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    Forgotten Premier League flop who was SACKED by club in sex scandal finds unlikely new club

    FORMER Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain forward Jese Rodriguez has joined Brazilian Serie A side Coritiba.The 30-year-old has signed a pre-contract with the Parana-based club.
    Jese has joined Brazilian Serie A side CoritibaCredit: AFP
    The Spaniard was sacked by PSG in 2020 after cheating on his partnerCredit: AFP – Getty
    Jese became a free agent after leaving Sampdoria in June.
    The Spaniard – who was once expected to be Cristiano Ronaldo’s replacement at Real Madrid – found himself out-of-favour following failed spells with Las Palmas and Ankaragucu.
    Prior to joining Las Palmas he spent four years with PSG, but was limited to just 18 first team appearances in total.
    His spell at the Parc des Princes came to an abrupt end in 2020 after he was accused of cheating on his partner, Aurah Ruiz, with her model friend.
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    Jese was also pictured at a party in Gran Canaria ignoring social distancing rules in the height of the Coronavirus pandemic.
    His behaviour proved to be a cause for concern for PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who suggested that he was having a negative impact on the reputation of the club.
    The forward was loaned out four times during his time at PSG – to Las Palmas, Real Betis, Sporting Lisbon and Stoke City.
    He made just 13 appearances during his season in the Premier League with Stoke during the 2017-18 campaign.
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    Jese allegedly cheated on his partner, Aurah RuizCredit: Instagram @ jeserodriguez10
    Prior to his disastrous time in France, Jese spent nine years with Real Madrid.
    He joined the club’s academy at the age of 14 and made his first team debut in a friendly against LA Galaxy four years later.
    The Spaniard was loaned to Stoke in 2017-18Credit: PA:Press Association More

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    Rafael van der Vaart’s son Damian, 17, lands first top contract as European giants snap him up in transfer

    RAFAEL VAN DER VAART’S son has followed in his father’s footsteps and signed for Ajax.Damian, 17, has joined the club from Danish side Esbjerg.
    Rafael van der Vaart’s son Damian has joined AjaxCredit: Getty
    He has signed a one-year deal at Ajax and was unveiled to supporters via a touching photo of both smiling at the Amsterdam Arena.
    Damian will be involved with their Under-18 side this season.
    He plays in midfield like his dad.
    Van der Vaart, 40, came through the youth ranks at Ajax, making 156 appearances for the club to help them win two league titles.
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    He then made the move to Hamburg in Germany before spending two seasons at Real Madrid.
    The Dutchman followed his time at the Santiago Bernabeu with a spell at Tottenham.
    Van der Vaart became a cult hero at Spurs, scoring 28 goals for the club between 2010 and 2012.
    After short spells again at Hamburg, then Real Betis and Midtjylland, he finished his career at Esbjerg, where his son was playing.
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    Van der Vaart worked as an assistant coach for the Danish team across two years after his retirement and was interim manager for six games last season.
    Damian’s mother is the former Netherlands international’s ex-wife Sylvie Meis.
    She is a TV personality and model. More

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    Ex-Arsenal star Adebayor cancelled Premier League transfer at last minute after having a bad dream

