Europe

Jürgen Klopp defends choice to join Red Bull following waves of backlash

BERLIN — Former Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp defended his decision to join Red Bull as global head of soccer from next year following criticism from fans in Germany, saying the project was 'outstanding' for him.

Klopp, who ended a successful nine-year stint at Liverpool last season, also coached Mainz 05 and Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga, with many of those clubs' fans angered by his decision to join Red Bull.

Vinicius Jr. believes his fight against racism was part of the reason for not winning Ballon d’Or

MADRID — Brazil and Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr. said on Monday that he will keep on fighting racism even if his activism is what led to him not winning the Ballon d'Or, sources close to the player told Reuters.

Vinicius took to social media after finishing second in the prestigious award voting behind Spain and Manchester City midfielder Rodri.

ROBBERY? — Players, personalities and celebrities react to Vinicius Jr.’s Ballon d’Or 'snub'

Vini Jr. is the people’s 2024 Ballon d’Or champ. If that makes it any better.

Monday morning struck the world with some of the biggest news of the year as reports revealed that ‘clear’ Ballon d’Or favorite, Vinicius Jr., was to not travel to Paris, France, for the prestigious award’s ceremony — meaning the star Brazilian and Real Madrid forward was imminently snubbed from taking the golden ball home.

Spain's Rodri wins 2024 Ballon d'Or for best player in the world

PARIS, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Spain and Manchester City midfielder Rodri is the 2024 Ballon d'Or winner for the best player in the world, beating Brazil's Vinicius Jr and England's Jude Bellingham, both of Real Madrid, to the prestigious prize.

Barcelona's Spain midfielder Aitana Bonmati won the women's award for a second time.

Watch: Salah's late equalizer earns Liverpool 2-2 draw at Arsenal

LONDON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Mohamed Salah's late equalizer earned Liverpool a 2-2 draw with rivals Arsenal in an entertaining Premier League encounter at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

Bukayo Saka gave Arsenal the lead in the ninth minute with a fierce strike, before Virgil van Dijk equalised nine minutes later, nodding home a Luis Diaz flick-on from a corner.

Kylian Mbappé drops one of the worst stinkers of all time as Barcelona thrash Real Madrid 4-0

Barcelona took Real Madrid behind the woodshed on Saturday with an unbelievable 4-0 result at the Santiago Bernabéu. The biggest talking point was Kylian Mbappé’s wretched showing in his first El Clásico.

The Mbappé vs Barcelona performance was truly hard to believe. The Frenchman is one of the most talented players on the planet right now but looked like a lost youth soccer player on Saturday. Real Madrid’s new star man was caught offside EIGHT TIMES against Barcelona.

Watch: Ricardo Pepi scores stunning volley and hat trick* for PSV

Ricardo Pepi scored twice and forced an own goal during a rare start for Eredivisie giants PSV on Saturday in a dominant 6-0 win. An incredible Pepi volley set the tone in the ninth minute as the USMNT striker had an acrobatic finish.

Pepi is typically PSV’s backup striker behind the veteran Luuk de Jong but was named in the starting XI for the second time in the league this season.

The 21-year-old sent a message with this spectacular finish.

Ricardo Pepi volley for PSV

18-year-old American Cole Campbell makes first-team debut with Borussia Dortmund

The U.S. men’s national team has yet another young American moving up the ranks in the Bundesliga.

Who is Cole Campbell, young American playing for Borussia Dortmund?

18-year-old American prospect, Cole Campbell, made his highly-anticipated professional debut for Borussia Dortmund. The USYNT forward came in as a substitute in the closing minutes of their 2-1 away loss against Augsburg.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti says he’s not losing sleep over upcoming El Clásico

MADRID — Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said on Friday that he does not fear LaLiga leaders Barcelona but has the utmost respect for Hansi Flick's side, who they host on Saturday.

Barca lead the standings three points ahead of their rivals. While Ancelotti praised Barca's recent form, he highlighted the fact that Real are the defending champions and will not be intimidated.

"Fortunately, at the moment nobody keeps me awake at night," Ancelotti told a press conference on Friday.

Attention USMNT fans: Christian Pulisic won’t be playing with AC Milan this upcoming weekend

Saturday's Serie A game between Bologna and Christian Pulisic's AC Milan has been postponed due to heavy rain and flooding in the area, the league said on Friday.

The clubs and the league organizers met on Friday in an attempt to find alternative arrangements, after Bologna mayor Matteo Lepore had earlier announced that he had ordered the suspension of the match.

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