Ryan Reynolds has praised Wrexham’s “heart” after the club’s impressive rise continued with a determined 1-0 win over Charlton Athletic. Josh Windass’ penalty extended the Red Dragons’ unbeaten run to five matches and lifted them to 13th in the Championship, just four points off the play-off spots, capping off a strong turnaround that has left the Hollywood co-owner beaming with pride.
Reynolds praises Wrexham as they extend unbeaten run
Wrexham continued their impressive surge up the Championship table with a 1-0 victory over Charlton Athletic, further cementing their place as one of the division’s most inspiring stories. The decisive moment came in the 77th minute when substitute Onel Hernandez was penalised for handball, allowing Josh Windass to calmly convert from the penalty spot for his fifth goal of the season. The goal was enough to secure Wrexham’s third consecutive home win and fifth match unbeaten in the league.
The result carried even more significance given the quick turnaround from a midweek fixture against Portsmouth, where Wrexham had ground out a gritty draw. Despite the fatigue, Phil Parkinson’s side maintained their energy and resilience, keeping Charlton’s attacking threats largely quiet. It was another display of maturity from a squad that had once looked out of its depth early in the campaign but now appears to be growing stronger with each passing week.
The atmosphere inside the Racecourse Ground was electric once again, with fans fully embracing their side’s newfound confidence. The energy in the stands, mirrored by the team’s intensity on the pitch, reflected a club that has rediscovered its belief at home. The full-time whistle was met with jubilant scenes, while Ryan Reynolds’ short Instagram post — “This Town. This heart. Forever.” — summed up the pride that has defined Wrexham’s remarkable rise.
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'Intensity' key to Wrexham's return to form in the Championship
Wrexham’s resurgence has come at a good time. From a nervy start to life back in the Championship — their first appearance in the second tier since 1982 — to now sitting four points off the play-offs, the Red Dragons’ transformation has been a testament to patience, structure, and spirit. The early-season growing pains, marked by defensive errors and narrow defeats, have given way to a side that plays with organisation, confidence, and self-belief.
As Parkinson put it, the “intensity” has returned — a feeling long associated with Wrexham’s ascent through the divisions. The Wrexham boss said: "I think the atmosphere now and the feeling in the stadium is what we've been used to. Those early games, we didn't quite create that intensity in our play. We had some really good periods in all those games but we got punished in key moments.
"The Oxford game, I thought the support was great. Coventry was special and today, what an atmosphere. We've always spoke about making this place difficult for the opposition to play and I think we've got it where we need it to be, and we've got to keep it there. That comes with the supporters obviously playing their part like they've done so well today, but also the manner of the performance, the physicality.
"I think Issa Kabore kind of typifies that really in his fighting spirit and the defenders winning headers when they needed to and playing with that physicality, and teams know if they come to Wrexham, they're in for a tough afternoon."
Wrexham's remarkable story from non-league to Championship
Wrexham’s return to the Championship marks one of football’s most remarkable modern success stories — a story written not only through investment but through culture. Since Reynolds and Rob Mac took ownership in 2021, the club has undergone a complete transformation, combining Hollywood ambition with genuine community spirit. What began as a bold experiment has evolved into a model of sustainable growth, media influence, and sporting ambition.
The documentary Welcome to Wrexham introduced the club to global audiences, but it’s their on-field progress that continues to astound. Three consecutive promotions — from the National League to the Championship — were achieved through smart recruitment, shrewd management, and the unwavering backing of the fanbase.
Financial investment from the owners has undoubtedly been key, with improved training facilities, global sponsorships, and Racecourse Ground redevelopment projects all elevating the club’s infrastructure. Yet, beyond the money, Reynolds and Mac’s genuine emotional connection to Wrexham remains the defining factor.
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Wrexham will look to maintain form after the break
Wrexham enter the international break sitting comfortably in 13th place. Phil Parkinson will use the next fortnight to rest key players and prepare for a challenging run of fixtures, beginning with a trip to Ipswich Town on November 22. Maintaining this momentum could turn a season of survival into one of genuine promotion contention.
For Reynolds and Mac, the latest chapter in Wrexham’s journey is further vindication of their long-term vision. The club’s trajectory continues to defy expectation, with performances on the pitch matching the ambition off it.
Paul Merson slammed a Chelsea star after the bitterly disappointing 2-1 defeat against Sunderland in the Premier League on Saturday.
Blues suffer setback against newly-promoted Sunderland
Sunderland have surpassed expectations so far this season, but the Blues would’ve been expecting to take all three points against a newly-promoted side, and the 2-1 defeat is a setback, especially after winning their previous four games on the bounce in all competitions.
Alejandro Garnacho opened the scoring for Enzo Maresca’s side after just four minutes, with the winger netting his first goal since arriving at Stamford Bridge, but Wilson Isidor’s equaliser and a stoppage-time winner from Chemsdine Talbi turned the game on its head.
A number of the home side’s players struggled, with Marc Guiu failing to make any impact on the match, and there have since been calls for Maresca to drop the striker, who touched the ball just ten times prior to being withdrawn on the 75-minute mark.
Guiu was given the nod at centre-forward, in order to accommodate Joao Pedro in an attacking midfield role, despite the Brazilian starting almost exclusively at striker so far this season.
Maresca would’ve been hoping the position change would allow the 24-year-old to rediscover his top form, but it wasn’t to be, with Merson left very unimpressed by his performance.
Speaking on Sky Sports (via Metro), the former Arsenal man said: “They need Delap back badly, they need a focal point.
“Guiu played up front and I think he touched the ball nine, ten times. You can’t do that in a team that are supposed to be dominating the ball.
“Chelsea ran out of ideas. They had winger after winger but half of them don’t go past anyone. Joao Pedro looked lost as a number ten. They struggled and were pretty poor.”
Injury may have impacted Pedro's performance
The Blues have been forced to deal with a number of injury issues in the early stages of the campaign, and Maresca revealed the former Brighton & Hove Albion man is one of many players not at full fitness.
