Sport shorts: Unai Emery has ‘one month’ to save Arsenal job and Ferrari summon Vettel and Leclerc to Maranello
Ten things from the world of sport on Monday 18 November
1. Huge month ahead for Emery
The Daily Mirror reports that under-pressure Arsenal boss Unai Emery has “one month to save his job” at the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal are without a Premier League win since 6 October and the Mirror says his fate will be decided by results from the league games against Southampton, Norwich, Brighton, West Ham and Manchester City.
During that period the Gunners also have Europa League matches against Eintracht Frankfurt and Standard Liege.
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An club source told the Mirror: “The DNA that made Arsenal the club it was has slowly but surely drained away. Long-serving members of staff have been shocked by what’s happening to the club.”
2. 70,000 watch women’s football matches
Women’s Football Weekend saw more than 70,000 fans attend matches in the FA Women’s Super League. A record 38,262 crowd watched Arsenal beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the first north London derby at the new Spurs stadium.
3. Vettel and Leclerc set for ‘crisis summit’
The Guardian reports that Ferrari have summoned drivers Sebastian Vettel and Charles Lerclerc to the Italian team’s headquarters in Maranello for a “crisis summit” after the duo collided at yesterday’s Formula 1 Brazilian Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won in Brazil to move ahead of Leclerc in the race to finish third in the drivers’ championship. Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly and McLaren’s Carlos Sainz were second and third respectively.
F1 2019 guide: standings ahead of season-ending Abu Dhabi GP
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4. Price defends Grand Slam of Darts title
Gerwyn Price retained the Grand Slam of Darts trophy after beating Peter Wright 16-6 in the final last night.
Price said: “I’ve had a good year, 18 months, but it doesn’t happen all the time. I’ve been playing well and it breeds confidence, and I’ve been confident in every tournament for the last six months. I’m just thankful to win this again.”
5. Fleetwood eyes European No.1 spot
Tommy Fleetwood is up to second in the European Tour Race to Dubai rankings following his play-off victory at the Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player.
The Englishman’s Rolex Series Event success means he is now in contention to become Europe’s No.1 golfer for the second time in three seasons.
The European Tour’s final event of the season, the DP World Tour Championship, takes place next weekend in Dubai.
Bernd Wiesberger leads the rankings ahead of the 2019 finale with Fleetwood second and Jon Rahm in third.
6. Tsitsipas ‘really close’ to first grand slam
Greek tennis star Stefanos Tsitsipas won the 2019 ATP Finals yesterday with a 6-7 (6-8), 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) victory over Dominic Thiem.
The 21-year-old said in London: “I feel like my game is getting better over time. I believe I’m really close to being crowned a grand slam champion. I know these are strong words that I say, but I do feel like I belong to be there.”
7. Bale and Pogba to swap clubs?
Real Madrid are more determined than ever to dump Gareth Bale and Manchester United are primed to be the beneficiaries.
It’s claimed that the Welshman could be an Old Trafford player as early as January, and if that doesn’t come to fruition he will be definitively discarded next summer as Real know the Red Devils are “determined to land a star name”.
Real could use Bale as leverage to bring Paul Pogba to the Bernabeu.
8. Folau criticised for homophobic sermon
A rugby union player who was ditched from the Australian national team earlier this year for making homophobic remarks on Twitter is back in the firing line over a sermon he delivered in a Sydney church yesterday.
Israel Folau said the bush fires which have killed six people since last month in eastern Australia were a “little taste of God’s judgement” for homosexuality.
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9. Ronaldo: I will break record
Cristiano Ronaldo needs just one more strike to reach a century of international goals for Portugal. The Juventus star was on target in Portugal’s 2-0 win over Luxembourg yesterday, with his 99th international goal securing the European champions’s place at Euro 2020.
Ronaldo is just ten goals behind the international record of 109 set by Iran legend Ali Daei and he is confident he can achieve the feat.
“All records must be broken and I will beat that record,” said the 34-year-old, who has now scored 99 goals in 164 matches for his country.
10. England are ruthless but there’s work to do
Another Euro 2020 qualifier, another emphatic England win as the Three Lions finished their campaign for next summer’s tournament with a 4-0 thrashing of Kosovo.
Although the scoreline flattered the visitors, the final table does not, with England finishing six points clear of second place Czech Republic, who lost last night to Bulgaria.
The goal difference between the two sides is a staggering 29 with England having scored 37 and conceded just six in their eight matches.
England boss Gareth Southgate said: “We know there is still a bit of work to do but I can’t fault the players in this campaign, they’ve been ruthless.”
Today’s back pages
England in ‘great shape’ ahead of Euro 2020
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