BARCELONA, Spain: Led by Jude Bellingham playing with a style and self-confidence far beyond his 20 years, a new generation of Real Madrid players has stepped forward at the 14-time European Cup winners.
All three of Madrid’s players who helped produce goals in their 3-2 comeback at Napoli in the Champions League group stage on Tuesday were 25 years old or younger. And they did so with their veteran teammates now providing supporting roles.
Bellingham set up 23-year-old Vinícius Júnior to cancel out Napoli’s opener before the England midfielder made a spectacular solo run to put the visitors ahead in the 34th minute.
After Napoli had pulled level, Madrid’s 25-year-old midfielder Federico Valverde unleashed a rocket of a shot that ricocheted off the bar and Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret before eventually going in for the 78th-minute winner.
Bellingham had scored several big goals already for Madrid this season, but his overall performance at Napoli’s Stadio Diego Armando Maradona was his best so far.
He started by robbing the ball from Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo and sliding it to Vinícius for the Brazil winger to slot home the equalizer from an angle. Bellingham topped that by slaloming past two defenders as he dribbled into the area.
Bellingham said that the victory was about decision-making, including when he saw Napoli’s defenders giving him that small bit of space he needed.
“As I was getting closer and closer to the goal I was trying to look for (Vinícius or Rodrygo), and when I saw the gap open I just decided to keep running with it,” Bellingham said. “I am always confident that I can go around (defenders) and find a yard. I managed to do it for that one and found the corner.”
Bellingham, Vinícius and Valverde were accompanied by other younger players. Eduardo Camavinga, a versatile workman in the midfield is only 20; forward Rodrygo is 22; and holding midfielder Aurélien Tchouameni is 23. Éder Militão (25), who is out for several months with a serious leg injury, is Madrid’s best central defender.
The victory at the Italian champions came after a summer when veteran striker Karim Benzema, Madrid's most prolific scorer since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure five years ago, was lured away to the Saudi Arabian league.
Nor were most of the other pillars of Madrid’s most recent European successes on the field in Napoli. Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is injured, while Luka Modric, now 38, was again left on the bench by Ancelotti until he went on as a late substitute. The only long-time veterans to start were Toni Kroos and Dani Carvajal.
Ancelotti acknowledged that Modric, who signed for another season this summer with Madrid, was upset about not playing more. Ancelotti had benched him at halftime during a recent 3-1 loss at Atletico Madrid and did not use the former Ballon d’Or winner at all in the following two matches.
“He did what we asked him to do. He went on and showed his experience and gave us control of the game,” Ancelotti said about Modric’s steadying hand in the second half at Napoli. “He can contribute. That is what I ask of a player who is not playing and is a little angry.”
While Vinícius and Valverde have been starters for several seasons now and played key roles in helping Madrid win their most recent Champions League title in 2022, Bellingham’s impact on the team since his arrival this summer has surprised everyone, including his coach.
“I’m surprised he’s only 20 years old because he looks like he’s 30 because of his character and attitude,” Ancelotti said. “He is always focused on the game and knows what he has to do. It’s unusual for a 20-year-old. He has a lot of quality, physical strength and skill.”
Bellingham has scored eight goals in nine games overall so far with Madrid. That includes a Spanish league-leading six goals to help keep Madrid in first place and a late winner to edge Union Berlin 1-0 in their Champions League opener last month.
Compare that to his 14 goals in 42 appearances for Borussia Dortmund in Germany and it is clear that Bellingham has taken his game to a new level in Spain.
Vinícius' goal was only his second of the season after he missed several games with a leg injury. Once he is back to full form and fitness, his alliance with Bellingham promises to be lethal.
“Bellingham linked up well with (Vinícius) and they both have a lot of creativity,” Ancelotti said. "Having both of them positioned on our left flank certainly creates a lot of danger.”
Madrid face Spanish league games against Osasuna and Sevilla before they visit Portuguese side Braga in the Champions League on Oct. 24. Four days after that, Bellingham will get his first taste of a league “classico” at Barcelona.
Bellingham leads youth movement at Real Madrid as Modric takes a diminished role
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Bellingham leads youth movement at Real Madrid as Modric takes a diminished role
- All three of Madrid’s players who helped produce goals in their 3-2 comeback at Napoli in the Champions League group stage on Tuesday were 25 years old or younger
- Bellingham, Vinícius and Valverde were accompanied by other younger players
E-visas available for 2023 FIFA Club World Cup ticket holders
Riyadh: The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed on Wednesday that electronic visas would be available to ticket holders for the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup in Jeddah.
The move has been made in cooperation with the Ministry of Sport.
“The step aims to facilitate travel procedures to the Kingdom for football fans to attend the 2023 Club World Cup matches, and also aims to provide the best possible experience for fans to visit the Kingdom and support their clubs during the tournament in an enthusiastic atmosphere,” a ministry statement said.
Ticket holders can apply online for an e-visa to attend the tournament’s games.
The Kingdom will host the competition from Dec. 12 to 22, with the participation of Al-Ittihad, the Roshn Saudi League champions for the 2022 to 2023 season.
Ronaldo-less Al-Nassr draw as Al-Fayha win on perfect AFC Champions League night for Saudi Arabia
- With Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad already qualified, the Kingdom will have 4 clubs in the round of 16
Al-Nassr rested their overseas stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, but still ended top of Group E in the AFC Champions League, and unbeaten, after a 1-1 draw at Istiklol of Tajikistan on Tuesday night.
The real story however was Al-Fayha which pulled off a stunning 4-1 win at Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan to progress to the round of 16, where Saudi Arabia will have four teams out of four, after Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad progressed on Monday.
Al-Nassr, coming off a 3-0 loss in the Riyadh derby against bitter rivals Al-Hilal on Friday, had already secured top spot before the clash against the already-eliminated team from Dushanbe. It meant that coach Luis Castro fielded an all-Saudi Arabian starting 11 with Sadio Mane, Anderson Talisca, Aymeric Laporte and Seko Fofana on the bench, and Ronaldo rested and back in Riyadh.
With the hosts already out and the visitors through, there was a lack of intensity and cohesion from Al-Nassr in the first half, unsurprising perhaps given the changes made. It was not a surprise when Alisher Dzhalilov opened the scoring just after the half hour to delight a large home crowd, some of whom could be seen wearing the Riyadh team’s yellow shirt.
Abdulrahman Ghareeb, who was to later make amends, gave the ball away in a dangerous position and Dzhalilov took possession, advanced toward the area and then fired a low shot that rolled past the diving Raghed Najjar who perhaps should have done a little better.
It was a poor first half from Al-Nassr but there was an immediate improvement after the break. Four minutes into the second half, the team from Riyadh were level thanks to Ghareeb.
Goalkeeper Rustam Yatimov palmed out a cross from the right into the crowded box and there was the forward, whose first shot came back off a defender and he then fired home the rebound. Soon after, Ghareeb, visibly growing in confidence, shot from the edge of the area to draw a fine save from Yatimov. Just after the hour, the goalkeeper was beaten but Sami Al-Najei’s shot from the left side of the area rolled just past the post.
Ghareeb and Talisca, who came off the bench, went close before the final whistle. All in all, it ended a fine group stage for Al-Nassr.
It was even better for Saudi Arabia as a whole as earlier Al-Fayha recorded the shock result of the day, coming from behind in Uzbekistan to defeat Pakhtakor 4-1.
The Central Asian powerhouse needed a win to progress to the second round and took a 16th minute lead through Khojimat Erkinov.
The goal fired Al-Fayha into action. Fashion Sakala has been in fine form this season since arriving from Scotland and equalized five minutes before the break. Immediately after, Sultan Mandash put the visitors in the lead and Henry Onyekuru sealed the win near the end. There was still time for Sakala to grab his second and Al-Fayha’s fourth.
The win put coach Vuk Rasovic and his men into second in Group A but they had to wait to find out if they were to advance as one of three of five best runners-up in the western zone.
They needed Persepolis of Iran to fail to defeat Qatar’s Al-Duhail.
It started badly as Persepolis took a seventh minute lead through Shahab Zahedi though the visitors soon levelled thanks to Mohammed Muntari.
With nine minutes remaining, the Tehran titans were awarded a penalty but Giorgi Gvelesiani missed and the Georgian and the home fans were left to rue that spurned opportunity just two minutes later as Michael Olunga gave the Qataris the lead.
