England 172 for 2 (Jones 86*, Beaumont 40) beat New Zealand 168 (Plimmer 43, Smith 3-30, Sciver-Brunt 2-31, Capsey 2-34) by eight wicketsAn injury to key bowler Sophie Ecclestone proved no barrier for England as Amy Jones overhauled a meagre target to send New Zealand out of the World Cup with a heavy defeat.Ecclestone injured her bowling shoulder while fielding and sent down just four deliveries, including a wicket, before England bundled New Zealand out for 168 inside 39 overs in their final group game.Her fellow left-arm spinner, Linsey Smith, overcame a difficult start to capture three wickets while part-time off-spinner Alice Capsey and seamer Nat Sciver-Brunt took two each before Jones’s unbeaten 86 took England home with ease.Related

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The result meant that England secured the No. 2 spot behind Australia, meaning that in the unlikely event of their semi-final against South Africa being washed out in Guwahati on Wednesday and on the subsequent reserve day, they would progress on the basis of holding a superior position on the table.It also ensured there would be no fairytale farewell for New Zealand captain Sophie Devine, who has played her last ODI in a match where New Zealand’s batters collectively failed convert starts and their bowlers struggled to put dents in England’s top-order.On the face of it, England had an easy ride into their semi-final campaign, but Ecclestone’s injury was cause for concern and they had to overcome a wayward start with the ball and in the field while their re-jigged middle-order went untested.The openers Jones and Tammy Beaumont broke the back of the run chase with a 75-run partnership and Jones combined with Heather Knight for an 83-run stand that took England within 11 runs of victory.England’s top four have all scored runs at this tournament, with Knight and Sciver-Brunt posting centuries and Beaumont and Jones reaching fifty before this game. Down the order they brought in the vastly experienced Danni Wyatt-Hodge for her first match of the tournament, replacing Emma Lamb who has struggled at No. 6.Knight’s dismissal, lbw to Devine for 33, prompted England to send Wyatt-Hodge in at No. 4 ahead of Sciver-Brunt to give her some exposure in the middle ahead of the knockout phase, although it was limited as she faced seven deliveries for 2 not out.Sophie Devine waves farewell after her final ODI•ICC/Getty Images

Beaumont raced to 26 off 20 balls, with four of her five boundaries up to that point coming in one Jess Kerr over. Back-to-back fours off Amelia Kerr put Beaumont in touching distance of 40 but, once she arrived there, she was struck on the pad by a Lea Tahuhu nip-backer right in line with middle stump.Knight carved the next ball expertly through backward point for four and, having overturned an lbw dismissal to New Zealand’s bemusement as Melie Kerr’s delivery was shown to be going over the stumps, Knight advanced down the pitch to power a huge six over long on in her next over.All the while, Jones had been steadily creeping towards her half-century with excellent timing and she brought up the milestone with six off Suzie Bates. Jones upped the tempo and helped herself to three fours in a row off Rosemary Mair before eventually bringing up the winning runs with consecutive boundaries off Devine, who left the field through a guard of honour from both teams.Earlier, Ecclestone took a tumble trying to intercept a boundary from Bates off the second ball of the match and jarred her shoulder after running from mid-off to chase Capsey’s misfield at extra cover.Bates only managed to reach 10 before spooning a waist-high full toss from Smith straight to mid-off where Lamb stood as a substitute for Ecclestone.Struggling to grip the new ball, Smith continued to serve up some wayward lengths and, after Bates had failed to capitalise, Kerr did with four boundaries on the trot as she set about rebuilding through a 68-run partnership alongside Georgia Plimmer.Sophie Ecclestone picked a wicket in the four deliveries she bowled before going off with injury•Getty Images

