In games such as these it can be hard to resist the urge to bemoan Gareth Southgate’s reluctance to play a freewheeling 1-0-9 formation, with Phil Foden playing the sweeper role and Harry Kane leading a gung-ho attack of Raheem Sterling, Mason Mount, Gary Lineker, Kylian Mbappé, Erling Haaland, Pelé, Maradona and Ali Daei.

Just why does Southgate refuse to go for it? Why is he so determined not to entertain? Is he actually Otto Rehhagel in disguise? All of these questions were bubbling away when England, struggling to find their passing game on a horribly slow pitch, were being held by Albania, who were refusing to be good sports by rolling over and making life straightforward for the bigger side.

Harry Kane takes centre stage as effi…

Wrexham have banned the striker Paul Mullin from wearing his controversial new boots which featured a blunt message directed at the Conservative Party. The National League club described Mullin’s fashion statement as an “unwelcome distraction” and quickly put their foot down to stop him from lacing up his boots.

Mullin had posted an image on Instagram of the boots, with “F*** the Tories!” printed on the side. But the promotion chasers, owned by the Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, moved swiftly to stamp out the former Morecambe, Tranmere and Cambridge forward’s custom-made boots.

Wrexham’s refusal to allow Mullin’s footwear was met with criticism from some fans on social media, while…

Morecambe directors have warned the League Two club faces a “catastrophic outcome” unless the current owners agree to sell. The club was put up for sale in September 2022 by Jason Whittingham of Bond Group but with no deal concluded, the club are in turmoil.

They were deducted three points by the English Football League last season for failing to pay players on time and Whittingham was fined £10,000. He was also given a suspended fine of £20,000, which is due to be activated on 31 May unless he deposits a sum equal to 125% of the monthly wage bill to cover any future delays.

Morecambe, who finished 15th this season, are also manager-less after Ged Brannan left to become No 2 at Accrington Stanley and have five…

Still almost 50 days out, college basketball doesn’t make a splash landing until the first week of November. About the time the 12-team field for the college football playoff starts to be narrowed, the hoops season gets going with a slow buildup to a beefy menu of marquee matchups. Early season tournaments and the Champions Classic without John Calipari stand as games to mark on the calendar. Here are the games our staff is jotting down in Sharpie. North Carolina at Kansas, Nov. 8A Friday night at Phog Allen Fieldhouse provides a huge hello to hoops in a pairing of bluebloods sure to generate an audience and endless closeups of Roy Williams in the stands. Tennessee at Louisville, Nov. 9SEC Player of the Year Dalton Knecht was subtracted from the Vols’ roster and landed with the L…

A lightning strike in the area zapped the power at Tropicana Field and caused a 19-minute delay in the third inning of Tampa Bay's game against the Angels. Hoping to keep their paying customers satisfied, the Rays showed a baseball-themed Looney Tunes episode during the stoppage in play. Bugs Bunny could probably be a formidable hitter for the Rays with some guidance from Joe Maddon. [ SB Nation] Photo: @frawls6 …

Some people are fans of the New York Jets. But many, many more people are NOT fans of the New York Jets. This 2018 Deadspin NFL team preview is for those in the latter group. Read all the previews so far here. Your team: New York Jets. source: [object Object] Your 2017 record: 5-11. Last year I thought the Jets had the worst roster in football history and that they’d struggle to win a single game, and every Jets fan took me aside and they were like, “No no no no no, you don’t get it. They’re gonna meaninglessly overachieve just to fuck up their draft position,” and LO AND BEHOLD. You people know your team all too well. So let’s not go overboard and declare that 5-11 a feel-good 5-11. The Jets still managed to pack plenty of Jetsiness into last season. For example, their…

Some people are fans of the Carolina Panthers. But many, many more people are NOT fans of the Carolina Panthers. This 2015 Deadspin NFL team preview is for those in the latter group. Read all the previews so far here. Your team: The Carolina Panthers Your 2014 record: 7-8-1. FIRST PLACE! I believe first place in the NFC South gets you the participation trophies that James Harrison threw away. Your coach: Ron Rivera, whose house caught on fire this offseason. If I could bet on any coach accidentally lighting his house on fire, it would be this man. Your owner: This charming fellow… Here I’ve been making fun of Jerry Richardson for years without realizing that the fucker used to own DENNY’S. It’s true! He also founded Hardee’s, which means that Jerry Richardson got rich of…

You might have noticed that over the past few weeks we've been bugging you to take the 2012 Gawker Media Census. Well, try not to cry too hard, but the most exciting survey on the whole World Wide Web has come to a close. We learned all sorts of fun facts about the 1,553 Deadspin fans who responded this year, like how 16% of readers claim to have gotten laid the day before they took the survey. You do know it only counts if you're with another person, right? The Gawker Media Cenus is our yearly opportunity to find out how to serve you better. It's your chance to let us know who you are, what you're into, and what we could be doing differently. In exchange, we offer one lucky census taker a new iPad as a prize. This year's big winner is Gizmodo reader Alex L. Ev…

This one's for all the General Motors, laddies. Will it be the Tar Heels? Or the Tar Heels? Then again, the Tar Heels could pull it out. Time will tell. Second Half 12:09 — [wipes tear from eye] There's just something about One Shining Moment that draws all the remaining cynicism from my lower intestine and converts it into dreams and rainbows for babies with AIDS. Despite the horrible game, I am at peace. No worries, though. I will continue to seek out petty annoyances, build them up internally, and let them flush out in the form of Deadspin's next live blog. Until then, comrades, please tell Sandy I said "WHEEEEEEEEEE!" 12:05 — Awkwardest music transition in sports broadcasting history: peppy basketball band music to Masters coverage piano melody. And no…

data-mm-id=”_pgygeyl4e”>Despite losing five of their last six games with Kyle Allen at the controls, the Carolina Panthers have made the decision to stick with Allen as their long-term quarterback. According to Ian Rapoport, the Panthers intend to trade their previous starting quarterback, Cam Newton, this offseason. Newton is coming off an injury to his left foot, which he fractured in the second week of this season.After this season, Newton has one year remaining on his current contract, which will count $21.1 million against the salary cap. So where will Newton land? These seem like the most likely spots. 1. Tampa Bay BuccaneersWhile Jameis Winston may be putting up the best numbers of his career in 2019, it still won't be enough for the Buccaneers to reach the playoffs, or for…