Category: Football

Thomas Mueller made his Major League Soccer (MLS) debut on Sunday as a second-half substitute for Vancouver Whitecaps in a 1-1 draw with Houston Dynamo that left the Germany great with “mixed feelings” after he had a goal disallowed for offside.

Vancouver were up 1-0 courtesy of Brian White’s sixth-minute penalty when the former Bayern Munich striker Mueller entered the contest to a massive ovation in the 61st minute.

Mueller, a World Cup-winner with Germany whose storied tenure at Bayern included 13 Bundesliga titles, had made his way into Vancouver’s BC Place stadium through a throng of excited supporters, high-fiving and shaking hands as he went.

The Whitecaps had officially unveiled their new signing on Thursday, a week after he inked a deal through the end of the 2025 season with an option for 2026.

The crowd of 26,301 stood and cheered when he was introduced before kickoff, and Mueller applauded fans in return.

Minutes after entering the game Mueller blasted a ball into the back of the net, but it was ruled offside.

“Mixed feelings, mixed feelings,” the 35-year-old said. “The result is disappointing, to be honest.

“But, yeah, I came in at my first moment directly with my first goal here. The crowd was going crazy, but then it was taken off for offside.

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“We have to take the next steps in the next game,” he added after seeing Houston’s Artur grab the equalizer with a long-range blast in the first minute of second-half injury time.

“But I’m very happy to be here. I think the crowd was amazing.”

The draw left Vancouver Whitecaps in third place in the Western Conference on 46 points, six behind conference leaders San Diego and one back of Minnesota.

San Diego moved to the top of the Supporters’ Shield standings for best overall record — ahead of Eastern Conference leaders Cincinnati on goal difference — with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday.

“We had to win it clear,” Thomas Mueller said. “We had to get big chances. But in the end, yeah, it’s soccer and it can happen.”

He was happy to have his first MLS match under his belt and looking forward to settling in after a whirlwind first week.

“I’m happy now that my first game is in the books,” said the German, who joined Bayern’s youth program in 2000 and then called the club home for 25 years.

“I can start next week, just a regular week,” he said.

“I just have to settle down today after this game in my apartment and think about what happened this week — it was crazy stuff.”

READ: Chelsea draw blank in Crystal Palace stalemate

Chelsea suffered a Club World Cup hangover as they were lucky to escape with a 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace to open their Premier League campaign on Sunday.

Palace were denied an early opener when Eberechi Eze’s free-kick was ruled out by a VAR review for Marc Guehi obstructing the Chelsea wall.

New Chelsea signing Estevao came closest to snatching a winner for the home side, but the newly-crowned world champions were blunt in attack against a well-organised Palace defence.

The Eagles key duo of Guehi and Eze started despite mounting speculation the England internationals are set to join Liverpool and Tottenham, respectively.

“As long as they are 100 percent committed, they will play as they are so good,” said Palace boss Oliver Glasner.

“They didn’t just show they are great footballers, but they are great persons and that’s what I expected.”

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Eze thought he had opened the scoring with a blistering free-kick that had too much power for Robert Sanchez.

The goal was disallowed for Guehi’s role in creating a gap by man-handling Moises Caicedo into the Chelsea wall.

Chelsea’s demolition of European champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup final last month had raised the Blues’ hopes they can challenge for a first Premier League title since 2017.

But Enzo Maresca bemoaned his side’s lack of preparation time since beating PSG in New York just 35 days ago.

“They played about eight (pre-season) games, we played just two so we tried our best,” said the Italian.

“We expected a tough game. Apart from the first half free-kick, we didn’t concede any chances.”

Estevao scored against Chelsea at the Club World Cup in his final game for Palmeiras.

The Brazilian has been hyped as one of the world’s brightest young talents but lacked the composure to finish when he sliced high and wide from the middle of the box.

Nottingham Forest made light of manager Nuno Espirito Santo’s pre-season fears over a lack of signings with a dominant 3-1 win over a much-changed Brentford.

