Lionel Messi won the men's Ballon d'Or award for a
record-extending seventh time at a ceremony in Paris on Monday.
Messi won the last edition of the Ballon d'Or in 2019 before
last year's awards were canceled due to the pandemic. He also won in 2009, 2010,
2011, 2012, and in 2015.
The 34-year-old scored 38 goals in 48 games last season for
Barcelona and won the Copa del Rey before captaining Argentina to Copa America
glory in July.
That was the first major international title of his
glittering career, which had been spent entirely with Barcelona before his
tearful departure from the Camp Nou in August and subsequent move to Paris
Saint-Germain.
Messi has played just 11 games for PSG so far, scoring four
goals, but he was rewarded as much as anything for his continued brilliance
down the years.
He has now won the Ballon d'Or twice more than his old rival
Cristiano Ronaldo -- between them, they have won 12 of the last 13 editions with
the exception coming in 2018 when Luka Modric claimed the prize.
Prolific Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski finished
second and Chelsea and Italy midfielder Jorginho was third in the voting by a
jury of journalists from around the world.
Spain starlet Pedri won the Kopa Trophy for the best player
aged under 21 at the Ballon d'Or awards ceremony in Paris on Monday, while
Italy's Gianluigi Donnarumma was named the best goalkeeper.
Barcelona midfielder Pedri, who only turned 19 last
Thursday, was a key player for Spain as they reached the semi-finals of the
European Championship and featured in their side that lost in the men's Olympic
football final against Brazil in Tokyo.
In addition, he played 52 games for Barcelona, helping them
win the Copa del Rey.
Pedri, who joined Barca from Las Palmas last year, recently
extended his contract at Camp Nou to 2026.
The Kopa Trophy is named after Raymond Kopa, the Real Madrid
and France star of the post-war era who won the Ballon d'Or in 1958.
France forward Kylian Mbappe was the inaugural winner of the
prize in 2018, and Matthijs de Ligt of Juventus and the Netherlands won it in
2019.
There was no Ballon d'Or awards ceremony last year because
of the pandemic.
Donnarumma won the Yashin Trophy for the best goalkeeper
after his outstanding performances in Italy's glorious Euro 2020 campaign.
The 22-year-old left AC Milan for Paris Saint-Germain
following the European Championship.
Liverpool and Brazil star Alisson was the first winner in
2019 of the Yashin Trophy, named after former USSR icon Lev Yashin.
Spain's Alexia Putellas wins women's Ballon d'Or
Alexia Putellas of Barcelona and Spain won the women's
Ballon d'Or prize at a ceremony in Paris on Monday, completing a remarkable
year for the 27-year-old.
Putellas is the third winner of the prize, following in the
footsteps of Ada Hegerberg, who won the inaugural women's Ballon d'Or in 2018,
and United States World Cup star Megan Rapinoe, winner in 2019.
The 2020 Ballon d'Or awards were canceled because of the
pandemic.
Putellas captained Barcelona to victory in this year's
Champions League, scoring a penalty in the final as her side hammered Chelsea
4-0 in Gothenburg.
She also won a Spanish league and cup double with Barca, the
club she joined as a teenager in 2012, and helped her country qualify for the
upcoming Women's Euro in England.
Her Barcelona and Spain teammate Jennifer Hermoso finished
second in the voting, with Sam Kerr of Chelsea and Australia coming in third.
It completes an award double for Putellas, who
in August was named player of the year by European football's governing body
UEFA.
Comment
The ABG Limited extended their hands to support the National Women’s Football Team to make the team's progress easier toward the success in football.
The country’s largest business conglomerate Bashundhara Group’s concern ABG Limited extends their support for National Women’s Football Team.
ABG Limited inked a three-year deal with Bangladesh Football Federation to provide monetary assistance for women’s football league, national and international competitions and other development projects for women’s football at MD House at Bashundhara R/A on Thursday.
Managing Director of Bashundhara Group and ABG Limited and Chairman of Sheikh Russel Krira Chakra Ltd Sayem Sobhan Anvir on behalf of the sponsor ABG Limited while FIFA Council Member, BFF Executive Committee member and BFF Women’s Wing Chairman Mahfuza Akter Kiron on behalf of the federation has signed the contract.
