Infantino saga: FIFA defends embattled president after fresh UEFA allegationsFIFA has launched a strong defence of Gianni Infantino after a turbulent week for footballs governing body.They accused his critics of attempting to undermine the president through allegations and misinformation.The intervention came after UEFA confirmed that a payment was made to a female employee who was alleged to have been involved in a relationship with Infantino during his time as UEFA general secretary.Reports have described the payment as a substantial exit settlement, adding to the controversy around a FIFA president already facing growing opposition from European football.Still, Infantino refuses to resign and continues to battle on.FIFA has rejected the allegations against Infantino and insisted that the Swiss-Italian remains in office with a legitimate democratic mandate from the organisations 211 member associations.A FIFA spokesperson said the organisation would not support or facilitate any attempt to challenge the presidential election process outside its established statutes and governance procedures.Recent reporting has included unsubstantiated assertions and demonstrably false claims concerning FIFA and its President, FIFA said.They also claimed there was an ongoing effort by some individuals to undermine both FIFA and Infantino.They argued that those without sufficient support among member associations should not attempt to achieve through allegations what they cannot accomplish through democratic processes.The statement comes against the backdrop of an increasingly bitter relationship between FIFA and UEFA.UEFA said it would continue to boycott competitions under Infantino if he remains president, following the collapse of his controversial proposal to sell 3.1 billion worth of World Cup commercial stakes to private investors.FIFA maintains that Infantinos record should be judged on his contribution to football over more than three decades.The governing body highlighted his efforts to broaden access to resources and opportunities across world football.It also insisted that legitimate scrutiny is welcome, but warned that inaccurate or misleading reporting would be challenged directly and vigorously.Meanwhile, UEFA are ready to open an investigation into Infantinos time with the body as they continue to bring the strongest offence against the FIFA chief.

Pfaadt versus Yamamoto was the matchup today. On paper, maybe, Yamaoto was the favorite. Myself, I didnt think so, and even though we didnt wind up winning the game, I think I was right. Unfortunately, however, that doesnt wind up meaning much of anything at the end of the day, at least if what one mainly cares about is the result in the W-L column. Which, in the heat of a wild-card race that we are very much right in the middle of, both in terms of time of year but also in terms of contention, is kinda the main thing.Big props, though, the biggest props in fact, to Brandon Pfaadt. I suspect that a lot of people, myself included frankly, kinda thought that maybe he was irretrievably broken and sorta washed up as a starting pitcher after the succession of performances earlier this year that got him first demoted to the bullpen and then kicked out of the bullpen and put on a bus to Reno. Since hes been back, though, hes been one of the best starting pitchers in baseball, and he showed it again tonight.This was a pitchers duel from the get-go, so Im not gonna describe a whole lot of the inning-by-inning action, because, as is the way with pitchers duels, there really wasnt any for the most part. Brandon Pfaaft gave up a one-out Andy Pages walk in the top of the first, but that was immediately erased when Freddy Freeman grounded into a 5-6-3 double play. Pfaadt then pitched two perfectly clean innings against the bottom two thirds of the LA lineup. In the top of the fourth, he once again allowed Pages to reach, this time on an infield single, with one out. Once again, Freddy Freeman was considerate enough to serve up another