Sports
USMNT milestone: Weston McKennie and Tim Weah combine for special Juventus strike
In a week when he lamented a bias against United States men’s national team players in Europe, Weston McKennie did what he does best.
In adversity, the midfielder stood up to be counted and proved that you write him and his USMNT team-mates off at your peril.
Left on the bench, alongside compatriot Tim Weah, for their Italian club Juventus as they hosted Manchester City, the pair combined as second-half substitutes to help secure a statement win against Pep Guardiola’s side.
Only six minutes after their introduction to the contest, McKennie started a move by finding Weah and then burst into the box, before the latter sent a perfect cross to the back post for the Texan to volley spectacularly past Ederson.
U.S. version:
Scored in Torino, made in America! 🇮🇹🤝🇺🇸
Juve’s #USMNT duo combine for a goal to remember as Tim Weah sets up Weston McKennie 🪄 pic.twitter.com/ZaZsL3u7jY
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) December 11, 2024
UK version:
Juventus double their lead over Man City 😳
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/okSptReD23
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 11, 2024
It made the score 2-0 against the reigning Premier League champions and created a slice of men’s Champions League history in the process.
It was the first time an American has assisted another American for a goal in Europe’s premier club competition. “There was a lovely, lazy confidence about the way Timothy Weah tossed it into the path of his fellow countryman,” said commentator Clive Tyldesley on Paramount +.
“I was falling over,” McKennie said post-match. “Nah, I’m just playing. We’ve seen it before, I did it also against Barcelona.”
McKennie and Weah are bringing their USMNT bond to club level (Valerio Pennicino / Getty Images)
There was a timely resonance to the moment, especially for McKennie, who spoke of his frustration at the perceived prejudice against American players in excerpts from a new Paramount + documentary about Christian Pulisic.
“There is definitely a bias,” said McKennie, who has had to prove himself to two different managers in the last two summers after appearing to be surplus to requirements in Turin. “I go through it most of the time when I’m at Juventus. Every year somehow I’m on the out and ready to be discarded, and every summer I’m like a new player coming in looking to make a name for myself.”
McKennie has only started three Champions League games out of a possible six for Juventus, and on Wednesday found himself initially benched with Weah, having recently recovered from muscle issues that had limited his involvement.
After the final whistle Juventus’ X account published a photograph of the pair with the caption ‘American connection’ and a stars and stripes emoji. The win moved Thiago Motta’s side up to 14th in the Champions League table and boosted their chances of automatic qualification for the last 16 of the tournament, with two fixtures of the initial league phase to go.
American connection 🇺🇸🔗#JuveManCity #UCL pic.twitter.com/kH18CKbUia
— JuventusFC 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@juventusfcen) December 11, 2024
It was a Champions League night which began inauspiciously for the Americans in Europe — with Christian Pulisic injured for Milan, striker Folarin Balogun sidelined for Monaco and McKennie and Weah on the bench. The previous evening, in-form striker Ricardo Pepi started on the bench as PSV lost to Brest, while Malik Tillman had a tough night in the same game.
Gio Reyna bucked that trend though, given his first start of the season in any competition for Borussia Dortmund in their home meeting with Barcelona.
Reyna started in midfield against the Catalan giants, a major upturn on his recent minimal game time from the bench in the Bundesliga, where his campaign to date has been ruined by groin problems.
A positive step for Gio Reyna despite Dortmund’s defeat to Barcelona (Photo by Lars Baron / Getty Images)
But the 22-year-old attacking midfielder played 73 minutes of a pulsating 3-2 defeat at Signal Iduna Park, in a sign he is ready to take on a more meaningful role in Nuri Sahin’s team going forward. Against Barcelona, no other Dortmund player made more passes into the final third than Reyna’s six, according to Fotmob.
He was back in the starting XI on the second anniversary of the start of a spectacular feud with former USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter that left a sour note on their relationship after the 2022 World Cup.
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At the San Siro, Milan’s USMNT midfielder Yunus Musah was another who started for his team, as the Rossoneri ran out 2-1 winners against Red Star Belgrade.
But the headline grabber came in Turin, where there was a distinctly American touch to Manchester City’s latest struggle, and where the goal of the night might have done a little to ease that supposed stigma.
