Archive May 30, 2025

Real Madrid pay Liverpool to sign Alexander-Arnold early

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After Liverpool agreed to pay a fee to let the defender leave his early on his contract, Trent Alexander-Arnold will join Real Madrid on June 1.

Sources at Liverpool have reported that Real have paid the fee in one, upfront payment of 10 million euros (£8.4 million). The Spanish club’s sources have suggested they paid less, though.

The England right-back will now have to accept a payment to join Real ahead of the Club World Cup.

When his contract at Liverpool expired on June 30th, the 26-year-old would have been able to leave on a free transfer.

Alexander-Arnold’s contract includes a 1 billion euro (£840m) buy-out clause and he has agreed to a six-year deal.

For the expanded month-long Club World Cup, which begins on June 14 and is taking place in the United States, Fifa approved an additional window for teams to register new players for the summer, starting on June 10th.

On June 18 in Miami, Real plays Saudi side Al-Hilal in its opening group game.

Alexander-Arnold could make his 33 England appearances after being selected for their World Cup qualifier against Andorra on June 7 and their friendly against Senegal on June 10.

Why delay signing Alexander-Arnold?

After a disappointing campaign, Real have responded quickly by signing Spain defender Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth for a fee of £50 million.

After a season in which they haven’t won a significant domestic or European trophy for the first time since 2020-21, the Spanish giants will be motivated to win the Club World Cup.

The 32-team winner of the tournament could potentially win up to £97 million in prize money, which is obvious financial incentive.

With Xabi Alonso, who has taken over as Real boss after Carlo Ancelotti, working sooner is also a benefit from this move.

Alexander-Arnold has played for Liverpool since he was six when he first moved to his hometown.

With the Reds, he has won two Premier League titles, the Champions League, the FA Cup, the FA Cup, the FA Cup, and the League Cup.

However, he claimed earlier this month that he had made the decision to leave and work for both “personally and professionally.”

In 354 appearances for the club, Alexander-Arnold has recorded 23 goals and 92 assists.

Analysis

Kieran Maguire, a seasoned expert in football finance,

The cost of paying 10 million euros for Alexander-Arnold outweighs the financial advantages of entering the later stages of the Club World Cup.

Real Madrid wants to incorporate him into pre-season training and other activities as soon as possible.

In terms of the Profit and Sustainability Rules, Liverpool are very well placed.

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James Blunt reveals dark backstory behind hit song – and it’s about ‘stalking’ a woman

James Blunt took a tongue-in-cheek journey down memory lane as he revealed what actually inspired the song in honor of the 20th anniversary of his breakout single You’re Beautiful.

The hit song “Sealing” a woman is the dark backstory of James Blunt’s dark backstory.

James Blunt is raising a glass to 20 years of You’re Beautiful, the chart-topping ballad that catapulted him to global fame and, as he puts it, paid for his Ibiza villa. In a tongue-in-cheek Instagram post on Friday, the 51-year-old singer walked through his lavish home while the iconic 2005 track played in the background.

He quipped, “20 years ago today, I put out this song that bought me this house,” before lowering his gaze to the camera. Who would have imagined, really? A song about stalking someone else’s girlfriend and using drugs while high would have a lot of resonance. You are beautiful, guys.

Fans and celebrity friends applauded the video, which was full of his signature deadpan humor. Poppy Delevingne wrote “Legend.” It’s a nice house, Humo Taylor said in a straightforward manner.

A six-bedroom, $1.7 million villa set in an Ibizan pine forest was purchased in 2006, just one year after You’re Beautiful became a global hit and soared to the top of the charts from the UK to Italy.

The star stormed to success with his 2005 hit single You Are Beautiful
The star stormed to success with his 2005 hit single You Are Beautiful(Image: YouTube)

The song has become a wedding staple, but many people don’t realize how romantic it is. Blunt claimed to The John Bishop Show in 2022 that “it’s about me stalking somebody else’s girlfriend on the underground while I’m high.” However, it is nice when people play it at their weddings.

