Established 1961 27 Sports Sunday, May 26, 2019 Holders US shrug off weight of World Cup expectations Physically, this is the fittest and sharpest I’ve ever felt: Lloyd NEW YORK: Few of the 24 women’s World Cup bility to the team, which failed to medal at the 2016 Rio teams arriving in France for next month’s tournament Olympics. “When you look at 2016, we had a lot (of will bear the weight of expectation quite like reigning the) players that we have now but those are players champions the United States. that barely had 10 caps on the team up to that point. The three-times winners will be aiming not only to Now I think (the team) is a little more experienced,” retain the trophy they won in 2015 but also build on said Morgan, who was in the 2011 and 2015 squads. their legacy as soccer’s dominant women’s team and “I understand that when you look at literal terms yes further cement their role as leaders in the fight for gen- we’re defending champions, but I don’t feel like going der equality. into this tournament we’re looking at defending any- In March, they sued the US Soccer Federation with thing because this is four years we’re talking about. allegations of gender discrimination with all 28 mem- There’s so many things that can change.” bers of the squad named as plaintiffs in federal court. Defender Becky Sauerbrunn, another stalwart at 33, But if the pressure on the squad in the build-up to the said the current U.S. team was full of younger players, World Cup is beginning to grate on the players at all, alongside the more experienced squad members, and 36-year-old co-captain Carli Lloyd is not showing it. they would all be looking to make their own history at “Physically, this is the fittest I’ve ever felt, sharpest the tournament in France. I’ve ever felt,” 36-year-old midfielder Lloyd said at a “This team is (a) new identity. It’s revamped, it’s got media event on Friday. “I feel at ease, I feel calm, I feel a very young, energetic, majority to it,” said hungry, I feel motivated and I just feel excited.” Sauerbrunn. “It’s a new team, we’re going to try to cre- Lloyd, along with striker Alex Morgan, 29, and ate our own legacy.” Much is expected of 21-year-old attacking midfielder Megan Rapinoe, 33, are among the forward Mallory Pugh, while 26-year-old defender veterans critical not only on the pitch but off it, as the Crystal Dunn has plenty to prove, having been the last U.S. bring new faces to the World Cup stage, said head player cut from the 2015 World Cup squad. coach Jill Ellis. The Americans are overwhelming favourites to top “It falls on those players to share their experiences, their World Cup group, having been handed a make sure there’s a push when there needs to be a push favourable draw that includes long-term rivals Sweden NEW YORK: The United States Women’s National Team poses during their Media Day ahead of the 2019 Women’s and make sure there’s an arm around the shoulder when alongside Chile and Thailand, who the U.S. will play in World Cup at Twitter NYC on May 24, 2019 in New York City. — AFP that’s needed as well,” said Ellis, who oversaw the their first match on June 11. World Cup triumph four years ago. “All of us are solely focused on the first game against Thailand and, you know, in a major tourna- 16 minutes of the final four years ago. win.” The World Cup kicks off on June 7 when MORE EXPERIENCED ment like this, you can’t get too far ahead of your- “It’s just kind of weathering the storm. Winning, hosts France face South Korea at the Parc des The trio of co-captains bring a welcome dose of sta- self,” said Lloyd, who scored a hat-trick in the first whether that’s pretty, ugly - just finding a way to Princes in Paris. — Reuters Al-Arabi club wins int’l award for stadium Niko Kovac eyes development project double after KUWAIT: Al-Arabi Sports Club won yesterday an award presented by the Netherland’s World Stadium ‘intense’ season Congress 2019 for its design for Sabah Al-Salem Stadium. Kuwait’s Public Authority for Sports Deputy Director General Sheikh Homoud Mubarak Al-Sabah BERLIN: Cup specialist Niko Kovac is hoping to expressed to KUNA in a statement his pride and hap- end a turbulent first season in charge of Bayern piness for this win. Munich with a domestic double when his side Sheikh Homoud also said that this win puts Kuwait face RB Leipzig in the German Cup final in Berlin on the international scale for developing stadiums as it