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Roberto Mancini's Italy side start their qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 against the side they ended the last European Championships against as England visit Naples.

The Azzurri defeated the Three Lions on penalties at Wembley in July 2021 to win their second European Championship trophy but failed to qualify for the last World Cup with North Macedonia knocking them out in a play-off inPalermo.

They are well known for their 4-3-3 playing style, but Mancini was quick to suggest that certain formation may not be the way they go in the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Thursday.

He said "We have played in a different formation in our recent Nations League matches so we could mix things up. Of course, within the 4-3-3 that is where we feel the most comfortable, especially when it comes to playing an attacking brand of football however that doesnt necessarily mean well play 4-3-3 on Thursday"

Italy vs England is becoming a recurring theme in international matches, especially with the Nations League pitting them together in the last round of fixtures - a season that saw Italy win their group and England relegated to League B.

Il Mister spoke about playing the Three Lions, saying "Its become a bit of a classic now - Italy vs England. This is the fourth time weve come up against them in two years, I think England are one of the best sides in the world."

He touched on the pool of players that Gareth Southgate can choose from, adding "Theyve got an extraordinary group of players available for selection, theyve always been very unlucky and I think it will be a very tough match. Well try and play our own game because we want to start our campaign well - it wont be easy but the same goes for both sides.

Thursday night's game will be the first Italian national team game played since the death of their Head CoachGianluca Vialli. The president of the FIGC confirmed that for the game in Naples, the home team's players would be wearing a message on their shirts for the former Chelsea man who racked up nearly 90 appearances for the Blues.

Mancini admitted "Its very emotional, obviously. Its the first time weve played a game since his passing. We were very fortunate to have him as a team mate and also to have worked alongside him, you were lucky enough to have him in London and hed almost become an honorary Londoner so youll have seen what hes all about. It is with great sadness, but people like him will always be close to us, they are immortal and he will always be with us."

Mancini and Vialli had a very strong relationship, dating back to their days in a strike partnership at Sampdoria. He died in London in January 2023 at the age of 58.

Eyebrows have been raised at the inclusion of 23 year old striker Mateo Retegui into the Azzurri selection. The attackerwas born and has been raised in Argentina but qualified for Mancini's team due to his grandfather being from Sicily.

Currently on loan at Tigre from Boca Juniors, Retegui has scored 29 goals in 50 league appearances for the Buenos Aires outfit, therefore earning his call up to the Italian side.

When asked about his playing style, Mancini confirmed "Hes a traditional classic centre forward... I remember when Gabriel Batistuta came to Italy - this guy is very young, he still needs to get used to his teammates, its not easy but as I said hes got a good head on his shoulders and I dont think that it will take him too long (to get used to the group)"

Speaking about the failure of the Italian side when it comes to recent World Cups, Mancini admitted that the current stature of the Italian game "comes down to us, we need to try and use what weve done in the past, we need to go back to playing very well out there on the pitch, entertain people and win matches. I think thats absolutely crucial to be once again what we were in the past Euro 2020, maybe something has changed in the intervening period but that doesnt mean we cant achieve what we have done in the past"

Italy have failed to qualify for the last two World Cups, and despite winning the recent European Championship, Italy have not played a knockout game at a World Cup since they last won it in 2006.

Continued here:
Mancini willing to "mix things up" against England - VAVEL.com

For many, Grace Harris going at 75 lakh in the auction was a major steal by UP Warriorz. The Australian all-rounder has established herself as arguably the most powerful hitter in the game, as was evident in her sensational 59 not out off 26 balls in UPWs first win of the Womens Premier League (WPL) against Gujarat Giants.

Meg Lanning finished as the leading run-scorer at the end of the league stage with 310 runs in eight innings. Despite playing half the number of innings, Harris returned with 216 runs at a strike-rate of 170.08.

The 29-year-old played a major role in UPWs run to the playoffs and is determined to deliver another strong performance when her team faces Mumbai Indians in the eliminator at the DY Patil Stadium on Friday. Excerpts from an interview with Harris:

Youre one of the best ball-strikers in the womens game. How do you train for power hitting?

