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Barcelona held by winless Granada at Camp Nou in Liga

Barcelona needed a 90th-minute equalizer by defender Ronald Araujo, sparking jeers by many in the crowd of nearly 27,000 on Monday.

Less than a week after a demoralizing loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League, Barcelona faltered at Camp Nou again, being held by winless Granada 1-1 in the Spanish league.

Barcelona needed a 90th-minute equalizer by defender Ronald Araujo, sparking jeers by many in the crowd of nearly 27,000 on Monday.

The setback followed the 3-0 rout by Bayern in the team’s first defeat since losing Lionel Messi to Paris Saint-Germain, and added pressure on coach Ronald Koeman and club president Joan Laporta.

Granada came to Barcelona winless in four matches and coming off two consecutive losses, including at home against Real Betis in the Andalucia derby last week. It defeated Barcelona at Camp Nou the last time they met in April.

“It’s a shame,” Araujo said.

“If we had been able to score earlier we could have gotten the victory. After the early goal they sat back on defense and that made it difficult for us.”

The draw left Barcelona in seventh place, five points from leader Real Madrid with a game in hand.

Coached by former Spain manager Robert Moreno, Granada opened the scoring two minutes into the match with a header by Domingos Duarte off a set-piece.

Barcelona squandered two great chances to equalize before halftime Sergi Roberto hit the crossbar from inside the area and Araujo’s header was brilliantly saved by Granada goalkeeper Luis Maximiano.

Memphis Depay and Luuk de Jong also failed to capitalize on scoring chances in the second half, but Araujo finally broke through with a close-range header in the 90th.

“We know that Barca isn’t going through a good moment and it was important to try to take advantage of that early on,” Duarte said.

“Earning a point at Camp Nou is always good but we came close to getting the three points. In the end they had many chances too. It was a fair result.”

Koeman couldn’t count on several players because of injuries, including Jordi Alba and Pedri Gonzalez.

He added a few youngsters in the second half, including Riqui Puig and 17-year-old Gavi, who set up Araújo’s equalizer. Philippe Coutinho was one of the players replaced.

Veteran defender Gerard Pique played as a striker after coming into the game in the final minutes.

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James Rodriguez closing in on Everton exit

Everton playmaker James Rodriguez is reportedly in talks with a club in Qatar ahead of a proposed transfer this month.

Since the departure of Carlo Ancelotti and the appointment of Rafael Benitez, the Colombia international has been linked with a move away from Goodison Park.

According to BBC Sport, Rodriguez has flown to the Middle East to negotiate a permanent move to a club in Qatar, where their transfer window is open until September 30.

Despite only joining Everton last summer, the Toffees are prepared to let the 30-year-old leave as they are keen to remove his £200,000-a-week salary off their wage bill.

Rodriguez, who was linked with a return to Porto over the summer, is yet to feature under Benitez this season and has seemingly played his final game for the club.

The former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich midfielder has made 26 appearances across all competitions for Everton, scoring six goals and providing nine assists.

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Ronald Koeman unsure over Barcelona future

Ronald Koeman has insisted that he has “no fear” about his long-term future as Barcelona manager.

Despite frequent speculation about his job after a turbulent 12 months at Camp Nou, the Dutchman kept the reins for the start of this campaign.

While the Catalan giants remain unbeaten in La Liga, they were comprehensively outplayed during last week’s Champions League fixture with Bayern Munich.

Speaking to reporters ahead of Monday’s fixture with Granada, Koeman has acknowledged that there are no guarantees about the length of his spell at the club.

The Dutchman said: “I don’t know if my position is at stake because they haven’t said anything. The only thing is to think about the game and the team.

“The rest is not in my hands and I am calm. We have seven points from three games. You have to get people back to have more players available, but you have to win. In the end the results count and nothing else. I have no fear of my future.”

Barcelona will return to the top four of the La Liga table with victory over Granada.

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Manchester United to make Paul Pogba highest-paid Premier League player ever

Manchester United are reportedly prepared to make Paul Pogba the highest-paid player in Premier League history.

The France international has enjoyed a strong start to the campaign, already contributing seven assists from five appearances in the top flight.

