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December 23, 2023

These Are the Most Popular NFL Players of 2023 Based on Google Searches

Filed under: Fitness — Tags: , , , — admin @ 9:00 pm

The NFL had another huge year, and a few star players stole the spotlight. Sports betting outlet Bettingtop10 Canada recently determined the most popular NFL players in America according to Google searches. The study ranked every position and compiled a list of America’s NFL “Dream Team” based on the most-searched-for players. The site analyzed Google data across 2023 for all 2,421 players in the NFL to reach their conclusions.

Of the quarterbacks, New York Jets star Aaron Rodgers was the most Googled in America, with an average of 2.5 million people searching his name each month. The study notes that a large number of those searches are due to ongoing interest in Rogers’ torn Achilles tendon, which he suffered during the opening game of the season against the Buffalo Bills.

Travis Kelce was crowned the most commonly searched-for tight end, with his name garnering more than 1 million dedicated searches per month. Of course, a high volume of this traffic comes from curiosity regarding his romance with Taylor Swift.

The swell of support for the Kelce family hardly stopped there. Travis’ brother, Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles, was the most-searched-for center in the country. More than 420,000 people search for him every month. Once again, a lot of this interest is thought to be due to Travis’s relationship with Taylor.

But coming out on top of the NFL was Damar Hamlin of the Buffalo Bills. He was not only the most-searched-for defensive back in America, but his name garnered the most Google searches of any player in the NFL. Fans searched for Hamlin more than 7.1 million times each month. The 25-year-old just returned for his first regular season game after suffering a cardiac arrest during a January 2 match.

“America’s fascination with NFL players frequently extends beyond their on-field performance, with injuries, romances, and rumors of their personal life, influencing who the nation searches for the most,” a spokesperson for Bettingtop10 Canada shared in a statement.

The year’s most popular players were then drafted onto America’s hypothetical Dream Team. Hamlin, Rodgers, and Kelce were easily the most-searched-for players of the year. They were joined on the Dream Team by Odell Beckham Jr. (825,667), Ezekiel Elliot (587,500), and Chris Paul (575,917), amongst many others.

“The ‘NFL Dream Team’ aims to showcase the players who have captured the nation’s attention the most over the past year, in order to create the perfect team lineup,” Bettingtop10’s spokesperson explained.

You can find America’s full Dream Team roster of the most popular NFL players below.

Bettingtop10.ca

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March 8, 2022

Muscat’s Marinos await Sydney FC SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 08: Adam Le Fondre of Sydney FC celebrates scoring a goal during the AFC Champions League match between Sydney FC and Kaya FC-Iloilo at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium on March 08, 2022 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Filed under: Outdoors — Tags: — admin @ 11:43 am

Kevin Muscat’s Yokohama F. Marinos will be among Sydney FC’s AFC Champions League opponents after the Sky Blues’ playoff success.

Kevin Muscat’s Yokohama F. Marinos await Sydney FC after the Sky Blues thrashed Filipino outfit Kaya FC 5-0 to reach the group stage of the AFC Champions League.

In wet and windy conditions that at one stage led to doubt whether the playoff would go ahead at Netsrata Jubilee Stadium, the Sky Blues were rarely threatened by the underdone visitors, whose domestic campaign is yet to start.

Second-half braces from Bobo and substitute Adam Le Fondre, and a first-half goal from Trent Buhagiar secured the Sydneysiders qualification in Group H of the Champions League.

Sydney’s group matches will take place during a two-week period next month in Vietnam, where they will meet Japan’s Marinos, who are coached by former Melbourne Victory mentor Muscat, South Korean outfit Jeonbuk Hyundai and Vietnamese side Hoang Anh Gia Lai.

The Sky Blues dominated early but it took them until the half-hour mark to grab the lead.

Buhagiar, who had earlier hit the crossbar, was the scorer following an impressive build-up involving right back Connor O’Toole and New Zealand international attacker Kosta Barbarouses.

A hesitant Bobo then wasted an opportunity on the stroke of half-time to double Sydney’s lead.

However, the Brazilian veteran made amends in the first five minutes of the second half which all but ended the match.

His first was a simple tap-in after Kaya goalkeeper Zach Banzon – who kept his side in the match in the first half – had parried a Max Burgess shot into the South American’s path.

Bobo’s second and Sydney’s third came from the penalty spot after a foul from Fitch Arboleda on Sky Blues right back Rhyan Grant.

English marksman Le Fondre then came off the bench to provide the icing on the cake with goals in the 71st and 81st minutes.

