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Lionel Messi tops Forbes’ highest-paid football players 2020 list.

Barcelona taliman, Lionel Messi has topped this year’s football rich list, according to Forbes. 
The Argentine who wanted to leave Barcelona this summer will get $92 million for the remaining year of his contract. His total yearly earnings for 2020 including endorsements has been put at $126 million.  Juventus forward Cristinao Ronaldo comes second on $117 million while Paris Saint-Germain’s Brazilian forward Neymar and teammate Kylian Mbappe, come third and fourth with  their earnings put at $96 million and $42 million respectively.
Barcelona icon Lionel Messi tops Forbes' high-paid footballers of 2020 list
Liverpool’s Egyptian forward Mo Salah is on the fifth spot at $37 million, Paul Pogba sixth at $34 million. Also included in the top ten list are Barcelona forward Antoine Griezmann ($33m), Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale ($29m), Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski ($28m) and Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea ($27m).
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“Yaya Toure deserves one too”. Fans react as Man City announces plan to honour David Silva with a statue.

Football fans have expressed their disappointment at Manchester City, following the club’s announcement to commission a statue at the Etihad in honour of David Silva, saying Yaya Toure deserved it better. The Spanish professional footballer Manchester City will get a statue at the Etihad in honor of his 10-year career at the club.

The playmaker will also have a training pitch at the City Football Academy dedicated to him, as well as a mosaic celebrating his role in the famous 6-1 win over Manchester United in 2011.

Club Chairman Khaldoon Al-Mubarak remarked, “David Silva is a transformational player. A quiet leader who has acted quietly and deliberately and inspired everyone around him. From the youngest academy player to his senior team-mates over the past 10 years”. Also, “He has put a stamp on the team, on this club, its history and even the Premier League as a whole. In doing so, he has been instrumental to the beautiful football philosophy you see today. He was the start of it. As with Vincent before him. David’s statue will act as a lasting reminder of the wonderful moments that he gave us. Not only as an incredible footballer but as an inspiring ambassador. Who represented this football club with great dignity at all times”.

The 34-year-old joined City from Valencia in 2010,won four Premier League titles, two FA Cups and five League Cups in his 436 appearances for the club. The statue will be unveiled next year.

Below are some of reactions from fans.

 

 

 

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 Seria A

“He has everything it takes to be better than Zidane.”Alessandro Del Piero on Pirlo’s appointment as Juve coach.

Ex Italian footballer, Alessandro Del Piero has backed his former team-mate Andrea Pirlo to be successful in his new manageria role in Juventus. The 45 year-old is confident that the midfield maestro can even do better than his counterpart at Real Madrid, Zinedine Zidane. 

Pirlo was announced as the new coach of seria A side, Juventus following the sack of ex manager, Maurizio Sarri after their Champions League last-16 exit to Lyon on Friday.

Piero spoke of his surprise about Pirlo’s appointment to Sky Sport Italia, ‘To be honest, I wouldn’t have bet on him becoming the coach. It’s a surprise for me too, I was already pleased for him taking the Under-23 role and thought that was the right move for him, but he’s skipped ahead, so I can only wish him luck. I think the general perception of former players who become coaches is changing in Italy. Before, there was this need to go through a long process in the lower leagues to learn the trade, but in recent years we’ve seen Filippo and Simone Inzaghi succeed, plus Gennaro Gattuso. They were great players and started straight away with great teams.’

He is also confident that Pirlo can also be reverred like Zidane at the Bernabeu.

‘It’s not a fair comparison, because Zizou had already worked with the Real Madrid youth team and then was Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant manager, but Pirlo has everything it takes to do even better than Zidane, He already knows the club, the players, the directors, so I think they communicated in a very clear way.’

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Arteta thanks Guardiola for helping him to become a manager.

The happiest manager in the world right now, Mikel Arteta has expressed his gratitude to Manchester City coach, Pep Guardiolafor helping him to become a manager. The Spaniard won his first trophy in charge of Arsenal after beating Chelsea to 2-1 winners at Wembley to clinch the FA Cup yesterday. The Gunners lifted their 14th FA Cup after two goals from cap.

