A TRIVIAL CHASE?
Finally! Real Madrid have announced the signing of Kylian Mbappé, a deal that was reportedly completed in February; a pursuit that began in the Mesozoic era. There have been bumps along the way, but it was always going to materialize at some point, making the Whites at the Bernabéu a boyhood dream for the Parisian. And while most of us are growing out of our pre-adolescent craze for Panini stickers [better skip over Quote of the Day, then – Football Daily Ed]Madrid’s chief prosecutor, Florentino Pérez, is not most of us. Nearly a quarter of a century since poaching Luís Figo from Barcelona, Pérez, bulging eyes outside the toy store, has not lost his desire for the latest shiny collectible. Even after winning the Big Cup for the sixth time in ten years, he remained ordinary had to have him.
One could almost feel sorry for the state-backed, super-rich, monopolizing entity Paris Saint-Germain, losing their star as a free agent after another season without European glory, their own country. galacticos The era is coming to an end without the trophy they so desperately desire. That is until you realize that this is the state-backed, super-rich, monopolizing entity that is PSG, which actually makes the whole episode very funny. Madrid can feel a little smug, but there’s also a slight awkwardness here, namely that of the megastar entering a perfectly functioning dressing room that, quite frankly, isn’t the case. need it.
How can we accommodate Vinícius Júnior alongside Mbappé, with both tending to venture onto the wing before ending up in the middle? For all the potential damage the partnership could cause, there is also the prospect of them playing bumper cars on the left side. The club’s own history also tells us that signing an electric world champion straight after continental success does not guarantee a trophy glut. The original Ronaldo, fresh from winning the 2002 World Cup and 25 years young – the same as Mbappé today – was signed just months after Zinedine Zidane’s balletic thunderous volley against Leverkusen won Madrid’s third Major Cup in five seasons. A waiting period of twelve years would follow the decima, and only one league title spanned R9’s four and a half seasons at the club.
So yes, it’s time for Carlo Ancelotti to do his thing. The ultimate manager of big players, Ancelotti continues to exude the calming qualities of a botanical garden, making him the best man equipped to safely incorporate Mbappe into the mix. If he’s ever inclined to dish out the occasional hairdryer, Ancelotti’s Smint-guzzling last weekend suggests he might even offer something refreshing with a burst. The 64-year-old is a scented candle, a chocolate bar, an Etta James vinyl; a care package made of meat. Let Mbappé walk around, in sync with the rest of the Madridistas, and Ancelotti can start thinking about his sixth – cue raising an eyebrow – Big Cup as a manager.
LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE
Join Taha Hashim at 8pm BST for minute-by-minute updates on France 3-1 England in Euro 2025 qualifying.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“When a big name player comes out you get a buzz… It’s a special place to be when you play the big cards and are known as the pack king, I have to keep that up, right? It’s brilliant, to be honest. They all put ‘let’s go Bunting mental’ in the chat and I think I also got a lot of new followers from people who didn’t know me” – darts player Stephen Bunting, number 16 in the world, describes the, um, The thrill of it opening the packages as he explains how he became a big deal among stickerheads after appearing on a livestream from the Paolo Panini TikTok channel.
WIN A DAVID SQUIRES PRINT!
Thanks to our friends at the Guardian Print Shop, we’re giving away another David Squires cartoon on Friday. To participate, simply write us a letter for publication below. At the end of each week we choose the top winners of our Letter of the Day and that worthy winner will then receive a voucher for one of our top, finest cartoonist prints. And if all else fails, you can scan the entire archive of David’s cartoons here and purchase your own. You can view the terms and conditions for the competition here.
Speaking of which, here’s our cartoonist’s latest offering on the Big Cup final, including Carlo Ancelotti’s winning vibes and Vinícius Jr’s coronation. to winner of the Ballon d’Or 2024, Ballon d’Or, Ballon d’Or!.
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
So José Mourinho already feels loved by Fenerbahce (yesterday’s Football Daily, full email edition)? The boom-bust cycle seems unusually compressed this time. Maybe he’ll be away on Friday?’ – John Nielsen-Gammon.