Read related topics:Sydney

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February 26, 2022

‘Time to act’: World Cup thrown into chaos (FILES) In this file photo taken on July 01, 2018 Russia supporters wave flags prior to the Russia 2018 World Cup round of 16 football match between Spain and Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on July 1, 2018. – Sport’s highest court will on December 17, 2020, delivers its verdict on whether to overturn Russia’s four-year ban from international sport imposed following allegations of state-sanctioned doping. The much-anticipated decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport follows a four-day arbitration hearing between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) at a secret location last month. (Photo by Mladen ANTONOV / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE – NO MOBILE PUSH ALERTS/DOWNLOADS

Filed under: Outdoors — Tags: — admin @ 10:44 am

The sporting world has continued to revolt against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and it could cost them a spot in sport’s biggest tournament.

Poland will not play their 2022 World Cup play-off with Russia in Moscow on March 24 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine the president of the Polish football federation said on Saturday.

The conflict entered the third day on Saturday since Russian leader Vladimir Putin unleashed a full-scale invasion that has killed dozens of people, forced more than 50,000 to flee Ukraine in just 48 hours and sparked fears of a wider conflict in Europe.

“The time for talking is over. It is time to act. Due to the escalation of the Russian Federation’s aggression in Ukraine, the Polish team does not envisage playing the play-off against Russia,” wrote president of the Polish Football Association Cezary Kulesza, adding it was the “only correct decision”.

He said he would work with the Swedish and Czech federations — the winners of their match would have to play in Russia (on March 29) if the latter beat Poland — to present a unified position to FIFA.

The three federations issued a joint statement on Thursday demanding FIFA move the respective play-offs from Russia.

Polish star Robert Lewandowski had tweeted on Friday that he would consult his teammates about the match and his rejection of war.

“Everything which is beautiful in sports is against what war brings,” he said. “For all people who value freedom and peace this is a time of solidarity with the victims of the military aggression in Ukraine.

“As the Captain of the National Team I will speak with my teammates about the match against Russia, in order to work out a common position on this question and present it to the president of the PZPN (Polish Football Association) as soon as possible.”

European football’s governing body UEFA punished Russia on Friday by stripping Saint Petersburg of hosting European club football’s showpiece event the Champions League final on May 28 and awarded it to Paris.

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February 24, 2022

NFL Offseason 2022: This Year’s QB Prospects, Free Agent Moves, and More

Filed under: Fitness — Tags: , , — admin @ 1:00 am

The NFL has built itself into a year-round eyeball magnet. The NFL offseason supposedly begins after the Super Bowl, but in reality, the pro football machine keeps right on turning. The pre-draft showcase and workout season get underway even before the Super Bowl is over, free agency begins in mid-March, the draft happens in mid-April, and then there’s only a few months of (relative) quiet before training camps open at the end of July. Even with no games on the calendar, the league has a way of generating enough drama to stay top of mind.

That said, the NFL does seem to be headed into an unusually wide-open offseason. The greatest quarterback ever just retired, as did another future Hall of Famer. Another one may or may not leave his career-long franchise, and the pecking order of QBs in this year’s NFL Draft is even harder to determine than usual.

So what’s going to happen? Below, I’ve called out four key questions that’ll shape the NFL over the next year.

NFL Offseason 2022: Quarterback Prospects, Free Agents, and More

1. What will Aaron Rodgers do, and how quickly can we stop discussing him?

I have lost interest in acquiring new information about the Green Bay Packers’ four-time MVP quarterback. At this point, everyone gets the idea: He is a preternaturally great quarterback and a preternaturally self-obsessed individual.

After his relationship with the Packers deteriorated to the point of a trade becoming a real possibility last year, Rodgers had a singular 2021 season. He won another MVP award (which is normal for him), lost another home playoff game (also normal for him), misled the public and probably the NFL about his COVID-19 vaccination status, and compared himself to Martin Luther King Jr. for not taking the shot. I learned more than I ever wanted to about his relationship with Shailene Woodley and his offseason cleansing regimen, which you should not read more about if you have a weak constitution.

As we head into the NFL offseason, Rodgers’ football future is uncertain. The Denver Broncos hired his Packers offensive coordinator, Nathaniel Hackett, as head coach, prompting speculation that Rodgers might head to the Mile High City. Maybe he’ll retire, or get traded somewhere else, or find some other path away from Green Bay. Maybe he’ll just play there again next year. He’ll single-handedly make whichever team he plays for into a title contender. Or maybe he’ll go into public health consulting.

