How to watch Argentina vs Bolivia for free with Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez set to feature
Manchester United fans can check the progress of Lisandro Martinez on his return from injury when Argentina play their World Cup qualifier tonight.
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Lisandro Martinez provides Manchester United injury boost ahead of Brighton
Manchester United centre-back Lisandro Martinez has hinted he's returned to full fitness ahead of the visit of Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.
Billy Gilmour feels no Brighton pressure replacing £160m pals as De Zerbi fess-up does the trick
Many would flounder at the mere thought of being flung into a £160m Premier League midfield void. But for Billy Gilmour the megabucks summer departures of Brighton stars Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister was never going to see him drown in the burden of expectation by the seaside.
Marcelo Bielsa Makes Instant Impact As Uruguay Beat Chile 3-1
Uruguay turned on the style, under new coach Marcelo Bielsa, as they beat Chile 3-1 in their opening South American World Cup qualifier on Friday. Argentine Bielsa, who had previously coached Chile between 2007 and 2011, opted for a youthful line-up without veteran strikers Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez. Bielsa was rewarded with an entertaining display from his new charges with River Plate attacking midfielder Nicolas de la Cruz scoring twice. De la Cruz opened the scoring with a fine left-foot strike in the 38th minute before Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde doubled the advantage on the stroke of half-time.
Former Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho joins Qatari team Al Duhail on loan from Villa
MANCHESTER, England: After spells with some of European soccer’s biggest clubs, Philippe Coutinho joined Qatari team Al-Duhail on a season-long loan from Aston Villa on Friday. The former Liverpool, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan playmaker’s move comes after a slew of the sport’s biggest stars have been lured to Saudi Arabia’s lucrative league. Al-Duhail described the Brazil international as a “great asset” after confirming his arrival. The 31-year-old Coutinho was a record signing for Barcelona when joining the Catalan club in a deal worth up to 160 million euros (then $192 million) in 2018. But his time at the Nou Camp did not go to plan as injury problems saw him fail to live up to expectations and led to loans at Bayern and Villa.
Spanish prosecutors accuse Rubiales of sexual assault and coercion for kissing a player at World Cup
BARCELONA, Spain: Spanish state prosecutors have accused Luis Rubiales of sexual assault and coercion for kissing a player without her consent after the Women’s World Cup final, the country’s prosecutors’ office said Friday. Rubiales, the now-suspended president of the Spanish soccer federation, kissed Jenni Hermoso during the awards ceremony after Spain beat England to win the title on Aug. 20 in Sydney, Australia. Prosecutors presented a case against Rubiales to Spain’s National Court in Madrid two days after Hermoso formally accused him of sexual assault. According to a sexual consent law passed last year, Rubiales could face a fine or a prison sentence of one to four years if found guilty of sexual assault. Prosecutors added Friday that Rubiales could have committed an act of coercion when, according to Hermoso, he pressured her to speak out in his defense immediately after the scandal erupted regarding his behavior. Rubiales has insisted the kiss was consensual.
Saudi transfer window closes after a $1 billion spending spree on soccer stars
MANCHESTER, England: After an outlay of $1 billion, Saudi Arabia’s transfer window shut on Thursday with the Kingdom having announced itself as a new powerhouse in global soccer. Leading target Mohamed Salah may not have joined Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema by moving to the lucrative Saudi Pro League, but it seems inevitable more stars will eventually be lured away from Europe’s biggest clubs. Liverpool last week reportedly rejected a bid worth 150 million pounds ($188 million) from Al-Ittihad for Salah and despite speculation a renewed offer would come before Thursday’s deadline, no deal was struck for the Egypt international. There is, however, little suggestion Saudi Arabia’s spectacular spending will end there as the country has sought to move its way into international sports, investing in recent years in golf, boxing, Formula One racing and tennis, as well as soccer. Based on reported fees, Saudi clubs paid just over $1 billion on players, which would place it behind only the English Premier League in terms of global spending during the window. Then there are the large salaries said to be on offer, with Ronaldo’s deal reportedly worth up to $200 million a year. Despite anticipation that Salah could be the latest superstar signing, the Saudi window ended relatively quietly.
LeBron James makes young Saudi players starry-eyed during first country visit
RIYADH: Global basketball legend LeBron James, in his first visit to Saudi Arabia, held a clinic this week for starry-eyed young Saudi Arabia players, including emerging stars from the women’s national team.