Erin Cuthbert expressed joy and relief at making her first appearance of the season in Scotland’s impressive 2-0 win over the Czech Republic.
By winning the Women’s World Cup round-one play-off away leg, the Scots are well set up for the return in Paisley on Tuesday, with Sweden the likely opponent for the team that progresses.
Chelsea captain Cuthbert, 28, is yet to feature at club level this season following a knee injury and came on as a substitute in Pardubice. Fellow sub Claire Emslie finished superbly for the Scots’ second after captain Caroline Weir’s stunning opener.
“It’s so good,” Cuthbert told BBC Scotland.
“It’s been such a long summer. It’s always great to come on and play for my country again – I’ll never take it for granted when I get a serious injury.
“I’m just glad to get back on a football pitch. The relief, the amount of self-doubt that you have, the amount of stress – am I going to be back to the same level, how am I going to perform, is my knee going to be alright? All those things run through your head.
“It was a bad one. I was in crutches and a brace for the best part of a month. I lost a fair amount of muscle and over the summer I was trying to rebuild all of that again.
Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring for Al-Nassr in their 3-0 win over Diriyah, his first game since Portugal walkout.
Published On 10 Oct 202610 Oct 2026
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to club football action on Friday after a controversial international break with Portugal and scored the opening goal as Al-Nassr beat Diriyah 3-0 in the Saudi Pro League.
The victory put the defending champions level on points behind leader Al-Qadsiah on goal difference in the eighth round.
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During the international window, the 41-year-old Ronaldo walked out of the Portugal squad, for which he has scored 146 goals in 234 appearances.
In a long statement posted on Tuesday, Ronaldo said Portugal coach Jorge Jesus had not been true to his word about when he would play the striker in the Nations League.
Ronaldo won the Saudi Arabia title in May with Jesus as Al-Nassr coach, and opened the scoring on Friday midway through the first half.
Kingsley Coman’s shot from outside the area was blocked by goalkeeper Waleed Abdullah, and Ronaldo was there to shoot home the rebound from close range for goal number 980 in his career.
Samu Costa added a second for Al-Nassr, coached by former Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou, just before the break, and Coman sealed the win with 13 minutes remaining.
Al-Qadsiah earlier thrashed Al-Kholood 5-0, with Dutch international Tijjani Reijnders opening the scoring and Italy’s Mateo Retegui and Mexico’s Julian Quinones also finding the target.
Deportivo, Parma, Hamburg. Not just a football hipster’s holiday hit-list, but a sample of erstwhile headline acts who have returned to their respective top flights in recent years.
You can throw Leeds United, Nottingham Forest, Schalke and Malaga into the mix too.
But with such footballing royalty back in the big time, where can you find Europe’s current sleeping giants? Which one-mighty sides are still snoozing?
We first need to establish some criteria – history, heritage, fanbase, stadium. Clubs with huge potential who currently exist outside the top flight.
Calling a big city home helps, but it is not a deal-maker – sorry to fans of Bristol City and second-tier Russian outfit FC Ufa, where the local population tops one million.
Likewise, some clubs with good-sized stadiums have not made the cut. Bari, whose Stadio San Nicola is the third-largest in Italy and was built for Italia ’90, stands out, though some of their calcio colleagues outside Serie A also have grounds of more than 30,000 – Hellas Verona, Messina and Palermo among them.
There’s a plethora of ex-Premier League teams with top-flight worthy arenas and storied pasts, while Germany is stacked full of historic clubs with huge homes who arguably deserve a spot – Fortuna Dusseldorf, Wolfsburg, Hannover 96 – but we can’t include them all.
A sleeping giant must have experienced some element of former glory and Pro Vercelli are the obvious candidate there, winning seven Italian titles by 1922. But, despite being under new ownership, the third-tier side boast neither the ground nor local population to awaken that historic status any time soon.
The other nuance is, that success cannot have come too recently. West Ham, for example, won a European competition three years ago, Wolves are recent top-flight regulars; likewise Stade de Reims, twice European Cup runners-up, and eight-time French champions Nantes.
Leaving out Steaua Bucharest was another big call. European Cup winners 40 years ago and Romania’s most dominant club, they now play in Liga II. But, following a deeply divisive split, many of the traditional fanbase follow top-flight FCSB. So who really owns that legacy?
And there was a case for Boavista, title winners in 2001 but whose existence now hangs by a thread. Facing financial ruin, despite fans’ best efforts, they have been ejected from Portugal’s professional leagues.
Anyway, let’s get on with this. Piped through the matrix above, here are my top 10 European sleeping giants – you can have your say in the comments, too.
LAS VEGAS — Kayla Thornton scored 18 points and the second-year Golden State Valkyries became the quickest expansion team to reach the WNBA Finals, sweeping the defending champion Las Vegas Aces 87-77 in overtime Friday night in Game 3.
The second-seeded Valkyries will have home-court advantage and will host No. 4 Atlanta beginning Oct. 17. The Dream swept New York earlier on Friday, and now teams are 22-0 in playoff history when leading a series 2-0.
Las Vegas, which was seeded third, had won three of the past four championships.
Gabby Williams added 16 points for the Valkyries, including eight in overtime. Former Aces Kiah Stokes and Tiffany Hayes each had 11 points, and Stokes also grabbed 10 rebounds.
A’ja Wilson, honored before night’s game for winning an unprecedented fifth MVP, scored 21 points, but on six-for-19 shooting for the Aces. She also had 10 rebounds, joining DeWanna Bonner as the only players with 1,300 points and 600 rebounds in the postseason.
Jackie Young added 18 points and Chelsea Gray 17.
A 17-point run bolted Golden State past the Aces for a 53-47. Las Vegas closed within a point by the end of the quarter, giving the Aces only seven points in the period.
The Aces led by six points late in the game before the Valkyries evened the score when Gabby Williams stole the ball from Wilson and Thornton finished with a transition layup to make it 69-69 with 1:50 left.
Golden State then took the lead Veronica Burton’s 9-foot floater with 1:12 remaining. The Aces tied the score on Gray’s inbound pass to Young with 27 seconds left and ultimately force overtime.
The extra period belonged completely to the Valkyries, who outscored the Aces 16-6.
