Month: January 2023

Pumas UNAM have terminated Dani Alves’ contract after the former Barcelona defender was arrested on sexual assault charges.

Alves was arrested in Barcelona on Friday after it was alleged he sexually assaulted a woman in a nightclub bathroom.

The 39-year-old, who became the oldest player to feature in a World Cup match for Brazil when he played against Cameroon in Qatar last month, has denied assaulting the woman.

According to widespread reports, Alves – who has also played for Paris Saint-Germain and Sevilla – gave a statement to the Mossos d’Esquadra police force before the public prosecutor’s office requested that he should be detained and not granted bail.

Spanish news agency EFE reported how that application, plus a private prosecution brought by the woman who made the allegation, would be put to the investigating judge to determine whether Alves is kept in prison while investigations continue.

Subsequently, Pumas confirmed on Friday, via a short statement on their website and a media briefing from club president Leopoldo Silva, that they had terminated Alves’ contract.

Alves joined Mexican side Pumas in 2022 after his second spell at Barca came to an end.

Chelsea have continued their extravagant January transfer window spending with the capture of PSV Eindhoven winger Noni Madueke.

Left-footer Madueke, 20, was on the books of Crystal Palace and Tottenham as a youngster but rose to stardom in the Netherlands after leaving North London in 2018. 

An England Under-21 international, the explosive attacker netted 20 goals in 80 appearances for PSV but has been blighted by an ankle injury this season.

Madueke, who has been handed a seven-and-a-half-year deal with the option of a further 12 months, said: “I’m really pleased to sign with one of the best clubs in the world in Chelsea.

“I like to get the ball and be exciting, take players on, beat players, create a lot and score. 

“To return to England and play in the Premier League is a dream for me and my family and I can’t wait to get started. 

“It’s the best league in the world, best teams, best players. I’m absolutely buzzing to be a Blue.

“I am excited for what the future holds and to be at a club like this and winning at the highest level.”

Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly and co-controlling owner Behdad Eghbali, who are believed to have dished out £35million to sign Madueke, added: “We’re delighted to bring Noni to Chelsea. 

“He’s an exciting talent who has proven his quality over the past few years with PSV, playing in a strong European league, and we are thrilled he has chosen to join Chelsea for this next stage of his career. 

“We are sure he will form an important part of our team.”

Madueke is the latest rising star to be added to Graham Potter’s bulging squad at Stamford Bridge.

He follows Mykhailo Mudryk, Benoit Badiashile, Andrey Santos and David Datro Fofana in signing a long-term deal in West London, while Atletico Madrid playmaker Joao Felix has joined on loan until the end of the season. 

Potter’s men lie 10th in the Premier League table ahead of tomorrow’s trip to Liverpool.

Juventus have been deducted 15 points in the wake of an investigation into the club’s past transfer dealings.

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) confirmed the news on Friday, with ex-Juve director Fabio Paratici – who is now at Tottenham – given a two-and-a-half-year ban from Italian football.

Paratici’s ban includes a request for an extension to cover UEFA and FIFA activities, meaning potentially a big knock-on impact for Premier League side Spurs.

Former Juve chairman Andrea Agnelli has also been banned from holding office in Italian football for the next two years.

It has been widely reported the decision is likely to be appealed by Juve.

The Bianconeri had been third in Serie A, but have now dropped to 10th – 12 points off the Champions League places – as a result of the punishment.

Turin Public Prosecutor’s Office had been seeking a nine-point deduction following a hearing earlier on Friday.

But the FIGC went with a harsher punishment after Juve were found to have used transfers to artificially boost their balance sheet.

The sanction comes on the back of chairman Agnelli, vice-president Pavel Nedved and the rest of the Bianconeri’s board resigning en-masse last year.

That came in the wake of an investigation being launched into financial violations during their time in charge.

A separate ruling made last year acquitted Juve and other clubs of their financial conduct within Serie A, with a case centred on player values in exchanges and transfers.

But football prosecutors reopened the case against Juve after seeking new documents collected by public prosecutors in Turin surrounding the club’s conduct.

Juve have denied any wrongdoing, while lawyers claimed prosecutors had not brought enough in to reach the adequate threshold for a new ruling.

The 36-time Italian champions are next in action on Sunday at home to Atalanta, in what was set to be a potentially crucial clash in the race for Champions League qualification.

Daniel Jebbison’s first league goal for Sheffield United since May 2021 secured a narrow 1-0 home win over Hull.

The 19-year-old striker ended his 18-game league drought for the Blades as Paul Heckingbottom’s men maintained their relentless automatic promotion push with an 11th victory from their last 13 games in all competitions.

