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Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho has slammed VAR, saying there is no excuse for officials to miss key incidents now they have the technology to help them.

VAR has once again been in the spotlight this week after controversial decisions during last weekend’s Merseyside derby and Manchester City’s Champions League clash with Porto on Wednesday.

Last Saturday, Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford avoided punishment for a clumsy foul on Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk that left the Dutchman facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a serious knee injury.

At the Etihad Stadium midweek, City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan also avoided a red card for an apparent foul on Porto goalkeeper Agustin Marchesin, with City awarded a penalty for a foul by Pepe moments later.

On both occasions VAR reviewed the incidents, but decided not to take further action.

Mourinho, who believes both Pickford and Gundogan should have been sent off, accepts referees can miss key incidents in real time given the frantic speed of the game.

However, he cannot accept such errors not being corrected given the VAR official has access to instant replays of incidents from several angles.

“I think the attention [the incidents have received] is based on the fact that there is a VAR. Without VAR, the situations on the pitch happen and the human being, the referee, makes mistakes,” Mourinho said, whose Tottenham side travel to Burnley on Monday.

"And you know me for quite a few years – it was difficult for me to accept the human mistakes but I learned and in this moment, I always accept the referee’s mistakes.

“What we don’t accept is the VAR mistakes. So I think if the referee of that match [the Merseyside derby], 100 mph, the situation happened, the linesman gives an offside, everybody would say: 'Ok, it was a bad tackle but it happened and it’s done'.

“But the problem was there was a VAR. The Porto goalkeeper could be now with a broken leg. And nobody understands how a broken leg for a Porto goalkeeper is transformed into a penalty against them.

"If the referee makes that mistake, everybody understands because the game is 100mph but with the VAR, how can that VAR make that mistake? And the situation of Pickford for me is the same. It’s the VAR, it’s not the referee.”

Jules Kounde drew interest from Manchester City during the summer transfer window, but the Sevilla defender said he never would have tried to force a move.

Pep Guardiola rebuilt his defence over the summer, eventually bringing in Nathan Ake from Bournemouth and Ruben Dias from Benfica.

Kounde, a France Under-21 international, admits he was flattered by interest from the Premier League title chasers, but in the end he was happy to stay where he was.

"The interest of a club like City is always a good thing, but I'm at Sevilla and I'm very calm,” Kounde told Sevilla FC TV.

“I'm lucky to be at a club that competes at a very good level. We have a fantastic group of players and people.

“That wasn't a bad option, but I always told [Sevilla director of football] Monchi that I would not force anything. If everyone wasn't happy, I knew I had a contract here, playing in the Champions League".

Kounde has missed Sevilla’s last three games, including their 0-0 group-stage draw with Chelsea in the Champions League, after testing positive for the coronavirus.

The 21-year-old admits it hasn’t been easy watching his team-mates playing without him, but he knows he is lucky not to be showing any symptoms.

"I feel good considering the circumstances. I'm at home and the time is dragging, but that's the way it is. I'm waiting for the test to come back negative. I haven't even lost my sense of smell and I'm totally asymptomatic.

"I miss both my teammates and football a lot. I am trying to take it philosophically and be patient, but it is somewhat different to the lockdown. I was alone in my house for two months, but there was no football and we were all in the same situation.

“Now it's time to watch football on the TV and follow my team-mates. There are days where you feel good and others are more difficult. But I'm very close to being back with the team and the worst is already over. I'm training at home so I return at the same level as before".

Victor Osimhen featured prominently as Napoli secured a 2-1 comeback victory over Benevento in Sunday’s Serie A game.

The 21-year-old attacker was handed his third start in the Italian top-flight since his big-money move from Lille this summer.

The centre-forward, who opened his account in his last league outing against Atalanta, could not, however, add to his strike at Stadio Ciro Vigorito.

Gennaro Gattuso’s men put their disappointing defeat against AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League behind them by clinching their second consecutive league victory against the Sorcerers.

The Parthenopeans started the game impressively and completely dominated the opening 30 minutes but failed to make their efforts account.

Benevento then scored from their few opportunities that came their way through Roberto Insigne on the half-hour mark.

Napoli came back into the second-half stronger with Lorenzo Insigne firing into the back of the net but the effort was ruled out for offside by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).

The forward then made up for the lost opportunity when he equalized with a fine strike on the hour mark after he was set up by Matteo Politano.

Andrea Petagna then scored the match-winning goal seven minutes later to help the Parthenopeans secure their fourth win of the season.

