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Gresini Ducati rider Alex Marquez says he was “surprised” at the media comments made by Honda’s Joan Mir immediately after the most recent MotoGP round in Japan.

The 2020 MotoGP champion spoke out against Marquez after being taken out of the race by the Ducati, which literally attached itself to the back of his machine after Marquez lost control on the first lap.

Mir made his comments about the “crazy” incident a short while before news of a long lap penalty for Marquez – which the Spanish rider must serve in this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix – was announced.

At the time, Mir was also under the impression that the clash was not being investigated at all. This led him to direct considerable criticism at the stewards as well as Marquez, who did accept responsibility for the crash and later said he had apologised to Mir.

“I was surprised by Mir’s reaction,” said Marquez in Australia on Thursday. “Because what he said to me didn’t make sense to me at all [compared to] what I found in the press yesterday.

“When Joan spoke in the press, he got heated and didn’t make a lot of sense. He was pissed off with race direction about the long lap [penalty that had not yet been announced].

“I was told that the reason was that I had ruined someone else’s race. But Jack Miller caused the crash at Mandalika [when the Australian took out three riders on the opening lap, and was not penalised].”

Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

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Marquez is 12th in the points standings heading into this weekend, having secured just one podium so far this season – a third position at the German Grand Prix.

Mir is 20th, having only occasionally troubled the scorers in a very tough year for all the Honda riders. The Spaniard’s lack of speed has been compounded by unfortunate incidents.

“It’s not just a case of bad luck. It’s also being in the wrong place at the wrong time. These kinds of things always happen when you’re fighting at the back,” said Mir.

He was, however, in more optimistic mood coming into the weekend, which will play out on a resurfaced Phillip Island circuit.

“I expect that this will help us,” Mir said. “This track is always special. It’s one I enjoy and where I have been fast in the past.

“Phillip Island is a bit different. Maybe it’s a track where we can show our progress…or maybe not!”

PAUL POGBA revealed he predicted Manchester United’s woes five years ago – after demanding to leave the club.

Pogba found himself at civil war with then-United manager Jose Mourinho until Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over in December 2018.

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The Frenchman went onto finish the season as the club’s top goalscorer and things appeared to be on the up under Solskjaer.

But Pogba has revealed he actually asked former United chief Ed Woodward to LEAVE in 2019 – before being denied.

He told the Daily Mail: “I will tell you something I’ve never told anyone.

“The year Jose went and Ole came, it was my best season at United but after the last game I told Ole and Ed Woodward that I thought it was my last year and that I wanted to leave.

“I was 27 back then, it didn’t work out the way I wanted. I gave my best but I didn’t see the club going upwards.

“Manchester City and Liverpool were better than us and they were improving. Ole said yes (to me leaving) and that he would talk to Ed.

“My head was already that I wanted to go but I came back for pre-season because I wanted to be professional.

“I spoke to Ed to try to make a move but he blocked it. I didn’t want to play for United anymore but I had to be professional.

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“Mentally I wasn’t there and then I got the injuries.”

Pogba initially left United in 2012 for Juventus, but after four years in Italy he returned to Manchester in an £89m deal.

Back in England he won the Europa League and League Cup but did finally get his move back to Juventus in 2022.

His career hit a crisis in February when he was hit with a FOUR-YEAR football ban for failing a drug test for a banned substance.

But the 2018 World Cup winner protested his innocence with the suspension slashed to just 18 months.

It paves the way for Pogba to continue his career in January with his contract at Juve set to be terminated.

He said: “I have goals and dreams — my dream was always to play for the national team and it is still in my head.

“But today the future of Paul is to get back on the pitch and show I still have the level.

“Football hasn’t stopped because I can’t play; players are playing, that’s life — that’s the circle.

“All the players will say, ‘Pogba is back, I don’t want him to take my position’. That’s normal. But I have to be ready.”

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But while Hughes senses a “life-changing opportunity” for himself in Saudi Arabia this weekend, McKee has been a big name in MMA circles for years and was for a long time the face of Bellator.

McKee also boasts the longest winning streak in Bellator history (18) and the second-most wins in the promotion’s history, further underlining the scale of the task facing Hughes this weekend.

Prior to that, the 29-year-old Californian captured the Bellator featherweight title and a $1m prize when he beat Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire in Los Angeles in July 2021, losing the belt in a rematch against the Brazilian nine months later.

“I’ve studied AJ for a long time,” added Hughes, who has secured eight of his 12 professional wins via stoppage.

“He’s been top of the game in the MMA world for five years. I’ve known who he is for a long time, I’ve watched him for a long time.

“I’m going to walk him down and knock him out. That’s what I foresee here. That’s what’s going to happen.”

Hughes also believes that beating McKee will elevate him from being a highly-touted prospect to being one of the best lightweight fighters in the world.

“This is a huge opportunity for PFL to put on a massive card and that’s what they’ve done here.

“The match-ups are unbelievable, Ngannou is the main event and obviously draws a lot of eyes so it’s a huge opportunity for me to perform.”

We’ll start with top speed and it’s Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven who’s blistered past the competition so far this season.