Hull, though, put up a strong fight and were pressing for an equaliser until a moment of petulance saw Ghana striker Benjamin Tetteh red carded for an attempted head butt in the 85th minute.

The game’s decisive goal came from the night’s first attack in the fourth minute when Anel Ahmedhodzic broke down the right channel and slipped the ball inside for Iliman Ndiaye.

His shot was blocked but the ball broke kindly for Jebbison, who stabbed in from seven yards.

Hull almost hit back immediately, but Wes Foderingham was quickly out of his goal to deny Aaron Connolly after he had raced on to an Oscar Estupinan through-ball.

But the Blades were only denied a second of the night when Alfie Jones made a brilliant block to thwart Jayden Bogle after he had latched on to a big boot forward by Foderingham.

Tigers goalkeeper Matt Ingram then reacted well to save at his near post after Sander Berge had played Jebbison in on goal.

At the other end Estupinan cleared the crossbar with a header after Jacob Greaves had won an aerial ball into the box.

But the hosts finished the half the stronger, with Tommy Doyle’s curling effort from the edge of the area tipped around an upright by Ingram and Berge heading over after exchanging passes with Jebbison.

After the break, a stretching John Egan failed to fully extend Ingram at his far post, while a curling attempt with the outside of his boot from Doyle was headed away from the visitors’ goal by Jones.

Hull boss Liam Rosenior responded by making a triple substitution just past the hour and two of the replacements – Ozan Tufan and Tetteh – swiftly combined to tee up an opportunity for Connolly that he lofted well over.

Tetteh also tried his luck with a 30-yard drive that drifted well wide, while moments later Jones headed past the near post from a corner.

Former Blade Regan Slater then climbed highest again in the home box to meet another corner, but his effort cleared the crossbar.

But Tetteh’s lively cameo came to an end when, after jostling with fellow substitute Oli McBurnie in preparation for an away free-kick, he thrust his head into the United striker’s face.

Tetteh was dismissed and with him went Hull’s hopes extending their unbeaten away run to an eighth games.

Scott Twine celebrated his first goal for Burnley with a stunning free-kick winner three minutes from time as the Championship leaders claimed a 2-1 comeback victory over West Brom.

Twine, who has been restricted to just five substitute appearances following his summer move from MK Dons, curled a set-piece into the top corner to see off their spirited visitors.

The Baggies had led from the seventh minute at Turf Moor, when Darnell Furlong outmuscled Charlie Taylor at the near post to head in John Swift’s corner.

Nathan Tella, though, produced a calmly-taken equaliser 15 minutes from the end, before Twine’s late winner.

Burnley’s unbeaten home record, stretching back to last May, was under pressure from the seventh minute, when West Brom took the lead, with Furlong scoring seconds after Daryl Dike’s header from a Swift corner had been blocked by home midfielder Josh Cullen.

Burnley could have gone further behind, as Swift broke down the right and rolled a pass into Dike 10 yards from goal, with Cullen getting back just in time to make an excellent block.

Burnley then had two penalty appeals rejected in quick succession, as first Ashley Barnes tumbled under Erik Pieters’ challenge following Tella’s delivery from the right, and then Josh Brownhill appealed in vain for a shove in the back by Furlong as they went for Connor Roberts’ ball in.

Both sides were having uncertain moments in defence, with former Burnley defender Pieters almost turning Barnes’ drive across goal into his own net, with goalkeeper Alex Palmer reacting brilliantly to turn the ball on to the post with his foot.

At the other end, Aro Muric fumbled a Swift corner into the net under pressure from Conor Townsend and Okay Yokuslu, but referee Jarred Gillett ruled a foul on the goalkeeper.

Barnes was close to an equaliser twice before half-time, first deflecting Ian Maatsen’s drive into the net, only to be caught just offside, and then striking the crossbar with a rising first-time drive from Anass Zaroury’s cross.

Tella then had a penalty appeal rejected right at the end of the half as he tangled with Furlong, with Albion’s players racing to remonstrate with the Southampton loanee, who they felt had gone down too easily.

Burnley continued to press for a goal after half-time, with Yokuslu deflecting a cross-shot beyond the far post.

The visitors, had to defend with great spirit, with Pieters getting his head in the way of a Tella volley after clearing Zaroury’s cross, before substitute Manuel Benson volleyed the follow-up wide.

But then Tella raced on to Zaroury’s through pass, clear of Pieters, and slotted in an equaliser.

Palmer then dropped a cross at the feet of substitute Jay Rodriguez and – recovering just in time – then blocked well from Charlie Taylor’s volley, but could do nothing to deny Twine.

Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris has blamed a lack of “mental freshness” for his recent costly errors, which he puts down to France’s run to the World Cup final.

Lloris played in six of France’s seven matches in Qatar, including a full part in their 3-3 final draw against Argentina after extra time that ended in a 4-2 defeat on penalties.

The 36-year-old, who has since called time on his international career, returned to club action with Spurs on January 1 and has made a spate of errors in his four games since.

He was beaten too easily by Riyad Mahrez in Spurs’ 4-2 collapse at Manchester City on Thursday, having also been at fault for goals against Aston Villa and Arsenal.

Indeed, his four errors leading to goals – as defined by Opta – are more than those of any other goalkeeper across Europe’s top five leagues in all competitions this season.

On the back of a tough month for club and country, Lloris accepts the criticism he is facing.

“I can’t complain. You’re a professional and you just follow a rhythm,” he told the Evening Standard. 

“When you’re involved with the national team and you go until the last day of the World Cup, you come back and miss mental freshness. But you need to get back on track.

“When you look at the Arsenal goal, I can be in a good position, but the deflection hit the ball on my chest and with the spin it goes over [the line]. 

“It’s something that even if I wanted to do on purpose, I can’t. Even on Thursday, when you look at the third [City] goal, a deflection makes the ball go over my knee.”

After conceding four second-half goals against City, Tottenham have now conceded 31 goals after 20 Premier League games – their highest tally since the 2007-08 season (36).

Spurs have lost three of their past four league games ahead of Monday’s visit to Fulham and are five points off the top four, having played a game more than the sides above them.

Despite crumbling against City, though, Lloris insists his side do not collectively have a mentality issue.

“When you look at the guys working every day, we can’t blame anyone,” he said. “We have probably lacked consistency in our performances. 

“I believe we struggle a bit to play 90 to 95 minutes at our best, things we were able to do last season, especially in the last two to three months.

“But the most important period is ahead of us: February, March, April and May is where you play for everything, and it’s important going forward to get our level back.”

Bayern Munich were pegged back by RB Leipzig as the Bundesliga returned with an entertaining 1-1 draw on Friday.

Marcel Halstenberg struck in the 52nd minute at Red Bull Arena to draw third-placed Leipzig level against the league leaders.

Julian Nagelsmann had seen his team take the lead against his former club eight minutes before half-time, with Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting picking up where he left off before the World Cup break.

Bayern were lucky ex-Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano stayed on the pitch after a rash challenge on Dominik Szoboszlai, but the visitors’ run of 10 successive wins in all competitions came to a halt regardless.

Jamal Musiala was a rare bright spot for Germany in Qatar, and the teenager teed up the first chance when he played in Serge Gnabry, whose shot was deflected against the post by another World Cup star Josko Gvardiol.

Leon Goretzka thought he had nosed Bayern ahead when he nodded in from Choupo-Moting’s flick-on, but the goal was disallowed for Matthijs de Ligt straying offside in the build-up, with the VAR upholding the linesman’s decision.

Bayern were not to be denied the lead, though, with Choupo-Moting turning in his seventh Bundesliga goal of the season after meeting Gnabry’s pinpoint left-wing cross.

Yann Sommer had little to do in the first half, but the Bayern debutant was picking the ball out of his net seven minutes after the restart.

Joshua Kimmich’s slack pass put Bayern in trouble, with the champions failing to clear their lines and eventually allowing Halstenberg to prod home from close range despite appeals for a foul in the build-up.

Upamecano was fortunate to escape a red card when he scythed down Szoboszlai and appeared to be the last defender, yet Bayern made their luck count to come away with a point.

Prosecutors are seeking a nine-point deduction against Juventus for their player transfer accounting, following the resignation of the club’s board in November.

Former chairman Andrea Agnelli and the rest of Juve’s directors quit en-masse last year amid investigations into financial violations during their time in charge.

A separate ruling made last year acquitted Juve and other clubs of their financial conduct within Serie A, with a case centred on player values in exchanges and transfers.

But football prosecutors are hoping to punish Juve as they seek new documents collected by public prosecutors in Turin surrounding Juventus’ conduct.

According to widespread reports in Italy, prosecutor Giuseppe Chine filed another motion on Friday, and the court of appeal will now consider the request.

Chine believes a nine-point deduction should be applied should Juve be found guilty.

Such a move would seriously hamper Juve in their quest to secure European football next season, denying them of a major source of both income and attraction to top players.

