Kylian Mbappé failed to score for the first time in the new LaLiga season as Real Madrid came from behind to preserve their 100% start by beating Mallorca.
The France superstar had two goals disallowed and teammate Arda Güler a third as Madrid were made to work hard for a 2-1 win at the Bernabeu, with Güler and Vinícius Júnior on target within a minute of each other after Vedat Muriqi had given the visitors a shock lead with the first goal conceded by Xabi Alonso’s men this term.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, back in the starting lineup a day after being left out of Thomas Tuchel’s England squad, almost announced himself in style within five minutes when he slid a pass through the heart of the Mallorca defence to put Mbappé in on goal and saw the striker finish, only for an offside flag to ruin the moment.
The former Liverpool defender continued to be heavily involved as the hosts pushed for the opening goal, but the breakthrough finally arrived at the other end.
There were 18 minutes gone when Muriqi, restored to the Mallorca team after suspension following his sending-off against Barcelona, challenged Aurélien Tchouaméni for Pablo Torre’s inswinging corner and deflected the ball into the net with his back.
Vinícius Júnior and Arda Güler grabbed the goals in Real Madrid’s win over Mallorca.
Sara Gordon/Real Madrid via Getty Images
Muriqi went close to a second with a 25th-minute attempt after more good work by Torre with the visitors settling into the contest.
Mallorca keeper Leo Román enjoyed an escape 13 minutes before the break when he fumbled a Tchouaméni shot from distance and saw the ball almost spin into his goal, but his luck was to turn markedly.
He was finally beaten with 37 minutes gone when Güler pounced after defender Dean Huijsen had headed back across goal from a quickly-taken corner, and then once again just seconds later when Vinícius made the most of Federico Valverde’s determination to win the ball back by firing home off the far post.
In an eventful finish to the first half, Mbappé saw a second goal disallowed for offside as over-eagerness cost him once again.
The hosts thought they had extended their lead when Franco Mastantuono’s 55th-minute shot was saved by Roman and Güler bundled the rebound across the line, only for referee Jose Maria Sanchez Martinez to rule after a VAR review that the Turkey international had handled.
Mallorca might have been level with 62 minutes gone had full-back Álvaro Carreras not produced a stunning goal-line clearance with the game still in the balance.
Alexander-Arnold’s evening ended with 17 minutes remaining when he was replaced by Dani Carvajal, and he watched from the bench as his team made it across the finishing line with their lead intact.
Tennis player Kamil Majchrzak — with some help from the internet — had a special meeting Saturday at the US Open with the young fan who had a souvenir cap meant for him snatched away earlier this week.
After defeating No. 9 seed Karen Khachanov in a five-set thriller Thursday, cameras showed Majchrzak holding up his cap to give to the boy, Brock, as he signed autographs on Court 11. A man standing next to Brock swiped the hat and stashed it in his bag.
Majchrzak saw the video and took to social media to enlist the public’s help in locating the boy.
“After the match, I didn’t record that my cap didn’t get to the boy … Could you help me find the kid from my match?” Majchrzak wrote on his Instagram story.
On Saturday, Majchrzak posted video of his meeting with Brock, which included lots of gifted merchandise.
“Hello World, Together with Brock we wish you a great day!” Majchrzak captioned a photo of them.
Majchrzak saw his US Open run end Saturday when he was forced to retire from his third-round match against Leandro Riedi while leading 5-3.
Hopes for the return of top‑tier cricket to Peshawar have been reignited, as Pakistan Super League (PSL) CEO Salman Naseer offered a positive update on the Imran Khan Stadium’s readiness to host matches.
The historic venue has been undergoing extensive renovation for several years but has still not hosted a match for its Peshawar Zalmi franchise.
While Zalmi owner Javed Afridi remains adamant about bringing cricket back to Peshawar, the PSL has been reluctant to award hosting duties in any of the league’s ten seasons. That may be about to change.
PSL CEO Salman Naseer weighed in, expressing hope that the PSL will come to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa soon.
“We have suggested further modifications to the Peshawar stadium, and we intend to make it an international venue in the future so that PSL matches can also be held here,” he said.
Today’s exhibition match between Zalmi and a Legends XI—to raise funds for flood‑affected areas of Pakistan—is the first action the stadium has seen in years. With areas for improvement now outlined, the focus is on completing the final stages of renovation to meet international standards so cricket can return to Peshawar.
Successfully hosting matches at Imran Khan Stadium would not only be a huge boost for Peshawar Zalmi, who consider it their home ground, but would also lift the broader cricket landscape of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and add an exciting new venue to the PSL map.
