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NFL

Rams' Donald absent; 'pay the man,' Peters says

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Cornerback Marcus Peters is new to the Los Angeles Rams but has quickly developed an opinion on defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s contract situation.

“Pay the man,” Peters said Monday after the Rams’ first organized team activities workout.

Donald, a four-time Pro Bowler and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, did not report for voluntary OTAs on Monday because of an ongoing contract dispute. Rams coach Sean McVay said that he doesn’t anticipate seeing Donald until a resolution is reached.

“It is something that we want to get resolved,” McVay said. “As far as a timetable, don’t really have any dates on that.”

Donald, who turns 27 on Wednesday, is entering the fifth year of his rookie contract and is scheduled to earn $6.89 million, but he is seeking to become one of the highest-paid players in the league.

The Rams’ defense underwent significant changes this offseason to better accommodate defensive coordinator Wade Phillips’ 3-4 scheme. Outside linebacker Robert Quinn was traded to the Miami Dolphins, and linebacker Alec Ogletree was dealt to the New York Giants.

The Rams acquired Peters in a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs and cornerback Aqib Talib in a trade with the Denver Broncos. Defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh signed as a free agent.

“Aaron is a vet, man,” Talib said. “He’s going to take care of his own business. What’s his business is his business.”

Before addressing Donald’s situation, Peters said the offseason program played an important role in the development of chemistry.

“We’ve got to make it jell at the end of the day,” Peters said. “You can say that we’ve got all these big names and that you’ve got this person and that person, but if we don’t make it jell, then it ain’t going to do nothing for us. So we’ve got to come in and learn each other. It’s going to be a learning process for us throughout OTAs, going into minicamp and then going into training camp.”

Donald’s contract negotiations began after the 2016 season. He did not attend organized team activities last May but reported to mandatory minicamp. Donald then held out of training camp and reported a day before the Rams’ season opener without a deal in place.

“He and I have had good dialogue,” McVay said of Donald. “I spoke with him last week. This feels a lot different than last year. Certainly, any time that you have something where the team comes together, to have a player that’s as important as he is here, you would prefer that. But it is voluntary. We understand that, and we have a lot of respect and understanding for what’s going on.”

The Rams’ mandatory minicamp is scheduled for June 12-14.

Soccer

Liverpool's Can making steady progress, may feature in UCL final

Liverpool’s threadbare midfield could be set for a massive boost at precisely the right time.

Five days after returning to first-team training following a protracted hiatus stemming from a back injury in mid-March, midfielder Emre Can’s recovery could see him in line for a return for Saturday’s Champions League final versus Real Madrid.

Following Monday’s training session at Anfield, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was asked if Can’s steady progress in his recovery could see him play a part in Kyiv. “It depends,” Klopp said, courtesy of the club’s official website.

“With Emre or players in the situation of Emre it depends on the reaction on things (but) let me say it like this: 10 days ago, I didn’t think it was possible that he could do what he did today, and that he could do what he did in Marbella already.”

James Milner, who also plays a key midfield role for the Merseyside lot, also returned to the club’s Marbella training sabbatical after missing the last match of the league campaign for precautionary reasons. Milner is set to start as part of a three-man midfield alongside Jordan Henderson and Georginio Wijnaldum, though the season and World Cup-ending injury for Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain leaves the middle of the park a bit thin ahead of the continental clash between two of Europe’s most successful sides.

Should Can make enough progress to be deemed fit for the final in the Ukranian capital, Klopp could be faced with a welcome option.

“That looked good and my impression of him is really positive, but we have to wait again until tomorrow,” Klopp admitted. “But the door, of course, is open. It’s really nice to have him back in the group and he is really desperate to be part of (the final) and we will see.”

NFL

Manziel observes, throws a little at CFL camp

HAMILTON, Ontario — Johnny Manziel spent much of the first day of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ training camp as an observer.

The 2012 Heisman Trophy winner watched a lot of the session Sunday, a day after signing with the Canadian Football League club. Manziel threw while working with the five other quarterbacks and made short tosses to receivers, but knelt off to the side or stood with quarterbacks coach Dan Morrison during one-on-one pass drills and 7-on-7 sessions at Ron Joyce Stadium.

“That’s because he doesn’t know the terminology, he doesn’t know anything,” Tiger-Cats coach June Jones said. “Dan was walking through each route as it was called. But [on Monday] guess what? We’re going to walk in and start taking a couple.”

