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Brighton’s head coach has led team to Wembley date with Manchester City despite losing his father four months agoGrowing up in Brisbane with a big time difference to London, Dario Vidosic loved being allowed to stay up past his bedtime to watch a big Wembley final on television next to his father, Rado, before trying to recreate a great goal with him in the garden the following day.On Sunday, Rado will not only be in the Vidosic family’s thoughts but in the hearts and minds of everyone associated with Brighton as the team walk out at Wembley for the Women’s FA Cup final against Manchester City to try to win their first major trophy, four months after Rado – who was working as the women’s team’s head of coaching – died from cancer.“He’s always in my thoughts,” Dario, the Brighton head coach, says of his father. “I know he’s always been there for me, from when I was a very small child. He’d be working all day, but he’d always make effort to play with me, to be in the back garden and take me out and kick the ball around and just help me, and it was the same as a coach.“It was very sad to see what he went through [with cancer]. But even through that, he still taught me some valuable lessons. When something feels like it’s going to defeat you, he still never gave up until the very, very last moment. He was still fighting it, still trying to get up, still trying to move, not letting it beat him. Even in his final moments, he still taught me so much. He showed me a strength that I didn’t know was possible.“I’ll take that with me, not just to Wembley, but in every moment in life. Whenever it feels like it might be a bit tough, I know I haven’t gone through anything that I can say has been ‘tough’. So, irrespective of what happens [on Sunday], it’s a day that I’m sure he’ll be proud watching the girls and watching the game unfold, I know he’ll be there with us and hopefully we can give him something to celebrate.”Brighton appeared to channel some of that never-give-in attitude during their semi-final when they recovered from two goals down at Liverpool to win 3-2 thanks to a roaring second-half comeback and a 95th-minute winner from the substitute Nadine Noordam. It sent them to their first major women’s final and felt like third time lucky, coming in Brighton’s third semi-final in six years.Vidosic has frequently spoken about wanting to win trophies for Brighton and they will go to Wembley with real intent against a side they beat when they most recently met in the Women’s Super League in April. Brighton won their FA Cup quarter-final at Arsenal, further showcasing their potential to cause an upset.“It is a fantastic achievement,” Vidosic says of reaching the final. “And [because of] the teams that we had to beat to get to the final, I think that has to be celebrated, but only the winner is remembered, so it is an opportunity for us, and I want to be the part of the history, to be the first [Brighton] team to bring a trophy back. It’s most important to enjoy it, not to feel any stress about it. And it’s normal to have those nerves that matchday will certainly bring.”The 39-year-old former Australia midfielder’s wife and children will be at the match. The Vidosic family has known many coaching triumphs, with Rado leading Melbourne City’s women’s side to an A-League double in 2020 during an extensive career coaching in Australia, which also included securing trophies as Ange Postecoglou’s assistant at Brisbane Roar 15 years ago. Dario played under the former Celtic and Tottenham coach for Australia and, when appointed by Brighton in 2024, thanked Postecoglou for providing a reference that helped convince the club to hire him.Brighton’s strong backing for women’s football was an attraction for Vidosic and was exemplified last month by the publication of the club’s plans for a purpose-built women’s team stadium on land adjacent to the Amex Stadium, designed to suit WSL fans and female athletes. It is due to cost about £80m and to have an initial capacity of 10,000.“It was a very nice moment,” Vidosic says. “It’s something for our younger players, in the academy and for girls aspiring to be professional footballers, and it just really shows them what is possible. It now fills their dreams, that they see that stadium that they can play in. The younger ones in particular, when they go in the garden or when they’re playing football at their school, they can have these scenarios in their mind, scoring potentially the winner in their new stadium. It’s very exciting and I’m very happy to be part of a club that’s really pushing the women’s game and taking it to new levels.”Last year Vidosic told the Guardian he wanted his team “to be the best of the best” and the club’s vision aligns with his aims. A victory at Wembley would be the next key step towards realising those ambitions, and perhaps somewhere in Brisbane there will be young parent-and-child duos sitting on the sofas watching and imagining following in Vidosic’s footsteps.

