Marc-Andre ter Stegen has confirmed he will miss Germany's Euro 2020 campaign after opting to undergo a "therapeutic procedure" on his knee.
Sunday's LaLiga results – including Celta Vigo's shock win at Camp Nou – mean Barcelona can no longer win the title, with the club and Ter Stegen subsequently deciding to cut his season short.
A brief statement released by the club revealed Ter Stegen will "undergo a therapeutic procedure on the patellar tendon in his right knee on Thursday May 20 in Malmo by Dr Hakan Alfredson and under the supervision of the club's medial services".
While Barca did not outline a return date, Ter Stegen provided an update on his official Instagram account on Monday, confirming it means he will play no part at the delayed Euro 2020.
"I'm disappointed about yesterday's defeat and that now we can no longer win La Liga," he wrote.
"After a complicated start to the season, we showed good character going 19 matches unbeaten – but we weren't able to keep this form.
"I have decided together with the medical team of the club that I will do a complementary intervention on my knee.
"I'm sad that I will miss Euro 2020 this summer with Germany. For the first time in many years I will be a fan at home supporting my country, I hope we win it!
"After the summer break, when we are back on the pitch I hope to be able to play with fans [in attendance] once again, I miss it!
"Thank you for your support throughout a difficult season and stay healthy!"
Ter Stegen has featured 31 times in the league in 2020-21 for Barcelona, but his overall performance for the season has not been quite up to the high standards he has set previously.
He has conceded 32 goals from shots on target worth 29.07 expected goals on target (xGOT), meaning he has let in nearly three goals more than expected. Celta's first goal on Sunday came from a speculative Santi Mina shot worth just 0.04 xGOT.
Ter Stegen's xGOT differential of -2.93 this term is by far his worst across a single season at the club. In 2015-16, it was -1.44, though he only played seven LaLiga matches, while his next worst was -0.16 in 2019-20, a narrow margin which essentially meant he conceded as many goals as would be expected given the quality of the shots on target he faced.
But for this procedure the ex-Borussia Monchengladbach man certainly would have been a part of the Germany squad next month, though he would have been playing back-up to Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer.
While Ter Stegen has let in more goals than he should have this season, Neuer has conceded 40 times in the Bundesliga from an xGOT value of 42.09, therefore preventing two goals in 2020-21.
The Neuer or Ter Stegen debate has been a hot topic for Germany for a while now, though the data suggests that, at least this season, the Bayern star remains the safer option between the posts.
Village Superstars win 2023 SKNFA Premier League title
After a long, hard-fought season, Rams Village Superstars were crowned 2023 SKNFA Premier League Champions when they defeated SL Horfords St. Paul’s United 8-7 on penalty kicks in the ultimate game 3 of the Super Six finals at Warner Park on Friday night.
It took sudden death penalty kicks after both teams were locked 0-0 after regulation extra time. Both teams also ended the match with 10 men with one of each sent off with red cards. This is Village’s 6th Premier League title and their triumph denies St. Paul’s United from winning their 3rd straight Premier League title after dominating other cup competitions this season.
After an electrifying championship final between Rams Village Superstars and SL Horsfords St. Paul’s United, the curtain falls on the Premier League 2023. This season will be remembered for its breathtaking moments, coming down to the very last penalty kick.
This season has been a display of tenacity, skill, and sportsmanship at every level. Each match showcased the best of football, with teams giving their all and fans unwavering in their support.
The SKNFA extends heartfelt gratitude to all participating teams for a season pulsating with excitement and memorable moments. As we celebrate the triumphs, let's honor the exceptional talents of this season with our League Awards:
League Awards
Premier Division
Coach of the Year:
Iroy Jeffers (SL Horsford St. Paul’s United FC) - $1000
Golden Glove:
Clifford Samuel (Sol Island Auto Conaree FC)- $1000
Best Defender:
Denis Fleming (Rams Village Superstars FC)- $1000
Best Midfielder:
Yohannes Mitchum (Newtown United FC)- $1000
Golden Boot:
Keithroy Freeman (SL Horsford St. Paul’s United FC) - $1000
Regular Season MVP:
Keithroy Freeman (SL Horsford St. Paul’s United FC) -$10,000
Finals MVP:
Zaykeese Smith (Village Superstars FC)- $5,000
Division 1
Coach of the year:
Jevon Francis (Trafalgar Southstars FC)- $500
Best Goalkeeper:
Abasti Tyrell (Trafalgar Southstars FC)- $500
Best Defender:
Ricaldo Archibald (Trafalgar Southstars FC)- $500
Best Midfielder:
Orlando Mitchum (Conaree Fireball International FC)- $500
Golden Boot:
Reynaldo Matthew (Dieppe Bay Eagles FC)- $500
MVP:
Abasti Tyrell (Trafalgar Southstars FC)- $5,000
Unai Emery savours ‘special’ Villa Park atmosphere in rout of Brighton
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery feels there is a special atmosphere brewing at Villa Park after his side romped to a remarkable 6-1 win against Brighton.
