The Saudi club Al-Hilal continues its activity in the transfer market and has begun preliminary negotiations regarding the possible acquisition of PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé.
According to information provided by journalist and insider Sasha Tavoleri, initial contacts have been established with Dembélé's representatives. If the footballer agrees to the offer, Al-Hilal will proceed with official discussions with PSG.
According to available data, Al-Hilal plans to strengthen its squad with another high-level player after the transfer of Crisencio Summerville from West Ham. Meanwhile, the Parisian club is interested in extending the contract of Dembélé, who is the winner of the 2025 Ballon d'Or.
Previously, there were also reports that Al-Hilal was interested in Alessandro Bastoni, the defender of Inter Milan.
According to Transfermarkt data, the transfer value of the 23-year-old footballer is 170 million euros.
Real Madrid's forward Kylian Mbappé informed club president Florentino Pérez that he convinced Bayern Munich player Michael Oliseň to consider a move to the Madrid club. This was reported by the publication Bild.
According to a source, these conversations took place during the 2026 World Cup. Mbappé, playing for the French national team, spoke with Oliseň almost daily throughout the tournament, explaining the advantages of moving to Real Madrid.
As mentioned in the report, Mbappé assured his friend that the Madrid club is in urgent need of him. Furthermore, he highly praised life in Madrid, the restaurants, and the city's climate.
Last season, Oliseň played 52 matches in all competitions for Bayern, scoring 22 goals and providing 31 assists. According to Transfermarkt, the transfer value of this 23-year-old athlete is estimated at 170 million euros.
The popularity of players of Indian descent in Australian cricket continues to grow. Cricket Australia (CA) has entrusted significant responsibilities to two athletes: Jeresis Wadia and Aryan Sharma.
24-year-old Jeresis Wadia has been included in the CA XI squad. Meanwhile, 18-year-old Aryan Sharma has secured a spot in the Australian men's development squad.
The CA XI team is scheduled to play a three-day training match against the Bangladesh squad in Darwin from August 6 to 8. Jeresis Wadia was born on December 3, 2001, in Mumbai and previously represented Vadodara in junior cricket. After moving to Australia, he established himself in the Adelaide professional cricket system. His batting has attracted attention, and last season he was part of the Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League (BBL). Now he will have a chance to prove his abilities against international bowlers.
All-rounder Aryan Sharma from Victoria will join the Australian men's development squad in Chennai. This squad will participate in a special training session at the MRF Pace Foundation academy. Furthermore, they will play two two-day matches on Indian pitches, which are favorable for spin, posing a serious test for batsmen technique and bowler patience. Aryan Sharma was previously part of the Australian U-19 squad at the World Cup. Last season, he also gained experience playing in the BBL with the Melbourne Stars.
The CA XI squad also includes talented players such as Sam Constas, Josh Philippe, Curtis Patterson, and Jack Doran. While the development squad features young cricketers including Jason Sangha, Lloyd Pope, Matt Gilkes, and Hugh Weibgen. Tim Nilson will be the head coach of the CA XI in the match against Bangladesh in Darwin. Experienced Australian captains Tim Paine and Anthony Clark will lead the men's development squad.
The CA XI squad includes Campbell Kawale (Victoria), Campbell Thompson (South Australia), Corey Rochickoli (Western Australia), Hano Jacobs (South Australia), Jack Doran (Tasmania), Jeresis Wadia (South Australia), Josh Philippe (New South Wales), Curtis Patterson (New South Wales), Sam Constas (New South Wales), Tig Riley (Tasmania), Tom Menzies (South Australia), Tom Rogers (Victoria), Javier Cron (Victoria), Noah McFadden (South Australia).
The men's development squad consists of Aryan Sharma (Victoria), Doug Warren (Victoria), Hugh Weibgen (Queensland), Jack Sinfield (Queensland), Jason Sangha (South Australia), Zaden Goodwin (Western Australia), Joel Davis (New South Wales), Lloyd Pope (South Australia), Matt Gilkes (South Australia), Rafael McMillan (Tasmania), Riley Kingsell (New South Wales), and Steven Hogan (Queensland).