Chris Wood struck twice either side of Dan Ndyoe’s debut goal for Forest on a nightmare afternoon for new Brentford boss Keith Andrews.

“It was a very good first half. The combinations were really good, beautiful goals,” said Nuno.

“This is why we are insisting on a good balanced squad that gives us options and solutions.”

The Bees have lost their manager, captain and top scorer in the off-season.

Thomas Frank left to take charge of Tottenham, Bryan Mbeumo got his dream move to Manchester United and Arsenal secured Christian Norgaard.

Yoane Wissa was also missing from the Brentford squad ahead of an expected move to Newcastle.

Igor Thiago’s first goal for the club from the penalty spot late on was the only consolation for the visitors.

“I do have genuine belief but we have to take responsibility for a first half that wasn’t good enough,” said Andrews.

READ: Reserve Lionel Messi scores in Miami win while Son gets first MLS win

Lionel Messi returned from injury as a reserve and scored in the 84th minute to spark Inter Miami over the defending MLS champion Los Angeles Galaxy 3-1 on Saturday.

The iconic 38-year-old Argentine striker was back on the field for Miami after suffering what Inter coach Javier Mascherano had called a “minor muscle injury” — an apparent hamstring strain — in Inter’s August 2 Leagues Cup victory over Mexican side Necaxa.

“It had been something very small,” Mascherano said of his injury after the match. “The three training sessions we had were good. The important thing is that the match ended. As the minutes went by, I saw him better. We have to see how he feels tomorrow.”

Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, who missed a Leagues Cup win over Pumas UNAM and last weekend’s MLS loss at Orlando City, was on the bench as a reserve before entering in the second half, replacing Telasco Segovia.

“We had planned the match to give minutes to Leo. The idea was to give him 45 minutes so that he can find sensations,” Mascherano said. “I didn’t see him after the game. Tomorrow we’ll see what feelings he had.

“He’s an extraordinary player. I saw that he was clearly not 100 percent comfortable but as the minutes went by he was loosening up more and more. We will have to see how he ended with the fatigue.”

Jordi Alba scored for Miami in the 43rd minute but Joseph Paintsil equalized for the Galaxy in the 59th minute.

Lionel Messi scored in the 84th and Luis Suarez added an insurance tally in the 89th off an assist from Messi to produce the final victory margin.

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Messi, the reigning MLS Most Valuable Player, has 19 goals and 10 assists in 19 MLS appearances for Miami this season.

He also has the Herons into the quarter-finals of the Leagues Cup, which they won in 2023 just after Messi’s arrival. Miami will play Tigres in a Cup quarter-final on Wednesday.

“He wants to play every single game,” Mascherano said. “You have to understand why Leo is Leo. He always wants to be on the pitch. He’s happy there. Sometimes we try to explain him that we have to go slowly but when he feels good he knows himself like no one. In the end we tried to give him some minutes today to start having good feelings for Wednesday.”

Inter Miami rank fourth in the MLS Eastern Conference, six points behind MLS leaders Philadelphia but with three matches in hand.

South Korean international and former Tottenham Hotspur striker Son Heung-min picked up his first MLS victory in his first MLS start as LAFC won 2-0 at New England.

Son, who helped LAFC take a draw in Chicago last week as a reserve in his league debut, assisted on the LAFC win-clinching goal by Mathieu Choiniere in the fourth minute of second half stoppage time.

Marco Delgado scored LAFC’s first goal in the 51st minute.

LAFC rank fifth in the Western Conference, nine points adrift of pace-setting San Diego with two matches in hand.

READ: Former pacer advises Babar, Rizwan to retire after T20I squad exclusion

LAHORE: Head Coach of the Pakistan National and Under-23 Football Teams, Nolberto Solano, arrived at the Football House here on Saturday.

Solano was warmly received by the Acting General Secretary of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF), Muhammad Shahid Niaz Khokhar, and also held a meeting with the PFF staff during his visit.