The Netherlands centre-back was also the fastest player in the last campaign and the quickest Premier League star at Euro 2024.

Fulham’s Adama Traore and Manchester City full-back Kyle Walker are two known for their pace, but this season their top speed is outside of division’s top 20. For winger Traore it’s 21st, and in Walker’s case, 80th.

Walker’s top speed also puts him below Trent Alexander-Arnold of Liverpool (19th), Manchester United’s Antony (24th) and Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn (61st).

We’re only ranking the quickest player for each team, which means there’s no space on our chart for Tottenham forward Timo Werner who has the same top speed as Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (35.7 km/h).

The slowest quickest player for their club is Ipswich’s Wes Burns, who is only the 49th fastest overall.

ENGLAND’S new manager has a ruthless streak that has seen him fall foul of players and club bosses — but it might be just the job for the Three Lions.

Those who know him best admit Thomas Tuchel has not been out to win any popularity contests while fighting his way to the top.

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Football writer Carsten Germann told The Sun: “He’s absolutely unhumorous.

“He’s not a coach for the people.

“He’s a football scientist, he puts tactics and results over all.

“But that winning mentality is what England could need.”

Tuchel, the 51-year-old former chief coach at Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint Germain, was caught on video bawling out a young striker — and French superstar Kylian Mbappe said the only German word he learned from him was “scheisse” (s***).

Tuchel, who has followed rival Jurgen Klopp into posts at various club sides, has also been known to bristle if compared to the former Liverpool boss.

Experiences that have shaped him include one seven years ago, while manager of Borussia Dortmund, when he survived a bomb attack on the team bus, with shrapnel striking seats close to him.

And the father of two ended his 13-year marriage to an ex-journalist after allegedly beginning an affair with a Brazilian businesswoman 14 years younger than him.

But there are also accounts of him offering warm words of encouragement to stars in one-to-one chats — and paying for his cleaner’s son to receive life-saving medical care.

Tuchel was born in the small town of Krumbach in Bavaria, and was coached by dad Rudolf with the local side.

At 15 he was spotted by top-flight German club Augsburg, and he played three times for the national Under-18s.

Yet teammate Heiner Schuh recalled: “He had few friends as he was exacting and demanding.”

Defender Tuchel turned professional at lower league Stuttgart Kickers. He never drank with the other players and is still almost teetotal, often opting for drinking warm water.

A series of knee injuries ended his playing career when he was at FC Ulm, aged just 24.

The cartilage damage was considered wear and tear by the insurers, so he did not get a payout.

He said: “I was insured for everything apart from this one lousy condition.”

Tuchel waited tables at the Radio Bar in Stuttgart in 1999.

It helped him become more gregarious and fund his business administration course at university.

A year later he was hired as a youth coach at top side Stuttgart, before moving on to Augsburg’s second team and then Mainz 05.

In a shock move he was promoted from under-19 coach to first team manager in 2009.

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ANDY DILLON: Thomas Tuchel has all the ingredients to become a classic England manager – tactical nous, drive and a tangled love life

By Andy Dillon

THOMAS TUCHEL possesses all the ingredients to become a classic England manager.

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Tactical nous, drive, energy, experience – a tangled love life.

English football should welcome back the most explosive, dynamic, charismatic and impossibly tall and gangly coach to have lit up the Premier League.

Chelsea’s colourful former boss has been leading a settled life in Munich of late.

Far enough away from ex-wife Sissi but close enough to see his two daughters.

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Walking his dog in the streets in the east of Germany’s most fashionable city, residing in the posh Bogenhausen area. Living relatively quietly with his Brazilian girlfriend.

Tuchel is a vastly different personality to the man who led England quietly but assuredly to the brink of World Cups and European Championships.

An excitable nature can make him hard to handle for those seeking calm and who like to impose their way on a manager they view very much as an underling.

Read more on why Tuchel REALLY IS the best man for the England job

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Tuchel admitted at the time that the Bundesliga club had been willing to take the risk because it had worked with Klopp in the past.

In the same year he married Sissi, a journalist at the highly respected national newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung.

She reportedly gave up her career to bring up their two daughters, Emma and Kim.

Sissi, who is very private, was seen by his side celebrating successes on the pitch as unfashionable Mainz twice qualified for the Europa League.

But an amateur cameraman caught Thomas screaming at young striker Shawn Parker for almost a minute in the dressing room after one game — before telling him: “So go join the under 17s.”

Club executive Christian Heidel wanted his manager to engage with the fans and media more — like the popular Klopp did.

But he regretted starting a conversation saying, “with Kloppo we used to . . .”

In an unauthorised biography titled Rulebreaker, Heidel said: “That’s when Thomas started yelling at me, ‘How dare I?’

“The conversation was over.

“I thought to myself, ‘Whoops, I hit a nerve’.”

He’s very sensitive to criticism

Football writer Carsten Germann

England’s Liverpool players, such as Trent Alexander-Arnold, may do well to remember that anecdote.

Indeed, Tuchel’s thin skin could be a problem as England coach — where flak comes with the job.

