Premier League
Naeem stars as Rupganj keep Premier League place intact
Legends of Rupganj kept their Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League place intact beating Old DOHS by six wickets in the Relegation League clash on Tuesday at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
The veteran allrounder and Rupganj captain, Naeem Islam, bagged two wickets conceding 12 runs in two overs and scored 27 off 14 balls with one six and four fours. He also won the player of the match award for his match-winning performance.
In order to avoid relegation to the first divisional league, it was a do-or-die affair for Rupganj. In this match, they won the toss and opted to bowl first. The rain-hit game was interrupted regularly, and which eventually reduced the game to 18-over a side.
DOHS posted 117 for six despite a wonderful knock of 51 off 39 by Anisul Islam Emon. Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Aliss Al Islam were the two other batsmen to do well for DOHS scoring 20 each.
For Rupganj, Hossain Ali bagged three wickets conceding 23 runs in three overs while Naeem took two.
In reply, Rupganj lost two wickets within 29 runs. They recovered this early damage riding on the 61-run stand between Sabbir Rahman and Mehedi Maruf. But both were dismissed by Abdur Rashid off two successive deliveries scoring 30 each.
In the last three overs, Rupganj needed to score 23 off 18 balls with six wickets in hand. Naeem smashed a six and a four off Abdur Rashid in the 16th over to ease the final job. He cleared Al Islam for a four in the next over and close the match well. Off the first ball of the last over, Naeem hit another four off Abdur Rashid and sealed the game for Rupganj. Naeem and Al Amin remained unbeaten for 27 and 7 respectively.
While Rupganj kept their Premier League place intact, Old DOHS and Partex Sporting Club relegated to the First Division. They will now have to be champions or runners-up in the First Division in order to take part in the next edition of the Premier League.
Villarreal beats Man U on penalties for Europa League title
The penalty shootout was going badly for Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea in the Europa League final, beaten by every Villarreal player who stepped up to the spot.
At 11-10, it got dramatically worse.
The shootout — after a 1-1 draw following extra time — went on so long that all of the outfield players took penalties, meaning De Gea and Villarreal goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli were the 11th men up.
Rulli sent his penalty into the top corner, but De Gea’s lacked power and was stopped by the Villarreal keeper.
Read:Rebel Super League clubs won’t accept UEFA ‘coercion’
As Rulli lay on the grass after his save, the entire team ran over and piled on top of him. It was an upset to savor as Villarreal — a team from a city of about 50,000 people — secured the first major trophy in the 98-year history of the club by beating one of European soccer’s giants.
It also secured a lucrative Champions League spot for next season rather than playing in the new third-tier Europa Conference League after Villarreal only finished seventh in the Spanish league. And it stopped an English sweep of the two big European competitions before Chelsea and Manchester City play the Champions League final on Saturday.
“It feels really good,” Villarreal midfielder Francis Coquelin said. “When you go down to the end it’s the winner taking it all. It was tough, we had a tough game. Manchester put a lot of pressure on us, especially in the first half.”
For Villarreal coach Unai Emery it was a record fourth Europa League title, and it offered a measure of redemption after he was fired by Arsenal last season. Emery was hoisted aloft by his players before they received their medals. He won three Europa League titles in a row with Sevilla from 2014-16 and lost the 2019 final with Arsenal against Chelsea.
“We worked hard this season and I think we deserved to win and to do something important,” Emery said. “We are going to enjoy each moment but above all we are going to prepare for the next season to prepare in the Champions League and have this opportunity with very big teams.”
Villarreal’s win also ensured that United went a fourth consecutive season without a trophy for the first time since the 1980s and left its manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer still looking for his first title. United’s last silverware was the Europa League in 2017.
Read:Could Koeman be closer to staying at Barca after Camp Nou meeting?
“That’s football for you. Sometimes it’s decided on one kick and that’s the difference between winning and losing,” Solskjaer told broadcaster BT Sport. “Got to ... taste this feeling and make sure you don’t get it again.”
Asked if United’s season — runner-up in the Premier League and now the Europa League — could be considered a success, Solskjaer said bluntly: “No.”
The marathon shootout had more excitement than the entire 120 minutes of the game.
