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Brighton v Manchester City: Women’s FA Cup final – live | Women’s FA Cup
Key events
Tom Garry
89 min The Manchester City fans give a resounding roar of approval as Alex Greenwood is named as the player of the match.
88 min: Brighton substitution Rebecca Rayner replaces Maisie Symonds.
GOAL! Brighton 0-4 Man City (Miedema 87)
Vivianne Miedema sprays the icing on the cake. She started the move with a superb pass out to Casparij on the right, then ran 50 yards to meet Casparij’s cross and power a downward header through the diving Nnadozie. A lovely goal, and a poignant moment for Miedema in the context of her mum’s poor health.
85 min: City substitution Laura Coombs, who will retire after this game, replaces the magnificent Bunny Shaw.
84 min The next corner eventually leads to Rose hooking a volley onto the roof of the net. Nnadozie had it covered.
83 min The resulting corner is half cleared, back to the taker Greenwood. She pushes the ball back to Fujino, whose whipped shot is brilliantly saved at the near post by Nnadozie.
82 min Bunny Shaw almost gets her second, and City’s fourth, with a shot that is tipped over by Nnadozie. Superb save, that, the best of the match.
79 min: Double substitution for Brighton Nadine Noordan and Rachel McLauchlan replace Fran Kirby and Marisa Olislagers
Tom Garry
78 min The attendance of 43,917 is a little bit lower than what the organisers had hoped for. It is still the seventh-highest attendance in this competition’s history and almost ten times larger than the turnout this showpiece fixture attracted merely 13 years ago, but a number closer to 50,000 had been anticipated.
77 min: Double substitution for City Sydney Lohmann and Mary Fowler come on for Lauren Hemp and Laura Blindkilde Brown.
77 min The official attendance is 43,917.
76 min Time for a drinks break.
75 min Caspirik leaned into Haley but not with enough force for it to be a clear and obvious error. I’m not even sure it was a foul.
74 min Brighton appeal unsuccessfully for a penalty when Haley goes down in the area. It’ll be checked by VAR.
71 min: Double substitution for Brighton Maelys Mpome and Rosa Kafaji replace Kiko eike and Charlize Rule.
70 min A terrific cross from Symonds is headed high and wide by the off-balance Vanegas. Brighton have played really well today, whatever the scoreline says.
68 min The scoreline feels really harsh on Brighton, but champions are clinical and City have exemplified that.
Shaw got away from Hayes on the left and slid a low pass into Miedema. She allowed it to run across to Fujino, who skipped back on her left foot and hit a deflected shot past Nnadozie.
GOAL! Brighton 0-3 Man City (Fujino 66)
Manchester City have done the Double for the first time!
65 min: Chance for City! Greenwood’s outswinging corner from the left is headed across goal and wide by Knapp. Once she got there it was a pretty good chance.
63 min Seike runs at Greenwood and drills a shot from the angle that is held by Yamashita.
62 min: Man City substitutions Aoba Fujino and the great Vivianne Miedema, who has been on compassionate leave, replace Grace Clinton and Kerolin.
60 min Olislagers pings a shot from the edge of the D that is well blocked by the outrushing Blindkilde Brown.
59 min After good play from Clinton, Kerolin shoots tamely at Nnadozie.
57 min Shaw tries a reverse pass to Hemp in the area; Brighton cut it out.
53 min After a good Brighton move, Knack barges Haley to the floor and is booked. Brighton remain bushy-tailed despite the scoreline.
51 min Kerolin beats Vanegas on the right and clips a dangerous ball across the face of goal. Hemp retreives the loose ball, fouling Rule in the process, and shoots just wide. It wouldn’t have counted.
49 min Brighton are up against it but they don’t look a beaten team and have started the second half pretty well. Trouble is City have a two-goal cushion and an extremely competent defence.
48 min “That’s Celtic won the Women’s Scottish Cup btw,” writes James Humphries. “The more things change, etc.”
46 min Peep peep! Brighton get the second half under way.
