Antoine Griezmann has had his contract with video game developer Konami cancelled following the leak of a video that showed the Barcelona forward laughing while Ousmane Dembele mocked hotel staff in Japan.
The video was taken during Barca’s pre-season tour to Japan back in 2019 and it has led to widespread condemnation on social media.
In the clip Dembele makes fun of the hotel workers attempting to fix the pair’s television. Saying, as quoted by the Daily Mail: “All these ugly faces, just so you can play PES [Pro Evolution Soccer], aren’t you ashamed?”
Dembele then adds: “What kind of backward language is that?” and “Are you technologically advanced in your country or not?”
The pair have since apologised, insisting that their actions were not racist. However, as reported by Marca, that has not stopped Griezmann losing his partnership with Konami. He signed with the Japanese digital entertainment company several months ago as a brand ambassador and was set to promote both the upcoming PES video game and also the company’s Yu-Gi-Oh! series.
He has now lost that deal, though, and things could get worse for Griezmann yet. Rakuten, a Japanese company that is one of Barcelona’s principal sponsors, have also hit out at the pair.
Griezmann was part of the France team knocked out in the Euro 2020 round fo 16 / Marcio Machado/Getty Images
CEO Hiroshi Mikitani wrote on Twitter: “As a sponsor of the club and organiser of this tournament, I am really sorry that the Barcelona players made discriminatory remarks.
“Especially as Rakuten has approved of the Barcelona philosophy and is a sponsor of the club, these sorts of remarks are unacceptable in all circumstances and we will protest officially against the club, as we wait to hear their position on the matter.”
Barcelona cannot afford to lose one of their financial backers currently as they are in the midst of a dire financial crisis. After years of overspending on player wages La Liga has prevented them from registering any new players until the come in line with salary restrictions.
Brighton have completed their first signing of the summer, splashing a rumoured club-record fee of £22m to bring in Zambian midfielder Enock Mwepu from Red Bull Salzburg.
The 23-year-old has been tracked by some of the biggest clubs in Europe, including Liverpool, thanks to his performances in an all-conquering Salzburg side, as well as shining on the biggest stage in the Champions League.
It is the Seagulls though who have swooped to bolster their options in the middle of the park, where Graham Potter has no shortage of quality at his disposal with the likes of Yves Bissouma, Pascal Gross, Adam Lallana, Jakub Moder, Steve Alzate and Moises Caicedo.
So, what can the Premier League expect of the second Zambia international to arrive on English shores this summer after Patson Daka at Leicester City? Here are seven facts about Mwepu.
Salzburg manager Jesse March used Mwepu in multiple positions / Markus Tobisch/Getty Images
The most striking thing about Mwepu is how versatile he is. During his time with Red Bull Salzburg and their feeder club FC Liefering, he played in – deep breath – attacking midfield, central midfield, holding midfield, left wing, right wing, right back and centre back.
Even more impressive than the sheer number of roles Mwepu can fill is his ability to adapt his game to play each one. He has scored 14 goals and claimed nine assists from 37 outings on the right, a return that most genuine wingers would we pleased with.
When used through the middle, Mwepu switches his focus to supplying rather than netting himself. 11 assists from central positions shows that he has the eye for a killer pass as well as a goal.
Mwepu is known as ‘The Computer’ / Markus Tobisch/Getty Images
On the surface, ‘The Computer’ might just be the most ridiculous nickname of any player in world football right, let alone the Premier League. Mwepu wears the moniker bestowed upon him by his fellow Zambians with pride though.
It refers to his aforementioned ability to compute what is needed in the multiple positions he finds himself being deployed in, his intelligence in tight spaces and the way he can see a pass and make it long before anyone else.
Zambia celebrate scoring at the 2017 Under-20 World Cup where Mwepu first made a name for himself / JUNG YEON-JE/Getty Images
Mwepu first burst onto the scene with his performances in the Zambia side which brought so much excitement to the 2017 Under-20 World Cup held in South Korea.
Zambia qualified by virtue of winning the equivalent Africa Cup of Nations tournament and they soon showed that they were not at the main event simply to make up the numbers.
After winning Group C ahead of Portugal, Costa Rica and Iran, Zambia pulled off arguably the biggest shock of the tournament by eliminating Germany in the second round. Mwepu was on target in that famous win.
Zambia eventually fell to Italy in the quarter finals. On a personal level, Mwepu came away from South Korea with two goals, two assists and a move to Austria in the bag.
