Arsenal duo Alessia Russo and Mariona Caldentey up for Player of the Year award

The Gunners became champions of Europe thanks to their shock win over Barcelona last month, with Russo and Caldentey two of the stars of their 2024-25 season.
Former Manchester United forward Russo scored eight times in Arsenal's European success and was joint top scorer in the Women's Super League with 12 goals.
Her team-mate Caldentey managed nine goals and five assists in the WSL and added eight more in the Champions League.
Erin Cuthbert is flying the flag for WSL champions Chelsea, with her contributions from midfield helping the Blues end the league season unbeaten.
Manchester City duo Mary Fowler and Yui Hasegawa are also on the list, along with Manchester United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce.
The American kept 13 clean sheets in United's 22 WSL matches.
The winner will be announced at the PFA Awards ceremony in Manchester on August 19.

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BBC News

8 minutes ago

• BBC News

Zverev and Medvedev win after sickness and nosebleed

World number three Alexander Zverev sprinted off court to vomit mid-match but recovered to beat Italy's Flavio Cobolli 6-4 7-6 (8-6) at the Halle the second game of his quarter-final of the grass-court tournament Zverev requested a toilet break and ran off court to be looked visibly unwell on his return and initially struggled in longer rallies, but he got better as the match went on and managed to hold off world number 24 Cobolli."I felt fine before the match. Then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, I felt really, really bad. I felt ill, went to throw up and then 15 minutes later I felt OK again," the 28-year-old German said."I don't know what it was, I've never experienced that before. I hope I'll be fine in the next couple of hours when the adrenaline settles."In the semi-finals Zverev will face Daniil Medvedev, whose match on Friday was also briefly delayed when the Russian had a nosebleed on needing a medical timeout in the second set, the former world number one ended up cruising to a 6-4 6-3 win over American Alex Michelsen to keep his preparations for Wimbledon on track, with 10 days to go before the start of the grass-court Grand Slam. "The shadows on the court made the conditions quite difficult. It took some time to get used to it," Medvedev, 29, said. Sabalenka saves four match points in win There was also drama at the Berlin Open, where world number one Aryna Sabalenka saved four match points to beat Elena Rybakina 7-6 (8-6) 3-6 7-6 (8-6).The Belarusian was down 6-2 in the deciding tie-break and only saved the first match point thanks to a fortunate net was to be the momentum swing Sabalenka needed. Kazakh 2022 Wimbledon champion Rybakina never recovered and Sabalenka won the next five points to reach Saturday's semi-finals."It's amazing to win matches like this, it trains your fighting spirit for the next tournaments and I'm proud of myself for trying till the very last point," said 27-year-old will face another former Wimbledon champion in the semi-finals in Czech Marketa Vondrousova, who beat Tunisian Ons Jabeur 6-4 6-1 in a re-match of their 2023 final at the All England Club.

Scottish Sun

8 minutes ago

• Scottish Sun

Jack Draper becomes highest Wimbledon seed since Andy Murray but two-time champ ‘refuses to answer questions about him'

