Former Brazil star Rivaldo is delighted to see Neymar back in action after the Paris Saint-Germain star underwent surgery on a foot injury sustained against Marseille in February. The 26-year-old came off the bench for Brazil to provide the breakthrough in last weekend’s friendly against Croatia, as he scored in their 2-0 World Cup warm-up victory. Rivaldo, who won the World Cup with Brazil and wore the same number 10 shirt as Neymar, believes that the former Barcelona attacker is now ready to make his mark in Russia....

The Barcelona star linked with Manchester City-bound forward Gabriel Jesus to lauch a counterattack that ended with Neymar rolling the ball into an empty net. It was the 24-year-old’s 49th goal for his country at senior level, while he has netted a further 18 at various youth levels for Brazil, including under-17, under-20 and the Olympic side. He has hit 95 since joining Barca, adding to the 138 he claimed at his first club, Santos....

The fresh terms will take the Brazilian through to 2021 and push him into a bracket shared by world soccer’s top earners. He will, however, still be operating in the shadow of his illustrious teammate, Lionel Messi - financially, at least. The current holder of the Ballon d’Or continues to operate at a different level to many of his contemporaries, and it is for that reason that he is handsomely rewarded for his efforts....

Barcelona 19/20 to win La Liga Also comprised of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, the MSN has been a fearsome triumvirate in La Liga, ever since the Uruguayan joined Barca in 2014. Messi, arguably the world’s best player, leads the trio in goals, netting a staggering 106 times in 105 games over the past three years. Suarez, meanwhile, has 85 goals in 97 games, while Neymar – often deployed on the left wing – has scored 59 times in the same amount of appearances....

Oakboro Police Chief T.J. Smith has been placed on unpaid administrative leave for two weeks and probation for six months for violating police policies of fraud, serving conflicting interests and committing “willful acts that endanger the property of others,” according to letters obtained by WSOC-TV. On Wednesday, the local outlet reported that the town of Oakboro hired a private investigation company to look into the allegations made against Smith and found that the police chief told his officers to attend a vaccine “clinic” that allowed for self-injection....

Toms River Councilwoman Laurie Huryk, who is a Democrat, didn’t read the letter aloud but described its content as both racist and disgusting, The Asbury Park Press reported. “The divisiveness in this country has reached a frightening pitch,” Huryk said Tuesday. The letter is believed to have been sent to Huryk’s home following the comments she made about the lack of racial diversity in Toms River during a June 23 town council meeting....

However, industry insiders could only guess at a precise launch date… until now. MORE: ‘King’ Dan Smith rules GPI World Poker Rankings | Poker icons star in Discovery Channel poker show | WSOP November Nine set New Jersey State Sen. Raymond Lesniak took to Twitter on Thursday to inform online poker proponents in the U.S. that PokerStars will launch in the Garden State within “weeks, not months.” In fact, the veteran Democratic state official barely seemed capable of containing his own excitement, informing Twitter followers that the re-entry of the world’s largest online poker site into the U....

O’Scanlon said he was notified Saturday morning his account was suspended for a tweet questioning whether governments should force people to be vaccinated against COVID-19. He said his account was offline for about 12 hours until he agreed to delete the message. Though the Republican lawmaker had the ability to appeal the decision, he said in an interview with NJ Advance Media he felt the process would only drag out his suspension....

Pittsburgh’s offense stalled for much of its Week 17 duel with Baltimore. But Harris was a shining light, thrashing his way through the Ravens’ front seven to give defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald fits. Harris strung together his first 100-yard game of the season on Sunday. He also scored the game’s pivotal touchdown, ghosting into the back corner of the end zone before fielding a dart from Kenny Pickett. The score kept the Steelers’ playoff hopes alive, all while cementing Harris’ place in Ravens-Steelers rivalry lore....

