Latest news with #LuisSuarez
Irish Times
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Ken Early: Champions League final is Ousmane Dembele's chance to silence his doubters for good
The 2022 World Cup final is remembered as one of the greatest football matches of all time. For Ousmane Dembélé, it was one of the worst nights of his life. Only 41 minutes had elapsed when the fourth official came to the sideline and held up the number 11 which meant, for Dembélé, the ultimate humiliation of being substituted in the first half of the biggest game in the world. He wasn't injured, he had just played terribly. Argentina were shredding France down their right flank. Dembélé gave away a penalty for a foul on Angel di Maria and then was nowhere to be seen as di Maria arrived from deep to finish off a counterattack for Argentina's second. His performance that night seemed to crystallise the essence of Dembélé: a player of enormous talent but questionable mentality who could be relied on to fail at the decisive moment. At Barcelona, nobody ever forgot how he missed an easy chance to make it 4-0 in the last minute of the home Champions League semi-final against Liverpool in 2019. READ MORE The Camp Nou had never really taken to him. He arrived there in 2017, aged 20, as one of the ill-fated panic buys they made to replace Neymar. He was immediately under pressure to justify his €135 million transfer fee and tasked with making himself relevant to a front three dominated by Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez - not the easiest guys to impress. He was soon being ridiculed as 'Dembulance' due to his frequent injuries. He played six seasons for Barcelona and in every season he suffered a serious hamstring injury. For most of the history of football, injuries were attributed partly to bad luck and partly to weakness (the euphemism was 'injury proneness') on the part of the individual player. Coaches, fans and even teammates soon grow to despise players who seem to get injured a lot. This might seem irrational, even perverse - why pick on the ones most in need of sympathy and support? But in another way, hostility towards injured players is a necessary cultural antibody. Players have to be prepared to endure a certain amount of suffering and live with a certain measure of risk. If they sat there worrying about all the things that could possibly go wrong they would never play any games. As Jurgen Klopp once told Daniel Sturridge at Liverpool, a player has to know the difference between 'real pain and 'just' pain'. In March 2020, L'Équipe published a report that traced the root cause of his injuries to Barcelona's training regime Few embodied that mentality better than Suarez, who dealt with injuries throughout his career by simply refusing to acknowledge them. These days he runs with a pronounced limp, but for Liverpool and Barcelona he hardly ever missed a game. Inter's Lautaro Martinez showed the same warrior spirit last month by declaring himself fit for the second leg of the Champions League semi-final against Barcelona, defying Inter's doctors and even his own worried mother. He wasn't going to let a hamstring tear keep him out of such a big game. He could hardly move for two days after the game, but in the first half he had scored and won a penalty, so it was worth it. Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez (left) scores against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final second leg at the San Siro. Photograph: Piero Cruciatti/ AFP via Getty Images This was the quality people were not seeing in Dembélé. He was a player of extraordinary gifts - balance, precision, composure - but was he a fighter? Did he have the mentality of a champion? At Barcelona, people said he kept getting injured because he was up every night playing video games. After he suffered yet another bad hamstring injury in November 2019, a frustrated Suarez told the media that 'Dembélé and the doctors have to find a solution' - seeming to put the blame equally on both. Dembélé's camp believed the blame lay elsewhere. In March 2020, L'Équipe published a report that traced the root cause of his injuries to Barcelona's training regime. The problem, according to this report, was that Barcelona were training at the leisurely rhythm of their geriatric officer corps: Messi, Suarez, Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets. So Dembélé would train all week hardly sprinting at all, then be expected to sprint in the matches: no wonder his hamstrings were coming apart like pulled pork. (You can imagine how Barcelona's leadership group reacted to this bulletin). When PSG bought Dembele for €50 million in the summer of 2023, the reaction of the Catalan press could be summarised as 'good riddance'. Their dismissive judgment was largely borne out by his performances in the first season at PSG - a campaign where the Parisian focus was overwhelmingly on Kylian Mbappé, who ultimately left on a free transfer for Real Madrid. It's no exaggeration to say Inter's chances of success tonight depend on denying him that space But for the first time since 2017, Dembélé had completed a full season without tearing a hamstring. Maybe L'Équipe's sources had a point about the importance of sprint training after all. And Mbappé's departure meant the then-27-year old, for the first time in his career, had become the senior player - the leader and reference point for a group of younger stars including Désire Doué and Bradley Barcola. Recognising that Dembélé was responding well to the increased responsibility, PSG head coach Luis Enrique decided to give him even more. Halfway through this season, Enrique switched Dembélé from the right wing into the centre. The move has revealed a dimension to the player's talent few had suspected even existed. Ousmane Dembélé has scored 39 goals in his first two seasons with PSG, one less than his goal-scoring tally in six seasons at Barcelona. Photograph: Fred Tanneau/AFP via Getty Images The new false-nine version of Dembélé is the top-scoring forward in Europe in 2025, with 25 goals in 28 club matches. Since coming on at half-time to lay waste to Manchester City in a crucial league-phase match, he has cut a swathe through the Champions League, providing goals and assists in every knockout round and propelling himself into contention for the Ballon d'Or. If he scores in the Champions League final against Inter Milan, it will be his 40th goal for