Chelsea are not getting carried away by talk of a title challenge following their 2-1 win over Leicester City, according to striker Nicolas Jackson.
Jackson netted his seventh Premier League goal of the season and was joined on the scoresheet by Enzo Fernandez on Saturday, as Enzo Maresca got one over on his former club at the King Power Stadium.
The result lifted the Blues to 22 points in third, just one adrift of champions Manchester City in second and six behind leaders Liverpool.
Speaking to TNT Sports after the game, Jackson said: "We know the months of November and December have a lot of games, so we just try to recover for the next one and go again.
"I saw the danger, then the ball came to Enzo, he gave it to me and he finished. I'm just working in every game to try to help the team win."
Asked if Chelsea were now thinking of themselves as title challengers, he added: "No, we don't look at the teams in front of us, we just try to win every game."
Five of Jackson's goals this season have come on the road, the most of any player in the Premier League.
Since the start of May, only Erling Haaland (18) has bettered Jackson's 11 goals in the competition overall.
Leicester got a stoppage-time consolation through Jordan Ayew's penalty, though they earlier felt aggrieved not to be awarded a spot-kick when Stephy Mavididi was seemingly felled by Wesley Fofana in the 85th minute.
Boss Steve Cooper lamented that call, saying: "We've had some terrible luck with this referee. That continued today.
"There's also the game to talk about. Tough first half in terms of Chelsea territory and dominance with the ball. We gave away a poor goal. It should have been 0-0.
"Defensively we were generally okay. We need to be showing courage and belief. If we do that we can create chances and be a threat.
"The big moment is the first penalty not given, it's clear what happened there. The second one was offside [before VAR] and you see how onside he was.
"That was the story of the officials' game. You can speak to them after 30 minutes. I'm not sure if I will or won't."
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has become the first manager to take charge of 700 games with the same LaLiga club.
The Argentine hit the milestone as his Atleti side welcomed Alaves to the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Saturday.
Simeone first took charge of Los Rojiblancos in December 2011 and has gone on to become the most successful manager in the club's history, having brought eight honours to the Spanish capital.
The former midfielder guided Atletico to the LaLiga title in 2014 and 2021, while also overseeing two Europa League triumphs in 2012 and 2018 in addition to helping them reach two Champions League finals.
Saturday's game is Simeone's 492nd LaLiga match in charge - the most by any manager at a single club - and he has also managed the third-most games with a single club in the Champions League (109), after Alex Ferguson with Manchester United and Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.
Atleti have won each of their last four matches across all competitions, and another on Saturday would be the 54-year-old's 300th in the Spanish top flight.
Hansi Flick says it is an "honour" to hear Lionel Messi praise Barcelona's start to the season.
Flick took over as Barcelona head coach in May, with the club making an impressive start to LaLiga, as they sit top on 33 points after 13 matches.
They have won 11 of their games, losing the other two, while they are sixth in the Champions League table, just three points behind leaders Liverpool.
Messi, who spent 17 years at Barcelona before leaving to join Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, recently described Flick's team as "spectacular", in particular lauding his use of young players in the team.
The German has not shied away from using academy players during his time at Barcelona so far, with Lamine Yamal the standout of the bunch after he carried last season's form into this campaign.
Yamal is the only player across Europe's big five leagues to complete 25+ dribbles (34), create 25+ chances (26), have 25+ shots (39), score 5+ goals (five) and provide 5+ assists (seven).
When asked how he felt about Messi's comments, Flick was delighted.
"It's an honour to hear the best player in history say that he likes this Barca," he told reporters.
"He follows the team closely, he has his heart set on this club, that means a lot to the youngsters and to the team."
Barcelona return to LaLiga action when they travel to Celta Vigo on Saturday, looking to extend their lead at the top of the league.
Sheffield United went top of the Championship following their 2-2 draw away to Coventry City despite twice surrendering the lead.
Chris Wilder's side are one point ahead of second-placed Sunderland ahead of Saturday's other matches although, after Tyrese Campbell put them one up after 13 minutes, they would have been hoping for a bigger lead.
Coventry forward Norman Bassette equalised nine minutes later, but Jesurun Rak-Sakyi had the visitors back in front on 34 minutes, having been set up by former Coventry man Gustavo Hamer.
Then came the game-defining incident, with Anel Ahmedhodzic sent off in the 44th minute after grabbing Bassette by his neck and throwing him to the ground. Tempers flared into half-time, but it was the home side who piled on the pressure in the second half.
