Hanoi FC changes coach after losing to Hai Phong FC; Lionel Messi wins Golden Ball for the 8th time

Lionel Messi won the Golden Ball for the 8th time

Superstar Lionel Messi set a new personal record when he was awarded the Golden Ball (Ballon d'Or) for the 8th time, organized by France Football magazine.

The Argentine star surpassed Erling Haaland (2nd), Kylian Mbappe (3rd) and De Bruyne (4th) - names that also played very well in the past year to step onto the podium of glory.

To win the 8th Golden Ball of his career, Messi played brilliantly at the 2022 World Cup Finals, leading Argentina to the championship after a thrilling victory over France in the final.

Closing his 2-year playing period for PSG, Lionel Messi moved to a new horizon, Inter Miami. He immediately made an impact in the US with a series of classy goals, helping the team of owner David Beckham conquer the Leagues Cup.

Messi said emotionally: "It's great to be here again to enjoy this moment. I won the World Cup and achieved my dream. I couldn't imagine the career I've had and everything I've achieved. The luck I have had is to be part of the best team in Argentina's history."

Messi has now won 29 titles in his career. The eighth Ballon d'Or means Messi has proudly conquered 45 individual titles.

The Argentine star now has three more Ballon d'Or titles than Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese player was not named in this year's nominations after moving to Al-Nassr.

Hanoi FC changes coach after losing to Hai Phong FC

October 30, Board of DirectorsHanoi FCofficially assigned Mr. Dinh The Nam - Director of Hanoi Youth Football Training Center to the position of interim coach of the purple team.

The coach, born in 1965, worked at the Hanoi Youth Football Training Center from 2011 to 2013 as Deputy Director. Starting from last July, he officially returned to the Hanoi youth football team after 10 years with the desire to find and train more talented athletes for the capital team as well as the national team levels.

Sharing his thoughts, Mr. Dinh The Nam said: “I was quite surprised to receive the decision from the Board of Directors today. This is both an opportunity and a challenge for me. I will try my best with the team in the upcoming match against the Hanoi Police Club.

I have been working here since the very first days, so it will not be difficult for me to get used to the work. The quality of the staff are all national players at all levels, my job is to connect you more smoothly. In general, difficulties are surrounding, but the team's tradition of overcoming storms has been shown many times before, this is not the first time. I believe the team will soon find its way back to victory."

Former President of the Spanish Football Federation received disciplinary action from FIFA

The FIFA Disciplinary Committee announced that it has suspended former Spanish Federation President Luis Rubiales from all football-related activity at national and international level for three years.

In a press release, the agency explained that Mr. Rubiales was guilty of forcibly kissing Spanish player Jennifer Hermoso on August 20, after the Women's World Cup final. The former president of the Spanish Football Federation violated article 13 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, which relates to "insulting behavior and violation of the principles of fair play."

Rubiales has been involved in a series of scandals in the past, such as firing Coach Lopetegui two days before the World Cup, using public money to organize parties, and signing a contract with Gerard Pique to organize the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Rubiales's provisional suspension is 90 days and he will have ten days to request an appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee, the decision of which will be published on legal.fifa.com. Luis Rubiales officially resigned as president of the Spanish Football Federation and vice-president of UEFA on September 10 under great public pressure.

Chelsea's worst rookie in history retires at age 33

Having won the Premier League with Leicester but failed when moving to Chelsea, Danny Drinkwater has now had to announce his retirement after a long period of wandering.

Drinkwater played in central midfield with N'Golo Kante, contributing to Leicester's fairytale season in 2015/16. It was his excellent performance that earned him a £35 million purchase from Chelsea in the summer of 2017, promising to explode at Stamford Bridge when reunited with Kante.

However, Drinkwater was a huge disappointment after just one year at The Blues. He played 22 games in his first season and... 1 game in the next 4 seasons, before Chelsea terminated his contract in June last year with a record of 1 goal in 23 games. Drinkwater was criticized as the worst contract in Chelsea's history.

After more than a year of not finding a suitable destination, Drinkwater announced his retirement at the age of 33. "I have thought about it for a long time and now is the time to officially announce it," Drinkwater shared on The High Performance podcast.