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Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris needed just one hour to be persuaded by new star, 24, to give him a career lifeline

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Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris needed just one hour to be persuaded by new star, 24, to give him a career lifeline

REGIS LE BRIS revealed it only took an hour for Aaron Connolly to convince him that he deserved a shot at resurrecting his career.

The Irish forward, 24, joined promotion-chasing Sunderland on a free this week after three months unemployed.

Sunderland announced the signing of Aaron Connolly this week

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Sunderland announced the signing of Aaron Connolly this weekCredit: X @SunderlandAFC
The Irish striker has been offered the chance to resurrect his career

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The Irish striker has been offered the chance to resurrect his careerCredit: X @SunderlandAFC

Connolly burst on the scene with Brighton in 2019 with a brace against Tottenham.

Four years later, after failed loan spells at Luton, Middlesbrough and Italian side Venezia, he left the Amex having featured more on the gossip pages rather than sport ones.

He scored eight times for Hull City last term in the Championship but questions were raised over his physical condition.

Despite their bright start, Sunderland have only had 19-year-old Eliezer Mayenda as a recognised striker after deadline day signing Ahmed Abdullahi was sidelined for three months.

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The club’s recruitment team had produced a number of suggestions to help bolster Le Bris’ attack.

But the Frenchman says he already knew the talents of Connolly and all it took was a chat at the club’s training ground for him to offer him a lifeline.

The Black Cats boss said: “I had many, many profiles during the transfer window and so I watched many games from him before. Then, during this period when he was available, I watched other games.

“Technically, I knew him before but from his profile, and the others were exactly the same, what exactly is his pathway and connection with this project and his willingness to become a high level player again.

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“So it was the connection with our team, club and energy and I just had a one hour conversation with him and at the end it was clear that he was ready.

“He was very clear. They were not bad subjects, everything was on the table.

Roy Keane made £800 off Sunderland players but lost dressing room with training ground trick that immediately backfired

“It was clear to me that he has learned from these experiences. If you want to avoid a subject . . . but he talked about every subject. It was interesting.”

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When asked if this was the last chance saloon for Connolly, Le Bris said: “I don’t know, we’ll see. The experience needs to be lived.”

Explaining how Connolly can help his talented teens such as Jobe Bellingham and Chris Rigg, Le Bris continued: “I’ll explain it for Aaron… He maybe got carried away before and now, after, he understood that he could have many problems if that is the case.

“So these experiences are very helpful to those players that don’t know these potential problems.

“Chris Mepham, for example, is great for that as when we have spoken in here for example he has shown great maturity.

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“I have shown two or three clips this week where Chris was involved with a mistake and he just said ‘it was my fault’ instead of trying to find an excuse.

“So this experience and this behaviour is very important for everybody because we can all make mistakes but we need to learn very quickly.

“The young players, we can expect them to not make any mistakes, but it is not possible. If you take risks then you will make mistakes, that is for sure, but if you learn quickly it’s OK.”

And when pressed on whether his new recruit has now matured, Le Bris added: “I think so, but we need to experience it. We’ll see.

“At the minute I think that’s the case but the truth lies in his activity and our experience. We’ll see in the next weeks and months.”

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Le Bris stated that he realistically expects Connolly to be ready for match action after the international break.

However, both Ian Poveda and Alan Browne are due to return to the Sunderland squad for the trip to Watford after their respective thigh and knee niggles.

Regis Le Bris expects to have the star in his squad after the international break

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Regis Le Bris expects to have the star in his squad after the international breakCredit: Getty

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Mark McCall expecting tight derby between Saracens and Harlequins

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Mark McCall expecting tight derby between Saracens and Harlequins

McCall said new-look Sarries had room for improvement despite seeing off Exeter to remain the only unbeaten side in the division.

“The last performance we were more consistent throughout than we have been in the first couple of games,” he said.

“We’re happy with the energy, spirt and fight in the team. It’s a good sign and a good characteristic to have in a new team, but there is plenty to improve in our rugby.

“When you have got some new folk at your club and trying to establish partnerships and new relationships, the longer they are together the better.”

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Samoan flanker Theo McFarland is not available after concussion at Exeter but Maro Itoje should start after training with England this week.

Tom Parton and Sam Spink remain a few weeks away but McCall said there was a chance Ollie Hartley could be back well before Christmas as his recovery from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury was ahead of schedule.

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Bolivia move to stadium 2,000 FEET higher in bizarre bid to qualify for World Cup 2026

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Bolivia move to stadium 2,000 FEET higher in bizarre bid to qualify for World Cup 2026

BOLIVIA have moved to a stadium 2,000 FEET higher in altitude in a bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

The South American nation have always been difficult to beat at home due to their ground in La Paz being 11,940 feet above sea level.

