Premier League: Arne Slot wins first Manager of the Month honour

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Liverpool, Dec 13 (IANS) Arne Slot has been named the Premier League’s Manager of the Month for November. Liverpool’s head coach claimed the award for the first time since taking charge of the club after guiding the Reds to a perfect record in the division during the period.

“It’s always nice to win something because it means you have won a lot of games, and that is by far the most important thing. So, winning a trophy like this is the result of winning games – and that’s what I like most,” Slot told Liverpoolfc.com.

Slot’s side came from a goal down to defeat Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 at Anfield, beat Aston Villa 2-0 on home soil, and then produced another turnaround to clinch a 3-2 victory away at Southampton.

The Dutchman saw off competition from Brighton’s Fabian Hurzeler and Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Gary O’Neil to take the prize. “It is because we win a lot and that’s mostly because of our players but it’s definitely also because of our staff and the programme we have and the facilities we have over here. My staff and players will tell you, all of them, that they put a lot of effort in to make the players on a daily basis maybe a bit better. It’s not going to work every day but we try to every day.

“And it’s not only my technical staff – it’s the performance staff, it’s the medical staff. Ali [Alisson Becker] gave compliments about the medical staff as well, how much they helped him to come back fit. It’s a team performance, not only from the players but definitely also from our staff,” Slot added.

–IANS

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La Liga 2024-25: Four things to look out for in Spain’s matchday 17

Madrid (Spain), Dec 13 (IANS) The top three teams in La Liga all play rivals in the bottom half of the table this weekend, while Valladolid host an absolutely vital match in the relegation zone.

Here are four things to look out for this weekend in Spain:

1. Bellingham on fire for Real Madrid

Jude Bellingham has sprung to life at Real Madrid in recent weeks when the team needed him most, with Kylian Mbappe struggling for form and Vinicius Jr injured. The England midfielder has scored six goals in the last seven games, emphatically putting behind him a start to the season where he looked flat and jaded after the UEFA European Championship, reports Xinhua.

Mbappe looked to be recovering his best form, with a vital goal in Madrid’s UEFA Champions League win in Atalanta on Tuesday, but missed Saturday’s short trip to play a spirited, but limited Rayo Vallecano with a hamstring problem. Vinicius is also back after forcing his return from injury, but with the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final on December 18, coach Carlo Ancelotti may not want to risk him in his starting 11, meaning Bellingham will again lead from the front.

2. Araujo back as Barca need to tighten up

FC Barcelona all but assured their place in the knockout stage of the Champions League with a 3-2 win away to Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, but coach Hansi Flick will have been worried that the defence twice allowed the rival to get back into the game.

Although Raphinha and Lamine Yamal continue to dazzle in attack, Barca’s defence is looking tired at the moment, which is why Ronald Araujo is available at the right time. The Uruguayan has missed the entire season through injury but was in Wednesday’s squad and his return should allow Flick to rotate his central defence with Pau Cubarsi or Inigo Martinez getting a rest against a well-worked, but limited Leganes.

3. Two teams on the up in San Sebastian

Real Sociedad entertain Las Palmas on Sunday in a game between two in-form teams, with Real Sociedad climbing up to sixth after four wins in their last five league games, while also assuring at least a place in the playoffs for the last-16 in the Europa League.

Las Palmas travel to the Anoeta Stadium after winning five out of seven league games since Diego Martinez took over as coach to move from rock bottom to five points clear of the relegation zone. Sandro Ramirez has been excellent for Las Palmas, while Ander Barrenetxea and Mikel Oyarzabal have led the Real Sociedad attack to good effect.

4. Drama in Valladolid

The weekend gets underway with bottom side Valladolid at home to second-bottom Valencia, with Valencia coach Ruben Baraja in danger of losing his job if his side fails to win. “Nobody has more to play for at Valencia than I do,” said Baraja in Thursday’s press conference, showing he is well aware of his current situation.

Baraja has done a good job at the club, but this season he hasn’t been able to inspire his players as he did in the last 18 months.

–IANS

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Hockey rankings: Indian men’s team ends year placed fifth, women in top 10

Lausanne, Dec 19 (IANS) The Indian men’s hockey team will end the riveting year in fifth place in the FIH world rankings, while the women’s team is placed ninth in the latest update released by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) on Thursday. The Indian men’s hockey team made history at the 2024 Paris Olympics by winning back-to-back medals at the Games for the first time since the 1972 Olympics in Munich.

Olympic champions the Netherlands (3267 points) stand at the top of the rankings. The Netherlands started the year in the top spot following a great run in the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup, and gold medals at the FIH Hockey Pro League and the EuroHockey Championship in 2023.

A fast start to the 2024-25 season of the FIH Hockey Pro League has propelled England (3139) into second place in the world with Belgium (3124) following closely behind in third, having made a good start to the new Pro League season themselves.

Reigning World Champion Germany (3066) had climbed up to second place following their silver medal at Paris 2024, but a rough start to the Pro League saw them dropping two places, down to fourth in the world.

Eight-time Olympic gold medallist India (2955) and the 2004 winners Australia (2814) are placed fifth and sixth in the world, with both teams set to start their Pro League seasons at home in February 2025 — the Kookaburras playing in Sydney from February 4, while the Men in Blue will start their campaign on February 15 in Bhubaneswar.

Argentina (2722), Spain (2570), France (2116) and Ireland (2112) round out the top-10 to end 2024, with South Africa (2082), New Zealand (2058), Malaysia (1970), Korea (1945) and Pakistan (1942) giving chase as teams ranked from 11 to 15.

In the women’s world rankings, the Netherlands (3689) had another perfect year winning the gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics, along with the EuroHockey Championships gold and another FIH Hockey Pro League title.

Argentina (3203) continue to remain in a distant second place, following their bronze medal performance at Paris 2024. They did manage to close the gap between themselves and the Netherlands earlier this month, after getting their first win in nearly three years, over the Dutch side in the FIH Hockey Pro League 2024-25.

Belgium (2918), Germany (2846), and Australia (2820) started the year as the third, fourth, and fifth-ranked teams in the world, respectively, and continue to hold the same positions as they head into 2025.

However, following them closely behind and rapidly closing the gap are Alyson Annan’s China (2685), who have gone from strength to strength in 2024, with a historic silver medal performance at the Olympics.

England (2471) are stepping into a new era following a slew of retirements in the aftermath of Paris 2024, and while they hold on to the seventh spot in the world rankings, three losses in four matches to start the new season of the Pro League mean, the chasing pack have now closed in on the English.

Spain (on eighth, 2422), India (ninth, 2350) and New Zealand (10th, 2124) round out the top-10 positions heading into 2025.

Both Spain and India will aim to climb up the rankings ladder early in 2025 when they start their FIH Hockey Pro League 2024-25 campaigns in February, in Sydney and Bhubaneswar, respectively.

The chasing pack behind the top-10 includes Japan (2063) in eleventh, Ireland (2028) in twelfth, United States (1998) in thirteenth, Chile (1962) in fourteenth, and Korea (1869) in fifteenth.

–IANS

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