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The Italian said: “Joao is not training every day because he is managing an injury problem. Moi is the same, Enzo is the same,
“We have four or five players that have some problems and cannot work every day. They try to make the effort and play the game. Joao struggled a little bit today but all of the players did today, so it’s not just Joao.”
That said, there will rightfully be concerns about the display, with the forward losing possession nine times and failing to get a single shot away throughout the match.
Pedro’s performance levels have been going downhill for some time now, having failed to register a Premier League goal or assist since September, and Maresca will be hoping the £125k-a-week forward can turn the corner soon.
Years from now, as the greatest comeback team in the history of World Series clinchers gathers for reunions, no one will have to lie, exaggerate or stretch the facts like taffy. The truth is wildly entertaining enough.
The Los Angeles Dodgers really did come from five runs down against a Cy Young Award winner working on a no-hitter. Freddie Freeman really did go all Kirk Gibson on one good leg. Shohei Ohtani did play with one good arm while keeping the other in an invisible sling. And Dave Roberts really did make critical strategic decisions once by feeling a man’s heartbeat and once by letting his first baseman make the call with a hand signal.
But when the 2024 Dodgers talk about how they won the World Series, especially with a 7–6 win in absolute lollapalooza of a Game 5 Wednesday, they must begin with the story of the team bus that afternoon. Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler strutted onto that bus as it departed for Yankee Stadium and told Andrew Friedman, the team’s president of baseball operations, and Brandon Gomes, the general manager, “Hey, if things get wonky tonight, I’m good to go.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. That’s great,” Friedman said with an eye roll.
“No, seriously,” Buehler said.
Friedman was thinking to himself,
Buehler had one day of rest after throwing 76 pitches in a Game 3 start, this in his first season back after missing almost two years after undergoing a second Tommy John surgery. He is a free-agent-to-be. In other words, he is the last guy anyone should expect to be cranking his arm voluntarily with such little rest. (His mound counterpart from Game 3, Clarke Schmidt, spent Game 5 in the New York Yankees dugout in sneakers.)
“Well,” Buehler continued, “but what if things get wonky?”
By the sixth inning, the Dodgers had scored five of the zaniest unearned runs the World Series has ever seen and Roberts, the Dodgers manager, had already called on all six of his high-leverage relief pitchers—with nine outs still to go.
At that point Buehler walked into the Dodgers clubhouse and found Friedman, who had been on a telephone trying to find a flight that night to Los Angeles with a lay-flat seat for Game 6 starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, given the likelihood of a Yankees win that would force the series back to Dodger Stadium.
“Um, is this the definition of wonky?” Buehler asked.
Yes. Most definitely yes.
Vincent van Gogh had the south of France. Georgia O’Keeffe had New Mexico. Ernest Hemingway had Spain. The 2024 Dodgers will always have World Series Game 5. Their last game was their signature game, not only because it clinched their second championship in five seasons, but also because it defined their trademark feistiness. When everything went wonky, including a 5–0 deficit to Gerrit Cole and a bullpen quickly running out of pitchers, the Dodgers were at their best.
“In years past we would have lost this game,” Roberts said. “We lost in 2017 in [World Series] Game 7. We were down 4–0 in the second inning. Look what they did now. I’m proud, especially of the little things this team did.”
Friedman has talked about building a “golden era” of Dodgers baseball. Don’t look now, but we are smack in the middle of it already. Over the past 12 years the Dodgers have posted a .613 winning percentage and won two World Series. No other franchise has played that well and won multiple titles over a dozen years.
This Dodgers team, Roberts admitted, trafficked in feistiness unlike the others he has managed. Buehler with a twice-repaired elbow volunteering to walk into the teeth of wonkiness defines that grit. But to find the real beginning of the bus ride story you must go back to Sept. 15 in Atlanta. The Dodgers had lost the first two of four games against the Atlanta Braves. They were 5–7 in their past 12 games. The Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres were making a run at them. The Dodgers had just found out that pitcher Tyler Glasnow was out for the year. Roberts, who generally disdains team meetings, called a meeting.
“The message basically was, I can’t believe more in them than they believe in themselves,” Roberts said.
Then he remembered the cardinal rule of team meetings: always check that day’s starting pitcher before you call a team meeting. The Dodgers’ starter that day was Buehler, who had a 5.95 ERA in 13 starts and was so bad coming back from his Tommy John surgery the Dodgers began to think he might not make their postseason roster.
So Roberts doubled down. He held a private meeting with Buehler.
“Hey, man,” Roberts told Buehler, “I need you to go on a heater. And it has to start now.”
“That’s about the extent of what he said,” Buehler said. “And I did.”
Buehler takes in the scene after recording the final out of the Series. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Buehler threw six innings that night and gave up one earned run. In his last seven games he would finish with a 3.45 ERA while finding the swing-and-miss magic on his four-seam fastball. The Dodgers won 9–2 that night. They won the next night, too. They finished the year 22–7 after that meeting.
“This team,” Roberts said, “learned what it takes to fight. It wasn’t always the Dodgers’ reputation. But we learned to be street fighters. It’s been the Padres’ M.O. Their reputation is like the UFC. We started playing like that, like brawlers in a street fight. It’s one of the things I’m most proud of about this team.”
The Padres pushed the Dodgers to the brink of elimination in the National League division series. One more loss would have sent Los Angeles to a fourth straight postseason series loss. The Dodgers responded by winning 8–0 and 2–0 and posting 33 consecutive scoreless innings.
“This group definitely had a special thing about them,” Friedman said. “Obviously, it's easy to say it sitting here drinking champagne winning the World Series. But it was very palpable when we were down 2–1 in San Diego. It was, . And there was an edge to the guys calling each other out in good, healthy, productive ways. It was all about making sure that we won the next two games. And it was different.”
Roberts is the renewable energy source of that fight.
“He is relentlessly optimistic,” Friedman said. “Obviously, we went through a lot this year, and a lot of adversity, and his ability during some of our more difficult times to breathe optimism into the group and remind them to look around and see just how talented the guys are that are around them, I think was very significant.”
