Football

Messi Eyes World Cup Glory

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Superstar footballer Lionel Messi will take a break from his Barcelona soap opera as he bids to fire Argentina to the World Cup in Qatar and what will probably be his last chance to try to win the coveted trophy.

The 33-year-old, a record six-time winner of the Ballon d’Or, has won everything in the club game with Barcelona several times over but his international trophy cabinet looks bare in comparison.

“The only goal I have now is to win the World Cup with the national team,” he has said.

The closest he has come so far was as losing finalist against Germany in 2014.

Thursday’s clash with Ecuador gives him the chance to start building towards one last tilt at that goal.

He will be 35 by the time the Qatar World Cup ends, and will turn 39 during the following global showpiece in North America.

In the meantime, he has a pair of qualifiers — Argentina also travel to Bolivia next Tuesday — to distract him from his club travails.

Messi tried to force his exit from the Catalan giants in the close season but Barca held firm and a 700 million euro release clause ensured he remained, albeit disgruntled.

Playing Ecuador in his homeland may provide a welcome respite but it is also fraught with potential difficulty.

Four years ago at the start of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Ecuador stunned Argentina 2-0 at River Plate’s iconic Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires.

It took a hat-trick by an inspired Messi in Argentina’s final qualifier — away to Ecuador — to send the twice world champions to Russia.

Football

Yaya Toure Close To Laliga Return

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Yaya Toure has reportedly held talks with newly-promoted side Cadiz.

According to BBC Sport as reported by the Daily Mail, the the former Ivory Coast international could make a shock return to the Spanish LaLiga.

The 37-year-old has been without a club since leaving Chinese Super League side Qingdao Huanghai at the start of the year and despite reported interest from Brazil, he remains a free agent.

Toure trained with League Two side Leyton Orient for two weeks in late July in a bid to retain his fitness levels with the hope of furthering his playing career before moving into coaching.

The former Manchester City midfielder enjoyed three successful years at Barcelona where he won seven major honours including the 2009 UEFA Champions League.

Capped 97 times by his country, Toure led the Elephants to 2015 Africa Cup of Nations glory and is considered to be amongst the best African footballers of all time.

Cadiz, who won promotion to LaLiga last season, currently occupy ninth spot in Spain’s top-flight.

Football

Messi lends £12m private jet to Argentina pals for international duty

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Lionel Messi has generously offered up the use of his £12million private jet to his Argentina team-mates for the international break.

Argentina take on Bolivia and Ecuador in their first two 2022 World Cup qualifying matches on October 8 and October 13. And, due to the coronavirus pandemic, Messi has offered up his plane to Argentine stars currently playing in Europe to help them stay safe. Messi was joined by the likes of Paulo Dybala, Juan Foyth, Marcos Acuna, Lucas Ocampos, and Nicolas Otamendi on the jet

The five Argentina stars will then join Messi on the return trip back to Spain in a bid to limit interaction at public airports. The Barcelona star, 33, first started using the £12m Gulfstream V jet in 2018 – and he has leased it from an Argentine company on a number of occasions in the past few years. The plane was infamously forced to make an emergency landing in Brussels due to a technical fault earlier this year.

It boasts a number of incredible features, including its very own kitchen. There are two bathrooms and enough seats for 16 people. The chairs can even be folded up and turned into eight beds so the players can get some much-needed shut-eye on the long flight to South America. Messi even has the names of his family adorned on the jet, with wife Antonella, plus children Thiago, Ciro, and Mateo all having their names etched on the steps. The plane also boasts Messi’s iconic No10 on the tail.

Football

Benzema about more than goals after reaching 250 for Real Madrid & breaking into top five of all-time

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The French frontman has been a regular source of end product for the Blancos down the years, but he prides himself on being a team player as well

Karim Benzema now has 250 goals for Real Madrid to his name, placing him fifth on the club’s all-time scoring chart, but the Frenchman says he has always been about much more than end product.

He has delivered plenty of that across 11 memorable years at Santiago Bernabeu.

His full value has not always received the recognition it deserves, with a demanding fan base taking to jeering him on occasion.

Operating in the shadow of Cristiano Ronaldo during the Portuguese superstar’s spell in Spain did little to aid Benzema’s cause, with his contribution often going unnoticed.

The 32-year-old has, however, become a key figure under Zinedine Zidane since a five-time Ballon d’Or winner departed for a new challenge at Juventus.

Benzema has found the target on 57 occasions through the last two seasons and is already up and running for 2020-21.

His latest strike has taken him to a notable personal landmark, but Benzema says individual achievements have never been the focus for him.

He told Real’s official website on the back of netting in a 2-0 victory over Levante: “I feel very happy and very proud of my goals.

