World Cup

THE World Cup is nearly here as the best players from across the globe come together in Qatar.A few notable absentees will be missed – including the likes of Erling Haaland, Mohamed Salah, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Martin Odegaard and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Messi is one of four PSG players in the best-paid World Cup XICredit: AFP

Ronaldo is the all-time record goalscorer in international competitionCredit: AP
But the vast majority of the world’s best will be in the Middle East for the tournament – which is taking place at the end of the year for the first time since it began.
And SunSport has taken the time to look at which players are the best-paid heading into the World Cup.
Five of the 11 players which make up the “best-paid XI” ply their trade in the Premier League.
France are the most represented country with three names in there, while England has just one representative.
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MANUEL NEUER – GERMANY
Neuer is the best paid keeper in QatarCredit: AFP
Manuel Neuer is not actually the best paid goalkeeper out there – that goes to Manchester United’s David De Gea.
But he was snubbed by Spain and left at home to play with his £375,000 per week.
So instead, German legend Neuer, on £298,000-a-week, is the best paid stopper in Qatar.
TRENT ALEXANDER-ARNOLD – ENGLAND
Trent is well paid – but might struggle for minutes in QatarCredit: Getty
Liverpool right-back Alexander-Arnold, 24, wasn’t even a certain pick by Gareth Southgate.
His form for the Reds, certainly from a defensive point of view, has been highly questioned this season.
But he’s loved at Anfield and that’s why he’s paid a whopping £180,000-a-week.
It makes him the highest-paid right-back going to the World Cup – narrowly ahead of Morocco and PSG man Achraf Hakimi.
RAPHAEL VARANE – FRANCE
Varane secured a lucrative contract when joining Man Utd in 2021Credit: Reuters
The first of three Manchester United stars in this team.
Varane, 29, was handed a £340,000-a-week deal when he made the switch from the Bernabeu to Old Trafford last year.
And he will be hoping he can help France retain the World Cup in Qatar, a tournament he proved instrumental in helping them win four years ago.
MATTHIJS DE LIGT – HOLLAND
Credit: Getty
Matthijs de Ligt joins Varane at centre-back.
That’s partly thanks to the absence of the better paid Sergio Ramos – who was overlooked by Spain – and David Alaba whose nation Austria failed to qualify.
Dutchman De Ligt swapped Juventus for Bayern Munich in the summer and picks up £265,000-a-week for the German giants.
LUCAS HERNANDEZ – FRANCE
Bayern defender Hernandez boasts a huge wage packetCredit: Getty
Perhaps a surprise inclusion for many, Hernandez joins De Ligt as the only Bundesliga stars to make this team.
The French defender, 26, can play both centre-back and left-back and has done for several years for Bayern Munich.
His lucrative deal sees him earn £240,000 each week.
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CASEMIRO – BRAZIL
Casemiro agreed a huge contract when joining Man UtdCredit: Getty
Yet another Manchester United man and a window into just how much the Red Devils are paying their players during this turbulent spell at the club.
Brazilian star Casemiro, 30, joined from Real Madrid and managed to secure a £350,000-a-week pay packet.
The World Cup is the one trophy missing from the midfielder’s glittering mantlepiece – which includes five Champions League winners medals.
KEVIN DE BRUYNE – BELGIUM
De Bruyne is the best-paid player at Manchester CityCredit: AP
Manchester City’s only member of this team is their midfield maestro De Bruyne.
The 31-year-old Belgian is on £400,000-a-week at the Etihad, making him their best-paid player – even with the addition of Erling Haaland.
LIONEL MESSI – ARGENTINA
Messi is still one of the highest-paid players in the worldCredit: Getty
Messi’s £750,000-a-week wages are enough to see him secure a place in this team.
The Argentine, 35, may still be searching for his first World Cup but he is perhaps the greatest player to ever grace the game – so it’s no surprise PSG are paying him that sort of figure.
NEYMAR – BRAZIL
Neymar earns well in excess of half a million pounds each weekCredit: Getty
Brazilian talisman Neymar, 30, will be hoping to lead his country to a first World Cup in two decades later this year.
The PSG man earns £600,000-a-week in the French capital, but that pales in comparison to the main man in Paris…
KYLIAN MBAPPE – FRANCE
Mbappe is the best-paid player in the world by some distanceCredit: Getty
The deal Mbappe agreed with PSG earlier this year makes him the best-paid player in the world by some distance.
It is a ludicrous two-year contract with the option of an additional year should the Frenchman take it up.
It currently sees Mbappe, 23, earn around £1.6MILLION per WEEK.
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CRISTIANO RONALDO – PORTUGAL
Ronaldo is the highest-paid player in the Premier LeagueCredit: Sportsfile
The fourth and final Manchester United man and the striker of this best-paid XI.
Ronaldo, 37, is now predominantly an impact substitute at Old Trafford following the arrival of Erik ten Hag.
But that doesn’t stop Portugal’s Euro 2016 winner from raking in £500,000 every week. More

