..::Football IV::..

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Juventus 2 Bayern Munich 0: Two-goal Favilli sinks German champions

Andrea Favilli announced himself with a first-half brace as Juventus defeated Bayern Munich 2-0 in their International Champions Cup opener.Joao Cancelo, Mattia Perin and Emre Can were making their Juve debuts in Philadelphia on Wednesday, however, Andrea Favilli stole the show.

Signed from Ascoli, Favilli broke the deadlock in the 32nd minute after Sven Ulreich's failed to deal with a poor back-pass from team-mate Josip Stanisic at Lincoln Financial Field midweek.

The 21-year-old then doubled the lead in cool fashion eight minutes later to condemn Niko Kovac to his first defeat as Bayern head coach since replacing Jupp Heynckes in the off-season.

There was no Cristiano Ronaldo following his sensational switch from Real Madrid but Juve still fielded a star-studded XI, including Perin, Can, Cancelo, Giorgio Chiellini, Daniele Rugani, Claudio Marchisio, Miralem Pjanic, Alex Sandro and Federico Bernardeschi.

Bayern – who defeated Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 in their ICC opener – fielded the likes of Franck Ribery, Javi Martinez, Juan Barnat and Serge Gnabry in the line-up, with Arjen Robben, David Alaba, Kingsley Coman and Renato Sanches on the bench.

It was a lively start despite the wet conditions as Ulreich was forced into an early save – the back-up keeper managing to get a strong hand to keep out Favilli's powerful attempt.Perin enjoyed a relatively comfortable half, though the former Genoa star was called into action to deny Ribery, who showed some nice foot work to create space to unleash a fine curling effort four minutes later.

Bundesliga holders Bayern began to take control as the half wore on, with Juve surviving a couple of goal-mouth scrambles, however, it was the Italian champions who opened the scoring just past the half-hour mark.

A poor back-pass from Stanisic put Ulreich under serious pressure and Marchisio pounced on the wayward return ball, picking out Favilli and the new signing side-footed the opener with the German shot-stopper caught off his line.Bayern were forced into a substitution with Martinez – who has endured an injury-ravaged career – replaced by Alaba following a collision with Favilli.

Favilli was in the thick of the action again five minutes prior to the interval when he sprung the offside trap after Sandro's long ball and finished coolly beyond Ulreich.The only concern for Juve from the first half was Can's withdrawal two minutes before the break.

Bayern substitute Woo-Yeong Jeong should have reduced the deficit just shy of the hour-mark but the Korean teenager somehow blazed over the bar with the goal at his mercy.

 

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Manchester City 1 Liverpool 2: Salah scores on return as Mane nets 94th-min penalty

Mohamed Salah made a goalscoring return as Sadio Mane's last-gasp penalty secured a 2-1 win for Liverpool against Manchester City at the International Champions Cup in New Jersey.

All eyes were on Salah at a wet MetLife Stadium, where the reigning Premier Golden Boot winner and Player of the Year started on the bench following a World Cup affected by a shoulder injury sustained in the Champions League final loss to Real Madrid.

And the Egyptian phenomenon – who scored 44 goals in all competitions last season – scored less than a minute after his introduction in the second half, which turned Wednesday's game on its head.

Salah, with the suggestion of offside, headed past the helpless Joe Hart to cancel out Leroy Sane's opener after the German put Manchester City ahead six minutes later, while the Liverpool star struck the woodwork moments later.

Sadio Mane wasted two great chances during the closing stages but it did not matter as he stepped up and converted a 94th-minute penalty after Solanke was bundled over.

Loris Karius retained his spot in the XI despite another error in Liverpool's opening 3-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund last time out, while Virgil van Dijk, Fabinho, Andy Robertson, Georginio Wijnaldum, Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne and Daniel Sturridge also started.

Missing a host of World Cup stars, Pep Guardiola's City line-up was headlined by club-record signing Riyad Mahrez and Claudio Bravo, with Sane and Bernardo Silva among the substitutes following a 1-0 defeat against Dortmund.