double play, this one a liner to Nolan Arenado at third that doubled Pages off first because the lineout came with a full count, so Pages had taken off for second as soon as the pitch was thrown. Pfaadt then proceeded to retire the bottom two thirds of the LA lineup in order again, which meant that he had faced the minimum through six innings, despite having given up a walk and that infield single.Pfaadt had been incredibly efficient, as well. Hed only needed 74 pitches to get through his first six innings of work, and when he came out for the top of the seventh, he only needed ten more pitches to record the first two outs, despite giving up another infield single to Pages. Inconvienently, though, Freeman didnt oblige with a third inning-ending double play, and Max Muncy came to the plate and drew a seven-pitch walk to push Brandon over the 90-pitch mark. Part of me actually thinks that was maybe a key at bat in the ballgame, because as someone noted in the Gameday Thread, Pfaadt might have been able to come out to at least start the top of the eighth otherwise. Thing was, his first pitch to Muncy was called a ball, though it was clearly a strike, but catcher James McCann didnt challenge it. Muncy then swung through the next two pitches; if that first pitch had been challenged and overturned, Pfaadt would have ended the inning right there with a three-pitch swinging strikeout. Instead, he wound up having to throw six further pitches before putting up his seventh and final zero of the night.Meanwhile, our offense was doing, well, mostly nothing. While Pfaadt only allowed four baserunners overall in his seven innings of work, his opposite number, Yoshimeru Yamamoto, was a lot less efficient. We put two runners on against him in the bottom of the first (two-out Gabriel Moreno single followed by a Ketel Marte walk), another runner in the bottom of the third (two-out Corbin Carroll walk), and another two runners in the fifth (leadoff single from Tim Tawa, one-out hit-by-pitch on Paul Ryan Waldschmidt). Moreno singled again to lead off the top of the sixth, and Marte walked again, and Lars Nootbar and Nolan Arenado both had relatively lengthy at bats before making outs without advancing the runners, but they forced Yamamoto out of the game after only 5 2/3 innings pitched and 107 pitches thrown. So we had plenty more chances than the Pfaadt had given the Doyers, but we simply couldnt get them home. Evan Phillips got the final out in the sixth in relief of Yamamoto, and Alex Vesia put up another zero in the bottom of the seventh, despite surrendering back-to-back walks. First blood was drawn in the top of the eighth, as Jonathan Loaisiga took the mound from Pfaadt to face Kyle SuFuYu Tucker, who launched the second pitch that Johhny threw over the fence in right-center. Two more singles ensued, but thankfully Johnny Lasagna managed to esape the top of the eighth with only the one run allowed. 1-0 Los AngelesIn the bottom of the eighth, the Diamondbacks had still more chances, as we loaded the bases with two outs against yet another FTD reliever, Kyle Hurt, thanks to a Nolan Arenado single that was folowed by back-to-back walks to Tawa and McCann. Sadly, Paul Waldschmidt couldnt repeat last nights bottom-of-the-lineup magic, lining out to shallow center to leave all the runners stranded.After Gerardo Carrillo pitched a scoreless top of the ninth for us, Geraldo Perdomo came to the plate to lead off the bottom of the frame. He started things off quite well against Edwin Diaz, the Doyers very expensive closer who give up last nights Waldschmidt walkoff dinger, hitting a gapper into the alley in right center field and booking it out of the box for a triple. Corbin Carroll then went oppo, lining a triple of his own into left. That tied the score and put our fastest baserunner at third with nobody out. It looked like it would be the second walkoff walk in as many nights, but alas, that was not to be. Moreno lined out to third, Marte popped out to short in an ambarrasingly dismal plate appearance, and after Diaz intentionally walked Lars Nootbar (I do love that I will get to type that name in probably every recap until the end of the season) he struck out Ildemaro Vargas, whod come on to pinch-run for Arenado in the eighth, to leave Corbin stranded. 