Salzburg’s Patson Daka: ‘There’ll only be one Haaland and only one Patson’

Patson Daka has just spent half an hour recounting the journey that led from school playing fields in Zambia to the spearhead of Red Bull Salzburg’s attack, so it seems cheap to follow up with the kind of question that speaks of football’s maddening impatience levels. But he is about to resume a season whose success can be measured by a strike rate of a goal every 74 minutes in Austria’s Bundesliga, so here goes: would it be fair to say he is the next Erling Braut Haaland?

There is laughter at one end of the line and some relief at the other. “I’m not the next anything,” Daka says. “There’ll only be one Haaland and there’ll only be one Patson. I just want to become the best vision of myself.”

Salzburg arrive at Anfield…

Rio 2016: South Africa draw felt like a defeat for Neymar

Brazil captain Neymar admitted that his side s 0-0 draw with South Africa in their opening Olympics clash on Thursday felt like a defeat.

The host nation dominated for large spells in Brasilia, but were unable to find a way past Itumeleng Khune in the South Africa goal, even after they were reduced to 10 men when Mothobi Mvala was sent off following a second booking.

Neymar insists Brazil never expected their challenge for the gold medal to be straightforward, but conceded that the result will be a difficult one to forget.

We knew it wouldn t be a case of coming here and bringing home the gold,  he said after the match.

For us, the draw is a defeat. The team played to win, but we know our responsibility. We ll face more difficulties yet.

We …

Man City ´head and shoulders´ above all teams in Premier League era, says James

Manchester City s current crop stand head and shoulders above all other teams in the Premier League era after winning four straight titles, says the club s former goalkeeper David James.

City became the first team in English top-flight history to win four successive titles on Sunday, a 3-1 win over West Ham ensuring they pipped Arsenal by two points.

Huddersfield Town (1923-1926), Arsenal (1932-1935) and Liverpool (1981-1984) all won the old First Division three times in a row, while Manchester United achieved the feat twice in the Premier League era (1998-2001 and 2006-2009).

Pep Guardiola s men ended the campaign with a nine-match winning streak, while they are now unbeaten in their last 35 matches across all competitions (29 wins, six draws), the longest such …

World champions France out to end 2018 on a high

Didier Deschamps is determined France will finish 2018 on a high against Uruguay, even if the World Cup winners Nations League fate is out of their hands.

Les Bleus became world champions for the second time as they defeated Croatia at Russia 2018, yet they have struggled to build on that triumph.

Although France cannot be relegated in UEFA s new competition, they must rely on already-relegated Germany to beat Netherlands on Monday in order to reach next year s Finals.

The Dutch side defeated France last week and Deschamps acknowledges it was tough to take at the end of a successful 12 months.

This match was wrong in all ways, but we have the opportunity to finish the year on a good note, he told a news conference ahead of facing Uruguay.

What h…

Ranieri: Beating West Ham my best moment of 2016!

Claudio Ranieri jokingly labelled Leicester City s hard-fought 1-0 win over West Ham as his best moment of 2016, despite leading the Foxes to the Premier League title last season.

Leicester defied all predictions to complete a remarkable title triumph in 2015-16, but a run of just one win in nine league matches had left them just three points above the relegation zone before the Hammers visited the King Power Stadium on Saturday.

However, Islam Slimani s thunderous 20th-minute header and a stoic defensive showing ensured Leicester have breathing space over the bottom three heading into the new year.

And wily Italian Ranieri is now hopeful of climbing away from the danger zone after celebrating what he quipped was his personal highlight of the year.

The Numbers Game: Ten Hag searches for much-needed turnaround at Villa Park

Manchester United are in desperate need of a Premier League win when they take on Aston Villa on Sunday.

The pressure has piled on Erik ten Hag after last week s sorry 3-0 loss to Tottenham.

United have lost three of their six league fixtures this season, winning just twice against Southampton and Fulham while they have lost their last two home matches in the top flight by an aggregate score of 6-0.

Their tally of seven points is their joint-fewest after six games of any Premier League season (two wins, one draw, three losses), having made identical starts under David Moyes in 2013-14 and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2020-21.

They now face another of the league s top teams when they take on Villa, who are fresh from their Champions League triumph ove…

Solskjaer adamant Man United have ´developed a lot´ since three 2019-20 semi defeats

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is convinced Manchester United have developed significantly since suffering three semi-final defeats in 2019-20 as they prepare to host rivals Manchester City in the last four of the EFL Cup.

Had things gone a little differently last term, Man United might have ended the campaign with three trophy successes, breaking Solskjaer s duck as the club s boss.

But, United lost 3-1 to Chelsea in the FA Cup semis, suffered a late 2-1 defeat to Sevilla in the Europa League and fell at the same stage of the EFL Cup to City, losing 3-2 on aggregate.

The elimination by City was particularly chastening given the manner of the first-leg home loss, as United were swept aside and somewhat fortunate to only lose 3-1 – the 1-0 away win in the second meeting w…

NFL Player Prop Bets for Week 4: Waller Ravages Chargers on MNF

Through three weeks of NFL action, there’s been no shortage of disappointments, surprises… and glorious NFL prop betting values to cash in on. As we have so far this season — and will continue to do so each week — we look into every one of those beautiful prop markets to uncover the week’s best team, player, and derivative prop bets.

We do the heavy lifting so you don’t have to. 

We’re hitting another guilty pleasure kicking prop, hitting a price drop with one of the league’s best pass-catching tight ends, and setting our watches to some Zach Wilson sacks.

We bring you our favorite free prop picks and predictions for Week 4 of the 2021 NFL season.

Teams to Watch and Trends to Follow for NFL Conference Championships Betting

2022 NFL playoff teams

Kansas CitySan Francisco
Los AngelesCincinnati

The NFL playoffs are one of the most exciting times of the year for sports bettors, all leading up to the biggest day on the sports calendar: the Super Bowl. 

NFL playoff betting takes on an increased intensity as the level of competition rises and the hype brings in many extra bettors to football betting sites. 

NFL Best Bets and Player Props for the Conference Championship: Burrow Calls Irwin's Number

With just two games remaining until the Super Bowl, the prop markets in the NFL playoffs are getting as efficient as they’ve been all season.

For this weekend’s NFL player props, I’m squeezing the value out of a plethora of plays that I’m confident will have more value now than the closing number.