Osimhen featured for the duration of the game and struck two shots, completed one dribble, made 27 touches and had a 73% successful pass rate.

The victory moved the Stadio San Paolo outfit to second spot on the league table after gathering 11 points from five games.

The Super Eagles forward will hope to continue his impressive performances when Napoli square off against Real Sociedad in a Europa League game on October 29.

Southampton fans were not the only ones celebrating their 2-0 victory over Everton on Sunday, with Arsenal supporters equally jubilant over the Saints’ win at St Mary’s.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Toffees arrived on the south coast as the only unbeaten side left in the Premier League this season, having won four and drawn one of their opening five games to sit top of the table on goal difference ahead of rivals Liverpool.

However, they were comfortably beaten by Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side, with first-half goals from James Ward-Prowse and Che Adams ensuring a third league win of the season that lifts them up to fifth.

It means every Premier League side has suffered a defeat this season, ensuring there can be no repeat of Arsenal’s famous ‘Invincibles’ season of 2003-04.

Arsene Wenger’s side went the entire Premier League campaign without defeat on their way to a 13th league title triumph, matching the achievement of Preston North End way back in 1888-89.

That Preston team became known as ‘The Invincibles’, with the Gunners taking on that moniker after their own unbeaten campaign.

They remain the only team to achieve such a feat in the Premier League era, and that record is now set to stand for at least one more year.

Arsenal fans took to social media to celebrate that feat, with supporters wishing fellow fans a 'Happy Invincibles Day’ ahead of their match against Leicester at Emirates Stadium on Sunday evening.

Arsenal's unbeaten run would stretch well into the following season and reach a record 49 games, breaking Nottingham Forest's previous record of 42 set between November 1977 and November 1978.

The famous run came to an end in a feisty encounter against Manchester United at Old Trafford, with goals from Ruud van Nistelrooy and Wayne Rooney securing the win for the Red Devils.

Tempers boiled over at full-time, with both sets of players clashing in the tunnel in an incident that became known as the 'battle of the buffet', when food including slices of pizza, soup and coffee was thrown at then-United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

Four years later Arsenal’s Spanish midfielder Cesc Fabregas - who was just 17 at the time - admitted he was the man responsible, spilling the beans on the TV game show "A League of Their Own".

Carlo Ancelotti says Lucas Digne’s red card against Southampton on Sunday was “a joke” and Everton will appeal the decision.

The Toffees’ unbeaten start to the Premier League season came to an end at St Mary’s, with Ancelotti’s side already two goals down when Digne saw red.

Match referee Kevin Friend showed him a straight red card after stamping on the back of Kyle Walker-Peters' ankle, but Ancelotti was furious with the decision.

"The red card was a joke, it was not intentional, for sure it was not violent,” Ancelotti said on Sky Sports.

“Maybe it was a yellow. Maybe all this talk all week against [Jordan] Pickford, against Richarlison, affected the decision and if so it's not right, it's not fair. We will appeal, for sure.

"I told the players winter is coming and we will have to react."

Everton have been in the headlines over the last week after the fallout from their 2-2 Merseyside derby draw with Liverpool.

Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford’s challenge on Virgil van Dijk has left the Liverpool defender possibly out for the rest of the season, while Ancelotti was criticised by some for drawing attention to a Van Dijk tackle on James Rodriguez after the game.

Ancelotti had said Rodriguez would likely miss the Southampton game but he started and played the full 90 minutes.

Some of the positive feeling surrounding Everton at the start of the season has seemed to dissipate over the last seven days, and Ancelotti admitted his side were far from their best.

"We didn't play well, Southampton were better than us and they deserved to win. Sometimes you are not at your best, it came after a really good run for us, now we have to look forward with the same spirit and belief.

"We tried to get back into the game, we had some good control after half-time.”

Everton’s next fixture is a trip to the north east to face Steve Bruce’s Newcastle.

Throughout November, the Toffees will then play Manchester United, Fulham and Leeds.

Everton are still top of the Premier League table with six games played, but Liverpool are now level on points at the top following their win over Sheffield United.

AFC Leopards chairman Dan Shikanda has revealed he enjoyed his stint as Gor Mahia player more than with Ingwe.

The forward had success at both clubs in the late '80s and early '90s. It all started at Ingwe between 1985-90 where the striker went on to help the team win three league titles and the domestic Cup, which was then called the Moi Golden Cup.

He ditched the 13-time champions for bitter rivals Gor K'Ogalo from 1991 to 1995, a transfer which shocked many with Ingwe fans demonstrating in the streets owing to the move.

