[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"header-nav":3,"footer-nav":29,"article-anthony-joshua-comeback-fight-albanian-fans-embrace":82,"category-counts-nav":97,"related-anthony-joshua-comeback-fight-albanian-fans-embrace":107},[4,8,11,14,17,20,23,26],{"label":5,"to":6,"exact":7},"Home","\u002F",true,{"label":9,"to":10},"World Cup","\u002Fworldcup",{"label":12,"to":13},"Standings","\u002Fstandings",{"label":15,"to":16},"Football","\u002Fcategory\u002Ffootball",{"label":18,"to":19},"Basketball","\u002Fcategory\u002Fbasketball",{"label":21,"to":22},"Tennis","\u002Fcategory\u002Ftennis",{"label":24,"to":25},"F1","\u002Fcategory\u002Ff1",{"label":27,"to":28},"Long Reads","\u002Fcategory\u002Flong-reads",{"brand":30,"columns":32,"tagline":80,"copyright":81},{"description":31},"In-depth sports journalism covering football, basketball, tennis, F1, and beyond. Daily analysis, long reads, and expert opinion.",[33,51,59],{"heading":34,"links":35},"Leagues",[36,39,42,45,48],{"label":37,"to":38},"Premier League","\u002Ftag\u002Fpremier-league",{"label":40,"to":41},"La Liga","\u002Ftag\u002Fla-liga",{"label":43,"to":44},"NBA","\u002Ftag\u002Fnba",{"label":46,"to":47},"Formula 1","\u002Ftag\u002Fformula-1",{"label":49,"to":50},"Champions League","\u002Ftag\u002Fchampions-league",{"heading":52,"links":53},"Content",[54,56,57],{"label":55,"to":16},"Analysis",{"label":27,"to":28},{"label":58,"to":16},"Data & Stats",{"heading":60,"links":61},"Company",[62,65,68,71,74,77],{"label":63,"to":64},"Terms of Service","\u002Fservice",{"label":66,"to":67},"Privacy Policy","\u002Fprivacy",{"label":69,"to":70},"Editorial Policy","\u002Feditorial",{"label":72,"to":73},"Contact Us","\u002Fcontact",{"label":75,"to":76},"About Us","\u002Fabout",{"label":78,"to":79},"Website Disclaimer","\u002Fdisclaimer","Built for the love of sport","© SportPulse. All rights reserved.",{"title":83,"slug":84,"category":85,"badge":15,"author":86,"excerpt":87,"date":88,"readTime":89,"image":90,"imageAlt":83,"tags":91,"body":95,"_path":96},"Joshua Banks on Albanian Crowd Noise for Comecome Fight","anthony-joshua-comeback-fight-albanian-fans-embrace","long-reads","Sarah Martinez","Anthony Joshua leans into hostile territory, inviting Albanian fans to bring their energy for his comeback fight on Saturday.","2026-07-23 20:02:48","2 min read","\u002Fimages\u002Farticles\u002Fanthony-joshua-comeback-fight-albanian-fans-embrace.webp",[92,93,94],"Boxing","Heavyweight","Comeback","## Joshua Told the Albanian Fans to Bring It\n\nThe most revealing moment of the final buildup was not a staredown or a soundbite about tactics. It was Anthony Joshua addressing the Albanian contingent expected to pack the arena for Saturday's fight and telling them, plainly: \"Bring your energy.\"\n\nHis opponent carries significant Albanian support, a fanbase that turns arenas into cauldrons of flags and relentless vocal backing. Rather than treating that as a problem to manage, Joshua leaned into it. His demeanor throughout fight week was notably relaxed: no clipped responses, no visible edge. He engaged with questions rather than bracing against them.\n\nThat is a deliberate posture. Joshua has fought in front of 90,000 at Wembley and travelled to Madison Square Garden. He knows crowd hostility can serve as fuel for a fighter with the psychological framework to absorb it. He has also looked tight in past buildups when the stakes felt heavy. This week, the body language read differently.