Dortmund-Villarreal : un duel très indécis au Signal Iduna Park

Le Borussia Dortmund retrouve ce mardi soir la Ligue des champions avec la réception de Villarreal au Signal Iduna Park.

Pour cette première journée de la phase de ligue, le club allemand entend démarrer sa campagne européenne sur une bonne note face à une formation espagnole qui cherche également à lancer sa saison européenne. Le coup d’envoi est prévu à 21h00.

Dortmund veut bien débuter

À domicile, le Borussia Dortmund aura l’occasion de prendre immédiatement des points importants dans cette nouvelle formule de la Ligue des champions. Les hommes de Niko Kovač arrivent notamment avec de la confiance après leur victoire spectaculaire contre Hoffenheim (3-2) en Bundesliga samedi dernier. betsport24.es

Le BVB pourra également s’appuyer sur son public pour cette première européenne de la saison. Dortmund connaît déjà Villarreal, les deux équipes s’étant affrontées la saison dernière, avec une large victoire allemande (4-0) au Signal Iduna Park.

Villarreal veut créer la surprise

De son côté, Villarreal se présente en Allemagne avec l’ambition de repartir avec un résultat positif. Le club espagnol reste toutefois sur une défaite en championnat face au Deportivo La Corogne (2-3) et connaît un début de saison plus irrégulier.

Cette rencontre représente donc une nouvelle occasion pour les Espagnols de changer de dynamique et de réussir leur entrée dans la compétition.

Un premier test européen

Dortmund et Villarreal vont ainsi ouvrir leur parcours dans une phase de ligue qui s’annonce particulièrement relevée. Pour le BVB comme pour le club espagnol, l’objectif sera de prendre rapidement des points afin de se positionner au mieux dans la course à la qualification.

Rendez-vous ce mardi à 21h00 au Signal Iduna Park pour le coup d’envoi de Dortmund-Villarreal.

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England prop Kyle Sinckler has defended the Springbok scrum following accusations of illegal tactics by the All Blacks.

The battle up front has been the biggest flashpoint of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series, with All Blacks coach Dave Rennie accusing the Boks of “walking around” at the set-piece after both the first and second Tests.

The Boks responded emphatically in the third Test at FNB Stadium, earning four scrum penalties and, late in the first half, decimating the All Blacks pack to win a penalty try.

WATCH: Power Bok scrum wins penalty try

Sinckler believes the accusations have only fired up a Bok scrum that has no need to cheat.

“All of the pressure that was put on [the Boks] by the New Zealand side in terms of walking around, wheeling around – I’ve never heard so much [about it],’ Sinckler said on the Biggar Thinking: Rugby Analysis podcast.

“But I think that kind of pressure from the outside really revved up the South African boys and they really put it to New Zealand in this Test.

“In my experience playing against South Africa, they’re not the type of team where they’re going to manipulate or mess around.

“Those big packs have got so much quality. They don’t need to manipulate or make something happen.

“They trust their processes. They trust their training. They trust the individuals that they have in the team, and even the people who aren’t in the team.

“How many games have they won in the past which have come down to their scrum?

“It might seem a bit strange from the outside looking in, but they’ve been in that situation where their scrum has won them World Cups, won them big tournaments.

“So for them, that is as guaranteed as taking the three points.”

ALSO: ‘Humble’ Kiwis look for scrum quick fix

There has also been debate over whether World Rugby is seeking to depower the scrum through law changes and the way existing laws are applied by referees.

Sinckler, though, is firmly against diminishing the contest and believes the attention generated by the Bok-All Blacks scrum battle has been good for the sport.

“The scrum is what makes rugby union rugby union.

“The set-piece, the lineout, the maul, the scrum, the ruck – it just highlights how important that part of the game is and why it should always be at the forefront of our game.

“Sometimes, which frustrates me, especially when you watch rugby on TV, you have commentators say, ‘Oh, we need to hurry this up. There needs to be a time on it.’

“It’s like, no. This is a contest. This is what rugby union is about. This is the game.

“That’s the contest, and it should be heightened. It should be bigged up like it has been throughout the series.

“I’m obviously always going to be biased, but I’ve absolutely loved it.”

The post ‘Boks don’t need to manipulate scrum’ appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.

Le rêve s’arrête là pour le CF Akbou. Le champion d’Algérie en titre ne disputera pas la phase finale de la Ligue des Champions féminine de la CAF 2026, après avoir concédé une deuxième lourde défaite consécutive dans le tournoi qualificatif organisé à Tunis. Après le revers initial face au FUS Rabat (0-4), les Akbouciennes […]

L’article Le CF Akbou éliminé de la course à la Ligue des Champions africaine est apparu en premier sur Shoot Africa.

Adam Ashley-Cooper, Drew Mitchell and Matt Giteau joined the debate about the Springboks’ tactics while noting the success of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series.

The former Wallabies on the Kick Offs and Kick Ons podcast discussed the topic that has dominated headlines since the start of the four-Test battle between South Africa and the All Blacks.

A war of words saw Rassie Erasmus unleash a fiery post-match presser in Cape Town while Dave Rennie has kept picking at the issue, his latest that World Rugby doesn’t view scrum laws the same as the Kiwis.

ALSO: ‘Boks don’t need to manipulate scrum’

Mitchell reckoned the Boks used Rennie’s grievances as fuel.

“They’ll find something and use it as motivation, right? Like, even if it’s been made to be bigger than it actually was,” he said.

“How often do we hear from their scrum coach before a Test? Never. And then all of a sudden, going into that Test, we’re hearing from [Daan Human] but because that became a talking point.

“They made it such a big deal, and you knew it was going to be a real focus.”

MORE: ‘There’s no Brodie to fix All Blacks set-piece’

Giteau felt comments from the New Zealand front row didn’t help.

“Was it [George] Bower who said, ‘We’ll just let our scrummaging do the talking’? Like, good on you, you’ve got to believe in what you think, that you can put up a great fight and your scrum is just as good.

“But talking about things to motivate people – if there’s a quote, Cheik [former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika] would have pulled that up for us for sure: ‘Look what this prop here thinks of you guys.'”

Ashley-Cooper widened the discussion to whether the scrum saga was good for the game overall.

“Everyone’s talking about walking around, but it’s like there’s a focus on the scrum, which is an integral part, but no one knows.”

RASSIE: Boks just need to outscore All Blacks

Mitchell welcomed it but drew a line at how it plays out online.

“What I don’t like are the vlogs on socials that will get an aerial view and say, ‘Oh, this referee does this, or they’re cheating, or Angus Gardner is such a cheat … Like, f**k off. Just love the game for what it is.

“Understand there’s going to be human error. No one’s intentionally trying to sway one way or the other. There’s going to be times where it was against your team; sometimes it’s for.”

Presenter James Rochford asked whether the seven games in the Republic had ticked the boxes, Giteau replying: “South Africa’s made it massive because they love the sport so much.”

Ashley-Cooper added: “I don’t think there’s a punter harder on their own team than the Kiwis. South Africans are similar, but they’ve got so much love and respect for every other nation.”

Photo: Floris van Schouwenburg/Gallo Images

The post Ex-Wallabies chime in on Bok scrum wooha appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.