Confirmed: Chapecoense WILL be crowned Copa Sudamericana champions after tragic air crash

Chapecoense, the club decimated by this week's tragic plane crash, will be crowned Copa Sudamericana champions.
Colombian champions Atletico Nacional, who were due to play the Brazilian minnows in a two-legged final that Chapecoense hoped would complete their fairytale, officially asked CONMEBOL, the South American federation, to award the title to Chape earlier in the week.
71 died, including 19 Chapecoense players, when the chartered LaMia flight they were travelling to Medellin on went down after running out of fuel.
And interim president Ivan Tozzo confirmed on Saturday night that he would posthumously award one of South America's most prestigious titles to the Chapecó club.
"CONMEBOL have testified that they will crown Chapecoense as champions of the Copa Sudamericana," Tozzo told Globo .
Blankets bearing the crest of Brazilian soccer team Chapecoense are placed on coffins

"We are receiving support from all federations. The CBF, CONMEBOL, FIFA, and especially the people of Chapecó.
"Right now we are beginning to rebuild the team. People want football, people love football in Chapecó.
"Therefore, we must continue this. Let's talk and do well, let the dust settle and rebuild the team for next year."

Brazilian clubs have promised to come together and help Chapecoense rebuild by making them exempt from relegation for three seasons and offering to loan them players free of charge.
In Chapeco, a small agricultural town in southern Brazil, dozens of fans kept vigil overnight in a drizzle at Chapecoense's stadium, where the wake will be held after the caskets are transported from a nearby airfield.
By dawn fans were lined up around the block and began streaming into the stadium, draped with banners and the team's green and white, when doors opened shortly thereafter.

Some supporters, even as organizers piped somber classical music over loudspeakers, sang raucous football chants.
Fans said the wake would provide closure for a town whose excitement at Wednesday night's cup final had turned to anguish.
"I will only really believe it when we see the coffins and the families," said Pamela Lopes, 29, who arrived for the vigil at 10 pm local time Friday night.
"At first there was commotion, but now a great sadness has set in."

Some 100,000 fans, about half the city's population, were expected to attend, as was Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA .
Brazilian President Michel Temer presided over a brief ceremony at the airport, where he posthumously decorated the victims and offered condolences to their families.
It was unclear whether Temer, wary of possible political protests, would attend the wake.

In response to outpourings of support from football fans and clubs around the globe, Chapecoense hung a huge black banner from the outer wall of its stadium.
"We looked for one word to thank all the kindness and we found many," it read, followed by the words "thank you" in more than a dozen languages.
Workers laid out giant banners on the field, decorated with white flowers, carrying the logos of Chapecoense and Atletico Nacional, the Colombian team that held a memorial ceremony on Wednesday instead of hosting the Cup final

Cleusa Eichner, 52, attended the stadium for the vigil - as she has so often for games - but was wary about seeing the players' caskets.
"I can still see those players entering with their kids in their arms. I'd rather keep that image in my head, hold on to that happiness, than replace it with nothing."
Brazilian media, citing an internal document, reported that an official at Bolivia's aviation agency had raised concerns about LAMIA's flight plan.
The official urged the airline to come up with an alternative route because the journey of four hours and 22 minutes was the same length as the plane's maximum flight range.

A Colombian civil aviation document seen by Reuters confirmed the flight time was set to be four hours and 22 minutes.
LAMIA Chief Executive Officer Gustavo Vargas on Wednesday said the plane had been correctly inspected before departure and should have had enough fuel for about 4-1/2 hours.
He said it was the pilot's responsibility to decide whether to stop to refuel.
The pilot's father-in-law, Roger Pinto Molina, who lives in Brazil, apologized to the Brazilian people in an interview with GloboNews.
"We want to say to millions of Brazilians, especially the families, sons, parents and brothers in Chapeco that we are very sorry," Molina said.
Confirmed: Chapecoense WILL be crowned Copa Sudamericana champions after tragic air crash

