Fulham manager Slavisa Jokanovic praised his team’s “brave” performance as Fulham secured their first victory since returning to the Premier League in an eventful match against Burnley.

Aleksandar Mitrovic scored twice for the hosts as they recovered from losing their first two matches to leave their opponents without a league win this season.

“We scored four goals and showed we could be a brave, attacking team,” Jokanovic said. “It’s an important step for us and we are satisfied with many things.”

Jean Michael Seri, signed from Nice in July, gave Jokanovic’s men the perfect start by firing a wonderful 25-yard strike into the top-right corner of Joe Hart’s goal after just four minutes.

Burnley drew level in the 10th minute as Jeff Hendrick converted at the second attempt after good work from Aaron Lennon down the right flank, but a cleverly worked corner allowed Mitrovic to head the home side back in front on 36 minutes, as Tom Cairney’s perfectly weighted cross from the edge of the area found the alert Serb.

Seeking another quick response, the Clarets were caught on the break two minutes later, as Mitrovic beat Stephen Ward in the air to glance beyond Hart – though the visitors were able to half their deficit before the break through James Tarkowski.

Mitrovic missed numerous chances to complete his hat-trick in a much quieter second half and agonisingly struck the post before Schurrle converted the rebound to add Fulham’s fourth with seven minutes remaining.

“We are improving, definitely. We know a huge job is ahead of us and we must keep going,” added Jokanovic.

“This is most competitive league in the world and this is not going to be an easy job for us.”

Lift-off for Fulham

With the knowledge that their opponents have been stretched by European engagements, the Cottagers seized their opportunity to kick-start their season in style with a first Premier League victory since April 2014.

After two defeats, Jokanovic’s attempts to gel Fulham’s new and old saw him hand a first start to Atletico Madrid loanee Luciano Vietto in a side consisting of seven summer additions.

They began with purpose, taking the game to slow-starting Burnley and Seri’s superb strike set the tone as Fulham demonstrated quality across their side – with the Ivorian himself at the heart of the hosts’ good play.

Fulham enjoyed more than two-thirds of the possession in the first half and both Schurrle and the lively Timothy Fosu-Mensah had attempts that, though unable to trouble Hart, offered warnings to Burnley.

But Mitrovic, now with three goals in as many Premier League games since signing permanently from Newcastle, looks as if he will be vital for Jokanovic’s side, proving a constant nuisance to Tarkowski and Ben Mee – though he should have added even more to his tally.

Fulham’s heavy investment in high-quality players over the close season – a reported £100m across 12 additions – suggests that, although survival is an obvious priority, continuing to play positively is also high on the agenda.

They demonstrated their ability to do so here very effectively.

“It’s an important step for us. We showed it is possible and we are satisfied with many things,” Jokanovic said.

“We know after the first two defeats it’s not easy for us to find the right way. There is room for improvement and we need to push harder on the training ground.”

Burnley’s tough start continues

Following a 3-1 loss to Watford last weekend, Burnley’s midweek Europa League play-off defeat by Olympiakos in Greece by the same score raised further questions over the Clarets’ capacity to successfully balance European and domestic competition.

They extended their winless run in the league to eight matches with defeat at Fulham, and have now conceded 10 goals in their past three in all competitions despite surrendering just four in six previous to that.

Sean Dyche reverted to the same side that had contested Burnley’s opening two Premier League fixtures, a total of six changes from Thursday night, but the Clarets conceded early for a second league game on the bounce.

There has been plenty made of Burnley’s busy schedule, but they now face an uphill task if they are to reach the Europa League group stages, and exiting that competition will only increase pressure on their league performances.

“It’s about working hard as well as smart,” said Dyche.

“The players have been peppered with messages of ‘it’s too much being in the Europa League’. You can’t make excuses because everyone wanted that challenge at the club.”

Once again Dyche’s men showed spirit to respond positively to going behind, pulling back to 3-2 just before half-time when Tarkowski converted from close range.

But spirit was far from enough to deny a lively Fulham side, who peppered Hart’s goal in the closing stages as the Clarets saw their winless record away to promoted sides extend to 10 games.

