Jese Rodriguez on Reds' radar as Barcelona send final Suarez payment
Liverpool are linked with ANOTHER forward in today's gossip column, as Smith prepares to make Bournemouth switch
If there's one thing Liverpool need, it's another forward. After all, they only have 203 of them at present. And you can never be too careful.
So, in Spain they are suggesting that Jurgen Klopp is lining up a new frontman.
Real
Madrid's Jese Rodriguez is the man. Marca report that Real are ready to
let him leave, and that Jese wants first-team football – who doesn't?
They
also report that Liverpool and Arsenal, who are becoming the new
Liverpool and Tottenham, are interested in the 23-year-old.
Mind you, they also say that Real would prefer to send the player out on loan.
Sticking in Spain, the Mirror report that Liverpool will this week
receive the final instalment of Luis Suarez's 2014 transfer fee from
Barcelona.
The Spanish champions will transfer a payment of
£12.98million to the Anfield club, the fifth of its kind, to take the
Uruguayan's total transfer fee to £65million.
Suarez has won La
Liga in both of his seasons at the Nou Camp as well as two Copa del Rey
titles, a Champions League, a UEFA Super Cup and a Club World Cup. If it
was £65m, then it's a steal.
Elsewhere, Brad Smith is expected to complete his transfer to
Bournemouth today. Liverpool say it will be a £6m deal, Bournemouth say
£3m.
Either way it's decent business for a back-up player with minimal first team experience.
Tuesday was a difficult day for Arsenal fans, with summer target Gonzalo Higuain joining Juventus in a €90million deal and Lyon rebuffing the Gunners' initial £29.4m offer for Alexandre Lacazette.
The Mirror suggests that Arsene Wenger will have to pay £40m to land
the French forward, while The Sun reports that Arsenal have now turned
their attentions to Real Madrid forward Jese Rodriguez.
Jese has cut a frustrated figure in recent times and has reportedly
asked to leave the Bernabeu due to a lack of regular playing time,
though Arsenal are said to face competition from Liverpool for the
23-year-old's services.
Meanwhile, Antonio Conte could risk the wrath of Arsenal fans by
bringing William Carvalho - long linked with the Gunners - to Chelsea
this summer.
Elsewhere, West Ham's pursuit of a striker rumbles on while Paul
Pogba's world-record move to Manchester United is reportedly being held
up by - you guessed it - money.
Renowned Congolese musician Koffi Olomide (left) on arrival at Jomo
Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi on Friday 22, 2016. Police
arrested the rhumba star in his home town of Kinshasa on July 26, 2016
Congolese music star Koffi Olomide will spend the next three
months in jail as he awaits a ruling on prosecutors' request to imprison
him for a longer period for assaulting one of his female dancers in
Nairobi.
The singer's free fall started when he kicked a woman in his band at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport last Friday.
Olomide was deported on July 23 alongside three of his female dancers.
Police
arrived at his residence in a continuation of perhaps the worst run in
Olomide’s fortunes, a painful price to pay for his moment of madness in
Nairobi.
According to reports from Kinshasa, a campaign to have
him arrested was started by Congressman Zakarie Bababaswe, who had filed
a petition on behalf of the Congolese public to get the musician
punished for assault.
Mr Bababaswe had in a televised press
conference wondered why Olomide was “still walking scot-free and yet
there was video evidence that he assaulted his dancer in Kenya?”
Incidentally,
the congressman and Olomide used to be good friends until they fell out
after the musician and Cindy Le Coeur, his lead singer, were accused of
belittling him in their songs.
His arrest, which was ordered by
the attorney-general, was received with jubilation by locals and
foreigners, who feel justice must be done for all, and especially in
enforcing women’s rights.
Since video footage of the incident, in
which one of Africa’s leading musicians lashed out with a “Kung Fu
kick” at one of his dancers, came to light, Olomide has suffered a huge
setback in a career the mercurial singer, composer and band leader has
diligently nurtured for several decades.
Higuain scored 36 league goals in 35 games for Napoli last season
Juventus have signed Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli.
The
28-year-old has signed a five-year deal at Juventus after the club met
his buy-out clause of 90m euros (£75.3m), which will be paid in two
instalments.
The fee for the France-born forward is the third most expensive in history and the biggest domestic deal of all time.