Who: Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur What: English Premier League Matchweek 6 Where: Old Trafford, Manchester, United Kingdom When: Saturday, October 9, at 5:30pm (16:30 GMT) How to follow: Al Jazeera Sport will bring you all the build-up from 13:30 GMT.
Manchester United and Tottenham are accustomed to battling it out at the top end of the Premier League, albeit for UEFA Champions League rankings as opposed the domestic crown in recent years for the former in particular.
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Recent seasons have seen both slide to dramatic lows by their standards and a concerned Old Trafford welcomes a Spurs side, whose immediate concerns are far greater than those of the hosts.
Roberto De Zerbi’s struggling North Londoners are bottom of the table with only two points to their name after five games. United’s have one only once in that time and a Spurs win will see the sides level on points.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a closer look at a match that, although early in the season, could well shape the months ahead for both sides and the immediate futures of their managers in a game that has been labelled: “El Sackicko”.
Carrick casts an eye across Manchester to eye City’s woes
United head coach Michael Carrick has plenty of problems of his own, but has called for a swift resolution to Manchester City’s financial charges case, saying the long-running process had raised many questions and affected him personally.
Last month, an independent commission found City guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules over nine seasons, between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 campaigns, as well as three of four charges concerning their failure to cooperate with the investigation.
City, who currently top the Premier league table as the only side with a perfect record after five matches, have denied wrongdoing and lodged an appeal.
Carrick spent 12 years at United from 2006 to 2018, winning five Premier League titles and the Champions League among numerous honours, before taking charge in January following Ruben Amorim’s departure.
During his playing career, the 45-year-old former midfielder lost out in two title races won by City, including the 2011-12 campaign when United fell short on goal difference after Sergio Aguero’s dramatic title-clinching goal on the final day.
“It’s thrown up a lot of questions. As it’s still ongoing, and we don’t know how long it’s going to go,” Carrick told a press conference when asked about the City charges.
“It’s affected me personally in different ways over a period of time.”
Would medals make up for lost titles for Man United?
Asked if he wants the titles United missed out on, Carrick said he would reserve judgement until the process was complete.
“I think regardless of anything, a medal anyway, in any sport in history, I think later on you get the medal and it’s proven at different times,” the Englishman added.
“It’s the moment that you strive for to win and achieve in that moment, so the medal here or there, not getting blase about it, but that doesn’t bring the feeling of when you initially win or you don’t win. That’s essentially what we’re all in it for.”
De Zerbi calls on struggling Spurs to react in Man Utd clash
Roberto De Zerbi has urged bottom-of-the-table Tottenham to “react” to the pressure of their crunch clash with fellow strugglers United.
Spurs have been waiting for the chance to erase the bitter taste of a 3-2 home defeat against Aston Villa in their last match before the international break.
And, with scrutiny mounting on the Italian, the Spurs manager demanded his players rise to the challenge against United.
“I’ve been waiting for this game from three weeks. After the defeat at home against Villa, personally I wanted to play the day after,” he told reporters on Friday.
“It was difficult, it was very tough, especially the first week. But it is football. It is part of the situation in this moment. We have to react, to work in this moment.”
Misfiring Tottenham must improve their aim
Tottenham failed to score in their first four league games before finally finding the net twice against Villa.
De Zerbi conceded his team have to improve in attack if they are climb out of the bottom three.
“We created chances to score many other goals in these seven games but we didn’t. We are working to improve in the last third, the assists and the finishing,” he said.
“We are fourth in the table for the team who brings the ball into the opponents’ area the most times.
“It is nothing but it shows we can arrive in the area. We are not good enough to score goals so far when we have clear chances.”
Can Carrick or De Zerbi survive ‘El Sackicko’?
With Carrick also under pressure following their poor start, Tottenham’s trip to Manchester has been dubbed ‘El Sackicko’.
De Zerbi saved Tottenham from relegation after arriving late last season, but that final-day survival feat is unlikely to save him from the axe if results don’t improve soon.
“We are Tottenham. United and Tottenham are still big clubs in the Premier League,” he said.
“We have to deserve to work in this club, playing better and making different results.”
What happened the last time Man United played Tottenham
The sides last met in February in a Premier League encounter at Old Trafford with the home side winning 2-0.
Cristian Romero was shown red on the half-hour mark for Spurs before Bryan Mbeumo and Bruno Fernandes netted the United goals.
When did Tottenham last beat Manchester United?
Spurs famously beat United 1-0 in the UEFA Europa League final in May 2025, thanks to Brennan Johnson’s first-half strike.
The match marked Ange Postecoglou’s last game in charge of the club before being sacked for their lowly league finish.
Ruben Amorim paid the same heavy price the following season.
When did Tottenham last win a match at Manchester United?
Spurs piled the pressure on Amorim early in the 2024-2025 season with a 3-0 Premier League win at Old Trafford.
Johnson gave the away team a third-minute lead, before United had Bruno Fernandes sent off on the stroke of half-time.
Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke completed the scoring in the second half.
Head-to-head – Manchester United vs Tottenham
This will be the 205th meeting between the clubs with United winning 96 matches compared to Tottenham’s 56 victories.
Prediction – Manchester United vs Tottenham
The Opta supercomputer has given United a 54 percent chance of winning, while offering Spurs only a 22 percent chance of emerging victorious.
Manchester United team news
“It’s a bit mixed really through the internationals,” Carrick said. “(Wing back) Patrick Dorgu came off and it looks like he’ll be out probably for a number of weeks.
“(Defender) Noussair Mazraoui came off and took a knock. He’s not quite right yet, we’ll have to see how he is.”
He added that Carlos Baleba was improving, while fellow midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, winger Amad Diallo and forward Marcus Rashford had resumed limited training. Striker Benjamin Sesko remains further away from a return.
Kulusevski, Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert and Mykhaylo Mudryk all remain sidelined due to injury.
Jan Paul van Hecke has overcome a foot injury, but may miss out after his wife gave birth to twins – the club has said emotional needs will be taken into consideration.
Predicted Tottenham Hotspur starting lineup
Kinsky; Gray, Senesi, Van de Ven, Robertson; Gallagher, Tonali, Fernandes; Savio, Solanke, Marmoush
Missing a number of experienced players, including captain Simone Magill, Laura Rafferty and Nadene Caldwell, McArdle handed a debut to defender Jane McMaster and first caps to Kess Elmore and Charlotte Havern off the bench.