The managerless Sky Blues got their reward 10 minutes from time through Bobby Thomas, meaning that they have now come back from losing positions to draw in back-to-back matches. They sit 16th in the table.
Elsewhere, Burnley went third after their second straight 1-0 victory as they beat Bristol City on the road. Jaidon Anthony scored the only goal of the game, although the home side created plenty of pressure and saw a penalty claim denied in the second half.
Scott Parker's side, nevertheless, kept their fourth clean sheet in five to get themselves back in the hunt for the top two.
Sheffield Wednesday and Cardiff City shared the points in a 1-1 draw at Hillsborough that does neither side many favours in their aim to climb clear of the relegation scrap.
Both goals came within two first-half minutes, with Ollie Tanner getting the visitors ahead from a Callum Robinson rebound in the 34th minute. The lead didn't last long though, with Di'Shon Bernard on hand to scramble home and restore parity almost straight away.
The result leaves Wednesday in 14th, four points above the bottom three, while Cardiff are 19th and just a point above third-bottom Luton Town.
Chelsea came through a nervy finish to beat Leicester City 2-1 at the King Power Stadium on Saturday.
Enzo Maresca guided Leicester to promotion last season before switching allegiance to Chelsea, who returned to winning ways after two successive draws in the Premier League.
Nicolas Jackson and Enzo Fernandez were on the scoresheet for the Blues as Jordan Ayew’s stoppage-time penalty proved only to be a consolation for the hosts.
The visitors dominated early on and Jackson’s brilliant outside-of-the-foot finish past Mads Hermansen gave them the lead in the 15th minute.
Jackson was involved in Chelsea’s second, too, as his header was saved by Hermansen, only for Fernandez to nod home the rebound in the 75th minute.
Ayew made no mistake from the spot to set up a grandstand finale, but third-place Chelsea held firm to move to within a point of Manchester City, prior to the reigning Premier League champions’ clash with Tottenham later on Saturday, while Leicester dropped down to 16th.
Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago were the only double winners on day one of the 2024 Rugby Americas North (RAN) tournament as their men and women teams registered contrasting victories at the Larry Gomes Stadium on Friday.
Trinidad and Tobago’s men came from behind to secure an unlikely and dramatic 12-5 victory over Mexico, while the Twin Island Republic’s women thrashed Barbados 37-0, as both teams put themselves on course for top spots in their respective round-robin groups.
Meanwhile, Jamaica’s men edged Cayman Islands 22-21, while the women were 40-12 winners over the Dominican Republic.
Canada and Barbados were also victorious in men’s Tier One action, bettering Guyana 29-0 and Bermuda 19-7, respectively.
In the men’s Tier Two division, Curacao topped Turks and Caicos 31-5, and the Dominican Republic secured a 46-0 win over St Vincent & the Grenadines.
The other women’s encounter saw Mexico register a comfortable 39-0 over Trinidad and Tobago’s ‘B’ team.
Action continues on Saturday with Trinidad and Tobago's women and their Jamaican counterparts doing battle, while the hosts’ B team will cross swords with the Dominican Republic to get the day going.
Day Two Fixtures
Women
Trinidad and Tobago ‘B’ vs Dominican Republic
Trinidad and Tobago vs Jamaica
Trinidad and Tobago vs Dominican Republic
Trinidad and Tobago ‘B’ vs Barbados
Trinidad and Tobago vs Mexico
Trinidad and Tobago ‘B’ vs Jamaica
Men’s tier one
Trinidad and Tobago vs Jamaica
Trinidad and Tobago vs Cayman Islands
Lewis Hamilton believes he should have been starting in pole position at the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Sunday despite qualifying 10th.
The Mercedes driver had finished top in both of Friday’s practice sessions before laying down the fastest time in Q2 as well.
Hamilton locked up during his first run in Q3 before a track limits violation in his second run saw his lap time deleted.
The British driver rued his drop-off in form that saw his team-mate and compatriot George Russell take pole position.
"I should have been on pole but I'm not, so it is what it is. C'est la vie, you live to fight another day," he told Sky Sports.
"It is what it is. It's been a good weekend so far, so I'll give it my best shot tomorrow. Congrats to George.
"The car felt different in Q3, and the stability was not there for some reason. But I had it in all the other sessions.
"But ultimately I didn't put the laps together. I'm really quite far back so I'll just see what I can do from there.”