The
£75.3m fee for Higuain, who began his career with River Plate in
Argentina, is dwarfed only by those paid by Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo(£80m) and Gareth Bale (£85m).
Higuain
won the Capocannoniere - Serie A's golden boot - last season after
scoring a league record-equalling 36 goals as Napoli finished runners-up
to his new club.
It
was only the second time this century a player had scored more than 30
goals in a Serie A season, following Luca Toni's tally of 31 for
Fiorentina in 2005-06.
Swiss tennis great Roger Federer will miss the Olympics and the rest of the season with a knee injury.
The 17-time Grand Slam champion said he needs "more extensive rehabilitation" if he wants to prolong his career.
Federer, 34, had knee surgery in February before missing May's French Open with a back problem.
Federer said on his Facebook page he was "extremely disappointed" to not be representing Switzerland in Rio and it was "tough" to miss the rest of 2016.
"I
am as motivated as ever and plan to put all my energy towards coming
back strong, healthy and in shape to play attacking tennis in 2017," he
added.
Federer
won doubles gold at Beijing in 2008, but has never won an Olympic
singles title and lost to Britain's Andy Murray in the final at London
2012.
Federer twice required treatment during
a five-set semi-final defeat by Canada's Milos Raonic at Wimbledon this
month, but found a "silver lining" in his injury-troubled year.
"This experience has made me realise how lucky I have been throughout my career with very few injuries," he said.
"The
doctors advised that if I want to play on the ATP World Tour injury
free for another few years, as I intend to do, I must give both my knee
and body the proper time to fully recover."
Russian
drug cheats will be competing at next month's Olympic Games despite
efforts to target them, according to the whistleblowers who highlighted
the country's state-sponsored doping.
The
International Olympic Committee has asked governing bodies to ban
Russians either implicated in a recent report into doping, or previously
sanctioned.
But
former Russian Anti-Doping Agency official Vitaly Stepanov and his 800m
runner wife Yuliya told BBC Sport: "There will be athletes who have
used doping from Russia in Rio."
Instead,
the IOC said it would be up to individual sports federations to decide
which athletes were eligible for Rio. So far, 37 athletes across six
sports have been banned since the IOC made its decision.
That
is in addition to athletics' governing body, the IAAF, already opting
to ban Russian track and field athletes from the competition unless they
can satisfy strict doping criteria. So far, only one athlete has been
able to do that.
"The
IOC showed that first of all there is no punishment for running a
systematic doping programme in the largest country in the world," Vitaly
said.
"And second, they protected not the majority of clean athletes globally, but they protected clean athletes in Russia."
The pair gave evidence to a German documentary maker in
2014 that led to an independent report being commissioned by the World
Anti-Doping Agency which found evidence of widespread doping.
That
in turn led to last week's McLaren report, which detailed extensive
attempts to cover up doping in Russia and implicated the Russian
ministry of sport, secret service and anti-doping agency.
Since
their testimony, the Stepanovs have been unable to live in Russia,
although Vitaly said they "feel safe" in their new home.
"Unfortunately the reaction to our actions in our home country is not positive," he said.
"A
lot of people in general and athletes as well hate us for what we did
and we would not go back to Russia right now. There, we would feel
unsafe."
Despite
being cleared to compete under a neutral flag by the IAAF, the IOC
ruled she should not be allowed to take part because she was sanctioned
for doping in 2013.
The
Stepanovs said this sent out the wrong signal to potential
whistleblowers, with Vitaly saying: "You didn't really have a choice if
you wanted to be a member of the national team.
"She
has served her ban, fully served her ban, she thinks that she should
not be punished a second time for something that she did in the past."
Liverpool sign Newcastle United midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum
Liverpool transfer news: All the latest from Anfield Georginio Wijnaldum put pen to paper of a five-year-deal with the Reds He will now fly out to join his new team-mates on their USA tour Tottenham pulled out of the race to sign Wijnaldum earlier this week
Jurgen
Klopp is predicting Georginio Wijnaldum will become a huge part of
Liverpool's future after he completed his £25million move from
Newcastle.
The Holland international has signed a five-year contract and becomes Klopp's sixth signing of an increasingly busy summer.
He passed a medical on Merseyside on Friday after Liverpool agreed to pay £23m with a further £2m in add-ons.
