International Football
AITEO CAF AWARDS: LIVERPOOL CHARTERS PRIVATE JET FOR SALAH, MANE
Top contender for the African Footballer of the Year, Mohammed Salah and club team mate, Sadio Mane will literarily make flying visits to Accra for the award as their premiership club, Liverpool has chartered a private jet to flying in the duo to Accra on Thursday and fly back almost immediately so they can feature Friday’s FA Cup match with Everton.
The influential attackers will leave Merseyside on Thursday morning and return immediately after the event. It is a six-hour flight to Accra but Jurgen Klopp has no concerns about Mane, who scored his first goal in the Premier league since November 29 in the 2-1 win over Burnley, spending 12 hours in the air before the FA Cup third round tie and does not believe their preparations will be affected.
‘We have everything organised,’ said Klopp. ‘We have two of the three best African players in our squad. We have to show them respect.
‘If it had been a matchday, they wouldn’t have asked (to go). We sleep in a hotel the night before a game, they will sleep in a plane. That is all the difference.’
Salah will continue to receive treatment for the groin injury that ruled him out of Monday’s trip to Turf Moor but, should he not make the squad against Everton, Klopp says it will have nothing to do with being in Ghana.
‘If Mo is not fit, it will not be for that,’ he said. ‘For our side, it is just a sign of respect. I know it, I had (Pierre-Emerick) Aubameyang at Borussia Dortmund and there is nothing more important than to go there.’
Mane has been struggling for form and looked deflated after scoring the opening goal but Klopp said: ‘Sadio is unbelievably important for us. He is strong, quick, so many things.
‘He scores a goal like this and it is like wow. He comes into the dressing room and the whole team gives him a hand.
‘We need him, we need him so much for all teams coming. I am happy because I had a lot of players with moments where it wasn’t clicking and he still scores.’
International Football
Two Moroccan football players lost at sea, says club official
![](https://sportsvillagesquare.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Abdellatif-Akhrif.png)
Two Moroccan players from top-flight soccer side Ittihad Tanger have been missing at sea since Saturday after strong currents drifted their small yacht, a club official said on Sunday.
They were in a group of five players from the club who went cruising off the northern city of Tangier when strong currents and heavy winds drifted their yacht away as they were swimming in deep waters, club deputy president Anass Mrabet told Reuters.
“Three players have already been rescued on Saturday, while research is still ongoing for the missing Salman Harraq and Abdellatif Akhrif,” he said.
The players did not have buoys on them when they jumped from the small yacht to swim, he said citing recounts by rescued players.
While Akhrif, 24, is already a full member of the squad, Harraq, 18, was about to move up to the senior team this year, Mrabet added.
Ittihad Tanger have been in the Moroccan top flight since 2015 and won the league title for the first and only time in their history in the 2017-18 season. However, they have struggled in the lower half of the standings in recent years.
-Reuters
International Football
FIFA launches ‘Football Manager’ World Cup with $100,000 in prize money
![](https://sportsvillagesquare.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/arsene-wenger.jpg)
FIFA will host its first ever FIFAe World Cup of Football Manager this year to crown the best virtual manager on the highly-popular video game, world soccer’s governing body said on Thursday.
FIFA is partnering with Sports Interactive, the developers of the game that has sold millions of copies and has also been used by several football clubs to scout players and opponents thanks to its extensive database.
Players will compete for $100,000 in prize money in the final event from Aug. 29 to Sept. 1.
“This competition requires participants to demonstrate a profound understanding of football strategy and tactics,” said former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who is the ambassador for the esports event.
“Success demands not only mastery of game mechanics but also in-depth football knowledge, making this format a fascinating blend.”
FIFA said in the inaugural year of the event, selected member associations will be invited to be represented at the final event.
Member associations from all six confederations are expected to be invited while players can sign up on FIFA’s website.
-Reuters
International Football
Former Italy international Roberto Baggio robbed at gunpoint
![](https://sportsvillagesquare.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/baggio.jpg)
Former Italy international Roberto Baggio was assaulted and robbed at gunpoint at his home in northern Italy while watching his country’s match against Spain in the Euro 2024 tournament on Thursday, local police said.
Burglars broke into Baggio’s house near Vicenza, hit him on the head with a gun butt and locked him and his family in a room while they stole jewellery, watches and cash, daily Il Corriere della Sera reported. It said he suffered a deep wound.
“Luckily, the violence I suffered only resulted in a few stitches, bruises and a lot of fear. Now it is to overcome the fear,” Baggio was quoted as saying by Italian news agency ANSA.
Baggio, 57, played for clubs including Juventus (JUVE.MI), opens new tab, AC Milan and Inter Milan. He also played 56 times for Italy, scoring 27 goals, and is widely seen as one of his country’s all-time greats.
After the robbery, Baggio, widely known as the “divine ponytail”, was treated at a local hospital where he received stitches for the head wound, Italian media reported.
Italy lost to Spain 1-0 on Thursday and now must avoid defeat by Croatia to guarantee progression in the tournament.
-Reuters
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