Elsewhere in the paddock, McLaren’s Lando Norris will start in sixth position on the grid, one place behind his title rival Max Verstappen.
Norris needs to beat the Red Bull driver by at least three points to keep his title aspirations alive and take the championship race to the Qatar Grand Prix next week.
He does not, however, favour his chances against the serial winner.
"I will do everything I can. That's what I'm here to do. I'm not going to give up 'til the end even if chances are extremely thin," Norris said.
"I'm here to do the best in every race I can whether I'm fighting for a championship or not. We have [Verstappen] just ahead of us. We have a chance to beat him.
"Whether he wins or not tomorrow, for me it is not going to change anything, he is pretty likely to win the championship.”
Norris currently sits 62 points short of Verstappen who leads the Driver’s Championship on 393 points, though McLaren lead Ferrari by 36 points in the Constructors’ Championship.
"Do I wish it could have gone a bit further? Sure. But the race was lost in the first races of the year, when Max got too far ahead. I am proud and happy with what we’ve done,” Norris added.
"Be optimistic and look ahead to what we can achieve. I don’t expect anything much, for sure."
Carlo Ancelotti insists "it is just a matter of time" until Kylian Mbappe breaks his goal drought, with the Real Madrid forward having failed to find the net in his last four appearances.
The former Paris Saint-Germain forward has endured a tricky start to life with Los Blancos since making the switch as a free agent.
Despite scoring eight goals in 16 appearances across all competitions, Mbappe is yet to truly catch fire at Santiago Bernabeu, where his displays have been subjected to widespread criticism.
The France forward has underperformed his season's expected goals (xG) total by 2.04, while he was left out of Les Bleus' squad for their recent Nations League matches after going over 400 minutes without scoring.
Mbappe is averaging a goal every 166 minutes in all competitions this term, compared to one every 88 minutes in his final campaign with PSG, but Ancelotti is confident the tables will turn.
"It happens to all great strikers," the Italian told reporters ahead of Madrid's clash with Leganes on Sunday. "He can get frustrated, but that's not his case. I see him motivated and happy to train with his team-mates.
"Sooner or later, he will break that streak of games in which he hasn't scored goals. Tomorrow, he will have a great game because it is just a matter of time. He has incredible quality and, sooner or later, he will show it."
Ancelotti also addressed suggestions Mbappe should be switched from the central attacking position to the left wing, in place of top scorer Vinicius Junior.
"I don't think Kylian has ever asked me for a position on the pitch, everyone wants to start in the starting 11," Los Blancos' head coach added. "But Mbappe and Vinicius don't have a fixed position on the pitch. It all depends on the match."
Nathan McSweeney conceded Australia have "serious work to do" if they are to get back into the first Test against India.
The Baggy Greens trail by 218 runs heading into day three in Perth after an unbroken century partnership of Yashasvi Jaiswal (90) and KL Rahul (62) put the tourists well in control at 172-0 at stumps.
Though they resumed at 67-7, Australia could only add another 37 runs and were bowled out for 104.
McSweeney acknowledged the hosts must improve, and quickly.
"It definitely hasn't gone to plan in the past couple of days," he told ABC. "We've got some serious work to do to get back into this Test. It looks like it is getting easier to bat, so hopefully we get early wickets tomorrow and get batting.
"It is definitely a new-ball wicket. All the damage was done before we could get through to the 35-40-over mark with the bat, so the trick will be nullifying the new ball and having batters in for the 40-80-over mark."
Former Australia head coach Darren Lehmann added: "It was a tough day, but hats off to the two Indian batters. They were excellent today and weathered the storm, and they got to the stage where they could take the game on.
"India are well ahead of the game. The wicket has settled down a little bit, but that is more because the Australia bowlers were tired from the first innings and having to bat two hours today."
West Indies captain Hayley Matthews put on a batting masterclass, smashing an unbeaten 60 off just 37 balls to power the Melbourne Renegades to a commanding nine-wicket victory over the Sydney Thunder at Melbourne's Junction Oval on Friday.
The win catapulted the Renegades to the top of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) standings and once again highlighted their title ambitions as they continue to enjoy fairly decent form. In fact, they required only 14.2 overs to easily get to 137-1, surpassing the Thunders modest total of 133.
Another West Indies star, Deandra Dottin, also played a pivotal role in the victory, chipping in with a tidy spell of 2-24 in 3.1 overs to help restrict the Thunder, with Renegades spinner Sophie Molineux delivering a standout performance by claiming 4-23. Georgia Wareham (2-20) also shared in the wickets.