However, the 28-year-old’s increased productivity has come at a time when he has less than 12 months remaining on his contract, putting him in a position where he can speak to other clubs in January.

According to The Sun, United are ready to increase their efforts to keep Pogba at Old Trafford by offering him a contract which would break new ground.

The report suggests that the World Cup winner will be given the opportunity to earn approximately £400,000 per week, the most lucrative terms in the history of England’s top division.

Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are both monitoring the situation ahead of potentially opening discussions at the start of 2022.

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CHELSEA THRASH SORRY SPURS 3-0 TO GO TOP OF THE TABLE

Thomas Tuchel’s half-time intervention allowed Chelsea to show their Premier League title challenging credentials with an impressive 3-0 win at Tottenham.

After being second best in the first half, Tuchel introduced N’Golo Kante and switched formation and it paid immediate dividends as Thiago Silva and the Frenchman both scored in the opening 12 minutes of the second half, with Antonio Rudiger adding a late third.

It extended their unbeaten start to the season and this statement victory – their third successive win at Spurs’ new home – shows they will be contenders to win the title this season.

Tottenham – like Chelsea – were mourning the death of Jimmy Greaves and they are a million miles away from the side that Greaves was a rampant scorer in during the 1960s and even further away from the one that reached the Champions League final just over two years ago.

After winning their opening three games under new boss Nuno Espirito Santo, things are beginning to unravel with a second successive 3-0 defeat in the league.

There are serious concerns over the form of Harry Kane, who was desperate to leave the club this summer and on this evidence it is easy to see why.

With the death of Greaves announced early on Sunday, this was a perfect fixture considering he played for both teams.

The atmosphere was heightened by a warming pre-match tribute to Greaves, where a host of former players came pitchside to join in the minute’s applause for Tottenham’s record goalscorer, who scored 266 goals in 379 appearances.

Tottenham fed off the energy of that and started the game brightly, with two loose balls in the area just evading Giovani Lo Celso.

Chelsea were a threat on the counter-attack, though, and had Spurs on the rack as they broke in a three-on-two situation.

Mason Mount fed Romelu Lukaku, whose return ball was under-hit, allowing Emerson Royal to get across and block Mount’s shot.

With Kane, Son Heung-min, Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele and Dele Alli in the team there was a different feel about Spurs from the one that limped to a 3-0 defeat at Crystal Palace last week and they had two big openings.

Son, returning from an injury, sent Sergio Reguilon through on goal and the Spaniard had the opportunity to drive in on goal, but instead he tried to pass to Lo Celso and the ball was cut out.

Then, just after the half-hour it was Son who was in after a Lo Celso pass, but the South Korean’s touch was heavy and Kepa Arrizabalaga came out to block the shot.

Tuchel was not happy with what he saw and brought Kante on at half-time and switched to a 3-5-2 formation.

And it transformed the game as Chelsea took a 49th-minute lead.

Marcos Alonso had a flying shot tipped over by Hugo Lloris and at a second corner from that save, Silva climbed highest and found the bottom corner with his header.

Chelsea were rampant and deserved the luck they got for their second goal just before the hour.

Lo Celso ran into trouble and was dispossessed, with Kante afforded space to line up a shot, which took a wicked deflection off Eric Dier and flew into the bottom corner.

Spurs – seemingly shattered from their first-half exertions – had nothing in the way of a response, with Kane’s fizzed shot at Arrizabalaga their only meaningful effort of the second half.

At the other end Chelsea had enough chances to rack up a handsome victory, but Lloris saved well from Silva, Timo Werner was twice denied when through on goal and Lukaku headed straight at the Frenchman.

Eventually the third goal came in injury time as Rudiger swept home Werner’s cross as Chelsea end the weekend on top of the Premier League table.

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MOURINHO SUFFERS FIRST DEFEAT AS ROMA BOSS

Jose Mourinho suffered his first defeat since returning to coach in Italy as his AS Roma side were beaten 3-2 by Hellas Verona in a thrilling Serie A encounter on Sunday.

A stunning volley from Verona captain Marco Faraoni proved decisive, ending Roma’s 100% start to the Serie A season while earning his side their first win of the campaign.

Roma appeared to be on course for another three points in the pouring Veneto rain after Lorenzo Pellegrini had given the visitors a halftime lead with a sublime back-heel flick.

