Milan – Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said Monday Cristiano Ronaldo’s one-match Champions League suspension was a welcome break for the Portuguese star to recharge after playing all matches since his move to Turin.
Ronaldo will sit out Tuesday’s European game in Turin against Swiss club Young Boys after his controversial sending off after half an hour in Valencia. Juventus went on to win the match 2-0.
“Ronaldo has played every game so far and Saturday was his best ever since he was at Juve,” said Allegri of the 3-1 league win over Napoli in which Ronaldo set up all three goals for the champions.
“A little rest will do him good.
“I’m curious to see the team without Ronaldo, although I already saw that in Valencia.
“It’s good that he will be with us in Manchester but it’s important that he rests as well as he’s already played a lot of games for us.”
Juve play Jose Mourinho’s United at Old Trafford on October 23 before hosting the English club in Turin on November 7 in Group H.
Ronaldo, a five-time Champions League winner, first won the competition with United in 2008 before leaving for Real Madrid a year later.
Meanwhile, Allegri warned against over-confidence against the Swiss who lost their opener 3-0 to Manchester United.
“We have to play well tomorrow night and we must win otherwise we will un-do all the good work that we did in Spain.
“We have to be very respectful because Young Boys are a team in form.
“They are solid in defence and organised.”
Allegri confirmed that Paulo Dybala and Mario Manduzkic would start up front with Sami Khedira back in the squad.
“Khedira won’t play from the start, but he’ll be part of the squad,” Allegri confirmed.
“The plan was to take him to Udine, so if he could play half an hour tomorrow that would be positive.
“There are still two games before the end of this mini-cycle and I’d like to have everyone available.
“(Giorgio) Chiellini won’t play, (Joao) Cancelo needs to recover and (Andrea) Barzagli will play because the old man is always good,” he added of the 37-year-old defender who was alongside him in the press conference.
Young Boys coach Gerardo Seoane said the absence of Ronaldo would not made their task any easier.
“We’re sad that Ronaldo isn’t there. It would have been nice for us to face him on the pitch, but if Ronaldo doesn’t play then another champion will because Juventus have good alternatives in every area.
“It’s our first Champions League and we know there isn’t much room for mistakes.”
PITTSBURGH — Not even prime time can save these Pittsburgh Steelers, though Sunday’s loss cuts deeper than some meaningless stat.
The Steelers, previously winners of 10 straight night games before the Baltimore Ravens’ 26-14 pounding, are a team without much of an identity beyond a few good drives here or there.
They can’t get enough stops, they can’t run the ball consistently enough and the flair of the past few years is hidden somewhere in the Heinz Field turf.
What exactly is this team about? That’s hard to know when the answers are sporadic from week to week.
Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense couldn’t get anything going against the Ravens in the second half. AP Photo/Fred Vuich
The Steelers’ disastrous starts at home are becoming more standard than aberration.
These numbers are numbing: In the past three home games, the Steelers have spotted opponents a combined 56-0 lead.
The Steelers largely played the Ravens to a draw for much of the game, but that doesn’t matter when it’s 14-0 seven minutes in.
To no surprise, the Steelers have lost three consecutive home games for the first time since 2012.
But so many plays were emblematic of a unit that can’t rediscover its glorified past. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Steelers had the Ravens first-and-18 at midfield and gave up a first down on two simple dump-offs and a sea of missed tackles.
These are crippling plays that will plague them all year unless something changes.
The reality is the Steelers’ offense is starting to miss Le’Veon Bell. James Conner has done some nice things but was averaging 3.9 yards per carry before his 19 yards on nine carries Sunday night lowered that figure further.
That forces Ben Roethlisberger (27-of-46, 274 yards, one touchdown, one interception) to keep defenses honest almost entirely with his arm, which works sometimes but probably isn’t sustainable.
Roethlisberger’s throw off his back foot with 2:22 left into the area of two Ravens defenders fell gently into the hands of Ravens corner Anthony Levine because it had no juice behind it.
The Steelers’ early offensive strategy was a sound one: Use Antonio Brown on deeper routes to draw the safety and loosen up the middle. That explains why fourth receiver Ryan Switzer caught seven passes and tight end Vance McDonald added 62 yards.
But when the Steelers needed big third-down plays in the second half, Roethlisberger and Brown were clearly off on their timing despite having a few opportunities to thread the ball. Usually, that deep out route to the sideline is money for them. Not right now.
