French
Zlatan Ibrahimovic ‘always wants to play’ – Milan coach
Zlatan Ibrahimovic always wants to play, AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli said on Wednesday, before their Europa League game against Sparta Prague. “I won’t ask Zlatan if he wants to play, because I already know the answer,” said Pioli amid a tight schedule of games every three days. “There will be changes, but I don’t like talking about turnover, I have many starters and I will field the best team. “If I ask Ibra if he feels like it, he will always tell me yes.” AC Milan are top of the Serie A table after five games as the 18-times champions target a first league title since 2011 when Ibrahimovic last played for the club. Pioli’s side won their Europa League opener 3-1 at Celtic and next travel to Sparta Prague before a home tie against French club Lille next week. “We have a lot of games so ...
European Union backs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for WTO role
The European Union has endorsed former Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next director-general of the World Trade Organisation, Bloomberg reported. The business news outlet cited anonymous officials familiar with the matter that all the 27 EU member countries agreed on Monday in Brussels to support Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala. Bloomberg also reported that the United States has decided to back Yoo Myung-hee, South Korea’s trade minister, for the role. The position has been fiercely contested amongst candidates of different countries since Roberto Azevedo resigned in August. Last month, Okonjo-Iweala and Myung-hee were selected as the last two candidates in the contest. The EU’s endorsement is seen as a significant boost for Okonjo-Iweala’s candidacy, with the final winner expected...
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits to Paul Pogba error
Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has surprisingly hinted that he mismanaged Paul Pogba, particularly at the start of this season. The French midfielder was a shadow of himself when the league began but was handed minutes nonetheless and so he continued to struggle. In fairness, United were performing poorly overall so Pogba wasn’t the only one who looked out of sorts. However, Solskjaer would soon exclude him from the starting XI and use him as an impact substitute, which he did remarkably well. Pogba’s lack of form was put down to a lack of a pre-season but perhaps fans have been a little dismissive that he also had to recover from Covid-19. According to the club’s official website, Solskjaer said: “You see, when you have got good players, it is a nice challenge and a nice deci...
Former France goalie Bruno Martini passes on
Former France goalkeeper and deputy director of Montpellier’s training centre, Bruno Martini, has died at 58. The Ligue 1 club made this known in a statement on Tuesday, stating that Martini was hospitalized after suffering a cardiac arrest at the training centre last week. “Today, French football mourns one of the greatest goalkeepers in its history and one of Montpellier’s most loyal servants, on and off the pitch. “He lives the image of a good man, always ready to help, and who never missed the opportunity to distill a kind word to each of his interlocutors,” the statement said. Prior to his death, Martini spent majority of his career at Auxerre and Montpellier and also played 31 times for France. Following a memorable 18-year career, he became a goalkeeping coach with the France squad ...
Zinedine Zidane claims 100 La Liga wins as Real Madrid coach
Real Madrid’s win over Real Betis on Saturday was Zinedine Zidane’s 100th in charge of Real Madrid in La Liga Santander. The Frenchman has coached Los Blancos in 147 La Liga matches in total, with 55 at home and 45 away from home. In those games, Zidane’s sides have scored 342 goals and conceded 142. Only Miguel Munoz has won more La Liga matches in charge of Real Madrid than Zidane with 257. As well as his centenary of victories, the former Real Madrid midfielder has won two La Liga titles – in 2016/17 and 2019/20. Get more stories like this on Twitter You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting...
US Republican senators confront Netflix over Chinese sci-fi show
Five Republican US senators have confronted Netflix over the streaming giant’s plan to adapt a Chinese sci-fi book trilogy, expressing concern over the original author’s comments about claims of forced labor in Xinjiang. Liu Cixin’s bestselling “The Three-Body Problem,” which tells the story of humanity’s first contact with aliens, is set to become a major Netflix series co-written by the creators of “Game of Thrones.” In a letter to content boss Ted Sarandos, the senators accused Liu of “parroting dangerous [Communist Party] propaganda” and suggested Netflix was “providing a platform to Mr Liu in producing this project.” They highlighted a New Yorker article from last year in which Liu is quoted defending mass internment in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region, where activists say more th...