With Smith pulled from the attack and Ecclestone still off the field having her injury assessed, Capsey entered to make a crucial strike as Kerr sought to go big down the ground and picked out Charlie Dean, who then struck with the first ball of the next over, pinning Plimmer on the pad for 43 as England wrested back control.Ecclestone returned briefly to remove Brooke Halliday, caught by Sophia Dunkley at deep midwicket, but then Dunkley bowled the remaining two balls of the over as Ecclestone, feeling more discomfort in her shoulder, left the field for the remainder of the innings.So it fell to Devine to make one last stand with the bat, even more so when Capsey took an excellent diving catch off her own bowling to remove Maddy Green – although she dropped another off Izzy Gaze next ball – but it wasn’t to be. Devine managed 23 off 35 before she strode forward to a Sciver-Brunt off-cutter which kissed the inside edge before landing in the glove of wicketkeeper Jones.Smith returned in the 29th over and, more comfortable with the worn ball, removed Gaze playing around a slow, full delivery that angled in to hit the top of off stump.Sciver-Brunt grabbed her second wicket by pinning Mair lbw and Jess Kerr was run out by a good throw from Dean at extra cover to Jones to put New Zealand on the brink of being bowled out. Dean finished it with a superb catch over her shoulder while running back at mid-off to remove Tahuhu and give Smith her third.

Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora is slated to miss his team's series-opening game Monday against the New York Mets according to a report Sunday from ESPN and the . His absence is for a good reason though, as his daughter, Camila, is graduating from Boston College.

The Red Sox are in the midst of a 10-game home stand that continues with their three-game series against the National League East-leading New York Mets starting Monday. Ahead of Boston's rubber match with the Atlanta Braves Sunday, Cora opened up about the special day for his family.

"It's going to be a very special day—one that I'm not going to miss," Cora said pregame Sunday via ESPN and the . "I 100% will miss the game for that. I will do that any given day. It's going to be a very special day for us."

The Red Sox are coming off a thrilling win over the Braves Saturday night thanks to a walk-off home run from Rafael Devers—the first of his career. The win snapped a four-game losing streak for Boston.

Without Cora Monday, bench coach Ramón Vázquez will serve as manager according to .

The New York Yankees managed to avoid being swept during their World Series rematch against the Los Angeles Dodgers this weekend. After losing Games 1 and 2 at Dodger Stadium on Friday and Saturday, the Yankees managed to get one back in Game 3, coming away with a 7–3 victory on Sunday evening.

But it wasn't all good news for New York.

Left fielder Jasson Dominguez exited Sunday's game early with what the team is calling a left thumb contusion. He seemingly hurt his hand while attempting to steal second base in the fifth inning. He remained on the base paths and came around to score, but was then replaced by Cody Bellinger.

After the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone was asked about Dominguez's status, but he told reporters he did not yet have an update on the 22-year-old.

Dominguez also spoke to reporters and indicated that he's "not too concerned" about the thumb.

The left fielder wasn't the only one dealing with an ailment. Luke Weaver was supposed to come on and pitch the ninth inning for the Yankees, but instead, it was Tim Hill who took the mound. Boone said Weaver "felt something" in his hamstring, per Boland.

Boone didn't offer a detailed update on either player, but the team hopes they can avoid a trip to the IL. New York has the day off on Monday before starting a home series against the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday, June 3.

Tottenham Hotspur are now readying a January move for an “amazing” striker, who has been praised by Thomas Frank in the past.

Tottenham looking to sign new striker despite Richarlison returning to form

Frank managed to stave off some of the pressure by recording a 2-0 victory against Brentford on Saturday, which was his side’s first home Premier League victory since the rout of Burnley on the opening day of the campaign.

It was a comfortable win for Spurs, who never really looked threatened throughout the match, with the Bees recording an xG of just 0.29, and Richarlison continued his recent uptick in form, scoring his sixth Premier League goal of the season.

That said, some of Frank’s other attacking options haven’t been quite so prolific in front of goal, with Randal Kolo Muani still yet to open his account in the Premier League, while Dominic Solanke has featured in just three matches in all competitions, having struggled with an ankle injury.

As such, the manager may want to bring in a new striker during the upcoming transfer window, and a Premier League star has now entered the frame as a target.

