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Soccer

Wenger highlights 3 errors VAR could have prevented in Arsenal's history
by

Armen Bedakian

Action Images via Reuters / John Sibley Livepic

For better or for worse, football has entered the era of the Video Assisted Referee (VAR) and for Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, the introduction of this new refereeing technology has him wondering what could have been.

Wenger is a man who has never shied away from looking back at his and his club’s past mistakes. And when asked by Arsenal Player to name a few failures VAR would have prevented, Wenger highlighted a few moments in Arsenal’s history that could have gone differently if video replay was implemented at the time.

“I would choose Barcelona’s equaliser (by Samuel Eto’o) in the 2006 Champions League final because it was offside, and we were 1-0 up with 30 minutes to go. That’s the trophy I miss here, you know, so that is for me the most important one.

“The second one I would choose is the second yellow card for Robin Van Persie at Barcelona in 2011, because this was the moment we were qualified against a very strong team, and it was a very difficult decision to accept – it basically killed our chances.

“After that maybe I go to a more recent decision – against Bayern Munich when Laurent Koscielny was sent off for a penalty when (Robert) Lewandowski was offside. That just comes to my mind now but maybe I forget many, many, many, many more.”

NFL

Giants might count on rookies Evan Engram, Dalvin Tomlinson to start

The New York Giants could have as many as 19 returning starters when the NFL season opens, but there are two rookies and two second-year players trying to earn their spots this summer.

Here’s a starting-lineup projection entering training camp:

Offense

Quarterback (Eli Manning): His job isn’t in jeopardy, even though the Giants drafted a quarterback in the third round. Manning had a down year in 2016 (26 touchdowns, 23 turnovers). But with improved weapons, there is hope this will be a bounce-back season.

Running back (Paul Perkins): The second-year back already has been anointed the starter. The elusiveness and versatility he showed during a rookie campaign when he averaged 4.1 yards per carry earned him the opportunity to be the lead back.

Wide receiver (Odell Beckham Jr.): The 24-year-old is one of the NFL’s biggest stars. He has had at least 90 catches, 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns in each of his first three professional seasons — the only player in NFL history to accomplish the feat. Now he needs to show that productivity in the postseason while playing for a new contract.

Wide receiver (Brandon Marshall): The tall, powerful receiver was signed this offseason as a complement to Beckham. The Giants hope they’re getting the five-time Pro Bowler, not the 2016 version of Marshall who struggled with injuries and inconsistency.

Wide receiver (Sterling Shepard): He’s looking to build off a strong maiden season during which he was second among rookies with eight touchdowns. Shepard had a strong spring, and his goal is to be more dynamic this season after the catch.

Rookie tight end Evan Engram’s ability to block on a consistent basis might be the only thing that keeps him off the field. AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Tight end (Evan Engram): The first-round pick adds a new dimension to the offense with his speed and ability to open up the middle of the field. But Engram’s blocking will ultimately determine just how often he’s on the field and whether he immediately earns a starting spot. Rhett Ellison could end up starting due to his blocking ability.

Left tackle (Ereck Flowers): The Giants went all-in on Flowers this offseason after they didn’t add a true veteran offensive tackle in free agency. They were impressed that he remained at the facility and reworked his body. Flowers, 23, allowed the second-most pressures (59) among all offensive tackles last season, according to Pro Football Focus. So there is plenty of room to improve.

Left guard (Justin Pugh): Perhaps the Giants’ best offensive lineman, Pugh is entering his contract year. He needs to remain healthy after missing nine games over the past three seasons.

Center (Weston Richburg): The fourth-year center also is entering his contract year. Richburg is hoping to bounce back after playing with a hand injury for most of 2016.

Right guard (John Jerry): The Giants re-signed Jerry this offseason to a three-year, $10 million contract with the intention of him being their starting right guard. Coming off one of the best seasons of his career, he will face some competition from free-agent acquisition D.J. Fluker. But Jerry is the favorite to start entering camp.

