Sports
Bellingham brace helps leaders Madrid crush title rivals Girona
Jude Bellingham struck twice as leaders Real Madrid took control of La Liga with a punishing 4-0 win over second-placed Girona on Saturday, opening up a five-point cushion.
Vinicius Junior drove home the opener and then set up Bellingham for the second as Carlo Ancelotti’s side dominated the Catalan minnows, leaving the surprise title contenders reeling.
Bellingham tapped in the third after the break from close range but limped off with an ankle problem early in the second half.
Rodrygo kept the goals flowing with a fine individual effort as the record 35-time Spanish champions taught Girona, in the top flight for only the fourth year in their history, a compelling lesson.
Victory leaves Madrid 11 points clear of champions Barcelona, third, who host Granada on Sunday.
Madrid’s victory was convincing, with swagger at times but also sweat to keep the league’s top goalscoring side quiet, despite significant injury absences.
Carlo Ancelotti started with a makeshift central defensive pairing of Dani Carvajal and Aurelien Tchouameni, with all four of the club’s specialists in the position out.
Girona were without the suspended Daley Blind and Yangel Herrera, as well as coach Michel Sanchez, watching on helplessly from a high vantage point as his team were dismantled.
They started well against Madrid but conceded early in a thorough 3-0 home defeat earlier in the season and committed the same mistake again at the Santiago Bernabeu.
This time Vinicius broke the deadlock in only the sixth minute, cutting in from the left and bending a vicious strike beyond Paulo Gazzaniga and in at the far post.
Back in the team after missing the Madrid derby with a neck problem, Vinicius’ drive was his seventh league goal of a season disrupted by injury.
Eduardo Camavinga, skipping forward from midfield, was shoved over by Juanpe on the edge of the box as Madrid pushed for a second, with Gazzaniga saving Fede Valverde’s low free-kick.
Bellingham, who started the match level with Girona’s Artem Dovbyk on 14 goals as the league’s joint top scorer, doubled Madrid’s lead.
The England international rounded Gazzaniga and then stroked home from a tight angle after a superb Vinicius pass sent him hurtling in on goal.
It ended a run of just one goal in eight games for Bellingham, who had scored freely at the start of the season as he hit the ground running following his move from Borussia Dortmund.
– Bellingham brace –
Bellingham tapped in his 16th of the season in La Liga early in the second half after Gazzaniga could only tip Vinicius’ shot into his path.
It was his last contribution, Ancelotti quickly withdrawing him afterwards for an ankle injury which he iced.
Bellingham might have sustained it when challenged by Pablo Torre, or slipping on it and colliding with Eric Garcia, both in the first half.
Madrid face RB Leipzig in the Champions League on Tuesday and will hope he is fit, after Bellingham reached 20 goals in 29 games across all competitions.
However Los Blancos have plenty of other firepower if he needs to rest.
Rodrygo rattled in the fourth after darting into the area as Girona collapsed — and perhaps their unlikely title bid has too.
Brahim Diaz curled inches wide and Joselu hit the post with a penalty after Yan Couto fouled Arda Guler as Madrid dominated from start to finish.
AFP
Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly will leave his role after agreeing to sell his stake in the Premier League football club to co-owners Clearlake Capital.
The announcement came early on Thursday morning, with the US equity firm acquiring “full control of the club”.
Boehly bought a stake in the London club in 2022 and said it had been an “honour” to serve as chairman.
He gave his thanks to “the coaches and players, the talented leadership and staff at Chelsea, and the legions of dedicated fans”.
His statement continued: “I have valued my partnership with Clearlake and the wider ownership group, and the collective decisions and investment we have made to support the immediate and long-term success of the club.
“I am confident that Chelsea is well positioned for continued success under Clearlake’s leadership.”
Behdad Eghbali and José E. Feliciano, co-founders of Clearlake Capital, said: “Todd has been an important partner throughout our ownership of Chelsea, and we thank him for his time and contribution as Chairman.
“He will always be a part of the Chelsea story and family. Clearlake has served as Chelsea’s majority owner since 2022, and as we move to full control our focus is to continue investing in the Club’s infrastructure, sporting performance, player development and delivering long-term success for Chelsea and the Club’s supporters.”
