Key events48m agoPremier League fixtures announced2h agoMorocco's Hakimi to stand trial for rape3h agoPreambleFormer Leipzig coach Ole Werner is unhappy he wasn’t given the chance to say goodbye to staff after his surprise dismissal from the club.Leipzig fired Werner and his assistant coaches Tom Cichon and Patrick Kohlmann on Wednesday after what many would consider a successful debut season – third place in the Bundesliga for Champions League.“Ole did a great job, he led us to the Champions League, but we also have to look forward,” said Red Bull head of soccer Jürgen Klopp , who made the decision with Leipzig supervisory board chairman Oliver Mintzlaff.Werner responded with a letter to the players, staff and fans of Leipzig on LinkedIn, saying “unfortunately the timing of this decision makes it impossible for me to say goodbye to all of you in person.”The 38-year-old coach looked back on what he called a “very positive” time in which he’d been asked to “give the team a new look in terms of its demeanor and style of play, while establishing a new, sustainable hierarchy within the dressing room.” He said he made many changes and thinks “together we succeeded in fulfilling this mandate.”With 20 wins and five draws from 34 rounds of the Bundesliga, Werner gained more points than any other coach at Leipzig. Werner thanked Leipzig’s sporting director Marcel Schäfer in his letter, but made no mention of Klopp or Mintzlaff.Leipzig has been linked with a move for Mallorca coach Martin Demichelis as Werner’s successor. Werner was also fired from his previous job at Werder Bremen after he refused to extend his contract with the club. APLionel Messi’s father is undergoing medical treatment for an undisclosed illness and his family asked the media for “humanity” on Thursday amid rumours about Jorge Messi’s health while his son competes at the World Cup. “Jorge is going through a health situation,” the Messi family said in a statement.The Tartan Army has taken over Providence, Rhode Island, and with it have secured an unofficial mascot in the form of Dawn the Duck.Dawn has joint bagpipes and marching on the streets, resplendent in a gold chain and Scottish flag.Dawn the Duck. Photograph: Greg M Cooper/EPAA big day for Connor Metcalfe after his fine performance in Australia’s win over Turkey. The St Pauli midfielder is wanted in MLS, with Sporting Kansas especially keen, and a good performance against USA will not do him any harm.Connor MetcalfePremier League fixtures announcedWhile everyone else is thinking about the World Cup, the Premier League announced the season’s fixtures.Krishnamoorthy emails: “Round one is over and could we now say the score is Rest of the lauded players 1-0 CR7.“If one of the most gifted players is not able to shrug off thoughts of his own achievements and focus on such a talented team, it would be a pity.”Poor old Ronaldo. Will he bounce back?Lionel Messi has company at the top of the Golden Boot list. Check out the latest scoring charts …It was horrible for Ismaël Koné’s teammates to witness his injury against Qatar.“I saw that something wasn’t right, and I just wanted for the medical staff to get in as quick as possible,” Stephen Eustáquio said.Paul MacInnes