Paris St Germain head coach Carlo Ancelotti has claimed that David Beckham's age is no barrier to success - and pointed out that Paolo Maldini was two years older when he won the Champions League.
Affichage des articles dont le libellé est Sport. Afficher tous les articles
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mardi 5 février 2013
David Beckham : 5 Months in Paris St-Germain PSG
Paris St Germain head coach Carlo Ancelotti has claimed that David Beckham's age is no barrier to success - and pointed out that Paolo Maldini was two years older when he won the Champions League.
dimanche 2 septembre 2012
Andy Roddick should bow out with no regrets
Until my dying day I will remember that game. One game, five shots, 46 seconds. That 46 second game which saw Andy Roddick serve out the US Open of 2003.
There are so many Roddick moments to recall from a distinguished career - I loved the quality and sportsmanship of his epic quarter-final with Younes El Aynouai in Australia earlier that year - but nothing tops that sprint finish to the line at Flushing Meadows.
On a totally green hard court in 2003, before the blue was introduced, Juan Carlos Ferrero managed to get his racket on just one of Roddick's four serves. It was the freedom of an all-American sport-mad kid, just doing his thing.
Roddick, 21, had become a Grand Slam champion and a new American idol, who would end that year as the world number one, had arrived on the international scene.
Fast forward almost nine years and Roddick, on his 30th birthday, found himself announcing his retirement, very calmly and very definitely, to a packed Flushing Meadows press conference.
Friends and family were seated alongside the journalists: Brooklyn Decker, his wife, Larry Stefanki, his coach, Stephen Little, the London taxi driver who drove him randomly one night and became a close friend.
They knew what was coming, the reporters weren't so sure.
Was he pulling out of the tournament? Was it a birthday celebration? Roddick did well to keep the news under wraps and, through the microphones of the media, announced it to the world on his own terms. He deserved that.
Andy Roddick has won 32 career titles in a 12 year professional tennis career. Photo: Getty
It was a sudden development, and the twittersphere reacted with shock, but, if we're honest, it had been coming. For a while, Roddick has struggled to live with the intense pace and quality at the top of the men's game. He's not interested in simply "existing", to use his phrase.
Feeling uncompetitive against the best, Roddick put it simply: "It is time," he said.
And, on Thursday, it was impossible to argue with that.
Then we had Friday night.
Roddick thrashed one of the better prospects in the game (supposedly) Bernard Tomic and there were plenty of fans wondering if he'd made a premature call.
The Arthur Ashe night session is Roddick's stage in America. Nobody has played more times under the New York lights. As he whacked, wheeled, bounced and smiled his way to victory, he put the feeble Tomic firmly in his place. (The Aussie was "pathetic" according to US commentator Patrick McEnroe). Does Roddick have one more glorious run left in him?
Whatever happens here, Andy Roddick has been great for tennis. Like Kim Clijsters, also retiring after this year's tournament (she won in Mixed Doubles last night to prolong her career another day), he will be missed by colleagues, fans and media alike.
We will miss his huge serve, sharp wit, perennial perseverance, even the funny fidgets.
Not a point went by without the right shoulder of his shirt being adjusted. I hope in his next life - in TV studio, office, garden, wherever - he keeps adjusting that shoulder of the shirt and requests a nearby towel.
His press conferences were often legendary. Silly questions would be dispatched to the boundary with tongue-in-cheek disdain. Half-volleys would be snaffled with quick-witted enthusiasm. And he always gave an honest answer.
"How do you rate Gonzalez's chances?" [in the 07 Australian Open Final v Federer].
"Slim."
"What was your favourite press conference?" he was asked last night.
"I don't really rate press conferences. It's not as though I leave the room fist-pumping my way down the corridor after a good one."
Classic, straight-faced, A-Rod.
Earlier, he was on good form on the court. He revealed he got a bit emotional as he walked past a TV studio and a saw a montage of his career. "The sound was down but I'm guessing it was set to an 80s ballad" he quipped.