“[I’m] also [proud] of the play [we produce] at this moment at the club, because for me it is an honour and I will work to continue scoring goals

“People see football differently and there are many who only pay attention on the goals, but there are more things like the movement or the passes.

“I am a forward who can score goals too.”

Benzema has now joined a star-studded cast of goalscorers in the top five of Real’s greatest frontmen.

Carlos Santillana sits 40 above him on that chart with 290, while the legendary Alfredo Di Stefano hit 308 for the Blancos.

Long-serving former captain Raul plundered 323 efforts while in Madrid, with Ronaldo well clear at the top on 451.

Benzema will be hoping that he has many more goals left in him, with his current contract due to run until the summer of 2022.

He has admitted in the past that he would like to return to Lyon – the club that gave him his big break – before the day comes to hang up his boots, but such a switch would appear to be some way off.

Football

New numbers for Puig, Araujo & Braithwaite as Barcelona confirm 2020-21 squad

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Barcelona have confirmed their squad for 2020-21 and there’s some new numbers for Riqui Puig, Ronald Araujo and Martin Braithwaite.

Despite all the talk over his future Puig has now been officially promoted to the first-team and will swap his No. 28 for the No. 12.

Araujo is also now a part of the senior squad and takes over Ivan Rakitic’s No.4, while Martin Braithwaite is Barcelona’s No. 9 following Luis Suarez’s departure

Midfielder Matheus Fernandes, who still hasn’t been officially presented at the club, has taken over Braithwaite’s old No. 19 shirt and is also in the squad.

Football

Dest: I didn’t understand a word Messi said!

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The U.S. men’s national team star admitted he had some communication issues during his first Barca appearance

Sergino Dest admitted he didn’t understand a single instruction from Lionel Messi during his Barcelona debut on Sunday, although the U.S. men’s national team star believes he’s off to a good start with his new teammate.

The former Ajax fullback made his first Barca appearance during the club’s 1-1 draw with Sevilla, coming off the bench to replace Jordi Alba.

Dest recently joined the club in a deal worth €21 million (£19m/$25m), joining fellow American Konrad de la Fuente at the Catalan club.

De la Fuente was also named to the bench on Sunday, but it was Dest who made his debut, becoming the first American to ever appear for Barca in an official match.

And, after the game, Dest admitted that it was special to play alongside Messi, even if the two still have some communication issues to work out.

“Today I saw everyone, Messi too,” Dest told Dutch outlet NOS. “Messi doesn’t speak English, but it was very special to meet him. 

“If I’m honest, I don’t know what he told me, but we were both smiling, so everything must be fine, right?”

Dest turned down Bayern Munich to make his move to the Camp Nou , having emerged last season during his breakout campaign with Ajax.

The 19-year-old defender made 35 appearances across all competitions while also earning three caps for the USMNT, confirming his allegiance to the U.S. by turning down overtures from the Netherlands.

Coincidentally, Dest is now managed by Ronald Koeman, who was in charge of the Netherlands team he rejected.

Koeman was one piece of convincing Dest to choose Barca, as was Messi and another former Barca star: Ronaldinho.

“I chose Barcelona because I have always dreamed of playing for Barca,” he said.

“Ronaldinho is my idol and a legend at this club. When I found out about Barca’s interest, I didn’t have to think twice.”

Barca currently sit fifth in La Liga, having earned seven points through three games to start the campaign.

Next up for the club is a visit to Getafe following the international break with the club then turning focus towards a Champions League clash with Hungarian side Ferencvaros.

Football

Eric Garcia: Barcelona have bid for Manchester City defender rejected

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Eric Garcia will remain at Manchester City after Barcelona had a £15.4m plus add-ons rejected by Manchester City with just hours of the transfer window to go.

Man City wanted closer to £20m for the central defender, who has entered the final year of his contract, with the player now set to see out his contract at the Etihad.

The Spanish international will now become a free agent next summer and should he move to the Nou Camp it will see a return to the club having been part of the La Masia academy between 2008 and 2017.

Garcia made his first top-flight appearance last season and would go on to feature 13 times throughout the campaign and last featured in the 5-2 defeat to Leicester City.

However, he was left out of City’s squad squad for the 1-1 draw at Leeds on Saturday with Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman previously confirming his club’s desire to sign the 19-year-old centre-back.

Football

Barcelona announce losses of £88m due to coronavirus impact

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Barcelona made an after-tax loss of 97m euros (£88m) due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the club have announced.

Figures for the 2019-20 season show revenue fell by 135m euros (£122.5m) to 855m euros (£777m), well below the recording-breaking forecast of one billion euros (£909m) which Barcelona claim would have seen them post a 2m euro (£1.8m) profit.

