Bernd Leno thinks Arsenal’s Europa League battle can help the team expedite its return to contention.
The Gunners are unlikely to reclaim a Champions League berth via the top four, currently 10 points back of fourth-place Chelsea.
And possible obstacles to winning the Europa League include Inter Milan, Manchester United, Wolves, Sevilla, and Ajax amongst others.
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But Leno says a trophy, whether the FA Cup or UEL, would be huge. But even if the Gunners don’t manage to reach another final, the big moments against top competition will help strengthen their nerve.
“In the Europa League and FA Cup we have so many difficult games, so many big games because we saw last season that in the Europa League quarter-finals and semi-finals you get Champions League teams. They are all playing for the title and the final was Arsenal against Chelsea [last season], so it was a very, very big game.
“We want to have this final again and also in the FA Cup. Everybody told me that the FA Cup final at Wembley is unbelievable with the atmosphere and it is also a trophy, a title and we are looking forward to playing these games. Hopefully we can win a title this season.”
It’s especially true for stars-in-waiting Gabriel Martinelli, Eddie Nketiah, and Bukayo Saka, and follows the same logic as sending Emile Smith-Rowe on loan to Huddersfield Town. Play in important spots for your side, and grow.
Arsenal is in training camp in the Middle East for its winter break, and will return to host Newcastle in the Premier League before beginning the Europa League Round of 32 tie with Olympiacos. Its next FA Cup opponent is Portsmouth on March 2, so it’s reasonable to figure Arsenal will take the next step toward silverware in both competitions.
Leno has been sensational for the Gunners this season, and he wasn’t bad in his first season after arriving from Bayer Leverkusen, either. Even if his top four prediction in December isn’t going according to plan.
Follow @NicholasMendolaCarson, Calif. (AP) The United States isn’t really motivated by what happened four years ago in the Rio Games as the team heads into an all-important Olympic qualifying match Friday night.
Coming off a World Cup championship in France last summer, the United States just wants to guard against any letdown.
Christen Press said it’s difficult after all the attention that comes in the wake of winning soccer’s premier tournament to transition so quickly to preparation for the Olympics.
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“I think that the mentality the group that was a part of 2015 and 2016 is bringing into this transition is that we have to have a short memory,” she said. “We have to let go of the World Cup and we have to go into this like this is our big tournament for the next three years. And so I think that that’s a good lesson to have learned.”
The United States had also won the World Cup in 2015 and went into the Rio Games brimming with confidence – only to be ousted in the quarterfinals by Sweden. It was the U.S. team’s earliest ever exit from the Olympics.
On Friday, the top-ranked United States will play Mexico in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying tournament with one of the region’s two berths in the Tokyo Games on the line. Canada faces Costa Rica for the other spot.
The U.S. and Canada won the Olympic berths four years ago. The Canadians went on to win their second consecutive bronze medal in Brazil.
Canada is led by captain Christine Sinclair, who surpassed retired U.S. star Abby Wambach’s international goals record in the group stage. Sinclair, who has been on the national team since 2000, has 186 career goals heading into the semifinals. That’s the most among men or women.
Canada coach Kenneth Heiner-Moller said it was important that his team avoids complacency during qualifying. And indeed, the team swept group stage play without conceding a goal.
“No matter who we play, we need to play to Canadian standard. It has to be our level of performance that we play to. It’s so easy to play a team that you’re better than, and then drop to their level,” he said.
By winning its group handily, eighth-ranked Canada avoided facing the United States in the semis. Costa Rica, ranked No. 37 in the world, has never made the 12-team field for the Olympics, although Las Ticas did play in the 2015 World Cup.
The Canadians are undefeated in 13 previous meetings with Costa Rica. In the 2016 qualifying tournament, Canada defeated Las Ticas 3-1 in the semifinals.
“It was a close match. It was a match where we made many mistakes, but it is in the past,” Costa Rica coach Amelia Valverde said. “We’re focusing on right here, right now.”
Mexico, ranked No. 26, made the field for the 2004 Olympics but has not been back since. However, Mexico is on the rise, boosted by a domestic women’s league. The team won its first two group-stage matches before falling 2-0 to Canada.
Like Canada, the United States swept its group stage matches without allowing a goal. Lindsey Horan led the way with five goals and Press added four.
U.S. midfielder Rose Lavelle emphasized that the team can’t get ahead of itself.
“I think that we know that what we did in France is kind of meaningless now. It doesn’t dictate how the rest of the year goes or dictate right now what our future is,” she said. “So while last year was so fun, we know that we have to set our sights on new goals. And I think before we even talk about the Olympics, we have to talk about our game versus Mexico and qualifying there.”
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More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports
Stunning news out of Soccer House, where one of the most powerful and controversial men in the United States Soccer Federation is leaving the organization.
