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Hello! Vinicius Junior wakes up with a smile on his face – will the Ballon d’Or come to him?

⚽ Vini treble hooks Real comeback

✍️ Why Klopp signed for Red Bull

📝 Marinakis’ spitting row of 14 pages

🎾 Footballer turns professional… in tennis

Vini, Vidi, Vici: The Brazilian scores a stunning hat-trick as Ballon d’Or victory approaches

Borussia Dortmund thought they had taken revenge. The German side were defeated by Real Madrid in the Champions League final last season and led 2-0 after 59 minutes of their rematch last night on their way to their first ever victory at the Bernabéu.

But there is an inevitability for Madrid that when the tide turns again – and Brazilian winger Vinicius Jr. was their center of gravity. After Antonio Rudiger pulled one back, Vinicius Jr. scored. equalizing less than two minutes later, before adding two more later to seal a remarkable 5–2 win.

His second goal stood out as he collected the ball deep in his own half to beat Emre Can, before cutting inside and smashing the ball into the far corner. We couldn’t even fit the whole thing into the snippet above. His third goal reminded Emilio Butragueno, a Real Madrid legend, of Pele.

Vinicius Jr.’s main rival for the Ballon d’Or, the winner of which will be announced on Monday, is Rodri of Manchester City. But with the midfielder injured and a historic preference for attacking players, last night’s hat-trick was a reminder of the Brazilian’s talent. with the trophy seemingly destined for Madrid.

He came, he saw, he conquered.

The only bad news for Madrid? Rodrygo injured himself in the build-up to Lucas Vazquez’s goal and will miss Saturday’s Clasico at home to Barcelona in La Liga. Their number 1 goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is also out due to a groin problem.

Have you looked, Messi?

This summer was filled with Olympic gold medals in the United States; now the change of season has brought an American ‘Olimpico’ goal.

Christian Pulisic has achieved a feat that even Lionel Messi has never managed: scoring directly from a corner kick.

When the match between AC Milan and Club Brugge was goalless after 33 minutes last night, Pulisic curled a corner towards the near post… and Simon Mignolet got his positioning all wrong. As the former Liverpool goalkeeper scrambled back to the front of his goal, he appeared to be invisible to a group of four players – and the ball went past his other side and into the net.

It wasn’t the prettiest, but don’t take anything away from Pulisic, who is in good form. That is his seventh goal in eleven games this season, with three assists. We recently asked if this is the best version of the USMNT game maker. It just might be possible, you know.

Villa at the top of the pile

It is 42 years since Aston Villa won the European Cup – and after three games in their long-awaited return to the competition now known as the Champions League this season, Unai Emery’s side are back on top. At least for the next few hours.

Yes, it’s early and tonight’s games will impact the standings, but Villa have beaten Young Boys, Bayern Munich and Bologna, all without conceding a goal. Let them dream.

Emery won four Europa League titles in seven years with Sevilla and Villarreal, so he also knows his way through the knockout stages…

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News overview

Klopportunity is correct: Why former Liverpool boss joined Red Bull

Jurgen Klopp is expected to take a year-long sabbatical to recharge his batteries after leaving the Liverpool manager’s job last summer.

This month, however, he joined the Red Bull group as head of football – which from the outside seemed the antithesis of what he stood for. However, The AthleticsSimon Hughes has tried to find out why the German was so keen to take on the role – and the reasons are starting to emerge.

In September 2022, with less than a month to live, Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz invited Klopp to meet him at a villa in Austria as the conversation stretched into the evening. There was mutual admiration and by the time Klopp left Liverpool in May he had a good idea of ​​where his future might lie.

According to Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s chief motorsport advisor, Klopp’s arrival had been an open secret. Klopp shares similar views on playing style with the clubs in the Red Bull group – and with his Anfield successor Arne Slot, who takes on RB Leipzig in the Champions League today and tries to put his own spin on Liverpool, there will be an intriguing be an interaction. storyline.

Explanation of Barca’s fast start to the season

(Pedro Salado/Quality Sport Images, Eric Alonso; designed by Dan Goldfarb)

Hansi Flick’s summer appointment at Barcelona, ​​after the 59-year-old was unhappy with the German national team, was greeted with ambivalence rather than excitement.

But Barcelona have started brilliantly and Flick has made that ambivalence part of his own personality and turned it into an asset. The media circus surrounding the Camp Nou club can be deafening, but Flick, who speaks neither Catalan nor Spanish, has chosen to serenely ignore it.

Last week he visited the home of Barcelona predecessor Xavi for dinner – it was a peaceful message to a club more used to mistrust and factions. They play Flick’s previous club, Bayern Munich, in the Champions League today and, as Pol Ballus writes, it will be a measure of how much Barcelona have grown under their new manager.

🎙️ Is Barcelona as good as they look? Pol and Dermot Corrigan debate their credentials on our latest TAFC podcast.

Every cough and ‘spit’

Is it a cough, or was it spit? This is what the latest case against Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis comes down to after he was handed a five-match ban for ‘spitting’ at match officials.

That word is in quotes because the Greek shipping magnate vehemently disputes that characterization – responding to the FA’s accusation with some comical legalese in a 14-page, 58-item, 4,486-word document.

“He smokes two or three cigars a day,” his witness statement begins. “He often has to cough and/or cough. His cough contains phlegm.”

The killer line? “He cannot now remember whether saliva came out of his mouth, but if it did (and he does not dispute that some may have done so), it was certainly not aimed at the referee’s feet.”

Let’s move on quickly, okay?

Around the Athletic FC

(Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

Catch a Match (Times ET/UK)

Europa League, competition stage

(Both 10.30am/3.30pm)

Galatasaray vs. Elfsborg — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports; Braga vs. Bodo/Glimt — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports.

Champions League, competition stage

(Both 2.45pm/7.45pm, kick-off)

Atalanta vs. Celtic — Paramount+, Vix/TNT Sports; Brest vs Bayer Leverkusen — Paramount+, Fubo/TNT Sports.

(All 3:00 PM/8:00 PM)

Atletico Madrid vs. Lille — Paramount+, Fubo/TNT Sports; Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich — Paramount+, Fubo/TNT Sports; Benfica vs Feyenoord — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports; Manchester City vs. Sparta Prague — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports; RB Leipzig vs. Liverpool — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports; Red Bull Salzburg vs. Dinamo Zagreb — Paramount+, ViX/TNT Sports; Young Boys vs Inter Milan — TNT Sports.

MLS Playoffs, Wild Card

Portland Timbers vs. Vancouver Whitecaps, 10:30pm/3:30am – Apple TV.

And finally… some, um, tennis!

(Kevin Santamaria / Tenis al Maximo)

Do footballers get bored after retirement? Are they missing that competitive advantage? This is certainly true for Diego Forlan.

The former Uruguay and Manchester United striker will make his professional tennis debut at the age of 45.

The ex-striker – who could have turned professional if he wasn’t on the court – will appear at the Uruguay Open next month.

Always at his best in a strike partnership, Forlan plays doubles alongside Federico Coria on the Challenger Tour event, the second level of tennis.

And that’s game, set, match for today’s edition. See you tomorrow!

(Top photo: Burak Akbulut/Anadolu via Getty Images)