yesterday. helps in achieving sustainable development and realiz- The Bayern boss has been under pressure ing Kuwait’s Vision 2035. lately amid rumours that he may be sacked at the The new Sabah Al-Salem stadium contains 30 end of the season, but has said that he is focusing thousand shaded seats, 333 VIP seats, 76 seats for on football ahead of final. “I want to throw myself media personnel, 390 seats for the disabled, and 654 into the task (of winning the cup), everything else, cabin seats. — KUNA everything concerning my position, is secondary,” he said on Friday. Just hours earlier on the other side of Berlin, Matches on TV Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said that Kovac’s job did not depend on the outcome of the (Local Timings) final. Kovac admitted that it had been an “intense” season, and said that winning the league title last weekend had lifted a weight off ITALIAN CALCIO LEAGUE his shoulders. Torino FC v SS Lazio 16:00 “The season was long, and when you reach beIN SPORTS HD 4 your goal you feel more comfortable and the ten- UC Sampdoria v Juventus FC 19:00 sion drops. But we have had time to relax with beIN SPORTS HD 4 our families and now we are focused on tomor- ACF Fiorentina v Genoa CFC 21:30 row,” he said. beIN SPORTS HD 10 Saturday will be a third return home in three Atalanta v US Sassuolo Calcio 21:30 years for native Berliner Kovac, who led former beIN SPORTS HD 3 club Eintracht Frankfurt to back-to-back cup Internazionale Milano v Empoli 21:30 finals in 2017 and 2018, and delivered a shock beIN SPORTS HD 4 victory over Bayern last year. AS Roma v Parma Calcio 1913 21:30 “Last year shows that there are no favourites beIN SPORTS HD 2 in a cup final” Kovac warned on Friday. “Both Spal v AC Milan 21:30 teams will want to win and you need a little bit of beIN SPORTS HD 5 luck.” The Bayern coach heaped praise on Cagliari Calcio v Udinese Calcio 21:30 Leipzig, saying that they were the “hardest oppo- beIN SPORTS nent we could have got in the final”. He said that he would have to pick his best team for the game, suggesting that departing vet- erans Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery would start on the bench in their final game for Bayern. with quality players, I promise our supporters we will give “It will be their last game so it is a difficult deci- Former Tottenham them something to cheer about.” sion to make,” he said, hinting that the likes of Messi finishes Gross became Tottenham manager in November 1997 Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman would be in manager Gross aims and two losses in three matches at the start of the the starting line-up. 1998/1999 season triggered his dismissal. “I know what it means to end your playing Europe’s top scorer He achieved only 10 victories in 30 matches at the career, but we also have players who have played to end Zamalek London club and was the target of constant ridicule by really well since January.” Leipzig coach Ralf for third year sections of the media, particularly over his poor grasp of Rangnick, meanwhile, said that it did not matter trophy drought English. After Tottenham, he coached clubs in Switzerland, to his team whether Robben and Ribery began BARCELONA: Lionel Messi has become the Germany and Saudi Arabia with more success before the game or not. JOHANNESBURG: Former Tottenham Hotspur manager first player to win Europe’s Golden Shoe award being hired by Zamalek in July last year. “If they come off the bench, we will have to Christian Gross believes the 16-year African trophy for three straight years after his nearest chal- Gross inherited a team that had lived in the shadows of play well, just as we will do from the beginning.” drought of famed Egyptian club Zamalek will end today lenger Kylian Mbappe failed to score the four fellow Egyptian club and arch rivals Al Ahly for more than Leipzig are targeting a first major trophy of their near ancient Mediterranean city Alexandria. goals he needed in Paris St Germain’s final league a decade. While Zamalek last lifted an African trophy in ten-year history, and Rangnick said his side Coached by Gross, Zamalek lost 1-0 away to match of the season on Friday. 2003, Ahly have won 11 CAF titles in the past 16 years, hoped to use the final as a springboard to chal- Moroccan outfit Renaissance Berkane last Sunday in the Messi earned the honour, which goes to the including the Champions League five times.