A SO-called future telling prophet has given his predictions for the World Cup ahead of the contest kicking off next week.Athos Salome, from Brazil, has been likened to French astrologer Nostradamus after claiming to have already correctly prophesised the Covid pandemic, the invasion of Ukraine and the Queen’s death.
Athos Salome has given his World Cup predictionsCredit: @athos_salome/Instagram
He has revealed the two teams he think will make it to the final in QatarCredit: AFP
Dubbed “Living Nostradamus”, Athos has revealed the five sides he believes have a chance of getting to the final – and the two he thinks will.
He told Daily Star Sport: “In a 2011 episode of The Simpsons, Homer Simpson is reading a magazine of solved crossword puzzles and one of the sentences written ‘Brazil is hexacam champion’, but it doesn’t mention that it would be the games in Qatar.
“People are very trusting, considered as one of the greatest TV series and generated controversy by getting several predictions right for decades.
“Particularly I don’t feel that Brazil can be hexa, I believe they can be in the final, not the champion.
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“Analysing the Kabbalah according to the year of the games 2022, start date and letters of the names of the countries that will play, we can find in the final Argentina, Brazil, Belgium, France and England.”
Athos believes it will then be Argentina and France in the final clash.
But Athos has also warned things could take a sinister turn.
He added: “Due to the large number of cases of Covid-19 which has increased again after the emergence of new sub-variants of Omicron, BQ.1 and XBB, which are more transmissible and resistant to vaccines.
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“Everything is at risk and could change the course of gaming betting again.
“Let’s hope and pray that there are no accidents and planes falling from the sky.”
The Brazilian clairvoyant claims his visions hit him out of the blue, with one of his prophecies warning that “World War III is coming”.
Another of his predictions warns of imminent danger for an unspecified city, which will see objects “fall from the sky and nothing will be left.”
He added that “this will be the warning that war has begun”, and ominously anticipates that a pair of “great leaders” will soon unite to attack the United States.
He warned that the impending damage will be far worse than the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
While his visions often warn of impending doom, Athos has said he instead intends his prophecies to be used for good so authorities have time to react to the incoming danger.
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“The predictions are made as a warning, not to bring despair to the population”, he said.
“This is no cause for despair, rather I warn so that the predictions reach the great leaders and something is done to prevent the worst.”
The Brazilian has been dubbed the ‘living Nostradamus’Credit: Getty More