2. Some legendary quarterbacks are retiring. Who will replace them?

Tom Brady’s NFL career is over after 22 seasons and seven Super Bowl wins, and he has cemented his status (among most observers) as the greatest to ever play the position. Ben Roethlisberger’s career is over after 18 seasons, two Super Bowl wins, and a much grimmer off-field legacy. Rodgers may or may not leave the Packers, but that’s at least two teams—if not three—who need to replace Hall of Fame passers in 2022.

Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming from a position of strength: They’re just a year removed from a Lombardi Trophy and have a quality defense. This franchise spent most of the century getting mediocre QB play or worse before Brady signed ahead of the 2020 season. In his absence, the frontrunner might be 32-year-old backup Blaine Gabbert, a long-ago first-round draft bust who has a couple years’ experience playing behind the best ever and learning the system of head coach Bruce Arians.

It sounds uninspiring, but it’s hard to immediately replace a generational QB. The Steelers will likely learn that while finding Roethlisberger’s successor. The in-house frontrunner is Mason Rudolph, a backup for most of the last four years who played poorly after Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending injury early in the 2019 season. The Steelers gave him a tepid “if the season started today” vote of confidence. External faith in him is almost nonexistent.

On the other hand, finding a worthy replacement in the draft is possible. But it won’t be easy.

3. The quarterback class in this year’s NFL Draft is something of a mystery. How will teams handle it?

There are no sure bets at QB or in the draft, but most years have one or two quarterbacks who analysts believe are worthy of high first-round selections. Last year had several: Quarterbacks were snapped up for the first, second, third, 11th, and 15th picks.

This year’s class has a handful of passers who might turn out to be good NFL players. Pitt’s Kenny Pickett morphed into one of the most exciting and productive college QBs in 2021. Liberty’s Malik Willis has a bazooka arm and will immediately be one of the most effective running QBs in the NFL. Matt Corral from Ole Miss could thrive in an offense that’s heavy on run-pass options and deep balls. Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder gets high marks for both his leadership and athleticism. North Carolina’s Sam Howell is mobile and can throw hard, but he didn’t play well against the ACC in 2021. Nevada’s Carson Strong is, well, big and strong, but he’ll have to answer questions about the quality of competition he faced in the Mountain West. (Though Wyoming’s Josh Allen has shown that the conference can produce NFL-caliber QBs.)

It’s safe to say that a few of these players will be solid NFL quarterbacks. But I have a hard time deducing who, exactly, will break through. Pro Football Focus doesn’t rank any of them higher than No. 20 overall (Howell), and it’ll be interesting to see how high a team reaches because it needs a quarterback.

4. This year’s free-agent class is heavy on wideouts. Who’s going where?

By PFF’s ranking, the No. 1, 3, 7, and 10 players available in free agency this NFL offseason are wide receivers: Davante Adams (Green Bay), Chris Godwin (Tampa Bay), Mike Williams (Los Angeles Chargers), and Allen Robinson II (Chicago). A couple of them seem like obvious targets for the franchise tag, where their teams hang onto them by offering them a one-year contract for what’s likely to be about $19 million each.

If the Packers get Rodgers back, it’s hard to see them letting Adams, his longtime No. 1 target, walk away. Williams seems another likely candidate for a tag if the Chargers don’t offer him a long-term contract extension—they have cap room and a mega-valuable young quarterback, Justin Herbert, who needs capable receivers.

The Bucs might be in for a lot of hurt. They could tag or extend Godwin, but they are short on salary cap room and don’t know how Brady’s contract will affect their cap room now that he’s retired. They have two other premium free agents in center Ryan Jensen and cornerback Carlton Davis, and they still need to sort out a quarterback. So Godwin might be on the move, and if he’s not, someone else, or even a couple of his teammates, will be.

In Chicago, Robinson also seems poised to hit the open market. His departure will sting for second-year Bears quarterback Justin Fields but be a boon for whoever signs him.

There’s uncertainty in every offseason, but 2022’s uncertainty seems concentrated between those who throw the ball and those who catch it.

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January 19, 2022

NFL Playoffs Preview: Overpowering Offense, QB Clashes, and More

Filed under: Fitness — Tags: , , — admin @ 11:12 pm

The NFL playoffs divisional round is my favorite football weekend of the year. With eight teams playing four games in two days, it’s the best mix of football in terms of both quantity (games all afternoon and into the evening on Saturday and Sunday) and quality—only excellent teams remain. It’s hard to fake your way to this point in the postseason.

The games start with the Cincinnati Bengals at the Tennessee Titans at 4:30 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, followed by the San Francisco 49ers visiting the Green Bay Packers at 8:15 p.m. (EST). Sunday’s slate has the Los Angeles Rams visiting the defending champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 3 p.m. (EST), then the Buffalo Bills playing at the Kansas City Chiefs at 6:30 p.m. (EST).

