Sports
Díaz reveals Wirtz talks before Bayern ‘gamble’
Bayern Munich forward Luis Díaz has described his move to Germany as a “big gamble” and said he discussed the transfer with Liverpool‘s Florian Wirtz before leaving Anfield.
Díaz joined the German champions in a £65.5 million (€75m) deal last month, having enjoyed a stellar individual campaign last term as Liverpool romped to the Premier League title.
Sources told ESPN that Díaz first signalled a wish to leave Liverpool in the summer of 2024, but the club held firm while assessing both the squad and the market. Two separate attempts to agree to a contract extension failed due to a gap between offers and demands, leading Liverpool to reluctantly sanction his departure this summer.
And Díaz made a dream start to life at his new club on Saturday by scoring a crucial goal in Bayern’s 2-1 DFL-Supercup win over VfB Stuttgart.
“I’m very happy and pleased with how this weekend went,” the 28-year-old told ESPN. “As you pointed out, it was my first official match, my first goal, and my first title. I dreamed of coming here to achieve great things and give my best. I try to enjoy football.
“It was a big gamble and I’m very grateful to the management for reaching out to me and trusting me. It’s always up to me to respond on the pitch and contribute with what I know how to do. To be at the disposal of the coaching staff. To start this way and be together with my teammates is incredible.”
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He added: “I already had some knowledge of the Bundesliga. I love watching football and all the competitions. I had the opportunity to talk to Florian in Liverpool, and I know it’s a physical league. I hope to have a great debut. I’ve been here at the club for about two weeks, and I need time to settle in.”
Díaz celebrated the goal by paying tribute to former Liverpool teammate Diogo Jota, who passed away in a car accident last month alongside his brother, André Silva.
Reflecting on the impact of Jota’s death, Díaz said: “It’s brutal. The fact that he’s no longer with us and that we’ve lost an incredible teammate is unbelievable. No one is prepared to receive this kind of news and feel OK when faced with a situation like this.
“He was a great teammate to me. We will remember him fondly. He will live on in our memories, and being able to dedicate the goal to him is something special. I had planned to do so.”
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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