Sport (Page 4)

Ronnie O’Sullivan takes on Mark Williams in the Tour Championship final today in Manchester with the pair competing for a mega £150,000 in prize money. O’Sullivan thrashed fierce rival Ali Carter 10-2 in the quarter-finals and edged Gary Wilson 10-7 in the semis. But the Rocket is not happy with the way he is playing as he continues to grind out results. “I’ve just got to commit to it now for a good year to try to get myself out of this sort of hole I’ve got myself in mentally with the obsession of the game, tinkering,” O’Sullivan said. “I know I’m never going to stop tinkering, but I have to somehow get sort of my head strong enough toContinue Reading

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 2. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) 3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 5. Lando Norris (McLaren) 6. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 7. George Russell (Mercedes) 8. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 9. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 10. Yuki Tsunoda (RB) 11. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) 12. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 13. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) 14. Valtteri Bottas (Sauber) 15. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) 16. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 17. Logan Sargeant (Williams) [DNF] Guanyu Zhou (Sauber) [DNF] Daniel Ricciardo (RB) [DNF] Alex Albon (Williams)Continue Reading

But Nadal was clear in his statement that his body “won’t allow” a return to professional tennis at the moment, raising fears that Djokovic and attendees at the French Open will not get the opportunity to witness Nadal on clay before he retires. “These are difficult times for me sportingly-speaking,” Nadal wrote. “Unfortunately, I am not going to play in Monte Carlo. My body just won’t allow it,” Nadal wrote. “And although I continue working and trying my best every day with the hope of being able to compete in tournaments that have been very important to me, the reality is that today I cannot. “I have no choice but to accept the situation and try to look towards theContinue Reading

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was full of praise for the “tremendous” Kai Havertz as the Gunners returned to the top of the Premier League table with a 3-0 win away at Brighton on Saturday night. The German scored one and set up another with British tennis icon and Arsenal supporter Andy Murray posting after the full-time whistle: “How good is @kaihavertz2. Easily one of the best forwards in the prem!” And Arteta was similarly keen to point out that Havertz, whose goal to make it 2-0 on the south coast was his ninth Premier League strike of the campaign, is one of the most in-form players in the division right now. The Spaniard told Sky Sports: “He was tremendous again today.Continue Reading

A Kevin De Bruyne masterclass kept Manchester City’s title challenge alive as they came from behind to beat Crystal Palace 4-2. Jean-Philippe Mateta put the hosts ahead but goals from Rico Lewis, Erling Haaland and a De Bruyne brace flipped the game on it’s head. Ousmane Edward scored a late consultation four minutes from time. Express Sport takes a look at the biggest talking points… De Bruyne back to best De Bruyne is finding his top form exactly at the right time. After being dropped to the bench against Aston Villa in the week, the Belgian grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck on his return to the starting XI and curled in a stunning equaliser. The playmakerContinue Reading

Nick Kyrgios has added more fuel to the fire over Cristian Garin’s controversial quarter-final win at the Estoril Open by calling for the umpire involved to be fired. The Chilean beat home favourite Nuno Borges 6-2 7-6(7-3) in Portugal, but the clash was overshadowed by crowd anger after Garin was awarded a point in highly dubious circumstances. After a spectator appeared to shout ‘out’ after Borges returned a shot from the baseline, Garin rashly hammered a forehand wide of the court. He then furiously remonstrated with the umpire and thought it was the official that made the call. And then bizarrely the umpire opted to award the point to the 27-year-old as opposed to standing firm or even ordering it to be replayed. It made forContinue Reading

Max Verstappen may have ruined Fernando Alonso’s chances of banking a career-changing move to Red Bull. The Dutchman has stressed the importance of youth at Red Bull and believes that hiring the Spaniard would be an ‘odd’ move by Christian Horner due to his age. Alonso is out of contract at Aston Martin once this season ends and the two-time F1 world champion has hinted at joining one of the front-runners. “It doesn’t matter to me who’s next to me, I also told that to the team,” Verstappen told De Limburger. “I will always believe in myself and in my opinion I am the best out of everyone. “But if you ask me, I would find it odd to hireContinue Reading

A murder investigation has been launched after human remains were found near Manchester United’s training academy. A member of the public found the remains wrapped in plastic just ‘yards away’ from the Red Devils’ facilities. The human remains were found on Thursday afternoon in the woodland area in Kersale Dale in Salford, which is near The Cliff where United’s academy is now based. The first team also used to use the facilities but now train at Carrington. The area has been sealed off by Greater Manchester Police, with an investigation ongoing to try to shed light on the matter. It was initially unclear as to what the findings were before a pathologist arrived and confirmed that the remains were human.Continue Reading

There was no love lost between Enzo Fernandez and Manchester United midfielder Mason Mount after the Chelsea star branded his ex-team-mate a “coward” following a Premier League classic at Stamford Bridge. The visitors seemed set for a dramatic three points when Mount was introduced into the fray in the 86th minute, with United having come back from 2-0 to lead 3-2. Supporters of the Blues instantly made their feelings on their former hero clear. Mount was only six years old when he joined the club in 2005 and spent 18 years there before opting to leave for Old Trafford last summer in a £55million deal. He was roundly booed as he stepped onto the field and every subsequent touch was alsoContinue Reading

And the defending Scottish and Welsh Open champion’s frustrations continued after the break. He made a run of 18 but left the black ball over the pocket and slammed his cue on the floor several times to create a loud thud. The Rocket was all too happy to take advantage of Wilson’s error, mopping up with another century break to take the lead at 3-2 for the first time in the semi-final. But they went into the mid-session interval tied at 4-4 after Wilson took advantage of the opportunities O’Sullivan left for him.Continue Reading