McMaster responded well after giving away the early penalty for Encarnacao’s opener, while Kelmore was lively in the second half and, at 16, it was a big moment for Cliftonville’s Havern to be introduced with 10 minutes remaining.
“It’s fundamental, especially for our younger players, to get this exposure,” McArdle added.
“It’s a risk and it’s brave, but it’s one that will definitely 100% stand strong with us in the long term.
“It will give us that sustainable opportunity to qualify for tournaments in the longer run because we need our younger players to get this exposure, but also for a lot of our senior players as well.”
After impressing in the second half before Pinto’s goal took the wind out of their sails, McArdle said his players will “hurt for the next 24 hours or so” but regroup for the second leg.
Northern Ireland will be without Chambers, who was sent off in the closing stages for grabbing the hair of Carolina Correia.
“There’s the travel over to Portugal thrown in to allow us to relax a wee bit afterwards.
“But once we get there, we’ll look forward to Tuesday again.
“We’re trying to qualify, but there is a longer process as well that we’ll use Tuesday night for.”
The Arsenal boss worked under Pep Guardiola between 2016 and 2019, which overlapped with the nine seasons during which City have been found to have broken rules and disguised secret funding of more than £830m.
In his first news conference since the ruling – which the club has appealed – Arteta attempted to bat away questions, saying he wanted to “respect” the ongoing process.
However, towards the end of more than half an hour of questioning, he was asked: “You were at City for three and a half years, is your conscience clear? You had a senior position there, is your conscience clear?”
Arteta answered: “Yes”.
His answer was one word, but it was arguably the most revealing part of the whole interaction.
It was the only occasion where the Spaniard did not in some way revert to his messaging about not giving opinions on the case until such a time as there is a resolution.
Arteta was at no point combative, but it was clear he arrived at Arsenal‘s training ground with a response he was determined to stick to.
Asked if he had spoken to Guardiola, he added: “I prefer not to answer those questions.”
Arteta was asked for his reaction to the damning report from the independent commission, which found City had arranged “sham contracts” with a number of commercial partners to disguise earnings.
He said: “I fully understand the question, but obviously I think it’s very important that we respect the process, the timelines, and it’s still an ongoing process that is not resolved because it’s been appealed.
“My position, and I think the club’s position, is not to make any further comments until this is fully resolved.”
When asked if he thought, that to preserve the integrity of the Premier League, the appeal and sanction needed to be resolved this season, he replied: “The people are responsible to manage this process and to come to the right conclusions and I’m sure it will be done and it will be resolved in the right way. We have to trust that.”
Arteta also added he “100%” believed the Premier League remains the best in the world.
Arsenal, who sit three points behind league leaders City, face fifth-placed Leeds on Saturday at Emirates Stadium.
Dana White has credited Eddie Hearn for making sure the long-awaited fight between Tyson Fury and Antony Joshua will be held in the UK but insisted he was “bored” of their ongoing feud.
The heavyweight bout will take place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff – despite efforts to host it New York’s Madison Square Garden – on a bill that starts on 11 December, though they are not expected to fight until the early hours of 12 December.
White and Saudi Arabian organisers wanted the bout in the United States, but Joshua and his promoter Hearn refused to budge on their contractual right to have it in the UK.
“You’ve got to give credit to Eddie for really grinding that and making sure that it happened in the UK,” UFC president and Zuffa Boxing chief White told Steve Bunce on the 5 Live Boxing with Bunce podcast.
The fight, which will be shown on Netflix, has been presented as a collaboration between Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh’s The Ring and White.
Hearn has been publicly feuding with White since the launch of Zuffa Boxing earlier this year and said his involvement in the fight “ain’t happening”.
But, Fury and Joshua held a news conference on 30 September, to ease concerns over their fight.
The Portuguese computer hacker who released documents which helped trigger the Premier League investigation into Manchester City will remain in witness protection after authorities in the country suspended the decision to end it.
Pinto, 37, disclosed a tranche of confidential football documents, including emails and financial records relating to the English Premier League side.
In 2018, he shared documents with German magazine Der Spiegel, which used them for investigations into City’s finances and alleged breaches of financial fair play rules.
City were recently found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. They have appealed against the decision.
Pinto became part of Portugal’s witness protection programme in 2020 after agreeing to co-operate with authorities and provide information obtained through the Football Leaks operation.
However, in a statement on Friday,, external Portugal’s Ministry of Justice said a decision to remove Pinto from witness protection had been reversed for the time being, with the body responsible for it – the special security programmes commission – having not adequately “notified” Pinto of grounds for its termination or given him the opportunity to challenge the decision.
Pinto will now be given 10 days to assess a risk assessment conducted by the special security programmes commission that indicates a low threat to his safety.
He posted on X, external thanking Portugal’s Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcao Judice and saying the commission’s initial decision had clearly violated the law and amounted to a “manifest abuse of power”.
Pinto has described himself as a whistleblower, but was convicted in Portugal of offences including illegal access to data and attempted extortion and given a four-year suspended sentence.
He wore a bulletproof vest during his first trial in 2020, which was also subject to heightened security measures.
Earlier this year, he was acquitted of 241 counts of illegally accessing email accounts belonging to a number of sports bodies in Portugal, including Benfica.
CAF had declared the Africa Cup of Nations would be held every four years, but may reverse that decision.
Published On 9 Oct 20269 Oct 2026
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is reappraising its decision to hold the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) every four years, CAF president Patrice Motsepe declared on Friday, while insisting his organisation did not take orders from FIFA or UEFA.
Motsepe, who last December announced the biennial AFCON would switch to a four-year cycle from 2028, said on Friday that it was “nonsense, absolute rubbish” that CAF was being dictated to by either the world or European governing body.
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The decision at the time, bringing the competition to a schedule that aligned with FIFA’s international calendar, rankled many at the 2025 AFCON in Morocco, with some saying it was made with European wishes at heart to the detriment of African interests.
Motsepe, a South African billionaire who is also a vice-president of FIFA, appeared stung by the criticism.
“My No. 1 job, my No. 1 duty is to protect, promote, and advance the interests of Africa,” he said. “And there are times when I have to stand firm and say, ‘Listen, we’re going to fight on this issue.’ And there are times when I have to say, ‘No.’
