Sports
AUNZ2023: Sweden Tumbles Italy 5-0 in Group G Match –
The Blue and Yellow girls of Sweden on Saturday caused La Azzurre girls of Italy to tumble in a 5-0 drilling in Group G at the Wellington Regional Stadium a score board that is the highest defeat Italy has ever suffered from Sweden.
Arsenal FC Forward Amanda Illestedt scored a brace in the same manner of the first as she got a header from J. Andersson off a corner kick for the curtain raiser in the 39th minute and came back with an Andersson connect again to score in the 50th minute the very way she did the first goal. Amanda had scored against South Africa in the 90th minute now making three goals haul to her credit.
Wonder girl, Andersson’s corner found Fridelina Rolfo of Barceloana where Azeezat Oshoala plies her trade, as she scored the second goal in the 44th minute. Rolfo had scored the curtain raiser of Sweden against South Africa in the 2-1 victory.
Hardly had the noise gone done for the Rolfo goal had Arsenal player, Stina Blackstenius scored the3rd goal from a goal mouth melee.
Jakobsson set up fellow substitute Rebecka Blomqvist of Wolfsburg in Germany who in the 90+5th minute laced a stormy shot into the bottom – left corner of the net for Sweden’s 5th goal.
Sweden had beaten South Africa 2-1 in the first match and Italy piped Argentina 1-0. Argentina drew 2-2 with South Africa in the second round and now Sweden scolded Italy 5-0.
Sweden tops group G with 6 point from two wins scoring 7 goals conceding 1; Italy is second with 3 points from a win scoring 1 goal and conceding 5; Argentina is 3rd with one point from a draw scoring 2 goals and conceding 3 goals while South Africa is at the bottom with one point from a draw but scored 3 goals and conceded 3.
The last matches of Group G are on 2nd August when South Africa will seek victory over Italy or go home at Wellington Regional Stadium and Argentina will try to avoid disgrace against Sweden at Waikato Stadium both at 1900 hours.
Sweden and Italy both European nations played 14 matches between themselves with Italy winning 6, Sweden 5 and 3 drawn games. Here are the last ten meetings. On 29th May 1983 Swe 2 Ita 1: 15th October 1983 Ita 0 Swe 3; 3rd June 1987 Swe 1 Ita 0; 14th November 1987 Ita 2 Swe 1: 19th June 2000 Ita 2 Swe 1; 19th June 2004 ???; 18th November 2009 Ita 1 Swe 0; 17th June 2016 Ita 1 Swe 0; 10th November 2017 Swe 1 Ita 0 and 13th November 2017.
Sweden has appeared in all the nine tournaments. Sweden were Runners-up at USA 2003 as they lost to Germany 1-2 in the final on the 12th October 2003 before 26,137 fans after losing 1-2 to Canada in the semifinal.
Sweden won the Bronze thrice at China in 1991 when she drubbed Germany 4-0 after losing to Norway 1-4 in the semifinal; at Germany on 16th July 2011 when she defeated France 2-1 after losing to Japan 1-3 in the semifinal and on 6th July when Sweden caged the Lioness of England 2-1 at France 2019 after losing to Netherlands 0-1 in the semifinal. Sweden were quarterfinalists twice at Helsingborg Sweden 13th June 1995 when she lost 3-4 on penalties after 1-1 at full time and at USA 99 when Sweden lost Norway 1-3 at San Jose on 30th June.
Italy called La Azzurre (The Blues) is ranked 16th in the world and coached by Milena Bertolini is making her 4th appearance at the female world cup but have her best record of reaching the quarterfinal twice. In the maiden competition of 1991 at China where only 12 teams were on parade, she placed 6th losing to Norway 2-3 AET before 13,000 fans and at France 2019 she placed 7th among 24 teams and was beaten 0-2 by Netherlands on 29th June before a crowd of 22,600 fans after beating China 2-0 in the Round of 16. Between 2003 and 2015 editions, Italy did not qualify.
Italy’s Goalkeeper and Captain, 39 year old Vanina Correa has been in the squad for all four of the tournaments.