He loved a bit of chat with an under performing umpire and would try to outwit them at change of ends. Once in Australia, he left the chair advising the crowd: "Stay in college, kids. Otherwise you may become an umpire."
When he needed to be serious, he had no trouble switching gears.
In the past 12 months he has been the most articulate voice of the locker room in the ongoing campaign for a better share of Grand Slam tournament revenues. The players should persuade him to stay as their spokesman and lead negotiations from the sidelines. He has also raised a huge amount of money for charity through his foundation.
Being such a popular player in the UK, it was a disappointment to many that he never won Wimbledon. How he tried.
He came close, especially in 2009, but never managed to avoid Roger Federer, who beat him in three finals. His effort in that marathon All England Club final three years ago was immense and one couldn't help but feel for him as he sat in the runners up chair as Federer paraded yet another trophy. Roddick just wanted to hold it the once.
No regrets though. It was a mighty fine career. Now a new life beckons and he's bound to be a success in whatever field he turns to, which will surely involve talking, a lot of jesting and quite a bit of fidgeting. Good luck Andy.
BBC
There are so many Roddick moments to recall from a distinguished career - I loved the quality and sportsmanship of his epic quarter-final with Younes El Aynouai in Australia earlier that year - but nothing tops that sprint finish to the line at Flushing Meadows.
On a totally green hard court in 2003, before the blue was introduced, Juan Carlos Ferrero managed to get his racket on just one of Roddick's four serves. It was the freedom of an all-American sport-mad kid, just doing his thing.
Roddick, 21, had become a Grand Slam champion and a new American idol, who would end that year as the world number one, had arrived on the international scene.
Fast forward almost nine years and Roddick, on his 30th birthday, found himself announcing his retirement, very calmly and very definitely, to a packed Flushing Meadows press conference.
Friends and family were seated alongside the journalists: Brooklyn Decker, his wife, Larry Stefanki, his coach, Stephen Little, the London taxi driver who drove him randomly one night and became a close friend.
They knew what was coming, the reporters weren't so sure.
Was he pulling out of the tournament? Was it a birthday celebration? Roddick did well to keep the news under wraps and, through the microphones of the media, announced it to the world on his own terms. He deserved that.
Andy Roddick has won 32 career titles in a 12 year professional tennis career. Photo: Getty
It was a sudden development, and the twittersphere reacted with shock, but, if we're honest, it had been coming. For a while, Roddick has struggled to live with the intense pace and quality at the top of the men's game. He's not interested in simply "existing", to use his phrase.
Feeling uncompetitive against the best, Roddick put it simply: "It is time," he said.
And, on Thursday, it was impossible to argue with that.
Then we had Friday night.
Roddick thrashed one of the better prospects in the game (supposedly) Bernard Tomic and there were plenty of fans wondering if he'd made a premature call.
The Arthur Ashe night session is Roddick's stage in America. Nobody has played more times under the New York lights. As he whacked, wheeled, bounced and smiled his way to victory, he put the feeble Tomic firmly in his place. (The Aussie was "pathetic" according to US commentator Patrick McEnroe). Does Roddick have one more glorious run left in him?
Whatever happens here, Andy Roddick has been great for tennis. Like Kim Clijsters, also retiring after this year's tournament (she won in Mixed Doubles last night to prolong her career another day), he will be missed by colleagues, fans and media alike.
We will miss his huge serve, sharp wit, perennial perseverance, even the funny fidgets.
Not a point went by without the right shoulder of his shirt being adjusted. I hope in his next life - in TV studio, office, garden, wherever - he keeps adjusting that shoulder of the shirt and requests a nearby towel.
His press conferences were often legendary. Silly questions would be dispatched to the boundary with tongue-in-cheek disdain. Half-volleys would be snaffled with quick-witted enthusiasm. And he always gave an honest answer.
"How do you rate Gonzalez's chances?" [in the 07 Australian Open Final v Federer].