Man of the match – Aleksandar Mitrovic

‘We can’t make excuses’ – what they said

Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic: “It was a tough game. Every goal is a nice goal and a great feeling but the most important thing is we grab the three points and give the fans a nice afternoon.

“We have so many new players. They came from different leagues and some don’t speak English but this is the best league, we want to stay with the best and we will work hard to do that.

“No matter what we do, we will stick to our system and that will give us more confidence to stay in this league.”

Burnley manager Sean Dyche: “Fulham had a good season last season but they have added some quality. It was a fair shift of money. But I thought they were the better side overall. They had the best player on the pitch in Mitrovic.

“Things aren’t going our way with injuries. We didn’t get as many in in the market as we’d like to help us across two competitions. We have to concentrate on what’s in front of us and that’s the next game.”

Mitrovic fares well against Hart – the stats

• Aleksandar Mitrovic has scored 15 league goals since his Fulham debut in February – and only Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah can match that total in that time across the top four tiers of English football.
• Four of Mitrovic’s 13 Premier League goals have been scored against Joe Hart, having also scored for Newcastle in October 2015 against Manchester City and West Ham.
• Burnley goalkeeper Hart has conceded at least three goals in five of the past past six Premier League games he has played in the month of August, conceding 17 in total.
• Since a run of five consecutive Premier League wins between March and April, Burnley have collected just three points from three draws in eight league games.
• After failing to score with any of his first 24 shots in the Premier League, Burnley defender James Tarkowski has scored with two of his last three in the competition.

What’s next?

Fulham host Exeter City in the League Cup on Tuesday (19:45 BST), followed by a trip to Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday (15:00 BST).

Burnley host Olympiakos in the second leg of their Europa League play-off on Thursday (19:45 BST) before Manchester United visit Turf Moor in the Premier League on Sunday (16:00 BST).

A senior Vatican official called on Pope Francis to resign, accusing the pontiff of failing to act sooner on sexual abuse allegations against former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.

In an 11-page statement, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano said sanctions imposed on McCarrick by Pope Benedict XVI over sexual misconduct were lifted under Francis, despite reports about his “gravely immoral behaviour with seminarians and priests”.

Vigano said he informed Francis in person in 2013 of the sanctions and how McCarrick, ex-archbishop of Washington, DC, “corrupted generations of seminarians and priests”.

Pope Francis “continued to cover” for McCarrick despite the sanctions and even made him “his trusted counsellor”, Vigano alleged.

“In this extremely dramatic moment for the universal church, he must acknowledge his mistakes and, in keeping with the proclaimed principle of zero tolerance, Pope Francis must be the first to set a good example for cardinals and bishops who covered up McCarrick’s abuses and resign along with all of them,” he said.

The Vatican had no immediate comment on the allegations.

‘Betrayal’

Vigano, 77, a conservative whose hardline anti-gay views are well known, has long been seen as a critic of Pope Francis, who is viewed as more moderate. 

His letter also contained a lengthy diatribe about homosexuality and liberals in the Catholic Church.

Vigano’s criticism came as Pope Francis made a two-day visit to Ireland, where he addressed sex abuse scandals and “begged for God’s forgiveness” for the “betrayal” by the church.

On Sunday, Pope Francis told tens of thousands of people gathered in Dublin: “None of us can fail to be moved by the stories of young people who suffered abuse, were robbed of their innocence and left scarred.”

Francis met privately on Saturday with eight victims of clerical, religious and institutional abuse, saying he would seek greater commitment to eliminate the “scourge”.

Vigano’s statement, first published in the conservative American publication the National Catholic Register, also claimed several Vatican officials knew for years about the allegations against McCarrick.

An investigation was launched after a man claimed he was sexually abused by McCarrick when he was 11 years old. Similar allegations were made against McCarrick by other men who were seminarians studying for the priesthood.

In July, McCarrick resigned as cardinal after he was removed from official duties in June.

A recent US grand jury report into sexual misconduct and coverups found 300 priests abused more than 1,000 children over 70 years in the state of Pennsylvania while senior church officials took steps to conceal it.

Vigano himself has had his own problems with allegations of trying to hide the truth.

The coverup accusation, which Vigano denied, concerned accusations he tried to quash an investigation into a former archbishop accused of misconduct.

SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Image: Guillaume Payen/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

When Facebook started off it was essentially an online yearbook based entirely on where you went to college — you could only log in if you had a .edu email address.

In the intervening 14 years the social media platform has changed the digital landscape (to put it mildly), acquired other networks like Instagram, and moved far from its university-based networks. But now Instagram is considering a feature very similar to Facebook’s early days.

A new feature reportedly being tested allows student ‘grammers to join networks or special communities based on their school affiliation.

A CNBC report on Friday showed invites asking students to join university community lists and “connect with other students.” It’s supposed to be a tool for current students, so alumni groups can stick to LinkedIn and Facebook.

If you do join, you can add your university and expected graduation year to your profile — very reminiscent of early Facebook. Now it’s only optional to include education information on your Facebook profile.

We reached out to Instagram for more information about the new school-focused feature.

Other than both launching at the start of the school year, the new Instagram feature is nothing like the new Tinder U dating app, which allows college students to search for matches within a geo-located area as long as they have active .edu email addresses.

Justin Verlander — the “Dodger killer” who was hit with a fake $1 million lunch bill while dining at The Beverly Hills Hotel this weekend — revealed that his meal was comped.

No, not the $1 million, but the actual bill, which included a $42 salad, $10 cranberry juice and $30 pancakes. 

“The manager came over and we ended up laughing about it,” said Verlander, whose Houston Astros beat the Dodgers in the World Series last year. “They actually ended up comping the meal. Everyone was talking about how expensive the pancakes were and the salad. It was comped. It worked out well for both sides.”

Sure, Verlander — who has an MVP, Cy Young Award and seven All-Star appearances on his resume — is one of the highest-paid players in baseball, but who can say no to a free lunch?

Contributing: The Associated Press

 

Dedryck Boyata responded to a fans’ banner claiming he was “not fit to wear the jersey” by scoring the only goal as Celtic beat Hamilton.

The Belgian, the subject of a rejected bid from Fulham, ruled himself out of recent games, claiming he was injured.

Manager Brendan Rodgers refuted the defender’s claims, and said he was “sad” at the situation.

But Boyata’s close range finish earned Celtic the points despite a lacklustre performance from the champions.

The victory moves Celtic into second in the Premiership before next Sunday’s Old Firm derby with Rangers.

Before that, Rodgers’s side host FK Suduva of Lithuania at Celtic Park on Thursday in the second leg of the Europa League play-off round, having drawn the first leg 1-1.

Hamilton, meanwhile, remain in the bottom half of the table, but will take consolation from the concession of just one goal in two away games after a home humbling by Hearts.

Celtic nowhere near their best

Just before kick-off, the earnest section of the Celtic support hoisted an anti-Boyata banner that declared him unfit to wear the jersey. It’s just as well as he did.

The Belgian’s behaviour has caused understandable anger around the club in recent weeks, but his tap-in finish just after the hour didn’t half lift the mood inside the stadium. Leigh Griffiths’ corner was flicked on by Moussa Dembele and then headed back across goal by Mikael Lustig for Boyata to poke home.

That was the breakthrough that Celtic had toiled to find. Finally they had broken Hamilton’s resistance, not to mind conquered their own lack of accuracy.

They had had moments – plenty of them. Hamilton had survived scares from James Forrest, Callum McGregor and a number of close-run things from Dembele.

The striker – along with Griffiths – got more game-time into his legs. No goals, but the mere fact that he was out there and getting chances will have encouraged his manager.

Celtic were far from free-flowing or impressive, though. Forrest and Kieran Tierney did their best to fire them up, but there was a lack of wit and ruthlessness in trying to cut through a resolute Hamilton. For all their mountains of possession, they were nowhere near their best. They were on different wavelengths too often.

Hamilton manager Martin Canning had cause to be frustrated at the simplicity of the goal, but his side’s organisation was good and their spirit was obvious. On the back of their fine win against Motherwell a week ago, this was a day that should give them heart.

Reluctant Celt makes valuable contribution – analysis

Boyata, the apparently reluctant Celt, managed to get himself in the right place at the right time to make sure an underwhelming performance still managed to bring three valuable points. After the full-time whistle, the entire Celtic team – including the manager – did a mini-tour of the pitch and wandered down to the end where the banner had been raised. It was conspicuous by its absence.

