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RONALD KOEMAN has been confirmed as the new head coach of the Netherlands national side.The Dutch boss has taken over the role from Louis van Gaal.
Ronald Koeman is the new boss of the Netherlands national sideCredit: Reuters
Van Gaal stepped down from the role following the country’s exit from the World Cup in Qatar.
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JUDE BELLINGHAM scored a brilliant goal for Borussia Dortmund in his first match since the World Cup.The England international, 19, has been enjoying some downtime following the Three Lions’ quarter-final exit in Qatar last month.
Jude Bellingham’s strike put Borussia Dortmund in front on SundayCredit: Getty
Bellingham has now scored 10 goals for Dortmund this seasonCredit: AP
Unlike English football, domestic action in Germany did not return until this weekend.
And Bellingham’s first game back for Dortmund came against 15th place Augsburg on Sunday.
It was thrilling encounter which ended with the Champions League outfit winning 4-3 in a topsy-turvy clash.
But it was Bellingham who caught the eye once more when he broke the deadlock in the 29th minute.
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The superstar midfielder, who SunSport exclusively revealed is set to snub a new deal with Dortmund, clipped a delightful pass with the outside of his boot onto the chest of Karim Adeyemi.
Adeyemi then played a neat one-two and laid it into the path of Bellingham, before the ex-Birmingham man feinted to go one way, went the other, and found the bottom corner from the edge of the area.
Reacting on social media, one person said: “That drop of the shoulder was special”.
Another added: “This Bellingham goal is worth watching solely for the noise it makes đ. Words cannot describe his footballing ability”.
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A third said: “Liverpool need a player who can score this type of goal”.
And a fourth replied: “What a goal from Bellingham, the trivela pass, the body feint, the finish, MODRIC-ESQUE đ©”.
Bellingham now has 10 goals for Dortmund this season, along with three assists.
Despite his youthfulness, he has already been handed the armband by the German giants.
And his superb performances – for both club and country – have seen him attract interest from Europe’s biggest sides including Man Utd, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Chelsea, Man City and Paris Saint-Germain. More
SPORTING LISBON and Benfica were shown a white card by the referee after Portugal introduced a new rule. Football fans are used to see yellow and red cards dished out with regularity to punish players who overstep the line.
But they won’t be accustomed to officials using a white card – which has the complete opposite effect.
Supporters in Portugal got a glimpse of the new card as Sporting Lisbon and Benfica’s women met in a cup match.
With Benfica leading 3-0, someone on the bench in the dugouts reportedly felt ill at the end of the first-half.
Medical staff from both sides rushed to the person’s aid.
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After the issue was dealt with, the referee can be seen brandishing the white card.
Fans responded with big cheers at the appearance of the rare colour.
White cards are part of a new initiative in Portugal.
Unlike the yellow and red cards which are meant to punish teams, the white card instead is shown to recognise and praise clubs for fair play.
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The new idea was started to encourage ethical values in sport.
Benfica would go on to win 5-0 in the cup quarter-final.
While not yet widespread, the white card is just the latest new rule change that has come to football.
Concussion substitutions and longer stoppage time – as seen in the Qatar World Cup – are some of the other ideas that could become the norm to try and shake up the game for safety and entertainment purposes. More
UNDER-FIRE keeper Hugo Lloris admits he is suffering from a World Cup hangover.The Tottenham skipper confessed to suffering a lack of âmental freshnessâ after leading France all the way to the World Cup final only for it to end in defeat to Lionel Messiâs Argentina.
Hugo Lloris has been out of sorts for Tottenham as of lateCredit: PA
Lloris was beaten at his near-post in Spurs’ capitulation at Manchester CityCredit: Reuters
The Frenchman admits he’s suffering from a World Cup hangoverCredit: Getty
Since his return, he has been criticised for a number of clangers.
He fumbled Bukayo Sakaâs shot into his own net to give Arsenal the opener in Spursâ 2-0 North London derby defeat at home last Sunday.
And at the Etihad on Thursday he flapped at a loose ball for Manchester Cityâs first goal then was beaten at his near post by Riyad Mahrezâs deflected shot as the hosts came from two down to win 4-2.
He also made another gaffe on New Yearâs Day during Aston Villaâs shock 2-0 victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
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And the French stopper, 36, said: âYou have to take into consideration that itâs not a normal season.
âFrom the beginning of September, we played every three days until the World Cup.
âThen when you finish the World Cup, for the players who reached the final, in one weekâs time you have to go back to your club and again repeat every three or four days.
âSo itâs very difficult mentally but also physically to stay at your best.
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âBut thatâs the demand of the competition this year.
âEven if sometimes you can face difficulties you just wonât give up, you want to continue, you want to push and you want to be ready for the important period of the season.
âWe know that from March until June is the moment you win or you lose places in the table.
âBut we know also that we have a deficit of points and we have to run after the others to get into the top four.
âBut there are plenty of games and we have to stay confident and positive â and also we really want to reach the level that should be ours.
âHopefully it will come soon and maybe it will happen for the most important moment of the season.â
But Tottenham need results to come sooner rather than later.
Tomorrowâs trip to high-flying Fulham will be another big test of their resolve.
Lloris said: âThey have good players, a very good manager and at the moment they have found consistency in their performances and results.
Tottenham have lost six of their last ten Premier League gamesCredit: REX
âBut we know in football and especially in the Premier League that the truth of today will probably be different in six monthsâ time.
