Ella Toone and team-mate Maya Le Tissier spoke at United’s pre-WSL media day on Tuesday, less than two days after Marc Skinner’s abrupt exit. They said Skinner addressed the squad in the dressing room on Monday morning to say his farewells before the announcement was made. Le Tissier reflected that there had been plenty of...

English football will run a trial this season aimed at stopping teams from using goalkeeper treatment as a tactical timeout. The Football Association, Premier League, English Football League, National League and Women’s Super League have agreed to the plan, with approval from the International Football Association Board (Ifab). After consultations led by Pro Ref and...

As the second week of August approaches, City have made just one signing so far: Elliot Anderson, who is expected to go straight into the starting XI this season. The Nottingham Forest fee for the England international is a club-record £116m, with the 23-year-old widely seen as the replacement for Bernardo Silva, who left at...

Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai says he has resolved the issue with Curtis Jones and Kostas Tsimikas after a video surfaced last week that appeared to show the trio arguing over the captain’s armband. The incident followed a 1-0 pre-season win over Wrexham at Yankee Stadium in New York. After the final whistle, Jones, Szoboszlai and...

Finally, to get results against stronger opponents, teams need to offer a genuine threat in possession. South Africa fired 14 shots to South Korea’s seven despite having just 31% possession. They did this by advancing the ball upfield in a controlled way from the back rather than simply launching long kicks from the goalkeeper. Underdogs...

Manager Derek McInnes says Rangers are taking a proactive approach to signing a new striker after Youssef Chermiti was ruled out long term, warning that defensive injuries mean the club is “playing with fire”. Chermiti, 22, suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in Saturday’s defeat to Hibernian, shortly after McInnes confirmed a bid for the...

Nigeria have qualified for every one of the nine Women’s World Cups, beginning with the inaugural edition in China in 1991. Falling short would be hard to accept in a nation used to dominance, with the Super Falcons having clinched Wafcon a record 10 times. Yet getting past Desiree Ellis’ well-drilled Banyana side was never...

Women’s Super League newcomers Birmingham City have added Canada defender Marie Levasseur to their squad. The 29-year-old arrives from Montpellier, where she made 63 appearances over three seasons. Before that, she played for FC Fleury, Metz, and ONS Oulu, and previously represented the University of Memphis. Levasseur, who has 18 senior caps for Canada since...

Goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie says Nigeria must “go back to the drawing board” after failing to secure automatic qualification for the 2027 Fifa Women’s World Cup. The Super Falcons missed out on the semi-finals of the ongoing 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) in Morocco, losing 1-0 to Cameroon in Sunday’s quarter-final. Cameroon’s progression to...

Everton have completed the free transfer of France forward Noemie Mouchon from Leicester City. The 23-year-old arrives after two seasons with Leicester, who were relegated from the Women’s Super League in May. She came through at childhood club Lille before spending a year with Reims. Mouchon made 24 WSL appearances for Leicester, scoring twice. “I’m...

Negotiations had reached a stalemate until Real presented a revised offer on Wednesday, which Vinicius is understood to have welcomed. He moved to Real from Brazilian club Flamengo in 2018 and agreed a contract extension three years later. After 18 months of talks between Real and his representatives over fresh terms, he has now committed...

Madibo’s suspension appears to be at the harsher end of the punishment scale. At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Uruguay forward Luis Suarez received a nine-match ban for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. In 1994, Italy defender Mauro Tassotti was banned for eight games for elbowing Spain’s Luis Enrique, leaving the now-Paris St-Germain boss...