The president of the French Football Federation (FFF) has opened the door for striker Karim Benzema to return to the national team when legal proceedings against him for alleged blackmail have finished.
The striker was suspended in-definitely by the FFF in December 2015 after being put under formal investigation by a judge for an alleged plot to blackmail France team-mate Mathieu Valbuena over a sex video.
FFF president Noel Le Graet said: “I am against lifetime punishments. The problem hasn’t been raised for the moment, but Karim is available for selection.
“The day when justice will be done, only then will the France coach decide whether to integrate him or not.”
Insigne contract
Contract renewal talks between Napoli and their attacking midfielder Lorenzo Insigne are nowhere near a conclusion with the player insisting on a higher raise in his salary, La Gazzetta dello Sport reported.
The 25-year-old’s stock rose impressively last season as he helped Napoli finish second in the Serie A behind champions Juventus.
At present, Insigne is getting €1.1m a year but he is asking for more. Gazzetta dello Sport said talks with club supremo Aurelio De Laurentiis last week failed to lead to a solution.
Yaya Toure agent blasts Guardiola
Yaya Toure’s agent has criticised Pep Guardiola for humiliating the midfielder by leaving him out of Manchester City’s squad for the Champions League group stages.
The 33-year-old has failed to make any of City’s match-day squads for their first three Premier League games of the season.
Agent Dimitri Seluk said Toure remains determined to force his way back into the team.
“If he wins the UEFA Champions League for Manchester City this season then I will say on TV that Pep Guardiola is the best manager in the world,” Seluk told reporters.
“But if City don’t win the title then I hope that Pep will say that he was wrong to humiliate a great player like Yaya Toure.”
Uganda end long exile from finals
Uganda ended an almost four-decade wait for a place in the African Nations Cup finals as Farouk Miya’s goal secured a 1-0 win over the Comoros Islands in Kampala on Sunday.
Uganda finished second behind Burkina Faso in their group but took one of the two places reserved for the runners-up in the 13 qualifying groups for next year’s tournament.
They last played at the Nations Cup in 1978 when they were beaten in the tournament final by hosts Ghana.
Beckenbauer has bypass surgery
Franz Beckenbauer underwent open heart bypass surgery last weekend in an operation scheduled long before Swiss authorities opened criminal proceedings against him.
Bild said Beckenbauer, 70, was still at his home in Salzburg when authorities carried out a two-hour search, but travelled to Germany on Friday to prepare for the long-scheduled surgery.
The Swiss Attorney General’s office last week launched an in-vestigation into allegations of fraud and misappropriation in-volving Beckenbauer and two former presidents of Germany’s football federation in connection with the 2006 World Cup bid.
Tottenham’s Son skips S. Korea duty
Heung-Min Son will skip South Korea’s 2018 World Cup qualifier against Syria today in a bid to kickstart his Tottenham career.
The 24-year-old forward had a stuttering first season at White Hart Lane following his £22m move from Bayer Leverkusen.
Although he remained at Spurs, his hopes of becoming a regular starter have not been helped by a lengthy summer of international duty.
Son said: “Tottenham are the team I wanted to join and I know that I have to work hard.
“I am sorry to my national team-mates and coach but I will support them and hope they get a good result against Syria.”
Union chief says referees don’t lie
The trade union boss representing Premier League referees has no knowledge of match officials being instructed to lie in their post-match reports.
Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey replied to Twitter posts on Saturday about Sergio Aguero’s three-match ban for violent conduct by alleging pressure from Professional Game Match Officials Limited for referees to say they have not seen incidents which could be open to video review.
His claims were questioned by Alan Leighton, national secretary of the Prospect union.
Leighton said: “In all the years that I have represented referees, I cannot recall any official approaching me on the basis they had been asked by PGMOL to lie in a report to the FA.”