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In the world of football, Tottenham have reportedly agreed to sign the German striker Timo Werner, who has played in the Premier League for Chelsea a few years ago, on a loan deal from RB Leipzig. Indian Olympic medallist PV Sindhu picked Indonesia’s Agus Dwi Santoso as her coach after parting ways with former trainer Muhammad Hafiz Hashim.
Read below to learn details about these top stories and other happenings in the sporting world in the last 24 hours.
Football
Tottenham agrees to sign Timo Werner on loan deal from RB Leipzig
Tottenham have agreed to sign the German striker Timo Werner on a loan deal from RB Leipzig with an option to make it a permanent move in the summer. The 27-year-old, who has previously played 80 matches for Chelsea while scoring 23 goals, is expected to fly to London for a medical, and Tottenham will be covering his wages for the rest of the 2023-24 footballing campaign.
Brazil part ways with interim head coach Fernando Diniz
The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) have decided to part ways with Fernando Diniz, the interim head coach of the senior men’s team, following a tough run of results in the FIFA World Cup qualifier, winning two and losing three matches out of six. With the Brazilian team in sixth and final automatic qualifying spot for the FIFA World Cup 2026 in South America, they released a statement, which read, “The CBF thanks Fernando Diniz for the work he has done, for all his dedication and seriousness, and for the challenge of renewing the Brazilian national team during his tenure. We wish Fernando Diniz the best of luck.”
Igor Stimac speaks about progress of Indian men’s football team in recent years
The head coach of the Indian men’s football team, Igor Stimac, spoke about how they have reconstructed the national team, and survived the two years during the pandemic, among other things during his tenure at the helm. The 56-year-old was quoted as saying, “When I look back to when we started 4.5 years ago, and everything that has happened since, I am amazed at how much we have done. Reconstruction of NT, 2 years pandemic - we survived everything. Now, we need to do our best. The sad thing is we are going to miss very important players in our team in this Asian Cup. It will lower our strength, but whoever the players are there in place of those players needs to do the job for us.”
Jordan Henderson wants to make shock Premier League return: Reports
The former England and Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson is reportedly wanting to make a shock return to the Premier League just six months after signing with Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittifaq for £750,000-a-week wages. The 33-year-old has struggled to get settled in the Middle East, and because of this reason, he will seriously consider any offers made to Al-Ittifaq this month, as per the report from the Daily Mail.
Some major results in football are as under:
International Friendlies
Iraq 0-1 South Korea
Bahrain 0-2 Australia
Ivory Coast 5-1 Sierra Leone
FA Cup 2023-24
Sunderland 0-3 Newcastle
Gillingham 0-4 Sheffield United
Queens Park Rangers 2-3 Bournemouth
Stoke City 2-4 Brighton
Chelsea 4-0 Preston North End
Middlesbrough 0-1 Aston Villa
Copa del Rey 2023-24
Lugo 1-3 Atletico Madrid
Elche 0-2 Girona
Alaves 1-0 Real Betis
Arandina 1-3 Real Madrid
Serie A 2023-24
Inter Milan 3-1 Hellas Verona
Sassuolo 1-0 Fiorentina
Coupe de France 2023-24
Lille 12-0 Golden Lion
Brest 1-0 Angers
Amiens 1-2 Montpellier
Nice 0-0(4-2) Auxerre
Tennis
Ons Jabeur opened up about personal toll after Wimbledon 2023 loss
Ons Jabeur opened up about the personal toll that she and her husband Karim Kamoun had after Wimbledon Championships 2023 loss. Jabeur said, "People think I have this pressure because I want to do it for other people, which is not true. There was a personal thing going on there. I win that [final] I could have a baby right away. And that dream faded. I was haunted by fear. After all I’m just a human being, what can I do more?"
Aryna Sabalenka hilariously blames her team for Brisbane International final defeat
World number 2 Aryna Sabalenka hilariously blamed her team after her defeat to Elena Rybakina in the Brisbane International final. Sabalenka lost the final of the tournament to Rybakina 0-3, 3-6. Later speaking at the post-match trophy presentation, Sabalenka began her speech by jokingly blaming her coaching team for the defeat. She said, "Couple of words to my team. You did a bad job today. Wow. 6-0, 6-3. That's all your fault guys.” She added, "Well, honestly I don't know where to start. First of all, Elena wow. Thank you for those 3 games at least. We made it look like a fight. Great job, congrats to you and your team on an amazing week. And see you in Melbourne.”
Rafael Nadal pulls out of Australian Open 2024 due to muscle tear
Spanish tennis wizard Rafale Nadal, who was gearing up for his comeback at the Australian Open 2024, pulled out of the tournament due to muscle tear during Brisbane International. Nadal released a statement and said, “Hi all, during my last match in Brisbane I had a small problem on a muscle that as you know made me worried. Once I got to Melbourne I have had the chance to make an MRI and I have micro tear on a muscle, not in the same part where I had the injury and that’s good news. Right now I am not ready to compete at the maximum level of exigence in 5 sets matches. I’m flying back to Spain to see my doctor, get some treatment and rest.”
I also cramped the first time I played Novak Djokovic: Holger Rune on Carlos Alcaraz injury
Holger Rune shared his thoughts on Carlos Alcaraz’s craps he got during his four-set semifinal loss against Djokovic at last year's French Open. Rune said, “I also cramped the first time I played Novak so I can relate to that. It’s not abnormal," Holger Rune told inews.co.uk. "We’ve got to step up. We’ve got to do it not just one time... Sinner beat him, but he is still winning three out of four Grand Slams and maybe he almost won Wimbledon also."
He added that the younger generation is still far away from replacing Djokovic on top spot. Rune added, "So we’re not there yet. We need to be there and do everything we can to get him out of there. I know it’s going to take a lot of work and I’ve been doing my work in the pre-season so far, and been really, really willing to improve.”
Badminton
PV Sindhu picks Agus Dwi Santoso as new coach after splitting with Hafiz Hashim
Indian Olympic medalist PV Sindhu picked Indonesia’s Agus Dwi Santoso as her coach after parting ways with former trainer Muhammad Hafiz Hashim. Sindhu said, “I'd been training with Hafiz and then I wanted some change - I thought it was not suiting my game - and that's when I asked Agus. He's really good for me because every coach has a different mindset. It's super tough; you're fatigued, you're tired but they (help you) get back that strength and they make sure your muscles are strong enough to be back on court the next day.”
