(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Johnny Cardoso and Real Betis are on the verge of reaching a European Final Cardoso played the full 90 minutes on Thursday as Manuel Pellegrini’s men defeated Serie A visitors Fiorentina 2-1 in UEFA Europa Conference League semifinal first leg action The second leg will take place in Florence on May 8 with the winner taking on Chelsea on Djurgarden in the final Abdessamad Ezzalzouli propelled Real Betis into an early 1-0 lead following a headed finish in the sixth minute Antony doubled the hosts lead in the 64th minute continuing what has been an impressive second half of the season Luca Ranieri pulled one goal back for Fiorentina in the 73rd minute but Real Betis would hang on for a first leg victory The 23-year-old has now made 40 appearances on the season for the La Liga club Real Betis will travel to Espanyol in league play on May 4 before traveling to Fiorentina four days later Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( 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week's news and a mix of analysis and features on a wide range of topics Have a laugh and test your news knowledge while figuring out what's real and what we've made up It's Been a Minute features people in the culture who deserve your attention Plus weekly wraps of the news with journalists in the know Exploring the biggest questions of our time with the help of the world's greatest thinkers A radio journal of news and culture produced from a Latino perspective and offbeat features from Chicago and around the world with only a microphone and a roomful of strangers How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior shape our choices and direct our relationships Your guide to examining how the media sausage is made Important ideas and practical advice: Code Switch features fearless and much-needed conversations about race—and Life Kit offers practical advice on things in life no one prepared you for Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX Reveal is public radio’s first one-hour radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting A weekly program presented by the New Yorker magazine’s editor killer beats and the edgiest new talent in storytelling come together for a weekly show that straps audiences into an audio rollercoaster Radiolab is known for its deep-dive journalism and innovative sound design Created in 2002 by former host Jad Abumrad the program began as an exploration of scientific inquiry Over the years it has evolved to become a platform for long-form journalism and storytelling Radiolab is hosted by Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser Sky forward Angel Reese reacts after scoring during an exhibition game against Brazil in Baton Rouge Angel Reese had “chills” leading up to the Sky’s exhibition game Friday at LSU, her alma mater which she hadn’t visited since graduating last spring to have a chance to spend a little time with — and for which she has been a central figure in recent years happy for [Sky rookie and LSU alum] Hailey [Van Lith] happy for the Brazil national team,” a smiling Cardoso said before the Sky left Chicago with the first of two preseason games — both against the league-runner-up Lynx — coming Tuesday which just so happens to be Reese’s 23rd birthday And if the Sky are going to stay happy this season they’re going to have to throw a far better version of themselves at WNBA opponents than the one that went 13-27 last season that means making the 6-7 Cardoso happy by playing through her in the post more determinedly It also means keeping All-Star Reese happy by helping her expand her offensive game It definitely means spacing the floor with more three-point shots squeezing all they can out of 36-year-old point guard Courtney Vandersloot and living up to new coach Tyler Marsh’s “commit and compete” mantra — not a novel concept in and of itself but certainly a welcome one after the Sky missed the playoffs for the first time since 2018 and pulled the plug on the Teresa Weatherspoon era almost before it started it means winning — and that won’t happen without the prize duo of the 2024 draft right at the heart of it all working in concert and making each other better The regular season opens May 17 at the Fever the next opportunity for the WNBA to showcase two of its brightest young stars in Caitlin Clark and Reese who stormed into the league and smashed its single-season rebounding record Cardoso needs a big season to cement her status “She knows how important she is to us from a defensive and offensive standpoint,” Marsh said “I think her potential is through the roof and we’re going to utilize her as much as possible.” Cardoso was sidelined four weeks after hurting a shoulder in last year’s preseason opener and didn’t make the rookie splash some envisioned she would But even as the Sky faded down the stretch Cardoso provided a nice taste of what she can do during a six-game September stretch averaging 14.5 points and 8.2 rebounds in 32 minutes Those numbers might be at the floor of what the Sky are looking for from a player whose rookie averages were 9.8 points and 7.9 boards in 27.4 minutes A key to unleashing Cardoso will be Reese’s ability to face the basket and handle the ball more often “Everywhere,” Marsh said when asked where he wants Reese to be want to be able to create space for her to have more one-on-one finishes inside and not have to feel like she’s got to play in a crowd We want to put the ball in her hands on the perimeter and allow her to facilitate and create off the dribble as well.” Yeah baby, this is what I wanna see more of from Angel Reese this season! Excellent transition break off of the rebound as she finds Kamilla Cardoso with a beautiful dime for the finish 🔥‼️ pic.twitter.com/an7UBPFKuH Reese drove on a defender from the three-point line to the rim got fouled and hit a free throw for the Sky’s first point Their third bucket came when Reese rebounded an air ball raced with the dribble to the other end and passed to Cardoso for a layup No one will be disappointed — or surprised — if the born-to-board Reese tops the charts in that category again But even more excitement would be derived from watching her develop a trustier shot from anywhere outside the restricted area but Reese doesn’t appear to be looking for easy “and I think that’s something we want from her through the ups and downs of the season.” Put it on the list of things that would make Sky fans happy this season Terms of Use • Privacy Notice • Cookie Policy • Terms of Sale This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Nigeria has significantly increased its resilience to external shocks Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Olayemi Cardoso said as he wrapped up a pivotal week of global engagements at the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings Cardoso committed to "double down" to ensure stability translates into tangible improvements for all Nigerians The Central Bank of Nigeria convened a high-level "Nigeria Investment Agenda" forum at Nasdaq MarketSite in New York "We have moved decisively from vulnerability toward strength," Cardoso told reporters citing reforms that have restored investor confidence even as global economic uncertainty persists Nasdaq forum underscores investor confidenceAhead of the Spring Meetings the CBN convened a high-level "Nigeria Investment Agenda" forum at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York Standard Chartered and Helios joined senior Nigerian officials to discuss the country's economic trajectory Deputy Governor Muhammad Sani Abdullahi outlined a series of structural reforms "We have moved decisively to restore policy clarity and coherence," he said Global financial leaders echoed the sense of positive momentum Global Co-Head of Corporate Banking at Citi called the FX reforms "fundamental" and a "complete game changer" for international investors "The idea of investors being able to put capital into Nigeria realise some return and be able to repatriate profits and dividends when they want to — that has completely changed." Chair of Global Research at JPMorgan Chase praised Nigeria's responsible policy amidst market turbulence Nigeria remained one of JPMorgan's top recommendations — a reflection of strong institutional interest driven by the reform direction Governor Cardoso said the New York engagement "significantly bolstered investor confidence," crediting Nigeria's economic reforms and Fitch's recent upgrade of the country's credit outlook as evidence of "consistent policies which have brought about stability in our economy setting the stage for investments and growth." At the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington D.C. Cardoso presented evidence of Nigeria's strengthening economic fundamentals: "The macroeconomic stability we are beginning to see today would not have been possible without the disciplined reforms of the past 18 months," Cardoso said Global optimism tempered by realitiesDevelopment partners expressed cautious optimism about Nigeria's trajectory Governor Cardoso reported that investor feedback signalling growing alignment with the country's policy direction." he warned that sustaining momentum would require continued discipline and adaptability especially to ensure that macroeconomic gains translate into real improvements for households and businesses including navigating softer oil prices and tighter global liquidity Banking sector recapitalisation efforts are already underway to support Nigeria's goal of building a $1 trillion economy by 2030 "We return home mindful of the scale of the challenges ahead but filled with renewed commitment to stay the course and build on the hard-won gains so far," Cardoso said Linda Anukwuem[email protected]PH: +1 (832) 452-7784 Linda Anukwuemlinda@aixfirm.comPH: +1 (832) 452-7784 in collaboration with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) Banking & Financial Services New Products & Services Do not sell or share my personal information: Joining Cardoso in Chicago was fellow rookie and WNBA All-Star Angel Reese The duo started the majority of their games in the frontcourt together helping the Sky contend for a playoff spot for most of the 2024 season Reese's statistics were certainly more eye-opening averaging 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds per game made her presence felt on the defensive side of the ball Cardoso finished her rookie year at 9.8 points on 52.1% shooting and 7.9 rebounds Jacob Musselman/ For IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK Ahead of the 2025 WNBA season, her second, Cardoso joined NBA Brazil during the Sky’s media day answering a few questions in her native language Numerous social media accounts translated one question Cardoso was asked "Who is the most promising player in the WNBA outside of herself?" "Caitlin Clark," Cardoso responded Cardoso notably picked the rival Indiana Fever's All-WNBA guard over her own Chicago teammate but she did have Reese as her "most famous contact." Clark and the Fever got the best of Cardoso and the Sky in 2024 But the center had one of her best performances of the year against Indiana recording 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting and 10 rebounds in the 88-87 June 6 win The Sky and their frontcourt duo will get a shot at Clark and the Fever in their opening regular season game on May 17th in Gainbridge Fieldhouse (Indianapolis The Chicago Sky have two of the best frontcourt players in the WNBA in Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso each entering their second season in the W The only dilemma the Sky faced last year was how to play them together taking on the Brazilian National Team in an exhibition game the duo showed a glimpse of why this pairing can work Cardoso's 6-foot-7 long strides took off in front of the pack she spotted Cardoso having established interior position thanks to her sprint down the floor SKYSCRAPERS BACK AT IT #Skytown pic.twitter.com/Ha58lAkbQH MORE: Paige Bueckers has solid stats in preseason debut It's not always easy in modern basketball's 3-point landscape to play two non-shooting bigs together because Reese and Cardoso are simply too good Taking advantage of Reese's ball-handling skills looks to be a major component of the whole thing where having both on the floor defends the rim and protects the