Yaya Toure capped his return to the Manchester City fold as he and new signing Gabriel Jesus were included in its squad for the Champions League knockout stages.
Toure was left out of City’s 25-man list for the group stages, sparking a row between boss Pep Guardiola and the Ivory Coast midfielder’s agent that led to him being frozen out of the side.
But since that dispute was resolved in November, Toure has reclaimed a place in the team and has been in fine form, with his latest dominant display coming in City’s 4-0 win at West Ham on Wednesday.
Toure’s inclusion in the Champions League squad comes as no surprise, with fellow midfielder Ilkay Gundogan likely to miss the rest of the season through injury.
Recent signing Jesus, who scored his first league goal since his move from Palmeiras in the West Ham win, comes into the European squad in place of Kelechi Iheanacho.
“I’m very happy for the goal, very happy for the performance and especially for the win,” Jesus told City TV.
“This is the spirit I think we have to have and if we keep that spirit we will be able to achieve our goals.
“The reception from the club has been great, my team-mates are helping a lot and the process of adaptation is going great.
“I honestly thought it would be more difficult but thanks to my family, my friends and my team-mates it’s going really well.”
Having now been registered at the club for two years, Iheanacho can be removed from the main squad quota but remain eligible as a player named on the “B” list.
City faces Monaco in the Champions League last 16 as it aims to win the competition for the first time.
Former New York Giants kicker Josh Brown admitted publicly to domestic violence for the first time during an interview with “Good Morning America,” but he disputed the more than 20 incidents claimed by his now ex-wife, Molly Brown, and said he never hit her.
Brown, 37, wants to return to the NFL. He was cut by the Giants on Oct. 25 after admitting abuse to the team.
“I mean, I had put my hands on her. I kicked the chair. I held her down. The holding down was the worst moment in our marriage,” Brown said during an interview with ABC News’ Paula Faris. “I never hit her. I never slapped her. I never choked her. I never did those types of things.”
Farris asked Brown how people reconcile are supposed to reconcile him abusing but not hitting his ex-wife.
“They’re not supposed to. What I did was wrong. Period,” Brown said. “Domestic violence is not just physical abuse. We’re talking intimidation and threats, the attempt to control, body language. An abuser is going to abuse to a certain degree to acquire some kind of a reaction.”
Brown still seemed to take offense to the notion that he hit his wife.
“The world now thinks I beat my wife,” Brown said. “I have never hit this woman. I never hit her. Not once.”
In October, documents were released related to Brown’s arrest on domestic violence charges in Woodinville, Washington. The letters, emails and journals contained admissions by Brown that he had physically, verbally and emotionally abused his wife.
“These were the things that you say to yourself and then you’d burn them. … And I didn’t,” Brown told GMA. “The fact that my private things are being used against me, that’s hard to swallow. I’m talking about my journals. I had to learn all that and write that down in order to heal and now you’re telling me that I’m going to be punished for trying to correct the things in my life that needed to be changed.”
Brown was coming off his best season of his career in 2015 when he made 94 percent of his kicks. The Giants signed him to a two-year, $4 million deal last April despite knowing he was under investigation for domestic abuse.
Brown was arrested on May 22, 2015 for domestic assault, fourth degree. Charges were never filed.
The NFL ultimately suspended Brown for one game for what he repeatedly called a “moment.” Brown was arrested after he was accused by his ex-wife of grabbing her wrist during an argument the previous year. He said the league has known everything since the start of the investigation and that he’s never tried to hide his problems.
But the arresting officer wrote in his report that Brown told him he tried to grab the phone and grabbed her wrist. Brown provided a different version of the story during his interview with ABC News.
“No I did not. I did not touch her on the wrist,” he said.
Brown, who was placed on the commissioner’s exempt list at the time of his suspension, is still hoping to return to the NFL.
“I want to be able to play again. I want to be able to continue to write this story, continue to be a voice for change,” Brown said.
With the admission of abusing his wife, he’s not sure it will ever happen.
“Maybe. We’ll see,” Brown said. “If it doesn’t happen, I’m fine.”
Commissioner Roger Goodell said Wednesday there is still an open investigation into Brown’s case.
“We do have an active investigation on Josh Brown … You know from last fall that we didn’t have all the information from law enforcement,” Goodell said. “They released some of that at a later date. We now have that information and we will continue that investigation. Until we have a final decision we won’t be making a decision about anyone’s eligibility on that front.”
Frank Lampard has called time on his illustrious football career.
The Chelsea legend took to social media to announce that he is stepping away from the sport after more than two decades.
Despite receiving multiple offers to continue playing following the conclusion of his contract with Major League Soccer’s New York City FC, Lampard explained that he is content with his accomplishments and that it’s “time to begin the next chapter” of his life.
“After 21 incredible years, I have decided that now is the right time to finish my career as a professional footballer,” he said on his Instagram page.
“Whilst I have received a number of exciting offers to continue playing at home and abroad, at 38 I feel now is the time to begin the next chapter in my life. I’m immensely proud of the trophies I’ve won, of representing my country over 100 times and of scoring more than 300 career goals.”
The 38-year-old went on to thank his former clubs – West Ham, Manchester City, and NYCFC – before paying tribute to Chelsea, where he spent the majority of his career and won numerous trophies during the most successful era in the club’s history.
“Of course, the largest part of my heart belongs to Chelsea, a club which has given me so many great memories,” he said.
“I will never forget the opportunity they gave me and the success that we managed to achieve together. It is impossible to give thanks individually to all the people that helped and supported me in my 13 years playing there.
“All I can say is from the day I signed until now and going forward, I’m eternally grateful for everything and to everyone.”
What a career. Thank you, Frank. #SuperFrank pic.twitter.com/IjolD8EtWp
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 2, 2017
Although he’s hanging up his boots, he won’t be far from a football pitch. He thanked the FA for the chance to pursue an opportunity to coach, and added that he is eager to pursue “off-field opportunities.”
Lampard – whose decision to retire comes just months after compatriot Steven Gerrard stepped away from the game – finishes his storied career with countless trophies, including three Premier League titles and a Champions League crown.
He also leaves the game with 106 England caps and more than 300 goals – 211 of which came as a Chelsea player, making him the club’s all-time leading scorer.
Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald says he will return for his 14th season in the NFL.
Fitzgerald told ESPN’s Jim Trotter on Wednesday that he will play out the final year on his contract with Arizona.
Fitzgerald, who has played his whole career for the Cardinals, had said earlier in the week he had “pretty much made up my mind” but wasn’t ready to announce the decision, which he added wasn’t a tough one to make.
The 10-time Pro Bowler led the NFL in receptions this season with 107. He also leads active receivers in career receptions with 1,125.
Fitzgerald, 33, ranks ninth in NFL career receiving yards with 14,389. Another 1,000-yard season would put him third behind Jerry Rice, with 22,895, and Terrell Owens, with 15,934. Fitzgerald has eight career 1,000-yard seasons, including in 2016, when he totaled 1,023.
Fitzgerald, speaking Tuesday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open after participating in the Special Olympics Open, said his body is never at 100 percent but that he feels “good” and his body is in the process of “coming back.”
The Cardinals and coach Bruce Arians have been waiting to hear decisions on whether Fitzgerald and quarterback Carson Palmer would return.
“I feel very comfortable with where they’re at and what’s going to happen,” Arians said Tuesday. “Like everybody else, I’ve got my fingers crossed, and I think when the juices start flowing and the injuries go away, they’ll both be back, but there’s nothing to confirm yet.”
Information from ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss was used in this report.
