International Football
VIDEO – HERO’S WELCOME FOR SADIO MANE IN SINGAPORE
Sadio Mane had stepped into the lobby of Swissotel The Stamford on Tuesday afternoon with airpods in his ears, but the Liverpool star was not deaf to the adulation of the many Liverpool fans present.
To the tune of The Archies’ Sugar Sugar, the 80-strong crowd
heartily serenaded their favourite footballer, singing “Sadio, Oh Mane
Mane!” as the Senegal forward arrived for his first visit to Singapore.
Some of the fans had made a beeline for the hotel as early as 10am to catch a glimpse of the 27-year-old, who is here with his national team. The Lions of Teranga are here as part of the Brazil Global Tour that sees the Selecao play Senegal on Thursday and Nigeria on Sunday at the National Stadium.
Looking somewhat bemused by the strong support, Mane did his best to entertain as many autograph and wefie requests as possible on both sides of the barricades, which had been set up to allow the team to pass through.
Clad in a cap bearing his SM10 initials, Senegal team jacket, white polo-tee and track pants, and carrying a white backpack, there were a couple of times when he looked like he was about to scoot off, only to stop and sign more memorabilia and accede to more photo requests.
Sylvester Ng could not help himself as he jumped and whooped in delight after securing a wefie and a signature on a Liverpool FC magazine featuring the No. 10.
The 18-year-old student, who had staked out the hotel since 1pm, told The Straits Times: “Shiok ah! I have supported Liverpool since I was in Primary 5, and Sadio Mane ever since he joined from Southampton in 2016, so you can say he is my childhood hero. I feel so, so lucky.”
C.T. Lim, a 45-year-old businessman, also took time off work to take his nine-year-old son Jia Le, who was clad in a Liverpool jersey, to the hotel. They were rewarded when Mane signed on their Champions of Europe book.
He said: “We like Mane not only because is he a good player, but he is also a kind-hearted person who gives back to society. We will also be supporting him and the other Liverpool players in the Brazil team from the front row on Thursday.”
In contrast to the Brazil team, who had arrived in batches, the 23-man Senegal team and their backroom staff arrived together at Changi Airport at 3.22pm following a 12-hour flight from Paris, where they had assembled.
Playing for the first time in Singapore, they will be hoping that the Republic will be where their fortunes turn around after suffering wretched luck in recent major tournaments.
At last year’s World Cup, they finished with the same points, goals scored and conceded as Japan, whom they had drawn 2-2 with in Group H. But with both teams placed behind group winners Colombia, the Africans became the first team in World Cup history to be eliminated by the fair play criteria as they had accumulated more bookings than the Samurai Blue.
Then, in July’s African Cup of Nations, Aliou Cisse’s men strode into the final, which they dominated, only to lose 1-0 to Algeria, who made their one shot at goal count.
Senegalese YouTuber Stan Diop, who runs the Les Outsiderz channel which covers the team, told ST: “Of course, when you lose under such circumstances, it is hurtful, but the mood is generally good within the team.
“We have the same coach since 2015 and the team have been largely successful. There is a good hype around the team and I think we can match the Brazilians.
“People see the Brazil superstars, but when we look at our players, we have Mane, who has played with and earned the respect of Brazilians like Roberto Firminho and Fabinho, one of the best defenders in Kalidou Koulibaly, and the new PSG fan favourite Idrissa Gueye.
“I was surprised to see fans stopping our goalkeeper coach Tony Sylva, which shows how knowledgeable some of them are here. Maybe not many people know about Senegal, so it would be nice to show to the world outside Africa what Senegal are about through these friendlies.”
Tickets for both games are still available at www.sportshubtix.sg, Singapore Indoor Stadium box office, all SingPost outlets, The Star Performing Arts Centre box office and Scotts Square concierge desk or ring 3158-7888.
International Football
Players’ union, FIFPRO, wants 20-minute halftimes, more cooling breaks amid extreme heat
Global players’ union FIFPRO is exploring whether extending halftime to 20 minutes and introducing more frequent cooling breaks could better protect players from extreme heat.
Nine of the 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup face conditions considered “extreme risk” for heat-related illness.
Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Guadalajara, Houston, Kansas City, Miami, Monterrey and Philadelphia are expected to face dangerous levels of heat and humidity, posing player safety concerns and fuelling calls for mandatory cooling aids or schedule changes.
FIFPRO’s heat risk assessments are based on wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT), a measure combining temperature, humidity, solar radiation and wind speed to estimate how environmental conditions affect the body’s ability to cool itself.
Under FIFPRO guidelines, a WBGT reading above 28 degrees Celsius indicates conditions in which matches should be postponed or rescheduled to protect players’ health.
By comparison, world soccer governing body FIFA’s own guidelines set the extreme risk threshold higher, at 32 degrees Celsius WBGT – but even by that standard, six of the nine cities are still projected to exceed safe limits.
Major League Soccer in the U.S. has a threshold of 29 degrees Celsius WBGT.
“Cooling breaks at the 30th minute and 75th minutes are quite traditional, but from a physiological point of view it does not make sense,” said Vincent Gouttebarge, FIFPRO’s Medical Director.
