England are "incredibly strong" and "definitely good enough to go all the way" at Euro 2024, insists former Three Lions goalkeeper Joe Hart.
Gareth Southgate's side, who were runners-up to Italy at the delayed Euro 2020, are among the favourites to go one better and lift the Henri Delaunay trophy in Germany this year, and there is envious quality within their ranks.
Jude Bellingham played a starring role during his debut season with Real Madrid, with Harry Kane following suit at Bayern Munich, while Phil Foden, Kyle Walker and John Stones are fresh from winning a record-breaking fourth successive Premier League title with Manchester City.
Hart, who recently announced his retirement from professional football, represented England at two European Championships in 2012 and 2016, playing alongside the likes of Kane, Walker and Stones at the latter.
The ex-Man City and Celtic stopper briefly featured for the Three Lions during the early stages of Southgate's tenure, which began in September 2016, and he talked up the nation's chances to BBC Sport.
"I know a lot of our players well from my time with the squad," said Hart, whose tally of 75 caps is only bettered by Peter Shilton (125) among England goalkeepers. "They are top-class players who will have a huge say in how we do this time.
"I feel like [Southgate's] confidence has increased a lot since my time with the squad. He's had success at the past two tournaments... and it also seems like everyone loves playing under him, which is so important.
"For everything that is talked about by people outside the squad, it is what happens in the camp that really matters, and Gareth has built an environment where they will feel safe and will be very focused.
"It looks like the manager and players understand each other and what it takes to go the distance, so they will be able to put themselves in the best position to execute all the planning and hard work that they have already put in.
"England are definitely good enough to go all the way in Germany. If you look at all the squads, then along with France, we are incredibly strong.
"But I know what goes into winning a tournament, and it is not quite as simple as just having the best players, so we will have to see how it plays out."
Cristiano Ronaldo believes Portugal have all the right ingredients to succeed at Euro 2024, but believes the current squad will be judged on the trophies they win as a group.
The 39-year-old will make history in Germany as he becomes the first player to feature in six editions of the competition, already holding the records of having the most games (25), most goals (14) and joint-most assists on record (6).
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner was part of the Selecao das Quinas side that lifted the trophy back in 2016, and is hoping to add another international accolade to his collection.
"I'm proud to be the first player to play in six EURO tournaments. I'm thrilled about it as it shows the longevity of my career. However, it's merely a chapter in what Cristiano Ronaldo has achieved in football.
"I'm happy and I feel privileged to be here to help the national team achieve its goals and, of course, try to go on and win it, which is our primary goal."
Portugal won all 10 of their qualifiers, but their preparations for the tournament have not gone as planned, suffering defeats to Croatia and Slovenia in recent friendlies.
Roberto Martinez's side face the Republic of Ireland in their final game before they travel to Germany ahead of their Group F opener against the Czech Republic on June 18.
Despite recent results, Ronaldo believes that the current Portugal squad is full of talented individuals, but insisted that the success of the team will be measured by winning international honours.
"I firmly believe that this team will bring a lot of joy to the Portuguese fans, beginning with this EURO," said Ronaldo.
"However, in my opinion, the best generation of players are always those who win (trophies). I hope this national team will win because it's an incredibly talented squad.
"As we all know, though, talent alone is not enough to win. There are many things that go into winning a major tournament like this one. We have all the ingredients to win it, but we'll take it one step at a time, game by game, all the while believing that we can win it.
"What we achieved in 2016 was historic, both in Portuguese football and world football. Now we have our feet firmly on the ground but our mind up in the sky to look up and see that it is possible to win the EURO."
Having secured two positive results to get the Concacaf World Cup qualifiers going, Trinidad and Tobago’s Head coach Angus Eve welcomed the solid platform on which he hopes to build when the Soca Warriors next take the field as part of the campaign.
Eve’s side registered one of the biggest winning margins of the opening round of matches, as they thumped Bahamas 7-1 in Basseterre, St Kitts, on Saturday. That dominance performance followed a shaky showing against Grenada in which the Soca Warriors had to come from two goals down to secure a point in a 2-2 stalemate.
It is with that in mind why Eve expressed pleasure with his team’s character, as the performances ensured the twin island republic sits second in Group B on four points, two behind leaders and group favourites Costa Rica on six points. Grenada (one point) is third, while St Kitts and Nevis and Bahamas, who meet on Tuesday, are yet to get off the mark.
“The result was the most important thing for us. We wanted to win the game. We wanted to get three points and we did,” Eve said.