Chances were few and far between in the first half, though City had an opportunity to break the deadlock in the 12th minute when Lukas Nmecha was played in brilliantly by Mahrez but Karius made a good save before the rebound was blazed over the crossbar.The introductions of Sane and Mane brought the match to life in the second half as Liverpool almost made the breakthrough within three minutes of the restart.

A last-ditch intervention off the line denied Mane, who almost bundled the ball into the net following chaos in the penalty area.City then had a golden opportunity to open the scoring when Luke Bolton left Fabinho in his wake and slid a ball across the six-yard box but Sane's shot was saved by substitute keeper Caoimhim Kelleher.

Sane was not to be denied a minute later as he showed outstanding pace and composure to put the Premier League champions ahead after gliding past Van Dijk and Clyne before finishing calmly – moment of magic which left Klopp shaking his head.

That prompted the addition of Salah just past the hour-mark and he restored parity within seconds of his arrival – guiding a header beyond Hart.City had no answer to Salah, who almost made it two but his goal-bound header was cleared away for a corner, while he rattled the crossbar moments later after finding space in behind Guardiola's defence.

With penalties looming, the referee pointed to the spot in the fourth minute of stoppage time when Solanke was clumsily fouled in the back by Tosin Adarabioyo following Salah's chipped pass and Mane made no mistake against Hart.

 

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Borussia Dortmund 2 Benfica 2 (3-4 on penalties): Portuguese giants win ICC shoot-out


Benfica ended Borussia Dortmund's 100 per cent start at the International Champions Cup as they triumphed 4-3 on penalties.Portuguese giants Benfica overturned a two-goal deficit to salvage a 2-2 draw before surviving a shoot-out in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Wednesday.

Benfica rallied after the break following two first-half goals from Dortmund's Maximilian Philipp had the Bundesliga side in control – Andre Almeida and Alfa Semedo restoring parity before Eduardo Salvio struck the decisive blow on penalties.

The result ended Dortmund's run of back-to-back wins over Liverpool and Manchester City at the pre-season tournament in the United States, while Benfica avoided defeat in their ICC opener.Dortmund started slowly as Pizzi fired a free-kick wide, before Omer Toprak came under pressure in his six-yard box to scramble clear.

The German outfit grew into the game, though, and opened the scoring in the 20th minute when Mario Gotze and Jacob Bruun Larsen played a one-two in the area, before Philipp poked home the latter's cross.

Two minutes later it was 2-0 as Philipp latched onto Gotze's pass and volleyed in to double Dortmund's lead.The former Freiburg striker nearly had a first-half hat-trick as Christian Pulisic crossed to the back post, but Ruben Dias cleared with Philipp lurking.

Dortmund withdrew Pulisic, who scored twice against Liverpool, along with Marcel Schmelzer at half-time, while Benfica changed their front three and halved the deficit six minutes into the second half.

Pizzi's pass was perfectly weighted into the path of Almeida, who hit the ball first time into the far corner beyond Marwin Hitz.A flurry of changes were made by both teams midway through the second half, but it was a Benfica substitute who levelled the score as Semedo scored at the second attempt, having only arrived on the field three minutes prior.

Franco Cervi and Salvio combined with five minutes remaining, but the Argentina latter was unable to make good contact with his header, before Dortmund's English prospect Jadon Sancho curled wide as the game went to a penalty shoot-out.

Sergio Gomez missed first for Dortmund in the shoot-out with Jonas blasting the ball into the top corner to give Benfica the advantage.

Alexander Isak's penalty was then saved by Mile Svilar before Salvio slotted home calmly to win it for the Eagles.

 

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Roma 1 Tottenham 4: Llorente, Moura at the double for emphatic Spurs


Fernando Llorente and Lucas Moura scored twice in the first half as Tottenham accounted for Roma 4-1 in their International Champions Cup opener.

Spurs went behind to an early Patrik Schick goal at the Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, but Llorente – who was deputising up front in the absence of Harry Kane – netted twice in nine minutes to make it 2-1 on Wednesday.Moura then scored twice before half-time to put the result beyond doubt as Tottenham opened their ICC campaign with victory against the Serie A outfit.