“I have to thank Pep.” Arteta who worked as Guardiola’s assistant at City for three years before leaving to join Arsenal told BT Sport.

‘Thank you as well I have to thank you Pep in a very big way because I am a manager in a big part to him so I think I have to consider that as well.’

Sometime in June, he spoke about his influence on his life

‘Well, he [Guardiola] was an influence for me since I was 15 years old and we met at Barcelona, both as players. And in my coaching career and my personal life, he has an enormous influence. If I have to talk about the person he is, his values, the way he has treated me and how he deals with the players and the staff around him, its phenomenal. As a coach, I have learned so much from him, we have spent some amazing moments together, some difficult ones as well, but the experience next to him has been incredible.’

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 La Liga, Sports

Real Madrid’s Mariano Diaz tests positive to Covid-19.

Real Madrid’s latest coronavirus testing came back with one positive result in the form of Mariano. The 26 year-old forward will not feature against Man City in next month’s Round of 16 second leg tie. He will be in  self-isolation as the Blancos prepare for a Champions League clash with Manchester City.

 “After the Covid-19 tests carried out individually on our first team yesterday by the Real Madrid medical services, our player Mariano has given a positive result. The player is in perfect health and complying with the sanitary isolation protocol at home.” Real announced via a statement on their official website:

Mariano also provided an update on his condition on Instagram. “Hello everyone. I appreciate your messages of support.  I am perfectly well, thank God my family and my environment are also great. Now I am recovering at home and I hope to return to normal soon and be able to be with my teammates and team. Greetings to all.”

Mariano has had no contact with other players and staff.

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Barcelona icon, Xavi tests positive to Covid-19.

Barcelona great and Al Sadd manager, Xavi has tested positive. He revealed the development on his instagram page. He is asymptomatic and now in self-insolation.

He wrote on Instagram: ‘A few days ago, following the QSL (Qatar Stars League) protocol, I tested positive in the last COVID19 test. Fortunately, I’m feeling ok, but I will be isolated until I am given the all clear. When the health services allow it, I will be very eager to return to my daily routine and to work. I’d like to thank all the authorities, especially those working in [the] QSL, [the] QFA (Qatar Football Association) and [at] Al-Sadd for supplying the means of early detection, reducing the spread of infection and that guarantees the normal development of the competition.’

The 40 year-old Xavi will be absent from the club’s Qatar Stars League game against Al Khor on Saturday. The midfield maestro will not be able to oversee the club’s training sessions. He is temporarily replaced by David Prats, Al Sadd’s reserves coach.

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 La Liga, Sports

Former Arsenal manager, Unai Emery appointed Villareal manager.

La Liga side, Villarreal have appointed former Arsenal coach, Unai Emery as their manager, the Spaniard’s first managerial role since his dismissal from Arsenal last November. He replaces Former Villarreal boss Javier Calleja who left the club last week after leading them to a 5th position on the  La Liga. Emery  replaced legend, Arsenal Wenger as manager in May 2018.

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No Ballon d’Or in 2020.

The Ballon d’Or awards, one of the most prestigious football awards will not be awarded this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This is happening for the first time since 1956. A statement from France Football, organizers of the event reads below.

“There will be no edition in 2020, because it turns out, after thoughtful consideration, that all the conditions are not met. We believe that such a singular year cannot -and should not- be treated as an ordinary one.

From a sports perspective, two months (January and February), out of the eleven generally required to form an opinion and decide who should lift the trophies, represent far too little to gauge and judge; without forgetting that the other games were played – or will be played – in unordinary conditions (behind closed doors, with five replacements, Champions League’s Final 8 played in a single game).

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Finally, the equity that prevails for this honorary title will not be warranted, especially when it comes to accounting and preparation: all the award seekers will not be in the same boat, some having seen their season cut short. Therefore, how can we establish a fair comparison? To avoid overly convoluted calculations and projections, we chose the least bad of the options.

This decision, which was taken of course with all the Group stakeholders, does not delight us but it seems to be the most responsible one. Protecting the credibility and legitimacy of such an award also means ensuring its flawlessness over time.

