Bale had not featured in any of Madrid’s past three friendlies, missing the defeat to his former club Tottenham and the wins over Fenerbahce and Salzburg. Officially, his absence for the Spurs game was due to an illness, though he was spotted playing golf the same day as the match and reportedly missed out due to his state of mind after a transfer to Chinese club Jiangsu Suning fell through....
The 28-year-old was left out of Real Madrid’s 2-0 La Liga win over Espanyol last Sunday with a calf problem, although head coach Zinedine Zidane insisted there was no major concern about his fitness. Wales 17/4 to beat Georgia 1-0 However, further tests with the Wales medical staff have determined he will not be available for his side’s final two matches in Group D. The Football Association of Wales confirmed it sent Bale for scans after a consultation with Madrid, which showed his injury is taking longer to heal than was hoped....
Los Blancos 5/4 to win at Spurs Bale has been out for a month since suffering a calf injury in the Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund, in which he scored a stunning volley, and he missed Wales’ crucial World Cup qualifiers earlier this month, as they missed out on a ticket to Russia. Carvajal has been on the sidelines for even longer after the right-back was diagnosed with a viral infection that was affecting his pericardium, the membrane enclosing the heart, in September....
During the school’s welcoming festivities, a freshman stepped up, drilled a half-court shot and won himself free tuition from Ball State president Paul Ferguson. MORE: Ranking CBB programs since 2000 | College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon schedule The packed house erupted. He ran around in disbelief. The financial department cringed. Wait, what? That’s a real diaper dandy, baby!
Having gone down for a second time with apparent cramp, Kepa refused to go off in extra time of Sunday’s encounter at Wembley, much to Sarri’s frustration, with Willy Caballero ready to come on. City eventually won on penalties – Chelsea’s goalkeeper failing to keep out Sergio Aguero’s tame spot-kick before making a fine save to deny Leroy Sane, with Raheem Sterling hammering home the winning effort. Both Sarri and Kepa played down the incident as a misunderstanding but Ballack, who won five major trophies at Chelsea between 2006 and 2010, believes the club must now provide clarity on their manager’s future....
Some others are also questioning the selection and pointing out the deserved candidates who missed out. However, what cannot be ignored is that the shortlist contains 30 of the most talented footballers in the World and choosing the best among them this year will not be an easy task. From glorious goalkeepers to defiant defenders, from magical midfielders to supersonic strikers, the 2018 Ballon d’Or shortlist has them all and as such, we went ahead and framed a starting eleven from the pool of talent at our disposal....
AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri has virtually guaranteed that Mario Balotelli will make his debut for the club when the Rossoneri host Udinese at the San Siro on Sunday. Balotelli joined Milan from Manchester City for a fee of around 30 million euros ($40.9m) this week in a deal that will see him remain with the Serie A giants until 2017. Although Allegri welcomed the Italy striker, he said the team must forget the recent media hype surrounding the 22-year-old star and maintain the impressive recent form that has seen them climb to fifth place in the table....
Television footage appeared to show Bancroft take on object out of his pocket while fielding on the third day of the Test at Newlands. He was then seen tucking the object down the front of his trousers before he spoke to on-field umpires Nigel Llong and Richard Illingworth. Shane Warne, the Australian spin bowling great, said on Twitter he was “very disappointed” by the pictures and called on Australia captain Steve Smith to clear up the “mess” in the post-play press conference....
At the top of the leaderboard are titles that garnered massive popularity in North America. At the number two spot is Tales of Vesperia, which joined the Xbox Game Pass last year. Just ahead of it, by a margin of just 30,000 copies, is Tales of Symphonia. While Symphonia predates Vesperia by six years, Symphonia was the most successful of the entire series in North American markets. In the first three years after its release, Symphonia had already sold nearly a million copies....
Al-Amin was left out of the squad in the just-concluded series against Afghanistan but the right-arm pacer did not have to wait too long to return to the team, reports bdnews24.com. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) named a 14-man squad in a media statement late on Sunday. The only change made to the squad from the Afghanistan series was the omission of spinner Taijul Islam and the inclusion of Al-Amin....