United dominated the early possession but it was Villarreal which made the breakthrough. Gerard Moreno pushed past Victor Lindelöf at a free kick in the 29th minute and strained to prod Daniel Perejo’s cross past De Gea in the United goal.
United equalized at a set piece when Edinson Cavani reacted quickest to knock the ball in after Marcus Rashford’s low shot was deflected following a corner. A video review ruled the Uruguayan onside for his sixth goal of the season in the Europa League, all of them in the last four games.
United could soon have had a second, if not for Rashford scuffing a shot wide when one-on-one with Rulli. Another missed chance followed when Torres blocked a Cavani header.
Read:Copa America 2021: Things you need to know
When the game went to extra time, United’s hopes of repeating a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Bayern Munich 22 years ago to the day in the Champions League final began to fade. Villarreal looked the fresher team in extra time as Solskjaer — the substitute goal-scoring hero in 1999 — held back all but one of his substitutions until the second half of extra time.
Solskjaer brought on two penalty specialists, Juan Mata and Alex Telles, for the shootout. They both scored but that meant little against Villarreal’s perfect 11 penalties from 11 players.
Rulli had come close to saving a couple of previous penalties, including when Luke Shaw’s kick eased in over his outstretched hand. De Gea seemed to try mind games. He approached some opponents to talk to them as they prepared to shoot, and made Villarreal’s 10th penalty taker, Pau Torres, wait while he strolled over from the sideline.
But in the end it was De Gea who had to trudge back toward his teammates to be consoled after his miss.
Golden Boot-chasing Kane leads Tottenham to win over Wolves
Harry Kane endured a frustrating match in his bid to win the Premier League’s Golden Boot for the third time despite scoring in Tottenham’s 2-0 win over Wolverhampton on Sunday.
Kane’s 45th-minute goal moved him to a league-leading 22 for the season — one clear of Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah — but the England captain also struck the post twice and had an effort cleared off the line.
Kane has two games left while Salah has three, starting with West Bromwich Albion later Sunday. Kane was the league’s top scorer in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who set up Kane for the opening goal with a piercing through-ball, added the second in the 64th minute by tapping in a rebound from close range after Gareth Bale’s shot was saved.
Tottenham moved into sixth place, above West Ham on goal difference, and still has a mathematical — if highly unlikely — chance of finishing in the top four in the race for Champions League qualification after winning three of its last four league games under interim manager Ryan Mason. The team is five points behind fourth-place Chelsea.
“We are not happy with where we are, we should be higher and we only have ourselves to blame,” Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli said.
“We are showing now what we can do but it is a bit too late. We just have to keep working hard and take it into the next season as well.”
Kane could easily have had a hat trick at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with the striker curling a long-range shot from distance against the base of the post in the fifth minute and then beating goalkeeper Rui Patricio to a high ball only to see his header cleared off the line by backpedaling defender Conor Coady.
Off a sharp counterattack early in the second half, Alli slipped a ball through for Kane but his low shot was tipped onto the post by Patricio. Alli latched onto the rebound but struck the follow-up against the other post.
“Excellent,” Mason said of Tottenham’s display. “We created lots of chances and the score line was probably a bit flattering to them. There were big moments, their keeper made a couple of good saves, we hit the post three times and dominated the game in the second half, so really pleased.”
How the European Super League could have ruled Messi and Ronaldo out of the FIFA World Cup 2022?
Is it possible to imagine a World Cup without Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo?However, such concerns were raised when an announcement came on Sunday (April 18th) that a new competition branded the "European Super League" will be launched with the best clubs from across Europe. The competition was initially planned to feature 15 topclubs as permanent members.UEFA responded immediately, warning that the teams would be excluded and their players would be banned from participating in international competitions.This article discusses, how the European Super League could have ruled Messi and Ronaldo out of the FIFA World Cup 2022?
What is the European Super League?
The European Super League is a brand new competition for so-called elite clubs which will feature 20 teams. There will be 15 founding clubs and the names of 12 clubs have been released so far. They are Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham from Premier League; Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid from La Liga; and Inter, Juventus, AC Milan from Serie A.
Read: How European football is badly affected by the pandemic covid-19?
Three more clubs are expected to join as founding members. Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, and Borussia Dortmund are believed to have been contacted, but none of them have shown a desire to join.
Five more teams will be picked for the competition each season based on their domestic season performance.
