Sports fans love June because a lot of fun things are happening this month! The Roland Garros is raging on, the NBA Finals has begun, and the FIFA World Cup is only two weeks away! And multiple head-turning sports news and updates popped up while we soak ourselves in the midst of the action!
The biggest shocker of the day is Zinedine Zidane’s departure from Real Madrid. Zizou had a very successful two-and-a-half year stint at the Santiago Bernabeu but he still felt that his third consecutive Champions League victory is the apt time to draw the curtains on his stint.
Meanwhile, Germany saw the timely return of their guardian deity in Manuel Neuer, further boosting the form of an already-terrifying team that will be defending their 2014 World Cup title. The Cleveland Cavaliers also finished like expected during Season Four of their yearly show with the Golden State Warriors.
Zizou shocks Real Madrid, football world with surprise resignation
If you tell any club owner that a manager can win the Champions League three years in a row and finish second in a league chock-full of talented squads, they will no doubt hire that man and extend his contract for 20 years.
However, we are talking about Real Madrid here.
Zinedine Zidane steps down as Los Blancos boss five days after his team took down a challenging Liverpool side to win the Champions League title. The former Galactico explained that now is the time for the club to find a new voice in the dressing room.
“I love this club,” Zizou said during the press conference of his resignation. “What I think is that this team needs to continue winning but I think it needs a change, a different voice, another methodology. This is the right moment for all involved — for me, for the squad, for the club.”
Some may speculate that Zizou’s failure to win this season’s La Liga title was what urged the Frenchman to call it a day at the Bernabeu. Some might even claim that he was made to leave the club the same way Arsene Wenger was reportedly treated at Arsenal.
However, none of that matters now and the search is on for the new man to take the hot seat. Some of the more favoured names running through the mouths of Madrid supporters include Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri, Napoli’s Maurizio Sarri and Tottenham Hotspur gaffer Mauricio Pochettino.
Cavs begins on schedule, lose Game 1 to Dubs
The NBA Finals is becoming like a good sitcom wherein the writers left after the third season: things just get repetitive.
I am in no way saying that the NBA Finals has become boring. After all, these two giants pulled off an incredible feat of meeting at the biggest party for four consecutive years. This year was especially difficult for the two teams after overcoming incredible obstacles in the Houston Rockets and the Boston Celtics. The NBA Finals is always exciting with these two ball clubs at the helm.
Nevertheless, the two met in the NBA Finals to set up a fourth knot in this long-running rivalry. And just like what was placed in the script, the Cavaliers got themselves on the back foot again.
For the fourth consecutive year, the 2018 Finals began with a loss for the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, this was a bizarre loss unlike any other. At the dying seconds of regulation, the Cavaliers got the ball with less than five seconds on the clock and the game tied at 107. The ball fell at the hands of JR Smith, who held on the ball too long.
His odd actions caused the game to head to overtime, where the Dubs won 124-114. LeBron James’ eye-popping 51-point performance was put to waste. Stephen Curry and friends were definitely happy that Smith helped them win a game that seemed a lot closer than it was on paper.
Many believe that Smith thought they were leading, which prompted him to hold onto the ball. While Smith denied those claims immediately, he cannot deny that his actions put them on a giant ditch.
LeBron would have to pull out his cape and toughen up. The series is going to get harder from here on out.
He Neuer left: Germany’s first-choice keeper is back
This bit of news will make a lot of supporters in Group F tremble with fear.
Manuel Neuer has reportedly returned to training with the German national football team. Reports say his form is as top-notch as ever despite missing most of the regular season due to a surgery on a broken bone in his foot.
Team manager Oliver Bierhoff included Neuer to the preliminary squad despite not playing for most of the past season. He also said that the No 1 position is all his should he make a full recovery to the team.
“Manuel will go to the World Cup as our No. 1,” said Bierhoff. “If he makes the squad then Marc-Andre [ter Stegen] will be No. 2.
“Manuel is already full on track. He does not need to get back on it. All the players have left a big impression here and it is a very difficult decision.”
The thought of Neuer and Barcelona keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen taking turns in front of goal is something many of the strikers in Group F are not happy about. Their gargantuan task of taking Germany down got a lot harder.
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