On February 17, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said in a press conference that financial institutions have started freezing accounts and canceling credit cards in accordance with the Emergencies Act, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked earlier this week. The powers granted by the act would allow banks to target the accounts of people who have donated to crowdfunding platforms, like the fundraising campaigns on GoFundMe and GiveSendGo, that have fueled the ongoing protests, but Freeland said she would not give “specifics of whose accounts are being frozen....
There is much speculation as to the identity of the subversive artist, who is believed to have come out of the cultural scene in the English city of Bristol and whose street works are known throughout the world. Now, a report from 2003 has been found that profiles a pre-fame Banksy’s “Turf War” exhibition in East London. It features an interview with a man who is pictured stenciling a black insect on to a wall and painting a picture of a baby with blocks spelling “KILL MORE”....
Mings is due to miss Premier League matches against West Ham, Swansea City, Southampton, Liverpool and Chelsea, the Football Association having confirmed his lengthy suspension following an Independent Regulatory Commission hearing on Wednesday. ‘I knew Ibra would come after me’ The defender appeared to stamp down on the prone Ibrahimovic after a challenge in the 1-1 Premier League draw at Old Trafford on Saturday. The Swedish veteran received a three-match ban for appearing to elbow Mings during a corner in the wake of the initial contact....
David Axelrod, who served as Obama’s chief strategist and adviser, said in a tweet Wednesday that the former president campaigned for swing-state Democrats when voters were paying attention. Democrats breathed a sigh of relief Wednesday after avoiding the midterm election washout that’s become common for parties in power. Axelrod said Obama helped his party cling to power as he talked up Democratic candidates and ripped their Republican opponents. Polling throughout the 2022 midterms showed Democrats facing strong political headwinds over inflation and President Joe Biden’s unpopularity....
The chat between Walters and Trump had to do with his finances, particular, his purchase of the Plaza hotel in 1988. At the time, he paid $407.5 million (the equivalent of over $698 million today) or the iconic New York location, a controversial sum. He went on to sell the building for $325 million (equivalent to $545 million) in 1995. In speaking with Walters, the purchase came up. Trump claimed to be a successful, covetable businessman with an incredible new deal, but Walters apparently had receipts that showed he was being dishonest....
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, 737,407 cases of COVID-19 have been reported since the beginning of the pandemic. Noting a recent rise in cases, provinces have instituted a number of mitigation protocols, including closing some businesses deemed non-essential. In response, some personal care facilities have rebranded themselves in order to remain open during the lockdown. Chrome Artistic Barber in St. Catharines, Toronto redesigned its salon in order to function as a visual production studio....
Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde rested Argentina star Lionel Messi in Turin, later introducing him as a second-half substitute as a 0-0 draw against Juventus sent the five-time European champions through as winners of Group D. Willian scored twice and won a pair of penalties as Chelsea thrashed 10-man Qarabag 4-0 in Baku to guarantee Antonio Conte’s side a top-two finish in Group C. First-half goals from Eden Hazard and Willian put Chelsea in control, with Cesc Fabregas adding a third before Willian netted again to cap the rout and knock Qarabag out of the competition....
Coutinho has been linked with Barca following his exploits for Liverpool after moving to the Premier League from Italian outfit Inter in 2013. The 24-year-old - sidelined with an ankle injury since November - is under contract until 2020 but two-time World Player of the Year Ronaldinho claims Barca are monitoring the Brazil international. “I hope when he [Coutinho] returns from injury that he will continue the form he has been showing all season with Liverpool,” Ronaldinho said in quotes attributed to The Sun....
Failure to win in the Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium could see Barca drop down to third place in the league table and slip to six points off the lead, should Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid win their respective games Saturday, reports Xinhua. Barca will travel in the midst of another crisis following their home defeat to Valencia last weekend and their unconvincing display at home to Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final....