Even on Oprah, Blunt acknowledged that it wasn’t exactly a feel-good anthem, referring to a fleeting encounter between her ex and her new partner on the London Underground: “She and I caught eyes and lived a lifetime in that moment, but didn’t do anything about it, and we haven’t seen each other since.

Over the past two years, James has been busy writing, singing, and recording, raising two kids, traveling between Ibiza and London with his wife, and doing so.

James is still making music
James is still making music (Image: Getty Images)

Sofia Wellesley, a legal consultant with aristocratic roots and educated at Edinburgh University, is James’ spouse.

It should come as no surprise that James and Sofia were given an exclusive invitation to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding in May 2018 because they are both the granddaughter of Lord and Lady John Henry Wellesley.

The couple got engaged in a private ceremony at a London registry office the morning after attending Elton John’s annual End of Summer party in Windsor, where they had been partying all year. Sofia, a socialite, joked with friends at the time that she “was almost too hungover to get married,” according to the Mail Online report.

James and Sofia tied the knot in 2014
James and Sofia tied the knot in 2014(Image: Getty Images)

The lovebirds immediately flew to Majorca for a second ceremony held at Sofia’s mother’s breathtaking Marsana estate, where they had already said, “I do.”

Before the big day, James reflected on his decision to partner with the Mail Online and said, “It takes a strong person to deal with someone working in music.

Continue reading the article.

It’s difficult when you’re with someone and discover that you’re the victim of something just because you’ve caught yourself standing next to someone else. He continued, “I’m fortunate to have her because it takes a tough person to handle that.”

Experts Point Out How TV’s Dr House Often Got It Wrong

He is the illustrious physician who loved to confound doctors with his brilliant, unconventional diagnoses.

Croatian doctors contend that Dr. Gregory House, the misanthropic genius who was the star of the multi-award-winning “House” television series, himself committed many errors.

Croatian researchers have increased the American series’ medical accuracy in a paper released this month after performing a colonoscopy on the wrong side of a patient or an MRI on a doctor who is clearly not a radiologist.

After analyzing every single episode of the show, which ran from 2004 to 2012, Denis Cerimagic, a professor at Dubrovnik University, and two other fellow neurologists, both of whom were devoted fans, put up a list of 77 errors.

Cerimagic told AFP, “We focused on the main cases’ diagnoses, the reality of clinical practice presentation, and the detection of medical errors.”

The mistakes were broken down into five categories: misuses of medical terminology, misinformation, and simple weirdness, which the show’s anti-hero, played by British actor Hugh Laurie, possessed in abundance.

That sluggish

The term heart attack and cardiac arrest are interchangeably used when they are not interchangeable, and vitamin B12 deficiency can be corrected with just one injection, according to them, along with the use of mercury thermometers, which had long replaced digital ones.

As one episode suggested, there is also no universal chemotherapy for all types of malignant tumors.

The biggest mistake of all is that Laurie uses his cane on the wrong side, which is the character’s genius for deduction coming from the misdiagnosis that left him limping and suffering.

Cerimagic suggested that the actor carry the stick on his unaffected side, even though he understood why the actor did it because “it’s more effective to see the pronounced limp on the screen.”

Additionally, according to their research, medical procedures were performed by experts who had no business working there, such as an autopsy performed by an infectologist.

With the results of complex laboratory tests carried out in a few hours, the series occasionally stretched reality beyond the limits. And doctors rarely go into patients’ homes to look for environmental causes of illness.

Not to mention Dr. House’s unethical behavior (he was quoted as saying in the paper’s article as saying, “Brain tumour, she’s gonna die”) and the character’s opiates addiction.

The researchers claim they may have missed other errors.

Cerimagic continued, “We are neurologists, but other medical specialists would undoubtedly establish additional errors.”

medical blunders

Despite their criticisms, the researchers claim that medical advisors have made modern medical series much more popular than they have in the past.

