The Nation Newspaper

Tag: UEFA

  • UEFA charges Neymar for “insulting’’ referee after PSG’s loss to Manchester United

    Paris St-Germain (PSG) forward Neymar has been charged for “insulting and/or molesting” the referee, European football governing body UEFA said on Friday.

    UEFA said the charge was in the wake of his post-game rant after the French side were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League last 16 by Manchester United.

    Neymar, who was sidelined by injury, was investigated for lashing out and labelling the video assistant referee (VAR) system a “disgrace”.

    This was after Manchester United won a controversial penalty kick in the dying stages to advance on away goals.

    READ ALSO: Neymar to Miss Champions League clash against United

    “Disciplinary proceedings have been opened following the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 second leg match between PSG and Manchester United FC (1-3), played on March 6 in France,” UEFA said in a statement.

    “Player Neymar Junior —- insulting/molesting acts against match official (statements made by the player following the above-mentioned match) – Art. 15 (1) (d) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations.”

    If the Brazilian is found guilty, he could be suspended for three matches in the competition for insulting match officials.

    UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body will look into the case and a date for the hearing is yet to be confirmed.

    PSG coach Thomas Tuchel had said after the game that he understood Neymar’s anger and defended his comments, saying they were made in the heat of the moment.

    NAN

  • Ronaldo fined $22,000 by UEFA for celebration gesture

    Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo has been fined $22,600 dollars by UEFA for appearing to make an obscene gesture while celebrating his side’s Champions League victory over Atletico Madrid.

    The Portugal international was guilty of “improper conduct,’’ the control, ethics and disciplinary body of the European football organisation ruled on Thursday.

    READ ALSO: Ronaldo adds £330,000 Rolls-Royce Ghost to his fleet

    Ronaldo had gestured to his crotch following the final whistle after his hat-trick earned Juventus a 3-0 win over Atletico on March 12, which sent the Italians into the Champions League quarter-finals 3-2 on aggregate.

    The gesture appeared to be a response to Atletico Coach Diego Simeone, who had celebrated in similar fashion during his team’s 2-0 win in the home leg.

    Simeone was subsequently also fined 20,000 euros by UEFA.

    NAN

  • Crotch-grabbing celebration: Ronaldo to face UEFA hammer

     

    Cristiano Ronaldo has been charged by UEFA for his celebration in Juventus’ last-16 Champions League game against Atletico Madrid.

    The 34-year-old fired his side into the quarter-finals with a hat-trick in the second leg in Turin, overturning Atletico’s 2-0 victory from the first leg.

    Ronaldo followed one of his goals by copying Diego Simeone’s ‘crotch-grabbing’ celebration from the first leg, for which the latter was given a £17,000 fine. The celebration is considered improper conduct and there are strong indications that the former Real Madrid ace who was dubbed a magician after he fired his side to Champions League quarterfinals will be punished for the celebration.

    Simeone said his gesture showed he had the courage to make tough selection decisions. He apologised two days later

    The UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body will deal with this case at its next meeting on March 21.

    Juventus will play Ajax in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final in Amsterdam on April 10.

    Meanwhile Juventus are reportedly preparing to battle Barcelona for the signature of Ajax captain Matthijs de Ligt.

    Widely regarded as one of the best young centre-backs in European football, De Ligt has already made more than 100 appearances for Ajax despite only turning 19 in August.

    Barca continue to be strongly linked with a move for the Netherlands international, but according to Tuttosport, De Ligt is Juve’s ‘first choice to revitalise their defence’.

    The teenager, who has a contract in Amsterdam until the end of the 2020-21 campaign, has scored twice in 25 Eredivisie appearances this term.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Chelsea’s Sarri unhappy with sorry state of Kiev pitch

    Chelsea’s manager Maurizio Sarri has expressed unhappiness with the pitch at Kiev’s NSC Olympic Stadium ahead of his team’s UEFA Europa League last 16 second leg tie later on Thursday.

