Xavi Hernandez ends International Career

Xavi Hernandez has announced his retirement from an international career that saw him win Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 for Spain.
The Barcelona midfielder confirmed at a news conference on Tuesday that he will focus on club football after deciding to prolong his stay at the Camp Nou.
"I think my time there [for Spain] has finished," he said. "I am happy to enter a new stage at Barca. I think that at the end of the season we will achieve things."
The 34-year-old quits La Furia Roja after earning 133 senior caps, the most for Spain as an outfield player and second only to goalkeeper and national team captain Iker Casillas, who has 156 caps.
Xavi played a key role in eras of unprecedented success for both club and country. He has won three Champions Leagues and seven La Liga titles with Barcelona and, alongside clubmate Andres Iniesta, formed the midfield base around which Spain's recent dominance was built.
His consistently accurate and incisive passing defined the "tiki-taka" style pioneered by former Spain coach Luis Aragones, which saw the national side claim their first major trophy for 44 years by winning the 2008 European Championship in Austria and Switzerland.
Under Aragones' successor, Vicente del Bosque, Xavi continued to pull the strings as Spain won their first World Cup in 2010 and then retained their European crown in Poland and Ukraine two years later.
He was named in the team of the tournament at all three competitions, and was named on the shortlist for the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2009 and the newly unified FIFA Ballon d'Or in each of the the following two years.

Xavi only made one appearance in Spain's calamitous defence of their World Cup crown in Brazil in June. He started their opening 5-1 defeat to Netherlands, but was dropped for the 2-0 defeat to Chile which sealed their exit from the competition at the group stage.
That disastrous campaign came after Barcelona had failed to retain their Spanish league title, losing out to Atletico Madrid in their final match of the season.
After that series of setbacks, Xavi admitted that he had considered leaving the club he had been with since he was a child, but was convinced to reject offers from clubs in MLS and the Middle East to stay in his native Catalonia.
"I finished the season with two disappointments and I abruptly decided to tell the club that I would be leaving at this stage," he told a news conference. "But they have convinced me that I can still be important for the club. I want to thank the patience of the club.
"[Coach] Luis Enrique is the key man to take this club forward. I have spoken with him three or four times this summer and I have good vibes.

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Romelu Lukaku hits back at Mourinho after the manager's comment on the striker's fighting spirit

Everton striker Romelu Lukaku has hit back at Jose Mourinho after the Chelsea manager claimed he wasn't prepared to fight for a first-team spot.

The 21-year-old joined Roberto Martinez's side for a club-record £28million last week when he opted to leave Stamford Bridge after starting just one Premier League game in a three-year spell.

Mourinho has since gone on record questioning Lukaku's commitment to Chelsea, with the Belgium striker hitting back at the Special One for his comments.

The Everton striker said 'I want to develop and become one of the best and the manager wants to make our team one of the best teams in England.

'So to me it was a great challenge to play under him. I need to play at a high level and play in a good team. I'm not saying Chelsea are not a good team but I needed to be in a place where it felt right.

'I have the trust of the supporters. I can grow. I can develop. It almost feels that I belong here. That's why I came back.'

With Mourinho bringing back veteran striker Didier Drogba to the club on a one-year deal as well as spending £32million on Diego Costa, Lukaku's days at Chelsea looked to be numbered with Everton pouncing as a result.

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Israeli troops withdraw from Gaza after a ceasefire agreement was reached

Israel has announced the withdrawal of all of its troops to "defensive positions" outside the Gaza Strip.

The move came moments before the latest truce - brokered by Egyptian mediators late on Monday - came into force at 08:00 local time (05:00 GMT).
Israel claims the main aim of the conflict - to destroy militants' tunnels - has been achieved.
Gaza officials say the four-week conflict has killed 1,800 Palestinians. Some 67 Israelis have also died.
"The Israel Defence Forces will be redeployed in defensive positions outside the Gaza Strip and we will maintain those defensive positions," Israeli military spokesman Lt-Col Peter Lerner said.
Just minutes before the truce came into effect, air raid sirens sounded in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as Hamas militants fired a barrage of rockets at central Israel. Israeli forces also staged raids in Gaza shortly before the ceasefire began.
There have been several truces called during the conflict but few have lasted, with each side accusing the other of violations.
Egypt negotiated a similar truce earlier in the conflict that was accepted by Israel but rejected by Hamas.
The new agreement proposes that delegations from all sides should attend further talks in Cairo.
The main Palestinian demands remain on the table, notably a full Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza, the end of the blockade of the territory and the opening of border crossings.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said again on Monday that Israel's main goal was to "return quiet and security to the citizens of Israel".
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the ceasefire, and he called on both sides to hold talks in Egypt to begin as soon as possible.

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Louis Van Gaal heap Praise on Wayne Rooney after International Champions Cup win

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has praised Wayne Rooney after the striker helped his side bounce back from a 1-0 deficit to beat arch-rivals Liverpool 3-1 to win the International Champions Cup preseason tournament on Monday night.
After a slow beginning at Miami's Sun Life Stadium, Rooney sparked United's charge in the second half by calmly tucking away Javier Hernandez's cross in the 55th minute. It was his fifth goal of the tour, and the England international was later named player of the tournament.
"He's always a winner," Van Gaal said at his post-match news conference. "I think he deserved to win the award because he made a lot of assists and scored goals. But we also defended well -- there are a lot of defenders who could also have been the most valuable player of this tournament.
"For Rooney, the goal was very important. It was a wonderful goal. You see the attack and what he did to push the ball under the legs of the goalkeeper and also in the corner. It was also a great cross from Chicharito."
Not only did Rooney win player of the tournament, but he was also given United's captain's armband for the final, although Van Gaal played down the significance in his choice in leader.
"I'm always looking for opportunities to give players the captain's armband," he said. "Today, Rooney played 90 minutes for the first time. Fletcher has already done it twice and therefore he was the captain. Cleverley also played 90 minutes."
The win bagged the Dutchman's first trophy as Manchester United boss, but he insisted that his sole focus was on the visit of Swansea to Old Trafford on Aug. 16.
"I think we gave a lot of pleasure to the fans and that's very important," he said.
"Of course, it's better to win than to lose in preseason but the most important game is against Swansea City. That's the one we have to win."
Antonio Valencia was substituted early in the match having aggravated a leg injury, although Van Gaal revealed that the move was precautionary.
"Valencia had feelings in his leg," the boss said. "I had told him before the game that you have to listen to your body. The accumulation of tiredness in this tournament is high.
"All the players want to play but you have to be clever and he was clever to step out. When you're feeling something in your leg, you have to pay attention to it."
Juan Mata also played a starring role in the International Champions Cup final -- scoring United's second goal which sent them ahead.
The Spanish midfielder said the team is slowly adapting their new system under Van Gaal, and the U.S. tour had been a success.
"It's been a great tour and I think we've played very well," he told the Miami Herald. "We're still trying to adapt to the new system, the new way of playing that the manager has brought with him... I know it's a friendly (tournament) but it's important to get off to a good start before the season."

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