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8 CommentsAaron Ramsey has described former team-mate Mikel Arteta as an inspiration, as the former Wales captain eyes a career in management.Ramsey, 35, is studying for his pro licence – the top coaching qualification available – with the Football Association of Wales (FAW), just as Arteta did a decade ago.Arteta leads Arsenal in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain on Saturday having already won the Premier League title – and Ramsey's aim is to emulate the Gunners boss."It is inspiring because Mikel was here [studying] around 10 years ago, in the same position starting his journey," said Ramsey."That's inspiring for us, to see him 10 years later, lifting the Premier League and in the Champions League final."I want to win all the big things in the game. That's the goal, that's the target - to get as good as I can to make that a reality."The Welsh Way - Inside the 'Harvard of coaching'Wales legend Ramsey won three FA Cups during his time with the London giants, but the closest he came to the top-flight title was a second-placed finish in 2016.Arsenal's Premier League triumph this season was their first since 2004 – and Ramsey was thrilled to see Arteta end the club's long wait."From a friend's perspective, I am really pleased for him, I know the amount of work he's put in and the dedication he has to making sure that he gives absolutely everything for his role and that club," he said."And I am so pleased for my team to have been able to win the Premier League this year."Ramsey has been part of Craig Bellamy's Wales staff in an unofficial capacity in recent months.He says he feels ready to move into a coaching job having called time on his 19-year playing career in April.As a player, Ramsey joined Arsenal from boyhood club Cardiff City, then had spells with Juventus, Rangers and Nice before rejoining the Bluebirds in 2023.He had a brief stint as Cardiff's interim boss in 2025 before ending his playing career with Mexican side Pumas UNAM last year.Having had a break since making his last playing appearance last September, Ramsey says he wants to return to football because "it's always important to have a purpose in life"."It's not in my DNA to just put my feet up," he added."I feel ready, but that all depends on the opportunity, doesn't it? So what that will look like will be different from different clubs, different age groups and all of that."For me, I feel ready to coach, to manage, to be inspiring to a group of players, and we'll see what comes up."Ramsey will be remembered as one of Wales' greatest players, having scored 21 goals in 86 international appearances and representing his country at three major tournaments.He says Wales' defeat by Bosnia-Herzegovina in the World Cup play-offs in March signalled the end of his time as a player."The thing for me was that the sort of carrot being dangled was the World Cup and obviously, every time I put on that Welsh shirt, it is the pinnacle of the game really for me," he said."I'm so proud to represent my country, so that was the thing that was keeping me going, really."Obviously [the World Cup] didn't come, but I'm extremely proud of what I've done as a player and now I have bigger plans to go into coaching."Which Wales players could move this summer?

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“I think he is just going to continue to dominate. I do,” says Theo Walcott. He is talking about Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal team. It is just days since the Gunners ended their wait for a trophy. Now, there is a sense that they are on the cusp of something greater.Beat holders Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final in Budapest and Arteta will elevate himself to another level entirely. Only Sir Alex Ferguson and Pep Guardiola have lifted that particular trophy and the Premier League trophy with an English club.It was not so long ago that the focus was on how he would be received if he fell short. But perceptions of Arsenal - and Arteta - are being reframed in real time. They are one game from doing what even Bertie Mee, George Graham and Arsene Wenger never did.Arteta has been patronised even in the build-up to this Champions League final. Luis Enrique will claim that calling him 'Mikelito' was an innocent reference to an old team-mate but it was telling. The subtle message from the PSG boss was that he was still his junior.Arteta never quite made it into the Barcelona first team. Unlike his own players, and the man in the opposite dugout on Saturday with his 62 caps, he did not become a senior international. But Guardiola has been vanquished. Luis Enrique could now go the same way.In Hungary, there is a growing confidence. At the fan festival in Heroes Square, Arsenal fans chant of set pieces. A youngster is invited to offer a prediction by the host and goes with 1-0 to Arsenal thanks to a Gabriel header. They believe in what Arteta's Arsenal do.It has been a journey to transform that mentality. "He has really changed the whole culture of the club," says Walcott. And he understands better than most. Twenty years have passed since he signed for Arsenal as a teenager. He saw how things changed there.Back in 2006, Arsenal were a force, edged out by Barcelona in that year's Champions League final. By the time that he left in 2018, they were no longer qualifying for the competition. The road back to the top table of European football has been a long and painful one.There were back-to-back eighth-place finishes in Arteta's first two seasons. "A lot of managers do not get that time, they do not get that energy, they do not get that support. But the club have had that patience." And Arteta's work has earned that patience.Walcott is speaking to Sky Sports fresh from playing in a five-a-side game at the fan festival in Heroes Square in Budapest. The Arsenal supporters