NEW DELHI: One of DR Congo’s most famous football supporters finally got his moment at the FIFA World Cup on Tuesday.Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, better known as Lumumba Vea, attended DR Congo’s match against Colombia after missing the team’s opening game against Portugal because of Ebola-related quarantine requirements.The supporter became a global sensation during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, where he spent entire matches standing completely still like a statue. Dressed in colourful suits and holding one arm in the air, he quickly caught the attention of television cameras and football fans around the world.Ahead of the Colombia match at Estadio Akron, Mboladinga arrived early and took his place behind the DR Congo bench. Wearing a bright red jacket and tie, a yellow shirt and blue trousers, he once again transformed himself into a “living statue”, standing motionless on a pedestal with his right arm raised.Although he did not speak to reporters, he smiled and nodded when asked if he was happy to finally be at the World Cup.His journey to the tournament has not been straightforward. Earlier this year, Mboladinga also missed DR Congo’s World Cup playoff against Jamaica because he could not secure a visa in time. He had travelled to Kenya and Ethiopia in an attempt to obtain the necessary documents, but was unable to make it to the match.His appearance is a tribute to Patrice Lumumba, DR Congo’s first Prime Minister and one of the country’s most important historical figures.
Lumumba played a key role in ending Belgian colonial rule in 1960 and became the leader of the newly independent nation. However, he was assassinated less than a year later during political unrest linked to a separatist movement in the Katanga region.Mboladinga’s raised arm, formal clothing and still posture are all inspired by monuments and images of Lumumba, which is why he is widely known as Lumumba Vea.His unique support has made him one of the most recognisable fans in international football and a symbol of DR Congo’s passion for the game.After missing the opening match against Portugal, many supporters were delighted to finally see the famous “statue fan” take his place in the stands at the World Cup.
Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant recently issued a three-word blunt response to Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) farewell post. Incidentally, Pant was traded to his former team, Delhi Capitals (DC), in a high-profile deal that sent star spinner Kuldeep Yadav to LSG.
Pant’s trade ends a disappointing two-year stint with the Super Giants after he joined the franchise for a staggering INR 27 crore ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, making him the most expensive player at the time.
However, he didn’t look at his usual best during his career with Lucknow. The franchise also failed to make it to the playoffs in both seasons under his leadership. They even finished last in IPL 2026, winning only four out of 14 matches.
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Thus, an exit was inevitable. After his departure from LSG, the franchise posted a farewell message on their social media handle. Pant responded with a three-word message, saying:
Pant also struggled miserably with the bat during his two seasons with the franchise. Across both seasons with LSG, he accumulated 555 runs in 27 matches, including a hundred against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in 2025.
Rishabh Pant takes a massive INR 12 crore pay cut to join Delhi
The 28-year-old cricketer took a huge INR 12 crore pay cut to join his former franchise, Delhi, for INR 15 crore. He spent nine seasons with the Capitals between 2016 and 2024 before joining Lucknow.
He was a cornerstone for the franchise and played multiple match-winning knocks. The southpaw scored 3,284 in 111 matches at a strike rate of 35.31, including one hundred and 18 half-centuries.
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Pant was a highly successful team leader, posting a strong win percentage during his tenure as captain. He has captained Delhi in 43 matches, leading the team to 23 wins and 20 losses. His best outing as a leader came in IPL 2021, when DC finished atop the points table but lost the Qualifier to Kolkata Knight Riders.
You have to give Jazz Chisholm Jr. this much: he’s never boring. Monday night, the Yankees second baseman made headlines when television cameras caught him with a lollipop in his mouth while playing the field. While playing the field with the Yankees down 4-1 in the fifth inning, specifically. Up big in a blowout? Maybe that flies. Not down in the middle of the game, though.
“I talked to him about it and it should be over with,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Tuesday, adding he didn’t know Chisholm played with the lollipop until after Monday’s game (via MLB.com). “I mean, let’s face it. I was annoyed by it. I addressed it. And at the end of the day, it’s not that big of a deal.”
Chisholm said the conversation between him and Boone will remain private. Monday was the second time he played with a lollipop this season, it should be noted. He had one in his mouth during an at-bat against the Red Sox in April. Chisholm did not have to make a play on the ball while sucking on the lollipop Monday.
Sure enough, the spotlight again found Chisholm on Tuesday. He clubbed a go-ahead two-run home run against the Tigers in the top of the sixth inning, then made sure to show the bucket of lollipops to the camera when he got back to the dugout. To the action footage:
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Chisholm started the season slowly and did not hit his first home run until New York’s 25th game on April 23. Tuesday’s homer was his 12th in 52 games since, and his sixth in the last 18 games.
In an effort to snap out of his early season slump last month, Chisholm began using his Giancarlo Stanton’s pants and, eventually, Aaron Judge’s bats as well. “Definitely didn’t ask him. Like a big brother, little brother thing,” he joked when asked about using Judge’s bat.
This is Chisholm’s second full season with the Yankees. He was acquired from the Marlins at the 2024 trade deadline. Last season Chisholm joined Bobby Bonds and Alfonso Soriano as the only 30-30 players in Yankees history. He will be a free agent after this season.
The FIFA World Cup has transformed North America into the center of the soccer world.
For nearly two weeks and counting, fans from around the globe have poured into the United States, Canada and Mexico, filling stadiums, fan festivals and watch parties across the 16 host cities.
Former Texas Tech and Indianapolis Colts offensive lineman Cody Campbell joined Fox News Channel’s “The Will Cain Show” on Tuesday. During the wide-ranging conversation, Campbell expressed optimism about the way international visitors have embraced some of the best the United States has to offer during the World Cup.
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“It’s great to have everybody here. And I’ve loved the comments on social media from people from around the world just saying how nice and how surprised they were with how great the United States is. Because I don’t think we’re portrayed that way in international media. So it’s a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase the whole country.”
Norway fans perform the Viking row in Times Square in New York on June 21, 2026, ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match against Senegal.(John Sibley/Reuters)
Campbell, who advises President Donald Trump on college sports issues, was asked about the Protect College Sports Act and its path to the Senate floor as the legislation continues to move forward.
“The Protect College Sports Act is the first viable college sports bill that has made it out of committee in either house. At this point, it’s our far and last and only chance to restore some measure of order and stop the chaos in [the] college sports landscape. You’re going to look at the high (level) things, limiting transfers, limiting eligibility, finding ways to get actual control over (the) ability to enforce rules. But it does a lot more than that, it thinks about the future of college sports and how those look. We know how much it’s changed over the last decade or so and so the bill has built into it provisions that will allow us to actually address what happens next.”
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Cody Campbell stands backstage during ESPN’s College GameDay at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, on Nov. 8, 2025.(John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., have spearheaded the Protect College Sports Act. The legislation would grant the NCAA a limited antitrust exemption, allowing the governing body to enforce restrictions on athlete compensation.
A Senate panel approved legislation supporters say would bring stability to college sports as critics warn it expands federal involvement.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The bill also addresses eligibility and transfer rules across college athletics.
The proposal could pave the way for colleges and universities to consolidate their media rights under a single entity, replacing the current conference-by-conference structure.
Neymar Jr. training in Brazil camp (Image: @CBF_Futebol/X)
Brazil fans have received mixed news ahead of their FIFA World Cup 2026 clash against Scotland on Thursday. Brazil head coach Carlo Ancelotti confirmed that Raphinha will miss Brazil’s final group-stage match against Scotland on Wednesday (local time), while also revealing that Neymar is fully fit and available to play the entire game if required.Raphinha was forced off in the 40th minute of Brazil’s 3-0 victory over Haiti in their previous group-stage fixture after suffering an injury. Despite the setback, the Barcelona winger remained optimistic about his recovery, posting on Instagram that he would “do everything in my power to recover and return as soon as possible.”With Raphinha unavailable, Ancelotti indicated that Neymar is likely to take his place, stressing that the veteran forward is ready to play a full 90 minutes if needed.“We’re thinking of nothing else but playing a good match with the best possible line-up; the same goes for the forwards,” Ancelotti said via Globo, as quoted by The Athletic.“Neymar is available, he trained very well this week, he is fit, ready to play, and we are very happy he is back. He is a high-quality player” Ancelotti added.The Brazilian coach further explained that Neymar could either start the match or be introduced from the bench, depending on the team’s needs.“He can play from half-time or the whole 90 minutes. He is doing very well and has worked extremely hard, so he is ready. His attitude has been excellent, he’s in good spirits, he’s a great player and a great teammate. He’s very serious, and we want to get him back playing as soon as possible. I’m very happy. He brings experience and knowledge, and he is doing very well,” Carlo Ancelotti concluded. Neymar has not featured in Brazil’s opening two matches against Morocco and Haiti due to a calf issue.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) trade window action for IPL 2027 has already begun. Star India wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant grabbed headlines on Tuesday, moving back to Delhi Capitals (DC) from Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), while spinner Kuldeep Yadav went the other way. DC co-owner Parth Jindal welcomed Pant with a heartfelt message on social media. In response to that message, former Australia batter and IPL-winning captain David Warner left a couple of intriguing responses that got the internet talking.