Privately, the Dodgers liked the World Series matchup against the Yankees. They knew New York cut corners when it came to the finer points of the game. The Yankees did not defend well. Their baserunning was lackluster; the Dodgers scouts wrote up reports about a consistent lack of strong primary leads and fundamental secondary leads. Limit the Yankees’ home runs, the Dodgers knew, and you could out-execute them.
The difference between the two clubs showed at the start. Before Freeman launched the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history to win Game 1, the Yankees facilitated Dodger rallies with stumbling play. Outfielders Alex Verdugo and Juan Soto allowed extra bases by taking poor routes to balls. Second baseman Gleyber Torres carelessly kicked a throw by playing it off the side. A pattern emerged: If the games remained close, the Dodgers would win on a huge edge in fundamentals.
APSTEIN: Yankees’ Obvious Flaws Surface in Ugly Fashion to End World Series
Freeman homered again in Games 2, 3 and 4, becoming the first player to homer in four straight games to open a series. Roberts punted Game 4, a bullpen game and a 11–4 defeat, by using two rookies, Ben Casparius and Landon Knack, and injury-plagued veterans Daniel Hudson and Brent Honeywell. The plan only made sense if he won Game 5. Nobody expected it would happen in such an outrageous manner.
After Buehler told Friedman and Gomes he was good to go out of the pen in Game 5, Gomes relayed the news to Roberts, who was already at Yankee Stadium.
“Tell him no thanks,” Roberts replied in a text.
When Buehler arrived at the ballpark, Roberts told him, “Dude, we're not going to use you in a f—ing Game 5.”
Roberts, front left, guided the Dodgers to their second World Series title in five years. / Wendell Cruz-MLB
That was before wonkiness ensued. Cole and the Yankees led 5–0 in the fifth when Enrique Hernandez lined a fastball for a single, the Dodgers’ first hit. Tommy Edman then hit a routine, weakly hit liner toward Aaron Judge in center field. As Judge put his glove in front of his face to catch it, he averted his eyes toward Hernandez. Why he checked the runner is a mystery. There was no possible advancement. By taking his eye off the ball, Judge dropped it.
Judge is a competent center fielder, and in the previous inning had made a leaping, acrobatic catch at the wall. But at 6' 7", 282 pounds, he should not be playing as much center field as the Yankees ask of him.
The next batter, Will Smith, rolled a grounder to the right of shortstop Anthony Volpe. Hernandez, in serpentine style, smartly skewed his route to disrupt the sightline of Volpe toward third base, where a force play was in order. A distracted Volpe spiked his throw to third baseman Jazz Chisholm. When Cole struck out Gavin Lux, the inning should have been over. But the errors by Judge and Volpe forced Cole to continue to labor.
Cole did strike out the clearly compromised Ohtani, who went 1-for-12 after suffering a subluxation of his shoulder in Game 2. Cole was huffing and puffing, pawing at the dirt with his spikes and trying to find any kind of breaks by often asking for a new baseball. Suspects in dimly lit interrogation rooms look more comfortable than Cole as this inning of endless would-be outs continued.
Mookie Betts tapped a weakly hit grounder toward first base that looked like yet another easy out. But Cole, withered by the length of the inning and the Yankees’ squandering of outs, made no effort to cover first base. Anthony Rizzo, the first baseman, had no one to throw to after catching the spinning baseball. Cole, plain and simple, suffered from a form of battle fatigue that caused a huge mental lapse. A run scored.
“[With] all that he went through in that inning,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said, “he was kind of spent and kind of almost working his way out of it. He just didn't react quick enough to get over.”
Freeman slashed a two-run single. Teoscar Hernandez blasted a two-run double. The game was tied as Cole, as if sinking in quicksand, labored through 38 pitches over about 20 minutes on the mound. The Yankees gave Los Angeles three extra outs in that inning alone.
New York recovered, however, with a run in the sixth to take a 6–5 lead. In the seventh, Roberts felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Buehler.
“I'll be in the pen if you need me,” the pitcher told Roberts.
“And he had his game face on,” Roberts said. “So, I was like, ‘Oh f–.’ And then you're looking at counting outs and who we got available. And it was a little bit of that Clayton Kershaw [NLDS] Game 5 in D.C. And I guarantee that was on his mind, right?”
“Hey, Walker is going to the pen,” Roberts told pitching coach Mark Prior.
A few minutes later Prior called Buehler on the bullpen phone.
“How do you feel? Did you throw today?” Prior asked.
“Yeah,” Buehler said. “I feel good.”
“I lied,” Buehler said. “I hadn’t thrown yet.”
Only two days earlier Buehler had thrown 76 pitches to shut out the Yankees over five innings. That game alone was a testament to his willpower. The night before his start he canceled a dinner with family and friends because he was feeling awful with flu-like symptoms.
“He was like, ‘I’m staying in bed,’” said his father, Tony. “He was sick as a dog.”
By the seventh inning of Game 5, Roberts knew he might need to take up Buehler on his offer to pitch. He brought in Blake Treinen, his last available high-leverage reliever, in the sixth and pushed him back out for the seventh and eighth.
The Dodgers scored two in the eighth to take a 7–6 lead, thanks to more ugly baseball by New York. Reliever Tommy Kahnle retired none of three batters he faced: two singles and a four-pitch walk. Gavin Lux tied the game with a sacrifice fly off Luke Weaver and Betts put Los Angeles ahead with another sacrifice fly.
The Dodgers needed six outs for the title, but Roberts had no known path to get there. Predictably, Treinen wobbled from fatigue. The Yankees put runners at first and second in the eighth with one out and Giancarlo Stanton coming up. Roberts bounded from the dugout to check on his pitcher.
Roberts put his hand on Treinen’s chest.
“I wanted to feel his heart,” Roberts said. “I wanted to look in his eyes and see. And I wanted him to tell me he had more in the tank.”
“Hey, dude, how are you feeling?” he asked Treinen.
“I got you,” Treinen replied. “I want him.”
Treinen recorded seven invaluable outs to earn the win in the Dodgers’ World Series clincher. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Roberts returned to the dugout. On the next pitch, Treinen retired Stanton on a pop-up. Two outs. Rizzo was due next. Roberts stood up and began to lurch toward the mound. He had a weary Daniel Hudson ready to face Rizzo.