there are enjoying his presence, particularly when he mimics Viktor Gyokeres' celebration after scoring a goal. On the mic, he plays to the crowd by talking of when not if Arsenal win.Walcott and Arteta were team-mates for five years from 2011 to 2016. "It was his work ethic. He set the examples, and he was always so strict on habits, good habits. And at times, when players didn't want to do something, he would make sure you would do it."It explains why former team-mates tend to believe in him. Perhaps you will have seen the footage of Tim Cahill defending Arteta on Sky Sports in 2020, pointing to the processes that Arsenal were putting in place, while Roy Keane could not look past the poor results.Cahill, who had played alongside Arteta at Everton, was able to appreciate what he was building even when some of the Arsenal supporters could not see it. What Walcott calls those "good habits" have taken root and now, finally, they are experiencing the rewards."As a person, he is very intense," explains Walcott. "I always felt when he came to the club, this was a man that was going to be a captain. But not just that, I just think it was the way that he held himself. He was always a man that you would want to listen to."Importantly, bonds has been forged. "He relates to players. That connection, more so with the person than the player, it helps. It really does. He gets those connections. When I go to the training ground, it is so positive when you walk in."There is another side to him, insists Walcott. Arteta has told the story of how he found out that his team were Premier League champions, his family rushing outside to tell him because he could not bear to watch Manchester City's game against Bournemouth."He can switch off at times. I was lucky enough to go on holiday and he was there, and he was having a great time with the kids, playing football." Maybe that will be Arteta very soon this summer, reflecting on this season of seasons. But before that, immortality awaits.OPPO has been partnering with UEFA Champions League since 2022 and currently serves as the Official Smartphone Product Partner, providing more fans with opportunities to experience OPPO's technology and capture exciting match moments

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The Fifa president’s biography talks about magic a lot – and no wonder. There is no other way to explain his utterly ludicrous proximity to powerGliding through time as if surfing a rainbow, you can transform uncertainty into something beautiful.People sometimes like to talk in general terms about the idea, the abstract concept of the worst book ever written. Probably this title should belong to a book that is supposed to be good in the first place, like a really terrible Norman Mailer about a super-tough, hard-drinking American fiction genius who has a fist-fight with a zebra on an oil rig.In The Information, Martin Amis has one of his characters write a modernist novel so complex and tortured it keeps inducing strokes, allergic reactions and minor brain aneurysms in the publishers he sends it to, which is a good joke, possibly even the best joke in The Information. I wouldn’t know because I kept choking on my own vomit and bleeding out of my eyes every time I tried to get past page 20.Sport has made its own bid for this crown at various points. Alex Ferguson wrote a book about leadership so boring it was actually quite dangerous when mixed with any kind of alcohol or medication. More recently there’s a new kind of sports book, the AI-generated Arne Slot biography you buy online and which unspools in a strangely cold and meandering tone, as though the author has been bitten by a venomous snake and is being encouraged to talk in a quietly droning voice about Arne Slot’s childhood in order to try to stay awake until the ambulance arrives.It was in this spirit of realism that I read the new Gianni Infantino book so you don’t have to. I read it out of hope too. Forward – The Revolution of Football was published at the end of April. It arrives just before a morally and geographically labyrinthine World Cup, which starts, believe it or not, less than two weeks from now.As things stand, Forward is the closest thing to a guide, a press conference, a human face, or at least some way of understanding a little better what is about to happen to us and why. Oddly enough, it delivers on that promise too. Although obviously not as a mea culpa or a straight-talking confession, but with its own strange energy, the sound, just below the gloss, of a voice shouting between the notes.First up, the book was quite hard to get hold of. Something about Forward seemed quite angry that I was trying to read it. It’s there on the internet if you’re willing to pay quite a lot. But this is not really a book at all. It’s a mission statement, the kind of document that is fanned out across a padded conference table, or left in hotel suites for the perusal of executive delegates. At times it feels like an alibi, an internal directive, somebody getting their story straight.Disappointingly, it isn’t written by the president’s own hand, despite being published in-house, and despite reading like a series of voice notes intoned into the bathroom mirror via a piece of software called dictatorblather.app. This is what Infantino calls “an anecdote-based biography”, pulled together by a man called Alessandro Alciato. “This is how he sees it”, Infantino writes in his foreword to Forward, although given Alciato kicks off by comparing his subject to both Albert Einstein and Leonardo da Vinci, the level of unblinking journalistic detachment is pretty clear.The format is odd, the lines ranged in random gobbets, like biblical verses. And in his intro, Infantino talks about magic a lot, as he often does. He talks about the ball. The magic ball. The magic of that magic ball. “Every single day in this office, at least once, I have looked at a ball, touched it, played with it.” Yeah, well, me too Gianni. Just make sure you wash your hands afterwards.