Mwepu and his fellow Zambian Patson Daka with their 2020/21 Red Bull Salzburg trophy collection / KRUGFOTO/Getty Images
Mwepu received his first call up to Red Bull Salzburg from Liefering within a year of his arrival in Austria, making his full debut for the parent club in April 2018. It took him just three minutes to claim an assist and there has been no looking back since.
Following his debut, Mwepu played a small role in helping Salzburg win the 2017/18 Austrian Bundesliga title, making eight appearances towards the end of the campaign in which he scored once and made a further assist.
Over the course of the next three season, Mwepu became one of the most important players as Salzburg won the Bundesliga and OFB-Cup double in 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21.
That most recent Austrian Cup triumph saw Mwepu score in the first round, the second round, twice in the semi-final and in the final when Salzburg breezed past LASK 3-0. With four assists in the cup run, Mwepu did more than anyone else to help his side to their eighth triumph in the competition.
?Most Successful pressures in the UEFA Champions League 20-21 season
?The Red Bull empire’s stars making a very strong impression this year. ??Followed closely by Midtjylland’s midfield starlet ???????Manchester United’s midfield maestro completes the list pic.twitter.com/w5q5T0twRf
— First Time Finish (@firsttimefinish) March 2, 2021
However impressive Mwepu’s performances in Austria have been, it is in Europe where he has really caught the eye.
He made such an impression against Liverpool when Salzburg were paired with the Reds in the Champions League group stage in 2019/20 that the Anfield hierarchy considered his credentials as Georginio Wijnaldum’s successor in their midfield engine room.
In the 2020/21 season, no player made more successful pressures than Mwepu in Europe’s elite competition. He has also shown that he can mix pressuring with creativity to good effect, racking up four assists in 11 Champions League career appearances.
Mwepu has received messages of support from the two main Zambia presidential candidates in the general election / Soccrates Images/Getty Images
Zambia goes to the polls in its general election on August 12 and the two main candidates were both quick to tweet their congratulations to Mwepu on his move to Brighton.
President Edgar Lungu was first to wish Mwepu well, saying: “Join me in congratulating Enock Mwepu on his signing with Premier League side Brighton. You have done the nation proud and be assured that we will all be rooting for you all the way as you lift our national flag high.”
He was quickly followed by his closest rival Hakainde Hichilema, who tweeted: “Congratulations Enock Mwepu, ‘Computer,’ on your move to Brighton and Hove Albion. This marks another milestone for us as a country. We trust that you will be an able ambassador and open more avenues for other Zambians to join these ranks. This coming EPL season will be lit!”
Whether Lungu, Hichilema and the rest of Zambia will be feeling so ‘lit’ when they are watching the Seagulls draw 0-0 with Brentford despite racking up an xG of 3.73 next remains to be seen…
Bissouma has been linked with a move away from Brighton / Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
Brighton fans were not the only ones celebrating the arrival of Mwepu at the Amex. Arsenal and Liverpool have both been heavily linked with a big money summer move for Bissouma and the Seagulls may be more willing to listen to offers now that they appear to have signed a ready-made replacement.
£50m is the fee being quoted for Bissouma and if Brighton can get close to that for him having forked out £22m for Mwepu, this whole transfer chain would represent excellent business for them.
Should Mwepu meets expectations, he might well become every bit as good as Bissouma with Brighton better off to the tune of £28m. That money can then be reinvested where the Seagulls really need it – on a clinical striker to end their xG nightmare.
Spain coach Luis Enrique has said that starlet Pedri has already surpassed Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta at the same age as a result of his incredible performances at Euro 2020, with La Roja reaching the semi-finals before narrowly losing to Italy on penalties.
Having made more Barcelona appearances that any other player last season, Pedri played all but one minute of Spain’s six games at the tournament, three of which went to extra-time. Against Italy in particular, he had the watching world stunned as he didn’t misplace a single pass.
“What Pedri has done in this tournament, at 18, no one has done, not even Andres Iniesta did that. It’s incredible, unique,” Enrique is quoted as saying by ESPN.
With one season of first-team football under his belt for Las Palmas in Spain’s second division, Pedri was only 17 when he joined Barcelona last summer but instantly became a regular.
Pedri has already achieved more than Lionel Messi & Andres Iniesta at the same age / Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
He made 52 appearances in all competitions. For comparison’s sake, Lionel Messi had only made 34 senior Barça appearances by the time he turned 19, while Iniesta was 20 before he started getting proper chances at club level and was 22 by the time he made his Spain debut.
