According to reports, Real Madrid have made Arsenal centre-back William Saliba their ‘priority’ for the 2025 summer transfer window but are ‘considering’ making a bid in January.
He spent time on loan at his former club, Nice and Marseille before Mikel Arteta made him a regular in his starting XI.
Neither Arteta or Saliba have looked back since. The Frenchman has formed one of the best centre-back partnerships in world football next to Gabriel Magalhaes and helped the Gunners compete for the Premier League title.
They have not won a trophy since their FA Cup success in 2020 but have finished second in back-to-back Premier League seasons with Saliba and Gabriel together at the back.
As one of the best defenders in the world, Saliba has found himself linked with European champions Real Madrid, as well as Paris Saint-Germain.
The 23-year-old was born just outside of Paris so that move could appeal to him, though Madrid is deemed the pinnacle for most footballers.
Saliba leaving Arsenal? Real Madrid make Gunners star 2025 ‘priority’
Links to Los Blancos are not going away and a fresh report from French outlet Le10 Sport claims Arsenal are ready to offer Saliba a new contract.
The French international signed a new four-year deal last July, meaning he will only have two years left at the end of the season.
Real Madrid have made the signing a ‘priority’ in the 2025 summer transfer window but are tempted to make an offer when the window opens in January.
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Carlo Ancelotti’s side could accelerate their interest after Eder Militao was ruled out for the rest of the season with an ACL injury.
That injury means a ‘duel’ between Madrid and Arsenal has started and ‘things are moving forward’.
Despite Los Blancos’ ‘very strong interest’, it is claimed that ‘Arsenal are not giving up’ on keeping Saliba, who ‘feels really good’ living in London.
The Gunners are ‘aware of Madrid’s interest’ and have ‘great confidence’ in the Frenchman staying, with discussions starting over a contract extension.
As touched on, Madrid are ‘thinking about taking action’ in the winter window and Saliba ‘does not remain insensitive to their interest’.
The player is finding it ‘difficult not to listen or even consider joining such a project’, though it is early days and the Spanish giants ‘have not sent the slightest proposal’ to Saliba or Arsenal.
Despite this, ‘the Saliba offensive could arrive sooner than expected given the serious injury to Militao’ and a winter window bid is being ‘considered’ as Madrid ‘intend to recruit a new central defender’.
AC Milan's legendary forward Andriy Shevchenko has been inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in the Foreign Players category. At the ceremony in Coverciano, he read an emotional letter in which he thanked Italy and AC Milan.
Former footballer and coach Andriy Shevchenko, now president of the Ukrainian Football Association, has been inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in the Foreign Footballers category.
This was reported by the Italian Football Federation, UNN reports.
Details
As reported by the Italian Football Federation, Andriy Shevchenko was nominated in the Foreign Footballers category and received his award at a ceremony in Coverciano.
The Hall of Fame also includes Italian footballer and former Roma coach Daniele De Rossi, Italian national team coach Luciano Spalletti, Ariedo Bride, Roberto Boninsegna, Valentina Giacinti, Agostino Di Bartolomei, Vincenzo D'Amico, and Manlio Scopinho. At the ceremony, Shevchenko read out his letter, which he addressed to Italy and AC Milan. “This is a letter from a Ukrainian child who dreamed of coming to you.
Our first meeting was on TV, and I immediately fell in love with you. I saw Maldini, Baresi, Maradona, Platini, Van Basten, Baggio, Vialli and froze, as one does in front of the greatest works of art. I saw the passion of people, almost a religion. I saw stadiums full of history. My first trip abroad as a child was to Italy, first to Rome and then to Agropoli for a tournament. I was immediately struck by everything about the people, especially their generosity. I felt good here and thought:
I have to come back here no matter what.” And so it happened. Dear AC Milan, thank you for believing in me. You made me feel like a member of your family right from day one. We won a lot together, and I met extraordinary people, especially the Berlusconi family, Adriano Galliani, Ariedo Braida, and the Maldini family. You become a Milanese from the first day and forever
– Shevchenko said.
Shevchenko noted that “entering the Italian Football Hall of Fame is a huge privilege, and for this I thank all my Milan teammates, the club's management and its fans.
Coversciano, where I am today, is not only the birthplace of Italy, it is known everywhere. All the greatest coaches have come from here, and I would like to tell you, the guys from the Italian national team, one thing: Italian football is loved all over the world. Protect it and honor it. Finally, I would like to thank the whole of Italy for supporting Ukraine in the most difficult moment of our history. What is normal for others is hope for us. Hope that we are still here, every day and forever. Italy, I love you
– Shevchenko added.