Barca managed to save 74m euros (£67m) in salaries thanks to a reduction agreement with players and coaching staff but are already predicting a 199m euro (£181m) drop in revenue for the 2020-21 season.

“The club suffered financially from the consequences of games being played behind closed doors, as well as the total cancellation of the basketball Euro League, and hence there was a considerable loss of income,” said the club’s financial report.

“The lack of tourists and visitors to the city of Barcelona due to the reductions and limitations applied to international tourism also meant far fewer visitors to Barca’s premises, meaning major losses in terms of such areas as visitors to the Camp Nou Experience and the sale of products in official stores.”

Net debt on June 30 was 488m euros (£443m), but, with investment in the Espai Barca project to redevelop the Nou Camp standing at 109m euros (£99m), the club’s adjusted debt is 379m euros (£344m).

The report also revealed the club spent 1.68billion euros (£1.5billion) on transfers over the last decade, recouping 944m euros (£858m) for a net spend on signings of 738m euros (£671m) over 10 years.

Football

Arsenal duo Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi seal loan transfers away to Atletico Madrid and Hertha Berlin

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LUCAS TORREIRA has followed Matteo Guendouzi out of the exit door at the Emirates on loan for the season.

The midfielders dropped down the pecking order with Mohamed Elneny returning to form and Dani Ceballos returning from Real Madrid for another season.

And with Arsenal chasing Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid, the club allowed Torreira and Guendouzi to head out on loan.

Uruguayan Torreira, 24, has headed the other way by joining Atletico for the 2020-21 season.

The Spanish giants have the option to make the transfer permanent at the end of the season.

Guendouzi, meanwhile, will spend the campaign in the Bundesliga with Hertha Berlin.

The pair both signed for the Gunners in 2018 under Unai Emery.

Only three players made more appearances for the club than Guendouzi in his first season in North London.

But the 21-year-old Frenchman fell out with Mikel Arteta last season.

He has not featured since his meltdown at Brighton on June 20, Arsenal’s second match after the restart.

Football

Messi lends luxury £12m private jet with kitchen and two bathrooms to Argentina team-mates for international duty

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LIONEL MESSI has generously offered up the use of his £12million private jet to his Argentina team-mates for the international break.

Argentina take on Bolivia and Ecuador in their first two 2022 World Cup qualifying matches on October 8 and October 13.

The jet seats 16 people, with the chairs folding out into eight beds and, due to the coronavirus pandemic, Messi has offered up his plane to Argentine stars currently playing in Europe to help them stay safe.

Messi was joined by the likes of Paulo Dybala, Juan Foyth, Marcos Acuna, Lucas Ocampos and Nicolas Otamendi on the jet.

The five Argentina stars will then join Messi on the return trip back to Spain in a bid to limit interaction at public airports.

The Barcelona star, 33, first started using the £12m Gulfstream V jet in 2018 – and he has leased it from an Argentine company on a number of occasions in the past few years.

The plane was infamously forced to make an emergency landing in Brussels due to a technical fault earlier this year.

It boasts a number of incredible features, including its very own kitchen.

There are two bathrooms and enough seats for 16 people.

The chairs can even be folded up and turned into eight beds so the players can get some much-needed shut-eye on the long flight to South America.

Football

Arsenal sign Atlético Madrid’s Thomas Partey after paying £45m release clause

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Arsenal have met Atletico Madrid’s £45m release clause for Thomas Partey as they look to secure a Deadline Day deal for the midfielder.

Partey has been linked with Arsenal throughout the window and although his £45m release clause has been an issue.

The Gunners have been attempting to free up wages and space in the squad before the window shuts at 11pm – with Matteo Guendouzi first out the door on Deadline Day, joining Hertha Berlin on loan.

Lucas Torreira is set to sign for Atletico Madrid on loan, Bayer Leverkusen’s move for Sead Kolasinac fell through at the 11th hour and the Gunners are listening to offers for Sokratis Papastathopoulos. They have not received any bids for Mesut Ozil, despite Mikel Arteta casting doubts over his future.

Arteta said at the weekend Arsenal were doing what they can to finalise transfers ahead of the deadline – and was confident deals can be done – while Sky Sports News reporter Dharmesh Sheth has confirmed that a Deadline Day move is on the card.

“Look, throughout this whole transfer window we know that Arsenal have been after a midfielder,” he said on Monday. “The one that never went away was Thomas Partey.

“We know that Arsenal have been interested in him for the whole window, the issue was the release clause as Atletico will not negotiate with any club on the release clause, so if someone wants to sign him they must pay £45m.

“Now, it is our understanding that Arsenal are pushing once again for Thomas Partey. There is an expectation – not 100 per cent – but there is an expectation that they will meet that £45m release clause.

