GENEVA: Leading officials within the Spanish Football Federation asked suspended president Luis Rubiales to resign on Monday because of his behavior at the Women’s World Cup, including kissing a player on the lips after Spain won the championship match.
The heads of the regional bodies that make up the federation (RFEF) made the request in a collective statement.
“After the latest developments and the unacceptable behavior that has caused great damage to the image of Spanish soccer, the presidents request that Luis Rubiales resign immediately as president of the RFEF,” the statement said.
Earlier Monday, the federation asked UEFA to suspend it from international competitions because of government interference related to Rubiales. However, in their statement, the heads of the regional bodies urged interim federation president Pedro Rocha to withdraw that request immediately.
The federation’s request for a suspension was widely seen as an attempt to silence some of Rubiales’ critics, including government ministers who have asked for his removal. Such a suspension would ban Spanish teams from competitions like the Champions League and could sway public opinion in favor of letting him keep his job.
Soccer’s governing bodies have longstanding rules barring national governments from interfering with the running of domestic soccer federations. However, UEFA will not comply with the Spanish federation’s request for a sanction, a person familiar with the issue told The Associated Press on Monday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision-making process was confidential.
Rubiales has faced a torrent of criticism from around the globe over his behavior at the Women’s World Cup final, including kissing Spain player Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent during the on-field trophy ceremony. He was suspended from office Saturday by soccer’s governing body FIFA, which is investigating his conduct.
Rubiales’ mother on Monday started a hunger strike in a church in southern Spain in defense of her son, demanding an end to “the bloody and inhumane hounding” of him.
The unprecedented request by the Spanish federation asking for a suspension seemed like a leverage play against its critics by trying to provoke fans and powerful clubs like Barcelona and Real Madrid, plus the men’s national team, into backing its efforts to save Rubiales’ job. Rubiales is also a UEFA vice president.
Spain’s top clubs are due to take part in Thursday’s Champions League group-stage draw being made by UEFA, and the men’s national team has games on Sept. 8 and 12 in qualifying for the 2024 European Championship.
FIFA opened a disciplinary case against Rubiales on Thursday after taking control of the process because it organized the Women’s World Cup. Rubiales’ behavior during and after Spain’s 1-0 win over England in the final on Aug. 20 in Sydney, Australia, has focused intense scrutiny on him and his five-year management of the federation.
FIFA, however, did not invoke its version of the rules against government interference to protect Rubiales.
The Spanish federation then urged UEFA to act, reportedly in a letter sent Friday, the same day its embattled president defiantly refused to resign at an emergency meeting.
The FIFA suspension prevents Rubiales taking part in official business and having contact with other officials, including in Spain’s bid to co-host the 2030 World Cup with Portugal, Morocco and possibly Ukraine.
FIFA disciplinary judge Jorge Palacio also ordered Rubiales and the federation not to contact Hermoso. She has said the federation pressured her to publicly back Rubiales.
Newly crowned as world champions, though drawn into a national scandal they did not seek and has distracted from their triumph, the Spain players have said they will not play any more games for as long as Rubiales is in charge.
Spanish soccer federation leaders ask president Rubiales to resign over his kiss of player
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Spanish soccer federation leaders ask president Rubiales to resign over his kiss of player
- Soccer’s governing bodies have longstanding rules barring national governments from interfering with the running of domestic soccer federations
Retegui fires Atalanta to top of Serie A ahead of Inter Milan
- Retegui claimed his 12th league goal of the campaign after just four minutes for the visitors before Ederson and Ademola Lookman scored to send Atalanta above Inter
- Juventus failed to impress in a goalless stalemate with AC Milan
VERONA, Italy: Serie A’s leading scorer Mateo Retegui netted as Atalanta beat Parma 3-1 on Saturday to go top of Serie A on goal difference, overtaking Inter Milan despite the reigning champions’ rout of Verona.
Retegui claimed his 12th league goal of the campaign after just four minutes for the visitors before Ederson and Ademola Lookman scored to send Atalanta above Inter, who hammered Verona 5-0 earlier.
Napoli drop to third before they host Roma on Sunday on Claudio Ranieri’s return to top-flight management.
Juventus, meanwhile, failed to impress in a goalless stalemate with AC Milan and are sixth, one place above their opponents.
Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini said his team were developing a winning mentality.
“We have to focus on winning every game we can and the rest is not really in our minds,” he told Sky Sport Italia.
“That was the case in the Europa League too, we didn’t start out thinking we’d win it, but as time wore on and we found ourselves in that position, we weren’t going to hold back either.”
Argentina-born Italy striker Retegui, 25, opened the scoring early on with a deft header.
The reigning Europa League champions doubled their lead after 39 minutes as Brazil midfielder Ederson scored his second goal of the season.