(Top photo: Valerio Pennicino / Getty Images)
Sports
‘Demon’ Finn Balor settles score with Dominik Mysterio at WrestleMania 42
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LAS VEGAS – Finn Balor and Dominik Mysterio were once brothers in arms in the Judgment Day. The two helped the faction run “Monday Night Raw” for several years.
As championships and opportunities came and went, the rift between Balor and Mysterio grew. It came to a head when Balor caused Mysterio to lose the Intercontinental Championship to Penta. Balor leaving the Judgment Day left Mysterio and Liv Morgan as the leaders with JD McDonagh, Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez sticking around.
Finn Balor is introduced before his match against Dominik Mysterio during WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on April 19, 2026. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
The latter four chose to ride with Mysterio and attacked Balor on one episode of Raw.
The bitter war led to a match Sunday night at WrestleMania 42. To make matters more interesting, Raw General Manager Adam Pearce made the match a street fight hours before the show was set to begin.
Balor had vowed to bring the “Demon” out and he certainly did.
JACOB FATU PUTS DREW MCINTYRE IN THE ‘REAR VIEW’ IN UNSANCTIONED MATCH AT WRESTLEMANIA 42
Finn Balor is introduced before his match against Dominik Mysterio during WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on April 19, 2026. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Balor made his way to the ring in his “Demon” gear, dripping with red and black paint. Mysterio was in a mask with other Mysterio supporters.
The two then proceeded to beat the crud out of each other.
Mysterio wrapped Balor’s head in between a chair and hit a 619 on him. He tried to pin Balor, but to no avail. At another point, Mysterio tossed Balor through a table set up in the corner.
As many have learned, it’s hard to keep your demons down. Mysterio learned the hard way.
Balor would not give up. Balor clotheslined Mysterio, hit him with a chair multiple times before wrapping his head in between the chair and drop-kicking him into the corner. Balor put Mysterio onto a table and hit the Coup de Grâce for the win.
Dominik Mysterio is introduced before his match against Finn Balor during WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on April 19, 2026. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
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Balor excised his own demons, while Mysterio is still haunted.
Sports
Ryan Ward has a solid debut, but bullpen blows it again as Dodgers lose to Rockies
DENVER — What do you know? The once-stampeding Dodgers have been caged by the Colorado Rockies.
With a 9-6 loss Sunday at Coors Field, the two-time defending World Series champions lost back-to-back games for the first time this season. The Dodgers again couldn’t hold a lead, letting the Rockies tee off for 15 hits.
Nor could the Dodgers keep up offensively at the hitter-friendly park — though they put some pressure on in the ninth inning, when Shohei Ohtani led off with a ground-rule double and the Dodgers scored twice to cut the lead to three runs. Then the new guy, Ryan Ward, made the final out in his big league debut, robbed of a hit and a chance to keep chipping away by a diving Troy Johnston in right field.
Before that, the Rockies — who beat the Dodgers twice in 13 meetings all of last season — chased starter Roki Sasaki from the game in the fifth inning and then ruffled the Dodgers’ relievers. That included closer Edwin Díaz, who came on in the eighth and promptly gave up three singles, a walk and two runs before being pulled with the Dodgers trailing 8-4.
Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki gave up three runs on seven hits in 4-2/3 innings Sunday against the Rockies in Denver.
(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
He and Blake Treinen combined to face eight batters without getting an out.
“They both weren’t sharp,” said manager Dave Roberts, who had theories but not many answers — though he did have real concern, especially about Díaz, who recently had his right knee checked out by the medical staff.
Roberts said the closer wanted to pitch after nine days off, even though it wasn’t a save situation. But his velocity was slightly down (95.4 mph vs. 95.8) and so, “today was a tough evaluation,” the manager said.
“It really was,” Roberts said. “Because, you know, I know what it’s supposed to look like, and when it doesn’t look like that, it gets a little concerning, really.”
And losing for the second time to the Rockies, who are now 9-13? Being in danger of losing their four-game series, after arriving in Denver without having lost to a National League opponent, against a club that hasn’t made the postseason since 2018?
It’s well below the bar the Dodgers have set, and it added a bitter note to Ward’s otherwise sweet debut.
Ward punched a big league clock for the first time wearing No. 67 and cranked his first hit off Rockies starter Michael Lorenzen in the fourth inning, lining a changeup to right field for a single that scored Andy Pages, made it 3-0 and got the 20-some members of Ward’s party up, jumping in place, hugging and high-fiving.