"Slim."
"What was your favourite press conference?" he was asked last night.
"I don't really rate press conferences. It's not as though I leave the room fist-pumping my way down the corridor after a good one."
Classic, straight-faced, A-Rod.
Earlier, he was on good form on the court. He revealed he got a bit emotional as he walked past a TV studio and a saw a montage of his career. "The sound was down but I'm guessing it was set to an 80s ballad" he quipped.
He loved a bit of chat with an under performing umpire and would try to outwit them at change of ends. Once in Australia, he left the chair advising the crowd: "Stay in college, kids. Otherwise you may become an umpire."
When he needed to be serious, he had no trouble switching gears.
In the past 12 months he has been the most articulate voice of the locker room in the ongoing campaign for a better share of Grand Slam tournament revenues. The players should persuade him to stay as their spokesman and lead negotiations from the sidelines. He has also raised a huge amount of money for charity through his foundation.
Being such a popular player in the UK, it was a disappointment to many that he never won Wimbledon. How he tried.
He came close, especially in 2009, but never managed to avoid Roger Federer, who beat him in three finals. His effort in that marathon All England Club final three years ago was immense and one couldn't help but feel for him as he sat in the runners up chair as Federer paraded yet another trophy. Roddick just wanted to hold it the once.
No regrets though. It was a mighty fine career. Now a new life beckons and he's bound to be a success in whatever field he turns to, which will surely involve talking, a lot of jesting and quite a bit of fidgeting. Good luck Andy.
BBC
jeudi 19 juillet 2012
Rafael Nadal Withdraws from the Olympics
Rafael Nadal
Splash News Online
Rafael Nadal will not be competing in the London Olympics, he announced Thursday.
"I am not in condition to compete in the London Olympics and therefore will not travel as planned with the Spanish delegation to take part in the Games," he said in a statement to the Associated Press.
"I have to think about my companions, I can't be selfish and I have to think of what's best for Spanish sport, especially tennis and Spanish players, and give fellow sportsmen with better preparation the chance to compete."
Nadal – who won the men's singles gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics – has been battling knee problems for years. Still, he continued to prepare for the Olympics until as recently as this week.
"I tried to hurry my preparations and training to the very last minute, but it was not to be," he said in his statement.
But earlier this week, he documented his training progress online. "Stretching after the practice, more and more eager to arrive to London!" he wrote on his Facebook page Tuesday.
Nadal also said recently that he was "doing everything possible to recover" after competing at Wimbledon. "The hopes are at a maximum, the work is total and I expect to be at 100 percent," he said last Saturday.
Nadal, ranked number three in the world after Wimbledon, had been selected to carry the Spanish flag at the London Olympic Games.
"I am not in condition to compete in the London Olympics and therefore will not travel as planned with the Spanish delegation to take part in the Games," he said in a statement to the Associated Press.
"I have to think about my companions, I can't be selfish and I have to think of what's best for Spanish sport, especially tennis and Spanish players, and give fellow sportsmen with better preparation the chance to compete."
Nadal – who won the men's singles gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics – has been battling knee problems for years. Still, he continued to prepare for the Olympics until as recently as this week.
"I tried to hurry my preparations and training to the very last minute, but it was not to be," he said in his statement.
But earlier this week, he documented his training progress online. "Stretching after the practice, more and more eager to arrive to London!" he wrote on his Facebook page Tuesday.
Nadal also said recently that he was "doing everything possible to recover" after competing at Wimbledon. "The hopes are at a maximum, the work is total and I expect to be at 100 percent," he said last Saturday.
Nadal, ranked number three in the world after Wimbledon, had been selected to carry the Spanish flag at the London Olympic Games.
People
jeudi 7 juin 2012
Heat-Celtics Game 6: It has to be LeBron/Wade show for Heat to survive
Reuters
In all the schadenfreude over watching the Miami Heat lose and seem to unravel, one thing seems to be consistently overlooked — the Boston Celtics are a really good defensive team. They were second in the league in points allowed per possession, they blow up pick-and-rolls, they are tough to score on in isolation. They slow down everyone. They were going to slow down the Heat.