Half-time reading
Tom Garry
Every player in the Brighton wall seemed to be expecting Kerolin to take that free-kick. Instead, Greenwood’s effort with her left was placed perfectly into the corner and Brighton will be kicking themselves. They’ve been the stronger team for most of the half but they go in at the break 2-0 down. Don’t forget, they were also 2-0 down in their semi-final away against Liverpool…
Half time: Brighton 0-2 Manchester City
Brighton have been the better team; City have been the more clinical and lead through goals from Bunny Shaw and Alex Greenwood.
Shaw was fouled in the D by Symonds. After much consideration, Greenwood curled a precise free-kick into the bottom-right corner. I’m not sure about the wall, which left a big gap, and the ball went under the diving Nnadozie, but City are 2-0 up and in control.
GOAL! Brighton 0-2 Man City (Greenwood 45+6)
Manchester City are on course for their first Double!
45+5 min Hayes loses the ball in a dangerous area to Kerolin, who faffs around on the edge of the area and is eventually dispossessed. That was half a chance for City.
45+1 min There will be seven minutes of added time: drinks break + Yamashita injury + other stuff.
45 min After a neat move from Brighton, Vanegas mishits a shot from the edge of the area that is easily saved by Yamashita.
The goal hasn’t really affected Brighton, who are dominating possession as we approach half-time. They’re such an impressive team.
42 min Brighton probably need half-time to regroup. They’ve been the better team for most of the first half and are certainly not out of this.
They’re also the only team to come from behind to beat or even draw with City this season.
Tom Garry
39 min Brighton momentarily seemed to be asking for a free-kick for a foul on the goalkeeper but I don’t think there was anything wrong with what Shaw did there. She simply outjumps Nnadozie. It was a lethal cross from Greenwood and that’s the first genuine moment of quality from Manchester City.
Hemp collects the ball on the left and finds Greenwood, who swings a typically precise cross to the far post. Nnadozie comes for it but Shaw gets there first to score with a gentle looping header. It’s a goalkeeping error, sad to say, but the next chapter of Bunny Shaw’s City career has begun in style.
GOAL! Brighton 0-1 Man City (Shaw 38)
Now the scoreline has changed!
37 min Lots of City possession now. The scoreline is the same but the mood of the match has done a 180.
36 min City have woken up. Hemp gets to the byline and picks out Shaw, whose instinctive sidefoot is comfortably saved by Nnadozie.
The family of Shaun Burton, say they are “devastated” by the loss.
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Key events
In the opening half an hour against Cape Verde, Mikel Oyarzabal, the centre-forward, did not get a single touch.
Kyle Green gets in touch: “Your highlighting of Lalas and his absurdity is something that has prevented me from wanting to watch the coverage on Fox. While every channel has its pros and cons I just can’t.
“I’m 45 and probably the youngest of anyone who remembers him as a player instead of an opinionated insert insult here. As for the match this could be more competitive than it looks on paper Spain need a win the pressure is on them. Saudi Arabia could hold out for a draw and see what happens in their last match. “
News from the England camp, and it seems to be good news on Declan Rice.
“I’m ready and fit, raring to go. I was feeling a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time. Obviously, not a lot of people would have known that. It was all behind-the-scenes stuff but it was a smart decision.
“In the end, that last 20 minutes is probably where you pick up the most, and it’s where you play a 70-minute match. But that last 20 is where you really feel your body going for it. And I think it was a smart decision because the last few days I felt really, really good.”
Alex Reid has penned today’s weekend special Football Daily.
Portugal v Uzbekistan on Tuesday enticingly pits the incredibly nice, incredibly 41-year-old-superstar-tolerant Roberto Martínez against Fabio Cannavaro, who’s won a Ballon d’Or as a player and the Chinese Super League as a coach. While the fixture following that game really does see the dream of Thomas Tuchel – in his first international job with England – taking on Queiroz, who is in charge of his ninth national side with Ghana.
The expected formations are 4-2-3-1 for Spain, and 5-3-2 for the Saudi Arabians.
The Saudi team features two Donis changes: Ali Lajami, a defender, and Nasser Al Dawsari, a midfielder, are preferred to Mohammed Abu Al Shamat and Mohamed Kanno. You may recall Salem Al Dawsari, the Saudi captain, as the man who scored the winner against Argentina.
