The Spanish Football Federation has announced an intention to take legal action over comments made about its president Luis Rubiales by World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso.
Hermoso was quoted in a statement issued by Futpro, the players’ union representing her, as stating “in no case did I seek to raise (lift) the president” during a a podium embrace after the World Cup final between Spain and England in Sydney.
The Federation says it has analysed four images of Hermoso and Rubiales embracing, claiming they show it was Hermoso’s force that lifted him.
Hermoso had accused the Federation of a “manipulative, hostile and controlling culture” as the World Cup-winning squad refused to play while Rubiales remains in post.
A total of 81 players signed a letter stating they will not accept national team call-ups while Rubiales refuses to resign after kissing Hermoso – who has stressed she did not consent – following the country’s World Cup win.
He claimed it was “spontaneous, mutual, euphoric and consensual” but Hermoso, who previously suggested comments playing down the incident attributed to her by the federation were false, hit back with an attack on the organisation as a whole.
The Federation said: “The RFEF announces the presentation of as many legal actions as may correspond in defence of the honourability of the President of the RFEF.
“In the union’s note, it is said to speak on behalf of Jennifer Hermoso and some statements by the player are attributed to her that are in quotation marks, implying that they have been pronounced by her.
“The RFEF wishes to inform public opinion that the competent bodies of the RFEF that are processing the complaints filed with the Federation have tried to contact Jennifer Hermoso, having been unsuccessful at all times.
“The RFEF and Mr President will demonstrate each of the lies that are spread either by someone on behalf of the player or, if applicable, by the player herself.
“The RFEF and the President, given the seriousness of the content of the press release from the Futpro Union, will initiate the corresponding legal actions.
“The RFEF regrets that after such an extraordinary sporting success as the one that occurred in the Soccer World Championship, it cannot be celebrated as the situation and success deserves for completely non-sports reasons.”
Juanma Lillo will introduce himself to the Premier League at large on Sunday as he takes charge of champions Manchester City in Pep Guardiola’s absence.
Guardiola’s little-known number two will call the shots from the dugout as the treble winners travel to Sheffield United without their influential manager.
Guardiola is recuperating in Spain after undergoing back surgery earlier this week and so Lillo, who only rejoined the club this summer after a year away, finds himself in the spotlight.
The experienced 57-year-old has had a varied and interesting coaching career, working in countries including Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Japan and China as well as his native Spain.
He first joined Guardiola’s backroom staff after the departure of Mikel Arteta in 2020 and spent two years at the Etihad Stadium before leaving to take up a post in Qatar.
City swept to Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup glory without him but Guardiola sought to bring him back after the exits of Enzo Maresca and Rodolfo Borrell at the end of the campaign.
The pair have been friends since Guardiola played under Lillo at Mexican side Dorados de Sinaloa and were keen to work together again.
“When I left was more of a ‘see you later’,” said Lillo at a press conference. “He’s someone very special to me, not only in footballing terms.
“I am here to be with someone who’s been very important in my life.”
Lillo recognises he has returned to a very strong set-up and is determined to do his best to ensure it remains that way.
He said: “A good team without good players is impossible, but at the moment we have good players and a really good coach. It’s very well managed.
“The way we train has a lot to do towards the way we play. That’s how we do it.
“Things might not always go our way, but I can assure you that we’re going to continue doing things the right way.”
Bernardo Silva, who signed a new contract at City this week, is available again for the trip to Bramall Lane after illness. New signing Jeremy Doku could come into the reckoning but John Stones and Kevin De Bruyne are sidelined.
Eddie Howe will send his Newcastle side into battle with Liverpool still haunted by the memories of their encounters last season.
The Reds were the only club to complete a Premier League double over the Magpies, although they gained a measure of revenge when they went on to finish fourth – one place and four points better off than Jurgen Klopp’s men.
However, Howe admits it does not take much to stoke memories of the Fabio Carvalho winner in the eighth minute of stoppage time which handed Liverpool victory at Anfield last August, or the red card in a 2-0 defeat in the reverse fixture which cost goalkeeper Nick Pope his place in the Carabao Cup final.