Right tackle (Bobby Hart): The Giants’ inactivity regarding the tackle slot this offseason again puts Hart in position to start, after he was benched late last year. Hart showed flashes of his potential last season.

Defense

Defensive end (Jason Pierre-Paul): He returns healthy and with a new four-year, $62 million deal. Pierre-Paul proved last season — with 53 tackles and seven sacks in 12 games — that he can still be a difference-maker.

Defensive tackle (Damon Harrison): He’s arguably the league’s best run-stuffing tackle. Pro Football Focus had him with a 15.8 percent run-stop percentage, tops in the NFL. Harrison might well be the most important player on the Giants’ defense.

Defensive tackle (Dalvin Tomlinson): Robert Thomas spent most of the spring working with the first-team defense. But when all is said and done, Tomlinson, a second-round pick out of Alabama, seems to have the best chance to start alongside Harrison on running downs.

Defensive end (Olivier Vernon): He came to the Giants with a massive contract and didn’t disappoint in his first season with the team. Vernon tied for the NFL lead with 17 tackles for loss and played the most snaps of any defensive lineman. They’re expecting much of the same in Year 2.

Weakside linebacker (Jonathan Casillas): The well-respected defensive captain was the team’s only three-down linebacker last season. He finished with a career-best 96 tackles and eight passes defended. He has a chance to fill the same role in 2017.

Middle linebacker (B.J. Goodson): The second-year linebacker had a strong spring, during which he impressed the coaching staff and teammates. With last year’s starter Kelvin Sheppard still unsigned and unlikely to return, Goodson appears primed to start and become the signal-caller on this defense.

Strongside linebacker (Devon Kennard): The reliable Kennard does an excellent job setting the edge and playing with power. He’s entrenched as the starter on the strong side, in large part because of his run-stuffing ability.

Cornerback (Janoris Jenkins): He took his game to a new level with the Giants last season and earned his first Pro Bowl selection. He shut down Dallas Cowboys wideout Dez Bryant (twice) and proved to be a shutdown corner even against No. 1 receivers.

Cornerback (Eli Apple): With Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie having made the smooth transition to the slot, Apple is the clear-cut starter on the outside. After an up-and-down rookie season, he should make a significant jump, if he can remain healthy.

Strong safety (Landon Collins): He blossomed into an All-Pro safety in his second season. Collins had 125 tackles, five interceptions, 4.0 sacks and 13 passes defended while becoming a fixture in the Giants’ secondary. He’ll be there for a long time.

Free safety (Darian Thompson): This is one of the few defensive positions up for grabs. Safeties coach David Merritt said as much last month. Thompson missed all but two games last season, and undrafted rookie Andrew Adams filled in admirably. The two will compete for the starting spot this summer, but Thompson enters as the favorite with his foot healthy. He blew away the team last spring/summer with his smarts and instincts.

Special teams

Kicker (Aldrick Rosas): He’s the only kicker on the roster, and the Giants were impressed by what they saw this spring. It’s Rosas’ job to lose at training camp and in the preseason.

Punter (Brad Wing): He established himself as a weapon last season. Wing’s average of 46.2 yards per punt was the best of his career.

Long-snapper (Zak DeOssie): The veteran is back for another season. The special-teams captain is well-respected and considered a leader in the locker room.

Soccer

Leipzig, Salzburg allowed into Champions League despite Red Bull ties

RB Leipzig and FC Salzburg, which are both owned by the energy drinks company Red Bull, have received clearance from UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) to play in next season’s Champions League.

In a brief statement released Tuesday on the governing body’s website, UEFA said the two teams made “important” structural changes to ensure that Red Bull does not have “decisive” control or influence over more than one club.

No two clubs in a UEFA competition can share the same majority owner or have one individual holding a position of influence.

