Category sport-news

In response to recent criticism, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick stated on Saturday that he will “protect” teenage star Lamine Yamal.

The 18-year-old winger struggled last weekend when Barca, the champions, lost, leaving them five points adrift in La Liga.

Yamal’s comments before the game, which made headlines among Los Blancos supporters and a significant portion of the Spanish media, were also controversial.

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Before Barca’s game against Elche on Sunday in La Liga, Flick stated, “We speak with him… we are very honest together, he with me and I with him, and this is the best way.”

“I will always be there for him,” he declared. He’s a fantastic player, fantastic guy, young player, and great leader for us.

Yamal has been dealing with a groin injury for a few weeks, but despite starting the Clasico, he still appears to be affected by it.

Lamine is excellent. He’s doing well, he said in a recent conversation, and I just spoke to him.

He obviously experiences some days of pain, but now he really works hard and does a lot better in these areas. This is what we can say because he is on a good evolution.

Robert Lewandowski and Dani Olmo are back at work, according to the German coach, but Barca are still without Pedri Gonzalez, Gavi, and Joan Garcia, among others.

Lewandowski and Olmo’s returns, according to Flick, had contributed to improving the training’s quality.

The last two training (sessions) were excellent, added Flick, “What I can see now with Dani and also with Lewy back.”

“They raise the standard and quality, and they also raise the level of the other players, as well as the younger players. It’s nice to see, and we’ll probably show it tomorrow.

Eder Sarabia, a former Barca assistant coach under Quique Setien, will lead the promoted side as they take on Elche at the Olympic Stadium.

Shehu Dikko, the national sports commission’s chairperson, has refuted allegations that the $1.2 million FIFA fund was used to extort funds for the construction of the mini-stadium in Kebbi State.

No one collected the funds, according to Dikko, who claimed in an interview with Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday, insisting that FIFA had managed the project funds directly.

No one collected the money because that is where people are getting it wrong. They can defend themselves, but I’m not here to defend the NFF.

What happens to the NFF has an impact on the entire sports ecosystem, according to the leader of the country. Therefore, he said, “we need to set the record straight for people to understand how this works.”

The Munich Allianz Arena will host the 2028 Champions League final.

He explained that the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) is denied access to the funds because the governing body appoints consultants, oversees contracts, and pays contractors directly under FIFA’s project structure.

I was in charge of FIFA projects, and I am familiar with its operation. Because FIFA manages its projects directly, no one collected the funds. The NFF’s job is to give the people’s wishes and land. According to Dikko, FIFA then chooses consultants, conducts procurement, and pays the contractor directly to complete the project.

The NSC chairman clarified that the project was approved in 2015 and that procurement started in 2016, clarifying that the project was not valued at the current exchange rate.

This project is not worth the $1.2 million it currently costs. The value was about $ 300 million when it was approved in 2015. He explained that that was the project’s original value at the time.

He added that construction and contract signing was postponed due to delays in obtaining land and gathering documentation, which FIFA’s appointed contractor then started doing.

A public tender and procurement procedure took place prior to the project signing. Simply put, people take pictures and assume they are incomplete. The project’s initial stage was only represented by the structure that was shown, according to Dikko.

Following widespread criticism of its appearance and value, the Birnin Kebbi mini-stadium project, which was funded through FIFA’s Forward Programme, has come under serious scrutiny.

FIFA’s use of the stadium’s image on its social media banner, which sparked outcry and inquiries into an investigation, led to the ensuing controversy.

Dikko reaffirmed that FIFA is still in charge of managing the project, insisting that all funds were handled honestly and to the highest standards.

Wembley and the newly renovated Camp Nou are both competing for the 2029 final, according to UEFA, while Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena is the only one of the two competing for the 2028 Champions League final.

Munich was the only city to advance to the 2028 final after hosting it in 2025 when Paris Saint-Germain defeated Inter Milan 5-0.

Munich also hosted the Olympic Stadium’s 1979, 1993, and 1997 finals, as well as the Allianz Arena’s 2012 and 2025 editions.

The Budapest Puskas Arena will host the final of the season in 2027, while Madrid’s Metropolitano will host the Metropolitano.

Due to Arsenal’s ongoing fixture stack-up, Mike Arteta cautioned that the top priority for football’s rule-makers should be the player welfare.

On December 16, Arteta’s side will face Crystal Palace in the League Cup quarter-finals.

However, that would leave Palace with three games in five days, and Palace could lose to the FA Cup holders if their game was moved to the Emirates Stadium.