“All of the talk during the window was how they generate that money. Well today, they are looking to offload players to fund that move for Partey.

“Torriera [to Atletico] is only a loan. They would get some sort of loan fee for that, but more importantly they get his wages off the bill. Guendouzi is the same.

“The other one is Kolasinac. Leverkusen want to buy him and Arsenal want to sell him. We think it’s around £10m. Leverkusen can’t afford that fee with the wages, so they are looking into a loan with an obligation-to-buy option.

“All of that put together – plus with the sale of Emiliano Martinez – it looks like Arsenal are getting those funds together, and we expect them to meet Partey’s £45m release clause.

“Time is running out, 11pm is the deadline, they are looking to get it sorted so Partey can become an Arsenal player.”

The Gunners were previously interested in Chelsea midfielder Jorginho. A deal for the Italy international is thought to be unlikely, but not impossible.

Houssem Aouar, meanwhile, is no longer thought to be a target after he declared his desire to stay with Lyon. “I want to continue the adventure with the club who raised me,” Aouar told Telefoot over the weekend.

“I think Thomas Partey is a top draw player,” Merson said. “I nearly fell off my chair with £45m, I don’t think that’s a lot of money at all for the quality of player.

“One thing he brings as well is discipline. Atletico Madrid are probably one of the most disciplined teams in Europe and he will do that. He’s not a midfielder that goes running all over the place, he’s very disciplined and plays in a disciplined team and I think he will be a great signing.

“I think what Mikel Arteta is doing, he’s trying to get rid of the players who aren’t involved, he doesn’t want them hanging around and he wants them out. Fair play, I like what Arsenal are doing.

“The likes of Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi and Sead Kolasinac aren’t playing at the moment and he doesn’t want them around the club. I like that kind of business. You look at Manchester United and the likes of Phil Jones are still there, but they’re not going to play so what’re they doing there still? Do they want to play football?

“Fair play to the lads at Arsenal, they want to play football so they want to go, they’re not digging their heels in. It’s a short career, play football.”

Football

Van Dijk calls for calm after Liverpool thrashed by Aston Villa

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The Reds centre-back believes it’s important for the club not to let the loss drive them crazy but is eager to see a positive response

Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has called for calm after seeing his side suffer a humiliating 7-2 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday. 

Jurgen Klopp’s side were humbled away from home by Villa, who scored four goals in the first 45 minutes and wrapped up the win despite having just 30 per cent of possession across the match. 

This was the first time the Reds have conceded seven goals in any competitive game since 1963, while they are the first reigning English top-flight champions to ship so many goals in a league match since Arsenal did so against Sunderland in 1953.

While a monumentally bad result for Liverpool, Van Dijk was quick to pay respect to Dean Smith’s side and called on his team to react appropriately to the defeat. 

“It’s hard to lose the way we lost tonight. First and foremost well done to Aston Villa, we have to give them the credit they deserve,” Van Dijk told Sky Sports post-match.

“It was one of those performances where we weren’t 100 per cent at it from start to finish. The goals we conceded we should have done, but also the chances that we had, we should have done better. Overall we’re all disappointed, we shouldn’t have lost with the numbers that we did but it’s about sticking together and making sure it doesn’t happen again.

“You can’t take the credit away from Aston Villa, but we should have been more clinical. In all aspects of the game we should have done much better. It’s important not to get crazy but we’ve got to step it up and the performance level between the Arsenal league win and today was too big.”

On the absence of Sadio Mane and Alisson, he added: “We prepared well and we played a good game against Arsenal in mid-week. Our preparation was good and we were ready for it before the game. Unfortunately in the game it didn’t happen how we wanted it to.”

Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins claimed a hat-trick against Liverpool and believes he should have had even more goals to his name. 

“I can’t believe it really. Getting one goal is good but three is unbelievable. I think 1-0 up gives us confidence, we grew into the game and punished them,” he told BBC’s Match of the Day.

“I came away with a hat-trick but think I could have got more. It is bitter sweet.”

Football

‘We lost the plot!’ – Klopp admits Liverpool made ‘the wrong type’ of history in Villa defeat

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The German coach believes his side lost their way early on in a surprisingly big loss

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp declared his team “lost the plot” after conceding inside four minutes against Aston Villa in a 7-2 loss on Sunday in the Premier League. 

The Reds conceded four first-half goals with Ollie Watkins netting a hat-trick inside 45 minutes as Villa strolled to a third straight league win. 

Klopp’s side dominated possession but struggled to make the most of their chances and were made to pay in defence by a ruthless Villa, who scored seven times from just 11 efforts on target.

While a monumentally heavy defeat for the reigning Premier League champions, the Liverpool manager concedes he saw such a result coming after conceding so early and continuing to make so many mistakes. 

