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Project Restart sets stage for Liverpool’s first English Premier League title

The English Premier League is set to return on Wednesday amidst a plethora of health protocols and empty stands after a forced three-month break which delayed Liverpool’s first league triumph since 1990.

With the implementation of ‘Project Restart’, the most-watched domestic league in the world will be back after the lockdown but in a way unknown to many. The Premier League returns on Wednesday after a three-month hiatus forced by the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the United Kingdom’s death toll stands at 41,736 due to the virus, football’s return in the country has come with conditions applied. Stadium access will be limited to only 300 people which includes the players, managers, officials, staff, and unfortunately, no fans. Before leaving for a match, all players and staff must complete relevant checks for Covid-19 and report any symptoms.

Teams will take the field separately, not side-by-side, and games will feature drinks breaks midway through each half. There will be no pre-match handshakes between teams and no handshakes at the coin toss. There will be no ballboys or ballgirls and players will have to use spare balls placed around the pitch if a match ball goes into the stands.

None of the remaining 92 games will be played simultaneously. Players are expected to maintain social distancing norms while celebrating a goal and the list goes on. But the biggest change is the newly-applied substitution rule which will let teams have nine players on the bench and five eligible substitutes during a match, instead of the usual three.

With a 25-point lead over Manchester City, Liverpool look unstoppable on their way to winning their first Premier League title. If Arsenal beat City on the opening day of the restart, and Liverpool manage to win against Everton on Sunday, then the trophy can be brought home to Anfield.

If that doesn’t happen, Liverpool can instead secure their first league title since 1990 on June 24 if they defeat Crystal Palace. Considering that Jurgen Klopp’s men visit City’s Etihad on July 2 next, they might or might not receive a guard of honour, depending on the social distancing rules.

The season is going to be extra special for the Reds, as they are also aiming to shatter a number of records on the way. Liverpool need only 19 points from the 27 available to surpass the record tally of 101 for a Premier League season set by Pep Guardiola’s City in 2018. The Reds can also set a record of most number of wins in a season and even the biggest title win by points margin.

City are currently awaiting a decision from Court of Arbitration of Sports (CAS) on whether their two-year UEFA ban will be overturned. If the CAS does not rule in their favour, then Liverpool, Leicester City, Chelsea, and fifth-placed Manchester United are currently the top four teams to qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League.

At the other end of the table, the relegation battle is set to be one of the closest with six teams in threat. Having scored just 25 goals this season at an average of one-per-game, Norwich City (21 points) are at the bottom, six points away from safety. With tough fixtures like Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester City still left for them, Norwich have a severe headache on their plate.

Standing on 19th is Aston Villa (25 points), who also have to face the traditional four of the top six (vs Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, and Arsenal). They boast the poorest defensive record in the league with 56 goals conceded in 28 games and will rely heavily on the services of Jack Grealish.

West Ham, Watford, and Bournemouth are the other three clubs fighting the relegation battle, all locked at 27 points at the bottom of the table and separated only by goal difference. Brighton also see themselves fighting the relegation battle, having failed to win a single match in 2020.

With no home support for the rest of the season, relegation-threatened clubs will be further in a turmoil after data produced by Gracenote from Bundesliga’s “ghost games” shows a radical shift where home advantage has been wiped out in empty stadiums.

ith 19 goals this season, Jamie Vardy is in firm position to win his first-ever Golden Boot after coming a close-second in Leicester City’s title-winning 2015/16 season. Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who won the Golden Boot last year, is just two goals behind. He has, however, said recently that he is at a turning point in his career and it will be a difficult decision whether to extend his contract at Arsenal or not.

Meanwhile, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and City’s Sergio Aguero follow closely at 16 league goals each. Southampton’s Danny Ings has been the surprise package of the season, scoring 15 goals. One below Ings are Liverpool’s Sadio Mane and Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford — who is fit again after a back injury.