Roma, who reached the Champions League semi-finals last season, made the perfect start as Czech forward Schick found the far corner of the net inside three minutes for his fifth goal in three pre-season fixtures.

But Spurs hit back six minutes later when Spanish veteran Llorente latched onto a deflected Luke Amos cross to head in the equaliser.The former Juventus, Bilbao and Swansea forward then gave Tottenham the lead when he followed up from Moura's saved shot at the back post.

Former Paris Saint-Germain winger Moura was becoming an influential figure Spurs, and having provided the assist for Llorente's second goal, the Brazilian added a third when he headed home Serge Aurier's pin-point cross.Moura scored Tottenham's fourth goal on the stroke of half-time after he collected the ball on the edge of the area and drilled accurately into the bottom corner.

A raft of changes were made by both teams as Son Heung-min and Davinson Sanchez featured in their first pre-season games for Spurs, while Daniele De Rossi, Edin Dzeko and Kevin Strootman were among the introductions for Roma.

Substitute Tottenham goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga made a fine save with 15 minutes remaining when he turned Dzeko's strike around the post.But there would be no further goals as Tottenham cruised to a comfortable win against their Italian opponents.

 

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Full Time
(9-8 PEN)

Manchester United 1 Vs 1 AC Milan

Manchester United Goal(s)

A.Sanchez 12'

&

AC Milan Goal(s)

Suso 15'
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Congratulations Manchester United!

Maru Penalty shootout eka
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AC Milan 1 Manchester United 1 (8-9 on penalties): Red Devils survive marathon shoot-out

Manchester United enjoyed a winning start to their International Champions Cup campaign after surviving a penalty shoot-out 9-8 against AC Milan.Franck Kessie chipped a spot-kick over the crossbar to finally hand United victory after 26 penalties, following a 1-1 draw in Pasadena, California on Wednesday.

Milan twice had the opportunity to prevail after Pepe Reina saved three successive penalties, including one from United counterpart Joel Pereira, but the Red devils eventually triumphed in a marathon.

United made a dream start at the Rose Bowl when the refreshed Sanchez broke the deadlock in the 12th minute.Having struggled following his high-profile arrival from Arsenal, Sanchez – who enjoyed an extended break courtesy of Chile's failure to qualify for the World Cup – scored with a tidy finish past Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Jose Mourinho, however, was left visibly frustrated after United conceded three minutes later – a ball from Leonardo Bonucci picking out Suso with ease.Both teams enjoyed chances to win their ICC opener but neither side could make the breakthrough in regulation time as United prevailed on penalties.

Bonucci has been tipped to complete a sensational return to Italian champions Juventus but the experienced centre-back skippered a Milan side, boasting Donnarumma, Hakan Calhanoglu, Suso and Patrick Cutrone.

There was no Anthony Martial for United after the disgruntled forward returned home for the birth of his second child amid growing doubts over his future.The Red Devils, though, still fielded Alexis Sanchez, Juan Mata, Ander Herrera, Eric Bailly, Luke Shaw and out-of-favour Matteo Darmian, who surprisingly wore the captain's armband in Antonio Valencia's absence, despite being linked with a transfer.

Herrera almost put United ahead in the third minute, but Donnarumma got down low to tip away the shot.But the Red Devils did hit the front thanks to Sanchez nine minutes later after being played through by Mata in a swift move.

United's lead was short-lived, however, as a simple throughball from Bonucci exposed Milan's opponents – Suso firing a half-volley past Lee Grant.Donnarumma appeared to be targeted by United, who on two occasions attempted to catch the scrambling keeper off his line with Sanchez almost scoring direct from a corner, while Mata came close with a quick free-kick after Herrera was denied by the Italian moments earlier.

Sanchez continued to look sharp and the Chile international's acrobatic volley came close to restoring United's lead two minutes into the second half.From that point, Milan looked the more likely to add to the scoring as United tired with the minutes ticking by, though the tireless Sanchez provided an outlet up front, while Milan debutant Reina made a fine save to keep out Luke Shaw's long-range effort.

Calhanoglu looped a ball over to Fabio Borini, but the substitute's shot was tipped onto the post by Joel Pereira with six minutes remaining as the match headed to penalties.