Suddenly, Roberts looked across the field and Freeman, his first baseman, was staring right at him. Freeman was slowly pushing both hands toward the ground, the universal symbol indicating “stand down.”
“He’s like, ‘Let him go,’” Roberts said. “And I go, .”
Treinen somehow had enough left in his tank to strike out Rizzo. Roberts sent word to the bullpen that Buehler had the ninth. Friedman saw him warming up.
“This is crazy,” Friedman said aloud. “It is wonky. But Walker is such a competitor that it's not shocking to see.
“I think a lot is going to be written about what Blake did. But it won't do it justice. Those guys are free agents, Blake and Walker. For them to do what they did, the way they put their teammates up on a pedestal, the way they competed and laid it all out there for their teammates, for the fans in Los Angeles, for Dodger Nation, I just don't think enough is going to be written and said about it.”
Buehler pitched a 1-2-3 ninth.
“I actually felt really good out there,” he said. “I was pretty surprised. I didn't do so much with my elbow. As weird as it sounds, it's gotten more black and white after every surgery. You know, he can do it, or he can't.”
The ball did not leave the infield. Ten of his 16 pitches were curveballs, including the last one, a swinging strike three from Verdugo.
“This is the only reason I play, for games like this,” Buehler said. “The whole year—the offseason, spring training, the regular season—it doesn’t matter. Well, it matters, but not like these games. To win championships is why I play. It’s the best feeling in the world. I live for this.”
Buehler has allowed only one run in 19 World Series innings. Only Madison Bumgarner (0.25) and Jack Billingham (0.36) have a lower World Series ERA than Buehler (0.47) among the 177 pitchers with at least 19 innings in the Fall Classic.
As soon as Buehler fanned Verdugo, the righthander turned to his dugout on the third base side and threw his hands out to the side and let his face remain calm as the joy and bedlam erupted around him. He had the pose of .
Later, in the clubhouse, Buehler was asked if this was his best day in baseball.
“Yeah, I think so,” he replied. “Two days ago was pretty fun, too.”
Hernandez then grabbed him around the neck and shouted at Buehler, “Everybody is going to watch this highlight. You're going to be on the mound getting the last out of the World Series for the rest of your f—ing life.
“For the rest of your life you're going to be the guy who got the last out of the World Series. On the mound on one day rest! Who the f— else, huh? Walker, thank you, man.”
Paul Pogba’s long-awaited Monaco debut has been delayed yet again after the midfielder picked up an ankle injury in training just 24 hours before his expected return. The 32-year-old, who last played competitively over two years ago, is now set to miss this weekend’s Ligue 1 clash against Paris FC, with his first appearance for the club pushed back beyond the November international break.
Paul Pogba's return to action delayed again
Just as anticipation built around Pogba’s long-awaited return to competitive football, the Monaco star has suffered another unfortunate setback. The 32-year-old picked up an ankle injury during Thursday’s training session, ruling him out of Saturday’s Ligue 1 fixture against Paris FC. Monaco boss Sebastien Pocognoli had raised hopes earlier in the week by suggesting Pogba could finally be named in the matchday squad, potentially ending his 26-month absence from professional football.
Pogba last played for Juventus in September 2023 before being handed a doping suspension that initially ran for four years but was later reduced to 18 months. He had spent the last three months on a rigorous fitness programme following his June arrival at Monaco, working to rebuild both physical strength and sharpness after a long layoff. His debut was already delayed once due to a minor knock before the Angers match, and this latest ankle issue now prolongs his wait for a first appearance in Ligue 1.
Monaco confirmed that they are awaiting confirmation of the injury’s severity but remain hopeful that Pogba will only be sidelined for a further two weeks. “We are awaiting confirmation of the severity, but it’s hoped he’ll only miss two weeks,” Pocognoli told reporters. “We’re all disappointed,” he added, explaining that the team now hopes to have the Frenchman fit in time for their home clash with Rennes on November 22.
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What the Monaco move means for Pogba…
Pogba’s repeated setbacks have cast a shadow over what was supposed to be a redemptive new chapter in his career. After signing a two-year deal with Monaco as a free agent in June, the move was seen as both a fresh start and a statement of intent; a chance for one of France’s most gifted midfielders to reclaim his place in the footballing elite. However, since his arrival, the World Cup winner has been restricted to gym work, recovery sessions, and individual training routines, with fans still waiting to see him in Monaco colours.
At 32, Pogba is no longer the explosive presence he once was at Manchester United or Juventus, and his transition back to top-flight football has required patience and careful management. Monaco’s coaching staff have publicly backed his rehabilitation process, with Pocognoli and his medical team determined not to rush him back prematurely and risk further injury setbacks.
Pogba's footballing journey: A mix of high highs and low lows
Pogba’s footballing journey has been one of the most eventful of his generation. A product of Manchester United’s academy, he first burst onto the scene with Juventus, winning four consecutive Serie A titles before returning to Old Trafford in 2016 for a then-world record £89 million fee. Across his two spells with United, he made over 150 appearances, winning the Europa League and Carabao Cup while establishing himself as one of France’s most technically gifted midfielders.
His international career reached its pinnacle in 2018 when he played a pivotal role in France’s World Cup triumph, scoring in the final against Croatia. Yet injuries and inconsistency began to plague his club form in subsequent years. The doping suspension handed down in 2023 proved to be the lowest point of his career.
Joining Monaco represented a chance to rebuild. The emotional scenes that accompanied his signing, Pogba was seen breaking down in tears as he put pen to paper, capturing how much the return meant to him personally. His stated goal has been to “rediscover happiness through football” and, eventually, earn a recall to Didier Deschamps’ France squad ahead of the 2026 World Cup. For now, though, his dream remains on hold, with recovery once again his main focus.
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Pogba's debut could now come after the November international break
Pogba’s immediate objective will be to recover in time for Monaco’s November 22 clash against Rennes, which now stands as the new target for his long-awaited debut. The club’s medical team is monitoring his ankle closely, and while the injury is not thought to be serious, Monaco are taking a cautious approach given his recent history. If all goes to plan, the Rennes fixture could mark his first appearance in professional football in more than two years.