Gernot Rohr backs Samuel Kalu to rediscover best form at Bordeaux
Nigeria head coach Gernot Rohr has backed Samuel Kalu to rediscover his best form for club and country. Kalu struggled to get near his best for French club Girondis Bordeaux last season. The pacy winger managed just one goal and two assists in 20 league appearances for Les Girondis. He fell out with former manager Paulo Sousa, who criticised him for his lack of effort in training. The former KAA Gent of Belgium player was also linked with a number of clubs during the winter transfer window. The 23-year-old is now enjoying a new lease of life under Jean-Louis Gasset. Kalu scored his first goal of the season in Bordeaux’s 2-1 away loss to Lens last weekend. “There’s this Kalu who was playing very, very well with me and Nigeria, who lost a bit of confidence last season. It was not going very ...
France’s economy minister contracts coronavirus
Getty Images French economy minister Bruno Le Maire announced Friday he has tested positive for COVID-19 but said he had no symptoms and was working from home as cases soared again in France. Le Maire, who is responsible for reviving a French economy battered by the months-long pandemic, is not the first member of President Emmanuel Macron’s government to have been diagnosed with the disease. “I tested positive for Covid-19 this evening. I immediately placed myself in isolation at home in line with the health regulations issued by the government,” Le Maire said in a tweet. “I show no symptoms. I will remain in isolation for seven days. I continue to exercise my duties,” the 51-year-old minister said. On March 9, the former culture minister and current minister for external trade, Franck Ri...
Gianfranco Zola hails Victor Osimhen’s ‘important qualities’ ahead Parma vs Napoli
Getty Images Gianfranco Zola is in awe of Victor Osimhen’s talent, suggesting that the Nigerian attacking ace has important qualities with which he can help Napoli to succeed this new season. Napoli will kick-start their 2020/21 Serie A campaign against AC Parma at the Ennio Tardini Stadium on Sunday, September 20, and Zola believes Osimhen can continue his fine pre-season form. The Super Eagles striker since joining Napoli earlier this summer from Lille for a fee of 70 million euros has scored six goals – two hat-tricks, in three pre-season games. Zola, ex-Napoli and Parma striker told Radio Kiss Kiss: “Napoli with Gattuso has found equilibrium. it will be an open game. Napoli has grown a lot with Gattuso. “He will be among the protagonists if Osimhen also enters immediately, he has impor...
Paris Saint-Germain sign Alessandro Florenzi on loan from Roma
Paris Saint-Germain have completed the signing of Alessandro Florenzi from Roma, with the defender arriving on a loan deal with an option to buy. The 29-year-old has been contracted to Roma throughout the duration of his career however he spent the second half of last season on loan with Valencia in the Primera Division. The 36-time Italy star will team up with international team-mate Marco Verratti in the French capital. “I’m especially proud and happy to become a PSG player,” he said in a statement on the club’s official website. “It’s one of the biggest clubs in Europe today, as was confirmed with their run to the Champions League final last month. “I’ve got the desire to give my maximum for PSG and the supporters of the club. There are enormous challenges ahead of us this season. It wi...
Paris Saint-Germain star tests positive for coronavirus
Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe has tested positive for coronavirus and has left the France national squad Mbappe has returned home and will not face Croatia on Tuesday night in the UEFA Nations League. He featured in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Sweden and scored the winning goal in that clash Mbappe is also set to miss PSG’s fixtures away to Lens on September 10 and at home to Marseille on September 13 according to Telefoot. A statement from the French FA told Goal. “The result of his Covid-19 test carried out by UEFA on Monday morning was found to be positive. He was placed away from the group after receiving the results, at the end of training, before going back to his own home in the evening. “Like the entire delegation, Kylian Mbappe had undergone a test prior to the games of th...
French anti-jihadist force kills civilian in Mali
French anti-jihadist troops in Mali killed a civilian Tuesday and injured two others after a bus refused to slow down in a volatile area despite their orders, the French army command said. The incident occurred about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from the city of Gao in Mali’s troubled north. The French soldiers fired warning shots in the ground but two bullets bounced off and hit the windscreen, wounding three people, including one fatally, the French army command said. “The seriously wounded person was evacuated by helicopter to the hospital of the (French) Barkhane force in Gao, but died of his injuries,” it said. “All steps have been taken to ascertain the exact sequence of events,” it said, expressing its “sincere condolences to the family of the deceased.” Mali is now under the control of...