While at K'Ogalo, Shikanda once again made a huge impact helping the team win three league titles before leaving. He is currently the chairman of AFC Leopards.

"I won three league titles each at Leopards and Gor Mahia; however, I enjoyed playing for Gor Mahia most," the now 51-year-old told the Nation Newspaper. 

The former Kenya forward went on to explain how he left the Den for bitter rivals despite his success.

"Leopards had suspended me. The then Chairman Alfred Sambu had given me some time off to write my exams," Shikanda explained.

"But the management was not pleased that I played for my university team, the University of Nairobi’s Red Brigade in a friendly match against a visiting team from Zimbabwe. I scored a hat-trick and we won 4-1.

"Around the same time, Leopards lost 1-0 to Gor Mahia in a league match and some players were accused of throwing away that game. I was among the players suspended until further notice as a result of the loss. I decided to train with Wazee wa Kazi Football Club.  

"As fate would have it, we played against Gor Mahia in a friendly match and the opposing coach liked me. Then Gor Chairman Job Omino, who doubled up as the Kenya Football Federation (KFF) chairman, ensured that K’Ogalo signed me. Leopards’ management tried to rescind my suspension but it was too late. Leopards even offered Gor Felix Otieno and Richard Asabel instead of me."

In June 2019, Shikanda succeeded Dan Mule as Leopards chairman and he has revealed his vision for the club.

"We have a lean office of three elected officials. It is now easier to make and implement decisions. Our fans deserve more, they have pressure at home and at work and mostly attend matches to relax. We want to offer them entertaining football and success," he said.

"We've traced the 15 acres of land given to the club by former President Daniel Moi and we are looking to put up a secretariat that will have an office, gymnasium, and training ground in the next few years. This will save us huge costs each year.

"There's also a plan to hire a human resource manager, commercial director, logistics officer, and a sales executive to market the brand and bring in money."

Long before it was 'Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo?' the debate over which player is the greatest of all time was dominated by Pele and Diego Maradona.

Pele's exploits for Brazil and Santos earned him the nickname O Rei, or 'The King', as he helped the Selecao light up the football world from the late 1950s into the early 1970s.

The South American pair did not play in the same era, like Ronaldo and Messi, with Maradona taking up the mantle in the 1980s into the 1990s, but that didn't stop the comparisons.

The stats, of course, don't always tell the full story, but they are useful metrics nonetheless.

So who really was better between Pele and Maradona? Goal takes a look at the numbers and more in the eternal debate.

Pele vs Maradona: Club goals

Due to the conflicting reports of Pele's goal tally, with some including goals from non-competitive games, it's impossible to get an exact comparison, but all of the Brazilian's tallies still far surpass Maradona's.

Maradona scored over 300 club goals, while Pele struck over 700 club goals. However, any comparative analysis must take into consideration the variables, including position and clubs represented.

While Pele was an advanced forward, Maradona was an attacking midfielder who dropped deep into his own half in order to initiate attacks.

The Argentine also plied his trade in a greater variety of leagues, playing for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Napoli and Barcelona among others. Pele, on the other hand, spent the majority of his career in Brazil with Santos before a swansong in North America with New York Cosmos.

That Maradona had to navigate his way in Italy's Serie A, which was packed with clubs that were renowned for their defensive nous, and Spain's Primera Division, which at the time featured a number of notoriously tough defenders, must be acknowledged.

Pele vs Diego Maradona: International stats

Pele's goalscoring record for Brazil is vastly superior to Diego Maradona's for Argentina.

The Brazilian scored 77 goals for his country during the course of his international career, while Maradona hit the back of the net 34 times.

Both players played roughly the same number of games, which emphasises Pele's goalscoring superiority, the Brazilian having a goals-per-game record of 0.84 to Maradona's 0.37.

Of course, it should be noted again that Pele and Maradona played in different positions, with Pele often deployed in a more advanced position, whereas Maradona was much more of a traditional playmaker.

Pele vs Diego Maradona: World Cup stats

Pele was part of three World Cup-winning teams (1958, 1962, 1970), while Maradona won the title just once (1986), though he lost in the final in 1990.

Both players appeared at four World Cup tournaments, with Maradona making more appearances overall. Injury curtailed Pele's involvement in the 1966 World Cup, which affects his tally.

Nevertheless, despite playing fewer games, Pele scored more goals than Maradona in the World Cup, with 12 strikes in 14 games (including goals in the 1958 and 1970 finals).