Below are five big questions that’ll define the action this weekend.

NFL Playoffs Preview: Top Storylines to Watch

1. The Bengals and the Titans have different identities. Who will dictate the style in Tennessee?

The Bengals have a pretty lousy offensive line and not much of a running game despite a talented tailback in Joe Mixon. Their offense hums because second-year QB Joe Burrow has morphed into one of the best passers in the NFL and developed excellent chemistry with a trio of star receivers: rookie Ja’Marr Chase (who’s the best of the bunch) second-year man Tee Higgins, and sixth-year slot receiver Tyler Boyd.

The Titans score their points differently. They call runs on almost half their plays (about 46 percent, to be exact), and at 32 carries per game, they’re the most solidly run-heavy team in the NFL. They have a dominant run-blocking offensive line that loves to bulldoze, and they’ve done that enough to claim the No. 1 seed in the AFC despite a midseason injury to elite running back Derrick Henry. They signed D’Onta Foreman after Henry’s injury, and the offense has barely missed a beat.

The teams’ defenses could do different things to take the opposing offenses out of their comfort zones. The Bengals could load the box to stop the run or the Titans could scheme up a way to limit Chase’s targets. But if either offense is fully operational, that team will probably win.

2. Can a battered 49ers defense hold up against Aaron Rodgers?

Short answer: Probably not.

Longer answer: The 49ers really need defensive end Nick Bosa, who suffered a concussion in the wild card round against the Dallas Cowboys, to be at full strength. That’s a lot to ask.

The Packers have Aaron Rodgers, one of the sport’s great quarterbacks, and he’s accustomed to playing in the frigid conditions of Lambeau Field in January. They have a strong offensive line to protect him, especially now that cornerstone tackle David Bakhtiari is back from a long-term injury.

The 49ers have a pretty good pass defense, but that’s more due to Bosa and company generating consistent pressure than the secondary keeping opposing receivers on lockdown. Bosa’s absence—or even limited effectiveness—would be a big problem, especially since the 49ers’s star linebacker Fred Warner is also hurt.

3. Do the Bucs have enough juice left on offense to beat the Rams?

Tom Brady’s defending champs have dealt with more attrition than any team left in the NFL playoffs. Wideout Chris Godwin was already out for the season when Antonio Brown quit the team and/or was cut right before the postseason began. Running back Leonard Fournette is on injured reserve, and backfield mate Ronald Jones II has also shown up on the injury report this week. The biggest worry for Tampa Bay: All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs hurt his ankle in the wild card round and may or may not play on Sunday.

For their part, the Rams have maybe the best cornerback in the NFL in Jalen Ramsey, and they could use him to neutralize just about any Bucs receiver (Mike Evans seems a likely target). The Rams also have some good coverage linebackers who could deal effectively with Rob Gronkowski. And the front still includes the best player in football, tackle Aaron Donald, plus good edge players like Von Miller and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo. Taken together, that’s a hell of a lot for the injury-plagued Buccaneers to manage.

4. Can Josh Allen repeat his performance from the wild card round?

The Bills quarterback is coming off quite possibly the best NFL playoffs performance a QB has ever posted. In a game against the New England Patriots last week, Allen completed 21 of 25 passes for 308 yards and five touchdowns, and the Bills scored a TD on every single drive except those that killed the clock at the end of the first and second halves—something no team had ever done. His 98.5 QBR (on a 100-point scale) means he played an almost perfect game.

But the Chiefs defense he’ll face at Arrowhead Stadium has been one of the best in the NFL over the back half of the season. Since Week 11, they’ve held some of the league’s better QBs (Dak Prescott, Derek Carr, and Justin Herbert) to some of the worst games of their careers while twice destroying Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger.

They did give up a bunch of yards and touchdowns to Burrow in Week 17, however, so maybe Allen can find some operating space. He’s likely to be important on the ground, as the Chiefs have had issues stopping quarterbacks as ball-carriers. (Just a few weeks ago, the Broncos QB Drew Lock, who’s not nearly the runner Allen is, had 23- and five-yard scoring runs against them.)

5. Can the Bills repeat their previous win against Patrick Mahomes?

Excellent as he is, Allen is not the best quarterback in the game. That title belongs to Kansas City’s Mahomes, who shook off some early-season problems and has been dominant since Week 14. He’s thrown for at least 8.6 yards per pass in all but one game since then (a mostly meaningless Week 17 win over the Broncos) and should be in a much better place than he was in Week 5, when the Bills beat him 38–20, held him to 5 yards per throw, and intercepted him twice.