However, the game swung in the home side’s favour early in the second half as goals from Antonin Barak and Gianluca Caprari edged Verona 2-1 in front.

Ivan Ilic’s own goal as he beat Roma striker Tammy Abraham to a cross levelled things up in the 58th minute, before Verona again took the lead five minutes later through Faraoni.

Roma piled on the pressure in search of an equaliser but Mourinho’s men were left frustrated to sit second in the standings on nine points, with third-placed AC Milan playing Juventus later on Sunday.

“We didn’t play very well, we didn’t adapt well to their way of playing.” Mourinho told DAZN. “We lost many individual duels. I need the videos, I need a few hours to better understand what happened.”

Verona moved out of the bottom three and up to 14th as new coach Igor Tudor got off to winning start after replacing Eusebio Di Francesco in midweek.

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VINICIUS, BENZEMA ON TARGET AS REAL MADRID RALLY TO LATE WIN OVER VALENCIA

Real Madrid forwards Vinicius Junior and Karim Benzema scored within the space of three minutes deep in the second half to propel their side to a 2-1 win at Valencia in LaLiga on Sunday after being outplayed for most of the game.

The hosts went ahead in the 66th minute with a thumping low strike from forward Hugo Duro, who spent last season on loan with Madrid.

Real levelled with a deflected strike from Vinicius in the 86th minute and then the Brazilian turned provider, crossing for Benzema to head home the winner in the 88th.

Valencia would have gone top of LaLiga had they held on for the win but instead Carlo Ancelotti’s Real side lead the standings with 13 points from five games.

“It’s never easy to come here especially when you concede the first goal but we never gave in, we kept working and kept persisting,” said Vinicius.

“We’ve got a great result here thanks to the work of the whole team and things are coming off for us right now.”

The win was on the back of another Real late show in midweek when Brazilian forward Rodrygo struck in the 89th minute to secure a 1-0 victory at Internazionale in their first Champions League group game.

Valencia had made a strong start to the season under new coach Jose Bordalas but suffered a setback in the build-up to kick off when captain Jose Gaya was ruled out injured.

More problems followed as midfielder Carlos Soler, who scored a hat-trick of penalties in last season’s fixture against Real, came off injured in the 15th minute while right back Thierry Correia soon followed him in hobbling off in the 23rd.

But Bordalas’ side still managed to outrun and overpower their opponents for most of the game and took a deserved lead when Duro swivelled to send a bouncing ball beyond the reach of keeper Thibaut Courtois and into the net.

Valencia continued to cause Real problems but eased off in the final 10 minutes and the visitors made the most of their deadly firepower, Vinicius scoring his fifth goal of the season and Benzema netting a sixth after bagging a hat-trick against Celta Vigo last week.

“We know what Real Madrid are like, we know they can turn the game around at any stage,” said Duro.

“We had a tough game, we got two early injuries but still managed to go ahead then the victory escaped from our grasp and they made us pay in two isolated moves. We were very unlucky to not at least get a draw today.”

Ancelotti added: “I have a squad who fight all the time, always, playing well or playing badly. It’s a team that keeps believing to the end, that’s the feeling I have today.

“What we did well was the counterattacks in the first half. But we didn’t have aggression at the back. It can happen, you sit back, and they score. After that the reaction was good, Valencia worked hard in the first half, they ran a lot, I put some fresh players on the pitch and we won the game.

“The subs did well, they came on with motivation and enthusiasm, that changed the game.”

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SADIO MANE SCORES 100TH LIVERPOOL GOAL AS REDS THRASH CRYSTAL PALACE

Record-breaking Sadio Mane’s 100th Liverpool goal set Jurgen Klopp’s side on the way to 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace which took them top of the table.

Mane became the first player in Premier League history to score against the same opponent in nine consecutive matches, beating Robin van Persie’s eight in a row against Stoke

His close-range strike just before half-time also made him the 18th man to bring up a century of goals for the club in his 224th appearance.

Mohamed Salah’s rich form continued as his volley 12 minutes from time meant he has only failed to score in one of his six games this season with a sumptuous left-footed volley from substitute Naby Keita finishing proceedings with a flourish.

