West Ham to face Lille in final pre-season game

West Ham United will host French club Lille at the London Stadium for the final match of their pre-season.The Hammers will complete preparations for the 2025-26 season by taking on the four-time Ligue 1 champions on Saturday 9 August.Graham Potter will take his squad to the US for the Premier League Summer Series in July, where they will face Bournemouth, Manchester United and Everton."We're really looking forward to facing Lille," said West Ham boss Potter."Our pre-season schedule is geared to building the players up so that they are in the best possible condition when the Premier League gets underway on Saturday 16 August, and a fixture against high-quality European opposition a week beforehand is part of doing that."West Ham United's pre-season fixtures:Grasshoppers (19 July)Manchester United (27 July)Everton (30 July)Bournemouth (3 August)Lille (9 August)

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BBC News

18 minutes ago

• BBC News

'He's got such an aura' - Farrell's rise to Lions top job

British and Irish Lions v ArgentinaVenue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin Date: Friday, 20 June Kick-off: 20:00 BSTCoverage: Live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app For British and Irish Lions boss Andy Farrell, building connections has always been as crucial to fostering a winning environment as tactics and systems. When he speaks to the media, he regularly outlines his desire to see players become the "best versions of themselves". Not the best tacklers, or goal-kickers or scrummagers, but the best "versions". Ask the players about Farrell and they will gush. Johnny Sexton knows him better than most. He was Ireland captain under him and is now part of his British and Irish Lions backroom team."It's been amazing to see already," Sexton said of watching Farrell in Lions camp. "We're only in week one and the standard of training, the atmosphere, the environment that he's created already in terms of getting people to share ideas, whether you're a coach or player, making it really inclusive, everyone has a voice and a say."The last thing Andy wants is fast forward four or five weeks' time when you've won or lost the series, he doesn't want people saying 'we should have done this, we should have done that'. "He wants you to speak now. That's the greatest part about the environment, it's a pretty special place to be at the moment and I'm sure it'll get better over the next couple of months."Farrell's ability to give clarity and confidence to those who come into his orbit extended to the British and Irish Lions decision-makers, who unanimously backed him as the man to lead this summer's tour to he was announced as head coach in January 2024, it surprised no-one. Now, nearly 18 months on, the 50-year-old is finally ready to tackle one of rugby's most daunting coaching challenges when he leads the Lions into Friday's pre-tour game against Argentina in Dublin. It is the start of an important new chapter for the Englishman. But everything up to this point shows he never shirks a challenge, and he usually finds success. Farrell's leadership skills were evident from a young age - and in a different in rugby league, he made his debut for Wigan Warriors at just 16, became the youngest Challenge Cup winner a year later in 1993 and captained Great Britain when he was 21. It wasn't all good in the 13-man discipline. Twenty of his 34 Great Britain appearances ended in defeat and he was captain for the 1996 tour which yielded three Test losses to New Zealand. The goal-kicking loose forward dreamed of testing himself in Australia's National Rugby League, which he considered the pinnacle of the sport. But after a move down under failed to materialise, he opted for arguably an even greater challenge: a switch to rugby union with Saracens in 2005. Injuries hampered his bid to become a cross-code phenomenon. He won eight caps for England, and while his 2007 World Cup was cut short by a calf problem, his enthusiasm to become a coaching powerhouse remained undimmed. His first opportunity came at Saracens - initially as Mark McCall's assistant - before he joined Stuart Lancaster's England ticket as defence coach in time for the 2012 Six Nations. "You could tell he was a leader as a player and as a head coach, you need a strong second voice in the changing room, that person who can take the weight off your shoulders a bit. Andy fulfilled that role for me," Lancaster told the BBC's Rugby Union Weekly podcast last also described Farrell as a "great orator" and that much became clear in 2013 when he delivered his now-famous "hurt arena" speech to the British and Irish Lions squad before the deciding third Test against Lions emerged from Sydney with their first tour win in 16 years (it also remains their most recent), while Farrell's star continued to rise when he returned as one of Gatland's assistants in the drawn 2017 series against New Zealand. His burgeoning status prompted the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) to swoop at the earliest possible opportunity, appointing him Ireland defence coach under Joe Schmidt within a month of his England exit, which came in the aftermath of the 2015 World Farrell served a three-year apprenticeship under Schmidt, it soon became clear after taking the top job in 2019 that his coaching style differed greatly from the New Zealander's. He emphasised the importance of marking landmarks like debuts or 50th or 100th caps with presentation ceremonies that often involved the players' families - an approach that would seem well-suited to a Lions environment where a lot of the players don't know each other."There's a different mentality around the place - a different relationship between players and coaches and a different relationship between players and players, going over stuff together," Ireland lock Iain Henderson said during the early stages of Farrell's reign."Before, the guys might have been a wee bit tentative about who they went and asked questions to. For fear of people thinking they don't know their detail, didn't know stuff."Five years on, Sexton's comments echo Henderson's words. It shows that creating a collaborative space in training and giving the players the confidence to express themselves has been the bedrock of Farrell's success with Ireland. Of course, he found the going tough initially, with mixed results during his first two years in charge leading Sexton to jump to his though, Farrell presided over one of the greatest periods in Irish rugby history, with talk of him as a future Lions boss intensifying after he led Ireland to a historic series success in New Zealand in 2022. And even though the All Blacks ended his side's World Cup campaign at the quarter-final stage in 2023, Farrell's 2022-23 run, that included a Six Nations Grand Slam and a 17-match unbeaten streak, effectively sealed his Lions appointment. 'When he speaks, you tune in' Since officially starting his Lions duties, Farrell has stuck to what he knows, plucking four coaches - Sexton, Simon Easterby, Andrew Goodman and John Fogarty - from the IRFU and flooding his squad with 16 Ireland players, several of whom will be absent on also took the squad on a pre-tour training camp in Quinta do Lago in Portugal, which has served as Ireland's warm-weather base before the Six Nations and World Cup in recent is still early days, but Farrell has clearly made an impression on those coming into contact with him for the first time. "He's got such an aura around the place," said Welsh scrum-half Tomos Williams, "Everyone turns their head when he speaks. He's been class, the level of detail and clarity he gives you is class."I think anyone would if you've got two caps or 100 caps. A person of his calibre, when he speaks, you just instantly tune in."