defensive glass Reese and Cardoso are two of the league's most popular players It's important for the WNBA to have them on the floor together and it looks like they're ready to answer that call Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle The official site of the USMNT Soccer Players with soccer news Credit: Richard Bierton - News Images via ZUMA Press - ISIPhotos.com Monday’s USMNT players abroad roundup starts in the Championship where Haji Wright’s Coventry City lost 3-1 at Plymouth Argyle Plymouth added a third goal in the 65th minute Ethan Horvath was in goal for Cardiff City’s 1-1 home draw with Oxford United Yousef Salech put Cardiff up in the 56th and Oxford United equalized in the 79th minute Daryl Dike’s West Brom lost 3-1 at home to Derby County falling behind to goals in the 7th and 30th Adam Armstrong pulled a goal back for West Brom in the 70th Brenden Aaronson’s Leeds United beat Lynden Gooch’s Stoke City 6-0 at home to seal promotion to the Premier League Gooch subbed on at halftime and Aaronson subbed out in the 86th and 20th with Junior Firpo making it 4-0 in the 26th Piroe scored again in the 41st and Wilfired Gnoto added a goal in the 59th minute Josh Sargent’s Norwich City lost 3-1 at Millwall Trailing 2-0 from goals in the 8th and 39th Norwich’s Shane Duffy pulled a goal back four minutes into first-half stoppage time Caleb Wiley’s Watford lost 1-0 at Portsmouth to a 25th minute goal Watford’s Kelvin Keben saw red in the 57th minute Aidan Morris’s Middlesbrough lost 2-1 at Sheffield Wednesday Boro went up from a Finn Azaz goal in the 11th Sheffield Wednesday equalized in the 54th and went ahead in the 89th minute Donovan Pines’s Barnsley drew 1-1 at home with Peterborough United Jonathan Russell equalized for Barnsley a minute into stoppage time Johnny Cardoso’s Real Betis won 3-1 at Girona in La Liga Girona pulled a goal back in the 85th minute Konrad De La Fuente subbed on a minute into stoppage time for Lausanne’s 2-0 home win over Lugano in the Swiss Super League Fousseni Diabate put Laussane up in the 27th and Morgan Poaty doubled the lead in the 38th minute The Serie A and Serie B schedules were postponed due to the death of Pope Francis Marlon Fossey’s Standard Liege lost 1-0 at home to Oud-Heverlee Leuven in Belgium’s Pro League Oud-Heverlee Leuven scored in the 78th minute Bryan Reynolds subbed out in the 65th for Westerlo’s 3-2 win at Mechelen Matija Frigan put Westerlo up in the 28th and an own-goal leveled the score in the 30th Westerlo retook the lead in the 64th from an Issai Sakamoto goal and Thomas Van Den Keybus scored in the 77th minute George Bello subbed on in the 67th for LASK’s 4-1 win at Klagenfurt in the Austrian Bundesliga Sascha Horvath put LASK up in the 12th and Maximilian Entrup doubled the lead in the 15th Entrup scored again in the 54th and Florian Flecker finished off the LASK goals in the 84th minute Wednesday saw Weston McKennie and Tim Weah’s Juventus lose 1-0 at Parma in Serie A McKennie subbed out in the 57th and Weah subbed on in the 86th Parma scored a minute into first-half stoppage time Juventus is in 5th-place tied on points with 6th-place Lazio and a point behind 4th-place Bologna Christian Pulisic subbed out in the 78th for AC Milan’s 3-0 win at Inter Milan to advance 3-1 on aggregate to the Coppa Italia final Luka Jovic opened the scoring on the night in the 36th and doubled the AC Milan lead in the 49th minute Matko Miljevic subbed out in the 67th for Huracan’s 0-0 home draw with America de Cali in the group stage of the Copa America Huracan put six shots on goal to one for America de Cali Did Not Play: Chris Richards and Matt Turner (Crystal Palace 2 – Arsenal 2) Yunus Musah (AC Milan 3 – Inter Milan 0) Thursday had Richy Ledezma and Malik Tillman’s PSV winning 3-1 at Twente in the Eredivisie Tillman subbed on in the 69th and Ledezma subbed out in the 78th Twente went up in the 1st and Ivan Perisic equalized for PSV in the 11th PSV took the lead in the 53rd from a Guus Til goal and Luuk de Jong scored in the 57th six points behind leaders Ajax with four games remaining in the season Johnny Cardoso’s Real Betis beat Valladolid 5-1 at home in La Liga Jesus Rodriguez put Real Betis up in the 17th with Valladolid equalizing in the 41st Cucho Hernandez returned the Real Betis lead in the 64th Abde Ezzalzouli finished off the Real Betis scoring in the 90th minute Real Betis is 5th in La Liga with 54 points after 33 games two points ahead of 6th-place Villarreal who have a game in hand and six points behind 4th-place Athletic Alan Sonora subbed on in the 82nd for Cerro Porteno’s 2-2 home draw against Sporting Cristal in group G of the Copa Libertadores Cecilio Dominguez equalized for Cerro Porteno in the 42nd and Federico Carrizo scored in the 44th Sporting Cristal equalized two minutes into stoppage time Vancouver took a 2-0 lead at home over Inter Miami in the first-leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup semifinal series Brian White opened the scoring in the 24th and Sebastian Berhalter doubled the lead in the 85th minute Did Not Play: Taylor Booth (Twente 1 – PSV 3) Sergino Dest and Ricardo Pepi (PSV 3 – Twente 1) Serie A on Fox Deportes: Atalanta vs Lecce at 2:45pm. Serie B on Fox Soccer Plus: Cesena vs Sassuolo at 2:30pm. Ligue 1 on beIN Sport: PSG vs Nice at 2:45pm Primeira Liga on GolTV: Famalicao vs Sporting Braga at 3:30pm Canadian Premier League on FS2: Valour vs Halifax at 8pm ET Saturday has the Premier League on USA: Chelsea vs Everton at 7:30am and Newcastle vs Ipswich Town at 10am Championship on CBS Sports: QPR vs Burnley at 7:30am and Oxford United vs Sunderland at 10am Bundesliga on ESPN Deportes: Bayern Munich vs Mainz at 9:30am Primeira Liga on GolTV: Santa Clara vs Arouca at 10:30am and Estrela vs Porto at 3:30pm Copa del Rey on ESPN Deportes: Barcelona vs Real Madrid at 4pm Ligue 1 on beIN Sport: Strasbourg vs St Etienne at 11am NWSL on CBS: Washington vs Gotham FC at 1pm. Canadian Premier League on Fox Soccer Plus: Cavalry vs Ottawa at 5pm and Vancouver vs Pacific at 8pm. MLS on Fox: Orlando City vs Atlanta at 7pm Honduran Liga Nacional on Fox Deportes: Motagua vs Real Espana at 9:30pm Sunday has Serie A on CBS Sports: Venezia vs AC Milan at 6:30am and Fiorentina vs Empoli at 9am Fox Deportes has Juventus vs Monza at 12pm Ligue 1 on beIN Sport: Angers vs Lille at 9am and Marseille vs Brest at 2:45pm Premier League on USA: Bournemouth vs Manchester United at 9am La Liga on ESPN Deportes: Villarreal vs Espanyol at 10:15am Primeira Liga on GolTV: Benfica vs AVS at 1pm and Boavista vs Sporting at 3:30pm Uruguay’s Primera Division on GolTV: Torque vs Defensor Sporting at 9:45am. Canadian Premier League on Fox Soccer Plus: York vs Forge at 2pm. Liga MX on FS2: Juarez vs UNAM Pumas at 7pm Honduran Liga Nacional on Fox Deportes: Marathon vs Olimpia at 7:15pm Monday has Peru’s Primera Division on Fox Deportes: Sporting Cristal vs Juan Pablo II College at 2pm Uruguay’s Primera Division on GolTV: Racing vs Cerro Largo at 2pm Photo by Richard Bierton – News Images via ZUMA Press – ISIPhotos.com RostersResultsFIFA RankingsAlumni USMNT NewsUSMNT Players in MLSUSMNT Players Abroad About US Soccer PlayersPrivacy PolicyContact UsSponsorship and Licensing © 2025 USNSTPA • Contact • Privacy Policy Copyright © 2025 All Rights Reserved - USNSTPA This website stores data such as cookies for analytics and essential functionality You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible We do not sell any data we get using cookies – we simply store cookie information in your browser to perform functions such as recognizing you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful We use browser local storage to hide the homepage background image on repeated visits to make it easier to see new content we will not be able to save your preferences This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again This website uses StatCounter to collect anonymous information such as the number of visitors to the site Keeping this cookie enabled helps us to improve our website Please enable Strictly Necessary Cookies first so that we can save your preferences As the Americans Abroad contingent grew to new heights over the past season many players impressed in some of Europe’s top leagues From Christian Pulisic’s continued production at AC Milan to Antonee Robinson and Haji Wright’s productive campaigns with Fulham and Coventry City respectively there was plenty for American soccer fans to be excited about heading into a busy international summer schedule Josh Sargent answered the call for Norwich City and Richie Ledezma logged ample minutes in the Dutch Eredivisie Here is a closer look at SBI’s Best XI for the past international season: **This post will be updated with final statistics for the European season when it concludes Ethan Horvath began Cardiff City’s season as the club’s No 1 and despite being on the bench for most of the winter schedule concluded the campaign back in his familiar spot made 20 appearances for the Bluebirds this season men’s national team veteran made the most of Jak Alnwick’s injury by jumping back in between the posts for the final few months Although the Bluebirds suffered relegation to League One Horvath has the best chance after playing the most minutes between him and the rest of the European contingent Richie Ledezma was thrown into the right back role at PSV and did not disappoint Ledezma logged 2,514 minutes in Peter Bosz’s squad The midfielder-turned-defender featured in four different competitions for the reigning Eredivisie winners showing his versatility in a new role for the club Ledezma seems likely to be part of the Mexico pool for the foreseeable future but Mauricio Pochettino could come knocking after watching the 24-year-old impress in his new opportunity Borussia Moenchengladbach’s Joe Scally delivered another strong season for the Bundesliga side Cameron Carter-Vickers’ trophy cabinet is getting filled fast Carter-Vickers played a leading role once again for Scottish champions Celtic logging 42 appearances across all competitions The USMNT center back scored two goals for the club helping Brendan Rodgers’ squad repeat as league winners Carter-Vickers remains one of several center backs eligible for CONCACAF Gold Cup duty this summer and it would be hard for Pochettino to leave him out after he was a rock for Celtic Chris Richards enjoyed his best season yet at club level The 25-year-old defender made 27 combined appearances for Crystal Palace this season Richards helped Crystal Palace advance to this month’s FA Cup Final while also keeping the Eagles in the mix for a top-half finish Despite suffering hamstring and calf problems during the club season Richards returned to consistent action in January it will be hard to leave Richards out of the USMNT starting lineup for the Gold Cup group stage Auston Trusty and Mark McKenzie both enjoyed positive moments throughout their club seasons and will also be on Pochettino’s radar for summer involvement One season after a career-best year for Fulham Robinson was one of Fulham’s best players this season registering 10 assists in 36 combined appearances The USMNT left back continued to show why some of Europe’s big clubs are circling him for a potential transfer target this summer Robinson’s final-third delivery continued to blossom Caleb Wiley and John Tolkin both showed promise in their moves to new clubs setting the stage for what could be a bigger 2025-26 Bournemouth fans were finally able to see the best version of Tyler Adams this season Adams returned to full fitness for the Cherries making 29 appearances across multiple competitions The USMNT midfielder was one of the key figures in Andoni Iraola’s squad which certainly helped Bournemouth remain in the European race as long as they did Keeping Adams healthy throughout the summer will be key especially given his track record of missing ample time in recent years Bournemouth and the USMNT will have big plans for Adams heading into the new campaign Gianluca Busio remained a consistent performer for Serie A side Venezia earning Honorable Mention honors for this spot There might not have been a more productive American midfielder this season than Johnny Cardoso Cardoso made 40 appearances for La Liga side Real Betis Consistency in Manuel Pellegrini’s squad as well as both of Spain’s competitions Cardoso has become