Just like against AC Milan in midweek Liverpool made hard work of a game in which they created numerous chances.

Klopp made six changes – including his entire back four – from the midweek Champions League tie which meant his side started a league match without either Andy Robertson (rested) or Trent Alexander-Arnold (ill) in the team for the first time since December 2018.

It did, however, afford Anfield its first look at summer signing Ibrahima Konate, lining up in central defence alongside the returning Virgil van Dijk.

Perhaps understandably there were some teething problems with a defence that had never played together before and a shaky start saw Alisson forced to tip Wilfried Zaha’s attempted lob from close range onto a post.

Konate was first extended in a foot race with Zaha, with the winger going down in the area but he did not appeal for a penalty and none was given.

The big centre-back passed his second test as well as, one-on-one with Christian Benteke, he blocked the striker’s near-post shot.

They were the rare Palace attacks as the home side dominated throughout and would have been ahead well before the 43rd minute had they shown more composure in front of goal.

Klopp’s side were frustrated for a long period by Palace’s discipline and organisation which saw them get men behind the ball quickly to regain their shape.

Diogo Jota fired over from a narrow angle after Kostas Tsimikas and Mane combined, Jordan Henderson’s far-post attempt was palmed behind, Thiago Alcantara’s weak shot was blocked by a crowd of defenders and an acrobatic Mane effort went for a corner.

But the worst came last as Thiago’s header was parried by Vicente Guaita only for Jota, who had a poor game against Milan, to blaze over from three yards.

Mane showed him how it should be done, however, when Salah’s glancing header from Tsimikas’ corner was half-stopped by the goalkeeper and the Senegal forward pounced to lash home.

Fewer chances were created in the second half as the game became scrappier before Palace boss Patrick Vieira turned to Odsonne Edouard, who scored twice on his debut last weekend, just past the hour.

But the direction of travel remained roughly the same with Guaita producing a double save from Mane and Salah.

Jordan Ayew wasted a promising opportunity when he opted to shoot rather than crossing for Zaha, who had escaped the clutches of James Milner for once in the game, while Edouard was smothered by Alisson as he somehow found space in the penalty area.

But the visitors’ hopes of snatching something from the game were snuffed out when Salah volleyed home at a corner, whipping his shirt off in celebration at his 99th Premier League goal for the club.

Alisson denied Edouard again before Keita added the gloss with a sweetly-struck shot.

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FORMER ENGLAND, CHELSEA AND SPURS STRIKER JIMMY GREAVES DIES AT 81

Former England, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur striker Jimmy Greaves has died. He was 81.

One of England’s greatest forwards, Greaves scored 44 goals in 57 international appearances and is Spurs’ record goal-scorer with 266 goals in 279 games.

Greaves also played for AC Milan and West Ham United and scored a total of 366 top-flight goals during a 14-year career, which stood as a record for most goals scored in Europe’s top five leagues for 46 years until it was broken by Cristiano Ronaldo in 2017.

A member of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning squad, Greaves missed out on the final after getting injured during the tournament. He was replaced by Geoff Hurst, who scored a hat trick in England’s 4-2 win against West Germany.

Alcoholism cut Greaves’ career short at the age of 31, and he also had health issues during his later years and suffered strokes in 2012 and 2015.

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher described Greaves as “the best goal scorer we have seen”, while Spurs striker Harry Kane called him “a true legend.”

Gary Lineker, a former Tottenham and England striker, said: “Terribly sad news that Jimmy Greaves has died. Quite possibly the greatest striker this country has ever produced. A truly magnificent footballer who was at home both in the box and on the box. A charismatic, knowledgeable, witty and warm man. A giant of the sport.”

England manager Gareth Southgate said the national team would pay tribute to Greaves in next month’s World Cup qualifier against Hungary at Wembley, while Spurs and Chelsea also paid tribute to their former player.

“Jimmy Greaves was someone who was admired by all who love football, regardless of club allegiances,” Southgate said in a statement released by the Football Association.

“I was privileged to be able to meet Jimmy’s family last year at Tottenham Hotspur as the club marked his 80th birthday. My thoughts are with them and I know the entire game will mourn his passing.”

