'You became one of my closest friends in football'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
30 minutes ago
- BBC News
Charity Shield: Linfield take on Dungannon Swifts
Update: Date: 19:43 BST Title: What they said Content: Linfield v Dungannon Swifts (19:45 BST) Linfield defender Euan East: "Spirits are high in the camp and we want to get going again and try to retain what we did last year. "It's good to get into a competitive game so quickly. You need that competitive edge to a game that that will give us. It's a good way to start the season. "Dungannon always give you a hard game and we know they will always be up for it." Dungannon winger Thomas Maguire: "It's a bit of a bonus having this game to look forward to. It's not a friendly, there's something to play for against good opposition on a good pitch with something on the line. "Everyone is looking forward to the game and then just kicking on and hopefully it will stand us in good stead for Europe." Update: Date: 19:39 BST Title: Team news Content: Linfield v Dungannon Swifts (19:45 BST) The first team news of the season is in! For David Healy's side, Chris Johns is back between the sticks having been dropped in favour of David Walsh midway through last season while Jamie Mulgrew wears the armband as usual. Rodney McAree gives three players their competitive debut as Peter Maguire, Tiernan Kelly and Mal Smith all start with Gael Bigirimana captaining the side after Dean Curry's retirement at the end of last season. Linfield: Johns, East, Millar, Allen, Hall, Archer, Mulgrew (C), McGee, Fitzpatrick, Morrison, Orr Substitutes: Walsh, Roscoe, Whiteside, Shields, Offord, McKee, Brown, McCullough, Annett, McKay Dungannon Swifts: Dunne, P. Maguire, Marron, Galvin, Dillon, Glenny, Kelly, T. Maguire, Smith, Wallace, Bigirimana (C) Substitutes: Henderson. Glass, S. Scott, J. Scott, King, Boyd, Alves, McGinty, McAleese, McAllister Linfield v Dungannon Swifts Update: Date: 19:36 BST Title: How did they get here? Content: Linfield v Dungannon Swifts (19:45 BST) Linfield secured their place in this year's Charity Shield by emphatically lifting the Gibson Cup for a record-extending 57th time. The Blues built an unassailable lead before the five sets of post-split fixtures and finished 22 points ahead of second-placed finishers Larne. The south Belfast side go into the game boosted by the news that manager David Healy has signed a three-year extension to his contract as boss. Dungannon followed up their hugely impressive fourth-place finish in the Premiership by collecting the Irish Cup for the first time in their history. The early-May decider with holders Cliftonville ended in a 1-1 draw after extra time, but Rodney McAree's side prevailed 4-3 in a penalty shootout. Update: Date: 19:31 BST Title: Here we go Content: Linfield v Dungannon Swifts (19:45 BST) It feels like yesterday the Irish Premiership season came to a close, but a new campaign is now upon us. It's time for the Charity Shield to kick things off and Iris Cup winners Dungannon Swifts take on runaway Irish Premiership champions Linfield. We'll have live updates right here so you can follow along. Thanks for joining us.
South Wales Argus
31 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
Family and friends gather at Diogo Jota's wake as queue forms outside chapel
The father of three, who married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso 11 days before the accident, was killed alongside his brother, Andre Silva, after a Lamborghini they were travelling in burst into flames following a suspected tyre blowout in the early hours of Thursday morning. The brothers' parents attended the Sao Cosme Chapel, the Capela da Ressurreicao, in the town of Gondomar near Porto on Friday, with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, Prime Minister Luis Montenegro and Jota's agent also among attendees. Some mourners embraced and cried before entering the venue as floral tributes of yellow and white and candles were lain by a tree outside. People cried as they made their way to pay their respects (PA) People held service sheets featuring pictures of both brothers, the largest one showing Jota smiling in his Liverpool FC shirt and making a heart sign with his hands. One man came to pay his respects wearing a Liverpool top. The wake comes ahead of their funeral, which parish priest at the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar in Sao Cosme, Jose Manuel Macedo, said would begin at 10am on Saturday. Liverpool Football Club postponed the return of players for pre-season following Jota's death, as a number of players past and present paid tribute. The club's manager, Arne Slot, said the 'sense of shock is absolute', adding: 'He was a loved one to all of us.' Former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson returned to Anfield with flowers and a club scarf on Friday as he paid his own tribute to Jota. A sea of floral tributes had been left outside the ground, with many Liverpool fans and supporters of other clubs looking to pay their respects. Flags have been lowered to half-mast at the stadium and all club stores, museums and tours have been closed until Monday, with staff offered wellbeing support. Liverpool forward Mo Salah said the loss has made the prospect of returning to the club frightening. One man wore a Liverpool shirt to pay his respects (PA) He shared a black and white picture of him and Jota hugging on the pitch on social media, saying: 'I am truly lost for words. 