Bastia have announced the appointment of Claude Makelele as the club's new boss on a two-year contract. The
former France international, who served as an assistant to Carlo
Ancelotti during the Italian's time in charge of Paris Saint-Germain,
replaces Frederic Hantz at the helm of the Ligue 1 side. "Bastia
are pleased to announce that Claude Makelele will be trainer for the
next two seasons," a statement on the club's official website read. "He
will arrive in Bastia on Monday, when he will sign his contract before
being presented to the press the following day at 11:00. "The former PSG man will be assisted in his task by Didier Tholot. "The great family of Sporting Club de Bastia welcomes them both." Makelele
established himself as one of the finest defensive midfielders of the
modern era during a career that took in spells at European superpowers
such as Real Madrid, Chelsea and PSG before retiring from the game in
2011.
Atletico Madrid midfielder Tiago has described manager Diego Simeone as a
"god" to the players, and the main reason why they are in the Champions
League final.
Simeone's rise as a coach has undeniably been the main
story in Atletico Madrid's path to Lisbon and, whatever can be said
about him being a "god", the Argentine has performed something close to a
football economic miracle by winning the Spanish league and taking the
club so far.
"I think for us, for all the club, he's like a God," Tiago said. "He
arrived to the club and changed everything. What he says comes true.
"If he asks him to jump from a bridge, we jump. I think he knows a
lot of football. We as a group follow him, and we're very proud to have
him as a coach."
All of the players put up for Atletico's pre-match press conference,
meanwhile -- Gabi, Raul Garcia and Tiago -- expressed pride at the
club's season, and called it their biggest ever game.
"This is the most important game in the history of the club, with all the responsibility that brings," Gabi said.
Atletico may have to play it without two of their key players, as both Arda Turan and Diego Costa are still struggling with injury.
Simeone, however, refused to rule either out. Costa did light sprints on Friday with Marca saying that Costa passed the test.
"We will look at Diego and Arda in training today, and see how they
feel. We will talk with them tonight and see what the team needs.
"If Arda or Costa do not play, there are two lads who we know will play. We will do what we worked on during the week."
Atletico meanwhile expressed a sense of calm and focus after winning the league.
"We are very confident because we have a very strong identity. This
team has shown, throughout the whole season, that we know what to do in
every game. I don't think that will change tomorrow. We'll be the same
Atletico, very strong. We have a great team opposing us, but this match
will be the same as any other."
Simeone meanwhile expressed no fear about Real Madrid.
"They could play 4-3-3 or 4-4-2, or maybe Isco behind [Gareth] Bale
and [Cristiano] Ronaldo. We've worked on what we might face, with
different options.
"The players celebrated winning Liga after enormous effort. Now
they've worked same as ever, focus on next game. There is no other path
for tomorrow.
"We know our strengths and our weaknesses. We're compact, structured,
interpret moments of game very well. That has brought us here."
While speaking at a campaign rally recently, Uganda’s President 'Yoweri Museveni' mocked
Nigeria's President 'Jonathan' for accepting foreign assistance to help fight Boko Haram. The former guerrila
fighter said he'd rather commit suicide than ask the
international community to protect his people against terrorists
“I have never called the United Nations to guard
us. Me, Yoweri Museveni to say that I have failed to protect my people
and I call on the UN: I would rather hang myself. We prioritized
national security by developing a strong Army, otherwise our Uganda
would be like DRC, South Sudan, Somalia or Nigeria where militias have
disappeared with school children.
“It would be a vote
of no confidence in our country and citizens if we cannot guarantee our
security. What kind of persons would we be?” He said
Laurent
Blanc wants Chelsea’s player of the year Eden Hazard to join David Luiz
as part of Paris Saint- Germain’s plans to conquer Europe.
The
PSG coach went public on his desire to sign Hazard as his club
prepared to announce the £50million signing of Chelsea’s disaffected
Brazil international central defender, Luiz.
Chelsea also have a decision to make on Hazard (right) after Blanc admitted that he wanted to sign the winger.
The Paris St-Germain manager said: ‘Why do I love Eden Hazard? Because he is a player who eliminates.
‘We can discuss all of the systems, or a player’s individual or collective qualities.
‘But a player who can eliminate three, four players at any time in a game is something else.
‘We do not know what to expect with these players. They destabilise the opponent.
‘We know we want plan A. But of course there is a plan B if he doesn’t come. There is also a plan C.’
