverpool, said: “I thought it was a disgrace what he did after the game.
“Some people have painted it as an emotional outburst. I don’t think it was. I think whenever Mo Salah stops in a mixed zone, which he has done four times in eight years at Liverpool, it’s choreographed with his agent to cause maximum damage and strengthen his own position.
“He’s chosen this weekend to do this now, and he’s waited I think for a bad result… everyone involved with the club (feeling) like they’re in the gutter, and he’s chosen that time to go for the manager and maybe try to get him sacked.”
Salah is a two-time Premier League champion with Liverpool and has also won the Champions League during his iconic eight-year spell at Anfield.
But, although he only signed a new contract in April, Salah hinted he might have played his last game for Liverpool as he prepares to jet off to the African Cup of Nations after their Premier League clash with Brighton at Anfield on Saturday.
Salah has been linked with a lucrative move to the Saudi Pro League and and Carragher added: “What he’s done off the pitch, I think the club have made the right decision in terms of him not going abroad. Whether he will play for Liverpool again, I don’t know.
“I hope he does, because he’s one of the greatest players we’ve ever had, but if you continue like that, and statements like that, if he doesn’t play, who knows.” (Guardian)
Manchester United great Paul Scholes says Kobbie Mainoo is “being ruined” by his lack of chances under Ruben Amorim, suggesting his best option is to leave Old Trafford.
The 20-year-old had a breakthrough season in 2023/24, which ended with the academy graduate scoring in the FA Cup final and breaking into the England squad.
But the midfielder has gone from starting the Euro 2024 final to struggling for game time at United.
He requested a loan move in August but was turned down.
Mainoo, still waiting for his first Premier League start of the season, was not brought off the bench in Thursday’s 1-1 draw with lowly West Ham United.
That disappointing result left Man United eighth in the Premier League ahead of Monday’s trip to bottom club Wolves.
United boss Amorim said last week that he considered Mainoo “a starter”, but Scholes reacted angrily in a now-deleted Instagram story that reposted the manager’s quote.
“The kid is being ruined, not being played in a team that can’t control a game of football,” said the former United and England midfielder, who won 11 Premier League titles at Old Trafford.
“Hate seeing home-grown players leave but it’s probably best for him now, enough is enough.”
Mainoo’s only start for United this season came in August’s humiliating League Cup exit at Grimsby and Amorim’s reluctance to use him has been a major talking point.
“I understand what you are saying,” he told reporters on Thursday following the draw against West Ham.
“You love Kobbie. He was… he starts for England, but that doesn’t mean I need to put Kobbie (in) when I feel I shouldn’t put Kobbie (in), so it’s my decision.”
Mainoo won the last of his 10 England caps in September 2024 and appears unlikely to make Thomas Tuchel’s squad for next year’s World Cup.
Amorim said he understood that the lack of time on the pitch could be demoralising for the midfielder but said his target was to win matches.
“I just try to put the best players on the pitch,” he said.
Pushed on whether the upcoming departures of Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo for the Africa Cup of Nations could present an opportunity for Mainoo, Amorim said: “I don’t know what is going to happen. It depends.
“If I see in the training it is the best thing, I will put it. That is the only way I know how to respond to that.” (Guardian)
Enzo Maresca said he had no choice but to rotate his Chelsea squad when questioned Friday over his team’s damaging 3-1 defeat at Leeds in midweek.
The loss at Elland Road on Wednesday left the Blues in fourth place, nine points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal.
“We did many things bad,” Chelsea boss Maresca said. “Probably we also paid the bill for playing one hour with 10 players against Arsenal.”
The Italian, who has previously been criticised over his rotation policy, made five changes for the game at Leeds.
Wesley Fofana was not included in the squad and Moises Caicedo was suspended while Malo Gusto, captain Reece James and winger Pedro Neto were named as substitutes.
But Maresca said his hand was forced.
“Most of the rotation we do is because the other one they cannot play,” he said. “So we have players in this moment not able to play every three days.
“And the reason why we have done most of the rotation in the past is for this reason.
“It’s always the same thing — when you pick 11 players and you win it’s fine. When you pick 11 players and you don’t win, it’s always the reason why.
“For sure, playing with 10 players for one hour (in Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Arsenal) then going to Leeds is not the best situation for us.”
Maresca was asked ahead of Chelsea’s game at Bournemouth on Saturday whether his young side needed an injection of experience.
“We always talk about experience when we drop points but when we beat Barcelona and drew against Arsenal, no one was mentioning about experienced players,” he said.
He added: “I know that we are always looking for experience but it was a bad game (at Leeds) for all of us.” (Guardian)
No Formula 1 driver puts pressure on his rivals quite like Max Verstappen.
The Red Bull star did it to Lewis Hamilton in 2021, winning his first title on the last lap of the season and preventing Hamilton from clinching a record eighth F1 title.
Verstappen came close to winning the title again this year, mounting an incredible late charge to crank up the pressure on Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Earlier in the season, the McLaren teammates were contesting the F1 title between themselves.
But Verstappen changed all that.
Heading into Sunday’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, it had become a three-way battle.
Verstappen did all he could.
He won in Abu Dhabi from pole position for a third straight race win, a season-leading eighth and 71st of a stellar career.
It was not quite enough to overtake Norris, who won his first F1 title by placing third in the race and ending up just two points ahead of Verstappen in the standings.
But it showed why Verstappen commands so much awe.
“This Max guy is pretty hard to beat,” McLaren CEO Zak Brown told broadcaster Sky with a large dose of understatement.
One race earlier, at the Qatar GP, Brown had jokingly compared Verstappen to a horror movie ghoul who keeps resurfacing.
“He’s like that guy in a horror movie, that right as you think he’s not coming back, he’s back,” Brown said in a podcast interview before the Qatar race. “What an unbelievable talent he is. He never makes mistakes. He seizes every opportunity. We’ve never thought he was out.”
After winning the Dutch GP on Aug. 31, Piastri led Norris by 34 points and was 104 ahead of Verstappen, who back then had won just two races compared to seven for Piastri. Verstappen took advantage of McLaren’s errors to barge his way back into contention.
“(When) you lose the championship by two points it looks painful. But on the other hand, if you look from where we were in Zandvoort, more than 100 behind, then it’s not too bad,” Verstappen said. “I’m very proud of the whole team. We could have also very easily given up at that point.”
Verstappen is already considered among the F1 greats, alongside Hamilton, seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna.
Despite his relatively young age, the 28-year-old Dutchman is already third all-time for race wins behind Schumacher (91) and Hamilton (105). Verstappen has 127 podium finishes and 48 pole positions — one area where he is not as clinical as Hamilton (a record 104 poles) was in his prime with Mercedes.
When Norris won the Brazil GP sprint race in early November, he moved 39 points ahead of Verstappen with four races to go.
A few weeks later, Verstappen had dramatically turned the tables and all the pressure was on Norris and Piastri.
“It’s probably fair to say that the world discovered an even more extraordinary Max this season,” Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said. “A bit because of the magnitude of the comeback. A bit because he has been so relaxed.”
Verstappen has been more amiable since becoming a father earlier this year, and has made a concerted effort to reign in his occasionally scathing rants over team radio.
He was all smiles and friendly with Norris when they watched highlights of Sunday’s race in the cool-down room.
In the past, bursts of rage or flashes of frustration would get the better of Verstappen.
Less so now.
But one thing that hasn’t changed is his intense desire to win and deep self-belief, whatever the odds.
“The fightback has been really fun,” Verstappen said. “I don’t see it like losing (the championship).” (JapanToday)
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