Crystal Palace failed to benefit from the Roy Hodgson effect as Steven Davis’ early goal and two saves by Fraser Forster helped Southampton beat the Premier League’s bottom club 1-0 at Selhurst Park yesterday.
Palace were playing for the first time under new manager Hodgson, but were reeling in the sixth minute when Davis steered the ball into the bottom corner after home goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey beat out a low right cross from Dusan Tadic.
Palace are without a goal in their opening five league games, a Premier League record, but not for want of trying, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek twice going close after half an hour and Forster also saving from Christian Benteke.
Photo: Reuters
Former England manager Hodgson took charge at Palace this week after Dutchman Frank de Boer was sacked following four defeats and no goals in his debut Premier League season.
LA LIGA
Reuters, MADRID
Real Madrid need their record signing Gareth Bale to improve, with the Welsh winger having drawn criticism from supporters and Spanish media, coach Zinedine Zidane said yesterday.
Bale scored in the first La Liga game of the season against RC Deportivo de La Coruna, but has not found the net since.
He was whistled by Madrid fans on Wednesday during their 3-0 Champions League win over APOEL.
“We want and need him to do more on the pitch, and he does too, but we are calm because he will do it soon,” Zidane told a news conference.
Real Madrid face high-flying Real Sociedad today, and with Cristiano Ronaldo serving the final match of his five-game suspension and Karim Benzema injured, the onus will be on Bale to make the difference.
However, Zidane said the winger does not have to be the team’s leader in the clash against Eusebio Sacristan’s second-placed side, who have won all three of their opening games and are level on nine points at the top with Barcelona.
“He will do his job,” Zidane said.
“Each day he feels better. I said that he has had four months out of the team [injured] and to return to his level he needs at least four months,” he said.
“We don’t have to think that because Cristiano and Karim are not there he has to be the leader, there are other important players too,” he said.
In yesterday’s early game, Levante UD drew 1-1 with Valencia.
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BIG NAMES GONE: Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title, reaching semi-finals for the fifth time in six years and finishing second on three occasions Alexander Zverev on Tuesday breezed past Rafael Jodar to stay on course for an elusive Grand Slam title at the French Open, while Jakub Mensik halted Joao Fonseca’s scintillating run in the quarter-finals. Zverev, the highest-ranked player left in the men’s draw, put an end to Spanish teenager Jodar’s impressive Roland Garros debut, easing into the semi-finals with a 7-6, (7/3), 6-1, 6-3 win. The 29-year-old Zverev is the clear favorite for a maiden Grand Slam title. He has finished runner-up on three occasions, including at the 2024 French Open. “I want to win the matches that are ahead of
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Taiwanese sprinter Chen Yi-cen on Friday won the silver medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, with a time of 53.16 seconds. Chen, 15, was the youngest among the eight finalists, and her performance also met the qualifying standard of 53.50 seconds for the Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September and October. Chen first made her mark at the National Games in Tainan in 2023, at the age of 13, winning the women’s 400m final in 55.55 seconds to become the youngest gold medalist in the history of the event. Meanwhile,
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