Sports
Arteta: Arsenal need a ‘title’ to secure elite tag
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has said that his side are now “one of the best in Europe” and are just missing a major trophy to seal their place among the elite clubs.
Arteta has led Arsenal to one FA Cup win and two FA Community Shield trophies in his seven years at the club as well as a second-placed finish in the last three Premier League seasons.
Despite the lack of trophies so far under his management, the Spaniard believes Arsenal are still a club “transformed” from when he first took over.
“I give my passion, my energy, my knowledge and everything I have to give to this club,” Arteta told ESPN Brasil. “I believe we have transformed this club from where it was to where it is today.
“In terms of performance, when we look at the last three years of the Premier League, we are the team that has scored the most points. But we still need to win a major title. That’s what we’re missing, because the rest is done.
“The connection with the fans has changed, there’s no doubt that Arsenal is one of the best teams in Europe at the moment, but we still need to seal that achievement.”
Arteta and Arsenal have spent big this summer in an attempt to make that next step, bringing in a striker in Viktor Gyökeres for €63 million ($74m) while also welcoming Noni Madueke, Martín Zubimendi, Christhian Mosquera, Christian Nørgaard and goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga for a combined transfer outlay of over €200m.
“It was a summer in which we had the chance to rest and relax. It was also a summer in which we worked hard, in which we were able to sign new players to have a bigger and better quality squad,” Arteta said.
“It’s going to be an exciting season, just look at the level of all the teams, of the league in general.”
The marquee signing of Arsenal’s window however is Gyökeres. Striker is a position that has been plagued by injuries during Arteta’s time at the club, so much so that midfielder Mikel Merino was leading the line at the Emirates for parts of last season.
Gyökeres scored 54 goals in all competitions for Sporting CP last season, and Arteta believes he can carry his form into the new season for Arsenal.
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“We [have] brought in a special player. When you look at his statistics, it’s impressive what he’s done in recent years. And secondly, because we needed to improve that area of our squad,” he said.
“Last season we had injuries to important players, who were out for four or five months. At this level, that’s unsustainable.
“Now, given all this context, we needed a player who had the personality to withstand the pressure of putting on that shirt and going out on the pitch with all that.
“Viktor has all that.”
Sports
Huskers earn top overall seed in volleyball tourney
Undefeated Nebraska earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament bracket released Sunday.
The five-time national champion Huskers (30-0) have dominated this season, dropping just seven sets. They lead Division I in hitting percentage at .352.
Dani Busboom Kelly, who won NCAA titles as both a Nebraska player and assistant, took over at her alma mater this season after longtime Huskers coach John Cook retired. Busboom Kelly led Louisville to the NCAA final in 2024, where the Cardinals lost to Penn State.
The other No. 1 seeds are Kentucky, Texas and Pitt. The Wildcats have won one NCAA title, and the Longhorns have four. The Panthers reached the final four the past four seasons but lost in the semifinals each time.
Pitt and Stanford finished tied atop the ACC at 18-2, and the Cardinal won their head-to-head matchup 3-2 at Stanford on Nov. 14. But the Panthers’ overall body of work secured them the last No. 1 seed, while nine-time NCAA champion Stanford is the No. 2 seed in Texas’ region.
SEC regular-season and tournament champion Kentucky defeated Texas 3-2 in the conference tournament final. They would face each other in the national semifinals should they advance that far.
Defending national champion Penn State, the only school that has appeared in every NCAA tournament dating back to the event’s start in 1981, is a No. 8 seed in Texas’ quarter of the bracket. St. Thomas (Minnesota) and Toledo are both making their first appearance in the tournament.
The Big 12 led all leagues with 10 teams in the field, the Big Ten has nine, the ACC seven and the SEC five.
Early-round matches will be held from Dec. 4 to 6 on campus sites. The regionals, scheduled for Dec. 11-14, will be hosted by the four highest seeds still standing in each quarter of the bracket.
The final four is at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, for the third time in the tournament’s history. It was there that Penn State won the championship in 2010 and Nebraska won its most recent title in 2017.
The national semifinals are Dec. 18 (ESPN), and the championship match is Dec. 21 (ABC).
Sports
Commanders vs. Broncos live updates: Washington tightens up in red zone, yields field goal
The Commanders return from their bye week searching for their first victory since Oct. 5. It won’t be easy against the Broncos, who have won eight straight.
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Sports
Ruben Amorim: Man United ‘steal’ set-piece routines from rivals
Ruben Amorim has said that Manchester United are “stealing” set-piece routines from other clubs after goals from two free-kicks helped earn a valuable 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.
United came from behind at Selhurst Park thanks to second-half goals from Joshua Zirkzee and Mason Mount, both of which came from Bruno Fernandes set plays.
Amorim’s team have now scored 10 Premier League goals from set-pieces this season — joint most with table-toppers Arsenal.
“We work a lot,” Amorim said when asked about United’s improvement at set-pieces.
“We have more time to work, we work a lot and we learn a lot in England.
“I think you are used to seeing that, but when you come for the Premier League you learn a lot with other teams how to do it and we are stealing a lot of things to score goals.”
United looked destined for another set-back following Monday’s defeat to 10-man Everton when Crystal Palace went in at half-time 1-0 up thanks to a retaken penalty from Jean-Philippe Mateta.
But there was marked improvement in their performance after the break as Amorim’s team recorded just their second league win away from home since March.
“I just said to the players we need to be more alive and you can feel that,” Amorim said.
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“So if you are more alive, you are in more places, you are near the ball more often. I think everyone did that.
“But we also need to understand that the opponent was tired also in the second half.
“And when you increase the rhythm and the opponent gets tired a little bit, suffers right away a goal, you felt that we had the control of the game and that’s it.”
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