With
such seemingly unlimited funding, Blanc is under pressure to win the
Champions League for the first time in the club’s history next season
after dominating the French league again last campaign.
PSG’s
medical team flew overnight to Brazil’s World Cup training camp where
Luiz passed a medical assessment to join the Ligue 1 champions.
The £50m fee was agreed with Chelsea and generous personal terms were successfully negotiated with the player.
The
sale of Luiz, which was revealed by Sportsmail in later editions
yesterday, is a massive gamble by Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho as he
attempts to build a team that can wrestle the Barclays Premier League
title from Manchester City next season.
Luiz
is Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich’s favourite player and the decision
to sell represents a fascinating move by Mourinho after he convinced the
board they must cash in.
PSG,
owned by the Qatar Investment Authority, certainly have the finances to
conclude a shock move for Hazard too, and Blanc is prepared to pay
another £50million to lure the Belgium international away from Stamford
Bridge.
But
UEFA’s financial fair play regulations could prove a key stumbling
block towards a potential move for the 23-year-old, particularly given
they have already splashed out £50m in the move for Luiz.
Chelsea
have released veteran striker Samuel Eto’o, but are still hopeful of
persuading England midfielder Frank Lampard to stay at the club.
Mourinho
will be planning to use the Luiz cash to bring a star striker to the
club with Atletico Madrid’s Diego Costa his main target.
Shakira
has released a music video for "La La La (Brazil 2014)", her newest
World Cup anthem. For the new visuals, which was dropped on Thursday,
May 22, the Latin singer recruited a number of soccer players including
boyfriend Gerard Pique to make cameos in it.
Shak's beau is seen flashing a huge smile and happily singing a little
part of the song alongside his Barcelona teammates like Cesc Fabregas, Lionel Messi and Neymar. Also making a guest appearance in the clip is Milan, the songstress' son with Pique.
In addition to the athletes' appearances, the video features Shakira
showing off some energetic dance moves in a black floor-length dress
while a bunch of people are playing soccer.
"La La La (Brazil 2014)", featuring Brazilian musician Carlinhos Brown,
is a World Cup-themed rework of her track caled "Dare (La La La)" which
appears in her latest self-titled album "Shakira".
Shakira teamed up with Activia for the new version. She has said of the
partnership, "With 'La La La (Brazil 2014)' we want to make a small
contribution so that everybody knows about the outstanding work the
World Food Programme is doing to fight hunger."
Police are investigating an allegation that former Manchester United manager David Moyes assaulted a man at a wine bar.
Officers
were called to the upmarket Emporium bar in the rural market town of
Clitheroe, Lancashire, on
Wednesday night following a report that Moyes
was involved in an altercation with a 23-year-old local man.
It is reported that Moyes, 51, had been socialising with his friend,
Blackburn managing director Derek Shaw, a local businessman in the
Ribble Valley who was on the board at Preston when the Scotsman was in
charge at Deepdale.
Police said the 23-year-old man did not require hospital treatment following the incident at about 10 p.m.
A spokesman said: "Inquiries are ongoing and we are speaking to a
number of people to try to establish the circumstances. There are a
number of differing accounts which we need to work through to try to
establish exactly what has happened. No one has been arrested at this
stage."
Police are expected to view any available CCTV footage to try to shed further light on the incident.
A spokesman for the Emporium said: "There was an incident outside the
building. However, it did not affect any of our customers or staff and
has been dealt with by the police."
The fashionable town centre bar in Moor Lane bills itself as "half
coffee shop, wine bar and brasserie; half interior design superstore,"
which offers "a unique, intoxicating lifestyle experience."
Moyes was dismissed by Manchester United last month following a
mediocre season after he replaced the retiring Sir Alex Ferguson.
On Thursday, he was among several names linked with the vacant Celtic managerial position after Neil Lennon stepped down as boss of the Scottish champions. He has formerly managed Everton and Preston, and played as a centre-half for a number of clubs including Celtic.
Mujica is known as the sandal-wearing, VW Beetle-driving, farm-living "poorest president in the world." He donates most of his $12,000 monthly salary to charity and lives in a one-bedroom home, even though a recent report indicates his assets to be well into the six-figure range.
Coolness factor
aside, Mujica broke ground by making Uruguay the first country to
legalize the production, distribution and consumption of marijuana.