“The ball is the most magical object there is, a crystal ball that helps to imagine the future,” he suggests. No it isn’t. Nobody thinks this. It’s not even a good metaphor. Crystal balls are the preserve of cranks and fraudsters, used to … hang on he’s back again. “Whenever I meet people on a football pitch, especially children, I remind them that the world and the ball share the same shape.” The only response to which is just to try really, really hard not to meet Gianni Infantino on a football pitch.After which, nothing happens for 60 pages. There’s one good detail about Infantino’s childhood, which has him travelling on a train collecting scrap metal in a sack to sell to dealers. The rest is basically name-dropping, despot-fluffing and yet more mentions of genies and lamp-rubbing. There are incredibly boring anecdotes about Infantino’s travels. He plays a game of football against 40 North Korean children. He goes to Iran and fights single-handed for the rights of women, including running across the pitch to a group of female spectators in order to take lots of selfies with them, although not, the book warns sternly, “out of vanity”.A chapter headed “A Clean Slate” promises to dig into how Infantino rid Fifa of corruption, but this is over in four hastily padded-pages, mainly about how he didn’t rip out Sepp Blatter’s old wall safe, plus a good bit where Infantino gets angry about the millions spent on the Fifa museum.A little later, the book seems to be saying Infantino saved the world from the Covid-19 pandemic and also, obviously, racism. He loves hanging out with legends, who actually really like him and not just because he’s a president. Hilariously, Diego Maradona used to criticise Blatter but changed his tune when Gianni arrived, also, as it happens, a period that coincided with Maradona being demonstrably out of his mind, ferried about the 2018 World Cup like a gurning, sweating captive bear, before eventually collapsing in a stairwell and being airlifted out of the country. So, that period then.At this point you find yourself staring again at the many, many photos, almost all of them of Gianni Infantino, looking for some kind of insight. The cover is iconic Gianni, there in dark suit, white shirt, clip mic, arms spread in gesture of healing, benevolence, love, the look of a man addressing from the bridge of his personal asteroid of hope.There’s a massive one with Cristiano Ronaldo in full, square-jawed, plasticised future sex-robot phase, Gianni beaming beside him, still hypnotic, looking more than ever like the distilled essence of human mendacity stuffed inside a swimming cap, with a pair of strangely flat and haunted eyes painted on. And the look is the only part that really stays with you, the look of a man who literally cannot believe what is happening to him. And correctly so. This is why Infantino talks in this strange way. Why this is not a coherent book. Why the words just slide over each other. It is cognitive dissonance.There is no way for him to write an honest book about what has happened to him, no way to rationalise this, no way to explain his utterly ludicrous reach, his proximity to power, without talking endlessly about magic. It’s just too strange to look directly in the eye. An unremarkable Swiss lawyer, embedded pretty much by chance in a ridiculously stratified sports body, at the precise moment when the world took a lurch into despotism, when the ability to put on a show suddenly puts you in the room with the ruling despots, the universe bosses. No wonder he talks about magic a lot. This makes no sense. Magic enters the room when reason departs. And on some level Infantino must realise this is grotesque, that people have died and will die because of choices made in the staging of World Cups.We’ve all been boiled so slowly in this frog water that you need to look up to take it in. From 2016 onwards football has been pushing at an open door. The best line in Forward is “money used to change hands under the table. Since 2016, however, it has moved in the open for all to see”. And this is basically how the world works too. There is no longer any need to be corrupt. Do it right out front. Allow nation-state funding to pay for your Club World Cup. Cosy up to Donald Trump and you have access to the biggest market in the world. Avoid scrutiny. Stage no press conferences. Communicate only in a gush of football-Jesus talk.This is what the pictures capture, a man who appears to have been entirely consumed by proximity to power, eyes wide, unable to divert the course, to do anything but crank the throttle into the heart of the sun. We can rage against Gianni himself, the court magician, but what we have here is essentially an avatar, out there riding the currents, surfing his rainbow, searching for some kind of speech that can make it make sense, but pretty much giving up before the end of his own foreword.

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Fans took to the streets of Port-au-Prince in November when victory over Nicaragua secured World Cup qualification for Haiti for the first time in 52 years. Photograph: Mentor David Lorens/EPAThe manager Sébastien Migné has never set foot in the country, but there will be pride, passion and no little ability from the Caribbean nationThis article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June.Haiti’s World Cup qualification is one of the most inspiring stories of a football generation. More than a sporting achievement, the Grenadiers’ success represents an extraordinary human triumph forged through adversity, sacrifice and resilience.At a time when the country continues to grapple with deep political instability and a relentless security crisis, the national team had to play every qualifying match away from home, deprived