“The AFCON — because this is one of the issues we’re talking about — we took a decision as Africa because there were lots of issues, but I can guarantee you we have discussed it over the last few days to say we are looking at everything, including having the AFCON coming back every two years,” Motsepe said. “We’re very clear.”
He was speaking at the final day of CAF’s three-day strategy conference in Cape Verde. On Thursday, he reiterated the 54-member body’s “unanimous” support for FIFA’s under-fire president Gianni Infantino, and Infantino reminded his potential election voters of investments FIFA has made for African football since gaining the job 10 years ago.
Motsepe reaffirmed the 2027 Africa Cup will go ahead as planned in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda next year, despite recent media reports from France saying construction projects were not going to schedule and some CAF members were pushing to have the tournament moved.
“You have to believe in Africa. There will be problems, there will be failures, fine, but we will be there. That’s what Mandela taught us,” Motsepe said.
Melanie Marx bought Angel City season tickets before the team was a team. It had no players, no coach and no uniform. It was more a concept than a reality and Marx bought in.
“I’ve always had pride for this team.” she said. “This was the first team from the NWSL that I’ve been able to say that I’m a supporter for.”
Yet supporting Angel City, she says, has been as exhausting as it has been exciting. Once the most valuable women’s professional sports team in history, Angel City has had one winning season and made just one playoff appearance in its first four seasons.
Attendance declined more than 22%, high-profile players such as Alyssa Thompson, Christen Press, Ali Riley and Madison Hammond have either been transferred away, retired or been allowed to leave and the team hasn’t re-signed popular captain Sarah Gorden for next season. At the same time, it has gone through five coaches and three general managers/sporting directors in less than five years.
Angel City defender Gisele Thompson celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal.
(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)
That’s not exactly what Marx signed up for.
“I’m upset as a fan, of course, and I’m upset as a season-ticket holder,” she said. “But I’m also upset as a fan of these players and someone who’s been invested in this league of almost 10 years.”
“What keeps myself and others coming back week to week is because of the players themselves,” she added. “Because the results on the pitch haven’t always matched the ambitions of the supporters.”
During the past three months, that support has finally been rewarded. Following Sunday’s draw with first-place Gotham FC, the reigning NWSL champion, Angel City (12-8-7) heads into the league’s two-week international break riding a seven-game unbeaten streak and is in sixth place in the 16-team table, in position for another playoff berth.
The team has lost just twice in 16 games under interim coach Leif Gunnar Smerud. Its 12 victories with three games to play is already a franchise record for a single season, as are its 45 goals. After posting a substantial negative goal differential in its first four seasons, Angel City’s plus-16 mark this year in best in the league.
And in the current international break, the team had a record nine players called up to various national teams. It’s one of the most dramatic turnarounds in NWSL history, one that may have saved at least a portion of the team’s most loyal fan base.
“My renewal for next year just recently came up and I was on a bit of knife’s edge deciding whether I want to go ahead,” said Michael Jaeger, an attorney who has had multiple Angel City season tickets in section 133 since the first season. “There have been consistent problems throughout.
“I really want the team to succeed. Given the recent successes, I did go ahead and re-up for next year because I’m feeling optimistic.”
Optimistic but not necessarily confident.
“I am not feeling like ‘OK, this is what I’ve been waiting for. The team’s really turned a corner,’” Jaeger said. “That to me would be success on the field, plus a decision about Sarah Gorden, plus [a] permanent head coach who we know is at least going to have one or more seasons to have things play out.
“So I don’t think we’re there yet. I like the current trend but because not a lot has necessarily changed about the front office, I’m not ready to say ‘OK, we’re fully on the right track.’”
Angel City has only itself to blame for that lack of trust. When the team launched with a massive ownership group that included Hollywood A-listers, former U.S. women’s national team stars and sports luminaries including Serena Williams and Billie Jean King, it promised to ignite a revolution in women’s sports.
Angel City FC fans chant during a match against the San Diego Wave at BMO Stadium on May 9.
(Luiza Moraes / Getty Images)
“We’re not just building a soccer club. We want to build an organization that has impact,” said Julie Uhrman, one of its team’s three founding owners.
And while Angel City has done real, meaningful work in the community, providing millions of meals to the hungry, funneling millions of dollars into community programs and taking a courageous stand against ICE raids across Southern California, as a soccer team it hasn’t delivered on its promises.
The loyal fans blame the front office, which has waived nearly six dozens players and five managers, including interim coaches, through its revolving doors since the first season. Mark Parsons, who won six trophies as manager with the Portland Thorns, was hired 20 months ago to stabilize things but his highly touted global search for a coach ended with Alexander Straus spending just a year with the club — going 7-15-5 in parts of two seasons — while Parsons unsettled the roster by making more than 40 transactions.
“There’s just a lack of trust in the front office frankly,” said Nadia Johnson, who attended games every season but didn’t buy season tickets until this year. “We’re still doing these chaotic things, which is really frustrating as a fan.”
And the chaos may not be ending anytime soon. Despite his success, Smerud has not publicly been guaranteed anything beyond this season; officially, the team is still searching for a new manager.
Gorden, the captain and anchor of the defense, is out of contract at the end of the season as is veteran Claire Emslie. Meanwhile Sydney Leroux, 36, who has played one minute the past two seasons as she deals with mental health issues, is signed through 2027.
At the same time, Parsons has built the league’s youngest roster around players whose performances are bigger than their names. Goalkeeper Angelina Anderson, 25, is third in the league with nine clean sheets and 12 wins. Brazilian Maiara Niehues, 22, already has a franchise-record nine goals while Evelyn Shores, 21, has tied the single-season record with seven assists and defender Gisele Thompson, Alyssa’s sister, leads all outfield players with 2,420 minutes.
“I am excited about how diverse our team is and really how they’ve grown,” season ticket-holder Johnson said. “It’s playoff crunch time and so it’s always exciting, especially when your team is in it. So I’m excited to see where they go.”
But after four seasons of mediocrity and worse, however, she’s learned to keep her fingers crossed.
“I’m not confident if we get a rough patch next year what decisions will be made in terms of trying to repair that,” she said. “So yeah, that’s where I’m at.”
When No. 21 UCLA football faces off against No. 13 Oregon on Saturday afternoon at Autzen Stadium, defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler wants the Bruins to toe the line between playing with emotion and playing emotional.