Asked if he could believe result post-match, Klopp told BBC Sport: “Yes, I saw it. So it is easy to believe because I was here. First of all you have to say that Villa did very well. They were very physical, very smart and very direct, we were not.

“We had big chances which we did not use, but when you concede seven I’m not sure you can say it would have been 7-7. We made too many mistakes and massive ones obviously. It started with the first goal and around the goals we made massive mistakes.

“We lost balls in the wrong area and did not protect properly. It looked like we lost the plot after it went to 1-0. It is not an excuse. Normally you can be 1-0 down and do the stuff you want to do. We created but did not protect ourselves properly so each ball we lost was a massive counter attack.

“That is why we conceded and three goals were deflected. It’s unlucky but it is not a coincidence because it means it was not a proper block. There is nobody to blame apart from me and us.

“Aston Villa were so good. Watkins wow and of course when you give the ball to Jack [Grealish] in a one v one situation on the left he can go either way and create chances.

“Who wants to lose 7-2? Years ago we told ourselves we wanted to create history. That was history but obviously the wrong type.”

The shock result sees Liverpool slip to fifth in the Premier League, while Aston Villa are now second despite playing one game less than every other side currently in the top half of the table. 

Football

Thiago Silva & Zouma give Lampard cause for hope of a settled Chelsea defence

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The Blues boss has been chopping and changing his backline since taking over the club but he is keen to stop in the near future

Frank Lampard is hoping that he can find a settled Chelsea defence after the partnership of Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma impressed in the 4-0 win over Crystal Palace.

Silva, signed on a free transfer from PSG, worked well in a new-look backline that featured fellow new signings in goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and left-back Ben Chilwell, alongside Zouma and Cesar Azpilicueta.

It was the first clean sheet for Chelsea in the Premier League this season in five attempts and it comes after the Blues conceded 54 league goals last term.

Lampard says he is searching for a more settled defence than last season when the club conceded the highest number of goals since Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003.

“I am really pleased with the clean sheet for everybody involved,” Lampard said at Stamford Bridge. “Not just the goalkeeper and the back four but the whole team. We didn’t give a really dangerous team away from home any chances to score which was great for the focus of the team.

“Yes, Thiago and Kurt looked very good, very composed. With Thiago, he has great experience and we saw that. It is still early days in terms of fitness, so let’s see how that partnership works but I want to find some sort of stability in the back four, of course, you do.

“It needs some competition and those two showed how well they can do it but that needs to continue.”

Roy Hodgson’s Palace side are known to be dangerous on the counterattack and at set-pieces, and have produced high-profile upsets in recent times, including a win over Manchester United already this season.

Indeed, they competed well with Chelsea in a scoreless first half before their collapse in the second half. Lampard was heard shouting ‘move it quicker’ in a drab first half and he continues to send a message that his side are still learning to gel after seeing six new signings arrive this summer for a total spend of around £220 million ($275m).

“There’s always a big eye on Chelsea as a club and, of course, we brought in players over the window and I understand everyone wants to see it straight away that we come together,” he added.

“It is just not the way that football works. What you saw in the first half was control of the game but I felt in the final third, especially in the middle of the pitch, was a little bit slow. It allowed a team as well organised as Palace to just deal with us for most of the first half.

“In the second half, we found Ben Chilwell quicker; we found balls between the lines, we were prepared to go one-on-one with defenders. Those are the things that are going to grow, that’s something that I have to drive.

“The players will get better with each other and learn the movements that I want them to make and I think we saw a little snippet of that in the second half but there’s a lot of work to do on that.

“As much as I won’t get too down as some seem to be after the West Brom and Tottenham games, I won’t get too high either. There’s a lot of work to be done but today, we saw some nice signs.”

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Real Madrid ‘are not quite there’ despite win at Levante, says Zidane

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The Liga champions came under pressure in the second half against the underdogs, with their manager acknowledging they were not at their best.

Zinedine Zidane felt Real Madrid struggled to kill the game off in their 2-0 victory against Levante because they are still “lacking something” in the early stages of the season.

Madrid took the lead at the Estadio de la Ceramica on Sunday through Vinicius Junior in the 16th minute, before Levante’s Nikola Vukcevic hit the crossbar before half-time.

Karim Benzema struck the post and Vinicius missed a pair of chances to add to his tally within 10 minutes of the restart.

Levante did not wilt but they were unable to find a way past Thibaut Courtois, who did superbly to deny Enis Bardhi on three occasions.

Madrid finally put the game to bed in the fifth minute of stoppage time when Rodrygo released Benzema on a fast break and the Frenchman scored his first goal of the season.

Zidane saw some positives as his team moved top of La Liga but knows the reigning champions remain some way short of their best.