Mahomes is a magician, and he has one of the league’s best offensive brain trusts in coordinator Eric Bieniemy and head coach Andy Reid. The Chiefs will have a sound plan for this NFL playoffs rematch, and it’ll be difficult for Buffalo to produce a repeat performance.

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December 9, 2021

2021 College Football Bowl Games: What to Watch This Year

Filed under: Fitness — Tags: , , — admin @ 9:18 pm

This year’s college football bowl games begin on Dec. 17 and continue for more than three weeks, culminating with the College Football Playoff National Championship in Indianapolis, IN on Jan. 10. There are some high-stakes title bouts nestled in there, most notably the Playoff games and four other “New Year’s Six” bowls that carry some prestige (the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl). But the rest of bowl season is fun because it’s quirky: Capable teams head to places like Mobile, AL, to play in games sponsored by mortgage companies you’ve never heard of. There’s a lot of great football to watch this time of year.

Taken together, the college football bowl season has more than 40 games, and it can be a lot to sift through. Below you’ll find a brief field guide to a handful of games worth tuning in for.

A Guide to College Football Bowl Games

The Playoff Bowl Games: Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl, Dec. 31

Cotton Bowl: No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Cincinnati

Orange Bowl: No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 3 Georgia

The winners of these two bowl games meet for the title 10 days later. Bama-Cincinnati is a historic matchup because the Bearcats are the first team from outside the Power Five conferences to ever get a Playoff slot. That says more about the selection committee’s bias than it does about the Bearcats’ talent, and now Cincy will get to carry the banner for undefeated teams before them that didn’t get a chance to prove themselves on the big stage. Bama will probably prevail, but you could talk me into believing that Cincinnati’s excellent defense gives the Bearcats some hope.

The other semifinal pits two of the angstiest fanbases in college football against each other, and the two teams’s seasons have been quite different. No matter what happens in this game, Michigan’s season will go down as a smashing success: The Wolverines finally slayed Ohio State and won the Big Ten under head coach Jim Harbaugh. Things are less rosy for Georgia. The Dawgs were the unbeaten No. 1 team heading into last weekend, but they got whacked by Alabama in the SEC Championship and appear to have a pretty serious QB problem. Coach Kirby Smart has his work cut out for him: Win two games in a row, or the most promising UGA season in a while will go down as an unfortunate failure.

The games take place on New Year’s Eve (the Cotton Bowl at 3:30 p.m. EST and the Orange Bowl at 7:30 p.m. EST), because Playoff organizers decided years ago that college football’s biggest games should conflict with all your end-of-year parties.

Best Aesthetics: Rose Bowl, Jan. 1

No. 6 Ohio State vs. No. 11 Utah

The Rose Bowl is the prettiest setting in college football—and maybe all of American sports. The sun hits the stadium perfectly by the third quarter or so, and the broadcast provides views of the San Gabriel Mountains that will make you want to move to Pasadena.

The game itself should be pretty attractive, too. Quarterback C.J. Stroud, receivers Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson, and tailback TreVeon Henderson will lead a very capable OSU offense against a stout Utah defense. The Utes are no slouches on offense, either: They have morphed into one of the better units in the country in the second half of this season, which raises the possibility that they could score a bunch against a deeply flawed Ohio State defense. Bottom line: Fun teams facing off in a beautiful stadium should make for a very entertaining game.

Best Clash of Football Styles: First Responder Bowl, Dec. 28

Air Force vs. Louisville

This game lacks the stark differences that might exist if an all-rushing service academy played an air raid team that mainly chucks the ball around the field, but it should still be a study in contrasts. Air Force will bring its version of the triple-option flexbone offense to North Texas for this game, and the Cardinals will take close to 100 percent of their snaps out of the shotgun and try to win with a mix of spread running and passing.

You might find it visually soothing to watch the action vacillate between Air Force’s repeated four-yard runs and Louisville’s attempts to use some of the Falcons’ same option principles out of the shotgun (and with more passing involved). These schools have never played football against each other, so there’s a certain novelty to them facing each other now.

Best for Offense: Music City Bowl, Dec. 30

Tennessee vs. Purdue

The Volunteers have one of the fastest-paced offenses in the country under first-year coach Josh Heupel. His offensive philosophy more or less boils down to “sprint to the line of scrimmage, snap the ball quickly, and throw it deep.” It’s great fun to watch.