Notably, he also legalized gay marriage and took in six detainees from
Guantanamo Bay, which the U.S. still hasn't dismantled after promising
to do so six years ago.
Under Mujica's presidency, Uruguay is aggressively fighting a $2
billion lawsuit filed by Phillip Morris, since the country's strict
anti-smoking laws force the company to place graphic warnings on 80% of
all cigarette packs. And Uruguay now has the most liberal laws on
abortion in all of Latin America. Are you taking notes, Mr. President? Lucia Topolansky, Mujica's wife, said that
the move to take in the Syrian orphans is to "motivate all the
countries of the world to take responsibility for this catastrophe."
Originally, Uruguay's president planned to consult with the Uruguayan
people about admitting the refugees into the country. But Mujica
proceeded without doing so and without congressional oversight.
A former Deputy Minister of Local Government, Godfrey
Kamanya (pictured above) reportedly committed suicide today May
22nd, barely a day after the Malawi elections results started filtering
in showing that he'd lost the parliamentary seat he was competing for in the 2014 Tripartite elections.
According to local news report, Mr Kamanya shot
himself around 3:30 this morning at his house in Area 10, Lilongwe after losing the Lilongwe Msodzi
North Parliamentary elections this week.
"We had to break
the door to his kitchen where he had locked himself up," Kamanya's
friend also a member of Banda's People's Party -
told Zodiak broadcasting.
In the suicide note, the former minister reportedly said he took his life because of misunderstandings
related to politics and outlined how
his wealth should be distributed to beneficiaries. Police are currently investigating the incident.
Eighteen years after Tupac Shakur
was fatally shot in Las Vegas, a former police officer who first
responded to the scene opened up about the rap superstar's last words
before he lost consciousness. Chris Carroll, who was with the Vegas
Metropolitan Police Department's bike patrol unit, shared the story to
Las Vegas weekly newspaper Vegas Seven on Wednesday, May 21.
Carroll, who served for 23 years before retiring in December 2010, said that he found Shakur bleeding in a car
while the rapper's friend Marion "Suge" Knight, who was also injured,
kept calling out his name. Back then, Carroll kept asking Shakur the
name of the shooter when he was still conscious.
"He went from fighting to 'I can't do it.' And when he made that
transition, he looked at me, and he's looking right in my eyes. And
that's when I looked at him and said one more time, 'Who shot you?' "
Carroll recalled.
"He looked at me and he took a breath to get the words out, and he
opened his mouth, and I thought I was actually going to get some
cooperation. And then the words came out: 'F**k you. After that, he
started gurgling and slipping out of consciousness. At that point, an ambulance showed up, and he went into unconsciousness," Carroll shared.
Shakur never gained consciousness following the September 7, 1996 shooting. He passed away on September 13 at the age of 25.
The young son of the pregnant 27 year old woman, Meriam Yahia Ibrahim
Ishag (pictured above), who was sentenced to death in Sudan last week
for Apostasy (her crime was marrying a Christian man - read here)
is forced to live in jail with his mom. Meriam who is reportedly
shackled & bleeding in her prison cell, is expected to give birth to
her second child on or before June 1st, Hollywood Life reports.
We thought that Meriam’s story could not get any worse, but it has. It
turns out that while a very pregnant Meriam awaits her death
sentence in prison, her precious little boy has been forced to live
inside her prison cell with her. Meriam will also have to care for her
unborn baby in that cell once it is born.
The UN is intervening and trying to save an 8 month pregnant woman from the death penalty in Sudan who married a Christian man….
Reports claim that the Sudanese government will not allow Martin’s
father to care for him while Meriam is in prison solely because he is
both a Christian and an American citizen.
Meriam is currently in prison because she refused to renounce her
Christianity in front of a Sudanese court. Because she was born in Sudan
and is therefore automatically considered a Muslim by their government,
they have condemned her for committing apostasy.
Since Sudan sees her only as a Muslim, they refuse to acknowledge her
marriage to a Christian man. Therefore, the court was also able to
charge Meriam with adultery.
Meriam has been sentenced to 100 lashes for adultery, but will
ultimately be killed when she is hanged for committing apostasy. The
court has allowed her time to birth and nurse her baby before she will
be killed.
Meriam’s husband has also been to visit her in prison when allowed and the description of what he found is almost unbelievable.
As soon as he heard that his wife was in prison and
facing death, Daniel hopped a plane from his New Hampshire home and flew
back to his homeland of Sudan.
