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Ronaldo urges Manchester United to ‘rebuild everything from the bottom’

Ronaldo urges Manchester United to ‘rebuild everything from the bottom’

Cristiano Ronaldo says his former club Manchester United must rebuild everything from the bottom up if they are to compete for the top football titles again. The 39-year-old Portugal forward won three Premier League titles, the Champions League and a Club World Cup crown during his first stint at United from 2003-2009 and said he still loves the club, which finished eighth in the league last season. Ronaldo says manager Erik ten Hag’s attitude is too negative, urging him to target the Premier League title. The Portugal star, who now plays for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, fell out with ten Hag before his second spell at Old Trafford ended late in 2022. Speaking on the “Rio Ferdinand Presents” podcast set to air on Thursday, Ronaldo said he was happy with the way the club’s administrators, led by INEOS boss Jim Ratcliffe, were investing in infrastructure. “They need to rebuild everything, in my opinion … the club needs time to rebuild because it’s still one of the best clubs in the world, but they need to change. They understand that this is the only way. “I believe that the future will be bright. I believe, but they don’t depend only on the talents. They have to rebuild from the bottom. If not, they cannot compete. It will be impossible.” Cristiano Ronaldo is still revered by fans at Manchester United, where he spent six seasons [File: Phil Noble/Reuters] Ronaldo dismisses ten Hag’s approach towards titles Ten Hag has said he is “quite confident” of claiming more silverware this campaign after lifting the League Cup and FA Cup over the past two seasons. But he said in July his team are a “long way away” from being ready to win the Premier League, which they have not won since Alex Ferguson’s final season in charge in 2013. Ronaldo dismissed ten Hag’s attitude. “The coach, they say they cannot compete to win the league and Champions League. Manchester United coach, you cannot say that you’re not going to fight to win the league or Champions League. “You have to be, to mentally say, listen, maybe we don’t have that potential, but I cannot say that. We’re going to try. You have to try.” United upset Manchester City in the FA Cup final in May but they endured their worst Premier League campaign last term, finishing eighth, and the 20-time English champions have lost two of their opening three matches this season. Ten Hag has come under pressure already after two defeats in their opening three games and Ronaldo said he should lean on his former United teammate Ruud van Nistelrooy, who was hired as an assistant coach. “You cannot rebuild a club without knowledge,” he said. “I believe that Ruud is going to help because he was inside the club. He knows the club, he knows the fans. If the coach listens to him, I think they can improve a little bit the club.” Cristiano Ronaldo left the club in December 2022, following a fractured relationship with manager Erik ten Hag [Carl Recine/Reuters] ‘I love that club’ Five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo, who spent six seasons with United earlier in his career, scored 27 goals in 54 appearances during his second spell at Old Trafford after signing from Juventus in 2021. Following his exit just over a year later, he claimed he felt “betrayed”, while saying of ten Hag: “I don’t have respect for him because he doesn’t show respect for me.” However, the 39-year-old said he still loves the club. “I’m not happy the way it all happened but, in the same way, we cannot control some points of our life sometimes, but it’s done, already done,” he said. “To prove that I’m right or wrong, this is not my issue any more. I say what I have to say and for me it’s done.” He added: “I love that club. I’m not that kind of guy that forgot the past.” United are currently 14th in the league and visit Southampton on Saturday. Adblock test (Why?)

Nine candidates named in Japan’s leadership race

Nine candidates named in Japan’s leadership race

A surfer and a nationalist are among the record number of contenders to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Japan’s governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has named the nine candidates who will run in a leadership race scheduled for September 27 to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, whose three-year term was tarnished by scandals. The record number of contenders named on Thursday include former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, 43, the surfer son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, and Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi, 63, a nationalist vying to be the first female prime minister. The LDP holds a majority in parliament, which means the winner is guaranteed to become Japan’s next premier. Koizumi has promised to change an “old-fashioned LDP” and accelerate reforms to revitalise Japan, including by making the job market more flexible. He said he would hold a snap election soon after taking office to seek the public’s mandate. Koizumi supports a revision to a 19th-century civil code requiring married couples to choose one of their surnames, which has caused most women to adopt their husbands’ surnames. He wants to allow an option of keeping separate surnames which is supported by the country’s powerful business lobby. Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi is the youngest candidate [File: Eugene Hoshiko/AP] He has said he will strengthen Japan’s alliance with the United States and expand a cooperation network with other like-minded nations to deter China’s growing influence. He wants to meet his Chinese and South Korean counterparts soon after taking office and hold talks with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un. Leading the opinion polls are Koizumi and former Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba, 67. Ishiba is running in the leadership race for a fifth time. Despite his popularity among general voters, he has struggled to win enough support from fellow party lawmakers. He has said this will be his “final battle”. A security and defence expert, Ishiba has proposed an Asian version of the NATO military alliance. He is a supporter of democracy in Taiwan, which China views as its own territory. Ishiba promises to push for gender equality and measures to address low births and Japan’s declining population. Shigeru Ishiba, member of the House of Representatives for the LDP and one of the candidates in the leadership election [File: Eugene Hoshiko/AP Photo] The other candidates are Yoko Kamikawa, 71, top diplomat for Kishida; Taro Kono, 61, outspoken reformist and digital affairs minister; Toshimitsu Motegi, 67, the LDP’s secretary-general; Takayuki Kobayashi, 49, former economic security minister; Katsunobu Kato, 68, chief cabinet secretary; and Yoshimasa Hayashi, 63, former defence minister and foreign minister. How the race works The nine candidates and other LDP lawmakers will meet at the party headquarters in Tokyo for the vote on September 27 to decide on its next president and, since it holds a parliamentary majority, the next prime minister. Each of the LDP’s 369 lawmakers will cast a vote in the first round, while an equal number of votes will be distributed among rank-and-file members polled earlier. In the 2021 leadership election, the party had 1.13 million registered members, its website showed. A candidate securing a simple majority in that poll becomes the party leader. If nobody secures a majority, a run-off follows between the two candidates with the most votes. In the second round, each lawmaker again gets one vote, but the share of the rank and file drops to 47 votes, one for each of Japan’s prefectures. Once a new LDP leader is elected, Japan’s parliament will gather, probably in early October, to pick a new prime minister, who is then expected to announce a new cabinet and appoint key LDP officials. The new prime minister may call a snap general election to seek a national mandate. Adblock test (Why?)

