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  Chelsea Set Sights On First Club World Cup Title Chelsea’s Brazilian defender Thiago Silva (3L) celebrates with his teammates and supporters after scoring the second goal during the English Premier League football match between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge in London on January 23, 2022. AFP   Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel will attempt to lead Chelsea to more silverware and a first Club World Cup title as the seven-team competition kicks off Thursday in Abu Dhabi. The European champions fly out to the UAE following Saturday’s FA Cup tie against third-tier Plymouth, and are aiming to become the third English club to win the trophy after Manchester United and Liverpool. “I have to say once you are in it you are pretty excited,” Tuchel told the Chelsea website. “Once you are not in it, it is a competition that has not the highest focus and highest value. It seems like this in Europe, or only for me. “But once you are in it and you start planning it and you see it coming

Man City Sign Argentina Forward Julian Alvarez (FILES) In this file photo taken on November 08, 2021 River Plate’s forward Julian Alvarez controls the ball during their Argentine Professional Football League match against Patronato at the Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires. (Photo by ALEJANDRO PAGNI / AFP)   Manchester City on Monday announced the signing of Argentina forward Julian Alvarez from River Plate on a five-and-a-half-year deal for a reported fee of £14 million ($19 million). The 22-year-old, who has won five senior international caps with Argentina, will remain with River on loan at least until July 2022. Director of football Txiki Begiristain said Premier League leaders City had signed a player with significant potential. “Julian is a player we have monitored for some time,” he said. “He is capable of operating in a number of attacking roles, and we firmly believe he’s one of the best young attacking players in South America. “I am so happy we have managed to bring him to M

  Premier League Clubs Spend Nearly £300 Million In Transfer Window   The empty stadium is pictured ahead of the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium in London on July 15, 2020.   Premier League clubs splashed out nearly £300 million in January — the second-highest amount ever spent in the winter transfer window — boosted by a flurry of late big-money moves. The arrivals of Luis Diaz, Bruno Guimaraes and Rodrigo Bentancur in the last few days of the month lifted the league’s gross spending to £295 million ($398 million) according to figures from finance company Deloitte. January 2018’s figure of £430 million remains the record but this year’s outlay is more than four times higher than last year’s figure of £70 million, when the coronavirus crisis hit budgets. The clubs’ net expenditure –. player purchases less player sales — of £180 million is the highest since the January transfer window was introduced in 2003. The five clubs curr

  Beijing Olympics Begins Torch Relay Amidst COVID-19 Fears File photo of the Beijing Olympic Park, Beijing   The Beijing Winter Olympics torch relay began its truncated journey to Friday’s opening ceremony as China tried to move on from the diplomatic boycotts and Covid fears that have dogged the build-up to the Games. The sport starts later Wednesday with curling, two days before the official opening of an Olympics overshadowed by controversies ranging from rights concerns to Peng Shuai and warnings about snooping by the Chinese government. Adopting the catchphrase “Together for a shared future”, China, its ruling Communist Party and the International Olympic Committee hope all the rancour will be forgotten once the Games get into full swing. When Beijing hosted the 2008 Summer Games, the torch relay took in swathes of China and other countries — where it met protests in places — but this time it will last just three days, ending at the “Bird’s Nest” stadium for the opening ceremony.

  Barcelona Sign Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang   Barcelona have signed former Arsenal captain, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang signing until 2025, the club said on Wednesday.  “It’s Auba time!” declared the club in a tweet which included a video of  Aubameyang declaring “I’m here Barcelona fans! Forza Barca!” “The player will sign a contract until June 30, 2025, with an option to agree departure on June 30, 2023,” said the club on their web site, adding that the deal for the 32-year-old included a 100 million euros ($113 million) buyout clause. “Aubameyang is a remarkably fast striker and has an eye for goal, having racked up over 300 as a professional. His powerful but accurate shooting have made him one of the most feared goal-getters in the European game,” said the statement. is previous club, Arsenal, on Tuesday released Aubameyang. That cleared the way for the striker, who was already in Spain, to sign for Barcelona as a free agent outside the transfer window which closed on Monday night. A

