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Spurs’ Maddison Says de Zerbi Is the Right Coach for His Game

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - August 19, 2023 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - August 19, 2023 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)
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Spurs’ Maddison Says de Zerbi Is the Right Coach for His Game

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - August 19, 2023 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - August 19, 2023 Tottenham Hotspur's James Maddison celebrates after the match. (Action Images via Reuters)

Tottenham midfielder James Maddison on Tuesday praised Roberto De Zerbi as the type of attacking coach that suited his game and said he was "excited" by what lay ahead.

Italy's De Zerbi took over from sacked interim boss Igor Tudor in March when Tottenham were winless in the Premier League in 2026.

He steered them to 17th place and survival with a tense 1-0 win over Everton on the last day of the season and has begun building a new squad with an aggressive summer of spending.

England international Maddison, who missed the majority of last season with a serious knee injury, said in Sydney he was pumped up for the next chapter.

"The manager is very clear, the goal is to be better, to play better football, to be passionate, to be proud to play for this club," said Maddison, who is reportedly set to be named Spurs' new captain.

"I'm still learning the way he plays. But as a player, he's a coach you want to play for because he loves everything with the ball. He's very attacking, and I'm really excited."

The club opened their pre-season tour with an entertaining 2-0 win over A-League champions Auckland FC in New Zealand on Sunday with goals from Dane Scarlett and Richarlison.

They face Sydney FC on Wednesday then meet London rivals Chelsea in Sydney three days later.

"First game of the season, Brentford. It's a big season for us under a new manager. We want to have a successful season," added Maddison of their opening Premier League game on August 22.

"We need to be better than the last couple of seasons. So it's kind of all just preparation leading to that first game.

"We're just stepping up what we've been working on and creating the team, how we want to play and the style we want to play."

De Zerbi's big-money signings so far include midfielders Mateus Fernandes from West Ham and Sandro Tonali from Newcastle. He also raided his old club Brighton for center-back Jan Paul van Hecke.

Full-back Andy Robertson, center-back Marcos Senesi and goalkeeper Martin Dubravka have all arrived on free transfers as the squad takes on a new look.

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Sports

GEA Chairman Confirms Six Kings Slam Tennis Tournament at Riyadh Season with Sinner Returning

Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 12, 2026 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates with the trophy after winning his final match against Germany's Alexander Zverev. (Reuters)
Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 12, 2026 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates with the trophy after winning his final match against Germany's Alexander Zverev. (Reuters)
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GEA Chairman Confirms Six Kings Slam Tennis Tournament at Riyadh Season with Sinner Returning

Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 12, 2026 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates with the trophy after winning his final match against Germany's Alexander Zverev. (Reuters)
Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 12, 2026 Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates with the trophy after winning his final match against Germany's Alexander Zverev. (Reuters)

Chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority (GEA) Turki Alalshikh confirmed on Monday that the Six Kings Slam will take place on December 27, 28 and 30 in Riyadh, as part of the seventh edition of Riyadh Season, bringing together six of the world’s leading tennis players.

The new dates allow Italy’s Jannik Sinner to return and defend his title after an injury forced him to withdraw from the event originally scheduled for October. Sinner won the previous two editions in 2024 and 2025, defeating Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in both finals.

Joining Sinner are Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, Germany’s Alexander Zverev, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, American Taylor Fritz and Australia’s Alex de Minaur. All matches will stream live exclusively on Netflix for the second consecutive year, with subscribers able to watch at no extra cost.

The line-up holds a combined 38 Grand Slam titles, including Djokovic’s 24 and Sinner’s five. Zverev claimed the French Open and US Open titles this year, while Alcaraz won the Australian Open to become the youngest man in tennis history to complete a Career Grand Slam.

The upcoming edition will mark Fritz’s second appearance after finishing third last year, while de Minaur will make his Six Kings Slam debut after reaching a career-high World No. 5 in July. Together, the players bring a variety of playing styles to the competition.

Sports

Barca’s Big-Game Defeats Pose Familiar Questions

Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick gestures during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)
Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick gestures during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)
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Barca’s Big-Game Defeats Pose Familiar Questions

Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick gestures during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)
Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick gestures during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)

After a superb start to the season Barcelona were brought crashing back down to earth by Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain last week, raising fresh doubts about the Spanish champions' ability to compete against the strongest opponents.

Hansi Flick's side have dominated in Spain over the last two seasons, winning back-to-back La Liga titles, but notably in Europe have fallen short on high-pressure nights.

The Catalan giants have played sumptuous attacking football this season and won their first 11 games across all competitions, but once the quality of their opponents rose, it was a different story.

Barca were beaten 4-2 in Paris by European champions PSG on Tuesday, showing they are still some way from matching Luis Enrique's side.

That was compounded by Sunday's painful 2-1 home defeat by Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid in La Liga, in which Barcelona's defensive frailties were laid bare again.

A draw would have been an acceptable result and maintained their six-point lead on Madrid in the top flight, but they left far too much space for Los Blancos to exploit in the final stages.