The final-eight game should be played on December 16th, according to what Arsenal are willing to accept in order to avoid further aggravated by the hectic Christmas schedule.

Arsenal are currently playing seven matches in just 22 days, with the Premier League leaders visiting Burnley on Saturday and then making their Champions League debut at Slavia Prague on Tuesday.

Every choice we make regarding a fixture must be based on two things; The rest must be very, very far away from the players’ welfare, followed by supporters, and that is it. And that rule should never be forgotten, Arteta told reporters on Friday.

We in our industry all won’t get there if we have that large piece of paper with those two principles in front of us before we make any decisions. Anything is possible if we don’t and simply ignore that. ”

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Rodri, a midfielder for Manchester City, stated last year that players could strike as a result of a rise in competition.

Arteta asked whether the discussion of player strikes would continue as the fixtures grew, noting that: “We will never get to that point.

The window must be closed there, we told the owner. That window cannot be opened. It needs to be closed. It is our most priceless asset. ”

With a 2-0 victory over Brighton on Wednesday, Arsenal advanced to the semifinals of the League Cup.

The red-hot Gunners won eight straight victories in all competitions under the banner.

With a four-point lead at the top of the table and a defense that hasn’t been broken in six matches, they’ll head to Burnley.

After finishing the previous three seasons as runners-up, Arsenal are hoping to capture the English title for the first time since 2004.

When asked if Arsenal are currently unstoppable in his camp, Arteta responded, “No, because you always feel like you have that sense of urgency, and you see the difficulties and challenges that the next opponent is going to bring you, and we know that and every three days, we have very little time to train and prepare.

We have a lot of room for improvement, but we must maintain that level of consistency, which is difficult.

We will need to reach those performance levels once more. ”

149 referees were suspended by the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) on Friday after being accused of betting on matches.

The TFF stated in a statement that three other referees’ investigations are ongoing, with the TFF stating that their disciplinary committee had issued suspensions ranging from eight to twelve months.

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The federation’s investigation into 571 Turkish professional league referees revealed on Monday that 152 of them had active betting accounts and 371 of them had sports betting accounts.

According to TFF President Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu, “refereeing is a profession of honor.”

Anyone who violates that honor will never play football again, Haciosmanoglu added.

The TFF announced on Monday that 22 of the officials (seven match officials and 15 assistants) are employed by the highest league.

Ten of the TFF’s referees placed more than 10,000 bets, with one of them alone placing 18,227.

The head of Turkish football said on Friday that 42 referees had staked in more than 1, 000 football games.

He did not specify whether any of them were suspected of betting on matches they had officiated, though.

The Istanbul public prosecutor’s office has also begun an investigation.

After a string of defeats in their last seven games that plunged the Premier League champions into crisis, Liverpool manager Arne Slot warned his team not to make it a habit to lose games they should win.

Prior to Aston Villa’s Saturday trip to Anfield, the Reds have lost their last four league games, and they also lost to Crystal Palace in midweek.

After facing criticism for his 3-0 defeat to the Eagles, Slot again defended the need to rest his key players after a string of injury issues in the first half of the season.

Ryan Gravenberch is only just starting to recover from an ankle injury, while Alexander Isak, Jeremie Frimpong, and Alisson Becker are all still sidelined.

Slot was watching Villa’s impressive visit, Real Madrid’s Champions League trip to Anfield on Tuesday, and Liverpool’s clash with Manchester City on Sunday.

At his pre-game press conference on Friday, Slot stated, “It has nothing to do with the squad depth; it has rather how we have handled the injuries and availability throughout the season.”

Simply put, the situation is as it is. I have to take care of a few of the players, and that is why I made the decision not to play. However, there are still more than enough good players available to play the game on Saturday, the game on Tuesday, and the game on Sunday. ”

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Villa fell 12 points clear of Liverpool after five games of the Premier League campaign.

However, the two teams only meet this weekend because Unai Emery’s men are in top form just as Liverpool’s losing streak began.

Villa served as a primer for his team on how quickly things can change and how the Premier League can perform as a whole.

Only three points separate second-placed Bournemouth from eighth-placed Villa, despite Arsenal’s four-point lead at the top of the table.

Other than Arsenal, I believe there are other teams in the same points, which again proves how difficult the Premier League is,” Slot continued.

You don’t ever lose a game of football where you create more chances than the other team, even though the run is already quite long with us.

Let’s hope we make a habit of having more chances than the opponent but not winning it, Villa said. ”