MANCHESTER: Pep Guardiola said on Friday that three-quarters of the Premier League want Manchester City relegated over alleged breaches of financial rules. But the City boss has insisted he will stay at the Etihad even if they are demoted all the way down into the fifth tier of English football. Guardiola, who has won six Premier League titles in the past seven years with City, signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday, committing him to the English champions till 2027. A hearing into the Premier League’s 115 charges against City has been ongoing for several weeks, with a verdict expected before the end of the season. The club have strongly denied any financial wrongdoing, but could face a severe points penalty if found guilty of some or all the charges. Guardiola too has been happy to be the public face of that defence, with the Spaniard saying Friday: “I prefer not to be in that position, but once it’s there I love it because, when you believe in your club, and the people there - I believe what they say to me and the reasons why. “I cannot say yet because we’re awaiting the sentence in February or March...I read something about the situation and how you need to be relegated immediately. Seventy-five per cent of the clubs want it, because I know what they do behind the scenes and this sort of stuff. “I said when all the clubs accused us of doing something wrong, (and people asked) what happens if we are relegated, (I said) I will be here. “Next year, I don’t know the position of the Conference they are going to (put) us, (but) we are going to come up and come up and come back to the Premier League. I knew it then and I feel it now.” Guardiola’s decision to extend his deal is also a boost during a rare period of on-field turmoil. For the first time in the Spaniard’s managerial career, his team have lost four consecutive matches. But the 53-year-old hit back at City’s critics, pointing to their success in becoming the first side to ever win four English top-flight titles in a row. “When you are here for nine years, with a long time at one club, you live all the scenarios, all the situations,” added Guardiola. “You’re able to lose four games in a row, but at the same time you’re able to win four Premier Leagues in a row. City’s poor run began with a League Cup exit to Tottenham before Premier League defeats to Bournemouth and Brighton either side of a 4-1 loss at Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League. All four losses came on the road and Guardiola is hoping for some home comforts when City return to the Etihad Stadium, where they have not been beaten in open play in two years. “We have to start to win games, we know it,” he added. — AFP
KOCHI: The Kochi CBI special court found 14 accused guilty in the gruesome Kasaragod Periya twin murder case, including CPM leaders Uduma former MLA KV Kunhiraman and Kanhangad block panchayat president K. Manikandan. Judge N. Seshadrinathan will pronounce the final verdict on January 3. In February 2019, Youth Congress workers Sarath Lal (23) and Kripesh (19), were stopped by assailants from their bikes and hacked to death. The CBI established that the purpose of the crime was to stymie the surging congress influence in the area. A. Peethambaran, Saji C. George, K.M. Suresh, K. Anilkumar (Abu), Jijin, R. Sreerag (Kuttu), A. Ashwin (Appu), and Subish (Mani) are the accused. T. Ranjith, the 10th accused, and A. Surendran (Vishnu Sura), the 15th accused, are involved in a conspiracy amounting to murder. The 14th accused K. Manikandan, the 20th accused former MLA KV Kunhiraman, the 21st accused Raghavan Velutholi and the 22nd accused Bhaskaran Velutholi are accused of forcibly releasing the second accused from custody. This offence is punishable with imprisonment of up to two years and a fine. Public Prosecutor Bobby Joseph appeared in the case. Former MLA K Kunhiraman is a member of CPM Kasaragod District Secretariat. K. Manikandan is the leader of DYFI. The first accused Peethambaran is a former member of the CPM Periya Local Committee. Raghavan Velutholi is a former Pakkam local secretary. The High Court handed over the investigation to the CBI, only after criticizing the crime branch investigation as unreliable and politically biased. A team headed by Deputy Superintendent T.P. Ananthakrishnan of the CBI Thiruvananthapuram unit investigated the case. “The CPM leaders were deliberately roped into the case. The party has nothing to do with it. An appeal will be filed in the Supreme Court” - M.V. Balakrishnan, CPM Kasaragod district secretary. “Not satisfied with the verdict. Legal action will be taken to punish the wrongdoers." PV Krishnan, (father of Kripesh)
WASHINGTON (AP) — In the two weeks since won the presidency, he’s tried to demonstrate his dominance by naming loyalists for top administration positions, even though many lack expertise and some face sexual misconduct accusations. It often seems like he’s daring Congress to oppose his decisions. But on Thursday, Trump’s attempt to act with impunity showed a crack as , his choice for attorney general, Trump had named Gaetz, a Florida congressman, to be the country’s top law enforcement official even though he was widely disliked by his colleagues, has little legal experience and was accused of having sex with an underage girl, an allegation he denied. After being plagued by investigations during his first presidency, Trump wanted a devoted ally during his second. However, it was never obvious that Gaetz could win enough support from lawmakers to get confirmed as attorney general. Trump chose for a replacement Pam Bondi, a former Florida attorney general who defended him during his first impeachment trial and supported his false claims of voter fraud. Now the question is whether Gaetz was uniquely unpalatable, or if Trump’s other picks might exceed his party’s willingness to overlook concerns that would have sunk nominees in a prior political era. The next test will likely be Pete Hegseth, who Trump wants to lead the Pentagon despite an allegation of sexual assault that he’s denied. So far, Republicans are , an Army veteran and former Fox News host. Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the controversy over Gaetz would have little bearing on Trump’s other choices. He said they would be considered “one at a time.” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, suggested otherwise, claiming “the dominoes are falling.” “The drip drip of evidence and truth is going to eventually doom some others,” he said. Trump’s election victory was a sign that there may not be many red lines left in American politics. He won the presidential race despite authoritarian, racist and misogynist rhetoric, not to mention years of lies about election fraud and his role in sparking the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. He was also of falsifying business records to pay hush money, and he was in a civil case. Empowered by voters who looked past his misconduct and saw him as a powerful agent of change, Trump has shown no deference to Washington norms while . The transition team hasn’t pursued for Trump’s personnel choices. While some of his selections have extensive experience in the areas they’ve been chosen to lead, others are who have impressed and flattered Trump over the years. Several have faced . Related Articles Hegseth is facing the most scrutiny after Gaetz. Once Trump announced Hegseth as his nominee for Pentagon chief, allegations emerged that he sexually assaulted a woman in California in 2017. The woman said he took her phone, blocked the door to the hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing, the report said. However, he paid the woman in 2023. Hegseth’s lawyer said the payment was made to head off the threat of a baseless lawsuit. Trump’s choice for secretary of health and human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has faced allegations of misconduct too. A woman who babysat for him and his second wife told Vanity Fair magazine that Kennedy groped her in the late 1990s, when she was 23. Kennedy did not deny the allegation and texted an apology to the woman after the article was published. That isn’t the only hurdle for Kennedy; he’s spent years spreading misinformation and conspiracy theories about vaccines, raising fears about making him a top health official in the new administration. Linda McMahon, chosen by Trump to be education secretary, is fighting a lawsuit connected to her former company, World Wrestling Entertainment. She’s accused of knowingly enabling sexual exploitation of children by an employee as early as the 1980s, and she denies the allegations. Tulsi Gabbard is another person who could face a difficult confirmation battle, but for very different reasons. The former Democratic representative from Hawaii has been a vocal Trump ally, and he chose her to be national intelligence director. But there’s grave concern by lawmakers and national security officials over Gabbard’s history of Critics said she would endanger relationships with U.S. allies. Gaetz was investigated by federal law enforcement for sex trafficking, but the case was closed without charges and Republicans have of a related report from the House Ethics Committee. However, some allegations leaked out, including that Gaetz paid women for sex. One of the women testified to the committee that she saw Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old girl, according to a lawyer for the woman. As Gaetz met with senators this week, it became clear that he would face stubborn resistance from lawmakers who were concerned about his behavior and believed he was unqualified to run the Justice Department. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction,” Gaetz wrote on social media when announcing his withdrawal. Sen. Mike Braun, an Indiana Republican, said he believed there were four to six members of the caucus who would have voted against Gaetz, likely dooming his nomination, and “the math got too hard.” He said some of the issues and allegations around Gaetz were “maybe beyond the pale.” “I think there were just too many things, it was like a leaky dike, and you know, it broke,” Braun said. Trump thanked Gaetz in a post on Truth Social, his social media website, without addressing the substance of the allegations against him. “He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect,” Trump wrote.
Thousands still queuing to vote after Namibia polls close
Louisiana agreed to terms on a new five-year deal with Ragin' Cajuns football coach Michael Desormeaux, ESPN reported Monday. The contract keeps Desormeaux, 39, in Lafayette through the 2029 season. Financial terms were not reported. Desormeaux was named the Sun Belt Coach of the Year this season and guided the Ragin' Cajuns (10-3, 7-1) to the conference title game. Louisiana will face TCU (8-4) in the New Mexico Bowl on Saturday in Albuquerque. Desormeaux is 23-17 as the head coach at his alma mater since taking over as the interim coach for the New Orleans Bowl to conclude the 2021 season. He replaced Billy Napier, who left Louisiana to take over as head coach at Florida. --Field Level MediaNEW YORK (AP) — Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa scored 27 points as Columbia beat Fairfield 85-72 on Saturday night. De La Rosa shot 8 of 15 from the field, including 5 for 11 from 3-point range, and went 6 for 6 from the line for the Lions (11-1). Avery Brown shot 5 of 8 from the field and 5 of 5 from the free-throw line to add 16 points. Kenny Noland went 5 of 12 from the field (3 for 7 from 3-point range) to finish with 15 points. The Stags (5-8, 1-1 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) were led by Louis Bleechmore, who recorded 12 points. Fairfield also got 12 points and seven assists from Jamie Bergens. Deon Perry had 12 points and five assists. Columbia's next game is Monday against Rutgers on the road, and Fairfield visits Merrimack on Friday. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .
