Football News: Review Of The Day 29th November 2022

Review of the Day

Contracts

Hibernian have confirmed that defender Ryan Porteous has rejected their offer of a new, improved contract following Hibs head coach Lee Johnson saying: "He ain't signing a new contract. At the end of the day, we've offered a fantastic contract, a really big one for the football club and in my eyes a contract that should have been offered two-and-a-half years earlier for a player of that quality. I've got no issue with Ryan at all. He turned down the best contact we could offer and therefore is seeking pastures new. I think potentially a January sale would be the best idea if we realise the fee."

Transfers

VfL Wolfsburg have released veteran German forward Max Kruse. Kruse had fallen out with head coach Niko Kovac and had been kept away from the first team squad since September. Injuries also affected his season but he has agreed to cancel his contract with immediate effect.

16 year old Atletico Madrid starlet Javier Fernandez Gonzalez has signed for Bayern Munich. The teenager will officially join the German champions on 1st January 2023.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has ruled out making any January signings unless there are "unforeseen circumstances".

Injury Round Up

Following the release of a new study by Glasgow University which showed that professional footballers are three and a half times more likely to die from brain disease than non-footballers, Scotland is to ban footballers from heading the ball in training the day before and after a match. Clubs are also being ordered to limit exercises that involve repetitive heading to just one session per week. SFA doctor Dr John MacLean said: "While the research continues to develop, what we already know about heading and its effects on the brain suggests that there is measurable memory impairment lasting 24-48 hours following a series of headers, and that brain-related proteins can be detected in blood samples for a short time after heading. Brain scan changes have also been reported in footballers that may be linked to heading. Therefore, the goal is to reduce any potential cumulative effect of heading by reducing the overall exposure to heading in training."

Job Changes

Former assistant manager to Steven Gerrard, Michael Beale has returned to Rangers as head coach of the Scottish giants. Beale, who rejected the opportunity to speak to Wolverhampton Wanderers earlier this season citing 'loyalty', leaves Queens Park Rangers after just 6 topsy-turvy months in charge of the Londoners. QPR were top early in the season when Wolves showed interest in Beale, but then failed to win any in 5, losing 4, to drop down the table to 7th.

Bournemouth have decided to confirm interim boss Gary O'Neil as head coach on a permanent basis. O'Neil stepped in after Scott Parker was sacked in August and the team won 13 points from 11 games under his leadership.

Former West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur winger Matthew Etherington has been appointed to take charge of League Two side Crawley Town. Etherington was working as under-21 boss at boyhood club Peterborough United and will be assisted by former Posh and Spurs teammate Simon Davies.

Wolverhampton Wanderers Head of Performance and Medicine, Dr Rob Chakraverty, has left the club. A former England national team doctor, Chakraverty joined Wolves in May 2020, initially as Lead Doctor for the academy before rising to his current role, where he restructured the department.

Former Arsenal, Manchester City, Celtic and Liverpool defender Kolo Toure has left his role as assistant to Brendan Rodgers at Leicester City. The 41-year-old has taken his first role as head coach with Wigan Athletic in the Championship. He will be working with Kevin Betsy, who was Crawley Town boss for a short period this season, and Leicester youth coach Ashvir Johal. Rob Kelly, who was also assistant boss under previous incumbent Leam Richardson, is to stay on as assistant manager.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has suggested a return to Barcelona might happen, just days after penning a new deal at the Etihad Stadium. Guardiola said: "If I thought I was essential, I would return, but that's not the case. If one day we have to meet again, we will meet again naturally and without forcing it." A totally different quote from those in the past, when he had stated he would not return to Barca.

Juventus owners Exor have been quick to appoint a new president (see below) to replace Andrea Agnelli in the shape of Gianluca Ferrero. Usefully, considering the trouble the Serie A club faces, Ferrero is described as an auditing expert in the bio that Exor attached to the statement. Also appointed is Maurizio Scanavino as the club's new CEO.

