Sport
I’ve refereed Cristiano Ronaldo matches a number of times… Man Utd legend is very difficult and complains a lot
A HONDURAN referee has lifted the lid on a heated exchange he had with a “difficult” Cristiano Ronaldo after revealing what it’s truly like to manage the superstar on the pitch.
One of the spats ended with the Portuguese striker later offering a sincere apology.
Said Martinez has officiated a number of games involving Ronaldo throughout his career.
And he has now recounted one particularly edgy incident involving the former Man Utd and Real Madrid star.
Martinez claimed that he was refereeing an Al-Nassr game when he disallowed two of the 39-year-old’s goals for offside.
An irate Ronaldo reportedly made his feelings surrounding the quality of Martinez’s officiating known.
Martinez told Mexican outlet Mediotiempo: “Cristiano Ronaldo is very difficult due to his temperament.
“He is a very competitive person, which makes him feel there’s a lot of injustice towards him, so he complains a lot.
“We disallowed two goals for him, with VAR and everything, but there was a play that upset him because he felt he was fouled in attack, leading to a goal against them. They were losing.
The 33-year-old added: “He stayed 10 metres away from me and said: ‘It’s always the same with you lot, you always think you’re the stars.
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“‘But we don’t bring you here to be the stars, we are the stars’, in perfect Spanish.
“He started calmly but then got agitated and I just looked at him provocatively to see if he would get closer to me, but he didn’t.”
However the Fifa-accredited official spoke to Ronaldo about their disagreement in the tunnel after reviewing the incidents.
The referee said: “After checking the VAR, I asked him to come closer. Cristiano is Cristiano, and if he doesn’t want to come, he won’t.
“But he came over to where I was and I said to him: ‘You’re a great player, but what you said at half-time isn’t right. I respect you a lot, but we’re here to do our job just like you are’.
“He replied: ‘Yes, you’re right; it wasn’t the right way to express myself. I apologise’.”
Ronaldo’s ultimate expression of regret speaks volumes about his sporting personality.
Martinez then revealed that the Portugal captain left him alone in the second half and went on to score a stunning free-kick.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo has received 12 red cards in his career.
Of those, eight were direct red cards and four dismissals have come through double yellow cards.
The former Juventus star was booked for dissent during Portugal’s defeat to Georgia in Euro 2024.
Sport
Winter Olympics 2026: Curler Bruce Mouat targets gold in Italy
He is clearly benefitting from his period of reflection and the improvements made in that time – with the ultimate aim of Olympic gold in Italy in 2026.
“I guess there are a lot of small things I could have done better – I really could have eaten better to fuel myself, I could have probably worked harder in the gym,” he said.
“Curling has probably got a bad reputation for people thinking you don’t need to go to the gym – but you do, for a lot of reasons.
“I am going to Switzerland next week and there is the potential to play 18 games in the space of six days, so that is a lot of impact on your body.
“Each game takes about an hour and a half, you burn about 1,000 calories every time you play – if you are burning up to 3,000 calories every day, you have to eat a lot more to fuel yourself.
“So there were a lot things I needed to educate myself on and I was lucky to work with a nutritionist to get that information and understand why I need to eat more and what I need to eat to get those slow-burning carbs.”
While their selection has still to be confirmed, Mouat’s rink look set to get the chance to defend their European title in Finland in November.
That marks the start of a huge 16 months he hopes will end with Winter Olympic glory in Milan.
“We have got a few targets,” Mouat added. “We want to get back to the Europeans and defend that title, we then want to be the team that is selected for the Worlds and we want to be able to win that like we did in 2023.
“Then we are hopefully going to be selected for the Olympics. We got silver last time, so if we do one better, it would be amazing.
“We are good enough, we are proving that this year, but it is not about accepting we have put in the hard work and it is all going to pay off. We have to continue doing that – then we can definitely aim for that gold at the Olympics.”
Sport
Karren Brady: The Premier League is the envy of world football.. now Man City’s rivals must fight to save it THIS WEEK
PREMIER LEAGUE meetings are usually cordial, professional and unobtrusive affairs.
All 20 clubs, plus their executives, sit in a room and ignore the massive elephant that also lurks in every meeting — the ongoing litigation and the £50million-plus of legal costs racked up fighting and defending claims.
But at the League meeting next week that elephant is going to get an introduction, as we have just tripped over his trunk.
Manchester City versus the Premier League feels like a boxing match, where at the end of the final round both fighters put their hands up claiming the victory.
If the judges of this heavyweight bout were the public, then City would be clear winners.
They not only have the world’s best team on the pitch but also have the best off it too.
Their PR and media team got their message across while making the Prem’s set-up look like a lower league outfit by comparison.
But it’s not the public or the media the Premier League has to worry about.
It’s the clubs, the rules that govern them and what on earth happens now.
Next week’s meeting is to decide exactly that.
