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Manchester United 1-1 Arsenal: Bruno and Rice stunners split points at Old Trafford

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Declan Rice’s equaliser denied Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim a much-needed win but Arsenal’s faltering Premier League title challenge suffered another damaging blow in a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The Gunners sit 15 points behind runaway leaders Liverpool, now with just one game in hand, with their focus beginning to turn to holding off the chasing pack for a place in next season’s Champions League.

Bruno Fernandes’ stunning free-kick put United ahead in first-half stoppage time.

The Red Devils, though, could not hold on for just a sixth Premier League win in 16 games under Amorim as Rice swept home 16 minutes from time.

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A point leaves United down in 14th.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was taking charge of his 200th Premier League match.

The Spaniard’s 118 wins in that time places him only behind a stellar cast of Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp and Alex Ferguson in the English top flight.

But his wait for a league title looks set to continue with Arsenal on course to finish second for the third consecutive season.

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United have had three permanent managers and an interim during Arteta’s five years in charge of Arsenal.

Amorim said he knows he will not get the time Arteta did to turn around a sinking ship at Old Trafford.

The discontent among the home support could be seen around the stands with many taking part in a protest by wearing black over what they perceive as “the death” of their club.

Arsenal had failed to score in either of their previous two league games to realistically wave goodbye to their hopes of a first title in 21 years.

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Despite still missing the attacking quartet of Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, the Gunners hit back in stunning fashion to thrash PSV Eindhoven 7-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Infused with fresh confidence, Arsenal started on the front foot but again missed the focal point of a natural centre-forward.

Midfielder Mikel Merino has been forced to deputise up front in recent weeks and fired wide from the edge of the area with an early opening.

United have struggled for goals all season, but their skipper has remained a source of inspiration and Fernandes produced once more with a sumptuous free-kick just before half-time.

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Questions will be asked over Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya’s starting position, but Fernandes still had to whip the ball over an imposing wall and back down into the visitors’ net.

If Raya was at fault for the opener, he made amends with a string of saves in the second period.

Noussair Mazraoui and Joshua Zirkzee were the first to be denied as United threatened a second on the counter-attack.

Arteta was able to throw on Martinelli on his return from a hamstring injury in the hunt for an equaliser.

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Instead, it was Rice who matched Fernandes’ fine finish by arrowing a shot beyond Andre Onana from Jurrien Timber’s pass.

Amorim had dropped Rasmus Hojlund to the bench after a run of 19 games without a goal.

The Dane twice had chances to snap that streak only to be foiled by desperate Arsenal defending.

More Raya heroics followed to stop Fernandes from snatching a winner as the match entered stoppage time.

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However, a draw did little for Arsenal’s title challenge.

Arteta’s men edge four points clear of third-placed Nottingham Forest and eight clear of Manchester City in fifth in the battle for a place in next season’s Champions League.

AFP

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Liverpool Legend, Mo Salah Joins Tranzonspor On Two-Year Deal

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MOHAMED SALAH has agreed to join Turkish side Tranzonspor on a free transfer.

The Liverpool legend had been a free agent since his contract at Anfield expired at the end of the 2025/26 campaign.

Salah, 34, has agreed to move to Turkey on a two-year contract.

Tranzonsport confirmed that they were in negotiations with the attacker on social media.

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The club then revealed that Salah would be arriving in Istanbul on Wednesday ahead of finalising the transfer.

A statement read: “Professional footballer Mohamed Salah, with whom we have begun transfer negotiations, will be at Istanbul Atatürk Airport General Aviation Terminal at 12:00 on Wednesday, August 5 (tomorrow).

“The player is scheduled to arrive in Trabzon on the same day in the evening hours.

“The time and other details regarding the welcome program in Trabzon will be shared with the public through our club’s official communication channels during the day.”

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It read: “Professional footballer Mohamed Salah, with whom we have begun transfer negotiations, will be at Istanbul Atatürk Airport General Aviation Terminal at 12:00 on Wednesday, August 5 (tomorrow).

“The player is scheduled to arrive in Trabzon on the same day in the evening hours.

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Infantino Could Have Earned £47m Annually From Abandoned World Cup Proposal

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FIFA president Gianni Infantino could have earned nearly £47 million ($63 million) annually if his controversial proposal to sell a stake in the FIFA World Cup had gone ahead, according to reports.

The proposed deal was abandoned following widespread opposition from football governing bodies and member associations, with reports suggesting it could have increased Infantino’s annual earnings by about £42 million from his current salary of approximately £4.5 million.

That would have taken his total annual compensation to almost £1 million per week.

The plan involved raising about £3.1 billion in private investment for FIFA’s Football Future Enterprise (FFE) project. Investment bank JP Morgan was reportedly advising on the initiative, while Thrive Capital, backed by Jared Kushner, was among the investors expected to acquire a 20 per cent stake.

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Infantino had repeatedly insisted that “nobody is selling football” as criticism of the proposal mounted.

UEFA reportedly spearheaded the opposition, with its member associations threatening to boycott FIFA competitions, including the World Cup. Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation also voiced their opposition, while England’s Football Association backed UEFA’s position.

The FA called for a comprehensive review of FIFA’s leadership and governance, stressing the need for greater transparency and long-term protection of the global game.

Facing mounting pressure, Infantino eventually announced that the proposal would not proceed, saying the project had created divisions that were no longer in the interest of its intended objectives.

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“Having listened carefully to all the views, it has become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place,” he said.

Infantino added that FIFA’s purpose remained to unite and improve the sport, while pledging to bring football stakeholders together and rebuild unity.

Despite the collapse of the proposal and the criticism surrounding his leadership, reports indicate that Infantino intends to seek another term as FIFA president at the organisation’s 2027 election.

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Oshoala Scores As 10-Woman Super Falcons Defeat Zambia In WAFON 2026 Cracker

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After loosing to Malawi in there Opening match of 2026 WAFCON cracker, The Super Falcons dig deep to secure a vital victory over Zambia in Rabat, despite playing the entire second half with 10 players.

The Super Falcons stumbled to a catastrophic loss in their July 28 opener against Malawi but put up a disciplined display against Zambia, a tournament favourite, to earn their first three points of the tournament on Saturday night.

Head Coach Justin Madugu made five changes to the side, bringing in six-time CAF Women’s Player of the Year winner Asisat Oshoala in place of Toronto-based Esther Okoronkwo, and Rofiat Imuran for Shukurat Oladipo.

The Copper Queens of Zambia came into the side with a lot of confidence after thrashing Egypt 6–0 in their opener, and it showed from the first blast of the whistle.

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A misplaced possession move led to a turnover, with Super Falcons captain Rasheedat Ajibade sending a long ball toward Oshoala, whose speed helped her beat the Zambian defence and allowed her to get to the ball before the Zambian goalkeeper, who saved the initial attempt but was unable to stop the ball from ricocheting off Oshoala for the only goal of the encounter.

It was Oshoala’s 15th WAFCON goal in a storied career.

The Super Falcons went a woman down when Oluwatosin Demehin got sent off for bringing down the Copper Queens’ captain, Barbara Banda.

The game plan changed from then, as the Super Falcons maintained a strong defensive shape and only attempted forays into the opponent’s half on the counter.

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In the end, their defensive grit, captain Ajibade’s disciplined play, and good goalkeeping from Chiamaka Nnadozie helped the Super Falcons to secure their first three points of WAFCON 2026.

Attention will now turn to the Cleopatras of Egypt, whom they face on Wednesday for a chance to progress to the next round.

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