While Usher gears up for his 2024 Super Bowl halftime performance, the singer will lean on his previous experience of hitting the NFL’s biggest stage to help him prepare

Under heavy security, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni on Thursday visited and pledged to improve safety at a Naples suburb where drug traffickers operate largely with impunity, organized crime wields influence and two girls were allegedly raped repeatedly by local youths. Meloni spent a few hours at the invitation of the local parish priest in the Green Park neighborhood in the town of Caivano, where the girls, cousins ages 11 and 12, were allegedly assaulted. The trip was an occasion for Meloni to show that her nearly year-old right-wing government is tough on crime and attentive to people living in largely neglected areas of the country. After meeting with the Rev. Maurizio Patriciello, a school principal and other local figures, Meloni promised that an abandoned, rundown sports complex, the suspected site of some of the alleged rapes, would be repaired and operational by spring. She said 10 million euros ($11 million) have been allocated to repair and make operational the complex, which includes swimming pools and tennis courts. The work will be carried out by the Italian army's engineering corps, and that once the complex reopens, it will be run by police athletic organizations. Meloni decried the alleged rapes as “an inhuman act, an infamous crime that has really shocked everyone." She said there probably “are more stories like this than those that surface in crime news.” Still, “we won't limit ourselves to dutiful condemnation and dutiful solidarity,'' said Meloni, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party has been leading in opinion surveys since her election nearly a year ago. She said her visit to Green Park makes it clear that “no-man's lands cannot exist in Italy." Meloni pledged a crackdown against “criminality, illegality, drugs" and said the number of police and local justice officials will be increased. The Camorra crime syndicate, whose illicit businesses include drug trafficking, holds significant influence in Naples and its suburbs, which include some of Italy's most impoverished areas. “I believe she (Meloni) will keep her word," about the sports center's renaissance, Patriciello said. Residents have complained for years that drugs are openly sold in the neighborhood's squares and streets, even as children pass by on their way to school or play. After the alleged rapes came to the attention of authorities, the cousins were placed in the temporary custody of caregivers while investigators determine if their parents were aware of their whereabouts during the days of the attacks. In 2013, a 6-year-old girl was killed by being thrown from a terrace of one of Green Park's rundown apartment buildings, allegedly by a pedophile who had abused her. The suspect was the companion of her mother's friend, according to Italian news reports. A year earlier, a 3-year-old boy was killed in a fall from an upper-story window of the same building in unclear circumstances. Meloni cited both children's deaths. The Caivano area includes farmlands that were contaminated a decade ago by the Camorra's multibillion-dollar racket involving disposing toxic waste, mainly from industries in the wealthy north that asked no questions about where the garbage went, so long as it was disposed at a fraction of the costs of legal removal. Many parents then marched in protest, fearing that their children's health was compromised from eating local produce. Ahead of Meloni's arrival, there were fears of big protests over her government's drastic slashing of a minimum-income assistance program, which was begun several years ago by populist former Premier Giuseppe Conte. The protests didn't materialize. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Partner of Italy PM Meloni faces backlash over rape comments: ‘Avoid getting drunk’ Italian leader tones down divisive rhetoric but carries on with pursuit of far-right agenda Putin’s forces pushed back by Ukraine counteroffensive after ‘largest’ drone strike

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Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario earned praise from captain Son Heung-min following his key role in their latest victory. Spurs made it four wins in a row after they battled to a 2-1 triumph at Crystal Palace, with Joel Ward’s 53rd-minute own goal and Son’s eighth strike of the campaign enough to earn all three points. Jordan Ayew netted in stoppage time for the hosts, but Ange Postecoglou’s resurgent team held on and Son subsequently paid tribute to summer signing Vicario. Vicario made two crucial early saves to deny Ayew and Odsonne Edouard, and while he missed out on a fifth clean sheet since he displaced Hugo Lloris as the club’s first-choice goalkeeper, he continues to grow his reputation. “Before we score without Vic’s saves we are going behind and when you go behind in this stadium, you know what is going to happen. I think big credit to Vic for making unbelievable saves,” Son told SpursPlay. “I am enjoying every single moment (with Vicario) because he made a good save, is playing out well and it is fantastic to have him behind the goal. “Obviously any game we are going to face chances and shots on target, but when you have Vic behind us you are just very comfortable he is going to make unbelievable saves, which he did. “Big, big credit to Vic today and also the way he play with the feet is fantastic. It brings so much to the team and I am very, very happy to have him in the team.” Vicario has adapted to life in England immediately and been an unsung hero during Tottenham’s ascent to first place in the Premier League. The role of top goalscorer Son has earned more headlines and he netted again on Friday, but only after a brilliant team move. Pape Sarr’s diagonal ball was headed down by Brennan Johnson to James Maddison, who touched back into Johnson’s path and he teed up the Spurs captain for a smart close-range finish. Former Empoli goalkeeper Vicario said: “I think our second goal was a top masterclass of football from the back. Find the spare man and then he (Son) attacks the right space. “It is easy for him to come to the back and score this kind of goal. It is a big situation we work on during the week, so we’re happy for that and we have to keep going, keep improving on that because we can do it. “Of course we enjoy the win, we take the rest of the week and then we go again.” A largely perfect night for Tottenham was rounded off with Rodrigo Bentancur returning from injury to play for the first time since February 11. Bentancur suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage to his left knee in a defeat at Leicester, which curtained a fine individual campaign that had seen him score five times. We couldn't wait to have him back and when he came on I was getting emotional Son Heung-min on Rodrigo Bentancur Captain Son was thrilled to see the midfielder return with a late cameo, he added: “What an unbelievable player. Having him in our squad is kind of like a new signing. “We couldn’t wait to have him back and when he came on I was getting emotional. He is one of my good friends and last year when I suffer with injuries, he was always pushing behind me. “I am really grateful he came back healthy.” Palace boss Roy Hodgson was downbeat about the impact of his substitutes and called for patience with Brazilian attacker Matheus Franca after his home debut off the bench. “They need more time,” Hodgson insisted. “The fact is I feel sorry for Franca. For some reason people have tried to imbue him with qualities that we can’t expect to see from him. “He’s 19 years of age, he has a handful of games in Brazil behind him and now we’re asking him to play against Tottenham, the team that is running away at the top of the Premier League at the moment.” Read More Erik ten Hag admits Man Utd ‘have a way to go’ as they prepare for derby day Luka Doncic scores 49 with four straight three-pointers to beat Brooklyn Texas Rangers win World Series opener in extra innings On this day in 2017: Anthony Joshua beats Carlos Takam to retain world titles Wolves v Chelsea on Christmas Eve means ‘unhappy wife’ for Mauricio Pochettino Matthew Mott wary of ‘raging favourites’ as England look to avoid further shame

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