SENEGAL midfielder Iliman Ndiaye has enjoyed an epic rise from grassroots football to the World Cup – in just four years. The 22-year-old’s extraordinary development in such a short space of time is inspiration for players hustling at the bottom end of England’s football pyramid.
Iliman Ndiaye will be looking to propel himself into stardom for Senegal at the World CupCredit: Getty
Ndiaye has been one of the stars of the Championship season so far, only four years after playing at grassroots levelCredit: Rex
Ndiaye fought his way up through Boreham Wood, Sheffield United U23s and a loan stint in the Northern Premier League to make it to Qatar.
And he will be praying for a chance to make his way onto the pitch for Senegal, who are still reeling after injury ruled Sadio Mane out of the tournament.
Ndiaye’s journey upwards began when he was recruited by Rising Ballers, a grassroots football team built from scratch four years ago with the mission to help talented young players get into professional football.
The venture was started by Brendon Shabani, Jamie Politt and Eni Shabani but they could not have dreamed that one of their own would be heading to Qatar so soon.
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The attacking midfield was spotted playing five-a-side football in Hammersmith and invited down to Rising Ballers.
The club’s head coach Mahrez Bettache told the Mirror: “He was the talk of the town.
“He wasn’t sure the club was for him. But then I remember the first time I met him I had a conversation with him. I told him I wanted him to be our star man, who we really focused on.  In the end, he came on board.”
Ndiaye had been on the fringes of Boreham Wood’s first-team when he left and had initially hesitated at dropping down from non-league to grassroots football.
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But Rising Ballers quickly developed a huge platform on social media and offered an opportunity for stars to show what they were made of.
The Senegalese star quickly took off and became known for his dizzying runs, his fantastic footwork and his hard work off the ball.
Bettache adds: “You can tell a footballer by the way he runs. He just fit the profile. He was very silky with the ball.
“Iliman is probably the best freestyler-slash-footballer I know to this day. The things he does with the ball are just incredible.
“He just lets his feet do the talking. He is a very humble guy off the pitch. At Rising Ballers, we became like family. Even to this day, we keep in touch with one another.”

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Soon Ndiaye managed to secure a trial at Sheffield United and impressed enough in his week there that he got a contract for the U23s.
He was soon sent off on loan to Hyde FC in the Northern Premier League, but any chance to impress was cut short as Covid ended the non-league season prematurely.
The star instead had to impress through the U23s and fight his way into the Blades’ squad.
While he was a regular in the team last season, it has been since August since Ndiaye has really begun to establish himself at Championship level.
His nine goals and two assists have helped propel Paul Heckingbottom’s side to second place in the Championship.
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And it fired him to a place in Senegal’s squad for the World Cup.
Senegal’s World Cup starts with a game against the Netherlands before games against hosts Qatar and Ecuador. More

SVEN-GORAN ERIKSSON has urged manager Gareth Southgate to quit if he guides England to World Cup glory.The England manager has led his side to a World Cup semi-final and Euros final in his two tournaments and optimism is high for the tournament in Qatar.
Sven Goran Eriksson thinks Gareth Southgate should step down as England manager if he wins the World CupCredit: Getty
Southgate has led England to a World Cup semi-final and Euros finalCredit: Rex
Eriksson managed England between 2001 and 2006, but never managed to get the side past a quarter-final at international tournaments.
He believes that should Southgate take the Three Lions all the way to the trophy that he should step down as boss as he can’t do any better.
He told The Telegraph: “The people expect a lot [now]. Southgate is spoiling them! If he doesn’t reach a quarter-final, I think it will be a problem.
“If you are a dreamer, as an England fan, you want the trophy in your lifetime.
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“If England win it, my advice to Gareth Southgate is to go. It can’t get any better than that.
“It is unfair to criticise him for being too defensive because he’s done one final and one semi-final.
“It is very difficult to do much better than that.”
Eriksson has previously backed England to win the World Cup as the players from England are used to playing in the winter months, rather than having a break like many European countries.
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He told SunSport: “This World Cup is not after a long, hard, tough Premier League season. It’s at the beginning of the season.
“I don’t think these English players are more tired than anyone else, whether that’s players from Germany, France, or wherever.
“It’s strange that the World Cup is in winter time and it is being played without any preparation, like friendly games.
“But maybe it’s good for England because they are not half-dead from the Premier League season.”
England kick off their World Cup campaign against Iran on November 21. More