For the unversed, Nolberto Solano was appointed as the head coach for Pakistan’s senior and under-23 sides in July, alongside assistant coach Jorge Castaneira.

A household name during his playing days at English club Newcastle United, Solano scored 38 goals in 233 appearances and became a fan favourite.

Since retiring from professional football, Solano has built a strong coaching career.

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He has managed three clubs in Peru and was part of the coaching staff that guided the Peru national team to their first World Cup appearance in 34 years in 2018.

He also played a vital role in Peru’s fourth-place finish at the 2021 Copa America.

Alongside Nolberto Solano, Jorge Castaneira is also vastly experienced with a formidable background in football conditioning and tactical development.

Castaneira, a former Argentine professional physical trainer, has worked with Venezuela’s national team during their 2002 World Cup qualifying campaign and has contributed to the success of clubs across South America and the Middle East.

The experienced duo will be part of the Pakistan football program for one year, aiming to enhance player performance in the short term and foster youth development in the long term.

READ: Liverpool strike late to beat Bournemouth in Premier League opener

Liverpool struck twice in the final minutes through Federico Chiesa and Mohamed Salah to overcome a battling Bournemouth 4-2 in a thrilling start to the Premier League season on Friday.

Antoine Semenyo looked to have rescued a point for the Cherries by scoring twice, after he had reported an incident of racial abuse from a fan, to cancel out Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo’s strikes for the defending champions.

But on an emotive night as Anfield remembered Diogo Jota, Chiesa was the unlikely hero as the injury-hit Italian fired the home side back in front before Salah rounded off the scoring.

Liverpool’s joy at celebrating a record-equalling 19th English top-flight title turned to tragedy during the off-season as forward Jota was killed alongside his brother Andre Silva in a car accident last month at the age of 28.

Just 11 days prior to the accident, the Portuguese international had married Rute Cardoso, the mother of his three children.

A large banner at the front of The Kop stand read: “Rute, Dinis, Duarte, Mafalda – Anfield will always be your home. You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

During a minute’s silence, fans held up a giant mosaic with the initials of Jota and Silva, who was also a footballer, and their shirt numbers in the Portuguese flag.

“The main emotion should be how emotive the tribute for Diogo was,” said Liverpool boss Arne Slot. “It was all so impressive and powerful.”

Despite romping to the title with four games to spare last season, Liverpool have undergone a major transformation in the transfer market, spending close to £300 million ($407 million).

Ekitike, Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez, and Jeremie Frimpong made their first competitive starts for the Reds.

More could be yet to come with Liverpool linked with a British transfer record move for Newcastle’s Alexander Isak and interested in Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi.

The visitors were fortunate not to be reduced to 10 men less than 15 minutes in when Marcos Senesi clearly directed the ball out of Ekitike’s path with his hand when the French striker had a clear run at goal, but VAR surprisingly did not intervene.

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The game was briefly halted on the half-hour mark as Semenyo reported to referee Anthony Taylor that he had been the subject of racist abuse from a Liverpool supporter, who was seen to be removed from the stands by police at half-time.

“Totally unacceptable,” said Bournemouth captain Adam Smith. “Kind of in shock it happened in this day and age.”

Liverpool said in a statement that the incident is now the subject of an ongoing police investigation.

Shortly after the resumption, Ekitike settled Liverpool’s nerves as he got the break of the ball and slotted past Dorde Petrovic.

Gakpo then coolly left two Bournemouth defenders on the ground and rolled into the bottom corner just after half-time.

But Slot’s men have struggled to find the right balance in pre-season and in losing the Community Shield to Palace last weekend, as a new-look, slick attack could not compensate for wide open defensive gaps on the counter-attack, and so it proved again.

David Brooks broke the offside trap and squared for Semenyo to pull a goal back.

The Ghanaian then rounded off his eventful evening for good and bad with an incredible equaliser.

Semenyo collected possession just outside his own box and sprinted through a vacant Liverpool midfield before firing into the bottom corner 13 minutes from time.

Chiesa was barely used by Slot in his debut season in England, but became the unlikely hero when he pounced on a loose ball inside the Bournemouth box in the 89th minute.

Salah then broke clear in stoppage time to score his customary goal in the opening game of the season and paid his own homage to Jota by mimicking one of his goal celebrations.

The Egyptian then broke down in tears after full-time as a chant in Jota’s name was belted out from the stands.

READ: Lionel Messi expected to return for Inter Miami against Los Angeles Galaxy

Lionel Messi is ready to return for Inter Miami when they host the Los Angeles Galaxy in a Major League Soccer clash that will launch a key stretch for the Florida club, coach Javier Mascherano said Friday.

Following Saturday’s Galaxy match, Miami plays Mexican club Tigres UANL on Wednesday in the Leagues Cup quarter-finals.

“Leo is doing well,” Mascherano told reporters on Friday before training. “He has been training with the team since Wednesday. Unless something strange happens during today’s training session, we think he’ll be available for tomorrow’s game.”

Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi suffered a “minor muscle injury,” apparently a hamstring strain, in the 11th minute of Inter’s August 2 Leagues Cup match against Necaxa.

The 38-year-old Argentine superstar returns as the Herons vie to bounce back from a humbling 4-1 loss to Orlando City last weekend.

Inter have slipped to sixth in the MLS Eastern Conference with 42 points — nine behind leaders Philadelphia but with three matches in hand.

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Lionel Messi, the reigning MLS Most Valuable Player, leads the Golden Boot race with 18 goals and nine assists in 18 games.

Inter Miami will be favored at home against the Los Angeles Galaxy, who are the defending MLS Cup champions but have sunk to last place with the league’s worst record.

The Galaxy, however, did qualify for the Leagues Cup quarter-finals, and Mascherano cautioned that Miami can’t afford to take them lightly.

“For me, they’re a team in which the MLS standings don’t reflect their quality, especially the quality of their players,” Mascherano said.

“The reality is that maybe they didn’t start the season well because of injuries and different situations. But they’ve improved a lot over the last few months.”

READ: Former Australian cricket captain and coach Bob Simpson dies

Liverpool manager Arne Slot confirmed on Thursday that a deal to sign 18-year-old centre-back Giovanni Leoni from Parma has been agreed between the clubs.

According to reports, the Premier League champions will pay £26 million ($35 million) for the highly-rated prospect, who has played just 17 Serie A games for Parma.

Liverpool have already splashed out £260 million on the signings of Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, Jeremie Frimpong, and Milos Kerkez to build from a position of strength after romping to a record-equalling 20th English top-flight title last season.

However, the departure of Jarell Quansah to Bayer Leverkusen had left Slot with just three centre-backs to choose from.

One of those, Joe Gomez, has missed most of pre-season due to injury, while doubts remain over the future of Ibrahima Konate, who has just one year left on his contract at Anfield.

“The clubs have agreed a deal, but he hasn’t signed for us yet. The moment when he signs for us, I can go into more detail,” said Slot at a press conference ahead of Liverpool’s Premier League opener against Bournemouth on Friday.

Despite Leoni’s arrival, Liverpool could add more centre-back cover before the end of the transfer window with reports linking them with a move for Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi.

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Liverpool have not won back-to-back league titles since 1984 and Slot expects it to be an even tougher challenge to defend their crown given the turnover in his squad.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, and Caoimhin Kelleher have also departed, while the club is still coming to terms with the tragic loss of Diogo Jota, who died in a car crash last month.

“The main reason that it is so difficult is that there are so many competitors who can win the league. It’s unbelievable if you are able to do it in this league, “added Slot. “This year will be even harder than before.

“We have lost five to six players who played quite a lot of minutes last season, and brought in four, so it’s normal there is adaptation.”

The fee to bring Wirtz to England from Leverkusen could rise to a British transfer record of £116 million.

Slot, though, believes the German international has the mentality to cope with the pressure of that price tag.