âI donât know where Fulham will finish the season but at the moment they are performing at their best and itâs very open â and when you face them you have to prepare yourself to be at your best, especially away from home.â
Tottenham have had little time to prepare but need a win after losing six of their last ten games in the Premier League.
Lloris said: âWhen you play many games in a short period, you donât really have time to work deeply.
âYou are more focused on the recovery. You just try to improve some aspects of the game and to prepare tactically for the next match.
âEspecially after a defeat, itâs always better to play sooner.
âWhoever you play, whoever you face, the demands are very high.
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âYou always need to be at your best as on a bad day you can lose to any team.
âThe most important thing is to look forward, to keep your chin up and be ready to compete.â More
WEST BROM wonderkid Amihere Idrissa Dauda is set to make his youth international debut this week⊠for Italy.Dauda is already being monitored by big clubs in England and Europe.
The centre-back, 15, also qualifies for England and Ghana.
But he was born in Italy and has already caught the eye of the European champions.
Dauda was the only player not from an Italian club to attend a pre-Christmas tournament that acted as a selection trial for the countryâs Under-15 side.
A total of 88 young talents attended the four-day event as his side won all three of their matches.
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Now he is in line to play in a friendly against Albania on Tuesday at the Italian federationâs Coverciano headquarters near Florence.
West Brom will have high hopes for Dauda as their latest academy rising star following the success of first-teamers Taylor Gardner-Hickman and Reyes Cleary who came through the youth set-up.
England have seen both sides of the challenge of convincing players who qualify for more than one country to choose the Three Lions.
Both Declan Rice and Jack Grealish represented the Republic of Ireland before switching to England.
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But Bayern Munich star Jamal Musiala played for the Three Lions right up to U21 level before opting for Germany.
Tariq Lamptey followed a similar path through the England youth ranks but now represents Ghana while fellow right-back Matty Cash secured his Polish passport ahead of the World Cup.
Reyes Cleary progressed through the West Brom academyCredit: Getty
Jamal Musiala ditched England to represent GermanyCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun More
MANCHESTER UNITED are interested in Rennes star Lovro Majer, according to reports.The 25-year-old attacking midfielder was one of Croatia’s star players at the World Cup.
Majer is rated at ÂŁ50m by RennesCredit: Getty
He helped his country reach the semi-finals of the winter tournament.
Croatia then beat Morocco in a third place play-off.
And according to Jeunes Footeux, his fine displays both for club and country have alerted Man Utd.
Fellow Premier League side Tottenham are also said to be keen.
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Majer only joined Rennes in 2021.
After joining from Dinamo Zagreb, Majer has had a part in a combined 20 goals and assists in 59 games.
And so Rennes have slapped a ÂŁ50m price tag on their midfield maestro, who is dubbed the next Luka Modric.
A January transfer is unlikely to happen.
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But Rennes could be more willing to do business in the summer though.
United are stacked in the midfield and have the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek, who can all play in Majer’s position. More
CHELSEA have been dealt a transfer blow after Celtic sold World Cup star Josip Juranovic to Union Berlin for ÂŁ10million.Juranovic, 27, was one of the stars of the World Cup for Croatia.
Juranovic will be joining Union BerlinCredit: Getty
The right-back helped the 2018 finalists reach the last four.
But they lost to eventual winners Argentina before beating Morocco in the third place play-off.
Juranovic’s fine form alerted the likes of Chelsea and he was even linked to Barcelona.
But according to Sky Sports, Union Berlin have won the race for his signature.
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The German side will pay Celtic a ÂŁ10m fee.
Union Berlin are fifth in the Bundesliga and are just eight points off league leaders Bayern Munich.
A win over Hoffenheim on Saturday could lift them up to second.
Celtic had wanted to keep Juranovic in Glasgow and held talks over an improved new contract.
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However, neither party could reach an agreement before he departed for the World Cup late last year.
Celtic have seemingly already replaced Juranovic.
They announced the signing of Canada right-back Alistair Johnston.
The Hoops paid an initial fee of ÂŁ3.5m for the CF Montreal defender More
WORLD CUP super fan Ivana Knoll stunned her fans on social media by storm with a revealing post.The Croatian, who was labelled the ‘World Cup’s hottest fan’, posted the picture of herself on a beach with very little cover.
Ivana Knoll stunned her fans with this picture on InstagramCredit: https://www.instagram.com/knolldoll/
Knoll shared the snap with her 3.5million followersCredit: Instagram
The picture shows Knoll wearing small blue bikini bottoms and nothing else.
The 30-year-old uses her hands to cover herself up while she sits in a water-submerged beach chair.
Knoll uploaded the picture onto Instagram with the caption, “whatâs up guys”.
She has 3.5million followers on the social media platform, and it attracted over 200,000 likes in an hour.
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Her fans absolutely loved the steamy snap, as one commented: “What a delight, love.”
A second wrote: “Looks amazing gorgeous, stunning lady.”
A third said: “So hot and pretty.”
A fourth added: “Very beautiful.”
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A fifth also wrote: “Everything perfect in this image.”
The post comes just hours after she shared images of a night out in which she danced on a pole in a plunging outfit.
Knoll rose to fame during the World Cup in Qatar after she was spotted wearing revealing outfits, despite the country’s modesty rules.
She travelled to the World Cup to support her nation Croatia, for which she argues is it’s “biggest fan”.
Since her appearance in Qatar, she has claimed that football stars have slid into her messages after spotting her.
She rose to fame at the World Cup in QatarCredit: Splash
And was labelled the ‘World Cup’s hottest fan’Credit: Getty More