    FORMER Premier League striker Emmanuel Adebayor once bizarrely rejected a move to Aston Villa at the 11th hour due to a DREAM.The Togo international had been lined up for a move to Villa Park from Tottenham in 2015.
    Emmanuel Adebayor rejected a move to Aston Villa from TottenhamCredit: PA:Empics Sport
    He then went on to join Crystal Palace for freeCredit: AFP
    He completed a medical and even had his picture taken with the shirt before refusing to sign on.
    However, the striker claimed that a “higher power” stopped him from giving the green light.
    Former Aston Villa defender Micah Richards recalled the day Adebayor sensationally snubbed the move while speaking to Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer on The Rest is Football podcast.
    He said: “There’s a story at Aston Villa. When we got rid of (Christian) Benteke – he was always going to go, he was on fire at the time – we got Adebayor.
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    “He came, he did his medical. All-but signed the papers. There’s even a picture of him with the shirt.
    “The reason why he didn’t sign that day – so he’d done a picture with the shirt and was going to sign in the morning – he had a dream that night that he was making the wrong decision.
    “This is no nonsense! He had a dream that the higher power or someone told him it was the wrong move to come to Aston Villa, so he didn’t turn up the next day.”
    Shearer then joked: “Are you sure he didn’t have a nightmare that he had to play with Micah Richards again?”
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    Adebayor was released by Tottenham just one month after snubbing Aston Villa.
    He then joined Crystal Palace in January 2016, but left as a free agent six months later.
    The striker went on to play for Istanbul Basaksehir, Kayserispor, Olimpia and Semassi before retiring earlier this year. More

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    Bukayo Saka named on Ballon d’Or shortlist as Premier League stars dominate but Onana is only Man Utd star to get a nod

    ENGLAND ace Bukayo Saka leads the string of Premier League stars nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or.The 22-year-old was a shining light for Arsenal last season, bagging 15 goals and 11 assists in their ill-fated Premier League title tilt.
    Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham have both been nominated for the Ballon d’OrCredit: Getty
    Saka was a shining light for Arsenal last seasonCredit: GETTY
    Jude Bellingham’s exploits for Borussia Dortmund earned him a mega move to Real MadridCredit: MEGA
    A staggering SEVEN Manchester City players have been nominated for the gongCredit: GETTY
    And he’s been joined on the nominations list by countryman Jude Bellingham, who bagged a big-money move from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid this summer thanks to 14 goals and seven assists in his final season for the Germans.
    The Three Lions stars have been nominated for the coveted trophy along with some of the biggest names in world football – including their national team skipper Harry Kane.
    Karim Benzema and Mohamed Salah have, unsurprisingly, been nominated for the gong.
    The prolific duo were joined by a staggering SEVEN Manchester City stars, with Kevin de Bruyne, Josko Gvardiol, Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias, Julian Alvarez, Rodri and of course Erling Haaland all being nominated.
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    Manchester United newboy Andre Onana, Aston Villa’s Emi Martinez and Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard completed the 12-strong line-up of Prem stars up for the trophy.
    Jamal Musiala’s displays for Bayern Munich saw him rewarded with a nomination alongside new team-mate and Red Devils summer transfer target Kim Min-jae.
    Paris Saint-Germain duo Randal Kolo Muani and Kylian Mbappe also made the cut.
    Georgian sensation Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has been nominated following an impressive season with Napoli along with team-mate Victor Osimhen.
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    Inter Milan duo Nicolo Barella and Lautaro Martinez round out the Italian-based contingent up for the trophy.
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    Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid will be represented at the ceremony thanks to Robert Lewandowski, Ilkay Gundogan and Vinicius Jr.
    Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann is also up for the coveted trophy.
    The shock nomination for the trophy comes in the form of Al-Hilal’s Yassine Bounou.
    The most predictable nomination, unsurprisingly, came in the form of Inter Miami new boy Lionel Messi.
    The seven-time trophy winner is the favourite to claim it again following his heroics at the 2022 World Cup.
    Messi, 35, ended Argentina’s 36-year wait to lift the most famous trophy in football last December at Qatar 2022, a tournament in which he scored seven goals and provided three assists.
    Meanwhile Cristiano Ronaldo suffered and brutal blow as he missed out on a nomination for the first time since 2003.
    The winner of the prestigious award – which is decided by France football – will be announced on October 30.
    Lionel Messi is the favourite to win his EIGHTH Ballon d’Or trophyCredit: Getty
    The nominees for the Women’s Ballon d’Or and Kopa Trophy were also revealed, with FOUR Lionesses stars included in the star-studded line-up.
    Millie Bright, Rachel Daly, Mary Earps and Georgia Stanway – who played huge parts in England reaching last month’s World Cup final – are all up for the gong.
    Read More on The SunBallon d’Or Nominees

    Josko Gvardiol (Croatia and Man City)
    Andre Onana (Cameroon and Man Utd)
    Karim Benzema (France and Al-Ittihad)
    Jamal Musiala (Germany and Bayern Munich)
    Mohamed Salah (Egypt and Liverpool)
    Bukayo Saka (England and Arsenal)
    Jude Bellingham (England and Bayern Munich)
    Randal Kolo Muani (France and PSG)
    Kevin de Bruyne (Belgium and Man City)
    Bernardo Silva (Portugal and Man City)
    Emi Martinez (Argentina and Aston Villa)
    Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Georgia and Napoli)
    Ruben Dias (Portugal and Man City)
    Nicolo Barella (Italy and Inter Milan)
    Erling Haaland (Norway and Man City)
    Martin Odegaard (Norway and Arsenal)
    Ilkay Gundogan (Germany and Barcelona)
    Yassine Bounou (Morocco and Al-Hilal)
    Julian Alvarez (Argentina and Man City)
    Vinicius Jr (Brazil and Real Madrid)
    Lionel Messi (Argentina and Inter Miami)
    Rodri (Spain and Man City)
    Lautaro Martinez (Argentina and Inter Milan)
    Antoine Griezmann (France and Atletico Madrid)
    Robert Lewandowski (Poland and Barcelona)
    Kylian Mbappe (France and PSG)
    Kim Min-jae (South Korea and Bayern Munich)
    Victor Osimhen (Nigeria and Napoli)
    Harry Kane (England and Bayern Munich)
    Luka Modric (Croatia and Real Madrid)

    Women’s Ballon d’Or Nominees
    Aitana Bonmati (Spain and Barcelona)
    Millie Bright (England and Chelsea)
    Linda Caicedo (Colombia and Real Madrid)
    Olga Carmona (Spain and Real Madrid)
    Rachel Daly (England and Aston Villa)
    Debinha (Brazil and North Carolina Courage/Kansas City)
    Kadidiatou Diani (France and Lyon)
    Mary Earps (England and Manchester United)
    Patricia Guijarro (Spain and Barcelona)
    Yui Hasegawa (Japan and Manchester City)
    Amanda Ilestedt (Sweden and Paris St-Germain/Arsenal)
    Sam Kerr (Australia and Chelsea)
    Mapi Leon (Spain and Barcelona)
    Katie McCabe (Republic of Ireland and Arsenal)
    Hinata Miyazawa (Japan and MyNavi Sendai/Manchester United)
    Lena Oberdorf (Germany and Wolfsburg)
    Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria and Barcelona)
    Ewa Pajor (Poland and Wolfsburg)
    Salma Paralluelo (Spain and Barcelona)
    Alexandra Popp (Germany and Wolsburg)
    Hayley Raso (Australia and Man City/Real Madrid)
    Alba Redondo (Spain and Levante)
    Guro Reiten (Norway and Chelsea)
    Wendie Renard (France and Lyon)
    Fridolina Rolfo (Sweden and Barcelona)
    Jill Roord (Netherlands and Wolfsburg/Manchester City)
    Khadija Shaw (Jamaica and Manchester City)
    Sophia Smith (United States and Portland Thorns)
    Georgia Stanway (England and Bayern Munich)
    Daphne van Domselaar (Netherlands and Twente/Aston Villa)

    Only one Premier League star will vie to win the Kopa Trophy, which was scooped by Barcelona’s Gavi last season.
    Manchester United new boy Rasmus Hojland is the sole Prem star to be in line to win the award, although he’s only been nominated for it because of his displays for Atalanta last season.
    Kopa Trophy Nominees
    Jude Bellingham (England and Real Madrid)Alejandro Balde (Spain and Barcelona)Eduardo Camavinga (France and Real Madrid)Gavi (Spain and Barcelona)Rasmus Hojlund (Denmark and Man Utd)Jamal Musiala (Germany and Bayern Munich)Pedri (Spain and Barcelona)Xavi Simons (Netherlands and RB Leipzig)Antonio Silva (Portugal and Benfica)Elye Wahi (France and Lens)

    THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY…The Sun is your go to destination for the best football, boxing and MMA news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.Like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheSunFootball and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSunFootball. More

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    Top 10 most overvalued summer transfers revealed with Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea all losing millions

    THE top ten most overvalued transfers have been revealed and it is not good reading for Premier League clubs.Experts at Spin Genie UK have crunched the numbers to work out which clubs around the world spent too heavily during the summer window.
    Chelsea supposedly overpaid for Moises CaicedoCredit: Alamy
    Man Utd forked out £72m on Rasmus HojlundCredit: Getty
    They have compared the amount the buying club paid to their market value at the time of the move.
    Chelsea signed Brighton star Moises Caicedo for a staggering £115million as they smashed the British transfer record.
    The Blues beat Liverpool to bring in the midfielder and handed him an eight-year deal at Stamford Bridge.
    However, the study claims that Chelsea overpaid by a huge £50m.
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    They believe he is worth just £64m.
    Saudi Arabian clubs also splashed the cash this summer, especially Al-Hilal, who overpaid by £26m each in the deals for Malcolm and Neymar.
    The top ten additionally shows Manchester United overspent in their moves for Rasmus Hojlund and Andre Onana.
    Erik ten Hag signed the Danish striker for a whopping £72m from Italian side Atalanta despite his inexperience, with him having only scored 27 goals in his club career.
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    Numbers from Spin Genie UK
    The statisticians think United paid £26m too much for Hojlund and £15m for goalkeeper Onana.
    Arsenal bolstered their squad by spending over £210m to sign Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber.
    The Gunners’ £105m deal for the ex-West Ham captain was £23m too high compared to his market value and Chelsea pocketed £17m more than they should have for Havertz.
    RB Leipzig were the big winners of the summer window despite losing key players Dominik Szoboszlai and Josko Gvardiol to Liverpool and Man City respectively.
    The German side received a combined £30m more than expected for the duo.
    And another transfer that was overvalued saw Matheus Cunha making his initial loan move from Atletico Madrid to Wolves permanent. More

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    Arsenal £72m signing Nicolas Pepe warned he will NEVER play for Gunners again if he refuses to agree transfer

    NICOLAS PEPE has been told to leave Arsenal while he still can or spend the rest of the season sitting on his hands.The 28-year-old Ivorian international has resisted all the club’s efforts to get rid of him without a lucrative pay-off.
    Nicolas Pepe has been warned he will never play for Arsenal againCredit: Rex
    But now he has just days to sort out a move before his last escape routes slam shut in his face.
    Turkish title contenders Besiktas are still keen to sign Pepe despite being turned down by the player earlier in the summer.
    And his representatives are also trying to raise a last-ditch offer from  Al Shabab before the Saudi transfer window closes on Thursday.
    But Pepe still has ten months remaining on his £150,000-a-week Arsenal contract which will net him around £6.5million if he stays at the Emirates.
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    And he is reluctant to take a pay cut just so Arsenal can get him off their wage bill.
    Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has already washed his hands of the player who cost what was then a club record £72million when he was signed from Lille by Unai Emery in 2019.