of the passion and energy of their supporters. Yet even in exile, they refused to break. Against all odds they carried the hopes of a nation and secured Haiti’s return to the biggest stage for the first time since the legendary squad of 1974.The French head coach, Sébastien Migné, has created a fierce and disciplined side built on intensity, tactical organisation and rapid transitions. They are able to defend with discipline before bursting forward in dangerous counterattacks. The experience and composure of leaders such as Duckens Nazon, Frantzdy Pierrot and Ricardo Adé give the squad a crucial balance.Haiti qualified by finishing second behind Curaçao in Concacaf Group C and then winning their third-round qualifying section with key victories against Costa Rica and Nicaragua, establishing themselves as one of the Caribbean’s most respected footballing nations.Migné has shaped Haiti into a modern, vertical, transition-based side. His 4-4-2 employs attacking full-backs for width and crossing, often shifting to a 4-2-3-1 in defence. Sometimes the striker drops deeper to create overloads in midfield and, if the midfielders maintain the shape when the full-backs push forward, it gives Haiti a strong platform. Recent results suggest it is working.Migné has never hidden his ambition. “In one match anything can happen. The idea is to write a new story with these players,” he said as he prepared his team to face Brazil, Scotland and Morocco in Group C. The Frenchman told Fifa.com: “We’ve been handed a tough group … but looking on the bright side, we’ll certainly be in the limelight, which is a tremendous reward for the boys. We’ll now have to go out there and prove that we’re up to the challenge.”Key players are Johny Placide, the veteran who holds the defence together; Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, who is the midfield engine; and Wilson Isidor, the main attacking threat with his pace, movement and technical ability.Since his appointment in June 2024 Sébastien Migné has become more than a head coach: he is the architect of a remarkable national footballing revival. A former assistant to the renowned manager Claude Le Roy, the French tactician sharpened his experience with managerial spells at African national teams including Congo and Kenya, before taking charge of the Grenadiers. Arriving during one of Haiti’s most difficult periods, Migné quickly brought discipline, unity and belief back into the squad. He has never set foot in the country. “It’s impossible because it’s too dangerous,” he told France Football magazine. “I usually live in the countries where I work, but I can’t here. There are no more international flights landing there.”With the explosive Duckens Nazon leading the charge, Haiti are daring to dream. The prolific striker has become far more than a goalscorer, embodying the passion, resilience and pride of a nation that breathes football. The buildup to the tournament has not been smooth because he plays for a club in Iran. “I was about to take a plane to go to Istanbul or Paris, then the steward told everybody to get off because the war had started,” he told BBC. “I was stuck at the border for maybe 48 hours. They refused me, sent me back to Iran and I slept at the border. But I was so lucky because, before the war started I bought an eSIM. After that, they cut the internet in Iran. The eSIM saved my life.”Largely unknown on the world stage, the 24-year-old Ruben Providence could emerge as one of Haiti’s breakout stars. Quick, fearless, and dazzling in one-on-one situations, the young winger possesses the explosive creativity capable of changing a match in seconds. Born in France, he came through some of Europe’s biggest clubs, spending time at Paris Saint-Germain and Roma before finding stability with Almere City in the Dutch second division, where he is turning heads with his technical flair, sharp movement and confidence under pressure.Often overshadowed by flashy forwards and headline-grabbing stars, Danley Jean Jacques remains an indispensable engine of Haiti’s national team. Tireless in midfield, he breaks up attacks, dictates tempo and brings balance with a quiet efficiency that rarely gets the spotlight it deserves. Often unspectacular but absolutely vital, he plays his club football at Philadelphia Union, whom he joined from Metz in 2024. “Changing countries and discovering a new culture forces you to step out of your comfort zone,” he told the club website. “I’ve had to take on more responsibilities and grow as a person. I’m calm, respectful, a good listener, and quite reserved. As a teammate, I’m always there for the team, to defend the club’s colors and represent our fans.”Fans at Haiti’s matches can expect an atmosphere charged with raw emotion and pride. From Port-au-Prince to Miami, Haitians are preparing to flood stadiums and watch parties dressed in blue and red, transforming every match into a celebration of national identity. Despite insecurity, economic hardship and electricity shortages at home, supporters remain determined to stand behind the Grenadiers as one people. The Haitian diaspora is expected to bring energy, drums, chants and passion.One controversy has sparked outrage beyond football. Under travel restrictions tied to the Trump administration, many Haitians without existing US visas may be unable to support the Grenadiers in America. While the Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, promised that “fans from all over the world will be welcome” the US Department of State has confirmed that no special exceptions would be made for Haitian supporters. Ticket prices is another problem. “We are happy Haiti is back in the World Cup after 52 years,” Julio Midy, founder of Boston-based Radio Concorde, which caters to the local Haitian community in the city, told Al Jazeera. “But tickets are very, very expensive and, unfortunately, we cannot afford it.”