Liverpool have confirmed the signing of Georginio Wijnaldum from Newcastle United in a £25m deal
Wijnaldum, Jurgen Klopp's sixth signing of the summer, will wear the number five shirt at Anfield
Wijnaldum poses with a Liverpool scarf after signing his contract at Melwood Training Ground on Friday
The 25-year-old will now jet out to join his new team-mates in their ongoing tour of the United States
'When
I talked to him I could tell that he knows we have to work together to
get this level out of him to all be successful for the team.
'He
has played a lot for his country already, been captain at a young age
in Holland and also been involved in a tough Premier League season so
this experience gives him a good foundation for the challenge here -
which everybody knows is huge.
He can play
a few positions for us and players that come through the Dutch system
usually have a good tactical understanding and flexibility. That's
really important.
'I can't wait to get him on the training pitch and for the fans to see him play in a Liverpool shirt.'
On
the prospect of working with Klopp, Wijnaldum told liverpoolfc.com:
'(He seems) a great man - from the outside - because I don't know how he
works yet and I have to work with him.
'(But)
I always love to watch him, his passion as a trainer, I like how he
enjoys the game. He gives something back to the group (with his passion)
so I look forward to working with him.'
Wijnaldum joined Newcastle in 2015, playing in all 38 of the club's Premier League games last season
He began his career at Feyenoord before moving to PSV Eindhoven and then making his big money move
That
was not the only business Liverpool completed on Friday as a 12-month
deal was also agreed to bring in former Arsenal goalkeeper Alex
Manninger to provide back up for Loris Karius and Simon Mignolet.
It
is 14 years since Manninger last played in the Barclays Premier League
with Arsenal but Klopp was eager to recruit him after allowing Wales
international join Huddersfield on a season-long loan to gain
experience.
Sam Allardyce left Sunderland to become the new England manager David Moyes has been appointed his replacement on Wearside Moyes has been out of work since his sacking by Real Sociedad He also had spells in charge of Manchester United and Everton
David Moyes has been confirmed as the new boss of Sunderland on a four-year deal.
The Scot replaces Sam Allardyce after he was installed as England manager on Friday.
The
former Manchester United boss has been out of work since being sacked
by Real Sociedad last November and Sunderland quickly identified him as
Allardyce's successor when it became known they were losing their
manager to the Three Lions.
Sunderland have appointed David Moyes as their new manager after the departure of Sam Allardyce
Moyes poses with the Sunderland scarf following his arrival at the club on a four-year contract
The 53-year-old Scotsman has revealed his delight at being able to join one 'a big British club'
Chairman Ellis Short said Moyes was the club's 'number one managerial target for the last five appointments'.
Short,
speaking after Moyes' appointment, said: 'We are absolutely delighted
to welcome David Moyes to Sunderland, who was by far and away our first
choice.
'He
is a man whose football pedigree speaks for itself and is someone I
have long admired. I have spoken with him on many occasions and I have
always been hugely impressed. He was my number one managerial target for
the last five appointments, but his desire to honour existing contracts
meant we were not able to bring him to Sunderland previously. To be
able to finally welcome him as our manager is fantastic news for the
club.
'The
fact that David has committed to a four-year deal is a clear
demonstration of his belief in what he can achieve here. It is our aim
to become a better, stronger and more stable football club and with a
manager of David’s calibre and experience at the helm, we have a
fantastic opportunity to begin looking upwards, rather than downwards
every season.'
And Moyes said: 'I am delighted to have joined Sunderland. I am relishing the challenge and excited by the opportunity.
'I have taken over a big British club, with a great support and I’m looking forward to working in the Premier League again.
'I look forward to continuing the good work done by Sam.'
Moyes
was approached by the Black Cats before Allardyce's arrival in October
and he even sent trusted lieutenant Jimmy Lumsden to check on the team.
Sunderland
face Rotherham on Saturday and then head to France for friendlies
against FC Stade Nyonnais, Dijon FCO and Montpellier.
His first competitive game in charge will be back in Manchester against City on August 13.
And Sunderland's players have already been talking about his arrival on their WhatsApp group.
Sportsmail
understand the squad are relaxed about the loss of Allardyce and
believe their improvement last season, while undoubtedly aided by the
manager's shrewd acquisitions and tactics, owed as much to the influence
of first-team coach Robbie Stockdale, the former Middlesbrough
defender.