Scores: Melbourne Renegades 137-1 (14.2 overs); Sydney Thunder 133 (19.1 overs)
Chasing 134 for victory, the Renegades’ duo of Matthews and Molineux made light work of the target. Matthews, who was in imperious form, smashed seven boundaries and two sixes in her unbeaten knock, which displayed her full array of strokes against a Thunder attack that had no answers.
Molineux capped her all-round brilliance with an unbeaten 29-ball 42, including seven boundaries and one six, as she added a steadying hand to Matthews’ aggression.
The pair took the hapless Thunder bowlers to task in an unbroken 95-run second wicket stand that ensured the Renegades raced to victory with 34 balls to spare.
Matthews’ dazzling innings, after losing opening partner Courtney Webb (24), marked yet another high point in her WBBL campaign, demonstrating why she is considered one of the best in the world.
Earlier, the Thunder’s innings never gained sustained momentum, as they lost openers Georgia Voll (11) and Chamari Athapaththu (11) with a mere 26 runs on the board.
Captain Phoebe Litchfield, batting at number three, top-scored with a quick-fire 17-ball 30 that had six boundaries. However, their batting lineup faltered dramatically and collapsed from 95-4 in the 12th over to lose their last seven wickets for just 38 runs.
Tahlia Wilson (27) was the Thunder’s next best scorer, while Sammy-Jo Johnson offered a late cameo with 21 from 19 deliveries, leaving them with a subpar total that was always going to be a challenge for their bowlers to defend.
The Renegades now sit atop the WBBL table with 14 points, relegating Thunder (13 points) to second, with Brisbane Heat (12 points) in third, and needing a massive win against the Sydney Sixers in their final match of the regular season on Sunday to leapfrog the Renegades and secure the coveted hosting rights for the grand final.
Meanwhile, the race for fourth place remains wide open. The Perth Scorchers (nine points) will take on the fifth-placed Hobart Hurricanes (eight points) on Saturday in a must-win clash. The Sydney Sixers, in sixth place with eight points, still have a mathematical chance of advancing if they upset the Heat.
Ruben Amorim expressed his “love” for Mason Mount as he prepares to take charge of his first match as Manchester United head coach.
Mount has been hampered by injury during his spell at United, having started just seven matches for the club in the league and contributing only one goal.
Yet he accrued 27 goals, 22 assists and created 227 chances during 129 appearances while at Chelsea. He will hope the arrival of his new boss will help him to recapture such form.
Amorim arrived in Manchester on 11 November and, having had time to familiarise himself with a new squad during the international break, is excited at what Mount can bring to the Red Devils.
“Mason Mount… I have to tell you I love that kid. You can look in his eyes that he wants this so bad. This is the most important thing,” he said at a press conference.
“He played in this system, so it’s perfect for him. I have two positions for Mount, so he should be very happy!”
The English midfielder was once seen as one of England’s most exciting talents, having impressed in the capital, but has floundered in his limited performances at United, with just 10 chances created in 17 matches.
But Erik ten Hag’s departure could signal a reversal of fortunes for United and Mount.
Following an unbeaten run under interim coach Ruud van Nistelrooy, Amorim will take the helm in the Premier League for the first time against Ipswich Town on Sunday.
Jason Kidd hailed the character of his Dallas Mavericks team after their gutsy win over the Denver Nuggets.
The Mavericks overcame Luka Doncic's absence, and a triple-double from returning Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, to win 123-120 in Friday's NBA Cup game.
It also marked the third consecutive game the Mavericks have had seven players hit double figures.
The Mavericks appeared to be running away with a dominant win after leading by as many as 24 points early in the third quarter, only for the Nuggets to swiftly respond.
They struck a fierce 28-9 run in an eight-minute span to bring the game within single digits going into the final quarter, but the Mavericks held on for a fourth straight win.
"We were here 10 days ago, we learned from that situation, we kept our composure. This group stayed together," Kidd said.
"On the defensive end we made stops and on the offensive end we made some big plays.
"We didn't finish the game 10 days ago. But the guys stepped up. Defensively, we did what we had to do. A lot of small things that we cleaned up from the last time we were here.
"This is a character game for us. Again without Luka, on the road, we were just in this situation in Oklahoma City. The games are too close for us to make mistakes late.
"This team has a lot of character, a lot of trust and we're becoming a team - it's still early in the season, we've had some injuries, but it's about the next man up and those guys are stepping up."
Dallas (9-7) improved to 2-1 in West Group C to keep their hopes of being one of eight teams to advance to the knockout round. The Mavericks trail the Golden State Warriors, who improved to 3-0 in Group Play after Friday’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
It was also a night to remember for Naji Marshall, who scored a career-high 26 points off the bench.
After scoring 15 points in the second half of Tuesday’s game against the Pelicans, Marshall scored 16 points in the first half on Friday.
Marshall had only two 15-point halves in his career prior to accomplishing the feat in consecutive halves, with Kidd showering praise for his recent displays.
"Just the trust. Marshall was playing extremely well for us. With the game on the line, he makes a floater with one second left on the shot clock," Kidd said.
"The confidence the guys have in him on the offensive end and defensive end [helps]."
George Russell "put it all on the table" to surge to a surprise pole position at the Las Vegas Grand Prix with an impressive qualifying display.
After Mercedes had topped all three practice sessions on Friday, Russell was able to convert his team's electric practice pace into a fourth career pole.
The Briton finished 0.098 seconds ahead of the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz, while Alpine's Pierre Gasly built on his podium at Interlagos last time out by finishing third, with Charles Leclerc starting in fourth.
While it was Russell’s out-going Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton who swept Thursday’s free practice sessions, the seven-time world champion could only manage 10th.
Asked if pole was expected coming into the weekend, Russell replied: “Honestly, absolutely not. It feels incredible to be back on pole.
“We’ve been so quick all weekend and I just knew coming into that last Q3 lap… that’s going to be the one that counts. It doesn’t matter what happened before then.
"I'm just so happy, and we've got to do some deep diving to understand why we’ve been so quick so far this weekend, because it was a real surprise!”
"Ultimately, you’ve got to put it on the table sometimes. I felt confident in myself – I knew if I did a clean lap, it would be enough to secure a front row, so to get pole position is incredible," Russell said.
"Ultimately, we’ve had a few good qualifying recently – we need to convert that into a win now."
Max Verstappen will share the third row of the grid with his sole remaining opponent for the title, Lando Norris, after qualifying fifth.
The Dutchman knows that he must finish ahead of the Briton's McLaren to claim a fourth consecutive world title, putting him level with Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel.
However, Verstappen believes that Red Bull are "just a bit too slow" after struggling for one-lap performance throughout the course of the weekend's action.
"We have been struggling to get the tyres to work over a lap, and we are slow on the straights as well, especially in qualifying," Verstappen said.
"You can see our rear wing, it’s trimmed down quite a lot, around the DRS flap, so when we open DRS we don’t get the gains like others do, so that makes it a bit more complicated around here.
“But that’s our own fault. We know that, that's a compromise we have, but nevertheless, I tried to do the best I could.
"It was quite close for P3, little details that could have been a bit better maybe, but overall I'm happy with the laps, was not much more in it."
Ange Postecoglou relishes the opportunity to challenge Pep Guardiola’s Premier League dominance after he signed a contract extension with Manchester City.
It was announced by City on Thursday that Guardiola will stay at the club until 2027 after agreeing a new two-year deal, taking his time at the Etihad to over a decade.
Under Guardiola (since 2016-17), City have lost more Premier League games (six) and conceded more goals (22) against Spurs than they have against any other opponent in the top-flight.
It is perhaps unsurprising then that, despite the City boss having lifted the Premier League trophy in six of the last seven seasons, Postecoglou was happy his competitor was remaining at the helm.
"I look at it the other way, imagine you knock him off? That would be something, eh?,"Postecoglou began.
"And I'm at the stage of my life where I'd rather have a chance of knocking him off than missing that opportunity. In the right way, obviously.
"I think when greatness is around, you want to be around it. Hopefully it challenges you to be like that as well.”
Postecoglou is preparing to travel to face City in the league on Saturday during Guardiola’s worst run of form of his career.
City have lost each of their last four matches in all competitions. The Citizens last lost more consecutively between March and April 2006 under Stuart Pearce (six – the fifth game of which was also against Tottenham).
It could present the perfect opportunity for the Australian boss to start his ascent on Guardiola’s dominance, though he will have to face demons of his own as his side have won just two of their last 11 Premier League away games (D2 L7).
"I love the fact that there is a massive target out there that can seem insurmountable. It does for me anyway, raises my level, gets me going,” he added.
"I love the challenge of that and I never see that as a bad thing."
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