With three minutes to go, Eduardo Camavinga raced through on goal and squared for Kylian Mbappe to net his 100th Madrid goal and second of the night to snatch victory.

"In the end sometimes in the big, big games, small things are important and they decide the game and which way they end, and today that was not on our side," Flick told reporters, pledging to improve.

"We know what we have to make better. We speak about this in every training. We will do it, I'm not worried about that.

"It's a part of this game to lose also. In this week, we had two (losses) and it's too much."

However, it is a discourse which the German coach has repeated during his tenure.

"We are a young side and we have to mature," said Flick, after Inter Milan ousted Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals in May 2025.

"We are working on it and we have to improve in defense and in other aspects."

- Lack of 'freshness' -

Despite spending good money on Anthony Gordon, Rodri and others this summer, and trying to bring in Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez, Barcelona did not sign a center-back.

Instead, Flick has persisted with Gerard Martin, a converted left-back, playing alongside Pau Cubarsi.

Martin has done well, considering his technical limitations and change of position, but against the world's best strikers is clearly out of his depth.

The defender's poor clearance handed Madrid their first goal against Barca, with Mbappe gleefully capitalizing.

To Martin's credit, he did defend well to stop Jude Bellingham and Mbappe in a two-on-one situation early in the second half, which exposed a more structural problem Barca have.

Their high-line defense is easy to breach when the team's pressing is not executed perfectly, with high energy.

Flick suggested Barcelona lacked "freshness" against Madrid, after a grueling schedule, although his team had an extra day to recover midweek and the coach waited until the final minutes to introduce Gabriel Jesus and Karim Adeyemi.

Barca do have injury problems at the back, with Eric Garcia, Jules Kounde and Andreas Christensen all missing the Clasico, along with midfielder Dani Olmo.

"This may be the most important point, the injuries we have," explained Flick.

Barcelona still hold a three-point lead on Madrid, third, in the title race. They are more than capable of going on another run of victories, but the weeks ahead will pose further interesting tests.

Aston Villa visit Camp Nou in the Champions League on November 3, before Barcelona head to Atletico Madrid on November 8. A month after that, Manchester City come to the Camp Nou.

Flick has been promising improvement in these type of matches for over two years -- perhaps now he will finally focus on implementing it.

Sports

Mourinho Gives Real Madrid the Answers to Barcelona Test in Return to Clasico

Real Madrid's head coach Jose Mourinho, left, shakes hands with Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)
Real Madrid's head coach Jose Mourinho, left, shakes hands with Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)
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Mourinho Gives Real Madrid the Answers to Barcelona Test in Return to Clasico

Real Madrid's head coach Jose Mourinho, left, shakes hands with Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)
Real Madrid's head coach Jose Mourinho, left, shakes hands with Barcelona's head coach Hansi Flick during a Spanish LaLiga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP)

Real Madrid recorded just a ‌second victory in eight games against Barcelona on Sunday night, with the return of Jose Mourinho to the fixture haunting the reigning champions.

In the first Clasico of Mourinho's first spell at Real Madrid, Barcelona ripped his side to shreds in a 5-0 win at Camp Nou. A 2-1 win in the first Clasico of his second spell suggests Mourinho's Real Madrid can challenge Barcelona's recent LaLiga dominance in his first season back in Spain.

Although the chances were shared out evenly, with Barcelona racking up more shots on goal, more possession and more passes throughout the match, those statistics were not an honest reflection ‌of the game. ‌Real Madrid played as if they had the answers ‌to ⁠the test Barcelona ⁠posed.

"The lads played an extraordinary match," said Mourinho in his press conference afterwards.

"Very organized, focused, and showing the courage to play the ball out from the back against an opponent that applied a lot of pressure."

Time and again, Mourinho's side moved the ball with urgency and precision in their own half to escape Barcelona's pressing.

Fede Valverde was praised for playing through injury by Mourinho, but ⁠above all he embodied the presence of mind to identify ‌where the space was whenever the ball ‌was turned over.

The Uruguayan did so from the right-back position, despite stating in September ‌2025 that he was "not born to play as a full-back."

Valverde later denied ‌he had expressed any unwillingness to play in defense, but a number of Spanish outlets took this as a suggestion he was not pleased about doing so, and perhaps he was not on board with then-manager Xabi Alonso's style of management.

For a ‌third game in a row, the Real Madrid captain started at right-back and delivered a captain's performance. Valverde's impressive ⁠showing in his ⁠unfavored position demonstrated Mourinho not only is finding tactical solutions to get the best out of his players, but is winning over the Real Madrid dressing room.

Mourinho remarked that leaving Camp Nou just three points behind Barcelona "gives us peace of mind, and it's well deserved."

The victory over Barcelona should help to boost morale and build unity within the Real Madrid squad. More importantly, Mourinho now has evidence his methods can help return Real Madrid to the summit of Spanish football.

"If we win today but lose at El Sardinero, it counts for nothing, because Madrid isn't playing to win at the Camp Nou," Mourinho said.

"They’re playing to win the championship" — a statement that now looks closer to reality after two defeats in September had sown early doubts about Mourinho's plans.