a fan favorite in Betis but could be on the move this summer after his impressive campaign Paxten Aaronson has enjoyed a positive loan spell with FC Utrecht continuing what has been a strong start to his European career Moving to PSV has been the spark for Malik Tillman in his club career Tillman scored 13 goals and added four assists for PSV rebounding from a few injuries to play a large role this season The attacking midfielder has returned with a bang helping PSV clinch a European spot for next season and becoming a key leader in their attack Although Tillman has lacked production with the USMNT Griffin Yow has continued to take steps forward for Belgian club Westerlo but still has a few more matches to contribute before making his next decision Christian Pulisic has surely enjoyed life in Milan The USMNT star has delivered another stellar season for the Rossoneri being a key reason on why the Rossoneri has brought home one trophy so far Pulisic could add a Coppa Italia Final win to his growing resume by season’s end as well as leading AC Milan back into Europe for next season Haji Wright has made the most of his time in the EFL Championship The 27-year-old leads Coventry City with 12 goals this season returning from an ankle injury to help Frank Lampard’s squad into the promotion playoffs Wright’s physicality and versatility has led to him playing in multiple offensive roles a theme that could translate over to the USMNT’s summer schedule Ricardo Pepi bounced in-and-out of the PSV starting lineup this season Pepi has 17 goals to his name in all competitions and still could add to that total by season’s end Josh Sargent made it double-digit goals for the second-consecutive season The Missouri native has tallied 15 goals for Norwich City despite the Canaries missing out on the promotion playoffs but still remained a vital part of the Canaries squad earning EFL Championship Team of the Season honors Whether or not Sargent remains at Norwich City this summer remains to be seen but if it was his last campaign at Carrow Road he will go down as one of the club’s more recent positive signings Alex Zendejas has continued to be one of Liga MX’s consistent offensive threats Zendejas has nine goals and 12 assists for Club America helping the club win the Apertura title and also remain in the hunt for a Clausura crown What do you think of the Americans Abroad Best XI Who did we leave out that you feel deserved a place and to think that was always a strength of US soccer Photo by: Joel WautersDalecka and Cardoso named MVC Doubles Team of the Week4/9/2025 3:46:00 PM | Women's Tennis Iowa — The UNI women's tennis team is ranked sixth in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) standings with a 2-3 conference record and 5-13 overall This week's MVC Doubles Team of the Week honors went to Darta Dalecka and Lorena Cardoso The Panther duo is 10-10 overall in doubles competition this season and currently riding a three-match win streak in MVC play where the duo picked up dominant wins over Valparaiso UNI will wrap up the regular season with three final matches - starting with Drake on Saturday April 12 before hosting Murray State on Friday UNI tennis action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Tennis), X (@UNITennis) and on Instagram (@uniwtennis) along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com Cardoso was coach Dawn Staley's star center last season and along with Paopao helped the Gamecocks win a national championship she was selected third overall by the Chicago Sky Some mock projections have the Sky selecting Paopao in the 2025 WNBA Draft on Monday (7:30 p.m. USA TODAY and the Athletic both have Paopao going to the Sky in their respective projections Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca along with ESPN contributors were asked Thursday about a reunion of some college players at the pro level The question relates not just to the former South Carolina players but also to Angel Reese who could be reunited with former LSU teammate Aneesah Morrow if she is drafted by the Sky "I think the only advantage is you can get a potential feel for what kind of player that person might be," ESPN analyst and former WNBA star Rebecca Lobo said Thursday right to Angel and say 'What kind of teammate is this person what kind of a worker is this kid,' but in terms of the chemistry that's a piece that's probably a little bit lower." Paopao and Cardoso never lost a game and according to CBB analytics the net rating when Paopao and Cardoso were on the floor together was a +40 14.7% of Paopao's assists last season went to Cardoso Pagliocca said the first thought will always be to do what's best for the team but that the chemistry factor does play a role in some way in terms of reuniting players "When there's players available that could be in our range to get perspectives from players that they may have played with .. it matters because continuity means a lot when you're building a team." TRACKER: South Carolina women's basketball transfer portal tracker 2025: Who's in, out for Dawn Staley The Sky were 10th in the Eastern Conference the leading scorer from last season with 17.5 points another reason why a productive guard may be a draft requirement Cardoso averaged 27.4 minutes and 9.8 points per game as a rookie starting in 29 of the 32 games she played in Paopao shot 44.4% from the field this season and 37% from behind the 3-point line Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X playIs Johnny Cardoso ready for the Premier League Alejandro Moreno and Gab Marcotti discuss whether Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso is on the move to the Premier League "I can't lie and it's true that it's something that gives me confidence, that makes me feel valued because I'm doing a good job," Cardoso told Diario de Sevilla about Tottenham's interest try to do my best for the benefit of the group and grow as a person on and off the pitch This season we have important things to think about." USMNT's Johnny Cardoso has a contract with Real Betis through 2030. Jesus Ruiz/Quality Sport Images/Getty ImagesCardoso whose contract with Betis expires in June 2030 Asked if he would like to remain at Betis if the team qualifies for next season's Champions League It's a team that has been my home since I arrived and I feel very good here." Cardoso was included in Mauricio Pochettino's USMNT squad for the Concacaf Nations League Finals earlier this month but had to withdraw due to a muscular strain The U.S. lost 1-0 to Panama on March 20 before falling 2-1 to Canada on Sunday to finish fourth in the tournament Despite the back-to-back defeats Cardoso is optimistic ahead of the 2026 World Cup Cardoso is confident the national team will get better under Pochettino, who was appointed in September following the USMNT's early exit from the Copa América on home soil "The change of coach takes a little to get used to at the beginning because we have very little time when you only have camps for a week every three months," he said "When we started with Pochettino we already had the mentality to learn and progress and put his style of play into practise "I'm looking forward to working with him again." Chicago Sky center Kamilla Cardoso was dominating in college while playing for Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks squad Cardoso's final college season concluded with the Gamecocks going undefeated and winning the 2024 NCAA national championship. In order to do that, they had to get past Angel Reese and Hailey Van Lith's LSU Tigers squad several times who South Carolina had a bitter rivalry with There is certainly no love lost between the Tigers and the Gamecocks. And Cardoso might have reignited some bad blood with a comment she made after the Sky's first WNBA training camp practice on April 27. Chicago is playing a preseason game in Baton Rouge (where LSU players play) against the Brazilian National Team on Friday, May 2. When Chicago reporter Julia Poe asked Cardoso to share her favorite memory from playing LSU in college, Cardoso said, “Well, we won every time we played them, right? So…” Chatted with Kamilla Cardoso for a bit this afternoon (more from that in a bit).With Friday’s preseason game in Baton Rouge coming up, I asked her to share her favorite memory from playing LSU.Kamilla: “Well, we won every time we played them, right? So…” While Cardoso was clearly just joking, her comment has frustrated a lot of LSU fans — even though it's true that she never lost a game at LSU during her entire college career. And despite the feedback, Cardoso doubled down on her comment took after it went viral, writing on X, "i might tell you a joke but I’ll never tell you a lie 😂😂 GO SKY 🩵💛". i might tell you a joke but I’ll never tell you a lie 😂😂 GO SKY 🩵💛 Props to Cardoso for standing on business in this way. However, doing so might not endear her to Reese or Van Lith, whom she's now teammates with. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only Betting and gambling content is intended for individuals 21+ and is based on individual commentators' opinions and not that of Sports Illustrated or its affiliates All picks and predictions are suggestions only and not a guarantee of success or profit If you or someone you know has a gambling problem crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER Real Betis placed one foot into the UEFA Europa Conference League semifinals after earning a comfortable first leg victory on Thursday men’s national team midfielder Johnny Cardoso played the full 90 minutes as Real Betis defeated Polish side Jagiellonia Białystok 2-0 Cardoso rarely put a foot wrong in the match Goals from Cedric Bakambu and Jesus Rodriguez helped Manuel Pellegrini’s squad take a two-goal lead into next week’s trip to Poland the 23-year-old made his 36th appearance of the season across all competitions Real Betis will take its nine-match unbeaten run into Sunday’s La Liga top-six showdown with Villarreal Gio Reyna and Borussia Dortmund got rolled in UCL play Tanner Tessmann missed Lyon’s first leg draw with Manchester United due to personal reasons Brenden Aaronson and Leeds United defeated Middlesbrough in EFL Championship play Caleb Wiley assisted once in Watford’s home victory over Hull City Alex Zendejas and Club America suffered CONCACAF Champions Cup elimination to rivals Cruz Azul Here is a closer look at this week’s Americans Abroad: Gio Reyna came off the bench and played 23 minutes in Borussia Dortmund’s 4-0 first leg loss to Barcelona on Wednesday Cole Campbell did not dress for Borussia Dortmund Tanner Tessmann did not dress (Personal Reasons) in Lyon’s 2-2 first leg win over Manchester United on Thursday Timmy Chandler dressed but did not play in Eintracht Frankfurt’s 1-1 first leg draw with Tottenham on Thursday Johnny Cardoso started and played 90 minutes in Real Betis 2-0 first leg win over Jagiellonia Bialystok on Thursday Brenden Aaronson started and played 90 minutes in Leeds United’s 1-0 win over Middlesbrough on Tuesday Aidan Morris started and played 90 minutes for Middlesbrough and played 90 minutes in Watford’s 1-0 win over Hull City on Tuesday Josh Sargent started and played 90 minutes in Norwich City’s 0-0 draw with Sunderland on Tuesday and played 90 minutes in Cardiff City’s 2-2 draw with Preston North End on Tuesday Haji Wright started and played 85 minutes in Coventry City’s 1-0 win over Portsmouth on Wednesday Daryl Dike came off the bench and played 25 minutes in West Bromwich Albion’s 2-1 loss to Bristol City on Tuesday Lynden Gooch dressed but did not play in Stoke City’s 1-1 draw with Luton Town on Tuesday Christian Cappis came off the bench and played 21 minutes in Viking’s 3-1 win over Kristiansund on Thursday Alex Zendejas started and played 90 minutes in Club America’s 2-1 second leg loss to Cruz Azul on Tuesday No player has looked at home at the base of midfield for Tottenham Hotspur this season Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur have played the most minutes in holding midfield but have been unconvincing The pair will have one year left on their contracts in the summer and it would not be a surprise if one or both departed north London Having been substituted at half-time in three of his last four starts Bissouma may already have one foot out the door Lucas Bergvall has deputised well deeper in midfield but is naturally a more attacking