Sport (Page 140)

Crystal Palace 1-0 Arsenal 16. The Eagles have lift off! Conor Gallagher sends the free-kick curling dangerously into the box from deep, Joachim Andersen challenges at the back post and – more by luck than judgement – knocks it back into the middle for Jean-Philippe Mateta to head home. Arsenal have been undone by a set-piece, and didn’t cover themselves in glory in defending it. The incoming Nuno Tavares was easily outmuscled by Andersen, and nobody challenged the goalscorer as he had the easiest task of nodding in. Palace lead this London derby!Continue Reading

FEARS that Chelsea’s humbling 4-1 defeat to Brentford may impact their Real Madrid preparations could be eased thanks to the Blues’ excellent record against the Spaniards. Thomas Tuchel’s side host Real Madrid on Wednesday in a crunch Champions League quarter-final first leg, before the return game six days later. 2 Chelsea faced Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals last seasonCredit: Marc Aspland – The Times 2 Tuchel’s side progressed to the final, extending their unbeaten record against Los Blancos to five gamesCredit: Marc Aspland – The Times And in five competitive meetings between the two sides, Chelsea have NEVER lost a match. So if the history books are anything to go by Tuchel and Co will be full ofContinue Reading

THE BOAT Race is taking place in front of spectators in London RIGHT NOW. Last year the race was held behind closed doors on the remote River Great Ouse at Ely, due to Covid restrictions and safety issues with Hammersmith Bridge. 2 Oxford vs Cambridge is finally back on the Thames after a change of location last year.Credit: Alamy 2 The time of when the race starts depends on the tide.Credit: Getty – Contributor This year sees the famous Oxford vs Cambridge boat race return to its original historic course on the Thames river. 12 months ago Cambridge reigned victorious over both Oxford’s men and women’s team. This is the third year in a row that both the men’s andContinue Reading

Fernandes slammed Paul Merson has slammed Manchester United for giving “moaning” Bruno Fernandes a new deal. On Friday the Red Devils announced that the midfielder had penned a new five-year deal to stay at the club. They have also doubled his wages to £240,000 per-week. Former Arsenal man Merson was quick to react to the news, labelling it as “strange” due to the fact that Man Utd have not appointed a new manager yet. He has since doubled down on his criticism, arguing that the club did it “off-the-cuff” and blasted the star for his “moaning”. When speaking on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday, Merson said: “I’m flabbergasted if I’m being honest. “You give him a four-year contract extension, more money, whatever it may be. “A manager comes in,Continue Reading

Kai’s crucial form It’s been a solid few weeks for Chelsea’s second-most expensive signing Kai Havertz. He started the season slowly, despite last year’s Champions League final winning goal, but over the course of the last six weeks, the German has come into his own. Havertz has played mainly as a No 9, with record signing Romelu Lukaku resigned to the bench, and has scored four times in his last three league games. That’s as many times as the former Bayer Leverkusen man notched in the 21 games before that. He also netted Chelsea’s crucial penalty in their 2-1 win over Palmeiras to win the Club World Cup. If Chelsea are going to pick up another big win today, they’llContinue Reading

ANTHONY JOSHUA is in no mood to joke around – no matter what day it is. The heavyweight superstar is getting down to business in training camp for his expected rematch with Oleksandr Usyk this year. 3 Anthony Joshua training for his boxing returnCredit: Instagram / @anthonyjoshua 3 Anthony Joshua is in camp with new coach Angel FernandezCredit: Instagram / @anthonyjoshua And Joshua posted on Instagram: “April ain’t fooling me.” The former two-time unified champion looked fighting fit as he was pictured on an exercise bike and enjoying a breather. AJ is currently in camp with new head coach Angel Fernandez in their Loughborough HQ. It has seen him relocate from Sheffield with promoter Eddie Hearn revealing the partnership isContinue Reading

LAST YEAR was a monster 12 months for boxing and you can expect more of the same in the first part of 2022. Stars such as Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Canelo Alvarez are all set to fight this year, with the latter pair’s fights confirmed. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET A FREE £10 BONUS WITH 100s OF GAMES TO PLAY AND NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED (Ts&Cs apply) And to hold you down in the meantime, we have middleweight title action between Gennady Golovkin and Ryota Murata coming next week. Check out SunSport’s extensive boxing schedule for 2022 below… ? DAZN (UK & US) ? ? April 9 ??Saitama, Japan Gennady Golovkin vs Ryota Murata (12 rounds – middleweight, WBA & IBFContinue Reading

ENGLAND secured their World Cup qualifying spot back in November but they finally get to find out their group stage fate TOMORROW. The Three Lions comfortably topped Group I – going on an unbeaten 10-game run where they accumulated 26 points. 1 England annihilated San Marino 10-0 in their final World Cup qualifying matchCredit: Getty And whilst a number of nations were battling it out for a plane ticket to Qatar within the last two weeks, Gareth Southgate’s men were securing international friendly victories against Switzerland and Ivory Coast. But the countdown to the 2022 World Cup officially starts with the draw on Friday and here are the possible scenarios England could be facing. What are the pots for theContinue Reading

Would Rashford and Calvert-Lewis fit in? FAN’S VIEW: My interest was peaked by reports that Arsenal are keen to sign Marcus Rashford and have a pre-contract deal with Dominic Calvert-Lewin, writes DAVE SEAGER. I have seen Arsenal fans write both off, suggesting Rashford has lost his mojo and that Calvert-Lewin will never be the same following his injuries. Just imagine if Arsene Wenger had taken that attitude with Nwankwo Kanu, Marc Overmars, Patrick Vieira or even Dennis Bergkamp? All signings that were deemed to be failures or injury-prone prior to their arrival in North London. The truth is both Rashford and Calvert-Lewin are quality players, who for differing reasons have slightly lost their way. Rashford is in need of a new challenge and a manager whoContinue Reading

Here come the two teams! The pitch has been heavily watered, the light show has finished, now it’s time for some football. Raheem Sterling and Serge Aurier lead their respective sides out to the first roar of the night, and line up for the national anthems. It may be a friendly, but for this much changed England side, the next 90 minutes represent an opportunity to make their mark on the international stage at the start of a World Cup year. Ivory Coast become the 85th different country that England have faced in their history, and it looks set to be another intriguing test. Kick-off is moments away.Continue Reading