The neurologist claimed that it is not like it was 20 years ago when doctors were examining X-rays in the face.

Cerimagic claimed that only medical professionals can now identify errors.

Despite its flaws, they believed the series could be used to aid in the training of medical students.

According to Cerimagic, the emphasis could be on acknowledging medical errors in the context of individual episodes, adopting the teamwork principle, and adopting a multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis and treatment.

He claimed that the response to his and his colleagues’ paper, “House M. D.: Between reality and fiction,” was surprising because it was not the first academic study to doubt the good doctor’s methods.

Confusion and concern loom over Mexico’s historic judicial election

The reforms were contentious from the beginning. To protest the constitutional amendment, thousands of court employees went on strike. Even the Senate building was taken by protesters.

The Morena party, according to critics, allegedly sought to elect sympathetic judges to strengthen its hold on power. The party already has majority seats in both the presidency and the Congress chambers.

The elections also sparked rumors that unqualified candidates would take office.

Candidates must have a law degree, legal experience, no criminal record, and letters of recommendation in accordance with the new rules.

Additionally, candidates had to pass evaluation committees made up of members from the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government.

Despite this, some of the final candidates have raised questions. For methamphetamine trafficking, one was detained. Another person is a part of a murder investigation. More people have been charged with sexual misconduct.

Arias believes that some candidates were unable to pass the election-related screening process due to limited resources.

Since the reforms were only approved in September, she noted that the National Election Institute only had ten months to organize the elections.

She claimed that “the timing is very rushed.”

Silvia Delgado, a lawyer who once defended Joaqun “El Chapo” Guzman, the cofounder of the Sinaloa Cartel, is one of the most contentious candidates for Sunday’s election.

She is currently running for governor in the border state of Chihuahua, Ciudad Juarez.

Delgado claimed she was only practicing law as a lawyer despite the attention she received from prominent clients.

She said, “Having represented this or that person does not imply that you are a member of a criminal organization.”

She contends instead that Mexico’s current judges are entitled to scrutiny. She claimed that many of them benefited from personal connections to win positions.

She said, “They came through a recommendation or a family member who helped them enter the court.”

In addition, President Sheinbaum framed the elections as a means of addressing the judicial system’s struggle against nepotism and self-dealing.

Raised in Manchester, joining Liverpool – meet fun-loving Frimpong

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“You only live once, so while we’re on this earth, just have fun, love others and just give it positive energy – and then life’s good,” says Jeremie Frimpong.

Life is never dull when the Dutchman, who has completed a £29.5m move to Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen, is around.

From entertaining goal celebrations, which include getting team-mates to shine his boots, to amusing post-match television interviews, right-sided defender Frimpong is all about fun.

“I like the pink by the way,” he told German football expert Archie Rhind-Tutt, who was wearing a pink jacket, in one live post-match television interview. “Very nice!”

“Often in football it becomes so serious that player interviews can be a bit dull,” former Germany midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger tells BBC Sport.

“Frimpong hasn’t lost any of that freshness, that sense of ‘I am enjoying what I am doing here’. He is different and he has such a refreshing tone.”

Another goal celebration with Leverkusen team-mate Amine Adli went viral on social media after Frimpong celebrated with a smoking gesture, just two days after Germany partly decriminalised marijuana use.

But don’t be fooled by Frimpong’s playful manner.

Liverpool are investing in a serious talent, who started out in Manchester City’s academy system, showed promise at Celtic before making a name for himself with Bayer Leverkusen.

After four years in Germany, Frimpong is returning to England after helping Xabi Alonso’s side break Bayern Munich’s dominance and deliver a memorable league and cup double in 2023-24.

Jeremie Frimpong (left) celebrates scoring for Leverkusen against Eintracht Frankfurt by placing his boot on team-mate Exequiel Palacios' kneeGetty Images

A better attacker than defender?

Frimpong was born in Amsterdam – the fifth child of seven – although he has spent the majority of his life in Britain.

