21/08/2025

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Malaysian Paper U S Y | UG , 0 5 ‘Broken promises’ A LEXANDER ISAK believes his depar ture from Newcastle is “in the best interests of everyone” after breaking his silence on the saga of the Premier League transfer window amid speculation over a move to Liverpool. welcome the 25-year-old back into the squad. Isak breaks silence on transfer saga, striker says ‘change’ best for everyone THURSDAY | AUG 21, 2025

McIlroy backs ‘clean slate’ acks clean late’

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According to reports, Isak had been promised an improved contract only for northeast side Newcastle to hold off due to pressures of meeting financial sustainability rules. Newcastle responded with a statement late Tuesday saying that while they were saddened by Isak’s comments, they could yet

“We are disappointed to have been alerted to a social media post by Alexander Isak this evening,” the club wrote. “We are clear in response that Alex remains under contract and that no commitment has ever been made by a club official that Alex can leave Newcastle United this summer. “We want to keep our best players, but we also understand players have their own wishes and we listen to their views.” The statement added: “This is a proud football club with proud traditions and we strive to retain our family feel. Alex remains part of our family and will be welcomed back when he is ready to rejoin his teammates.” Isak has scored 62 goals in 109 appearances since joining from Real Sociedad in 2022, including the winner against Liverpool in the League Cup final earlier this year that ended Newcastle’s 70-year wait to win a domestic trophy. Liverpool have already spent around £300 million (RM1.7 billion) overhauling a squad that romped to the Premier League title last season. But they have also recouped over £200 million (RM1.14b) in sales and are still in the market for attacking options after the departures of Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez and tragic death of Diogo Jota. Any deal is unlikely to be done before the two clubs face off in their next Premier League game on Tuesday (Aug 25, 3am Malaysian time) at St James’ Park. – AFP

The Swedish international, who was the second-highest goalscorer in the Premier League last season, has not featured for the Magpies in pre-season or their opening game of the campaign, a 0-0 draw away at Aston Villa on Saturday. Liverpool have reportedly had a £110 million (RM626m) bid rejected for the 25-year-old, with Newcastle holding out for a British transfer record fee of up to £150 million (RM854m). Isak released a statement yesterday after deciding not to appear at the Professional Footballers’ Association awards event despite being selected in the Premier League 2024/25 team of the year. “I’ve kept quiet for a long time while others have spoken. That silence has allowed people to push their own

Mbappe lifts Los Blancos

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version of events, even though they know it doesn’t reflect what was really said and agreed behind closed doors,” Isak posted on Instagram . “The reality is that promises were made and the club has known my position for a long time. To now act as if these issues are only emerging is misleading. “When promises are broken and trust is lost, the relationship can’t

Ready to soar

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continue. That’s where things are for me right now - and why change is in the best interests of everyone, not just myself.”

Alexander Isak. – REUTERSPIC

Rubber tapper’s son aims to stand proud alongside Latif Romly

BORN into a rubber tapper’s family in Pauh, Perlis, national deaf athlete Zaiman Megat Abu (pic) , 24, has never allowed a life of hardship to be an excuse to stop “dreaming”, but instead uses it as motivation to raise Malaysia’s name on the world stage. The youngest of five siblings now carries the big ambition of standing alongside his “training mate” and national Paralympic champion, Datuk Abdul Latif Romly, with a mission to chase glory at the pinnacle of deaf sports, the Deaflympics Tokyo 2025. Zaiman, who lost his hearing at the age of two after a fall, began to take athletics seriously at 17 when his talent was discovered by coach Sanusi Zainal Abidin, the same individual who once groomed Abdul Latif. “I have trained once with Abdul Latif. The coach also always says I can be like Abdul Latif. Those are the words I hold on to until today,” he told Bernama ahead of the Southeast Asian (SEA) Deaf Games 2025 in Jakarta, which offi

“His parents really were his backbone, willing to send him to training every day even though we trained at various locations. I still remember, the day he came back from Iran with a gold and a silver medal, that very same day his father passed away. “At that time, I told his family, let me take Zaiman to any competition. If there is fortune in rewards, he can buy a house for his mother because now he is the main pillar of the family, as his other siblings are already married,”he said emotionally. Now, he pours all the knowledge he has with the hope that Zaiman can become his “second protégé”to bring glory to the world stage, prov ing that persons with disabilities should never be looked down upon. Earlier, the Malaysian contingent set a mis sion to capture 16 gold medals at the 2025 SEA Deaf Games, in order to defend the title won at the inaugural edition in Kuala Lumpur in 2022. – Bernama

years of coaching, this is the first time he has trained a deaf athlete without any foundation in sign language. “Zaiman comes from a very poor family. He has done all sorts of jobs before becoming a full-time ath lete. “One thing I have never doubted about him is his com mitment. If I set training at 4pm, by 3.45pm he is already on the field. Sometimes, if he has to come late because of work, he will make sure to con tinue training until he truly gets what I teach him,” he said. He added that the first moment of their meeting seven years ago remains etched in his mem ory when Zaiman came to the field simply out of interest, never imagining that the journey would take him to the international stage.

cially opens today and runs until next Tuesday (Aug 26). The honour of carrying the Jalur Gemilang (national flag) during the opening ceremony is a symbol of

his determination, with a single target – to ensure the gold medal in the triple jump event is brought home as a gift in conjunction with the 68th National Day on Aug 31. Behind the success he is beginning to enjoy, Zaiman always places his family as his source of strength, especially his mother, Maznah Mansor, 65, following the loss of his late father, Megat Abu Mat Saman, who passed away at the age of 64.

Meanwhile, his coach Sanusi, 59, who is also a secondary school teacher in Perlis, views Zaiman as an extraordinary figure, as in his 30

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