Sport shorts: Rooney scores another wonder goal and President Trump hits back at US skipper Rapinoe

Ten things from the world of sport on
Thursday 27 June

Daily Briefing

Former England and Manchester United captain Rooney is now
playing in Major League Soccer (MLS) for DC United.

Since moving to the US in 2018 the 33-year-old has found
the net 18 times for the Washington-based
side.   

In the MLS match against Orlando he scored with a superb
effort from within his own half to earn DC a 1-0
victory.

Describing the long-range strike as one of his “greatest goals”,
The Sun says it’s the third time he has scored
from the halfway line in his career.

2. Duggan predicts a World Cup
cracker

England forward Toni Duggan expects tonight’s Fifa Women’s
World Cup quarter-final against Norway to be a “cracker”. The
Lionesses face their European rivals in Le Havre and Duggan said:
“I’ve watched them in this tournament and they’ve been brilliant. I
said in an interview the other day that they’re one of my teams to
watch. But hopefully they’re not here too much longer! It’s going
to be a great game, it really is. It’s going to be a
cracker.” 

Norway vs. England: Lionesses ready to
‘embrace’ quarter-final pressure 

3. Trump tells Rapinoe: respect the
flag

President Donald Trump has hit back at US co-captain Megan
Rapinoe after she said she would not visit the White House if the
US team won the Women’s World Cup. Trump tweeted:
“Megan should never disrespect our Country, the White House, or our
Flag, especially since so much has been done for her & the
team. Be proud of the Flag that you wear. The USA is doing
GREAT!” 

4. Silverstone and British GP’s future in
doubt

The future of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone is “in
jeopardy” after it was revealed by the Daily Mail that Formula 1 bosses are in talks
with mayor Sadiq Khan about hosting a race in London. Under the
current contract this year’s British GP on 14 July is potentially
the last at Silverstone.

F1: British Grand Prix ‘in jeopardy’ because of
London race talks

5. Pakistan pile pressure on
England

England’s hopes of reaching the Cricket World Cup
semi-finals took another blow when Pakistan beat New Zealand by six
wickets to move to within a point of the tournament hosts. The
result leaves the Kiwis in second and moves Pakistan to sixth,
level on seven points with fifth-placed Bangladesh who boast a
superior run rate.

Cricket World Cup: Joe Root calls for calm as
pressure mounts 

6. Gayle to carry on 

West Indies legend Chris Gayle has said that he will
reverse his decision to retire from one-day international cricket.
The 39-year-old could even play Test cricket again. “I’ll
definitely play the ODIs against India [in August],” he said. “I
won’t play the T20s. My plans are for the World Cup. Maybe a Test
match against India.”

7. Konta setback

Johanna Konta’s Wimbledon preparations suffered a significant
setback, The Guardian reports, after losing against Ons
Jabeur in the third round at Eastbourne. British No.1 Konta was
beaten in straight sets by the Tunisian. 

8. Jones to coach the Baa-Baas

England rugby head coach Eddie Jones will be in charge of
the Barbarians for their clash against Fiji on 16 November at
Twickenham. It’s the first time in his career that Jones will coach
the invitational Baa-Baas team. 

9. Zaha in for Auba? 

Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha is keen to leave the club
this summer and favours a move to Arsenal. But before Gooners start
counting their chickens, the BBC points out that the Eagles’ asking price for the
26-year-old Zaha could pose problems. Arsenal may need to shell out
£80m, but the broadcaster reckons the north London club could raise
the money. How? By “cashing in” on Pierre-Emerick
Aubameyang.  

Arsenal transfer news: Zaha, Aubameyang,
Saliba, Weigl, Balde, Comert 

10. Wan-Bissaka on his way 

Manchester United have agreed a £50m deal with Crystal
Palace to sign Aaron Wan-Bissaka. According to reports the
21-year-old right-back will pen a six-year deal worth £80,000 a
week at Old Trafford.

Today’s back pages: Man Utd land Wan-Bissaka
but pull plug on Maguire deal