player Archie Gray’s debut in that role against Fulham was encouraging but he has just turned 19 and is inexperienced in that position as a professional Tottenham should be looking to sign a defensive midfielder in the summer they made contingency plans for that last year As part of the deal to sell Giovani Lo Celso to Real Betis Spurs inserted a buy option on Johnny Cardoso According to sources with knowledge of the arrangement the fee is in the region of €25million (£20.9m; $26.9m) Cardoso signed for Betis in January 2024 from Brazilian club Internacional Though he was raised in Brazil by Brazilian parents Joao Lucas de Souza Cardoso does not wear the famous yellow and green on the international stage a nickname given to him as a child by his father He moved to his parents’ homeland when he was a baby and is still learning the English language Cardoso offers a technical and physical dynamism that should see him fit seamlessly into life in north London Cardoso’s formative years were spent playing futsal a small-sided version of football often played indoors with a smaller and heavier ball technical ability shines above pace and power and Cardoso’s ability to handle the ball in tight spaces reflects the hours spent on the hardwood court he receives a pass on the half-turn with space to attack in front of the Atletico Madrid defence Cardoso typically plays as part of a double pivot for Real Betis alongside Sergi Altimira who is more of a traditional deep-lying playmaker he often pushes forward while his partner receives from defence while the No 6 is often required to play that role under most coaches Cardoso’s tendency to push ahead of the defence may be more reflective of a prospective role at Tottenham under Ange Postecoglou where the central defenders (particularly Cristian Romero) are often the primary ball-progressers from deep With Atletico midfielder Koke attempting to cover the distance Cardoso spins his marker and pushes the ball forward He then plays an excellent reverse through pass between the Atletico centre-backs weighted perfectly for Abde Ezzalzouli to run onto and face Jan Oblak in a one-v-one situation Ezzalzouli drags his shot wide of the post After leaving the confines of the futsal court and graduating to the pitch Cardoso played as a striker or wide player before moving deeper He’s now primarily a midfield anchor for club and country but that urge to progress attacks and play quickly in the opposition’s half has not left him Cardoso supports an attack in the opposition half where Las Palmas shirts outnumber Betis After his team-mate loses possession on the right wing Combining his defensive qualities and experience playing as a forward he dribbles down the wing and cuts a cross back for striker Willian Jose His ability to affect the game higher up the pitch is an attractive asset for Spurs who have struggled recently with creativity from midfield given Bentancur and Bissouma’s patchy form and Gray and Bergvall’s lack of experience in that role Spurs may envision a player with different qualities to play in holding midfield moving forward As evidenced by his line-splitting pball against Atletico Cardoso is an ambitious passer — regardless of his position The camera angle does not do this pass justice but the grabs below highlight his capabilities in picking team-mates out from deeper positions This clip is from his time in Brazil playing for Internacional where Cardoso spots a diagonal run made by forward team-mate Enner Valencia Under limited pressure — a privilege he will rarely receive in that position in the Premier League — he drives a 50-yard pass through the heart of Cuiaba’s defence which drops perfectly into the former West Ham United man’s path but it highlights Cardoso’s passing potential if given time and space with on-loan Manchester United winger Antony making a similar run across the face of his defensive marker Cardoso chips a pass over the Las Palmas defence and onto the in-motion Antony’s chest who brings the ball down and attacks their goal Reflected in an average pass completion rate compared to positional peers (84.7 per cent) Cardoso’s forward balls are not always as fruitful He can be guilty of rushing transition attacks and unsuccessfully attempting difficult passes There’s also the question of how he responds to the Premier League where the physicality level is increased and midfielders do not typically get as much time and space to assess their passing options A player with the drive to push the team forward is an attractive quality for most elite coaches but his pass selection must be better in a side that endeavours to keep possession in the opposition half he has led La Liga in interceptions per 90 and currently ranks second highest in that category this season (2.35) he makes the highest share of interceptions near the centre circle — an area Spurs must improve in to become more defensively solid — but is also adept at making them all over the pitch Real Sociedad are attempting to break quickly on Betis and Cardoso is the player closest to the ball prompting the opposition player to attempt a take-on but Cardoso reacts and wins the ball with a sliding tackle He doesn’t have outstanding straight-line pace but combined with his ability to read the game Cardoso closes distances quickly and excels in winning possession through interceptions or tackles he is occasionally overconfident in trying to win possession and has a tendency to get caught hunting when staying in a defensive structure may be more effective with Cardoso attempting to close down the space on an opposition player about to receive the ball and the Osasuna player plays a first-time pass to a team-mate on his first touch and attacks the space behind Cardoso before receiving the ball after a quick give-and-go action given it’s his first full season playing in Europe Cardoso’s game is not yet entirely refined it’s a role the club needs to add specialists in a 23-year-old international with experience in La Liga and European competition Elias Burke is a staff writer covering European football and transfers. He has previously covered U.S. soccer, West Bromwich Albion and Derby County for The Athletic. He is based in London. Follow Elias on Twitter @EliasBurke Credit: Pedro Soares - Imago via ZUMA Press - ISIPhotos.com The USMNT players abroad roundup starts in England’s FA Cup quarterfinals where Chris Richards’s Crystal Palace advanced 3-0 at Antonee Robinson’s Fulham and Eddie Nketiah finished off the goals in the 75th Tyler Adams’s Bournemouth lost 2-1 at home to Manchester City Evanilson scored for Bournemouth in the 21st Manchester City equalized in the 49th and scored again in the 63rd minute Haji Wright subbed out in the 77th for Coventry City’s 3-1 loss at Sheffield United in the Championship Coventry’s Jack Rudoni scored two minutes into stoppage time Josh Sargent’s Norwich City won 1-0 at home over West Bromwich Albion Sargent scored the game’s only goal two minutes into stoppage time Ethan Horvath was in goal for Cardiff City’s 1-1 home draw with Sheffield Wednesday Isaak Davies put Cardiff up in the 21st with Sheffield Wednesday equalizing in the 61st minute Aidan Morris’s Middlesbrough beat Oxford United 2-1 at home Middlesbrough’s Kelechi Iheanacho equalized in the 48th and Neto Borges scored in the 80th minute Brenden Aaronson subbed on in the 73rd for Leeds United’s 2-2 home draw with Swansea City Aaronson put Leeds up in the 1st with Swansea equalizing in the 64th Leeds retook the lead from a Wilfried Gnoto goal in the 86th Swansea equalized again six minutes into stoppage time Caleb Wiley subbed out a minute into stoppage time for Watford’s 0-0 home draw with Plymouth Argyle Joe Scally subbed out in the 71st for Gladbach’s 1-0 home win over RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga Alassane Plea scored for Gladbach in the 56th minute Cameron Carter-Vickers’s Celtic shutout Hearts 3-0 at home in the Premiership Weston McKennie and Tim Weah’s Juventus beat Genoa 1-0 at home in Serie A Kenan Yildiz scored the Juventus goal in the 25th Christian Pulisic subbed out in the 79th for AC Milan’s 2-1 loss at Napoli Trailing 2-0 from goals in the 2ns and 19th AC Milan’s Luka Jovic scored in the 84th minute Gianluca Busio subbed out in the 89th for Venezia’s 1-0 home loss to Bologna Andrija Novakovich subbed on in the 64th for Bari’s 2-1 loss at Carrarese in Serie B Carrarese equalized in the 45th and scored again in the 51st minute Kristoffer Lund’s Palermo won 2-1 at Salernitana going ahead from a Matteo Brunori goal in the 27th Joel Pohjanpalo doubled the lead in the 40th Salernitana scored a minute into stoppage time Johnny Cardoso’s Real Betis beat Sevilla 2-1 at home in La Liga Cardoso equalized for Real Betis in the 25th and Cucho Hernandez scored three minutes into stoppage time Tanner Tessmann subbed out in the 85th for Lyon’s 4-2 loss at Strasbourg in Ligue 1 Strasbourg led from goals in the 55th and 60th when Corentin Tolisso pulled a goal back for Lyon in the 62nd Strasbourg scored again in the 73rd and 89th Lyon’s Georges Mikautadze converted a penalty six minutes into stoppage time Folarin Balogun subbed on in the 76th for Monaco’s 2-1 home win over Nice Monaco’s Mika Biereth equalized in the 55th and Breel Embolo scored in the 73rd Mark McKenzie’s Toulouse lost 4-2 at home to Brest Vincent Sierro pulled a goal back for Toulouse in the 65th and Joshua King scored in the 78th Brest added a fourth goal in the 90th minute Bryan Reynolds’s Westerlo lost 1-0 at Dender in the Belgian Pro League Westerlo gave up an own-goal in the 26th minute Marlon Fossey’s Standard Liege drew 2-2 with Mechelen at home Andreas Hountondji put Standard up in the 21st with Mechelen equalizing in the 33rd Lazare Amani returned the Standard lead in the 41st with Mechelen equalizing again in the 68th minute Sergino Dest, Malik Tillman, and Richy Ledezma’s PSV lost 2-0 at home to Ajax in the Eredivisie Tillman subbed on in the 46th and Ledezma subbed on for Dest in the 77th Paxten Aaronson’s Utrecht shutout Heerenveen 2-0 at home Utrecht’s Miguel Rodriguez scored in the 22nd and an own-goal doubled the lead in the 58th minute George Bello’s LASK won 2-0 at Altach in the Austrian Bundesliga Andres Andrade put LASK up in the 28th and Krystof Danek doubled the lead in the 59th Nicholas Gioacchini subbed out in the 70th for Asteras Tripolis’ 2-0 home loss to Aris in the Greek Super League Kenny Saief’s Maccabi Haifa won 2-0 at Hapoel Haifa in the Israeli Premier League Saief scored in the 38th and Guy Melamed added a goal in the 75th minute Saief saw yellow four minutes into stoppage time Liga MXAlex Zendejas subbed out in the 75th for Club America’s 3-0 home win over Tigres in Liga MX Brian Rodriguez put Club America up in the 32nd and converted a penalty six minutes into first-half stoppage time Cade Cowell’s Chivas lost 1-0 at home to Cruz Azul falling behind two minutes into first-half stoppage time Joe Corona subbed on in the 71st for Tijuana’s 2-1 win at Monterrey Raul Zuniga opened the scoring for Tijuana in the 19th with Monterrey equalizing from the penalty spot in the 23rd Tijuana retook the lead from a Gilberto Mora goal in the 83rd minute Matko Miljevic subbed out in the 80th for Huracan’s 0-0 draw at Banfield in the Argentinean Primera Division Did Not Play: Matt Turner (Crystal Palace 3 – Fulham 0) Daryl Dike (West Brom 0 – Norwich City 1) Donovan Pines (Barnsley 1 – Wigan Athletic 1) Kevin Paredes (Wolfsburg 0 – Heidenheim 1) Timmy Chandler (Eintracht 1 – Stuttgart 0) Lenny Maloney (Mainz 1 – Borussia Dortmund 3) Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund 3 – Mainz 1) James Sands (St Pauli 2 – Bayern Munich 3) John Tolkin (Holstein Kiel 0 – Werder Bremen 3) John Brooks (Hertha BSC 3 – Karlsruher 1) Terrence Boyd (SV Waldhof 0 – Borussia Dortmund II 0) Jordan Pefok (Reims 3 – Marseille 1) Taylor Booth (FC Twente 1 – Heracles 2) Konrad De La Fuente (Lausanne 1 – Luzern 4) Matthew Hoppe (Sonderjyske 2 – Silkeborg 1) Erik Palmer-Brown (Panathinaikos 2 – Olympiacos 4) Jonathan Gomez (PAOK 3 – AEK Athens 2) Ventura Alvarado (Mazatlan 3 – Atlas 2) Alan Sonora (Cerro Porteno 1 – Atletico Tembetary 0) Photo by Pedro Soares – Imago via ZUMA Press – ISIPhotos.com After an insanely entertaining WCBA regular season Who’s making the biggest difference for their squads This 2024-25 WCBA regular season was nothing