Rihanna And Donald Glover Finally Debut Footage From Their Top Secret Collab

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It’s been a few months since fans started speculating about Rihanna and Donald Glover‘s secret project after a smiley photo of them surfaced online and internet sleuths figured out that they were on set in Havana, Cuba, filming with the rapper’s “This Is America” music video director, Hiro Murai. Local outlets added some pieces to the puzzle, including the title — Guava Island — and the involvement of co-stars Letitia Wright and Nonso Anozie.

Ever since, everyone on the project has remained tight-lipped, with Rihanna only describing it as an “exciting experience” when asked for details — until this weekend when Glover premiered the first footage from the film during his Pharos Festival in New Zealand. Although none of the actors posted the clip online, one festival attendee shared the wealth, and the preview looks like a musical explosion of island culture.

Billed as “A Childish Gambino Film,” Glover is a musician who laments the vacation-free reality of his days. “We live in paradise but none of us actually have the time or the means to live here,” his character says. However, this film doesn’t seem to be a depiction of the slow island life you might imagine. The fast-paced clip speckles lively drumming and dancing with intricate work in a textile factory and a bag-over-the-head hostage situation.

Honestly, it’s still a bit of a mystery as to what, exactly, Guava Island is, but check out the clip above to submit your best guess.

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The Match: $9m event indicates dangerous direction golf is heading

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Phil Mickelson sank a four-foot putt on the 22nd hole to beat Tiger Woods and claim the $9m prize

Cards on the table, I did not watch it. I had plans last Friday night and they were not going to be changed by The Match even though it carried a scary significance that stretched beyond a contest between America’s two best known golfers.

Judging by the reaction to Phil Mickelson’s 22nd hole victory over Tiger Woods I did not miss much.

The golf was mediocre by their standards, their much-vaunted “smack talk” was pretty dull and the destiny of the $9m (£7m) was settled by a 93-yard pitch and putt.

But this contrived contest offered a glimpse of where professional golf is headed. The destination looks terribly tawdry and potentially downright dangerous.

This was nothing more than a desperate attempt to make a quick buck. Never mind the $19.99 television charge, the most significant ground broken by this pay-per-view pantomime was the wager culture it promoted.

Changing odds were constantly updated as MGM’s gambling app offered an assortment of “in-play” punts. The telecast featured betting experts effectively promoting the idea that the only way to enjoy the golf was to have some money on it.

Timing is everything and American sport is on the threshold of a betting revolution. Golf does not want to miss out after the US Supreme Court’s decision to end a federal ban on sports punting.

The Match was a cynical play to get the ball rolling. It is well known that Mickelson loves a bet and plays high stakes money matches with fellow pros on the Tuesdays of tournament weeks.

Woods said “we’ll play for whatever makes him feel uncomfortable” when the idea of a winner-takes-all match was initiated at last May’s Players Championship. It would be all about the money.

So it was perfectly in keeping when the publicity shoot last week had both players posing with millions of greenbacks piled around them. It was so tacky, so out of touch, so unfeeling for the world outside their super-rich existence.

“When they put that photograph out of both of them caressing nine million we were left going ‘hang on a minute, this is not our sport’,” Sir Nick Faldo told BBC Radio 5 live’s Breakfast show.

Yet those tasteless, gaudy pictures did their job; they stoked interest, had people talking and got The Match trending.

This was never going to be a worthy, legitimate sporting occasion which makes the fact that it appeared as a sanctioned event on the PGA Tour calendar hard to stomach.

How could they let it overshadow the World Cup in Australia? Well, The Match was a cash cow, a vehicle to open golf to fledgling US gambling markets and so commanded official endorsement.

The PGA Tour wants sports betting on its platforms. It recently announced an agreement with distributors to circulate scoring data for media usage and gambling purposes.

There is no doubt golf lends itself to in-play betting, a type of wagering that nets huge sums for bookies. It reportedly accounted for 77% of Bet365’s revenue when the online bookmaker last week revealed an operating profit of £660m.

That is money largely extracted from losing punters’ pockets, many lured by Ray Winstone’s uninvited living room incursions instructing us to take note of changing odds and to have a wager.

Sir Nick Faldo has been particularly critical of The Match

For some it is a welcome bit of fun to enhance our viewing, for others it is a dangerous assault on impressionable minds that can lead to a lifetime of misery.

Either way, this is the world that has caught the eye of professional golf and it wants its share.