“Big-time environments tend to bring a little extra out of your guys, and when you do a little bit extra, you tend to do too much,” Hitschler said. “Football is a hard game, but you can’t make it harder than it already is. Sometimes when you press, you tend to give up big mistakes. In the Purdue game, looking back, we definitely pressed a little bit too hard and got a little emotional. … Got to play with emotions, but we can’t play emotional. We’re in a good spot of growing and understanding that. But this is a new atmosphere, a new environment.”
Aside from the national rankings, the long history between these former Pac-12 rivals and both teams’ chances to contend for the College Football Playoff, the memory of Oregon knocking James Madison out of the Dukes’ first playoff appearance last December remains fresh for many of their players and assistants who followed coach Bob Chesney to the Bruins.
And the 51 points and 514 total yards the Ducks garnered against Hitschler’s defense left a chip on his shoulder.
UCLA safety Malik Hartford trips Purdue receiver Asaad Waseem at the Rose Bowl on Sept. 19.
(Ronaldo Bolaños/Los Angeles Times)
“We’re going to continue to be aggressive and continue to find a way to create opportunities for our offense to get the ball in a positive field position,” Hitschler said. “But we got to be on top of our game because they will make you pay no matter who it is at quarterback. They are going to make you pay for your mistakes, and they’re going to find a way to create the explosives they always have, and we got to limit them.”
Although Oregon quarterback Dante Moore — who tallied 313 passing yards and five total touchdowns against Hitschler‘s defense in the playoff — was ruled out for Saturday because of a head injury suffered against USC on Sep. 26, the Ducks’ Dylan Raiola is not a typical backup.
He threw for 4,819 yards and 31 touchdowns in two years as Nebraska’s starter, then went 11 for 11 with three touchdown passes in his Ducks debut before stepping up with 289 yards and two touchdown passes after replacing Moore in a 41-27 win over USC at the Coliseum.
“When you watch him come in and complete that game and do what he did, there’s not a giant drop-off between the two of those guys. They’re both really, really good,” Chesney said. “Dylan obviously had a chance at the end of that USC game to really put himself in position to gain confidence in his teammates and teammates to gain confidence in him, and I thought he was on time. I thought he was accurate. He let those guys compete for footballs, and I’m sure there’s a lot of buy-in in that program right now in him.”
While Raiola is a proven passer, his impact is amplified by the weapons around him. In the backfield, Hitschler touted Dierre Hill Jr. and Jordon Davidson as the best running back duo in the country. While the Bruins have gone toe-to-toe with formidable tailbacks thus far, they have yet to face a one-two punch like Hill and Davidson, which could pose problems for an otherwise staunch run defense.
Raiola’s arsenal includes potent pass catchers, particularly the Ducks’ top two wideouts, Dakorien Moore and Evan Stewart, who have combined for 512 yards and seven touchdowns.
Chesney tabbed Stewart as a matchup “nightmare,” adding that Oregon is going to get him the ball in a multitude of ways by utilizing him in the slot and creating mismatches for Hitschler’s defense. Chesney also said that Dakorien Moore’s extreme speed allows him to take the top off the defense, and that the Ducks will not be afraid to take shots downfield, testing the Bruins’ secondary.
And if the Bruins let emotions get the best of them, like they did against Purdue — when quarterback Ryan Browne threw for 378 yards and two touchdowns — then it may be a long day for Hitschler’s secondary.
The Bruins’ biggest headache could be 6-foot-5 tight end Jamari Johnson, who caught seven passes for 159 yards against USC, particularly with all three of UCLA’s starting cornerbacks shorter than 6 feet.
“The tight end we faced last year, and he’s special. They do a really good job of getting into different personnel packages, and then if you go to a bigger group, they’re going to spread you out. They’re going to try to find a matchup with that tight end,” Chesney said. “He can catch everything in his general vicinity; he’s absolutely phenomenal.”
With an explosive Ducks offense set to perform in the friendly confines of Autzen Stadium, the Bruins trusting the playbook may be most important.
“Football is football no matter where we are,” fifth-year offensive lineman Hall Schmidt said. “We don’t have a magic potion for Oregon, but we definitely have ourselves, and we have the tools that we’re going to use.”
USC quarterback Jayden Maiava has been playing above-average football, but the signal-caller’s deep throws have not been as sharp lately and he has shied away from some contact after taking a big hit to his shoulder during a 39-0 shutout of Fresno State on Sept. 4.
When asked about his quarterback on Tuesday, Trojans coach Lincoln Riley quickly replied that Maiava is not injured.
“Jayden has been pretty healthy,” Riley said. “They’ve kept him upright all season long.”
Maiava has adapted to shifting receiving options, calling it a learning experience as he connects with new pass catchers. USC freshman Trent Mosley was an early breakout star, but Maiava has had to look to others with Mosley out the past two games because of injury.
“I’ve been trusting myself, trusting the plan and trusting those guys on the perimeter,” Maiava said
He credits co-offensive coordinator Dennis Simmons for having his receivers ready whenever their names are called.
“It’s the next-man up mentality and we are all going to do the same thing,“ Maiava said.
A key building block
USC coach Lincoln Riley watches from the sideline during the fourth quarter of a win over Washington at the Coliseum on Oct. 3.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
As USC chases the program’s first win over Penn State in Happy Valley, Riley said he expects the Trojans to draw on the resilience they showed against Washington.
He called the rally for a victory over the Huskies a potential turning point for a program that can’t afford another loss if it hopes to reach the College Football Playoff for the first time during Riley’s tenure.
“It wouldn’t shock me if six to eight weeks down the road you’re going to look back at us and see that’s the game that was critical in the season,” Riley said of the Washington win. “Those are important. It helps develop the personality of your team. Most importantly, the biggest thing it shows is the brotherhood within our locker room right now.”
Supporting the defense
USC cornerbacks Chasen Johnson and Prophet Brown break up a pass intended for Washington receiver Dezmen Roebuck in the end zone to secure the Trojans’ win at the Coliseum on Oct. 3.
“[Patterson] is one of the best coaches of our generation. One of the best defensive minds in college football history,” Riley said, backing up his coordinator when asked about his progress.
Riley, however, did not defend poor tackling on Washington’s final touchdown drive that put the Trojans on the brink of a loss.