Carsten, who has interviewed Tuchel, said: “He’s very sensitive to criticism.”

Who has Tuchel coached?

Here is a list of the England stars that have already worked with Thomas Tuchel…

• Harry Kane – Bayern Munich
• Eric Dier – Bayern Munich
• Mason Mount – Chelsea
• Reece James – Chelsea
• Ben Chilwell – Chelsea
• Callum Hudson-Odoi – Chelsea
• Ruben Loftus-Cheek – Chelsea
• Raheem Sterling – Chelsea
• Ross Barkley – Chelsea
• Tammy Abraham – Chelsea
• Conor Gallagher – Chelsea

However his undoubted talents led Dortmund to hire him as Klopp’s replacement in 2015.

Two years later he won Germany’s equivalent of the FA Cup and reached the quarter final of the Champions league.

In April that year a controversial 3-2 defeat against Monaco showed how hard it can be to know the truth about Tuchel’s character.

It came after he survived the team bus attack, which left him being viewed by some as a heroic defender of his squad, and by others as a callous villain.

Sports journalist Pit Gottschalk’s book Locker Room Whispers reported he responded to seeing tearful players by saying: “I’m supposed to beat Bayern with these wimps?”

The manager gave a totally different account. He had been angry that his side had been ordered to play the game against Monaco just 24 hours after the bombing.

He said: “We had the feeling we were being treated as if our bus had been hit by a can of beer.”

Bizarrely, it turned out that perpetrator Sergei Wenergold hid homemade devices filled with hydrogen peroxide and a dozen bolts close to the bus in order to make money on the stock exchange.

Shortly before the attack he “bet” that the club’s shares would drop.

In November 2018 Wenergold, 35, was jailed for 14 years.

The fallout from the incident caused a rift with Dortmund’s chief executive and Tuchel was dismissed.

He joined PSG, taking the French side to their first Champions League final.

He’s a football scientist, he puts tactics and results over all

Football writer Carsten Germann

However it was reported that he fell out with star player Mbappe as well as Brazilian sporting director Leonardo, and he lost his job.

Before leaving the French capital, Tuchel heard his cleaner’s son was going to hospital and paid for his care.

In January 2021 he arrived in London, replacing Frank Lampard as Chelsea manager.

Tuchel took them from ninth in the Premier League to fourth, qualifying for the Champions League, but lost in the FA Cup final to Leicester.

Off the field, there were problems with Tuchel’s marriage.

He started a relationship with Brazilian Natalie Guerriero Max, 37, and in 2022 he split from Sissi.

Natalie, who still lives in London, could be one of the reasons he was keen to take the England job.

An insider said: “Thomas is obsessed with Natalie, but he is still close to his children and is a good father who sees them often.”

Tuchel led Chelsea to Champions League glory in 2021, masterminding victory against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.

Yet he was dismissed by the club’s new American owners in September 2022.

An email included in Sissi’s divorce papers suggested that he had been fired for “’off-field reasons” with the players “losing respect for him.”

But the manager remained in demand.

Hired by Munich, he won the league title in his first season before a poor set of results the following year led to yet another departure.

Three Lions fans will be hoping Germany’s loss is England’s gain.

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Forgotten England stars could benefit from Tuchel appointment

WITH Thomas Tuchel announced as the next England manager, a few forgotten stars might be hopeful of a return to the international set up.

The former Chelsea and Bayern Munich manager usually uses a 3-4-3 formation.

That could provide an opening for Mason Mount, who’s not been involved in the England set-up since the World Cup in 2022.

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The now Manchester United star enjoyed his most successful spell under Tuchel while the pair were at Stamford Bridge.

Tuchel could also offer lifelines to other previously capped players such as Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Eric Dier.

RLC has excelled since his move to AC Milan and with England struggling to find a partner for Rice, he could be the surprise answer.

Meanwhile, Dier played for Tuchel at Bayern Munich as part of a back-three last season.

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The defender did enough to convince the club to make his loan move permanent after he had fallen out of favour at Tottenham.

Click here to see the full England XI who could play under Tuchel.

German laughter at rivals’ boss bid

By Rob Pattinson

THE Sun’s front page announcing Thomas Tuchel as the new England boss was the talk of Germany yesterday — even being retweeted by its ambassador in Britain.

Diplomat Miguel Berger cheekily added a laughing emoji as he sent out yesterday’s splash with the headline “Football’s coming home” translated into German.

He wrote: “A German manager for England! Congrats to Thomas Tuchel. A brave decision.”

Reaction across Germany was mixed, with many gleefully mocking Tuchel’s deal to manage their arch rival.

Bild, the country’s biggest-selling newspaper, used a picture of The Sun’s splash and claimed England must be desperate if we were turning to a German.

It said the ideal outcome would be England losing the World Cup final to Germany on penalties.

An online vote had 80 per cent of Germans gloating England would not win the World Cup with Tuchel.

And one journalist wrote: “The desperation on the island must be enormous if they admit that only a German can help now.”

Upmarket magazine Der Spiegel promised Tuchel “can be trusted” but warned he would inevitably “face anger” for crossing the North Sea.

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