The commitment from PSL CEO Salman Naseer and the ongoing work at the stadium suggest fans in Peshawar may not have to wait much longer to see their favorite T20 stars in action.
Trent Rockets progressed to the men’s Hundred final after rain caused the abandonment of Saturday’s eliminator against Northern Superchargers at the Oval.
The Rockets advanced to Sunday’s showpiece against Oval Invincibles at Lord’s due to having finished second in the group stage, a place above the Superchargers.
Showers in south London delayed the start of the contest by 20 minutes, prompted two hour-long interruptions, and eventually wiped out the game out altogether.
Andrew Flintoff’s Superchargers had made 119 for five from 75 balls before the Rockets twice started to chase adjusted targets – 131 off 75 and then 105 off 55.
Rockets openers Tom Banton and Joe Root initially faced just one ball before being forced back off.
A further four deliveries eventually followed, only for a final heavy downpour to prompt umpires James Middlebrook and Martin Saggers to finally pull the plug on the match at 9.52pm.
Dan Lawrence top scored for the Superchargers with an unbeaten 44 off 31 balls, while Dawid Malan made 29 and David Miller blasted 28.
Earlier, teenager Davina Perrin made history with a 42-ball century to lift the Superchargers into the women’s final after they defeated defending champions London Spirit by 42 runs.
Perrin became just the second woman after Tammy Beaumont in 2023 to reach three figures in the 100-ball tournament with a stunning 101 off 43 balls, which included 15 fours and five sixes.
It was the fastest ton in the women’s competition and second quickest overall, with only Harry Brook’s 41-ball hundred for the Superchargers against Welsh Fire in 2023 eclipsing this salvo from Perrin.
When that was put to her, the 18-year-old, who was run out at the non-striker’s end, laughed and told Sky Sports: “One ball? Damn, I better hit the gym so I can send those sixes a bit further!
“It felt pretty brilliant. It’s not every day you get to find yourself in that state of flow and in the zone and it’s when you’re there, stay in the present and take every ball as they come.”
Watched on by around 20 family and friends, Perrin clubbed an attack featuring England-capped players Issy Wong, Charlie Dean and Sarah Glenn to all parts to underpin the Superchargers’ 214 for five.
It was the highest ever total by a woman’s team by far – the previous best was 181 for three by Welsh Fire when Beaumont made her century – and it was too many for the Spirit in Saturday’s eliminator.
Grace Ballinger and Annabel Sutherland claimed three wickets apiece to leave last year’s winners short on 172 for nine as Superchargers set up a showdown with unbeaten Southern Brave in Sunday’s final.
Marco Grote had been “convinced for years that he can be a special player” after coaching Woltemade with Werder Bremen’s under-19s.
But last season was when Woltemade truly became a household name in his homeland.
Working closely with Stuttgart manager Sebastian Hoeness, on the training pitch and in the video analysis room, Woltemade went on to score 17 goals in 33 games, including the opener in the German Cup final, as the centre-forward won the first major trophy of his career.
Woltemade then lit up the under-21 Euros last month and went home with the Golden Boot as Germany reached the final – only to lose 3-2 to England.
Bayern Munich felt moved enough to make several unsuccessful bids before Newcastle stumped up a club-record package of £65m plus £4m in add-ons this week.
Given the situation with Isak, and the lack of time left in the window, Newcastle had to act after seeing targets Hugo Ekitike, Benjamin Sesko and Joao Pedro move elsewhere this summer.
And there are, ironically, some parallels with Isak’s arrival three years ago.
Isak was also Newcastle’s most expensive signing of all time, arrived at a similar age and he did not have much time to settle, either, after joining in the final days of the window.
The Swede, though, had long been regarded as one of the continent’s top prospects and, crucially, had experience of playing in several different countries.
Woltemade, by contrast, has never played outside Germany and the striker will have only had the benefit of a few training sessions with his new team-mates before his potential debut against Wolves next month.
But he is a coachable talent who could continue to flourish in the right hands.
“He understands the game,” Grote said. “He works with the team and the coaches hand in hand. He wants to learn, he wants to become a better player and is ambitious. He loves the game. He has a talent but he worked hard for his development.
“Give him time – he is young, it’s a new country. It is not so easy for everybody. The fee is not his responsibility, but he is diligent and professional. With patience, he is a player who can make the difference.”
Coleman Wong’s historic US Open run ended in a five-set thriller against Andrey Rublev, who eventually prevailed 2-6 6-4 6-3 4-6 6-3.
Wong, 21, came through three rounds of qualifying to become the first man from Hong Kong to reach the main draw of a Grand Slam in the Open era.