An entertaining read, even for those of us who have just seen the clips.
In a conversation where his co-panelist is casually reminiscing about his days playing alongside Messi or exchanging shirts with Ronaldo Nazário at the World Cup, what exactly is Lalas going to talk about – coming on as a second-half substitute for Earnie Stewart in a friendly against Scotland in 1998? Helping the Kansas City Wizards finish last in the 1999 MLS Western Conference? Did Lalas enjoy an elite playing career? No. But does he do the background reading that could compensate for his relative lack of standing in a conversation with titans like Henry and Zlatan? Also no. But is he charming or funny or charismatic or otherwise magnetic on screen? Eh, no.
For the record, I once interviewed Alexi Lalas on the challenge of playing against Romario in the 1994 World Cup. He had this to say:
“He could kill you in so many different ways. If you remember from that World Cup, he scored so many types of goals. That ranged from solo adventures to an outside-of-the-right-foot half-volley off a corner kick. Romario was both the most difficult to play against and the best that I have faced.
“Roberto Baggio was doing his thing, but in terms of consistency and living up to the hype, he [Romario] was the best. As with all stars, there was a moment when the fans sit up in their seats, and that was a feeling I got with Romario. When it got close to him and the potential for his involvement in a play was there, everybody sat up in their seat. They knew that something spectacular would be happening.”
Saturday’s match reports here.
The Saudi Arabia coach, and Blackburn legend, Georgios Donis, spoke about the challenges facing his team: “Spain is not the same team when Yamal or Williams are on the bench.
“While they still have plenty of possession, they lack the individual one-on-one penetration when these two are missing. I’m not saying it’s a problem for Spain, but when those players are missing, they play in a different way. We saw this very clearly against Cape Verde.
“We are playing against one of the best teams in the world, and it’s very important that when you play against these kinds of teams, you should enjoy the experience and respect the opponent, but not too much.
“It is very hard for any team playing against Spain to have any time in possession. So what we must do is to be more in control of our movement and compact, and when the ball goes through the lines, be able to defend dynamically.
“It’s nice to see miracles in football, and we’ve seen favourites losing against underdogs. Of course, it’s great for Saudi football to have a great memory of the result against Argentina, but we aren’t drawing anything from that.
“I think we’ll feel more pressure in that [Cape Verde] game than we will against Spain.”
The Spain coach, Luis De La Fuente had this to say in his Saturday press conference: “This generation of footballers is highly competitive and really fired up… It’s going to be a completely different story,” he said at his pre-match press conference on Saturday. There is no drama or crisis. The bottom line is simply that we need to win tomorrow.”
Four changes for Spain: Lamine Yamal, Pedro Porro, Dani Olmo and Alex Baena also come into the side with Marcos Llorente, Fabian Ruiz, Ferran Torres and Gavi dropping out.
The teams – Lamine Yamal starts
Spain: Simon, Porro, Cubarsi, Laporte, Cucurella, Gonzalez, Rodri, Yamal, Olmo, Baena, Oyarzabal. Subs: Raya, Joan Garcia, Pubill, Grimaldo, Eric Garcia, Llorente, Merino, Torres, Fabian, Gavi, Pino, Williams, Zubimendi, Munoz, Iglesias.
Saudi Arabia: Al Owais, Abdulhamid, Tambakti, Lajami, Al Amri, Al Harbi, Nasser Al Dawsari, Al Khaibari, Al Juwayr, Al Buraikan, Salem Al Dawsari. Subs: Al Aqidi, Al Kassar, Majrashi, Yahya, Al Shehri, Al Boushal, Kadesh, Al Johani, Al Ghannam, Al Hajji, Al Hamdan, Mandash, Kanno, Thakri, Abu Al Shamat.
Referee: Raphael Claus (Brazil)
Perhaps one of the Saudi -players can write themselves into this high-grade selection?
Perhaps it can be their goalkeeper.