\n\n## What a Comeback Fight Actually Demands\n\nComeback fights in heavyweight boxing are not regular fights. They are public examinations of whether a fighter still has the reflexes, the desire, and the physical tools to compete at the level he once owned. Opponents are selected to provide a credible threat without prohibitive risk. Crowds watch for signs of slippage as much as signs of dominance.\n\nJoshua's relaxed state serves a functional purpose here. A tight, anxious fighter invites the very questions this night is supposed to answer. A loose fighter signals that training camp has done its job and the body has responded.\n\nThe risk is real. A hostile crowd amplifies every missed punch, every moment of hesitation, every round lost on the cards. If Joshua starts slowly, the noise compounds the pressure. But this is a fighter who rebuilt himself after a devastating loss and has spoken openly about using negative energy as motivation. He has performed in hostile rooms before and never needed the crowd to like him.\n\nWhether that psychological edge survives the first clean shot landed on him is the question only the bell can answer. Joshua is betting it will. The Albanian fans are being invited to test that bet on Saturday.","\u002Farticles\u002Fanthony-joshua-comeback-fight-albanian-fans-embrace",[98,99,100,101,102,103,104,105,85,106],"analysis","basketball","cricket","f1","football","general","golf","mma","tennis",[108,121,132],{"id":109,"stem":109,"path":110,"title":111,"category":85,"badge":112,"badgeType":113,"author":86,"authorRole":114,"authorInitials":115,"date":116,"readTime":117,"image":118,"imageAlt":111,"tags":119,"excerpt":120},"ryu-seizes-womens-pga-lead-as-yoon-collapses-under-pressure","\u002Farticles\u002Fryu-seizes-womens-pga-lead-as-yoon-collapses-under-pressure","Ryu Seizes Women's PGA Lead as Yoon Crumbles Under Pressure","Feature","category","Transfer Correspondent","SM","2026-06-27 23:18:27","6 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F5388\u002Flive\u002Fb921c350-726f-11f1-8bb9-bd086bea9c83.jpg","LPGA, Women's PGA Championship, Golf Majors","A five-shot lead evaporated in a single round as nerves consumed Ina Yoon, handing Haeran Ryu control of the Women's PGA Championship.",{"id":122,"stem":122,"path":123,"title":124,"category":85,"badge":112,"badgeType":113,"author":125,"authorRole":126,"authorInitials":127,"date":128,"readTime":117,"image":129,"imageAlt":124,"tags":130,"excerpt":131},"wales-pay-dispute-resolved-before-fiji-opener-tandy","\u002Farticles\u002Fwales-pay-dispute-resolved-before-fiji-opener-tandy","Tandy Relieved as Wales Pay Dispute Resolved Ahead of Fiji Test Opener","Elena Rossi","SportPulse Contributor","ER","2026-07-02 22:48:50","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F5853\u002Flive\u002Fc072e090-757a-11f1-9db8-97a620cd9604.jpg","Rugby, Six Nations, Welsh Rugby","A fragile truce between Wales players and the WRU clears the path for Steve Tandy's squad to focus on Fiji.",{"id":133,"stem":133,"path":134,"title":135,"category":85,"badge":112,"badgeType":113,"author":86,"authorRole":114,"authorInitials":115,"date":136,"readTime":117,"image":137,"imageAlt":135,"tags":138,"excerpt":139},"sciver-brunt-fit-england-t20-world-cup-semi-final","\u002Farticles\u002Fsciver-brunt-fit-england-t20-world-cup-semi-final","Sciver-Brunt Cleared: England's Captain Returns for World Cup Semi","2026-07-01 12:48:47","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F56f5\u002Flive\u002Fc2795630-753e-11f1-a627-714adb4eed6e.jpg","T20 World Cup, Women's Cricket, ICC","England's talismanic captain passed fit just in time for Thursday's T20 World Cup semi-final showdown against South Africa."]