But if LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are really on there is no defense that can stop them.
And that’s what this series has come down to for the Heat — they need LeBron and Wade to be exceptional to win. Not good, like combining to score 57 points on 47 shots in Game 5, they need to be world beaters. Both of them. Every game. They need to put up 65 at least between them and hope that Chris Bosh can pitch in more (he will play more).
Those two especially are going to have to do that on the road in Game 6 because the Heat can’t count on anyone else. If they are going to force a Game 7 it will because the Heat’s stars carried Game 6.
Boston’s offense has looked solid enough the last few games against the Heat, most of that due to Rajon Rondo. He is running the pick-and-roll beautifully with Kevin Garnett (getting KG easy looks rolling to the rim or open spot up 18 footers), he is hitting a few outside shots and he is controlling the flow of this series. Throw in some good buckets from Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and it’s good enough.
Miami is helping out with defensive lapses — often ones of effort. How many times did the old legs of Boston just outrun the Heat players down he floor in Game 5? Dwyane Wade was not alone but was the most prominent guy just getting beat down court, forced into bad matchups because of it that Rondo and the Celtics exploit. That’s not on coach Erik Spoelstra, either — if you can’t get fired up for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals to bust it every single play there is nothing a coach can do.
Remember, the Heat entered this season wanting to up the tempo — play pressing defense, force turnovers, get out in transition and overwhelm with their athleticism. We saw that kind of defense in Game 1 and the second half of Game 4 from Miami, but that’s it. It was supposed to be their identity, but it isn’t. Not every game, not every play. The committment and effort are not there.
And at the end of the day, that is what this series is about. Boston is a good team that will play good defense and give you maximum effort every night. They will be the best team they can be.
Miami plays like it can flip the switch. But that switch almost never stays on for a full game. They will have a fantastic quarter then go back to coasting on both ends, something they can still win doing in the regular season but it leads to bad habits. The Heat are very self-conscious and that can throw off their confidence in a heartbeat. The Celtics will just put their head down and fight through those kinds of stretches.
Which is why you have to think Boston has the edge at home – this will be their best effort, best game of the series. That’s still not good enough to beat Miami’s best, but do you really think we’ll see that for 48 minutes at both ends of the floor? Do you really think this is the night Wade and LeBron both show up and play their best games? I’m just not sold.
NBC
mardi 8 mai 2012
Cisse eyes revenge for Hughes
Djibril Cisse believes it would be a sweet moment for former Manchester City manager Mark Hughes if Queens Park Rangers can get a good result at the Etihad Stadium.
QPR head into Sunday's season finale in charge of their own destiny after moving out of the Premier League relegation zone with a dramatic 1-0 win over Stoke.
The victory, which came courtesy of Cisse's
89th-minute strike, means Rangers will avoid relegation if they draw at City, where Hughes was sacked in 2009 after 18 months in charge.Many think the Welshman was unfortunate to lose his job after a tumultuous period at the club that included Sheikh Mansour's multi-million pound takeover.
Cisse thinks Hughes, a former fans' favourite at Manchester United,
will not be motivated by revenge but still thinks it would be nice for Rangers to triumph over City after the way his manager was treated."That would be sweet revenge for him," Cisse said.
"I don't think he is thinking about this - his main concern is to keep QPR up but it will be sweet for him too."
Important
Cisse only joined QPR in January but he has already had a number of ups and downs and was delighted to score such a crucial goal against Stoke.It was the fifth time the Frenchman has scored in seven appearances, but he has been suspended for seven matches after getting sent off against Sunderland
and Wolves, and he felt he owed Tony Fernandes a good performance."I am trying to do my best to repay what I owe the people," said the striker, who latched on to Anton Ferdinand's flick-on to seal the late win.