Soon after, Warner posted another reply to Jindal’s post, this time explaining how auction dynamics and Pant’s poor fortunes at LSG have led to DC getting him back.
“It was always going to happen. Auctions can get out of hand, and if there is a dip in form and one owner wants to get rid of you while the other wanted you but was unfortunately outbid, you can bide your time,” Warner said.
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It was always going to happen. Auctions can get out of hand, and if there is a dip in form and one owner wants to get rid of you while the other wanted you but was unfortunately outbid, you can bide your time.
Dear Kuldeep, thank you for your service over the last 5 years. You have been a core part of our team and you will be sorely missed. Go well – you are a champion player and I am sure you will do extremely well back in your home ground. Rishabh – Kiran and I are both happy to have you back at DC. Hope you can find your best form back home in Delhi.”
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Pant was signed by LSG for an IPL record price of Rs 27 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. Although DC had originally right-to-matched LSG’s winning bid of Rs 20.75 crore, the latter raised it to Rs 27 crore, which the former did not match.
However, after two unsuccessful seasons, including a last-place finish in IPL 2026, LSG and Pant have parted ways. Pant has taken a massive Rs 12 crore paycut, rejoining DC for Rs 15 crore.
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Tushar Deshpande’s Brilliant Final Act Ensures Thrilling Win For RR Over Gujarat Titans
Three-time Indian Premier League (IPL) winners Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are reportedly eyeing to trade in star all-rounder Hardik Pandya from Mumbai Indians (MI) ahead of IPL 2027. According to the report, Rajasthan Royals are also interested in signing the former India skipper, but have now fallen behind in the race.
Pandya’s future with MI looked uncertain after the five-time IPL champions finished ninth in IPL 2026. This is the second instance in a row that Mumbai has failed to reach the playoffs under Pandya’s leadership since his return to the franchise from the Gujarat Titans.
According to a PTI report via Hindustan Times, an insider close to the development revealed that the two franchises have had multiple discussions over Pandya’s trade. It further adds that Pandya will take over the leadership role from Ajinkya Rahane if he joins the Knight Riders.
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“Ajinkya Rahane was always a stop-gap arrangement for KKR, and he was always going to be released after this season,” the report stated. “The KKR top brass had approached MI owners towards the end of last season, but since Reliance’s Annual AGM was round the corner, IPL trade discussions weren’t a priority at that stage.
“However, it has been learned that KKR has once again approached MI’s top leadership and there have been a few rounds of discussions,” it added.
Pandya enjoys a good record as an IPL captain, winning 36 of 61 matches, while losing only 25. The energetic all-rounder guided Gujarat to their maiden title in their debut season in 2022 before leading them to a runner-up finish next year.
“He’d better be with a fresh setup” – Michael Vaughan wants Hardik Pandya to join a new IPL team
Former England captain Michael Vaughan had floated the same idea last month when he predicted that Pandya would fare better in a new IPL team. He also predicted a direct swap with a KKR all-rounder, Cameron Green.
“Replace him with Cameron Green. If he wants to carry on as captain, then he’d better be with a fresh setup. Maybe KKR. Kolkata will be looking for a new captain. That’s why the Green-Hardik swap,” Vaughan had said in a video shared by Cricbuzz.
Pandya had a lean outing in IPL 2026, scoring only 206 runs in 10 matches without a single half-century. He also struggled with the ball, picking up only four wickets and conceding runs at an economy rate of 11.43.
You may well have seen one of these images yourself. Some have racked up millions of views as they go viral on social media.
One of the most-viewed of these images shows a fan in a World Cup stadium wearing a Germany jersey, waving a German flag and bearing a striking resemblance to Adolf Hitler, a fake that DW’s Fact Check team debunked shortly after Germany’s World Cup match against Curacao.