Disciplinary Charges

Despite claiming they have done nothing wrong the entire board of Juventus have resigned due to an ongoing investigation into the club's finances. Juve, whose history is littered with cheating scandal after cheating scandal, have been investigated by the police over "revenues from player registration rights" between 2019 and 2021. The club stated in November 2021 that they were co-operating with the police investigation but the board have stepped down "having considered the centrality and relevance of pending legal and accounting issues". President Andrea Agnelli has been one of the main movers behind the European Super League process. Other clubs in Italy are also being investigated by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), which launched an investigation into allegations of presenting false accounting information and producing invoices for non-existent transactions. Managing director Maurizio Arrivabene will remain in his role until shareholders meet on 18th January to choose a new board. The ten that quit, other than Agnelli and former Ferrari boss Arrivabene, are vice-president and former playing legend Pavel Nedved, Laurence Debroux (an administrator) and six independent directors: Massiomo Della Ragione, Katryn Fink, Daniela Marilungo, Francesco Roncaglio, Griorgio Tacchio and Suzanne Heywood.

Cameroon coach Rigobert Song has suspended Inter Milan goalkeeper Andre Onana from their World Cup squad, stating that the former Ajax keeper refused to play against Serbia. The pair fell out over Onana's tendency to wander out of his penalty box to get on the ball, with former Liverpool and West Ham United defender Song preferring to take a more pragmatic approach: "He is an important player, but we are in a difficult tournament. I know what I have to do, and that is to ensure that the team takes precedence over any individuals. Andre wanted to step out and we accepted that position. In a squad, discipline is important." Cameroon's football federation Fecafoot have backed Song. Onana missed most of last year serving a 9-month drugs ban. It is being reported that, despite Song leaving the door open for Onana to return, he has done a Roy Keane and flown home in a strop already, abandoning his country.

A derby match in the Turkish second division between Goztepe and Altay had to be abandoned midway through the first half as ambulances were called onto the pitch due to fans throwing fireworks and flares. After the game stopped a supporter ran on the pitch and attacked Altay's keeper Ozan Evrim Ozenc with a corner flag. Video footage caught the supporter running across the pitch to attack Ozenc from behind before he could be restrained by players and security staff.

Kenya are to return to international football after their FIFA ban was lifted. FIFA suspended the nation after Kenya's sports ministry disbanded the country's football federation following allegations of misappropriation of funds. Clearly FIFA could not stand for that attempt to interfere in their brown envelope gathering activities and immediately jumped in to block Kenya from all international football. Thankfully all has returned to normal with the reinstatement of the federation's vice-president Doris Petra and general secretary Barry Otieno, along with control of the offices being handed back to its board. FKF president Nick Mwendwa is still suspended from his position due to a long-running court case against him on fraud charges.

Argentine defender Walter Perez, of Huracan, has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for sexual abuse and the gang rape of an 18-year-old girl. The 24-year-old was one of 5 men sentenced, the other four receiving jail terms of 9 years. A sixth man admitted guilt and is to be sentenced separately. Perez, along with 9 friends, had rented a house in Carlos Paz and then invited a group of 4 girls back that they met while on holiday there in December 2019. One of those four made the complaint and it was found to be proven.