Scroll down to see when the Wimbledon comms team will be revealed Muzz job Jack Draper becomes highest Wimbledon seed since Andy Murray but two-time champ 'refuses to answer questions about him' JACK DRAPER can shower with the big boys now as he secured a top-four seeding spot at Wimbledon. England's top hope fought off American Brandon Nakashima 6-4 5-7 6-4 to reach the Queen's semi-finals for the first time. Advertisement 3 Andy Murray has revealed he is snubbing a Wimbledon TV appearance Credit: Getty 3 Murray told GQ he doesn't want to annoy the likes of Jack Draper Credit: Getty The Sutton star is on collision course with Carlos Alcaraz in Sunday's final as the Spanish hero eliminated French lucky loser Arthur Rinderknech 7-5 6-4 – his record 16th win in a row. Yet Draper – who ends this week as world No 4 after moving up two spots – will avoid Alcaraz and world No 1 Jannik Sinner until at least the semi-finals on SW19 Centre Court. And he can enjoy the comforts of washing in the exclusive Gentlemen's Members' Dressing Room, one of the perks of being an elite player. Draper – Britain's highest Wimbledon seed since defending champion Andy Murray was top guy in 2017 – said: 'This means the world to me. Advertisement READ MORE IN TENNIS GETTING BI Tennis star, 17, walks out of A Level exam to find she's got Wimbledon wildcard 'This is a definite huge step for me. I remember last year going into the grass ranked around 40. 'To be inside the top-four come Wimbledon one year around, that's massive progress. 'A testament to my team, the dedication I have had for tennis, the work I have put in on a daily basis. 'You know, I live and breathe the sport and I'm obsessed with progressing. Advertisement BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK 'I'm obsessed with becoming the player that I want to become all the time and achieve the things I want to. 'The top-16 seeds get, you know, a better changing room. There's some tournaments where it's top-eight seeds, in the Masters 1000s I've had this year. Andy Murray starts new career as agony aunt as he reveals details of 'terrible' first date with wife Kim 'Nothing is different apart from the fact that maybe, potentially I won't see Alcaraz or Sinner in the quarters – if I make it there.' Advertisement Meanwhile, Murray won't be stepping into TV punditry work just yet – as he does not want to annoy Jack Draper with his words. Muzza, 38, hated it when he was playing and former British tennis stars, who had nowhere near his same level of ability or talent, gave him advice. Now retired and at a loose end following the dissolution of his coaching gig with 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, the Scotsman could earn decent money working for the BBC. But the two-time Wimbledon singles champion is conscious of appearing in front of millions and saying something that current British No 1 Draper, 23, disagrees with. Advertisement Asked by GQ magazine if he feels the need to stay in the public eye, Murray replied: 'I'm not thinking daily that I need to tweet something or somehow remain relevant. 'That's why I'm much more interested in the idea of coaching because I feel like I'd actually really be helping someone. 'Whereas with punditry, it can be harmful. If I go and work at, let's say Wimbledon, you start getting asked questions about British players like Jack Draper. 'I know when the British ex–tennis players would talk about my tennis and what I should be doing. Advertisement 'Because you respect them, you listen to what they're saying – but it's not always the same as what your coach is telling you. 'What the pundits are saying could be wrong. They're not right all the time, and when you're young, it's quite conflicting. 'So I'd be more inclined to do coaching, because I think punditry is quite an easy gig. You can just throw stuff out there. "People love it if it's a bit controversial, but you don't actually have any skin in the game.' Advertisement On an extremely hot day, Draper, 23, will try to out-ace Czech speedster Jiri Lehecka, who crushed the spirit of British star Jacob Fearnley 7-5 6-2 in the opening quarter-final. Dressed in all-black clothes, the black-haired Scotsman injured his arm returning one 138mph ace. And overall he served TEN double faults as his service game malfunctioned due to nerves and anxiety. Fearnley, 23, moaned: 'He was serving great. I was serving terrible. At this level you can't give away that many free points.' Advertisement BBC's Wimbledon TV comms team will be revealed on Monday.

The Independent

8 minutes ago

• The Independent

Liverpool newcomer Florian Wirtz motivated to build on Leverkusen achievements

Liverpool's record signing Florian Wirtz insists he has not moved to Anfield to 'have fun' but believes it is the right place for him to improve and be successful. The Premier League champions have paid Bayer Leverkusen £100million for the 22-year-old Germany international but that fee could potentially become a British record as there are £16m of add-ons included. If achieved that would surpass the existing mark of £115m which Chelsea paid for Moises Caicedo in 2023 and it is understood Liverpool will be happy to pay these 'aspirational bonuses' as it will mean they have enjoyed considerable success at elite level. And that is what Wirtz, one of Europe's hottest properties, is determined to contribute to. 'I'm not coming (to) have fun here, I want also to achieve something and give the fans what they deserve,' he told the club's website. 'Of course I want to keep going at this performance. So yeah, that sure gives motivation to achieve more. 'I would like to win everything every year. First of all, we have to do our work, I have to make my work. In the end, we want to be successful. 'Last season they won the Premier League, so my goal is for sure to win it again and also to go further in the Champions League. I'm really ambitious.' Wirtz has signed a five-year deal and at 22 has his best years ahead of him. He wants to continue the progress which saw him score 57 goals and contribute 64 assists in 197 appearances for Leverkusen. 'This was also a big point for me: that I will improve my own personal level and physical levels because I think everyone knows that in Liverpool the players are machines – really strong and really physical,' he added. 'But I see this also as an opportunity for me to get better in this point. So yeah, I just thought this was the right place for me.' Liverpool saw off competition from Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid to secure Wirtz. Leverkusen had valued him at £126m but a compromise was reached last week, although the up-front fee easily outstrips the £85m deal Liverpool agreed with Benfica in 2022 for Darwin Nunez, who is expected to leave this summer. 'I'm really excited to have a new adventure in front of me. This was also a big point of my thoughts: that I want to have something completely new, to go out of the Bundesliga and to join the Premier League,' he added. Wirtz is Liverpool's second signing of the summer, following close friend and Leverkusen team-mate Jeremie Frimpong to Anfield, and with the Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvilli joining next month after a deal was agreed a year ago spending has already reached £175m. That is set to be pushed beyond the £200m mark with a £40m fee agreed for Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez. It is their biggest summer window since 2018 when Naby Keita, Fabinho, Xherdan Shaqiri and Alisson Becker were recruited for around £170m, with Virgil van Dijk having signed for £75m the previous January. Owners Fenway Sports Group have, despite their 'Moneyball' reputation, not been afraid to splash out big fees for transformative players like Van Dijk and Alisson – and Wirtz falls into that category. The club have already recouped around £26m with the departures of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Caoimhin Kelleher with further funds expected to be generated from the likes of Nunez, Harvey Elliott, Federico Chiesa and potentially Andy Robertson, who is a target for Atletico Madrid.