Bolivia have moved to the Villa Ingenio stadium to help their World Cup qualification

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Bolivia have moved to the Villa Ingenio stadium to help their World Cup qualificationCredit: instagram @club_always_ready_oficial
They beat Colombia on Thursday in their first home game since the ground switch

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They beat Colombia on Thursday in their first home game since the ground switchCredit: AFP

But three defeats in five games in World Cup qualifying left them in dire need of a result.

They sat second bottom of the 10-team table – prompting a major decision by the Bolivian FA.

In September, they decided to switch their final five home matches to the Villa Ingenio stadium in El Alto.

This is 13,615 feet above sea level – nearly 2,000 feet higher than their usual venue in La Paz.

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They also appointed a new manager, Oscar Villegas, following the sacking of Antonio Carlos Zago in July after a disappointing Copa America.

And it seems to have worked.

After a 2-1 win away at Chile, they then beat Colombia 1-0 in El Alto on Thursday to move up to sixth in the table – the final automatic qualification spot for the World Cup.

They have not qualified for a World Cup since the US last hosted it 30 years ago.

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Following the decision to switch grounds, new head coach Villegas revealed it “is going to help us a lot”.

He said: “Soccer is made of details. It does not mean that with this [changing stadiums] we are going to win.

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“We are trying to take care of details that can allow us to be more effective.

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“In El Alto, we are going to try to be as intense as possible and to let them know that they are on a new pitch where we have been unbeatable.

“The psychological and emotional aspect also plays a role, it is something that is going to help us a lot.”

Bolivia‘s final four home games are against Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile and Brazil.

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England have to be courageous at times – Carsley

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England have to be courageous at times - Carsley



England interim manager Lee Carsley says the Three Lions “have to be courageous at times” after his attacking line-up failed to impress in a 2-1 defeat by Greece.



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Kevin Bowring: Former Wales coach dies aged 70

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Kevin Bowring: Former Wales coach dies aged 70

Bowring was born in Neath and was a product of the Neath Grammar School.

He played a few games for the Neath senior side in the back row alongside his boyhood idol Dai Morris, the former Wales flanker.

Bowring spent nine years with London Welsh where he appeared in 268 games, captaining the club for three seasons and representing the Barbarians on three occasions.

A teacher by profession, Bowring hung up his boots at 32 when he took up a job at Clifton College.

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His first taste of coaching had come as a 20-year-old when he worked with the Briton Ferry RFC youth squad.

Bowring became involved with the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) set-up where he worked his way through the ranks, coaching the Sevens, under-21s and Wales B sides.

After initially being caretaker coach as Wales beat Fiji in November 1995, Bowring took permanent control and was in charge for 28 more games.

He was tasked with trying to help Wales cope with the move to professionalism and also integrating returning rugby league players back into the union set-up.

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Bowring was seen as seen as one of the great thinkers of the early professional game and he wanted his national side to play in the traditional expansive way associated with Welsh rugby.

His reign as Wales coach ended after he resigned following a heavy 51-0 defeat by France in the 1998 Five Nations at Wembley.

After working as a lecture in Cardiff Met university, Bowring was appointed to his RFU role.

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer REJECTS national team job as he waits for return to management three years after Man Utd sacking

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer REJECTS national team job as he waits for return to management three years after Man Utd sacking

OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER has reportedly rejected the chance to return to management.

The Norweigian has been out of work since being sacked by Manchester United in 2021.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has turned down a chance to manage a national team

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has turned down a chance to manage a national teamCredit: AFP
Solskjaer has been out of work since leaving Man United

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Solskjaer has been out of work since leaving Man UnitedCredit: Getty

Solskjaer, 51, earned the full time job at Old Trafford after a stint as interim manager in 2018.

However, despite a promising start, he was axed after two and a half seasons.

Solskjaer has now been offered the chance to take over the Denmark national team.

Tipsbladet reported that he was approached over the vacant role following Kasper Hjulmand’s exit.

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However, it is believed that Solskjaer rejected the chance to have an interview with the Danish FA.

Had he accepted the position, then he would have had the opportunity to coach current Red Devils Rasmus Hojlund and Christian Eriksen.

The report claims that it is because he is already in “negotiations with a major club” over the head coach role.

Solskjaer has recently admitted that he would accept a role back at Old Trafford if the opportunity arose.

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He told media: “If the family [United] asks, I would say yes every day of the week.

“It feels wrong to talk about jobs that other people have now, but I would say yes, of course.”

How would Southgate and Tuchel transform Man Utd flops and who is best for job?

The Red Devils currently have Erik ten Hag in the dugout, although he faces an uncertain future.

The Dutchman has come under pressure from fans and the Old Trafford hierarchy due to the terrible start to the season.

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Ten Hag was the full-time replacement for Solskjaer after Ralf Rangnick‘s interim spell ended in the summer after the 2020/21 season.

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'It's going to be a massive game' – Arsenal's McCabe on Chelsea

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'It's going to be a massive game' - Arsenal's McCabe on Chelsea

Arsenal’s Katie McCabe says Saturday’s match against Chelsea is a “massive game” and it “hurt” seeing the Blues win back-to-back WSL titles.

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