Until then, Monaco’s focus will remain on maintaining form in Ligue 1 as they juggle a busy schedule without their marquee summer signing. Pocognoli’s men face Paris FC this weekend and Reims shortly after, fixtures that could prove decisive in maintaining their early-season momentum. The team will continue to rely on the likes of Mohamed Camara and Eliot Matazo to anchor the midfield while Pogba completes his recovery programme.
Jamie Carragher has sent Liverpool manager Arne Slot a warning about the “dangerous” game he is playing tweaking the Reds’ system following back-to-back defeats against Crystal Palace and Galatasaray.
Slot admits Liverpool must "find answers" to form
After spending around £400m in the summer, many expected Liverpool to look better than ever under Slot, who switched his system to work new signings into his side. So far, however, they’ve looked at their most vulnerable and, Hugo Ekitike aside, it’s fair to say that a lot of their fresh faces are yet to get going.
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Last weekend’s defeat against Crystal Palace looked on the cards since Liverpool’s 4-2 victory over Bournemouth on the opening day and a second-consecutive defeat against Galatasaray didn’t do anything to ease concerns. Now, Slot has admitted that his side must “find answers” after recent results.
One of the most disappointing aspects about Liverpool this season has been the form of Florian Wirtz. The £116m midfielder has looked a shadow of the midfield star that the Reds signed from Bayer Leverkusen and hasn’t been involved in a goal since the Community Shield.
Carragher wasted no time before taking aim at the German in midweek and the Liverpool legend has now doubled down on his criticism whilst firing Slot a “dangerous” warning.
Carragher sends Slot warning
Writing in his column for The Telegraph, Carragher warned Slot of the “dangerous” nature of persisting with a faltering system. He believes Slot’s plan was to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold’s creativity with Wirtz, and the manager now has a choice to stick with it – possibly with disastrous consequeneces – or pull the plug until the team has settled back to form without the German.
Carragher wrote: “He (Wirtz) is yet to add what Liverpool are missing without Alexander-Arnold, while at the same time the team has lost the intensity which made them so difficult to play against.
“It means Slot has a dilemma as he tries to defend the title going through a transitional phase that might take longer than many thought. He must decide whether to regroup and temporarily revert to the strategy of last season, accommodating Wirtz in a different role or leaving him out entirely until he is up to speed with English football.
“Or he might persist with his vision believing more short-term pain might be necessary until it clicks. The latter would be dangerous because even with all the credit in the bank from his title win, there is immense pressure to keep winning, especially when you have spent a combined £230m on two players who are supposed to be ready-made to take a championship-winning side to the next level.”
German football legend Lothar Matthaus believes 17-year-old Lennart Karl could be the next Jamal Musiala, a fearless and technically gifted prodigy destined for Bayern Munich stardom under Vincent Kompany. After scoring on his Champions League debut and in the Bundesliga against Borussia Monchengladbach in the same week, Karl has captured Germany’s attention, with Matthaus seeing in him the same blend of boldness and intelligence that made Musiala a modern Bayern jewel.
The rise of Bayern's new teen sensation
When Karl marked his Champions League debut with a curling strike against Club Brugge, the Allianz Arena erupted. At 17, he became Bayern’s youngest-ever scorer in the competition, breaking a record once set by Musiala. But beyond the goal, it was his composure, creativity, and quiet confidence that truly turned heads.
Bayern’s 4-0 win over Brugge was emphatic, but Karl’s performance was the story. From his first touch to his explosive runs, he looked every inch a Bayern player – technical, decisive, and unafraid. His journey, however, has been anything but instant. Karl began in Germany’s fifth tier with Viktoria Aschaffenburg, before stints at Eintracht Frankfurt’s youth system and a return to Viktoria in 2022. Bayern signed him later that year, drawn to his intelligence and discipline. From scoring 17 goals in nine matches for Bayern’s U17 side to dazzling in Europe, his rise is a story of persistence and purpose, not hype.
It’s no surprise that his performances have impressed former German captain Matthaus. The World Cup-winning legend has spoken glowingly about the young winger, setting the stage for wider recognition of Karl’s rapid rise in the Bundesliga.
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Matthaus claims “Karl will be deployed regularly”
Among those watching Karl’s evolution closely is German football legend Matthaus, who has hailed the teenager as one of the Bundesliga’s most exciting young prospects. In his column, Matthaus drew parallels between Karl and his teammate Musiala, praising both for their confidence and technical flair.
"Can Karl follow the path Jamal Musiala took before him? The possibilities are always there; it's up to the player himself, and he needs a coach who trusts him. I think Kompany trusts him based on his recent performances and isn't worried about benching or substituting a seasoned player for him. And I believe Karl will get regular playing time because he's delivered when he's been on the pitch," Matthaus said.
The former Bayern player further added: "Karl will be deployed regularly. Vincent Kompany has slowly introduced Karl to the team, with brief appearances in the Bundesliga, the DFB Cup, and last week, his first full 90 minutes in the Champions League. Karl caused a sensation with his goals against Bruges and Gladbach, but he still needs to show up in training every day. He's ambitious and wants to develop – those are the basic requirements."
For Matthaus, the 17-year-old's rise reflects deeper philosophy, as he explains: "This presents a great opportunity for FC Bayern to integrate another player from the campus into the first team, after Pavlovic and Stanisic, as Uli Hoeneß has always wanted. I believe Karl can become an important player for Kompany, who just extended his contract until 2029."
Jonas Urbig also finding his stride at Munich
While the headlines belong to Karl, another young name is staking a claim, Jonas Urbig. Signed by Bayern in January 2025 on a long-term deal, Urbig’s trajectory has been quietly impressive. A product of Koln’s youth system, he gained senior experience on loans at Jahn Regensburg and Greuther Furth, compiling 33 appearances and 11 clean sheets across those spells, including a run of over 600 minutes without conceding in 2023.