1-1 TIECarrillo came out for the top of the tenth, recorded two quick outs on fly balls that didnt allow ghost runner Kyle Tucker to advance, before walking the number nine batter with a ball-four wild pitch that allowed Tucker to take third, and then giving up an infield hit to Shohei Ohtani that pushed Tucker across the plate. 2-1 Los AngelesIn the bottom of the tenth, we couldnt match it, with Tawa striking out, McCann singling Ildemaro Vargas to third, and Waldschmidt grounding unceremoniously into a game-ending double play.Loss Probability Added, courtesy of FanGraphsPerhaps to punish me for my snarky remark regarding the silliness of WPA in the comments on the recap of last nights game, the WPA algorithm spewed out a wholly new variety of wackiness that I dont think Ive ever seen before, in seven or eight years of recapping Diamondbacks games here at the Snake Pit. Whereas, many nights there arent more than one or two players who reach the +/-10% threshold that is our rule of thumb for who gets mentioned in this part of the recap, toight there was only one playerNolan Arenado, at -6% WPAwho didnt reach that threshold. Makes sense, I guess, because it was a low-scoring game where every plate appearance and every pitch thrown could tip the balance decisively one way or the other. But still. My first thought was to say screw it and just let anyone whos interested sort it out for themselves by clicking on the FanGraphs link above, but on less sober reflection I think Im going to try to break the list down into broad categories based on why I think they rated as high or as low as they did in terms of WPA. So. Here goes:The Best Starter: Brandon Pfaadt (7 IP, 2 H, 0 r, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, +45% WPA)Dudes Who Got Extra-Base Hits: Geraldo Perdomo (4 AB, 1 H, 1 R, 1 3B, 1 BB, 1 K, +34% WPA), Corbin Carroll (4 AB, 1 H, 0 R, 1 RBI, 1 3B, 1 BB, 1 K, +21% WPA)James McCann: James McCann (3 AB, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K, +25% WPA)A Reliever Who Did His Job, at least until Extras: Gerardo Carrillo (1 2/3 IP, o H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, +21% WPA)Guys Who Didnt Do Anything, or Didnt Do What They Did at the Right Time: Gabriel Moreno (-14% WPA), Ketel Marte (-20% WPA), Lars Nootbar (-17% WPA), Ildemaro Vargas (-14% WPA, despite coming on as a pinch-runner in the bottom of the eighth and only having one AB), Tim Tawa (-15%)Relievers Who Happened to Be on the Mound when a Run Scored: Jonathan Loaisiga (-19%), Brandyn Garcia (-22%)Hero to Zero: Ryan Waldschmidt (4 AB, 0 h, 1 K, -70% WPA!!!) Okay. Upon reflection, I probably just spent way too much time on the above. I should have just recommended clicking on the link, So be it. Anyway. It was, much like last night, quite the robust Gameday Thread, with 392 comments at time of writing. By popular acclaim, and also because I already called out the first two ABs of the gentleman referenced, tonights Comment of the Game goes to our Fearless Leader:That was indeed a bit of a bright spot, though I was sad that he couldnt manage the GIDP.LIDP trifecta in his third plate appearance with Andy Pages on first. Ah, well. If wishes were horses, and so on.So once again, we go into a Sunday game that is a rubber match, with the series victory on the line. In this case, the season series victory is on the line too, which makes it even more intense. Or something. Anyway. Eduardo Rodriguez, everyones favorite hologram, takes the mound for us, while Justin Wrobleski goes for the Doyers in a lefty-on-lefty duel for the season series title. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10pm AZ time. Hope you can stop by and join us!As always, thanks for reading, and as always, go Diamondbacks!