 

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AC Milan vs Man Utd 1-1 (Pens 8-9)

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Manchester City vs Liverpool 1-2 Highlights

 

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AS Roma vs Tottenham 1-4 Highlights

 

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Juventus vs Bayern Munich 2-0 Highlights

 

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Mourinho clarifies Martial's reasons for leaving US tour


Jose Mourinho has confirmed Anthony Martial has left Manchester United's tour of the United States to attend the birth of his second child in Paris.

Martial has been strongly linked with a move away from the club after his agent claimed he wanted a move , with the France international reported to have a strained relationship with Mourinho.It was speculated on Wednesday that Martial would be returning home but later Mourinho confirmed his departure was not due to transfer rumours .

"I found out that Martial was going to Paris when he told me," Mourinho told reporters after United's 1-1 International Champions Cup game with AC Milan, which they ultimately won 9-8 on penalties."It was two or three days ago. When it is personal reasons, everyone analyses that the way they think is the correct way.

"When a man is going to be a father in this case, it's the second time he is going to be a father, and he decides it is very important for him to go, nobody has the right to stop him to go."The shoot-out victory over Milan was United's first ICC contest of the year and, following a couple of unimpressive draws with Club America and San Jose Earthquakes, Mourinho was happy with how things went.

"The game was good, a good training session against a team with more time [training] than us, with more players than us, so was a good training session," Mourinho said."We played in a system [3-5-2 formation] we don't play many, many times, so it's good experience too.

"We made a couple of defensive mistakes, but with the ball we were dangerous, especially when fresh, our problem at the moment is to play 90 minutes, but for 65 minutes we were very good."We had a chance not to just score goals but score beautiful goals; the counter with Ander [Herrera] in the first half and Alexis [Sanchez] in the second.

"And in the end the penalties mean nothing, but I think football fans, especially American football fans, enjoyed the penalty shoot-out and [it] was good fun."

 

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Darmian wants to leave Man Utd, admits Mourinho


Jose Mourinho has revealed Matteo Darmian wants to leave Manchester United, but says the club will not sell the defender unless they receive a good offer.

The right-back captained United as they won a penalty shootout against AC Milan in the International Champions Cup on Thursday. However, he has been heavily linked with a return to Italy amid reports Juventus, Inter and Napoli are interested.

After making just eight Premier League appearances in 2017-18, the Italy international does not expect to remain at Old Trafford beyond this summer.

But Mourinho insists the club will be demanding a fair price."[Darmian was given the captaincy] because he is a fantastic guy in my two years and with Mr [Louis] van Gaal before me," he told reporters. "He is the kind of guy who is always ready to give what he has, he grew up in AC Milan and to play against his child club and be captain in a friendly has a nice meaning.

"Matteo wants to leave and I think when a player wants to leave, if the right offer arrives you have to try to be human and let the player follow his instinct but not at any price. And, until now, the offers we got for Matteo are not even close to being accepted."

Darmian’s departure would, however, leave United slim in options at right-back because of the fitness issues currently hindering the team, leaving Mourinho worried over the potential loss.

"Antonio Valencia is injured and he will be injured for the beginning of the Premier League, Diogo Dalot is also in a recovering phase, he will not be ready for beginning of Premier League,” he added.

"Ashley Young is a possibility to play right-back, but is on holiday. I don't know if he fancies to be back for that and put himself to be available for the team or stay on holiday."Victor Lindelof is a possibility, he is not a right-back but is a possibility, he starts training next Monday. I will send people to Manchester to train with Victor, it makes no sense for him to come to the United States.

"So if Matteo leaves he leaves because the right offer arrives and if he stays, yes you are right, he can be important for us.”

 

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Mourinho: Liverpool must win Premier League after lavish summer spending


Jose Mourinho says the expectation is on Liverpool to win the Premier League title this season after their high-profile signings this summer.