Urbig’s Bayern breakthrough came under pressure when Manuel Neuer’s absence handed the youngster sudden responsibility. Urbig replaced Neuer in a Champions League tie against Bayer Leverkusen and kept a clean sheet in a 3-0 win. Over the 2024-25 season he made eight Bundesliga appearances and four in Europe, showing command in the box, calm distribution and an ability to deal with heavy workloads.
Speaking about Urbig, Matthaus said: "Urbig has done well at Bayern so far, apart from one mistake in Berlin, and was there when it mattered most. He can learn from Manuel Neuer every day in training . If he develops accordingly, he may eventually become Neuer's successor."
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Kompany’s calm amid the noise
“This isn't normal. I'm not a fan of the hype he'll get now” Kompany said after Karl's debut in Champions League. "I'm a fan of training and calm. We'll see what he shows and just move on."
The coach's words remind the young star that it is okay to celebrate the moment, but one should know when to return to fundamentals. It’s the same approach that has allowed Urbig to grow: steady exposure, ownership of errors, and daily work.
With Kompany recently signed until 2029, Bayern have signalled they want continuity. Karl and Urbig are beneficiaries of that stability. Karl will continue to receive minutes in cup ties, rotational league appearances and carefully selected European outings; Urbig will keep accumulating high-pressure experience until a permanent succession plan is clear.
West Ham United chairman David Sullivan has held talks with a top candidate to replace Graham Potter, with the tactician seemingly making his demands crystal clear.
The managerial candidates to replace Graham Potter at West Ham
Potter has recorded the second-worst win percentage of any West Ham manager in Premier League history, behind only Avram Grant, with pressure mounting on the Englishman as he faces a stay of execution.
David Moyes, who guided West Ham to successive European campaigns and ended their 43-year wait for a major trophy during his time at the London Stadium, could even be the man to put one of the final nails in Potter’s coffin this weekend.
In a real piece of irony, Moyes’ Everton side, who are faring much better than West Ham right now, may have a big say in whether Sullivan, Karren Brady and the Hammers board elect to hand Potter a P45.
Worst West Ham managers in the Premier League
Win percentage
9. Sam Allardyce
30.7%
10. Julen Lopetegui
30%
11. Gianfranco Zola
27.8%
12 Graham Potter
26.1%
13. Avram Grant
18.9%
via StatMuse
It is hard to see Potter remaining in the West Ham hot seat if they suffer a humbling defeat at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, with club insider ExWHUemployee previously reporting that, if he does survive past that point, the ex-Chelsea boss is likely to be sacked after their trip to Arsenal.
West Ham are deep into their contingency plans to replace Potter, and there are a number of very interesting names under consideration.
Sullivan, as ever, is dipping into the free agent market.
Former West Ham midfielder Gary O’Neil is a favourite for the potential job, according to Miguel Delaney, with another ex-Hammer in Slaven Bilic — who was in charge between 2015 and 2017 — also in the frame.
Bilic is even said to be making plans for his West Ham backroom, in the event he is chosen as a short-term option until the end of the season, and Sullivan is believed to be personally in favour of bringing the Croatian back to East London (Pete O’Rourke).
Managers who are already in work haven’t been definitively ruled out, either. West Ham have internally discussed the possibility of appointing Scott Parker, following his rise to the Premier League with Burnley, but one man stands out above all the aforementioned names.
Nuno Espírito Santo's demand after holding West Ham talks with Sullivan
Former Tottenham, Wolves and Nottingham Forest boss, Nuno Espírito Santo, is believed to be the favourite to succeed Potter as things stand.
As per the reliable ExWHUemployee, Nuno has already held talks with Sullivan over a potential move to West Ham if Potter leaves, and the Portuguese’s stock is at an all-time high after making history at Forest last season.
However, according to Sports Boom, West Ham face another roadblock in pursuit of Nuno, following some reports that ‘legal issues’ are delaying his arrival too (Pete O’Rourke).
The outlet reports that Nuno’s big wage demands are a hindrance to West Ham and could prove to be a real obstacle, with Bilic ready to join the Irons as an alternative.
Why West Ham must not give up on Nuno
Nuno guided Forest back to Europe for the first time since 1995, and if it wasn’t for a public fallout with Evangelos Marinakis, he’d still be at the City Ground now.
The appeal for West Ham is obvious. Nuno steered Forest away from the drop zone in his first season, transforming them into a robust, hard-to-break-down outfit with a clear counter-attacking identity.
He also helped to fix Forest’s glaring set-piece weakness, something which has really plagued West Ham this season, having conceded 7 of their 13 Premier League goals so far directly from corners.
Managing to get the best out of his players, Forest ended up being last season’s major surprise package thanks to Nuno’s work, and the 51-year-old’s availability as a free agent makes this potential appointment an arguable no-brainer.
The final game of the night in Major League Baseball takes place at Coors Field with the Colorado Rockies hosting the Milwaukee Brewers.
These teams are in totally different spots this season, as the Brewers are in first in the NL Central with 50 wins already in 2024 while the Rockies are over 20 games out in the NL West, sitting in last place.
However, oddsmakers aren’t setting Milwaukee as a massive favorite in this one, and it could have to do with an interesting pitching matchup. Let’s dive into the odds and my best bet for this NL clash on Monday.
Brewers vs. Rockies Odds, Run Line and Total
Run Line
Brewers -1.5 (-105)
Rockies +1.5 (-115)
Moneyline
Brewers: -155
Rockies: +130
Total
11.5 (Over -102/Under -118)
Brewers vs. Rockies Probable Pitchers
Milwaukee: Bryse Wilson (5-3, 3.89 ERA)
Colorado: Austin Gomber (1-5, 4.63 ERA)
Brewers vs. Rockies How to Watch
Date: Monday, July 1
Time: 8:40 p.m. EST
Venue: Coors Field
How to watch (TV): Bally Sports Wisconsin, AFN, MLB Network
Brewers record: 50-34
Rockies record: 28-55
Brewers vs. Rockies Key Players to Watch
Milwaukee Brewers
Christian Yelich: Christian Yelich rocked a homer on Sunday, and he’s now hitting .321 with eight homers, 36 runs batted in and 18 stolen bases in 2024. Yelich has an OPS+ of 149, and he’s on pace for his best season since he was last an All-Star back in 2019.
