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ATLANTA, United States: World champions Argentina will open the Copa America this Friday morning with Lionel Messi eyeing a second continental title in what looks to be his final appearance at the tournament.

The 108-year-old tournament was held in the United States (US) with the host among six teams from the CONCACAF zone joining 10 South American countries in the hunt for a place in the final on July 17 in Miami.

While FIFA will closely monitor the organization of the tournament, two years ahead of the World Cup which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico, the tournament’s illustrious history and prestige means it is not just a ‘test tournament.’

Argentina have won the Copa 15 times but only once during the Messi era in 2021 and coach Lionel Scaloni is relying entirely on a World Cup-winning squad, with veterans Angel Di Maria and Nicolas Otamendi likely to feature for the last time at a major tournament.

Whether this will be Messi’s last appearance in elite international football remains to be seen – the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, who currently plays in Major League Soccer with Inter Miami, will turn 37 after the opening game in Atlanta against Canada this Friday morning and It is still undecided if he will try to match his record six World Cup appearances.

“It’s great to have a record and keep winning things but I’m not going to play at the World Cup just to say I’ve been there six times,” Messi told ESPN last week.

“If I feel good and everything goes well for me to go there, fine, but I’m not going to go just because I want to go. It’s hard to imagine what will happen because there’s still two years left. I don’t have to make a commitment now either or not I will go there,” he said.

Messi, who managed to be at his best in the run-up to the tournament, is sure to be relishing the chance to win three major titles in a row with his country after years of disappointment with the national team.

After facing Canada, Argentina will face Chile in New Jersey before finishing Group A action against Peru in Miami but they are aware that tougher opponents await in the knockout stages with arch-rivals Brazil and Uruguay expected to challenge for the title.

Brazil are struggling in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in the South American zone after winning just two of their first six games and are currently sixth after defeats to Uruguay, Colombia and Argentina.

Some familiar names are out of Dorival Junior’s Brazil squad with Casemiro, Gabriel Jesus and Thiago Silva ruled out while Richarlison and Neymar are both injured.

The pressure will be on for Real Madrid’s attacking duo of Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo to translate their excellent performances at the club into success with the Selecao with 17-year-old Endrick, who will join Real from Palmeiras next month expected to make his senior debut.

Uruguay, also 15-time champions, impressed under 68-year-old Argentina coach Marcelo Bielsa, who brought with him a high-energy style of play that raised expectations following recent wins over Argentina and Brazil.

Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez will lead the attack although Bielsa has the option of featuring veteran Luis Suarez from the bench.

Colombia head into the tournament unbeaten in two years with Liverpool winger Luis Diaz a constant threat and James Rodriguez enjoying a late-career renaissance as Nestor Lorenzo’s side’s challenge cannot be underestimated.

WEMBLEY: Manchester United chose the best moment to save their bad season when they shocked Manchester City 2-1 to lift the FA Cup for the first time since 2016 at Wembley Stadium, just a moment ago.

Victory over the English Premier League champions allowed the Red Devils to also book a ticket to next season’s Europa League after just finishing the league campaign in eighth place – their worst position since 1990.

Even sweeter, Erik Ten Hag’s men also managed to prevent the neighboring enemy from making history by becoming the first team to win the league and the FA Cup two seasons in a row.

When Ten Hag’s position was in shambles and the player was bombarded with criticism following his poor performance this season, the Red Devils line clearly did not pay attention to the issue, instead appearing with good defensive action to make up for the disappointment of losing in the same final action last season.

In fact, they surprised City when they took the lead in the 30th minute through Alejandro Garnacho who capitalized on a defensive error by Josko Gvardiol and goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.

Nine minutes later, City’s goal was conceded again when young player Kobbie Mainoo scored the second goal with an exciting move to strengthen United’s position.

Although substitute Jeremy Doku narrowed the gap for City in the 87th minute with a shot from outside the penalty box, the goal was too late for Pep Guardiola’s men to drag the action into extra time thus allowing United not to end the season empty-handed.