The Reds crowned Alisson Becker the most expensive goalkeeper in history when he joined from Roma for £65 million ($85m) this summer , following Naby Keita from RB Leipzig, Fabinho from Monaco and Xherdan Shaqiri from Stoke City as the latest arrival at Anfield.The Anfield side are looking to improve on last season’s league performance after finishing 25 points behind Manchester City in the Premier League while reaching the Champions League final.

And although Mourinho is interested to see Jurgen Klopp go back on his assertion that he would never go on large spending sprees, he expects great things from his rivals this season.

"I think if you have the money, if you invest well, is better than to have it in the bank, because the interests are very low," Mourinho told reporters with a smirk after his side's 9-8 penalty win over AC Milan in the International Champions Cup.

"The problem is you have to invest well and honestly I think they did very well because every player they bought are quality players and I'm happy for them.

"And I'm also happy to smile and to see that, you know, you can change your opinion and change as a person. It's funny. But that's okay."But maybe this season finally you demand that they win. You, I think, you have to be fair and now you have to demand and say the team with investments you are making with investments that you start making last season, not just this season, last season.

"That you made in January, that you make now, that will probably be the record of the Premier League this season, I don't see another team getting close to that level of investment, a team that was a finalist in the Champions League, you have to say you are a big candidate. You have to win."

 

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AC Milan's Bonucci looking to rejoin Juventus, admits Leonardo


AC Milan defender Leonardo Bonucci is ready to return to Juventus after just one season at the San Siro, according to new club general manager Leonardo.
Bonucci, 31, caused a stir in the summer of 2017 when he swapped Turin for Milan after seven trophy-laden seasons with the Old Lady.

But the centre-back failed to find the imperious form that had marked him out as one of the world's elite defenders in his new home, amid constant instability on and off the pitch for the club.

And on his first day back at the Rossoneri, Leonardo admitted that his namesake was close to making an exit.“I’ve met some people, not just those from Juventus,” the 1994 World Cup winner, who has represented Milan as player and coach, told reporters in Thursday's press conference.

“We’re bound to FFP, so it won’t be a crazy market. It’ll be moderate and wise. The desire [to talk to Juve] started with Leonardo Bonucci, so if we can, we’ll make it happen. We have no objection to it.

While affirming that Bonucci was seeking a way out, Leonardo added that he could yet stay for another term at Milan, who have recently fallen into the hands of US hedge fund Elliott Management.

“It all started from an idea, a very sensible and quiet one. It’s from here that all the talk started," he stated. “It’s very normal for a player to have a wish. A player doesn’t just ask to leave, there’s also the project and objectives to consider.“He arrived last year as a symbol for change. In great harmony, we’ll try to see what will happen. It’s not definite that he’ll leave.”

 

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Atletico Madrid 1 Arsenal 1 (Atletico win 3-1 on pens): Smith Rowe stars in Emery's new-look side

Arsenal prospect Emile Smith Rowe scored a superb solo goal to earn his team a 1-1 draw against Atletico Madrid in the International Champions Cup as Unai Emery was treated to a showcase of the potential in his squad.

The 17-year-old attacking midfielder impressed throughout the first of Arsenal's three pre-season friendlies in Singapore and showed just why he is one of the club's most talked-about young players when he scored from outside the box early in the second half.

The goal cancelled out Luciano Vietto's opener for Atletico, who were without the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez but nevertheless exposed Arsenal's defensive frailties on occasion and looked the better organised of the two teams.

Arsenal's young guns failed to fire in the penalty shoot-out, though, with Joe Willock and Eddie Nketiah missing their spot-kicks along with Henrikh Mkhitaryan as Atletico triumphed 3-1.

Emery gave valuable minutes to new additions Bernd Leno and Sokratis Papastathopoulos in a side that blended youth and experience, with Alexandre Lacazette looking sharp as he prepared to continue the good form he enjoyed in 2017-18.

Atletico, whose first competitive test of the season will come when they face Real Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup on August 15, improved as the game unfolded and were unfortunate not to find a winner as Arsenal's error-prone defence began to tire.

Playing a similar system to that employed primarily by Arsene Wenger last season, Arsenal started with Aaron Ramsey and new signing Matteo Guendouzi protecting the defence as Lacazette spearheaded a front four featuring young attackers Reiss Nelson and Smith Rowe.

