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Showing posts with the label Sean M

Scotland end winless run

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Scotland 1 - 0 Croatia Scotland finally broke their long winless streak in the Nations League with a hard-fought victory over 10-man Croatia, thanks to a late goal from substitute John McGinn. Author - Sean M McGinn capitalised on a loose ball after Dominik Kotarski parried Ben Doak's shot, slotting home his 19th international goal and sending Hampden Park into rapturous celebration. The win keeps Scotland's hopes alive of staying in Nations League A, with a potential relegation play-off secured if they manage another victory against Poland on Monday. A win in Warsaw could even open the door to the Nations League quarter-finals and a top-seed spot for the World Cup qualifying draw – provided Croatia lose at home to Portugal and there's a three-goal swing in Scotland's favour. However, those calculations can wait. The immediate focus was ending a dismal run of 10 competitive matches without a win, a form slump that had seen them victorious just once in their last 16

FA Cup: Notts come from behind to avoid upset

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Notts County 5 - 1 Alfreton Town Notts County staged a comeback to avoid an FA Cup upset, ultimately securing a 5-1 win over Alfreton. Author - Sean M Despite an early setback when Liam Waldock put the visitors ahead at Meadow Lane, Alassana Jatta and Jevani Brown both scored twice in the second half to push County through to the second round. Jake Day had a chance to put National League North side Alfreton in front, but his volley was comfortably held by Alex Bass. However, the breakthrough came in the 14th minute when Day’s shot deflected into Waldock’s path, allowing him to slot it home. County responded almost immediately, levelling the score just two minutes later with Matty Platt’s long-range strike nestling in the bottom corner. The League Two side took control early in the second half when Brown crossed for Jatta, who found the back of the net. The pair linked up again in the 62nd minute, with Jatta sliding the ball under George Willis to claim his second goal. Brown added

Premier League: Southampton remain winless

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Manchester City 1 - 0 Southampton Manchester City reclaimed their spot at the top of the Premier League table after an early goal from Erling Haaland secured a narrow victory over struggling Southampton. Author - Sean M Haaland muscled past Jan Bednarek to connect with Matheus Nunes' cross just five minutes in, slipping the ball past Saints’ goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale for his 11th league goal of the season. At that moment, it seemed as though the visitors were in for a tough afternoon. However, a combination of resilient defending from Southampton and some wasteful finishing by City—Haaland being a notable offender—left the home fans feeling a bit uneasy until the final whistle. This win extended City’s unbeaten run in the Premier League to 32 matches. They are now only six weeks away from going a full year without a league defeat, their last loss coming against Aston Villa on 6 December. While Southampton deserve credit for their determined display , the result did little to ea

Championship: Cardiff continue revival

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Cardiff City 2 - 0 Portsmouth Cardiff City continued their revival under interim boss Omer Riza, cruising past Portsmouth with another impressive attacking display to secure their second home victory in just four days. Author - Sean M Fresh off their 5-0 thrashing of Plymouth Argyle on Saturday, the Bluebirds hit the ground running once more. They found themselves 2-0 up within 13 minutes, thanks to an own goal from Regan Poole and Callum Robinson’s close-range strike. A closer look at what happened Despite squandering several opportunities to extend their lead either side of half-time, Cardiff kept Portsmouth’s substitute goalkeeper Jordan Archer busy, with David Turnbull and Anwar El Ghazi testing him throughout the match. Although Portsmouth showed signs of life in the second half, they struggled to break down Cardiff’s defence, with their rare attempts on goal thwarted by captain Jak Alnwick in the Bluebirds' goal. The win sees Cardiff move out of the Championship relegatio

Premier League: Stones scores controversial winner

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Wolves 1 - 2 Manchester City The Premier League champions secured their sixth win in eight games this season with a 2-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday. Author - Sean M The match ended in controversy when John Stones scored a dramatic header in the 95th minute from Phil Foden’s corner. Initially, the goal was disallowed for offside, but after a VAR review, referee Chris Kavanagh reversed the decision, allowing the goal to stand, much to Wolves' frustration. Earlier in the match, Josko Gvardiol equalised for the hosts after Jorgen Strand Larsen had given Wolves the lead. Unfortunately for Wolves, they remain winless this season and currently sit at the bottom of the Premier League table. What happened then? In the final seconds of stoppage time, Foden delivered a corner kick that Stones headed powerfully into the net.  However, as the Manchester City players celebrated, the linesman raised his flag to signal an offside, noting that Bernardo Silva was standing in fro

Championship: Cardiff thrash Plymouth

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Cardiff City 5 - 0 Plymouth Argyle Cardiff City climbed off the bottom of the Championship table in stunning fashion with a dominant win over 10-man Plymouth Argyle, securing only their second league victory of the season. Author - Sean M In what was undoubtedly their finest display of the campaign so far, the Bluebirds surged to an early 2-0 lead. Alex Robertson opened the scoring with a sublime 20-yard curling strike, followed by a similarly classy finish from Rubin Colwill. Plymouth's troubles worsened just before half-time when Ibrahim Cissoko was sent off for pushing Perry Ng to the ground. Colwill, who had assisted Robertson’s opener, continued to shine in the second half. His low cross was tapped in by Anwar El Ghazi, before Callum Robinson added a fourth with an impressive solo run and finish. Chris Willock made it five with a bouncing shot from the edge of the box, as Cardiff more than doubled their season’s goal tally in one game, having scored just four in their prev

Nations League: Scotland hold Portugal

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Scotland 0 - 0 Portugal Author - Sean M Scotland put on a determined defensive performance to hold Portugal to a 0-0 draw, earning their first point in the Nations League A campaign. Scott McTominay had a golden opportunity early on but missed, and from there, the Scots saw little of the ball as Portugal pressed hard for a breakthrough. Cristiano Ronaldo, making his 200th international appearance, was left frustrated in his pursuit of a 134th goal for Portugal, as Scotland’s goalkeeper Craig Gordon and his defence stood their ground. While the result means Steve Clarke’s team have now won just one of their last 16 matches, they avoided the unwanted record of becoming the first Scotland side to lose five consecutive games. A more detailed look at what happened in Glasgow After a tough time at the Euros and a difficult Nations League campaign so far , Scotland needed to lift the Hampden crowd, and they nearly did just that within the first four minutes. Ben Doak made a surging run do