Good to see Mourinho gaining favor with the Fenerbahçe fans. And it’s nice that he promises ‘that from this moment on I belong to your family’. Yes. All families have that weird uncle [rings a distant bell – Football Daily Ed] who can start a fight in an empty room, and personally I can’t think of a more suitable candidate to temper the extreme emotions and conspiracy nonsense that has been plaguing Turkish football lately. Still, it should make for some interesting Squires work” – Colin Reed.
All those suggestions for Roy Hodgson action figures (Football Daily letters passim) and yet no mention of Fighting Roy? – Alan Burgess.
Send letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Today’s letter o’the day winner is… John Nielsen-Gammon, who now has the chance to win a David Squires cartoon from our print shop at the end of the week. You can view the conditions for all this here.
NEWS, BITS AND BOBS
A Real Madrid security staff member has been charged with common assault in connection with an incident involving a Wembley steward during Saturday’s Big Cup final.
FIFA has ruled that Emilio Nsue, top scorer at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations, was never eligible to play for Equatorial Guinea during his 11-year international career. He has been given a six-month suspension.
Scotland managed to dampen any hype with both hands, but still emerged from the warm-up with a victory, recording a 2-0 win over the mighty Gibraltar in Portugal.
West Ham have joined Leverkusen in a snap to sign Girona midfield dynamo Aleix García.
Bruno Fernandes wants more money if he wants to continue playing a central role in the fun and games at Manchester United. And that’s if they even want to keep him. Meanwhile, after being accused of occasionally playing on the beach last season, Casemiro has joined Marbella’s board of directors after becoming a stakeholder in the Spanish club.
England will not compromise on their playing style just to be unpredictable, cheered Sarina Wiegman as the Lionesses prepared to take on France.
The uncertainty surrounding Mikel Arteta’s long-term future at Arsenal only leaves him hungry to dethrone Manchester City in the Premier League. “[In] It is very helpful that this profession has this uncertainty,” he cooed. “At least it motivates me.”
Burton has appointed Chelsea Under-21 coach Mark Robinson as new boss following the departure of Martin Paterson.
And forget the Big Cup trophy and individual prizes: Top Trumps! Top Trumps! Top Trumps! Top Trumps!
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN
He is one of the best midfielders the Premier League has ever seen. He cuts opponents apart geometrically and makes beautiful passes behind the backlines, with great success. He has won six league titles, the Grand Cup and a suitcase full of other gongs. Oh, and he also earns around £21 million a year. So what else can Kevin De Bruyne pursue? Well, the Saudi Pro League, it seems. “At my age you have to be open to everything. If I play there for two years, I can make an incredible amount of money. Before that I had to play football for 15 years. I may not even reach that amount,” he said The last news. “I have to think about my future. These are also conversations that we as a family are having more and more often. I still have one year to go [Manchester City] contract, so I have to think about what could happen. Sigh.
DO YOU WANT MORE?
The Euros are coming and our Experts’ Network team guides continue with No. 3 Scotland and No. 4 Switzerland.
Louise Taylor reveals the player ratings after England’s 3-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Jacob Steinberg believes Luke Shaw’s fitness run could be the difference between success and failure at the European Championship.
Settle in for a long Sid Lowe lecture on Kylian Mbappé and Madrid.
Xabi Alonso and unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen rewrote history, but Andy Brassell tips his hat to Stuttgart and Harry Kane’s wonder goal in his full Bundesliga review.
It should come as no surprise that Todd Boehly and his colleagues have shopped for Chelsea managers as they have for managers. Enzo Maresca certainly knows his fate, writes Jonathan Liew.
And here’s Jonathan again talking about José Mourinho walking straight into the seething cauldron of Fenerbahçe with forces far beyond his control.
MEMORY LANE
Hands up if you remember the Euro 2000 mascot? We neither. His name was Benelucky, a lion with a devilish tail and human hands. Since the tournament was jointly organized by Belgium and the Netherlands, it contained elements of the national flags of both countries and the name was a portmanteau of “Benelux”, the term for the three countries Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. As for the ending? “Lucky” is a simple message of “good luck” to participating teams. Now you know it.