Howe said: “I move on quickly from the game in the sense that then you have to prepare the next one, but I think the emotion of the game and the feeling and the memories of the game, they stay with you for some time.
“The memories of last year’s games, they’re with me. I can visualise certain moments, but then you have to detach yourself from that and go, ‘right, how do we prepare this one?’, because whether it’s tactical or whatever the thing is that you think you can do better, it’s about then delivering that to the best of your ability.
“There’s a lot of defeats in my management career that are still there and they just need probably the emotions stoking and they’ll come back to the forefront of my brain.”
Newcastle’s resurgence, fuelled in large part by the wealth of their Saudi-backed owners, has seen them re-establish a rivalry with Liverpool which sparked a series of memorable encounters in the 1990s.
Klopp has on more than one occasion taken aim at the Magpies, and the two coaching teams have at times enjoyed a frosty relationship on the touchline.
However, Howe expressed surprise at the perception there is added needle between the two camps when they go head-to-head.
Asked why he believed the rivalry had become so intense in recent seasons, he replied: “I don’t know. Has it?
“Genuinely, I think the rivalry between Newcastle and Liverpool has always been there, historically. I don’t think it’s been ramped up particularly any more than it’s always been.
“When the game’s been on historically over a number of years, it’s a game everyone will go, ‘I want to watch that, I want to see what’s going to happen’.
“There will be moments and flashpoints because they are two iconic clubs going against each other. I don’t think it’s necessarily ramped up in the last two years.”
Matt Wallner had a three-run triple in the first inning and the Minnesota Twins rolled to a 12-2 rout of the reeling Texas Rangers on Friday in a game that saw the benches clear.
Rangers starter Dane Dunning walked three of the first four batters and eventually walked the bases loaded before Wallner cleared them to put the Twins up 3-0.
Jeffers capped the four-run first with an RBI single and was later hit by Dunning in the third inning.
Minnesota starter Sonny Gray hit former Twin Mitch Garver in the fourth and players from both teams and bullpens convened around home plate and the pitcher’s mound before order was restored.
The Twins essentially sealed the win with a six-run seventh.
Carlos Correa began the inning with a home run and Donovan Solano had an RBI single before Edouard Julien crushed a 435-foot, three-run homer to make it 10-1.
Max Kepler hit a home run off Texas catcher Austin Hedges in the eighth.
Gray allowed one run and six hits over seven innings.
The Rangers walked eight and hit three batters in their eighth straight loss, dropping them into a tie with Seattle for the AL West lead.
Diamonbacks stay hot despite Pham’s lost home run
Tommy Pham lost a home run on a bizarre fan interference, but Jace Peterson drove in three runs and the Arizona Diamondbacks won their sixth straight, 10-8 over the Cincinnati Reds.
With Arizona leading 8-4 in the seventh inning, Pham sent a towering shot to the wall in left that Reds outfielder Spencer Steer caught as he reached over the wall. But a kid in the stands reached into Steer’s glove and pulled the ball out.
The home run was negated after the review.
Arizona has won eight of nine to move a one-half game ahead of the Cubs for the second NL wild card.
Nick Martini hit his first two home runs of the year and Will Benson had a ninth-inning grand slam for the Reds, who dropped a game behind the Cubs in the wild-card race.
Bautista’s injury overshadows Orioles’ win
Rookie Gunnar Henderson hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning and the Baltimore Orioles rallied to beat the Colorado Rockies 5-4 in a win that was marred by an apparent injury to All-Star closer Felix Bautista.
Bautista retired the first two batters in the ninth but slipped awkwardly off the mound after delivering a pitch to Michael Toglia.
Manager Brandon Hyde said Bautista left with “arm discomfort” and was “still being checked out.”
Ryan Mountcastle and Austin Hays also homered as Baltimore won its 80th game and moved three games ahead of second-place Tampa Bay in the AL East.
