LiveScore Daily: Today's football news in bite-sized chunks

LiveScore Daily is here to deliver all the big talking points from the world of football throughout the day. Keep refreshing this page for the latest stories in bite-sized chunks.

Too hot to handle

England head coach Sarina Wiegman heaped praise on Lauren James after the forward grabbed her first strike for England in last night's victory over South Korea in the Arnold Clark Cup.

The Lionesses kicked off the title defence with a comfortable 4-0 victory at Stadium MK, with James scoring the fourth and final goal.

Chelsea speedster James has followed in the footsteps of her brother Reece by becoming an important player for both club and country.

And Wiegman was quick to credit the rising star for her hard work and patience on international duty.

She said: "She’s very tight on the ball and can dribble really well too. 

"Last season she didn’t play a lot, she was still building. This year she’s playing more and more and a lot now in the latest time. She feels good, you can tell, she plays really well.

"I think she has been a talent of course for a long time, she just needed to be available and needed some time at Chelsea.

"I think she worked really hard at Chelsea, that’s what you can see this season at Chelsea, then she can take the next step to the national team. I hope now she gets consistency, stays fit and keeps enjoying herself."

Hayes calls for increased access for schoolgirls

Emma Hayes has voiced her concerns over the access available to football for schoolgirls in England.

She believes that boys get more of an opportunity to play the sport during their school years.

The UK Government launched a review in September into domestic women’s football from grassroots to the elite level following the success of England at Euro 2022.

Since the Lionesses' Euros glory last summer, the appetite for women's football has grown tremendously but Chelsea boss Hayes feels there is still much to be done.

She said: "Boys, generally, in the academy game, they’re having parents that are taking them somewhere or they will get on trains to do it. Girls won’t.

"Women’s football is quite middle class in my opinion, in terms of the locations, and the pedigree of players that are coming are often coming from suburban, urban belts around the training grounds.

"My nine-year-old niece goes to school and says to me, 'Why do I have the girls' sessions only once a week and the boys have three?'

"I don’t know what to tell my niece when she cries, when she says, ‘Why don’t I get to play it more like [the boys]?’"

Ten Hag's promise

Erik ten Hag has insisted that talk of a takeover at Manchester United will not hinder his side's ambition to win silverware this season.

The Red Devils are the latest club to enter talks around a potential change of ownership but nothing is finalised.

November’s announcement that the Glazers were conducting a strategic review brought hope to frustrated supporters, with the sale of United one option being considered.

It is thought that today is the deadline for any initial offers for the club, which comes in the middle of a hectic schedule for Ten Hag and his players.

But the Dutch coach is not getting distracted by any of the noise surrounding the Carabao Cup finalists.

He said: "We are following it, It’s our club and of course we are committed. But we are focusing on football, on training and our way of play, on games. That is what we are focusing on.

"We are really enjoying in the moment with the togetherness. It’s enjoyable to work. We are focusing on games and we have four leagues, so others in the club will have to take decisions, give efforts in the process but it’s not up to us.

"I focus on football. They are focusing on other parts, departments of the club. How to get everything, for instance, financed."

United last won silverware in 2017, but have the opportunity to end their drought against Newcastle at Wembley next weekend.

FA to trial referee bodycams

The FA will proceed with a trial for grassroots referees to use bodycams during games.

The aim of the trial is to explore whether the use of the technology will improve participant behaviour and respect towards officials.

Bodycams will be used by approximately 100 referees in selected matches, starting in Middlesbrough and rolling out across other leagues by the end of the season.

The FA's Chief Executive Mark Bullingham is heavily in favour of the experiment and has expressed his support for referees across England.

He said: "Referees are the lifeblood of our game and we thank the IFAB for their support in allowing us to undertake this new grassroots bodycam trial, the first of its nature globally.

"We have listened to feedback from the referee community, and we hope this trial will have a positive impact on the behaviour towards them — so that ultimately they can enjoy officiating in a safe and inclusive environment."

Mings signs Villa extension

Tyrone Mings has signed a new contract at Aston Villa.

The 29-year-old defender initially joined the Villans on loan in 2019 and has since gone on to make 141 Premier League appearances for the Midlands side.

His original contract was set to expire in the summer of 2024 but the England international will continue on at Villa Park beyond that.

Mings helped Villa clinch promotion to the Premier League at the end of his first season and has been a key player under new boss Unai Emery.

He earned his first international cap for the Three Lions in a 6-0 win over Bulgaria back in October 2019.

The new deal is reported to be a two-year extension on his current contract, keeping the 6ft 4in powerhouse at the club until 2026.

Ben takes a Chil pill

Ben Chilwell has said that Chelsea can take a lot of positives from their narrow defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Wednesday.

The Blues defender started for the first time since returning from a hamstring injury in the clash at Signal Iduna Park and had a solid outing.

Chelsea dominated most of the game but were undone by a slick counter-attack.

Chilwell remained positive after the game, saying: "At the end of the day, we’ve lost the game which is the main thing but overall I think we can take plenty of positives from our performance.

"I think after a while we got to grips with the game and created a lot of chances, especially in the second half.

"It was a much better team performance and I think you can see we are starting to gel more.

"We’re disappointed to have lost the game but there’s still plenty to play for in the tie. We’ve got a second leg to come at Stamford Bridge and we just need to take the positives from this performance into that game when it comes."