Ashim PK, a Dubai resident who grew up in the village of Erpona, Kerala state, shares his thoughts on how public opinion around Argentina is forming after the recent World Cup. He notes that his perception of Argentine football was shaped since childhood while watching matches in the southern state of India, colored by the flags of Brazil and Argentina.
Previously, friends' mockery over Argentina's losses was relatively harmless. However, after Argentina managed to beat Egypt in the concluded tournament, the situation changed. Conspiracy theories emerged suggesting the team received improper assistance from FIFA and referees during victories over Egypt and Switzerland, leading Argentine support to become a subject of insults.
According to Ashim, many fans do not view Argentina's loss to Spain in the final as an admission that Spain played better. There is a feeling that Spain had a moral right to defeat a team that many considered unworthy of the final.
Ashim emphasizes that controversial decisions are part of football, pointing out that teams complaining about refereeing in Argentina's matches themselves benefited from decisions in their favor at other times. He argues that people tend to complain when a decision goes against them but ignore it when it benefits them. He also finds it unfair to create conspiracy theories about FIFA wanting any team to win the World Cup.
Furthermore, Ashim was puzzled by the narrative on social media labeling Argentina as a racist country. He objects to such categoricity, stating that every country has both good and bad people, and one cannot label an entire nation based on the actions of a few individuals.
Another troubling point for Ashim was that trolls attacked Argentina's mascot, Lionel Messi, not because of his performance in the final, but due to non-football related issues. Some social media users tried to inject politics into football, questioning support for Messi's humanitarian initiatives, particularly concerning Palestine. They pointed to Messi's participation in UNICEF campaigns in Israel but deliberately ignored the fact that the same campaign included Messi's visit to Palestine.
Hodge Ferrari, an Argentine sports photographer from Sharjah, agrees that even mainstream media engages in slander. He expresses disappointment with British media, noting that their criticism often seems driven by prejudice rather than objective analysis. Ferrari criticizes the selectivity and dishonesty of the criticism, insisting that fair game analysis differs from promoting a specific narrative.
Brazilian football expert Tim Wiki explains that demonstrating fighting spirit against a stronger opponent is acceptable in South America. He believes that Argentine football possesses both beauty and a wild side. When they play well, their technique is incredible, but when they fear losing greatly, the national team becomes a symbol of the nation, and defeat feels like an invasion that must be repelled by any means, whether fair or unfair.
Wiki notes that this behavior looks bad on the world stage but raises an interesting question about what constitutes shame: giving up easily or fighting until the end using all available means. He believes this distinguishes the South American approach and provokes a strong reaction on the other side of the Atlantic, especially in England.
Ferrari reminds that football history is full of teams that fought hard against stronger opponents. He cites examples of aggressive play in club football, such as José Mourinho's teams, where players like Sergio Ramos and Pepe regularly broke rules. He also recalls the 1984 incident where Diego Maradona was injured by Andoni Goikoetxea, and later Maradona himself struck an opponent.
Ferrari asserts that there has always been a dark side to football in all major countries. He counters that critics focus only on Argentina's physical play, ignoring how often Messi was fouled throughout the tournament, including the final. He points to the obvious foul by Rodri on Messi near the penalty area that was ignored.
As an Argentine, Ferrari feels shame over Leandro Paredes' actions, who attacked Spanish player Gavi after the final, calling such behavior unacceptable. He believes some of his fouls were so rough it seemed he came to fight rather than play. Ferrari also rejects the notion of many European media outlets that the Paredes incident reflects the mentality of all of South America, calling it lazy journalism.
He compares this to the incident where Jude Bellingham hit an Argentine player after the semi-final, arguing that one incident cannot be used to generalize an entire team or country. Despite mediocre performance in the final, Ferrari states that his compatriots will always be proud of the Argentine team, accepting defeat to deserving champions, but demanding the same fairness in evaluation.