Where now for Boyata? Heaven knows. Celtic have been linked with the 20-year-old Le Havre centre-back, Harold Moukoudi, but are they really going to let the Belgian go and replace him with another rookie? He might not be the flavour of the month for some Celtic fans, but Rodgers still sees him as his top centre-back. “We’re better when he’s in the team,” he said, pre-match.

Celtic move onwards into a huge week. A Europa League game on Thursday and then Rangers on Sunday. They got through this one. In seven days, when Steven Gerrard brings his team to Parkhead, the occasion promises to be a little more thunderous.

Harare, Zimbabwe – A loud and familiar chant rang out across the tightly-packed arena as Emmerson Mnangagwa took to the stage to be sworn in as Zimbabwe’s president.

“ED Pfee! ED Pfee!” the crowds roared in unison, echoing the ruling ZANU-PF party’s election campaign slogan for Mnangagwa to “get in there” in the hope that Zimbabwe’s second president will deliver a new era of prosperity and peace.

Addressing the thousands of supporters gathered on Sunday at Harare’s National Sports Stadium, Mnangagwa urged Zimbabweans to unite across political, tribal and racial divides.

“We are all Zimbabweans; what unites us is greater than what could ever divide us,” said the 75-year-old, a former vice president and intelligence chief nicknamed “Ngwena”, Shona for crocodile.

Mnangagwa’s inauguration was delayed by two weeks after the main opposition coalition filed a legal challenge to reject the result of the July 30 presidential election, which it said was marred by “mammoth theft and fraud”.

Electoral officials had declared Mnangagwa the winner with 50.8 percent, ahead of MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa, who got 44.3 percent.

But on Friday, Zimbabwe’s Constitutional Court unanimously rejected the opposition’s bid and upheld the ZANU-PF leader’s victory – much to Chamisa’s dismay.

“President Mnangagwa is disputed as leader,” the 40-year-old opposition leader said in a statement. “I have a legitimate claim that I am supposed to be leading the people of Zimbabwe.”

At the inaugural ceremony attended by other opposition leaders and several regional heads of state, Mnangagwa reached out to the opposition and urged the nation to look forward and work towards helping the country’s shuttered economy grow.

‘Father of all of us’

“The vision of a new and prosperous Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe we all want is a shared one and transcends political party lines. As a president I pledge to act fairly and impartially, without fear or favour as president of all Zimbabweans,” he said.

Echoing Mnangagwa’s comments, Godfrey Gotora, a 26-year-old who works as a driver in Harare, said he was confident Mnangagwa could transcend the political rift and avoid repeating the mistakes of Robert Mugabe, who led  ZANU-PF and the country for 37 years. 

“Mnangagwa used to work with Mugabe and he could see all the mistakes that Mugabe made,” he told Al Jazeera.

“ED [Mnangagwa] will correct all those things in the new dispensation. Even those in the opposition who think he will not make a good leader, they will see he has the ability to unite all of us.

“Mnangagwa is the father of all of us as people of this land so we must put our trust in him,” he said.

Ever since it declared independence in 1980, Zimbabwe has been ruled by ZANU-PF. But following the rise of the MDC movement in the 2000s, the country has experienced disputed elections which resulted in violent clashes and court challenges from the opposition.

Although Chamisa accuses the judiciary of being under ZANU-PF’s control, Mnangagwa has promised a new dawn for Zimbabwe with impartial state institutions.

However, since Mugabe’s fall in November 2017 in the wake of a military intervention, concerns remain over the power and influence of the country’s armed forces.

On August 1, security forces crushed opposition protests in Harare, killing at least six people and wounding scores more during demonstrations against delays in the announcement of election results.

According to Dewa Mavhinga, the Southern Africa director for Human Rights Watch, the post-election crackdown on the opposition by the security forces “marked a turning point” in Zimbabwe’s democracy.

“The military is the power behind Mnangagwa’s throne, and could be an obstacle to the democratisation project, notwithstanding Mnangagwa’s declared desire for a new dispensation,” he told Al Jazeera.

Mending ties or burning bridges again?

