Watford’s maverick attempt to match that Leicester football miracle

STING IN THE TAIL

While the assist with which he teed up his successor Claudio Ranieri to win the title for Leicester was the managerial equivalent of Mike Fillery’s routine cross to Clive Allen ahead of that sublime triple drag-back and finish for QPR against West Ham on an Upton Park bog back in 1984, Nigel Pearson’s impressive feat in keeping them in the Premier League against all odds back in 2015 certainly paved the way for the footballing miracle that would follow 12 months later. When Watford sweep all before them and march to similarly unlikely glory next season, Pearson’s role should also be remembered. But for now fans have the more pressing concerns of hoping their under-performing team can earn the p…

Chelsea will have to wait until 2014 to secure Neymar’s services

that Neymar will move to Europe from Santos after next summer’s World Cup in Brazil.

It is thought that the 21-year-old is focusing on his career at Santos right now and is trying to stay in fine form for the World Cup, which he is desperate to win.

The Brazilian will then want a new challenge after competing in the biggest tournament of them all and Chelsea could be the team that he heads to.

The European Champions have been keen on the forward for a while now, but his desire to stay at Santos has meant a deal had never materialised.

However, in the summer of 2014, they could land one of the best players that the world has to offer right now and it would be a cracking bit of business.

One of the main reasons for Chelsea leading the way is tha…

Southgate lauds England´s battle as Euro 2024 not ´just about playing well´

Gareth Southgate insists Euro 2024 is not just about England playing well as the Three Lions manager lauded the character shown in their penalty shoot-out victory over Switzerland in the last eight.

England were once again unconvincing in Dusseldorf and fell behind to Breel Embolo s 75th-minute opener, only for Bukayo Saka to level shortly after on Saturday.

Penalties followed at Dusseldorf Arena as Jordan Pickford denied Switzerland s first spot-kick from Manuel Akanji, before Trent Alexander-Arnold coolly slotted in the winning effort to seal a last-four place.

Since Euro 1996, England have played 11 knockout matches at the European Championship and eight of those have gone to extra-time, including the last four in a row.

That may be apportioned to thei…

The Finnish Leicester: How IFK Mariehamn produced 2016´s greatest underdog story

It has certainly been a year for the football underdog.

Leicester City stunned the world by surging to a remarkable maiden Premier League title last May, before Iceland made it to the quarter-finals of Euro 2016 in their first appearance at a major international tournament and Wales went one better to reach the final four.

Finland s IFK Mariehamn winning the Veikkausliiga for the first time in their history may not appear to be on a par with those achievements, but theirs is a story undoubtedly worthy of similar, if not greater, recognition.

Finland s former Barcelona and Liverpool midfielder Jari Litmanen branded Mariehamn the Finnish Leicester for the triumph they completed last Sunday. It is a tag that club chairman Robert Soderdahl accepts, but he feels his s…

2014 FIFA World Cup: Gotze glory rounds off captivating spectacle

The 2014 FIFA World Cup was a tournament of contrasting halves but sustained intrigue.

When Mario Gotze fired Germany to extra-time glory in Sunday s final at Rio s iconic Maracana, Brazil 2014 equalled France 1998 as the highest-scoring World Cup of all time.

That statistic owed much to the vibrant, almost devil-may-care nature with which numerous teams launched their campaigns during the group stages.

The first of many spine-tingling moments arrived before a ball was even kicked, when Brazil s fans and team roared their national anthem in unison at a fervent Arena de Sao Paulo.

Two goals from poster boy Neymar secured a 3-1 opening win over Croatia and, although those strikes papered over obvious cracks in Luiz Felipe Scolari s team, it was impossible t…

Trippier: Tiredness no excuse for Euro 2024 heartbreak

Kieran Trippier says England cannot use tiredness as an excuse for their Euro 2024 heartbreak after losing the final to Spain.

The Three Lions fought back through Cole Palmer after Nico Williams early second-half opener but conceded a late Mikel Oyarzabal goal in their 2-1 defeat to La Roja.

It is the second consecutive European Championships final England lost, with Gareth Southgate admitting after Sunday s match that some players were a little bit short of their physical peak .

However, Trippier, who started all six of their games en route to the final, says that is not an excuse.

The team that we ve got is fit, the right-back said. If you see the running stats, I think we re probably the highest in the whole tournament. So that s not an excuse.

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James handed first Real Madrid start since May 2017

James Rodriguez is set to start a Real Madrid match for the first time since May 2017 as Los Blancos welcome Real Valladolid in LaLiga.

Colombia international James spent the last two seasons out on loan with Bayern Munich, with his Madrid career seemingly over.

However, Bayern opted against triggering their purchase option and James has been integrated back into the Madrid squad with Zinedine Zidane s men having so far failed to offload him.

The playmaker slots into the midfield in place of Luka Modric after the Croatia international was sent off in Madrid s season opener last weekend – a 3-1 win at Celta Vigo.

833 James Rodriguez will make his first start for Real Madrid in all competitions in 833 days, last starting on May 14th 2017 against Sevilla i…

Week 5 NFL Touchdown Props: James Conner Finds End Zone

We’re coming off our third profitable TD week with a 2-2 SU +1.7 unit Week 4. For our Week 5 bets, we’ve identified some strong tight end and running back options that we’re confident will help us cash in again. 

Nick Chubb at even money is not something we’re going to turn down and we’re also riding with touchdown machine James Conner for the potent Arizona Cardinals.

We’ve fallen smitten over this week’s TD prospects and feel we have a great mix of value plus matchups on this week’s card.

Here are our favorite TD prop picks for Week 5.

Key Dates for the 2022-23 NFL Season: From Camp to the Super Bowl

The NFL regular season may be 18 weeks long, but the league stays at the forefront of the sporting world 365 days a year.

That’s because the NFL schedule simply doesn’t stop, with key dates littered throughout the offseason, regular season, playoffs, and beyond. Whether it’s the trade deadline mid-season, the Super Bowl, or even players reporting to training camp in late July, you can count on the NFL dominating the news cycle at any given time. 

With so much noise around the National Football League year-round, there are bound to be some inflection points that stand out as more important than others. We’ve cut through the noise for you here, outlining key dates for the 2022-23 NFL season. 

Best NFL bonuses

If you’re signing up for a new spor…

Miles Sanders Super Bowl 57 Prop Odds and Prediction: Sanders Held Under Rushing + Receiving Yards Total

The Philadelphia Eagles were an outstanding rushing team in the regular season, and that success has made the transfer to the playoffs so far.

Miles Sanders captains the backfield for the Eagles, so naturally, his rushing (and receiving) Super Bowl player props are of great interest.

Check out my Super Bowl picks for Sanders below, including an additional same-game parlay. 

Need more insight? Check out our Super Bowl odds and Super Bowl predictions.