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Enzo Maresca offered every Manchester City player an opportunity to make an impressionAt the end of the 2025-26 season, it did seem obvious which players would depart Manchester City this summer. However, Enzo Marescas arrival as manager did give Citys players an opportunity to impress their new manager. Maresca spoke yesterday and said his arrival at City was a reset for Manchester Citys players. Judging by Marescas comments and the performances of the City players in their two friendlies against Inter Milan and the K-League All-Stars, it is easy to see which players have taken the opportunity on offer.Enzo Maresca offered an opportunity for every Manchester City player to reset their standing in the City squad.Speaking yesterday ahead of Manchester Citys final preseason friendly in Asia against Atletico Madrid, Enzo Maresca revealed that every player started from the same position at the beginning of Manchester Citys preseason. Maresca added that how his players performed during their preseason would shape who would depart the club this summer. He explained: The only thing I have said since I start to the players is that for me its a new reset. All of them start at same level.Pre-season will dictate a little bit the transfer window. This has been the same message for everyone for me it is a reset.Several players have seized the opportunity that Enzo Maresca has offered.Manchester City have played two preseason friendlies with one more to come. Those matches and the training sessions have offered Enzo Maresca an opportunity to see his players up close. Judging by the performances of Citys players in the two friendlies it is easy to see which players have taken the opportunity on offer.Nico Gonzalez is the first player that comes to mind. The Spanish midfielder fell down the pecking order in Pep Guardiolas squad throughout the second half of last season. Nico has taken his opportunity to impress in midfield and is now set to play a more prominent role for Manchester City next season.Savinho is another player who has taken the reset on offer. The Brazilian international was another who fell out of favour last season. However, in the two friendlies that Manchester City have played, Savinho has played well. Yes, the areas of his game that need to drastcially improve remain. It was expected that Savinho would leave Manchester City this summer. But now you wonder if his preseason performances have seen Maresca view him as an important player for his team for next season.There are other players who have impressed throughout Manchester Citys preseason. Divin Mubama, Rico Lewis, and Vitor Reis come to mind. Enzo Maresca offered his squad a reset, and a host of players have taken the opportunity that was on offer. All of a sudden, the Manchester City squad may have a different look than what was expected when the 2025-26 season ended.

The Manchester City manager will select his teams captain and there is a clear favouriteThere will be a completely different vibe at Manchester City in the Enzo Maresca era. With a plethora of Manchester Citys experienced players having left the club, Maresca has the opportunity to select Citys next batch of leaders. It has been reported that this is an option that the Italian manager will pursue. Sam Lee has reported for The Athletic that Enzo Maresca will select Manchester Citys captain for the 2026-27 season. There is a clear-cut favourite for that role in Citys squad, which is Ruben Dias. The Portuguese international is his teams defensive leader and should be awarded the Manchester City captaincy for next season.Enzo Maresca is set to personally select which will be the Manchester City captain for next season.Sam Lee has reported for The Athletic that Enzo Maresca is set to decide who be Manchester Citys captain for the 2026-27 season. Pep Guardiola typically let his players vote on who would captain his team during his decade as the manager of Manchester City. Last season however, Guardiola personally selected Bernardo Silva to be Manchester Citys captain. Ruben Dias, Rodri, and Erling Haaland formed Citys captaincy group with Bernardo Silva for the 2025-26 season. Enzo Maresca is set to follow suit and personally choose Manchester Citys captain in his first season as City manager. It is also reported by Lee that Ruben Dias is in line to be Manchester Citys captain for next season. However, no decision on this had been made as of yet by Enzo Maresca.Sam Lee further reports that Rodri is likely to be replaced in Manchester Citys leadership group. The Ballon dOr-winning midfielder is expected to sign with Barcelona this summer. If Maresca employs a four-man leadership group, Maresca will have to replace Bernardo Silva and Rodri. Lastly, Sam Lee reports that Maresca wants a homegrown presence in Citys leadership group. Phil Foden and Marc Guehi are the top contenders for this particular role.Ruben Dias is the right man to be named as Manchester Citys captain.There is a standout candidate to be Manchester Citys captain for next season. That is Ruben Dias. Ever since Dias joined Manchester City, he has been an inspirational figure for his team. Dias presence inspires those around him and he has been Manchester Citys defensive leader for some time now. Also, Ruben Dias knows what is expected at City and how high the standards must be for his team to succeed. If Enzo Maresca wants a player who sets the standards amongst the players to lead his team, Ruben Dias is that player.You could mount an argument for Erling Haaland to be Manchester Citys captain. Haaland was in Citys captaincy group last season and the Norwegian international has learned to become a leader during his time as a member of Pep Guardiolas squad. Erling Haaland is also contracted with City until 2034. However, Haaland may have to wait his turn as Ruben Dias does look to be the next man up in terms of the captaincy at Manchester City. Haaland may well get his opportunity to wear the captains armband in the 2027-28 season. But that is looking too far ahead for now.Enzo Maresca will take on the duty of selecting Manchester Citys captain for the 2026-27 season. Ruben Dias is the prime candidate for the role. Dias is a natural leader and wearing the captains armband may elevate his game to another level.

