Dortmund, July 11 (IANS) England manager Gareth Southgate heaped praise on his players and remained committed to their goal of winning the Euro 2024 after his side sealed their first major final spot on foreign soil after beating Netherlands 2-1 in the semi-final to set up a summit clash with Spain.

England came from behind to turn the tide in their favour after conceding the early goal in the seventh minute of the game. Xavi Simons stunned the English defence as he struck the ball from outside the box on the top left of Jordan Pickford’s post. His goal gave the upper hand to the Dutch team in the clash before Harry Kane scored an equaliser on the penalty. In the 90th minute of the clash, substitute Ollie Watkins’ goal kept England’s hopes alive to win their first European title.

“I took the job to try to improve English football and we’re now in a second final. The last one was the first in over 50 years. We’re now in a first one overseas. We’re giving people amazing nights. We’ve given our supporters some of the best nights in the last 50 years. I’m hugely proud of that,” Southgate said after the match.

“I’m delighted if everyone at home is feeling the way we are and the way those in the stadium were. But we’re not finished. We’ve got the greatest possible test to prepare for. We came here to try to win the tournament and that’s still our aim,” he added.

England have had a difficult journey to the final, being the first team in Euros history to do so after trailing in both their quarter-final and semi-final matches.

Jude Bellingham’s bicycle kick in the 95th minute put them ahead of Slovakia in the last 16, and they needed a penalty shootout to beat Switzerland. In fury, fans threw plastic cups aimed at Southgate after their 0-0 draw with Slovenia in the group stages.

“We all want to be loved, right? When you’re doing something for your country, you’re a proud Englishman – you don’t feel that back and all you read is criticism, it’s hard,” said Southgate.

“To be able to celebrate a second final is very special. If I had not been on the grass, I would have been watching and celebrating like (the fans) were.

“I’m the one that has to pick a team so to be able to give them a night like tonight was very special. We have come here to win and play the team who have been the best in the tournament [in the final]. But we’re still here and fighting,” he concluded.

England will face spirited Spain in the summit clash of the tournament at Olympiastadion Berlin on Monday, July 15.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 11 (IANS) Australia’s left-arm fast-bowler Mitchell Starc said he was unhappy over being dropped for the Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eights match against Afghanistan last month, adding that fielding eventually led to the side’s surprise 21-run defeat at St Vincent.

Australia had replaced Starc with left-arm spin all-rounder Ashton Agar for the crucial game against Afghanistan to tie down their batters on a slow spin-aiding pitch. But that move didn’t yield desired results as Agar didn’t pick any wickets, with openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran having an opening stand of 118 runs, their third century stand of the competition.

“No – two World Cups in a row. Just the match-up, they saw previous games on that ground in St Vincent with spin playing a part and obviously Ash and the left-armer enticing them to make a change I think Ash bowled pretty well in the power play.

“They probably played the spin quite well and batting first probably assessed the conditions a little bit better than we did, and had a couple of stumbles that in the end cost us the game. It was probably the fielding that cost us again that game. That meant we had to win against India and we fell short there as well,” said Starc to the Willow Talk podcast.

After a sloppy fielding show, Australia’s batting crumbled in face of captain Rashid Khan and seam bowling all-rounder Gulbadin Naib to lose the game, which jeopardised their semi-finals hopes. After that, Australia suffered a defeat to eventual champions India in their last Super Eight game at St Lucia, which confirmed their exit from the competition.

Starc, who won IPL 2024 with the Kolkata Knight Riders, was also displeased with the scheduling and pre-seeding arrangements in the tournament that saw Australia advance to the hectic Super Eights stage in the Group 1, a pre-determined move despite topping Group B.

“We finished ahead of England and end up where we were pre-seeded as the second side. All of a sudden, you’re in a different group. The argument was it was because it was so hard to get around the West Indies, so fans knew where your team was playing. So then why don’t you have the chock-a-block tournament at the front and then spread it out at the back end?

“We had the two night games and the third was a day game, so it wasn’t the best preparation. We had a delayed flight out of St Vincent, it was a 90-minute drive from the airport to the hotel in St Lucia, and then we had a 10 o’clock toss.

“I think that was probably maybe a misread (by organisers), the fact that the front half of the tournament was more spread out, and then you hit the super eights and travel around the West Indies is probably not the easiest thing to do, certainly not to travel home from,” concluded Starc.