But five minutes into the second half, the hosts cut the deficit as Matteo Cancellieri fired home.
Retegui was replaced by attacking midfielder Charles De Ketelaere as Gasperini rested the attacker before Tuesday’s Champions League trip to Swiss side Young Boys.
Parma’s hopes of denying Atalanta a seventh straight league win were dashed with a quarter of an hour to play as Nigerian international Lookman finally scored, netting for a seventh time this campaign to ensure his side take top spot in the table.
Earlier, Marcus Thuram scored twice in Inter’s easy win over Verona as Joaquin Correa, Stefan de Vrij and Yann Bisseck were also on the scoresheet.
Correa’s opener in the 17th minute, a delightful dink after smart interplay with Thuram, didn’t just spark a rout, it was also the Argentine’s first Serie A goal in more than two years.
Out-of-favor Correa had only played 38 minutes this season before this weekend but was excellent in place of captain and star striker Lautaro Martinez who was sent home early on Saturday with the flu.
“I know him well, he’s been training brilliantly since July, he’s got a lot of competition,” Simone Inzaghi told DAZN.
“I’m pleased for him but I’m also pleased for the boys because they played really well,” he added.
Verona have lost nine of their 13 league matches this season and sit 14th, just three points above the relegation zone.
Inter now host Leipzig on Tuesday as they push for direct qualification for the last 16 of the Champions League, having thumped Verona with a clutch of starters either injured or rested.
As well as Martinez, Hakan Calhanoglu, Federico Dimarco and Benjamin Pavard missed Saturday’s match after a busy period on international duty.
Juventus trail Inter and Atalanta by three points after offering little to shout about against AC Milan at the San Siro.
Ravaged by injuries, including to starting center forward Dusan Vlahovic, coach Thiago Motta was forced into an experimental line-up featuring midfielder Teun Koopmeiners up front.
“I’m pleased with our performance, especially defensively against a team which created very little,” Motta told DAZN.
“All in all we played well, I think a point right now keeps us going. I’m happy to see that we’re well-organized and are capable of playing like a big team should.”
10-man Barcelona concede two late goals in draw at Celta Vigo
- Celta poured forward at Balaidos Stadium and Hugo Alvarez rifled in the 86th-minute equalizer with Barcelona unable to mark the extra man
- Antoine Griezmann converted a late penalty to equalize and Alexander Sorloth struck an 86th-minute winner to give Atletico Madrid a 2-1 win at home over Alaves
BARCELONA: Celta Vigo gave 10-man Barcelona a shock by scoring two late goals and snatching a 2-2 draw at home in the Spanish league on Saturday.
Barcelona were minutes away from a win to pad their league lead after Raphinha and Lewandowski had put Barcelona ahead.
But the game dramatically swung after Barcelona defensive midfielder Marc Casado was sent off with a second booking in the 81st. Moments later Jules Kounde’s poor control of a ball in his area allowed Alfon Gonzalez to pick his pocket and give the hosts hope in the 84th minute.
Celta poured forward at Balaidos Stadium and Hugo Alvarez rifled in the 86th-minute equalizer with Barcelona unable to mark the extra man.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, however, said that he saw it coming since his team had never been able to establish their passing game and was making mistakes even when up 2-0.
“It was not only the 10 last minutes, it was the whole match. We played today a really bad game,” Flick said. “The passing game for us was bad. We made a lot of mistakes and at the end we had no confidence with the ball.”
This was Barcelona’s second straight stumble since Lamine Yamal was sidelined with a right-ankle injury. Barcelona lost 1-0 at Real Sociedad without Yamal before the international break.
Barcelona is seven points ahead of third-place Real Madrid, which has played two fewer games.
Koundé accepted the blame for what he called his “gross mistake” that helped give Celta hope.
“We didn’t do what we needed to all game, and at the end they made us pay,” Koundé said. “It starts with me. I can’t lose my focus like that. It was a gross mistake that can’t happen. I accept that it was my fault.”
The late rally by Celta came after Raphinha had led Barcelona as he filled in for Yamal on the right side of the front three.
Raphinha opened the scoring in the 15th when he ran onto a long pass by Kounde that bounced over left back Óscar Mingueza, cut back to his left foot and fired home.
Lewandowski doubled the lead in the 61st after Raphinha intercepted a pass by Minqueza and set up his strike partner. The Poland striker scrambled the ball past two defenders before slotting beyond Vicente Guaita.
Lewandowski took his league-leading tally to 15 goals in 14 rounds, while Raphinha has added eight league goals.
Raphinha came close to a second goal that would have made it 3-0 when he hit the post in the 77th, just moments before the wild final stretch when it all crumbled for the visitors.
“We have to learn from this. This can’t happen just because we had a player sent off. But onto the next game,” said Gavi Paez, who started his first match since returning from a serious leg injury last season.