“Following a thorough investigation, and further to several important governance and structural changes made by the clubs (regarding corporate matters, financing, personnel, sponsorship arrangements, etc.), the CFCB deemed that no individual or legal entity had anymore a decisive influence over more than one club participating in a UEFA club competition,” the statement read.

The Bundesliga’s 50-plus-1 rule – which requires members of German clubs to have a controlling stake and majority vote in affairs – may have set Leipzig apart from sister club Salzburg.

But Red Bull has also distanced itself from Salzburg, according to Reuters, as it has relinquished a majority stake in favour of a sponsorship.

Had UEFA ruled that only one Red Bull-associated outfit could feature in the Champions League, Austrian champion Salzburg would have qualified ahead of Bundesliga runner-up Leipzig because it finished higher in its league.

In fact, Leipzig would have disqualified for Europe altogether because of the possibility of Salzburg falling into the second-tier Europa League.

The two sides could now theoretically face each other in the group stage of the continent’s premier tournament, raising questions about a potential conflict of interest. Both play in stadiums named Red Bull Arena and wear shirts with the company’s famous logo.

Salzburg will enter the second round of qualifying in July, while Leipzig will begin action in the Champions League proper.

NFL

Bengals CB Jones banned 1 game for conduct

Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam Jones has been suspended for the 2017 season opener for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy, the league announced Friday.

Jones’ suspension stems from his January arrest at a hotel in downtown Cincinnati. He allegedly pushed a security guard, poked him in the eye and refused to comply with law enforcement officers.

He had faced misdemeanor charges of assault, disorderly conduct and obstructing official business and a felony count of harassment with a bodily substance for allegedly spitting on a nurse in jail, but most of the charges were dropped at the request of a Cincinnati prosecutor, who said the incident was just “drunken foolishness.”

Jones pleaded guilty in May to the obstruction charge. He was sentenced to two days in jail, which had already been served.

The NFL told Jones in a letter that it watched video “of the tone, tenor and nature of your interactions with law enforcement at the site of your arrest, during transportation to the jail, and during the booking process.” The league also said his actions reflected poorly on him, his family, the Bengals and the NFL.

“While it is our understanding that appropriate apologies have been publicly extended, they do not completely negate your behavior and admission of culpability for the underlying conduct,” the NFL wrote.

In a statement, the Bengals said they had anticipated the suspension and were looking to move on.

“Our focus is on getting ready for the upcoming season,” the Bengals said. “Adam will participate in training camp, and we are counting on him to help our team when he returns from suspension.”

Adam Jones will miss the Bengals’ first game of the regular season after the NFL announced his personal conduct suspension Friday. AP Photo/John Minchillo

The Bengals host the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1, and Jones would be allowed on Cincinnati’s active roster the day after the game. He will be allowed to participate in preseason practices and games.

Jones has three days to appeal the suspension. His agent Peter Schaffer said they are reviewing all options in regard to a potential appeal.

Jones’ participation in preseason games would be departure for the Bengals from last season, when linebacker Vontaze Burfict did not play in the preseason ahead of his three-game suspension to start the regular season.

In a video released by Cincinnati police, Jones was shown cursing at an officer in the back of a police car and telling him, “I hope you die tomorrow.” Jones apologized in court for the incident.

Jones said he has been going to anger management classes and alcohol-related treatment following the arrest. He made headlines in April for yelling at a local reporter who asked questions about the arrest.

The 33-year-old has a history of off-field incidents, including one that almost ended his career. He was suspended without pay by the league for the 2007 season after an incident in a Las Vegas nightclub resulted in a man being paralyzed. Jones was later ordered to play $12 million in damages to the victim.

Jones has been with the Bengals since 2010 and was voted a team captain for the first time in 2016. Bengals owner Mike Brown publicly stood by him after the arrest.

“He knows full well what he has done to himself,” Brown had told Bengals.com and the Cincinnati Enquirer as part of his statement. “He regrets it. But it’s been made into a public issue, and maybe I am overly tolerant. If so, so be it.”

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Soccer