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Arsenal bounce back to thrash Southampton 3-1 at Emirates
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Arsenal bounced back from conceding a goal to lowly Southampton to win 3-1 after a pulsating second half in their Premier League clash at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, with winger Bukayo Saka instrumental in the Gunners’ victory.
Southampton were much-improved compared to their 3-1 drubbing against Bournemouth last Monday, but they had no answer to Saka’s boundless creativity as he created two goals and scored a third in an electric individual display.
After a dull first half, the visiting Saints, who came into the game in 19th place in the league with a single point to their name, took a surprising lead through Cameron Archer in the 55th minute as Arsenal were caught flat-footed by a rare counter-attack.
That lead turned out to be short-lived as Saka, who had looked lively from the start, teed up Kai Havertz to equalise less than four minutes later, making him the first Gunner since Robin van Persie to score in seven consecutive home games in all competitions.
With Southampton struggling to play through Arsenal’s press, coach Mikel Arteta rang the changes up front and it did not take long before his side took the lead.
Brought on the pitch on the hour mark, substitute Gabriel Martinelli gave Arsenal the lead nine minutes later with a brilliant first-time finish from close range after Saka picked him out at the back post with a superb cross.
All that was missing from Saka’s stellar performance was a goal of his own, and he duly got on the scoresheet himself in the 88th minute, capping off his fine individual display with a deft right-foot finish to put the game out of reach.
It was a tough one, but we showed our qualities – we know that they are a really good side and they played really well as well, to be fair, but we did well. We won the game, so we’re really happy with the result,” Gabriel Martinelli told the BBC.
The win means Arsenal head into the international break in third spot in the standings on 17 points, level with second-placed Manchester City and one behind leaders Liverpool.
Southampton coach Russell Martin was pleased with his side’s effort, despite another 3-1 defeat.
“I feel so much more positive and proud of my team than I did on Monday night, and we played against one of the best teams in the country. If we play like that in the next block of games I’d be very happy,” he said.
Reuters
The Super Falcons of Nigeria were up against South Africa in the 2027 Women’s World Cup play-off and needed a victory to move to the next stage – the intercontinental play-offs.
Two tickets were up for grabs, with four losing quarter-finalists at the 2027 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) battling for them.
Already, Ghana has defeated Côte d’Ivoire to pick one of the tickets. Thank you for following the live updates of the South Africa vs Nigeria 2027 Women’s World Cup play-off game.
98′ – It is full-time, and Nigeria have lost 2-1 against South Africa. It is the end of the road for the Super Falcons, who won’t be at the World Cup for the first time since the tournament’s inception.
93′ – Ucheibe scores for Nigeria.
92′ – Nigeria gets a penalty, and it is also a red card for South Africa after their player blocked the ball with her hand.
91′ – Justine Madugu gets a yellow card.
77′ – South Africa scores the second goal. It is 2-0 against Nigeria.
75′ – Uchenna Kanu’s header is parried away for a corner kick.
60′ – Chiamaka Nnadozie saves Nigeria, preventing South Africa from scoring again.
56′ – South Africa takes the lead! It is 1-0 to the Banyana Banyana!
54′ – Justine Madugu throws Joy Omewa into the fray. She replaces Asisat Oshoala.
48′ – Oshoala shoots into the goalkeeper.
46′ – The second half is underway!
HT: It is half-time in an evenly balanced game in the 2027 Women’s World Cup play-off between South Africa and Nigeria.
45′ – One more minute added. It is still no goal yet.
40′ – Michelle Alozie’s shot goes narrowly wide for a goal-kick to South Africa.
35′ – No goals in Casablanca in a game of few chances.
28′ – Rasheedat Ajibade’s free kick straight to the South African goalkeeper.
23′ – A South African ball over the top fails to find any Banyana Banyana.
20′ – Twenty minutes in and nothing has separated the teams. No clear-cut chances so far from either country at the Moulay Rachid Stadium.
10′ – Nigeria are pressing for an early goal, but it is still goalless.
1′ – The World Cup play-off between South Africa and Nigeria has kicked off!
Barcelona have reached a final agreement with Paris Saint-Germain for Ferran Torres in a deal which will see the Spain star head to Parc des Princes on a transfer worth €50 million.
The two clubs have been in talks for a while and the deal is now done, according to Fabrizio Romano. Torres has been absent from Barcelona training for the last two days and is now heading to Paris to complete his move.
Torres will sign a five-year contract with PSG and link up with Luis Enrique’s side after scoring the winning goal for Spain in the World Cup final.
The 26-year-old was into the final year of his contract at Barcelona but will now seek a new challenge in Ligue 1 with the French giants.
Barcelona had reportedly been reluctant to extend Torres’s contract, as they would have had to pay an extra €8 million to Manchester City, while there’s been speculation the Spain star was happy to move on after feeling undervalued by Barca.
Cameroon shocked hosts Morocco 3-1 on penalties on Wednesday night to reach the final of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) after a tense semi-final ended goalless following extra time in Rabat.
The Indomitable Lionesses held their nerve at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium after 120 minutes without a goal.
Morocco had a golden chance to settle the game in the 118th minute when they were awarded a penalty, but Fatima Tagnaout failed to convert, leaving the hosts to pay a heavy price for the miss.
Marie Ngah, Rose Bella and Myriam Nyadjou scored for Cameroon in the shootout, while Hanane Aït El Haj was Morocco’s only successful taker. Kenza Chapelle, Meryem Atiq and Sakina Ouzraoui all missed as Cameroon secured their fourth appearance in the WAFCON final.
Cameroon remained organised and continued to frustrate the hosts until the end of regulation time. Extra time followed, with the match seemingly heading for penalties before Morocco were handed their best opportunity two minutes from the end.
Tagnaout took responsibility from the spot but could not beat the goalkeeper, sending the game into a shootout.
Morocco had won their previous two WAFCON semi-finals on penalties, against Nigeria in 2022 and Ghana in 2024, but their luck deserted them this time.
Aït El Haj converted Morocco’s first penalty before Chapelle missed the second. Ngah scored for Cameroon, although Grace Mendoua missed the Indomitable Lionesses’ next attempt. Bella then put Cameroon back in front, while Antique failed to convert Morocco’s third.
Nyadjou scored Cameroon’s fourth penalty, leaving Ouzraoui with the task of keeping Morocco’s hopes alive. She missed, confirming Cameroon’s 3-1 victory in the shootout.
The win is a major boost for Cameroon, who had lost their previous three WAFCON penalty shootouts, including their 2018 semi-final defeat by Nigeria.
The Indomitable Lionesses have now eliminated defending champions Nigeria and hosts Morocco in successive knockout rounds.
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