LIVERPOOL: Mohamed Salah paid tribute to Jurgen Klopp on social media after the manager’s last game with Liverpool this season.

The German manager ended his career at Anfield with a 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the last Premier League game, and gave an emotional speech.

Egyptian forward Salah, who worked with Klopp for several years at Liverpool, hopes they can clash again in the future.

The 31-year-old uploaded a photo of himself with Klopp in training and wrote: “It’s been great to share all the trophies and experiences with you over the last seven years.

“I wish you the best of luck and hope we meet again.”

Salah joined Liverpool in June 2017, two years after Klopp took over the club – and became one of the Premier League’s top scorers.

Together, they won the European Champions League in 2019, the Premier League title the following year, as well as five domestic and international championships.

Salah scored 32 goals in his first season, breaking the record for most goals in a campaign that featured 38 games, and a total of 211 goals during his time on Merseyside.

Liverpool confirmed that Feyenoord boss Arne Slot will replace Klopp from June 1, reportedly on a three-year contract.

Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk are among the Liverpool stars who still have a year left on their contracts, and it is not yet clear whether they will be part of Slott’s long-term plans at Anfield.

MANCHESTER, England: Manchester United face the risk of failing to qualify for European competition for the second time since the 1989-90 season.

Erik ten Hag’s men are eighth in the Premier League, 32 points behind Arsenal, after a 1-0 defeat to the Gunners at Old Trafford earlier this morning saw their 19th defeat in all competitions this season.

United have at least improved slightly compared to when they were beaten 4-0 at Crystal Palace earlier last week.

Ten Hag once again blamed a long list of injuries for his team’s struggles this season.

Captain Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire are among those not in action for the United squad.

“It’s like trying to swim with your hands tied behind your back,” Ten Hag said.

“If you want to improve as a team, you need agile players. You saw that in the team we played against today.”

United, who have never finished seventh and below in the EPL era, are three points behind Newcastle and Chelsea with two games remaining.

Failure to finish in the top seven or win the FA Cup final against Manchester City will see United miss out on European action.

“It would be terrible (if we didn’t qualify for Europe) but that’s the situation we’re in now,” said Ten Hag.

“If you analyze the performance you can see we are very competitive.

“It’s not the way we want it to be, United have to win, always! But right now as a club and this team, with the injury list we have, we’re not in that position.”

LONDON: Brazilian defender Thiago Silva has announced he will leave Chelsea at the end of the season after four years at the English Premier League (EPL) club, but hopes to return in a different role.

The 39-year-old joined Chelsea from Paris St Germain on a free transfer in August 2020 and made 151 appearances as he won the Champions League, Club World Cup and Super Cup.

“Chelsea means a lot to me. I came here with the intention of just one year and it ended up being four years,” said Silva.

“I think, everything I did here for four years, I always gave my best.

“Unfortunately, everything has a beginning, middle and end. It doesn’t mean this is the end. I hope to leave with an open door so that in the future I can return, even in a different role.

“Goodbye is for those who leave and never return. I intend to return one day.”

LONDON: Liverpool got back on track after a miserable week as a 3-1 win at Fulham revived their Premier League title challenge while Nottingham Forest hit out at the officials during a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Everton earlier this morning.

Jurgen Klopp’s side were knocked out in the Europa League quarter-finals by Atalanta early Friday morning after suffering a league defeat at home to Crystal Palace last weekend.

The Reds’ desire to give Klopp a wonderful parting gift was somewhat subtle but they roared back into the championship race with a much-needed first win in three league games.

Liverpool are now second, behind leaders Arsenal on goal difference and one point ahead of third-placed Manchester City, who have played one game less than their two rivals.

Next up for Liverpool is a clash of local rivals at Everton early this Thursday morning, while Arsenal host Chelsea the day before and City travel to Brighton early Friday morning.

“Fulham usually cause us problems so it was a good performance at the right time,” said Klopp.

