On the eve of his second European Under-21 Championship as England manager in 2019, Aidy Boothroyd was asked which of the motivational quotes pinned around their training base in northern Italy was his favourite. “It is actually one of mine which says: ‘There has never been a better time to be an England player’,” he revealed.
Try telling that to the team that was comprehensively outclassed by Portugal on Sunday night. Despite Boothroyd’s promise that England would be more attacking after the opening loss to Switzerland, his side failed to register a single attempt on target in Ljubljana that means that their hopes of reaching the quarter-finals of the expanded tournament are now hanging by the slimmest of threads.
England U21s …
The knockout rounds of Euro 2024 got underway on Saturday, with the first two teams booking their places in the quarter-finals.
Switzerland stunned the defending champions, sending Italy home after a 2-0 victory in Berlin.
Later, Germany also prevailed by the same scoreline to take a step closer to potential success on home soil, beating Denmark.
Here, we round up the best Opta statistics from the first set of Euro 2024 round-of-16 ties.
Switzerland 2-0 Italy: Vargas ends Azzurri defence
The teams on Switzerland s side of the draw will be looking over their shoulders after they dumped Italy out, largely thanks to Ruben Vargas standout performance.
He set up Remo Freuler s opener before curling in a stunning effort himself, becoming the fir…
Germany tested the crossbar three times during the first-half initially when Julian Brandt s sweetly struck shot cannoned to safety with Weverton beaten.
The hosts much-vaunted frontline of Luan, Gabriel Barbosa, Gabriel Jesus and Neymar began to link pleasingly and, after Renato Augusto spurned an unmarked 23rd-minute chance at the back post, it was Brazil s captain who sent a capacity crowd into raptures.
Neymar s 25-yard free-kick was simply sumptuous, leaving Timo Horn grasping helplessly as it found the net via the underside of his bar.
Germany refused to be daunted by the scoreline or a now ramped-up party atmosphere and a Meyer free-kick caused havoc his delivery from the left deflecting and skimming to top of the crossbar.
From the resulting corne…
Sean Dyche is super-proud of his Everton side, as well as the staff aiming to bolster his squad before the transfer window shuts.
Everton have lost their opening two Premier League games by an aggregate score of 7-0, and sit bottom of the early standings.
Dyche s team beat Doncaster Rovers 3-0 in the EFL Cup on Tuesday, and now prepare for an early-season crunch clash against Bournemouth at Goodison Park.
Everton, whose financial issues have been well documented, are still aiming to add to their squad before Friday s deadline, with midfielder Orel Mangala nearing a loan move from Lyon, while a winger is a target.
Uncertainty remains over Dominic Calvert-Lewin s future, too, but Dyche said he is content with the work everyone involved has done this window.…
Thousands of supporters of the Spanish national team have vowed to shave their heads if their side wins the Euro 2008 football championship.
Spanish sports daily Marca has been urging fans to sign an online petition promising to go bald if Spain wins the title and as of Tuesday night just over 10,000 people have made the pledge, the newspaper said on its website.
I, an unrepentant lifelong fan, solemnly commit myself before Marca, the fans and the national team, to shave every last hair on my Spanish head if our team wins Euro 2008, the online pledge reads.
The team needs all the support it can get from its fans, the newspaper wrote on its website over a photo of a group of bald fans wearing red and yellow Spain jerseys with their arms in the air.
If…
Barcelona have reclaimed the LaLiga title after a dominant x-x victory over struggling Deportivo La Coruna secured the crown for Ernesto Valverde s side.
Having already clinched the Copa del Rey with a 5-0 thrashing of Sevilla, Barca made light work of Deportivo at the Riazor on Sunday to clinch the title with four games of a marvellous campaign in which they have yet to lose to spare.
There was a slight blip in mid-season, allowing Atletico Madrid to close the gap, but a 1-0 victory at Camp Nou courtesy of a stunning Lionel Messi free-kick all but ended the title race.
It marks a fantastic debut season in charge of the Blaugrana for former Athletic Bilbao boss Valverde, who arrived to little fanfare last May, with Barca securing their first title since 2014-…
Jack Wilshere is determined to deliver the EFL Cup for Arsenal on Sunday, as he still holds painful memories of their 2010-11 final defeat to Birmingham City.
Arsenal were huge favourites ahead of the Wembley decider seven years ago, but Obafemi Martins 89th-minute winner following a mix-up between Wojciech Szczesny and Laurent Koscielny secured an unlikely Blues win.
Wilshere, who played in that match, is now hoping to go one better against Premier League leaders Manchester City in a competition Arsene Wenger has never won.
In 2011, we were expected to win and I was convinced we were going to win and come home with silverware, he told Sky Sports.
I think it helps as you grow up in football. You get more experience in these [situations]. I know we didn …
The Tennessee Titans are riding a five-game winning streak including massive wins over BUF, KC, IND and LAR. They enter Week 10 as 3-point home favorites versus the New Orleans Saints but can the Titans avoid a let-down this Sunday against a Saints team that is 3-0 SU as an underdog this season but could be without the services of Alvin Kamara?
Find out in our free picks and predictions for Saints vs. Titans on November 14.
…
Sunday sees the Miami Dolphins on the road to face the Baltimore Ravens with both teams having won on the opening weekend. The Ravens looked impressive against a poor Jets team, while the Dolphins made Bill Belichick and the Patriots look ordinary.
For this game’s best betting angles, check out our NFL picks and predictions for the Dolphins vs. Ravens on Sunday, September 18.
…
A doomsday scenario befell the New York Jets, their fans, and their backers on Monday Night Football, as quarterback Aaron Rodgers was injured in just his fourth snap with his new team in Week 1.
After 18 years in Green Bay with a Super Bowl ring and four NFL MVP awards to show for it, Rodgers was brought in to be a franchise savior, but now the Jets must pick up the pieces without him.
See the latest Jets Super Bowl odds movement below, as well as my evaluation of what comes next for Robert Saleh’s men.
…