On the other side, Jeff Brohm’s Boilermakers enjoy running the occasional gadget play, and wide receiver David Bell (who may opt out to prep for the NFL Draft, but we’ll see) is one of the best players in the sport at any position. Neither of the defenses in this game has been bad, and in Purdue’s case, the D has outperformed the offense for much of the year. But I still expect points, especially because Tennessee will make sure these teams squeeze lots of snaps into 60 minutes.

Best Weekday Game: Frisco Bowl, Dec. 21

UTSA vs. San Diego State

The Roadrunners went 12–1 and claimed the Conference USA Championship. The Aztecs don’t play much offense, but they have a great defense, including maybe the most powerful punter who has ever played American football. The game will air on ESPN at 7:30 (EST) on a Tuesday night right before Christmas—a time when many people are liable to forget college football is even being played. Don’t fall into that trap: This is some weeknight action worth making time for.

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November 19, 2021

Popa: Fallen Victory must ‘dream big’ SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 22: Tony Popovic the coach of the Glory yells instructions during the A-League Elimination Final match between the Wellington Phoenix and the Perth Glory at Bankwest Stadium on August 22, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

Filed under: Outdoors — Tags: — admin @ 1:53 am

Tony Popovic is excited about the challenge that awaits him at former A-League heavyweights Melbourne Victory.

Melbourne Victory coach Tony Popovic has urged his players to “dream big” as they take the first steps towards restoring the fallen giants to the A-League summit.

There is only one way for the Victory to go after last season’s disastrous last-placed finish.

But Popovic, brought to the club in the off-season to work his magic, refuses to put a timeframe on how long it will take the four-time champions to again reach the top or a ceiling on what the Victory can achieve.

“We have to be ambitious, we have to be confident, we have to dream big, but we also have to be realistic,” Popovic said ahead of the Victory’s first-round clash with Western United at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday night.

“With Melbourne Victory, there’s a certain expectation that comes with a big club.

“We’re all very well aware of what’s expected and what the standards are, and the great history of Melbourne Victory.

“(But) we’re going from bottom of the pile last season.

“We understand where we were last year but we’re not shying away from the challenge, and we’re also not putting any ceiling on where we can finish.

“At Melbourne Victory, you can’t put a pass mark of making the top six or improving on the table from last season as progress.

“I’m sure there will be clear progress with the club this season in terms of how we want to play but at Melbourne Victory or in particular with this group and everyone involved with the club right now, we don’t want to put any limits on what’s possible this season.”

The Victory is the third A-League club the former Western Sydney Wanderers and Perth Glory mentor Popovic has coached.

In that time, the 48-year-old former Socceroos defender has also coached in Turkey (Karabükspor) and Greece (Xanthi).

Both of those overseas coaching experiences ended too soon for Popovic’s liking, but he insists he has nothing to prove in his return to the A-League.

“I don’t know why I’d have something to prove,” he said.

“I’m not going to go into what happened over there (in Greece) – that’s done. I’ll let other people speak about that.

“I’m very happy being here. I’m at a big club. I’m looking forward to coaching here and the challenge ahead.”

That challenge is even more enthralling because it’s the Victory’s arch rivals Melbourne City who have become the A-League’s best and most feared team.

“You have to acknowledge they are the champions, and they are worthy champions,” Popovic said.

“They are the best team in the league … Melbourne City’s come to the fore.

“They’re up there now with Sydney FC, where they’re talked about on the same level.

“We want to bring Melbourne Victory into the conversation.

“We know there’s a lot of hard work to get there, but we’re all willing to put in the hard work to compete with the best teams.”

Read related topics:Melbourne

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November 18, 2021

‘I am a woman’: Female footballer accused of being a man fires back x x x x x x

Filed under: Outdoors — Tags: — admin @ 1:53 am

Iran women’s goalkeeper Zohreh Koudaei has hit out at reports the Jordan Football Association (JFA) accused her of being a man.

The goalkeeper for the Iran women’s soccer team has hit back after the Jordan Football Association (JFA) accused her of being a man.

Zohreh Koudaei, 32, defended herself when responding to the JFA’s request for a “gender verification check”.

“I will sue the Jordan FA,” Koudaei said, according to Turkish newspaper Hurriyet. “I am a woman. This is bullying from Jordan.”

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The allegation came after Iran beat Jordan in Uzbekistan on September 25, to qualify for its first ever Women’s Asia Cup. Koudaei saved two penalties in the 4-2 shootout victory.

A team manager for Iran denied the gender allegation and said the Jordanian team was looking for an “excuse” for losing the match.

After the game, the JFA reportedly approached the Asian Football Federation (AFC) about Koudaei’s gender.