He then defeated American Aleksandar Kovacevic and Australia’s Adam Walton to move to within one win of reaching the second week in New York.
Against Rublev, the world number 173 played “with no fear” as he won the first set, twice breaking the 15th seed in a run of four consecutive games.
Rublev responded by winning the second and third sets before Wong wrestled his way back into the match at the beginning of the fourth, converting the only break point of the set in the opening game to force a decider.
There, Rublev made the decisive break in the sixth game before closing out the win on his first match point.
“He played aggressively and with no fear – it was tough,” said Rublev, who will play third seed Alexander Zverev or Felix Auger-Aliassime next.
“I didn’t start well, he was all over me, and I needed to fight for every ball to turn it around. He was fighting until the end in the last game. I’m happy I was able to win and get to the next round.”
Elsewhere, 435th-ranked Swiss qualifier Leandro Riedi became the lowest-ranked man to reach the fourth round of a major since 2002 after Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak retired injured in the first set.
Riedi’s next test is eighth seed Alex de Minaur, whose third round opponent Daniel Altmaier retired midway through the fourth set when trailing 6-7 (7-9) 6-3 6-4 2-0.
Tenth seed Lorenzo Musetti progressed in similar fashion against fellow Italian Flavio Cobolli.
Cobolli, the 24th seed, injured his arm in a fall during the match and received treatment from the trainer three times before retiring in the third set, trailing 6-3 6-2 6-0.
Musetti will face unseeded Spaniard Jaume Munar, who beat Belgium’s Zizou Bergs 6-1 6-4 6-4 to advance to the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.
The Spanish giants were still short of their best, but good value for a narrow victory to continue their undefeated start
Arda Guler and Vinicius Jr scored back-to-back goals within 60 seconds as Real Madrid overcame an early scare to beat Mallorca, 2-1. Los Blancos were dominant throughout, but had a trio of efforts narrowly ruled out.
Madrid thought they had the lead early on when Kylian Mbappe raced through to turn Trent Alexander-Arnold’s pass home, but the referee ruled his effort offside after a long VAR review. Mallorca responded in style, though, when veteran forward Vedat Muriqi headed home off a corner. Los Blancos equalized shortly before half time thanks to another piece of dead ball work. Alvaro Carreras floated a ball to Dean Huijsen at the far post, who nodded across to Guler to finish into an empty net.
Less than a minute later, the home side were in the lead. Vinicius started and finished it with a weaving run, drop of the shoulder and calm finish into the bottom corner. It was almost three before half time, but Mbappe had another goal ruled out for a tight offside. They had another chalked off early in the second half, when the ball was adjudged to have stuck Guler’s arm before he smashed home from close range.
Los Blancos rotated heavily as the minutes waned, with Alonso toying with various combinations. Rodrygo enjoyed a bright cameo. Brahim Diaz made his case on the right. But it was otherwise a simple affair for Madrid, who were good value for the win.
GOAL rates Real Madrid’s players from the Santiago Bernabeu…
Pep Guardiola says he can sense that Manchester City will have a good year after seeing a marked improvement in the squad, starting from the Club World Cup, but wants to see consistency from the team.
After thrashing Wolves at Molineux on the opening weekend, a home defeat by Tottenham brought them back down to earth for a mixed start to the campaign. City will be aiming to get over that loss at Brighton on Sunday in the final match before the international break. The two-week gap will deny them the chance to build momentum for now but when they return to action against Manchester United, it will initiate the start of a hectic domestic and European schedule.
Asked why he was feeling confident, the City head coach said: “The way we are training and the way we are competing. We have to improve, but there are things that I would say are a sign. When I see these things in games, like in the United States of America, I like it. We won six Premier Leagues in eight years and when we started the season I wouldn’t say I knew we were going to win the league. But I see things that I like.
“Even against Spurs I saw many things that I like my teams to do. I want to do some of them much, much better, but that is completely normal at this stage of the season. You will see through the results. When you are able to win four, five or six games in a row, or you’re competing well, or being stable in many departments, conceding few and scoring much more. After that I will say: ‘Our consistency is back.’”
The first stage of the Champions League will begin after the Manchester derby with the visit of Napoli on Thursday 18 September and the prospect of playing twice almost every week until the end of January will give the opportunity to build up rhythm. Five players have arrived since the end of last season, three making debuts at the Club World Cup, but Guardiola is waiting for them to integrate fully into a team that have adjusted their style since finishing a distant third in the Premier League and trophyless overall.
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“Maybe in two months I will say how wrong I was, but right now I have seen, since we travelled to the States for the World Cup, I have seen things that I like,” Guardiola said.