MORE: Best photos of WNBA legends, current stars | Popovich explains Hammon hiring “If Becky doesn’t coach in the Summer League, and win, you and I might not be doing this interview, whether I’m qualified or not,” Lieberman told NBA.com’s David Aldridge. “And I know I’m qualified.” Hammon, a former WNBA star, coached the the Spurs’ Summer League team last month after being hired as the league’s first female assistant coach last fall....

Ahead of Thursday’s vote on the social spending and climate bill, whose $1.75 trillion price tag is among the things that Republicans are objecting to, McCarthy exploited what is known as the “magic minute.” In lieu of a filibuster in the lower house, it allows the Speaker and House minority and majority leaders unlimited time to speak on the chamber floor. The other representatives have time limits. Commandeering proceedings at 8....

Pelosi touched on the subject during an appearance on ABC’s This Week after being pressed on the matter by host George Stephanopoulos. Prior to the interview, progressive Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri reiterated her support for the police reform slogan and referenced pressure from within the Democratic Party to change her stance. “With all due respect in the world for Cori Bush, that’s not the position of the Democratic Party,” Pelosi said....

Graffiti on the garage door read “$2K”, “Cancel rent” and “We want everything,” according to ABC 6. The perpetrators had also written “UBI”, which may be a reference to “Universal Basic Income.” A pig’s head was left outside the garage door sitting in red paint and local police were informed at around 2am. Pelosi, the leading Democrat in Congress, appears not to have been home at the time. No individual or group has yet claimed responsibility for the vandalism and it is not clear who might be behind it....

In a 5-4 vote, conservative justices blocked a lower court order that would have allowed Wisconsin to extend absentee voting until April 13, giving residents more time to vote from home amid the pandemic. The majority opinion from the Supreme Court was that “extending the date by which ballots may be cast by voters—not just received by the municipal clerks but cast by voters—for an additional six days after the scheduled election day fundamentally alters the nature of the election....

The move to curtail President Donald Trump’s ability to act unliterally is designed to force Republicans in the Senate to address the heightened tension with the Middle Eastern nation. “Last week, the Trump Administration conducted a provocative and disproportionate military airstrike targeting high-level Iranian military officials,” Pelosi wrote in a letter announcing the legislation to her colleagues Sunday night. “This action endangered our service members, diplomats and others by risking a serious escalation of tensions with Iran… we are concerned that the Administration took this action without the consultation of Congress and without respect for Congress’s war powers granted to it by the Constitution....

Nanoparticles are far smaller than what the human eye can detect, measuring between 1 and 100 nanometers across. A typical human hair is at least 80,000 nanometers thick. Medical researchers have learned how to use these particles to deliver microscopic doses of medications to tumors, damaged organs and inflamed tissues. A research team from two divisions of Harvard University, the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and the John A....

Osaka, the world’s No. 2-ranked women’s tennis player, announced her decision in a statement posted to her official social media accounts on Monday. She had been fined $15,000 and threatened with disqualification after skipping out on a press conference following her win against Patricia Maria Tig on Sunday. Osaka said she was withdrawing from the French Open and “taking some time away from the court” to deal with issues of depression and anxiety, as well as to avoid being a “distraction” during the rest of the tournament....

Osaka discussed her decision to play for Japan in her new Netflix docuseries. She was born in Chūō-ku in Osaka and her mother was Japanese, while her father was from Haiti. She was raised in the U.S. “I’ve been playing under the Japan flag since I was 14. It was never even a secret that I’m going to play for Japan for the Olympics,” Osaka said in the series, which premiered on Thursday....

The four tennis administrators who signed a statement in support of players’ mental health concerns are the same ones who threatened to disqualify or suspend Osaka on Sunday after she skipped a news conference. Osaka responded by saying she is struggling with anxiety and depression. The No. 2-ranked player was fined $15,000 for skipping a news conference after her first-round victory at Roland Garros on Sunday. She withdrew from the competition the next day, saying she experiences “huge waves of anxiety” before meeting with the media and that she has “suffered long bouts of depression....