The Ballon d’Or will gather again the football big family and enthusiasts in 2021, to relive the happiness that surrounds the ceremonies as we have experienced them in recent years ».

The France Football Dream Team at the end of the year

Instead of the four usual winners (men and women BO, Kopa and Yachine Trophies), France Football will designate 11 players at the end of the year and establish an all-time team chosen by the usual BO jury (180 juries from all over the world).
The idea? Each jury will choose 11 players from a list of names established by FF redaction to build their Dream Team. This team of legend will be unveiled on L’Équipe and France Football various channels.

With this development, Barcelona’s Lionel Messi will remain the football player with the most Ballon d’Ors in history this year.

 

 

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 La Liga, Sports

Current Barca team lacks identity- Dani Alves

Former Barcelona right-back Dani Alves has offered his thoughts on what is wrong with his former team. The  37-year-old who left Barcelona for Italian giants Juventus in 2016 after almost a decade in Catalonia is of the opinion that the current Blaugrana lacks identity on the pitch.

“What this Barça lacks is the identity it has always had, like Ronaldinho’s Barça, our Barça. The identity of a team that dominates for 90 minutes, 100 minutes, or 150 minutes. Barça are there for people to enjoy. Now what I see, from the outside, is that Barça are just another team. They used to have an understanding throughout the team and made things look easy.” He told Catalunya Radio

Also Read: Liverpool’s replica home shirt becomes the highest selling in their history.

“What this Barça lacks is the identity it has always had, like Ronaldinho’s Barça, our Barça. The identity of a team that dominates for 90 minutes, 100 minutes, or 150 minutes. Barça are there for people to enjoy. Now what I see, from the outside, is that Barça are just another team. They used to have an understanding throughout the team and made things look easy.” He told Catalunya Radio

Speaking on his ex teammate, Lionel Messi’s frustration at the club, the Brazilian chipped in.

“Leo is a natural winner. He doesn’t like losing. When the team loses it’s normal he gets angry, he always wants to win. Just like me. We always want to win.

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“He sees, what I feel, and that’s a lack of support. I’ll always say that Messi is the main course and we were the perfect ingredients for that plate. Now I have the feeling that he’s doing everything, all the time, and we must remember he’s only human.”

Barca were beaten 2-1 at home by Osasuna on Thursday, handing the LaLiga title to their rival, Real Madrid. An emotional Lionel Messi spoke of the need for the club to change to continue the Champions League race.

“We need to change a lot, otherwise we will also lose against Napoli, I already said before that playing like this we won’t be able to fight for the Champions League and you see, we could not even fight for the league. We need to be self-critical.”

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 English Premier League, Sports

Football fans could return to UK stadiums from October.

UK stadiums will be reopened to spectators from October, British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson has announced. Recall that the stadiums were shut in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic and matches have been played behind closed doors after the return of the Premier League on June 17.

“We will pilot larger gatherings in venues like sports stadiums with a view to a wider reopening in the autumn, from October, we intend to bring back audiences in stadiums. Again, these changes must be done in a Covid-secure way, subject to the successful outcome of pilots.” He said on Friday.

The government has  outlined operating guidelines for that to happen. They include:

  • Fans must agree to a new code of behaviour that includes not attending if they potentially have symptoms of coronavirus or have been exposed to a person who has tested positive;
  • Social distancing must be observed in seating arrangements;
  • Crowd management plans should be in place, including the controlled entry and exit of fans and one-way systems;
  • Additional hygiene facilities should be installed inside venues, particularly at entrances and exits;
  • Screening procedures should be considered at stadium entrances.

Sports minister Nigel Huddleston spoke of his excitement about the news.“For months, millions of us have felt the void of being unable to go to the match to support our team or attend a top-class sporting event, So I am pleased that we are now able to move forward with a plan to help venues safely reopen their doors to fans.  I recognise that not every sport, team or club has the benefit of huge commercial revenue, and it is often their dedicated fans that are the lifeblood which helps keep them going. By working closely with sports and medical experts, these pilots will help ensure the safe return of fans to stadiums. Although it will remain some time before venues are full to capacity, this is a major step in the right direction for the resumption of live spectator sport across the country.”

 

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