“When I was on first base, I got to see them all jumping around up there,” Ward said. “That was a pretty special moment.”
He also singled in the sixth and swung on the first pitch in his first at-bat, a fly out in the third inning.
The Dodgers gave Sasaki a 2-0 lead in the third. Alex Freeland drove in Hyeseong Kim, and Shohei Ohtani doubled in Freeland — and extended his career-best on-base streak to 51 games, moving past Willie Keeler into third place in Dodgers history.
Sasaki went 4-2/3 innings, threw 78 pitches and gave up three runs on seven hits, striking out two and walking two. His ERA after his fourth start: 6.11, worst in the six-man rotation.
The Dodgers fell behind 6-5 in the seventh when Treinen — who was cleared Friday after he was struck in the head by a batted ball during batting practice — gave up four consecutive hits, including a two-run home run by Mickey Moniak.
The result likely will be a minor detail when Ward tells the story years from now about getting the call after first baseman Freddie Freeman was placed on the paternity list.
The Dodgers’ No. 19 prospect and reigning Pacific Coast League MVP spent the last seven years in the minors. Last season, he hit 36 home runs and drove in 122 runs with a .937 on-base-plus-slugging percentage for triple-A Oklahoma City, and he has a 1.020 OPS and four homers this year.
Ward made it a point to improve his chase rate, draw more walks and get on base more frequently, everything the Dodgers asked of him. He also passed the broadest patience test.
“The plate discipline, being a better hitter … he’s done all that,” Roberts said. “He’s improved his defense. But honestly, for me, just not to let his lack of opportunity in the big leagues deter him. That’s easy when you get frustrated and let it affect performance, and he hasn’t done that.”
If anything, Ward said, the waiting made him better.
“I used it to keep going. ‘OK, if I’m not there yet, what do I have to do to get there?’” he said. “‘What part of my game do I need to work on to keep getting better?’
“I used it as fire to keep working.”
That will be the Dodgers’ assignment too.
In the finale of the four-game series Monday, the Dodgers are expected to start left-hander Justin Wrobleski (2-0, 2.12) against Colorado left-hander Jose Quintana (0-1, 5.63).
Sports
ESPN’s Stephen A Smith hears boos from WrestleMania 42 crowd
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LAS VEGAS – Danhausen’s curse may be real after all – just ask Stephen A. Smith and the New York Mets.
While the latter dropped their 10th game in a row, Smith got his share of the curse on Saturday night during Night 1 of WrestleMania 42. Smith was in attendance for WWE’s premier event of the year and heard massive boos from the crowd.
Stephen A. Smith attends WrestleMania 42: Night 1 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, on April 18, 2026. (Andrew Timms/WWE)
Smith was sitting ringside to watch the action. The ESPN star appeared on the videoboard above the ring at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. He appeared to embrace the reaction and smiled through it.
The boos came after Danhausen appeared on “First Take” on Friday – much to the chagrin of the sports pundit. Smith appeared perplexed by Danhausen’s appearance. Smith said he heard about Danhausen and called him a “bad luck charm.”
Danhausen said Smith had been “rude” to him and put the dreaded “curse” on the commentator.
WWE STAR DANHAUSEN SAYS METS ‘CURSE’ ISN’T EXACTLY LIFTED AS TEAM DROPS NINTH STRAIGHT GAME
Stephen A. Smith attends WrestleMania 42: Night 1 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, on April 18, 2026. (Andrew Timms/WWE)
Smith is far from the only one dealing with the effects of the “curse.”
Danhausen agreed to “un-curse” the Mets during their losing streak. However, he told Fox News Digital earlier this week that there was a reason why the curse’s removal didn’t take full effect.
“I did un-curse the Mets. But it didn’t work because, I believe it was Brian Gewirtz who did not pay Danhausen. He did not send me my money so it did not take full effect,” Danhausen said. “Once I have the money, perhaps it will actually work because right now it’s probably about a half of an un-cursing. It’s like a layaway situation.”
Danhausen enters the arena before his match against Kit Wilson during SmackDown at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on April 10, 2026. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
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On “Friday Night SmackDown,” WWE stars like The Miz and Kit Wilson were also targets of Danhausen’s curse.
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