
On This Day in 2019: Harry Maguire joins Manchester United
Manchester United completed the signing of Harry Maguire from Leicester for £80million on this day in 2019. The England international, then 26, signed a six-year contract at Old Trafford with the option of a further year in a deal that involved a world-record fee for a defender. Maguire was strongly linked with both Manchester clubs but Leicester held out for their valuation and the fee surpassed the £75million Liverpool paid Southampton for Virgil van Dijk in January 2018. Maguire told United’s official website: “I am delighted to have signed for this great club. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Leicester and would like to thank everyone at the club, and the fans, for their fantastic support over the past two seasons. “However, when Manchester United come knocking on your door, it is an incredible opportunity. “From my conversations with the manager, I am excited about the vision and plans he has for the team. It’s clear to see that Ole (Gunnar Solskjaer) is building a team to win trophies. “I am now looking forward to meeting my new team-mates and getting the season started.” Maguire has gone on to make 175 appearances for United, but it has not panned out how he expected when he made the move. His switch to Old Trafford has coincided with a difficult few years for the club and he was only a bit-part player in new boss Erik ten Hag’s first season at the helm. He has been stripped of the captaincy this summer and the subject of bids from other clubs. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live
2023-08-05 13:15

Is Logan Paul accused of scamming investors? WWE star blocks YouTuber who labeled him 'evil'
Mutahar aka SomeOrdinaryGamers criticized Logan Paul for not compensating individuals impacted by the failed NFT project
2023-08-05 12:53

Jake Paul vs Nate Diaz: Prediction for most-awaited August 5 boxing match
In what is anticipated to be a close to sellout, ringside tickets for Jake Paul vs Nate Diaz are priced up to $5K
2023-08-05 12:51

Barcelona landed one Man City star for free - now Pep Guardiola won’t allow another
Pep Guardiola’s intended audience may have been in Barcelona. It often has been, though usually when he was their midfielder, captain or manager. In seven years in Manchester, Guardiola has frequently had to address matters at the Camp Nou, though it was usually only to deny that Lionel Messi was bound for the Etihad Stadium. Now the subject of another saga is a player from his present, not the increasingly distant past. Manchester City’s summers seem to consist of two rituals: lifting the Premier League trophy and then enduring a wait to see if Bernardo Silva stays. The Portuguese’s most persistent admirers are in Catalonia. The other constant is that Barcelona repeatedly refuse to meet City’s asking price. Sometimes they receive no firm proposal while a cash-strapped club with a recruitment policy based on hoping their allure will encourage players to engineer their exit seemingly think they can acquire elite footballers on the cheap. All of which is a cause of some irritation in Manchester. Guardiola has long insisted that he will allow players to leave if they want to go, providing he has enough time to find a replacement and an acceptable sum is recouped. Silva has been tempted to go, although seemingly not to Saudi Arabia. But the season starts with both him and the Bayern Munich target Kyle Walker at the Etihad, with Guardiola vowing to do everything he can to keep them, but with the familiar state of affairs that no one has made a suitable offer for Silva. It remains an unsettling, undermining situation. And so Guardiola seemed to direct a message from Manchester to his old club: in effect, to put up or shut up. “I want to clarify because I know Barcelona reports make up what I say,” he said. “From day one I don't want any players who don't want to be here but I'm an employee. I want to work with guys who want to stay and work with staff and players, but after we have to get a proper offer. If we don't get a proper offer, he's our player and we want him. “If they want him, they will take a plane and come here and talk to our sporting director and CEO to make an agreement because three parts have to be there. For us to buy a player, just because we are Man City it is £10-15m more expensive than other clubs all the time. If people want our really, really important players, first they have to make an offer - and that hasn't happened. When it happens, we will fight to extend the contract and be with us. That has happened with all of our players since day one.” The notion of a City tax in signing players is familiar. Josko Gvardiol, whose arrival should be ratified, will become the second most expensive defender in history, at £77m. Barcelona appear to think tax should be deducted at source, that they should get players for below their market value. City think Silva is worth £80m which, as midfielders such as Declan Rice and Enzo Fernandez have commanded nine-figure sums, may not be excessive; it may have been an understatement when Guardiola said it would cost more than £50m to replace the Portuguese international. City were beneficiaries on one of the few occasions in straitened times when Barcelona, despite their heavy debts, paid a sizeable fee: €55m for Ferran Torres, who has since lost his place in their team. Their powers of persuasion worked on Ilkay Gundogan, who joined on a free transfer. But Barcelona’s difficulties in even registering players is a reason why there has been no bid for Silva this summer, just an extended courtship. Much as Guardiola often praises the midfielder, he has long seemed to have a wanderlust. He may be interested. “When you win the treble, it looks like the job is done,” Guardiola said. “Players who are 32, 33 like Ilkay and Riyad [Mahrez] say we arrived here for Premier Leagues and then people ask about the Champions League [and then they win that]. Some players feel they want a new experience. “I will not be the guy who says no, but they have to make an agreement with the important part of the club, the business. Make a deal and it happens. In the case of Bernardo and Kyle, we talk many times over the last months and even years how important they are, how we want them and we will continue to do so until the end. I don't know what will happen.” The uncertainty is an annual experience but Silva could be still more important now. Gundogan’s departure may allow him to play his preferred role in the middle of midfield. For Guardiola, he is central, in more ways than one. And if Silva has the technical talent to play for Barcelona, it comes with the kind of price tag that, so far, they have been unwilling or unable to match. Read More Pep Guardiola hopes Manchester City complete signing of Josko Gvardiol soon Pep Guardiola keen to avoid ‘difficult’ transfer task after Man City lose ‘incredible players’ Josko Gvardiol set for Manchester City medical after £77.5m deal agreed
2023-08-05 12:51

Jake Paul vs Nate Diaz: Tristan Tate predicts winner ahead of much-awaited boxing match
Nate Diaz and Jake Paul will square off in a thrilling boxing match on August 5
2023-08-05 12:48

DeSantis: Trump's 2020 election fraud theories were 'unsubstantiated'
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday that the "theories" put out by former President Donald Trump and his associates following the 2020 election were "unsubstantiated" and "did not prove to be true."
2023-08-05 12:45

Ukrainian drone strikes are bringing the war home to Russia. What does it mean for the conflict?
Ukrainian drone strikes taking place inside Russia once seemed an unthinkable prospect. But such attacks have become an increasingly common feature of Moscow's war -- with an emboldened Kyiv warning that more will come.
2023-08-05 12:29

Alfonso Rivas, Bryan Reynolds have huge performances as Pirates beat Brewers 8-4
Alfonso Rivas had a three-run homer and a triple among his three hits, leading the Pittsburgh Pirates to an 8-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers
2023-08-05 12:28

Justice Department faces biggest test in its history with election conspiracy case against Trump
The Justice Department is facing the biggest test in its history in the prosecution of former President Donald Trump
2023-08-05 12:24

Russia's war with Ukraine has generated its own fog, and mis- and disinformation are everywhere
On the battlefields of Ukraine, the fog of war plagues soldiers
2023-08-05 12:23

Artificial intelligence is gaining state lawmakers' attention, and they have a lot of questions
State legislatures across the country are rushing to get a handle on fast-evolving artificial intelligence
2023-08-05 12:18

Trump and allies boost calls for Justice Dept. takeover in new attack on democratic institutions
This week's charges against former President Donald Trump for trying to remain in power despite losing the 2020 election have highlighted a new worry about American democracy — increasing calls by Trump and his allies for more control of federal prosecutions
2023-08-05 12:18