End of season mailbag special
Rate, review, share on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast and Stitcher, and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.
On the podcast today; Philippe begins with a little PSG and then the panel pick their moment of the season before moving on to transfer news including Liam Delap to Chelsea and the possibility of Bryan Mbuemo at Manchester United.
Elsewhere there's the Club World Cup and whether footballers, and more importantly, football podcasters will ever get some time off.
Plus, pedants corner, favourite parks and your questions answered.
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Daily Mirror
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Paul Pogba 'agrees next move' as ex-Man Utd star posts cryptic four-word message
Paul Pogba was free to return to football in March after serving an 18-month drugs ban and the former Manchester United star has now reportedly agreed to join Monaco Paul Pogba looks set to return to football after reportedly agreeing a two-year deal with Monaco. The former Manchester United star has not played for almost two years, having been sidelined after testing positive for the banned substance DHEA. Pogba was initially handed a four-year ban, but that was ultimately reduced to 18 months after he won an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He became a free agent back in November after his contract with Juventus was terminated early. Pogba was free to play again in March, but has yet to sign for a club despite being linked with a number of sides in France, Saudi Arabia and the US. According to a new report from French outlet Le Parisien, Pogba is close to signing with Monaco. The report states that the 32-year-old agreed a two-year deal with Monaco on Sunday, having made 'significant financial sacrifices'. It is claimed that Monaco did make an approach for Pogba during the January transfer window, but a deal was considered 'too expensive' at the time. And Pogba has hinted that his return is imminent, posting images of himself training on social media with the caption: "I think it's time." Pogba has previously admitted he thought his career was over when he was banned, but he now hopes to get back to his best and win back his place in the France squad ahead of the 2026 World Cup. "Yeah, I had many thoughts in my head, I had so many thoughts to even stop playing," he said in an interview with ESPN last year. "I'm like: 'What am I going to do?' If it's four years, you start making the maths in your head. "Four years not playing, training — which club is going to want me? Would I be fit and stuff like that, you make a lot of pictures in your head. But on the other side, I had faith obviously, and I was positive. "I knew I didn't do anything wrong on purpose, so then thankfully that happened and they reduce it. It's so good to have somebody that is your manager [France boss Didier Deschamps] and you can have a good relationship also outside football. "And this is really rare and that's why I'm very grateful and appreciate the relation that I have with him. We need to respect these players [in the France team], also that they're here and you have to respect that. "And the way I respect that is, for me, training hard to deserve my place because they deserve to be in the position and to play for the national team. "And there is good players in this position also. It's always good to hear good positive things, 'We want you' and stuff like that. But you have to respect they're doing well." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Daily Mirror
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Jobe Bellingham reveals why he only has first name on shirt after Dortmund move
Jobe Bellingham has just moved to Borussia Dortmund and, like at Sunderland, has opted to have his first name on the back of his shirt after being urged to do so by a former coach Jobe Bellingham claims he only dons his first name - and not his surname - on his shirt because he thought it would be "cool to have my own name" as he claimed there was no "deeper meaning" behind it. Bellingham has continued the trend by having Jobe on the back of his Borussia Dortmund shirt having also done it at Sunderland. It was his exploits with the newly promoted Premier League outfit that earned Bellingham his switch to Germany this summer. His last game for the Black Cats saw them win promotion from the Championship in the play-off final at Wembley. He's since made a £32million switch to the Bundesliga outfit and scored his first goal for his new club on Saturday as he found the net against Mamelodi Sundowns in a 4-3 victory in the Club World Cup. Not opting for the traditional last name on his top, Bellingham has gone with Jobe, which he's done since leaving Birmingham for Sunderland after a coach suggested he do it. He told FIFA: "Well, if I'm being really honest, obviously, it started when I first signed for Sunderland. I, maybe, thought about it a few times. I thought: 'Yeah, that would be quite cool.' But, only when people brought it up to me. I never