The former Manchester United boss has been out of work since being sacked by Real Sociedad last year
Moyes had an 11-year spell in charge of Everton during which he led them to the FA Cup final in 2009
Indeed, the players will let it be known that they would like to see the 36-year-old continue in his role.
Allardyce finally said his goodbyes to his squad on Friday after not mentioning anything regarding England until that point.
A
club statement confirming his departure read: 'Sunderland AFC confirms
the departure of Sam Allardyce, who takes up the position of England
manager with immediate effect.
'The
focus of everyone at Sunderland AFC now is on moving forward quickly
and decisively, with the appointment of the club's new manager to be
confirmed at the earliest opportunity.
The 61-year-old former West Ham and Sunderland boss has signed a lucrative two-year contract
Sam Allardyce has replaced Roy Hodgson on initial two-year deal The 61-year-old has option of a further two years depending on success He beat off competition from Steve Bruce to land England job
Sam Allardyce has been confirmed as England's new manager following weeks of speculation
Bruce left his role at Hull moments before Allardyce confirmation
Sam Allardyce pledged it was 'time for us to deliver' after being confirmed as the new England manager on Friday.
The
61-year-old has agreed an initial two-year deal with the Football
Association, worth around £6million, and vowed to 'make the whole
country proud'.
Allardyce
wants to appoint Sammy Lee, with whom he enjoyed a very successful
spell at Bolton Wanderers, as his assistant manager — as first revealed
by MailOnline on Friday morning.
'Dan
Ashworth, David Gill and I have carried out a thorough process in the
last three weeks and ultimately we could not look beyond Sam as the
ideal candidate.'
Allardyce
was still in the North East on Friday afternoon, saying goodbye to the
players he guided to Premier League safety last season.
On
Friday night, Sunderland were on the brink of appointing former Everton
and Manchester United boss David Moyes as their new manager.
Allardyce
did not take training on Thursday or Friday, but had the opportunity to
explain his decision and say his farewells to his squad and club
employees.
He
leaves Sunderland after activating a release clause in his contract and
the club declined an opportunity to wish the England boss good luck in
their statement announcing his departure.
ALLARDYCE'S PLAYING CAREER
1971-1980: Bolton Wanderers
1980-81: Sunderland
1981-83: Millwall
1983: Tampa Bay Rowdies
1983-84: Coventry City
1984-85: Huddersfield Town
1985-86: Bolton Wanderers
1986-89: Preston North End
1989-1991: West Bromwich Albion
1991-92: Limerick
1992: Preston North End
It
read: 'Sunderland AFC confirms the departure of Sam Allardyce, who
takes up the position of England manager with immediate effect.
'The
focus of everyone at Sunderland AFC now is on moving forward quickly
and decisively, with the appointment of the club's new manager to be
confirmed at the earliest opportunity.'
Allardyce will be presented at St George's Park on Monday, by which time he hopes to have finalised his backroom staff.
Lee,
57, had a part-time role with England under Sven Goran Eriksson from
2001 before going full-time until he joined Allardyce at Bolton in
September 2005. He was also offered the chance to manage the Under 21s
by Steve McClaren in 2006 but stayed at Bolton.
Lee
and Allardyce enjoyed two successful years together at Bolton,
achieving qualification for the UEFA Cup before Lee took over from
Allardyce following his move to Newcastle United.
Ex-Liverpool
midfielder Lee, who won 14 England caps, is out of work after leaving
Southampton following Ronald Koeman's departure.
Juventus close in on Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain
Juventus have been strongly linked with Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain
The 28-year-old former Real Madrid striker has £78million release clause
The Serie A champions have agreed to reach the striker's valuation
Higuain reportedly underwent a secret medical in Madrid clinic on Friday
Juventus have agreed to pay the £78million buyout clause for Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain.
Talks
are underway between the clubs with Sky Italia reporting the Argentina
international underwent a secret medical in a Madrid clinic on Friday
afternoon.
Higuain scored 38 goals in all competitions for Napoli last season, who finished runners-up to Juventus in Serie A.
His signing
will represent a major coup for the Italian champions as they look to
strengthen despite the loss of Alvaro Morata and the expected departure
of Paul Pogba to Manchester United.