    Chelsea, who won last week’s first leg game in London 3-0, trained at the stadium on Wednesday.

    “The pitch is not good and I think that it’s really dangerous to play any football here. It’s really very dangerous for injuries,” Sarri told reporters.

    “I don’t know the reason, probably winter, because I played here two years ago and the pitch was wonderful (but it is now) very, very dangerous.”

    Read Also: Chelsea battle past Fulham in West London derby

    The NSC Olympic Stadium hosted last season’s UEFA Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool, which the Spanish side won 3-1.

    Sarri was in charge of Napoli when the Italian side beat Dynamo 2-1 at the stadium during the 2016/2017 UEFA Champions League group stages.

    Chelsea coach Sarri also criticised UEFA for not paying more attention to player welfare.

  • UEFA’s Fans’ Team of the Year: van Dijk, Hazard, Kante make list

     

    Premier League stars N’Golo Kante, Eden Hazard and Virgil van Dijk have been voted into UEFA’s Fans’ Team of the Year 2018.

    Kante and van Dijk are making their debuts in the prestigious team, while Hazard is selected for the second successive season. Fans were able to vote online for their favourite players to be selected for the team from a 50-man shortlist.

    Liverpool centre-back van Dijk was the only non-Real Madrid player in the back four, with Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane and left-back Marcelo also named – the latter for a third time.

    In goal is Barcelona stopper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, earning a 30% vote share to beat the likes of Liverpool’s Alisson Becker, Keylor Navas and Hugo Lloris to the No 1 shirt.

    Kante, with 53% of votes, is joined in a midfield three by Ballon D’Or winner Luka Modric of Real Madrid and Chelsea talisman Eden Hazard.

    With 115,440 votes, World Cup finalist Modric earned more votes than any other player in the team.

    Predictably, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo slot into the front three, but Paris Saint-Germain wonderkid Kylian Mbappe takes the final spot ahead of Neymar.

    Ronaldo extends his own record in making his 13th UEFA Team of the Year, while Messi joins him in double figures with a 10th selection.

    Premier League stars including John Stones, Paul Pogba, James Milner, Kevin De Bruyne, Harry Kane, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah all missed out on a place in the team.

    Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale was also denied a spot, having twice featured before in 2011 and 2013.

    However, his club is still the best-represented with four players, while Barcelona and Chelsea both have two and Liverpool, PSG and Juventus boasting one apiece.

    The award has been running since 2001, with 1.8million people voting to decide the 2018 team.

  • Manchester United lose 1-2 at Valencia to blow chance of top spot

    Manchester United endured an undignified end to their topsy-turvy UEFA Champions League group stage campaign by losing 1-2 at already-eliminated Valencia on Wednesday and missing their chance of topping Group H.

    Manchester United were already guaranteed a last 16 berth but needed to win and to see Juventus lose to group minnows Young Boys if they were to take the top spot.

    One half of the unlikely scenario materialised as the Swiss side beat the Italian giants 2-1 but Manchester United blew their chance with a defeat that consigned them to second place.

    Carlos Soler put the La Liga side ahead in the 17th minute with a powerful finish.

    Then Manchester United defender Phil Jones scored an embarrassing own goal at the start of the second half to double Valencia’s lead.

    Substitute Marcus Rashford gave them brief hope of a comeback by heading home in the 87th minute after a rare bright passage of play from the visitors.

    But Valencia comfortably saw out the victory.

    Juventus finished top of the group on 12 points, with Manchester United on 10.

    Valencia, who were already assured of third place and qualification for the knockout stages of the UEFA Europa League, finished with eight while Young Boys earned four.

    With one eye on Sunday’s trip to English Premier League leaders and historic rivals Liverpool, Jose Mourinho rotated his side.

    He made eight changes from Saturday’s 4-1 win over Fulham, including bringing record signing Paul Pogba back into the fold.