In a letter dated November 5, the JFA cited doubts over the “eligibility of a participating player” and claimed the Iranian women’s team “has a history with gender and doping issues”.

The JFA requested for the AFC to “initiate a transparent and clear investigation by a panel of independent medical experts to investigate the eligibility of the player in question and others on the team”.

The President of the JFA, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, addressed the letter in a tweet on the weekend, calling the allegations “very serious issue if true”. He also called on the AFC to “please wake up”.

A spokesman for the AFC said, “The AFC does not comment on ongoing investigations and/or proceedings, whether actual or potential.”

Iran’s coach, Maryam Irandoost, told sports outlet Varzesh3: “The medical staff have carefully examined each player on the national team in terms of hormones to avoid any problems in this regard, and so I tell all fans not to worry.

“We will provide any documentation that the Asian Confederation of Football wishes without wasting time.”

The 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup will begin in January in India.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission

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November 13, 2021

Football star breaks silence over sick teammate attack arrest The attack has shocked French football. Photo: Getty Images and Instagram.

Filed under: Outdoors — Tags: — admin @ 1:24 am

The footballer arrested over an alleged plot to attack a teammate has spoken publicly for the first time to address a disturbing theory.

Paris Saint-Germain women’s footballer Aminata Diallo has denied any involvement in a street attack on her teammate Kheira Hamraoui, in her first public statement about an incident that has shaken one of the world’s biggest football clubs to its core.

Diallo, who was detained by police on Wednesday morning in connection with an attack on her teammate, was released in the afternoon without being charged, Versailles prosecutor Maryvonne Caillibotte told AFP.

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Diallo was driving fellow midfielder Hamraoui home last week near Paris after dinner when her car was stopped by two masked men.

They dragged Hamraoui out and beat her with a metal bar on her legs, meaning she was unable to play this week in PSG’s Champions League clash with Real Madrid.

Diallo was detained by police at her home on Wednesday and held for nearly 35 hours before being released without charge, with investigators looking into whether on-field rivalry might explain the violence.

Diallo “hopes that judicial authorities conclude their investigation quickly and is sure that this will end up showing her complete and total innocence,” a statement issued by her lawyer said on Friday.

The statement denounced a “totally artificial suggestion of a rivalry between her and Mme Kheira Hamraoui that would explain why she would target her teammate. This theory does not reflect at all the reality of their relationship.”

French media reported that Hamraoui had raised the alarm about Diallo when she filed a police complaint about the attack, highlighting the unusual route taken by her teammate and the slow speed of their vehicle when the attackers sprang out.

A man already in jail over a separate assault case in the southeastern city of Lyon — a friend of Diallo’s — was also arrested as part of the investigation before he too was released without charge on Thursday evening.

Diallo criticised the “media speculation which has already condemned her, without justification, and she will not hesitate to launch legal action if necessary against any defamation”.

“Other far more serious theories are now being explored by investigators that do not involve my client,” the statement from lawyer Mourad Battikh said.

Her detention overnight at a police station in Versailles outside Paris was also unnecessary “given that she could have made a statement without being subjected to constraint,” he said.

Given the manner of the attack on Hamraoui and the arrest of Diallo, commentators had recalled a notorious assault on American ice skater Nancy Kerrigan in the run-up to the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics.

Her rival Tonya Harding was banned for life after her ex-husband and bodyguard hired a hitman to club Kerrigan in the leg.

Diallo, 26, and Hamraoui, 31, were described by club sources as friends who even holidayed together, despite their competition for the central midfield berth in the PSG team.

Hamraoui, a capped French international like Diallo, returned to the French club in the summer from Barcelona where she won the Champions League last year.

Unable to play in Tuesday night’s clash with Real Madrid after her assault, she was replaced in the team by Diallo who played most of the match before being substituted in the 89th minute.

Neither player attended the team’s training session on Saturday, the club said. PSG, who have invested heavily in their women’s team, asked for the table-topping clash with Lyon on Sunday to be postponed but the French football federation turned down the request.

French football has also been rocked in recent years by allegations that star attacker Karim Benzema took part in an attempt to blackmail national teammate Mathieu Valbuena with a sex tape.

Benzema, who went on trial last month, denies the allegations. A verdict is expected on November 24.

— with AFP

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October 25, 2021

College Football Week 8: Pitt Might Actually Be It

Filed under: Fitness — Tags: , — admin @ 8:24 pm

The college football season is now just about two-thirds finished, as dozens of teams have played eight of their 12 regular season games and the rest will get there over the next week or two. No matter how bleak the schedule looks for any given week—and Week 8’s had virtually nothing in the way of blockbuster matchups—every week finds a way to provide some form of unique drama, and this one was no different.