Some of these images we spot as fake right away; others we might easily mistake for real. Either way, they’re having an effect.
“It is an event that gets billions of people around the world from different countries, different regions, different political circumstances, all watching the same matches at the same time,” said Henry Ajder, one of the world’s leading experts on deepfakes and manipulative AI. “It is the perfect environment for people to start spreading deepfakes and AI generated content.”
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Alongside more lighthearted World Cup deepfakes, plenty carrying political messages are going viral, too. DW Fact Check examined several of them and shows how you can spot the fakes yourself.
An Iranian protest with a pink backpack?
Before the conflict between Iran and the US had even ended, Iran kicked off its World Cup campaign against New Zealand, coming away with a point in a 2-2 (1-1) draw. But did one of the players really mark the result with a protest gesture?
An OpenAI analysis of this viral World Cup image shows that it was created using OpenAI toolsImage: Open AI
The image doesn’t show a scene from Iran’s World Cup match, and it doesn’t show any of Iran’s actual World Cup players, either.
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No such protest took place during the match against New Zealand, and the player in the photo doesn’t match anyone on Iran’s World Cup squad.Iran’s actual World Cup jersey looks different, too. The stadium doesn’t match up either: the arena in the image looks noticeably different from the World Cup stadium in Los Angeleswhere the game was played; even the shape of the stands is different.
The fake does have a real event behind it, though: Iranian fans staged genuine protests in the stands at the Los Angeles match, some commemorating children allegedly killed by the US in a school in the Iranian city of Minab.
Reportingby outlets such as The New York Times and investigations by Bellingcathave pointed to possible US military involvement in that strike, which killed more than 150 people. But the viral image of a player protesting the incident is fabricated.
Keir Starmer in a Croatia jersey?
Would a British prime minister really pose in the rival team’s jersey right before England’s opening match? Seems unlikely, yet that’s exactly what social media would have you believe. A viral image circulating on X shows Starmer smiling alongside three other people in a pub, all of them wearing Croatia jerseys — England’s first opponent of the tournament.
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Left: the real photo featuring Starmer (third from left); the photo on the right is fakeImage: Facebook/X
A quick Google search for “Keir Starmer pub football fans”turned up the original photo:same pub, same people — including former Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner — but different outfits. Three of them are wearing England jerseys, and Starmer is in a plain white T-shirt. The photo is actually two years old, taken around the 2024 European Championship in Germany.
In other words, the jerseys were digitally altered, almost certainly with the help of an AI tool.
The AI detector ZeroGPT flags a high probability that the image was AI-generated, and the jerseys themselves give it away: two have black collars, two have white ones, the Croatian federation (HNS) logos are blurry and inconsistent in size, and overall the jerseys look noticeably softer and less detailed than the sharply rendered faces.
Political protest isn’t exactly welcome at the World Cup, but it keeps happening anyway, as the Iran example shows. Some cases, though, are worth a second look.
A screenshot of an X post allegedly showing a protesting fan; the image is AI-generatedImage: X.com
Claim: “I’d trade the sixth title for Lula and Janja’s imprisonment. Would you support that?” reads a sign supposedly held up by a fan, in a photo that’s been circulating on X, among other places.
DW Fact Check: Fake
After a 1-1 draw to open the tournament against Morocco and a rocky run-up to the World Cup, it’s still an open question whether Brazil can dream of a sixth title. What is clear, however, is that the fan’s message is not real. ZeroGPT puts the probability that the image is AI-generated at 96%, and other AI detectors land in the same range.
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A closer look backs that up. The handwriting on the sign is suspiciously neat for something supposedly scrawled by hand: the letters are too even, and the cardboard’s texture looks unnaturally smooth. The sign-holder’s face has a glossy, idealized look that’s become a telltale sign of AI generation.
Zoom in further and the background gets stranger still, with some faces looking unfinished, almost melting into the wall behind them. Other versionsof this fake have also turned up, showing different people holding the exact same sign, and AI detectors flag those as generated too.
A spectacular opening ceremony with an Iranian float?
Around 1.2 billion peoplewatched the opening ceremony of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Plenty of clips from it circulated on social media afterward, but some showed a show that simply never happened.