short of spectacular. So many WNBA players found roles made strides and even discovered new identities throughout this winter unforgettable highlights and hype-inducing stat lines that seem to nearly guarantee a jump when these players return to W soon doing it in the regular season is one thing but being unstoppable in the playoffs is something else So which of your WNBA favorites are still playing at a high level now that the WCBA playoffs have begun all of whom continue to set the tone for their squads as they fight their way to a chip Chennedy Carter has turned into a GOAT in China this year When it came to the regular-season scoring champion in the WCBA there was hardly anyone or anything that could slow her down before her team ultimately lost their first-round series to Shanxi after stealing the first game On top of her countless performances throughout the season Chennedy Carter 52 points vs. Shanxi : Chinese Baller Vision pic.twitter.com/HJP3uKuqry eight boards and three assists on 53 percent shooting from the field was otherworldly as Wuhan managed to squeak out a one-point win to kick off the series Carter and her squad dropped the next two games one of the newest members of the Phoenix Mercury a season that has continued into the second round of the playoffs Her heroics in the first round prevented Inner Mongolia from getting ousted by Shaanxi unleashing a masterclass performance where she popped off for 25 points and 14 boards all on 60 percent shooting and 7-for-7 shooting from the free-throw line in a 34-point win to propel her squad to the second round Kamilla Cardoso has been a true jack of all trades in the WCBA this season Her performance in this league has me fully locked in on the jump she could be set for in the 2025 WNBA season with the Chicago Sky Cardoso has been on another level and that isn’t changing just because the playoffs have begun; if anything Faltou só um pouquinho pro triple double! anota mais um double double pra nossa 17 PTS6-10 FG20 REB9 AST1 BLK 2 STL36 MIN#WCBA #WNBA pic.twitter.com/0CqCnNgjm5 Cardoso torched the first round with her squad sweeping Cardoso turned in a very impressive 17-point She only doubled down in Game 2 with an 18-point 14-rebound and nine-assist performance in the series-sealing win Unreal numbers by the soon-to-be WNBA sophomore superstar Kamilla Cardoso 2025 WNBA MVP prop bets and current oddsData SkriveBookmakers have listed the Chicago Sky's Kamilla Cardoso at +25000 to win the WNBA MVP award for the 2025 season For Cardoso's updated statistics and to stay on top of changing odds WNBA odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Monday at 5:13 a.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub Sign up for Fubo to watch WNBA games live! ShopLas Vegas Aces Drafted: Chicago Sky (No. 3 overall in 2024) 2024 SEASON OVERVIEW: The No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 draft by the Sky, Kamilla Cardoso established herself as a key piece to Chicago’s future after a statistically strong rookie season.  Overall, she averaged 9.8 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks on the season. She finished the year ranked second in the league in offensive rebounds per game at 3.0, which ranked only behind teammate Angel Reese.  Cardoso missed the Sky’s first six games of the season due to an injury. Upon her return in a June 1 game against Indiana, Cardoso made an immediate impact off the bench with 11 points and six rebounds. Cardoso was inserted into the starting lineup after her first three games, notching starts in her remaining 29 games of the season. She helped the Sky to a pair of key victories in June, including a career game in which she finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds in a win over Indiana. After the All-Star/Olympic break, Cardoso averaged 12.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 blocks while shooting 58.7% from the field and 80.9% from the free throw line in her 13 healthy games. She pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds in a win over Los Angeles on Aug. 17 and then set career highs in scoring twice in the span of five games (18 on Aug. 23 and 22 on Sept. 1). She also set career highs for assists with six on Aug. 28 and notched a career-high five blocks twice. For her efforts, Cardoso was named to the WNBA’s All-Rookie Team alongside Reese. Among rookies this season, she ranked first in blocks (46), first in field goal percentage (52.1%), third in double-doubles (seven), second in total rebounds (254) and second in offensive rebounds (96).  If you are having difficulty accessing any content on this website men's national team squad due to injuries Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information “We’ve found ourselves in a situation where the foreign-exchange rate has adjusted,” Cardoso said in a virtual briefing on Thursday, referring to the naira’s sharp depreciation last year. The weakening offers investors the chance to “take advantage” of a currency that has become “a lot more competitive,” he said. This marks the first time in franchise history where two rookies have been named to the All-Rookie team in the same year. Joining the two in All-Rookie honors are Indiana’s Caitlin Clark, Los Angeles’s Rickea Jackson and New York’s Leonie Fiebich. Both Reese and Cardoso were also named to the Associated Press 2024 All-Rookie Team. In this year’s 2024 WNBA Draft, the Sky selected Cardoso as the No. 3 overall pick and Reese as the No. 7 overall pick, securing two first round draft picks since 2018. On June 12 against Connecticut, the duo became the first rookie pair to record 10+ points and 9+ rebounds in the same game in the league since 2014 with Connecticut’s Chiney Ogwumike and Alyssa Thomas. Just two games later, the rookies became the Sky’s first rookies in franchise history to tally more than five offensive rebounds in the same game and the first to do so in the league since New York’s Jocelyn Willoughby and Joyner Holmes in 2020. On June 23 against Indiana, they became the first rookie duo in league history since 1998 to notch double-doubles over multiple games in the same season. In that same game, they became the only the fifth pair of teammates and first rookie teammate pair to have at least 15 points and 10 rebounds while shooting over 65.0% from the field in the same game. By the end of June 2024, the duo also became the first rookie teammates in the WNBA since 2010 to record more than 10 rebounds in the same game. With Cardoso’s 15 points and 14 rebounds and Reese’s 14 points and 11 rebounds on August 17, it marked the 12th time two rookie teammates each had double-doubles in the same game. Cardoso and Reese account for the last four in the record books. The pair combined for 33 double-doubles this season and Reese and Cardoso rank first and second, respectively, in franchise history for most double-doubles in a rookie season. They also led the Sky in offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds and total rebounds. The duo accounted for almost half of the Sky’s total rebounds this season, notching 700 of 1,464. Among rookies this season, Reese and Cardoso finished first and second, respectively, in both rebounds per game and offensive rebounds per game in 2024. The pair were also two of four rookies this year to surpass 300+ total points this season, with Reese reaching 462 and Cardoso with 313. They also both finished top four in points per game. In a stretch from August 18-25, Reese recorded at least 20 rebounds in three straight games, becoming the first player in league history to do so. Her 22 rebounds on August 25 were the league season high and tied the Sky’s all-time single game record with Sylvia Fowles. She also became the first player with multiple games of 10+ offensive boards and 10+ defensive rebounds in the same game. Additionally, Reese also became the fastest player to 400 rebounds in league history. After being sidelined for the first six games of the season, Cardoso immediately made an impact during her first regular season game on June 1 with an 11-point, six rebound game. She recorded her first career double-double just seven games in with 10 points and 10 rebounds against Indiana on June 16. Cardoso also finished first among rookies in field goal percentage at 52.1% and second in blocks per game at 1.4. She recorded a season-high 22 points against Minnesota on September 1 and reached 300 career points also against Minnesota on September 13. She also recorded career highs in assists with six on August 28 and in blocks with five apiece on August 25 and September 6. She finished her year ranked in the top 10 in Sky single season rebounds and blocks. In her last 13 full games, Cardoso averaged 12.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 blocks. challenges for the ball with Celje’s Mark Zabukovnik during a Conference League soccer match between Betis and Celje at the Benito Villamarin stadium in Seville LOUIS (AP) — Midfielder Johnny Cardoso will miss the second leg of the United States’ CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Jamaica on Monday because of a strained left hamstring Soccer Federation said Cardoso was returning to Spain’s Real Betis later Saturday and was not being replaced on the roster Credit: Craig Thomas - News Images via ZUMA Press Wire - ISIPhotos.com The weekend roundup of USMNT players abroad starts in the FA Cup Fifth Round where Antonee Robinson’s Fulham advanced 4-3 on penalties over Manchester United after drawing 1-1 in regulation Calvin Bassey put Fulham up at Old Trafford a minute into first-half stoppage time with Manchester United equalizing in the 71st Fulham went four for four from the penalty spot with Antonee Robinson converting in the fourth round while Manchester United failed to convert in rounds four and five Matt Turner and Chris Richards’s Crystal Palce beat Millwall 3-1 at home to advance and own-goal gave Palace the lead in the 33rd and Daniel Munoz scored in the 40th Millwall pulled a goal back 13 minutes into stoppage time Eddie Nketiah finished off the Crystal Palace scoring in the 81st minute Tyler Adams’s Bournemouth advanced 5-4 on penalties after drawing 1-1 at home with Wolverhampton Evanilson opened the scoring for Bournemouth in the 30th with Wolverhampton equalizing in the 60th Bournemouth failed to convert in round four of penalties with Wolverhampton not converting in rounds five and six Ethan Horvath was in goal for Cardiff City’s 2-0 loss at Aston Villa to goals in the 68th and 80th minutes Brenden Aaronson’s Leeds United drew 1-1 at home with Daryl Dike’s West Brom in the Championship Junior Firpo put Leeds up in the 9th and Darnell Furlong equalized for West Brom in the 39th minute Josh Sargent’s Norwich City drew 1-1 at Blackburn Rovers Norwich’s Ante Crnac scored in the 90th Blackburn equalized six minutes into stoppage time Haji Wright subbed on in the 74th for Coventry City’s 3-2 win at Oxford United Jack Rudoni put Coventry up in the 7th with Oxford United equalizing in the 53rd Coventry retook the lead from an Ephron Mason-Clark goal in the 58th with Oxford United equalizing in the 62nd Tatsuhiro Sakamoto put Coventry up for good in the 71st minute Aidan Morris’s Middlesbrough shutout Derby County 1-0 at home on an 80th minute Finn Azaz goal Johnny Cardoso’s Real Betis beat Real Madrid 2-1 at home in La Liga Cardoso equalized for Real Betis in the 34th Isco converted a Real Betis penalty in the 54th minute Joe Scally subbed out in the 78th for Gladbach’s 3-0 win at Heidenheim in the Bundesliga Nathan Ngoumou doubled the lead in the 18th Lenny Maloney subbed on in the 83rd for Mainz’s 2-1 win at RB Leipzig Nadiem Amiri equalized for Mainz in the 52nd and Jonathan Burkardt scored in the 58th Gio Reyna subbed out in the 74th for Borussia Dortmund’s 2-0 win at St Pauli Serhou Guirassy opened the scoring for Dortmund in the 50th and Karim Adeyemi doubled the lead in the 58th minute Julian Green subbed out three minutes into stoppage time for Furth’s 2-1 win at Fortuna Dusseldorf in the 2.Bundesliga Branimir Hrgota equalized for Furth in the 9th and Green converted a penalty in the 75th minute Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty’s Celtic won 5-2 at St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership Jeffrey Schlupp opened the scoring for Celtic in the 28th with St Mirren equalizing in the 33rd Arne