That is according to a report from Football Insider, which states Tottenham are now readying a January move for Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta, with his future at Selhurst Park up in the air.

Palace may be forced to cash-in on the centre-forward, given that no progress has been made in negotiations over a new contract, and it has previously been revealed they could look to hold out for £44m.

Journalist Pete O’Rourke also added: “He’s under contract until 2027 but if he’s not going to sign a new deal by next summer, you would imagine Palace would be more increasingly open to selling Mateta to get a fee for him, rather than potentially letting him run down his contract.”

"Amazing" Mateta has earned move to top club

Lauded as “amazing” by Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner, the Frenchman has been in impressive form this season, netting nine goals in 23 matches in all competitions, while also providing two assists.

The 28-year-old has now proven himself over a number of years in the Premier League, scoring a combined 30 goals across the 2023-24 and 2024-25 campaigns, meaning he has earned the opportunity to prove himself at a top club.

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In fact, Frank was personally left impressed by the Palace star for his performance in a 2-1 defeat against Brentford last season, describing him as “very hard to handle.”

As such, Tottenham should definitely look to capitalise on the Eagles’ stalling contract negotiations by pursuing a move for Mateta in the upcoming transfer window.

Former Tottenham manager Glenn Hoddle has tipped a ‘world-class’ member of Thomas Frank’s squad to snub new contract talks amid interest from world football’s elite sides.

Tottenham enjoy mini Thomas Frank revival after two consecutive wins

Frank’s Tottenham tenure was heading towards crisis territory just days ago, but consecutive victories over Brentford and Slavia Prague have injected fresh optimism into a campaign that threatened to derail completely.

Saturday’s 2-0 triumph against Brentford represented far more than three precious points — it also went a long way to vindicating Frank’s approach after mounting pressure following a dismal five-match winless streak.

The victory, sealed through first-half strikes from Richarlison and Xavi Simons, ended Tottenham’s agonizing wait for a home Premier League win since their opening-day demolition of Burnley.

Frank described the performance as “very complete,” highlighting his side’s dynamism, unpredictability and defensive discipline that restricted Brentford to just four attempts throughout the match.

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Simons, who has attracted criticism since his £52 million arrival from RB Leipzig, put in a Player of the Match display.

The Netherlands international orchestrated both goals, curving his run brilliantly to deliver Richarlison’s tap-in before producing a sensational solo effort, driving from halfway into Brentford’s penalty area to slide past Caoimhin Kelleher.

Tuesday’s 3-0 Champions League victory over Slavia Prague continued the momentum, extending Tottenham’s remarkable home European record to 23 consecutive matches without defeat.

An own goal from David Zima, and penalties from Mohammed Kudus and Simons, elevated Spurs into the top eight of the Champions League standings with 11 points from six games.

Kudus was Tottenham’s ‘best player by far’ on the night as he continues to justify his £55 million transfer from West Ham in the summer, but Micky van de Ven once again proved himself indispensable too.

According to recent reports, Spurs are ready to offer van de Ven a ‘double your money’ contract in an attempt to ward off the likes of Real Madrid and Chelsea, who’ve shown interest in the Dutchman.

Van de Ven is an indispensable member of the Lilywhites backline and scored what was perhaps their goal of the season against FC Copenhagen recently, mimicking Son Heung-min’s famous Puskas winner with a mazy run from deep inside his own half.

Interest in the 24-year-old is inevitable, with Hoddle now commenting on the defender’s long-term future.

Glenn Hoddle tips van de Ven to snub Tottenham contract offer

Amid claims that Spurs are eager to tie down their superstar centre-back, Hoddle has now told Capital Football that he expects van de Ven to snub Tottenham’s advances over a new deal.

Hoddle adds that he is the club’s ‘only’ world-class player, and could ply his trade at basically any team in the world.

The former Wolfsburg star was also a vital member of Ange Postecoglou’s team and key to the Australian’s high line. Whenever van de Ven was absent through injury, you noticed, and he’d be an equally hard player to replace for Frank.

Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is the only Spurs star to play more Premier League minutes this season than van de Ven, highlighting just how pivotal he is for Tottenham’s new boss.

Replacing him would be a near-impossible task, but luckily for the club, he’s already contracted until 2029.

Tottenham Hotspur returned to winning ways on Saturday, marking their first victory in the Premier League since the final weekend of October.

It was a win that lifted huge pressure off the shoulders of Thomas Frank, who, despite being in the dugout for a matter of months, was already facing questions and scrutiny about his job.

It’s another big week for Spurs who face Slavia Prague in the Champions League on Tuesday evening before coming up against Nottingham Forest next Sunday.

Heading into those games, Frank has received some positive and negative injury news.

The latest injury news out of Spurs

French forward Randal Kolo Muani has started to find his feet in Spurs colours in recent weeks, notably bagging against PSG in the Champions League.

However, he was withdrawn during the weekend’s win over Brentford and was spotted limping as he left the stadium.

Fortunately, he trained on Monday and looks set to play a part in Europe this midweek.

For James Maddison, things continue to look tough. The attacking midfielder featured on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football for their coverage of Wolves vs Manchester United and he may have to get used to off-field duties for now.

There is no specific time frame,” Frank began. “It will be a long time unfortunately before he [Maddison] is available.”

Spurs star will now miss the rest of 2025

While there is more positivity about Spurs heading into this week’s run of fixtures, there has been bad news on the injury front for Italian full-back Destiny Udogie.

The young defender has attracted criticism in recent weeks for his displays but missed the win against Frank’s former employers due to injury.

Speaking about the problem, the manager said: “Destiny picked up a hamstring injury at the end of the Newcastle game, so he’s out until January unfortunately.”

Ahead of their clash with Slavia Prague, a late call will be made on Brennan Johnson’s fitness but Yves Bissouma is set to miss out once again after his latest off-field controversy.

The Mali midfielder has not been seen in Spurs colours under Frank after he was dropped from the UEFA Super Cup squad for persistent lateness.

To make matters worse for Bissouma, a report at the weekend showed footage of the Spurs man allegedly inhaling nitrous oxide, more commonly known as laughing gas.

Commenting on the matter this week Frank said: “It’s an internal matter that we are dealing with at the moment and when we have dealt with that, then I will comment on it.”

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Celtic manager Wilfried Nancy will have plenty of big decisions to make on Thursday night when Italian giants Roma come to Parkhead in the Europa League.

It will be the Frenchman’s second match in charge of the Hoops and his first ever game in a European competition, having only managed in the MLS previously.

The former Columbus Crew head coach implemented his 3-4-2-1 system in a 2-1 defeat to Hearts in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday, and will have learned a lot about which of his players do and do not suit certain roles.

Ranking the worst Celtic performers against Hearts

Football FanCast have already suggested that the new manager should drop Arne Engels from the team, because he gave the ball away a staggering 23 times, per Sofascore.

The Belgian midfielder was hugely ineffective in the middle of the park, but he was not the only one, as Benjamin Nygren did not create a single chance for the team in 65 minutes on the pitch.

1

Arne Engels

2

Sebastian Tounekti

3

Daizen Maeda

4

Liam Scales

5

Benjamin Nygren

As you can see in the table above, we have ranked Daizen Maeda in third, despite missing two ‘big chances’ (Sofascore), because he did assist Kieran Tierney’s goal by winning a header.

Liam Scales was also among the worst performers on the day, losing 100% (1/1) of his ground duels, and losing possession 15 times as a centre-back, per Sofascore.

Sebastian Tounekti, meanwhile, was the second-worst performer after Engels. The Tunisia international was given a 3/10 player rating by 67HailHail, and he should be dropped against Roma, as Hyun-jun Yang has proven himself to be a better option.

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The summer signing from Hammarby should be ruthlessly dropped by Nabcy because his performances have not been good enough of late for the Scottish giants.