“Even if you ingest more than 200 millilitres of fluid, you already cannot take it all. So I would definitely like to see some project where we look at the efficacy of perhaps more frequent but shorter cooling breaks – every 15 minutes, rather than only one during each half.”
LONGER HALFTIMES
Gouttebarge also questioned whether the traditional 15-minute halftime interval is sufficient when matches are played in extreme heat.
“You can imagine that halftime of 15 minutes might not be enough in order to decrease the core temperature,” he said.
“It could be a halftime of 20 minutes which would be significant. That has been shown in the laboratory and FIFPRO, together with the national union in Portugal in August, we are going to test this kind of mitigation strategy.”
The urgency of stronger heat protocols became clear at this month’s Club World Cup where two matches — Benfica-Bayern Munich in Charlotte and Chelsea-Esperance in Philadelphia exceeded the WBGT threshold FIFPRO considers unsafe.
“According to our position, those games should have been postponed later that day or rescheduled,” Gouttebarge said.
FIFPRO officials acknowledged that FIFA has responded constructively during the tournament by lowering thresholds for mandatory cooling breaks and improving pitch-side hydration, but stressed that proactive planning is critical.
“FIFA have been quite responsive once the tournament was under way,” said Alex Phillips, FIFPRO General Secretary.
“They have actually modified how they’ve been dealing with heat during the matches based on FIFPRO’s input, which is credit to the work of the team. Obviously, it would have been better if that happened in advance, but it’s better that they have adapted.”
FIFPRO warned that the risks highlighted at the Club World Cup are a preview of what players could face at the expanded 2026 World Cup.
“This is not just affecting the Club World Cup, but also future tournaments either in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world,” said Alexander Bielefeld, FIFPRO Director of Policy & Strategic Relations.
“We need a better balance between commercial interests and the health and safety of players,” he added, referring to earlier kick-off times to accommodate European television audiences.
-Reuters
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Former Manchester United and England midfielder Paul Ince has been charged with drink-driving, police said on Monday.
Ince, who earned 53 caps for England and won two Premier League titles during his six years at United, has been released on bail and will appear in court on July 18.
“The incident involved a black Range Rover which had collided with the central reservation barrier. Officers attended the scene and arrested a 57-year-old man,” the Cheshire police said in a statement.
“Paul Ince, of Quarry Road, Neston, has since been charged with drink-driving.”
Reuters has contacted Ince’s representative for comment.
After retiring as a player, Ince led Milton Keynes Dons to a League Two title in 2007-08. He most recently managed Reading during 2022-23.
-Reuters
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International Football
From garbage collector to Starman of Ancelotti’s Brazil team: the story of Ribeiro
“I was without a team for a year and a half, doing trials… and no club in Brazil wanted me.!” Alex Ribeiro
Alexsandro Victor de Souza Ribeiro (Rio de Janeiro, 1999) was, until a few days ago, a semi-unknown to the general public in Brazil.
However, Carlo Ancelotti, impressed by his strong performance against Real Madrid in the Champions League, insisted on calling up the Lille centre-back… and giving him his debut.
Not only that. He started alongside Marquinhos against Ecuador (0-0) and Paraguay (1-0) and helped the Seleçao keep two consecutive clean sheets for the first time in the qualifying rounds.
Alex, as he likes to be called, impressed with his 1.92 meters (6′ 1″) frame and confidence. According to ‘R10Score’, he was the Brazilian player who completed the most actions with the ball (186) and the second with the most cuts (11).
He completed 154 of the 166 passes he made (92% accuracy) and won 12 of the 16 duels he was involved in: 5 of 7 at ground level and 7 of 9 in the air. “A gentleman defender,” boasted the official Ligue 1 Portuguese account.
His path to the elite wasn’t easy. “I don’t think you know this, but this is my first game as a professional in Brazil. Strange, isn’t it? There’s nothing better. To debut in Brazil like this, with a win and qualification,” he boasted after defeating Paraguay.
These first few days with Ancelotti have been unique; I’ll remember them for the rest of my life. I’ve responded well not only to myself, but also to the coach and the Brazilian people. I was able to demonstrate my ability to those who had doubts. Few people give me the opportunity that the manager has given me,” he insists
The Lille centre-back took his first steps in Flamengo’s youth system, where he even met Vinicius.
“When we played against Real Madrid, Vini came up to me and hugged me. He said, ‘I’m glad to see you here, brother.’ That inspired and motivated me even more,” he told ‘Globo Esporte’.
‘Fla’ cut him off. He had to make a living as a street vendor. He also collected trash, especially cans. “I was without a team for a year and a half, doing trials… and no club in Brazil wanted me, so I went to Europe to play in Portugal’s Third Division.”
Praiense (2018-20), Amora (2020-21), and Chaves (2021-22)—the latter already in the Second Division—were his springboard to Lille. The Bulldogs signed him in 2022-23 for €2 million. He has become a more than worthy successor to his compatriot Gabriel Magalhaes.
“Little by little, my name is spreading. My football is reaching everywhere. This includes Brazil,” he said before making his debut with the Seleçao. Now that he’s made it, he has another challenge: “I want to continue it.”
-Marca
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