“It was a game we suffered in. We had chances to kill the game off in the second half, and it could have been a very different match,” Zidane told Movistar . “We suffered a lot because they had chances too. I’m happy about the first half but the game is 90 minutes.

“It’s the beginning of the season and we know we’re lacking something in attack and defence. We are not playing perfectly. I’m happy with the effort, they’ve given their all.

“I’ve seen it against this same opponent, they have good chances that you have to contain.

“Maybe physically we’re not quite there. The opponent put a little more energy in and had two or three chances.

“I’m very happy going into the international break. The team is working well together, wanting to show what they can do.”

Before the game, Zidane had played down suggestions that Madrid could be boosted with a move for Lyon midfielder and long-time Arsenal target Houssem Aouar.

“I don’t know what information you have about him [Aouar],” Zidane told reporters. “He’s a great player, I have no doubt about that.

“Maybe one day he could play at Real Madrid, but right now we have this squad and we’re going to go forward with the players we have.”

Football

‘If someone cannot cry about VAR it is Manchester United’ – Mourinho has no sympathy for former club after Spurs’ 6-1 victory

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The Portuguese felt that his old side could have no complaints about the decision to send off Anthony Martial going against them in the first half

Jose Mourinho suggested that Manchester United were not in a position to complain about their VAR misfortune after Tottenham routed the Red Devils 6-1 at Old Trafford.

The former Red Devils boss saw his Spurs side ride roughshod over a woeful performance from the home side, who suffered their joint-worst home Premier League defeat in history.

The hosts had snatched an almost immediate lead following a second-minute Bruno Fernandes penalty but the visitors responded in quick succession to take the lead well inside the opening quarter-hour thanks to efforts from Tanguy Ndombele and Son Heung-min.

United’s problems were compounded on the half-hour mark though when Anthony Martial was shown a red card for an apparent retaliation to receiving an elbow from Erik Lamela, in the wake of which Harry Kane piled on more misery with a third goal.

Controversy reigned from the decision, which saw Lamela escape without punishment despite clear replays suggesting he was the instigator, but speaking after the match, Mourinho suggested that his old side were not in a position to complain about the outcome given their own fair share of assists from VAR technology.

“I didn’t watch it. Maybe later I will. If someone can cry about the VAR decisions it is Tottenham and if someone cannot cry about VAR it is Manchester United for sure,” he told Sky Sports . 

“I don’t know, the only thing I know is we played extremely well. I told my players that a good result here would be to win and we did that.”

The Portuguese was filled with effusive praise for his side’s rampant performance however, who doubled their early haul through second goals for Son and Kane plus an effort for Serge Aurier, hailing it as a “historical” result.

“Manchester United doesn’t lose many matches, [and] to lose by six is of course not every day,” he added.

“[It’s a] historical victory but in the end [it’s] three points and three very important points because we lost five points at home.

“We prepared ourselves very well tactically and also psychologically, the team was ready. So ready that a penalty in the first minute and going 1-0 down did not affect the team at all.

“Some people can say you play against 10 men for a long time which is true but for me it is also true that 11 v 11 we were playing extremely well, we were creating huge problems, we were winning 2-1 and they could not find solutions to control us.”

Dele Alli made his first Premier League appearance since the opening-day defeat to Everton, coming off the bench in the second half having only played a couple of Europa League qualifiers since the loss to the Toffees.

The England midfielder had been linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain but Mourinho insists Alli has always been part of his plans.

“He has never stopped showing, I always said that I never had a problem with him. Very polite, very educated, always behaving well. He is training well, sometimes I want different things from him on the pitch,” he further added. 

“That is more about his qualities as a player than other things. He is a fantastic player as everyone knows.”

Football

‘I wish Nigeria all the best’ – Arsenal star Saka confirms England future

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The Anglo-Nigerian has committed his international future to the Three Lions despite his eligibility for the African giants

Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka has wished the Nigeria national team all the best after confirming his international future with England.

The versatile player has been handed call-up by the Three Lions for their upcoming games against Wales, Belgium and Denmark.  

The 19-year-old has been delivering outstanding performances for the Emirates Stadium giants since his promotion to the first team.

“I feel like I’m really, really proud of my Nigerian heritage,” Saka told Sky Sports. “I always still watch Nigeria’s games where I can and I wish them all the best and support them all the way, but I’ve seen the process of how England are transforming and I think in the future they’re going to do great stuff.

“I feel like it was right for me to choose England.”

Saka made a key impact for Mikel Arteta’s men in the 2019-20 season as they won the FA Cup and finished eighth in the Premier League.

The forward was born in England but eligible to play for the Super Eagles through his parents and has now pledged his international future with the European country.