When asked whether the mistakes were addressed with the players, Riley responded, “Oh yeah. … It was a bad play. Not near our standard.”
He later added, “I bet we don’t see it again.”
While the Huskies’ scoring drive exposed some problems, the defense held its ground late in the fourth quarter to seal the win.
Stephens served a one-game suspension for a late hit to the head on Oregon quarterback Dante Moore and his behavior celebrating as Moore was being treated by medical staff before leaving the Coliseum in an ambulance.
USC released an apology from Stephens a day after the game. Riley was asked Tuesday whether Stephens would get his starting job back after Robinson’s strong play. While he didn’t specifically address the starting role, Riley did suggest Robinson earned more snaps.
“It was an opportunity for some other guys to step up and they did. … When you see guys that are there for that opportunity and rise to the occasion, it’s going to create more opportunities for some of those guys, there’s no question about it,” he said. “But Des is a good player and an important part of this football team. We view this a lot like just we’re coming back off any normal football game, like nothing else happened. … I think what we learned this week is we have a handful of guys who can go out there and play really, really well. … We look at it as a positive.”
If the Brewers are going to take down the heavily favored Dodgers, their group of Southland products will be key in the National League Championship Series that begins Sunday in Milwaukee.
Former Westlake star Christian Yelich is Mr. Brewer. He’s a three-time All-Star and the National League MVP in 2018. He’s always been willing to come back to the community and make contributions.
First baseman Jake Bauers is a Marina High graduate who lost in the Southern Section Division 1 championship game at Dodger Stadium to Jack Flaherty and Harvard-Westlake 1-0. Here’s a look at Bauers this season.
Former Marina first baseman Jake Bauers has 21 home runs for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys suffered an unexpected loss to the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels in front of a home crowd on “Thursday Night Football.”
Some might describe the loss as “embarrassing” — in fact, one guy actually said that exact word in the Cowboys tunnel within earshot of Prescott as he walked to the locker room after the game.
Online video footage shows Prescott looking back at the man — who was there as a transportation service driver and not an employee of the Cowboys or AT&T Stadium — while still walking, then turning away. The man then said something else, possibly “you heard me,” which prompted the veteran quarterback to look back and say, “You say it once I look off, huh?” while still walking.
Prescott can then be seen speaking to a Cowboys security employee and gesturing in the direction of the other man. Footage shows the security employee going back down the tunnel, presumably in search of the heckler, but it is unclear what happened after that. The Cowboys declined to comment for this article.
Prescott was asked about the incident during his postgame news conference. At first, he simply acknowledged that the person wasn’t necessarily wrong in his assessment of the game.
The four-time Pro Bowl selection was then asked if he thought the comment was disrespectful.
“You know, when he said it I just happened to look at him, and at that point he looked away, didn’t look. And when I turned my head back, he said something else,” said Prescott, who completed 24 of 42 passes for 316 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
“So that’s the part that — just as a man or as a person, feel free to speak your mind. Just speak it. Don’t coward away from the reaction that you’re going to get. If you’re saying it’s embarrassing, say it’s embarrassing. If you’re saying it to me, then say it to me. Don’t go back on it. So that’s all that was, and hate it that it’s even being talked about, to be honest with you.”
The Cowboys led 10-7 at halftime, but Tampa Bay scored 17 points in the third quarter to take control of the game. Dallas pulled to within 24-16 late in the fourth quarter, but Prescott threw his second interception of the night deep in Buccaneers territory with 1:16 remaining to seal the game.
Owner Jerry Jones called the game’s result “extraordinarily, extraordinarily disappointing.”
“Boy, I’ve been so disappointed before with losses, but this was disappointing,” Jones told reporters after the game. “And I’m disappointed because I see potential growth here. And we need to have good experiences on an individual basis as well as a team. And this was not a good experience out here.”
Prescott said he hesitates to use the word “embarrassing” to describe the loss because “I feel like I’m discrediting the NFL if I use that and particularly the Tampa Bay Bucs and a great Todd Bowles-coached and defensive-coached team.”
But, he added, “when a winless team comes into your home stadium on a Thursday night primetime game, yeah, we’re supposed to win that. So it sucks and it’s right up there close to ‘embarrassing,’ but I don’t know if I would say that.”
Defence coach Shaun Edwards has joined Argentina’s coaching staff on a deal that runs until the end of the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
The announcement ends any speculation that Edwards could be handed a role in Steve Borthwick’s England set-up, with the 59-year-old set to fulfil his consultancy role with England’s women’s team before joining Felipe Contepomi’s staff.
“I’m delighted to join Felipe Contepomi, his coaching staff and the Argentina rugby team at the end of this month until the World Cup next year in Australia,” said Edwards.
“I’ve always admired the ability and quality of Argentine players and I hope to bring some of my international experience to the team during the next year,” added the former Wigan rugby league great.
Englishman Edwards, who is one of the most decorated coaches in rugby union, left his position as France men’s defence coach earlier this year after helping them win three Six Nations titles.
Edwards and former Argentina head coach and hooker Mario Ledesma, who has been appointed to take charge of the forwards, will start work with the Pumas at the end of October.
Argentina are then set to face Ireland, Italy and France in November in Nations Championship matches.
Three-time semi-finalists Argentina have been drawn in a pool with Fiji, Spain and Canada at the World Cup which takes place between 1 October and 13 November in 2027.
Edwards, who also spent a successful 12 years with Wales and won four English titles and two Champions Cups while on Wasps’ staff, said in March that he was interested in coaching in the Rugby Championship, the southern hemisphere tournament contested by South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina.
He turned down a chance to coach his country in 2006, believing that the busier fixture list at Wasps would suit him better as he grieved the death of his brother.
Mustache. Aviator sunglasses. Bears sweater vest. Though Mike Ditka‘s look may be iconic, his time as a player and coach is what cemented his name in NFL history.
Ditka, the first ever tight end to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and coach of the legendary 1985 Chicago Bears, has died. He was 86.. His family announced his death in a statement Friday.
“It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, Mike Ditka,” The family said. “While the world knew Mike as a Hall of Fame football player, legendary coach, and leader of the Chicago Bears’ Super Bowl XX championship team, we knew him as the heart of our family. Mike will be missed beyond measure and remembered forever.”