Nigeria beat Cameroon to win the 2016 women's Africa Cup of Nations

Desire Oparanozie scored the winning goal for Nigeria
Nigeria won the women's Africa Cup of Nations for an eighth time after a 1-0 win over hosts Cameroon in front of a capacity 40,000 crowd in Yaounde.
A late goal from Desire Oparanozie was enough for Nigeria to retain the trophy they won in Namibia two years ago.
The Super Falcons have dominated this competition, winning all but two of the ten editions played so far.
In a repeat of the 2014 final, Cameroon finished as runners-up again despite enjoying massive home support.
In front of Cameroon president Paul Biya, the hosts had the best of the first half, with a number of chances for Aboudi Onguene, but the Indomitable Lionesses failed to make the most of their opportunities.
In the second half, Oparanozie, who also scored Nigeria's winner against South Africa in their semi-final, hit the decisive goal again when she broke the deadlock seven minutes from time.
She followed through on a pass from the tournament's leading scorer Asisat Oshoala to give her team the trophy.
The winning goal from Nigeria was a huge blow for the hosts and the thousands of fans who filled the 40,000 capacity Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium more than five hours before kick-off.
Security in the stadium was stepped up for the final because of the presence of President Paul Biya and roads were blocked for several kilometres around the stadium since early morning.
Thousands more supporters were locked outside after tickets were given out free as "invites".
There were three fan parks around Yaounde set up for people to see the game.
Ghana finished as bronze medallists after a 1-0 win over South Africa on Friday.

Manchester city vs Chelsea the History & Records

WE HAVE HISTORY
This fixture’s first incarnation was at Hyde Road in early April 1908, a Division One encounter watched by 18,000 spectators that ended 3-0 to the Pensioners. We took the lead after five minutes through an own-goal by Jackson, and tripled the lead after the break with goals by Percy Humphries and Fred Rouse.
The more recent league title-defining battles are not the only ones of significance in our history. In the 1980s there were two second-tier tussles that stick in the mind.
The first of those, in May 1984, was a Friday night fixture that Chelsea needed to win to keep on course for the Division Two championship, having already won promotion. Defeat would end the Citizens’ remote prospects of joining us, and Mickey Thomas had not endeared himself to home supporters with newspaper comments suggesting the Mancunians’ inferiority meant them missing out would be a mercy.
Player-coach John Hollins had neglected to bring his boots and had to be left out, but the Blues encountered no other problems. Pat Nevin, at his most mischievous and effective throughout, created the Blues’ first with a shrewd header over Clive Wilson, followed by a smart finish across keeper Alex Williams.
Chelsea’s second (pictured above), Kerry Dixon’s 33rd of the season, derived from twinkle-toed trickery by Paul Canoville culminating in the nutmegging of Wilson, allowing David Speedie to cross for the no.9 to finish with his head.
Prior to our March 1989 meeting City had been undefeated at home since the opening game of the season. There was little chance of that record surviving their comedy of errors that lunchtime. ‘City were so busy making life difficult for themselves that Chelsea, now 21 League games unbeaten, were required to do very little and in the end they were reduced to City’s level,’ reckoned the Guardian’s acid-tongued Cynthia Bateman.
Andy Dibble came for and missed a 15th-minute Peter Nicholas corner, leaving a close-range tap-in for the grateful Dixon. The centre-forward turned provider for the second before half-time, muscling past Brian Gayle to set-up strike partner Kevin Wilson for a side-foot finish.
It was 3-0 to the visitors after Paul Lake stumbled on the ball in the Chelsea half and Tony Dorigo hared half the field, rounded goalkeeper Dibble and finished in style to the delight of thousands of travelling fans of the Londoners.
City finally responded with a contentious penalty dispatched past Dave Beasant by Neil McNab, followed by a stoppage-time stab home by 18-year-old Ged Taggart. It ended 3-2. A week earlier the Blues had lost top spot to the Citizens, this was redemption, and we would once more regain top-flight status as champions.
The February 2014 Premier League game at the Etihad was billed as a chance for Jose Mourinho’s ‘little horse’ team to peg back champions-elect City in the title race. It was expected the Portuguese would set his side up defensively, but instead they went toe-to-toe with the Manuel Pellegrini’s side.
The power, skill and determination of the Blues was an awesome sight,
Nemanja Matic famously overpowering Yaya Toure, and Willian and Ramires running their opponents into the turf.
Eden Hazard was another standout performer, but it was Branislav Ivanovic who had the honour of the winning goal. The Serb was first to the ball after Joe Hart had parried Ramires’s drive, and blasted it left-footed into the net.
Matic hit the bar and last-man Matija Nastasic might have seen red for a professional foul, but a riveting encounter ended 1-0 to Chelsea – the first time the hosts had failed to score in 61 outings at the Etihad.
You may enjoy moments from these and other away trips to City below
This weekend Chelsea are looking to avoid a third successive Premier League defeat against Manchester City. The most recent time that occurred was in 2010.
BLUE NOTES
Fifty-six years ago on 3 December 1960, Jimmy Greaves notched all but two of Chelsea’s goals in a 7-1 whipping of West Bromwich Albion at the Bridge. Remarkably, this was the third time in four seasons as a Blues first teamer that the 20-year-old forward scored five times in one match.
OUR LAST 10 LEAGUE MEETINGS AT MANCHESTER CITY
OTHER PREMIER LEAGUE MATCH LAST SEASON
16 April 2016
Chelsea………..……..0 Man City…..…….……..3
Aguero 33, 54, 80 pen
Att: 41,212
CHELSEA V MANCHESTER CITY IN ALL COMPETITIONS
Games played 155
Chelsea wins 64
Draws 39
City wins 52
HEAD TO HEAD IN THE LEAGUE AT MAINE ROAD AND THE ETIHAD STADIUM
Games played 71
Chelsea wins 22
Draws 17
City wins 32
BIGGEST LEAGUE WIN AT MAN CITY FOR EACH TEAM
Man City 6-2 Chelsea - 26/11/1977
Man City 1-4 Chelsea - 03/05/1933 and 01/10/1966
Visit again later for the final part of the Briefing
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PMB: Manchester City v Chelsea - history