Higuain is understood to have agreed a four-year deal worth up to £8.3million a year with bonuses after tax.
Juventus
will pay the fee in two installments of £39million, though it is
understood that is not dependent on Pogba's transfer. The Italians are a
wealthy club and have funds to spend regardless of whether Pogba is
sold.
However,
his transfer to Manchester United is still expected to go through once
United agree to increase their bid and pay the 20 per cent bonus agreed
to Pogba's agent Mino Raiola.
This
week, Napoli club president Aurelio De Laurentiis claimed the forward
would 'betray himself' if he were to leave last season's Serie A
runners-up.
'I
haven't spoken to the player,' De Laurentiis told reporters. 'The only
offer I've had was from the president of Atletico Madrid last month and I
told him we couldn't do anything.
Higuain could not fire Argentina to Copa America glory as they lost the final to Chile on penalties this summer
'He offered €60million (£50m) plus two or three players and I said no.
Higuain scored 36 goals in Serie A for Napoli last season but they still finished nine points behind Juventus
'Even if Juventus were to come into the picture, they need Higuain's consent.
'Would he be betraying Napoli? It would be a much bigger betrayal of himself.
'You
don't go to the Napoli curve (hardcore fans), sing songs of love of the
club and then just go somewhere else. It would be absurd.
'I'm not interested in his brother's [Higuain's brother and agent, Nicolas] strategy.
'The
fact that Napoli have qualified for Europe seven years running, with
dignity, is a clear indication that we are good enough.
'With us, Higuain has gone back to being what he was when he played for Real Madrid.'
SAN DIEGO -- Giancarlo Stanton
wore out Petco Park with a record display of power in the All-Star Home
Run Derby on Monday night, peppering every landmark from the left field
corner to center field. Stanton
hit 20 homers in the final round to best defending champion Todd
Frazier of the Chicago White Sox. Overall, the Miami Marlins slugger hit
a record 61, shattering the single-night mark of 41 by Bobby Abreu in
2005.
Stanton's
impressive shots hit the top level of the Western Metal Supply Co.
Building in the left-field corner and the top of the batter's eye in
center field.
He sent several balls just below the giant
scoreboard high atop the left-field stands and several over the bullpens
in left-center.
"For sure, being on the West Coast and taking the flight out here
just for this, you know. I figure it's a waste if I don't bring this bad
boy home,'' Stanton said, hoisting the trophy.
The three-time
All-Star is not on the National League roster for Tuesday night's game
after batting .233 with 20 homers and 50 RBIs before the break.
"I had a great time. I had a blast.''
Literally.
His longest shot was estimated at 497 feet. He hit the eight longest homers of the competition and 20 of the 21 deepest drives.
"When
I get a few in a row I would kind of bump it up 5 to 10 percent,'' he
said. "But most the time I stuck at 80-90 percent. I knew I could do it
endurance-wise. I was just hoping my swing didn't fall about.''
Stanton can defend his title at home next year when the Marlins host the All-Star Game.
"That is where I got my childhood memories, watching the Home Run Derby as a kid,'' said Stanton, who's from Los Angeles.
"Maybe some kids are watching me. I would like to return that.''
Stanton is baseball's highest-paid player with a $325 million, 13-year deal. His new hitting coach is home run king Barry Bonds.
Frazier,
who's not on the American League All-Star team, hit 13 in the final
round. He was a hometown winner last year while with the Cincinnati Reds. He was traded to the White Sox in December.
The
Western Metal Supply Co. Building served as one of the better Derby
targets, joining the Warehouse at Baltimore's Camden Yards in 1993 and
McCovey Cove outside San Francisco's AT&T Park in 2007. Those were
both targets for lefty hitters. Stanton hit 24 homers in the first round
to eliminate the Seattle Mariners' Robinson Cano (seven) and 17 in the
semifinals to knock out Mark Trumbo (14) of the Baltimore Orioles.
Frazier
hit 13 in the first round to beat Carlos Gonzalez (12) of the Colorado
Rockies, and 16 in the semifinals to eliminate Adam Duvall
(15) of the Reds. Trumbo, who leads the majors with 28 homers, had two
of the most impressive shots of the night, off the scoreboard in left
field and onto the top of the Western Metal Supply Co. Building in his
semifinal matchup against Stanton.