Two Group F matches are still being expected today. First, France versus Brazil at Suncorp Stadium at 1100 hours and Panama will slug it out at 1330 hours with Jamaica at NIB Stadium.
On Sunday 30th July there will be four matches. Korea will meet Morocco at Hindmarsh Stadium at 0530 hours in Group H; two matches will be played simultaneously at 0800 hours to conclude group A as Norway meets Philippines at Eden Park and Switzerland versus hosts New Zealand at Forsyth Stadium while the second round of group H match will also be concluded at 1030 hours when Germany will slug it out with Columbia at Allianz Stadium.
By Eniola Olatunji
Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola says Alexander Isak is a “massive” player for him – but adds he “fights” with the player about needing to do more for the “collective”.
Isak scored twice in the opening nine minutes in the 2-0 win over Ipswich to take his tally to three for the season – but Iraola hinted the player needs to do more off the ball for the team.
“He’s a massive player for us,” he told Sky Sports. “My demands will not be about the goals: he’s fit, in a good shape and he will produce the numbers.
“But my fights with him are more about other stuff, how to help the team in other situations. But it’s good he has played two full games and today a good amount of minutes, scoring the goals.”
Iraola did not reveal which specific areas Isak needs to improve, but it could be interpreted that Iraola wants his striker to do more in the pressing.
“I will demand other things so we can play well,” he said in his post-match press conference about those demands to Isak. “And if we play well, we are in good positions, the goals will come.
“He has to contribute to the collective and when everyone helps, after the goals and results will come.”
Iraola also said to Sky: “Today we were much, much better in our press. We were recovering very high and then we can contact him in good positions.
“If we recover the ball lower, it will be more difficult to find him to have less spaces. So we need more quality effort to put our No 9 in situations like he had today.”
Aryna Sabalenka briefly halted her US Open match against Kamilla Rakhimova because of a strong smell of cannabis before cruising into the fourth round in New York.
Top seed Sabalenka raised the issue after going 3-0 up in the first set against Uzbekistan’s Rakhimova, telling umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore that “someone is smoking weed”.
The Belarusian asked the umpire to intervene “because it’s so strong”.
Asderaki-Moore spoke to an official on her radio and made a smoking gesture to someone behind her, before play continued.
Two-time defending champion Sabalenka went on to secure a confident 6-3 6-4 victory on Louis Armstrong Stadium as she chases a fifth Grand Slam singles title.
Sabalenka said afterwards she was not sure where the smell of cannabis was coming from but asked fans to be more mindful.
Smoking is not permitted on site at Flushing Meadows but the smell of cannabis sometimes wafts on to court from the nearby Corona Park.
It is legal to smoke it in New York for adults aged 21 and over.
“It’s a bit tricky to handle that smell while you’re trying to compete at your best,” Sabalenka said.
“I don’t know if it was coming from the crowd or was from the outside because the wind blows it into the stadium.
“I just hope they’re going to be a bit more aware of that stuff.”
Sabalenka is not the first player at this year’s US Open to complain about the smell of cannabis at Flushing Meadows.
Britain’s Katie Boulter previously said it was distracting, while Harriet Dart and Francesca Jones also noticed the smell.
In past years players including Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev have also complained.
Egyptian football star Mohamed Salah has welcomed his third child and first son, named Lail, Trabzonspor President Ertuğrul Doğan said after the Turkish club’s third-round league match against Amedspor.
Doğan said Salah and his Cameroonian teammate André Onana travelled outside Turkey following the match as their wives were due to give birth.
“After the Amed match, we travelled abroad with Onana and Salah. Onana welcomed twins, while Salah welcomed a baby boy. I congratulate their families and wives,” Doğan was quoted as telling Turkish media.
Salah’s sister, Rabab Salah, later revealed the baby’s name on Instagram, posting a photograph of a baby hat and congratulating her brother on the birth of Lail.
The child is Salah’s first son. The Egyptian star and his wife, Magi, already have two daughters, Makka and Kayan.
Doğan’s comments came after a photograph of Salah and Onana aboard a private jet circulated online, prompting questions among Trabzonspor supporters and local media about the reason for their trip.
The club president said both players had travelled for family reasons following the match.
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