La Liga
MESSI AND SUAREZ SPOTTED IN BARCELONA RESTAURANT!
Man of the moment, Lionel Messi may not have reported to Barcelona medicals and training sessions, there are indications that he is in Barcelona.
The Sun of UK quoting numerous sources, has reported that the maverick striker was spotted in Barcelona for the first time since dropping the bombshell that he wanted to leave the Nou Camp.
He was captured leaving a restaurant with best pal Luis Suarez – whose future also remains up in the air.
Footage released by El Chiringuito TV, reveals Messi departing in a black vehicle while Suarez then follows separately.
It comes after the 33-year-old demanded Barca exercise a clause in his contract that would allow him to quit for nothing with immediate effect.
But the Spanish giants believe the stipulation expired expired on June 10, with the Argentine superstar under contract until the summer of 2021.
Club and player seem set for a legal battle over the clause, with Barcelona believing his €700m (£629m) buy-out clause is still valid.
It has sparked a transfer battle between Europe’s rich list.
Manchester City, United, Chelsea, PSG and Inter Milan have all been linked with the Argentine superstar.
But Suarez’s agent Alejandro Balbi, admitted the 33-year-old Uruguayan’s next step could be dependant on the outcome of Messi’s transfer saga.
Balbi told TyC Sports via Goal: “Messi’s future will have an influence because they are best friends.
“There is a lot of brotherly love between them; they are inseparable, always together.”
Messi’s anger at the Barca board started after new manager Ronald Koeman ordered the Suarez to leave in a one-minute phone call.
Ajax have since confirmed their interest in signing the ex-Liverpool forward, who has also been linked to Inter Miami and Juventus.
Inseparable pair Messi and Suarez are now set to report to training at the start of next week, despite both facing a Barca exit.
It was mission accomplished, said Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti after his side fought back from two-goals behind to snatch a rip-roaring 4-4 draw on Tuesday for a 5-4 aggregate win that put them through to the Copa del Rey final.
Ancelotti brushed off questions about a sub-par performance by his side and praised his players’ effort in what he considered a highly entertaining encounter.
“We have achieved our goal today which was to reach the final and there is not much time to think about it,” Ancelotti told a press conference.
“It was an entertaining game with some mistakes and a lot of good things. It was fun and we are in the final.
“I never saw ourselves out of it because anything can happen at the Bernabeu. When we have to come from behind, we never give up. We never give up, especially at home, with the fans by our side.”
Ancelotti said David Alaba was not to blame after he deflected two balls into his own goal, calling it “bad luck” by the Austrian defender, but urged his defence to play with better focus moving forward.
“It’s not good to concede four goals in a game,” Ancelotti said.
“Right now we are a team that has a lot of effectiveness up-front, but little balance.
“However, we can’t ignore what we did in attack, scoring four goals against Real is not that easy. I think we are doing quite well.”
Real Madrid, who have won the Spanish Cup only once in over a decade, will play either Barcelona or Atletico Madrid in a mouth-watering final in Seville next month.
Atletico fought back to hold Barca to a thrilling 4-4 draw ahead of Wednesday’s second-leg in Madrid.
-Reuters
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Real Madrid’s legendary coach Carlo Ancelotti will go on trial next week for allegedly failing to declare income to Spain’s tax office, the Madrid court which will hear the case has said.
Prosecutors are seeking a jail term of four years and nine months for the 65-year-old Italian, accusing him of having cost Spain’s treasury more than one million euros ($1.1 million) in undeclared earnings from image rights in 2014 and 2015.
The trial will begin on Wednesday and it is expected to last two days, a spokesman for the court said.
Ancelotti, who as a coach has won a record five Champions League trophies including three with Real, must be present for the hearings, he added.
Prosecutors accuse him of only declaring in his tax returns the personal remuneration received from Real Madrid during those two years even though he himself declared himself to be a tax resident in Spain and indicated his home was in Madrid.
They accuse Ancelotti of allegedly setting up a “confusing” and “complex” system of shell companies to hide his extra earnings from his image rights as well as from other sources such as real estate.
A Spanish court in 2023 ordered Ancelotti to stand trial over the affair, but did not set a date.
Ancelotti dismissed the affair last year as “an old story that I hope will be resolved soon” when he was asked about the case.
He took over at Real Madrid in 2013, leaving in May 2015, before being appointed at Bayern Munich the following year.
The former Italy international midfielder, who as a player won the European Cup twice with AC Milan, later managed Napoli and Everton before returning to Real Madrid in 2021.
Aside from his success in the Champions League he has won domestic league titles with Madrid and Milan, in England with Chelsea, in Germany with Bayern Munich and in France with Paris Saint-Germain.
-AFP
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Spain’s former soccer chief Luis Rubiales told Reuters on Thursday he would appeal a court ruling which found him guilty of sexual assault for kissing player Jenni Hermoso without her consent.-
-Reuters
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