Man City vs the Premier League: Q&A
By Martin Lipton
BOTH Manchester City and the Premier League were claiming a win after their legal scrap over Associated Party Transactions.
SunSport sifts the claims to try to explain the latest issues.
What was the case about?
City were furious that Prem bosses brought in new tougher regulations – by the smallest possible majority under League rules – in February. They were aimed at blocking clubs bypassing financial controls by earning “unfair” amounts via sponsorship from a company with the same owners, or selling players on the cheap to teams under the same ownership umbrella.
Why were City so upset?
The Etihad club argued that the rules were illegal and had been deliberately aimed at them by rivals and were both flawed and politically driven. They also branded the “two thirds support” rule that has been part of Prem regulations since its inception as a “tyranny of the majority”
This was an Arbitration Tribunal – explain that?
Under Prem rules, any club has the right to ask for Arbitration if they are unhappy about the regulations or due process. The three retired judges heard evidence in June and their full ruling was distributed to the 20 Prem clubs on Monday afternoon.
And what did they say?
Depending on who you listen to, they either totally vindicated one side or the other. The actual answer is that there were “wins” for both City and the Prem. But it’s your choice which ones meant more.
OK, what were City’s wins?
Maybe the most important one in terms of the repercussions. That both the new rules and the previous version – brought in after Saudi Arabia’s PIF bought Newcastle in 2021 – were “unlawful” as they exclude shareholder loans to clubs in any APT calculations. City also won over their claims that the rulebook prevented them from responding to Prem decisions over whether two proposed deals with Abu Dhabi companies represented “Fair Market Value”, access to the “databank” of comparable deals and the time it took for decisions to be reached.
That sounds pretty big. So what about the Prem’s side?
The key finding as far as the League is concerned is that the Tribunal backed the concept of APT rules as well as the Fair Market Value tests. Additionally, City’s challenges to the actual decisions on the two proposed deals “failed”. Prem bosses insist the “rulebook has been found to comply with competition and public law standards and is an effective and necessary system”.
Is that it, then?
Of course not. That shareholder loan issue is a big deal, given that it is believed owners have loaned around £1.5bn at low or preferential rates across the Prem. Those loans will almost certainly have to be calculated at commercial rates now, unless the owners convert them into shares. But the League is convinced the main thrust of the rules remains valid.
And what will be the impact on the “115 charges” case?
Probably nothing. That is an allegation of breaking the rules, while this matter was City questioning whether one small element of the current rulebook was legitimate. But City are using the same legal team, headed by £10,000 per hour Lord Pannick KC. And the stakes on the bigger case are a great deal higher.
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But how did we get here?
Most supporters have never heard of the term APT — Associated Party Transactions — or knew about the new rules regulating them when they came into play in 2021.
APT rules were accepted by the majority of clubs — although by no means all — and were put in place to ensure that all clubs’ sponsorship deals reflect a true and fair market value.
It was hoped to prevent clubs from earning revenue through inflated sponsorship deals from companies related to their owners.
This is important, as the value of sponsorship and other commercial revenue is used to offset the costs of the clubs, like player salaries, agent fees and the manager, which leaves you with a number, usually a loss.
If you go over the League’s number of what they consider to be an acceptable loss — as Everton and Nottingham Forest did — you get a fine, a points deduction or possibly both.
So, the higher your sponsorship, the higher your costs can be and the less you get into trouble.
City challenged the legality of these rules, alleging the APT Rules breach competition and public law and the League’s application of the rules also breached public law standards.
The Prem claims the three-man Arbitration Tribunal endorsed the overall objective of their rules.
No one wants it to become a competition between too few clubs, usually by rich ones who can afford multiple multi-million transfers and top wages.
They also agreed that if the price of an APT is evidently not at fair market value — what anyone else OTHER than the party connected with the owner would have paid — then the competition will be distorted as the club would be benefitting from what effectively is a subsidy.
The Prem needs a financial system to ensure that football is, remains and will always be competitive.
The undiminished competitiveness of the Premier League is the envy of every other foreign league and club and the reason why our top-flight is the best in the world.
No one wants it to become a competition between too few clubs, usually by the rich ones who can afford multiple multi-million transfer fees and top wages.
So next week clubs have to agree to make the necessary changes to the APT rules to address the Tribunal’s concerns.
This requires 14 votes — at least 14 clubs have to agree — or the whole system is thrown into chaos.
It needs to be so that the system can continue to be effective.
We must stop clubs spending whatever they like to get an unbeatable team and create an uncompetitive league.
Sport
Boxing: Conor Benn pushes Chris Eubank Jr in Saudi Arabia altercation
Conor Benn launched a foul-mouthed tirade at Chris Eubank Jr and pushed his fellow Briton in the chest during an altercation in Saudi Arabia.
The pair were set to meet in October 2022 – 30 years after their fathers Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank Sr fought – but the bout was cancelled after Benn failed two voluntary doping tests.