“My dad was born here, my mum was born in Nigeria, but they both grew up in Nigeria and met each other in Nigeria,” he added. “They came over and when they came to England it wasn’t easy for them because obviously, it’s a new country.

“It’s really cold for them, but they adapted well, and as soon as they had me and my brother they always left everything out the way and put us first.

“Especially my football career, my dad always pushed me, he took me to training on days where sometimes it would take two hours to get to training, so I’ll always be so grateful for my parents for the work they’ve done for me.”

Nigeria are well covered in the wing roles, with the likes of former Leicester City forward Ahmed Musa, Nantes star Moses Simon, Bordeaux’ Samuel Kalu, Villarreal sensational Samuel Chukwueze and CSKA Moscow’s Chidera Ejuke impressing for the three-time African champions.

The Super Eagles have lined up two friendlies against Algeria and Tunisia on October 9 and 13 respectively as part of their preparation for their Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Sierra Leone in November.

Football

Juventus re-sign €10.7m midfielder Mandragora from Udinese

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Jurgen Klopp insists his Liverpool players have the hunger and desire to challenge for another league title.

The 23-year-old Italy international returns for a second spell at the club, though he will remain in Udine on loan for a season

Juventus confirmed the signing of Rolando Mandragora for €10.7million (£10m/$13m), but the midfielder will remain at Udinese on loan.

The one-time Italy international left Juve on a permanent deal in 2018 and has since become a regular at Udinese.

But the Serie A champions confirmed the signing of Mandragora on Saturday, although the 23-year-old will stay in Udine.

The fee will be paid across two seasons, with Mandragora – who has signed a contract with Juve until 2025 – staying on loan at Udinese for 2020-21.

Udinese also hold an option to extend that loan through 2021-22.

While the loan is free, Juventus said Udinese may receive bonuses up to €6m (£5m/$7m).

Mandragora has been sidelined since June after suffering a knee injury, missing the run-in as Udinese eventually finished 13th.

Born in Naples, Mandragora began his senior career at Genoa, making his Serie A debut against Juve in 2014.

He impressed while on loan at Pescara in 2015-16 and signed for Juve the following summer, but made only one league appearnace before being sent on loan to Crotone and eventually sold to Udinese.

Mandragora represented Italy at five youth levels and was a regular for his country’s under-21 side, but he is yet to add to his solitary senior cap. The midfielder made his bow for Roberto Mancini’s side in a friendly defeat to France in the run-up to the 2018 World Cup.

Mandragora arrives as Juve’s fourth major signing of the summer.

Arthur arrived in a big-money move from Barcelona early in the window, with Alvaro Morata signed from Atletico Madrid and Weston McKennie brought in from Schalke.

On Saturday, defender Daniele Rugani completed a loan move to Rennes , who are preparing for their debut season in the Champions League.

“I am happy to be in Rennes,” Rugani said. “I discovered a beautiful environment. I can’t wait to start playing with my new teammates and help them as best as possible to have a great season,” Rugani said. 

“I arrive in an important championship. The Champions League is obviously a very high level but I think the club and I will have the opportunities to show good things in this competition. My goal is to make a fresh start.”

Football

‘Maybe he’s cleverer than me!’ – Guardiola struggles to answer Bielsa’s post-match question after Leeds draw

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The Spaniard was filmed in a respectful embrace with the Argentine at full-time and battled to find the words to describe the contest

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has revealed he struggled to answer a question posed to him by Leeds United coach Marcelo Bielsa after their 1-1 draw in the Premier League on Saturday. 

Despite Raheem Sterling’s 17th-minute opener, Guardiola’s side were unable to close out the contest with Rodrigo scoring a second-half equaliser for Leeds. 

City were made to pay for being wasteful in the final third as they got just two of their 23 shots on target. Leeds also edged out Guardiola’s team for possession and passes as they continue to show they can compete in the top-flight this season. 

Guardiola and Bielsa exchanged a hug after the full-time whistle blew with the latter eager to get his counterpart’s thoughts on the game – something the City manager struggled to produce so quickly.

“He said to me ‘What is your opinion of the game?’ And I said ‘After one second I am not able to analyse the game!” Guardiola told Sky Sports post-match.

“Maybe he’s cleverer than me! I’m not. I need time to process how was the game, but you know I said that I thought it was a good game, it was fair and that’s why the result was the result.”

Speaking later on, Guardiola would pay respect to Bielsa’s side for not shying away from the contest. 

“The approach was incredible and it’s nice to face a team like Leeds because they want to win, like they did with Liverpool. It’s incredibly entertaining football and it’s interesting for the fans,” Guardiola told BBC’s Match of the Day. 

“It was an entertaining game for everyone. I’m incredibly proud of these players who enjoy football and come to this country and play many years at a high level. This is their first pre-season together, we couldn’t do it more because the opponent was so good like all Marcelo Bielsa sides.”