Nelson sped to the by-line after four minutes and crossed to the far post but couldn't quite pick out Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who sliced a shot wide from a deep Smith Rowe corner moments later as Arsenal looked dangerous early on.

Having started slowly, Diego Simeone's under-strength Atletico team came to life when Juanfran burst into the box just before the half-hour mark and pulled the ball back to Angel Correa, whose first-time shot was headed clear by Shkodran Mustafi.

Ramsey threaded a pass in behind the Atletico defence where Lacazette thumped the ball onto the palms of the alert Jan Oblak, who was tested again when the French forward played a neat one-two with Smith Rowe and tried another low shot.

Having dominated the first half, Arsenal were undone four minutes before the break when Correa turned Rob Holding and crossed to the unmarked Vietto, whose diving header from the right side of the box found the far corner of the net before Leno could react.

The second half was just two minutes old when Smith Rowe picked the ball up 30 yards from goal and jinked his way between two defenders and drove the ball into the top right corner of the net with a confidence that cannot have failed to impress the watching Emery.

In contrast to their fluency going forward, Arsenal looked edgy and unsure of themselves in defence and Atletico should have restored their lead when Guendouzi failed to clear the ball in the six-yard box but Joaquin Munoz fired over the bar from point-blank range.

Emery sent on Sokratis as he made mass second-half substitutions, with Calum Chambers and Mkhitaryan also featuring in the last half hour as the game lost its shape.The last of Arsenal's chances fell to young forward Nketiah, who burst down the right flank and flashed a shot across the face of goal but his effort was saved by Antonio Adan as Atletico held firm.

Adan then starred in the shoot-out, saving from Mkhitaryan, Willock and Nketiah before taking the winning kick himself and burying it in the top right corner of the net.

 

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Allegri 'happy' for maturing Pogba but won't discuss Juventus return

Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri admits Paul Pogba's performances at the World Cup caught his eye but stopped short of expressing an interest in bringing the midfielder back to Turin.

After a season of mixed fortunes at Manchester United, where he impressed and frustrated across the course of a campaign that yielded only runners-up spots in the Premier League and FA Cup, Pogba was inspirational for France in Russia and scored in their 4-2 final victory over Croatia.

The 25-year-old's international team-mate Blaise Matuidi called for Pogba to return to Juventus amid France's celebrations, and it has been rumoured he would be interested in heading back to Serie A to link up with new signing Cristiano Ronaldo.

Allegri – who allowed Pogba to leave Juventus for an initial €105million ($123m) in August 2016 after four glittering seasons with the Bianconeri – praised the midfielder for coming of age at the World Cup but would not confirm any concrete interest in a transfer."I can only say I'm happy for having seen him grown up in an important competition like the World Cup," Allegri told reporters."He played with great personality. Compared to the past, he matured a lot."

Allegri watched his players beat Bayern Munich 2-0 on Wednesday in the International Champions Cup, and he praised new arrivals Emre Can and Joao Cancelo for "improving the team" in their first pre-season outing.

Juve's goals were scored by 21-year-old forward Andrea Favilli but Allegri indicated that it was too soon for him to compete for a first-team place."Favilli is a good player," he said."He has great potential and great skills, but I think he is about to move to Genoa on loan for next year."

 

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Everton finally set to land Mina from Barcelona with £27m bid


Everton are on the verge of signing Yerry Mina from Barcelona after making a £27 million ($35m) offer, Goal understands.

The 23-year-old arrived at Barca from Palmeiras in January, but the Camp Nou side have already decided to listen to offers for the Colombian defender despite his bright World Cup campaign and insistence that he wants to stay.Everton emerged as the main candidates to sign Mina and made an initial offer of £15m ($20m) which was soon increased to £21m ($28m).

The Premier League outfit were told to return with a better bid amid further offers from West Ham, Borussia Dortmund and Lyon, whose president claimed Mina preferred a move to France over one to Merseyside.

But just a day after seeing Barca beat them to the signing of Malcom from Bordeaux, the Toffees are confident of wrapping up the signing of the defender after submitting an offer worth £27m, which the Catalan club are ready to accept.