PSG, equalling the tally he managed in six years at Barcelona. When a player suddenly explodes like this in a new role, it raises the question: how did nobody think of playing him there before? The fact that Dembélé's classic winger qualities are now so devastating through the centre shows the direction in which football has evolved in the last few seasons. [ Ken Early: Emi Martínez commits one of the most expensive mistakes in Villa's history Opens in new window ] The traditional centre-forward was a player with the physical strength to fight central defenders for the ball. But now so much of the play consists of cat-and-mouse games between the defenders in possession and the attackers on the press. The attackers hunt while the defenders try to play out. Now the dangerous forwards are the ones who can come deep to receive passes out of defence, then have the speed and dribbling ability to do damage in the space. Dembélé's goals at Anfield against Liverpool and the Emirates against Arsenal both came from situations like this. It's no exaggeration to say Inter's chances of success tonight depend on denying him that space. If any coach and group of players can find a way, it will be Simone Inzaghi and his experienced Inter who believe, after that epic win against Barcelona, destiny is on their side. But no other team in Europe has reached the level PSG showed in their victories over Manchester City, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal. If they play to their potential they will win. 'Potential' is a word that has followed Dembélé all his life and the older he gets, the more it seems like a curse. Win tonight and he escapes it for good.
Kuwait Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Kuwait Times
Messi and Suarez each score twice as Miami rips Montreal
MIAMI: Inter Miami's Luis Suarez celebrates scoring his team's third goal with Lionel Messi during their team's Major League Soccer match against CF Montreal at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on May 28, 2025. - AFP MIAMI: Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez each scored two goals to spark Inter Miami to a 4-2 Major League Soccer victory over visiting Montreal on Wednesday. Argentine superstar Messi opened the scoring in the 27th minute and assisted on Suarez's first goal in the 68th minute for a 2-0 edge. Uruguayan star Suarez scored again in the 71st minute before Montreal's Dante Sealy answered in the 74th minute. Messi struck again in the 87th minute before Victor Loturi pulled one back from the Canadian club two minutes into stoppage time. Miami jumped to sixth in the Eastern Conference with seven wins and five drawn from 15 matches while East doormat Montreal slid to 1-10 with five drawn. Miami had lost twice and drawn twice in the past four matches. 'We had to take responsibility for the poor results. It's a matter of correcting to regain confidence,' said Suarez, who added the victory 'means a lot ... We have to continue to gain confidence in this kind of game.' Inter coach Javier Mascherano was concerned about injuries to defenders Gonzalo Lujan, Tomas Aviles and Jordi Alba. 'We needed to cut the negative dynamic. I'm happy,' he said. 'Unfortunately (the victory) is tarnished by the departure of Gonzalo, Jordi and Toto. 'In the case of Gonzalo and Jordi it was something muscular, which tomorrow we will see how far it is. In the case of 'Toto' it was the ankle that swelled in a stomp. Maybe he could continue. He wanted to continue.' Overall league leader Philadelphia won 2-1 at Toronto as the Union rallied late after Norway's Ola Brynhildsen scored in the 75th minute. Nathan Harriel netted the equalizer for the Union in the 86th minute and Germany's Kai Wagner scored the game winner two minutes into stoppage time. — AFP The Union improved to 10-3-3 for a league-high 33 points while none of the three clubs just behind them on the table could manage full points, second-place Cincinnati drawing 3-3 with visiting Dallas and third-place Nashville drawing 2-2 at fourth-place Columbus. – AFP
Al Jazeera
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Al Jazeera
Messi leads Inter Miami to 4-2 victory over Montreal in MLS
Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi each finished with two goals and an assist to lead Inter Miami to a 4-2 home victory over CF Montreal in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Inter Miami (7-3-5, 26 points) secured a win for only the second time in its past nine matches across all competitions. Wednesday's result also snapped a four-match winless streak in league play to move up to sixth in the Major League Soccer (MLS) Eastern Conference. Montreal (1-10-5, 8 points) lost for the second time in its past three matches. Suarez had not scored since Miami's last victory on May 3 and had only two goals in MLS matches this season. The star striker doubled that total with back-to-back tallies in the 68th and 71st minutes, which proved to be decisive in Miami securing three much-needed points against Montreal. Suarez's first goal was set up by a brilliant play by Messi, who controlled possession near the end line and drew a defender before looping a ball to a wide-open Suarez, who comfortably fired a point-blank shot past Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois. Three minutes later, Suarez came racing in and intercepted a ball that tapped off the foot of Montreal's George Campbell, and the Uruguayan forward fired another shot past Sirois to give Inter Miami a 3-0 edge. Montreal's Dante Sealy ruined Miami's clean sheet when he tapped a ball home past Inter Miami goalkeeper Oscar Ustari in the 74th minute off a feed from Caden Clark. It was Sealy's second goal of the season. But Messi ended Montreal's slim hopes of a comeback when he fired a close-range shot into the back of the net off a precise cross from Suarez in the 87th minute. Messi delivered his first goal in the 27th minute when Sergio Busquets dropped the ball to him near the box. Messi worked the ball to the top of the box and fired a long-distance shot past Sirois. Sealy earned an assist along with Fernando Alvarez on Montreal's second goal by Victor Loturi, which came in the second minute of stoppage time. Inter Miami's victory, while needed, was costly. A squad already playing without midfielder Yannick Bright, had three starters – Jordi Alba, Gonzalo Lujan and Tomas Aviles – all leave the game in the first half due to injuries.