    Pogba had Manchester United’s best opportunity to cancel out Soler’s impressive opening strike following a Marouane Fellaini knockdown.

    But somehow he missed the target from close range with the goal gaping.

    Manchester United’s task in turning the game around became significantly harder, thanks to a clumsy moment from Jones.

    He failed to communicate properly with team mate Sergio Romero and slid the ball into his own net.

    “I think we were too passive in the first half. We were quite comfortable with the ball but not in intensity and ambition,” Mourinho told reporters.

    “In the second half, I was pretty sure that after speaking at halftime, things could be different. But we started with an own goal that gave Valencia a better position to control the game.”

    Valencia have had a poor campaign in both Europe and La Liga, where they lie 15th in the standings with only three victories.

    But coach Marcelino said the win had lifted the mood in the dressing room.

    “I’m happy for the players because they have competed well in many games this season but things haven’t worked out for us.

    “Today, we played with freshness and bravery, and I’m delighted for them because they have suffered,” he said.

    “There are many tremendous teams in this competition, some real powerhouses. But the thing that counts is winning and, unfortunately, we haven’t picked up enough points.”(Reuters/NAN)

  • Munich, St. Petersburg bid to host UEFA Champions League final

    Munich and St Petersburg are the two candidate cities bidding to host the 2021 UEFA Champions League final match, the European football governing body said on Thursday.

    UEFA said the Russian and German federations had on their behalf sent declarations of interest in hosting the match by last Friday’s deadline and were the only ones to do so.

    Three others — Vienna in Austria, Tbilisi in Georgia and Seville in Spain —- expressed interest in hosting the Europa League final of the same year.

    Read also: Patrice Evra Fired, Banned from UEFA Club Competitions

     

    Prague in the Czech Republic and Gothenburg in Sweden were candidates for the women’s Champions League final, UEFA said.

    UEFA said the declarations of interest were not binding and the formal bids will have to be delivered with full dossiers by Feb. 15.

    It is no longer possible for national Football Associations (FAs) who have not declared an interest to bid for the finals, UEFA added.

    UEFA’s executive committee will choose the hosts in May or June.

  • Infantino’s plans for new global tournaments

    FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s plans for two new global tournaments are back on the agenda at the governing body with football officials set to discuss the proposals on Friday.

    FIFA’s ruling council meets in Kigali, Rwanda and Infantino’s plan for a new `mini World Cup’ and an expanded Club World Cup feature among the items for discussion.

    FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment and it was not clear if the plans would be put to a vote.

    Infantino wrote to FIFA Council members in May, outlining his plans which he says are backed by a “solid and serious’’ group of investors.

    He said the investors are willing to spend $25 billion over a 12-year cycle starting in 2021.

    The letter did not outline the identity of the investors but several media reports have stated that Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group is heading the consortium.

    Read Also: Infantino’s interpretation of Things Fall Apart

    However, the plans were strongly opposed by clubs and leagues in Europe.

    UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said the plans were “highly cynical and ruthless mercantilism’’ and accused FIFA of selling the soul of the game.

    The plans did not feature on the agenda of FIFA’s congress in Moscow in June.

    Infantino’s proposals would bring about major changes to the international calendar.

    The proposals outline what would effectively be a mini-World Cup, featuring eight international teams, every two years in addition to the traditional event.

    The tournament, known as the “Final 8’’, will be the climax of a proposed global Nations League competition.

    In the May letter, it was suggested that the new tournament would take place every October and/or November of every odd year starting from 2021.

    The Confederations Cup, currently staged every four years in a year before the World Cup, would be abolished.

    The annual Club World Cup, which currently features seven teams, would be expanded to 24 teams and moved to once every four years, according to the proposals.

  • Spanish federation delays approval of Girona-Barca match

    La Liga’s plans to move Girona’s fixture with Barcelona on Jan. 26 to Miami hang in the balance, after the Spanish soccer federation (RFEF) declined to authorise the move until it received more information on the game.

