分类： sports

FLORENCE — As Italy prepares for its critical World Cup playoff against Northern Ireland, Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori has revealed the extraordinary lengths coach Gennaro Gattuso has gone to maintain team cohesion during the four-month gap since Italy’s last international fixture in November.

In a striking testament to Gattuso’s managerial approach, Calafiori disclosed that the Italian coach maintained more frequent communication with him than his own mother throughout the recent period. This intensive player engagement strategy saw Gattuso traveling extensively across Italy and making international trips to personally dine with squad members, fostering camaraderie ahead of Thursday’s decisive qualifier in Bergamo.

“His outreach during my injury absence from late December to January was particularly remarkable,” Calafiori stated at Italy’s Coverciano training facility. “The dinner he organized provided a genuine atmosphere of friendship beyond typical coach-player dynamics.”

The team-building initiative included Italy delegation chief Gianluigi Buffon and assistant coach Leonardo Bonucci, both legendary former Azzurri players, who joined Gattuso for a London meal rich with football anecdotes from their distinguished careers.

Calafiori, whose versatile defensive capabilities helped Bologna achieve Champions League qualification before his 2024 transfer to Arsenal, emphasized the tactical challenges ahead. “We must remain vigilant against Northern Ireland’s set-piece threats,” he cautioned. “Modern football margins are extremely narrow, and dead-ball situations could prove decisive.”

Despite recently recovering from a minor knock and facing increased competition from Piero Hincapie at Arsenal, the 23-year-old defender remains focused on international objectives. While Arsenal leads the Premier League by nine points, Calafiori identifies World Cup qualification as the fulfillment of a childhood dream.

Italy’s path to North America 2026 requires victory against Northern Ireland followed by an away win against either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina—a challenging scenario given Italy’s elimination in playoffs for the previous two World Cups by Sweden and North Macedonia.

“We approach this with the seriousness it demands while maintaining normal preparation routines,” Calafiori concluded, acknowledging the high stakes of Italy’s redemption campaign.

In a significant victory for British sporting heritage, the World Snooker Championship will remain at its iconic Sheffield home until at least 2045 following direct intervention from Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The decision ends speculation that the prestigious tournament might relocate to China or Saudi Arabia.

The Crucible Theatre, which has hosted snooker’s premier event since 1977, will undergo a comprehensive £45 million ($60 million) renovation primarily funded through national and local government support. This development comes after snooker chief Barry Hearn declared the venue “no longer fit for purpose” two years ago, citing its limited 980-seat capacity as inadequate against competing offers from international hosts.

The substantial refurbishment will expand the venue’s capacity by approximately 500 seats, significantly enhancing revenue potential and likely increasing prize money. The project will also modernize spectator facilities throughout the historic venue.

Prime Minister Starmer, who visited Sheffield last month to discuss the redevelopment, emphasized the cultural significance of preserving Britain’s sporting landmarks. “We have a deep cultural and sporting heritage here in the UK—sport, art and culture are the very best of us,” Starmer stated. “I’m delighted with today’s confirmation that the theatre and the city will stay host to the famous world snooker championship for many years to come.”

The new agreement includes an option to extend the hosting arrangement until 2050. While the championship will continue at the current Crucible through 2028, the World Snooker Tour confirmed the event would temporarily relocate during redevelopment before returning to a transformed venue.

The decision represents a strategic commitment to maintaining Britain’s position as snooker’s traditional home despite growing international interest. China and Saudi Arabia, both hosting major snooker events, had been considered potential alternative hosts for the world championship.

Reigning world champion Zhao Xintong, the first Chinese player to win the title, expressed support for the decision: “Sheffield has become my home in the U.K. and it is famous around the world as the home of snooker. I am so pleased that we are working together to keep the world championship in the city.”

PARIS — French football sensation Kylian Mbappé has confidently declared his complete recovery from a persistent left knee injury that sidelined him for several weeks, delivering encouraging news for France’s World Cup preparations. The Real Madrid striker, who joined the Spanish giants in 2024 after his transfer from Paris Saint-Germain, revealed his physical and emotional journey through rehabilitation during a media engagement on Monday.

Mbappé acknowledged experiencing significant frustration and anxiety during his recovery period, particularly when the nature of his injury remained undiagnosed. ‘I had reached a stage where I didn’t know what was wrong with me,’ the star forward confessed. ‘I wasn’t the happiest player in the world during that phase, but I’m genuinely pleased to confirm that chapter is definitively closed.’

The injury occurred as a knee sprain late last year, disrupting what had been an exceptional season for the prolific scorer. After playing through January despite discomfort, Mbappé ultimately required three-and-a-half weeks of intensive recovery before making his cautious return to play.

The 25-year-old emphasized his deliberate approach to rehabilitation, explaining: ‘My priority was avoiding premature return that might trigger secondary injuries. While I wasn’t specifically concerned about re-injuring the same knee, I recognized the risk of compensating weaknesses elsewhere after extended inactivity.’

Mbappé also addressed what he termed ‘completely baseless’ speculation regarding his condition during absence. Contrary to circulating rumors about potential surgery or World Cup exclusion, the striker maintained that even he lacked clear diagnosis initially, making external assessments particularly unfounded.

Despite his absence, Real Madrid maintained strong performance levels, currently holding second position in La Liga while preparing for upcoming Champions League quarterfinal clashes against Bayern Munich.

With 38 goals across 35 appearances this season, Mbappé now looks toward international friendlies against Brazil and Colombia as crucial preparation for France’s World Cup campaign in North America. The tournament, hosted across the United States, Mexico, and Canada, represents another opportunity for Mbappé to add to his already remarkable international achievements—including his historic 2022 World Cup final hat-trick and becoming the second teenager after Pelé to score in a World Cup final.

Italian tennis sensation Jannik Sinner has etched his name into the history books by breaking Novak Djokovic’s longstanding ATP Masters 1000 record for consecutive sets won. The world number two achieved this remarkable feat during his dominant performance against France’s Corentin Moutet at the Miami Open, securing a straight-sets victory of 6-1, 6-4 in just 71 minutes on court.

Sinner’s triumph marks his 26th consecutive set won at the prestigious ATP Masters 1000 level, surpassing the previous record of 24 sets that Djokovic had maintained for over a decade. The 24-year-old Italian had initially equaled the Serbian champion’s record during his opening match against Damir Dzumhur before making the record his own against Moutet.

Reflecting on his achievement, Sinner maintained his characteristic humility, stating, ‘I am very happy. This sport is unpredictable, so we try to keep attention as much as we can and we’ll see what is coming in the next round.’

The four-time Grand Slam champion has been in exceptional form, having won the previous two Masters 1000 tournaments at Indian Wells and Paris without dropping a single set. His performance against Moutet demonstrated this dominance, as he won 19 of the first 26 points and sealed the first set in just 22 minutes.

Sinner now advances to face American Alex Michelsen in the round of 16, continuing his pursuit of the coveted ‘Sunshine Double’ – winning both Indian Wells and Miami Open consecutively. The last player to achieve this remarkable feat was Roger Federer in 2017.

In other tournament developments, former world number one Daniil Medvedev suffered an unexpected early exit in the last-32 stage against Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo. The match was briefly interrupted by unusual circumstances when umpire Mohamed Lahyani’s chair became entangled with the aerial ‘spider cam’ system, requiring staff intervention to prevent the chair from toppling over.