Latest news with #ParisStGermain
TimesLIVE
5 hours ago
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Mbappé inherits Real Madrid's No 10 jersey after Modric exit
Kylian Mbappé will follow Real Madrid greats Ferenc Puskas, Clarence Seedorf and Luis Figo by wearing the iconic number 10 jersey after Luka Modric's departure to AC Milan, the LaLiga club said late on Tuesday. The 26-year-old French forward wore the No 9 shirt in his debut season after arriving from Paris St Germain on a free transfer. He scored 44 goals in all competitions in the 2024-25 season, though failed to lift a major trophy. Among the other elite players to wear the No 10 shirt for Real Madrid are Gheorghe Hagi, Michael Laudrup, Robinho and Mesut Ozil.
Powys County Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Powys County Times
Thomas Frank plays down injury concerns over Dominic Solanke and Destiny Udogie
New Tottenham boss Thomas Frank played down injury concerns over Dominic Solanke and Destiny Udogie weeks out from the Super Cup against Paris St Germain on August 13. Left-back Udogie and England forward Solanke were set to feature in Spurs' second friendly of the day at Luton, but were pulled out as a precaution hours after Wycombe had earned a 2-2 draw with the Europa League winners. Solanke was absent from the 0-0 draw at Kenilworth Road due to a minor ankle injury and Udogie was withdrawn before kick-off. However, the duo are expected to join the squad on Sunday's flight to Hong Kong for Tottenham's week-long pre-season tour of Asia. It ends goalless in Luton ⏱️ — Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 26, 2025 'Dom has a minor ankle issue, nothing we're worried about, just a precaution,' Frank said. 'Destiny felt something in the warm up, so, again, just a precaution. We just want to be on top of that.' Frank used two completely different starting line-ups for the friendly fixtures, with captain Son Heung-min involved in the 2-2 draw with Wycombe at the club's training ground, but not with the squad for the stalemate at Luton. Son, who has entered the final 12 months of his contract, has attracted interest from MLS club Los Angeles FC this week, but Tottenham are yet to receive a bid for the South Korean attacker, the PA news agency understands. Two goals from Pape Sarr earned Spurs a draw with Wycombe – after Rodrigo Bentancur was forced to pull out before kick-off due to illness. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Pape matar sarr (@pape) A different line-up was fielded at Luton where Tottenham's summer recruit Mohammed Kudus had an early shot cleared off the line before the hosts threatened in the second half, but Nahki Wells had a back-post volley saved by Antonin Kinsky and lifted another effort over to ensure it finished goalless in front of 10,071 spectators. Frank added: 'I would say the big takeaway on the positive side is that we got more or less 75 minutes into most of the players – that was the reason why we played two mixed teams and subbed on all the youngsters. 'So, the physical, minute-wise – box ticked. I'm happy with that.'
Toronto Star
5 days ago
- Politics
- Toronto Star
Soccer players' union hits back at ‘autocratic' FIFA and Infantino in fallout from Club World Cup
President Donald Trump, from right, and FIFA President Gianni Infantino present Chelsea's Cole Palmer with the golden ball trophy after Chelsea won against Paris St Germain in the Club World Cup final, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool Photo via AP) flag wire: true flag sponsored: false article_type: : sWebsitePrimaryPublication : publications/toronto_star bHasMigratedAvatar : false :
Reuters
6 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
Neymar confronts Santos fan after late goal ruled out
July 24 (Reuters) - Striker Neymar had a heated exchange with a fan after his late goal was ruled out, condemning his club Santos to a 2-1 defeat and leaving them in the Brazilian Serie A relegation zone. The 33-year-old, who has had a frustrating time since returning to his boyhood club this year, went over to the stands at the end of the game with Internacional on Wednesday night to talk with a fan who appeared to be remonstrating with him. Videos showed Neymar agitated and gesticulating, then raising a thumbs up as a teammate ushers him away. Santos had been pushing for a comeback from two goals with Alvaro Martin Barreal scoring a minute into added time. Three minutes later, Neymar thought he had scored with a left-footed shot and celebrated in front of cheering home fans. But boos rang out across Vila Belmiro stadium as the referee ruled the ball had not crossed the line. Santos are 17th in the 20-club league, where the bottom four are relegated to Serie B at the end of the season. The former Barcelona and Paris St Germain player has had a torrid time since returning: sidelined with injury, sent off for a handball and suffering COVID-19.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Sport
- Telegraph
Liverpool hope Hugo Ekitike can be the next Alexander Isak