Last month’s election had been trumpeted as a major step towards mending Zimbabwe’s diplomatic relations with Western countries and ending decades of isolation, as well as securing much-needed international funding to revive the economy.

Election observers from the European Union and the United States were allowed to monitor a vote in Zimbabwe for the first time in 16 years.

In the lead-up to the polls, the opposition had repeatedly complained over access to the voters’ roll and demanded more transparency in the printing and storage of ballot papers.

After the vote, European Union observers said that Mnangagwa had benefitted from an “un-level playing field” and some voter intimidation, but international monitors largely praised the conduct of the election.

But Jeffrey Smith, executive director of Vanguard Africa, told Al Jazeera concerns over the election and subsequent tensions have damaged hopes of restoring ties with the West.

“If international donors and world powers were somehow fooled by an orderly election day, and liable to lend support to the government thereafter, those illusions were effectively shattered when the military opened fire on protesters,” said Smith.

Mnangagwa has expressed regret for the loss of life on August 1 and said he will soon announce an independent commission of inquiry to investigate the violence.

The president has repeatedly pledged to lead Zimbabwe to a more democratic era, but Smith told Al Jazeera Mnangagwa’s past reputation as Mugabe’s right-hand man – accused by critics of being the chief architect behind the political violence during the 2008 elections as ZANU-PF’s chief election agent – may stand in the way.

Mnangagwa has also faced allegations of playing a role in ethnic massacres that killed at least 20,000 people in the 1980s, when he was a minister of state security. Mnangagwa has denied any role in the killings.

The president has repeatedly pledged to lead Zimbabwe to a more democratic era but critics say his brushing off of the past raises doubts over his ability to ensure accountability and justice – especially since much of Mugabe’s old guard remains in positions of power.

“The Mnangagwa government is nothing new. It [will be] a cabinet stocked with Mugabe-era hardliners, and the absolute worst of the worst who cannily destroyed Zimbabwe over the past four decades,” said Smith.

A nation hungry to eat

But for many Zimbabweans, fatigued after weeks of tensions and uncertainty, the hope is that Mnangagwa’s inauguration will allow the country to put political differences behind and focus on fixing the economy, which has seen worsening cash shortages and rising prices of basic commodities.

“What we want now is to eat,” said Romeo Nemarmbwa, a 34-year-old entrepreneur.

“It doesn’t matter whether you like the president or not – we want to eat. I am positive that Mnangagwa can do it, he will deliver us from our suffering,” he told Al Jazeera.

In his inaugural speech, Mnangagwa reiterated his mantra that “Zimbabwe is open for business”, pledging to cut down on government expenditure and implement policies to attract domestic and foreign capital.

He also pledged to introduce a raft of fiscal measures to address Zimbabwe’s external debt arrears and liquidity crisis.

“Through the engagement and re-engagement policy we are opening a new chapter in our relations with the world, underpinned by mutual respect, shared principles and common values,” he said.

“Measures will be taken to correct the fiscal imbalances that threaten to undermine the viability of the financial sector as reflected through the spiraling cash shortages and the distortions plaguing the foreign currency market,” he said.

Faced with urgent, complex economic and political problems, over the next five years, Mnangagwa is likely to have a challenging path to navigate in his bid to lead Zimbabwe into a new era.

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Image: Getty Images For Parkwood Entertainment

Beyoncé and Jay-Z are known for their surprises, but they themselves got one of their own during the Atlanta stop of the On The Run II tour on Saturday. 

As the show was finishing up, the two walked off the stage hand-in-hand right as a member of the audience hopped on stage and attempted to follow them out. 

In footage caught by fans in the audience, you can see a man in a white shirt casually climbing the stairs and running past dancers and towards the couple. 

The temporarily stunned dancers raced after him and appeared to stop him before actually reaching The Carters. Other angles, captured from the audience, show the altercation between dancers, security, and the stranger. 

The BeyHive reacted to the incident in classic BeyHive fashion. 

But the show must go on, of course. Beyoncé’s publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure, took to Instagram to reassure fans following the stunt. “Thank you to all the fans for your concern,” she wrote. “They are fine and looking forward to the show tomorrow.”

You can see the remaining On The Run II tour dates here.