Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1040165
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 17 OCTOBER 2018 21 SPORTS FOOTBALL SPORTS FOOTBALL MANCHESTER United man- ager Jose Mourinho has been charged over comments he made in Portuguese to a tel- evision camera after his side's win over Newcastle. It is claimed Mourinho used "abusive, insulting or improper language" after the 3-2 comeback victory at Old Trafford on the 6th of Octo- ber. The Football Association used a lip reader and the 55-year-old's remarks were interpreted as offensive. Mourinho had been un- der pressure amid reports he would be sacked. His side had been 2-0 down to winless Newcastle at half- time of the Premier League game, but they scored three goals in the final 20 minutes to turn the match around. After the game, Mourinho said he could "cope with the manhunt" against him. A 90th-minute winner from Alexis Sanchez ended a run of four games without a win as United have recorded their worst league start for 29 years and are eighth in the table. Mourinho has until Friday to respond to the charge. Jose Mourinho charged over Newcastle comments Sergio Ramos labels England as 'world class' Spain suffered a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the English SPAIN captain Sergio Ramos felt Eng- land were world-class during their 3-2 victory in Seville on Monday. Gareth Southgate's men stunned Spain in one of the most memorable England wins for many a year, and their first in that country since 1987. Raheem Sterling scored two goals in the opening 45 minutes, having only scored twice in his previous 45 interna- tional appearances, with Marcus Rash- ford sweeping home in an extraordinary first half which Spain midfielder Dani Ceballos called a "disaster" for his side. Spain were much improved after the break and responded with goals from Paco Alcacer and Ramos, who was en- couraged by his team's riposte. "The beautiful thing about football is that it gives you an opportunity to turn things around," Ramos was quoted as saying by L'Equipe following Spain's first competitive defeat on home soil since 2003. "England are world-class opponents with some very dangerous players. We had to forget the first half and turn it around in the time it took them to go 3-0 up. "It's a shame we couldn't answer them. It didn't go as planned." Ramos' Real Madrid team-mate Ce- ballos came on as a second-half substi- tute and set up one of Spain's goals. "The first half was a bit of a disaster and it left us in a bad position," he told Marca. "The coach asked us to be ourselves, as we have been in previous matches, but we couldn't." Meanwhile, Marcos Alonso believes Chelsea team-mate Ross Barkley can be the answer to England's midfield prob- lems. The Three Lions reached the World Cup semi-finals this summer, despite an over-reliance on goals from set-piec- es and the lack of a playmaker capable of creating a chance out of nothing. Barkley did not go to Russia, but has returned to the international scene after a two-year absence to play a big part in England taking four points from their two tricky away games in the Nations League against Croatia and Spain. Barkley played a key role in a three- man midfield in Seville - alongside Tot- tenham pair Eric Dier and Harry Winks - as the youngest England side since 1959 won in Spain for the first time in over 30 years. Alonso feels England do not have an- other midfielder with Barkley's quality on the ball. "Even at the World Cup, despite play- ing well, England were aware that they didn't really have that kind of player, someone in the middle who played and made others play, who used the ball," Alonso told the Telegraph. "He's a great player. He showed it not just today but against Croatia (last Fri- day) too: he showed that he can be a great player. I hope he keeps improving and that he helps us at Chelsea to stay near the top."