Liverpool appear unlikely to be successful in their pursuit of Alexander Isak, but in signing Hugo Ekitike they might have identified the next best thing to the Newcastle United forward. Gangly and quick, with a venomous shot, Ekitike moves and plays in a similar way to Isak, and has even taken a similar journey to English football. At 23 years old, Ekitike, whose move to Anfield was confirmed on Wednesday evening, is a little younger than Isak. He is not Premier League-proven, either. But the Frenchman is undoubtedly a striker of enormous potential and, crucially for Liverpool, he was available for a price they believe to be fair value. He has joined the champions from Eintracht Frankfurt in a deal worth an initial £69m. As with Isak, Ekitike's rise to the Premier League has not been entirely smooth. A thrilling young talent in France, he was signed by Paris St-Germain from Stade de Reims at the age of just 20, but then struggled to make the expected impact at such a huge club. In 33 games for the French giants, Ekitike scored only four goals. 'We knew he had abilities but since we hardly saw them at PSG, France immediately forgot,' says French football journalist Timothé Crépin. 'When PSG recruited him, he still had quite a few deficiencies. 'I am a Reims fan and we knew we had a promising young man but frankly it didn't go any further. I remember one of his professional coaches who knew his talent, but who still doubted his ability to really go higher, especially in relation to his mentality. And I think he was right, because Ekitike still took time to, I think, really understand certain things at the highest level.' Isak experienced the same issues earlier in his career, after moving to Borussia Dortmund from Sweden as a 17-year-old wonderkid. He went on to make only five Bundesliga appearances, scoring zero goals, before transferring to Real Sociedad two years later. Isak ultimately came to England a few weeks before his 23rd birthday, and has subsequently developed into one of the Premier League's most devastating forwards. Liverpool clearly believe that Ekitike can make that same step at the same age, and there is plenty of evidence to suggest they could be right. Ekitike's record for Frankfurt speaks for itself: 22 goals in 48 appearances last season. Those numbers do not do justice to the nature of those goals, though, as Ekitike proved himself capable of unpicking defences in all sorts of ways. Just like Isak, Ekitike is a player who can take many different routes to the opposition's goal. In his time in Germany, he has scored with stylish curlers, towering headers, one-versus-one finishes, back-post tap-ins and long-range screamers. This is a player who has every finish in his locker, even if he does not always produce the right one at the right time. Ekitike, who has been of interest to Newcastle on numerous occasions in recent years, has already demonstrated this goalscoring ability on English soil. In the Europa League last season, he produced a fabulously fizzing effort from the edge of the box at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. In their first attack of the game, Frankfurt take the lead over Spurs thanks to Ekitike 😮💨 📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK — Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 10, 2025 Of course, Ekitike and Isak are not identical. The Frenchman is probably the more creative and tricky dribbler, for example, while Isak is certainly a more clinical finisher. In league football last season, Isak scored three more goals than statisticians would expect, based on the quality of his chances. Ekitike, by contrast, underperformed his expected goals by seven. No player hit the woodwork more often in the Bundesliga last season, and no player had more shots. This looseness with his finishing might be one of the primary concerns for Liverpool supporters, who have spent the last three seasons watching the erratic Darwin Núñez. The hope will be that Ekitike can succeed where Núñez has failed by adding a more ruthless edge to his game as he moves into his mid-twenties. Another worry will be that big-money signings from the Bundesliga often struggle to replicate their attacking exploits in the Premier League. In recent years the likes of Jadon Sancho, Christopher Nkunku, Christian Pulisic and Timo Werner have all been unable to meet expectations after high-profile moves from the Bundesliga. Indeed, recent history would suggest that Frankfurt forwards do not always translate their goalscoring prowess to new clubs. Randal Kolo Muani (PSG), Luka Jovic (Real Madrid) and Sebastien Haller (West Ham United) all stumbled after big-money moves away from Deutsche Bank Park. It should help Ekitike's cause, though, that he has a burning desire to improve ('I have a thirst for learning,' he told TNT Sports last season) and perhaps also to prove PSG wrong. On his time in Paris, where he struggled for minutes in a squad that contained Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, he has said: 'I wouldn't wish it on anyone'. Ekitike might catch the eye off the pitch, too. He is known to have a passion for fashion, having been spotted in a variety of extravagant outfits in recent years. At Paris Fashion Week last year, he turned up in a fluffy pink jacket, bright pink shirt and pink sunglasses (although he said earlier this summer that he is no longer as interested in fashion as he was). Hugo Ekitike at Fashion Week. 📸 @RMCSport — Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) January 17, 2024 For Liverpool, all that matters is that Ekitike is able to consistently improve, and to make the most of the physical and technical gifts with which he has been blessed. He has all the ingredients required of a modern striker: the speed, the skill, the creativity and the physique. Could Ekitike be the next Isak? Well, if all goes to plan at Anfield, he might ultimately prove to be even better.