Persepolis could not get the two goals needed, meaning that Al-Fahya, which lost three of the first four games of the group, will go through to make it four out of four for Saudi Arabia in the knockout stages.
Messi named Time magazine’s ‘Athlete of the Year’
- Time: Lionel Messi this year managed to do what once seemed impossible, when he signed with Inter Miami: Turning the US into a soccer country
- Messi was quoted by Time as saying that his first preference after PSG had been a fairytale return to Barcelona, but that move stalled over the club’s finances
LOS ANGELES: Lionel Messi has been named Time magazine’s “Athlete of the Year” for 2023 after a trailblazing season marked by an eighth Ballon d’Or award and his ground-breaking move to Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami.
Time said the Argentine superstar had already had a transformative impact on the American sporting landscape, which has been historically slow to embrace football.
“Lionel Messi this year managed to do what once seemed impossible, when he signed with Inter Miami: Turning the US into a soccer country,” Time commented.
The 36-year-old Messi made his debut for Miami in July following an acrimonious departure from Paris Saint-Germain.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner made an instant impact on Miami’s fortunes, playing a pivotal role in helping the team win the expanded Leagues Cup, a cross-border competition for teams from MLS and Mexico’s top flight.
Messi finished the campaign with 11 goals in 14 appearances across all competitions, but an injury toward the end of the season meant he was unable to help Miami force their way into the playoffs.
Messi was quoted by Time as saying that his first preference after PSG had been a fairytale return to Barcelona, but that move stalled over the club’s finances.
“I tried to return, and it did not happen,” Messi said, adding that he was also “thinking a lot” about joining the wave of overseas players who have headed to the Saudi Pro League.
“It was Saudi Arabia or MLS, and both options seemed very interesting to me,” Messi told the magazine.
Time said Messi’s arrival had driven a surge in attendances, ticket prices, merchandise sales and viewership, revealing that on the day of his debut, subscriptions to Apple TV — which retains exclusive rights to MLS —had jumped by 110,000, a 1,700 percent increase over the previous day.
Arsenal moves 5 points clear in Premier League after last-gasp win but Raya’s form remains a concern
Arsenal moves 5 points clear in Premier League after last-gasp win but Raya’s form remains a concern
As soon as the ball hit the back of the net, Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya sprinted the length of the field to celebrate the last-gasp winner with his jubilant teammates.
No player will have been more relieved than Raya to see Declan Rice’s glancing header creep into the corner and seal a chaotic 4-3 victory over Luton in the Premier League on Tuesday.
While Rice is proving value for money after his club-record signing in July, Raya — another offseason recruit — remains an issue for Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta as the team bids to win the league title after last season’s near miss.
Arsenal moved five points clear with its fourth straight victory in the league, overcoming errors from Raya that led to two goals for Luton by netting in the seventh minute of stoppage time through Rice at Kenilworth Road.
“The spirit of the team — how we fought, showed our quality in the right moments and never gave up,” Arteta said. “We went for it and got our rewards.”
Arteta chose not to talk about the mistakes by Raya, which looked like they’d be costly for Arsenal.
The team was leading 2-1 in the 49th minute when the Spanish goalkeeper was beaten in the air at a corner by Elijah Adebayo, who powered in a header for an equalizer.
Eight minutes later, Raya allowed a shot by Ross Barkley to go under his body as he dived to his left.
Luton, a promoted team likely to be battling relegation this season, was suddenly 3-2 ahead and Raya didn’t know where to look.
Kai Havertz scored an equalizer almost immediately, though, and incessant pressure in the final minutes ended with Martin Odegaard whipping in a cross and Rice rising to flick a header into the bottom corner, sparking wild celebrations in the away end and jeers from Luton fans. The goal came after the six allotted minutes of stoppage time had expired.
Arsenal has won nine points from goals in the last five minutes of games this season, a good sign for a club looking to win the league for the first time since 2004.
Arteta now has to decide what to do with Raya, who has taken the place of Aaron Ramsdale since arriving from Brentford. He is better with his feet than Ramsdale but has produced errors in other parts of his game, like being caught completely out of position to let in a cross from Mykhailo Mudryk in a match at Chelsea in October.
Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus scored first-half goals for Arsenal, either side of Gabriel Osho’s equalizer for Luton.
Second-place Liverpool can move back to two points behind by beating last-place Sheffield United on Wednesday. Manchester City, a further point back in third, visits Aston Villa.