The first step to power hitting is that you have to have a good base. Your footwork is not necessarily important, but you have to have access to the ball and be still. You have to be able to power-hit from a still base. Its a bit like baseball. If you watch them, they anchor their feet and power-hit with their hips. So, batting is pretty similar to that, except your bat could end up on a different line based on where the ball has pitched. Other than that, its just about a clean bat swing. Often, players get it wrong when they try to over-swing you try to hit the ball 100 metres instead of just 60. So, in my head its about 90 percent swing and if you make good, clean contact with a still base and eyes on the ball, more often than not it goes for six. These are the three key things for me to hit sixes.

In training, I start by hitting a bulk number of balls just on one line and length, and then change. And once Ive hit a heap of balls from those lines and lengths, I get a thrower in and hit random balls. Your instincts take over at that point and you know how to do it.

Have you been specifically assigned the role of finisher in the UPW Warriorz team?

I try to take one innings and ball at a time. Our coach Jon Lewis tries to ensure were playing to our strengths at all times. Wherever I line up, I just try to figure out the match situation Im in, the bowlers that are left, who I can potentially target, and which end I can target if theres a short boundary and Im not quite set but can get away with a little bit. And then its about working with your partner at the other end and being flexible. I mean at the end of the day its just cricket, right?

Your thoughts on the performance of Indias domestic players in the WPL?

Im actually still surprised by the depth in Indian cricket. There are a number of great players, the ones in our team are quite young so I can understand why they are still uncapped. Theyre either very young or still relatively new to cricket even if they are a bit older in age. Ive learned that they havent been playing cricket for too long, and it takes time to know your own game and understand it. So, I wouldnt be surprised if some of the players in our team earn India caps in the coming years. Im thoroughly impressed by the domestic players. I know they arent in the lists of top performers, but thats irrelevant really for the first season. Internationals dominated the first season of the WBBL too. So, its not shocking. In a couple of seasons, there will be domestic players running wild in the top performers lists. Im looking forward to seeing that. Its what the WPL is all about really.

Australia are undoubtedly the strongest team in the womens game and their players have had a big say this season. Several players have had to deal with more losses than they are perhaps used to. How has the experience been?

Overall, its been quite positive. I dont think any Australian player went into the tournament thinking they were going to win every game. Youre in a domestic team competition, after all, and know that even if youre the one player who can change the game, you still need the others to perform to win the competition. So, I think theyve just been trying to embrace the whole experience, its mainly about developing world cricket and Indian domestic talent. Its about helping the youngsters in whatever way possible and passing on the knowledge.

Is there a sense of competition among the Aussies?

Im not going to lie. The Aussies definitely want to win games and stand up for their franchises. There is competition around. You keep an eye on who has made the final, who hasnt, whos scoring more runs and taking wickets. You always want to beat the Australians in the other team that youre coming up against (laughs). Its all healthy competition though, and theres no animosity between any of us. Were just enjoying the experience.

How do you look at the eliminator against Mumbai Indians?

Theyre very competitive and will put up a strong fight. We may have beaten them in the league stage but that doesnt matter anymore. Mumbai Indians have world-class players and a great domestic list as well. Harmanpreet Kaur loves a good knockout game, doesnt she? She always stands up in these big games. So, it might be a battle between her and Alyssa Healy, who is also a big-game player. Itll be great to beat Mumbai in Mumbai again. Wed love to have more UP Warriorz support in the stands, but you know what, well take it however it comes and just roll with it.

In Sophie Ecclestone, Deepti Sharma, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Parshavi Chopra and yourself, UPW have a strong spin attack. Your thoughts?

Our spinners have been outstanding throughout the tournament. Parshavi has been absolutely amazing and has probably been one of the bigger revelations for us. She bowled the 19th over to a set Ash Gardner and delivered very well. So, I think our spinners can take a lot of confidence into games. When we are bowling our lines and lengths, we know that world-class players are going to struggle because there are going to be good balls. So yeah, credit to our spinners its made batting a lot easier for me.

See the rest here:
Im thoroughly impressed by Indias domestic players: Grace Harris - Hindustan Times

So here I begin my reasoning as to why I blame Ramsdale for the loss.

Normally I dont like to point fingers too much when Arsenal lose or draw a game, but too many times this season I have sat there and watched Ramsdale idiotically stand outside of his box further up the pitch, thinking he is invincible and wont ever be beaten.

Just as I slate him for his positioning I also slate the team when they try to play out from the back! It doesnt need to happen and it should stop!