The Blaugrana will make almost three times the figure they paid to bring Mina to Camp Nou, but are not willing to cut ties with him completely as they will insert a buy-back option in the deal.

Mina is a top target for new Everton boss Marco Silva, who has already held talks with his uncle and representative, Jair Mina, over the centre-back's role in the team.

Mina signed a five-and-a-half-year deal with Barca in January, but made just six appearances for Ernesto Valverde’s side as they went on to win the Spanish league title.However, the arrival of Arthur Melo from Gremio this summer forced Barca to consider letting him go due to having too many foreign players.

Mina has 15 caps for Colombia to his name and took his goal record for the national team up to six with his key role in their World Cup campaign.After missing the opening game against Japan, Mina scored against Poland, Senegal and England as the South Americans made it to the last-16 of the competition.

He will be Everton's second big signing of the summer, after the Goodison Park outfit snapped up Richarlison from Watford for £40m ($53m).

 

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Ronaldo given two-year prison sentence after striking deal over tax charges


Cristiano Ronaldo will accept a two-year prison sentence and a fine worth €19 million (£16.9m/$22.15m) after striking a deal with Spanish authorities over tax charges.

The ex-Real Madrid striker, now at Juventus, pleaded guilty to four charges of evasion between 2011 and 2014 worth a total of €14.7m. According to EFE, that amount has been reduced in his guilty plea to €5.7m, although taking into account fines, interests and other cost the sum ascends to €19m.

The charges were initially denied by Ronaldo and his management company Gestifute, with the player answering tetchily whenever questioned over the matter.

After reports emerged that the Spanish government had rejected an initial offer to settle the case, Cristiano wrote on Instagram "Don't try to spoil the beautiful moment I'm living through with fake news," while on another occasion he insisted: "I do things the right way and I will continue to do so."

As a first-time offender Ronaldo's prison sentence will not be made effective, meaning that he will not spend time behind bars.Under Spanish law, though, if the Portugal striker re-offends during the duration of the sentence he would then be open to a custodial sentence.

Ronaldo's sentence still must be confirmed, which will occur when the star presents himself before Madrid's Pozuelo de Alarcon court to hear the final verdict.

The charges and prospective sentence are almost identical to those initially handed down to Ronaldo's great rival, Barcelona wizard Lionel Messi.

Messi and father Jorge had been sentenced to 21 and 15 months in prison respectively for tax fraud, having failed to pay some €4.1m owed on image rights. But in July the pair saw their sentences commuted in return for the payment of additional fines.

Other footballers that have fallen foul of Spanish tax authorities in recent years include Manchester United's Alexis Sanchez and former Argentina captain Javier Mascherano.

 

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Ferguson thanks hospital staff and promises Old Trafford return after recovering from brain surgery


Former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has thanked hospital staff for saving his life in his first public appearance since undergoing an operation following a brain haemorrhage.

The 76-year-old was rushed to hospital in May, less than a week after appearing at Old Trafford for Arsene Wenger's final visit in charge of Arsenal.United at the time stated the procedure had gone "very well" and the Scot was released from hospital at the beginning of June to continue his recovery at home.

He has now appeared in a video published by the club, thanking the medical professionals who treated him and the well-wishers who provided words of support.

A healthy-looking Ferguson began his message by noting his appreciation of the staff at Macclesfield District General Hospital, Salford Royal and the Alexandra Hospital.

"Believe me, without those people, who gave me such great care, I would not be sitting here today," he said."So, thank you from me and my family. Thank you very much.

"It is has made me feel so humble has all the messages I've had from all over the world, wishing me the best. The good wishes do resonate very, very strongly with me, so thank you for that support you've given me.

"Lastly, I'll be back later in the season to watch the team. In the meantime, all the best to Jose [Mourinho] and the players."Ferguson won a 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups and two Champions Leagues in a remarkable 27-year spell in charge, having previously led Aberdeen to three Scottish Premier League triumphs and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.

His illness triggered messages of support from across the football world, with past and present United players joining the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool, FIFA and UEFA in wishing him a speedy recovery.