Maradona scored eight goals in 21 World Cup games, including four in Argentina's successful 1986 campaign, though never in the final.

His most memorable World Cup goals came in the same game - a quarter-final showdown with England. The infamous 'Hand of God' was followed by an outrageous solo goal which was hailed as the 'Goal of the Century'.

Pele vs Diego Maradona: Who won the most titles?

Pele won more titles than Maradona during his playing career.

As well as three World Cups, the Brazilian won the Copa Libertadores twice with Santos, along with two Intercontinental Cups and one Intercontinental Supercup.

He won six Brasileiro titles with Santos and the NASL Bowl with New York Cosmos. Pele also has 10 Campeonato Paulista titles and four Torneio Rio-Sao Paulo titles (which are not included in the above table).

Maradona enjoyed a degree of success in Argentina, Spain and Italy, with his most successful period coming at Napoli, where he won two Serie A titles, a Coppa Italia, Supercoppa Italiana and the UEFA Cup.

At Barcelona, the Argentine won the Copa del Rey, Copa de la Liga and the Supercopa de Espana, while at Boca he won the Argentine Primera Division Metropolitano.

Furthermore, Maradona won the youth equivalent of the World Cup - the FIFA World Youth Championship.

Pele vs Diego Maradona: Who won most individual awards?

*Pele and Maradona shared the prize in 2000.

There is very little between Pele and Maradona when it comes to individual awards. Both players have won the World Cup Golden Ball, while they shared FIFA's Player of the Century award.

France Football conferred each player with an honorary Ballon d'Or, but Pele was retrospectively deemed the 'alternative winner' of seven Ballons d'Or in 2016, whereas Maradona was the 'alternative winner' twice.

Maradona was twice named the South American Footballer of the Year and Pele never had the honour because the award only began in the 1970s.

As well as winning the Golden Ball in 1970, Pele was named the best player in the old South American Championship (now Copa America) in 1959.

Both players have been awarded a host of unofficial individual awards and magazine accolades over the years.

Pele vs Diego Maradona: Who do football's legends think was better?

The debate about who was better between Pele and Maradona has been ongoing for decades and the pair have even traded barbs on the subject.

Naturally, Maradona is of the view that he was superior, while Pele told Goal in 2017: "I always say to him: ‘Maradona, you can be level with Pele when you have scored more than 1,000 goals.’

"And he says: ‘I can’t now, but it doesn’t matter!’"

But what do others within the game think?

Gary Lineker now views Lionel Messi as the best of all time, but prior to that it was Maradona who was "the greatest player of all time, by a long way". 

That view has also been expressed by former Manchester United star Ryan Giggs, who believes that Maradona is "the best of all time".

He said: "Today there are so many strong players such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, but the things I have seen Maradona do I have never seen anyone else achieve in football history".

Argentina's World Cup-winning coach Cesar Luis Menotti could be forgiven for giving his compatriot the vote, but he suggested that Pele was better than Maradona.

"The best of all was Pele, who is a mixture of Di Stefano, [Diego] Maradona, Cruyff and Leo Messi", he said.

There is no such dissent among the Brazilians though, with Zico telling the world that Pele is the best ever "by some distance", while Romario once said: "Messi has all the conditions to be the best, but first he has to beat Maradona, Romario and then eventually Pele".

The modern equivalent of Pele and Maradona also have divergent views, with Lionel Messi calling Maradona the "greatest ever", while Cristiano Ronaldo said that Pele was "the greatest player in football history".

Serge Gnabry has been cleared to return to action with Bayern Munich after it was confirmed the coronavirus test he returned had been a false positive.

The 25-year-old tested positive for Covid-19 after returning from international duty with Germany and has missed Bayern’s last two games as a result.

To their credit, Hansi Flick’s side have coped well in Gnabry’s absence. Bayern beat Atletico Madrid 4-0 in the Champions League before thrashing Eintracht Frankfurt 5-0 in the Bundesliga, in a game which also saw Leroy Sane make a goalscoring return from injury.

A statement from Bayern said that Gnabry had taken a coronavirus test every day since entering quarantine, and had tested negative on each occasion. He has also taken an antibody test which also came back negative.

That was enough for the Munich health authorities to conclude that his earlier test was a false positive, and lift the 14-day quarantine period he had been subjected to as a result.

Gnabry will rejoin his team-mates before they travel to Russia on Monday. Bayern play away to Lokomotiv Moscow in the Champions League on Tuesday and Gnabry is available for selection.

