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Football News: Review Of The Day 25th February 2021

Review Of The Day 25th February 2021
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Review of the Day

 

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Contracts

Brighton & Hove Albion goalkeeper Robert Sanchez has signed a new contract which runs until 2025.

Lucas Digne has signed a new contract with Everton which will expire in 2025.

 


Transfers

Former Arsenal striker Yaya Sanogoals, erm I mean Sanogo, has signed for Huddersfield Town. The 28 year old was a free agent after being released by Toulouse at the end of last season.

David Beckham's Major League Soccer team Inter Miami have paid £3.27m to sign Brazilian midfielder Gregore from EC Bahia.

 


Injury Round-Up

Bournemouth's Welsh international forward David Brooks has been ruled out for a month with another ankle problem. The 23 year is expected to miss Wales World Cup qualifiers next month due to the injury.

Aberdeen striker Fraser Hornby is looking to have ended his season early after he suffered a "significant tear" to a thigh muscle. The youngster is on loan from Stade Reims.

VfL Wolfsburg forward Josip Brekalo has been ruled out of the weekend's Bundesliga clash with Hertha Berlin after being hit in the face with a ball in training on Tuesday. The 22 year reported feeling dizzy afterwards and was taken to hospital where he was diagnosed with a mild concussion.

 


Managerial Changes

Aftre 13 League Two matches without a win, Colchester United have relieved Steve Ball of his head coach duties. The 51 year old only took charge in July, after a spell as assistant. Wayne Brown has been appointed as interim manager, despite currently also managing Isthmian League North Division side Maldon & Tiptree. With the Isthmian Leagues suspended, Brown is being given a chance to stake his claim for the U's job.

Underfire Celtic manager Neil Lennon has finally resigned with his team 18 points behind Rangers in the SPFL with the season almost over. Despite blaming all but himself for his side's failings this season, Lennon has left and his assistant John Kennedy has stepped up to take interim charge of team affairs.

 


Disciplinary Charges

Hamilton Academicals' Jamie Hamilton has had his red card overturned. The teenage defender was dismissed in Saturday's 2-0 loss at the hands of Hibernian for a challenge on Martin Boyle. Replays showed little contact and a Scottish FA panel have downgraded the card to a yellow.

Egyptian giants Zamalek are facing severe punishment after being found guilty of duping a player out of nearly £1m. Benjamin Acheampong signed a four-year contract with Zamalek in 2017 but was unable to get into the first team and so joined fellow Egyptian club Petrojet on a five-month loan deal. Acheampong alleged he was duped into signing a contract which stated he would forego the remainder of his Zamalek salary, when he believed he was signing a deal to be paid by Petrojet for the duration of the loan deal. Acheampong told the BBC: "This is not right - this is what I do to feed my family. Nobody would do that. The only thing I (knowingly) signed was that Petrojet would pay me the half-season I was going to play." When Acheampong discovered what had happened, he waited for the three months without pay that FIFA stipulate is the maximum allowable, then terminated his contract and took his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). CAS found in his favour and said that Zamalek were guilty of "immoral", "intimidating" and merciless behaviour and ordered Zamalek to pay up the $1.1m Acheampong's contract was still owing. Instead of settling the debt, Zamalek wrote to FIFA claiming to have reached a "settlement with the player's agent" for the Ghanaian forward to receive $250,000. The agent concerned, a former Egyptian national team captain Nader El Sayed, produced paperwork stating that he will receive 20% of the settlement fee. Acheampong has denied that Al Sayed is still his agent and that he would accept less than a quarter of the amount he is owed just days after winning the award in court. FIFpro's legal director Roy Vermeer said: "The mere contention that Mr Acheampong would - two weeks after the notification of the Cas decision - suddenly authorise a third party to accept a settlement for less than 25% of the amount due is preposterous." FIFA's disciplinary committee are meeting today to discuss the issue with a transfer ban, deduction of points and even relegation being among the punishments they can enforce.

It has been revealed that a 16-year-old registered to a Premier League club has been banned for nine months for possession of a growth hormone which is illegal in all sports. While the independent regulatory panel could not prove the substance was used, the hormone somatropin was kept in a dispenser in the player's fridge at a carer's home and the player and his parents initially lied to the FA that the dispenser actually belonged to a family member. Somehow the commission decided that the player did not intend to breach anti-doping rules and so was banned for nine months, backdated to when the provisional FA suspension began on 7th August 2020. As usual with the FA, the name of both club and player have not been released, but this time because of the player's age, rather than their usual intent to pretend the sport is clean.

 


Teen Wunderkind Picks Nation

Former Chelsea youth player, now Bayern Munich's youngest ever goalscorer in the Champions League, Jamal Musiala has chosen to represent Germany rather than England in international football. The teenager, who turns 18 tomorrow, was born in Stuttgart before moving to England as a child. He returned to Germany and joined Bayern in 2019 and has played for both countries at youth level. Musiala told The Athletic: "In the end, I just listened to the feeling that over a long period of time kept telling me that it was the right decision to play for Germany, the land I was born in. Still, it wasn't an easy decision for me. I have a heart for Germany and a heart for England. Both hearts will keep on beating. It is difficult to find words for what England means for me because I have so many memories connected to very positive emotions."

 


Angelino Hits Out At Pep

Following his permanent transfer from Manchester City to RB Leipzig this month, 24-year-old Spanish left-back Angelino has criticised his former boss Pep Guardiola for destroying his confidence. Angelino said: "I had a rest when I was with Pep for six months, that was enough. I don't want it again. That's why I want to be on the pitch. I don't like being out. I am thankful that I get to play most of the time. I had enough holidays." When asked about the difference between Guardiola and current coach Julian Nagelsmann, Angelino replied: "They both like to play with the ball, get the ball quick, there is one thing that is a big difference - one gave me the confidence and played me and the other didn't. So I am thankful to Julian for the trust and sometimes you need, I don't want to use a bad word, you need courage to put a player and he did from the first game. It killed me. The confidence was everything, when you don't have the trust of a coach it is everything. I was judged for pre-season, two games, and then I didn't get my chance until a few months. It is hard to play one game every two months so I am just happy that happened so I could come here and meet Julian and everyone here. It was a 50/50 experience. On one side I really learned a lot from Pep, he improved me as a player on the pitch and I have to be thankful also for the experience. On the other side I didn't play as much as I wanted to or I deserved."

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Written by Tris Burke February 25 2021 05:57:30

 

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