Telegraph

35 minutes ago

• Telegraph

Shubman Gill wants India to dominate – Ben Stokes will have other ideas

Shubman Gill can never be accused of lacking confidence. Gill, the new India captain, has his nickname 'Prince' stamped on his cricket bat and he is going to need that self-assurance when he comes face to face with Ben Stokes over the next six weeks. Under Stokes and Brendon McCullum, England have carved out a new style and, for all its ups and downs, Bazball achieves one thing; it rattles opposing captains. Pat Cummins, Rohit Sharma and Tom Latham have all spoken in the past about how they have had to reconsider their tactics and respond to the way England, and Stokes, challenge their thinking. Holding your nerve and staying calm is easier said than done when face to face with England on the charge. Cummins's eyes were spinning like a fruit machine at Old Trafford two years ago as England went on the rampage, and that image will remain with England as they prepare for the Ashes this winter. Gill will require a stiff backbone in his first series as captain, leading one of the world's most scrutinised sports teams, as they embark on the challenge of winning a series in England for the first time since 2007. Gill has inherited the No 4 position too, which in itself would be enough responsibility for a 25-year-old to handle without the burden of leadership. The role has been held by Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli since the early 1990s, before Gill was born, let alone picked up a cricket bat for the first time on his father's farm in the Punjab. Gill comes to the job with a Test average of 35 and much to prove away from home. He averages 29 outside of India and 31 against pace, which will be what England will throw at him in Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue. But it is the ultimate challenge, and Gill is relishing it. He has the world at his feet. Whether he can seize the moment will become clearer over the next five Tests. 'Hopefully we find ourselves in a position where he might scramble his own mind but we will not go out there purposely to put pressure on a new captain,' said Stokes, but he knows from his time playing in India the pressure Gill is under. On the For the Love of Cricket podcast this week, England's Jos Buttler said: 'I don't think we can quite understand the level of interest and the stardom that these guys have. You see it around the IPL [Indian Premier League], you're aware of it, but actually living that yourself… I think they say the Indian Test captain is like the third or fourth most influential person in India, behind the prime minister etc – so you really are put up on that pedestal. It's going to be a huge job for him.' 'I want to be the best batsman in the series' The first question of Gill's initial captain's press conference was about his 'coronation moment' and whether he had grasped the 'enormity' of the responsibility thrust upon him. If the job can be likened to the prime minister's office then Gill has a politician inside him. He straight-batted every question while saying all the right things. Sitting back in his chair and exuding calmness, he acknowledged the 'biggest honour' a player can have by captaining India in Test cricket and identified winning a five-Test series in England as a bigger achievement than lifting the IPL title. He shrugged off any thoughts he will walk to the crease with a target on his back now he is captain. 'I want to play as a batsman and dominate opposition and be the best batsman in the series. That is what I am trying to look at.' Buttler played under Gill for Gujarat Titans in the IPL and believes his captaincy will be a mix of Kohli's hot-headedness and Rohit's level-headedness. Kohli was never a tactical genius, but he gave an edge to India that has permeated through to the next generation; Gill sledged Jonny Bairstow and James Anderson in the last series against England and has been known to upset umpires in the IPL. Gautam Gambhir, the coach, is a 'prickly character' to quote Ricky Ponting, and he will expect his young captain to be punchy and reflect the self-confidence of Indian cricket. Gill has consulted both Kohli and Rohit about captaining in England and will lean on Gambhir for advice. Together they want to build a team where players 'feel secure and valued', giving them a longer rope, which will involve shutting out the noise and resisting the pressure to change tack when things inevitably go wrong at some stage. A captain is only as good as his bowling attack and in Jasprit Bumrah, Gill possesses the ace. To average 19 in Test cricket in the modern era of bigger bats, aggressive batsmen and flat pitches makes Bumrah a true great of the game; a bowler who can take wickets on any surface at any stage of an innings. Bumrah captained India in Australia when Rohit was unavailable, but the job went to Gill on a full-time basis because of workload fears. Bumrah will play at least three Tests against England, and how Gill uses him will determine whether he has the puff left for a fourth. 'He is young and energetic, he has his own thought process, and that is how it should be. If he needs anything from me, I will always be there for him,' Bumrah said about Gill this week. The pitch at Headingley is green but dry underneath, and, with sunny weather forecast, the groundsman is leaving the grass on it to try to prevent it breaking up for as long as possible. It is not going to be the seaming paradise on which Anderson and Ollie Robinson rolled India for 78 in the first innings four years ago. That series ended with India going home due to a Covid scare while 2-1 up. When they came back a year later to finish off the series, England had been rejuvenated by Bazball and romped to victory at Edgbaston. This time it is India and Gill's chance to show they are the team setting the agenda, and trying to spark new life into their Test team. 'Our side is not experienced but doesn't have any baggage coming to England, because not all have been here before. That could make a difference,' Gill said.