Latto, YG, Sauce Walka and Diamond The Body are set to bring star power to Claressa Shields historic fight night at State Farm Arena next weekend.[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]The hip-hop artists will accompany fighters during their walkouts for the August 15 event, which will make Shields the first woman to headline a boxing event at State Farm Arena.The event will feature championship boxing, celebrity appearances and crossover influencer bouts.GRAMMY-nominated Atlanta rapper Latto will walk out with Shields as the undisputed heavyweight champion moves down in weight to challenge unified WBC and WBA world champion Kaye Scott.YG will accompany undefeated knockout artist Ernesto Tito Mercado, while Sauce Walka will walk out with Ray J for his influencer boxing debut. Diamond The Body will accompany boxing contender Atif Oberlton.The event is a collaboration between boxing promoter Salita Promotions, Atlanta-based Wynn Records and streaming platform Zeus Network.This has always been about creating an event that reflects where sports and culture are today, said Ruben Branson, CEO of Wynn Records. Atlanta deserves more than a fight cardit deserves an experience. Bringing together world champions, major recording artists and some of entertainments biggest personalities under one roof is exactly the vision behind this partnership.Tickets are still available through Ticketmaster.TRENDING STORIES:Georgia DOT moves surplus property auctions online to reach buyersEx-Georgia drug task force agent charged with misusing license plate reader databaseMothers boyfriend arrested for concealing missing 2-year-olds death, police say[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Mexico bounced back from a poor start to get a 2-1 victory over Canada to qualify to the 2026 U20 CONCACAF Championship but more importantly to get the ticket to the 2028 Olympic Games. Mexico returns to the Olympic tournament after failing to qualify for the 2024 Olympic in Paris, France when they failed to get out of the Quarterfinals of the 2022 U20 CONCACAF Championship (they also missed going to the 2023 U20 World Cup). Mexico will now face off against the United States for the 2026 U20 CONCACAF Championship on Sunday, where they hope to repeat the result of the 2024 U20 CONCACAF Championship where Mexico defeated the United States in the final by a 2-1 score.The 1st half started a lot later than expected, as there had been a weather delay because of the extreme rain that continued into the match. A minute into the match, Antone Bossenberry would injured himself and would leave the match. Liam Mackenzie was subbed in his place. From outside the area, Owen Graham-roache would force a save from Mexicos goalkeeper, Cristo Navarrete, who would leave the ball there but Navarrette would get fouled by a kick and although Canada scored, it was already ruled to be a foul. Two minutes later, Owen Graham-roache would get off an even better right footed shot that would go past Navarrete to score a great goal that gave Canada the surprising 1-0 lead. Canada had surprised Mexico by going on offense and the early lead was deserved. Marsel Bibishkov got off a right footed shot in the area that was deflected wide. More bad news came up for Mexico as Cristo Navarrete couldnt get back from the injury he got in the goal that was called off and had to be stretchered out of the match. Artemio Olvera came in his place, him being the third goalkeeper as Juan Liceaga had a three match ban after his red card against Costa Rica and wasnt available. The referee would go to VAR for a possible penalty kick against Mexico but the referee decided no PK for the shirt pulling. A cross from Santiago Sandoval would turn into a shot that was easily saved by Canadas goalkeeper, Nathaniel Abraham. From outside the area, Luis Gamboa got off a right footed shot that went close but wide. Off a free kick, Samir Inda tried to surprise with a left footed shot but Abraham did well to get to easily save it. From way outside the area, Edwin Soto got off a left footed shot that Abraham easily handled. Mackenzie got off a left footed shot that was badly stopped by Olvera but luckily for him, Mexico defense deflected the ball off Graham-roache before he could get a close range chance. Lucas Lima