It featured the longest string of overtimes in the sport’s history, one team in Pennsylvania rising to heights it hasn’t reached in a generation, another losing the aforementioned overtime game, and Ohio State continuing to look like perhaps the sport’s most well-oiled machine. Here are three teams that emerged from the fray looking pretty and three that did not.

Winner: Pitt

The Panthers almost always occupy a space in college football’s middle class. They’re rarely bad and have qualified a bowl game every year but one since 2008 (though they opted not to play in one in 2020). They churn out plenty of NFL talent, including the best player in the world right now, Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald. But they haven’t finished a season ranked in the AP Poll since 2009, and their best moments have tended to be upsets of other teams that were en route to special seasons when Pitt derailed them.

Maybe that’s changing in 2021. The Panthers took an embarrassing home loss to Western Michigan in Week 3, but otherwise, they’ve been rock solid. They passed a major test by beating Clemson at home on Saturday, 27-17, putting the ACC Coastal in a chokehold. Clemson’s offense has been out of sorts all year, but the defense remains elite, and ascendant Pitt QB Kenny Pickett had a nice afternoon with both his arm (302 yards) and legs (a couple of key first downs to close out the game) en route to the win. Pitt is on a collision course with Wake Forest for the ACC Championship (more on the Deacs shortly) in December.

Loser: Penn State

Pennsylvania’s other Power Five team had a horrible, no-good, very bad afternoon at home against Illinois. The Nittany Lions lost to Big Ten bottomfeeder Illinois in a record-setting nine overtimes, the most ever played in a Division I game. That record comes with an asterisk, as the NCAA instituted a rule this year that makes overtime periods into a two-point-conversion shootout from the three-yard line if a game isn’t settled after two standard overtimes from the 25. But the asterisk should not obscure how painstaking it was to watch PSU and the Illini trade scoreless attempts near the goal line, until Illini QB Brandon Peters finally broke through.

Winner: Ohio State (or, at least, Ohio State fans)

Ohio State fans, despite having a team that’s pretty much always one of the four or five best in the country, are always stressed about something. The Buckeye fans in my life were in mild shambles when their team lost to Oregon in Week 2 and seemed destined for a subpar year. Things have drastically turned since then, as Ohio State has won its last five games by a combined score of 272-71. The latest was a 54-7 thrashing of Indiana on Saturday in Bloomington, which was even more lopsided than the score indicated. The margin was 44-7 at halftime, after which point Ohio State let up on the gas considerably. The Buckeyes scored 42 points on 38 offensive plays in that half and added a safety on defense for good measure.

Loser: Oklahoma State

One of the sport’s other OSUs had a tougher Saturday. The Cowboys lost their first game of the year at Iowa State, 24-21. They’re listed as a loser here not because they played poorly or there’s any shame in losing on the road to the Cyclones, who make a habit of beating up on good Pokes teams in Ames, but because they were very much on the short end of an iffy fourth-down spot that likely cost them the game. Had they gotten better ball placement on their final drive, even by another six inches, they would’ve had a solid chance to at least force overtime and perhaps win in regulation. College football is a tough business.

Winner: Surprise unbeatens not named Oklahoma State

UTSA, Wake Forest, San Diego State, and SMU are all fine programs. But UTSA is a startup that only started playing football a decade ago; Wake is usually mediocre or worse in the ACC (or at least was, before head coach Dave Clawson arrived in 2014); San Diego State is generally more good than great; and SMU has not been near the top of the sport since the late ‘80s; when things ended in an episode you might have watched a documentary about.

Yet this year, those four teams are a combined 29-0. All won on Saturday, and usually convincingly. SDSU only beat Air Force by six points, but the winning margins for UTSA, Wake, and SMU were 29, 14, and 29, respectively. Wake beat Army 70-56, as both teams individually hit the full-game total of 56 points that Las Vegas bookmakers had laid out.

Loser: Gary Patterson

Patterson’s TCU lost at home, 29-17, to what had been a 2-4 West Virginia team. The head Frog has had a rough year, as his team has played some of the worst defense of his decorated tenure in Fort Worth. Too often, TCU hasn’t been able to make up for it on offense.

Losing at home to WVU will be a low point, and it comes just four days after Patterson got publicly furious at a blog post that argued for TCU to fire him. Patterson has done a lot for TCU, piling up wins for more than two decades while stewarding the football program from the WAC to Conference USA to the Mountain West to the Big 12. But his team is bad, and he doesn’t look equipped to make it good again. I don’t think the ending here will be happy.

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