Manchester United smashed the British transfer record when they completed the signing of Argentina’s Angel Di Maria on this day in 2014.
The Red Devils, in a rebuilding phase following the departure of their hugely successful manager Sir Alex Ferguson the year before, paid £59.7million for the then 26-year-old.
Di Maria, brought in by the club’s new Dutch boss Louis van Gaal, arrived at United fresh from helping his old club Real Madrid seal their 10th European title the season before.
Di Maria said at the time of his signing: “I am absolutely delighted to be joining Manchester United. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Spain and there were a lot of clubs interested in me, but United is the only club that I would have left Real Madrid for.
“Louis van Gaal is a fantastic coach with a proven track record of success and I am impressed by the vision and determination everyone has to get this club back to the top – where it belongs. I now just cannot wait to get started.”
However, things never really clicked for Di Maria at Old Trafford on the pitch. He also endured a fairly miserable time off it, after an attempted burglary at his home in February 2015.
Less than a year later, he joined Paris St Germain, and told the French media that he did not have a great relationship with Van Gaal.
Di Maria spent seven years at PSG before joining Juventus in 2022.
Last year was a special one for him, as he played and scored in the World Cup final as Argentina beat France on penalties.
Earlier this summer he rejoined Portuguese side Benfica, his first European club after leaving Rosario Central in 2007.
Daniel Dubois knows he will have to “bully” Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday night if he is to stand any chance of becoming Britain’s 10th world heavyweight champion.
Dubois (19-1, 18KOs) will attempt to etch his name into British history alongside Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Lennox Lewis when he walks out at Tarczynski Arena in front of around 43,000 spectators.
Usyk’s WBA, IBF and WBO belts will be on the line and the Ukrainian (20-0, 13KOs) will be backed by a partisan crowd in Wroclaw, which will be filled with Ukraine natives who have resided in Poland since Russian’s invasion of their country last year.
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The bookmakers make Dubois, 25, the overwhelming underdog but he tipped the scales at 16st and 9lbs at Friday’s weigh-in, almost a stone heavier than 36-year-old Usyk’s 15st and 10lbs.
Both boxers have fought 20 times in the professional ranks but there is a big disparity in rounds with Dubois involved in 105 fewer than Usyk’s 168, which has contained plenty for a world title.
Nevertheless, all of Dubois’ bouts have been at heavyweight while the former undisputed world cruiserweight champion only stepped up to the blue-riband division in 2019.
Dubois told the PA news agency: “I have been boxing for most of my life so that (age) argument is out of the window. I have the experience and I need to be a veteran in this fight.
“I have to bully him. I have to go in there and be the bully. Be the bully and shake him up.”
The Londoner also has a secret weapon after joining forces with trainer Don Charles, who was in Derek Chisora’s corner when the British veteran caused Usyk problems in 2020.
“Yeah, Don will be putting in things that I am not even aware of style-wise and coach-wise. He has a lot of passion and that is what you need,” Dubois said.
“You need the bully-the-bull type mentality to go in there and f*** s*** up, as they say. That is what we need to do.”
Stablemate Tyson Fury will also act as inspiration for Dubois with Queensberry Promotions promoter Frank Warren able to draw parallels between this clash and a memorable world title fight in Dusseldorf in 2015.
Few gave Fury any chance when he stepped out to fight Wladimir Klitschko eight years ago but he produced an enormous shock to win on points and claim the belts now held by Usyk in his own first world title bout.
Dubois added: “All the great fighters had to do it. Before they were champions, people doubted them and had a lot of things to say.
“Boxing is made up of opinions so I never take it to heart or let it break me. I am ready to go. Ready to go out there and prove what I need to do.
“Tyson is a good example. Look at what he has done and gone on to achieve now. I just need to get the prayers going and hopefully the big man upstairs hears me.”
While most of the pre-fight focus has centred on whether a unification clash between Usyk and Fury could finally occur in 2024, the mandatory challenger wants to spoil a homecoming party of sorts in Poland.