The club has denied any wrongdoing, while lawyers claimed prosecutors had not brought enough in to reach the adequate threshold for a new ruling.

In addition, Chine is seeking bans for both Agnelli and former chief football officer Fabio Paratici, who is now with Tottenham.

– Brentford have scored in seven of their nine Premier League away games 
– Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals has occurred in nine of Leeds’ last 11
– Recommended Bet: Back both teams to score and over 2.5 goals

Fresh from firing in five goals against Cardiff in the cup, Leeds host Brentford in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

Willy Gnonto ignited the atmosphere at Elland Road in midweek with his spectacular first-minute volley that paved the way for a 5-2 rout of the Bluebirds.

That was also the score when the Bees beat Jesse Marsch’s men in West London earlier this season with the Whites’ manager receiving his marching orders for blowing his top at the referee.

Brentford won only one of their next eight matches in the league, but have subsequently been securing some eye-catching results to move into eighth place in the table.

Leeds start the weekend in 14th place and only two points clear of the relegation zone.

Team news

New signing Georginio Rutter “has looked good in training” and could be in the squad for Sunday’s game.

Marsch could hand Max Wober his full Premier League bow after the defender overcame an apparent hip problem that forced him off in the second half against Cardiff.

Liam Cooper, Pascal Struijk and Robin Koch all sat out the midweek FA Cup replay with minor knocks, but one of the trio could be dropped in favour of the Austrian.

Stuart Dallas (knee), Archie Gray (ankle) and Crysencio Summerville (ankle) are still unavailable for this weekend’s clash.

For Brentford, Thomas Frank hopes to have Rico Henry back for the game after the defender missed the Bees’ win 2-0 win over Bournemouth with a calf injury.

Vitaly Janelt could revert back to his usual midfield role if the former Walsall man reclaims his left-back spot with Josh Dasilva the most likely starter from last weekend’s win to drop down to the bench.

Aaron Hickey may be selected in the matchday squad for the first time since October after a spell out with an ankle injury.

But Pontus Jansson (hamstring) and Frank Onyeka (thigh) remain sidelined, while Shandon Baptiste is still a little way off regaining full fitness after a groin problem.

The stats

Gnonto is the youngest Leeds United player (19 years, 74 days) to score in consecutive appearances at Elland Road since Alan Smith in October 1999 (18 years, 358 days).

Gnonto is the youngest Leeds United player (19 years, 74 days) to score twice in a game since Fabian Delph in October 2008 against Walsall (18 years, 339 days).

Leeds clocked up 13,000 metres of intense running against Aston Villa, a feat which has only been bettered once in the last five years in the Premier League.

Ivan Toney has converted all of the 21 penalties he has taken for the Bees.

Prediction

Brentford are catching Leeds at a bad time here with a new mood of optimism around Elland Road following the midweek FA Cup replay win and the performances of new fan favourite Gnonto.

The Whites have also spent a significant sum in the transfer market to strengthen their attacking options while the return to fitness and form of Patrick Bamford could be huge for the club’s trajectory.

The Bees won their last two Premier League away games, at Manchester City and West Ham, but were very prone to draw prior to that.

Frank’s side are usually good for a goal or two on their travels, registering in seven of their nine away trips in 2022-23.

And that trait, alongside Leeds’ habit of scoring and conceding in the same game, suggests an entertaining encounter will be in store.

Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals has occurred in nine of Leeds’ last 11 competitive matches and another such game, available to back at 5/6 with LiveScore Bet, could be played out in West Yorkshire.

Memphis Depay is eager to repay the faith shown in him by Atletico Madrid following his move from Barcelona.

Depay fell down the pecking order at Camp Nou and signed a two-and-a-half year deal with the Rojiblancos on Friday.

Atleti are paying an up front free of €3million to Barca for the forward, who was due to be out of contract in July, potentially rising to €4m.

Depay is determined to make a big impact in the Spanish capital..

“Everything has gone great,” he said. “I have had a good conversation with the coach [Diego Simeone] and I am eager to show what I can do.

“It’s a very big club, with an impressive history. I’ve a heard a lot of good stories from them. They wanted me to be here. [That] has been very important.”

On his meeting with Simeone, Depay revealed: “The most important thing [is] he wants me to feel t home.

“That makes me excited. He is known [for] his passion for the club and now he wants me to be as ready as soon as possible. He liked me when I was at Lyon.”

Depay also touched on conversations with Antoine Griezmann, who previously played with him at Barcelona before returning to Atleti.

“He told me many good things,” he added. “The people are nice, [but[ it wasn’t a surprise. They have welcomed me with open arms [and] I want to play with the team now.”