FBL-ENG-PR-CHELSEA-BRIGHTON
Todd Boehly bought the stake in 2022 (Image: Getty)
Chelsea said that Hansjörg Wyss “will remain an important stakeholder and partner in the ownership group” after Mark Walter, another of the club’s co-owners, also sold his stake to Clearlake.
Mr Boehly, Mr Walter and Hansjörg Wyss each had a 12.8% stake following their joint takeover of Chelsea four years ago.
The new change will not change day-to-day operations or strategy at the club.
Lionel Messi is set to make his final appearance for Argentina after being named in the squad for an international friendly against Benin on October 6.
The 39-year-old forward, who announced his retirement from international football in August, will return to the national team for what is expected to be an emotional farewell before Argentine supporters at River Plate’s Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.
The Argentine Football Association (AFA) plans to honour its captain during the fixture, with AFA president Claudio Tapia confirming that Messi was invited to receive the send-off the federation believes he deserves.
“We made the decision to invite the best player in the world, the symbol of our national team, our captain, Lionel Andres Messi, so that he can have the farewell he truly deserves on October 6 here in Argentina,” Tapia said.
Members of Argentina’s 2022 World Cup-winning squad have also been invited to attend the ceremony.
Messi is expected to win his 208th and final international cap against Benin. He remains Argentina’s record appearance holder and all-time leading scorer, with 125 goals for the national team.
His two-decade international career has been decorated with major honours, including the 2022 FIFA World Cup and Copa America titles in 2021 and 2024.
Before the farewell fixture, Argentina will face Bolivia in Cordoba on September 30 and Burkina Faso in Buenos Aires on October 3.
The Bolivia clash will be Argentina’s first match since their defeat to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final.
The fixtures will also take place against the backdrop of FIFA disciplinary sanctions imposed on Argentina following incidents involving members of the team.
Argentina have been ordered to play their next home match at 50 per cent stadium capacity after breaching FIFA disciplinary regulations relating to demonstrations considered non-sporting at a sporting event.
The punishment followed Argentina’s 2-1 semi-final victory over England in July, when several players displayed a banner bearing the words: “The Falklands are Argentine.”
The upcoming friendlies are also expected to count towards suspensions handed down following incidents after Argentina’s World Cup final defeat to Spain.
Midfielder Leandro Paredes has been suspended for 10 matches, while defender Nahuel Molina was handed a seven-game ban.
Despite the disciplinary backdrop, the October 6 fixture is expected to centre on Messi as Argentina prepares to bid farewell to the captain who led the country to its long-awaited World Cup triumph.
The Premier League’s refereeing body has admitted that an error was made in allowing Erling Haaland’s winning goal to stand during Manchester City’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United in Sunday’s Manchester derby.
The controversial goal, scored at Old Trafford, has sparked fresh questions over the use of VAR after the video assistant referee overturned an initial offside decision and allowed City to take the lead.
Haaland eventually scored the only goal of the encounter as Manchester City secured all three points against their city rivals.
However, the refereeing body, ProRef, later acknowledged that the VAR team made an error in its assessment of the incident.
The controversy centred on City midfielder Enzo Fernandez, who was in an offside position during the build-up to Haaland’s goal.
Although Fernandez did not make contact with the ball, his position and movement were considered potentially relevant because of his interaction with Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez.
The assistant referee had initially raised his flag for offside, but VAR intervened and determined that Haaland was onside when he received the ball.
The on-field decision was subsequently overturned, allowing the goal to stand.
Following a review, however, ProRef admitted that VAR had failed to properly consider whether Fernandez had interfered with Martinez in the build-up.
According to the refereeing body, the VAR team should have advised referee Michael Oliver to review the incident on the pitch before reaching a final decision.
ProRef described the incident as an “error of judgement” and said Manchester United had been informed of the mistake.
The admission is likely to fuel further debate over VAR and the consistency of Premier League officiating, particularly when decisions have a direct impact on the outcome of high-profile matches.
Manchester City, however, will retain their 1-0 victory despite the refereeing admission.
Under Premier League rules, a match result is not overturned because of a subsequent admission that a refereeing or VAR decision was incorrect.
The defeat leaves Manchester United to rue another controversial moment in a derby that City ultimately won through Haaland’s decisive strike.
The latest development also puts renewed focus on the responsibilities of VAR officials, particularly in situations involving an offside player who may not touch the ball but could still influence an opponent’s ability to defend the play.
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