After coming through the storm of his 2020 defeat to Joe Joyce, where he took a knee which allowed himself to be counted out in the 10th round due to a hugely swollen left eye, Dubois believes he now has a date with destiny.
“My dad especially backing me and being behind me has been paramount,” he said.
“This doesn’t happen often but I am ready for this opportunity and ready to perform. That is the main thing to perform on the night.
“Go out there and show everything I have done. All the hard work I have put in and my dad has put in over the years. It is finally time.”
The San Francisco 49ers have traded quarterback Trey Lance to the Dallas Cowboys less than three years after trading three first-round picks to draft him.
According to reports, the 49ers will receive a 2024 fourth-round pick for Lance.
Lance’s departure is not surprising after San Francisco made the decision earlier this week to give the backup job to San Darnold behind starter Brock Purdy.
Still, the choice to move on from Lance is stunning since the 49ers traded three first-round picks and a third-rounder to Miami in 2021 to move up from No. 12 and draft the untested quarterback third overall.
Lance only made 17 starts at FCS-level North Dakota State before he was drafted, and never gained much experience in the NFL.
Handed the starting job last season, Lance played less than five quarters before he broke his ankle in Week 2, sidelining him for the rest of the season.
Purdy, meanwhile, came on late in the season and won his first seven starts to take over the starting job heading into this season.
In his brief time with the 49ers, Lance completed 56 of 102 passes for 797 yards with five touchdowns, three interceptions and an 84.5 passer rating. He also rushed for 235 yards and one score on 54 carries.
Cooper Rush has been the backup most of Dak Prescott’s career in Dallas, including last season when he went 4-1 filling in after Prescott broke his thumb in the opener.
Mauricio Pochettino insisted Raheem Sterling deserves the credit for turning his Chelsea career around after his two goals fired the team to a 3-0 victory over Luton at Stamford Bridge.
Sterling endured a disappointing debut campaign in west London but has looked a player transformed since his new manager took charge, and cemented a sensational return to form with a match-winning display against Rob Edwards’ newly promoted side.
His first strike was a particularly fine solo effort, cutting in from the wing and beating three defenders before sliding the ball home.
But it was his second midway through the second half that transformed the atmosphere inside Stamford Bridge, sweeping first-time into the bottom corner from Malo Gusto’s pinpoint cross.
Chelsea’s third – the first time in more than 10 months that they had held a three-goal lead in the Premier League – saw Sterling turn provider as his nonchalant ball driven into the centre was finished off by Nicolas Jackson for his first Chelsea goal.
And Pochettino said that ever since his first conversation with the player when he “held up a mirror” and asked him which position he most loves to play, the catalyst for change has all been down to Sterling.
“I can only talk from day one when we arrived,” said Pochettino. “We had a conversation. His commitment in the way that he wants to provide and contribute for the team, his work ethic and quality.
“I repeat again, I think he deserves the full credit for his performance. We’re very pleased and very happy, he has the quality and he can provide the team goals and assists. Then when we don’t have the ball, working really hard to recover it as soon as possible.
“I’m so pleased for him. He told me it was a difficult season for him last season. I’m very pleased when a player is happy, an offensive player who can score and assist, for us it’s the best feeling.
“Our first conversation with all the players, our conversation with Raheem, I love to ask the position they love to play, how they feel, how they see themselves; to put a player in front of the mirror.
“It’s not the position, it’s the animation and the way the team is going to link in between them. It’s to find the best position, the dynamic of the game when we are playing an offensive situation, to provide the best platform, position and place and link with the player where they can (show) their best quality.
“It’s really important, the process. Time to work to create all these links and this animation and to know each other, we need time. When you want to build a team in the process that we are, it’s matter of time.”
The crowning moment of Pochettino’s first win in charge came when summer signing Jackson was rewarded for an energetic, committed display by knocking in his first goal for the club.
The manager was full of praise for the 22-year-old’s performance and hinted that he has the potential to insert himself amongst the Premier League’s all-time goalscoring greats.