Pointless List Of The Day

The CIES Football Observatory has produced a list which might actually not qualify as pointless, but I am going to put it here just because all lists have gone here in recent months. The list concerns the amount of minutes played by the players at the World Cup in 2022, ranking the nations there by average minutes the players have played in official competitive matches - for club and country up until 19th November. Interestingly, despite two key players in Joao Felix and Cristiano Ronaldo struggling to get in their teams this season, Portugal have recorded the highest average. Liverpool and Netherlands defender Virgil van Dijk has the highest minutes for an outfield player, while Canada and Red Star Belgrade keeper Milan Borjan has the highest amount in total.
Average Minutes - Nation - Highest Amount - Minutes - Lowest Amount - Minutes
3,378 - Portugal - Joao Cancelo - 4,468 - Joao Felix - 2,205
3,329 - Brazil - Alisson Becker - 5,070 - Fred Rodrigues - 2,199
3,258 - Mexico - Guillermo Ochoa - 4,590 - Hirving Lozano - 2,089
3,216 - Germany - Joshua Kimmich - 4,424 - Youssoufa Moukoko - 1,667
3,181 - Croatia - Dominik Livakovic - 4,920 - Dejan Lovren - 1,544
3,168 - Netherlands - Virgil van Dijk - 5,160 - Memphis Depay - 1,166
3,149 - England - Harry Kane - 4,830 - Callum Wilson - 997
3,131 - France - Hugo Lloris - 4,350 - Ibrahima Konate - 2,094
3,109 - South Korea - Jin-su Kim - 4,541 - Joon-Ho Son - 1,863
3,083 - Argentina - Enzo Fernandez - 4,378 - Angel Di Maria - 1,472
3,065 - Spain - Rodri Hernandez - 4,123 - Marco Asensio - 2,034
2,997 - Belgium - Toby Alderweireld - 4,335 - Eden Hazard - 928
2,981 - Serbia - Dusan Tadic - 4,323 - Nemanja Radonjic - 1,185
2,877 - Poland - Robert Lewandowski - 3,889 - Grzegorz Krychowiak - 2,021
2,877 - Canada - Milan Borjan - 5,430 - Atiba Hutchinson - 1,485
2,815 - Switzerland - Djibril Sow - 4,006 - Haris Seferovic - 970
2,705 - United States - Walker Zimmerman - 3,682 - Matt Turner - 1,440
2,670 - Denmark - Kasper Schmeichel - 4,800 - Simon Kjaer - 715
2,593 - Ghana - Daniel Amartey - 3,732 - Tariq Lamptey - 1,424
2,574 - Morocco - Yassine Bounou - 4,199 - Abde Ezzalzouli - 1,670
2,556 - Costa Rica - Anthony Contreras - 4,460 - Ronald Matarrita - 435
2,529 - Japan - Shuichi Gonda - 3,602 - Takehiro Tomiyasu - 1,336
2,501 - Wales - Brennan Johnson - 4,101 - Gareth Bale - 871
2,422 - Uruguay - Sergio Rochet - 4,622 - Facundo Pellistri - 565
2,416 - Cameroon - Nouhou Tolo - 4,001 - Nicolas N'Koulou - 794
2,355 - Senegal - Edouard Mendy - 4.094 - Bamba Dieng - 1,196
2,251 - Australia - Jackson Irvine - 3,436 - Harry Souttar - 90
2,180 - Tunisia - Aissa Laidouni - 3,745 - Yassine Meriah - 386
2,177 - Ecuador - Piero Hincapie - 3,449 - Jeremy Sarmiento - 299
2,020 - Iran - Mehdi Taremi - 3,578 - Ali Karimi - 458
2,010 - Saudi Arabia - Saud Abdulhamid - 3,129 - Saleh Al-Shehri - 511
1,348 - Qatar - Homam Ahmed - 2,029 - Mohammed Muntari - 67

Legend Waives Salary

The real Ronaldo, the Brazilian one, has decided to waive his salary and bonuses in his role as president of Real Valladolid. The former Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and AC Milan striker, who also owns his first professional club Cruzeiro, is the majority owner of Valladolid. Valladolid released their accounts, which revealed that the Covid-19 pandemic and relegation to the second tier meant that they made a loss of more than 5m euros in the last financial year. Because of the loss, the club stated: "The president of the entity has waived the right to receive any remuneration for the year ending."

Even Qatar Needs Investment

Qatar Sports Investment are the latest to put a big club up for grabs. QSI are the owners of Paris Saint-Germain and, like Liverpool and Manchester United in recent days, have begun exploring opportunities to get investment into their team. A minority stake is up for sale, which the Financial Times says has already got three parties interested in the 15% shareholding. PSG are also looking at a new stadium after club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi claimed the council does not want them at the Parc des Princes: "Our first choice is for us to stay, but I don't think the city council want us to stay. They are pressuring us to leave. We have been in discussions with them for five years. Every time there are the same false promises: today, tomorrow, these elections, the next elections. We're fed up with it. We need a fair agreement. I love the Parc des Princes, it is our history and I respect it more than anything, and staying has always been our first choice. But I don't think we're wanted there. The city council think that we're joking around, but we're not and we're seriously considering alternative options. We're looking at alternative options because we're not welcome at the Parc des Princes. They're playing with us and we're tired of it." PSG have been trying to increase the 40,000 capacity at the Parc des Princes in an effort to increase revenue and Al-Khelaifi has previously suggested that buying the Stade de France could be an option instead. However the most likely option would be to build a brand new purpose-built stadium.

Written by Tris Burke November 29 2022 11:36:10