got off a left footed shot in the area that Olvera once again deflected poorly. Off a free kick, Sandoval got off a good left footed shot that forced a save from Abraham. A throw in into the area ended with a close range header from Aldahir Valenzuela that Abraham saved. The match started to get chippy and there was a small scuffle between Soto and Mackenzie. Off a counter, Hugo Camberos had a good chance but his right footed shot went wide. A bad give away allowed Graham-roache to get a good chance but his right footed shot was deflected wide by Navarrete in a bad miss by Canada. The half ended and Canada had been the better team and had a deserved lead over a nervous and struggling Mexico. The 2nd half started with Mexico subbing out Luis Gamboa and Luis Carmona for Diego Jimenez and Cristobal Alfaro. Canada subbed out Marsel Bibishkov for Marius Aiyenero. The ball would get into the area where Valenzuela would get off a left footed shot that was blocked by Abraham but it would eventually get into the path of Cristobal Alfaro, who got off a great left footed shot from almost outside the area that went into the net for a great goal that tied the match at 1-1. If Canada had come out swinging at the start, Mexico did so at the 2nd half and had an early goal as a reward that changed the match. A great cross into the area from Camberos would find Sandoval, who headed it back to a wide open Valenzuela, who incredibly headed it wide from close range in a terrible miss. Canada subbed out Valter Sedin and Richard Chukwu for Dylan Judelson and Zayne Bruno. A cross into the area would almost be deflected by Moise Archange into his own net. A long ball got deflected into the path of Sandoval but he incredibly got off a terrible lob that went right to Abraham in another bad miss. From outside the area, Ramirez got off a wonderful right footed shot that hit the post. Mexico now was the superior team and looked closer to getting the win. After Liam Mackenzie slapped Soto, he would earn a second Yellow card leaving Canada with 10 players. It was a controversial call and it might had been a harsh call. Canada subbed out Lucas Lima for Felix Samson. Off a free kick, Camberos got off a great right footed shot that forced a good save from Abraham. After Sandoval won a ball in the area, he got tripped by Max Vogele and the referee gave a Penalty Kick to Mexico. Hugo Camberos took the PK and his right footed shot went past Abraham to score and give Mexico the 2-1 lead. Ramirez would win the ball and get to the area where his right footed shot was blocked by Abraham in a good save. Mexico subbed out Hugo Camberos for Diego Reyes. Valenzuela tried to get off a lobbed shot from the halfway line but Abraham did well enough in getting back, plus it wouldnt have gone in even if he had failed to get to it. Mexico subbed out Santiago Sandoval for Luis Gomez. Off a corner kick, the ball would be headed by Yohan Orozco and his header would beat Abraham but hit the post. A cross into the area was headed by Ramirez from close range but Abraham made another good save. It was the last chance as the final whistle blew and Mexico had defeated Canada and had returned to the Olympic games. Mexico struggled but were able to overcome a poor start to get a great 2nd half performance that gave them the deserved victory. Everyone knew Canada was going to be the biggest test for Mexico so far in the tournament and they did so with a great start in which they were the better team. Still Mexico kept at it after they calmed their nerves and the 2nd half was a different match in which Mexico were the better team. The early goal in the 2nd half definitely helped Mexico, as well as the return of Santiago Sandoval after getting surgery on a broken finger. Mexico accomplished their main goal which was a return to the Olympic games. Mexico missed out on the 2024 Olympic games after a terrible elimination on the 2022 U20 CONCACAF Championship which not only caused Mexico to miss out on the Olympics but also on the 2023 U20 World Cup. Mexico will face off against the United States on Sunday in the final in which nothing but pride will be in play. But being that its at home in Estadio Azteca, against their biggest rival, pride is more than enough for Mexico to mean its a must win title for Mexico.