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Users claim this video shows the World Cup opening ceremony, but it’s AI-generated footage
Claim: A videoshared on X claims to show the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Cup.
DW Fact Check: Fake
The nearly five-minute clip shows fireworks, dance numbers, and performances representing the participating nations. The real opening ceremony looked quite different and featured different artistic elements.
Watch closelyand the stadium itself gives it away. Across different shots, its roof is sometimes round, sometimes oval, sometimes open, sometimes closed, shape shifting repeatedly over the course of the “ceremony.”
Look even closer and the usual AI video tells appear: visual artifacts, warped objects, blurry faces. AI detectors again flag a high likelihood of generative AI here.
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A separate video claiming to show a giant golden float symbolizing Iranat the same ceremony has the same problem; the stadium changes shape mid-video there too.
Deepfakes that leave a mark
Thanks to AI tools that are now both widely available and easy to use, fakes like these can be whipped up in no time, and at a mega-event like the World Cup, they spread almost as fast.
And they’re not harmless.
“These kinds of moments are really activating and really visceral to audiences. They play into narratives and really quite hot topics, so to speak, that people around the world are paying attention to,” Ajder said.
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The takeaway for this World Cup: Keep a close eye not just on the matches, but also on whatever’s going viral online to not fall for fakes.
Thomas Tuchel was inches from being two from two; two games, two substitutes scoring. Even when Nico O’Reilly’s header thumped against the bar, the rebound fell obligingly for Harry Kane. “Ninety-nine times out of 100,” Tuchel argued, Kane would score. And if so, the manager may have been seen as a catalyst with his changes. Instead, Kane skied his shot.
As it is, England have one goal from a replacement this World Cup; a potentially significant one, too, with Marcus Rashford’s late clincher against Croatia. And yet, as Ghana shut England out, narrow as the margins were, it brought into question Tuchel’s strategy for providing bench strength.
Jude Bellingham embraces Eberechi Eze and Morgan Rogers after being substituted (Getty)
The German’s blueprint can be for more of the same, for like-for-like replacements. On the left wing, Anthony Gordon and Rashford share plenty of characteristics, and bringing on the Mancunian for the similarly speedy Merseysider worked well against Croatia. On the right, Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke even share a club, the 2025 signing understudying Arsenal’s homegrown talent for Mikel Arteta and presumably doing so again on international duty when the brighter star is fit enough to start.
Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers are Midlanders and friends. The Aston Villa man may not have the talent of the Real Madrid player but Bellingham’s route back into the side, seemingly, was to emulate Rogers’ role as the No 10 in autumn.
As for the back-up strikers, Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney may not be Kane clones, but they are less likely to be seen anyway. “Does Argentina rely too heavily on [Lionel] Messi and France on [Kylian] Mbappe?” Tuchel asked rhetorically. “It is normal. They are world-class players and they do what they do.”
Nico O’Reilly and Harry Kane of England react after a missed chance (Getty)
But the flaw in the formula may come when England are not winning; when Plan A is not working, is Plan B to offer more of the same, merely with new faces and fresher legs? Tuchel took the choice to omit players with other skillsets. Phil Foden and Cole Palmer could be called the mavericks, or simply footballers whose poor seasons meant their form did not merit selection. Each is true – though Morgan Gibbs-White, with his 15 Premier League goals, is entitled to feel his recent efforts merited a spot – but Foden and Palmer remain two of English football’s greatest talents.
The Chelsea man’s prowess as an impact substitute was displayed in Euro 2024, albeit after a glorious season at club level. But he came off the bench to score in the final and in itself, that offered a compelling reason to recall him.
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Tuchel did not want to pack his squad with No 10s; too many might have been a distraction, and certainly would have brought more questions about anyone who was marginalised. But the slot as the third potential No 10 that might have gone to Foden or Palmer instead went to Eberechi Eze; fine a player as he is, he is surely less of a difference-maker at elite level.
Cole Palmer could have offered England a wildcard option off the bench (Getty)
And the expansion to 26-man squads ought to leave room for a wild card; instead, the closest England came to having one was O’Reilly, the box-crashing converted midfielder who is a distinctly unorthodox left-back.
Their issues were partly personnel, partly tactical. “I don’t think we become predictable with wide wingers,” insisted Tuchel, despite evidence to the contrary. But the thinking was to have someone chained to the touchline on either flank. It explains why Palmer, more of an inside-forward, is not his type of wide man.