    He has been ordered to train alone since returning from an unsuccessful loan spell at Nice and doesn’t even have a squad number after his number 19 shirt was handed to Leandro Trossard at the beginning of the year.
    It has been made clear to him that he has no future at the club and will not play another game for them if he declines to leave.
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    His lack of activity has already cost him his place in the Ivory Coast squad for their forthcoming games against Lesotho and Mali.
    And with his home country hosting the African Cup of Nations in January, Pepe knows his international career is in jeopardy unless he finds another club.
    But Arsenal are still asking for a nominal transfer fee in the region of £4million and Besiktas want to sign him for nothing.
    The Turkish transfer window closes on September 15 and it could be a case of which club blinks first.
    That could all change if Al Shabab follow up their interest with a firm bid but Arsenal have not yet received any offers.
    Pepe has been unable to agree a move away from ArsenalCredit: Getty More

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    Man Utd star Sofyan Amrabat ‘arrives with injury’ following revelation about World Cup struggles

    SOFYAN AMRABAT arrived at Manchester United with a recurring back injury which had hampered his World Cup. The midfielder joined Old Trafford from Fiorentina on a deadline-day loan deal.
    Sofyan Amrabat arrived at Manchester United with a recurriing back injuryCredit: Getty
    But according to The Athletic, United detected a minor back injury in Amrabat’s medical.
    The Moroccan had revealed he received pain-killing injections just to play in the round of 16 against Spain.
    Following a knock to Mason Mount which sidelined the summer signing, United were forced into the market for a new midfielder.
    But talks to sign Amrabat were not plane sailing.
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    It is claimed Fiorentina wanted a total package worth near £30million — an £8.5m loan fee, £17.1m after 15 appearances plus £4.2m in add-ons.
    United only offered £2.5m for the loan, which was rejected and left the Serie A club short of patience.
    The club’s director of football negotiations Matt Hargreaves was left to resurrect the deal after being told it was off.
    Amrabat, 27, was hellbent on a move to Manchester and even switched to the same agency as manager Erik ten Hag to get it done.
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    Eventually, the two clubs agreed on an £8.5m loan fee with the option to make the move permanent for £17.1m.
    Amrabat has not played all season, not because of injury but as Fiorentina wanted the player to make a decision on his future.

    But it remains to be seen how his back problem will effect the start of his season.
    Rasmus Hojlund came off the bench in United’s 3-1 loss at Arsenal over the weekend having also joined with a back injury.
    Rasmus Hojlund joined Man Utd with a back injuryCredit: Getty More

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    Champions League giants ‘still in talks with Man Utd over Donny van de Beek transfer after failing in deadline day move’

    GALATASARAY are reportedly still in talks with Manchester United’s Donny van de Beek after failing to agree a £1million loan deal on deadline day. The Red Devils outcast is set to leave Old Trafford as Erik ten Hag aims to trim his squad.
    Galasataray are continuing talks with Manchester United for Donny Van de BeekCredit: Getty
    Turkey’s transfer window does not close until September 15th with clubs able to continue making offers past the European deadline.
    Van de Beek arrived at the Red Devils in 2020 from Ajax for £40million with high expectations.
    The hefty fee came off the back of him playing a starring role in Ajax’s run to the Champions League semi-finals.
    But the midfielder has faced injuries, an unsuccessful loan move to Everton and failure to secure first-team opportunities at United.
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    He played just seven games for the Toffees during his loan spell, scoring one goal.
    This has left the 26-year-old eager to revamp his career.
    The Dutchman has played just 34 league games since arriving in England and is yet to be named in any of Ten Hags fixtures this season.
    He has started just two Premier League games since the start of last season, despite having starred under Ten Hag during their time together at Ajax.
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    French giants Lorient and former club Ajax have both shown interest in the forgotten star.
    But with the European window now closed Champions League contenders Galatasaray are the front runners.
    The Super Lig side remain keen on Van de Beek and are hopeful of finalising a deal with United in the coming days.
    Galatasaray have already signed Premier League star Wilfred Zaha this summer.
    The former Crystal Palace ace joined as a free agent in July and made his debut in a 0-0 draw against Kayserispor.
    Tottenham’s Tanguy Ndombele and Davinson Sanchez are also set to be flying to the Turkish capital to finalise a deal. More