It's taken us some time to come to terms with it but the group stages of Euro 2024 have come to an end and we've lost a third of the teams. We bid a sad farewell to the early leavers and look back at some of their best bits.
SERBIA
Serbia did not do much this tournament. They scored just 1 goal in their three matches, and even though it was a 90+5 minute equaliser, it was not enough to really make us excited for the team.
(Yeah, we don't know what goalkeeper Jan Oblak was doing here either 😬)
Yes, Serbia's group wasn't the easiest (on paper) but we expected so much more from a squad boasting Dušan Vlahović, Aleksandar Mitrović, Dušan Tadić etc.
Perhaps the most interesting thing they did all tournament was threaten to leave the Euros if Albania and Croatia weren't punished for the joint anti-Serbian chanting by their fans when the two sides met. Leaving the politics to one side, we can only assume Serbia were ultimately unhappy with UEFA's response and were determined to follow through with their threat, hence the poor results 🤔.
Not even a special pre-match visit from tennis superstar and fellow countryman Novak Djokovic was enough to inspire them.
Overall, Serbia did not really bring anything to the Euros that we're gonna miss, unfortunately (well except Vlahović himself, of course) . Maybe next time?
Copa do Mundo da FIFA: Camarões se recuperam e empatam em 3 a 3 contra a Sérvia
Copa do Mundo da FIFA: Camarões se recuperam e empatam em 3 a 3 contra a Sérvia
Camarões manteve suas esperanças de chegar às oitavas de final da Copa do Mundo vivas na segunda-feira, depois de recuperar de dois gols a menos para empatar um emocionante jogo do Grupo G com a Sérvia por 3 x 3. A equipe de Rigobert Song parecia quase morta e enterrada depois que gols de Strahinja Pavlovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic e Aleksandar Mitrovic deram à Sérvia uma vantagem de 3 a 1 no…
Thousands of demonstrators rallied in front of the Serbian government building in Belgrade on Friday evening at the sixth of the weekly ‘Serbia Against Violence’ protests that were initially sparked by two mass shootings in May.
Some protesters arrived carrying cardboard figures dressed in prison suits, depicting President Aleksandar Vucic, PM Ana Brnabic, the owner of the pro-Government tabloid Informer, Dragan Vucicevic, the president of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media, Olivera Zekic, and the owner of the pro-Government TV Pink, Zeljko Mitrovic.
The protesters had marched to the government building through the city centre after initially gathering in front of the National Assembly building.
Their main demands relate to the ‘culture of violence’ that they claim has thrived in the media and politics during Vucic’s rule, and which they believe contributed to the two mass shootings that claimed the lives of 17 people in Serbia in May.
They are calling for the replacement of the governing council of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media and the dismissal of the heads of the Serbian Public Broadcasting Service, for print media and tabloid newspapers promoting hatred and violence and breaching journalistic ethics to be shut down, for the frequencies of the pro-government Pink and Happy TV stations to be revoked, and for reality television shows that depict violence to be banned.
They are also calling for the removal or resignation of Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic and the head of the Security Intelligence Agency, Aleksandar Vulin.
The protest had the theme of ‘education’, and before the march, the crowd was addressed by law professor Miodrag Jovanovic, Belgrade teacher Marina Vidojevic and philosophy student Vanja Djurdjic. Various well-known Serbian actors also addressed the protesters.
Serbian language teacher Marina Vidojevic from Belgrade stated that a month ago, our society realized that the school system cannot protect either the students or the teachers.
“Today, we understand that the reason for this is that the school is insignificant to those in power. And it’s not just the school that they consider insignificant. We, as educators, are unimportant, irrelevant, and unappreciated in their eyes. The truth is that we are invisible,” she emotionally expressed.
Famous actor Seka Sablic emphasized that the greatest form of violence is the absence of justice, citing several examples.
“Violence is when land, water, and clean air are taken away from citizens. Violence is when workers in factories are pushed out of their jobs without salaries and any explanation, with gates locked in front of them,” Sablic stated during her speech.
“A prime example of violence is seen in our Parliament. Violence also exists when citizens are unable to access doctors due to unbearable waiting rooms. Violence is witnessing farmers pouring out milk. Violence is when the rest of Serbia is unable to access television channels like most of Belgrade. If those in power truly believe in their truth, why are they so afraid of what they label as ‘media tycoons’?” she stressed.
