Barcelona star Yamal faces backlash for reportedly hiring people with dwarfism for birthday party
Spain's Ministry of Social Rights has asked prosecutors to open a probe into the hiring and exposition of the entertainers. Ministry director Jesús Martín Blanco told Europa Press that such hirings 'take us back to the Middle Ages.'
Advertisement
A local association for people with disabilities had already condemned the alleged hirings, saying it would take action 'legally and socially' against those responsible for promoting such actions.
Spanish radio station RAC1 published an interview with one of the entertainers who said he was in the party. The man said they were all treated with respect. He complained about the reaction against Yamal for hiring them.
Yamal celebrated his birthday with a party filled with celebrities. It also included some of his Barcelona teammates.
In May, Yamal signed a contract extension to stay at Barcelona until 2031. He helped the Catalan club clinch a domestic treble — La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup. His big season came after he helped Spain win the European Championship in the summer of 2024.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
The Associated Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Tom Lynagh to start at flyhalf for the Wallabies against the British and Irish Lions
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Tom Lynagh will start at flyhalf for Australia against the Lions in the series-opening test on Saturday, 36 years after his famous father wore the Wallabies No. 10 jersey against the combined British and Irish team. Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt announced his squad Thursday to take on the Lions and was forced into some lineup changes after the narrow win over Fiji. The 22-year-old Lynagh will start his fourth test match in a new halves combination with Jake Gordon in the biggest moment of his short international career. 'With the short runway leading up to such a big test match, we know we must adapt fast and improve quickly from the performance we had against Fiji,' Schmidt said. 'We're very much aware of the occasion and conscious of earning the support from the public through the effort they see on the field.' The Lions won the series 2-1 on their last tour to Australia in 2013, avenging a 2-1 series loss to the Wallabies in 2001. Michael Lynagh was part of the Australian team that lost the 1989 series 2-1 to the Lions, and he went on to help guide the Wallabies to a World Cup triumph in 1991. His son was born in Italy, went to school in England and moved in 2021 to Australia, where he has flourished at the Queensland Reds and earned three test caps. There was a vacancy at No. 10 after Noah Lolesio was injured against Fiji. Tom Lynagh will be the first Wallaby to follow in his father's footsteps in playing against the Lions. Nick Champion de Crespigny will make his starting debut as blindside flanker and hooker Matt Faessler has won a spot in the XV in changes to the lineup. Lions coach Andy Farrell was set to unveil his squad later Thursday in a downtown Brisbane hotel. The Lions are 5-0 ahead of the three-test series since a 28-24 loss to Argentina in a warmup in Dublin. They had wins over all of Australia's Super Rugby franchises before Saturday's 48-0 demolition of an AUNZ invitational XV comprising Australians and New Zealanders in Adelaide. The Lions landed in Australia last month and have beaten Western Force in Perth, Queensland Reds in Brisbane, New South Wales Waratahs in Sydney and the Brumbies in Canberra. The second test is set for July 26 in Melbourne, followed by Sydney on Aug. 2. ___ Squads: Australia: Tom Wright, Max Jorgensen, Joseph-Aukuso Sua'ali'i, Len Ikitau, Harry Potter, Tom Lynagh, Jake Gordon; Harry Wilson (captain), Fraser McReight, Nick Champion de Crespigny, Jeremy Williams, Nick Frost, Allan Ala'alatoa, Matt Faessler, James Slipper. Reserves: Billy Pollard, Angus Bell, Tom Robertson, Tom Hooper, Carlo Tizzano, Tate McDermott, Ben Donaldson, Andrew Kellaway. ___ AP rugby:
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
The Martin Zubimendi passing paradox: Why his numbers don't match the hype
As the football data revolution continues at pace, it's easier than ever to build up an image of a player without ever really needing to see them in action. Free online statistical sources can be powerful tools, giving us an outline of someone's game, but event data alone often lacks the crucial context provided by the eye when evaluating real quality. Martin Zubimendi's subtle brilliance lies between those statistical rifts — Arsenal have signed a selfless midfield facilitator whose raw numbers never seem to jump off the page. He ranked 19th of 69 midfielders in La Liga for forward passes completed per game with Real Sociedad last season, and was down at 27th for progressive carries. His passing accuracy, at 84.4 per cent, feels distinctly middle of the road for a player who has generated such excitement for his tempo-setting ability. Advertisement Part of it can be explained away by semantics, metric definitions that don't quite capture those passes that feel as if they've made a difference — whether he's found a team-mate in space, picked up the pace of play or destabilised the opposition shape. But with advancements in tracking data, we can start to explore how someone like Zubimendi's passes actually interact with the game around them, and to give credit to those players who can turn the tide of a match without providing that crucial final ball. With the help of SkillCorner data, The Athletic delves into the tape to find out what's going on… At the heart of Real Sociedad's in-possession game — he was the player with the most touches, passes and carries in their squad last season — Zubimendi's role was all about providing balance. He would float across the width of the pitch, identify when team-mates were under pressure or outnumbered, and offer himself as the spare man, not afraid to launch himself into tricky situations if it helped his side keep the ball moving. It means the numbers often paint Zubimendi as a risk-averse passer, keeping things ticking over in midfield with short and simple balls in his own half, but there is more to the event data than meets the eye. According to SkillCorner, close to 57 per cent of his passes last season were attempted under pressure, while only nine midfielders in La Liga absorbed a higher proportion of the pressures that their team received (9.4 per cent). In short, much of what Zubimendi does on the ball needs to be done quickly, with the opposition breathing down his neck — but he is happy to shoulder much of that stress