Jose Mourinho claims FA treat him differently to other managers

The Manchester United manager has served two touchline bans within a month.
Jose Mourinho claims football authorities treat him differently to other managers – and the Manchester United boss wants that to stop.
The Portuguese has won medals throughout his career but the route to glory has not been without controversy and fall outs.
Mourinho’s appointment at Old Trafford led to the resumption of his testy relationship with the Football Association, who this week handed him a touchline ban for the second time within a month.

The latest suspension came after booting a water bottle in frustration in Sunday’s Premier League draw at West Ham, leading to a charge of improper conduct that saw him in the stands when United met the east Londoners in the EFL Cup three days later.
It mattered little given his side triumphed 4-1 but Mourinho feels he is treated differently to others managers.
“The only thing I would like would be the same rules for everyone,” he said following the latest punishment.
Jose Mourinho has revealed the latest #MUF
“Let’s go back to the last one. I kick a bottle of water, I cannot do it. If I do it, it’s a sending off. After the sending off, there is a punishment.
“So I accept that is a sending off. In fact, if you see the images, when the referee comes, I go – not a word, not a complaint. I accept the suspension of one match and it’s as simple as that. But it has to be the same for every manager. It has to be the same.”
Mourinho may feel aggrieved but it is understood that he would not have been handed a ban had the bottle incident been his first offence.
Jose Mourinho has been charged following Manchester United’s game against West Ham United on Sunday:
Given the sending off against Burnley and subsequent ban for misconduct, the FA felt a one-match touchline ban and £16,000 fine – double the standard amount – would the correct sanction.
Mourinho will be aware of the code of conduct related to technical area protocol, but may well be aggrieved that old foe Arsene Wenger avoided such punishment when kicking a bottle at Old Trafford in 2009.
The United boss will be back on the touchline in Sunday’s clash at Everton, where they arrive with 20 points following their worst start to a Premier League season.
Jose Mourinho spoke to the media earlier today - read the key points from his press conference: fal.cn/QAlK
8:04 PM - 2 Dec 2016
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It means the Red Devils are 11 points off the top after just 13 matches, leading Mourinho to admit the title could already be out of their grasp.
“When I was speaking about destinations, I think the destination is for us is to be champions,” he said. “Maybe not this year, maybe we cannot do it.
“I don’t know. In football anything is possible but maybe we don’t do it.
“There’s a gap between us and the top of the table but the destination is for us to be champion.
“I don’t know when, maybe next year, maybe this year, maybe in two years’ time.”