Atletico move into second place
Antoine Griezmann converted a late penalty to equalize and Alexander Sorloth struck an 86th-minute winner to give Atletico Madrid a 2-1 win at home over Alaves.
The comeback victory lifted Atletico into second place — five points behind Barcelona.
Coach Diego Simeone showed his sensitive side after the match when he choked up when speaking about this love for the team he has coached for nearly 13 years.
Valencia honor flood victims
Valencia played their first home game since last month’s devastating floods that killed over 200 people in eastern Spain.
The club honored the victims before kickoff when several fans were seen to cry during the ceremony.
Hugo Duro led the 4-2 win over Real Betis by scoring a double.
Elsewhere, Girona routed Espanyol 4-1 in a Catalan regional derby with Bojan Miovski’s first two goals since joining the club.
Mallorca forward Johan Mojica scored off a set piece from a free kick inside Las Palmas’ area to complete a 3-2 win for the visitors in injury time.
Spurs thrash Man City 4-0 to end 52-match unbeaten home run
- James Maddison struck twice in seven first-half minutes before Pedro Porro rubbed salt in the wounds of his former club and Brennan Johnson completed the rout
- City’s first defeat on home soil from open play since the eve of the 2022 World Cup leaves them still five points adrift of Premier League leaders Liverpool
MANCHESTER: Manchester City crashed to a stunning fifth consecutive defeat as Tottenham won 4-0 at the Etihad to end the English champions’ 52-game unbeaten home run on Saturday.
James Maddison struck twice in seven first-half minutes before Pedro Porro rubbed salt in the wounds of his former club and Brennan Johnson completed the rout.
City’s first defeat on home soil from open play since the eve of the 2022 World Cup leaves them still five points adrift of Premier League leaders Liverpool, who play their game in hand at bottom-of-the-table Southampton on Sunday.
A great day for Tottenham eases the pressure on Ange Postecoglou as they climb into the top six.
City boss Pep Guardiola has committed himself to turning around the poorest run of his managerial career after extending his contract till 2027 this week.
But hopes his new deal could revitalize a City side, that have won an unprecedented four consecutive Premier League titles, proved short-lived.
Rodri paraded his Ballon d’Or trophy to the home fans before kick-off as his name was lit up across the Etihad pitch by firelight in an ostentatious show of support for the Spanish midfielder.
The 28-year-old is not expected to play again this season after suffering knee ligament damage in September and his absence has been at the heart of City’s demise.
Guardiola’s men did start strongly as Guglielmo Vicario denied Erling Haaland and the Norwegian had another shot deflected wide.
But the momentum of the match completely swung on Tottenham’s first serious attack after 13 minutes.
Dejan Kulusevski’s teasing cross picked out Maddison who applied a cool first-time finish.
Maddison had found himself frozen out of Postecoglou’s starting line-up in recent weeks and was keen to prove a point to his manager.
Son Heung-min’s inventive pass freed the England international inside the box and he dinked the ball over the advancing Ederson to double Spurs’ lead.
Inconsistency has been the scourge of Tottenham’s season so far.
A 2-1 home defeat to Ipswich before the international break saw Postecoglou’s men slip to 10th in the table.
But they have now twice won comprehensively in Manchester after a 3-0 win over United at Old Trafford.
Dominic Solanke was denied by a fine Ederson save with the chance to make it 3-0 before half-time.
Spurs, though, were not to be denied seven minutes into the second period.
The excellent Kulusevski crossed for Solanke and he patiently laid the ball back for Porro to blast home from close range.
Haaland clipped the bar from an almost impossible angle as City labored to find a response.
Instead, they were hit with one final sucker punch as Timo Werner eased past Kyle Walker and crossed for Johnson to tap home at the far post.
The one glimmer of hope for City may be the return of Kevin De Bruyne after a two-month injury absence as a late substitute.
However, Guardiola has to find solutions fast if his side’s title defense is to be maintained into the new year.
A daunting trip to face Liverpool at Anfield is next up in the Premier League, where City have not won in front of a crowd since 2003.
Odegaard inspires Arsenal to reignite title hopes
- Victory at the Emirates lifts them to 22 points, level with third-placed Chelsea
- Captain Odegaard was making his first appearance at the Emirates since late August and showed what a huge miss he was for Arsenal
LONDON: Mikel Arteta said his Arsenal team “flows in a different way” when Martin Odegaard is playing after the Gunners crushed Nottingham Forest 3-0 on Saturday to end their winless run.
Stunning strikes from Bukayo Saka and Thomas Partey and a first Premier League goal for teenager Ethan Nwaneri gave Arsenal a first victory in five league games, reigniting their title challenge.
Arsenal, Premier League runners-up for the past two seasons, started the campaign strongly but their form dipped and they kicked off on Saturday nine points behind leaders Liverpool.
