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The match, which was held at Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, also served as the final exhibition game before the Catalans resume the defense of their LaLiga title. In what was a highly one-sided fixture, Barcelona dominated proceedings almost all through the match. They will now head into their season opener Athletic Bilbao high on confidence. Despite not having the services of Lionel Messi who is struggling with an injury, the Barcelona players on display still held their own....

Although Martin Ødegaard plays for Real Sociedad, he is on loan from and on the books of Real Madrid, which boosts Los Blancos’ tally to six players to Barcelona’s five. The Norwegian’s stunning performances have been thoroughly recognised and rewarded in-game with an upgraded 92-rated card. EA Sports traditionally launch the Team of the Season (TOTS) in May. However, due to the unforeseen circumstances amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, they were resorted to launching a new variation of the promo under the title TOTSSF....

The sanction, which covers the summer and January transfer windows, followed an investigation into the Spanish champion's signing of players under age 18 from 2009-13. FIFA also fined Barcelona $509,000 after discovering the signing of 10 unnamed players breached its rules covering the protection of minors. Barcelona has 90 days "to regularize the situation of all minor players concerned." The punishment prevents Barcelona from signing players until the summer of 2015 and leaves in limbo recent agreements with Borussia Monchengladbach goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen and Croatian teenager Alen Halilovic to join the club in July....

The club will also be naming the new stadium they are building for their ‘B’ team after the former Dutch international. Speaking to the media, Bartomeu said “It is an honour to name these most emblematic spaces after him. He taught us a way of living through the game and laid the foundations for modern football.” Cruyff’s son, Jordi was in attendance along with his family. He proclaimed himself ‘proud’ and said: “It is a great honour, the Mini Estadi is the last step before the first team, and my father always valued youth and would be delighted with this homage, it is a lovely gesture that ensures my father will always be present....

Xavi, who plays for Al Sadd SC in the Qatar Stars League, had earlier been quoted by The Real Arab where he spoke about Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, and the difference between them. The two superstars have always been compared extensively, about their playing style, their achievements and in general their success with their clubs, to determine which one of them is the better player. Speaking to Canal Plus, as previewed by AS, he insisted that his quotes were lost in translation, saying, “The translation of what I said was erroneous....

Lionel Messi has not been at his best for Barcelona this season and is yet to score a goal from open play for the club. The Argentine star has taken up a creative role in Ronald Koeman’s set-up and needs to step up to the plate in the final third in the coming weeks. Ivan Rakitic spent six years at Barcelona before leaving the club in the summer transfer window this year....

According to El Nacional, the 25-year-old is becoming increasingly frustrated with manager Xavi Hernandez due to the situation. Kessie moved to Barcelona in the summer on a free transfer from AC Milan. He attracted interest from several of Europe’s biggest clubs but chose the Blaugrana. The Ivorian played 223 times for Milan across five seasons and helped them win their first Serie A title in a decade last season. He was considered one of the hottest free agents of the summer and joined the Catalonian giants with the expectation of being a first-team regular....

Valverde divided opinion in his time at the club and the former Athletic Bilbao coach was often slated for the club’s lack of footballing identity, something they have been renowned for over the years. Aside from his philosophy, Barcelona’s embarrassing capitulation in successive seasons in the Champions League did not sit well with the hierarchy, as the circumstances of the defeats against AS Roma and Liverpool were virtually unheard of for a club of such stature....

Hamilton started on pole for the second race in a row, Rosberg chalked up his second win of the season and fifth in a row, 16th of his career. Rosberg took the lead at the start, Hamilton and Bottas collided, with the Finn handed a drive-through penalty. Hamilton then fought back from seventh at the end of lap one. Mercedes have now won eight races in a row but their run of seven one-two finishes ended....

“We came to know that an Unauthorised Badminton League is getting organised in the month of March in Agra and June in Sonepat, Haryana,” BAI Secretary (Events) Omar Rashid said in the letter. “You are advised to inform all registered players of your State not to participate not only in league but also not in any unauthorised tournament/league as per rules and regulations stipulated in the constitution.” BAI said it will deactivate the IDs of players with immediate effect if any one is found to be associated in any unauthorised tournament....