Top Matches

Manchester City vs. Arsenal (Wednesday, June 17)

Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester United (Friday, June 19)

Everton vs. Liverpool (Sunday, June 21)

Tottenham vs. West Ham (Tuesday, June 23)

Chelsea vs. Manchester City (Thursday, June 25)

Manchester City vs. Liverpool (Thursday, July 2)

Tottenham Hotspur vs. Arsenal (TBC)

Arsenal vs. Liverpool (TBC)

Liverpool vs. Chelsea (TBC)

West Ham vs. Aston Villa (TBC)

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MARCUS RASHFORD JOINS FAVORITES TO WIN SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARD AFTER WINNING STANCE ON FREE SCHOOL MEAL.

Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford is now the joint-favourite to win the 2020 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award following his remarkable charity efforts which resulted in a government U-turn.

In partnership with food poverty and waste charity FareShare, the England international has helped to raise £20million during the coronavirus pandemic in order to provide three million meals to vulnerable people across the United Kingdom.

Rashford wrote an open letter to MPs this week urging the Government to reverse its decision not to award free school meals vouchers in England – for which nearly 1.3 million children are eligible – outside of term time.

The Manchester United and England forward followed that up with an impassioned article in The Times on Tuesday, detailing his experience of growing up using food banks and receiving free meals as a child.

The government initially refused to extend the program before, on Tuesday, relenting. The cost will come to £120 million in additional funding, Downing Street said.

Reacting to the news, Rashford wrote on Twitter: “I don’t even know what to say. Just look at what we can do when we come together, THIS is England in 2020.”

Referring to Rashford, the Prime Minister’s spokesperson added: “The PM welcomes his contribution to the debate around poverty and respects the fact that he has been using his profile as a leading sportsman to highlight important issues.”

Rashford has been widely praised for his charitable efforts, last month winning a special recognition award from the High Sheriff of Greater Manchester, Eamonn O’Neal, for “outstanding activity and contribution to the community”.

Many have called for the 22-year-old to at least be made the Sports Personality of the Year, with the latest odds from bookmakers showing him as the joint-favourite for the prestigious prize at around 6/4, along with boxer Tyson Fury, ahead of the likes of Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and reigning Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Rashford’s odds were previously as long as 150/1, while they were cut down to 80/1 by the start of June.

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FRESH PRESSURE ON SAUDI’S NEWCASTLE TAKE OVER AS PIRACY EVIDENCE IS RELEASED.

Fresh pressure has been put on the Premier League to reject a controversial £300m takeover of Newcastle by a Saudi-backed consortium after Fifa and Uefa heavily criticised Saudi Arabia for supporting a pirate service that illegally streamed football matches.

The forceful response from world and European football’s governing bodies came after the World Trade Organization ruled that the pirate beoutQ service was “operated by individuals or entities subject to the criminal jurisdiction of Saudi Arabia” and said the Saudi state had breached intellectual property rights by failing to tackle it.

The ruling, first revealed by the Guardian last month, also found that Saudi Arabia had repeatedly stopped sporting bodies, including the Premier League, from taking legal action against beoutQ there.

The de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, is also the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which is seeking a 80% stake in Newcastle. The WTO ruling will increase the scrutiny on the Premier League’s decision over whether to approve the takeover.

It is more than 10 weeks since the consortium contacted the league for approval – a process expected to take about 30 days. In the league’s owners’ and directors’ test there is a reference to digital piracy being a disqualifying factor and a clause requiring any prospective owner or director to have never provided “false, misleading or inaccurate information” in their dealings with the league. How closely the Saudi state and the Saudi PIF are aligned is being heavily investigated by Premier League lawyers.

The Premier League chief executive, Richard Masters, declined to comment but in a statement Fifa condemned what it called the “active involvement and support that has been provided by Saudi Arabia in the past three years” for the beoutQ service.

“Fifa agrees with the WTO panel’s recommendations and demands that Saudi Arabia takes the necessary steps in order that it conforms to its obligations under the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights agreement with immediate effect in order to protect legitimate media rights partners, such as BeIN, and also football itself,” it said.

“The WTO panel’s recommendations are clear and piracy of football matches is an illegal activity and will not be tolerated on any level.”

Uefa pointed out that beoutQ was hosted on Arabsat, based on Riyadh and majority Saudi-owned. “What is clear is that beoutQ’s broadcasts constitute piracy of Uefa’s matches and as such, are illegal. BeoutQ was hosted on frequencies transmitted by Arabsat and was promoted and carried out by individuals and entities subject to Saudi Arabia’s territorial jurisdiction. Piracy not only threatens that investment but also the existence of professional sport as we know it.”

The WTO report followed a complaint by Qatar over the piracy of its broadcaster beIN Sports, which holds the rights to show Premier League games in the Middle East.

In its evidence to the WTO, beIN claimed the Saudi government and senior figures had promoted piracy in “governmental tweets” and via giant screens in public gatherings during the 2018 World Cup.

BeoutQ has since been removed from Arabsat. However, beoutQ illegal set-top boxes which allow the streaming of major broadcasters, including Sky and BT, are still widely available across the region.

In a statement following the WTO ruling the Saudi Arabian government said it had a “strong record of protecting intellectual property and is committed to applying its national law and procedures in full conformity with WTO rules”.

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NAPOLI NOT GIVING UP ON NEWCASTLE BOUND CIRO IMMOBILE BUT HAS NIGERIAN FORWARD AS PLAN B.

Napoli are not dropping their interest in Newcastle United target Ciro Immobile, but Lazio’s asking price is keeping the southern Italian side looking at Lille’s Victor Osimhen.

Immobile has been in terrific form for Lazio this season, topping the Serie A goalscoring charts ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo with 27 strikes to his name.

His impressive performances has attracted the attention of Premier League side Newcastle, who are preparing a big money move for the Italian once their £300m takeover of the club by a Saudi Arabian-led consortium goes through.

The Magpies face competition in their pursuit of Immobile though with Serie A outfit Napoli hot on the heels of the Lazio striker.

While Napoli are maintaining their interest in Immobile, Lazio’s asking price is fast becoming a stumbling block.

Lazio are claimed to want €70m to sell Immobile, while the striker himself wants wages to the tune of €4m per season.

As such, Napoli are keeping open the possibility of moving to sign Osimhen from Lille.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is on good terms with his Lille counterpart and it is claimed that €40m plus Adam Ounas could do the trick for Osimhen.

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La Liga to seek criminal action against pitch invader

MALLORCA, SPAIN - JUNE 13: A member of the public is dragged away by security guards after invading the pitch during the La Liga match between RCD Mallorca and FC Barcelona at Estadio de Son Moix on June 13, 2020 in Mallorca, Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The fan, wearing an Argentina shirt with Messi’s name and number 10 on the back, breached strict security measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus by going onto the pitch early in the second half.

La Liga’s organising body has said it is filing for criminal action against the man who ran on to the pitch during Real Mallorca’s behind-closed-doors match against Barcelona on Saturday to try to get a photo with Lionel Messi.

The fan, wearing an Argentina shirt with Messi’s name and number 10 on the back, breached strict security measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus by going onto the pitch early in the second half.

A statement from La Liga on Sunday said the man accessed the pitch “without any authorisation and disobeying the protocols established by health legislation, as well as disobeying the orders of security staff”.

“La Liga also wishes to show its absolute condemnation for this type of conduct that puts the health of others at risk and risks damaging the integrity of the competition,” the statement added.

The fan, a French Mallorca resident, spoke to Spanish radio station Cadena Cope after being ejected by security personnel and police, revealing that he had scaled a two-metre fence to access the stadium.

“I had planned this ever since I knew the match was happening, I wanted a photo with Messi and to meet him because he’s my idol,” he said.

Mallorca said they were investigating how the fan had got into the stadium.

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MERTENS TO STAY IN NAPOLI

Belgian forward Dries Mertens came close to joining Chelsea but will renew his contract with Napoli instead, journalist Kristof Terreur has told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“In January when Chelsea knocked on the door, he was quite convinced,” Belgian reporter Terreur said.

