🚨 José Mourinho reveals his biggest problem with Pedri in El Clásico: 🗣️“That guy was our biggest problem throughout the game. We tried everything to stop him, but he was always finding a way to keep possession. At half-time, I spoke to Tchouaméni and Valverde and asked them, ‘How are we going to stop this guy?’ Their answer was simple: ‘He’s almost impossible to stop.’ The problem with Pedri is that when he has the ball, he decides what happens next. He controls the tempo, finds the spaces, and makes you defend in ways you don’t want to defend. Honestly, every time he received the ball, I was worried about what he was going to do. Even before Raphinha’s goal, I was shouting at my players to close him down, but we couldn’t get there in time. Then he produced that pass. What can you say? The vision was incredible. He saw something that most players wouldn’t even think of attempting, and he executed it perfectly. I won’t lie, that pass caught me off guard. At that moment, I knew we had a serious problem.”

🚨 Piers Morgan reacts to China’s stance on Mbappé over the Mao Zedong meme controversy: 🗣️“Why were they silent when these memes first started circulating months ago? Why is it suddenly such a serious issue now that Mbappé is involved? Are they trying to make an example of him because of his global popularity, or is there something else going on here? I find the whole situation rather ridiculous. Mbappé reacted to a meme online, something millions of people do every day. From what we saw in the clip, he appeared to be laughing casually. There was no clear indication that he intended to insult or disrespect anyone. Now, does that mean nobody is allowed to criticise his reaction? Of course not. But there is a massive difference between criticising someone for a questionable reaction and potentially damaging their commercial relationships over it. Mbappé has apologised, and that should at least be taken into consideration. What more are people expecting from him? Must a footballer spend the rest of his career paying for a moment that, from the available footage, doesn’t appear to have been intended as an insult? I also question whether this situation has become more about politics and public relations than the actual incident. When a global superstar is involved, even the smallest controversy can become a much bigger spectacle than it needs to be. Football is a global game that brings different cultures together. It shouldn’t become a battlefield for political disputes or a platform for people to settle scores. **If Mbappé has acknowledged the controversy and apologised, then surely there must be a point at which everyone moves on. This entire situation needs perspective, because not every controversy deserves to become an international crisis.”