Victory at the Emirates lifts them to 22 points, level with third-placed Chelsea.
Arsenal took the lead in the 15th minute when Saka exchanged passes with Odegaard on the edge of the area before lashing a left-footed shot into the roof of the net.
Captain Odegaard was making his first appearance at the Emirates since late August and showed what a huge miss he was for Arsenal during his two-month injury absence.
Time and again the Norwegian found space in the penalty area with his quick feet and he teed up Gabriel Jesus, who curled narrowly wide, before linking up with Saka again.
Partey doubled Arsenal’s lead early in the second half after collecting Saka’s pass 20 yards out and taking a touch, before curling his shot away from the dive of Matz Sels and inside the far post.
Seventeen-year-old Nwaneri tucked away Raheem Sterling’s cutback to wrap up an emphatic win in the 86th minute.
“I think we started really well,” Arteta told the BBC. “The sense I was getting in the last 48 hours after the international break, the boys coming together and were all at it.”
Speaking about Odegaard, who returned to action at Inter Milan earlier this month, he said: “It’s not a coincidence. The team flows in a different way when he is playing.”
And he also had warm words for Nwaneri.
“He is the second-youngest (Premier League goalscorer) in our history,” Arteta said. “That’s a story in itself.
“He’s brave. You see the reaction of fans and they were singing ‘He’s one of our own’. I think we have to put brick by brick and make sure the cement doesn’t get dry. Hopefully we can build a beautiful thing with him.”
Leipzig lose ground on Bayern, Dortmund and Leverkusen win
- Hoffenheim came from a goal down to equalize three times and hit the lead with four minutes remaining on a wild debut for new manager Christian Ilzer
- In Dortmund, the home side won 4-0 over Freiburg thanks to goals from Maximilian Beier, Felix Nmecha, Julian Brandt and Jamie Gittens
DORTMUND: RB Leipzig continued to lose ground on Bundesliga league leaders Bayern Munich with a 4-3 defeat at lowly Hoffenheim on Saturday, while Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen registered big wins.
Hoffenheim came from a goal down to equalize three times and hit the lead with four minutes remaining on a wild debut for new manager Christian Ilzer.
Hoffenheim’s Adam Hlozek collected a brace while Tom Bischof scored a clever free kick and Jakob Bruun Larsen was responsible for the winner in the 86th minute.
Leipzig’s efforts came through Willi Orban, Antonio Nusa and an own goal from Hoffenheim’s Stanley Nsoki.
Equal on points with Bayern just three matchdays ago, Leipzig have lost two and drawn one and now sit eight behind the league leaders.
Leipzig had only conceded five goals in the league season before Saturday’s outing.
Eintracht Frankfurt can leapfrog Leipzig into second place and close the gap on Bayern to six points when they host Werder Bremen later on Saturday.
In Dortmund, the home side won 4-0 over Freiburg thanks to goals from Maximilian Beier, Felix Nmecha, Julian Brandt and Jamie Gittens, while the visitors finished with nine men.
Under fire and sitting outside the European placings coming into the match, Dortmund’s one saving grace this league campaign has been their home form, with five wins from five.
The hosts got on track early, when Beier, who scored a double for Germany’s under-21s against France this week, opening the scoring seven minutes in.
Midfielder Nmecha, who scored for Germany’s senior side in their 1-1 draw in Hungary midweek, added a second with a superb long-range effort on the 40th-minute mark.
Freiburg’s hopes of a comeback were snuffed out after 63 minutes when Patrick Osterhage picked up a second yellow card for a rough tussle with Marcel Sabitzer.
From the ensuing free kick, Dortmund’s Brandt curled the ball home and England winger Gittens curled in a fourth to seal the match with 13 minutes remaining.
Freiburg’s Junior Adamu saw straight red for striking Dortmund’s Waldemar Anton in stoppage time, reducing his side to nine men.
Dortmund have now won their past six against Freiburg, scoring 24 and conceding five.
Defending champions Leverkusen came from two goals down to win 5-2 at home against Heidenheim thanks to a hat-trick from Patrick Schick.
Heidenheim, who host Chelsea in the Conference League on Thursday, were two goals up within 21 minutes, with Niklas Dorsch and Mathias Honsak taking advantage of some sleepy defense.
World Cup winner Exequiel Palacios pulled one back on the half-hour mark before Schick, in for the injured Victor Boniface, scored three unanswered goals to wrestle back control of the match before Granit Xhaka added a fifth with eight minutes remaining.
Last season’s runners-up Stuttgart scored two second-half goals through Chris Fuehrich and Justin Diehl to win 2-0 at home over last-placed Bochum, who have just one point from 11 games this season.
Elsewhere, Wolfsburg’s Ridle Baku scored the only goal as his side defeated Union Berlin 1-0 at home.
