La Liga
SUAREZ MAKES FAREWELL VISIT TO MESSI
Luis Suarez was spotted at Lionel Messi’s house on Thursday as the Barcelona pair’s respective futures look more and more unclear.
Messi is in deep talks with the La Liga giants over his future next season following his shock transfer request last month.
Suarez himself has been linked with a move away from the Camp Nou with Italian side Juventus circling around his availability.
According to Daily Mail, the Uruguayan forward was snapped at Messi’s house along with his wife Sofia Balbi, which has intensified speculation over whether the pair have said farewell as team-mates.
The Barcelona attacking duo are not only best friends but also neighbours. It is understood Messi had a one-hour meeting with his father today about his future, with Suarez joining the Barcelona captain in a game of Padel before the meeting.
Messi’s saga took another twist today as the Argentinian forward’s father Jorge, who also acts as his agent, confirmed that his son could stay at Barcelona this year and leave on a free transfer ahead of next season.
This statement comes just a day after Messi Senior told reporters that it would be very difficult for his son to remain a Barcelona player for the coming season. Manchester City, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain have all been linked with the player’s signature.
The 33-year-old is currently in a legal dispute with Barcelona over a clause in his contract which states he can leave on a free transfer at the end of the season.
Messi attempted to activate that clause when he made the transfer request via burofax in August, but the Catalan club told their talisman that the clause expired on June 10.
LaLiga backed Barcelona on their stance, stating that any club who wants to sign Messi must pay his release clause, which stands at £630million.
Messi’s father met with Barcelona earlier this week to come to an arrangement, but Barcelona stood firm on the issue. The player has not reported back for pre-season training and is currently still on strike.
Meanwhile, Suarez was reportedly told by new Barcelona head coach Ronald Koeman that he is no longer required at the Camp Nou.
The Dutch coach told the Uruguayan striker in a one-minute phone call that his time at Barcelona coach is over, despite Suarez being the third-highest goalscorer in the club’s history.
Reports in Italy said that Juventus are looking to snap up the 33-year-old this summer for a deal worth £4.4million.
The Serie A champions are willing to offer Suarez a £9million-a-year contract, with several bonus clauses to be added, according to Sky Sports Italia.
However, Suarez is reportedly demanding £22 million in severance pay, putting his proposed Juventus deal in doubt.
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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