The Steelers failed to convert 10 of 12 third downs compared to the Ravens hovering around 50 percent in that area for much of the game. In the fourth quarter, the Steelers held the ball for two minutes, 40 seconds. Oof.
Couple all that with coach Mike Tomlin’s botched challenge over a Ravens third-down conversion and McDonald’s costly first-quarter fumble, and that’s how games are lost.
A third straight AFC North title is starting to slip away. The Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns are all better.
The season might be salvageable, but not the way the Steelers are currently playing — especially with Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons coming to Pittsburgh in Week 5.
London – Manchester City travel to Hoffenheim on Tuesday desperately needing a win to kickstart a Champions League campaign that began with a shock 2-1 defeat to Lyon for the competition favourites.
There should therefore be no shortage of motivation for Pep Guardiola’s men, but one member of the City squad will be especially keen to make a big impression back on German soil.
Leroy Sane was one of the stars of City’s romp to a record 100 Premier League points and the League Cup last season. The 22-year-old was crowned Young Player of the Year in England thanks to a stellar return of 14 goals and 19 assists in all competitions.
However, that still wasn’t enough to earn him a place in Germany’s World Cup squad as Sane was surprisingly cut from Joachim Loew’s 23.
Sane may have had the last laugh as the defending champions crashed out in the group stages — the first time in 80 years Germany had fallen at the first hurdle.
The pace, direct running and eye for a quick shot at goal possessed by the former Schalke winger were all traits missing from a laboured and predictable Germany in Russia.
Let down by body language
Yet, there was no time for Sane to feel vindicated as on his return to club duty he was similarly shunned by Guardiola, sparking doubts over his attitude off the field.
“Sometimes you have the feeling with Leroy’s body language that it is all the same whether we win or lose. He has to improve his body language,” said Germany’s vice-captain Toni Kroos even as Sane was recalled to Loew’s squad for last month’s Nations League opener against newly crowned world champions France.
“He was fantastic for City last year but Pep has the same problem at the moment — he’s trying to get the best out of him so he can perform better.”
If Guardiola was looking for a reaction, he has got what he desired.
After being dropped for City’s first four Premier League games of the season, Sane scored just two minutes into his return against Fulham and has created a goal in all three of his appearances since.
That included Bernardo Silva’s consolation against Lyon as Sane came off the bench to transform a pedestrian first-half performance that has put City under pressure to bounce back this week.
“Leroy has played really good the last few games,” said Guardiola after Saturday’s 2-0 win over Brighton in which Sane created Raheem Sterling’s opening goal.
“Our profession is so demanding, we have to do our best every single day. I want all of my players to be focused.”
Guardiola is notoriously demanding of his players’ professionalism. But having racked up titles in charge of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and now City, the Catalan coach knows which players are worth persisting with.
“We never — even in this period when he didn’t play — doubted Leroy’s quality,” added Guardiola after Sane’s instant impact against Fulham.
With his club manager’s faith restored, Sane heads back to Germany with a perfect chance to show his compatriots, least of all Loew, what they were missing in a rare summer of sorrow at international level.
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Sam Darnold went from being a college student and Heisman Trophy hopeful in Los Angeles to a perceived franchise savior in New York.
It has been a whirlwind, coast-to-coast year for the New York Jets quarterback, who is adapting to life in the Big Apple after spending his entire life in Southern California.
In a not-so-serious interview with ESPN, Darnold shared some thoughts on the transition and his new life.
What do you want to do in New York that you haven’t done yet?
Sam Darnold: I haven’t had the great pizza that everyone is talking about. So that’s one thing I want to do. Other than that, I haven’t gone to the Jersey shore. I don’t know if that’s a New York thing. You know what I want to do? I want to go to the 9/11 Memorial. I heard that’s amazing and crazy to look at, an amazing museum. So I haven’t done that. I’d like to do that.
Describe the last time you got recognized by a fan in public.
Darnold: It was actually [Monday]. Me and Josh [McCown] went into Panera Bread. We were just kind of sitting down and having our sandwiches, and this guy came out. I thought he was about to faint because he was so excited to see the both of us. He took a picture. It was kind of funny.
Do you get recognized more in New York or Los Angeles?