Despite a full club season and going to the latter stages of Euro 2020, Pedri will now link up with Spain’s Olympic squad, where La Roja will be among the favourites to win a medal.
He is one of six players alongside Dani Olmo, Mikel Oyarzabal, Pau Torres, Unai Simon and Eric Garcia that went to the Euros and have also been selected for the Under-23 competition in Japan.
Pedri now has a chance to win an Olympic medal / David Ramos/Getty Images
Spain won a gold medal on home soil in 1992, with Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique part of that team. A squad featuring future World Cup winners Xavi, Carles Puyol, Carlos Marchena and Joan Capdevila also claimed a silver medal at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
For more from Jamie Spencer, follow him on Twitter and Facebook!
Arsenal centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes has been ruled out of Brazil’s Olympic squad with a knee injury.
The defender signed for the Gunners from Lille last summer and enjoyed a fairly promising opening season in north London. The 23-year-old made 32 appearances in all competitions and scored three goals. This included starting each of Arsenal’s final five Premier League fixtures, all of which they won.
He has been set to cap off the campaign by travelling to the Olympics with Brazil. However, as reported by Globo, the Brazilian Football Confederation confirmed that he has been removed from the squad on Tuesday.
After joining up with his international teammates on 1 July, he felt discomfort in his left knee. After physiotherapy and an MRI scan it was decided that Gabriel would not be fit enough to feature in the tournament. Brazil are expected to call up a replacement for the centre-back in the coming days.
Gabriel’s absence is a blow as he was one of the most recognised players in the Olympic squad. It leaves Brazil with three centre-backs: Bruno Fuchs, Nino and Sevilla’s Diego Carlos. The squad also features legendary right-back Dani Alves who has gained a new lease of life playing for Sao Paulo.
Gabriel should feature regularly next season following the departure of David Luiz / Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images
Gabriel’s Arsenal teammate Gabriel Martinelli could feature as well, along with Hertha Berlin forward Metheus Cunha and Lyon’s Bruno Guimaraes.
Richarlison is also among those travelling but only after he completes his Copa America duties. Brazil are set to face Argentina in Sunday’s final after they defeated Peru 1-0 in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, their opponents required penalties to get past Colombia in their semi.
Brazil are without Gabriel Jesus for the final after he was dismissed just after half-time for a reckless, high challenge.
Lionel Messi took an impassioned swipe at Colombia defender Yerry Mina, telling the Everton star to ‘dance now’ after missing a crucial spot-kick in Argentina’s Copa America semi-final shootout victory.
Mina took centre stage in the quarter-finals of the competition, dancing and celebrating after scoring a penalty in the shootout victory over Uruguay.
The Everton star’s actions had clearly stuck with Argentina and Messi, who took great glee in giving Mina a taste of his own medicine in the semi-final.
Mina saw his effort saved by Aston Villa star Emi Martinez, and Messi spotted his moment to mock the centre-back, shouting wildly, “Dance now! Dance now!” as he trudged back to the centre-circle.
Messi was caught up in the moment like we’ve almost never seen him before, leading by example with a stunning spot-kick of his own. He was one of three Argentina players to dispatch their penalties, while Martinez was able to save three of Colombia’s attempts, booking their place in the big final.
¡ASÍ VIVIÓ LOS PENALES MESSI! #CopaAméricaEnTyCSports. pic.twitter.com/1AQzT6iq9z
— TyC Sports (@TyCSports) July 7, 2021
It wasn’t only Messi who was unusually vocal during the shootout, as Martinez himself took great pleasure in needling Mina throughout his penalty ordeal.
The Villa star didn’t stop talking to Mina for one second, saying, “You’re nervous, eh? I can tell you’re nervous. I know where you’re going to shoot. Watch and see how I’m gonna eat you up.”
Sure enough, Martinez’s mind-games worked, as he dived the right way to palm Mina’s penalty away from goal, handing Argentina the chance to win the game. Martinez’s mind-games didn’t stop there however, after he celebrated his penalty save by pelvic-thrusting with some gusto.
Martinez and Messi embraced one another at the end of the shootout, knowing they had each played a huge part in their country’s progression to the Copa America final.
Posting on Instagram after the victory, Messi wrote: “Proud and happy to belong to this group!!! One more goal accomplished… Thank you God for continuing to give me these moments. We go for glory.
“Dibu [Martinez], no words, you deserve it BEAST!!!”
Next up is Brazil at the Maracana – and only one game separates Messi and his nation from major silverware.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok
