Aston Villa have completed the signing of Micah Richards on a four-year deal, the club have announced.
The 26-year-old defender will officially join the club on a free transfer on July 1 after his Manchester City contract expires.
Richards spent last season on loan at Fiorentina and becomes boss Tim Sherwood’s first summer signing at Villa.
Sherwood said: “I’m really pleased to get Micah on board and I’m sure he will prove to be an excellent signing for the football club.”
Richards started his career at City in 2005 and won the Premier League in 2012 and FA Cup in 2011 but found his chances limited in recent seasons.
He made just 10 appearances in 2013-14, and just two in the league, as City regained the title and was loaned out to Fiorentina last season.
The Birmingham-born England international, who has 13 caps, played 20 games for the Viola as they finished fourth in Serie A.
Richards leaves the Etihad having scored nine goals in 245 games for City.
Barcelona
A Spanish judge has accepted a legal complaint filed by Brazilian investment fund DIS that alleges it was the victim of fraud perpetrated in Barcelona’s signing of Neymar from Santos.
DIS, which owned 40 per cent of Neymar’s rights when he was at Santos, alleges it was paid less than half the money it was entitled to when the player agreed to join Barcelona in 2013.
Barcelona, former president Sandro Rosell, incumbent Josep Maria Bartomeu, Neymar, his father, Santos and two of the Brazilian club’s executives were all named in the lawsuit, according to a court statement on Wednesday.
The complaint is the latest twist in a saga that has resulted in Barcelona, Rosell and Bartomeu facing trial for tax fraud over the Neymar deal.
This is the first time Neymar himself has been named as a defendant in a lawsuit linked to the transfer, though. The court said that as part of the probe into the DIS complaint, Chelsea, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich had been asked for details of offers they made for Neymar when he was at Santos between 2009 and 2013.
Pakistan
Faisal Saleh Hayat has been dismissed as Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) president for incompetence and fund embezzlement after an extraordinary meeting, local media reported on Wednesday.
Only 18 of 26 PFF members were present at the meeting in Islamabad, where Hayat was also suspended from the PFF and secretary Ahmad Yar Khan Lodhi kicked out of the federation. Arshad Khan Lodhi was appointed acting president in place of Hayat, an Asian Football Confederation executive committee member.
Despite the dismissal, Hayat, who sits on Fifa’s strategic committee, is still eligible to stand in the PFF elections on June 30.
US Open Cup
The Seattle Sounders finished their US Open Cup match against rivals the Portland Timbers with seven players after three were sent off and one was injured after all substitutes had been used.
Portland won 3-1 after extra time late Tuesday in the fourth-round game, in which Clint Dempsey was sent off for taking referee Daniel Radford’s notebook and tearing up the record of the game.
Seattle were a goal down when Brad Evans was sent off in the 69th minute for a second yellow card.
Obafemi Martins was injured in the 85th after equalising moments earlier and could not continue, reducing Seattle to nine men. Michael Aziri was sent off in the 111th for striking a Portland player with his elbow and Dempsey was booked for his reaction to the dismissal, then shown red for taking the notebook.
Osasuna
A Spanish judge investigating what happened to more than €2 million (Dh8.3m) missing from Osasuna’s accounts has said there is evidence the cash was used to fix games towards the end of the 2013/14 Primera Liga season.
In a statement on Wednesday, the judge said the investigation suggested that of at least €2.4m withdrawn from the club’s accounts, €250,000 was paid to Espanyol players to draw 1-1 with Osasuna on the penultimate match day.
A further €650,000 was given to Real Betis players, €400,000 to beat Real Valladolid on the same day and €250,000 to lose to Osasuna on the final day of the season.
2022 World Cup
Qatar paid the African Football Confederation (CAF) US$1.8 million (Dh6.6m) to be able to present its 2022 World Cup bid at a congress, Africa’s top football official told a French magazine.
CAF president Issa Hayatou said he saw nothing wrong with the payment, made just before the confederation held a congress in Angola in 2010.
Jeune Afrique magazine asked Hayatou about reports he had accepted $1m from Qatar on CAF’s behalf.
“It was $1.8m, not $1m. Paid in two times $900,000,” Hayatou said. “The Qataris gave it to us to be able to show their plan during the congress.”
He denied that it was a bid to buy African votes and added that he did not expect other candidates, including the United States and Australia, to pay for a similar privilege.
Hayatou also said he did not think Fifa was riddled with corruption and was not worried by the controversies surrounding the world body.
Under 20 World Cup
Ivan Saponjic scored in extra time to give Serbia a 2-1 win over Mali in the Under 20 World Cup on Wednesday to set up a final against Brazil, who routed Senegal 5-0.
Serbia’s match grew tense in the final minutes with Youssouf Kone, who scored for Mali, sent off for a second yellow for dissent.
He then appeared to push Argentine referee Mauro Vigliano and was ushered away by teammates. Earlier, Brazil, who won two straight shoot-outs to reach the semi-finals, ended a 244-minute scoring drought in style, with Marcos Guilherme scoring twice.
Women’s World Cup
The United States beat Nigeria 1-0 on Tuesday to top Group D at the Women’s World Cup, while Australia and Cameroon got the results they needed to advance.
Australia drew 1-1 with Sweden to finish second behind the US, and Cameroon beat Switzerland 2-1 to take second in Group C behind Japan, who beat Ecuador 1-0.
The Netherlands and Switzerland were certain to be two of the four third-place finishers who advanced, with the other places determined late last night.
Matches confirmed for the round of 16 are Australia v Brazil in Moncton, Canada v Switzerland in Vancouver and China v Cameroon in Edmonton.
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