“I thought we were a little bit flat in the first game against Grenada, and we never got going until the second half. We wanted to right that wrong, and I think we did it. The passing...the fluency of the team was much better,” he added.
Trinidad and Tobago players celebrate a goal against Bahamas.
While critics argued that the 7-1 scoreline was due to the fact that Bahamas was a perceived lesser opponent, Eve rubbished the thought, as he reminded football enthusiasts that the Bahamians were responsible for Trinidad and Tobago’s demise during the last qualifying cycle.
“It doesn’t matter who we played. This team [Bahamas] threw us out of the World Cup last time around. I don’t think we could have scored on them back then. So it shows improvement, for us beating them by seven,” Eve declared.
“As the game went along, we believed we could have gotten more, we pushed for more, and it has taken us up to four points, which is most important,” he noted.
Obviously disappointed by the Grenada performance, the tactician made seven changes to his starting team, and the likes of Malcolm Shaw, Duane Muckette, Andre Rampersad, Alvin Jones, Steffen Yeates, Triston Hodge and Josiah Trimmingham repaid Eve’s faith in them. Shaw and Muckette both scored braces.
“I just wanted to freshen up the team. I have confidence in all of the guys that we brought here, so we believe that we could kind of change up the squad somewhat and get the desired result,” Eve said.
“I thought they did very well and we believe in all the players that we bring here, and we have no fear to change up the team,” he shared.
Meanwhile, having missed out on a Copa America berth, Eve will have to possible find a few friendly encounters to engage in to keep his Soca Warriors sharp ahead of the Nations League, which gets under way in September.
The World Cup qualifying campaign will resume next June. At that time, Trinidad and Tobago will host St Kitts and Nevis, before a possible top-of-the-table clash away to Costa Rica.
Only the top two teams from each group will progress to the final stage of the qualifiers.
Late Germany legend Franz Beckenbauer will be honoured during the Euro 2024 opening ceremony on Friday, UEFA has confirmed.
Beckenbauer, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of all time, passed away in January at the age of 78.
Affectionately nicknamed 'Der Kaiser', he captained Germany to glory at the 1972 European Championship and 1974 World Cup, and was manager as his nation triumphed again on the global stage in 1990.
Each of Germany's record-equalling three European Championship successes will be represented during the ceremony at Munich Football Arena, before the hosts kick off the tournament against Scotland.
Beckenbauer's wife Heidi will bring the Henri Delaunay trophy onto the field with Bernard Dietz and Jurgen Klinsmann, who skippered DFB's winning sides of 1980 and 1996 respectively.
Germany, who are aiming to become only the fourth host nation to win the European Championship, will also face Hungary and Switzerland in Group A.
Naomi Osaka put her French Open disappointment behind her to advance to the next round of the Libema Open after beating Elise Mertens in straight sets.
The 26-year-old had match point against eventual winner Iga Swiatek in the second round at Roland-Garros but failed to capitalise. However, that defeat was put to the back of her mind, winning 6-2 6-4 in the Netherlands.
Mertens matched Osaka in the opening exchanges, but the Japanese would rally to take control and win the next three games to secure an early advantage.
She showed signs of frustration in the second set as the Belgian threatened to take the encounter to a deciding set, but Osaka remained composed to see out the victory.
Osaka will now face either Bernarda Pera or Suzan Lamens in the next round.
Data Debrief: Osaka wins maiden grass encounter against Mertens
Osaka's victory saw her win 28 of her 31 first-serve points, accumulating to a 90 per cent success rate.
The Japanese claimed her fifth victory over Mertens since their first meeting in Wuhan in 2019, but her triumph was the first encounter between the pair on a grass court.
Roger Federer insisted his decorated tennis career was "about having grit" as he dismissed the theory that his style of play was "effortless".
Federer is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, with his tally of 20 grand slam men's singles titles only bettered by Novak Djokovic (24) and Rafael Nadal (22).
The Swiss, who also won a record eight times at Wimbledon before retiring from the sport in 2022, was one of the most popular sportsmen of his generation with his classy brand of tennis earning him adulation around the globe.
But Federer rejected claims his ability was "pure talent alone" while delivering a graduation speech at Dartmouth College, where he received a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from the New Hampshire institution.
"People would say my play was effortless. Most of the time, they meant it as a compliment," he said during the ceremony. "But it used to frustrate me when they would say: 'He barely broke a sweat', or: 'Is he even trying?'.
"The truth is, I had to work very hard to make it look easy. I didn't get where I got on pure talent alone. I got there by trying to outwork my opponents. Most of the time, it's not about having a gift. It's about having grit."
Federer shared the lessons he felt served him well during his glittering career, including the way he dealt with adversity during matches.