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Head coach Jesse Marsch has included Bayern Munich defender Alphonso Davies in what he described the best 26-man squad "ever assembled" by co-hosts Canada for this summer's World Cup.Davies, 25, was deemed sufficiently fit for inclusion despite recovering from a hamstring injury, while Juventus forward Jonathan David also makes the cut.Porto midfielder Stephen Eustaquio, Villarreal's Tajon Buchanan and Tani Oluwaseyi, and Southampton forward Cyle Larin are all included."We have really our best group of 26 players that this country has ever assembled at any one time," said Marsch."Are all of them right now at full 100%? No, but they're close," he added, signalling frustration at the repeated questions from media about players' injuries."Davies faces a race against time to be fit for Canada's opening game against Bosnia and Herzegovina on 12 June after being injured in Bayern Munich's Champions League semi-final defeat by Paris St-Germain.That followed a series of muscle injuries after his return from an eight-month absence with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear suffered in October."We've had a pretty good idea of who our core group is for a while. The real X factor in all these decisions was to determine... which players are gonna be healthy, and who could we project to be really close to 100% and in the best form of their life," added Marsch."Luckily, we are on track with a lot of guys. Will everyone be 100% for the Bosnia match? No, that won't be the case. But we will have a really strong core that will be ready for that match, and we believe we can get stronger as the tournament goes on."As one of three co-hosts, Canada, who are yet to win a World Cup game, will play all three group games on home soil.Games against Qatar and Switzerland in Vancouver follow their World Cup opener in Toronto.The expanded 48-team competition in Canada, the US and Mexico runs from 11 June to 19 July.Goalkeepers: Dayne St Clair (Inter Miami), Maxime Crepeau (Orlando City), Owen Goodman (Crystal Palace).Defenders: Alistair Johnston (Celtic), Derek Cornelius (Marseille), Richie Laryea (Toronto), Niko Sigur (Hajduk Split), Joel Waterman (Chicago Fire), Luc de Fougerolles (Fulham), Moise Bombito (Nice), Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich), Alfie Jones (Middlesbrough).Midfielders: Stephen Eustaquio (Porto), Ismael Kone (Sassuolo), Tajon Buchanan (Villarreal), Mathieu Choiniere (Los Angeles FC), Ali Ahmed (Norwich City), Nathan Saliba (Anderlecht), Liam Millar (Hull City), Marcelo Flores (Tigres UANL), Jacob Shaffelburg (Toronto), Jonathan Osorio (Toronto).Forwards: Jonathan David (Juventus), Cyle Larin (Southampton), Tani Oluwaseyi (Villarreal), Promise David (Union SG).World Cup: Every squad as they are announcedEverything you need to know about the World Cup

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Jose Mourinho's return to Real Madrid was always going to get people talking. Among the many questions surrounding his reappointment, one stands out: How will he manage his relationship with Vinicius Junior?It will be one of the most closely watched aspects of Mourinho's second spell in charge at the Bernabeu.Mourinho has signed a three-year deal to return to Real, but the 63-year-old's contract will only be valid if current president Florentino Perez wins the presidential election on 7 June.The Portuguese coach was at Benfica when they faced Real in the Champions League in February.After the first leg of the knockout phase play-off, Mourinho faced criticism for comments he made about Vinicius Jr's behaviour. The Brazil forward had alleged that Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni had racially abused him. Prestianni strongly denied the accusation.Mourinho will now coach not only one of the best talents in football, but also one of the most scrutinised players in the world.He is a manager whose success has often been built on trust, loyalty and a connection with his players. But his relationship with Vinicius could become a defining narrative of his second spell in charge.Mourinho signs three-year deal to return as Real bossMoments later, following an interaction with Prestianni, the Brazilian ran over to the referee while gesturing towards the Benfica winger.The referee made the crossed arms gesture to signal a racist abuse report, activating Uefa's anti-racism protocol, and stopped play for almost 10 minutes as tensions escalated inside the stadium. Vinicius and some of his team-mates left the field.A Real Madrid statement said Vinicius told the referee he had been racially abused by the Argentina winger - which Prestianni denied.It led to Uefa suspending the Benfica player for the second leg while an investigation took place.Prestianni was eventually handed a six-match ban, although not for racist abuse, as Uefa said there was insufficient evidence to prove the alleged remark.Instead, the punishment related to a homophobic insult, which Prestianni admitted directing towards Vinicius.Mourinho was seen speaking with Vinicius after he walked off the pitch following the interaction with Prestianni.But it was Mourinho's post-match comments that were the most shocking.While publicly backing his player Prestianni, Mourinho suggested Vinicius had incited tensions through his celebration in front of the home support."You score a goal from another world, why celebrate like that?" Mourinho said."The same thing always happens in so many stadiums. In how many states has this happened? In how many stadiums? How many? How many?"He's an out of this world player, I love him. Vinicius tells me one thing and Prestianni tells me another. I want to be balanced."The remarks sparked widespread criticism, with many accusing Mourinho of shifting attention away from the racism allegations and placing responsibility on the victim instead.In addition to expressing his belief that Vinicius had been disrespectful with his goal celebration, he pointed to the club's legendary striker Eusebio as proof that Benfica are not a racist club.Asked if he felt Vinicius incited the crowd, Mourinho said: "Yes. I believe so."It should be the crazy moment of the game, an amazing goal. Unfortunately [he was] not just happy to score that