Addendum Addendum
Andriy Shevchenko began his football career with Dynamo Kyiv, for whom he made his debut on November 8, 1994, as a substitute in a match against Shakhtar Donetsk. With Dynamo, Shevchenko became the champion of Ukraine 5 times and won the Ukrainian Cup three times.
In the summer of 1999, AC Milan paid $25 million for Andriy. On August 29, 1999, he made his Serie A debut in a match against Lecce, and in his first season became the top scorer in Serie A, scoring 24 goals in 32 league games. In total, Shevchenko played for AC Milan from 1999 to 2006, where he won medals in the Italian championship, the Italian Cup, and also won the Champions League. In 2004, Shevchenko received the Ballon d'Or.
In 2006, Shevchenko moved to the English club Chelsea for 30.8 million pounds. This transfer was called one of the most disastrous by English fans. Unable to gain a foothold in the senior team, Shevchenko returned to Milan on loan for a year. The 32-year-old failed to win a place in the starting lineup and spent most of his playing time in UEFA Cup and Italian Cup matches or as a substitute in Serie A matches.
In total, Shevchenko scored 175 goals and provided 45 assists in 322 matches for AC Milan. In August 2009, it became known that Shevchenko was returning to Dynamo Kyiv, where he spent three years, and in 2012, after the home Euro 2012, he retired from football.
From 2016 to 2021, Shevchenko led the Ukrainian national team, with which he made it to the last 16 of Euro 2020. After his career in the national team, Shevchenko took over the Italian club Genoa, where he worked for only a year and was fired due to poor results. In January 2024, Andriy Shevchenko was elected the new president of the Ukrainian Football Association. Delegates at the UAF extraordinary Congress voted for the decision.
The CEO of a Kansas bank transferred $47 million in bank funds to fake crypto wallets after a fraudulent WhatsApp scheme. The FBI managed to recover only $8 million, and the banker was sentenced to 24 years in prison.
The CEO of the popular Heartland Tri-State Bank in Kansas (USA) has fallen victim to a scam that began with a simple WhatsApp message. UNN writes with references to NBC News and EL PAÍS.
HelpHelp
Shan Haines, 53, who has served society for about three decades, has fallen victim to a sophisticated cryptocurrency scam called Pig Processing.
In 2022, in a WhatsApp conversation, the sender offered the financier a lucrative opportunity to invest in a crypto wallet with a very attractive return.
The system was easy to use – it worked through an app and included cryptocurrencies.
HelpHelp
Pig butchering scamstypically involve fraudsters who lure victims into investing money by promising significant profits and then disappear with the money.
How the fraud was carried out
In fact, Haynes invested his own money in fake cryptocurrency investments.
Over time, he began to "borrow" money from other sources: from the funds of a church that Haynes regularly attended; then from the college funds of one of his daughters; and, starting in 2023, from Tri-State Bank, where he worked. This was done in transfers of $1 million or $2 million at a time, and even forced bank employees to bend the limits set by the bank itself to make the transfers requested by a top bank executive.
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Thus, the 53-year-old man made transfers for $6.7 million and another for $10 million. He transferred these amounts to his fraudulent activities.
The associates assured Haynes that his investment would pay huge dividends, and he only needed to invest more money to get back what he had already invested.
CFO declassifies scheme, FBI uncovers fraud
The vigilance of the bank's CFO helped to uncover the fraud, which led to a government investigation that revealed the full extent of the fraud.
Entrepreneur was cheated out of $250 thousand in cryptocurrency: law enforcement officers expose criminal group of extortionistsSep 2 2024, 12:07 PM • 20861 view
According to court documents, Haynes organized a complex scheme in which he transferred more than $47 million from the bank's funds to numerous cryptocurrency accounts controlled by third parties.
The FBI has recovered $8 million of the $47 million stolen by hacking the crypto wallet involved in the scam. In August, Haynes was sentenced to 24 years and five months in prison after being found guilty of embezzlement.
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Republican Senator Marco Rubio is likely to be the next U.S. secretary of state, according to reports on Nov. 12 that mark the latest insight into how President-elect Donald Trump's White House will approach Russia's war in Ukraine.