There is already gambling on golf but it is now headed to another level. So far the sport has been spared a betting scandal but it needs to be wary of the way integrity easily disappears when betting becomes a central part of proceedings.

It would be naive to think otherwise, especially if we are headed down the “exhibition” route of The Match.

Many have wondered whether Mickelson and Woods privately decided to split the $9m so both were guaranteed a big pay day regardless of the result. There is no evidence to suggest this, but cynics still ask the question.

Faldo called The Match meaningless. “The bottom line, in the real golf at the Ryder Cup Tiger and Phil couldn’t get a point,” said the six-time major winner. “That’s when you are playing real golf with heart and passion. Everything [about it] was wrong to be honest.”

These sentiments illustrate what sport should be about and what made it attractive in the first place. They explain the enduring success of events such as the Ryder Cup where there is not a penny or cent of prize money.

Plenty of people make a lot of money out of the Ryder Cup – it props up the entire European Tour – and the players indirectly profit from playing in it too. But ultimately, it needs no cash prize to be be golf’s most compelling event.

Amid the torrent of comment on last Friday’s Las Vegas pantomime, Faldo delivered a terrific tweet.

“Good morning from Dubai….Weird just dreamt of my 93 yard wedge at 1995 Ryder Cup. Philip [Walton] wins last match and WE win the RC! Best part of all I received a very emotional hug from Seve! #Priceless PS ….how did #thematch go down?”

That is a fine summation of what proper sport should mean. Especially on the night when Mickelson’s wedge from the same distance netted him $9m he does not need.

But Faldo was wrong to say The Match was “meaningless.” The outcome might have been and certainly, for me, it wasn’t worth watching but the implications for golf run deep.

It is one of life’s more reasonable bets that this sport is headed in a potentially damaging and dangerous direction. Beware the bookies, a betting culture brings a massive potential threat to the integrity that golf enjoys.

Unlike $9m to a billionaire, that is a prize the game cannot afford to lose.

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Cyber Monday 2018: Walmart and Amazon have a TON of Dyson vacuums on sale for up to $200 off

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Just to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission.

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Clearly, both Walmart and Amazon are well aware of the stress that comes with all the entertaining around this time of year because they are coming in clutch for Cyber Monday with SO many deals on vacuum cleaners—but not just any vacuum cleaners: We’re talking Dysons. 

Safe to say Dyson doesn’t get its top-notch reputation from doing a lackluster job in the cleaning department. Whether you’re in the market for a cordless vacuum, upright, multi-floor or combination vacuum—Dyson products are pretty much a sure thing when it comes to getting the job done. And with all the shopping and planning you’ll be doing around the holidays, the last thing you need to worry about is picking the right vacuum to catch all the dust bunnies in the dining room you only use once a year. 

So save yourself the stress and guessing and hop on one of these cleaning machines while you can get them at one of these *seriously* awesome prices (for real—you can save up to $200 on some of these top models right now).

Check out the best Dyson deals below—there are plenty to choose from. 

A Dyson in its natural environment.

A Dyson in its natural environment.

Dyson Cyclone V10 Absolute Lightweight Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner — $515.95 (list price $699.99)

Dyson Cyclone V10 Animal Lightweight Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner — $379.99 (list price $599.99)

— $344.99 (list price $499.99) 

Dyson DC33 Multifloor Bagless Upright Vacuum — $179 (list price $279)

Dyson Ball Animal 2 Vacuum — $299 (list price $499)

Dyson Light Ball Multifloor Bagless Upright Vacuum, Multiple Colors — $239 (list price $269) 

Motorhead

Motorhead

Dyson Cyclone V10 Motorhead Lightweight Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner — $351.98 (list price $499.99)

Dyson Upright Vacuum Cleaner, Iron/Purple— $299 (list price $499.99) 

Dyson Upright Vacuum Cleaner, Ball Multi Floor 2, Yellow — $249 (list price $399.99)

Dyson Small Ball Multi Floor Upright Vacuum Cleaner, Iron/Yellow — $199.99 (list price $399.99) 

Dyson V6 Animal Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner, Purple — $279.99 (list price $304.99)

Dyson Ball Animal Upright Vacuum – Corded — $329.90 (list price $399.99)

Dyson Ball Multi Floor Upright Vacuum – Corded — $293 (list price $399.98) 

Dyson Cinetic Big Ball Animal Allergy Upright Vacuum Cleaner, Nickel — $504 (list price $519)

Dyson Cinetic Big Ball Animal Upright Vacuum Cleaner, Purple/Iron — $399.99 (list price $599.99) 

Dyson V7 Motorhead Cordless Vacuum Cleaner + Direct Drive Cleaner Head + Wand Set + Combination Tool + Crevice Tool — $299 (list price $399)

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Ex-Trump aide Manafort violated plea deal by lying: Prosecutors

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US President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort has been accused of breaching a plea deal by lying to federal prosecutors, signaling a potential setback to the special counsel’s probe into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.