Engels returned the Celtic lead from a penalty a minute into first-half stoppage time Yang Hyun-Jun put Celtic up for good in the 68th and Daizen Maeda extended the lead in the 88th Hyun-Jun scored again three minutes into stoppage time Gianluca Busio subbed out in the 60th for Venezia’s 0-0 draw at Atalanta in Serie A Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah’s AC Milan lost 2-1 at home to Lazio Musah subbed out in the 37th and Pulisic followed in the 70th AC Milan fell behind in the 28th and went a man down when Strahinja Pavlovic saw red in the 67th Samuel Chukwueze equalized for AC Milan in the 84th but Lazio converted a penalty eight minutes into stoppage time Andrija Novakovich subbed on in the 78th for Bari’s 1-1 home draw with Sampdoria in Serie B Down a goal two minutes into first-half stoppage time Bari’s Giulio Maggiore equalized in the 48th minute Kristoffer Lund subbed on in the 79th for Palermo’s 1-0 home win over Brescia Joel Pohjanpalo converted a Palermo penalty in the 87th minute Tanner Tessmann subbed on in the 70th for Lyon’s 2-1 home win over Brest in Ligue 1 Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette equalized in the 24th and scored again in the 82nd Mark McKenzie’s Toulouse won 4-0 at Angers going ahead from a Frank Magri goal in the 51st Vincent Sierro doubled the lead in the 57th Charlie Cresswell added a goal in the 71st and Noah Edjouma finished off the scoring four minutes into stoppage time Bryan Reynolds’s Westerlo drew 0-0 at Oud-Heverlee Leuven in Belgium’s Pro League Marlon Fossey’s Standard Liege lost 2-0 at home to Anderlecht to goals in the 63rd and 88th minutes Richy Ledezma’s PSV lost 3-2 at Go Ahead Eagles in the Eredivisie PSV’s Luuk de Jong equalized in the 30th and Noa Lang scored in the 34th Go Ahead equalized in the 74th and took the lead in the 87th minute Taylor Booth subbed out in the 61st for Twente’s 1-1 draw at Groningen Sem Steijn converted a Twente penalty four minutes into first-half stoppage time Paxten Aaronson subbed out in the 77th for Utrecht’s 1-0 home win over NAC Oscar Fraulo scored Utrecht’s goal in the 59th minute George Bello’s LASK won 2-1 at Klagenfurt in the Austrian Bundesliga Valon Berisha equalized for LASK in the 14th Maximilian Entrup scored for LASK in the 61st Matthew Hoppe subbed on at halftime for Sonderjyske’s 3-1 home loss to Silkeborg in the Superliga Tobias Klysner equalized for Sonderjyske in the 35th Silkeborg equalized in the 67th and went ahead seven minutes into stoppage time Nicholas Gioacchini’s Asteras Tripolis lost 2-0 at PAOK in the Greek Super League Alex Zendejas subbed out in the 89th for Club America’s 3-0 home win over Toluca in Liga MX Alvaro Fidalgo put Club America up in the 6th and Cristian Borja finished off the scoring six minutes into stoppage time Matko Miljevic subbed out in the 68th for Huracan’s 2-0 win at Velez Sarsfield in Argentina’s Primera Division Velez Sarsfield saw red in the 63rd and 72nd Matias Tissera doubled Huracan’s lead in the 80th Alan Sonora subbed on in the 77th for Cerro Porteno’s 1-0 home loss to Guarani in the Primera Division Guarani scored four minutes into stoppage time Did Not Play: Lynden Gooch (Stoke City 0 – Watford 0) Caleb Wiley (Watford 0 – Stoke City 0) Donovan Pines (Barnsley 4 – Lincoln City 3) Kevin Paredes (Wolfsburg 2 – Werder Bremen 1) Timmy Chandler (Eintracht 1 – Bayer Leverkusen 4) James Sands (St Pauli 0 – Borussia Dortmund 2) John Tolkin (Holstein Kiel 1 – Union Berlin 0) John Brooks (Hertha BSC 0 – SV Elversberg 4) Terrence Boyd (SV Waldhof 2 – Alemannia Aachen 1) Folarin Balogun (Monaco 3 – Reims 0) Sergino Dest (PSV 2 – Go Ahead Eagles 3) Konrad De La Fuente (Lausanne 0 – Servette 0) Erik Palmer-Brown (Panathinaikos 2 – Panetolikos 0) Jonathan Gomez (PAOK 2 – Asteras Tripolis 0) Ventura Alvarado (Mazatlan 1 – Cruz Azul 1) Cade Cowell (Chivas 1 – UNAM Pumas 0) Joe Corona (Tijuana 1 – Club Leon 2) On Monday, Kenny Saief’s Maccabi Haifa drew 3-3 at Hapoel Be’er Sheva in the Israeli Premier League Dia Saba doubled the lead two minutes into first-half stoppage time Hapoel Be’er Sheva scored in the 65th and 69th Weston McKennie and Tim Weah’s Juventus shutout Verona 2-0 at home in Serie A McKennie subbed out in the 60th and Weah followed in the 61st Juventus took the lead from a Khephren THuram goal in the 72nd and Teun Koopmeiners scored in the 90th minute Photo by Craig Thomas – News Images via ZUMA Press Wire – ISIPhotos.com challenges for the ball with Manchester United’s Noussair Mazraoui during the English FA Cup soccer match between Manchester United and Fulham at the Old Trafford stadium in Manchester CHICAGO (AP) — Defenders Antonee Robinson and Auston Trusty and midfielder Johnny Cardoso will miss the United States’ CONCACAF Nations League final four matches and were replaced on the roster Tuesday by midfielders Jack McGlynn Soccer Federation did not detail any injuries Cardoso left Real Betis’ March 9 Spanish league match against Las Palmas after 79 minutes and was seen training Wednesday with his left thigh wrapped then faces Mexico or Canada on Sunday in the title game or third-place match Constant transfer speculation is giving Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso extra motivation to play at his best, according to the United States international Cardoso, 23, has thrived with Betis since joining the LaLiga club a year ago from Brazilian outfit Internacional "This [transfer interest] motivates me even more to continue working, evolving and seeking to achieve great goals. It has been a very special year, with a lot of learning and development. I have adapted very well here," Cardoso told Marca I have improved as an athlete both technically and tactically and I continue to evolve I am still working to get better and better." Cardoso has made 19 appearances for Betis this season Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso started for the United States against Jamaica in November. Jesus Ruiz/Quality Sport Images/Getty ImagesAC Milan have reportedly included Cardoso on a shortlist of potential signings at midfield in the winter transfer window Betis president Ángel Haro revealed in September that many clubs were monitoring Cardoso and that his club had reached an agreement so that Tottenham has first refusal on any move for the player "I try to stay focused on the now and continue working to help Betis," Cardoso said "I leave that [transfer negotiations] in the hands of my father and my agent." Asked about his €80m ($82.6m) release clause Cardoso, who missed the October international window with a muscular problem, is focused on helping Betis in LaLiga, the Copa del Rey and the Conference League "Betis has the capacity to be among the top five [in LaLiga]," he said "Unfortunately this season we've had many injuries that ended up harming the team's rhythm and performance as well It is not easy to play in three competitions with a short squad due to injuries but we have a very strong squad to fight for big goals." Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso was not in the squad on Thursday for his team's Europa Conference League round of 16 second leg against Vitória Cardoso came off in the 80th minute of Sunday's 1-0 win over Las Palmas in La Liga Betis head coach Manuel Pellegrini said while the 23-year-old was experiencing discomfort "Johnny still has 24 hours until the match so we'll see how he recovers," Pellegrini said on Wednesday "He came off [against Las Palmas] with some discomfort but medical tests later determined he didn't have a muscle injury So we'll wait until tomorrow to see who the best starting lineup is and see if he starts or is just good for a few minutes." Cardoso trained with a visible bandage around his left thigh on Wednesday with the club ultimately deciding he wasn't ready for Thursday's game in Portugal The midfielder has been a vital cog for Pellegrini this season having started each of his club's last 11 league matches That streak will end this weekend regardless of Cardoso's health as he'll be suspended for Sunday's game against Leganés due to yellow card accumulation The next match Cardoso will be eligible to play in will be a Concacaf Nations League semifinal against Panama on March 20 Cardoso was named to Mauricio Pochettino's 23-man USMNT roster earlier this week Aidan Morris and Gianluca Busio would all be candidates to take his place on the roster and one of their rising stars is set to return better than ever Kamilla Cardoso, the 6-foot-7 center, spent her offseason dominating in the Women’s Chinese Basketball Association (WCBA), where she played 38 games and delivered an outstanding performance for the Shanghai Baoshan Dahua Swordfish. Cardoso averaged 20.8 points per game on 64.7% shooting, 10.2 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 31.4 minutes per contest, proving how much she has developed since her rookie WNBA season She helped Shanghai secure a fifth-place finish their best standing in the last four years as Cardoso was named the WCBA International Player of the Year beating out several high-profile WNBA names "YOUR 2025 WCBA INTERNATIONAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR," the Sky wrote on X Cardoso outperformed several WNBA players in the race for the award who led the WCBA in scoring with 31.4 points per game She ranked 10th in scoring and 6th in rebounding while making her presence felt defensively Chicago Sky center Kamilla Cardoso (10) looks on This honor puts her in elite company. New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones earned the award last year and later led her team to a WNBA championship Now, Cardoso is set to return to the Sky, bringing her international success back to Chicago as she enters her second WNBA season. She will rejoin a roster that features All-Star forward Angel Reese, veteran center Elizabeth Williams, forward Michaela Onyenwere, and guard Rachel Banham.  By Syeda Sadia Shahid covers MLB trending news for Athlon Sports Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso refused to commit to whether new signing Lebo Mothiba will debut for the South African giants before the current season comes to an end The former Strasbourg striker has not played an official match since December 2023 “I really hope so because Mothiba is a quality player high quality player that comes from a long period of absence a big injury and a long period of recovery,” Cardoso said as quoted by SABC Sports he had small setbacks but small which had nothing to do with an injury he had but trying to get conditioned and his muscles responding It's a player that we need to treat like a crystal very carefully but we are willing to do it “He's a wonderful person and human being and we are happy to have him among us but we need to give him all the conditions so he can recover and help us in the future I still have expectations that he can play for us before the end of the championship.” Cardoso continued: “This week or yesterday the players that were not with us made a joint training session with the Diski team and he played in a two times 20 minutes he's also anxious but we know what we have to do and we are gonna do it together so that he can join us in the future.” Sundowns will return to action against Chippa United at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Wednesday A right shoulder injury delayed Chicago Sky rookie Kamilla Cardoso’s regular season WNBA debut, causing her to miss the first six games of her first season. Since working her way back from injury, Cardoso continues to exceed expectations after the Sky drafted her No. 3 overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft. Cardoso began her WNBA career on a minute restriction following her injury but was still able to make a positive impact on the team right away. “I feel like I’m coming back,” Cardoso said at the time. “The game is coming. I’m trusting the process, letting the game come to me and going with the flow.” Her talents were on full display in her debut game, where she was entrusted to play 18 minutes off the bench in a matchup against her former collegiate teammate, Fever center Aliyah Boston. Sky head coach Teresa Weatherspoon put Cardoso in a high leverage situation right away and Cardoso delivered, recording 11 points on 71.4% shooting to go along with six rebounds in 18 minutes of play. Her first game as a professional came down to the wire as she checked back in with Chicago down six points with 5:55 left in the fourth quarter. Despite the Sky losing by a point, Cardoso finished as a game-high plus-11. “It makes me feel like [Weatherspoon] trusts me and that’s all I need,” Cardoso said of playing in a high-leverage situation early in her career. That trust stands out as she continues to draw starts on a team with several talented frontcourt pieces. Just 24 games into her professional career, Cardoso has started in 21 games and became a rotation staple, something that’s far from guaranteed in the WNBA even for top picks. When her minutes and workload increased, Cardoso never looked back. She had a particularly strong six-game stretch where she averaged 8.5 points and 9.8 rebounds from June 16 to July 2. During the productive stretch, she recorded the first two double-doubles of her career, something that drew praise from her teammates. “I’m proud of [Cardoso] going out and getting a double-double” fellow rookie forward Angel Reese said. “That’s something you all are not gonna be able to stop. We’re here for a while and we’re not going to be denied.”  She’s only continued to grow after the All-Star/Olympic break. She notched a career-high 18 points on Aug. 23. Cardoso followed that up with a career-high five blocks on Aug. 25 and then stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks and a career-high six assists on Aug. 28. Since the break, she’s averaging 12.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 blocks while making 65.3% of her field-goal attempts. “My teammates and coaches show me a lot of love and support and that gives me confidence,” Cardoso said of her inspired play since the break. Cardoso’s ability to attack mismatches in the paint is a big reason for the team’s increase in scoring and efficiency in their victories this season. Currently, Chicago attempts a league-high 42.4 points in the paint per game in large part to the efforts of their rookie tandem. Cardoso scores 7.3 points per game from the paint, ranking second in the league among rookies behind only Reese (8.5). Weatherspoon continues to utilize her frontcourt’s talents and is impressed with the dominance in the paint while continuing to be excited about its upside and room to grow. “When you see it and you can continue to show it on film, this is how we want to look. This is how it has to look for us to be successful,” Weatherspoon said. “We’re growing in those areas so it looks really good for us to know that this is a paint-heavy team. They rebound well and they score from the rebounds they convert.” As mentioned by Weatherspoon, the Sky are rebounding at an elite level with Cardoso helping lead the way. Chicago ranks first in the league with 37.5 rebounds per game. They’ve also long been dominant on the offensive glass, recording 11.5 per game. Their total rebounds and offensive rebounds per game would rank 13th and 25th, respectively, in WNBA history. Cardoso is a significant part of that dominance, ranking second among all rookies in total (8.0) and offensive boards per game (3.1). The rookie backcourt is both the highest offensive rebounding and overall rebounding duo in the league with Cardoso and Reese combining for 8.3 offensive rebounds and 20.9 total rebounds each night. “It’s a process in the rebound, you can’t just go and snatch the glass,” Weatherspoon said. “Everyone is very, very talented in this league. So you have to use your gifts, you gotta make sure you stay fundamentally sound and being fundamentally sound means you gotta put a body on somebody and then go snatch the glass. We’re getting so much better at it … it’s paying off for us right now.” Beyond her talents on the glass, Cardoso has also shown an ability to make the same kind of defensive impact that helped her alma mater become such a powerhouse in that regard. Among rookies with 20 or more games played, she ranks first in blocks per game. With Cardoso making her WNBA presence felt at a young age, it has her teammates excited for what the future holds for one of the Sky’s centerpieces. “I’ve never played with a post player that moves her feet so well, has great hands, runs up and down the court so fast and blocks shots,” Reese said. “I think she does a great job. It makes my job easy. I know she’s usually going to go and finish around the basket but she’s also a great passer as well. I just try to work with her and we work with each other and I think we’re building a good chemistry together because we’ll be here for a while.” There are no statistics available for this player There are currently no upcoming/recent events Thanks for visiting The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here The Chicago Sky have reportedly traded the No 3 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft for Washington Mystics guard Ariel Atkins The No. 3 draft pick in the 2025 WNBA draft will no longer play for the Chicago Sky next season. That’s because the Sky have traded it for Washington Mystics star Ariel Atkins, ESPN’s Alexa Phillipou reported on Sunday the Mystics will also receive a 2027 first-round pick swap and Chicago’s second-round pick in 2027 For the Mystics, the decision to trade away Atkins signals a desire to rebuild around a promising young core headlined by Aaliyah Edwards who was the Mystics’ leading scorer last season leaves after spending the first 7 years of her career with the organization Edwards had a solid rookie season, but has seemingly elevated her game to another level by playing in Unrivaled the new professional women’s 3-on-3 basketball league taking place in Miami through March She was the runner-up in Unrivaled’s 1v1 tournament and seems poised to make another leap the trade seems to indicate a level of urgency to win sooner rather than later Vandersloot is a veteran point guard who will almost definitively elevate the play of Reese and Cardoso while Allen is an experienced three-point shooter and solid defender who will help space the floor in Chicago Nurse, meanwhile, joins the organization via free agency after a year with the Los Angeles Sparks and holds career averages of 9.3 points and 2.5 rebounds shooting 42.7% from the field and 35.7% from three She’s averaged double-figure points in each of her 7 WNBA seasons She’s also the first player in WNBA history who was named to an All-Defensive Team in each of her first five seasons Atkins is in the midst of a busy offseason; earlier this week Unrivaled announced her as their latest relief contract player Atkins had been playing professionally for the Turkish club Fenerbahce this winter Atkins is amid her athletic prime and should help elevate the Sky’s roster right away 3 pick for her indicates Chicago wants to increase the chances of a winning season in 2025 and seems to follow a pattern of acquiring veteran players that began when Vandersloot agreed to sign with the team last month Atkins will certainly improve next year’s roster and provide a versatile scoring option who can also defend the Sky gave up a promising pick in what was set up to be a stacked draft class — a decision that could prove costly in the long term Johnny Cardoso picked a perfect moment for his first La Liga goal of the season The Real Betis midfielder powered home a first-half header to equalize against Real Madrid on Saturday helping his side to an upset 2-1 win over the Spanish giant Brahim Díaz gave the visitors the lead in the 10th minute at the Estadio Benito Villamarín before Cardoso answered in the 34th minute men's national team midfielder took advantage of some shaky marking in the box to nod home Isco's corner kick Former Madrid star Isco would get involved again in the second half as his 54th-minute penalty proved to be the winning goal for Betis on the evening is having another strong campaign with Betis as he continues to be a mainstay in midfield for the Andalusian club The New Jersey-born midfielder has now started 10 league matches in a row With the goal, Cardoso became just the second USMNT player to score against Real Madrid in the past 20 years. Christian Pulisic, then with Chelsea, scored against Madrid in the 2020-21 Champions League semifinal. The win was a major boost for Betis' European hopes, with Manuel Pellegrini's side moving up to sixth place. Madrid, meanwhile, dropped vital points in the title race. Los Blancos are in second place, level on points with Barcelona, which now has a game in hand. Barcelona will face Real Sociedad on Sunday. Johnny Cardoso helped Real Betis defeat Real Valladolid 5-1 in La Liga yesterday. The USMNT midfielder has become a key player for Betis this season as they aim to secure qualification for the Champions League Sam Cohen of the United Stand fan channel posted on X: "Manchester United have in recent weeks been scouting Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso The 23-year-old has featured in 24 matches this season registering 3 goals and 1 assist from midfield "Real Betis currently have Antony on loan from United and while no formal approach has been made yet it remains to be seen whether any potential interest in Cardoso could pave the way for a swap deal involving the Brazilian winger." United are one of the biggest clubs in the world. However, they have not been the force that they once were for a while now. The Red Devils will also be without European soccer next season unless they win the Europa League Cardoso should think twice if he has the opportunity to join Ruben Amorim's side Malik Tillman has impressed in the Eredivisie this season scoring nine goals and providing one assist in 22 games for PSV Eindhoven This is despite the midfielder missing part of the campaign due to a leg injury The USMNT player proved himself in the Dutch league and the Scottish Premiership when he was on loan at Rangers but it could now be time for him to try out the Premier League The Chelsea Blogger Simon Phillips published an article on Substack linking Tillman with Enzo Maresca's side Tillman had a taste of playing in one of Europe's top divisions when he was at Bayern Munich he was only given four games to prove himself in the Bundesliga Moving to Chelsea may not be the best move for Tillman as he plays in the same position as Cole Palmer the American would likely struggle for game time at Stamford Bridge Mauricio Pochettino's start as USMNT head coach has not gone to plan. His side was heavily criticised for their performances in the recent CONCACAF Nations League fixtures, where they lost to Panama and Canada This is worrying with the United States co-hosting the World Cup next year Former USMNT manager Bruce Arena has questioned whether Pochettino is the right man for the job on Tim Howard's and Landon Donovan's Unfiltered Soccer podcast "when you have coaches that don't know our culture I'm sure our coach is a very good coach but coaching international football is different than club football it's a completely different job." Pochettino has also expressed his desire to return to Tottenham Hotspur one day. TBR Football has now reported that he is "very much in contention to return to the club to replace Ange Postecoglou." The current Tottenham manager is expected to leave the club at the end of the season even if he guides them to winning the Europa League Soccer allowed Pochettino to return to Spurs The organisation wasted a lot of time in the recruitment process before rehiring Gregg Berhalter only to sack him after a disappointing Copa America last year they cannot be seen to make another wrong appointment © 2025 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved Betting and gambling content is intended for individuals 21+ and is based on individual commentators' opinions and not that of Minute Media or its affiliates and related brands Sam Cohen of the United Stand fan channel posted on X: "Manchester United have in recent weeks been scouting Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso United are one of the biggest clubs in the world. However, they have not been the force that they once were for a while now. The Red Devils will also be without European soccer next season unless they win the Europa League The Chelsea Blogger Simon Phillips published an article on Substack linking Tillman with Enzo Maresca's side Mauricio Pochettino's start as USMNT head coach has not gone to plan. His side was heavily criticised for their performances in the recent CONCACAF Nations League fixtures, where they lost to Panama and Canada Former USMNT manager Bruce Arena has questioned whether Pochettino is the right man for the job on Tim Howard's and Landon Donovan's Unfiltered Soccer podcast Pochettino has also expressed his desire to return to Tottenham Hotspur one day. TBR Football has now reported that he is "very much in contention to return to the club to replace Ange Postecoglou." The current Tottenham manager is expected to leave the club at the end of the season GOAL's key takeaways from Americans players in Europe including one USMNT midfielder scoring a dream-defying goal men's national team stars playing in Europe but the biggest winner wasn't one of the usual suspects who went toe-to-toe with the best midfield in the world - and outplayed them We're talking about Johnny Cardoso, who scored a dream-defying goal in Real Betis' win over Real Madrid Saturday Few teams get the better of Madrid and few can say they really deserved it with the American putting together a performance that could change the trajectory of his career for club and country as was Antonee Robinson - both defenders helped their sides to victory in the FA Cup The USMNT's attackers largely struggled with goals relatively hard to find this weekend It was an up-and-down series of matches but who made a loud enough statement to make up for even the worst moments for Americans Abroad this weekend GOAL looks at the major takeaways from this weekend's Americans Abroad By Alissa Hirsh How a pair of building blocks thrive together CHICAGO–With 5.4 seconds left in the game, the ball was where it needed to be: in the hands of Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter.  Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers Join today Carter had just hit a step-back 3 on the previous possession to cut the Aces lead to three Now, with “Let’s go Sky!” chants blaring, Carter crossed over to her right, shaking a premier defender in Jackie Young using her length to get a hand in Carter’s face as she unloaded from behind the arc “I’m here,” Carter screamed to a roaring crowd Those familiar with Carter’s career arc likely understand the sentiment.  Breanna Stewart had 54 rebounds in the five games of the WNBA Finals Only two players have had more in a WNBA Finals Stathead is your all-access pass to the Basketball and College Basketball Reference databases Our discovery tools are built for women’s basketball fans like you Answer your questions in a matter of seconds Carter signed a training camp contract with the Sky But in Chicago, Carter earned head coach Teresa Weatherspoon’s trust She came off the bench her first 12 games in a Sky uniform before becoming the team’s leading scorer.  Now she’s one of the best clutch players in the league, ranking fourth in clutch points amongst guards this season “She’s someone who is unguardable when she puts her mind to it,” Sky small forward Michaela Onyenwere told reporters at a shootaround in June When defenders get too close, Carter puts them on her hip and drives all the way to the rim, where she makes 63.4% of her shots. When defenders give her space, she elevates for a jumper. Her midrange efficiency is currently top ten in the league And when the team needs a clutch 3-pointer–though long-range shooting isn’t her specialty–she delivers “She’s starting to make a stamp for herself in this league,” Aces star A’Ja Wilson told reporters postgame on Aug Carter’s heroics fell short against the defending champions Las Vegas countered with a perfect out-of-bounds lob play to win the game 77-75.  But Carter has made it clear that long term, the Sky can build a dynamic offense around her The Next: A basketball newsroom brought to you by The IX diverse staff and dedicated to breaking news historical deep dives and projections about the game we love After Carter’s last two stints with WNBA teams ended in disappointment why does she seem so at ease with the Sky?  She often attributes this to her relationship with Weatherspoon “Spoon allows me to be me,” Carter told reporters at a postgame press conference in July.  Described by former teammate and current Aces head coach Becky Hammon as “the ultimate player’s coach,” Weatherspoon finds ways to keep Carter close Weatherspoon is often the first to grab an emotional Carter and put her arm around her It also helps that Carter’s style of play fits perfectly with Weatherspoon’s vision of dominating the paint. The Sky’s top two 2024 draft picks were post players who excel at creating paint opportunities. But few are better at converting in the lane than Carter. Not only does she lead all guards in paint points this season, her 10.6 paint points per game holds weight historically.  So the first step to building out Weatherspoon’s paint-dominant vision will be re-signing Carter Carter will command a premium contract in free agency the Sky can match any offer she receives. As long as Carter’s bond with Weatherspoon doesn’t break down The next step will be adding and developing pieces around Carter to make the vision more dynamic Tune in to Locked On Women’s Basketball Here at The Next, in addition to the 24/7/365 written content our staff provides, we also host the daily Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast Join us Monday through Saturday each week as we discuss all things WNBA Listen wherever you find podcasts or watch on YouTube Cardoso was still finding her footing.  The 6’7 former collegiate national champion averaged only eight points per game before the Olympic break.  ‘oh you gotta be more aggressive,’” Cardoso told reporters at practice during the break.  Not only is the rookie center finishing better through contact she’s showing off a nice touch in front of the basket.  Since the break, Cardoso is averaging 12.6 points per game on 64.4% shooting from the field and 71.4% from the line. Before the break, she shot only 46.2% from the field and 62.2% from the line This is the same type of improvement that helped Reese achieve her historic double-double streak.  Cardoso is also benefiting from chemistry with Carter, who’s given Cardoso 20 assists so far this season That’s the second most of any assist pair on the team which… leaves [our posts] wide open at the block,” Carter told reporters after a win in July “So all they have to do is catch the ball… and score.” Defensively, Cardoso has upped her blocks (1.6) and defensive rebounds per game (6.0) since the break She recorded a season-high five blocks against the Aces most of which came against two-time MVP A’Ja Wilson But Cardoso has plenty of room to improve on defense. According to Sky assistant coach Sydney Johnson Cardoso can work on being more active before her opponent catches the ball.  “[In college] you can kind of allow your person to catch the ball and play off of that,” Johnson told The Next “These [WNBA] players are so good if you allow them deep catches or even catches in their sweet spot they kinda already have you on your heels.”  Johnson believes Cardoso can make these types of adjustments before the season ends Cardoso’s slow start may begin to feel like a distant memory.  Alissa Hirsh covers the Chicago Sky for The Next She is also writing a memoir about the difficulty in leaving her college basketball career behind Illinois is known for having the top bagel options in the Chicagoland area You must be logged in to post a comment Contact Us About Us Privacy Policy We have upgraded our membership system.Please check your mailbox for a secure link to sign in and set up a new password If you have any question or need help, please email editors@thenexthoops.org Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Ken Ferris Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab , opens new tab Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. , opens new tabScreen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. © 2025 Reuters. All rights reserved By Emily Adler Brittney Sykes' 3-point shooting and a WNBA draft lottery update Welcome back to Sunday Notes, your weekly journey into trends and analysis around the WNBA. Today we’re looking at the signs that Chicago Sky rookie Kamilla Cardoso is already getting up to speed plus some random notes from my side projects I define “this week” as the prior Sunday through Saturday night no one in the WNBA is currently tanking on purpose (at least let’s see where the teams are right now in the lottery standings and where they project to end up (The chart is vaguely organized by the rightmost column.) Dallas moved up three games on Chicago for the No 8 seed from last week while Atlanta stayed where it was Indiana put four more games between itself and the Sky The Fever will probably be removed from the check-in next week In our pre-draft scouting report on Cardoso, we noted how her interior defense rests on her ability to solve movement problems a skill that was as much cognitive as it was physical The upshot was that it would likely translate to the professional level superb timing and halfcourt processing even from somewhat atypical physical approaches create defensive impact that projected to be more durable as the athleticism of her opponents improved in the WNBA as opposed to collegiate rim protectors who rely solely on length and marginal athleticism Cardoso did an impressive job handling that assignment The first thing that can pop with Cardoso is her burst and lateral quickness But her hip flexibility and overall dexterity really make her defense shine The understanding of angles and timing that allows her to solve as many movement problems as she does can be subtler but is no less impressive Note how efficiently she makes up ground recovering from playing at the level here despite looking a step behind the play when the pass is thrown but Cardoso is flashing high-level play already I bet you thought this section was going to be about Dallas’ big wins this week. But nope, this is about Tulsa Shock legend Karima Christmas-Kelly And I’m not sure I have encountered a bigger difference between a prospect’s reasonable projection and their actual WNBA peak than Christmas-Kelly a very reasonable spot at the time but a wild steal in hindsight given the quality (or lack thereof) higher in the draft She ended up being a quality role player at a position of need in her W peak but that was entirely unpredictable from her time at Duke This deeply reported story follows four connected generations of women’s basketball pioneers from Elvera “Peps” Neuman to Cheryl Reeve and from Lindsay Whalen to Sylvia Fowles and Paige Bueckers If you enjoy his coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX, you will love “Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way for the WNBA.” Click the link below to order and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout Christmas-Kelly shot 28.3% on 198 threes and 68.3% on 398 free throws in college, similar numbers to her first two to three professional seasons. Then she had a five-year peak of 10 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.1 steals on 53.3% true shooting, 34.2% from three and 80.1% from the line. That’s a peak future value of 50 her future value was a very clear 45 (good bench player) if you were to tell me that she had a solid outside jumper there was zero indication that would be the case I can at least chalk up that improvement to her being stuck in a bad and overtaxing offensive system in college then I have no idea what I’m keeping them for Brittney Sykes has shot 34.2% from three in 49 games as a Mystic. The longest previous streak she’d had shooting at least 34.0% from deep was a 32-game streak back in 2017 for the Atlanta Dream, per Sports Reference Sykes took 3.1 3-pointers per game in that Atlanta streak She is taking nearly four per game in Washington Related reading from 2023: ‘Now look what I can do’: How Brittney Sykes has realized her potential with Washington Mystics I do have a spreadsheet carefully ranking everyone in league history I’ve watched who played onto a second contract and through their peak Emily Adler (she/her) covers the WNBA at large and college basketball for The Next with a focus on player development and the game behind the game You must be logged in to post a comment Barcelona are keen to add the talents of the young Cardoso Varela to their club's youth ranks and are apparently closing in on a transfer