Wil Myers of the San Diego Padres
tried to become the second hometown player to with the Derby. With
younger brother Beau -- an infielder-outfielder at Appalachian State --
pitching to him, Myers hit 10 homers in the first round and was
eliminated by Duvall with 11. Beau Myers even hit his brother with a
pitch early in the four-minute period, and nearly nicked him another
time.
Here's what you might have missed to Giancarlo Stanton
Gincarlo Stanton was overpowering in his Home Run Derby performance on Monday
SAN DIEGO -- During the player interview sessions on Monday, I asked Cole Hamels
how he would make baseball more fun. "I don't want to get in trouble
here," he said with a laugh, "but the All-Star Game shouldn't count for
anything. It should just be for fun." Well, the Home Run Derby is just
for fun! Fun is good! Here are nine things you may have missed: 1. Giancarlo Stanton was destroying baseballs!
If you believe the soul of the cow still lives on in the cowhide used
to make baseballs, I feel bad for the cow. Heck, I feel bad for the cork
and the yarn. That was an awesome display of power. Kudos for Stanton
electing to do the Derby when he wasn't selected for the game. He could
have taken four days off and relaxed on South Beach, but instead came to
San Diego and gave the fans a show. It may even upstage tomorrow's
All-Star Game, kind of like what happened at Fenway in 1999. 2. This isn't your older brother's Petco Park. First of all, the fences were
moved in a few years ago and Petco has actually played as a neutral
home run park since 2013. We saw that the players had no issues clearing
the fences. In fact, in the first round, only Robinson Cano failed to reach double digits. Corey Seager
failed to advance with 15 home runs, and last year in Cincinnati no
player hit 15 in the first round. At least that gave Padres fans a
chance to chant "Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.!" when Seager was eliminated. 3. OK, Mark Trumbo didn't advance to the final, but his first round got the crowd going. The ball just sounded different coming off his bat. Also, the ball went far.
Unfortunately, after that the stadium loudspeakers were turned up to
"Standing next to a jet about to take off" volume and we couldn't hear
the sound of the crack of the bat. Why must everything be so loud? Why
must there be a DJ in right field on a flashing cart? Or maybe I'm just
old and flashing carts in right field and nonstop loud music will get
kids wanting to play baseball. 4. Everybody wanted a picture with David Ortiz. As Mike Trout said earlier in the day, "Big Papi, I know you're not retiring!" 5. Brotherly love above all. Hometown favorite Wil Myers lost his first-round matchup with Adam Duvall. No wonder.
6. Hey, it's Harry and Lloyd. No, not Brian Cashman and Hank Steinbrenner. I kid, Yankees fans, I kid! 7. Frisbee-catching dogs > mascots or sausage races or "Cotton-Eye Joe." Just my opinion. 8. Revenge is sweet. Todd Frazier
beat Stanton in the semis in 2014. That round was … 1 to 0. Let’s all
pretend that never happened. This round was much better, with Stanton
winning 20 to 13. You want the math? Here's the math: 9. Even David Ortiz was impressed with Stanton. I think Big Papi is buying dinner for all the All-Stars after the game tomorrow.
Giancarlo Stanton's record Derby
Miami
Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton hit so many home runs on his
way to winning the Home Run Derby on Monday night that he caused at
least a temporary marketing nightmare for his team.
Earlier in the day, the Marlins sent an email to their fans advertising that "when Giancarlo homers, you score!"
The
offer said that "each time G launches a home run out of Petco Park,
we'll knock a percentage point off future Marlins tickets."
Stanton
proceeded to launch 61 home runs, besting Bobby Abreu's 2005 record in
the contest by 20 homers. His final competitor, Todd Frazier, also broke
the record by one (42 home runs).
So did that mean that Marlins fans got 61 percent off future games?
The last 16 months for Andy Murray have not been too bad at all.
From
getting married in April 2015 to winning his second Wimbledon title
yesterday, he's also led Great Britain to a Davis Cup triumph, won BBC
Sport's Personality of the Year, oh and he became a father too.