Manziel has plenty to learn about Canadian football. Standing on the field for the first time only served to further drive that point home.

Johnny Manziel threw while working with the five other quarterbacks and did short tosses to receivers, but spent much of the first day of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats’ training camp as an observer. Peter Power/The Canadian Press via AP

“Spacing is a little bit different on the defensive side if I had to look at anything,” Manziel said. “On offense, I’ve never ran this many routes that are predicated off of one defender … every route has an opportunity to break three or four different ways, which is different.

“But I think it gives you the versatility and offensive weapons to be able to attack coverages more intensely than it would just running a fixed route. I know it’s going to take some time, but now I see it more so, and my expectations are tempered.”

Hamilton’s other quarterbacks include starter Jeremiah Masoli, CFL veterans Vernon Adams Jr. and Bryant Moniz along with youngsters Dane Evans and Chris Merchant of the Vanier Cup-champion Western Mustangs.

Jones said the Ticats aren’t waiting for Johnny Football to become familiar with their offensive terminology and schemes.

“He’s got to catch up because we’ve got guys in there, and he will,” Jones said. “We have plenty of time in camp. I’d say in 2½ weeks he’ll have a handle on everything.”

The 25-year-old former Texas A&M star was selected in the first round — No. 22 overall — by the Cleveland Browns in the 2014 NFL draft. He was released in March 2016 after posting a 2-6 record over two tumultuous campaigns.

Manziel actively pursued an NFL contract this offseason, throwing during pro days at both Texas A&M and the University of San Diego and participating in The Spring League — a development circuit for players overlooked by the NFL.

He has dealt with several off-field issues. In 2016, a domestic assault charge against Manziel in Dallas was dismissed after he took an anger management course and participated in the NFL’s substance-abuse program. In a recent interview, he said he has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has stopped drinking.

The CFL approved the signing, saying that in December it began the process to determine if Manziel could join the league. Manziel had to meet certain conditions, including an assessment by an independent expert on domestic violence, a review by legal counsel and a discussion with commissioner Randy Ambrosie.

“I’ve been very upfront with my past and the fact that I haven’t been perfect by any means,” Manziel said. “Obviously, the magnitude of my mistakes in the past are something I’m definitely not proud of, but at the end of the day I feel like I’ve come a long way from that person that I was at that time.

“I feel I’ve grown a lot and feel through the mistakes I’ve made they’ve turned me into a better person, they’ve turned me into a man. I’ll never be able to outrun my past … the only thing I can do is grow and hopefully be a better person moving forward, and I have every intention of doing that.”

Soccer

Messi wins 5th European Golden Shoe of career

Lionel Messi finished the 2017-18 campaign with the fifth European Golden Shoe of his career, collecting the prize for the second season in a row.

The Argentinian didn’t start La Liga’s final day against Real Sociedad on Sunday – a match which also marked Andres Iniesta’s last outing for Barcelona – but still collected the award despite being unable to add to his 34 league goals when he was introduced after 67 minutes.

Messi is the first player in history to collect five Golden Boots, with longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo picking up four over the course of his playing days. The 30-year-old’s trophy cabinet will also be supplemented by a sixth Pichichi – the individual gong given to La Liga’s top scorer.

The Golden Boot isn’t ranked purely on goals, instead relying on a points system to recognise Europe’s most potent finisher. Each strike tallied in one of Europe’s top five leagues is worth two points – meaning Messi finished the season on 68 – while goals in supposedly lesser leagues are given a weight of 1.5 or 1. Benfica’s Jonas scored as many as Messi in the 2017-18 term, but the Primeira Liga’s pull of 1.5 points per goal left the Brazilian veteran on 51 points and ninth overall on the list.

Messi’s greatest rival for the Golden Boot was Mohamed Salah, who struck 32 Premier League goals in his debut season with Liverpool. The Egyptian was also prolific on the continent, with his 10 Champions League goals beating Messi’s count by four.

Barcelona almost romped to an unbeaten league season under Ernesto Valverde, but many critics pointed to the singular brilliance of Messi being the chief reason the club eased to its 25th Spanish title. In addition to his 34 goals, Messi contributed 12 assists and was a notable absentee during the Blaugrana’s only La Liga defeat, a 5-4 reverse at Levante last Sunday.

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Soccer