Actor Nenad Maricic read out the protest demands before the protesters began their march towards the Government, emphasizing that if the Government does not meet these demands by the following week, the protesters will modify their protest strategy, without specifying the practical implications.
“He [referring to Vucic] is finished,” he confidently declared in his speech.
Protesters were also addressed by Sasa Jovanovic, a friend and colleague of Omer Mehic, the pilot of an army helicopter that crashed in 2015, killing seven people including Mehic, an accident for which some have blamed official negligence.
Robert Kozma, an Green-Left Front opposition MP in the Serbian parliament, told BIRN in an interview this week that because of the huge numbers joining the weekly protests, “a new hope has been born… that we can establish justice and responsibility in our country”.
Addressing the media on Wednesday, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic repeated that he “understands” the people who are protesting but again accused opposition politicians of misusing a national tragedy.
He said declared that he is “ready to talk” with the opposition’s leaders and that if they don’t respond, Serbia could hold snap elections. He did not specify any deadline for the opposition to respond.
The ongoing protests are being organised by various opposition parties, including the Democratic Party, the People’s Party, the Green Left Front/Ne Davimo Beograd, Zajedno and the Party of Freedom and Justice/Movement of Free Citizens/Syndikat Sloga/Movement for the United Turn.
However, party political symbols have not been displayed at the protests.
The first ‘Serbia Against Violence’ protest was held on May 8, with subsequent protests being held every week, mostly on Friday evenings.
Vucic held a counter-rally on May 26, bussing in people from all over the country in an attempt to show mass support for his rule amid the regular opposition gatherings.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Kapten Al Hilal Tiru Selebrasi Lionel Messi saat Perayaan Juara Piala Super Arab Saudi 2024
Cristiano Ronaldo menjadi bahan ledekan di laga Al Nassr vs Al Hilal. (Foto: Instagram/@cristiano)
CRISTIANO Ronaldo menjadi bahan ledekan sepanjang laga Al Nassr vs Al Hilal di final Piala Super Arab Saudi 2024 yang dilangsungkan di Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Sports City, Minggu (18/8/2024) dini hari WIB. Bahkan kelar pertandingan, giliran kapten Al Hilal Salem Al-Dawsari yang meledek Cristiano Ronaldo.
Saat melakukan selebrasi juara, Salem Al-Dawsari yang membawa trofi berjalan pelan-pelan menuju podium juara. Hal itu persis seperti yang dilakukan Lionel Messi ketika merayakan gelar juara Piala Dunai 2022.
“Kapten Al Hilal meniru selebrasi Lionel Messi saat juara Piala Dunia 2022, di saat para suporter Al Hilal meneriakkan nama Lionel Messi,” tulis akun X @Joshua_Ubeku.
Munculnya nama dan Selebrasi Lionel Messi di laga Al Nassr vs Al Hilal tidak mengherankan. Sebab, kapten Al Nassr, Cristiano Ronaldo, merupakan rival abadi Lionel Messi.
Cristiano Ronaldo tak pernah lepas dari perbandingan dengan Lionel Messi, termasuk dalam laga dini hari tadi. Cristiano Ronaldo sejatinya membawa Al Nassr unggul 1-0 lebih dulu atas Al Hilal pada menit 44
Skor 1-0 untuk keunggulan Al Nassr bertahan hingga babak pertama usai. Megabet99, di babak kedua Al Nassr gagal mempertahankan keunggulan ini.
Al Hilal mencetak empat gol di babak kedua lewat gol-gol dari Sergej Milinkovic-Savic di menit 59, Aleksandar Mitrovic (63’ dan 69’) serta Malcom (72’). Al Hilal menang 4-1 atas Al Nassr dan keluar sebagai juara Piala Super Arab Saudi 2024.
Sementara itu, hasil buruk bagi Al Nassr memperpanjang catatan minus Cristiano Ronaldo. Setelah terakhir kali juara Coppa Italia 2020-2021, Cristiano Ronaldo tak pernah lagi memenangkan trofi.
Benar, ia pernah membawa Al Nassr juara Arab Club Championship pada 2023. Namun, ajang itu tak diakui FIFA karena merupakan turnamen internal yang diselenggarakan Kerajaan Arab Saudi.