Daily Mirror

35 minutes ago

• Daily Mirror

Bryan Mbeumo signs, Marcus Rashford departs - Man Utd's next transfer moves

A busy summer is expected at Old Trafford and Carrington as Manchester United are left with no option but to back Ruben Amorim or face another year of desperate struggle Matheus Cunha is signed and ready to deliver after his £62.5m arrival from Wolves but that should just be the start of a long and hectic summer at Manchester United. Ruben Amorim's squad needs significant revamping following the nightmare campaign just gone and chief executive Omar Berrada says the club's target remains winning the Premier League in 2028. ‌ But everyone under the sun knows that the club must persuade other clubs to sign high-earning misfits for them to fund further new signings - with outgoings now the top priority despite continued interest in Brentford star Bryan Mbeumo. ‌ Here is where things stand with 81 days left in the transfer window. Mbeumo chase United know that their attack needs drastic improvement if the gap is to be closed in 2025-26 and Mbeumo has proven his Premier League chops by excelling at Brentford. However this deal is complicated by two factors. Spurs are also interested, having just appointed Thomas Frank from the Bees and Mbeumo may decide working with his old boss and playing in the Champions League is a better option. Plus he would not have to relocate. United aren't in Europe and the fact is that if they are to sign him there must be a number of unwanted stars heading for the exit. Ekitike doubts That second point also applies to any pursuit of Eintracht Frankfurt's forward Hugo Ekitike, who carries the red flag of having no experience of English football and just one prolific year in the Bundesliga. ‌ Eintracht are under no obligation to sell and what a big sum. United have taken similar risks in recent seasons that have backfired spectacularly. Rashford interest Then there are the exits and none are more high profile than Marcus Rashford, the homegrown hero no longer with a future at Old Trafford. ‌ His loan at Aston Villa last season went well before injury cut it short and a return there appears unlikely. Barcelona have been linked, talk of a switch to Newcastle has been dismissed. But it is probably beneficial to all parties for a deal to be agreed. Sancho to Naples Similar can be applied to Jadon Sancho. Chelsea paid £5m not to sign him following his mixed bag loan and recent reports suggest Napoli would be keen on bringing him in, joining Scott McTominay. ‌ But, yet again, there appears to be a snag regarding the financial make-up of a move. Garnacho conundrum Reports immediately after the Europa League final suggested that the Argentina attacker was told he could leave if he finds a new club. But he still went on a money-spinning post-season tour in Asia and there have been crickets since. ‌ He is one of few players who could earn a considerable fee, which also means he is one of few players with the natural ability to shine in a successful United side. Expect talk around his future to drag on to the September 1 window. Who else can go? We know Bruno Fernandes will stay because he turned down the Saudi riches but beyond that anyone could go if a good offer comes in. That, according to past reports, includes Kobbie Mainoo, Casemiro and Rasmus Hojlund, who is yet to catch fire after two seasons since arriving for £72m from Atalanta.