After his visit, Daniel claimed that his wife was shackled to the
floor inside her cell, and that the shackles were causing her ankles to
bleed.
Daniel also mentioned that Meriam’s legs are swollen, and he fears she is not receiving the proper medical treatment she needs.
If this is the case, when Meriam goes into labor with her unborn baby, it could prove to be fatal.
Chelsea's on-loan goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has claimed it 'would
not be healthy' for him to be in the same squad as the club's
first-choice keeper Peter Cech next season.
Long-standing Chelsea No.1 Cech would appear to be blocking the
first-team path for Courtois, who will line-up for Ateltico Madrid in
this weekend's Champions League final against Real Madrid in Lisbon.
This will probably be the last game of the Belgain's three-year loan
spell with the Spanish club.
Yet Courtois seemed less than convinced that a return to parent
club Chelsea would be a step forward in his career, as he spoke to the
BBC at Atletico's pre-Champions League final media day.
"The two of us want to play everything," stated Courtois, who
will line-up for Belgium at this summer's World Cup finals. "Nobody will
be happy to play in only the League Cup or FA Cup. Things are unclear
at the moment.
"I have the biggest respect for Petr Cech. I think he was named
as the best goalkeeper of the Premier League, so he is still at a great
level. He is one of the best goalkeepers in the world so I think putting
him and me in the same team is not the healthiest thing in the world.
"With the World Cup coming, I wanted this resolved quickly as I
have to concentrate on that, but that was not possible. We will see in
the next week if we can sit together with Chelsea to find something for
next year, find out what they want, what my desire is. We will see."
Courtois admitted he 'felt strange' to be a part of the Atletico
side that knocked Chelsea out of this season's Champions League at the
semi-final stage, but he hopes he handled the second leg of the tie at
Stamford Bridge in a professional manner.
"It was strange and weird knocking out Chelsea," said Courtois.
"Normally when you win a semi-final you celebrate really hard, but I
didn't do it because Chelsea bought me and gave me the opportunity to
play for Atletico for three years.
"I think I showed respect to the Chelsea players and supporters
and they to me. It was a nice feeling and hopefully I can give them
those things back in the future."
Courtois is looking forward to Saturday's Champions League
decider with relish, as he suggested the newly crowned Spanish league
champions will look to continue with their ploy of counter-attacking
football against local rivals Real Madrid.
"We know these are top players and it will not be easy," he
added. "I think we will play the same game as we always do. There are
some teams that play more defensive against us and we found it more
difficult to make the game.
"Against Real Madrid they will have to come more. We will have to defend well and play more on the counter-attack."
Warner Bros. announced the official title of the "Man of Steel" sequel which people had been calling "Superman Vs. Batman", "Man of Steel 2", “Untitled Man of Steel Sequel”, “The Untitled Batman-Superman Movie”.
The film that will bring together Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman is now called "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice".
Henry Cavill will reprise his role as Superman, starring opposite Ben Affleck as Batman. Gal Gadot will make her first appearance as Wonder Woman in the movie, and star as the Amazonian heroine in two other WB movies. Meanwhile, Jesse Eisenberg has been cast as the villain Lex Luthor.
"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" is slated to hit U.S. theaters May 6, 2016.
Michael Jackson’s hologram had better watch himself: there’s a new kid on the block, ready to kick his computer-generated butt in a dance-off.
This video from the Pitman High School Talent Rally in Turlock,
California shows a shaggy-haired teenager absolutely crushing the
competition to the beat of “Billie Jean”, popping his pelvis and
moonwalking as smoothly as the King of Pop ever did, while the crowd
goes wild behind him. Who is this masked white-gloved lord of the dance?
Eto'o is out of contract at Stamford Bridge after a season-long stint
following his move from Anzhi Makhachkala and looks to have signalled
his departure with some disparaging remarks in recent weeks.
The 33-year-old was angered by Mourinho's comments earlier in the
season when he appeared to question his official age and described the
Portuguese as a 'puppet' after previously branding him a 'fool'.
"Contrary to what a puppet says about my age, I am still physically
fit," he told the Confederation of African Football's official website.
"At 33, I feel real good. I have proven that I could do better than youths."
Eto'o scored 12 times last season as Chelsea finished third in the
Premier League and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.
He is currently preparing for the upcoming World Cup and is confident he can still play for a top European team next season.
"I wish to also say that I am not going to the United States or to the Middle East," he said.
"I will continue at the top level. I will continue to play the Champions League.
"My romance with this competition is far from over. I will not tell
you where, but I will be at the top level. I am 33 and I have two World
Cups to play.
"Before me there are other players who went on until the age of 41. So I can continue."
With the selection for this summer's World Cup looming he doesn't need any extra pressure. But
Mario Balotelli will have a lot on his mind after attending an Italian
court where he is fighting a custody battle over his daughter. The
Italian striker is in negotiations with his ex-girlfriend Raffaella
Fico for the right to visit the child, called Pia, who is eighteen
months old. Ballotelli did not acknowledge he was Pia’s father until February this year after DNA tests proved his paternity. He
was allowed to hold her for the first time only a month ago in the
court house in Naples, after the judge granted special permission. Balotelli
and Miss Fico attended a private hearing at a court in Brescia, near
Milan, to discuss how often the footballer will be able to visit his
daughter. After a hearing
that lasted about an hour the Serie A star’s lawyers said that they were
confident he would have the chance to hold his daughter again before he
leaves for the World Cup in Brazil. Balotelli’s
lawyer Alessandra Capuano told Corriere della Sera: ‘We are well on
track to finding a way for both parents to fully collaborate.’ The
judge did not go into discussions on maintenance payments, which are
the subject of a separate legal process beginning in September. Balotelli,
who has a turbulent on-off relationship with Belgian model Fanny
Neguesha, shed his bad boy image for the court, dressed in muted tones,
loafers, a white vest and shirt and sunglasses. He left the hearing yesterday with his lawyers and security, signing autographs as he went.
Balotelli with Miss Fico at the Studio 11 Night Club in Milan in September 2011
Miss
Fico, a former model, wore skinny jeans, a tight white T-shirt and
leather jacket, and strode purposefully on towering heels. The pair have had an acrimonious
relationship since she fell pregnant in Manchester in 2012, with
Balotelli claiming she told the papers about the pregnancy before him. Miss
Fico then appeared to go to great lengths to persuade Balotelli to meet
his daughter, posting pictures of Pia on Twitter and speaking of his
'indifference'. But
Balotelli claims that he would not meet her until his paternity was
proven by a DNA test ‘because children must not be disappointed by
adults who disappear.’ ‘For a whole year I have tried to
reach an agreement with Fico over where, and how, to do this DNA test,'
Balotelli told La Gazzetta dello Sport earlier this year. ‘I
cannot turn up if I am not certain of being her father, because
children mustn’t be disappointed by adults who then disappear. I know
something about that.’ In
February he finally announced to the world that he had a daughter
writing on Twitter: ‘Finally the truth, PIA, sweet child of mine, your
dad.' In April he took the
day off training to hold the baby for the first time in a courtroom in
Naples, spending about 50 minutes with her. Balotelli
was born in Sicily to Ghanaian immigrant parents. He was placed in
foster care at the age of two and from then on raised by his adoptive
family in Brescia.
A Filipino maid has been left covered
in burns after her Saudi boss's mother allegedly threw boiling water at
her as punishment for not making coffee quick enough. The 23-year-old was not taken to hospital for hours, despite suffering scarring to her back and legs. Once there, she passed her cousin's phone number to hospital staff and urged them to call for help. When she returned for a check-up, her cousin arrived to take her home. She is now in the care of the Philippine Embassy. Outraged, her cousin has shared images of 'Fatma', which is not her real name, on Facebook. The posts also claim Fatma was beaten by her employer and deprived of food. According
to ABS-CBN News, she was scolded after her employer's mother in Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia, became enraged at the time it was taking to brew coffee. A tussle ensued, which led to Fatma being covered in the freshly boiled water. The Facebook post read: 'This is my cousin, who works as domestic helper in Riyadh, Saudi
Arabia.
'Her female Saudi employer poured boiling water on her. She has
only been in Riyadh for two months. 'She was beaten up within five days
of her arrival by her male employer and was sometimes deprived of food.' 'She was only taken to the hospital six hours after boiling water was
poured on her. 'She was then taken home to continue working despite her
extensive injuries,' she said.
The country's Department for Social Welfare and Development is providing Fatma with medical care and accommodation.