Bashundhara Group (EWPD) Deputy Managing Director and Head of Accounts and Finance, Bashundhara Kings President and BFF Vice-President Imrul Hassan, ABG Ltd advisor Mostofa Azad Mohiuddin, BFF vice-president Mohiuddin Mohi, BFF general secretary Md. Abu Nayeem Shohag, and T-Sports CEO Ishtiaque Sadeque attended the signing ceremony.
Also, Daily Sun Editor Enamul Hoque Chowdhury, Kaler Kantho Editor-in-Chief Imdadul Haq Milan, Bangladesh Pratidin Editor Naem Nizam, Kaler Kantho Editor Shahed Muhammad Ali, News24 Executive Editor Rahul Raha and other distinguished personalities were also present.
Comment
Morocco may not have reached the World Cup final but the players and
supporters can take pride in the fact that they will leave Qatar having played
seven games, a first for any African nation, coach Walid Regragui said on
Friday.
Morocco's
dream run at the World Cup ended when they were beaten by reigning champions
France in the semi-finals but they still have the opportunity to leave Qatar on
a high when they take on Croatia in the third-place playoff on Saturday.
Regragui
said he would not make too many changes to the squad as that would upset the
team balance but admitted it was a difficult and complicated game for two teams
being asked to play after the disappointment of losing their semi-final
matches.
"I
understand it's important to finish third rather than fourth, but my takeaway
is we didn't reach the final... We wanted to play the final on Sunday, not play
tomorrow," Regragui said.
"But
I told my players this is our seventh World Cup game. If you told any Morocco
fan we would be playing our seventh game on December 17, they would be
proud.
"Morocco
played six World Cup games in 20-odd years and now we've played six games in a
month - this is priceless. It's as if we played two World Cups or even more,
that's beautiful from an experience point of view."
Regragui
said Croatia were a formidable team even if they had not been favoured to
repeat their 2018 run, when they finished runners-up in Russia. Their dreams
were crushed by Lionel Messi's Argentina in the semi-final.
"We
knew Croatia were going to be one of the best teams in the competition. After
the first game (where Morocco and Croatia drew 0-0 in the group stage) we knew
the performance was very good," Regragui said.
"A
lot of people said Croatia were approaching the end of their cycle and would
have the rug swept out from under their feet. Croatia got stick for not beating
'underdogs' Morocco but both teams reached the semi-final.
"There
was a lot of hesitation for the first game... Both teams will want to win it
(on Saturday) and it will be a great game."
The game
could be Croatian midfielder Luka Modric's last with the national team and
Regragui praised the Real Madrid man who is still going strong at 37.
"I
don't know if it's Modric's last game, he's a competitive warrior and will want
to finish his World Cup in style. When he wants to finish on a great note, we
should be wary," Regragui said.
"Hats
off to Modric. What he's doing at 37 is monumental. He was a Ballon d'Or winner
and I completely understand why."
- Reuters
Morocco World Cup Qatar Regragui
Comment
Brazil coach Tite said his dance celebration during his side's emphatic
4-1 World Cup win over South Korea on Monday was an expression of pure joy at
his side's bold attacking performance, and would help him bond with his young
team.
Brazil's
players rushed over to the dugout after Richarlison put the five-time world
champions 3-0 up inside 30 minutes of their last-16 encounter with South Korea,
and Tite briefly joined in their dancing.
"We
try to adapt to the characteristics of the players," the 61 year-old said
when asked about his moves at a news conference. "They are very young and
I try to adapt a bit to their language, and part of their language is
dancing."
He said
his players told him before the game that they would make him dance with them
if they scored.
Not
everyone was impressed. Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane, speaking on
Britain's ITV television, said: "People say it's their culture. But I
think that's really disrespecting the opposition."
Tite was
at pains to stress that was not the case.
"There's
no interpretation other than happiness at the goal, happiness for the team,
happiness for the performance," he said. "There was no disrespect for
the opposition nor towards (South Korean coach) Paulo Bento for whom I have a
lot of respect."
Brazil
raced into a 4-0 lead over South Korea before halftime with goals from Vinicius
Jr., Richarlison and Lucas Paqueta plus a Neymar penalty. The match ended 4-1
after substitute Paik Seung-ho got a consolation goal for the Asian side.
Brazil will face Croatia in the World Cup quarter-finals on Friday. They beat Japan on penalties earlier on Monday after their last-16 tie finished 1-1.
Comment
Football fans who travelled thousands of kilometres to get a glimpse of
the sport's most prestigious event savoured their first sips of beer at the
launch of a fan festival on Saturday, a rare place where they can drink alcohol
at the World Cup.