Portugal beat France to win Euro 2016 final with Éder’s extra-time goal
Portugal1 France 0
Cristiano Ronaldo and his Portugal team-mates celebrate with the European Championship trophy after their 1-0 win against France
he substitute Éder won the European Championship for Portugal with a brilliant goal after Cristiano Ronaldo went off injured in the first half
In the end, Cristiano Ronaldo had his hands on the trophy even if it was not the way the ultimate showman had intended. Portugal, the team that finished third in their group, had found a way even on a night when their greatest footballer was taken off on a stretcher. The players of France were on their knees and suddenly it was a sunrise of a smile on Ronaldo’s face, in stark contrast to the devastation that had been seen earlier in the night.
Has any player been through as many contrasting emotions in the space of a major final? Ronaldo was in tears when he left the pitch with his damaged knee in the first half. He had tried desperately to carry on and when he finally accepted it was futile it felt like a grievous setback to Portugal’s hopes of denying France the outcome that would have meant so much in this city. Ronaldo looked broken. The final was deprived of its main attraction and at that stage it was tempting to wonder whether his team-mates truly believed they could cope.
Portugal subsequently played like a team affronted by the suggestion they might be overly reliant on one man. They gave everything to keep out France during the long passages when the host nation put them under pressure.
Their sense of adventure grew as the game wore on and, ultimately, Éder’s decisive goal in the second period of extra time won a test of endurance. Their run of 10 successive defeats to France, stretching back to 1978, was over and Ronaldo, his leg heavily strapped, climbed the steps to collect the silverware – an excruciating low, an exhilarating high and a night like few others.
Portugal can duly reflect on their greatest ever victory, made all the more remarkable by the fact they could not beat Iceland, Hungary or Austria in the group stages. Their safety-first tactics will not appeal to everyone but nobody could dispute their competitive courage and mental toughness after the jarring challenge that meant their three-times Ballon d’Or winner was unable to influence the game in the way he would have imagined.
Fernando Santos, their wily old manager, has put together a tough, obdurate side. Their goalkeeper, Rui Patrício, had a fine night and France seldom threatened after that moment, at the end of normal time, when the substitute André-Pierre Gignac turned inside Pepe in the penalty area to leave himself with the opportunity to be a hero. Gignac scuffed his shot against a post, almost in slow motion, with the clock ticking into stoppage time. The game went into an additional 30 minutes and France gradually ran out of ideas.
Portugal might also reflect they were fortunate earlier that Antoine Griezmann misdirected his header with another of the game’s few clear opportunities. At times,sansRonaldo, it seemed like they did not entirely believe in their own ability to get behind the French defence and that conservatism certainly suffocated parts of the games as a spectacle.
There were signs, however, from the 70th minute onwards that they were willing to play with more adventure. Raphaël Guerreiro, Portugal’s left-back, struck the crossbar with a free-kick in extra time –even if it should have been a foul the other way – and a couple of minutes later, the ball was at the feet of Éder, 25 yards from goal. Éder finished last season on loan at Lille and his brief time at Swansea City, having signed for £5m from Braga last summer, can probably be encapsulated by the South Wales Echo describing him as “one of the most disappointing transfer flops” in the club’s history. His shot was struck with power and precision, arrowing its way into the bottom right-hand corner of Hugo Lloris’s net. Portugal had their breakthrough and it seemed like every single member of their entourage was on the pitch to celebrate.
For France, it was a galling way to end the tournament, but the truth for Didier Deschamps and his players is that they did not show enough wit and creativity around the penalty area. Olivier Giroud had one of his frustrating nights, Griezmann faded after an encouraging start and it was strange that Deschamps decided to take off Dimitri Payet in the 57th minute when the West Ham player had been troubling his opponents. Maybe the enormity of the occasion was weighing on French minds, or perhaps it worked against them that they had a day fewer than Portugal to prepare. Whatever the truth, they will be left to contemplate why they were unable to take advantage of Ronaldo’s misfortune.
The injury occurred after eight minutes when Payet’s knee followed through, at speed, into the side of Ronaldo’s left leg and there was not a single moment from that point onwards when the Real Madrid player looked pain-free.
Nine minutes later he was down again, signalling for help, before being taken off for a second round of treatment. This being Ronaldo, there was a desperate attempt to see how far his powers could stretch, but it always seemed unrealistic when he made one last attempt to run it off. Ronaldo finally conceded defeat in the 25th minute and collapsed to the ground for the third occasion.
The ovation as he was carried off suggested the crowd recognised genuine greatness. His team-mates, however, seemed intent on making sure his absence was not the decisive factor.
