Arkema Première Ligue : l’OL Lyonnes enrôle l’internationale suédoise…

L’OL Lyonnes se renforce avec l’arrivée de l’ailière droite internationale suédoise Johanna Rytting Kaneryd en provenance de Chelsea dans un communiqué publie ce lundi. La joueuse de 29 ans a signé pour les trois prochaines saisons, soit jusqu’en 2029. chickenroad.qpon

L’ailière droite aura joué 115 matches et inscrit 12 buts durant son passage dans le club londonien. Arrivée en 2022 dans le club anglais, elle a remporté trois championnats (2023, 2024, 2025) et deux coupes nationales (2023, 2025).

Avec la Suède, Johanna Rytting Kanery totalise 70 sélections et a joué la Coupe du Monde 2023. « Le club se félicite de cette nouvelle arrivée qui, après celles de Maria Luisa Grohs et Caroline Weir, respectivement internationales allemande et écossaise, témoigne de l’attractivité du projet OL Lyonnes et renforce ses ambitions sur la scène européenne. », s’est félicité le club lyonnais.

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The work Damian Willemse’s coaches put into making him a jack of all trades made him the valuable player he is today, he said after his 50th Test for the Springboks.

Willemse and Cheslin Kolbe both reached their 50-cap milestones when South Africa beat England 45-21 in their first Nations Championship match at Ellis Park on Saturday.

Both players had great games.

Kolbe scored a try and slotted five out of seven conversions, while Willemse played brilliantly in attack and defence and secured some of the contestable kicks that saw the Springboks secure momentum at critical times.

Willemse also kicked a 50-22 and made a try-saving tackle.

‘Still a lot of room for improvement’

Though primarily a fullback, Willemse can also play inside centre, where he has been selected for this weekend’s Nations Championship match against Scotland at Loftus Versfeld, and flyhalf. He was even used at wing in three games for the Stormers this season.

He had to cover wing again briefly when Kurt-Lee Arendse received a yellow card against England.

“Being a utility player, I had to learn different roles. It really made me the player I am today and there is still a lot of room for improvement.”

He said he had learned from former Springboks Frans and Morné Steyn, while Willie le Roux (fullback), Damian de Allende (centre) and Handré Pollard (flyhalf) were current Boks who taught him a trick or two about their positions.

“Elton Jantjies also helped me a lot with my kicking. There are many people to thank. I am super grateful for everyone who believed in me and who got me to this moment.”

Willemse thanked former Bok head coach Jacques Nienaber and current assistant coaches Mzwandile Stick and Felix Jones for adopting the now-modern trend of developing utility players five years ago and doing a “hell of a job” in enhancing his versatility.

Willemse delighted to share milestone with Kolbe

In terms of game, Willemse said every Test was special but to reach 50 caps was a big milestone.

“I am very proud of my teammates, the management, coaching staff, everyone who has gone before me and is not here.

“Tonight [Saturday] is a special occasion for myself, Cheslin and Paul de Villiers [debut] but we can’t take it away from the team. It was a big Test for us, the first Test of the year so we wanted to get off on the front foot.

“Looking back, my first Test and this one are probably ones I would look back and say, ‘Wow, I did it.'”

He said he was grateful to share the milestone with “a great man” and “great player” like Kolbe.

Le huitième de finale de la Coupe du Monde 2026 entre l’Espagne et le Portugal, programmé ce lundi, promet un affrontement de très haut niveau. Si les regards seront naturellement tournés vers les attaquants, la véritable bataille pourrait bien se jouer au milieu de terrain, où Pedri et Vitinha s’apprêtent à livrer un face-à-face captivant.

Un duel déterminant au milieu de terrain

Considérés comme deux des meilleurs milieux de leur génération, les deux maestros incarnent le jeu de leurs sélections respectives. D’un côté, Pedri, chef d’orchestre de la Roja, impressionne par sa vision, sa qualité de passe et sa capacité à accélérer le jeu. De l’autre, Vitinha est devenu le véritable métronome du Portugal grâce à son intelligence tactique, son volume de jeu et sa maîtrise technique. Ce duel n’a rien d’une première. Les deux hommes se connaissent déjà très bien pour s’être affrontés en Ligue des Champions lors de la double confrontation entre le Paris Saint-Germain et le FC Barcelone. À cette occasion, Vitinha avait livré une prestation de très haut niveau, parvenant à limiter considérablement l’influence de Pedri dans l’entrejeu. Son pressing, son placement et sa lecture du jeu avaient permis au Portugais de prendre l’ascendant sur le prodige espagnol.

Ce précédent ajoute une dimension particulière au rendez-vous de ce lundi. Pedri aura sans doute à cœur de prendre sa revanche, tandis que Vitinha cherchera à confirmer sa supériorité dans ce duel individuel. Leur influence sera déterminante pour contrôler le rythme de la rencontre et offrir à leur équipe la maîtrise du ballon.

Au-delà de la rivalité entre l’Espagne et le Portugal, ce choc mettra donc aux prises deux des milieux de terrain les plus élégants du football mondial. Un véritable duel dans le duel, qui pourrait bien peser lourd dans l’issue de cette affiche des huitièmes de finale. Si l’un parvient à imposer son tempo, il offrira à sa sélection un avantage considérable dans la course aux quarts de finale.

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Springbok head coach Rassie Erasmus has made 13 changes to his team to play their second Nations Championship match against Scotland at Loftus on Saturday.

A number of Bulls players enter the side for a Test at their franchise home ground, including Handré Pollard, Embrose Papier, Wilco Louw, Johan Grobbelaar and Elrigh Louw.

Boan Venter, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Evan Roos, Aphelele Fassie, Edwill van der Merwe, Quan Horn and Vincent Tshituka are the other players coming into the side.

The five players who retained their spots in the starting XV are Jesse Kriel, Damian Willemse, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Paul de Villiers, and Ruan Nortjé.

Du Toit will captain the side again after Siya Kolisi suffered a late injury last week.

The other players who will get another run are Canan Moodie, who moves from the bench to the starting team, and Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Zach Porthen, Ben-Jason Dixon, and Grant Williams, who have been named on the bench.

Springboks: Scotland will provide a tough test

The Springboks beat England 45-21, scoring seven tries to England’s three, at Ellis Park in their first Nations Championship game at the weekend.

That lifted South Africa to the top of the overall table.

Scotland beat Argentina 47-38 in Córdoba. The Scots also scored seven tries and earned a bonus point.

“We have good depth in our squad, and this will be a great test for the team,” said Erasmus.

“We told the players from the outset that we would give as many of them a chance as possible to play this season, while we are also trying to manage some players, while others are not available for selection this week. So it was important to select a team with some continuity from last week, while bringing in players we believe will be the right fit for what we are expecting from Scotland.

“They had a good Six Nations campaign, and they come off a victory against Argentina away, so they will be psyched up going into this match.”

Springbok team

Aphelele Fassi, Edwill van der Merwe, Jesse Kriel, Damian Willemse, Canan Moodie, Handré Pollard, Embrose Papier, Evan Roos, Pieter-Steph du Toit (captain), Paul de Villiers, Ruan Nortjé, Cobus Wiese, Wilco Louw, Johan Grobbelaar, Boan Venter

Replacements

Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Zach Porthen, Ben-Jason Dixon, Vincent Tshituka, Elrigh Louw, Grant Williams, Quan Horn