thought about it like spontaneously on my own. READ MORE: Ilkay Gundogan responds to Pep Guardiola's claim over second Man City transfer exit "Someone close to me would say: 'That would be cool if you did that'. And then, someone who's quite special to me – a coach that I had at Sunderland and at Birmingham when I was a kid – he said: 'Why don't you do that at Sunderland?' And, just because I was young, I thought: 'It would be cool to have my own name on the back of my shirt'. So, it was more that than anything (else). "I wasn't really trying to have a deeper meaning behind it, but I suppose you can find that in that act. But yeah, I think it's quite unique and it's quite cool, and it's something that I enjoy having." His switch to Dortmund has inevitably drawn comparisons with brother Jude, who went from Birmingham to the German side. He thrived and eventually moved on to Real Madrid. Despite following a similar path the Dortmund new boy insists he is not simply copying his brother as he underlined his desire to be his "own man". He said: "I don't really care how it looks, but it might look a bit contradictory to some people. I was perhaps being biased against Dortmund for a very long time, because I have anxieties and fears and you want to be your own man, but I don't think I should let those stop me from making the right decision. "So for me, it was about choosing the right path, not necessarily a different one. I don't think my path has been the same as Jude's at all." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The Guardian
30 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Woody Johnson signs £190m deal to buy John Textor's shares in Crystal Palace
Woody Johnson has agreed a deal to buy John Textor's stake in Crystal Palace, with a sale to the New York Jets owner likely to be ratified by the Premier League within four weeks. In a move that could be a major boost to Palace's hopes of playing in next season's Europa League, it is understood that Johnson's offer of £190m for Textor's 44.9% stake was signed on Sunday evening in the United States. The 78-year-old, who has owned the Jets since 2000 and missed out on buying Chelsea in 2022 after making a $2bn offer, mustpass the Premier League's owners' and directors' test before he can complete the purchase. But it is understood that with Palace under pressure from Uefa to comply with its regulations on multi club ownership, the league is expected to act swiftly to aid their cause. A decision on the FA Cup winners' participation in the Europa League is due this week, although it is believed this latest development will be looked on favourably by Uefa. Textor has come under increasing pressure from Palace's chair, Steve Parish, and the other co-owners – Textor's fellow Americans Josh Harris and David Blitzer – to complete the sale as quickly as possible. The four Palace co-owners were part of the delegation that attended a meeting at Uefa's headquarters in Nyon this month and argued that Textor, the majority shareholder in the French club Lyon, who have also qualified for the Europa League, does not have a decisive influence at Selhurst Park despite being the largest shareholder. It is expected that Johnson's arrival should clear the way for Oliver Glasner's side to take their place in the league stage. It remains to be seen whether the former US ambassador to the UK, who has made no secret of his desire to buy an English football club, has his sights on a full takeover. Harris and Blitzer, who bought stakes worth a combined 36% in 2015 and have portfolios of investments across a number of sports, are believed to be willing to sell, owing to concerns about the ballooning costs of building a new main stand, which some sources are predicting could reach up to £240m. Textor, who failed with an audacious attempt at a takeover of Palace in May in a last-ditch attempt to assume control, is understood to have been reluctant to leave the club in which he has invested about £180m since buying a 40% stake for almost £90m in August 2021. Yet he had a major falling-out with Parish, who owns just over 10% but is the executive chair of the managing company that is in charge of Palace and retains the casting vote, over resistance to embracing his Eagle Football network that also includes the South American champions Botafogo and the Belgian side Daring Brussels. Textor is expected to turn his attention to another English club. The former Palace owner Simon Jordan revealed last week that he recommended to Textor buying the Championship side Sheffield Wednesday, who were last week hit with a ban on transfer spending until 2027 last week for the repeated failure to pay players' wages. 'I was talking to John Textor the other day, and if he comes out of Palace, I was saying to him that is the football club you should be buying if you want to buy another English club,' said Jordan. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Textor failed with an attempt to buy Everton this year and has previously held talks with Watford's owner, Gino Pozzo, about investing at Vicarage Road.