“We are not asking for him to run a lot and press and recover the ball, because it is his quality,” said Pochettino. “His work ethic is amazing and then he is fast, to run in behind the defensive line and then the quality into the feet.
“It’s only a matter of time that he’s going to score goals also. He’s amazing. It’s difficult to find a player like him in the market. For me he’s going to be one of the great strikers. He has the potential to be.”
Despite watching his side lose for the second time in two games since their top-flight return, Luton boss Edwards said his players could hold their heads up after competing well with Chelsea before Sterling’s decisive intervention caused the game to slip away.
“We don’t like losing, but I can accept it when there’s a performance like that,” he said.
“The players were committed, we gave it absolutely everything. We just came up short in both boxes. I’m extremely proud to be involved with this football club and these players.
“We were very resilient and incredibly brave. We went man for man, tried to press them, tried to take the ball. For a time in the second half, we had the territory. I could smell a goal coming, but it was them unfortunately.”
Shohei Ohtani was listed second on the Los Angeles Angels’ lineup card and slotted as the designated hitter Friday against the New York Mets despite his serious elbow injury.
Ohtani was removed from the mound in Wednesday’s start against the Cincinnati Reds after 26 pitches, and the Angels announced after the game that he will not pitch again this season due to a torn ligament in his right elbow.
Ohtani previously had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow after the 2018 season. The two-way superstar will seek a second medical opinion before making a decision regarding another potential surgery that would surely affect his upcoming free agency this offseason.
Until Ohtani’s recovery plan is set, the major-league home run leader plans to continue playing as a designated hitter.
“He’s going to play. So, as far as a second opinion goes, they’re still working on that,” general manager Perry Minasian told reporters. “Him and his representation are going to come up with a plan but as we sit here today, he’s going to play until he tells us he’s not.”
Ohtani finishes the year as a pitcher with a 10-5 record and an ERA of 3.14 with 167 strikeouts in 132 innings.
Ohtani is batting .304 with a 1.069 OPS, and his 44 home runs are two shy of his career high.
Star teammate Mike Trout returned to the injured list Friday as he continues to recover from a fractured bone in his left wrist.
Trout returned from a 38-game absence to go 1 for 4 on Tuesday but has not played since due to lingering soreness.
Robert Helenius failed a pre-fight drugs test prior to his recent heavyweight fight with former world champion Anthony Joshua, it has been revealed.
The 39-year-old Finn, knocked out by Joshua in the seventh round at London’s O2 Arena on August 12, had stepped in as a late replacement for Dillian Whyte, who had failed a drugs test himself.
Fight promoter Matchroom Boxing confirmed in a statement on Twitter that Helenius had “returned an adverse analytical finding” after being voluntarily tested on August 11.
Matchroom Boxing said: “Today, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) has informed Matchroom and the British Boxing Board of Control that Robert Helenius has returned an adverse analytical finding as part of a random anti-doping protocol.
“Helenius was voluntarily tested on Friday, 11 August before the heavyweight fighter’s defeat by Anthony Joshua in London on Saturday, 12 August. The result was made known to Matchroom today.
“Matchroom defers to the relevant regulatory authorities on next steps. We vehemently continue to support voluntary anti-doping testing. We are committed to promoting a clean and fair sport for all athletes.”
Joshua had been scheduled to fight British rival Whyte at the O2 Arena on August 12 before the latter returned an adverse finding from a doping test.
Whyte later said he was “shocked and devastated” to learn of VADA’s findings and intended to prove his innocence.
Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson watched Nakhi Wells score his first EFL goal since February – and then admitted he was unsure why he had not ended up with a brace during a 1-1 draw at Hull.
Wells levelled the scores just past the hour mark but earlier had been denied by a very delayed flag in first-half stoppage time, after Jason Knight’s deflected drive had fallen to him six yards from goal.
The Tigers had earlier forged in front courtesy of Ozan Tufan’s fourth goal of the season but a confused Pearson said: “From what we were told about the offside rule in pre-season to what I am seeing now during the season, there’s a bit of confusion and we need some clarification about what constitutes a deflection to somebody in an offside position.