The federation announced Thursday night that U.S. Soccer chief commercial officer Jay Berhalter “stepped down” from his position.
“Jay has played an invaluable role in the growth of our Federation and the evolution of the game in our country,” said U.S. Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro. “His deep understanding of all the technical, commercial, and business aspects of the sport will have a lasting impact on the game across America.”
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Berhalter is the brother of USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter, and spent 15 years with U.S. Soccer. He played big roles in the U.S. hosted Women’s World Cup as well as the growth of the Development Academy for youth soccer and the National Women’s Soccer League, according to U.S. Soccer’s press release.
But reports earlier this week said he was being passed over for the federation’s CEO job. It was long discussed that Jay Berhalter had been hand-picked by outgoing CEO Dan Flynn.
There was plenty of controversy in Jay Berhalter’s final years on the job. That tumult escalated when his brother Gregg was hired to manage the United States men’s national team in a baffling hiring process that ignored some big and interested names.
Soon after, Jay Berhalter was mentioned as the probable CEO in waiting, but at least one report noted that new president Carlos Cordeiro did not want that.
Those reports and the impending status quo were met by a spate of terrible reviews from employees and former employees of U.S. Soccer on the job site Glassdoor.
The federation has to find a CEO, and there will be plenty of discussion about the future of the men’s team given the struggles under Gregg Berhalter. U.S. Soccer just hired legendary USMNT player Brian McBride as the program’s new general manager, operating under sporting director Earnie Stewart.
Follow @NicholasMendola📰 | Jay Berhalter has stepped down as CCO of @ussoccer.
We are deeply grateful to Jay for his many years of service and contribution to the growth of the sport in the United States.
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) February 7, 2020
LONDON (AP) Concussion substitutions could be trialed in English soccer next season after proposals were presented to the game’s lawmakers.
The Premier League has given an initial suggestion to the rule-making International Football Association Board proposing that the current three-minute period to assess players for concussion would be used to determine if a “head injury replacement” is required.
A framework from the league’s medical advisor seen by The Associated Press said that if there are no immediate signs of concussion then the player would continue to be observed while back in action. If clearer concussion symptoms become evident, then the player can be replaced by a special substitution beyond the three changes currently allowed.
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The English Football Association prefers allowing players to be replaced at least temporarily for 10 minutes to allow a fuller concussion assessment, a person with knowledge of their thinking told the AP. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the FA’s thinking ahead of the annual meeting of IFAB on Feb. 29 in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The FA along with the other British federations hold half of the eight seats on the IFAB board, with international governing body FIFA controlling the other four votes to change laws.
The international players’ union shares the view of the English FA that temporary substitutes should be considered.
“We welcome discussions by football stakeholders with a view to safeguarding players who suffer a concussion,” FIFPRO general secretary Jonas Baer-Hoffmann said. “FIFPRO strongly believes doctors must be given enough time and space to assess a player with a suspected concussion in order to enable them to make the correct decision on whether he or she can stay on the pitch. In our view, this means they must be provided with significantly more than three minutes.”
The English FA has also been exploring advice that youngsters should restrict heading the ball in training sessions.
A Scottish study published last year put a fresh focus on the need for footballing authorities to address the potential long-term impact on health of head injuries.
Researchers from the University of Glasgow found former professional players in Scotland were less likely to die of common causes such as heart disease and cancer compared with the general population but more likely to die from dementia. Researchers compared the causes of death of 7,676 Scottish men who played soccer with 23,000 similar men from the general population born between 1900 and 1976. Over a median of 18 years of study, 1,180 players and 3,807 of the others died. The players had a lower risk of death from any cause until age 70.
However, they had a 3.5 times higher rate of death from neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s. In absolute terms, that risk remained relatively small – 1.7% among former players and 0.5% for the comparison group.
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More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports
There were three non-MLS players on the USMNT roster for last month’s friendly win over Costa Rica, but it could have been there.
That’s the story of Pumas playmaker Sebastian Saucedo, according to Goal.com, who hopes the federation won’t forget about him when it comes to Olympic qualifying.
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Saucedo, 23, was not released by his Liga MX side because of a Feb. 2 visit to Santos Laguna. The winger played 71 minutes in his fourth appearance for the club during the Clausura.
He’s represented both Mexico and the United States at youth levels, but the Costa Rica match could’ve been his first senior cap.
For now, he’s looking to representing the U.S. at the U-23 level.
“For Olympic qualification, there’s the FIFA date. I imagine the club will deal with that when it comes to letting us go or not. I’d like to go. It would be a dream to qualify for the Olympics.”
In 90 matches with Real Salt Lake, Saucedo scored six goals with 12 assists. Saucedo is an RSL Academy product, but did have a loan to Veracruz for almost all of 2016.
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