Trump, leader of the Republican party who was elected president on Nov. 5 in a race where he beat Vice President Kamal Harris as the Democratic nominee, has repeatedly promised to end the war "in 24 hours.”
Though Trump hasn't yet elaborated on his plan, it is expected to involve Ukraine ceding land to Russia or agreeing to a ceasefire and freeze of front-line positions, with Russia holding on to some 20 percent of Ukrainian territory.
If appointed, Rubio would be the U.S.' top diplomat, at the forefront of any peace negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow.
Who is Marco Rubio?
Rubio, 53, is a Republican senator from Florida. The son of Cuban immigrants, he would be the first Latino U.S. secretary of state.
How important is Trump’s choice of secretary of state for Ukraine?
Very. The Secretary of State job is the U.S.' top diplomatic position, and the person in this role is responsible for "carrying out the president's foreign policy decisions and advising the president on issues of international concern," according to the National Museum of American Diplomacy.
Rubio stands to replace Antony Blinken, who, in the administration of outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden, has played a leading role in U.S.-Ukraine relations throughout Russia's full-scale invasion launched in early 2022.
It was Blinken, along with his British counterpart David Lammy, who in September first received President Volodymyr Zelensky's detailed account of why Ukraine needs permission to strike targets deep inside Russia using Western missiles.
Blinken has made numerous important announcements regarding Ukraine, including humanitarian assistance from the U.S., the provision of air defenses, and F-16 fighter jets. He has also made numerous trips to Kyiv during Russia’s full-blown war against Ukraine.
While on the job, Blinken has been largely supportive of Ukraine and providing Kyiv with what is needed to continue its ability to fight back against Russia's invasion. Judging by his recent comments, Rubio is expected to take a more nuanced position that is tweaked to Trump’s stance.
Marco Rubio walks off the stage before the arrival of Donald Trump at the Miami-Dade Country Fair and Exposition on November 6, 2022 in Miami, Florida (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
What has Rubio said about Ukraine?
Rubio's public statements on Ukraine appear to be very much in line with Trump's broad plans for the war — a swift end to it.
On the campaign trail, Trump has repeatedly said he could end Russia's war within 24 hours if elected president, without elaborating on how he plans to achieve it.
Rubio's statements and actions have been very much geared towards negotiation and an end to the war rather than giving Ukraine what it needs to evict Russian forces from its territory.
Rubio was among the 15 Republican lawmakers in the Senate who voted against the $61 billion military aid package for Ukraine, which eventually passed in April 2024. Its delay severely hampered Ukraine's fight against Russian forces.
"I think the Ukrainians have been incredibly brave and strong in standing up to Russia," Rubio said on Nov. 6.
"But at the end of the day, what we are funding here is a stalemate war, and it needs to be brought to a conclusion, or that country is going to be set back 100 years."
In September, he insisted he was "not on Russia’s side" but that the "reality of it is that the way the war in Ukraine is going to end is with a negotiated settlement."
"I would be comfortable with a deal that ends these hostilities and that I think is favorable to Ukraine, meaning that they have their own sovereignty, that they don’t become a satellite state or a puppet state that is constantly held hostage by the Russians. I’m not going to prejudge any agreement."
It's too early to say what sort of peace deal Trump's new administration will pursue and be able to forge, but some reports in recent months have provided clues.
The latest report came last month when the Financial Times, citing its sources close to Trump's team, reported that he planned to freeze the war.
According to the paper, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, in September outlined the idea of freezing the war by establishing autonomous regions on both sides of the demilitarized zone and leaving Ukraine outside the NATO military alliance.
According to one of Trump's longtime advisors, the new plan would rethink the failed Minsk agreements of 2014 and 2015, which were never implemented.
The agreements contained a plan that would create temporarily autonomous zones in Russian-occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts which would later be fully reintegrated with the rest of Ukraine. Occupied Crimea was not mentioned in the Minsk agreements.
In July, Politico reported that Trump was reportedly considering the possibility of making a deal with Russia to block the future NATO accession of certain countries, namely Ukraine and Georgia.
One of the sources told Politico that Trump "would be open to something foreclosing NATO expansion and not going back to the 1991 borders for Ukraine."
What will Ukraine think of Rubio's stance?
Zelensky and other Ukrainian officials have pushed back against the notion of any sort of ceasefire that would cement Russia's battlefield gains.
“When (Putin) gains strength, he might issue an ultimatum – to recognize all occupied territories, to stay out of NATO, to forget about European integration,” Zelensky said in June."
And there will be many such conditions, depending on how strong (Putin) is at that moment. Therefore, a ceasefire is a trap,” Zelensky added.
US Secretary of State Blinken travels to Brussels to coordinate further support for Ukraine with NATO and EU partners. The visit takes place against the backdrop of Trump's election victory and North Korean troops' participation in the war on the side of Russia.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is heading to Brussels on Tuesday. In the last weeks of US President Joe Biden's tenure, Washington is looking for ways to "increase" military assistance to Ukraine, UNN reports citing Voice of America.
Details
According to the publication, after Brussels, Blinken will travel to Lima, Peru, for a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, and then travel to Brazil to attend the G20 summit of the 20 largest economies. He will join Biden in Peru and Brazil.
President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to hold one-on-one talks on Saturday on the sidelines of the APEC summit. The meeting is expected to last about an hour and a half. This was reported to Voice of America by informed persons on condition of anonymity.
On Wednesday, Blinken will participate in talks with NATO and European Union counterparts to coordinate further support for Ukraine, and President Biden will meet with President-elect Donald Trump at the White House.
The officials said Biden will ask Trump to "stay the course" on Ukraine. North Korea's direct support for Russia's war in Ukraine is expected to be a central topic of Blinken's discussions with European counterparts and likely to be on the agenda for talks between US officials and their APEC counterparts.
Ukraine reports that North Korean troops are actively participating in hostilities in Russia's Kursk region, prompting condemnation from a number of European countries of the increased military cooperation between Russia and North Korea.
Add
Meanwhile, Russia continues to shell Ukraine, and the country's supreme military commander said that tens of thousands of Russian troops are ready to attack in Russia's Kursk region, part of which Ukraine seized in August.
Charles Kupchan, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, told Voice of America that Trump may try to "bring about a ceasefire in Ukraine," as he made this promise during his election campaign.
At the same time, Kupchan noted: "It will not be as easy as he promised… It will take a lot of time for Zelenskyy and Putin's positions to converge," as the conflict has been going on for more than two and a half years.
After the U.S. presidential election, the State Department said that Blinken had been in contact with his European counterparts.
Among them were French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot, German Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy.
Officials say the talks focused on the situation in Ukraine, as well as the consequences and threats associated with Russia's decision to send North Korean troops to fight against Ukraine.
Blinken's meetings in Brussels preceded European leaders' talks in Budapest last week, where they discussed transatlantic relations, support for Ukraine, and other pressing issues in light of Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election last week.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister heads to Brussels for important talks with the EU and NATONov 12 2024, 01:36 PM • 14964 views
Ukrainian activists have turned on the sound of an air-raid warning and chanted "Stop Russia" during a speech by Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of Russian politician Alexei Navalny, at the Web Summit 2024 conference in Lisbon.
Source: Marketer and blogger Khrystyna Zhuk on X (Twitter), as reported by European Pravda.
Details: Zhuk called on Ukrainians to join the flash mob during Navalnaya's speech, and the founder of the Air Alert project suggested using a sound signal from the Test Region in the app during the campaign.
As a result, at 12:15, air-raid warnings sounded on the phones of all those present who had selected the appropriate option in the app.
The blogger posted two videos from the event, and in one of them, the air-raid warning can be heard during Navalnaya's speech.
Виступ навальної на вебсаміті зірвали, дякую всім українцям хто доєднався до акції. На сцену вийшла українка, наш голос почули Громадяни країни 404 мають знати, що їх таке чекає у будь якому куточку світу pic.twitter.com/7YYqntHTfX
— Христина Жук (@KhrytstynaZhuk) November 12, 2024
In the other video, activists shout, "Stop Russia" and "Stop the War". Zhuk said that Navalnaya's speech was disrupted.
Виступ навальної зірвали, дякую всім хто доєднався pic.twitter.com/Q6n1CL5LTB
— Христина Жук (@KhrytstynaZhuk) November 12, 2024
"A Ukrainian woman took the stage, and our voice was heard. Citizens of the 404 country [Russia – ed.] should know that this is what they should expect anywhere in the world," she said.
The Ukrainian protest took place during Navalnaya's first speech at 12:10-12:30, and the conference organisers also planned to have another speech by the Russian.
The organisers stated that they had invited Navalnaya because, in their opinion, she was "a powerful voice for democracy and human rights".
The official pages of the conference did not comment on this event.