astonishing goal. When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way."He added: "When he was arguing about racism, I told him the biggest person in the history of this club [Eusebio] was black."This club, the last thing that it is, is racist. They [Vinicius and Prestianni] told me different things. But I don't believe in one or another. I want to be an independent."Real Madrid named football's most valuable clubFormer Real Madrid midfielder Clarence Seedorf said at the time: "I think he [Mourinho] is still emotional. He's saying it's OK, when Vinicius provokes you, to be racist - and I think that is very wrong."We should never, ever justify racial abuse. Vinicius has had enough of that unjustified behaviour from people. I know Mourinho by heart would agree with me but he expressed himself a bit unfortunately."Former Arsenal forward Theo Walcott agreed, saying: "I love everything Jose Mourinho has done in football but he has made a poor decision. It was maybe the one time we shouldn't have heard from him, the one night he should not have been in front of the cameras."Later that evening, Vinicius posted an Instagram statement condemning both the incident and the handling of it."Racists are, above all, cowards," he wrote. "They need to hide behind others to show how weak they are."Nothing that happened today is new in my life or my team's life."Vinicius' Real Madrid future is uncertain, but there are strong signs he wants to stay.Although his contract runs until 2027, renewal talks have reportedly slowed because of disagreements over wages and status within the club.The 25-year-old is believed to want recognition as Los Blancos' top star financially, especially after carrying the team for years before the arrival of Kylian Mbappe.Real Madrid, however, are traditionally strict about maintaining their salary structure under president Florentino Perez.Despite this tension, Vinicius has publicly described Madrid as "the club of my dreams" and said he hopes to remain there "for many years".A successful World Cup in Brazil this summer could strengthen his team's negotiating position with Real Madrid.Ultimately, the relationship between Vinicius and Mourinho could prove decisive in shaping his long-term future.A strong relationship, a clear shared vision, and unwavering support, particularly in the face of any future racism allegations or incidents, may be key to convincing the Brazilian star to extend his stay beyond 2027.With expectations high both on and off the pitch, next season will play a defining role in determining whether Vinicius commits his future to the club.Listen to the latest Football Daily podcastSoundsGet football news sent straight to your phone

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ShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleLewis AdamsEssexEx-England goalkeeper Peter Shilton said he was too frightened to get help with his gambling addiction, out of fear it would leak in the press.The 76-year-old, who lives on Mersea Island in Essex, lost more than £1m betting on horseracing over 45 years, but he quit in 2015.He has now launched a charity to help other addicts, called Shiltons' Silverlining, and said using his platform was a "no-brainer"."It affects you in so many ways and it's a silent illness that's getting worse and worse," Shilton told BBC Essex presenter Ben Fryer.He is England's most-capped player with 125 appearances, and he played in the World Cup finals of 1982, 1986 and 1990 while also turning out for Nottingham Forest and Leicester City at club level.Shilton has long credited his addiction counsellor wife, Steph, with helping him to kick the gambling habit."Being quite well known, it's difficult [to get help] because you're frightened it's going to get out and somebody's going to [write] it in the press, it's going to go haywire," he said."That's why Steph was so good. She worked on me over a period of time until it finally clicked. It is a terrible, silent disease."The legendary goalkeeper, who famously conceded Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" goal in 1986, said his charity would help gamblers rehabilitate themselves and manage their debts, and offer prevention work.It has been backed by his former teammates Gary Lineker, Terry Butcher and Paul Parker, as well as cricket icon Graham Gooch.There are between 117 and 496 suicides associated with problem gambling every year, according to government figures.If you, or someone you know, has been affected by addiction, the following organisations at BBC Action Line may be able to help.Steph Shilton said those "heartbreaking" numbers inspired them to set the charity up."Peter just looked at me and said, 'We're not doing enough, we need to be doing more.' They're unnecessary deaths and it's so heartbreaking," she said.Shilton, whose club career also included playing for Southampton, Stoke City, Derby County and Plymouth Argyle, added: "It's so easy to get drawn in."It's always looked upon with the advertising as fun - 'Let's all get together and have a good time'."But there's a dark time to it, which we know, and that's why we want to help people who've reached a bad place."Do you have a story suggestion for Essex? Contact us below.Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

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Arsenal's men have thrived in Europe with a high possession approach that has minimised the number of chances they concede, boasting the most clean sheets (9) in the competition so far.Luis Enrique's PSG, by comparison, have only five clean sheets but are the tournament's top scorers with 44 goals to Arsenal's 29.Although these stats set the game up as the best attack against the best defence, Arteta will hope his side are front-footed, playing in PSG's half as they did for large parts of the two legs in last season's semi-final exit.Listen on SoundsThe value of a different type of number nineA tactic that worked impressively - despite the narrow defeat - in the second-leg tie between the two sides last season was the use of midfielder Mikel Merino as a number nine.PSG, known for their ability to press intensely and often in a man-to-man fashion, stepped up to Arsenal as they looked to build out from the back.A key principle of positional play