"Serge Gnabry has been released from the self-isolation he has been observing for the last five days," the statement read.

"A PCR test returned a positive result for the Germany international last Tuesday, upon which he immediately went into isolation. Gnabry has undergone further PCR tests on each of the four days since, which all produced a negative result.

"In addition, antigen tests were carried out on Saturday and Sunday, which also came back negative.

"The Munich health department has therefore concluded that the PCR test last Tuesday was a false positive and has lifted the isolation measures.

"Gnabry will now rejoin the squad and board tomorrow’s flight to Moscow for the Champions League match against Lokomotiv Moscow on Tuesday, where the winger will be available for selection."

Bayern will take on the Russian outfit in the Champions League before an away match at winless Cologne on Sunday in the Bundesliga. 

Hansi Flick's treble-winners are currently level on points with Dortmund in second place in the Bundesliga, one point behind first-place RB Leipzig.

Habibou Diallo and Ludovic Ajorque found the net as Strasbourg silenced Brest 3-0 in Sunday’s French top-flight outing.

The Racers went to Stade Francis-Le Ble having lost 3-2 at home to Olympique Lyon, however, they bounced back to secure their first away win of the 2020-21 Ligue 1 campaign.

Three minutes before the half-hour mark, Diallo put Thierry Laurey’s men ahead, heading past goalkeeper Gautier Larsonneur a cross from Anthony Caci.

Kenny Lala doubled the lead for Strasbourg on the dot of 40 minutes from the penalty spot after one of the hosts’ defenders had handled a goal-bound effort. The French defender made no mistakes by stroking home the ensuing kick.

In the 67th minute, Ajorque wrapped up the game after he was played by in Diallo as the Pirates’ defenders were caught flatfooted.

Senegalese forward Diallo was in action from start to finish for Strasbourg alongside Ghana’s Alexander Djiku.

Nine minutes to the end of the game, Sanjin Prcic came on for impressive Ajorque, Mali’s Kevin Zohi was a 90th-minute replacement for Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, while Mali prospect Ibrahima Sissoko came off for Adrien Thomasson.

Tunisia's Moataz Zemzemi, South Africa's Lebo Mothiba, Algeria's Idriss Saadi and Senegal's Bingourou Kamara were not dressed for the encounter.

For Brest, Algeria’s Haris Belkebla featured for the duration as Benin Republic’s Steve Mounie was replaced for Irvin Cardona after 70 minutes of unproductivity. Comoro Island’s Rafiki Said was not listed for the game by manager Olivier Dall'Oglio.

Despite this result, Strasbourg remain in the relegation zone - staying in the 18th position with six points from eight games. They are guests of Reims in their next outing on November 1.

On the other hand, Brest occupy the 14th spot after accruing nine points from the same number of outings. They would be eyeing redemption when they travel to the Roazhon Park on October 31 for a date with Rennes.

Born in Saint-Denis, Reunion, 26-year-old Ajorque is of Malagasy descent and was approached to join the Madagascar national football team in March 2018. He declined the request, insisting he wants to concentrate on club football.
 

Joe Aribo scored on his full return from injury in Rangers’ 2-0 victory over Efe Ambrose’s Livingston in Sunday’s Scottish Premiership game.

The 24-year-old was out of action for more than eight weeks after he suffered a muscle injury against St. Johnstone in August.

He made a cameo appearance against Celtic after replacing Scott Arfield in the 89th minute and came off the bench in the Gers’ Europa League win over Standard Liege.

The Nigeria international was then handed a starting role at Ibrox Stadium against Gary Holt’s men and delivered a fine performance to help his side clinch all three points.

The midfielder wasted no time to announce his full return from injury when he put Steven Gerrard’s men in front with a well-taken effort after he was set up by Ianis Hagi in the ninth minute. 

Former Tottenham Hotspur star Jermain Defoe then doubled Rangers lead in the 16th minute after receiving a timely pass from James Tavernier.

The second half saw less goal-mouth action as the Gers could not add to their first-half lead with Livingston, who paraded Nigeria international Ambrose for 46 minutes, managing to keep the scoreline at 2-0.

Aribo featured for 75 minutes before he was replaced by Arfield while his compatriot Leon Balogun was an unused substitute in the encounter.

The victory ensured Rangers consolidated their lead at the top of the Premiership table after securing 32 points from 12 games.

Aribo has now featured in five games across all competitions for Rangers in the 2020-21 campaign and will hope to continue his impressive form when his side takes on Lech Poznan in a Europa League game on October 29.