He was seven when he arrived in England with his family and grew up in the east Manchester suburb of Clayton, playing for AFC Clayton on Saturday mornings before turning out for Clayton Villa a few hours later.

Aged nine, he was scouted by Manchester City and placed in their academy, where he crossed paths with Jadon Sancho in the under-18s before the latter moved to Borussia Dortmund in 2017.

Frimpong went on to play for City’s under-23s, played in the EFL Trophy at places like Rochdale, Crewe and Barnsley, and made appearances in the Uefa Youth League.

But by the age of 18, he left City for Celtic in 2019 without playing a single minute of senior football.

Celtic, who paid City £300,000, originally bought Frimpong to provide cover but within three months he played – and was sent off – in the Scottish League Cup final against Rangers, who were managed by former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard.

Frimpong recovered from that red card to become a trusted member of the team, and just over a year later he signed for Leverkusen in a deal worth around £10m.

“I’ve never seen a better kid than him,” said Neil Lennon, his manager at Celtic.

“The quality of his play, the pace of his play, the end product.”

Former Celtic forward Sutton highlights Frimpong’s electric pace as he adds: “He was only at Celtic for a season or two and when he arrived you worried about him size-wise, but he gave the team such an attacking thrust.

Netherlands defender Jeremie Frimpong (right) celebrates a goal during a friendly match against CanadaGetty Images

‘Phenomenal speed’

The arrival of Frimpong at Liverpool is intended to help soften the blow of losing Trent Alexander-Arnold, who will become a Real Madrid player on Sunday.

According to his numbers, the 24-year-old is arriving at Anfield with serious potential.

Frimpong was one of the strongest runners in the Bundesliga in 2024-25, making 1,021 sprints, 2,116 intensive runs, registered a maximum speed of 36.34 km/h, and covered a distance of 259.6km over 33 games.

He is also versatile.

In his final appearance of the season, a 4-2 home defeat by Borussia Dortmund on 11 May, he played as a midfielder and scored. It was Frimpong’s 23rd goal in 133 Bundesliga matches.

An Opta graphic showing Jeremie Frimpong's passes for Bayer Leverkusen during the 2024-25 Bundesliga seasonOpta

“What I find phenomenal is his speed when he is standing still and those kind of first few steps,” adds Hitzlsperger.

“That’s what he’s got and he loves going forward. So he is equipped to be a wing-back.

“Defensively he is still a very good player but he is not your typical right-back that you see playing for teams like Inter Milan who might defend for 90 minutes.

“Of course there is a lack of height with him. But with his pace, drive and determination to set goals up, to get to the byeline and pull balls back, then wing-back is probably his best position.”

Will Frimpong make an instant impact in the Premier League?

With Netherlands team-mates Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch in the Liverpool dressing room, he will be surrounded by familiar faces as he looks to settle quickly.

“People are talking about Conor Bradley being Liverpool’s first-choice right-back next season and I get that, but you need fierce competition and Frimpong would provide that,” adds Sutton.

Jeremie Frimpong celebrates scoring a goal for Bayer Leverkusen against Eintracht FrankfurtGetty Images

Two languages – one serious talent

Frimpong used the Bundesliga’s 2024-25 winter break to visit Ghana, his parents’ homeland, for the first time.

“It was English that was spoken in the house when I was growing up – that and the Ghanaian language called Twi,” he said.

“My mum would normally speak that to me, but my brothers and sisters all speak English. I’m still working on my Dutch.”

While in Ghana, Frimpong visited an orphanage in the capital Accra and was moved by what he saw.

“I bought them food, we sat together and I asked lots of them what they would like to be,” he added.

“The small children there didn’t know me at all but they came straight to me and wanted me to take their hands. They showed me so much warmth.

“In spite of their situation and the whole environment, they were so full of joy. They smiled and we just played football and were happy.”

Jeremie Frimpong celebrates scoring for Bayer Leverkusen against Bayern MunichGetty Images

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