is finding the free man. When opponents apply man-to-man pressure, finding a free man is harder.With Merino dropping deep into central midfield, PSG centre-back Willian Pacho was reluctant to follow him, which allowed the French team to keep an extra player in the defensive line.Arsenal, without a striker, however now had an extra man in midfield.PSG's midfield trio, alert to Arsenal's midfield three, looked to shift across onto Merino at times but this would leave another Arsenal midfielder free helping the Gunners get up the pitch.Although Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres has seen out the season in strong form, both Merino, who is fit again after a long absence, and Kai Havertz are players naturally suited to this tactic.Against high man-to-man pressing, the long ball over the opponent's attack and midfield is also a valuable tactic.Merino and Havertz, again, are best placed to bring down or flick on long passes from David Raya before Arsenal's midfield swarm the second ball making this another tactic to look out for.Gyokeres could make use of long balls by duelling with defenders in wider areas, looking to run the channels.From non-league to Champions League final - Raya's fairytale risePSG have not conceded many goals this season but Chelsea, RC Lens and Bayern Munich have all attacked well against them.By positioning their players close to each other, those teams have been able to draw PSG and their man markers higher up the pitch into crowded clusters. This then leaves other parts of the pitch with fewer players.Releasing the ball from these crowded areas into more open spaces is a tactic that has helped teams break down a resolute PSG, particularly while attacking down the middle.Arsenal tend to shy away from playing centrally, focusing more on safer attacking play and crosses, as losing the ball centrally makes you more susceptible to a counter attack.But this might be a risk they could lean into with the likes of Leandro Trossard, Havertz, Bukayo Saka, Martin Zubimendi and Eberechi Eze capable of playing in close proximity under pressure paired with players capable of finishing moves centrally.Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, an explosive right-footed left winger is one of football's most dangerous players, and Arsenal will need to keep him quiet.PSG under Luis Enrique are a very fluid side but follow certain rules as outlined in this tactical analysis of the side earlier in the season.One of these ideas is that they have certain areas of the pitch they look to keep occupied throughout the game including the two centre-back positions, both flanks, and the centre-forward position - but who moves into these positions is less important.The many rotations of different players into these areas helps PSG pull apart the opposition's defensive shape.Kvaratskhelia naturally finds himself on the left touchline often. From here, his off-the-ball movement stands out.In PSG's first leg against Bayern, Desire Doue dropped deep from the attacking line - a common movement Arsenal will need to be alert to.With Bayern's Dayot Upamecano less than touch-tight, Doue had time on the ball. Kvaratskhelia feinted to run in behind, then dropped short, then looked to run in behind, dropped short again before eventually running in behind.These movements froze Bayern's full-back and Doue clipped a pass in behind for his team-mate to run onto before he cut inside and scored.If Arsenal are to nullify PSG, in these situations they will have to commit to an approach.This could be to stay very tight on the players that drop deep so as not to give them time to find runners in behind or they could drop off, letting them have the ball in certain areas but reducing the space in behind their defence.After going 1-0 down in that first leg last season, Arteta tweaked his side's defensive approach, saying after the game that "we had one issue that we corrected after 15-20 minutes, that turned the game around".Martin Odegaard's role in the press changed higher up the pitch making it harder for PSG to find their midfielders but the other key difference was the increased pressure and attention William Saliba applied to Dembele. He went man-to-man even when Dembele dropped very deep.This echoes former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca's sentiment too who, after a 3-0 win against PSG in the Club World Cup, said: "The idea was to go man-to-man. PSG are so good that if you give them time you are going to struggle. You have to press them very intensely."It would be negligent to write about Arsenal beating a direct opponent without mentioning their most effective tool this season.PSG have only conceded 29 goals in the league this season but six of them have come from non-penalty set-pieces. The size of their squad makes this an obvious area of weakness.Thomas Frank’s Spurs lost to PSG in the Champions League earlier this season but managed to score three goals, one coming from a corner. They also lost on penalties against them in the Uefa Super Cup in August, scoring both goals in a 2-2 draw from crossed free kicks.Under Frank, Spurs adopted various Arteta-isms including making set-plays one of their main methods of breaking teams down.For all three set-piece goals, Spurs targeted the back post before heading the ball back across goal, either for a teammate or directly to goal.PSG appear uncomfortable dealing with crosses that float over their heads as they track back and the header back in the other direction goes against the direction they are moving in, giving the attacking side, who know where the ball will go, an advantage.Arsenal are even better placed for that, so if they are able to get up the pitch in the first place, forcing corner kicks or winning free-kicks will produce good looks at goal.While there is little that can be done about potential moments of brilliance, there are at least signs of hope that Arsenal can hurt the defending champions.Highlights of the Champions League final will be available on the BBC Sport website and across social media channels 15 minutes after the trophy lift, and on BBC iPlayer and television later in the evening.Live commentary will also be on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds, with build-up from 15:00 BST.