"When you lose every second point, on average, you learn not to dwell on every shot," he continued. "When you're playing a point, it is the most important thing in the world.
"But when it's behind you, it's behind you. This mindset is really crucial, because it frees you to fully commit to the next point and the next one after that with intensity, clarity and focus.
"You want to become a master at overcoming hard moments. That to me is the sign of a champion."
Ian Maatsen will join the Netherlands' Euro 2024 squad after injuries forced two midfielders out of the tournament.
He will officially replace Frenkie de Jong, who the Netherlands confirmed would miss out due to an ankle injury he suffered while playing for Barcelona in April.
In Oranje's final friendly before the tournament, a 4-0 victory over Iceland on Monday, Teun Koopmeiners pulled out of the starting line-up after sustaining a muscle injury in the warm-up.
In a post to X on Tuesday, the Netherlands said: "Teun Koopmeiners misses Euro 2024.
"The midfielder won’t be able to participate after injuring himself during the warm-up of the match against Iceland yesterday.
"We’re thinking of you, Teun."
Maatsen's absence from the initial squad raised some eyebrows after he reached the Champions League final with Borussia Dortmund in 2023-24.
The 22-year-old joined the German side on loan from Chelsea in January, making 23 appearances for them in all competitions, scoring three goals and providing two assists.
Netherlands will begin Euro 2024 against Poland in Group C on Sunday, before facing France and Austria in their other group matches.
Fernando Torres has been named as the new head coach of Atletico Madrid's B team, in a statement released by the LaLiga club on Tuesday.
The former World Cup-winning Spain striker started his coaching career in 2021 with Atleti's Under-19's side after retiring from professional football two years prior.
His new role will be his first in senior management and he will succeed Luis Tevenet, who has joined Diego Simeone's senior staff ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.
"I am at home and I feel an enormous responsibility since I decided to face this new stage," Torres said. "It has been three years of constant learning.
"For me this step is very important and I want to be ambitious to do things better every day, face the challenges that come and the responsibility in the best way and at the same time knowing that I am in no hurry and no need to take a wrong step.
"I accept it as a great challenge with a lot of ambition and the peace of mind of knowing that we are prepared."
The 40-year-old scored more than 100 goals in two spells for the 11-time Spanish champions, and helped his nation win the European Championship in 2008 and 2012.
Jessica Pegula eased past Aliaksandra Sasnovich in straight sets on her return from injury at the Libema Open on Tuesday.
The American pulled out of the French Open due to back and neck injuries that have kept her out since April but made her return with a 6-2, 6-2 win in just 58 minutes.
Sasnovich matched Pegula in the opening four games, with both players trading points, but the world number five soon gained her foothold to cruise through the rest of the first set.
Pegula remained in control in the second, despite Sasnovich's late attempt at a comeback, but the Belarusian could not do enough to stop the top seed from advancing.
Pegula will now face Aleksandra Krunic or Jessika Ponchet in the next round.
Data Debrief: Pegula puts injury worries behind her
Pegula last played in America's Billie Jean King Cup victory in April, but she showed no signs of rustiness on her return to the court.
She showed no signs of rustiness though, hitting nine winners and just six unforced errors on her way to sealing her victory.
Luis Diaz says he is "happy" at Liverpool as speculation continues to surround his future at the club.
While there have been no official approaches to Liverpool for the Colombian, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain are both reportedly interested in his signature in the upcoming transfer window.
It was also reported earlier this month that Liverpool had apparently lowered their asking price for Diaz amidst the interest.
Speaking after Colombia's 5-1 friendly win over the United States, Diaz addressed his future, saying: "I am very happy there in Liverpool, it is a great team and club," he told Gol Caracol.
"I always wanted to play there, so I am very happy and calm.
"I'm not thinking about anything else, I'm thinking about the Colombian national team, which is where we are."
Diaz joined Liverpool from Porto in January 2022, signing a five-and-a-half-year contract with the Reds. He has made 72 appearances for them in all competitions, scoring 18 goals and providing a further eight assists.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been tipped by John O'Shea to one day manage Portugal once he brings an end to his playing career.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner is part of Portugal's squad for Euro 2024, which they kick off with a match against Czech Republic next Tuesday.
Ronaldo will take part in his 13th major international tournament and what could be his last given he will be 41 by the time of the next World Cup.
Despite his age, Ronaldo continues to score regularly for Al Nassr at club level and also netted 10 times in Euro 2024 qualifying.
When the forward does eventually hang up his boots, however, former Manchester United team-mate O'Shea can see him moving into coaching.
