Sports
Messi scores twice, assists once in Inter Miami’s 4-0 win
Messi scores twice, assists once in Inter Miami’s 4-0 win
In his first start for Inter Miami, Lionel Messi not only scored twice but also provided an assist as Inter Miami defeated Atlanta United 4-0 in a purely one-sided encounter.
Before assisting teammate Robert Taylor in the second half, the 36-year-old Argentina star scored twice in the first 22 minutes.
Messi pointed at David Beckham, the owner of Inter Miami, after scoring his second goal.
His performance comes after a game-winning stoppage-time free kick on his debut last week.
“He can do everything on the ball. He can keep it in tight spaces, and he makes the right decision 100% of the time,” Taylor said in a post-match interview. “Most of the time he’ll find one of his team-mates.
“He brings so much quality to the team, so much. I mean, he’s the best player in the world.
“This is what he does – he scores two goals, he scored last game, gets another assist. It’s a dream come true to play with him.”
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Messi, a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, joined the Major League Soccer team after his contract with Paris St. Germain expired and only began training with his teammates last week.
During a two-year stint with the French champions, the 2022 World Cup winner scored 32 goals in 75 games and declined lucrative offers from other nations to play in the US.
In the ninth minute, Messi scored the game’s first goal by converting a rebound of his own shot after controlling a pass over the top from fellow newcomer and former Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets.
Thirteen minutes later, he doubled the advantage by teaming up with Finland midfielder Taylor to bury a low cross from close range.
Before the half, Taylor added a third, and Messi finished the scoring by putting the 28-year-old through on a break in the second period.
Messi was substituted in the 78th minute to a standing ovation, with a number of fans leaving the 20,000-seat DRV PNK Stadium shortly afterwards.
The win saw Inter Miami move into the knockout stages of the Leagues Cup.
The Leagues Cup is a tournament which brings together all the top-flight teams from MLS and Mexico’s Liga MX and with two wins Miami top their group and with their new arrival looking settled so quickly, they will surely believe they can get their first-ever trophy.
Sports
EPL: Man City go top after thrashing Fulham
EPL: Man City go top after thrashing Fulham
Manchester City on Saturday climbed to the top of the Premier League table after an emphatic 4-0 win at Fulham.
The victory came just one week left for the season to end.
Two goals by Josko Gvardiol and one each from Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez sealed the victory for the City, which displaced Arsenal that previously topped the table.
This is City’s seventh successive league win and 16th consecutive victory over Fulham in all competitions, moving them two points clear of Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola’s relentless side, closing in on an unprecedented fourth English title in a row, have 85 points from 36 matches, with Arsenal on 83 having also played 36.
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Arsenal can regain top spot by beating Manchester United on Sunday but City, who play their game in hand at Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday, are two wins away from making history.
Croatian defender Gvardiol slotted them ahead in the 13th minute after a neat one-two with Kevin De Bruyne and City doubled their advantage when Foden swept home a shot after 59 minutes.
Gvardiol slid in to touch home Bernardo Silva’s cross at the back post and Alvarez converted a penalty deep into stoppage-time to complete the rout.
The spot-kick was awarded for a foul by Fulham’s Issa Diop who was sent off.
EPL: Man City go top after thrashing Fulham
Sports
My adventure at PSG will end in few weeks – Mbappe
My adventure at PSG will end in few weeks – Mbappe
France striker Kylian Mbappe said he will leave Paris St-Germain at the end of the season.
“I’ve always said that I would speak with you when the time comes,” Mbappe said. “It’s my last year at Paris St-Germain. I will not extend and the adventure will come to an end in a few weeks.
” Mbappe’s contract with PSG expires in June and BBC Sport reported in February that he has agreed a deal to join Real Madrid in the summer.
The World Cup winner is PSG’s record goalscorer with 255 goals and will play his final home game at the Parc des Princes against Toulouse in Ligue 1 on Sunday at 20:00 BST.
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After that PSG have away fixtures at Nice (15 May) and Metz (19 May) before the French Cup final against Lyon at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille on 25 May.
Paris-born Mbappe, who joined PSG from Monaco for £165.7m in August 2017, said the club helped “grow as a player” and “grow as a man as well”.
He added: “It’s a lot of emotions, many years where I had the chance and the great honour to be a member of the biggest French club, one of the best in the world. “It allowed me to arrive here, to have my first experience in a club with a lot of pressure, to grow as a player of course, by being alongside some of the best in history, some of the greatest champions.
“It’s hard and I never thought it would be this difficult to announce that. But I think I needed this, a new challenge, after seven years.”.
My adventure at PSG will end in few weeks – Mbappe
Sports
Lookman scores as Atalanta reach first European final
Lookman scores as Atalanta reach first European final
Super Eagles forward, Ademola Lookman was on the scoresheet as Atalanta makes history as the club reaches its first European final, after a 3-0 (4-1 aggregate) victory over Marseille in the UEFA Europa League semi-final.
With the tie so delicately poised after a draw in the first leg, it was La Dea who took the initiative in an utterly one-sided first half. The only surprise at the break was that Atalanta’s one-goal lead wasn’t any bigger, such had been their dominance.
Gianluca Scamacca and Charles De Ketelaere had both come close before Ademola Lookman found the breakthrough midway through the opening period. Cutting in from the left, Lookman’s curled shot took a hefty deflection off Samuel Gigot, before whistling into the far right-hand corner.
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The visitors had a chance to atone for their dreary first half display following the restart, but Iliman Ndiaye squandered the opportunity.
The ex-Sheffield United man had an empty net to aim for after goalkeeper Juan Musso found himself in no man’s land, but his lobbed effort fell wide of the upright. That miss was punished emphatically by Matteo Ruggeri, who put the tie beyond the Olympians.
Breaking into the Marseille penalty area, the 21-year-old drilled into the top corner of Pau López’s goal, giving Atalanta an unassailable advantage on the night and breathing space in the tie.
It just wasn’t Marseille’s night in the end, with Atalanta a cut above the Ligue 1 outfit, even adding a third through El Bilal Touré’s stylish effort in stoppage time.
That kickstarted the celebrations, and having knocked out competition favourites Liverpool en route to the final, La Dea will contest the final against Bayer Leverkusen on the 22nd of May confident they can secure just a second-ever major honour.
Lookman scores as Atalanta reach first European final
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