England’s 50-over team are favourites for next year’s World Cup and claimed a 2-1 series win over India with an eight-wicket win at Headingley on Tuesday, captain Joe Root hitting a second successive unbeaten century. By contrast, the Test team followed up losing the Ashes by suffering a 1-0 series defeat in New Zealand and were held to a 1-1 draw by Pakistan at home. They will now look to rediscover their form in the five-day game in a five-match series with India, and Bairstow, who plays for his country in all three formats, is against weighing up the Test side’s fortunes against those of the ODI team....

Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers from Bake Squad season 2 premiere. Hosted by Milk Bar founder Christina Tosi, the cast includes popular and well-renowned bakers including cake decorator Ashley Holt, pastry chefs Christophe Rull and Maya-Camille Broussard, and chocolatier Gonzo Jimenez. For the season premiere, they had to make a cake for 13-year-old Josh’s Bar Mitzvah. The bakers went above and beyond to make the occasion extraordinary with their cakes....

Mayfield’s play during the 2020 season greatly altered the equation. He took Cleveland to its first postseason game since 2002 and first playoff win since 1994. The former No. 1 overall pick set career-bests in quarterback rating, ESPN’s QBR, and touchdown-to-interception ratio, showing off a matured game in new coach Kevin Stefanski’s offense. Instead of an impending cut, Mayfield may have earned himself a chance at a future extension with the Browns....

Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield is entering Year 4 of his NFL career, meaning he’s now eligible for a long-term deal with Cleveland. When that deal may come to pass, though, is anyone’s guess. According to Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot, the Browns and the quarterback haven’t had any “substantive talks about his contract extension yet,” and the contract situation could stretch well into the 2021 season. The report is a marked departure from recent comments from Mayfield’s agents Tom and Jack Mills, who said they expect a deal to get done this summer....

Future Bakery, located in the Toronto suburb of Etobicoke, was defaced by numerous messages in the early hours of Tuesday morning. This includes disparaging comments such as “#Losers,” “F**k Ukrian [sic],” and “Russia Is Power,” according to the Toronto Star. Words had also reportedly been covered up to leave letters spelling out “Putin” in a reference to the president of Russia. The messages were spray painted onto a “#StandWithUkraine” banner that had recently been hung outside of the bakery....

Bakhmut, a city in Ukraine’s embattled Donetsk region, has been a focal point of the Russian offensive for several months. During a televised address on Monday night, Zelensky said that the harsh battle was “breaking” both the Russian Army and Russian-aligned mercenaries operating in the area, such as the notorious Wagner Group. “Bakhmut is the hottest spot on the entire frontline—more than 1,300 kilometers of active hostilities,” Zelensky said. “Since May, the occupiers have been trying to break our Bakhmut, but time goes by and Bakhmut is already breaking not only the Russian Army, but also the Russian mercenaries who came to replace the wasted army of the occupiers....

Tiger Woods says he is enjoying a more balanced life in many ways, but his hunger to overtake Jack Nicklaus’ career record of 18 major golf titles remains as great as ever. “I would like to be able to get to that point,” Woods said Tuesday. “It took Jack a while to get to 18, all the way until he was 46 years old, so there’s plenty of opportunities for me....

Will this momentum lead to an effective agreement in Indonesia? Before the negotiations have even started, important developing countries Brazil and India have already spoken out against emission targets, and the Bush administration, which is not party to the talks, shows no sign of reversing its stance against mandatory caps on emissions. NEWSWEEK’s Thijs Niemantsverdriet discussed the politics of the Bali conference with John T. Holdren, professor of environmental science and public policy at Harvard University, director of the Woods Hole Research Center in Massachusetts and a policy adviser to the United Nations....

Even still, it appeared the guard was carrying a little extra motivation for the much-anticipated matchup with little brother LaMelo. NBA League Pass: Sign up to unlock live out-of-market games (7-day free trial) As our own Kyle Irving wrote yesterday, the early honors across the two previous meetings had gone the way of LaMelo despite their teams splitting the games. In the third matchup between the brothers in the NBA, it was the Bulls that held off the pesky Hornets for the 133-119 win....