“When you see him play, he is so creative. He is mentally strong, he doesn’t get distracted by a transfer fee or anything else,” added the Dutch coach.

“Good players always find a way to play well in good teams. He has to adjust to England, the league, the intensity, and his team-mates. His adjustment has already gone quite well, more than we expected.”

READ: Cricket fraternity extends Independence Day wishes to Pakistan

Barcelona announced on Wednesday the long-term injury validation of goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen by the Spanish league, meaning the club can register new signing Joan Garcia without breaking financial fair play rules.

“LaLiga’s Medical Committee has ruled that goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s injury meets the long-term injury criteria established by current regulations,” Barcelona said in a statement on their website.

“The club will proceed tomorrow (Thursday) to immediately formalise the registration of player Joan Garcia.”

After two seasons marred by serious injuries, Barcelona captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen underwent back surgery last month.

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However, the 33-year-old had refused up until last Friday to release his medical details as Barcelona tried to have him classified by La Liga as a long-term injury, which would allow them to deduct part of his pay from their official wage bill.

The Catalan club had planned to use the German’s long-term absence to register their new recruits while remaining within the financial fair play rules.

In addition to the recruitment of 24-year-old shotstopper Garcia, Barcelona extended the contract of veteran Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny this summer.

It’s worth noting that Joan García will be available for Saturday’s league opener against Mallorca after La Liga granted the club permission to use salary space allocated for the injured Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

READ: Imam-ul-Haq shares cryptic post after consecutive centuries for Yorkshire

Germany international defender Malick Thiaw on Tuesday completed a permanent move to Premier League club Newcastle from AC Milan.

The 24-year-old centre-back agreed a long-term deal for an undisclosed fee reported to be worth an initial 35 million euros ($40 million).

“I’m really excited to join this massive club. I can’t wait to start training and to get to know my new teammates and all the staff,” said Thiaw.

“The gaffer (Eddie Howe) showed me his vision and what he wants to do with me as a player and the club itself, which is really exciting.

“I think Newcastle speaks for itself. It’s a great club, a big club with passionate fans who I can’t wait to see at St James’ Park.”

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Thiaw — capped three times for Germany — joined AC Milan from Schalke 04 in 2022 and made 85 appearances in all competitions during his three years at the Serie A club.

Malick Thiaw becomes Newcastle’s third summer signing after Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga and Southampton goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

“We’re really pleased to have Malick on board,” said manager Howe.

“He’s a player I’ve admired for a long time and somebody who will add real quality to our defensive options.

“Malick is still young but brings valuable experience of Champions League football, as well as playing in the Bundesliga and Serie A, which is a major positive for us as we return to Europe this season.”

Newcastle finished fifth in the Premier League last season and open their latest campaign at Aston Villa on Saturday.

READ: Shai Hope joins elite list with sublime century against Pakistan

European champions Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) said on Tuesday they have signed Ukrainian centre-back Illia Zabarnyi from Premier League club Bournemouth.

British media reports said the deal was worth around £57 million ($76.7 million, 66 million euros).

“Paris Saint-Germain are excited to welcome Illia Zabarnyi,” PSG said in a statement, adding he would be the first Ukrainian ever to play for the club.

The arrival of Zabarnyi, 22, could jeopardise the place of Brazilian stalwart Marquinhos in the starting lineup.

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Zabarnyi had an impressive 2024-2025 season in England when Bournemouth finished ninth, and the club’s supporters voted him their player of the season in the previous campaign.

Bournemouth have now sold three of their first-choice defensive lineup from last season after Milos Kerkez moved to Premier League champions Liverpool and Dean Huijsen was transferred to Real Madrid.

Qatar-owned PSG, who thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 to win the Champions League for the first time in May, also signed highly-rated Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier last Saturday, a move that appears to herald the possible departure of Gianluigi Donnarumma.

The Italian international ‘keeper has reportedly not been selected in the squad for Wednesday’s European Super Cup final against Europa League winners Tottenham in Italy.

READ: BCCI’s roadmap for Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma’s future revealed