With nicknames “Iron Mike,” “Da Coach” and “The Hammer,” Ditka was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988 after a 12-year playing career that featured five Pro Bowls, 427 receptions, 43 touchdowns and 5,812 receiving yards.
Ditka, who won two Super Bowls as a coach and one as a player, revolutionized the tight end position, transforming it from a primarily blocking-focused role to one that could pose a threat in receiving.
Notorious for his fiery personality, Ditka also took his stardom from field to screen, starring alongside Will Ferrell in “Kicking & Screaming,” in which he played himself. Though instead of coaching the championship-winning Bears, he helps coach a little league soccer team — but his competitive spirit remains the same. He also made several TV appearances, including in “Cheers,” “L.A. Law” and “Entourage.”
Born in Carnegie, Pa., on Oct. 18, 1939, Ditka was a first-round draft pick of the Chicago Bears in 1961. The team at the time was helmed by Bears founder, president and head coach George Halas, who later bestowed Ditka with his first NFL head coaching job in 1982.
Coming from the University of Pittsburgh, where he also played basketball and baseball and received All-America honors in football, Ditka immediately became a mainstay in the Bears lineup, going on to start 84 straight games. He was named rookie of the year with 56 catches for 1,076 yards and 12 touchdowns, becoming the first tight end to reach 1,000 yards receiving in his rookie season.
He also earned All-NFL honors from 1961 to 1964 and made the NFL Pro Bowl five times in his first six seasons. Ditka was enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986.
Chicago Bears tight end Mike Ditka is tackled after a pass reception against the Green Bay Packers at Wrigley Field on Oct. 16, 1966.
(Associated Press)
The tight end eventually became a coach, famously leading the 1985 Chicago Bears. The team, one of the best in NFL history, went 15-1 and scored 456 points while only allowing 198. The Bears had plenty of personality that year as well, audaciously recording a rap-styled video called “The Super Bowl Shuffle” that was released during the regular season.
But it was not only a strong season on paper — Ditka is credited with leading the Bears back to relevance and luster after losing records in 1980, 1981 and 1982. He built them back to a team fans adored and competitors feared.
“I think that’s the way Mr. Halas always wanted it,” Ditka told The Times in 1985. “He wanted to have a ballclub with a certain personality, a team made up of, you know, rough, tough guys, a team that didn’t take any crap from anybody and could dish it out.”
Ditka and the team brought triumph to Chicago in Super Bowl XX in New Orleans with a 46-10 win against the New England Patriots.
Winning NFL coach of the year with the ’85 team, Ditka is one of only two who have won a Super Bowl as a player, assistant coach and head coach.
“I believe Mike Ditka represents us, in more ways than one,” then linebacker and captain Mike Singletary told The Times. “We know he’s not coaching the Chicago Bears because he needed a job. The Bears mean something to Mike Ditka. The team is part of him.”
His time in Chicago wasn’t all glitz and glamour, though. Ditka wasn’t immediately welcomed back to the Bears as a coach, with his temper a source of strain between him and the owners. He also had a DUI conviction in 1985 and suffered a heart attack in 1988.
“There was a (magazine) poll of 200 NFL players who said the coaches they would least like to play for were, first, (Tom) Landry and, tied for second, Don Shula and me. I was flattered. What a great compliment,” wrote Mike Ditka in his 1986 autobiography.
Ditka was entrenched in controversy, having been outspoken about Washington not changing its name from the Redskins, also facing backlash for comments he made in 2016 criticizing Colin Kaepernick and social justice protests, later apologizing.
Despite it all, his name is etched in NFL history.
“Ditka was proud and headstrong,” wrote former Times sports columnist Mike Downey. “He was common and condescending. … He did as he pleased. But he restored the reputation of the Chicago Bears, made them winners and made them watchable.”
During his playing career, he made an iconic 63-yard catch-and-run against the Steelers on Nov. 23, 1963, which stands in 69th place on NFL’s 100 Greatest Plays. The highlight helped the Bears to a 17-17 tie after being down 17-14 in the fourth quarter; the team later went on to win the NFL championship.
In 1967, he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles and then to the Dallas Cowboys in 1969. During his time with the Cowboys, Ditka made it to two Super Bowls, with a loss in 1971 and finally a win the following year in which he scored the final touchdown in a 24-3 win against the Miami Dolphins.
After retiring in 1972, Ditka joined the Cowboys as an assistant coach. He got his hands on the Super Bowl trophy once again in 1977 with the team and stayed on until joining the Chicago Bears.
The Hall of Famer’s ties with Chicago were once again severed, this time with his firing in 1993 following a 5-11 season. But he refused to shed the navy and orange in the years after he went 106-62 and led the Bears to seven playoff appearances in 11 seasons.
“Yeah, I was fired by the Bears, but that’s life,” Ditka said during a visit to Chicago’s practice field in 2013. “There has never been a time I was not a Bears fan. I have a right to be a Bears fan as much as anybody. I played on a championship team and I coached a championship team.”
The Bears retired Ditka’s number, 89, in 2013.
His involvement with the NFL expanded off the green as he explored TV commentating, even earning Sports Emmy nominations for outstanding sports personality in 1994 and 1996.
Ditka did have one more head coaching stint in the NFL from 1997 to 1999 with the New Orleans Saints. After two 6-10 seasons, the Saints traded all of their draft picks — plus a first-round selection in 2000 — to move up and select running back Ricky Williams. But the team went 3-13 in 1999 and Ditka was fired after the season.
He finished his coaching career 121-95 after the 15-33 stint in New Orleans.
“I’ve been to the top of the mountain and I’ve seen it,” Ditka told The Times in 2004. “And I’ve been to the bottom of the mountain and I’ve seen that too. I don’t want to get anywhere between them anymore.”
Professional football would not see the last of him, however, as he went on to do radio and TV broadcasting for programs such as The NFL Today, Monday Night Football and SportsCenter. His passion for football would never fade, apparent in his launch of X Football, women’s tackle football competition league, in 2021.
And his mark on Chicago was not confined to the stadium gates; he was a partner in Ditka’s Restaurant Group which first opened a steakhouse in downtown Chicago in 1997, boasting its signature dish, “Da Pork Chop.” While the original location closed in 2020, there are still locations in Oakbrook, Ill., and Pittsburgh.
After a short stint living in Florida, Ditka and his wife, Diana, replanted roots in Chicago at the end of 2024.