Madrid screening of Spain v Saudi Arabia cancelled due to heat
The public screening of Spain’s World Cup match against Saudi Arabia in Madrid on Sunday has been cancelled because of extreme heat forecast for the Spanish capital, officials said.
The match, due to kick off at 6pm local time on Sunday, had been scheduled to be shown on a giant screen installed by the Spanish football federation (RFEF) at a fan zone in Plaza de Colón in central Madrid.
Madrid city council and the federation decided to cancel the screening after national weather agency AEMET issued an orange heat warning – the second-highest level – for the Madrid region, with temperatures forecast to reach 40C.
“The decision has been taken with the aim of protecting the health of attendees, event staff and support services involved in the event,” Madrid city hall said in a statement, apologising for any inconvenience.
Officials urged supporters to watch the match indoors in air-conditioned spaces and avoid prolonged exposure to the heat.
Large parts of Spain are experiencing unusually high temperatures for June as a mass of hot air from North Africa moves across the Iberian Peninsula.
A total of 13 of Spain’s 17 regions are on orange alert for heat on Sunday, while the northern Basque Country bordering France is on red alert, the highest level.
Authorities advised residents and visitors to take precautions during the heatwave, including drinking water regularly, staying in cool environments, limiting outdoor physical activity during the hottest hours of the day and taking extra care of vulnerable people. AFP
Can Saudi Arabia repeat the magic of 2022?
Argentina arrived in Qatar on a 36-game unbeaten run. When Lionel Messi opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 10 minutes, a comfortable afternoon seemed in the offing. Saleh al-Shehri and Salem al-Dawsari had other ideas, Argentina had three goals disallowed for offside in the space of 13 minutes and the greatest comeback in Saudi Arabia football history was made. Argentina went on to lift the trophy, while defeats to Poland and Mexico meant the Saudis did not reach the knock-out stage.
Unai Simon over David Raya is a controversial choice for De la Fuentes. The Arsenal keeper could lay claim to being Europe’s best this season.
“Those at the Champions League final had a few more days, so I got there on the Wednesday night,” Raya says. “I arrived a bit before Fabián [Ruiz]. I was saying hello to some of the others in reception when he arrived. I went to say congratulations; that was almost the first thing I did. I couldn’t really talk [to him] after the final; I just didn’t have it in me. The next day we talked about the game properly. Just two mates chatting … I was happy for him that he could lift the trophy for a second time.”
A high pressure game for the European champions, as Sid Lowe reports.
“If we had scored one, the game would have changed,” Martín Zubimendi said. Immediately after the game, De la Fuente had offered a simple analysis: when the ball doesn’t want to go in it doesn’t want to go in, he insisted. Spain had racked up 27 shots, after all. Ferran Torres had hit the bar and seen another clear opportunity saved. Vozinha, the 40-year-old goalkeeper who stopped that, saved six more and was named the man of the match. “There’s nothing to reproach the team for,” Rodri said. “We generated chances but couldn’t put it away; the good thing is they created almost nothing.”
We wait to see what role Lamine Yamal will play today. His coach would surely like to be able to use him.
The worst mistake we could make would be to compare him to anyone. He is the midst of a process. He has exceptional footballing maturity and lives it all with total naturalness. He has great serenity and strength. We have to let him follow his path but those players who have something different are ready for that. They’re geniuses, like Dalí [who] can paint a picture, or Michelangelo. They’re different. What is exceptional to us, isn’t to them. In those extremes, they feel comfortable. Why? Because they are different. What we think is exceptional, they consider normal.
Preamble
Spain’s campaign did not get off to a flying start, and Luis de la Fuentes may wake up in the night to visions of Cape Verde’s Vozinha. He will have Georgia on his mind ever since Monday. Saudi Arabia are no pushovers and gave Uruguay a scare in their opening match. Memories of downing Argentina four years ago still abound, and so Spain might beware. They can ill afford to go into the final game with Uruguay at a disadvantage. All eyes on Lamine Yamal, whose fitness situation remains opaque, though Spain need their other forwards to come to the party.
Kick-off 5pm UK, 1pm ET, 2am AEST. Join me.
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