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Diego Maradona Urged Real Madrid To Sell Gareth Bale For Mbappe in 2017

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Diego Maradona was one of the greatest footballers to have ever lived. For some, he ranks even higher than the likes of Lionel Messi, Pele, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The iconic Argentine led his nation to World Cup glory in 1986, and also won Serie A twice with Napoli, as well as winning major honours with Boca Juniors and Barcelona. Truthfully, though, his impact on football cannot be measured by trophies – it was something more fantastical than simple statistics.

With that in mind, whenever Maradona spoke about the beautiful game, it was always wise to pay attention. In 2017, he eyed up one player he felt would be the next big thing in football, and urged Real Madrid to snap him up.

Maradona Urged Florentino Perez To Sell Gareth Bale

gareth bale

As a former Barcelona player, some may be surprised to hear Maradona talking about which players rivals Real Madrid should buy. Evidently, though, he had some kind of relationship with club president Florentino Perez.

The two met at a FIFA event in 2017 – roughly three years before Maradona’s death – and the Argentine could not help but sing the praises of Kylian Mbappe. He was so impressed by the then-teenager, he even claimed the Spanish giants should offload Gareth Bale to make way for the French winger:

“Mbappe, for me he is the big revelation in football. I think he can surpass many players. And why did [Perez] not sign him? I told him! It was when we saw each other at FIFA.

“He said to me, ‘[but] you know I have Cristiano’.”

“Sell Bale, give Bale away. He will surely be a makeweight for something, and Florentino will be left with half of Madrid or half of Italy and Bale will play for AC Milan or Inter.

“But I think they have to buy Mbappe.”

Mbappe Has Had Incredible Career Since

At the time, Mbappe would have still been in his teens, but Maradona was clearly dazzled by the young winger. He scored an impressive 27 goals and picked up 16 assists in 60 games for AS Monaco before all the big clubs came swooping.

Around the same time as Maradona urged Madrid to make their move, French giants Paris Saint-Germain flexed their financial muscles and announced the signing of Mbappe from Monaco on loan with a mandatory purchase option of €180m. The youngster would be a massive hit, bagging 256 goals and claiming a further 110 assists in 308 games, while also getting his hands on six Ligue 1 titles.

All the while Bale fell further and further out of favour in Madrid. Admittedly, he impressed in 2017/18, scoring that iconic bicycle kick in the Champions League final, but his influence on the team steadily faded. By 2019, he was as good as unwanted under Zinedine Zidane and ended up on loan at Tottenham Hotspur in 2020 before his eventual exit in 2022.

Even Ronaldo didn’t spend much longer at Real Madrid, leaving in 2018, not long after Perez had argued that he couldn’t sign Mbappe with the Portuguese forward in the team already. While they wouldn’t land the Frenchman in the short term, he did eventually make his way to Madrid.

After years of repeated rumours, Los Blancos announced that they’d finally landed their man in June 2024, with the winger signing a five-year contract. While he’s yet to win La Liga or Champions League with the Spanish outfit, goals have not been an issue and major trophies in that bracket seem inevitable.

Mbappe’s Career Stats

Club

Games

Goals

Assists

Monaco

60

27

16

PSG

308

256

110

Real Madrid

75

62

7

France

94

55

40

Maradona was certainly right to highlight Mbappe as a player with the potential to become one of the best in the world in 2017, and the Argentine would have witnessed the crowning moment of his career so far, in which he scored twice as France won the 2018 World Cup.

Still only 26 years old, Mbappe has become the youngest ever footballer to score 400 goals for club and country, setting the record earlier in 2025. His career has been so special already, and you get the sense that even more great achievements are on the horizon.

Stats via Transfermarkt – as of 20/11/25

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Exact UK Start Time of Topuria vs Gaethje Revealed

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UFC fans in the UK now know exactly when they will need to tune in for one of the most significant events the promotion has ever staged.

For the first time in history, the UFC will host an event on the grounds of the White House, with UFC Freedom 250 set to take place on the South Lawn of the Washington DC property. The event has been organised to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the USA, together with the 80th birthday of president Donald Trump.

The historic card has attracted huge interest from fight fans globally, as several of the biggest names in the promotion will be featured, with two UFC championships on the line.

UFC White House Card Explored

UFC White House

In the main event of the evening, Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje will face off for the undisputed UFC Lightweight Championship. Before that clash, Alex Pereira will seek to win UFC gold in a third weight class as he takes on Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC Heavyweight Championship.

A stacked card also sees fan favourites such as Sean O’Malley, Michael Chandler, and Derrick Lewis in action, making UFC Freedom 250 one of the deepest lineups assembled in recent memory.

The card is unique in that there are no preliminary fights, with all seven fights on the bill being part of a bumper main card. Given the unprecedented setting in which the fight will take place, many fans will want to take in every second of the action.

Exact UK Start Time For UFC Freedom 250

Topuria vs Gaethje UFC Freedom 250

As anticipation continues to build, the exact start time for British viewers has now been revealed. Notably, UFC Freedom 250 will not be a pay-per-view show, meaning that it will be shown as part of the standard TNT Sports subscription.

The event will air on TNT Sports 1 in the UK, with a start time of 1am BST on Monday morning. Fans will be in for a late night if they want to watch the action live.

If there was ever a card to miss sleep for, it’s arguably UFC Freedom 250. However, for those among you who want to grab a few extra hours in bed, the expected start times of the two championship fights have also been confirmed.

