Bayern Munich sedang mempertimbangkan untuk merekrut mantan penjaga gawang Manchester United, David de Gea, secara gratis, menurut Bild.

Pemain berusia 32 tahun itu mengakhiri masa 12 tahunnya dengan Setan Merah awal bulan ini, dan dilaporkan bahwa juara Bundesliga telah mengajukan pertanyaan apakah dia tertarik untuk bergabung dengan mereka. Manajer Bayern, Thomas Tuchel, sedang mencari pemain cadangan untuk Manuel Neuer, yang akan kembali menjadi penjaga gawang utama. Neuer absen di paruh musim setelah patah kaki dalam perjalanan ski pada bulan Desember setelah Piala Dunia 2022.

Yann Sommer diboyong Bayern setelah cedera Neuer dan tampil dalam 19 pertandingan untuk membantu mereka meraih gelar juara liga. Namun, Internazionale tertarik untuk merekrut penjaga gawang Swiss tersebut sebagai pengganti Andre Onana, yang bergabung dengan Manchester United awal bulan ini. De Gea juga masuk radar Inter, tetapi tuntutan gajinya mungkin terlalu tinggi untuk pihak Italia.

Penyerang Paris Saint-Germain, Kylian Mbappe, menolak tawaran dari Al Hilal, dilaporkan oleh L’Equipe. Pemain berusia 24 tahun itu mendapat tawaran €300 juta dari klub Saudi Pro League, tetapi kabar terbaru menyatakan bahwa dia menolak pembicaraan mengenai persyaratan pribadi.

Al Hilal juga tertarik untuk merekrut gelandang PSG, Marco Verratti, menurut Fabrizio Romano. Sedang berlangsung pembicaraan mengenai kesepakatan untuk pemain berusia 30 tahun itu, tetapi diperkirakan PSG ingin lebih dari €30 juta jika mereka setuju untuk melepaskan Verratti. Ia tampil dalam 29 pertandingan liga musim lalu dan masih memiliki kontrak selama tiga tahun lagi di Parc des Princes.

Liverpool yakin bahwa kepindahan gelandang Fabinho ke Al Ittihad akan terlaksana, menurut Paul Joyce dari The Times. Negosiasi sempat terhenti karena perbedaan pendapat mengenai biaya £40 juta, tetapi kabar terbaru menunjukkan bahwa kesepakatan itu semakin dekat. Liverpool juga bersiap untuk mengajukan proposal resmi kedua untuk gelandang Southampton, Romeo Lavia.

Sedang berlangsung pembicaraan antara penyerang Rayo Vallecano, Radamel Falcao, dan klub Brasil, Grêmio, menurut Ekrem Konur. Grêmio bersiap menawarkan kontrak selama dua tahun untuk pemain berusia 37 tahun tersebut, meskipun mereka mungkin harus melawan minat dari klub-klub Arab Saudi. Falcao mencetak dua gol dalam 27 penampilan LaLiga musim lalu.

West Ham United terus menilai opsi untuk merekrut seorang striker, seperti yang diungkapkan oleh Gazzetta dello Sport. The Hammers, yang berusaha berpisah dengan Gianluca Scamacca, sebelumnya telah membahas kemungkinan kepindahan Armando Broja dan Divock Origi, namun belum menemukan opsi yang cocok untuk lanjutkan pembicaraan. Scamacca, yang berusia 24 tahun, mencetak tiga gol dalam 16 penampilan Premier League musim lalu.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Heading into the match against the Republic of Ireland on Wednesday, Canada’s Christine Sinclair stands on the edge of history: a goal would make her the first player, male or female, to score at six World Cups.

It’s no secret that this will be her last World Cup; Sinclair (or “Sinc”) has been there and done it all before, both in the NWSL and with Canada on the international stage. She knows what it’s like to battle the U.S.; she also knows what it’s like to make it to a World Cup and be knocked out after just three group stage matches. She has experienced success and heartbreak in her professional life, like two summers ago when Canada defied the odds to win Olympic gold after a shoot-out against Sweden.

Even though Sinclair the person (quiet, avoids the spotlight) has always kept a clear distance from Sinclair the player (bold, impactful, dynamic), it’s hard to talk about her consistency on the pitch without mentioning how much she hates the spotlight. As the all-time leading scorer in international football — her 190 goals exceed Cristiano Ronaldo’s 123 in the men’s game, for example — Sinclair is the opposite of the megastars and mega-egos you’d expect with such on-field performance. What drives her isn’t fame or money, but team success; it’s evident that Canadian women’s football wouldn’t be where it is today without over two decades of dedication from the British Columbia native.

Making her senior debut at age 16 in 2000, Sinclair would alternate between youth and senior levels for Canada, setting collegiate records when not representing her country. Her consistent performances brought numerous individual accolades, but unlike other goal-hungry players, Sinclair remained just outside of the public eye, displaying her natural modesty. However, she continued in the same vein, transitioning from youth to collegiate level to the senior team and rarely looking out of place.

Ascending to the role of captain in 2006 for Canada’s Gold Cup run, Sinclair remained steadfast in her performances: she was a natural leader in that team and a natural choice for captain. Despite still being in her early 20s, Sinclair led from the front. After Canada’s historic bronze medal at the 2012 Olympics, she was dubbed “the face of soccer in Canada” by The New York Times. That summer, Sinclair was at her best, inspiring the Canucks as they fought through the tournament. Her six-goal haul (the most by any player) helped Canada win a well-deserved bronze medal.

With her national team experiencing ups and downs, Sinclair scored Canada’s only goal of the group stage at their home World Cup in 2015, but the hosts ultimately fell short, losing to England in the quarterfinals. Renewed at the Rio Olympics the following summer, Canada once again won bronze with Sinclair (three goals) playing a leading role.

Sinclair’s fifth World Cup in 2019 saw her become just the second player in history to score at five World Cups (after Brazil’s Marta) when she netted against the Dutch before exiting in the round of 16 against Sweden. As she aged, discussions about Sinclair breaking Abby Wambach’s all-time goal-scoring record, then held by Wambach, dragged on for years as the Canadian approached the record but struggled to break it.

Sinclair eventually tied and surpassed Wambach’s record at the age of 36, but her focus remained on the team. Despite scoring only once, she helped Canada win gold at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. The victory was a watershed moment for Canadian women’s soccer, with Sinclair — along with a few other veterans — using it as an opportunity to advocate for a professional women’s league in Canada and pushing for change. Despite her usual aversion to the spotlight, growing tensions with Canada Soccer led Sinclair to use her platform and voice, leading negotiations with the federation, all with the betterment of Canadian soccer in mind.

Sinclair might yet make history as the first person to score at six consecutive World Cups, having missed a golden opportunity from the penalty spot against Nigeria in Canada’s first game. Her legacy will undoubtedly revolve around her goals, but as she continues to push for improvement in Canada and demand more from her federation, Sinclair’s legacy is about her contributions to women’s soccer in Canada and her impact on her teammates (both domestically and internationally). Her legacy will be that of a quiet but lethal forward, an intelligent player who can read the field as well as her teammates, a diligent and hardworking footballer, and a player whose dedication has kept her a force on the pitch for over two decades.

Perhaps never fully recognized for her contributions, as she approaches the end of her playing career, there is still room for more history and even a golden send-off for Canada’s beloved daughter.