    “We have received a letter from the RFEF requesting more information about our proposal to play a La Liga competition match in the USA.

    “We will provide that information,” La Liga’s head of communications Joris Evers told Reuters on Tuesday.

    According to world governing body FIFA’s statutes, any domestic competition played outside the league’s usual home must be approved by the home federation.

    The approval of European governing body UEFA, the federation where the game is taking place, and the regional confederation – in this case the United States Soccer Federation and CONCACAF would be required.

    “They are not saying no, they are asking for more documentation. “Evidently, they are not very keen on it, but I’m still optimistic,” La Liga president Javier Tebas told reporters gathered outside the organisation’s headquarters on Friday.

    In August the Spanish federation took the Spanish Super Cup outside of Spain for the first time, as Barcelona met Sevilla in Tangier, Morocco.

    “The federation may not like the idea of us playing this game.

    “But the president of the RFEF has to resolve this legally, with the precedent of having taken a game to Tangier after everything that has been said about adulterating the competition,” Tebas added.

    Read Also: Tebas: 90 percent chance Girona against Barcelona in U.S

    “The game (in Miami) is still alive, without a doubt. We believe we are in the right and we will respond to all the doubts expressed in the letter.

    “This isn’t about us wanting to play a game in Miami, it’s a strategic plan to promote our brand amid the relentless competition for broadcasting rights,” he said.

    Girona and Barcelona declined requests from Reuters to comment.

    In August, La Liga announced a landmark 15-year promotion deal with U.S. Entertainment Company Relevent, the organiser of the annual International Champions Cup tournament played across the United States, Asia and Europe.

    The agreement included plans to play one game a year stateside.

    The plans were initially rejected by the Spanish Footballer’s Union, the AFE, who said they were prepared to go on strike in order to prevent the match from going ahead.

    Earlier this month, Barca spokesman Josep Vives said the club supported the idea of playing abroad, but would only do so if all parties in Spanish football agreed.

    “We’re interested in playing in the United States because it’s a strategic market, but we want it to be done consensually, in agreement and in harmony with the players and the Spanish soccer federation,” he said.

    Last week Real Madrid coach Julen Lopetegui said he was opposed to the idea, telling a news conference: “I don’t agree with this game, all the teams should play in the same stadiums.”

  • UEFA set to review 53 year old away goals rule

    Scoring away goals in international competitions seen to be a big deal is to become a non issue if UEFA approves the review being proposed by leading coaches in the round leather game.

    Top coaches believe that undue advantage and weight given to away goals is no longer relevant today considering that it is becoming easier to score away goals today compared to when the rule was introduced 53 years ago.

    Giorgio Marchetti, deputy secretary general of European football’s governing body, confirmed it would “open a discussion” on the future of the rule used to split teams who are level on aggregate in knockout ties in the Champions League and Europa League.

    “The coaches think that scoring goals away is not as difficult as it was in the past,” Marchetti told reporters. “They think the rule should be reviewed and that’s what we will do.

    “They consider the situation in football has changed and the weight of the away goals is not the same as many years ago when the rule was introduced.”

    The rule was first used in the European Cup Winners’ Cup of 1965 as a way of settling ties that finished level, so as to avoid the prospect of deciding the result with a coin toss or a replay at a neutral venue, which was a far greater logistical challenge than it is today.

    Marchetti spoke after the annual Elite Club Coaches Forum in Nyon, which is used to swap ideas with UEFA about possible improvements to the game and debate the future of the continent’s top tournaments.

    Along with the away-goals rule, the use of VAR and the technical and tactical aspects of last season’s tournaments, attendees also called for a unified end to the transfer window.

    A number of coaches are said to have been frustrated this year by the different closing dates for individual countries and leagues.

    “We discussed the summer transfer windows – the coaches were of the view that there should be a unified window – and that the window should not overlap with the start of competitions,” Marchetti said. Should the new changes see the light of the day, strong indications abound that it will gradually spread to all levels of the game worldwide.