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In the summer, journalist Anders Lindberg claimed that Tounekti has “the X Factor”. That was clear to see in his early outings for the club, as he completed five dribbles and created four chances, per Sofascore, on his debut against Kilmarnock.

Tounekti followed up on that promising debut with a goal against Partick Thistle in the League Cup in his second match for the Hoops, which only heightened the excitement around him at Parkhead.

Unfortunately, the 23-year-old forward has done very little since his first couple of appearances for Celtic. He is currently on a run of eight matches without a goal contribution, and has not assisted a goal in 18 matches for the club so far, per Sofascore.

Tounekti was subbed off after 59 minutes against Hearts so that Yang could switch over to the left side to play as the left wing-back, instead of on the right, and their recent performances suggest that he would be a better option there.

Goals

0

1

Key passes

2

1

Assists

0

0

Dribbles completed

3/13

6/10

Duels won

12/35

22/39

As you can see in the table above, the South Korean international has been significantly more effective in his physical duels and in his dribbles, which suggests that he is better suited to playing as a wing-back.

In this new role created by Nancy’s system, there is more of an onus on the player in that position to carry the ball up the pitch and to compete in more physical duels, which Yang is more equipped to do.

Tounekti, unfortunately, has failed to prove that he can be relied upon to be efficient in his duels or as an offensive threat, with his lack of goals and assists, as well as his struggles in physical contests with opposition defenders.

This is why he should be ruthlessly ditched from the starting line-up by Nancy for this clash with Roma on Thursday in the Europa League, with Yang moved over to the left.

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That would then open up a space on the right flank for another player to be brought in and given a chance to impress the new boss, who is still learning about his players.

Manchester City are now obsessed with signing a “generational” forward, joining the race for his signature alongside a number of the Premier League’s top clubs.

Man City kicking into gear ahead of Real Madrid clash

Man City were a little shaky at the start of the season, losing against Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton, but Bernardo Silva believes they are starting to kick into gear, ahead of the tough Champions League clash against 15-time champions Real Madrid tonight.

Silva said: “The team has been growing a lot since [the start of the season]. We’re improving day by day. It’s true that our teams have always been much better in the second part of the season than the first and hopefully it happens again this season.”

Pep Guardiola’s side have looked very potent on the front foot, having already scored 35 Premier League goals, seven more than any other side, with Phil Foden starting to get back to his best, regularly providing goals and assists.

Phil Foden’s attacking record

Appearances

Goal contributions

Premier League

13

8

Champions League

4

3

EFL Cup

2

2

However, Man City remain keen on making more additions to their forward line, according to a report from Spain, which states they now have an ‘obsession’ with signing RB Leipzig star Yan Diomande, who has emerged as one of the most exciting youngsters in Europe.

A plethora of top Premier League clubs are keen on Diomande, including Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea, but City are the ‘most persistent’, having conducted a number of scouting missions since October.

Leipzig have no desire to sanction a move, with the German club eager to tie him down to a new contract, and interested clubs will need to make offers in the region of €80m – €100m (£70m – £87m) to tempt them into a sale.

"Generational" Diomande likened to Haaland

Journalist Bence Bocsak is a huge admirer of the left-winger, recently saying: “Just catching up on RB Leipzig’s game tonight and oh my Yan Diomande is a special player. I actually think he’s one of those players you break all your recruitment models for.

Yes, the same size is small. But he’s a generational talent.”

Bocsak also likens the Ivorian to a current Man City star, saying: “Haaland was another level even to Diomande but the RB Leipzig winger is not far off.”

It is clear to see why the 19-year-old has received rave reviews, most recently making a real statement by scoring a hat-trick in RB Leipzig’s 6-0 victory against Eintracht Frankfurt.

The four-time Ivory Coast international has now amassed seven goals and four assists in 15 matches in all competitions, which is a very impressive tally, given that it is his first season in the Bundesliga.

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City certainly aren’t struggling from an attacking point of view, but the opportunity to sign Diomande may be too good to pass up…