Outspoken former Rangers midfielder Joey Barton’s dig at Scott McTominay back in 2018 looks very interesting now. It has been a near-perfect week for the Napoli star, who scored a beautiful overhead-kick goal during Scotland’s 4-2 comeback win over Denmark to help the Tartan Army qualify for the World Cup in stunning fashion.
The 28-year-old has unveiled a completely different version of himself since leaving Manchester United in 2024. If his MVP award in his first Serie A season – as Napoli stormed to the Scudetto – didn’t already prove that, then his recent international heroics have surely silenced the rest of his critics. Watch his stunning goal below:
Among those critics, the usual argument from naysayers was that McTominay simply wasn’t good enough for a big club, that he was out of his depth at United. But Barton had a very different take on his struggles – one that looks even more bizarre now that McTominay is shining and proving many doubters wrong.
The Bizarre Dig Barton Aimed At Scott McTominay Back in 2018
Barton claimed McTominay has chosen to pledge his international future to Scotland “because he wants his summers off.” Speaking on Alan Brazil’s Sport Breakfast Show on talkSPORT when the midfielder was just 21-years-old, he said, as per The Sun: “He obviously wants his summers off.
“He has shown his ambition hasn’t he? He realises the weight of playing for England and working every summer – he doesn’t want that. Maybe Manchester United and Fergie have influenced it.”
But the criticism of him ended there, as Barton very quickly started praising him. “Scotland have improved the last qualification campaign and if he feels more Scottish than English fair play to the kid,” he continued.
“It would have been easy to go financially to the England side and, if you are in the Manchester United team, then there’s a good chance you get called up by England. That has been a route map for a long period if you look at [Jesse] Lingaard and [Marcus] Rashford etc.
“But fair play to the boy if he feels a passionate Scotsman like Mr Brazil here, then it can only be a good thing for Scotland because he is a seriously talented individual.”
Seven years on, it could be argued that McTominay – once written off as half of United’s much-mocked “McFred” duo – is now Scotland’s most talented footballer. And, importantly, he won’t be having any breaks next summer, with the Scots heading across the pond en masse for the World Cup – the first time the nation has qualified for one since 1998.
At England, where Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham are just two of many fighting tooth and nail for a guaranteed spot in the engine room, McTominay may have never been the star of the show. But for a country as passionate as Scotland, that probably didn’t cross his mind anyway, and playing for the Tartan Army simply means more.
The UFC world was left stunned last weekend as Ilia Topuria suffered the very first defeat of his professional MMA career, losing via TKO against Justin Gaethje at the UFC Freedom 250 event in Washington D.C.
The ex-lightweight world champion was pulled out by his corner after the fourth round of the headlining event at the White House as he failed to recover from a devastating left-right combination from the veteran American that left him bloodied in the third.
Gaethje’s explosive display was full of hard-hitting punches plus knees and uppercuts. Topuria’s inability to deal with the constant physical beat down meant an upset occurred and the challenger snatched away the lightweight crown to become a first-time undisputed champion in the UFC.
Topuria, who has also held the belt at featherweight, now has to deal with a fight fallout and feeling which he has never experienced as a professional, which is responding to and coping with a loss.
Ilia Topuria’s Close Friend Opens Up About Fighter’s Reaction
Amber Searls via Imagn Images
In the days since the 31-year-old’s brutal defeat in the American capital, a close friend of his, Pablo Motos, has spoken out to reveal the kind of emotions the fighter is currently experiencing and what his current state of mind is.
Speaking on his ‘El Hormiguero’ chat show, Motos touched on a recent conversation he had with Topuria, stating: “We were talking about something we’re going to do this summer, making jokes, and then he said a phrase I loved.
A lot has been said about Topuria’s health after his war with Justin Gaethje, but a close friend probably knows best, and he’s spoken out.
“He looks at me with his eyes closed and says, ‘Champions, when we fall, we fall hard.’”
Motos then revealed what Topuria’s intentions are in the Octagon and how he wants to go about avenging his world title loss to Gaethje, saying: “They’re already looking toward the future. He was telling me, ‘I’d love to do the rematch in Spain with Gaethje.'”
What Next For Ilia Topuria
Topuria’s desire to jump into a rematch demonstrates that he is keen to rectify his shortcomings against his most recent opponent and reclaim his spot at the top of the lightweight division.
Topuria, who is of Georgian and Spanish descent, has not fought in Spain since the very early days of his professional MMA career, with his last bout in the country coming in a 2016 featherweight title triumph over Jhon Guarin at Mix Fight Events 28 in Valencia.
It remains to be seen what Gaethje intends to do moving forward after achieving his career-long dream of becoming an undisputed UFC champion at 37.
Should Topuria get his wish and get another crack at Gaethje in his home country, it would surely be one of the most anticipated UFC events of recent times.
Arsenal have placed an official bid to sign wonderkid Jeremy Monga from Leicester City, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
The Gunners have been linked with a move for the 16-year-old for some time now, with reports of an offer emerging as early as last month.
Monga, who has been compared to Ousmane Dembele and described as a ‘deadly’ finisher, is expected to leave the Foxes this summer following their relegation to League One, despite having broken into the first-team as a 15-year-old.
And Arsenal have shown the keenest interest in him, with talks progressing over the last few weeks between the Gunners and his representatives over a move to the Emirates Stadium.
Now, according to Romano, Arsenal have lodged an official bid to sign the 16-year-old winger. He tweeted: “Arsenal sent official bid to Leicester City to get Jeremy Monga deal done. 16-year-old winger keen on joining #AFC and deal moving quickly now with optimism to sign #LCFC talent, seen as huge prospect for the future.”
Newcastle were hoping to land the young talent, but while they were trying to lower his fee, the Reds stormed in to agree to his £34.6million release clause, and the deal is as good as done. When Muñoz will agree personal terms remains to be seen, given he is busy at the World Cup with Spain, but Liverpool will be confident of striking a deal, especially with a Spanish boss now in place.
Liverpool are not done there
Ken Blaze (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters)
It was unclear how bold Liverpool would be in this transfer window, given their huge spend and lack of return last summer, but the questions are now being answered. The Reds are already closing in on an exciting young talent in Muñoz, and that is only going to be the start of their business, according to a fresh report.
Football Insider claim Muñoz will be the first of five new signings this summer, with a central midfielder, centre-back, right-back and right-winger all required by Iraola.
The right-winger and centre-back signings will come as no surprise, given the exits of Ibrahima Konate and Mohamed Salah this summer. Meanwhile, many have called for more options in the middle of the park, while Conor Bradley battling his way back from a serious injury issue looks to be forcing the Reds to add more depth at right-back.
Muñoz can play on the right-wing, and he is a right-footer, but he has traditionally played on the left, liking to cut inside.
Shearer’s Reds warning
Speaking to Betfair last week, Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer warned that Liverpool need to recruit heavily in this summer’s transfer window. “Liverpool are going to have to go again in the transfer market,” he said. “Mohamed Salah’s gone, so they obviously need someone to replace him.
“They’ve also got Rio Ngumoha, who’s obviously a great talent, but for the future.So Liverpool need several players, I think, if they want to compete again at the very top. And certainly, in wide positions, they’re going to have to strengthen.
“I’m not surprised with who they’re being linked with, like Diomande and Barcola. I guess it’s only a matter of time before that, that would be the position that they announce.”