The midfielder has been at the Ibrox Stadium since the summer of 2019 and delivered eye-catching performances in his debut season to win the Gers’ Young Player of the Season award.

Aribo has four caps for the Super Eagles since he made his international debut for the West Africans in 2019.

The midfielder will be expected to replicate his fine club form for the Super Eagles in their Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

BBC Match of the Day commentator Guy Mowbray has been forced to delete his Twitter account after an angry reaction to his comments about Marcus Rashford.

Rashford has been widely praised for his campaign to fight child hunger in the UK, with his efforts sparking a country-wide effort to ensure children will have access to free food during the upcoming school holidays.

The Red Devils striker was critical of the UK Government earlier this week as a vote to extend free school meals over the holidays until Easter 2021 was defeated.

Though the motion failed, a number of businesses vowed on Friday to step up and provide free meals over the holidays – with Rashford retweeting many of the offers and including the location of the businesses.

Rashford was equally successful with his efforts on the pitch in midweek, with the 22-year-old scoring a late winner against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Mowbray reflected on the events of the previous seven days during his commentary of United’s goalless draw against Chelsea on Saturday.

"He didn't get a win in parliament, but he got the winner in Paris,” Mowbray said. "And whether you agree with Marcus Rashford's causes or not, there's surely only admiration for his continued commitment.”

Mowbray’s comments were perceived by some as questioning whether fighting child hunger was a worthy cause.

After a significant backlash, Mowbray attempted to clarify his comments, saying he was referring to the political elements of Rashford’s cause, given he was commentating for a state broadcaster and needed to comply with impartiality rules.

With the angry reaction failing to subside, Mowabray opted to release a statement before deleting his account.

"I really think it is time to go now,” he said.

"Disturbing getting hounded by people whose view of a situation is in reality the same as mine.

"Impartiality broadcast rules mean things have to be phrased a certain way.

“I tried to do that, having checked my original words in the morning with the programme editors.

"I had to change them - it’s in the political arena so balance (however strange that may seem with some topics) is paramount.

"The first things I said were purely factual.

"The latter was wholesome praise of someone fighting a noble cause. That’s it. Couldn’t have done anymore. Shouldn’t have done any less.”

Brazil and Barcelona legend Ronaldinho has confirmed he has tested positive for coronavirus. 

Ronaldinho, who won 97 caps for Brazil between 1999 and 2013, posted a video to his Instagram story revealing his diagnosis. 

The 40-year-old said he is asymptomatic and is self-isolating in Belo Horizonte, having arrived in the city on Saturday. 

"I've been here in BH since yesterday, I came to participate in an event," Ronaldinho said on Instagram on Sunday. 

"I took the test and tested positive for Covid. I'm fine, asymptomatic, but we'll have to leave the event for later. Soon we will be there together. Big hug!" 

It has been a turbulent year for Ronaldinho who, along with his brother Roberto Assis, was jailed in Paraguay in March after entering the country with fake passports . 

The pair were moved to house arrest in a Paraguayan hotel in April after serving 32 days in prison, with their sentences ending in August. 

“It was a hard blow, I never imagined that I would go through such a situation," Ronaldinho said at the time.

"All my life I have sought to reach the highest professional level and bring joy to people with my football."

The Brazilian became one of the most iconic figures in football history over the course of a playing career which lasted 17 years.

As well as Brazil and Barca, he represented Gremio, Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan, Flamengo, Atletico Mineiro, Queretaro and Fluminense.

Ronaldinho won titles in Spain and Italy as well as the 2005-06 Champions League. At international level, he lifted the World Cup, Copa America, Confederations Cup and won Olympic bronze in 2008.

He won the Ballon d'Or in 2005 and was twice named FIFA World Player of the Year.

Former Barcelona winger Gerard Deulofeu recently said he thought Ronaldinho was the greatest player ever - ahead of Lionel Messi.

He told Serie A’s official website: “For me, Ronaldinho is the best player in history. I met him, I went to see a match at the Camp Nou and he was sitting next to me. It was a wonderful experience.

“Messi is incredible too, I like him very much. I played with him for six months and he is a nice person, a great player. The whole world knows about Messi.”

Young Africans (Yanga SC) administrative and technical advisor Senzo Mazingisa has revealed he wanted Cedric Kaze to coach Simba SC.

Mazingisa served as Simba’s CEO before he joined Yanga in August and has now revealed his prime target to succeed Patrick Aussems was the Burundian coach.

