Serbian SuperLiga side Partizan Belgrade has been banned from competing in Champions League football or the Europa League for the next three seasons, UEFA confirmed Wednesday.
The ruling is due to a violation of Articles 65(1), 66(1), and 66bis(1) of the UEFA Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play Regulations – all relating to unpaid debts.
UEFA ruled that the 2015 champions of Serbia amassed almost $2.6 million in unpaid debts as of this summer, owing the majority to social and tax authorities in Serbia, the Associated Press reports.
The three-year ban was deemed a suitable punishment due to the fact that Partizan failed to recognize unpaid debts on three separate occasions in the last five years.
Partizan fans will have to wait until the 2020-21 season before they have the prospect of seeing their side compete with Europe’s elite.
On Sunday, by virtue of a thrilling comeback that resurrected the title race in La Liga, Sevilla defeated Real Madrid 2-1 at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan, bringing an end to Los Blancos’ unbeaten run which stood at a Spanish record of 40 fixtures in all competitions.
Real Madrid looked set to add a 41st match to its undefeated streak until deep into the second half. Then, in the 85th minute, a free-kick from Pablo Sarabia forced Sergio Ramos to act on the ball, and the Spanish centre-back ended up throwing his former club a lifeline, deflecting the ball into his own net to bring the match level.
Riding a wave of momentum, Sevilla then achieved the unthinkable in the 92nd minute. Stevan Jovetic, who only joined the Andalusian club five days ago and also scored on his debut, produced a 25-yard curler that Keylor Navas got a hand to but couldn’t stop from landing in the back net.
Just like that, Real Madrid’s unbeaten run was over, Los Blancos losing their first game since April of last year, when VfL Wolfsburg beat the Spanish club 2-0 in the first leg of a Champions League tie.
Only three days ago, it was a very different scene at Estadio Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan as Sevilla hosted Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey. Jorge Sampaoli’s side was on the verge of ending Los Blancos’ undefeated streak until the 93rd minute, when Karim Benzema dribbled his way through Clement Lenglet and Sergio Escudero, and slotted the ball past David Soria. The 3-3 draw resulted in Zinedine Zidane’s side advancing to the tournament’s quarter-finals with a 6-3 victory on aggregate and setting the unbeaten record.
It might be hard to believe, but TSG 1899 Hoffenheim is now the only club from European football’s top five leagues yet to lose a league match this season.
Fabled Dutch manager Louis van Gaal is reportedly set to retire from coaching after a 30-year career despite receiving a £44-million offer to manage in Asia, according to the Guardian.
The Ex-Manchester United boss has been out of work since leaving in May of 2016 and being replaced by Jose Mourinho, and says that he is now ready to call it a day, citing his family as the reason for his decision.
“I could go there, but I’m still here,” Van Gaal said of a possible overseas move. “So much has happened in my family.”
After leaving Old Trafford, Van Gaal suggested he would look for work elsewhere but has seemingly reconsidered as the Guardian reports, by way of Dutch newspaper the Telegraaf, that the death of his daughter’s husband has changed his mind.
“I thought maybe I would stop, then I thought it would be a sabbatical, but now I do not think I will return to coaching,” he said, as quoted by the Guardian.
The former Netherlands, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, and Ajax manager has enjoyed a long and trophy-laden coaching career, where he won the Dutch Eredivisie four times with two clubs, La Liga twice, the Bundesliga once, as well as an FA Cup with United, among other pieces of silverware.
He also guided Holland to a third-place finish in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Tianjin Quanjian owner Shu Yuhui rues the rule change in the Chinese Super League that has further restricted the usage of foreign players, dashing hopes of signing Diego Costa.
The latest reports suggest Costa will likely leave Chelsea in the summer transfer window following controversy over an apparent spat with the club’s medical staff amid interest from China. However, from March, the number of foreign players a Super League team is allowed to field at one time will be reduced, meaning a move there – or to Tianjin, at least – is off the table.
Shu’s apparent efforts to sign Paris Saint-Germain’s in-form forward Edinson Cavani, Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema, AS Monaco’s Radamel Falcao, and Benfica’s Raul Jimenez have also fallen by the wayside.
“Our club had a massive investment plan for the new season but it was tightened up by the new rules,” Shu told Tianjin Sports Channel, with translation from ESPN FC’s Michael Church.
“I made an appointment with (agent Jorge) Mendes and he came to my hometown to visit me. At that time, we were interested in signing Costa.”
The new rule, imposed by the Chinese Football Association to curb “irrational investment,” follows in the wake of Oscar’s £60-million switch from Chelsea to Shanghai SIPG and various other deals that have tempted leading internationals from Europe to Asia for vast sums.
At Tianjin Quanjian, a newly promoted outfit managed by World Cup winner Fabio Cannavaro, signing Costa or another overseas player would’ve necessitated difficult juggling of personnel between Brazilians Jadson and Geuvanio, Belgian Axel Witsel, and South Korean defender Kyung-Won Kwon.
(Courtesy: @MailSport)
“We need an out-and-out striker so we made a bid for Benzema. We also made an attempt for Falcao,” Shu said. “As a matter of fact, the club had even prepared the contracts for Falcao and Raul Jimenez, but the new rules forced us to give up on them.”
For some deals, the opportunity to complete a transfer would’ve come not before the league’s kickoff in March, but when European divisions conclude their campaigns in the summer.
“PSG told us Cavani would only be allowed to leave in June, even though the player himself was willing to join us,” Shu explained. “The same can be said for Costa because Chelsea will also only let him leave in June.”
He added, in quotes picked up by Sky Sports’ Patrick Surlis: “We couldn’t afford to wait half a season. We continue to wait and suffer, but at the end of the day, we’ll get someone.”