LAGOSEXTRA

Atletico Madrid forward, Antoine Griezmann was handed a 2-game ban by the Spanish Football Federation on Wednesday after he was sent off at the weekend for insulting the referee. Griezmann was dismissed during Atletico Madrid’s 2-2 draw at Gerona on Saturday during the opening weekend of the La Liga season. The 26-year-old also received a 600-euro ($700) fine, while Atletico were penalised 700 euros. Both have the right to appeal their sanctions. The French International will miss league matches against Las Palmas on Saturday and Valencia on September 9. He was shown a straight red card an hour into Saturday’s match after insulting the referee for not awarding a penalty in his favour. He later apologised.

Lionel Messi is said to have made one last-ditch attempt to persuade Neymar to ignore the lure of Paris Saint-Germain and stay at Barcelona. Gerard Pique tried a simila tactic with his now infamous "se queda" ("he stays") tweet, but admitted last week that he knew even then the Brazilian would make his world record move to the French capital.   "I don't feel tricked by Neymar," Pique said. "The day I said 'he stays' I knew that he was going 100 per cent." Not so for Neymar's two partners in the 'MSN' triumvirate. Messi and Luis Suarez held a secret meeting with the wantaway forward during Barca's pre-season tour to the US in a bid to make him stay, according to  Sport. The night before their game against Juventus in New Jersey last month, the three South Americans met in their hotel. With reports suggesting that Neymar wanted to move to Paris in order to step out of Messi's shadow and become the wor...

  France forward Ousmane Dembele is finally set to join Barcelona from Borussia Dortmund, according to reports. Dario Sport in Spain claimed on Wednesday that the two clubs have agreed an initial €100m fee for the 20-year-old with add-ons the only issue to be sorted out. Dembele, who joined Dortmund from French club Rennes for €15m in 2016, had gone missing last week in a bid to force through a move after the Germans insisted on keeping him. Dortmund then condemned the youngster’s action and announced again that he was not for sale. But there appears to be a resolution now with the fee agreed and Dembele pictured packing his luggage, apparently off to Spain. Having sold Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain for a world record €222m fee, Barcelona are keen to replace the Brazilian with a high-quality forward.

Neymar said the midfielder would be a great addition to the Catalan club. 28-year-old Paulinho is currently playing for Chinese Super League side Guangzhou Evergrande. Neymar told reporters on Saturday, “Paulinho is a friend of mine in football. “I want him to sign for Barca because with a player like him, who’s also a mate of mine, we’ll get so much.” Paulihno’s current club has reportedly turned down an offer in the region of €20m for the Brazilian.

Shanghai SIPG manager, Andre Villas-Boas has noted that Brazil international, Paulinho’s move to Barcelona from Guangzhou Evergrande is proof of the strength of the Chinese Super League, CSL. The 29-year-old midfielder is poised to sign for Barcelona for 40 million euros and he could be unveiled as a Barcelona player today. Paulinho and Villas-Boas worked together at Tottenham Hotspur in 2013. The Portuguese coach told reporters on Sunday that the player’s move to Spain, “is good news for Chinese football.” “Because Paulinho’s come here, he’s done ever so well and now he has a transfer to one of the biggest clubs in the world. “I think it shows that the big clubs are also looking at our league. It’s a reflection of the players and the quality of work that is being done here.”

W hat’s your favourite Diego Costa moment? Perhaps it’s the one where he manages to get Gabriel Paulista sent off for a retaliatory kick just by standing quite near him, muttering and smiling like some horrible, handsome, impossibly terrible footballing Iago. Or the 2-2 draw with Tottenham where Mark Clattenburg books 12 players but not actually Costa, who has a hand in at least five of those yellows, all the while maintaining an attitude of prim and saintly innocence. Or the 3-1 defeat of Arsenal where Costa “scare-assists” his team’s final goal by running towards Petr Cech and making Arsenal’s goalkeeper perform his best impression of Shaggy from Scooby Doo confronted by a double-dealing fairground owner in a zombie mask. Now we have this, the endless summer of Diego. As of this week Costa has spent half the summer and the opening week of the Premier League season  holed up in his family home in Lagardo pretending to be inconsolably offended b...

Real Madrid captain, Sergio Ramos and left-back, Marcelo have reacted to the red card given to star forward, Cristiano Ronaldo during their Spanish Super Cup game against Barcelona on Sunday. Ronaldo received a second yellow card after referee, De Burgos Bengoetxea adjudged him to have dived in Barca’s goal area having collected the first when he celebrated his superb goal by removing his shirt. Ramos told Telecinco after the final whistle that he believed Ronaldo had not dived, and therefore the club would be able to appeal the decision. He said, “I was far away. But I believe Cristiano lost his balance and did not fake anything. We can appeal as it leaves us without a very important player, with 10 minutes left. “[The referee] should have thought about it a bit more.” Ramos pointed out that the referee had erred earlier in awarding a penalty when Suarez fell to the ground dramatically, with little or no contact from Madrid keeper Keylor Navas inside the box. “There is ...

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has been suspended for five matches after pushing the referee following his red card in Sunday’s Clasico. The Portuguese forward reacted angrily to being dismissed during the second half of a 3-1 victory for Zinedine Zidane’s side over Barcelona in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup. Ronaldo had joined the action as a substitute, helping to put Real 2-1 in front with a typically stunning strike at Camp Nou. He was booked after removing his shirt in celebration, with the 32-year-old going on to mimic Lionel Messi’s iconic jersey-holding celebration at the Santiago Bernabeu from April.