Colorado Rockies
Austin Gomber: Austin Gomber was awful at Coors Field in 2023, posting a 7.05 ERA in 15 starts, but he’s flipped the script this season with a 3.57 ERA in six starts. The Rockies are just 5-10 in his outings, but Gomber could be a sneaky pitcher to back on Monday.
Brewers vs. Rockies Prediction and Pick
Regression is coming for Bryse Wilson, who has a 4.65 xERA this season and a Fielding Independent Pitching of 4.89.
While he did throw six shoutout innings in his last outing, he still posted a 5.19 ERA in June, and now he has to go to a hitter-friendly park in Coors Field.
Last season, Coors Field was a nightmare for lefty Austin Gomber, but he’s turned things around at home in 2024. The Rockies starter has a 3.57 ERA in six home starts, holding opponents to a .226 batting average. On the road, opponents are hitting .288 against Gomber.
Backing the Rockies in any scenario is a risky proposition since they’ve won just 28 games all season, but a few blowup outings by Wilson in June completely took the Brewers out of games.
With Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba retiring and Luis Suarez' slowing, its time for Messi and Miami to deliver
Lionel Messi bringing together the remnants of great Barcelona teams past in Miami was a beautiful thing. It was a side for the football romantics. Many who watched Messi in Barca would have seen him connect, play and win with his compadres.
Jordi Alba was the left back who had assisted Messi more than anyone else. Luis Suarez developed the kind of attacking chemistry that many can only ever dream of. And Sergio Busquets was at the base of midfield, winning everything and metronomically ticking the game over.
That quartet was the spine of one of the best sides in the history of the sport. Their reunification in Florida just right. You can imagine the "We're getting the band back together" style meeting. It was probably over WhatsApp. Maybe there was a Zoom call involved. Honestly, it may have gone through agents.
They reunited, and the assumption was that they would win, early and often. The reality has been far from the case. The vibes are immaculate. The romanticism is clear to see. Their desire to continue to perform at a high level cannot be questioned, either. But results have remained elusive.
And time, it seems, is running out. Alba and Busquets are retiring at the end of the season. Suarez may yet do the same. And even if Messi just signed a three-year extension with the club, there is a sense that this is the last ride for the Catalonian boys in Miami. The band is breaking up, and on the dawn of MLS playoffs, they have one last chance at a big hit.
Imagn
The Barcelona connection
There is a beautiful circularity to the story of these four. They last played for the same Barca team in 2020. That iteration of Barca underperformed slightly, in the sense that they had the sheer audacity to win La Liga. Still, the currency of playing for is trophies, and the quartet ultimately failed.
After that, they dispersed. Suarez bolted for Atletico Madrid once it became clear that Barca were going through something of a transition. Messi, unthinkably, left soon after, starting the strange fever dream era in which he played for PSG (a saga that was defined by him skipping a couple games, scoring some outrageous goals, and ultimately winning a World Cup with Argentina). Then the move to Miami in 2023.
Alba and Busquets stuck around, the elder statesmen on what was a strange era of La Liga. Barca and Real Madrid were both in transition. Xavi – if only to complete the old-teammate vibe – came in as manager. They won La Liga in 2023, and then both bolted for Miami.
Suarez did the same, albeit after a sabbatical in South American soccer with Gremio. His signature was surprising; he had spoken openly about his body breaking down in real time. But the appeal of Miami – and reunification with his old friends – was too much to turn down.
Miami, in turn, were a strange outfit. They barreled their way through the 2024 regular season, making a mockery of the league, setting a new points record and claiming the Supporters' Shield. They were, by extension, playoff favorites. And they failed to live up to that tag in quite remarkable fashion, losing in the first round to eighth-seeded Atlanta United.
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The challenges of a new season
Heading into this campaign, the writing was on the wall. There was scattered talk that Suarez could retire at the end of last season, but he stuck around. Busquets and Alba were playing on expiring contracts. All of the signings Miami made over the winter – Tadeo Allende, Telasco Segovia, Maxi Falcon – seemed shrewd options, the kind of foreign talent that, in theory, makes a win-now MLS team.
The addition of Javier Mascherano as manager, meanwhile, was a massive keep-Messi-happy move.
Miami have gone about their business admittedly well – especially given the flaws. There was always going to be a hefty workload, with CONCACAF Champions Cup, Club World Cup and Leagues Cup added to an already packed MLS schedule. Across all competitions, they played 57 matches, won 31, lost 12 and drew 14.
They are scoring more than two goals per game, possess the best attack in MLS and, crucially, have managed to stay relatively healthy throughout.
Some midseason transfer activity was smart. Benjamin Cremaschi openly criticized his coach, and was swiftly sent to Parma – his Miami future seemingly over. Rodrigo De Paul's signing was an immense upgrade in the midfield, and also perhaps a signifier of Busquets' impending retirement.
Sure, they missed out on a centerback that they badly needed. But zoom out, consider the angles and think about the scope of MLS – a league in which playoff success is everything – and they are better set up for a run than last year's group.
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What would success be?
It's important to consider, though, what exactly success for Miami would look like. The numbers suggest that this is a good MLS side, led by someone who is, to say the least, a clear difference-maker. But their finish in the Eastern Conference – third, and one point off first – is indicative of where they are as a team.
FC Cincinnati (second) are more well-rounded and have plenty of weapons. First-place Philadelphia Union are wonderfully consistent and will likely be able to deal with the rough and tumble of three-game playoff series.
In truth, Miami are right where they should be – especially given they have played 16 games more than Cincinnati and 18 more than Philadelphia with the other competitions. This is an older team being asked to play more games, and still came within one point of first place. In abstract, by the normal variables of modern soccer, this is effectively an overperformance.
Miami don't have the time to recover, regroup, coach and train. They take it game-by-game . Anyone else would struggle. But of course, none of that really matters. Miami cannot point to heavy workloads, or make the "excuses" other clubs routinely use. Talent alone renders all of that irrelevant.
