Football: Manchester United sack Van Gaal -- reports

May 23, 2016

London, May 23: Louis van Gaal has been sacked as manager of Manchester United , several British media outlets reported Monday, amid speculation he will be replaced by Jose Mourinho.

VanGaalBoth Van Gaal and leading employment lawyer Paul Gilroy were seen entering United's Carrington training ground on Monday.

Gilroy's clients have included David Moyes, whose sacking as United manager paved the way for Van Gaal's appointment.

There has a yet been no official confirmation from United, 20-times English champions, about the position of Van Gaal, who still has a season remaining on his three-year contract.

But James Ducker, the northern football correspondent of Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper, tweeted Monday: "Paul Gilroy QC finalising Van Gaal's severance package now...£5m pay off. Expect an announcement lunchtime."

The BBC said that United would make a statement about Van Gaal at 1:00pm local time (1200 GMT) Monday.

British media have been awash with reports of Van Gaal's demise, after a leak from an unknown source spread as Manchester United lifted the FA Cup on Saturday.

The Dutchman cryptically commented, "It's over" as he left the squad's Cup final hotel on Sunday, but it was not clear whether he was referring to his tenure or United's season.

The BBC said Van Gaal had not been informed whether he was staying for next season, although it said Saturday's 2-1 win over Palace at Wembley was believed to have been his last game in charge of United.

Van Gaal himself was defiant after Saturday's Cup final.

"I show you the cup and I don't discuss it with my friends of the media, who already sacked me for six months," the 64-year-old said.

"Which manager can do that, what I have done?"

Despite winning their first trophy since the great Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013, Van Gaal's United didn't challenge for the Premier League title and failed to qualify for the Champions League.

Fans were also unhappy with the brand of football their team played under Van Gaal.

United scored just 49 league goals this season, their lowest return for 26 years and many supporters felt Van Gaal's approach ran counter to the club's traditional attacking style.

Mourinho saw his second spell as Chelsea manager end with the sack in December, after last season's champions made a miserable start to the their Premier League title defence.

United captain Wayne Rooney accepted this term's performance had not been good enough by the standards expected at Old Trafford.

"He has been under pressure," Rooney said of Van Gaal. "I think we all have.

"That's part of playing for Manchester United and managing Manchester United -- it is a massive club.

"You have to set standards and we fell below them this season.

"But we have to make sure as players we get back to those standards and make sure we are back challenging for the main trophies."

Meanwhile former United midfielder Ray Wilkins said Mourinho was the man to revitalise the club.

"He (Mourinho) is a winner -- there is no two ways about it," Wilkins, also a former Chelsea assistant manager, told talkSPORT radio on Monday.

"When he goes to a club, normally he wins a big trophy within the first couple of years."

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News Network
May 2,2020

Melbourne, May 2: After becoming the number one side in Test cricket, Australia's head coach Justin Langer has said that his team has won back the respect of the country.

Australia dethroned India from the top spot in Tests and now the Men in Blue are in the third place.

Langer came in as the coach of Australia after the 2018 ball-tampering scandal and it took him some time to get the side back to winning ways.

Ever since the return of David Warner and Steve Smith, Australia went on to become a commendable side and the results reflect that.

"We have got lots of work to do to become the team we want to be. But over the last couple of years, not only have we performed well on the field, we have performed well off it. We have earned some respect back from other teams around the world but also from Australia," Langer said in an official statement.

"When we started on this journey, there had been a lot of talk about Australia wanting to be No. 1 in the world in all three forms of the game.

We took a different approach. Not once did we talk about being No. 1 ranked in the world. We wanted to be No.1 in our values and process. That is what I am most proud of," he added.

In the latest ICC rankings update, that rates all matches played since May 2019 at 100 per cent and those of the previous two years at 50 per cent, Australia (116) have taken over from India as the top-ranked side in the ICC men's Test team rankings with New Zealand (115) remaining in second place.

India is now third with 114 points. With only two points separating them, this is the second closest the top three teams have been since the Test rankings were launched in 2003.

The closest for the top three teams were in January 2016, when India had led Australia and South Africa by a single point.

Australia has also moved to the top spot in the T20I rankings for the first time in the format.

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News Network
May 6,2020

New Delhi, May 6: He has flattered to deceive on umpteen occasions but highly-rated wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson says he has learnt to accept his failures in pursuit of the calm demeanour that former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni possesses.

The 25-year-old from Kerala has always been talked about by the likes of Rahul Dravid and Gautam Gambhir but it hasn't translated into international success with only four T20 Internationals in his kitty in the last five years.

"I have learnt to understand and focus more on my strengths and (be more) accepting (of) the failures. I try to contribute to the team's cause and try to take the team over the line. I am learning to focus and control my emotions while batting like MS Dhoni," Samson said during a podcast organised by Rajasthan Royals.

He recently made a comeback in India's T20 side and it was a worthy experience for him.

"It was great to be a part of the Indian team again. To be a part of one of the best teams in the world, surrounded by players like Virat bhai and Rohit bhai, it was a fantastic experience," Samson said.

In one of the games in New Zealand, Samson was sent to bat in the Super Over, something which made him feel wanted in the Indian set-up.

"It was a great feeling to be trusted by the players such as Virat bhai and Rohit bhai to go out there and bat in the crucial moments. It's a great feeling when the team and the players consider you to be a match winner."

On a lighter note, Samson revealed that he refers to Steve Smith as "chachu" (uncle) after Brad Hodge once started calling him by that name.

"I share a very good relationship with 'Chachu' Steve Smith. He is one of the best brains in world cricket and we all enjoy a lot playing under him."

Asked what's the back story of the nickname, Samson said: "It started with Brad Hodge, he used to call Smith 'Chachu', then when Hodgy left, I started calling Smith 'Chachu'. In return Smith also started calling me 'Chachu'. We both really enjoy and continue calling each other that."

While Dhoni is his idol, he also loves watching Jos Buttler in Royals and makes notes on how the star Englishman prepares for games.

"I observe Jos especially given he too is a wicketkeeper-batsman. He's always working on his skills and his game and never sits idle.

"He's either working on his keeping, batting in the nets or running around the park. I love to observe and know how he thinks and prepares as a keeper before a game.

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Agencies
August 5,2020

New Delhi, Aug 5: As Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Bollywood celebrities have taken it to their social media platforms to express their excitement and shared their thoughts.

Taking to Twitter handle, senior Bollywood actor Anupam Kher extended his best wishes to his legion of followers for the Ram Janmabhoomi Pujan.

While 'Masti' actor Riteish Deshmukh, on the micro-blogging site tweeted multiple hashtag 'Jai Shree Ram' to mark the historic day.

'Queen' actor, Kangana Ranaut's official Twitter handle team wrote: "What could not happen in 500 years happened this year.... this is not picture of the day but the moment of many centuries #JaiShreeRam #RamMandirAyodhya"

Actor Kirron Kher, legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, filmmaker Ashok Pandit and others also marked the day and expressed their excitement.

Earlier, evergreen star Hema Malini, through an audio recording congratulated the devotees of Lord Ram on the occasion.

The Mathura MP expressed her excitement on the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the much-awaited Ram Temple.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed the special Bhoomi Poojan at Ayodhya ahead of the foundation stone laying ceremony.

He also released a commemorative postage stamp on 'Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir'. Earlier, Prime Minister Modi had offered prayers at the Hanuman Garhi Temple in Ayodhya.

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