BY MICHAEL KLINE
Atlético Madrid breathed a huge sigh of relief when scans revealed Radamel Falcao’s hamstring injury isn’t as serious as originally thought.
Falcao was removed from Sunday’s match against Levante after aggravating his left hamstring. Scans confirmed no tear was detected in the Colombian’s hamstring, alluding to a minor strain.
Atlético sit in second place in the La Liga table in large part due to Falcao’s 18 league goals (tied with Cristiano Ronaldo for second-most in the league).
A return date has not been determined for the La Liga star.
Here are some other stories to get you through your Monday:
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN GRIEVE DEATH OF COACH
Paris Saint-Germain coach Nick Broad tragically died in a car accident on Thursday.
Nick joined the PSG coaching staff in January of 2012 as Head of Performance. He spent a couple seasons with PSG manager Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea as Head of Sports Science before following the Italian to Paris.
“Nick Broad, 38, leaves behind him a family in mourning, to whom the entire Paris Saint-Germain club presents their most sincere and heartfelt condolences,” stated PSG’s official website.
LLORENTE TO SIGN WITH JUVENTUS ON JULY 1
Italian giants Juventus have publicized their summer plans to sign Fernando Llorente on a free transfer.
Juventus sporting director Beppe Marotta, in an interview with Italian radio, stated “I’m optimistic on his (Llorente) contract. In any case, he will join Juve on July 1.”
Llorente has been a target for many clubs over the past couple seasons, but has failed to make a move.
Despite defending Serie A champions Juventus being atop the league table once again, The Old Lady lacks a pure goalscorer.
Fernando Llorente might to be the answer to Juve’s scoring problems, but the 27-year-old striker has only scored a single goal in a handful of La Liga appearances for Athletic Bilbao this season. Last season the Spaniard netted 30 goals in all competitions.
SURPRISING TIES IN AFRICAN CUP OF NATIONS
The third day of the African Cup of Nations saw defending champions Zambia and powerhouse Nigeria both held to draws.
Ethiopia fought back despite being a man down to tie Zambia while Burkina Faso netted a late equalizer to take a point from heavily-favored Nigeria.
Adane Girma equalized for Ethiopia 30 minutes after teammate Tasew Jemal was shown red for a wild tackle. Collins Mbesuma opened the scoring for Zambia, but ultimately The Copper Bullets failed to make the most of their advantage against Ethiopia.
The second match of the day was almost a mirror image of the first match, as the scoring ended 1-1 and Efe Ambrose saw red.
Late dramatics allowed Burkina Faso to save a point in their opening match of the tournament. Alain Traore leveled the score in the 94th minute against 10-man Nigeria with the last kick of the match.
All four teams are level with one point in Group C, and play will continue on Friday with Zambia facing Nigeria and Burkina Faso taking on Ethiopia.
——-
What do you think of these developments? Relieved to hear Falcao is not seriously injured?