‘‘I was born in Pennsylvania and raised in Pittsburgh, but Chicago is my home . . . and it is my life,” Ditka told the Chicago Sun Times.
The Africa Cup of Nations could continue to be held every two years, with discussions under way to reverse its proposed switch to a four-year cycle.
Speaking on Friday at a Confederation of African Football (Caf) strategy conference in Cape Verde, president Patrice Motsepe said: “We’ve discussed it over the last few days.
“We are looking at everything, including having the Afcon coming back every two years. We are very clear, the matter is being reviewed.”
The tournament has taken place every two years since 1968, bar a one-year gap between the 2012 and 2013 editions.
However, in December 2025 CAF announced it would shift to being staged every four years after the 2027 Afcon in East Africa and a 2028 edition.
That planned alteration to the schedule had received widespread criticism across the continent.
National associations had raised concerns about the visibility of their teams, the commercial implications and where Africa’s biggest competition would sit in the international football calendar.
After Manchester City were found guilty of Premier League breaches, rival managers give their reaction as games resume.
Published On 9 Oct 20269 Oct 2026
The Premier League returns to action this weekend following the international football break, and since a ball was last kicked domestically in the English top flight, a seismic shock was sent around the world by the guilty verdict faced by Manchester City.
An independent commission found the team guilty of more than 100 breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules between 2009 and 2018.
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City have continued to protest their innocence and have lodged an appeal, but if the decision is upheld, then points deductions, fines, transfer embargoes and relegation are all possible punishments for the club.
City manager Enzo Maresca has said he believes the appeal will be won, and none of the trophies claimed since the period the charges began are tainted.
Al Jazeera Sport has collated the reaction of some of the managers, who were all speaking publicly for the first time since the verdict, starting with the club City face next when they travel to Liverpool on Sunday.
Liverpool manager – Andoni Iraola
“I think uncertainty is not good for anyone, and anyone involved, but the process is ongoing, and we have to be patient like everyone else and see what happens at the end,” Iraola said.
Manchester United manager – Michael Carrick
“I’ve got my own questions about it; it’s affected me personally in different ways over a period of time,” said the former United midfielder, who finished second to City as both a player and assistant manager since the 2008 Abu Dhabi takeover.
“What I will say, the sooner it gets sorted for everyone’s benefit is essential.
“There’s so many angles to look at, from so many different perspectives, but really speed is essential for everyone to be clear, to be able to deal with it, to be able to move on whatever happens.
“It’s unprecedented, a unique situation to be in, at this level with such a huge impact in so many ways.”
Arsenal manager – Mikel Arteta
“It is very important that we respect the process and the timelines; it is still an ongoing process because it has been appealed,” said the Spaniard, who was assistant manager to Pep Guardiola at City from 2015-2019.
“My position, and I think the club’s position, is to not make any comment until the appeal is fully resolved.
“In our hands is the way we have prepared since the international break to set the club up to win.”
Everton manager – David Moyes
“It looks terrible that Everton have been docked points and had to pay fines, and this was not so long ago, but there are other things going on that were more than 10 years ago and have not been dealt, which I find really difficult,” Moyes said in relation to the sanctions Everton faced, including being docked 10 points. Their charges related to breaches of financial sustainability rules between 2019 and 2022.
“I hope it is not just Everton that are being picked on. Manchester City have helped raise the level of the Premier League by the football they have played, their manager and the players they have had.
“We all had to park the bus, because they were that good and everybody used to say: ‘Why are you not having a go?’ – it was tough.
“But they were such a good side, and it was great times to play against Pep’s teams because they had so many good players.”
Chelsea manager – Xavi Alonso
“We need to be patient and wait until the final sanctions from the panel; they are independent enough to assess the situation,” Alonso said.
“Whatever I say and whatever opinion we have, they are the ones to take it, and we need to respect it.
“It is not in our hands; let’s see what happens, and then we need to respect it.”
Verstappen’s pole lap appeared to be further confirmation of Red Bull’s resurgence after his dominant win in Malaysia but he faces an investigation for overtaking under yellow flags shown before the first session was stopped for the Perez incident.
The four-time champion said he had not believed pole was possible before qualifying.
“We have some difficulties with the car in ride, as we know,” he said, “but at least when we went to the soft tyres (in the final session), it made the car a bit more stable in places where before you were a bit unsure.
“I did not expect this but you take it, I’m happy for sure. Qualifying tomorrow is still the main goal and for us the start is always a critical point but at least a positive end to our day.”
Russell’s performance compared with that of Antonelli raises further doubts about the efficacy of the Mercedes upgrade introduced in Malaysia.
It was their biggest car update since the Canadian Grand Prix in May but team boss Toto Wolff said at Sepang that it had appeared to take them backwards rather than forwards.
Mercedes split the car spec here in Singapore in an attempt to better understand its performance but Antonelli ended the session 0.573secs behind Russell.
The Briton said: “As a team there is still nothing telling us it isn’t working but it’s all driven by the stopwatch and, yeah, the stopwatch hasn’t been great for the upgrade yet. Maybe tomorrow’s a different day.”
Antonelli, who leads the championship by 84 points going into the weekend, said: “Already FP1 I was struggling and there is still a lot to understand about this package. Really the car is very difficult, very unpredictable, very difficult to put a lap together. It’s a shame. I was coming with high hopes but so far it has been very difficult.
“It’s going to be a difficult weekend unless we can pull something out tomorrow. Other than that it is going very tricky. I don’t really see where we can find 0.7secs but you never know.”
Wolff said before sprint qualifying: “The new car seems to be a little more tricky to drive. Not saying it’s necessarily slower, because there will be goodness in it, but maybe we haven’t just found a way of putting it all together and tuning it. The older car is a bit more stable, grippy, but that is really just one data point.”
Leclerc was 0.243secs off pole, and ruing what he said was Ferrari “losing a little bit of our raw performance” in the past three or four races.
However, he added: “Still I feel there is potential in the car and maybe tomorrow we can be there or thereabouts in fighting for pole.”
Hamilton said: “We did a slightly different run plan to the others. It was my choice, but I think we got that wrong. But ultimately, the car was very oversteery on that lap. If the rears [tyres] are not ready or they are overheating, it’s difficult to say. But it was very snappy and oversteery in the lap overall.”