FREE-SCORING SOUTH KOREANS
South Korea boasts two of the leading scorers in the Premier League this season.
While Tottenham’s Son Heung-min isn’t too much of a surprise, Wolverhampton’s Hwang Hee-chan certainly is.
Hwang made it eight goals in 15 games in this campaign with the first-half winner in Wolves’ 1-0 victory over Burnley at Molineux. That’s as many league goals as he managed in his first two full seasons for Wolves after joining from Leipzig in August 2021, initially on loan.
Hwang is one goal behind Son, with only Mohamed Salah (10) and Erling Haaland (14) ahead of them.
Tottenham snatch point at Manchester City in classic after Liverpool drama
- Champions City looked set to move to within one point of leaders Arsenal when they led Spurs 3-2 in the dying minutes
- Liverpool turned the tables in dramatic fashion against Fulham
LONDON: Dejan Kulusevski headed a dramatic late goal as Tottenham held Manchester City in a six-goal thriller on Sunday after Liverpool staged a sensational comeback on a breathless afternoon in the Premier League.
High-flying Aston Villa scored in the 90th minute to draw 2-2 at Bournemouth while 10-man Chelsea shrugged off a red card for captain Conor Gallagher to edge Brighton 3-2 on a day when 24 goals were scored in five matches.
Champions City looked set to move to within one point of leaders Arsenal when they led Spurs 3-2 in the dying minutes at the Etihad.
But Kulusevski headed home from Brennan Johnson’s cross in the 90th minute to leave City ruing dropped points for the third match running.
Son Heung-min put the away side ahead in the sixth minute but three minutes later the South Korean forward turned villain, putting the ball into his own net.
Phil Foden put City in front just after the half hour following a sweeping move but Giovani Lo Celso levelled about 20 minutes from time.
Jack Grealish restored the home side’s lead once more, only for Kulusevski to stun the Etihad late on.
“Of course that’s why we love football,” Tottenham captain Son told Sky Sports. “That’s what I told the lads.
“Obviously Man City are a huge, huge team and one of the best teams in the world but that’s why we love football, it happens sometimes. We kept believing until 90 minutes so I’m very very proud of the team.”
Earlier, Liverpool appeared set for their first home defeat in the Premier League since October 2022 when they went 3-2 down to Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s goal in the 80th minute.
But they turned the tables in dramatic fashion through Wataru Endo and Trent Alexander-Arnold, who struck in the 87th and 88th minutes for a 4-3 win.
It was the latest Liverpool have ever fallen behind in a Premier League match that they went on to win.
“We played an incredible game until we didn’t anymore,” Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp told the BBC.
“All credit to Fulham, they did really well. Today we scored four worldies and were lucky in the end to win the game, and that tells you everything.”
Alexander-Arnold set Liverpool on their way in the 20th minute when his brilliant free-kick clipped the underside of the crossbar and went in off Fulham keeper Bernd Leno for an own goal.
Harry Wilson levelled before Alexis Mac Allister produced a moment of magic to restore the home side’s lead, unleashing a rising drive that found the top corner for his first Liverpool goal.
But Fulham equalized through Kenny Tete before half time and the London side looked set for a sensational victory when substitute De Cordova-Reid nodded home their third with 10 minutes of normal time to go.
However, Liverpool were not finished. Mohamed Salah set up Endo, who found the net from the edge of the box and Alexander-Arnold drove the ball home a minute later, sparking wild scenes at Anfield.
Chelsea recorded just their second Premier League home win of the season against Brighton, despite being reduced to 10 men before half-time.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men were cruising midway through the first half after goals from Enzo Fernandez and Levi Colwill.
Facundo Buonanotte halved the deficit for the visitors shortly before half-time and there was still time for Gallagher to pick up a second yellow card before the break, changing the complexion of the match.
Fernandez restored Chelsea’s two-goal cushion from the penalty spot, but Joao Pedro struck in stoppage time to heap the pressure on the home side but they held on.
Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins headed home a cross from Moussa Diaby in the 90th minute to rescue a point Unai Emery’s team, which kept them in fourth place.
At the London Stadium, Mohammed Kudus put West Ham ahead in the first half, before Odsonne Edouard equalized in the second period to earn a point for Crystal Palace.
