Sport News – HesGoal

Media Reveals Spence’s Words To Frank

LONDON: A tense atmosphere prevailed in the Tottenham camp after the 1-0 defeat to Chelsea.

Defender, Djed Spence, was seen ignoring manager, Thomas Frank, who invited him to interact with the fans after the match at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, last Saturday.

The incident went viral after Spence and teammate Micky van de Ven refused to shake hands with Frank and proceeded to leave the pitch – a situation that raised questions about team harmony.

According to the Daily Mail, lip-reading expert Jeremy Freeman revealed Spence told Frank: “I don’t want to… go), after his manager was seen asking the 24-year-old to give the home fans a round of applause.

After the defeat, Frank tried to defuse the situation by describing the incident as a minor matter.

“All the players are obviously disappointed. They want to win, they want to perform well, so I understand the feeling.

“We do things differently, but I don’t think it’s a big deal. Micky and Djed have given everything they can this season,” said Frank.

In that match, Spence and Van de Ven were said to be the cause of the situation that led to Chelsea’s winning goal scored by Joao Pedro.

That raises questions about Frank’s level of control in the dressing room.

Although Frank led Tottenham to fifth place in the Premier League – a huge improvement on 17th place last season under Ange Postecoglou – the team’s form has been criticised for being too lacklustre.

The data shows Tottenham have scored just 0.05 expected goals (xG) against Chelsea – their worst since the statistic was introduced in 2012 – and have won just three of their last 19 home games.

Commenting on the poor performance, Frank admitted: “It really hurts. In my entire career, I have never managed a team that created so few chances in a single match. I will look at what needs to be improved.”

On the fans’ booing at the final whistle, he added: “Yes, I completely understand their frustration. We all felt that.

“But this is part of football – the important thing is that we stay calm and keep looking for solutions.”

Amorim Was Not United First Choice

LONDON: Thomas Tuchel and Roberto De Zerbi reportedly led a list of six candidates considered by Manchester United before the club changed course and finally appointed Ruben Amorim as their new manager.

The English giants initially wanted to give priority to candidates with Premier League experience, but after receiving information that the young Portuguese coach would be the “next great manager”, their stance changed.

This story takes place around May 2024 – before Erik ten Hag presented United with the FA Cup title.

After that, he was given a contract extension before finally being replaced by Amorim in November.

Interestingly, Amorim, who has been at United for almost a year now, might not be at Old Trafford today if some early talks with other candidates had come to fruition.

According to a report by The Athletic, apart from Tuchel and De Zerbi, four other names are also on the shortlist, namely Mauricio Pochettino, Thomas Frank, Marco Silva and Graham Potter.

It is understood that United have begun discussions with several candidates, either physically or online, including after the FA Cup triumph, when Ten Hag’s future is still unclear.

The director of football, Jason Wilcox, also contacted Amorim and was impressed with his vision.

However, concerns have arisen about his ability to make the big leap from Sporting Lisbon to United, who are currently in a transitional phase.

Tuchel is said to have met with United’s top management in Monaco, but opted to take a break after leaving Bayern Munich before being appointed England head coach in mid-October.

The Athletic also reported that United made an offer to De Zerbi after he left Brighton, but the manager turned it down due to financial reasons.

He then accepted the position as Marseille manager in July 2024.

Another name also being monitored is Thiago Motta, who created a sensation at Bologna before joining Juventus.

Ultimately, United chose Amorim whose record in Portugal was quite impressive with two league titles with Sporting, three domestic cups and a 71 percent win percentage.

The decision in Amorim’s favor came after a five-hour meeting in Seville, Spain, on October 18, where he presented his plan and philosophy.

Mbappe’s Hat-trick Vaulted PSG To The Top

PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) striker Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick to help his team beat Reims 3-0 and jump PSG to the top of Ligue 1.

Mbappe’s finishing touch was sharp enough as the French captain did not wait long to open the scoring as early as the third minute, before adding two more goals in the 59th and 82nd minutes.

Mbappe admitted that he was happy to help PSG to a victory that helped the team jump to the top of the league after the nearest challenger, Nice was only tied at Montpellier yesterday.

“As a striker, of course my job is to score goals and perform as well as possible. I want both – to play well and score goals.

“The objective was achieved… but the most important thing is that I can help the team win because it is very valuable in the hunt for the top spot,” said Mbappe.

Asked about PSG’s comeback after defeat at the hands of AC Milan in the previous Champions League, Mbappe thought it was two different competitions.

“It’s a different competition and all we want to do is win. It’s a good draw (the match against Nice) and we want to take the top spot. It’s done and we’re happy with that.

“We have time to improve in the Champions League but Ligue 1 is a different competition, and that means a different mindset, and a different way of playing,” he said.

Ronaldo’s Two Goals Keep Al-Nassr’s Perfect Record

RIYADH: Cristiano Ronaldo scored two impressive goals as Al-Nassr remained perfect in their Asian Champions League campaign early this morning as the Saudi Pro League club won 4-3 in Riyadh over Qatar’s Al-Duhail to go nine points from three games. Group E.

The former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker fed Anderson Talisca to score his side’s first goal in the 25th minute while Sadio Mane grabbed the second, with Ronaldo firing in from distance in the 61st minute to give Al-Nassr a 3-0 lead.

Ismaeel Mohammad and Almoez Ali replied for Al Duhail before Ronaldo’s volley in the 81st minute restored the two-goal lead, before Michael Olunga struck Al Duhail’s third with five minutes remaining to ensure a thrilling finish.

The win put Al-Nassr three points ahead of Iranian club Persepolis, who saw goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand save Senin Sebai’s seventh-minute penalty before winning 2-0 in Tehran against Tajikistan’s FC Istiklol.

Saeid Sadeghi scored twice to enable the hosts to claim their second win in three matches and five points ahead of Al-Duhail and Istiklol, each by one point.

Al-Ain moved a step closer to the knockout rounds as Alfred Schreuder’s side hammered Saudi club Al-Fayha 4-1 to maintain their perfect record in Group A.

Paraguayan player Kaku scored twice, after watching Kouame Kouaido open the scoring, with Soufiane Rahimi sealing the win in the last minute after Nawaf Al-Harthi scored a consolation goal for the visitors.

The victory allowed Al-Ain to gain nine points from three matches, six points ahead of Al-Fayha, Pakhtakor from Uzbekistan and Ahal.

Pakhtakor picked up their first win of the campaign when they beat the Turkmen club 3-0 in Tashkent with Azizbek Turgunboyev scoring twice after Hojimat Erkinov had put them in front.

Only the winners of each of the 10 groups in the competition qualify for the last 16, where they will be joined by the top three runners-up from the east and west sides of the draw.

Inter Beat AC Milan 5-1

MILAN: Inter Milan crushed neighboring rivals AC Milan 5-1 for their biggest win at the San Siro since 1967.

Simone Inzaghi’s side looked to be at their peak, opening the scoring in the first five minutes through Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

The former Arsenal man added a second-half goal with Davide Frattesi, Hakan Calhanoglou and new signing Marcus Thuram also on target.

Rafael Leao’s single goal for AC Milan put Inter in the net for the first time this season.

The result continued Inter’s perfect record since the start of the season, putting Inzaghi’s side at the top with a two-point advantage over their nearest rivals.

“I’m happy for the fans and our club, we know it’s very important. Four wins in derbies gave us the trophy and qualification for the Champions League (last season), and this win put us at the top of the league for a while – but it’s only matchday fourth,” said Inzaghi.