Kaze was appointed as Yanga coach a week ago to replace Zlatko Krmporic, who was sacked before he served for even two months.

“When we were looking for a coach to take over from [Patrick] Aussems, Kaze was one who looked attractive to me,” Mazingisa told Mwanaspoti.

“I would have actually liked to see him land then at Simba but in the end, I was overwhelmed by the majority decision. To me, he was the best coach to take over since he is a man who knows his job well.

“I saw his kind of football philosophy and the club he was working for and you know it would not be easy for Barcelona to give anyone a job but in the end, he was trusted with the job.”

Kaze’s reign has been marked by two successive wins which pushed Yanga to the second place, above Simba, after seven matches.

“I am happy we are together at Yanga now and whatever he has done is just proof enough I was right to champion for his services at Simba,” he added.

“I can see that a lot of players have shown improvement and are slowly getting back to their best levels. This has made me happy and remember the coach has been working for just a few days now.”

The administrator also revealed why Yanga had to let go of Krmpotic, who had not lost in five matches.

“Many players were dropping their performance levels and that pained me a lot but now they are on the rise again,” he concluded.

“You know the club and the sponsors signed good players but they did not have the right coach. The players were just performing at an individual level, that was not right and that is the reason we made the quick decision and get a better coach.

“Kaze is the coach who we believe is capable of taking the club to the next level and make Yanga better as they were back in the days.”

Yanga and Simba will clash on November 7 for the first 2020/21 Kariakoo Derby at Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

Samuel Chukwueze was in action as Villarreal played out a 0-0 draw against Cadiz in Sunday’s La Liga game.

The 21-year-old has featured consistently for Unai Emery’s men in the 2020-21 campaign and against Alvaro Cervera’s charges, the winger was handed his seventh league appearance.

The Nigeria international gave a good account of himself during the time he spent on the pitch to help the Yellow Submarine extend their unbeaten run to five games across all competitions.

The game started with both sides aiming to outwit each other but despite their efforts, they failed to find the back of the net.

The best chance of the game fell to Alvaro Negredo in the seventh minute of the encounter and he hit the back of the net, but the strike was ruled out for offside by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).

In an effort to ensure his side secures all three points, manager Emery made some tactical changes, including introducing Chukwueze for Takefusa Kubo in the 62nd minute. 

The Super Eagles forward had 25 touches on the ball, completed one dribble and had a 90% successful pass rate in the encounter.

Chukwueze has made eight appearances across all competitions for the Yellow Submarine in the current campaign and has one assist.

The draw ensured Estadio de la Ceramica outfit are third on the league table after gathering 12 points from seven games.

Chukwueze was promoted to Villarreal’s first team in 2018 and has continued to turn heads with his sizzling displays.

The 21-year-old will hope to feature prominently when his side squares off against Qarabag a Europa League game on October 29.

Zambia will be mentally fit to challenge for glory at the 2020 Cosafa Women's U17 Cup, according to coach Kaluba Kangwa.

The Copper Princesses missed out on a place in the final but settled for the bronze after defeating Botswana 3-0 in the third-place match in the inaugural edition held last year in South Africa.

In the build-up, they have since begun camp preparations three weeks ago ahead of battle with hosts South Africa, Comoros, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Tanzania in this year's edition.

While discussing his side's readiness, the tactician is confident his players will be ready in time for the competition scheduled to be held from November 4-14 in Nelson Mandela Bay.

“Mental strength is what we want them to have but definitely we know that the days are very little, especially dealing with young ones," Kangwa told ZamFoot.  

“Our key focus now is to make sure that we strengthen specific departments of the team, from the goalkeeping to defence, midfield and attack, and perhaps the general coordination of the entire team. 

“There is that difference [in terms of fitness] between those who have been with us because they know what it takes and they still have those elements of fitness around them. The fitness levels will continue improving and improving."

Zambia are the second Southern Africa side to compete at the Fifa U17 Women’s World Cup after South Africa following their appearance at the 2014 edition in Costa Rica.

Despite being poised to guide his side to success, insists his priority remains the development of the players. 

“We are going to be ready for the challenges ahead. Remember that our first priority as U17s at every event is to make sure that we make the progression for the players," he continued. 

They have to grow in the mind, they have to grow on how they are going to play the game. 

"They have to grow in the management of the game itself and besides that our key element is also to make sure that we achieve the goals from the Football Association of Zambia. 

"This goal is to make sure that we mould a team that is going to bring trophies because we want to create a great champion in the hearts of the girls in such a way that we want to make sure that when they graduate to U20 and senior team, they would have been strong champions at heart here.”