“People in football were not asked their opinion about it and I’d just say offside is offside and that the assistant should put the flag up straight away, but that won’t happen.”
Pearson was happier with his players’ overall efforts, arguing that the same character is now needed in home matches and that Hull only ended up with a share of the spoils due to some heroic, last-ditch defending.
“Apart from 10 to 15 minutes in the first half when we didn’t get it right in terms of how we pressed, I thought we played very well and created lots of chances,” he claimed. “I saw bravery out there with players wanting the ball and doing positive things on the pitch.
“We need to see that character in home games now because people talk about coaching and training, but the most important day in the week is match day.
“Sometimes though, away from home, it’s more straightforward to go with a gameplan that’s not about entertaining and we were conceding more ground, but it was like springing a trap and we are very good at that. They also defended their goal with a lot of commitment and but for that, I think we would have won comfortably.”
Hull boss Liam Rosenior admitted his team did have their backs to the wall more than he would normally like.
“When you go a goal up at home and don’t get three points, you have to view it as two dropped,” he reasoned.
“I thought the first 25 minutes was exactly what I wanted. Then we were trying to score with every attack and it became a bit of a basketball match, which suited Bristol City.
“I think if we had carried on playing the way we were and keeping possession, we would have exhausted Bristol City of their oxygen.
“But I also have great respect for Nigel Pearson’s teams. They were winning the ball back and played with four up front and two full-backs high up the pitch, so they were playing really offensive football as well.
“I was delighted with how we were putting bodies on the line and defending long throws, but it was happening too often. We then regained control after they scored and I felt that we could have won the game, but we could have easily lost it as well because it was really open.”
Explaining his decision to substitute the Championship’s early-season top scorer Tufan, Rosenior added: “Ozan has been magnificent for us, but he has an issue away from football that I can’t go into and I thought he was mentally exhausted.”
Erik ten Hag told his players that their drop-off in the defeat at Tottenham was unacceptable as the Manchester United boss accused some of the team of not running or sticking to their jobs.
Having finished third in the Premier League and won the Carabao Cup during a promising first season in charge, Ten Hag began the new campaign with a 1-0 win against Wolves but United were fortunate to get anything from the game.
The Red Devils were then beaten 2-0 at Spurs after a fine start faded in the capital last Saturday, but the manager hit back at suggestions his midfield was to blame.
“You also have to make clinical analysis and that assessment is not right,” Ten Hag said. “It’s not about the midfield.
“It was about the back and the front. That’s why we were open.”
Pressed on what those areas of the team were not doing, the United boss retorted: “They didn’t run, or they run in the wrong moment, too late, especially the front, didn’t recover.
“It happened, you can’t turn it around. But it’s a demand here, if you want to win games.
“First 35 minutes, we were so good and we dominated the game totally. We should have scored minimum once, but I think two.
“They were nowhere, nothing, and then things happen in the game and they got distracted, not doing their jobs anymore. That’s not a demand from a Manchester United player and from our team.
“I am not used to it from this team because they always do (it). The demand for Manchester United is you do it 90 minutes and you do it every game, no matter what.”
The 53-year-old’s frustration was made clear in the press conference previewing Saturday’s match against Nottingham Forest, just as it had been to the players in the build-up.
“I told them, I gave them the feedback that this is not acceptable,” Ten Hag said.
“We have to work as a team, we have to do it with togetherness. Every individual has to take responsibility.”
Asked if they are big enough to take that responsibility and accept criticism, the United boss said: “Oh, yes. We are in the same boat. I am responsible for it, me as well.
“We have to do that in togetherness and we have to face the first two games were not good enough, but still one we won.
“From the other we can take the positives. If we do the right things in the first 35 minutes, we have a very good team and we will win games if everyone is doing their job.”
The loss at Spurs also saw Bruno Fernandes face some criticism, particularly the recently appointed captain’s appeals for a first-half penalty and comments about the decision afterwards.