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Nashville and the realities of a tough matchup
On MLS Decision Day, Miami looked something close to their scintillating best. They turned in a very Miami performance. They were battered for 20 minutes, and really should have gone down a goal or two. And then, the main men woke up. Alba found Messi, who scored. Nashville responded twice and went up 2-1 at halftime.
Then, the Blaugrana boys turned it on properly. Messi scored twice more in the second half, and set up a third. Alba purred up the left wing. Suarez was a constant irritant and saw a couple of shots well denied. Still, 5-2 wins don't always keep coaches happy. Sure, it's nice to score five. But conceding twice isn't the hallmark of a team in control.
Control, however, has never been Miami's thing. And that's why they are so dangerous. This side can wake up in an instant, and rattle off four second-half goals without breaking a sweat. They sacrifice defense in the name of a rip-roaring attack. Is it borderline reckless, and the kind of thing that might see them undone? Sure, but it's the way they play.
Nashville, Miami's opponent in this rematch from Decision Day, will be tricky. Last's week's loss notwithstanding, they are structured, disciplined, well coached, and have excellent attacking players, Hany Mukhtar and the ruthless Sam Surridge. There likely won't be any more 5-2 Miami wins here.
Liverpool will have to cope without having Hugo Ekitike at their disposal when they travel to Selhurst Park to take on Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday.
The French centre-forward is set to be suspended for the trip to London because of the red card that he picked up in the 2-1 win over Southampton in the League Cup at Anfield on Tuesday night.
Ekitike came off the bench at half-time in the win over the Championship side. He made an impact as a substitute by netting the winner late in the second half, converting into an open net from Federico Chiesa’s pass.
However, joy quickly turned to confusion as the referee showed a red card to the forward, who had taken his shirt off to celebrate his finish in front of the Anfield crowd.
This means that Arne Slot will be without the summer signing from Eintracht Frankfurt for the clash with Palace, after Ekitike started the first five matches of the Premier League season.
The Liverpool head coach now has a decision to make on whether or not to play club-record signing Alexander Isak from the start at Selhurst Park.
Why Alexander Isak may not start against Crystal Palace
Despite arriving at Anfield from Newcastle for £125m, a British record fee, during the summer transfer window, it is not a certainty that the Sweden international will start against the Eagles.
Because of the drawn-out transfer saga, Isak did not have a pre-season with the Magpies and did not feature in the opening weeks of the 2025/26 campaign, which means that he is still short on match fitness.
The Liverpool number nine has yet to play more than 58 minutes in any of his three appearances for the club, per Sofascore, and came off at half-time against Southampton after scoring his first goal for the Reds.
This shows that Slot and the medical team are being careful with Isak and slowly building him up, rather than chucking him straight into full 90-minute appearances.
Alexander Isak’s injury record
Season
Injuries
Games missed
24/25
3
9
23/24
2
12
22/23
1
17
21/22
2
5
20/19
0
0
19/20
0
0
18/19
5
15
17/18
1
8
Via Transfermarkt
As you can see in the table above, Isak has far from a spotless injury record during his career, which is why they may want to be extra careful with him to avoid causing any unwanted muscle injuries.
With his fitness and Ekitike’s suspension in mind, Liverpool may save Isak to come off the bench because of their lack of senior centre-forward options to play in the crucial stage of the match.
Assuming, based on how his appearances have gone so far, that the Swedish striker is not ready to play the full 90 minutes, Liverpool would be in danger of potentially having to substitute the £125m forward in the second half whilst chasing a result.
Instead of running that risk, the Reds could go with a wildcard replacement for Ekitike by unleashing a different player in that role and subbing Isak on to finish the match in the second half.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
Slot brought Jayden Danns on in the second half against Southampton on Tuesday night, and the 19-year-old academy graduate could be the wildcard replacement for Ekitike to lead the line until Isak is introduced on Saturday.
Why Liverpool should unleash Jayden Danns
The teenage centre-forward provided the fans with a reminder that he is physically ready for first-team football by winning all three of his duels in 15 minutes off the bench against the Saints, per Sofascore.
Danns has scored two goals for club and country at youth level so far this season, per Sofascore, and looks to be getting back to his best after an injury put an end to his loan spell at Sunderland in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.
The England U20 international first arrived on the first-team scene under Jurgen Klopp with two goals against Southampton in the FA Cup in 2024.
Danns also scored off the bench against Accrington Stanley in a 4-0 win for Liverpool in the FA Cup under Slot at the start of this year, before his loan move to Sunderland and subsequent injury troubles ended his campaign.
This means that he has already had a tiny bit of success at first-team level at Anfield, with three senior goals under his belt, which is why throwing him in from the start against Crystal Palace may not be the worst idea in the world.
Jayden Danns’ career
Team
Appearances
Goals + Assists
Liverpool U18s
33
24 + 4
Liverpool U21s
12
4 + 2
Liverpool first-team
10
3 + 0
England U18s
9
0 + 0
England U16s
3
2 + 0
Liverpool Youth League
2
1 + 0
England U20s
1
1 + 0
Stats via Transfermarkt
As you can see in the table above, Danns has scored goals at an impressive rate for almost every team he has played for at senior and youth level.
U23 scout Antonio Mango described the striker as being “extra prolific” because of his intelligence and movement off the ball. His goal against Southampton in the earlier clip is a great example of those attributes in action.
The 19-year-old star, who made one appearance in the Premier League last season, is an exciting prospect and appears to have the physical and technical qualities to hold his own in the first-team already.
This is why he could be an ideal option to lead the line from the start against Crystal Palace on Saturday. That would provide Danns with a huge opportunity to showcase his quality, whilst also allowing Liverpool to end the game with Isak leading the line.
Not Ekitike: Liverpool have Sturridge 2.0 in star who's "making an impact"
Liverpool may have found their new version of Daniel Sturridge in this Reds star.
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It could be an ideal solution to the problem facing Slot, with Ekitike’s suspension, as it would prevent the Reds from being in a position where they are chasing a result but have to substitute their star striker whilst doing so.