A hat-trick from Ollie Watkins and further strikes from Jacob Ramsey and Douglas Luiz, as well as Pervis Estupinan’s own goal, helped Emery’s side secure a 10th successive league win at home.
Despite Brighton’s Ansu Fati briefly reducing the deficit to 3-1 at the start of the second half, Villa were at their clinical best to leapfrog the Seagulls in the table and extend their winning streak at home.
Emery said: “We have to feel something special at Villa Park and try to create a positive energy between us and the supporters and try to work on the pitch to connect with them.
“We want to compete the same at home and away, we will need time to build the team to be consistent but at home we feel strong with our supporters and the energy the supporters are transmitting to us, we need to keep being consistent at home.
“Ollie Watkins is committed to the club, he is very happy here and we are very happy with him, he works hard every day and tries to learn every day. He did very good work scoring goals and working defensively to help the team.
“We have to be very demanding and try to improve every day, each match is going to demand different things, we have to be ready and be strong in our work to be successful.”
Villa blew Brighton away with three quickfire goals in the first half as Watkins scored the opener on 14 minutes with a close-range finish before netting again on 21 minutes with a low effort past Jason Steele at his near post.
Estupinan’s own goal on 26 minutes put Villa in command before Albion responded when half-time substitute Fati scored his first goal for the club five minutes into the second half.
However, Watkins completed his hat-trick on 65 minutes with a deflected effort before Ramsey curled home on 85 minutes and Luiz rounded off the scoring seven minutes into injury time to inflict a heavy defeat on the Seagulls.
Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi said: “Everything [went wrong], we played very bad.
“It’s not a problem of our physical condition, first and foremost when we lose this type of game it’s my responsibility. If you lose 6-1, the biggest responsibility is of the coach.
“We are not ready to compete and to play every three days, I’m trying to manage in different ways to keep the physical energy [up].
“The physical energy is not enough, in football you have to be ready to give your all and your best in the head in the mentality. We can’t lose every tackle, every duel and every second ball otherwise you lose the game in this way.
“But I believe in my players because I have big confidence in the people inside of my dressing room, we are suffering a lot for this defeat but this can happen sometimes if you are not ready and you have to adapt quickly.
“We have to learn. We are suffering, it’s a very bad day but maybe one of the most important days – we want to reach this level.”
Napoli end Lecce’s home run with formidable display
Napoli emphatically ended Lecce’s 100 per cent home record in Serie A with a 4-0 victory at the Stadio Via del Mare.
Goals from Leo Ostigard and substitutes Victor Osimhen and Gianluca Gaetano had the visitors in control before Matteo Politano converted a penalty in added time.
Both teams started the day in the top six with 11 points from six games but Rudi Garcia’s men were good value for their fourth win of the campaign to maintain the pressure on the Milan clubs.
Garcia made three changes following the convincing 4-1 defeat of Udinese in midweek, with Mathias Olivera, Giovanni Simeone and Jesper Lindstrom coming in for Mario Rui, Osimhen and Politano.
Napoli had early control in sunny Puglia with Lecce, the season’s surprise package, struggling to make an impression.
The visitors’ early enterprise was rewarded in the 16th minute when they took the lead, central defender Ostigard heading in Piotr Zielinski’s free-kick from the left unchallenged at the far post.
Lecce won only three home games last season but had already beaten Lazio, Salernitana and Genoa this time around and falling behind sparked them into life.
Roberto D’Aversa’s men, who saw their best start to a Serie A season end on Tuesday with a 1-0 loss at Juventus, threatened in the 25th minute when Nikola Krstovic brought a low, diving save out of goalkeeper Alex Meret.
Central defender Marin Pongracic then wasted the Salentini’s best first-half chance on the half hour, firing over from seven yards after a corner on the right.
However, Napoli finished the half strongly and could have led by more than one goal at the interval.
In the final five minutes of the first half, Simeone saw a powerful right-foot shot go just wide, Wladimiro Falcone saved from Zielinski, then Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was narrowly off-target with a free-kick.
Osimhen replaced Simeone for the second half, and within six minutes of his introduction he had doubled Napoli’s lead with his fifth goal of the season, a header off the post from close range following Kvaratskhelia’s cross.
Gabriel Strefezza had the ball in the visitors’ net in the 57th minute with a close-range header but it was ruled out for handball in the build-up by Krstovic.
With a Champions League match against Real Madrid coming up on Tuesday, Garcia rotated his players, first replacing Lindstrom and Kvaratskhelia with Giacomo Raspadori and Politano.
Raspadori’s low left-foot shot was saved by Falcone in the 67th minute, before Jens-Lys Cajuste came on for Stanislav Lobotka with 14 minutes remaining.
Lecce could not find the breakthrough they needed to set up a tense finish and Napoli made it 3-0 when Gaetano, the last of their five substitutes to be introduced, increased the lead with two minutes remaining.
Less than five minutes after his introduction, the attacking midfielder fired home powerfully from the edge of the penalty box.
There was still time for a fourth goal, Politano sending Falcone the wrong way from the penalty spot after Ylber Ramadani had been penalised for fouling Gaetano.
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