The best VPNs for unblocking Disney+
Disney+ is packed full of exciting content that can keep you entertained for absolutely ages,
2023-08-07 18:19
'Sister Wives' Season 18: Where is Meri Brown now? Star claims Kody 'won’t give a crap' as she moves out amid split
Meri Brown revealed how Kody would react when he learned she was moving to Utah
2023-10-02 06:57
Football’s biggest brand? Only one thing can stop the Man City ‘machine’ now
Manchester City were often described as the best team in the world, even before the Champions League that had long eluded them gave them a greater claim to that title. It was more contentious when their chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, called them “the No 1 football brand in the world”. The alternative argument is that City are not even the leading football brand in Manchester. But at a point when Manchester United is up for sale and the Glazers want $6 billion, it was notable that Al Mubarak described the value of the City Football Group as over $6 billion. The picture he painted in his end-of-season address was of financial and footballing success with some of the world’s best executives, scouts and sporting staff. Certainly that description applies to Pep Guardiola. And yet this could not simply be the celebration of a transformation, a 15-year journey from a team who were in the relegation zone at Christmas a few months after Sheikh Mansour’s takeover to one who demolished Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, to the situation where Erling Haaland signed a contract and told Al Mubarak he would win him the Champions League. “To show you where Erling is going, this is the beginning,” Al Mubarak said. “And the scary part, this is just the beginning for him.” In a way, it is just the beginning for City, too: just not quite in the same respect. Al Mubarak said it was “very frustrating” the treble has come against the backdrop of 115 charges by the Premier League. The Emirati promised a “very blunt” response, but only when the legal process has happened. The question if these are tainted, tarnished titles will linger; perhaps forever, certainly until a case is finally heard. Some might argue there is an irony there. Al Mubarak had claimed Sheikh Mansour has given “passion to the club”; that the Champions League final was just the second game the owner had seen in the flesh might suggest he has a different way of showing it but, with his billions, he has been the architect of a rise. But if sportswashing is intended to launder reputations, City instead find their achievements and character impugned. The issues, however, do not surround the all-conquering 2022-23 season as much as how City got here; how they constructed the platform that took them to such heights and whether the financing that allowed them to build to this point amounted to repeated and deliberate breaches of regulations. On the pitch, City attract admiring glances. Al Mubarak claimed that, at a Uefa dinner the night before the Champions League final, he was asked what was special about City. “The winning mentality,” he replied, and that is not something that can simply be bought. He reflected on the hunger of Haaland, who reacted to his five-goal salvo against RB Leipzig by thinking he should have scored seven or eight, and the humility of the World Cup winner Julian Alvarez. He talked about how City have executives that rival clubs are trying to hire and the excellence of their medical staff. “Unheralded heroes,” he said. There was a point to the praise. There is a misconception that City can call upon a vast pool of players. “We have a high-quality small squad,” Al Mubarak countered. “But it’s not what I think is the perception, which is that we operate with a huge squad; that is not the case.” It is partly Guardiola’s preference but they are operating with around 18 top-class options, some of them very expensive, not a cast of thousands, like Chelsea. “People will throw at us, ‘the biggest spenders’, ‘you have the biggest squad,’” he said. Yet City should have few problems with Financial Fair Play now. “Look at our net spend figures,” Al Mubarak added. In a summer when they signed Haaland, they made a transfer-market profit, partly because of the departures of Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko, partly because they banked around £50 million by selling four youth-team products to Southampton. There were years of vast outlay. Now City has become a business with revenue streams. “We have a commercial machine that is one of the best in the world,” Al Mubarak said; some may disagree – many of their sponsorships come from the United Arab Emirates, some from companies connected to Sheikh Mansour – but City’s problem is not the present or the future, but the past and how they got here. For now, they have Guardiola tied up for another two years – Al Mubarak said he was “never concerned” before the Catalan extended his contract – an outstanding team and the opportunity to strengthen it. The outlook should be sunny but there are still clouds on the landscape. Read More Man City chairman vows to give ‘very blunt views’ on FFP charges once concluded Saudi Arabia can help Chelsea solve headache — but talks raise more questions than answers Sportswashing is about to change football beyond anything you can imagine
2023-06-20 19:51
Futures edge up ahead of Fed policy meet, Instacart debut in focus
U.S. stock index futures inched higher on Tuesday ahead of a two-day Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting and
2023-09-19 18:53
Wilson, Simmons lead Denver Broncos to first win over Chiefs since 2015 with a 21-9 thrashing
The Denver Broncos snapped their 16-game skid to the Kansas City Chiefs in a big way
2023-10-30 08:22
Sean Hannity reports on Elise Stefanik's complaint against Judge for ‘biased’ behavior in Trump case, Internet says 'fire him'
Stefanik is claiming that Judge Arthur Engoron, who is overseeing the trial, has exhibited "bias" and shown "peculiar behavior" in the courtroom
2023-11-11 12:45
Is Hailie Jade OK? Eminem’s daughter sparks concern after canceling podcast, says she 'physically can’t record'
Fans of Hailie's podcast sent her kind words and well wishes after she explained on Instagram that she needed to take time off
2023-10-27 20:53
They bought a cheap home in Italy. Then they bought another
One euro homes in Italy are two a penny, so Jeffrey Pfefferle and Leon McNaught bought two. They snapped up their first cheap turnkey property in Mussomeli, Sicily. But the locals were so friendly that they decided to buy another.
2023-09-22 00:50
Inter Miami vs Toronto FC- MLS: TV channel, live stream, team news & prediction
Previewing Inter Miami vs Toronto FC in MLS.
2023-09-20 05:56
'I have no choice!' Lauryn Hill postpones concert to prevent 'serious strain or damage' to her voice
Lauryn Hill was forced to postpone a concert in Philadelphia this week on doctor's orders, to prevent "serious strain or damage" to her vocal cords, but she is still planning to play in Toronto on Thursday (26.10.23).
2023-10-24 15:17
Police say more charges are likely in the massive brawl at the Montgomery riverfront dock. Here's what we know
Police say additional charges are likely as they investigate a large, chaotic caught-on-video brawl at a riverfront dock in Montgomery, Alabama, on Saturday that has so far resulted in arrest warrants for three men.
2023-08-09 14:17
BTS star Jung Kook says solo projects will boost band when they reform
K-Pop superstar Jung Kook says making their own tracks will boost the band's bond when they reform.
2023-07-20 20:59
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