Neymar Faces 5-Year Jail Term Over Transfer To Barcelona
A Brazilian investment firm has called for Neymar to be handed a five-year prison sentence when he stands trial next week on fraud and corruption charges relating to his transfer to Barcelona from Santos in 2013.
DIS, which owned 40% of the rights to Brazil forward at the time, argues it lost out because the transfer fee was undervalued.
The 30-year-old forward who currently plays for PSG has denied the allegations but lost an appeal in Spain's High Court in 2017, leading to the trial being brought by Spanish prosecutors.
The Paris St-Germain forward will have to appear in person for the first day of the trial in Barcelona on Monday, the court said, but it is unclear if he will be asked to stay for the entire hearing which could last two weeks.
The other defendants are Neymar's parents, the two clubs, former Barcelona presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell, and former Santos president Odilio Rodrigues.
Rosell has also previously denied any wrongdoing.
In a statement, Baker McKenzie, the lawyers representing the Neymar family, claimed that Spanish courts "lack jurisdiction to prosecute the Neymar family and their company N&N" because the acts were committed by Brazilian nationals outside Spanish territory.
They also pointed out that the alleged crimes are not punishable in Brazil.
DIS acquired a percentage of Neymar's rights when he was 17, in exchange for 2m euros.
Barcelona said at the time of Neymar's move that the transfer fee was 57.1m euros, of which 40m euros was paid to his family.
The investment firm received a 40% share of the remaining 17.1m euros that was paid to Brazilian club Santos.
As well as the five-year jail term demand, DIS is also requesting prison sentences for Rosell and Bartomeu, and a 149m euro fine.
Spanish prosecutors are demanding for a two-year prison term for Neymar and the payment of a 10m euros fine and a five-year jail term for Rosell, plus an 8.4m euro fine for Barcelona.
Super Eagles Captain Ahmed Musa Celebrates 30th Birthday
Ahmed Musa, the captain of the Super Eagles, turns 30 today.
Ahmed Musa, the captain of the Super Eagles of Nigeria, celebrated his birthday on Friday, October 14, 2022.
Musa, a Super Eagles veteran, celebrated his 30th birthday on social media.
Musa shared fresh images of himself dressed in traditional costume on his official pages, along with a statement.
The message by Musa said, "This is 30! First I want to thank Almighty Allah for keeping and bringing me thus far Alhamdulillah. I am what I am today because of His mercies, favor, and grace.
"To my family - my number one cheerleaders I am grateful to have you all in my life. For supporting me in this journey, I am happy to be sharing my life with you.
"To my supporters, friends, and well-wishers, thanks for your prayers, your support, and everything. 30 feels so good with you all celebrating with me.
"Here's to many more years of achieving greater things and making you all proud. Happy 30th birthday to me."
Musa is nearing the conclusion of his professional football career with the Turkish First Division club Sivasspor.
The Super Eagles captain recently underwent surgery after injuring himself while playing for Sivasspor.
Musa is undergoing rehabilitation and will be sidelined for the remainder of the year. He is anticipated to return in early 2023 and play an important part for the Super Eagles in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast.
Mohamed Salah Nets Fastest-Ever Champions League Hat-Trick
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool achieved the quickest Champions League hat-trick Wednesday night, scoring three goals in six minutes after coming off the bench against Rangers.
The Egyptian international came in in the 68th minute, replacing Darwin Nunez, and contributed to a 7-1 victory over the Scottish Premiership team.
Salah's three goals in six minutes and 12 seconds increased the margin from 3-1 to 6-1.
Diogo Jota assisted on all three goals. This is the first time this has happened since Franck Ribery assisted three Mario Gomez goals for Bayern Munich against Basel in March 2012.
Bafetimbi Gomis of France formerly held the record for the quickest triple in Champions League history.
In the 2011-12 group stage, he scored three goals in eight minutes for Olympique Lyonnais against Dinamo Zagreb.
After the game, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp talked to BT Sport (via the Mirror).
“He played a different position,” he said. “A bit more inside, but of course, he is an outstanding player, as we all know, and today he showed it.”
The goals came at the right time for Salah’s confidence ahead of the club’s Premier League game against Manchester City on Sunday.
Klopp added: “This had nothing to do with the City game, but of course, it is better to get some confidence and some flow, but we now have to prove consistently.
“I don’t have to say it all the time, but I get asked all the time.”