CELEBRITY
Messi replaces Neymar in his Ligue 1 debut for PSG
Lionel Messi made his much-anticipated Ligue 1 debut for Paris St Germain on Sunday (Aug 29) but it was Kylian Mbappe who shone as the capital club maintained their perfect start to the season with a 2-0 victory at Stade de Reims.
Mbappe gave PSG a taste of what they would be missing if he left for Real Madrid, who have made bids to recruit the France striker since Messi joined on a two-year deal from Barcelona.
PSG are top of the standings with a maximum 12 points.
All 20,545 tickets available were sold at the Auguste Delaune stadium to see 34-year-old Messi play and the fans, who chanted the Argentina forward’s name, were rewarded in the 66th minute when he replaced the disappointing Neymar.
Mbappe did not disappoint though in a brilliant performance, seemingly unfazed by the transfer frenzy surrounding him.
Two days before the end of the window, the 22-year-old made the difference with his speed and sense of timing, opening the scoring with a header and rounding off with a clinical finish
After a stuttering start, PSG got into their groove and Mbappe put them a head after 15 minutes by heading home from Angel Di Maria’s cross.
PSG somehow got too comfortable and Reims started to apply some pressure, with Moreto Cassama’s superb strike hitting Keylor Navas’s crossbar three minutes before the break.
Reims celebrated what they thought was a Marshall Munetsi equaliser five minutes into the second half, only for the Zimbabwean’s effort to be ruled out for offside.
Messi started to warm up after 57 minutes, drawing applause from the Reims supporters, whom he saluted. They sang his name just when he was about to come on, shortly after Mbappe had doubled PSG’s advantage from Achraf Hakimi’s cross at the end of a sharp counter attack.
Mbappe combined with Messi, but the former Barcelona striker was not in the same condition as the Frenchman, having not played a competitive game since winning the Copa America with Argentina on July 10.
Earlier, French champions Lille finally got their title defence going with a 2-1 home win over Montpellier and surprise package Angers beat visiting Stade Rennes 2-0 to go second on 10 points.
Lille celebrated their first league win of the season thanks to goals from Yusuf Yazici and Jonathan David. Montpellier ended the match with 10 men after defender Junior Sambia was sent off late in the second half.
Promoted Clermont Foot continued to impress as they kept their unbeaten record intact after fighting back from two goals down in a 2-2 home draw with Metz. They are third on eight points from their first four matches.
-Reuters
Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first footballer to reach billionaire status, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which has valued the Portugal great’s net worth at an estimated $1.4 billion.
The 40-year-old striker’s financial ascent comes after he signed a new contract with Saudi side Al-Nassr in June reportedly worth more than $400 million.
Bloomberg said that Ronaldo earned more than $550 million in salary between 2002 and 2023, supplemented by a decade-long Nike deal worth nearly $18 million annually, and lucrative endorsements with Armani, Castrol and others that added more than $175 million to his fortune.
Ronaldo’s move to Al-Nassr from Manchester United in 2023 had already made him the highest-paid player in football history, with an annual salary of 177 million pounds ($237.52 million), plus bonuses and a reported 15% share in his Saudi Arabia club.
Argentina and Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi has earned more than $600 million in pre-tax salary during his career.
Ronaldo’s billionaire status places him among a rare group of athletes that includes basketball greats Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and LeBron James, golfer Tiger Woods and tennis player Roger Federer.
Ronaldo suggested he is not considering retirement any time soon.
“I still have a passion for this,” he said at the Portugal Football Globes gala on Tuesday. “My family says it’s time to quit and they ask me why I want to score 1000 goals if I’ve already scored 900-something. But I don’t think that way inside.
“I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team. Why not continue? I am sure that when I finish I will leave full because I gave everything of myself. I know I don’t have many years left to play, but the few I have left, I have to enjoy them to the fullest.”
-Reuters
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
Former England soccer captain David Beckham and actor Gary Oldman were knighted in King Charles’ annual birthday honours list on Saturday, while sculptor Antony Gormley was made a Companion of Honour.
Beckham, 50, joined Manchester United as a trainee in 1993, going on to make almost 400 appearances for the club where he won a string of titles and cups.
He subsequently played for Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, and Inter Milan, as well as captaining his country 58 times and making 115 appearances.
His marriage to fashion designer and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham in 1999 cemented a celebrity status which went far beyond his sporting exploits.
Oldman, 67, started his career on the stage, where he was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, before rising to prominence in film. He won the best actor Oscar for playing Winston Churchill in the 2017 drama “Darkest Hour”.
He also had roles in the “Dark Knight Trilogy” and the “Harry Potter” movie series and more recently starred in the TV spy drama “Slow Horses”.
Other famous names receiving honours included damehoods for musical theatre star Elaine Paige, novelist Pat Barker and ceramics maker Emma Bridgewater.
Roger Daltrey, lead singer of rock band the Who and a patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust, received a knighthood for services to charity.
More than 1,200 people received honours for their achievements, with a particular focus on those who had given their time to public service, the government said.
King Charles’ official birthday will be celebrated with the annual “Trooping the Colour” military parade in London on Saturday. His actual birthday is on November 14
-Reuters
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
One of three judges in Diego Maradona’s closely scrutinized homicide trial in Argentina resigned on Tuesday amid a scandal triggered by the alleged filming of an unauthorised documentary, bringing uncertainty to the future of legal proceedings.
The high-profile trial over the death of soccer star Maradona began on March 11 in the South American country where the World Cup winner is still revered.
-Reuters
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
- World Cup6 days ago
Victor Osimhen qualifies South Africa for World Cup as Super Eagles go for Play-Off
- World Cup1 week ago
BREAKING! Lookman Suspended for Crucial Benin Clash
- World Cup1 week ago
Judgment Day Beckons in Group C: Only One Ticket, Three Contenders, Infinite Drama
- FIFA RANKING3 days ago
Nigeria Jumps Four Places in New FIFA Rankings; Stirs Optimism in Local Football Circles
- World Cup1 week ago
Super Eagles Stranded in Angola After Aircraft Suffers Cracked Windscreen
- World Cup1 week ago
Akor Adams Becomes Nigeria’s 61st Scoring Debutant
- Nigerian Football7 days ago
Serial offenders, Kano Pillars Fined ₦9.5m, Banished to Katsina
- CAF Champions League2 days ago
Two Decades After Their Defeat, Mamelodi Sundowns Return to Abeokuta