'Until yesterday, I never thought there would be something that would frighten me of going back to Liverpool after the break. 'Team mates come and go but not like this. It's going to be extremely difficult to accept that Diogo won't be there when we go back.' Jota and Silva were both found dead after the car crashed on the A-52 in Palacios de Sanabria near the city of Zamora at 12.40am on Thursday. Police said they were investigating the possibility that the Lamborghini left the road because of a tyre blowout while overtaking, and a source from the government sub-delegation in Zamora confirmed 'a possible speeding incident' was being looked at. Jota was killed in a car crash on Thursday (Mike Egerton/PA) Pictures of the aftermath of the crash showed debris scattered along the side of the road including what appeared to be charred parts of the vehicle. No other vehicles are said to have been involved in the incident. The club has opened physical and digital books of condolence in the wake of the deaths, and supporters and members of the public can go to the Anfield Road Stand reception area over the coming days to sign a message. The online book can be found at
The Guardian
34 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Thomas Partey: the former Arsenal midfielder facing five rape charges
For the first time since Thomas Partey left his home town of Krobo Odumase in eastern Ghana at the age of 11, he woke on Tuesday without a club. Three days later the midfielder, who had departed Arsenal after his contract expired, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. What happens next with Partey's career will be determined by the outcome of legal proceedings scheduled to start with his appearance at Westminster magistrates court on 5 August. The allegations relate to three women who reported incidents between 2021 and 2022. Partey denies all the charges and 'welcomes the opportunity to finally clear his name', his lawyer said. Partey, 32, had been linked with moves to Spain, Turkey and Saudi Arabia in recent weeks after talks over extending his Arsenal contract hit an impasse, even though Arsenal's manager, Mikel Arteta, had insisted in May that he wanted him to stay. 'Consistency-wise it's been his best season,' Arteta said. 'The way he's played, performed, his availability, has been exceptional and he's a really important player for us.' Partey joined Arsenal from Atlético Madrid in a record fee paid for a Ghanaian player – £45m – in October 2020. He struggled with injuries during his first two seasons at the Emirates but became a regular during the 2022-23 campaign when Arsenal finished as runners up behind Manchester City. A hamstring injury in November 2023 kept Partey out for most of the following season before he emerged as a key performer last season at the base of Arsenal's midfield. The impending arrival of Martín Zubimendi from Real Sociedad in a £51m deal that has been in the pipeline since January affected Partey's status as a first choice, with the Spain international expected to line up alongside Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice in a recalibrated midfield. Partey is understood to have been offered a new deal on slightly reduced terms and confirmation of his departure came with Arsenal having agreed a fee that could rise to £15m to bring in Brentford's Christian Nørgaard as his replacement. Partey made 52 appearances last season. Arsenal will face questions about whether it was appropriate for him to have continued playing while being investigated by the police over such serious allegations. Partey moved to Europe after being spotted playing for Ashaiman Revelation FC in Accra as a teenager. 'I played for them until I was 18, which is when I moved to Spain,' Partey told Arsenal's website. 'But that was the club I grew up at as a footballer. We had a good, young, talented team at the time, and I still have a few mates from that time who are now playing elsewhere in Europe. They are not at the very top now but they are still playing and I still talk with them a lot.' He was encouraged to attend trials in Spain by his father, who coached him as a junior, and joined Leganés before moving to Atlético in 2012. The tough-tackling player was sent on loan to Mallorca and Almería before eventually making his debut for Diego Simeone's side in 2015. He made almost 200 appearances for Atlético and was part of the side beaten in the 2016 Champions League final by Real Madrid before winning the Europa League two years later. Partey has played 52 times for his country, scoring nine goals. Ghana confirmed last month that Partey had been 'given a break by head coach Otto Addo' after he wasn't included in their squad for the Unity Cup tournament in London. He also missed their Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Angola and Niger last November after holding 'confidential' talks with Addo. Partey has represented Ghana at three Afcon finals and the 2022 World Cup, where they were eliminated in the group stages. He remains one of the country's most famous figures.
