06/05/2025

SPORTS TUESDAY | MAY 6, 2025

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Things need to change, says beleaguered Amorim

Paqueta in tears after receiving yellow card WEST HAM boss Graham Potter revealed Lucas Paqueta was reduced to tears by his frustration at the team’s performance against Tottenham. Paqueta looked distraught after he was shown a yellow card in the second half of the 1-1 draw for a foul on Mikey Moore. The Brazilian midfielder is still awaiting the outcome of the FA hearing into allegations he deliberately got himself booked in four matches, which he denies. In bizarre scenes at the London Stadium, Paqueta had to be consoled by Hammers skipper Jarrod Bowen and referee Michael Oliver. Potter said: “I think he’s just a player that’s trying his absolute best and wants the situation to be better and probably got a bit frustrated with the action. “And then you see a human being, not perfect, but I love Lucas. He’s given everything and in difficult circumstances he’s in as well. He’s given everything and he’s absolutely fine now.” Tottenham went ahead in the 15th minute when Hammers defender Max Kilman had two stabs at making a pretty routine clearance, but hit Mathys Tel with both of them. Ű BY ANDY SIMS

Ű BY REUBEN ROSSO-POWELL

third midfielder who can reach the box, he’s really intelligent and he’s getting there. “He trains really hard, sometimes too hard and I have to pull him back and take him off the pitch because he wants to do more. He wants to play more minutes and I’m really happy with him.” Victory for the Bees represents a second win in three days after their 2-0 win at Champions League hopefuls Nottingham Forest on Thursday. “It was a very good performance, we were in control from minute one,” boss Thomas Frank said. “We were on top, pressed aggressively, we produced a lot of crosses and two of our goals were fantastic. “I’m very happy with the performance and it was a deserved win… against Man United who are a massive club.” – The Independent

suffered with the set pieces and throw-ins so we knew we would struggle against them. “They (players) have to understand we cannot do this anymore, we know the context of the season and we need to change that.” Mason Mount scored his first goal of the campaign to put Amorim’s men ahead but a Luke Shaw own-goal and Schade’s first meant the hosts led at the break. Schade’s got his second with a close-range header from Bryan Mbeumo’s delivery, before Yoane Wissa made it 4-1 from six yards out. United showed more grit than previous weeks however, rallying with Alejandro Garnacho’s 82nd-minute goal and Amad Diallo’s stoppage time effort. On Mount, Amorim added: “It’s not just the finish, it’s the position he has on the pitch, he’s a

C HELSEA head coach Enzo Maresca said Cole Palmer can do “what no one expects” after his penalty ended a 16-week scoring drought to help beat Premier League champions Liverpool 3 1 at Stamford Bridge. Palmer looked back to his brilliant best and his goal in stoppage time was no more than a dynamic individual display warranted as the Blues landed a significant blow in the race to qualify for the Champions League. Chelsea were excellent against an admittedly much-changed Liverpool side, Arne Slot making six alterations to the team that secured the club’s 20th title a week ago, and whatever disruption it made to their rhythm was readily exploited by the hosts. Enzo Fernandez swept the first in after three minutes, Jarell Quansah on only his third League start of the season scored a bizarre own-goal, then after Virgil van Dijk had briefly reduced the arrears, Palmer relieved months of frustration from the spot following Quansah’s foul on Moises Caicedo. “We saw Cole day by day at the training ground and he’s exactly the same way, scoring goals, happy,” said Maresca, whose side moved level on points with fourth-placed Newcastle. “For sure when he doesn’t score goals he’s not happy and the reason why is he wants to help the team and the club reach something important. “He’s happy for sure because he scored and we won but I didn’t see him different from three months ago. He scored 14 goals in (the first) 20 Premier League games.” It might have been better for the England forward but he struck the inside of the post from virtually on the byline after a slaloming run. “He’s that kind of player that can do things no one expects,” said Maresca. “They’re different players. When he has the ball I expect anything because he can do anything.” RUBEN AMORIM said Manchester United “need to change” after their 4-3 defeat at Brentford. Kevin Schade scored twice at Gtech Community Stadium as United’s miserable Premier League campaign took another blow, with their winless League run stretching to six matches. United boss Amorim, whose team beat Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in the first leg of their Europa League semifinal on Thursday, made eight changes to his starting line-up for the clash in west London. “It was a reflection of our season,” Amorim said after the loss, United’s 16th of the League campaign. “We started well and controlled well, we