Tournament format
The clubs will be split into two groups and the matches will be played on a home and away basis, as usual. The top three teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals. For the final two spots, the fourth and fifth teams in each group will play a two-leg play-off match. Then the rest of the way is like the Champions League.
Expected tournament schedule
The season's calendar can be complicated since Super League teams still tend to compete in the domestic league. It'll be a packed schedule and being occupied in such a tournament means bidding farewell to the Champions League. The Super League authority has confirmed that the matches will take place in mid-week. The final will be one match and it will be held by the end of May.
When is the Super League set to begin?
FC Barcelona said in an official statement that they want to begin the league as soon as possible. However, the clubs announced in a joint statement that the competition will begin in August.
How much money will the clubs earn?
European Super League teams will get a huge financial benefit. The founding clubs will receive 3.5 billion euros for infrastructure improvements and debt relief. The prize money for teams in the Super League will be significantly higher than the prize money for teams in the Champions League.
Read: Football Transfers 2021: The hot favorites to replace Sergio Aguero at Man City
UEFA's response on super league
UEFA, the Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A all responded quickly to the Super League's announcement. In an official statement, UEFA said that they are all working together to avoid this unethical project, and they believe the super league is formed to protect the clubs' self-interest.
UEFA also stated that football is a merit-based sport and that they will never support such a decision. As a result, super league clubs will be banned from competing in any domestic, continental, or worldwide competition. Players from the teams will also be unable to represent their country in any international matches.
After the announcement of UEFA, there are fears that superstar footballers like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will not be seen in FIFA World Cup 2022.
Both Messi and Ronaldo have yet to win the World Cup. So they want to make one last attempt to win the World Cup in Qatar. But if UEFA's announcement is true, then apart from these two best footballers of all time, almost half of the world's best footballers will be absent in the World Cup 2022. Because nearly all of the world's biggest stars play for Europe's top clubs.
Read: Potential Young Players Who Could Rule World Football Next Decade
Protest and confirmation of all English clubs withdrawal
Supporters from a number of Premier League clubs have protested the club owners' arbitrary decision. Fans of Liverpool and Chelsea were prominent among them. Within 48 hours of the widespread criticism, all Premier League clubs reversed their positions and announced their withdrawal from the Super League.
Following the announcement by all Premier League teams, the Super League's other six clubs would no longer remain in their previous stands. So, the European Super League's dissolution may be announced at any moment. However, UEFA and FIFA must place more emphasis on protecting everyone's interests.
Read: Summer Window 2021: Five Potential Big Football Transfers
Bottom Line
Coronavirus has placed all of Europe's big clubs into a huge economic crisis. As a result, they're attempting to cover the financial loss by introducing new initiatives. However, there is no valid reason to support a proposal that undermines the very essence of football. The demands of the clubs are not completely unreasonable. In this case, UEFA needed to be more vigilant. If the Super League tournament is not held as expected, big names like Messi and Ronaldo will be able to participate in the FIFA World Cup 2022. This will be great news for millions of football fans around the world.
Read: Lionel Messi: The Argentine Football Star’s Most Unbreakable Records
FA Cup holder Arsenal eliminated, Man City survives scare
Last season’s FA Cup winner Arsenal was eliminated from the competition in the fourth round on Saturday thanks to Gabriel’s own-goal in a 1-0 loss to Southampton, while Manchester City survived a scare to beat fourth-tier Cheltenham 3-1.
Premier League Football begins Wednesday
The country's most prestigious domestic soocer meet, the 13-team Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) Football '2020-21, is scheduled to begin Wednesday (Jan 13) at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka.
Premier League, Champions League call off matches
The Premier League and the Champions League were both suspended Friday as the chaos stemming from the coronavirus outbreak continues to impact soccer.
Liverpool charges 25 points clear by beating Bournemouth 2-1
A scare survived this time, Liverpool is three wins from glory.
Man City beats Aston Villa 2-1, wins 3rd straight League Cup
Manchester City won the League Cup for a third consecutive season by beating Aston Villa 2-1 on Sunday, providing the club with a moment of celebration as it fights to protect its reputation off the field.
Premier League to launch Hall of Fame
The English Premier League will launch its official Hall of Fame with the first two inductees to be revealed on March 19, announced the league on Thursday.