Zambia will open their campaign against South Africa at The Oval on November 4 and take on Tanzania two days later before squaring up against Comoros and Zimbabwe. 

Raheem Sterling has said he wants to be a “helping hand” by setting up a charity foundation that will offer support to disadvantaged young people across the UK.

The 25-year-old has gone from humble beginnings to become a worldwide star in the Premier League for Manchester City and on the international stage with England.

With that has come great financial reward, though Sterling said he takes no satisfaction from the millions he earns and would rather use some of his wealth to help others, particularly those from poorer backgrounds, citing his own experiences from growing up in London.

The winger wants his foundation to give support to disadvantaged young people, including providing university scholarships and work placements, to promote social mobility and give them a second chance in life they may otherwise have been denied.

His announcement follows on from the efforts of England team-mate Marcus Rashford, whose campaign to try and eradicate child poverty in the UK has drawn widespread acclaim and saw him awarded an MBE by the UK Government over the summer.

Sterling says his foundation would also seek to help those who have benefited from Rashford’s efforts.

“That's me finished with the 'what can happen, what should happen'. Now I'm trying to put into place stuff I can do myself,” Sterling told The Sunday Times.

"Stuff to give young people in the same circumstances I was in another shot. If there is a university they want to go to, football equipment they need, other things. I want to be a helping hand.

"I'm not really fussed about having this million and that million. What will make me happy is seeing I am able to help. Even if it's five people, even if it's one, at least I have helped someone come out of their bubble and experienced that there is something better to England.

"It comes down to, OK, I come from northwest London, I move out of my area - what good is it if I take all I have made in life, my success and just build a big house somewhere? I'm happy, cool, but that's not who I am."

A big Soweto Derby encounter against Kaizer Chiefs is looming for Orlando Pirates which will be their first real test in the new 2020/21 season. 

Bucs players' confidence took a knock as they were frustrated by AmaZulu FC in their opening PSL match of the campaign which ended in a 1-1 draw on Saturday night. 

Coach Josef Zinnbauer felt that his charges were too casual and also lacked confidence in a game which the Buccaneers struggled to create clear-cut chances.

Unlike their Soweto rivals, Chiefs, who succumbed to an embarrassing 3-0 defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns in their league opener on Saturday, Pirates remain undefeated this season.

Bucs started the new term with a 1-0 victory over Cape Town City in the MTN8 quarter-final match courtesy Terrence Dzvukamanja's first-half goal last weekend.

This was before Buccaneers' frailties were exposed by AmaZulu as they failed to hold on to their lead and they could have easily lost the game.

Pirates will now return home to Soweto where they are scheduled to take on coach Steve Barker's Stellenbosch FC on Wednesday night in another league encounter. 

Stellies had to come from behind to hold newly-promoted Swallows FC to a 1-1 draw at home in their opening league match of the new season on Sunday afternoon. 

The 2018/19 National First Division (NFD) champions will now travel to the Mecca of South African football, Orlando Stadium, where they will meet a strong Pirates side. 

The Buccaneers have turned the 2010 Fifa World Cup training ground into a slaughterhouse as they are undefeated in their last 23 league matches at the venue. 

This excludes games which were played in the bio bubble as clubs were not allowed to host matches at their normal home grounds. 

This will be a chance for Zinnbauer's side to build momentum ahead of their eagerly anticipated clash with Chiefs in the MTN8 semi-final first-leg encounter on October 31.

Pirates have a psychological edge against Stellenbosch, who are in their second campaign in the elite league. 

The Buccaneers secured a 1-0 win over the Western Cape-based side in the last meeting between the two teams at Pirates' temporary home ground, Ellis Park Stadium just a month ago. 

A first-half goal by Frank Mhango inspired the Soweto giants to a victory in a league encounter which Bucs dominated as they clinched a top-three finish on the day of the 2019/20 season.

Furthermore, Stellies are among the worst travellers in the PSL having won just three of their 15 away league matches and recorded four draws and eight defeats in the process. 

Pirates will be considered the underdogs against Chiefs heading into the first Soweto Derby game of the campaign. 

Amakhosi are enjoying a three-match unbeaten run against their arch-rivals having recorded three successive wins over Bucs.

This includes the Telkom Knockout Cup clash which Chiefs won on penalties following a draw between the two heavyweights of South African football. 

A win over Stellenbosch would do Pirates a world of good as they need a winning mentality, confidence and belief that they can end Chiefs' recent dominance over them.