“Of course I back him and I think he has also to make his point,” Ten Hag said. “It’s justified and it was a clear penalty, so then you can express it.
“But also don’t get distracted by it. You have to keep focusing on your job.
“Last season when he (was captain), he did already brilliant. Now as well.
“He’s an inspiration, he’s an example for the team, he has the personality, so he’s a very good captain.”
Fernandes and United will attempt to right the ship at Old Trafford, where fans are planning to protest against the Glazers with a sit-in after Saturday’s match.
The club have lost their place at the top of English football during their ownership and look short, in terms of a quality and depth, of a title bid ahead of next Friday’s transfer deadline.
Ten Hag ruled out signing a striker but is understood to be keen to bring in a midfielder, while Fenerbahce goalkeeper Altay Bayindir has undergone a medical ahead of a potential move.
United may now also move for a left-back after Luke Shaw suffered an injury, with back-up Tyrell Malacia also absent and Brandon Williams departing on loan.
“It can be, because I think always we have to anticipate on situations,” Ten Hag said.
“If there are good opportunities, yes, but it has to be the right player otherwise we have to deal with the current squad.”
Dina Asher-Smith vowed to hit back at the Olympics after battling a mystery problem at the World Championships.
The 2019 200m champion missed out on the podium on Friday night in Budapest after coming seventh as Jamaica’s Shericka Jackson stormed to a title defence.
Jackson ran the second best time in history to win in 21.41 seconds ahead of the USA’s Gabby Thomas and Sha’Carri Richardson, before Noah Lyles defended his 200m title.
Asher-Smith, who was also beaten by fifth-placed British team-mate Daryll Neita, admitted she suffered an issue in the 100m semi-final on Sunday but still feels it gives her belief ahead of next year’s Paris Olympics.
She said: “I was going great and then I just couldn’t feel anything below my waist.
“That’s why I was able to go and run the (100m) final because I wasn’t in pain but neurally I didn’t have any control. I was still dealing with that.
“It was about still coming back and just making everything work. I’m grateful to have got through it all in one piece after just not being able to feel from here (waist) downwards during that 100m.
“It was such a shame because I really was on the way to something quite good.
“But I think it gave me quite a bit of self-confidence, how I was running going into it and how I felt and despite the fact that I got halfway through the 100m (and then could not feel her legs).
“I’m taking a lot from that and pushing into Paris that I can be very much on top of the podium.”
Neita set a personal best of 22.21s in the semi-final and then broke it again to clock 22.16s in her first global 200m final.
She said: “I performed well. My last final was Tokyo (Olympics, 100m) when I came last. I came fifth in a very fast final, I know I can perform. I’ve got time to get better. I ran a PB and yesterday so I am raising my game.”
Lyles completed his double in Hungary to prove he is ready to claim Usain Bolt’s sprint king crown going into the Olympics.
The American defended his 200m title in 19.52 seconds ahead of team-mate Erriyon Knighton and Letsile Tebogo of Botswana as Great Britain’s Zharnel Hughes finished fourth in 20.02s.
It came after Lyles won the 100m in Budapest on Sunday to become the first man to win both sprints at the worlds since Bolt in 2015.
“It is a great feeling to know I did something not a lot of people have done,” he said. “I came out and showed it. I am double champion. Usain Bolt has done it and him saying to me that he sees what I am doing and he respects it, it is amazing.”
Hughes refused to be downbeat after his fourth place, having won 100m bronze on Sunday.
He said: “No, there’s nothing to be disappointed about. I gave it my best and got fourth. That’s nothing to be disappointed about. Obviously I wanted to be on the podium but I’m still happy.
“You saw how close I was. Listen, with a better lane, I would have been on the podium, honestly.”
He will join the 4x100m relay team for Saturday’s final after they qualified third in their heat in 38.01s.
Preparation was interrupted after Reece Prescod withdrew from the squad on the eve of the Championships and Eugene Amo-Dadzie needed to pull them back from fourth to third on the final leg.
