Sports Burst - Is Griezmann the New Messi?
Griezmann will need to be on top for Barcelona as Messi loses fight to be fit for Valencia
By Tim Stannard
Messi and Suarez still struggling to be fit for Valencia clash as Griezmann continues to hold the line for Barcelona
Antoine Griezmann came to Barcelona wanting to sit at the same metaphorical table as Lionel Messi. It's a dream come true for the striker, then, as Griezmann is having an epic meal with 27 courses for his new club.
The Frenchman is going to have to lead the line for Barcelona through the start of the season a little bit longer as it looks as though Messi's return is going to be put on hold at least until next week, with little chance of making a league debut against Valencia at the Camp Nou on Saturday. "A huge doubt," notes beIN SPORTS man-on-the ground in Barcelona, Jamie Easton.
The Argentinean has been suffering from a calf injury suffered on the player's first day back with Barcelona in pre-season and is still unable to train in full with the first team.
Messi will also face a race against time to be fit for Barcelona's campaign-opener in the Champions League next week - a particularly testing clash against Borussia Dortmund in Germany. Luis Suarez is also a doubt for the Valencia clash after suffering a calf injury in the defeat at Athletic Bilbao.
This sees Barcelona's hopes resting on Griezmann who has had mixed success in this regard. The French forward pulled a vanishing act in Barcelona's two away games in La Liga - the defeat to Athletic and draw at Osasuna - but was sparkly at home to Betis with two goals in a 5-2 win.
The Sports Burst live show will look at whether Griezmann will be up to the task. Just head to our beIN SPORTS USA Facebook page at 12PM ET / 9AM PT.
USMNT digs deep against Uruguay as Brazil get beaten
Sports Burst's unnecessarily snarky and downright UnAmerican pop at the USMNT yesterday was thoroughly put to shame in St. Louis on Tuesday night.
A 1-1 draw against Uruguay, the fifth best team in the world according to the rankings (although what number it is without Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani is another matter) put a bit of a spring in the step of Gregg Berhalter who saw his side come back from 1-0 down thanks to an equalizer from Jordan Morris.
Elsewhere in the US of A - Los Angeles this time - Brazil saw a 17-match unbeaten run ended with a 1-0 defeat to Peru. Neymar came on for the final half-an-hour of the game with the revelation from Neymar's Dad - his official name - that negotiations with Barcelona on a possible transfer were not yet over. Oh good.
Over in Texas and Mexico had a most unfortunate result against Argentina with Inter forward Lautaro Martinez scoring a hat-trick in a 4-0 rout against a fairly robust El Tri side. It was the country's first defeat under Tata Martino, who took over in January.
Antonio Brown faces sexual assault charges
Antonio Brown is back in the news once again, but for a considerably more serious reasons than frostbite or engineering a departure from the Oakland Raiders.
The New England Patriots player has been accused of rape in a civil complaint raised by his former personal trainer, Britney Taylor.
Brown's attorney has strongly denied the accusations. Darren Heitner said that the pair in question had an entirely "consensual relationship" and that the allegations were a "money grab."
It remains to be seen if the wide receiver will make his debut for the Patriots against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday. The NFL will also be opening an investigation into the affair.
Breaking News!
And some breaking news just in. Sports Burst had to rewrite some copy in regards to Team USA in the FIBA World Cup. A crushing victory of the French was assumed in the quarterfinals in China. Instead, France pulled off an impressive and comprehensive 89-79 victory to end a 58-game winning streak in international competitions for the US.