When Kurt Cobain committed suicide in a Seattle
suburb 20 years ago, the idea of the 27 Club entered the public
consciousness. "I told him not to join that stupid club," his mother said at the time of death, and the quote was subsequently picked up and distributed worldwide by the Associated Press.
Writers and music fans started drawing the link between Cobain and a
long line of equally talented artists and performers — ranging from
Brian Jones, to Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and more — who
died at the same age. In 2011, Amy Winehouse followed
in Cobain's wake. Her death immediately launched broad speculation
about whether 27 was actually a cursed age. It started to seem like
there was more to the club than mere coincidence. Now, two decades after
we started mythologizing "the club," science has shown that there's
more truth to the myth than anyone expected.
In 2011, British researchers surveyed
1,500 performers over a 40-year period. They compared the rock stars'
average lifespans to non-rock stars from the same periods. So, Elvis'
life span would be compared to the average lifespan of other men who
were 21 when he released "Hound Dog" in 1955. The researchers found,
"North American pop stars were 87.6% as likely to be alive as [non-rock
stars] of the same age and ethnicity — the lowest survival rate of any
group identified in the study." Although less likely to die prematurely
than their North American counterparts, Euro rockers were, on average,
more likely to die young than non-rocking Europeans. That, of course,
completely fails to explain Keith Richards.
Drug and alcohol overdoses were among the most common
causes of death, which comes as no surprise given that the average rock
star has access to an illicit pharmacy whenever he or she seeks it
out. Author Howard Sounes lists 50 "unofficial" members in his book The 27 Club, the
majority of whom had serious substance abuse problems. That culture,
coupled with the emotional lives that inspire many musicians to write
and perform, provide the perfect set of circumstances for an early
death. Additionally, Sounes pointed out that most members of the club
had "strikingly difficult childhoods," producing emotional wounds that
would inspire artists like Cobain and Hendrix to look to drugs, alcohol
and music as a means of self-medication.
There's a strange trend in the club members'
relationships, too. Pain attracts pain, and drug abusing musicians often
attract, either willfully or not, other drug users into their lives.
Most members of the 27 Club were romantically involved with other drug
users at the time of their death. Jim Morrison's girlfriend lied to police
when her boyfriend died as a means of covering up her own drug abuse,
adding to already-intense speculation surrounding the demise of the
Doors frontman.
But while it's clear that rock stars are more likely to
die young than, for example, their average fan of the same age, the 27
Club is really more "The 20's and 30's Club." There is a long list
of rockers who have died prematurely, both younger and older than 27.
But the members of the 27 Club get the most attention both because the
term is marketable and because the deaths of those involved have sparked
the most rumors. Plane crashes, for example, have killed a surprisingly
high number of talented artists (Buddy Holly, Otis Redding, etc.) but a
plane crash can't compete with the intrigue of a drug overdose. Reports
of Morrison's demise in a Paris bathtub have inspired four decades of
rumours. Speculation on Cobain's death is endlessly fascinating. Reports
of Redding's crash landing in a Wisconsin lake were equally tragic
(he'd just recorded "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"), but not nearly
as mysterious. So, the club's mystique has only grown.
Whatever you want to call it, though, there is a
scientific basis for the 27 Club that goes well beyond mythology. While
rock n' roll might not "kill," per se, the rock n' roll lifestyle does,
and those most drawn to the rock lifestyle are most likely to push it
too far.
There is some good news in all of this, however: The authors of the 2011 study indicated
that today the rock lifestyle claims fewer casualties than it did in
the debauched days of the '60s and '70s. Mark Bellis, an expert on
substance abuse and one of the study's authors, speculates
that "professionalization" might be one reason. Increasingly, the music
business is perceived as exactly that — a business — and a "valid
career choice," as opposed to a means of escape for troubled young
people. But even when science seems to have explained it away and our
musicians begin living longer, the mystique of that number will remain.
Former Manchester United players David Beckham, Edwin Van der Sar and
Owen Hargreaves have backed Louis van Gaal to be a huge success as
manager of their former club and welcomed the appointment of his former
teammate Ryan Giggs as his new assistant.
Beckham admitted 'he was
emotional' at the sight of Giggs striding out at Old Trafford as interim
Manchester United manager last month. But he told Sky Sports that the vastly more experienced Van Gaal is the right choice to take the club forward in the long term.
"He has got a history of working with young players, bringing players
through academy systems at places like Ajax," said Beckham of Van Gaal.
"That can only be great for Manchester United.