Eubank Jr takes on Poland’s Kamil Szeremeta on Saturday in Riyadh. The 35-year-old came face-to-face with Benn, 28, on Friday.
“You’re lucky you’re fighting tomorrow,” Benn told Eubank Jr before taking off his sunglasses and stepping closer to his rival.
“I’ll see you tomorrow after the fight. I’ll get in that ring and give it to you.”
Benn continued with the foul language, warning a member of security – who placed his arm between the boxers – to take his hand away.
A smiling Eubank said: “It’s OK, let him come close, I like this energy,” before being shoved in the chest by Benn.
Eubank Jr labelled him “a kid”, with Benn then accusing him of arrogance.
MMA
Beterbiev vs. Bivol Results: Live updates of the undercard and main event
MMA Fighting has Beterbiev vs. Bivol results live for the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol fight card at Freedom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday afternoon.
When the main event begins around 6 p.m. ET, check out our Beterbiev vs. Bivol live round-by-round updates for our live blog of the main event. Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol square off to determine the undisputed light heavyweight champion.
Artur Beterbiev (20-0) is the WBO, IBF, and WBC light heavyweight champion. Beterbiev has only fought once this year when he knocked out Callum Smith in the seventh round this past January.
Dmitry Bivol (23-0) is the WBA light heavyweight champion. Bivol knocked out Malik Zinad in the sixth round in his only fight of the year in June.
Check out Beterbiev vs. Bivol results below.
Main Event (ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET)
Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol — for the IBF, WBC, WBO and WBA light heavyweight titles
Undercard (DAZN at 12 p.m. ET)
Fabio Wardley vs. Frazer Clarke
Jai Opetaia vs. Jack Massey — for Opetaia’s IBF cruiserweight title
Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Kamil Szeremeta
Skye Nicolson vs. Raven Chapman — for Nicolson’s WBC featherweight title
Ben Whittaker vs. Liam Cameron
Mohammaed Alakel vs. Jesus Gonzalez
Marco Maric vs. Christian Lopez Flores
Sport
Cricket great Derek ‘Deadly’ Underwood left family more than £800,000 in his will
CRICKET great Derek Underwood left more than £800,000 in his will, probate documents reveal.
England’s most successful spinner — nicknamed Deadly — bequeathed the money to his family.
The star, who died in April aged 78, left £826,000, reduced to £823,000 after debts and costs were deducted.
Wife Patricia Cheeseman was given £50,000 in cash, as well as his home and car.
The remainder was given to his daughters, Fiona and Heather, from his marriage to first wife Dawn Sullivan.
Left-armer Derek took 297 wickets in 86 Tests between 1966 and 1982.
Before the use of covers Underwood was considered unplayable on wet pitches and inspired England to a famous win over Australia at The Oval after the crowd helped mop up the field.
Placid on and off the field, he was known as an unlikely ladies man.
Kent and England team-mate Brian Luckhurst joked that Derek was the only man his wife would leave him for.
Sir Geoffrey Boycott said of his friend: “I don’t know anybody that could play him or hit him after it had rained on those pitches.
“Derek was a one-off, brilliant, extraordinary bowler – unique. There was nobody else like him in English cricket.”
Flags flew at half-mast at grounds across the country to salute the left-armer who, although a spinner, bowled at speeds above 70 miles per hour.
SPIN KING
DEREK Underwood is a legendary figure in cricket thanks to his exploits with England and Kent.
The spinner earned the nickname ‘Deadly’ thanks to the havoc he used to wreak on wet pitches.
There was even a saying that England would carry Underwood “like an umbrella in case of rain”.
Although he was listed as a slow left-armer, he often bowled at medium pace with unerring accuracy and boasted a lethal inswinging arm ball.
Underwood took 296 wickets in 86 Tests for England and was ranked the world’s No1 bowler from September 1969 to August 1973.
He retired in 1987 at the age of 42 having taken almost 2,500 wickets.
Appointed as an MBE in 1981, Wisden named him in a XI of England’s greatest post-war cricketers in 2004.
Underwood was one of six English cricketers to feature in World Series Cricket and also went on the rebel tour of South Africa.
MMA
Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol live round-by-round updates
MMA Fighting has Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol live round-by-round updates for one of the most anticipated boxing fights of the year at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday night.
The main event is expected to begin around 6 p.m. ET on ESPN+. Check out our Beterbiev vs. Bivol results page to find out what happened on the undercard.
Artur Beterbiev (20-0) is the WBO, IBF, and WBC light heavyweight champion. Beterbiev has only fought once this year when he knocked out Callum Smith in the seventh round this past January.
Dmitry Bivol (23-0) is the WBA light heavyweight champion. Bivol knocked out Malik Zinad in the sixth round in his only fight of the year in June.
Get the Beterbiev vs. Bivol round-by-round live blog below:
Round 1:
Round 2:
Round 3:
Round 4:
Round 5:
Round 6:
Round 7:
Round 8:
Round 9:
Round 10:
Round 11:
Round 12:
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