In a
last-minute U-turn, two days before the tournament's opening match, the
international football governing body Fifa said on Friday that alcoholic beer
would not be sold at Qatar's World Cup stadiums.
Budweiser,
a major World Cup sponsor, had been set to exclusively sell alcoholic beer
within the ticketed perimeter surrounding each of the eight stadiums three
hours before and one hour after each game during the month-long event.
Now fans
can only consume beer at the Fifa Fan Festival in Doha. Alcoholic beverages
remain available at the stadium hospitality areas.
One
Mexican fan in a sombrero, his country's tricolour flag draped over his
shoulders, balanced a cardboard drink holder containing four beers as he joined
a group of his compatriots at Doha's Al Bidda Park, hosting the Fifa Fan
Festival.
"Not
having alcohol is not good because the World Cup it's a party of the
world," said Brazilian fan Julio Cesar, wearing a felt hat in his
country's colours.
The 2022
World Cup is the first edition of the tournament held in a conservative Muslim
country with strict controls on alcohol, the consumption of which is banned in
public.
Qatar has
also faced criticism from some countries playing in the 32-nation tournament
over its rights record on migrant workers, women and the LGBTQ community.
For the
fans unfazed by Qatar's dire human rights record, the absence of beer at World
Cup venues has proven a major disappointment.
"It's
tough to tell what happened in Qatar, whether it is the truth or not,"
said 41-year-old Guilherme, another Brazil fan.
"My
only problem is banning alcohol."
- Reuters
FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar World Cup 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022
Comment
Senegal star Sadio Mane has lost his race to be fit for the
2022 World Cup and has been withdrawn from their squad, the country's football
federation announced on Thursday.
His club Bayern Munich added later that the 30-year-old, who
was voted second in the Ballon d'Or last month behind Karim Benzema, had
undergone "successful surgery" in Innsbruck where "a tendon was
reattached to the head of his right fibula".
Bayern said Mane "will begin his rehab in Munich in the
next few days".
The absence of the talismanic Mane is a massive blow to the
Senegalese. He scored the winning penalty in a shootout victory against Egypt
in the African Cup of Nations final and repeated the feat against the same
opponents to qualify the Lions of Teranga for the World Cup.
Mane was voted African footballer of the year for his feats,
and has scored 33 times in 92 matches for Senegal.
He picked up his shin injury playing for Bayern earlier this
month but was named in the World Cup squad in the hope he could regain fitness.
But on Thursday Senegal said the former Liverpool star would
not make it.
"Unfortunately, today's (Thursday) MRI shows us that
the improvement is not as favorable as we imagined and unfortunately we have to
withdraw Sadio from the World Cup," said team doctor, Manuel Afonso in a
video on the official Senegal Twitter account.
Senegal had originally hoped the forward would be fit in
time for their opening game on November 21 against the Netherlands.
They will also take on hosts Qatar and Ecuador in Group A.
Senegal football federation chief Augustin Senghor told AFP
Thursday there was no panic over the loss and said the player's health had been
paramount in their decision.
"We have been ready for this since the news of his
injury," Senghor said.
"We had been waiting for new test results and when they
came in we all agreed his health had to come first."
When asked how the team had taken the blow Senghor replied:
"Zen".
But Senegal international Pape Gueye told AFP that Mane
would be missed.
"Mane is irreplacable," he said.
"But we do have other options on the flank, and that's
a ray of hope on a dark day for Senegal."
After naming Mane in his World Cup squad a week ago, coach
Aliou Cisse was optimistic but cautious.
"Losing Sadio Mane is not an easy thing for a coach,
for the team, even for African football," he said.
Mane had been in Munich receiving treatment with his club.
- Reuters
Comment
Morocco may not have reached the World Cup final but the players and supporters can take pride in the fact that they will leave Qatar having played seven games, a first for any African nation, coach Walid Regragui said on Friday. Morocco's dream run at the World Cup ended when they were beaten by reigning champions France in the semi-finals but they still have the opportunity to leave Qatar on a high when they take on Croatia in the third-place playoff on Saturday.
Senegal star Sadio Mane has lost his race to be fit for the 2022 World Cup and has been withdrawn from their squad, the country's football federation announced on Thursday. His club Bayern Munich added later that the 30-year-old, who was voted second in the Ballon d'Or last month behind Karim Benzema, had undergone "successful surgery" in Innsbruck where "a tendon was reattached to the head of his right fibula".