“But once you are in the south of Italy, with good money and you are a god, why would you change that?

“He would come to the Premier League as a nobody and in Italy he is a star.”

Mertens, 33, became Napoli’s outright all-time top goalscorer on Saturday when his goal in the Coppa Italia semi-final win over Inter Milan moved him to 122 for the club, one clear of Marek Hamsik.

The Belgium international’s contract expires at the end of the season, but he has reportedly agreed a three-year extension despite interest from Inter Milan and Chelsea.

Terreur added that Mertens’ love of London, where he and his wife regularly go for mini-breaks, also made Chelsea’s offer attractive.

Chelsea have made attacking additions this summer, with a deal agreed for Ajax’s Hakim Ziyech, and RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner expected to follow.

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CAVANI AND THIAGO TO LEAVE PSG

Edinson Cavani and Thiago Silva are set to leave Paris St-Germain this summer after the conclusion of the club’s Champions League campaign in August.

Uruguay striker Cavani, 33, is PSG’s record scorer with 200 goals and Brazil defender Silva, 35, is club captain.

“It was a difficult decision to make – they are players who made their mark on the club’s history,” sporting director Leonardo told Le Journal du Dimanche.

“The stories were so beautiful. But, yes, we are coming to the end.”

He added: “We had to make a logical decision. Maybe we are wrong, I do not know – there is never a perfect moment. Now the Champions League is still in sight, and the idea is to continue competing with them until the end of August. How it can be done is not yet clear.”

Both players’ contracts are due to expire on 30 June. Ligue 1 was cancelled in April, but the Champions League is due to be completed in August with a mini-tournament behind closed doors.

PSG resume training on 22 June and are already through to the Champions League quarter-finals after beating Borussia Dortmund in March before football was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cavani had asked to leave the French champions in January amid interest from Spanish side Atletico Madrid, while he was also linked to Manchester United and Chelsea.

Last month, PSG signed striker Mauro Icardi for 60m euros (£54m) from Inter Milan.

When asked if forwards Neymar and Kylian Mbappe would still be at the club next season, Leonardo said: “Nothing tells us otherwise.

“They still have two years on their contracts and we’re more thinking about the future with them. We want to go forward.”

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COSTA PAYS TRIBUTE TO TORRECILLA

Diego Costa marked his first Atletico Madrid goal of 2020 by paying tribute to Virginia Torrecilla – a midfielder for their women’s team – who had surgery for a brain tumour.

Costa celebrated equalising in a draw with Athletic Bilbao by holding a shirt with Torrecilla’s name and number.

Torrecilla had a successful operation to remove a brain tumour in May.

Bilbao captain Iker Muniain had opened the scoring in the 37th minute only for Costa to level two minutes later.

This was Atletico’s first match since knocking holders Liverpool out of the Champions League at Anfield on 11 March.

Diego Simeone’s side remain sixth in the table but are now level on points with Real Sociedad, who sit fourth and in the final Champions League qualifying spot

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Marcelo takes knee as Madrid return with win over Eibar

Marcelo celebrated by taking a knee as Real Madrid returned from three months away following the coronavirus suspension by beating Eibar 3-1 on Sunday.

After scoring Madrid’s third goal in the 37th minute, Marcelo dropped onto his left knee and raised his clenched right fist into the air, apparently in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Madrid’s win may have come at a cost as Eden Hazard and Sergio Ramos were both substituted early in the second half and were seen with ice packs strapped to them while sitting in the stands.

Hazard was making his first start since February and his ice pack appeared to be around his troublesome right ankle, which he injured in November and February, before undergoing surgery in March. 

“We knew Eden would lack a bit of rhythm playing the whole game,” coach Zinedine Zidane said. 

“He played well for an hour, he took a knock which was a scare but at half-time he said he was fine. He is happy with what he has done and we are happy with him.”

Madrid’s win means they reduce the gap behind league leaders Barcelona back to two points after the Catalans thrashed Real Mallorca 4-0 on Saturday.