–IANS

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Charlotte, July 11 (IANS) Uruguay manager Marcelo Bielsa bemoaned his team’s wastefulness after the Celeste were eliminated from the Copa America following a 1-0 semifinal defeat to Colombia.

Jefferson Lerma put Colombia ahead in the 39th minute but the Cafeteros were reduced to 10 men when Daniel Munoz was shown a red card on the stroke of halftime, reports Xinhua.

“We should have obtained an advantage but, with one more man, the game was distorted,” Bielsa said. “There were many interruptions, which made it difficult to maintain a fluid rhythm of play.”

Uruguay striker Darwin Nunez squandered two early scoring chances and it appeared only a matter of time before Bielsa’s men would find a way past Colombia goalkeeper Camilo Vargas.

Despite dominating possession, the Celeste managed only two shots on target from 11 attempts in total.

“We should have been able to swing the balance in our favor, both in the first half – due to our movement in attack – and in the second due to our numerical advantage,” Bielsa said. “In the last few minutes, Colombia could have extended the lead because their scoring chances were very clear.”

–IANS

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Washington, July 11 (IANS) The USA have sacked head coach Gregg Berhalter following their Copa America group-stage exit.

The 50-year-old rejoined the men’s national football team in 2023 for a second spell, having led USA to the last-16 of the 2022 World Cup, but defeats to Panama and Uruguay on home soil have brought an end to 14-match tenure.

“Gregg Berhalter has been relieved of his duties as head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team, effective immediately,” US Soccer Federation said in a statement.

U.S. Soccer Sporting Director Matt Crocker will lead and has launched a search for Berhalter’s replacement.

“We are deeply grateful to Gregg for his commitment the past five years to the Men’s National Team and to U.S. Soccer. Gregg has earned the respect of everyone within our organization and has played a pivotal role in bringing together a young team and moving the program forward. We wish Gregg all the best in his future endeavors, and we know he will find success in his next coaching position,” said Crocker.

Berhalter compiled a 44 wins, 17 losses and 13 draws record in 74 matches as USMNT head coach and 29 wins, 9 losses and 7 draws record in official competitions during his tenure, leading the USMNT to a successful 2022 World Cup qualification campaign.

“Our immediate focus is on finding a coach who can maximize our potential as we continue to prepare for the 2026 World Cup, and we have already begun our search process,” Crocker added.

Berhalte’s first stint as head coach ended in 2022 with an investigation into his past conduct. He was four years into the role when he admitted kicking his wife when they were teenagers.

In 2022, he became the first former national team player to coach the US at a World Cup, leading the youngest team on the field in the tournament to a second-place finish in Group B with five points after draws against Wales and England and a win against Iran, before falling to the Netherlands in the Round of 16.

Under his guidance, the USMNT won the 2021 Gold Cup and two Concacaf Nations League titles.

–IANS

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Harare, July 11 (IANS) Zimbabwe Cricket announced that the second edition of the Zim Afro T10 tournament will commence on September 21, with the final scheduled for September 29 in Harare.

The dates for the player draft and the fixtures will be announced soon, Zimbabwe Cricket said.

The T10 tournament, which is the first of its kind in Africa, will see all the games being played at the iconic Harare Sports Club, much like the inaugural season. In the first year, Zim Afro T10 rewrote the history books as it became the first tournament to be played under floodlights at Harare Sports Club.

Speaking ahead of the second edition, Zimbabwe Cricket Chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani said: “We are delighted to be opening our doors again for the Zim Afro T10 tournament.

“The first season was nothing short of a festival and a celebration of the sport for us, and we expect more of that this year as well. The high standards of cricket in the T10 league have definitely helped us in our white-ball game and I am sure it will continue to make a big, positive impact on our ecosystem,” he added.

Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk, T Ten Global Sports Founder and Chairman, said “We can’t wait for the second chapter of the cricketing extravaganza in Zimbabwe to kick off. After a fabulous inaugural season, we have a duty to ensure that the cricket on display is of the highest quality, so that the fans get their due and the cricketing family of the country also benefits from the Zim Afro T10. We are delighted to be back and we promise to entertain and impress everyone in Zimbabwe, and light up the evenings at the Harare Sports Club.”

–IANS

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