When Tuchel talked of England having “repetitive attacks”, that was part of the problem. They lacked the capacity to switch emphasis. They attacked too little in the middle; another central creator might have been able to unlock Ghana’s defiant defence.
It is unclear if Eberechi Eze can be a difference maker at this level (Reuters)
Tuchel opted to go without the closest thing to a pure playmaker from deep England have, in Adam Wharton, instead preferring Jordan Henderson and Kobbie Mainoo. He twice omitted – once in his initial squad, then when Tino Livramento pulled out – the most inventive right-back at his disposal, in Trent Alexander-Arnold, instead eventually going for Trevoh Chalobah.
So he plumped for a group with a common purpose and shared strengths. It meant the second XI looks like the first, only worse.
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It was not the approach some of his peers took. England possess plenty of gifted attackers. So do France but, in Rayan Cherki and Jean-Philippe Mateta, Didier Deschamps seemed to deliberately bring in two who do not resemble the starters.
In contrast, Tuchel seemed to want a diet of the same. And against Ghana, England perhaps could have benefited from a penetrative pass from Wharton, a devilish cross from Alexander-Arnold or, most obviously, a long shot from Palmer.
When they looked to the bench, they needed some x-factor. But the men who might have supplied it had been excluded from the squad.
NEW DELHI: Daniel Muñoz scored the decisive goal as Colombia beat DR Congo 1-0 on Tuesday to become one of the first teams to secure a place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage.The defender found the breakthrough in the 76th minute after a tightly contested match in Guadalajara. Muñoz’s left-footed effort from inside the box took a deflection off a defender before finding the back of the net, leaving DR Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi with no chance.It was Muñoz’s second goal of the tournament and enough to give Colombia their second straight victory in Group K.For much of the game, Mpasi kept DR Congo in the contest with an outstanding performance. The goalkeeper made five difficult saves in the opening 20 minutes as Colombia dominated possession and created several chances.DR Congo almost snatched a dramatic equaliser in stoppage time. Nathanael Mbuku tested Colombia goalkeeper Camilo Vargas with a powerful long-range strike, but Vargas produced a superb save. Moments later, he denied Chancel Mbemba’s header from the resulting corner to preserve Colombia’s lead.Colombia thought they had sealed the game late on through Luis Díaz, but the Liverpool forward saw two goals ruled out within two minutes. One was disallowed for a foul and the other for offside.The African side had impressed in their opening match by holding Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal to a 1-1 draw, but they could not repeat that result against a clinical Colombian team.With six points from two matches, Colombia now sit top of Group K and have booked their place in the round of 32. Portugal are second after their 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan, while DR Congo remain on one point.A draw against Portugal in their final group match will be enough for Colombia to finish as group winners.The match also featured the return of DR Congo’s famous supporter Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, popularly known as “Lumumba Vea”. The fan, who became a viral sensation during the Africa Cup of Nations for standing like a statue throughout matches, attended the game after missing the team’s opener because of Ebola-related quarantine rules.Colombia, who failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup, have made an impressive return to the tournament with back-to-back wins. Veteran playmaker James Rodríguez also reached a milestone, joining Colombian greats Freddy Rincón and Carlos Valderrama with 10 World Cup appearances.
After a swirl of trades and rumours of trades in recent days has helped give a new outline to the Eastern Conference, for the Toronto Raptors, Tuesday night was a moment of relative calm, a pause in a continuing storm.
It was time to do what an NBA front office is supposed to do: Choose the best player available when their turn comes around.
The Raptors, picking 19th, were inevitably dependent on who was taken before them. In the end, they got Allen Graves, a player they had been hoping would be available all along and who multiple sources had indicated to me was high on their board of eligible prospects.
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A six-foot-eight freshman from the University of Santa Clara, Graves fits a lot of what the Raptors want to do under head coach Darko Rajakovic, as he jumped out on analytical models for his ability to gain possessions by way of his remarkable steal rate (1.9 in 22 minutes per game) and knack for offensive rebounding (2.8 per game). That he can shoot — he converted 41.3 per cent on nearly three attempts per game from deep — is a bonus.
