Millwall chief executive Steve Kavanagh has paid tribute to the “extraordinary and exemplary” contribution of late owner and chairman John Berylson, who has died aged 70.
The club announced on Tuesday evening that Berylson had “lost his life in a tragic accident”, but gave no further official details. It has since been reported that the accident took place in the United States.
Berylson first became involved with the south London club in 2006 and helped them become established in the Championship, finishing last season just outside the play-offs.
Tributes flooded in from around English football following the news, while the club have made a book of condolence available at The Den for any supporters wishing to pay their respects, while messages can also be left online.
In a tribute on the club’s official website, chief executive Kavanagh said it was “unquestionably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to write in my life” as he reflected on the “best club owner I have ever worked with”.
Kavanagh wrote: “What he did for Millwall over so many years was both extraordinary and exemplary. He trusted his staff to get on with the task at hand, but was always unwavering in his support in so many ways.
“John’s endless passion for Millwall was infectious. He was so incredibly dedicated to the club and year after year showed remarkable energy and drive to keep us progressing on and off the pitch.
“There have been ups and downs, sure, but in my view many more of the former, and as we know John enjoyed nothing more than to light up a big cigar in celebration of a famous win, promotion, or other deserving achievement.
“His regular visits to The Den became increasingly memorable as the support for him from the fan base grew further with every passing season.
“He loved the time he would spend walking the perimeter of the stadium to speak to supporters, and his lap of honour before the final game of the season – in hindsight an even more profound moment now – was amazing to witness.
“I feel so desperately sad for John’s family and our thoughts and prayers are with them at what is just such a devastatingly cruel time.”
Kavanagh confirmed Millwall’s squad would remain out in Spain to continue pre-season preparations and would visit The Den to pay their respects to the late chairman on their return.
Lions boss Gary Rowett said: “One of the players mentioned they had never heard a bad word said about John. I think that pretty much sums up what an amazing individual he was.
“All our thoughts go to his family, to his wife Amy and his children and grandchildren. Not only is it devastating news the last 24 hours for anyone who knew John, it’s very hard to comprehend just something of that magnitude.
“The first thing that strikes me is that I remember many conversations about players and matches and things he wanted to try to do to move the club forward and he’d often be having a conversation with one of his grandkids in the background.”
View this post on InstagramRowett added in a video on the club’s social media accounts: “He would always ring me after games, he’d ring me a couple of times in the week just to ask how things were going.
“The skill that John had was incredible, he’d always try to make you feel better if you’d lost a game or something had happened.
“He’d always try to support and make it feel like there was a way out of it, there was a route out of it and there was a strategy to move forward. That showed his compassion, that showed his love for the club.
“It’s so difficult to comprehend, for me certainly, Millwall without John Berylson, because he was the figurehead, he was the inspiration and just a tremendous, tremendous owner and chairman.”
Jamaica 0-1 United States: Pepi give visitors advantage in Nations League quarter-final
Ricardo Pepi's first-half strike gave the United States a 1-0 advantage over Jamaica after the first leg of their Concacaf Nations League quarter-final.
The hosts saw a penalty saved in the first half before their frustrations were compounded late on thanks to Mason Holgate's red card.
The USA had the lead just five minutes in – having smothered a Jamaica attack at one end, the visitors caught them out with a pacy counter-attack, with Pepi sweeping it into the back of the net.
Shortly after, Shamar Nicholson was brought down by Matt Turner when he tried to take it around him, but the goalkeeper made amends, diving low to his right to deny Demarai Gray from 12 yards.
In the second half, Holgate was denied a tap-in by Yunus Musah before Turner scrambled to stop Leon Bailey's corner from nestling into the net as Jamaica searched for an equaliser.
With 86 minutes on the clock, Holgate received a second yellow card in just over 10 minutes for dragging Brandon Vazquez back, meaning he will miss the return leg in Missouri on Monday.
