Man United’s Casemiro ruled out for several weeks with injury
Manchester, Nov 3: Manchester United midfielder Casemiro has been ruled out for a “several weeks” with a hamstring strain. The 31-year-old Brazilian captained United against Newcastle in the English League Cup on Wednesday after missing the previous three games. But, he was taken off at halftime of the 3-0 loss and United said in a statement Wednesday that Casemiro “will be out for several weeks due to a hamstring injury suffered during” the game. It added that “subsequent assessment has revealed a strain.” United has three games before the next international break, visiting Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday before traveling to Copenhagen in a crucial UEFA Champions League match on Wednesday and then hosting Luton next weekend. United is eighth in the league table after a lackluster start that has seen manager Erik ten Hag come under increasing pressure. (AP)
Klopp to let Diaz decide when he is ready to play again for Liverpool
Liverpool, Nov 3: Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp will let winger Luis Diaz decide for himself when he’s ready to play again, after his parents were kidnapped by a guerrilla group in Colombia. Diaz’s father is still missing, while his mother was rescued within hours by police after the kidnapping last weekend in the small Colombian town of Barrancas. Colombia’s government said Thursday that the guerrilla group National Liberation Army, known as ELN, was responsible for the kidnapping. Klopp said Diaz, a Colombia international, has trained with the team this week, but he will leave it up to the forward to decide whether he wants to be in the squad for Sunday’s trip to Luton. Díaz was absent from Liverpool’s match against Nottingham Forest on Sunday. His teammates expressed their solidarity with the Colombian by holding up one of his jerseys on the pitch after scoring the team’s first goal in their 3-0 victory. (AP)
Football’s prestigious Ballon d’Or
to be co-organised by UEFA
Nyon (Switzerland), Nov 3: Football’s most prestigious individual prize, the Ballon d’Or, will be co-organised by Union of European Football Associations from next year, giving the European football body a global event that traditionally out-ranks FIFA’s own world awards. The deal comes seven years after a previous partnership between the French organisers of the award and world governing body FIFA ended. From 2024, the Ballon d’Or awards and ceremony will be co-organised by UEFA and Groupe Amaury, which publishes France Football and L’Equipe. France Football magazine created the Ballon d’Or, which was first awarded in 1956 to England winger Stanley Matthews. For six seasons from 2010 the award was known as the FIFA Ballon d’Or, and ceremonies were held in the world governing body’s home city Zurich. FIFA has run its own Best Awards since 2016 and previously had an annual world player of the year award since 1991. The deal will also see UEFA scrap its own player of the year awards, which have traditionally been handed out in August, although it will hand out a player of the season award for each of its club competitions, such as the Champions League and Europa Leauge. (AP)
Medvedev to play for Indian team PBG Eagles in World Tennis League
New Delhi, Nov 3: Daniil Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, will compete for Indian team ‘PBG Eagles’ in the second season of the World Tennis League (WTL) and will have fellow Russian Andrey Rublev as teammate in the year-ending event starting December 24. The Indian team has been acquired by Punit Balan Group, which already owns nine teams in various leagues across sports. The second season of the WTL, which has support of former Indian player Mahesh Bhupathi, will be held at Yas Island’s Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi from December 21 to 24 where 16 of the world’s best tennis stars will compete. Medvedev, a semifinalist at this year’s Wimbledon, said, “I’m delighted to be joining for this season of the World Tennis League in Abu Dhabi. I’ve played several times in the UAE and always enjoy coming back, and I’m aiming to finish this year on a positive note there.” Balan, the Chairman & Managing Director of PBG, said they are aiming for title as they make a foray into a global tennis project. (PTI)