Barca deBarca desperate to break Real’s unbeaten streak

BARCELONA: Barcelona are the more desperate side as Real Madrid visit Catalonia on Saturday for the first El Clasico of the season boasting a six-point lead at the top of La Liga.
Real have won 15 more points in all in La Liga under the guidance of Zinedine Zidane since the sides last met in April and are riding a 31-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
“On Saturday we have more to play for than Madrid, they can lose, we can’t,” said Barcelona defender Gerard Pique. Barca are off to their worst league start in nine seasons and have drawn three of their last four games in all competitions, failing to beat Malaga and Real Sociedad in their last league outings.
However, coach Luis Enrique believes much of the media criticism of his side has been overblown, citing the institutional crisis that Barca overcame in the January of his debut season in 2015 to win the treble.
“We remain favourites for all the titles, but it is evident we have to improve,” said Enrique. We lack consistency, but don’t exaggerate. In my first season you (the media) exaggerated and we ended up winning the treble.”
Real have enviously looked on as Barca claimed six La Liga titles in the last eight years, but they can take a huge step towards a first crown since 2012 with victory at the Nou Camp.
Real have won two Champions Leagues in the last three years, but have been frustrated by Barca’s recent domestic hegemony, and many of their players have spoken about prioritising their title chase this year.
They lead Barcelona and third-placed Sevilla by six points at the top of the standings and Zidane is two games away from equalling a club record of 34 games unbeaten.
Both coaches have had to juggle their squads to deal with a raft of absentees this season and Real will be without Toni Kroos and Gareth Bale, although midfield anchor Casemiro is set to return.
Barcelona are boosted by the return of captain Andres Iniesta after six weeks out with a knee injury.
Real’s fringe players like Lucas Vazquez, Marco Asensio, Mateo Kovacic and Alvaro Morata have performed admirably when the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Kroos and Luka Modric have been injured.
Barca have looked far more vulnerable, however, when key personnel have been injured, despite spending some 122 million euros ($128.84 million) on strengthening their squad in the close season.
“Zidane has managed the squad very well, we have the best squad in the world and you can only achieve an unbeaten run like ours with a strong squad,” said Real winger Lucas Vazquez.
Defender Nacho added: “In comparison to last season we go to the Nou Camp in a great frame of mind. We’re top of the league, we are in very good form and we’re very excited about going there to take the three pointsstreak


BARCELONA: Barcelona are the more desperate side as Real Madrid visit Catalonia on Saturday for the first El Clasico of the season boasting a six-point lead at the top of La Liga.
Real have won 15 more points in all in La Liga under the guidance of Zinedine Zidane since the sides last met in April and are riding a 31-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
“On Saturday we have more to play for than Madrid, they can lose, we can’t,” said Barcelona defender Gerard Pique. Barca are off to their worst league start in nine seasons and have drawn three of their last four games in all competitions, failing to beat Malaga and Real Sociedad in their last league outings.
However, coach Luis Enrique believes much of the media criticism of his side has been overblown, citing the institutional crisis that Barca overcame in the January of his debut season in 2015 to win the treble.
“We remain favourites for all the titles, but it is evident we have to improve,” said Enrique. We lack consistency, but don’t exaggerate. In my first season you (the media) exaggerated and we ended up winning the treble.”
Real have enviously looked on as Barca claimed six La Liga titles in the last eight years, but they can take a huge step towards a first crown since 2012 with victory at the Nou Camp.
Real have won two Champions Leagues in the last three years, but have been frustrated by Barca’s recent domestic hegemony, and many of their players have spoken about prioritising their title chase this year.
They lead Barcelona and third-placed Sevilla by six points at the top of the standings and Zidane is two games away from equalling a club record of 34 games unbeaten.
Both coaches have had to juggle their squads to deal with a raft of absentees this season and Real will be without Toni Kroos and Gareth Bale, although midfield anchor Casemiro is set to return.
Barcelona are boosted by the return of captain Andres Iniesta after six weeks out with a knee injury.
Real’s fringe players like Lucas Vazquez, Marco Asensio, Mateo Kovacic and Alvaro Morata have performed admirably when the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Kroos and Luka Modric have been injured.
Barca have looked far more vulnerable, however, when key personnel have been injured, despite spending some 122 million euros ($128.84 million) on strengthening their squad in the close season.
“Zidane has managed the squad very well, we have the best squad in the world and you can only achieve an unbeaten run like ours with a strong squad,” said Real winger Lucas Vazquez.
Defender Nacho added: “In comparison to last season we go to the Nou Camp in a great frame of mind. We’re top of the league, we are in very good form and we’re very excited about going there to take the three points