Madrid struck in the fourth minute after a superb strike from Toni Kroos before Ramos tucked away Hazard’s pass on the counter-attack. 

Eibar pulled one back in the second half through Pedro Bigas but never found the second to make Madrid nervous, despite a brief spell of pressure. 

Before going off, Hazard was busy, the Belgian involved in all three goals. 

His weaving run through midfield led to Kroos’ shot and it was his effort that was cleared out to Marcelo, who drove into the corner. 

After a miserable opening season in Spain, it was a bright start for Hazard, who could now redeem himself by playing a crucial role in the run-in, if he can stay injury-free. 

Perhaps even more impressive though was Karim Benzema, who linked up brilliantly with Hazard and was unfortunate not to get the goal an excellent all-round performance deserved. 

Gareth Bale started on the bench but came on and could start against Valencia on Thursday. 

Zidane is likely to rotate heavily over the next few weeks, with the games coming thick and fast. 

adrid’s coach will also have been pleased to get off to a positive start in their new training ground home, which was the 100th different stadium to be used in La Liga.

They will be playing all their remaining home matches at the Alfredo di Stefano Stadium to allow renovation work at the Santiago Bernabeu to continue this summer.

“We know the situation, it’s all a bit strange,” said Zidane. “But the players are all champions and we have to get our heads around it.”

Barca had needed less than two minutes to score against Mallorca and Madrid were only slightly later, as Hazard broke through Eibar’s midfield and Casemiro set Benzema free. 

The ball was cleared to Kroos on the edge of the area, who struck first time, sidefooting perfectly into the far top right-hand corner. 

Ramos doubled their advantage after starting, and finishing, a ruthless counter-attack. In between, Benzema and Hazard were involved again, the former picking out the latter, who generously gave Ramos an open goal. 

Marcelo put Eibar all but out of sight before half-time as Benzema played through for Hazard and his shot spilled out to Marcelo to lash into the corner. 

Eibar were better after the break as Edu Exposito forced a full-stretch save from Thibaut Courtois and then Sergi Enrich headed against the crossbar. Bigas did score after diverting in Pedro Leon’s shot but Madrid held on.

Earlier, Diego Costa scored his first goal since October but Atletico Madrid missed the chance to move into La Liga’s top four by drawing 1-1 away at Athletic Bilbao.

Costa celebrated by holding up the shirt of Virgina Torrecilla, a player from Atletico’s women’s team, who underwent surgery on a brain tumour last month. 

His equaliser came two minutes after the excellent Iker Muniain had given Bilbao the lead towards the end of the first half and neither side could find a winner at the empty San Mames, with Atletico defender Santiago Arias missing the best chance late on. 

Diego Simeone’s side stay sixth, level on points with Getafe and one behind Real Sociedad, who were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Osasuna.

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PITCH INVADER TO FACE CRIMINAL CHARGES

MALLORCA, SPAIN - JUNE 13: A member of the public is dragged away by security guards after invading the pitch during the La Liga match between RCD Mallorca and FC Barcelona at Estadio de Son Moix on June 13, 2020 in Mallorca, Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

La Liga says it will take legal action after a pitch invader breached security to get a selfie with Barcelona’s Lionel Messi at a behind-closed-doors game.

The fan, wearing an Argentina shirt with Messi’s name and number, appeared on the pitch early in the second half of Saturday’s 4-0 win away to Mallorca.

He managed to pose for a picture within a couple of metres of Messi before being grabbed by security staff.

La Liga said it considers the incident “to represent a criminal act”.

In a statement the Spanish league said it made clear its “total condemnation” of the incident.

“This type of conduct puts the health of others at risk and risks damaging the integrity of the competition,” it added.

The fan claims he scaled a two-metre high fence to gain access to Mallorca’s stadium.

“I had planned this ever since I knew the match was happening. I wanted a photo with Messi and to meet him because he’s my idol,” the French Mallorca resident told radio station Cadena Cope.