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‘My biggest dream is to win a title with this shirt. I will keep trying. I will always fight for this dream. This time that we win this Copa,’ said Lionel Messi ahead of the Championship, and on Sunday, the night belonged to the 34-year-old as Argentina, achieved what many deemed impossible, beating Brazil in their backyard, at the Mecca of football, the Maracana.
Euro 2020 Round of 16 will see two of the competition favourites in Belgium and Portugal face each other in a heavyweight clash in Seville on Sunday (Jun 27, 2021). Both sides are coming into the game on the back of some great performances, led by their star attackers, Cristiano Ronaldo and Romelu Lukaku.
Following the stepping down on MS Dhoni, India’s most successful skipper of all time, the reins were passed to Virat Kohli, a run-machine at the top of his game, beginning with Test cricket in 2014 and limited-overs in 2017. The batsmen from Delhi looked like the ideal replacement, given his abilities with the bat and his impact on a game.
The 2021 edition of Copa America is far from an ideal scenario that many teams would have hoped for as initially scheduled to be hosted by Argentina and Columbia, the tournament was shifted to Brazil amid the coronavirus pandemic, despite the country being one of the most affected by the epidemic.
Cristiano Ronaldo had a noteworthy individual campaign but it was on the collective front that Juventus struggled, both domestically and in Europe. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner became the first player to top the scoring charts in Italy, Spain and England’s first divisions but wasn’t able to guide the Turin giants to similar heights.
Cristiano Ronaldo finished the season as the leading scorer in Serie A, becoming the only person in history to do so in the top divisions of Italy, Spain and England. And with Juventus needing to win their final game to keep European hopes alive, it was certain that Andrea Pirlo will count on his star for goals but the 36-year-old was left out of the starting XI.
Along with several on-field issues, the Bianconeri also have a number of off-field issues to deal with, predominantly being the future of superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has one year left on his contract but is touted to leave Turin after a rocky campaign with several reports linking him back to Portugal or even Paris.
During his short tenure at Chelsea, where results mean everything, Thomas Tuchel has prioritised making the team more resolute, organised and efficient. A set-up that has paid dividends but the German’s winning machine has come to a screeching halt at the worst possible moment and could derail all the great work done before it.
Trailing 2-1 after the first leg, Mikel Arteta’s men were unable to complete the job, producing yet another below-par performance, raising questions about the future of the manager and the club itself. Arsenal’s hopes of playing European football next year and finishing their underwhelming season on a high seem to be fading fast after yet another European disappointment.
Rishabh Pant was deemed as the successor of MS Dhoni in the Indian cricket team but the youngster had a rocky start to his international career, however, in recent times, the wicket-keeper has finally been living up to his undeniable potential and has produced several match-defining knocks just like his predecessor.
Manchester City star Sergio Aguero has announced that he will be leaving the club in the summer once his contract expires. The Argentine joined the Premier League side in 2012, leading them to several titles, including helping them end a 40-year wait for domestic league glory.
The IPL 2021 player auction which took place in February saw many uncapped players bag huge contracts. Krishnappa Gowtham became the most expensive uncapped in the history of IPL after being bought by Chennai Super Kings for a stunning INR 9.25 crore while Riley Meredith emerged as the most expensive overseas uncapped star.
IPL 2021 is scheduled to be played between April 9, 2021, and May 30, 2021, with six cities hosting India’s premier T20 tournament. Kolkata, Delhi, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Mumbai will host Indian Premier League 2021 behind closed doors for the initial stage.
James Anderson and Stuart Broad have been at the forefront of England’s bowling attack in Tests for nearly a decade now and have been immensely successful, amassing over 1000 wickets between them in the longest format. And despite being in their late 30s, the duo are showing no signs of slowing down.
The sacking of Frank Lampard was a 'very difficult decision’ said the club in an official statement. The 42-year-old led Chelsea to a Champions League finish in his first year in charge but struggled during this campaign with his team failing to impress after the signing of several star players.
Lionel Messi has always been a quiet guy, a person who came in, did his job and left. But this year, despite questions being raised about his loyalty to Barcelona, the Argentine has shown a completely new side of him on the field and off it as well. He has been more vocal, more demanding, encouraging and can be seen maturing as a person, footballer and leader.
Rajeev Shukla criticised the Indian batsmen for not showing much intent on the final day and believed a little better performance from the middle order would have resulted in a win. The BCCI chief was eventually trolled as fans hit back at the vice-president for not understanding the conditions in which Hanuma Vihari and Ravi Ashwin played.
Sports brought some sort of normalcy back into people's lives in a year full of uncertainties and improbabilities and football played a huge part in it. Though the sport came to a temporary halt due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, early in the year, it returned back a few months later, to the aid of a sport-starved world.
Sports around the globe came to a temporary halt due to the coronavirus pandemic and even fans were barred from attending live games. But one thing remained the same, which was, several great sporting icons calling an end on their illustrious career and moving on to explore other avenues in life.
The Catalan team looked like a different side – both physically and mentally - than the one which has taken the field for more often than not this season. Players looked hungry, more determined to make an impact, led by their captain Lionel Messi.