Brazil’s Filipe Luis calls time on 20-year career
SAO PAULO,Dec 1: Flamengo defender Filipe Luis has announced his retirement from football after a professional career spanning two decades.The 38-year-old said Flamengo’s last match of the Brazilian Serie A season – against Sao Paulo away on December 6 – will mark his farewell appearance.“I just have one word to describe how I feel: gratitude,” Filipe said in a social media post on Thursday.“Gratitude toward the [Flamengo staff] that bet on me… to every fan who supported me… to those who criticized me, to all the people who were part of this. Thank you very much. They were the best years of my life.”Filipe started his career at Figueirense before earning a move to Dutch giants Ajax in 2004. He later had spells at Deportivo La Coruna, Atletico Madrid and Chelsea before joining Flamengo in 2019.The left-back helped the Rio de Janeiro club to two Copa Libertadores trophies, two Brazilian Serie A titles and one Copa do Brasil triumph.He was also capped 44 times for Brazil and was a part of the South American team’s 2018 FIFA World Cup squad.Filipe’s last game at Flamengo’s Maracana stadium will be against Cuiaba on Sunday. (IANS)
Albania hope to keep coach Sylvinho beyond Euros 2024
TIRANNA (Albania), Dec 1: Albania hopes to keep coach Sylvinho at the helm in a bid to reach the World Cup for the first time after the Brazilian ushered the team into next summer’s European Championship.Albania qualified for Euro 2024 atop a group that included the Czech Republic and Poland. It’s only the second time the country has reached the tournament.Sylvinho’s current deal ends after next summer’s tournament in Germany.Armand Duka, president of Albania’s football federation, said Thursday that Sylvinho will be offered a contract extension as the team tries to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.Duka downplayed the idea that Sylvinho will be lured to a bigger job after next summer’s tournament.Albania has made it to the European Championship only once before – in 2016 under Italian coach Giovanni de Biasi. It has never qualified for a World Cup.Sylvinho was hired in January together with his two assistants – countryman Doriva and Argentinian Pablo Zabaleta.Sylvinho could not be contacted for any comment.Earlier this month, he was reluctant to say where he saw himself after next summer.(PTI)
Man United defender Malacia due to return early next year
MANCHESTER, Dec 1: Manchester United defender Tyrell Malacia is expected to return from a knee injury early next year, his club said Friday.The left back had surgery during the offseason and then required another operation following an unspecified setback.He has not played yet this season and United did not give a firm date on his expected return to action.“Unfortunately, he suffered a setback during his rehabilitation, which required further surgery,” United said in a statement. “This has been successfully completed and Malacia is now back at Carrington working hard to be fit early in the New Year.” Malacia joined United from Feyenoord last season in deal worth around 13 million pounds ($16 million). (PTI)
Nadal to make a comeback at Brisbane International
MADRID, Dec 1: Rafael Nadal will return to playing at the Brisbane International in Australia in January, the 22-time Grand Slam champion said on Friday.“After a year of not competing, it is time to come back,” Nadal said in a video posted on social media.“It will be in Brisbane in the first week of January. See you there.” The 37-year-old Spaniard has not played on tour since last January, when he hurt his hip flexor during a loss in the second round of the Australian Open.In May, a little more than a week before the start of the French Open, Nadal announced that he would miss the tournament he’s won a record 14 times and wasn’t exactly sure when he might return to play.Nadal had said then that he hoped to compete in 2024, which he expected to be his final season.“You never know how things will turn out,” Nadal said at a news conference at the time, “but my intention is that next year will be my last year.” He wound up having arthroscopic surgery in June in Barcelona.Dating to the end of 2022, the Spanish left-hander has lost seven of his past nine matches, including going 1-3 this season.Nadal’s 22 Grand Slam singles titles rank second to Novak Djokovic’s 24 for the most among men. (PTI)
Lyon fire coach Fabio Grosso
LYON, (France), Dec 1: Italian coach Fabio Grosso was fired by Lyon on Thursday after less than three months in charge of the struggling seven-time French champion.Grosso was fired after just eight league games in charge, having being hired in September as a replacement for Laurent Blanc with the mission to put the team back on track. The 46-year-old Grosso, who played 75 games for Lyon from 2007-09, had a contract until the end of the season. He was injured in October when the Lyon team bus was attacked by fans throwing stones after a game at Marseille, which left him bleeding from a cut to his face. The club, which is owned by American businessman John Textor, said Pierre Sage would be in charge of preparations for Lyon’s match at Lens on Saturday. The prospect of relegation is real for Lyon this season. (PTI)