Navalnaya also did not react to the Ukrainians' actions. Her last post on X was dedicated to the unveiling of a memorial in her husband's honour in front of the Russian embassy in Lisbon.
Previously:
On 19 February, Yulia Navalnaya took part in a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.
The same month, current US President Joe Biden met with Yulia Navalnaya and her daughter Dasha in San Francisco.
The UK has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 81% by 2035 compared to 1990. Prime Minister Keir Starmer presented this goal at the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku.
The new goal is central to the new contribution that the United Kingdom, like other signatories to the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, must make to the United Nations by February 2025.
Transmits UNN with reference to LeMonde.
Details
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer set an extremely ambitious goal at the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku – to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by “at least 81%” by 2035 compared to 1990.
The new goal is the central axis of the new Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) that the United Kingdom, like all other signatories to the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, must submit to the United Nations by February.
A global problem also requires global partnership and responsible international cooperation
– said the head of the British government.
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Stramer called on “all parties to present ambitious goals.
According to Starmer, the British public should not be burdened with a new goal.
“We're not going to tell people how to live their lives. We're not going to tell people what to do,” Starmer said.
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A Ukrainian drone struck an oil depot in Russia’s Belgorod Oblast igniting one silo, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported on his Telegram channel on Nov. 12.
"Ten fire crews worked at the scene and quickly extinguished the fire," Gladkov said, adding there were no reports of casualties.
The oil depot is located near the city of Stary Oskol, he added.
In recent months, Ukrainian forces have launched a series of drone strikes aimed at damaging Russia's oil industry, whose profits fuel Moscow's war efforts.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's concerted campaign to get permission to use Western-supplied weapons like the U.S-made ATACMs and the U.K's Storm Shadows to strike deep inside Russia has, to date, failed.
However, drones can potentially have an outsized impact when they hit highly flammable and less protected targets, such as ethanol distilleries or fuel depots.
Ukraine in September established the Unmanned Systems Forces, a separate branch of Ukraine's Armed Forces dedicated to drone warfare.
Kyiv said it aims to produce 1 million drones this year, in addition to the thousands pledged by foreign partners.
Starting November 15, military personnel will be able to submit requests for transfer through the Army+ application. The decision on the transfer will be made within 72 hours with a mandatory notification of the result.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that military transfers in the army should be unblocked and work through the Army+ app, with the technical readiness to start on November 15, UNN reports.
"Transfers of soldiers in the army must be unblocked. The government has just adopted a special resolution that introduces a real and transparent mechanism for transfers for our soldiers between military units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This applies to transfers initiated by the soldiers," Zelenskyy said.
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According to him, the mechanism was developed in cooperation with civil society, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
"We agreed on this at a meeting with civil society in October. We are fulfilling our promise. Transfers will be made through the Army+ app. 72 hours to check the report. The result of the verification is reported to the soldier through the Army+ app. In case of refusal, clear reasons must be given. In case of approval, a clear decision should be given," the Head of State added.
According to him, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine should monitor the effectiveness of the approved mechanism. The technical readiness of the launch is November 15.
"This is an important example of absolutely constructive cooperation between the military leadership and the team of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, on the one hand, and representatives of civil society organizations, on the other. I am grateful to everyone who worked for this decision," Zelensky summarized.
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The city of Helsinki is initiating a compulsory purchase of the largest sports arena in the Finnish capital from its Russian owners, who have been sanctioned.
Source: Reuters
Details: In 2023, Helsinki announced that Russian-Finnish businessmen Gennady Timchenko and Roman Rotenberg, who control the company that owns the arena, would face expropriation if they did not voluntarily sell the property.
The Helsinki Arena, a large concert venue and hockey arena, has been closed since 2022 due to sanctions imposed on Russian investors following Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine that year.
The extension of the expropriation was reportedly necessary to stop the building from deteriorating and to prevent Finland's reputation from being damaged by its inability to cater for major international events.
In 2023, the Helsinki authorities estimated that hotels, restaurants and other businesses lost up to US$425.24 million in revenue per year while the arena was idle.
All of Timchenko's assets in the EU have been frozen, and Rothenberg is subject to US sanctions imposed on his father Boris, uncle Arkady and their families for their close ties to Russian ruler Vladimir Putin.
Background: The Helsinki District Court granted a motion filed by Naftogaz of Ukraine and five other companies of the Naftogaz Group and seized certain assets owned by Russia in Finland.
The Kyiv IndependentChris York
