Former Tamil Nadu Footballer Shanmugam Passes Away, Spanish PM Gives La Liga Clearance For Resumption From June 8 and More (Football Round-up)
Shanmugam 77, represented the Burmese junior and senior National teams in 1966-67 before playing for Mohun Bagan in 1968.
Former Tamil Nadu footballer and coach R Shanmugam passed away early on Saturday morning. Shanmugam, 77, wasn’t keeping well of late, and is survived by his three children - two sons and a daughter.
Born in Burma in 1943, Shanmugam represented the Burmese junior and senior National teams in 1966-67. He also played for Mohun Bagan in 1968, and represented the Indian Railways at the 1969, ‘70, '71 Senior Nationals. He also played for the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) from 1969-77 in the top-tier of the Chennai Football Association (CFA) league.
After his retirement Shnmugam attended the FIFA Coca Cola coaching course in 1978 & '91, and also took the Olympic solidarity course in 1996.
He also served as the president of the Football Coaches Association in Chennai.
Spanish PM gives La Liga clearance for resumption from June 8
La Liga could resume from June 8 onwards, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced. Sanchez made this announcement as he addressed a variety of coronavirus related issues on Saturday.
La Liga officials had been aiming at Friday, June 12 as the date for the league’s return, and can now work towards making their goal possible.
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"Spain has done what it should and now new horizons are opening for everyone. The time has come to resume many daily activities. From June 8, La Liga will return to football," Sanchez said.
Clubs have returned to training, with rules of social distancing still in place. Full group sessions have not been allowed yet.
Matches will be played behind closed doors, but Sanchez's announcement should allow the 2019-20 season to be played till the season is completed.
Premier League 'as confident as can be' about June return
The Premier League has declared that they are ‘as confident as we can be’ about resumption in June, chief executive Richard Masters said.
Players resumed their training on Tuesday, the day it was announced that as many as six positive cases have come across three clubs. "There is some momentum. We've taken the first step," Masters told BBC Sport. "It's great for everybody, including the fans, to see our players back on the training ground."
When asked about the final date of resumption of the Premier League, Masters said it must be ‘flexible’ and could learn and take a lot of pointers from the resumption of the Bundesliga.
He also said that there was a need for a ‘contingency plan’ and said ‘curtailment is still a possibility’, meaning the season would be ended, but there was ‘optimism’ fans could enjoy matches next season.
Mauricio Pochettino, former Spurs manager, open to Premier League return
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino said he is open to the idea of coaching again in England’s Premier League and will make a decision on his future based on the kind of task given him by any potential employer, whether in the top six or not.
The Argentine took Spurs to the Champions League final last year losing the to Liverpool, 2-0. Pochettino left the club by mutual consent in November, ending a successful yet trophyless five-and-a-half years at the club.
“I love England,” Pochettino told Sky Sports. “My idea is to keep living in London, but at the same time I’m open to different countries, to listen and see what happens.
“I’m ready and we’re a much better coaching staff now. We’ve learnt a lot from our experiences at Espanyol, Southampton and Tottenham. We have a lot to provide to the people that will trust in us in the future,” he said of himself and assistant coach Jesus Perez, goalkeeping coach Toni Jimenez and others that form a part of his coaching team.
Mario Götze to leave Borussia Dortmund at end of season
Mario Götze plans to leave Borussia Dortmund when the current season ends, the club announced on Saturday. Gotze, who scored Germany’s winning goal in 2014 has been a part of a lot of clubs and at the age of 27, is at a crossroads.
Nearly four years on from his return to Dortmund, the player and the club agreed to part ways after the current season ends, according to sporting director Michael Zorc.
"We'll end our working relationship with Mario at the end of the season," Zorc said. "It is a joint decision after a transparent conversation. Mario is a really good guy."
The 27-year-old forward has played for Dortmund 218 times in two spells with the club but struggled to prove his mettle this season. He just played a total of 20 minutes in all competitions in 2020.
Borussia Dortmund recorded a second successive victory post restart, beating Wolfsburg 2-0 yesterday at the Volkswagen Arena. The victory puts them in second place in the table behind Bayern Munich. The two title rivals will play a blockbuster title deciding clash -- in front of an empty stadium -- next weekend.
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