“As a player, he’s a high processor, two-way player, wins the possession game, I think, on both ends of the floor,” said Raptors general manager Bobby Webster. “Obviously a developing player as well, just played one year of college, so he’ll have the usual and typical adjustment to NBA pace, speed, quickness. But sort of a young prospect that we think does a few things really well on the defensive end, and then offensively, obviously shooting, feel for the game. So we thought we got one of the better two-way players in the draft.”
Never let it be said the Raptors don’t have a type when it comes to big wings who can defend. Webster’s initial vision for the newest Raptor?
“Most likely I see him wreaking havoc (on defence( with CMB (Raptors forward Colin Murray-Boyles), right? That’s probably the easiest one.”
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The Raptors have had considerable success picking in the middle and bottom third of the draft in the past. Most recently, Ja’Kobe Walter, taken 19th as a freshman out of Baylor in the 2024 draft, emerged as a key rotation player on a playoff team midway through his second season. In previous years, the Raptors have had success drafting Delon Wright (20th) in 2015, Pascal Siakam (27th) in 2016 and OG Anunoby (23rd) in 2017. If Graves approaches that level of success in any way, shape or form, the Raptors would undoubtedly be thrilled.
For his part, Graves, 19, seems determined to give his best shot. In addition to the way his attributes popped on the Raptors’ analytical models, Graves also made a positive first impression on a personal level when he visited the team’s practice facility during the draft process.
He certainly sounds like he’s got a firm grasp of his path towards earning minutes in the Raptors rotation.
“I feel like I have a great feel for the game, very cerebral player, just offensively, just being able to be that connector piece,” Graves said after being selected. “I don’t need the ball in my hands. I don’t need to score a certain amount of points. But just being able to make the winning plays, being able and willing to do anything that the team needs of me, and then on the defensive end, just being able to win the possession battle: deflections, steals, things like that, and rebounding. That’s where I plan to impact most.”
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But for all the promise Graves might have — not to mention who the Raptors might draft with the 50th pick when the draft resumes Wednesday — there are more immediate concerns the Raptors will need to sort through if they plan on maintaining or improving on the fifth-place finish they earned in the Eastern Conference last season.
“Now we’ll turn our attention … to trades and free agency,” said Webster. “I think people saw a couple big deals that went down, and not that they were holding up the rest of the league, but I think they gave everyone a chance to exhale. And we’ve been stockpiling a lot of assets (over the years), having our first-round picks, having players under rookie scale contracts (and) that’s allowed us to build and be the youngest team in the playoffs. But at a certain point, we want to be opportunistic in the trade market, and so now we’ll look to do that over the course of the summer and even into the trade deadline next season.”
The conference has shifted significantly with the reported trade of two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat, a deal that can’t be made official until July 6th. Whether adding the oft-injured 31-year-old Milwaukee Bucks star will age well, it’s hard to argue that the Heat — who finished 10th last season — won’t improve as long as Antetokounmpo can stay healthy. The 2025 NBA finalist Indiana Pacers should rebound to the top tier of the East after an injury-driven slide this past season, the upstart Charlotte Hornets have another year of growth under their belts, and the bottom-feeding Washington Wizards seem ready to pivot to competitive relevance.
In addition, the Bucks’ trading of Antetokounmpo could have a domino effect, with Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown reportedly a trade target after he was offered to Milwaukee in a potential deal, and the Bucks are clearly open for business after moving on from their long-standing franchise superstar.
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NBA sources I’ve spoken with have connected the Raptors to Bucks centre Myles Turner, with the possibility that Raptors centre Jakob Poeltl, third-year wing Gradey Dick and potentially draft compensation being the core of a deal that would net Toronto the veteran big with credentials as a rim protector and three-point threat.
Absent that, the Raptors will likely need to clear out some salary to have a better chance at re-signing stretch big man Sandro Mamukelashvili, whose perimeter shooting gives him an outsized significance to the Raptors lineup.
Keeping Mamukelashvili will likely require the Raptors to cut ties with Dick, their 13th pick in the 2023 draft, who is looking for a change of address in any case after falling out of the rotation after the all-star break. And until Toronto reaches an agreement on an extension with RJ Barrett — talks will likely be picked up at Summer League in Las Vegas next month — the future of the Canadian national team star with Canada’s lone NBA team will remain a question mark as he heads into the last year of his deal.
The Raptors first-round pick is on the books, but the rest of their off-season is a series of chapters yet to be written.
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