Motherwell must 'increase tempo' after 'tricky' start
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The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
‘Great feeling': Palmer hails Maresca after Chelsea glory but Trump booed at final
Cole Palmer said that Enzo Maresca is building something special after Chelsea produced a stunning performance to beat Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in the first final of Fifa's expanded Club World Cup. Palmer was in astonishing form at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium, scoring two brilliant goals and setting up João Pedro to make it 3-0 by half‑time. Chelsea were underdogs going into their clash with the European champions but they were set up brilliantly by Maresca, whose young side will go into next season with incredible belief after being crowned world champions. 'He is building something special, something important,' Palmer said of Chelsea's head coach. 'Everyone has talked a lot about us all season but I feel like we are going in the right direction.' Chelsea have spent more than £1bn on signings since Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital bought the club three years ago. It has been a slow process but there are growing signs that their youth-driven recruitment is working. In Maresca's first season in charge Chelsea have qualified for the Champions League, won the Conference League and dominated PSG in a major final. 'It's a great feeling,' Palmer said. 'Even better because everyone doubted us before the game, we knew that. To put a fight on like we did, it's good. The gaffer put a great gameplan out. He knew where the space was going to be. He tried to free me up as much as possible and I just had to repay him and score some goals.' Chelsea, who have made around £90m from their time in the US, will have three weeks off before returning to training in the lead-up to the new season. They open their Premier League campaign by hosting Crystal Palace on 17 August. 'Of course I am very excited [about the future],' Maresca said. 'But I'm more excited that we have three weeks off.' Maresca hailed his young side for carrying out the plan to perfection. 'I have no words for the players,' the Italian said. 'They all deserve this and it's a good moment. We won the game in the first 10 minutes. We set the tempo and we were very good at pressing them. The conditions made it hard to keep going but the boys did well.' There was praise for Palmer, who shone in a right-sided role, but Maresca focused on the whole team. ' Today we found a position for him where there was more space to attack,' he said. 'Obviously Cole played really well but the effort from all the players was fantastic.' President Trump was jeered by the crowd on more than one occasion when he came on to the pitch for the trophy ceremony. Trump, who appeared next to Boehly and Fifa's president, Gianni Infantino, ignored the boos and remained front and centre with Chelsea's players as they lifted the trophy. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion There was a major security operation outside the ground before the match. Secret Service officials were present in the surrounding areas because of Trump attending the game and bag checks were conducted by Transport Security Administration officials. PSG were stunned by Chelsea and lost their cool towards the end. João Neves was sent off for pulling Marc Cucurella's hair and Luis Enrique, the Ligue 1 side's manager, may face disciplinary action after appearing to push João Pedro in the face. Luis Enrique defended himself by saying he was trying to separate players after a brawl broke out at full time. 'I have no problem expressing my feeling at the end of the game in a high level of pressure,' he said. 'It's very stressful for all of us. It is going to be impossible to avoid. Everybody was involved. it was not what was best and the end result of the pressure of the match. 'I have seen Maresca. I saw he had pushed others and we had to separate all the players and I do not know where that pressure came from. But this is a situation we must all avoid. My intention is that I wanted to separate the footballers so the situation didn' t become worse.'
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
‘We've found our urgency': Wiegman salutes Lionesses as they set up Sweden clash
Sarina Wiegman said her Lionesses side found a sense of 'urgency' to book their place in the quarter-finals of the European Championships with a comfortable 6-1 victory over Wales. 'This urgency comes [after the France defeat],' the England head coach said. 'You could see the togetherness of our team. We knew today would be a different game because we knew we would have the ball a lot. 'I'm very happy with the performance. We knew that Wales really wanted to fight and we tried to stay out of it. I think in most of the moments we did but in the beginning we were sloppy. I hope we keep going with this. We created great chances like we did against the Netherlands and now we have to break down Sweden.' A key part of England's improved form during a tough Group D was a shift in gameplan from Wiegman and the coaching staff. One change has been the introduction of Ella Toone back into the No 10 role against the Netherlands with the ever-creative Lauren James moving out to the right. Keira Walsh, the Uefa player of the match, credited Toone for England's change in fortunes. 'She's come in and done an incredible job,' she said. 'People speak about her offensively, but the defensive work she does for me and Georgia [Stanway] when she's in [the No 10 role] is incredible. She covers a lot of spaces that we can't. 'That's probably been the main thing that's stopped other teams from playing. Obviously with Lauren James on the wing, we've managed to get both of them on the pitch at the same time and they are two world-class players.' In her two tournament appearances, Toone has looked back to her best. A goal and two assists in 45 minutes against Wales made her a standout performer and her 100% pass completion rate caught the eye. 'I feel like I'm in a really good place,' the 25-year-old said. 'I've missed this Ella Toone. I've not had it for a while. I feel like I'm really coming into it and I'm really enjoying it. I love playing with these girls. I love the football that we play. 'I feel like I'm in a good mindset and enjoying my football and that's when I'm probably playing my best so it was nice to get two assists and another goal tonight. Hopefully I can keep continuing in that form.' Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion Walsh also spoke about the Lionesses' ability to navigate their way through a difficult group that contained France, the Netherlands and Wales. 'It was a slow start,' she said. 'But we've definitely built on that. I think the intensity in the last two games – we've really attacked. In defence, we've tried to win the ball back really fast so I think we're happy with where we're at. 'Sarina [Wiegman] wanted us to be confident and to enjoy it. We obviously play better football when we do that. There was more flow to the game tonight and better connections so we just have to keep that going and keep the momentum up in the next game.' England will face Sweden next in the quarter-finals, an opposition that they are well-acquainted with. 'They're always very powerful,' Wiegman said. 'They have speed up front on the counterattack. They are a hard team to beat and have done well in the group. We will see and we will get ready.'
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
Halftime pep talk sparks Cascarino heroics as France storm back to beat Netherlands
July 13 (Reuters) - France forward Delphine Cascarino turned up the heat when it mattered most, scoring twice and creating another goal as her side roared back from a 2-1 deficit to thrash Netherlands 5-2 on Sunday and book a Women's Euro quarter-final clash with Germany. France took an early lead but found themselves trailing at halftime after conceding two goals. Enter Cascarino, who delivered a second-half masterclass that propelled France to victory in Group D ahead of second-placed England, who demolished Wales 6-1 to also advance. "She's a star, and at some point you have to light the fire so she can show her full potential," France coach Laurent Bonadei told reporters. "At halftime I told her she was able to do more and better, that went for the whole team too ... I liked Delphine's reaction." Cascarino took her coach at his word, setting up Marie-Antoinette Katoto to equalise in the 61st minute, and she then scored two quickfire goals herself to sink the Dutch and secure top spot in the group. "Laurent said we lacked aggression, and it was true. We were behind 2-1, we were making less effort in the defence, that was clear," Cascarino told reporters. "The Dutch were able to take advantage of our weakness, but we didn't let go. We showed aggression in the second half, and that really helped to get us over the line." France now face Germany in Basel on July 19, a prospect that does not faze the confident Cascarino despite her team's past struggles against the Germans. "When it comes to Germany, it's a very big nation," she said. "They won several trophies and they have already knocked out others, so we know it's going to be a great game, a big game and a difficult game. And we're going to try to find the cracks and to win the game."