"It was one of the most important goals of my career. It's really important because I know how important it is for the club to stay up.
"I saw Tony after the game and he gave me a hug. I remember having a conversation with him by text, telling him: 'I am going to pay you back what I owe you' and he came and told me: 'Thank you. You paid me back'.
"It was nice of him."
SkySports
mercredi 11 avril 2012
Kinsler, Phillips get contracts that fit their position
Ian Kinsler and Brandon Phillips were similar enough to begin with. With both second basemen getting contract extensions barely a day apart this week -- part of a spring rush to lock up key players across the game -- they can look foward to comparisons for at least another five years.
Phillips' six-year, $72.5 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds starts now and takes him through 2017. Kinsler is locked up throught he same season, thanks to a five-year, $82 million extension that takes effect next season. The Texas Rangers also have a option year on Kinsler for 2018.
Kinsler gets the edge in annual value but is that a measure of ability or market? The Rangers are feeling flush with a new television deal and could explore deals with free-agents-to-be Josh Hamilton, Mike Napoli and Colby Lewis. Kinsler fingered catcher Napoli as next in line, though that could be a close race with outfielder Hamilton.
The Reds might not have the same cash flow but have been just as eager to commit what they have -- locking up first baseman Joey Votto through 2023 with a 10-year, $225 million contract a week ago. Former MVP or not, Votto getting a deal past his 40th birthday raised some eyebrows.
The contracts for Phillips and Kinsler fall into a more comfortable age range --Phillips will be 36 when the '17 season ends, Kinsler 35. And both are athletic with body types likely to hold up. The only concern would be how much wear and tear the acrobatic Phillips and all-out Kinsler inflict on themselves. Then again, and here's the ever-present rub for all these deals, we would have said the same thing about Chase Utley four years ago when he was a similar age.
Neither Kinsler nor Phillips is the best player on his team but each is a pivotal peformer in a good lineup and important parts of their clubhouse cultures. They've spent six seasons as regulars with their current teams and Kinsler has a .276-.272 edge in batting average. Their home run and stolen base totals are nearly identical but Phillips' nearly 1,000 extra at-bats skew that comparison.
It's what they've done for their teams lately that drives the contract extensions anyway, and both are Top 5 second basemen in the majors over the previous two seasons.
Kinsler ranks third and Phillips fifth for 2010-11 in Fangraphs.com's Wins Above Replacement measurement. Robinson Cano of the Yankees and Dustin Pedroia are 1-2, with Tampa Bay's Ben Zobrist sliding in between Kinsler's 11.1 WAR and Phillips' 10.3.
These new deals are good news for Cano and Pedroia, who figure to move up into similar financial territory once it's their turn again. The Yankees picked up Cano's $14 million option for this season, turning his current deal into five years and $44 million. The team has another option for next season at $15 million.
Pedroia will have to exercise a bit more patience. His current contract is six years and $40.5 million through 2014, plus an $11 million club option for 2015 that figures to be a bargain.
For now, though, Kinsler has them all beat for annual dollar value and that could remain the case for awhile. Milwaukee's Rickie Weeks, 29 like Kinsler, signed an extension last spring that includes an option for 2015 that vests at $11.5 million pretty much if he stays healthy and in the lineup. And Zobrist also is locked up through 2015 assuming the Rays pick up a couple of option years that don't go above $7.5 million.
As for value on the field, Fangraphs gives him the advantage over Phillips in hitting and baserunning the past two years. Phillips has been the better defender over that period.
Overall in 2010-11, according to Fangraphs, Kinsler trails Cano, Weeks, Pedroia and Atlanta's Dan Uggla on offense but leads all second baseman running the bases and trails only Pedroia, Zobrist and Phillips on defense. Phillips is eighth on offense, fourth on the basepaths.
In other words -- or in words rather than numnbers -- Phillips and especially Kinsler find themselves in a comfortable economic league for themselves -- and really not so far-fetched for their teams.
USA Today
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