Chelsea boss Antonio Conte says Chinese spending power “a danger to every club in the world” as Oscar exit looms December 16, 2016 Chelsea manager Antonio Conte believes every club in the world is under threat of having star players prised away by cash-rich Chinese teams. Blues midfielder Oscar is on the verge of finalising a mooted £50m move to Shanghai SIPG, where he is reportedly set to earn an eye-watering £400,000-a-week. Conte expects to receive a significant proportion [...]
Arsenal star Alexis Sanchez has Barcelona flat seized in Spanish tax investigation December 16, 2016 Alexis Sanchez's luxury Barcelona flat has been seized by Spanish tax authorities as part of an investigation into alleged tax avoidance by footballers in the country. According to reports in Spain, the Spanish Treasury has taken possession of Sanchez's four bedroom apartment, as the Arsenal star is accused of being £3.7m in debt to the government [...]
Joe Marler interview: All players should see a psychologist December 16, 2016 Reinvigorated England prop Joe Marler has urged every professional rugby player to consider seeing a psychologist, having reaped the rewards himself. The 26-year-old revealed in May that he was seeking professional help from a sports psychologist, former Northamptonshire, Gloucestershire and England spin bowler Jeremy Snape, to address a “lack of professional control”. Marler’s admission followed [...]
Why Adam Silver and Sir Philip Craven are my sports leadership heroes of the last 12 months December 15, 2016 If politics entered a post-truth era in 2016, sport entered a post-trust era. So much of sport is about trust – from your teammates to the coaches and medical team to the administrators that govern the game. Slowly but surely trust has been seeping out of the sports we love, and 2016 was the climax of [...]
Alastair Cook asks beleaguered England for one final push as Liam Dawson is primed for Test debut December 15, 2016 England skipper Alastair Cook has vowed to restore some pride as his side bid to escape from the fifth and series-concluding Test with India, which starts in Chennai on Friday, unscathed. The tourists trail the world’s No1-ranked Test side 3-0 following a long and arduous tour, while Cook continues to be dogged by constant speculation over [...]
Star Wars: Rogue One review: A brilliantly gutsy, spectacular spinoff that could have been braver December 15, 2016 While it may not feature Jedis doing backflips or the Millennium Falcon tooling about space, Rogue One: A Star Wars story definitely feels like a Star Wars film. It has a heartbreaking family-based plot, a familiar struggle between the Empire (baddies) and the Rebellion (goodies, kind of) and all manner of weirdo aliens. There's even [...]
Government blocks sale of rare Wedgwood vase December 15, 2016 The culture minister has blocked a rare Josiah Wedgwood vase from leaving the country. The “Basaltes” vase was sold in July to an unnamed bidder for almost half a million pounds. However, it is hoped that an alternative buyer from the UK can raise an equivalent amount of £482,500 (plus £16,500 VAT) in order to [...]
Fifa’s video replay plans thrown into doubt by critical Real Madrid stars Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo December 15, 2016 Fifa's plans to bring video replays into football have been plunged into doubt after Real Madrid stars criticised its use during their 2-0 Club World Cup semi-final win over Mexico's Club America. Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modric blasted the technology currently being trialled by Fifa after the former's injury time goal took nearly a minute to be [...]
Dreamgirls review: Glee star Amber Riley yells the house down in the first Dreamgirls production to come to London December 15, 2016 This is the first time Dreamgirls has been performed in the West End, and it’s a production that’s sure to echo down the years, purely for the diabolical racket it kicks up. The mics might have been turned up to 11 – not necessary in the tiny Savoy Theatre – but the primary source is [...]
Europe’s big guns fire back at Gianni Infantino’s World Cup expansion plans December 15, 2016 Fifa's plans to expand the World Cup to 48 teams have been met with fierce opposition from Europe's biggest clubs who say their stars are already playing too many games. Proposals to expand the World Cup in 2026 from 32 to 48 teams are being backed by Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who favours a format that would [...]