09/06/2025

MONDAY | JUNE 9, 2025

30

SPORTS

Pochettino: Spurs return not realistic Team USA coach pours cold water on speculation U NITED STATES coach Mauricio Pochettino played down speculation about a return to his former club Tottenham Hotspur after the Premier League side sacked Ange Postecoglou, saying it was not a realistic option at this stage. or Espanyol.” The US will next host Switzerland in a friendly in Tennessee on Wednesday as Pochettino’s side looks to avoid a fourth straight loss.

in six years. “If you have seen the rumours, I think there are 100 coaches in the list. I think, don’t be worried about that,” Pochettino said. Pochettino, who left his position as Chelsea manager in May last year after one season in charge, has a big job on his hands, having been tasked with leading the United States at the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico. The former Espanyol, Southampton and Paris St Germain manager signed a two year contract with the United States in September. “If something happened, for sure you will see, but we cannot talk about this type of thing, because I think today, it’s not real. It’s not realistic,” he said. “And look at where I am, where we are. And the thing is, the answer is so clear, no? But we’re talking about it because it’s my club, like Newell’s (Newell’s Old Boys)

But the North London club also endured their worst domestic season for nearly half a century under Postecoglou, finishing one place above the Premier League’s relegation zone after losing 22 games. Argentine Pochettino, 53, guided Spurs to the 2019 Champions League final and turned them into Premier League title contenders as they finished in the top four for four straight seasons before he was fired in 2019. “After I left in 2019, every time that I was free, and the place of the position of the manager or head coach in Tottenham Hotspur, my name is appearing on the list,” Pochettino told reporters after the United States was defeated 2-1 by Turkey in a friendly match in Connecticut yesterday. Several managers have been linked to the Spurs job, including Brentford boss Thomas Frank, Crystal Palace’s Oliver Glasner and Fulham’s Marco Silva, with the club searching for a fifth full-time manager

Jack McGlynn scored 59 seconds into yesterday’s match before Arda Guler in the 24th minute and Kerem Akturkoglu in the 27th gave Turkey the lead. “For the first time for a few camps there were more positives than negatives,” said midfielder Tyler Adams. “I think we have a lot of room for growth, if you asked me in March, I would say that we were far away but after a performance like that, there’s a lot more positives that we can take away,” he added. – AFP/Reuters

Spurs sacked Postecoglou on Friday, 16 days after the 59-year-old Australian guided them to a first major trophy in 17 years with a 1-0 victory over Manchester United in the Europa League final.

08/06/2025 (SUN)

5978/2025

3866 5899 3050

Draw Date: 08/06/25 (Sun)

Draw No: 5925/25 Venue: WISMA GENTING, KL

9542 2165 5911 0126 3936

6336 5612 9299 5651 7164

6724 6341 2717 7130 4221

2159 6665 3747 6644 6765

5137 8403 5010

Netherlands’ Denzel Dumfries (left) and Finland’s Robert Ivanov (centre) vie for the ball during the 2026 World Cup Qualifying Group G match. – AFPPIC

5680+ 9896 7996+ 8594 8943+ 9783 0867+ 5220 4306+ 4147

2682+ 4760 3417 + 0981 2172+ 2882 3929+ 0465 3601 + 7359

10,382,079.25

3866 5899 3866

3050 3050 5899

3050 3050 5899

3866 3866 5899

177,014.75

RM7,724,723.40

5137+ 8403 5137+ 5010 8403+ 5010

8403+ 5137 5010 + 5137 5010 + 8403

3866 5899 3050 RABBIT

RM485,586.10

RM305,833.30

015 137 + DOG

4 7 5 8 6 7 5 8 6 5 8 6 8 6

RM1,162,611.00

018 403 + MONKEY

Depay, Dumfries on target for Oranje

3 3 2 3 6 8 8 4 8 5

RM110,000.00

175 010 + SNAKE

795 680 619 896 332 682 774 760 437 996 018 594 833 417 070 981 118 943 479 783 782 172 752 882 000 867 895 220 923 929 890 465 834 306 154 147 683 601 807 359

8 6 8 0 3 8 6 8 0 3 8 8 0 3 8 0 3 8

8 6 8 0 3 8 6 8 0 8 6 8 8 6

THE Netherlands kicked off their World Cup qualification campaign with a comfortable victory as goals from Memphis Depay and Denzel Dumfries secured a 2-0 away win over Finland yesterday. Depay profited from a defensive error to give the Dutch the lead inside six minutes, and Dumfries added a second with a neat finish at the back post midway through the first half. The Netherlands moved third in Group G with three points, behind leaders Poland, who have won both their games, and Finland who have four points from three matches. It was a professional performance from the Dutch, who were settled by their early goals and could then coast through the second half to secure a first victory in their World Cup qualification opener since 2012. The Netherlands’ captain Virgil van Dijk said the match against Finland was a “tough game” after a long season. “The first one is always difficult. Especially under these circumstances, two weeks after such a long season for everyone. So it’s important that we got three points,”Van Dijk told NOS after the match.

“But I want to go to the World Cup. This is the start of our cycle; it’s all about the three points. “We played well for most of the match against a team that sits back a bit more. You have to play around them, because the centre is packed. “The first hour was good, but the last half hour needs to be better.” Depay latched on to a mis-controlled chested back pass by Kaan Kairinen and his neat finish into the bottom right corner meant no clean sheet for home goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky on his 100th international appearance. It was a 48th international goal for Depay, leaving him two short of Robin van Persie’s all-time record for the Netherlands. The Dutch went 2-0 up after 23 minutes when Cody Gakpo’s cross to the back post was volleyed into the roof of the net by Dumfries. Depay could not beat Hradecky from an excellent chance early in the second half and Gakpo fired into the side netting from a tight angle but Finland rarely threatened to get back into the match. – AFP/Agencies

3 8

2 5 18 27 44 57

137 403 010

46,182,957.51

16 20 30 31 39 50

RM700,521.80 137 + 403 + 010 403 + 010 + 137 137 + 010 + 403 010 + 137 + 403 403 + 137 + 010 010 + 403 + 137

13,768,404.43

4 22 24 30 34 36 21

6,259,466.92 127,184.01

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