Bielsa himself conceded that his side were second best for much of the game but managed to engineer moments of dominance that was ultimately rewarded. 

“The start and the end were with City and the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half were a bit better for us,” Bielsa said. 

“For them to be superior to us is pretty easy for them, it doesn’t require much effort, whereas for us it requires us to go to the limit to be on their level.

“We couldn’t take the ball off them and they were taking the ball off us very easily. We did it with a lot of effort, a lot of aggression to win the ball back and the confidence in our game grew.

“It wouldn’t have been fair if we had won the match, it would’ve been possible, but not fair.”

Football

Lampard’s Chilwell obsession explained in match-winning Premier League debut

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The left-back delivered an extraordinarily assured performance on his league debut for his new club following on from a £50m move from Leicester

Ben Chilwell was at the top of the Chelsea transfer shortlist all summer, with Frank Lampard having identified the left-back spot as a glaring weakness, and the England man is producing the goods from the off. 

Following on from an assist on his debut against Barnsley, and an accomplished 60-minute display in the EFL Cup penalty shootout defeat against Tottenham, the full-back was the best player on the pitch at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday.

The 23-year-old struck his first goal for the club after Cheikhou Kouyate’s clearance in the 50th minute to cap off what was already a man-of-the-match performance on his Premier League debut for his new side.

He went on to provide for the second, a deep cross for Kurt Zouma to head home to make it 2-0 at home to the club’s London rivals. That was his second assist since joining and his first full 90 minutes on a day when Chelsea hit four in total. Jorginho went onto add two penalty goals to round off a comfortable 4-0 win.

Chilwell had consistent, impressive moments on the ball throughout, demonstrating his stamina on the left-hand side. Going forward he was deadly. And with Mason Mount and Reece James on the bench, Chilwell stepped up to take corners and free-kicks. Deliveries from the £50 million ($65m) defender led to a free header from Zouma and a good chance for Jorginho.

It was the first clean sheet of the season against Premier League opposition for what might turn out to be a defence Lampard can settle on. What a difference seven days make, following last week’s disastrous defensive showing against West Brom. 

Crystal Palace’s threats are well known – a counter-attacking team good at set-pieces – and they have already gone to Old Trafford and beaten Manchester United this season. Chilwell’s speed and stature were crucial against such opposition on Saturday afternoon.

Chilwell met the media for the first time since leaving Leicester for Stamford Bridge this week, revealing that he still prioritises his defensive work and is looking to fix what was a weak backline last season.

“I’ve come here to try and help Chelsea concede fewer goals. If I can chip in with helping to score or creating goals, that’s a positive,” he said. “But myself coming here, the aim has to be to help the team stop conceding goals,” he said in a Zoom conference on Thursday ahead of the match.

Blues boss Lampard has been chopping and changing his defence since taking over and with Chilwell and Cesar Azpilicueta at full-back – allied with central defensive duo of Thiago Silva and Zouma – Chelsea finally look solid. 

The Foxes were understandably reluctant to sell but eventually had to let go of their homegrown prospect, with Lampard getting his man. In the process, both of the club’s other left-backs, Marcos Alonso and Emerson Palmieri, were unsettled and are now competing over a move to Inter.

Alonso was substituted following a half-time row at the Hawthorns with Lampard that has thrown his future in doubt. The Spain international works better as a wing-back so hasn’t been able to excel when in a back four under Lampard.

The left-backs are part of Chelsea’s overall strategy to offload players and they weren’t in the squad for Palace as Chilwell impressively stepped up to take his place.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Antonio Rudiger were also left out and Lampard found his most complete performance of the season after five flawed games to begin.

Callum Hudson-Odoi started the match despite an approach from Bayern Munich, with the German giants once again making their interest public. Lampard sent a message to his youngster by starting him – first-team football may help convince the 19-year-old that Chelsea is the place to be.

Meanwhile, Christian Pulisic returned from injury late on, with Hakim Ziyech also closing in on a comeback from a knee injury.

There has been a ruthless purge to fit in six new signings in recent weeks, but Chilwell, or ‘Chily’ as they call him in west London, proved that renewal is not only necessary but to be welcomed.

Fixing a defence that conceded 54 goals last season in the league is going to be a priority, the worst such record since Roman Abramovich bought the club. Even signing Anthony Barry as a coach from Wigan Athletic has been part of that particular repair job.

“At the minute, I am working on set-pieces, certainly overseen by Frank, and nothing would ever be done without his blessing and approval,” Barry said in the programme before kick-off.

Amid an inconsistent start, the win shows Lampard’s project has got a fresh outlook after criticism following their defeat in the Carabao Cup.

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