Tax evasion claims on Ronaldo, Mourinho

Ronaldo could have hidden 150 million euros in tax havens in Switzerland and the British Virgin Islands.
 Around 18 million leaked documents have been examined in the tax envasion claims on Ronaldo, Mourinho.
 According to leaked documents obtained by a number of media outlets Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho could have been involved in a multimillion-euro system of "tax evasion".
A group of 12 European newspapers said it intends to disclose over the next three weeks the results of investigations into widespread alleged corruption at the heart of football under the banner "Football Leaks".
Both Ronaldo and Mourinho say that they have fully complied with British and Spanish fiscal requirements.
Based on leaked documents obtained by German weekly Der Spiegel, the outlets claim that Real Madrid and Portuguese star Ronaldo could have "hidden 150 million euros in tax havens in Switzerland and the British Virgin Islands".
"On this amount, the striker paid only 5.6 million euros in taxes, or barely four percent," added the report.
Ronaldo, it is claimed, benefits from "a system developed by his agent Jorge Mendes".
They cite two operations related to advertising revenue of the Portuguese star.
The first, between 2009 and 2014, could represent "74.8 million euros via an offshore company called Tollin, registered in the British Virgin Islands", said the report released Friday.
"He would have eventually declared a part of it," added the report sent to AFP by the Mediapart organisation.
"The lawyers of the player told the (media) consortium that a Spanish tax audit aimed at Cristiano Ronaldo was still in progress," the newspapers said.
In the second operation, Ronaldo could have "avoided 31 million euros of taxes" according to these newspapers, making the most of "12 days of an ultra-advantageous tax regime" on his marketing rights for the period 2015-2020.
According to the European Investigative Collaborations (EIC) consortium, Manchester United manager Mourinho is said -- again via Mendes -- to have "concealed 12 million euros in a Swiss account owned by a British Virgin Islands company".
It was "subject to a tax audit in Spain... which resulted in a recovery of 4.4 million euros, penalties included".
Friday's first batch of leaks centred on "a system" put in place, according to the newspapers, by Mendes, the super-agent of Ronaldo and Mourinho.
The system overall would have accounted for a loss of "at least 185 million euros of sponsorship income from the tax administrations through a network of offshore accounts and offshore companies in Ireland, the British Virgin Islands, Panama and Switzerland".
In response, Mendes's company Gestifute said Friday that Ronaldo and Mourinho had "fully respected their obligations vis-a-vis the Spanish and British authorities".
The company accused the media consortium of operating in an "insidious" way concerning the stars' tax obligations.
It said that neither Ronaldo nor Mourinho "have been implicated in legal proceedings of the tax evasion commission in Spain".
Earlier Friday, Gestifute said that last March "a number of societies linked to the world of football were the victims of cyber-attacks" which saw the leaking of documents published by Football Leaks "in several countries in Europe, notably Spain".
The company noted they had taken legal redress against claims of tax evasion and stressed it had always acted with "the highest degree of professionalism in relations with (its) clients and authorities".
More than 18 million leaked documents have been examined in the expose.
In weeks to come, the media organisations, which include Der Spiegel, The Sunday Times in Britain and Spain's El Mundo, say they will also publish allegations of prostitution and exploitation of minors in football.

Colombia plane crash: Ronaldinho and Juan Roman Riquelme offer to play for Chapecoense and 'want to help'

Former footballing greats Ronaldinho and Riquelme are willing to help Chapecoense after 19 of their first-team squad were killed in Monday's plane crash in Colombia

Brazilian football great Ronaldinho is ready to come out of retirement to play for
Chapecoense in an effort to help rebuild the club after the devastating plane crash in Colombia on Monday night killed the majority of their squad, coaching team and club staff.
71 people died in the crash in the mountainous region near Medellin in Colombia, including 19 first-team members, with Chapecoense travelling across the continent for their Copa Sudamericana final against Atletico Nacional.
The funerals of the Chapecoense players will take place later today, with Fifa president Gianni Infantino travelling to Brazil to attend after postponing his trip to Australia for the women’s Under-20s World Cup, and thousands of fans have taken part in three days of national mourning across the country.
Brazilian clubs have already united to offer Chapecoense player on loan for free, while a request has also been made to rule them exempt from relegation for the next three years. However, the Brazilian Football Condeferation [CBF] have already caused controversy by ordering the club to play their final Serie A match of the season, according to current stand-in president Ivan Tozzo.
In an effort to help out the club, both Ronaldinho and former Argentina international Juan Roman Riquelme are reported to be willing to sign for the club and help them out in a desperate time of need.
Ronaldinho’s agent and brother, Roberto Assis, confirmed that the former Brazil international is ready to help out the club in any way possible, though he did stress that no talks have been held as now is not the time to discuss football with the tragedy still fresh in everyone’s minds.
“It is a very difficult time,” Assis told Globo Esporte. “Later on, if there is a contact, we can talk.
“I can only say that we are here and we want to help.
“He (Ronaldinho) fits the profile, can be the right guy. But the moment is to help families and it would be (wrong) to create expectations for now. As Brazilians, we feel involved. We are together.”