Floods in northeastern Nigeria affect one million people

Floods in northeastern Nigeria affect one million people

Severe flooding in northeastern Nigeria has killed at least 30 people and affected more than one million others, the authorities have said. The collapse of the Alau dam on the Ngadda river in Borno State on Tuesday caused some of the state’s worst flooding since the same dam collapsed 30 years ago, and prompted residents to flee their homes. The state government said on Wednesday that the dam was at capacity due to unusually high rains. Officials expected the death toll to rise. The current flooding comes nearly two years after Nigeria’s worst flooding in a decade killed more than 600 people across the country. Ezekiel Manzo, spokesman of the National Emergency Management Agency, on Wednesday put the death toll at 30. “One million people have been affected so far,” said an aide for Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum, adding that as efforts to document displaced people begin, that number could rise to nearly two million. Residents of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, said food has become expensive since the central market was destroyed in the floods. The swirling waters partially destroyed a local zoo and several animals escaped. Mary Mamza, a Maiduguri resident, said people were afraid to leave their homes after an escaped crocodile was killed near her home. West Africa has experienced some of its worst flooding in decades. More than 2.3 million people have been affected so far this year, which is a threefold increase from last year, according to the United Nations. African nations are losing up to 5 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) every year as they bear a heavier burden than the rest of the world from climate change, a new report said on Monday after one of the continent’s hottest years on record. The World Meteorological Organization said many African nations are spending up to 9 percent of their budgets for climate adaptation policies. Adblock test (Why?)

Texas Dem’s Senate ad features border wall he once blasted as ‘racist’

Texas Dem’s Senate ad features border wall he once blasted as ‘racist’

Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, featured the southern border wall in a recent Senate campaign ad despite having previously claimed the wall proposed by former President Trump was “racist.”  The Democrat was seen in a July campaign ad walking with law enforcement along a portion of the border wall as he hit Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, for opposing a border measure backed by Democrats in the upper chamber.  However, Allred has had a long history of opposing the border wall and other elements of Trump and Republicans’ efforts to secure the border.  ROGERS ADDRESSES ABORTION AMID SLOTKIN ATTACKS: ‘MICHIGAN VOTERS HAVE ALREADY DECIDED’ In fact, at an event in 2018, Allred told attendees, “If they build that racist wall, my generation is the one that will tear it down. You’re not going to have a wall in this country.” As a representative, he has voted against countless bills that would institute strict changes to address the crisis at the southern border. Most notably, he opposed the H.R. 2 Secure the Border Act, which had been advocated by House and Senate Republicans. The legislation is understood to propose the toughest crackdown on the southern border and illegal immigration in consideration. GOP SENATOR PUSHES FOR GOOGLE SUBPOENAS OVER TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT SEARCH RESULTS He also voted for a resolution to end the national emergency declaration that then-President Trump had made for the southern border and in favor of legislation that would limit the president’s ability to suspend or restrict the ability of illegal immigrants to enter the country, among other controversial measures.  “Congressman Allred is laser focused on solutions supported by both parties to fix our broken immigration system and secure our border. Ted Cruz has been in the Senate 12 years and has nothing to show for it. He tanked bipartisan legislation that would secure our border. Lyin’ Ted only cares about himself, and Texans know he will never be part of a real solution,” Allred spokesperson Josh Stewart told Fox News Digital in a statement.  TOP 5 MOMENTS DURING TRUMP-HARRIS PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE: ‘I’M TALKING NOW’ While the border bill in question was negotiated by bipartisan Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz, and James Lankford, R-Okla, Republicans have largely rejected the resulting bill and were vocal critics of the negotiations as they were taking place.  After the long-awaited release of the negotiated bill this year, Republicans promptly rejected it.  Some members of the Republican conference in the Senate have even said the measure would have made the current border crisis worse.  While some have pointed to Trump’s opposition to the bill as the reason it did not succeed, one Senate Republican told Fox News Digital it would have failed either way. But they said they imagine Trump is happy to take credit.  In the most recent procedural vote on the border bill, two of the three negotiators, Sinema and Lankford, voted it down.  NRA BETS BIG ON MONTANA IN GUN RIGHTS PUSH AS TESTER TEETERS IN SENATE RACE Another Republican criticism of the bill has been that the president currently enjoys the authority to address many of the concerns at the border right now and doesn’t need additional congressional permission to fix the crisis.  Allred is not the only Democrat who has apparently changed their tune on the border wall as concerns about illegal immigration surge. Vice President Harris, who is running as the Democrat nominee for president, has also used the Trump-era border wall in campaign advertisements portraying her as strong on the southern border.  Trump’s campaign slammed Harris over this, with a spokesperson previously saying that statements that Harris now supports Trump’s border wall are “preposterous and false claim(s).” A top political handicapper, the Cook Political Report, rated the Texas Senate race “likely Republican,” with Cruz boasting a significant advantage. However, given the Democrats’ relatively unfavorable Senate election map, the Texas and Florida Senate races are their best pickup opportunities. Allred has spent far more on the race than Cruz so far, with millions more spent on past ad spending and on future reservations ahead of the election. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.