Leaving Arsenal Without Real Goodbye Hurts – Aubameyang   Former Arsenal Striker, Pierre -Emerick Aubameyang has stated that he regrets the circumstances that led to his leaving the North London club as he was unable to say proper goodbyes to teammates.   Aubameyang and manager, Mikel Arteta’s relationship declined after a disciplinary breach by the 32-year-old led to him being stripped of his captaincy and excluded from a  number of matchday squads further signifying his exit rumours The Gunners on Tuesday via a statement announced the termination of the Gabonese contract with the club by mutual consent.  

  Police Release Man Utd’s Mason Greenwood On Bail In this file photo taken on January 10, 2022, Manchester United’s English striker Mason Greenwood gestures during the English FA Cup third round football match between Manchester United and Aston Villa at Old Trafford in Manchester, north-west Englan. Paul ELLIS / AFP   Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood has been released on bail after being questioned over the alleged rape and assault of a young woman, police said on Wednesday. The 20-year-old was arrested on Sunday after images and videos were posted online, and while he was still in custody on Tuesday he was further arrested on suspicion of sexual assault and threats to kill. Greater Manchester Police have not named the footballer, but said: “A 20-year-old man arrested on Sunday, January 30, 2022, on suspicion of the rape and assault of a woman has been released on bail pending further investigation.” A spokeswoman for the force confirmed to AFP: “The man has been released on

  Mason Greenwood: Man Utd footballer further arrested over sex assault Published Share IMAGE SOURCE, GETTY IMAGES Image caption, The 20-year-old striker, who made his debut for the club in March 2019, was arrested on Sunday Manchester United footballer Mason Greenwood has been further arrested on suspicion of sexual assault and making threats to kill. The 20-year-old was arrested on suspicion of rape and assault on Sunday. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said it had been granted more time to question him having previously been given an extension on Monday. Manchester United have said he will not play for the club until further notice. GMP said the player was arrested on Sunday after the force "became aware of online social media images and videos posted by a woman reporting incidents of physical violence". It said magistrates had granted a second extension to keep him in custody until Wednesday. A force spokesman said inquiries were ongoing and a woman was being "offere

  Nato members wary of burning bridges with Russia Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has also been been travelling to Eastern and Central Europe, trying to rally support among Nato allies to send a strong message to Russia. Speaking in Croatia, Wallace said they were “absolutely united” in addressing Russia’s build up of military forces on the border of Ukraine, which he said were a “very grave cause for concern”. Croatia’s defence minister said “dialogue and diplomacy are the best weapons for de-escalating tensions”. But while there may be shared concerns about Russia’s intentions, this round of diplomacy has revealed differences too. Last week the country’s president said in the event of a Russian attack “Croatia should get away from it like a fire” and that Ukraine had no place in Nato. His comments were slapped down by Croatia’s prime minister. But it illustrates some of the strains within Nato members who are wary of burning bridges with Russia.

  Russia-Ukraine tensions: Zelensky praises allied response Published Share Related Topics Ukraine conflict IMAGE SOURCE, TASS/GETTY IMAGES Image caption, MPs in the Rada held up flags of countries that had offered help to Ukraine Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has praised Western backing in the face of Russia's military build-up and announced an expansion of the army. "Support for Ukraine is the biggest since 2014," he told MPs on a day of visits by British, Polish and Dutch leaders. Top US and Russian officials are due to hold fresh talks on the crisis. Mr Zelensky told parliament a new "format of political co-operation" was being created with the UK and Poland. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said it would cover security as well as trade, investment and energy. Speaking in Kyiv, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki promised defensive weaponry including drones and anti-aircraft missiles but also humanitarian aid. Poland has said it is prep