Becoming a rudeboy
Hatem Ben Arfa's missing 90k
Quote of the day
“When you've got nothing, you've got to have some focus. That focus for me is getting better at the guitar.” - Ousted QPR boss
Gareth Ainsworth.
FOOTBALL
Changed your Toon
“It’s a proud moment for me”, said Swedish striker Alexander Isak as he gave his
post-match interview in the precise tones of a Scandinavian MBA student who’s just won a year’s internship at Credit Suisse.
Nothing wrong with that, but it’s a little different to the roadman accent he uses when he’s with his Newcastle teammates.
In a recent
behind the scenes video at the training ground, the 24-year-old sounded like a year 8 schoolboy flogging Haribo in a Hackney playground, telling Jacob Murphy: “Naaaah man, I see him on the road”.
He joins other international members of the Premier League mandem such as Arsenal’s former Catalan defender
Hector Bellerin, whose landlady in academy digs once phoned his parents to warn them he was “becoming a rudeboy”.
FOOTBALL
Had my Wycked way
Hell of a 92nd minute
winner for Barnsley’s Sam Cosgrove against Wycombe on Tuesday night.
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FOOTBALL
How the other Arf lives
By all rights Hatem Ben Arfa should be terrorising Saudi defences in front of 537 fans right now, but things never quite worked out for the unhinged winger.
The 36-year-old still hasn’t officially retired, but he’s now focusing his energies on padel, climbing to the top 3% in the world.
Hopefully he’s getting on better with the local league secretary than he did with his old bosses in French football.
When Lyon sold him for assaulting a teammate, Ben Arfa accused the club of “lacking class” and failing to pay his wages on time.
This barb was slightly undermined when the club emptied his training ground locker and discovered he’d left behind a cheque for €90,000.
Lyon’s finance director told the press: "To accuse us of being financially disorganised is a bit much coming from him”.
FOOTBALL
Your Mo-ve
Speaking of dribbling wizards pursuing extra curricular activities, Mo Salah admitted this week that he is “addicted to chess” and plays “every day, literally every day”.
According to Chess.com, the Liverpool star has an impressive online rating of 1400, but Mo isn’t the only one trumpeting his abilities on the board.
Last summer, Atletico Madrid gaffer Diego Simeone posted a photo of him and his son playing chess, describing it as "a duel that requires a lot of concentration."
There was just one sliiight problem - Simeone was playing without a king, which is kind of an important piece.
He deleted the post soon after.
FOOTBALL
You’ve made a clear and obvious error, your honour
When you’re thrown in a fearsome Brazilian slammer for “immersing yourself in cocaine” and dabbling in violent robbery, there are two ways you can go.
You can ingratiate yourself with the terrifying gangs who prowl the exercise yard, smuggle spice in your
prison pocket and sip on hand sanitiser cocktails to unwind.
Or, like referee Rhamon Da Silva, you knuckle down, take the odd stabbing on the chin, and prepare for life on the outside.
After keeping his nose clean for 18 months, Rhamon is a free man, and has become to first ref to officiate a game while wearing an ankle tag.
Quick hits
A
Newcastle fan told Talksport he was so sad about PSG’s late penalty that he had turn off all the Christmas lights on his house.
Defending world snooker champ
Luca Brecel says he deliberately spunked all his winnings on Ferraris to put pressure on himself to win again.
Man United’s
Alejandro Garnacho has the cast of Prison Break
tattooed on his arm.
Hatem Ben Arfa was a regular at Zaman Cafe, the Parisian coffee shop/brothel we discuss in our pod on
French football’s sordid decade.
AND FINALLY
Blades of glory
The Korean baseball champions win a giant sword.