Speaking ahead of Tuesday's friendly with Portugal, Republic of Ireland interim head coach O'Shea said: "Knowing the type of person he is, the dedication and professionalism he has, I am sure he has plans to carry on in terms of Portugal and where he's going to go.
"I'm sure he has ambitions, further down the line, to manage his country also in tournaments to come - if he wants to bring those pressures on himself.
"He's had no problem taking the pressure of his country throughout his career. Whatever his next steps will be, I am sure they will be positive for Portugal."
The 10 goals scored by Ronaldo in qualifying was bettered only by Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku (14).
The 39-year-old is the leading scorer in men's international football, netting 128 goals in 206 matches, including 14 in the European Championship finals.
"You see in Saudi, he's scored some goals for this team, and you also see the impact he's had with his goalscoring for Portugal in the campaign to qualify for the Euros, too," O'Shea added.
"I've no doubt whatever plans or rotations Portugal will have to use him, to maximise how far they get in the tournament, I think Ronaldo will be a key part of that, definitely."
2016 champions Portugal will also face Turkiye and Georgia in their Group F campaign.
Hellas Verona have parted ways with head coach Marco Baroni by mutual agreement, the Serie A club confirmed on Monday.
Baroni took charge of Verona in July 2023, signing a one-year contract with an option for a second year, but leaves the club after one season at the helm.
The Italian won nine of his 38 league games, finishing with a win percentage of 25% as the Gialloblu battled relegation for much of the campaign, but managed to steer them clear of the bottom three.
It was the second time Baroni had been in management at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi having been appointed as Alberto Malesani's assistant for the 2002-03 season.
Verona was the 16th club he has managed since starting his managerial career with Rodinella 24 years ago, and was thanked by his latest club for his contributions.
"President Maurizio Setti, on behalf of the whole club, thanks Mr Baroni for the work he has done this season and wishes him the best of satisfaction for the continuation of his sporting career," the club statement said.
According to Italian media reports, the 60-year-old is expected to become the Lazio manager to replace Igor Tudor, who recently resigned after less than three months in charge.
Bruno Fernandes said the criticism that followed Portugal's 2-1 defeat by Croatia at the weekend was a reflection of fans' elevated expectations ahead of Euro 2024.
The Selecao das Quinas concluded their preparations for the tournament with a disappointing display in Lisbon, with Luka Modric's penalty and Ante Budimir's second half strike cancelling giving the visitors their first win over their opponents in their history.
Portugal won all 10 of their qualifiers, but prior to travelling to Germany this week, have suffered defeats to Croatia and Slovenia in recent friendlies.
The 2016 champions have since failed to go beyond the quarter-finals of an international tournament, coming at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Fernandes believes that he enjoys the negativity around the national team, but knows the quality in the sign know they have to do more as a collective.
"I don't want anyone to think that we came to this point thinking that everything was done and there was nothing to improve," Fernandes told reporters on Monday.
"There are always aspects to improve. To be honest, I like a bit of this negativity around the national team, 'the team isn't as good anymore', 'it's still not what we want'.
"I like it because it's a sign that people expect a lot from us and want more from the national team. It means that we players who are representing the country have the quality to do more.
"We know that, we have ambition and we want to do more and better."
Portugal play the Republic of Ireland in their final warm-up match on Tuesday ahead of their Group F opener against the Czech Republic, before taking on Turkey and Georgia.
Michal Probierz is hopeful the injury sustained by Robert Lewandowski in Poland's final Euro 2024 warm-up game is nothing serious.
Lewandowski was taken off a little over half an hour into his side's 2-1 friendly win over Turkiye on Monday with an apparent thigh issue.
Probierz had already seen fellow striker Karol Swiderski leave the field with an ankle injury sustained as he celebrated his 12th-minute goal.
Baris Alper Yilmaz equalised for Turkiye in the 77th minute, but Nicola Zalewski won the game for Poland with a last-minute strike.
The injuries to Lewandowski and Swiderski were the big talking points after the game, though, with head coach Probierz sharing an update to reporters.
"Karol has sprained his ankle," Probierz said. "Only after the tests will we know what the situation looks like.
"Robert has a slight injury but there should be no problem. There will certainly be no changes made [to the squad]."
Lewandowski has made more appearances (150) and scored more goals (82) for Poland than any other player.
Poland have already lost another attacker in the build-up to Euro 2024 as Juventus' Arkadiusz Milik injured his knee against Ukraine last week.
Probierz's side kick off their tournament against the Netherlands on Sunday, before facing Austria and then France in Group D.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