He said: “It’s always nice to run men down, put guys on notice. I’m confident, I’m going to back myself and I trust these guys to get he baton in my hand. It was fun. It was a surreal boyhood dream.”
The women’s team of Asha Philip, Imani-Lara Lansiquot, Bianca Williams and Annie Tagoe qualified for the final fifth fastest in 42.33s but Neita and Asher-Smith are due to run on Saturday night to boost their medal hopes.
Raheem Sterling scored twice to continue his fine start to the Premier League season as Chelsea overcame early nerves to beat Luton 3-0 at Stamford Bridge.
A game that had threatened to drift into familiar goal-shy territory for Mauricio Pochettino’s side came alive midway through the second half when Sterling swept home his second of the match, that after he had broken the deadlock in the 17th minute with a superb solo effort.
And goalscorer turned provider minutes later when he crossed for Nicolas Jackson to knock in his first Chelsea goal and hand the hosts their first three-goal victory in the league since beating Wolves last October.
Until that flourish, Rob Edwards’ side had inflicted familiar feelings of frustration on home fans who witnessed their team struggle to open up the top-flight newcomers, until Sterling’s brilliance finally helped them cement their dominance and hand Pochettino his first win in charge.
Chelsea’s first chance fell after just six minutes. Luton failed to clear decisively after a free-kick from the right, and coming onto the ball with a thunderous volley from 12 yards was Sterling. His drive was clean and true, but Thomas Kaminski was its equal with a superb piece of handling to cling on to the ball.
Moises Caicedo, fresh from conceding a penalty on his debut against West Ham, showed more jitters on his first home start when he allowed Tahith Chong to dispossess him inside his own half. The Luton winger left his opponent on the turf and raced away before arcing a shot wide of goal to spare the blushes of Chelsea’s record buy.
It had been an urgent if not wholly assured start by Chelsea. On 14 minutes, Ben Chilwell linked up well with Jackson to provide Enzo Fernandez with a sight of goal. The World Cup-winner’s shot was taken early with his instep, curling past the angle of post and bar.
The opening goal was all Sterling’s own work. Picking up the ball wide on the right from Malo Gusto’s pass, he drove in from the wing with purpose, darting into the box and cutting inside three defenders before sliding a fine left-footed finish past Kaminsky.
The second half sustained the pattern of Chelsea pressure. First, Ben Chilwell played a one-two with Jackson and went through on goal, only to pick the wrong option and look for a pass instead of taking the shot on. Then Jackson himself tried to beat Kaminski at the near post, a challenge the Luton goalkeeper stood up to well.
Caicedo’s inclusion had meant a more advanced role for Fernandez, and the Argentinian appeared determined to make amends for his costly penalty miss against West Ham. He was the next to go close, arriving at the back post to meet Sterling’s superb low ball into the box. Kaminski, increasingly exposed as the game wore on, beat the ball to safety.
But as long as Chelsea’s dominance failed to yield a second, Luton’s threat lingered. Their moment looked to have arrived on the hour mark. Carlton Morris held the ball up well inside the box and helped work the ball via Elijah Adebayo into the feet of Ryan Giles, whose driven effort looked destined to fizz beyond Robert Sanchez until Gusto’s heroic last-ditch block deflected it into the Chelsea goalkeeper’s arms.
Much of the hosts’ attacking play had suffered from attempts to overcomplicate, but there was nothing of that about their second. Gusto, a lively forward threat all night pushing up from wing-back, whipped the ball into the box low and with a cool sweep of the right boot Sterling guided the cross into the bottom corner to finally settle Chelsea’s nerves.
Stamford Bridge suddenly found its mood transformed, and within minutes it was three. Fernandez, looking settled now in his new role, sent a clever spinning ball up to Sterling, who was almost nonchalant as he pulled it out of the air and drilled it in for Jackson crash home his first goal in blue.
It was a stylish goal, the kind supporters were once used to in this part of west London. They will hope that a corner has finally been turned.
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