Exact UK Start Times For Ilia Topuria vs Justin Gaethje and Alex Pereira vs Cyril Gane

Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane

The co-main event between Pereira and Gane will be a five-round affair, although most predict that it will end inside the 25-minute distance. The two fighters are expected to make their way to the Octagon at 3:30am UK time, with the action set to get underway shortly afterwards.

Once the interim heavyweight title fight is decided, all eyes will then be on Topuria and Gaethje as they battle it out to determine the best 155-pound fighter in the world. That bout is scheduled to go down no earlier than 4:45am UK time.

The above timings assume that the outdoor event isn’t disrupted by bad weather, which is something that the UFC have been planning for.

Whether you’re pulling an all-nighter to catch the whole card or just getting up for the championship bouts, UFC Freedom 250 is a night that will live long in the memory.

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7 National Teams Can Wear Special FIFA 2026 World Cup Gold Badge

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Eagle-eyed viewers have spotted that Brazil wore a different FIFA World Cup 2026 badge to the rest of the national teams that have competed in this summer’s tournament so far.

Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Czech Republic, Canada, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Qatar, Switzerland, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland, United States, Paraguay, Australia and Turkey all played with white or dark variations of the FIFA badge on their jerseys.

Brazil’s, on the other hand, was gold. Naturally, this left many football fans puzzled.

There are so many initiatives these days that it can be hard to keep up. For example, players appearing in a World Cup finals match for the first time will wear a new ‘debut’ patch.


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Six Other Teams That Can Wear Gold FIFA Badge

Brazil World Cup badge Caean Couto via Reuters

Just seven of the 48 teams competing at the 2026 World Cup will wear the gold FIFA badge on their shirts, including Brazil.

While the Selecao haven’t lifted the iconic FIFA World Cup trophy since Ronaldo Nazario inspired them to glory in 2002, they remain the competition’s most successful nation.

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Their 2002 triumph was the fifth time Brazil have been crowned champions, following their victories in 1958, 1962, 1970 and 1994.

Only teams that have previously won the World Cup can wear the badge. The other six teams are:

Argentina

Argentina's Julian Alvarez Rodrigo Valle via Reuters

The reigning world champions have the same gold badge on their sleeve of their jersey, plus a special gold FIFA badge on the front of the shirt to celebrate their 2022 triumph.

​​​​​​​

England

Harry Kane Nathan Ray Seebeck via Reuters

It’s now been 60 years of hurt, but the Three Lions did indeed win the World Cup back in 1966 at the old Wembley stadium thanks to Sir Geoff Hurst’s legendary hat-trick.

France

Kylian Mbappe celebrates after scoring for France Stephane Mahe via Reuters

Winners of the FIFA World Cup in 1998 and again in 2018. Didier Deschamps played a big role in both triumphs, first as a player and then as manager.

Germany

Kai Havertz Michael Dinovo via Reuters

Germany last won the World Cup in 2014, defeating Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the final. They also lifted the trophy in 1954, 1974 and 1990.

Spain

Spain's Lamine Yamal
Spain’s Lamine Yamal

Spain ended their long wait for the World Cup in 2010 thanks to Andres Iniesta’s famous winning goal against the Netherlands in South Africa.

Uruguay

Federico Valverde Kai Pfaffenbach via Reuters

Winners of the first-ever World Cup back in 1990, the South American nation lifted the trophy again 20 years later.

The only former World Cup champions missing from this summer’s tournament are Italy. The Azzurri (winners in 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006) haven’t qualified for a World Cup finals since 2014.

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Brentford Set to Make Approach to Beat Arsenal to Jeremy Monga

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One of Arsenal’s Premier League rivals is set to attempt to hijack their move to sign a young star ahead of the summer transfer window.

The Gunners are acting fast in the summer window as they look to improve their squad heading into the 2026-2027 season.

Arsenal enjoyed a phenomenal campaign last time out, reaching the Champions League final before losing to Paris Saint-Germain while also lifting the Premier League title.

Although they shouldn’t need a host of reinforcements to battle for the title once again, Mikel Arteta’s side will be looking to bring in new additions to go one step further in the Champions League.

The North London club also won’t want to rest on what they’ve already built, looking to dominate English football for the future.


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Arsenal are making moves this summer.

Premier League Rivals’ Arsenal Hijack

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta puts his arms out in defence

According to a report from The Times, one of Arsenal’s Premier League rivals is set to make an approach to try and sign Leicester City winger Jeremy Monga in the summer transfer window.

That side is Brentford, who are now expected to make formal contact with Leicester over a move, despite the Gunners identifying Monga as a priority target.

The 16-year-old has been tracked by a number of clubs, and Brentford could hold an advantage in the race due to being able to offer more game time than Arsenal.

Previous reports had suggested that Arsenal were advancing in talks to sign the young star who has previously been described as ‘England’s Ousmane Dembele‘.

England World Cup Quiz

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Brentford Could Beat Arsenal in Race

Jeremy Monga

Monga, described as ‘special’, will find it incredibly difficult to break into Arsenal’s senior squad, especially in the next couple of years.

Brentford are more likely to offer him regular minutes, especially in the near future, and they’ve regularly offered young talent game time.

The Gunners might have a plan for Monga to go out on loan to continue gaining first-team experience, but either way, the Bees might present a clearer pathway.

It looks set to be a competitive race to secure the signature of the 16-year-old, and he certainly has some tough decisions to make in terms of choosing his next club.

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