The hottest transfer saga in world football finally got a closure last week when Paris Saint Germain announced the signing of Neymar Jr. for a mind boggling sum of €222 million. Despite attempts from La Liga to botch the transfer, the Parisians succeeded in acquiring their biggest ever scoop till date. Neymar had an eventful stint with the Catalans where he spent four years and scored 105 goals in all competitions. Here are the unforgettable Neymar displays for Barcelona 5.  Neymar vs AS Roma (2015) https://youtu.be/E8UBKLJNTIA The Catalans dismantled Roma 6-1 in the Champions League group stage at their home turf. Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez scored a brace whereas Neymar missed a penalty late in the game. Though he was not able to be a top-line figure on the score sheet, Neymar’s overall contribution in the match meant this performance would be remembered as one of his most influential ones. 4.  Neymar vs Rayo Vallecano (2015) https://youtu.be/e4Pvl...

‘I LOVE YOU!’ – NEYMAR SENDS HEARTFELT GOODBYE TO MESSI, SUAREZ AND BARCELONA. The Brazil ace has branded the Argentine as his "idol" and has joked that the most important lesson the Uruguayan taught him was to kick out first Neymar has hailed former Barcelona team-mates Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez in an Instagram post wishing both the best of luck for the future. Along with the South American duo, the Brazil star, who moved to Paris Saint-Germain on Thursday for a world-record €222 million, formed one third of the famed ‘MSN’ offensive trio that is regarded as one of the best forward lines in the history of the game. Neymar is sad to have ended that relationship but is grateful for the time spent together. “Brothers, I wish you all the best. Thank you for these years of great joy and learning,” he wrote on Instagram. “I’m a more accomplished guy for playing with you. One of the reasons I signed for Barcelona was you Lionel Messi, because I wanted to play ...

The Brazilian and Kylian Mbappe have missed out on the shortlist for UEFA's awards for the best player in each position in the Champions League New Paris Saint-Germain signing Neymar has failed to make the shortlist for UEFA's Champions League positional awards for 2016-17. The Brazil star, who completed his world-record €222million move from Barcelona on Thursday, has been beaten to a place among the final three nominees for best forward by Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Paulo Dybala. Monaco sensation Kylian Mbappe also missed out on a place on the final list, despite excelling in his side's run to the semi-finals. Mbappe came fourth in the voting, ahead of Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski in fifth and Neymar in sixth. Champions League winners Real Madrid dominate the shortlist, with six players making up the final 12 nominees. View image on Twitter  Follow Champions League   ✔ @ChampionsLeague Leo Messi  Paulo Dyba...

NEYMAR: I WANTED A BIGGER CHALLENGE AT PSG THAN AT BARCELONA. The 25-year-old attacker says he "already feels at home" in the French capital, but says leaving Barca was "the most difficult decision of his life" Paris Saint-Germain forward Neymar has revealed that he has joined the Ligue 1 side to experience a "greater challenge". The 25-year-old Brazil striker signed for the Parc des Princes side from Barcelona for a world-record fee of €222 million and was presented in front of the media for the first time on Friday. "I wanted something bigger, a bigger challenge," he said. "My heart wanted a new ambition, that’s why I’m here in front of you. This is what my heart told me to do. I listen to my heart every day. And my heart told me to go to PSG." There had been speculation that he was disgruntled at Barcelona for not being the sole star, though that is something he has denied. "No, it didn’t impact my decision ...

‘BEFORE NEYMAR, PSG WAS WORTH €1BN, NOW WE’RE WORTH €1.5BN’ – PSG PRESIDENT. The club official has told those who think that the Ligue 1 outfit are in breach of FFP regulations to "go and have a coffee" Paris Saint-Germain might have smashed the world transfer record by signing Neymar from Barcelona for €222 million, but president Nasser Al-Khelaifi believes the club have received value for money. The previous record was Manchester United’s purchase of Paul Pogba for €105m from Juventus, but the Ligue 1 side have obliterated that figure with their capture of the 25-year-old Brazilian. Al Khelaifi is of the opinion that the club have got a good deal. “Before Neymar signed the club was worth €1bn and now it is worth €1.5bn,” he told reporters on Friday.  “Today he’s the most expensive player ever, but in two or three years will he be?  “I’m sure we’ll make more money than we’ve paid.” He also had words for those claiming that PSG are in breach of Financ...

Barcelona confirm forward wants to leave. Neymar has also been given permission to not participate in training after making a brief appearance at Barca's training ground on Wednesday. Barcelona  confirmed  Neymar 's wish to leave the Catalan giants on Wednesday, but insisted the Brazilian's 222 million euro ($260 million) buyout clause must be paid as his potential world record move to  Paris Saint-Germain moved a step closer. " Neymar Jr, accompanied by his father and representative, communicated to FC Barcelona this morning his decision to leave the club, " Barca said in a statement. " The club have informed them that the buyout clause in his contract that from July 1 is 222 million euros must be paid in full ." Such a fee would smash the current record £89.3 million ($111 million, 105.2 million euros)  Manchester United  paid for  Paul Pogba  last year. Neymar has also been given permission to not participate in training after making...