for his team. The sequence below against Valencia, for example, captures Zubimendi's role well, with the 26-year-old Spain international lurking behind the two strikers during build-up before drifting into a position to receive the pass. He doesn't have to do much to create the space for himself on this occasion, but after picking up the ball, he takes opponents Javi Guerra and Hugo Duro out of the game with a short burst of acceleration before sliding a pass through to Sergio Gomez, who himself spins and keeps the play moving. Under traditional definitions, Zubimendi's action here wouldn't be labelled as 'progressive' — dig into the small print and you'll see that a progressive pass must not start from the defending 40 per cent of the pitch — but to the viewer, his change of tempo and forward ball are transformative, taking his team from slow build-up to a four-vs-four higher up the pitch. Advertisement In this next example, against Athletic Club, Zubimendi is much more incisive and his movement out wide to receive the pass from full-back Hamari Traore is crucial in helping Real Sociedad escape an aggressive man-to-man press. Still, despite moving his team from a potentially difficult spot and launching a quick attack with an adventurous first-time ball, Zubimendi would not be rewarded by many traditional progressive passing metrics in this instance either, due to the pass starting too far back. Tracking data can help bridge the gap between the more intangible parts of build-up play and data analysis. By contextualising game events in relation to the other players on the pitch — looking at how passes weaken defensive structures, bypass defenders, escape pressure — we can credit those who can change the pace of a match by hitting the sorts of balls that otherwise might have gone unnoticed. Line-breaking passes are a good place to start, defined by SkillCorner as those that progress the ball through, over or around organised defensive shapes. Zubimendi ranked highly for these across last season, trailing only Barcelona's Pedri with his total of 157 from central midfield, and being ninth among La Liga midfielders with his average of 4.7 per game. In the clip below against Celta Vigo, we see a good example of how inquisitive Zubimendi can be with possession, producing three line-breaking passes in the space of eight seconds after dropping deep between his defenders, eventually finding Pablo Marin with a left-footed ball. While none of these passes make huge progress up the pitch, Celta defenders are constantly asked to step out and put pressure on the receivers after Zubimendi picks them out. They are probing balls, they ask questions, and they eventually create spaces for the play to develop up ahead. He can also pick up the pace and be much more direct, as shown by this excellent pass against Valencia. Again, Zubimendi's movement into defence eases the build-up, giving centre-back Igor Zubeldia an easier pass under pressure from the opposition. From there, the 26-year-old breaks two defensive lines with a left-footed ball, met with a neat Mikel Oyarzabal flick to open up the space. It was not technically progressive, according to many popular event-data sources, but it was an example of the kind of bold, forward-thinking pass for which Zubimendi doesn't always get credit. He isn't always so aggressive, of course, and there will be games where you hardly notice him jumping from space to space in deep build-up and offering himself for passes simply to help his team-mates escape. But when Zubimendi spots the opportunity to switch up the tempo, he can — and often does so to good effect. Mapping Zubimendi's line-breaking passes helps outline his role further, zipping the ball short and sharp through the first defensive line before generally looking to the flanks with longer passes further up the pitch. He doesn't tend to get too involved when moving the ball into the opposition box, but the eye test suggests that for a territorially dominant side such as Arsenal, where defences will sit deeper, he will have more opportunities to find team-mates in dangerous, central areas. SkillCorner can also help to quantify his ability to move the ball forward at speed, having completed 77 'quick' line-breaking passes last season — defined as those released first-time, or within one second of receiving the ball. Only Real Madrid duo Luka Modric and Federico Valverde and Barca's Pedri made more among La Liga's midfielders. Advertisement The following clip against Mallorca shows how Zubimendi can quickly sort his feet out to escape from tricky situations as he plays a sharp one-two with Luka Sucic before using his left boot to control the ball, then poking a pass through to full-back Aihen Munoz. Moving the ball through the lines, he then drifts forward with the play, eventually finding winger Ander Barrenetxea with a scooped pass in behind. Here's another example of Zubimendi helping to pick up the pace, away at Osasuna, dropping into a position to receive and breaking the midfield line with a one-touch pass. While not particularly dangerous in isolation, it's the speed of the forward ball that catches the opposition press off-guard, and allows his team-mates operating further up the pitch to move into space. Declan Rice was excellent for Arsenal in the deeper midfield role last season, but things come naturally to Zubimendi in build-up. He has a knack for escaping pressure and an instinctive understanding of when and how best to move the ball forward. For any Arsenal fans concerned by the seemingly underwhelming numbers, don't worry; Zubimendi takes more risks and plays a much more significant role in helping his team attack than they might initially suggest.
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Sabbi scores in 4th minute, White adds 1 goal, 1 assist as Whitecaps beat Dynamo 3-0
HOUSTON (AP) — Emmanuel Sabbi scored a goal in the fourth minute, Sebastian Berhalter added a goal and the Vancouver Whitecaps beat the Houston Dynamo 3-0 on Wednesday night. Yohei Takaoka had two saves and his MLS-high 10th shutout this season for Vancouver. Mathias Laborda's header from the center of the area, off a ball-in played by Édier Ocampo, was parried by diving goalkeeper Jonathan Bond but Sabbi blasted a half-volley into the net to open the scoring. Brian White, on the right side of the area, played a pass back to a charging Sebastian Berhalter for a first-touch finish from just outside the penalty box in the 42nd. White had a penalty kick blocked by Bond but tapped in his own rebound to cap the scoring in the 56th. The Whitecaps (12-5-5) had lost back-to-back games — by a combined score of 6-0 — and four of their last five. ___