Darnold: Oh, definitely here, especially with Jets fans. They’re everywhere. I mean, the USC thing is pretty crazy, too, but there are a lot of things in L.A. New York is kind of like L.A. If I walk around, not everyone is going to notice me because not everyone watches football, especially in New York. But I feel like everyone in Jersey is a Jets fan, and I always get recognized here.
What do you miss about California?
Darnold: It’s starting to rain here a little bit — so the weather. No, I mean, I love it here. I think the biggest thing about California is the people, especially my friends and family. That’s what I miss.
As the USC quarterback, you must have met some celebrities. Who?
Darnold: I met quite a few people. Will Ferrell is up there. I got a chance to meet and hang out with Sam Hunt. He’s actually a pretty cool dude. I got to go to a concert a couple of years ago. He actually played at UAB (quarterback, 2005-07). He was coached by Tyson Helton, who coached me in college at USC. So it kind of came full circle and I was able to hook up with him and hang out for just a little bit. Russ [Vitale] the Rapper, I met him.
Sam Darnold got to know USC fan and actor Will Ferrell, and the quarterback even hosted him for a podcast. Nati Harnik/AP
You had Will Ferrell as a guest on your weekly podcast last year at USC. What’s he like?
Darnold: So he’s a funny dude. I’m a huge Will Ferrell fan. I met him at the Cal game. He actually came out to watch us at Cal a couple of years ago. He’s just a normal dude. A lot of people think, oh, he must be hilarious all the time. Nah, he’s just kind of chill. Very relaxed dude, but when he sees an opportunity to make a joke or say something funny, he always does. He’s a good dude.
What about celebrities in New York?
Darnold: I mean, I’m friends with Gary V [Vaynerchuk, entrepreneur and avid Jets fan], which is pretty cool.
What do you do for fun away from football?
Darnold: I just like hanging out with my friends, honestly. I mean, as long as I’m in good company and with cool people and we’re just hanging out and having a good time, that’s usually what I like to do. When I’m home, if you want to go to the beach or anything like that, I’m always down. When I’m here, I’ll hang out, grab a bite to eat. I’ll play a video game every now and then. But not too many video games. I’m open to a lot of things, but the biggest thing is just having cool people to hang out with.
Tell us something about you that people don’t know.
A lot of people think you’re a surfer, and you’re not, right?
Darnold: Yeah, I’m not a surfer. A lot of people think I am. That might be one thing. It’s funny, I did a commercial for Toyota, and they had a surfboard on top of the car I was driving in the commercial. I was like, ‘Guys, I don’t surf.’ Everyone thinks I surf. All my friends give me crap when someone says, ‘Oh, Darnold surfs.’ They’re like, ‘Dude, you can’t keep telling people you surf. You know you can’t surf.’ All my friends surf.”
What kind of music do you listen to before a game?
Darnold: It kind of depends, actually. I don’t have a superstition or anything, but before every game I have to listen to “15th and the 1st” by Gucci Mane. You don’t know that song? You should listen to it. It’s a good one to listen to right before you go to bed [joking]. I’ve listened to that song since senior year of high school. Yep, right before the game, that was the first song I listened to. But after that, whatever I feel like.”
What is something that would surprise people to see in your apartment?
Darnold: (long pause) I don’t know. I just have a normal apartment, dude. I don’t have anything for you.
Any big splurges with your signing bonus, either for you or your family?
Darnold: I mean, I did a little thing with Kay Jewelers and I was able to get my mom a few thousand bucks, which was cool. They put together a lot of stuff with that in terms of redesigning our house and doing some stuff there in California, which was really cool.
What about for yourself?
Darnold: One thing people should know about me is I’m a simple, simple guy. Some people can probably already guess that. I mean, I don’t need anything to make me happy. I already have all that I want, so I’m definitely the guy who’s probably not going to spend any of his NFL money.
So we’ll never see you driving a Porsche?
Darnold: That’s the only thing, I might drive a nice car. [smiling] But I’m definitely not going to go crazy and buy chains and a bunch of jewelry. Until I get a girlfriend or a wife, that’s never going to change.
Best thing you ever purchased?
Darnold: To be honest, I get a lot of stuff for free. You would think once you become a professional, you’re going to get all this money and spend it, but there are so many different perks. I get a bunch of free stuff from Nike all the time, so I don’t need to be spending money. So I haven’t bought anything crazy.
Everything you need this week:
