Gillingham boss Stephen Clemence hailed his side’s high standards after they cruised into the third round of the FA Cup with a 2-0 win over League One Charlton.
The Priestfield Stadium came alive in the 26th minute when former Charlton man Macauley Bonne, who made a move to the Gills in the summer, netted against his former club.
Timothee Dieng caught the Addicks defence sleeping again and drilled a low effort into the bottom corner four minutes later.
With a place in the third round secured for a second successive season, Clemence pointed to his side’s relentless work rate.
He said: “I thought we were outstanding from the start, we had a game plan to get after them, how to press them and the lads carried it out fantastically.
“When you start like that you need to make sure you get your nose in front and thankfully we did and to go and score a second soon after was fantastic.
“I thought in the second half we could have gone on and got a few more so that was the message at half time.
“The boys were absolutely fantastic today and they’ve set some high standards for us to keep up to.
“I thought we were in control, we still played some good football but our pressing game was absolutely fantastic. I thought they were all exceptional.
“From my point of view and the players’ we’re happy to be in the next round and we’ll see who we get tomorrow.”
It was a rather different tale for Michael Appleton’s men, who failed to reach round three for the second year in a row.
After an underwhelming display against League Two Gills, the Charlton boss criticised his side’s lack of effort.
He said: “That was a difficult one for me, we were second best in a lot of areas of the pitch.
“Early on in the game, there was probably four or five players who were always second to the ball, always caught between positions, didn’t play forward, weren’t aggressive enough and we paid the price.
“But even coming in at half time, we gave away a couple of poor goals which is one thing, but coming in at half time I’m always positive because we’ve got 50 minutes or so to try and get back into the game.
“We’re very strong normally in the second half of games but we just didn’t do enough.
“We had a lot of territory but I can’t remember the keeper making too many saves, don’t know how many times the ball come into the box and we weren’t there getting the first contact.
“It’s not one that will live long in the memory if I’m being honest.”
Ricketts congratulates 'Bunny' Shaw on FWA Women's Player of the Year award
Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) president Michael Ricketts saluted Reggae Girl and Manchester City striker Khadija “Bunny” Shaw on her latest accomplishment of being voted the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Women’s Player of the Year for the 2023-24 season.
Shaw won the women’s Footballer of the Year award with 80 per cent of the voters opting for either the Manchester City striker or Chelsea’s Lauren James. James finished runner-up with another Manchester City standout Alex Greenwood finishing third. Yui Hasegawa, Elisabeth Terland and Khiara Keating completed the top six.
In a release on Friday, Ricketts pointed out that the award spoke volumes of Shaw's impact on Manchester City's Women's Super League charge, as she has been a model of consistency since joining the Gareth Taylor-coached club in 2021. Her performances have placed Manchester City on the brink of securing their first WSL title since 2016.
“This award is a beautiful feather in her cap and a massive advertisement for Jamaica’s football,” Ricketts said.
“I am happy to see the consistency in quality shown by Khadija. She has always been a top player, but her standard has risen a notch this season. This augurs well for the national team in the future. We wish her all the best on the road to recovery,” he added.
Prior to Shaw sustaining a broken foot during her last Women’s Super League match against West Ham, the Reggae Girls captain scored 21 goals, which were complemented by three assists in 18 games this season.
Shaw is the third Jamaican-born individual to have won the award after John Barnes (1987-88, 1989-90) and Raheem Sterling in 2019.
However, she is the first national representative to receive the honour, as both Barnes and Sterling were England internationals when they earned the recognition.
'It's football hunger' – Moyes intent on West Ham stay as Lopetegui speculation swirls
David Moyes insisted there remains a "football hunger" to carry West Ham forward as speculation persists over the Hammers moving for Julen Lopetegui.
Widespread reports suggest West Ham have been in contact with Lopetegui, who left Wolves ahead of the 2023-24 campaign after just eight months in charge.
Yet Moyes reiterated his commitment to West Ham as the Scotsman aims for another top-10 Premier League finish, with the Hammers ninth in the table heading into the weekend's action.
"Absolutely, it's football hunger," Moyes responded when questioned on his drive to take West Ham to the next level.
"I'm nearly a bit embarrassed to be asked that question because I'm a football nut. I love my football, I go to games, I love it, really do. I have got great hunger."
"I said to everybody that we will make a decision at the end of the season."
West Ham and Moyes will hope to end a three-game winless run in the league when they head to London rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Courtois to make first start this season as Madrid close in on title
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will make his first start of the season against Cadiz on Saturday after making a full recovery from two knee injuries, Carlo Ancelotti has revealed.
Ancelotti, however, will remain cautious with Courtois, who has not played since suffering torn ligaments 13 months ago, with Andriy Lunin set to return for Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich.
"The decisive game we have in mind, a final, is Wednesday's match against Bayern, where Lunin will play. After that, we'll see what happens," Ancelotti said on Friday.
"Courtois is fine, he will play tomorrow after a long, long time. It's good news that he's coming back, just like [Eder] Militao.
"Courtois can contribute, he's feeling good, he's very excited. We are delighted to have him back."
Lunin has established himself as Ancelotti's preferred deputy in Courtois' absence, seeing off competition from Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Lunin was Madrid's hero as they beat Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals, making two saves in their 4-3 penalty shoot-out victory after an inspired performance in a 1-1 second-leg draw.
Courtois, however, is widely considered to be one of the world's best goalkeepers and the Belgian is likely to regain his starting spot soon, with a LaLiga and Champions League double in Madrid's sights.
He was named man-of-the-match in the 2022 Champions League final after making nine saves to deny Liverpool as Madrid clinched a record-extending 14th European title with a 1-0 win in Paris.
Brazil centre-back Militao returned in late March after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in August, making his first start in last week's win at Real Sociedad in LaLiga.
"We were too passive against Bayern. We have to be more active. So Militao will play tomorrow to get into a rhythm," Ancelotti said.
"We are only thinking about the 'final' on Wednesday. We don't think about what might happen in a month's time. Hopefully, soon we can start looking further ahead, it will mean we'll make the final in London."
With five games left, Ancelotti's side top the LaLiga standings on 84 points, 11 ahead of Barca and 13 clear of third-placed Girona. They can clinch a record-extending 36th Spanish title if they beat Cadiz and Barcelona fail to win at Girona later on Saturday.
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