The Guardian

Something had to give and it was not Sunderland’s unbeaten home Premier League record. Instead Manchester City’s winning streak came to a juddering halt as Pep Guardiola’s side spurned a chance to move within two points of Arsenal at the top of the table. Hats – or should that be chapeaus – off to Régis Le Bris and his clever and courageous Sunderland team for not merely frustrating City but offe…

Batter has been thrown in at the deep end at No 3 and if the selectors have faith in a young player they should be doing everything to help them succeed There used to be a saying in county cricket: a quick game’s a good game. You’d hear it from the old pros who sensed a poor wicket or a downpour, because it meant they would get more time off. Well, England and Australia have certainly adhered to …

In a season defined by chaos and turnarounds, the award should go not to surprise, but to the coach who solved the hardest problems The NFL’s Coach of the Year award is simple. It typically serves as a mea culpa. We’re sorry our preseason predictions about your team were wrong. In theory, it’s a straight line: the coach who oversaw the biggest turnaround is handed the award. In practice, it’s a y…

It’s a strange quirk of this fixture that the away side hasn’t lost for the last 10 Premier League matches, and substitute Tom Cairney’s late equaliser ensured that the streak goes on. Only a brilliant save in injury-time from Dean Henderson and a glaring miss from former Crystal Palace player Joachim Andersen denied Fulham all three points after they had fallen behind to Jean-Philippe Mateta’s f…

Manager toed the line at Stamford Bridge with one eye on the Manchester City job, frustrating fans and his employers It was late on New Year’s Eve when Chelsea’s patience ran out. They knew that Enzo Maresca was attempting to engineer an exit from the club and now they were ready to call his bluff. Midnight was approaching and the fireworks at Stamford Bridge were about to erupt. A baffling story…

Two unbeaten records continued at Anfield but only one team could take satisfaction from that. Leeds succeeded in stifling and frustrating Liverpool as the first goalless draw of Arne Slot’s reign underlined the limitations that linger behind the Premier League champions’ recent recovery. A drab scoreless draw, the first in 84 Liverpool games under Slot, owed much to the defensive dominance of th…

Humphries v Van Veen later | Follow us on Bluesky Anderson and Searle through | And you can mail Rob *Searle (1) 2-0 (0) Clayton Another break of throw for Searle! Clayton missed a dart at D16, a terrible effort, and Searle took out 116 on tops with the air of a man strolling to the paper shop on a brisk winter morning. His finishing has been outrageous. Searle (1) 1-0 (0) Clayton* Continue readi…

Philogene and Akpom goals secure 2-1 win over Oxford Charlton hold Coventry 1-1; Derby upset Middlesbrough Ipswich climbed into the automatic promotion places in the Championship following a 2-1 victory over struggling Oxford . Their success came via first-half goals from leading scorer Jaden Philogene and Chuba Akpom, while Will Lankshear replied for the visitors. Ipswich moved a point above Mid…

British boxer is released on New Year’s Eve in Ikeja Joshua can ‘recuperate at home’ after treatment The British boxer Anthony Joshua has been discharged from hospital, Nigerian authorities said on Wednesday night. The two-time former heavyweight champion and 2012 Olympic gold medallist was a passenger in a car accident near Lagos on Monday which killed two of his close associates and team member…

On the heels of another sports year that was chock full of surprises, Guardian US contributors make their bold predictions for the months to come Here are our bold predictions for 2025 in sports. Please note the bold (or should that be bold ?) in bold predictions: these are mostly to be taken with a pinch of salt. *** Continue reading...

Classic New Years Tests offer clues for how England and Australia can end this series on their terms at the SCG and set up for the next If you’re an England cricket team, a Test in Sydney doesn’t look so bad. The last few weeks have merited constant updating of England’s horrible streak in Australia since January 1987, which last week’s Melbourne win improved only as far as 51 played, seven won, …

Coach Thierry Mouyouma also sacked by government Veteran defender Bruno Ecuele Manga ditched too Gabon’s government has announced the suspension of the national football team, the sacking of their coach and the kicking of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang off the squad in the wake of three defeats at the Africa Cup of Nations finals. Gabon’s acting sports minister announced on television the suspension o…

Miami reaches CFP final four after Cotton Bowl shock Scott’s pick-six turns game against Buckeyes Hurricanes one win from title game at home Keionte Scott peeked over at the Miami sideline to see the reaction of his teammates as he sprinted 72 yards untouched for a touchdown returning an interception against defending national champion Ohio State. They certainly were excited, as were a Pro Footba…

With the club game hurtling along a Premier League-trodden path, women’s football is at a crossroads Where will women’s football in England be in a decade’s time? How can we possibly begin to imagine the scale of the interest, attendances and participation then? How will the game on the pitch have developed, with each generation training and playing in better and better environments and at younge…

Today’s newsletter looks at 10 superlative talents who are ready to take the next step in the coming 12 months Alara Sehitler , Bayern Munich and Germany (19): Sehitler’s transition into Bayern Munich’s first team has come as little surprise and the creative midfielder has established herself as a strong impact player for José Barcala’s side. She has three Frauen Bundesliga goals this season and …