Data Debrief: Hitting the mark
Pepi got the all-important goal on Thursday, and is the fourth player to score 12 goals for the USA before turning 22 years old, joining Landon Donovan, Jozy Altidore and Christian Pulisic.
But it was perhaps Turner who actually had the most vital interventions; he has now saved three of the eight penalties he's faced for the USA, including two against Jamaica.
Mauricio Pochettino also could not have asked for a better result from his first competitive game in charge of the Stars and Stripes as he became just the third full-time manager to win his first competitive away match, joining Bob Bradley (2008) and Steve Sampson (1996).
Scaloni 'not here to criticise' Argentina after shock Paraguay defeat
Lionel Scaloni says he is "not here to criticise his players" after they suffered a shock 2-1 defeat to Paraguay in World Cup qualifying.
Lautaro Martinez had given Argentina the lead in the 11th minute – his powerful shot past Roberto Fernandez was initially ruled out for offside before a VAR review overturned it.
However, Paraguay were soon back on level terms. Gustavo Gomez rattled the crossbar with a diving header from a corner, but they regathered possession and pulled level with a sublime overhead kick from Antonio Sanabria 19 minutes in.
Two minutes into the second half, the hosts completed the turnaround through Omar Alderete, who met Diego Gomez's precise free-kick to nod in from close range.
Rodrigo De Paul arguably should have equalised for Argentina with just over 20 minutes to go, but under pressure, sliced over from close range, with the visitors unable to salvage a point.
It was a third defeat in World Cup qualifying for the Albiceleste, who remain top of the standings with 22 points, and Scaloni chose to focus on the positives.
"I'm not here to criticise my players; I'm here to support them," Scaloni said. "We knew it was going to be a tough match. We're here to move forward.
"In the first half, we played a good game, but the first action at the start of the second half made everything more difficult. We have to congratulate the opponent, who defended very well.
"I don't know if they found the antidote [to beating Argentina]. We're hoping to get back on the positive path.
"The team always tries and stands tall. That's what's important: never giving up on the game and always having the desire to compete."
Paraguay are sixth in the table, having extended their unbeaten run to six matches, which also includes a win over Brazil.
They had to dig deep, having only 23.2% possession throughout the game, though they had eight shots to Argentina's nine and scored with both of their efforts on target.
Head coach Gustavo Alfaro is yet to lose a game since taking over Paraguay after the Copa America, and he hailed his team's resilience.
"With the rebelliousness of these players in the face of adversity, I have no doubt that we will get there. When the predisposition is so great, time is secondary," he said.
"They were fantastic points, very difficult. It is difficult to take a point from Argentina."
Real Madrid hit Twente for seven, five-star Wolfsburg also win big
Real Madrid had six different goalscorers as they trounced Twente 7-0 in the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, while Wolfsburg beat Galatasaray 5-0.
Signe Bruun opened the scoring three minutes into the Group B encounter at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano, then Maria Mendez's header gave Madrid a 2-0 half-time lead.
Madrid, who had won one and lost one of their opening two games in the tournament, got a third through Naomie Feller five minutes into the second half, then Caroline Weir made it 4-0 with a brilliant free-kick.
Mendez headed home her second of the encounter shortly after the hour mark, while Oihane Hernandez and Carla Camacho got on the scoresheet late on to complete the rout.
The victory took Madrid second in the Group B standings ahead of Chelsea's trip to Celtic.
Wolfsburg were also convincing victors in Group A, getting off the mark for this season's competition as Rebecka Blomqvist scored a hat-trick in their 5-0 thrashing of Galatasaray.
The Bundesliga side – who failed to pick up a point or score a goal in their opening two matches – had a narrow 1-0 lead at half-time through Joelle Wedemeyer, before Blomqvist took centre-stage in the second period.
She tapped home after Janina Minge struck the crossbar, then added her second goal in the 77th minute and her third six minutes into stoppage time.
Vivien Endemann powered home a fifth for Wolfsburg one minute later, as they provisionally moved within three points of Lyon and Roma ahead of their meeting.
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