Free Malaysia Today
2 days ago
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
Messi and Suarez each score twice as Miami rip Montreal
Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi scored the home side's fourth in the 87th minute. (AP pic) MIAMI : Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez each scored two goals to spark Inter Miami to a 4-2 Major League Soccer victory over visiting Montreal on Wednesday. Argentine superstar Messi opened the scoring in the 27th minute and assisted on Suarez's first goal in the 68th minute for a 2-0 edge. Uruguayan star Suarez scored again in the 71st minute before Montreal's Dante Sealy answered in the 74th minute. Messi struck again in the 87th minute before Victor Loturi pulled one back from the Canadian club two minutes into stoppage-time. Miami jumped to sixth in the Eastern Conference with seven wins and five drawn from 15 matches while East doormat Montreal slid to 1-10 with five drawn. Miami had lost twice and drawn twice in the past four matches. 'We had to take responsibility for the poor results. It's a matter of correcting to regain confidence,' said Suarez, who added the victory 'means a lot … We have to continue to gain confidence in this kind of game.' Inter coach Javier Mascherano was concerned about injuries to defenders Gonzalo Lujan, Tomas Aviles and Jordi Alba. 'We needed to cut the negative dynamic. I'm happy,' he said. 'Unfortunately (the victory) is tarnished by the departure of Gonzalo, Jordi and Toto. 'In the case of Gonzalo and Jordi it was something muscular, which tomorrow we will see how far it is. In the case of 'Toto' it was the ankle that swelled in a stomp. Maybe he could continue. He wanted to continue.' Overall league leader Philadelphia won 2-1 at Toronto as the Union rallied late after Norway's Ola Brynhildsen scored in the 75th minute. Nathan Harriel netted the equaliser for the Union in the 86th minute and Germany's Kai Wagner scored the game winner two minutes into stoppage-time. The Union improved to 10-3-3 for a league-high 33 points while none of the three clubs just behind them on the table could manage full points, second-place Cincinnati drawing 3-3 with visiting Dallas and third-place Nashville drawing 2-2 at fourth-place Columbus.
CBS News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Messi scores twice, assists in Miami's 4-2 win over Montreal
Lionel Messi scored twice and had an assist, and Inter Miami broke out of its slump with a 4-2 rout of Montreal on Wednesday night. Messi scored in the 27th and 87th minutes and set up Luis Suárez's goal with some nice dribbling in the 68th. Suárez added another in the 71st. The win gave Messi's slumping Inter Miami team just its second victory in its past eight matches. Miami last won on May 3, going 0-2-2 since then and dropping to sixth in the Eastern Conference. It has been a surprising plunge for a team that went 22-4-8 during the regular season in 2024 to set MLS records for points (74) and winning percentage (.765) and captured the Supporters Shield. In its last match, Miami rallied from a two-goal deficit to tie Philadelphia, and that momentum carried over against Montreal, which is last in the Eastern Conference with just one win this season. Messi's first goal on Wednesday was set up by Sergio Busquets, who delivered a pass to his former Barcelona teammate and set the screen that freed up Messi for his seventh goal of the MLS season. Messi then linked up with Suárez to give Miami a two-goal cushion midway through the second half, and iced the win on a pass from Suárez just before the end of regulation. It was a much needed goal for Suárez, who finished last season tied for the second-most goals in MLS (20) but had just two goals entering Wednesday's match. Dante Sealy and Victor Loturi scored for Montreal. It was also the offensive performance Miami needed before it begins Club World Cup play. The Herons have another MLS match at home on Saturday against Columbus before their first contest of the tournament against Al Ahly of Egypt on June 14.