Born in east London in 1940, Greaves signed for Chelsea and made his professional debut at the age of 17. He scored 132 goals in 169 games, racking up 100 league goals by the time he turned 20.

He attracted interest from Italy and signed with AC Milan in 1961, but only managed 12 appearances and nine goals in his single season at the club.

Greaves returned to England with Spurs in 1962 for £99,000 and scored in the FA Cup final as Tottenham lifted the trophy that season.

His nine seasons in north London coincided with the most successful decade in the club’s history. Greaves would also win the FA Cup with Spurs in 1967, as well as the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1963.

Greaves made his England debut in 1959, scoring in a 4-1 win against Peru. He holds the record for the most hat tricks scored by an England player and netted the first of his six in an 8-0 win against Luxembourg in 1960.

He scored the last of his 44 England goals in 1967 and is fourth on England’s all-time goal-scorers list behind Wayne Rooney, Bobby Charlton and Gary Lineker.

After leaving Spurs in 1969, Greaves moved across London to sign for West Ham, where he stayed for two seasons until 1971. Due to alcoholism and fitness issues, Greaves was less prolific during his final two years in the top flight and scored 13 goals in 40 appearances for West Ham before he retired in 1971 at the age of 31.

After retiring, Greaves pursued a career in broadcast media and presented popular football talk show “Saint and Greavsie” alongside former Liverpool striker Ian St John from 1985 to 1992.

Greaves eventually received his World Cup winners medal in 2009. Due to FIFA rules which were subsequently overturned, only the players who finished England’s 4-2 win over West Germany on the pitch received winners’ medals in 1966.

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BRIGHTON CONTINUE FINE FORM WITH WIN OVER LEICESTER

Brighton maintained their impressive start to the Premier League season with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Leicester at the Amex Stadium.

The Seagulls found themselves on the right side of VAR throughout the game as Leicester had two equalisers ruled out in the final stages, with Harvey Barnes judged to be offside and obstructing the goalkeeper on both occasions.

Neal Maupay put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot in the 35th minute, sending Kasper Schmeichel the wrong way, and Danny Welbeck doubled Brighton’s lead just after the break with a well-timed header.

However, after going two goals behind, it was Leicester who dominated, with Jamie Vardy pulling one back just after the hour mark with his 150th goal for the club on his 250th Premier League appearance.

The Foxes kept the pressure on in the final minutes of the game but were unable to find the leveller.

Brighton had the best of the early chances, including when Maupay was fed through by Marc Cucurella, but his shot was blocked and deflected over the crossbar.

Solly March also had an opportunity to break the deadlock after being played in by Joel Veltman but his low drive was saved by the legs of Schmeichel.

A penalty decision from Stuart Atwell handed the home side the breakthrough they had threatened from the start.

The ball into the box was headed by Shane Duffy and struck Jannik Vestergaard’s hand at close range, with the referee pointing to the spot after a discussion with his assistant.

VAR then upheld the decision before Maupay scored from the spot to claim his third goal of the season.

Leicester looked marginally more threatening after the break and Vardy capitalised on a loose ball only to drag his shot wide of the target.

However, Brighton doubled their lead just moments later, with former England international Welbeck sending a header past Schmeichel.

The free-kick was put into the box from Leandro Trossard and Welbeck timed his run, lost Vardy who appeared to be marking him, and jumped well to nod into the back of the net.

Leicester halved the deficit just after the hour mark, with substitute Ademola Lookman playing a clever back-heeled one-two with Youri Tielemens who sent in a well-timed ball to the back post which was calmly slotted into the net by Vardy.

The visitors appeared to have secured an equaliser when Lookman scuffed a volley into the back of the net, but it was ruled out.

The assistant referee had raised his flag for offside with VAR upholding the decision, with Barnes in the line of sight of goalkeeper Robert Sanchez and was offside as the ball came in to the former Fulham player.

Caglar Soyuncu headed wide inside the box with just over 10 minutes remaining as Leicester kept the pressure on in search of a leveller, with Barnes also having a shot deflected onto the bar.

Leicester looked to have equalised for a second time, only for Wilfred Ndidi’s header to be ruled out for another offside from Barnes, who was ruled to be obstructing Sanchez for a second time.