“We want to stay in contention, that’s clear. Arsenal won yesterday, Manchester City will win the remaining one game, so we have to win games and that’s what we’ll try to do.”

Klopp’s side have struggled in recent weeks and he dropped Mohamed Salah to the bench in one of five changes he made.

Trent Alexander-Arnold put Liverpool ahead in the 32nd minute with a stunning free-kick that curled into the corner of the net.

Fulham defender Timothy Castagne equalized from close range after Liverpool failed to clear the ball from the penalty area in first-half stoppage time.

Ryan Gravenberch restored Liverpool’s lead in the 53rd minute with a powerful shot from the corner of the penalty area for his first league goal.

Diogo Jota completed the win in the 72nd minute, curling a clinical finish into the top corner.

Everton took a big step towards continuing their 70-year run in the English top flight with a controversial win over Forest.

Idrissa Gueye and Dwight McNeil scored to keep The Toffees five points above the relegation zone.

Forest remain just one point above the relegation zone and were disappointed to be denied three powerful penalty appeals.

The club’s official account on media site X questioned the integrity of the Premier League by claiming the VAR official was a fan of the club struggling with relegation Luton.

“We warned PGMOL (the governing body of referees) VAR was a Luton fan before the game but they ignored it,” Forest said in a statement.

“Our patience has been tested several times. The NFFC will consider all available options.”

Aston Villa strengthened their chances of playing in next season’s Champions League after a 3-1 win over Bournemouth.

Unai Emery’s men bounced back through goals from Morgan Rogers, Moussa Diaby and Leon Bailey after Dominic Solanke had put the visitors ahead from the penalty spot.

BARCELONA: Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique said his players were strong enough to overcome Barcelona in the European Champions League quarter-final rematch.

Spanish champions Barcelona won 3-2 in Paris in the first leg last week, and PSG will need to overcome a deficit at the Olympic Stadium tomorrow to advance to the semi-finals.

“PSG have never bounced back from losing the first game, but tomorrow is the day.

“After losing such an important match, the days after are very difficult.

“It’s very difficult to recover mentally, but the good thing about football is that you have another game against the same opponent.

“We are sure of what we are going to do and I think we are quite prepared,” said Enrique.

Barcelona, ​​under Enrique, thrashed PSG 6-1 in 2017 to overturn a 4-0 deficit in the first leg of the last 16.

PSG will return to strengthen Achraf Hakimi after the Moroccan player was unable to play in the first match due to suspension.

LONDON: Jude Bellingham struck in stoppage time to help England draw 2-2 with Belgium at Wembley after Youri Tielemans’ brace threatened them in an exciting international friendly earlier this morning.

Tielemans put the visitors in front after 11 minutes with Ivan Toney equalizing from the penalty spot soon after, before Tielemans’ header saw Belgium lead 2-1 at the break.

It looked a bit cruel for England, who did not look the same as the side that bowed out at the hands of Brazil last Saturday and they deserved to grab a late equalizer.

“I realize the curse we’re going to have if we lose two games in a row,” Bellingham said.

“We should have won with all the chances we created but these two games taught us a lot. I know many will criticize but we have to take the positives.

“I’m sure the manager will be happy with the way we played. You won’t be happy with a loss or a draw but we have to be happy with the way we performed.”

The clash between third-ranked England and fourth-ranked opponents was markedly different from last Saturday’s action, where England rarely attempted against Brazil and a chance was created after 20 seconds when Toney fired over the bar from Jarrod Bowen’s cross.

Belgium, wearing a strange light blue and brown kit, took the lead when Jordan Pickford failed to clear the ball from the danger area and it landed at the feet of Amadou Onana before Tielemans fired into the gaping goal.

England equalized from the penalty spot six minutes later when Jan Vertonghen brought down Toney and the Brentford forward marked his first start with his debut goal.

With his challenger as back-up to the injured Harry Kane failing to shine, it’s a big moment for Toney and his dream of knocking on the door in the Euro squad.