Ű BY ROBERT O’CONNOR Cole out from the cold Maresca says England forward never changed during Chelsea goal drought

Palmer told Sky Sports : “I felt normal. Obviously s*** happens. I went three months without scoring but it just gives me more motivation, more fight to do well, not just for myself but for the team. “You know yourself social media is just full of idiots, trolls or whatever, I don’t pay no attention. To score today I’m happy. It’s only one and I’ve got to keep improving to try and reach my levels.” Chelsea gave Liverpool – who were playing for the first time since being crowned champions – a guard of honour ahead of kickoff, though it was a subdued display from Slot’s side for whom Wataru Endo and Harvey Elliot were making their first League starts. The gap between the teams now stands at 19 points, though Slot reflected on a point earlier in the season when Chelsea had briefly looked to be his side’s closest challengers. “I expected them to be a threat this season,” he said. “At Anfield they were better than us, they were

The second time Tel was able to smuggle the ball away and square it across goal, where it was missed by Aaron Cresswell leaving Wilson Odobert the simple task of finishing past Alphonse Areola. But West Ham responded just before the half-hour mark when Bowen beat the offside trap and beat Spurs keeper Guglielmo Vicario at his near post. With Tottenham boss

Ange Postecoglou placing all his eggs in the Europa League basket he made eight changes to rest his first-choice players for Friday’s semifinal second-leg trip to Norway to face Bodo/Glimt. “I’m proud of the players’

efforts. It’s not easy making so many changes

Chelsea’s Cole Palmer in action. – REUTERSPIC

and it’s going to affect the fluency and even the rhythm of the team,” he said. “I thought the efforts they put in today were outstanding, they were disciplined, organised.” – The Independent

so close to us. It’s a complete surprise to me that we’re 19 points clear. I didn’t feel that at all when we played them.

“If a team like this with so much quality, if we’re able to be 19 points ahead of them, it’s a big compliment for our players.” – The Independent Newcastle manager Howe praises VAR and Isak’s ‘ruthless mentality’ Paqueta

Ű BY ED ELLIOT

lengthy VAR check after Brighton substitute Yasin Ayari was punished for handling Fabian Schar’s freekick. Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler believes VAR disrupts the rhythm of games but is making football fairer. “VAR makes football more fair, but of course it breaks the rhythm and takes a long time, so sometimes it’s very frustrating how long it takes. “On the one side it’s very positive, on the other side we all know it breaks the rhythm of the game.” – The Independent

very, very easy to miss that moment. But he didn’t. “He’s got that ruthless mentality to scoring goals. And that’s where you really lean on those type of players. “To have the coolness of mind to just take a step back and go, ‘right, this is what I need to do’ and deliver it for the team. “It was a brilliant penalty in a big moment because we needed something from the game. Losing the game would have dented us.” Isak eventually capitalised following another

two second half spot-kick awards overturned following VAR intervention, prior to their late leveller from 12 yards. Referee Craig Pawson initially reversed his decision when replays showed Anthony Gordon was fouled just outside the box by Tariq Lamptey before doing so again after a dive by Joe Willock. “I’ve not been there myself, so I can’t put myself in his shoes,” manager Howe said of Isak. “But I can only imagine the process he is going through and then he has to stop, and that’s why he did very well because it would be

EDDIE HOWE praised VAR and Alexander Isak’s composure after Newcastle made it third time lucky from the penalty spot to salvage a 1 1 Premier League draw at Brighton. Striker Isak converted his 23rd top-flight goal of the season two minutes from time at the Amex Stadium to boost the Magpies’ hopes of Champions League qualification. Having fallen behind to a first half goal from former player Yankuba Minteh, Newcastle had