"As a Manchester United fan and for Manchester United as a club, to
have someone like this with his pedigree is great. He has worked with
some of the biggest and best players in the world.
"I'm delighted Ryan [Giggs] is still involved as well. When you've
got someone like Giggsy, who all the players respect and all the fans
love, it makes a huge difference.
"His role now has totally changed and I'm sure he will find it an
easy transition because he takes things in his stride, he's not affected
by anything. He knows the club better than most people who are at
Manchester United now."
Beckham -- who was part of the United "Class of '92" along with
Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Phil Neville -- called on Van Gaal
to retain some of his former teammates services at United as well.
Meanwhile, 33-year-old Hargreaves, whose four years at United from
2007-11 were ravaged by injury, told BT Sport: "If they can get the
players necessary I don't doubt that Van Gaal could even lead them to
the title. But they need to have a great summer.
"I doubt anything less than minimum Champions League (qualification)
and even potentially competing for the title would be sufficient for
him. I can't imagine him coming there to finish fourth. He has been so
successful everywhere he's been, so I don't think they could have had a
better option at this point."
Former United goalkeeper Van der Sar joined the chorus of praise for
Van Gaal's appointment, as he believes his former coach at Ajax has the
stature to succeed at Old Trafford.
"Van Gaal will spend the right money on the right player to ensure
that they are right for United," stated Van der Sar, in quotes appearing
in the Daily Mirror.
"He will know if they have the United DNA of the club inside of them.
If not he will let them go and let them go to other clubs. You have to
play and you have to fight for Manchester United. Not only come for the
money. What's more important? Money or the priviledge of playing for a
coach like Van Gaal?"
"It's a massive club and if you are able to participate in that and
to contribute to winning a title then you are settled for life because
you have the adoration of the club," added Van der Sar. "Van Gaal is
going to be very clear about what he wants and what he demands from his
players and while it's going to be a tricky period for him with the
World Cup deciding on what transfers he will need, if anyone can cope
with a situation like this it is Van Gaal.
"His credentials in Spain, in Germany, in Holland with the national
team speak for themselves. He has won the title in every country. He has
a history of winning trophies, of bringing young players through, of
working with big players.
"He is a very hard-working coach and he is a guy who makes players
better. He also sends out the right signals about the kind of football
he wants to play to the players."
A footballer has died from
the injury he suffered on the pitch following a horror challenge during an
Indonesian Premier League match. Persiraja striker Akli Fairuz
was injured after taking a boot to the body from PSAP Sigli goalkeeper Agus
Rahman as the pair raced for the ball in the area. Players, clearly incensed by the
tackle, clashed on the pitch while the referee had to be moved away by
security. Fairuz was substituted but
managed to watch the rest of the game from the sidelines. However, the attacker
later took a turn for the worse and had to be admitted to hospital. It was soon
discovered that Fairus had suffered bladder leakage and, a few days after the
match, passed away from his internal injuries. Sad.
Sylvester Stallone and "The Expendables 3" castmates made a grand entrance at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday, May 18. The group that included Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mel Gibson, Kellan Lutz, and Harrison Ford rolled into the Croisette in two tanks.
Sly brought his entourage to France to support the third installment of his action-packed film "The Expendables". Also coming for the promo tour were Jason Statham, Wesley Snipes, Dolph Lundgren, Kelsey Grammer, and Antonio Banderas among others.
A behind-the-scene video was shown at the event. It saw a truck plunging into a dock with Statham behind the wheel. While a boat explosion during "The Expendables 2" filming killed a stuntman in 2011, the recent truck mishap fortunately left Statham with no serious injuries.
"Everyone gets hurt," Stallone said as quoted by BBC News. "There's no
getting around it. Everyone goes home bruised. You try to take
precautions, but when you do hands-on action that's what you take pride
in - actually talking the bumps and bruises." Statham added, "You do get
hurt and things do go wrong. It's par for the course."
Lutz who is one of the new additions to the cast said joining the
franchise was like "winning an action sweepstakes - running around
shooting guns with all my favourite heroes." Director Patrick Hughes
additionally gushed, "All these guys have worked on so many films. To
have that wisdom on set was like [being in] film school all over again."
The cast of action movie Expendables 3 later carried the
#bringbackourgirls posters in support of the worldwide campaign in getting back the Nigerians girls been kidnapped by some militants 'Boko Haram'.
