Category: Sport News

BARCELONA: Barcelona fans’ desire to see club legend Lionel Messi back with the Catalan squad has been described as ‘unrealistic’, club president Joan Laporta has said.

The 38-year-old Argentine star made a surprise appearance at the Camp Nou Stadium on Sunday and expressed his hope of returning to the club one day to ‘not just say goodbye as a player but something he has never done before’.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner and Barcelona’s all-time top scorer left the club in 2021 after two decades of service, following serious financial problems that left Barca unable to retain his services.

“Out of deep respect for Messi, the club’s professional staff and the members of Barcelona, ​​I think it is inappropriate to make unrealistic speculations. It is not appropriate,” Laporta told Catalunya Radio.

Laporta, who was also at the helm of the club when Messi left Barca, insisted he did not regret the decision because ‘Barcelona is above everything’.

Despite ruling out the possibility of Messi returning as a player, Laporta confirmed the club intends to hold a special tribute match to celebrate the Argentine star’s career once the Camp Nou stadium is fully renovated.

“The previous farewell didn’t go as we had hoped. If this tribute event can make up for what we didn’t get to do, I think it’s a good thing,” he said.

“Messi deserves the biggest honour in the world, and it would be wonderful if it were to happen in front of our 105,000 fans.”

Laporta also described the Inter Miami striker’s surprise visit to Camp Nou last Sunday as a spontaneous act that reflected his love for his old club.

LONDON: Cristiano Ronaldo insists Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will not be able to perform miracles at a club he described as “structureless” and now losing direction.

In an interview with Piers Morgan on the Piers Morgan Uncensored show , Ronaldo once again launched a scathing attack on his former club, admitting he was “sad” to see the state of the team he considered one of the most important in the history of world football.

When asked about Amorim’s performance, who is currently leading United two points behind second place after 10 matches, Ronaldo gave a sarcastic answer.

“He has done his best. What more can be done? A miracle? A miracle is impossible.

“In Portugal, we say miracles only happen in Fatima… and he won’t perform a miracle.

“They have good players, but some of them don’t understand what Manchester United really means,” Ronaldo said.

United are currently in a phase of renewal after Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS took over the club’s football operations, appointing Jason Wilcox as director of football and focusing on signing young players such as Leny Yoro and Benjamin Sesko.

However, Ronaldo remains skeptical that the changes will bring back the Red Devils’ glory days in the near future.

“I’m sad because the club is one of the most important in the world and is still close to my heart for obvious reasons.

“But they need to follow wise people, who are able to build the foundation for the future like before.

“Right now they have no structure. I hope that will change because the potential of this club is incredible,” he said.

Ronaldo has previously criticised the club’s leadership and said United need to “rebuild everything” to return to the top.

Although his strained relationship with Ralf Rangnick and Erik ten Hag is still fresh in his memory, Ronaldo insists he still loves his old club.

“Of course I still see their results. Of course I feel sad when I see their performance.

“I’ve won the Champions League, the Ballon d’Or, and more than 10 trophies there. United is still in my heart.

“But you have to be honest, they are not on the right track. For me, it is not just the fault of the coach or the players,” he said.

MANCHESTER, England: Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim described his first year at Old Trafford as a journey full of twists and turns, but remains proud of sticking to his principles as the club begins to show signs of revival.

After facing heavy criticism over his formation and tactics, United finally recorded three consecutive wins for the first time under Amorim, who will celebrate his first anniversary with the club next month.

United are currently sixth in the English Premier League (EPL) with 16 points after nine matches, six points behind leaders Arsenal and one point ahead of defending champions Liverpool.

“It’s been a long and difficult journey, there have been sweet moments and there have been bitter moments. I learned a lot from it and that’s very important,” said Amorim ahead of the match against Nottingham Forest this Saturday.

“I learned that even in the most difficult moments, I can still stand by what I believe in and that’s a good thing to understand.

“The answer is different now than it was three weeks ago. This is one of the biggest honours of my life and I want to stay here for a long time.”

Forest are now managed by Sean Dyche, their third manager of the season, who was previously among Amorim’s critics after claiming the Portuguese manager should have used a 4-4-2 formation to achieve more wins.

“I always say my playing style will take time and in the future it will get better,” Amorim stressed.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen, but I can see Sean Dyche as a manager and an analyst. If you’re an analyst and you don’t speak up, I won’t watch you. Me either. I understand, they’re two different jobs.

“I know Dyche is smart and knows the ins and outs of the game. He knows that talking about football is not the same as coaching a team,” he said.

Amorim also informed that Harry Maguire’s injury status is still uncertain, while Lisandro Martinez is not ready to play despite having returned to full training after recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury he suffered in February.

MADRID: Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso praised Jude Bellingham’s impressive performance after the sensational midfielder emerged as the winning hero in the Clasico victory over Barcelona 2-1 earlier this morning.

Bellingham scored Madrid’s second goal and also assisted Kylian Mbappe’s opening goal, completing a perfect week after also scoring the only goal in beating Juventus 1-0 in the Champions League last week.

The 22-year-old is just recovering from shoulder surgery which saw him sidelined for a long time at the start of the season, as well as being left out of Thomas Tuchel’s England squad last month.

“We saw his quality against Juventus, today and against Getafe last week – three very good matches for him,” said Alonso.

“At first he needed some time to get into the rhythm, but now his performance is even better than we expected after the last international break, when he stayed with us and not the national team.

“Jude is a player who plays based on feelings and relationships with his teammates, which is why he has been able to play so well lately.”

His goal against Juventus was his first at the Santiago Bernabeu since April and this morning’s victory extended Madrid’s five-point lead over defending champions Barcelona.

Before the match, much of the focus was on Lamine Yamal’s controversial comments accusing Madrid of “stealing” and “complaining”, but Alonso insisted his squad was motivated enough to end a run of four consecutive Clasico defeats.

“The team is really motivated. We talked before the match how important this match was, not just because of the three points,” explained Alonso.

“But because of where we come from, because we want to show a good game, deserve to win and I’m very happy for the players, they need this feeling, the confidence to be able to win a big match like the Clasico.”

Madrid actually scored three goals that were disallowed for offside but still clearly dominated Alonso’s debut in the Clasico.

Vinicius Jr also stood out but raised questions when he got angry after being substituted.

“I don’t want to lose focus on the main thing. Vini contributes a lot, just like the other players,” said Alonso.

“It’s an important victory and honestly, it could have been bigger.”

MANCHESTER: Manchester City’s venomous striker, Erling Haaland, is clearly on a different level.

He scored in 12 consecutive matches for club and country, helping City overcome their away form in European competition.

Haaland continues to make other clubs in Europe jealous with his sharpness in front of goal.

Captain Bernardo Silva also scored a goal late in the first half as Villarreal, known as ‘The Yellow Submarine’, sank at home in this morning’s Champions League action.

The victory allowed City to extend their unbeaten run to nine games in all competitions and Pep Guardiola’s squad are currently in top form.

The last time City won a Champions League match away from home was almost 13 months ago, against Slovakian club Slovan Bratislava.

Since then they have lost four times and drawn once – a record that does not match their status as former European champions two and a half years ago.

Haaland has now scored 15 goals in all competitions this season and the season has not yet reached the end of October.

By scoring in 12 consecutive games, Haaland also equaled the record of legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo.

The achievement adds to the excitement ahead of Sunday’s match against Aston Villa, where Haaland has the opportunity to break the Portuguese star’s record.