And Ive always said to myself; one of these days he is going to get caught out when he constantly positions himself as an outfield player.

And low and behold in a knockout game, that we wont ever truly know if Arteta and the boys were fussed about winning or not, he gets caught out.

Now take nothing away from the goal because it was a beauty I must admit but Ramsdale cannot be standing that far up the pitch and has to take part blame for the goal conceded!

Arteta changed Matt Turner and put in Ramsdale in the hope we didnt concede after Turners shaky game last week, and what does Ramsdale do? Concede a goal that Sporting should never have been allowed to score!

Against your Citys and your Liverpools with the strike force they have, had they been there last night we would have been battered with Ramsdales play! Yes he made a few good saves, but he still let one in that was never meant to be conceded! And dont get me started on his lack of penalty saves despite coming close, but close is not good enough!

The team as a whole were not great, being sloppy in possession and just not clicking for some reason at times, but having taken the lead through Granit Xhakas goal you sensed it was a game we could have seen out as 1-0 winners, yet Ramsdales stupidity put us in a position we could have done without being in!

And I do not blame Gabriel Martinelli one bit for his penalty loss because had we kept that initial clean sheet we would not have gone as far as penalties, but if you look at it deeply and Im sure many Arsenal fans would agree, if you couldnt have both, and if you were to choose between winning the Europa League or the Premier League, I know which one I would choose.

Its just a shame we had to play nearly two hours and then get knocked out, rather than losing in normal time! Especially after we then have to play another game in less than 72 hours.

But we have managed to play Thursday, Sunday before and the boys know what they need to do, win one more game before the international break, have a break, and come back even more fired up ready to do the business in the remaining games of our season!!

But last nights loss is not the end of the world and I guess its good we play in a few days as I believe we can pick ourselves up as quickly as possible!

Heres hoping hey Gooners!

Shenel Osman

@sh3n3l_

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There is only one person I blame for Arsenals exit from the Europa league - Yardbarker

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND OCTOBER 18: Bradley Ibrahim of Arsenal U21 in action during the Papa Johns Trophy match between Northampton Town and Arsenal U21 at Sixfields on October 18, 2022 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Pete Norton/Getty Images)

The pizza firm signed a three-year deal with the league worth around 1 million per season in 2020.

The competition is known for featuring Under-21 sides from Premier League, including Arsenal, and Championship clubs alongside those from Leagues One and Two.

The Papa Johns Trophy (formerly known as the EFL Trophy) has provided opportunities for young players to gain experience against professional opposition, although some clubs have criticised the format and scheduling, which can be difficult to balance with domestic and international commitments.

Arsenals Under-21 team has taken part in the tournament in recent years. The Young Guns were knocked out in the first knockout game this season after making it through the group stage.

The EFL hopes that the upcoming final between Bolton and Plymouth will act as a powerful advert, with a crowd of around 70,000 expected at Wembley on April 2. League officials are now looking for a new sponsor for the tournament.

See the article here:
Papa Johns pulls out of EFL Trophy: A slice of bad news for English ... - Daily Cannon

Modified Mar 21, 2023 15:04 IST

Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar is hopeful of India meeting Pakistan in the final of the 2023 World Cup later this year. Pakistan lost to India in the 2011 World Cup semifinal in Mohali and Akhtar believes that Babar Azam and co. will be keen on avenging that defeat.

The matches between these two teams have always been high-pressure ones. If we add the context of the World Cup knockout game to it, the pressure will increase exponentially on both sets of players.

Speaking exclusively to Sports Tak, here's what Shoaib Akhtar had to say about the possibility of India and Pakistan being in the World Cup final:

There has been a lot of talk from cricket experts from both India and Pakistan on whether the two teams should play bilateral or not. Quite a few spicy comments were made on whether India will tour Pakistan for the 2023 Asia Cup and whether Pakistan will boycott the 2023 World Cup.

However, Shoaib Akhtar feels that there's no need to add fuel to the fire as he believes only the two governments will be able to come to a solution. He stated:

Pakistan could face sanctions from the ICC if they decide to boycott the 2023 World Cup in India.

Edited bySankalp Srivastava

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"We have to avenge the 2011 defeat"- Shoaib Akhtar wants an India-Pakistan final in 2023 World Cup - Sportskeeda