In a court filing on Monday, lawyers working on Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the alleged Russian interference, said Manafort had nullified their agreement to cooperate – charges denied by the 69-year-old.

In the latest filing, Mueller’s team said Manafort “committed federal crimes” by lying about “a variety of subject matters” even after he agreed to truthfully cooperate with the investigation, which has been ongoing since 2017.

Prosecutors said they will detail the “nature of the defendant’s crimes and lies” in writing at a later date to the judge.

Manafort, who pleaded guilty in September, denied lying and breaching his plea agreement, saying he “believes he provided truthful information” during a series of sessions with Mueller’s investigators.

But both sides agreed the court should move ahead and sentence him for his crimes.

The surprise development comes at a critical time for Mueller, who is expected to finalise a report in the coming months on the findings of his 18-month probe into Russia’s election meddling and possible collusion with the Trump campaign.

While not a fatal blow, the dissolution of Manafort’s plea agreement means Mueller is losing the contributions of a witness with deep ties to Russia and who ran the Trump campaign as it took off in mid-2016.

“It’s bad for the overall Mueller investigation,” Patrick Cotter, a criminal defense lawyer in Chicago and former assistant US attorney in New York, told Reuters news agency. “He’s got one less witness today.”

Ethical line

Manafort, who remains jailed, had been meeting with the special counsel’s office since he pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy against the United States –  a charge that included a range of conduct from money laundering to unregistered lobbying. He also admitted that he tried to tamper with witnesses.

He cut that deal to head off a second trial after being convicted last summer of eight felony counts related to millions of dollars he hid from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in offshore accounts.

Manafort already faces up to five years in prison on the two charges in his plea agreement. In his separate Virginia case, Manafort’s potential sentencing under federal guidelines has not yet been calculated, but prosecutors have previously said he could face as much as 10 years in prison on those charges.

WATCH: Ex-Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort guilty on eight counts

Manafort was a long-time Republican political consultant who made tens of millions of dollars working for pro-Kremlin politicians in Ukraine before joining the Trump campaign in March 2016, promising to work for free.

Manafort attended a meeting at Trump Tower in June 2016 with a group of Russians offering “dirt” on Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who lost in an upset to Trump in the vote that November.

His long-standing relationship with an oligarch close to Russian President Vladimir Putin was another reason Manafort’s cooperation was seen as important to Mueller’s probe.

Manafort’s lawyers said he met with the government on several occasions and made “an effort to live up to his cooperation obligations,” according to Monday’s joint filing, which was submitted to US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson in Washington.

Rudy Giuliani, who represents Trump in the Russia probe, said Mueller’s team had crossed an ethical line between search for the truth and exerting too much pressure on Manafort.

“They are trying not to get a witness to sing, but to compose,” he said in an interview with Reuters on Monday night.

Mueller, a lawyer and the head of the FBI from 2001 to 2003, was appointed as special counsel to the US Justice Department to investigate possible Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election on May 17.

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Ariana Grande’s ‘Thank U, Next’ Gets A Synthy, Soulful Cover From The 1975

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While the world waits with bated breath for Ariana Grande‘s rom com-inspired “Thank U, Next” video, The 1975 have shown their appreciation for the pop smash with their own cover.

The British band debuted their version of the self-reflective chart-topper while visiting BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge on Monday (November 26). Speaking about his cover choice, frontman Matty Healy said, “I want to dedicate it to the artist of the song, who’s become, I think, the main protagonist — is that the right word? — in most people’s lives. The person I see spoken about most, and somebody I’ve started to really care about for some reason. … She’s had a right old tough time and I like her a lot. I think she’s cool. And she’s got a great voice. And I don’t. So I’m gonna sing one of her songs.”

Even with lyrics so expressly personal to Grande — ones that reference her exes and her parents — The 1975 managed to make the song their own, giving it a synthy, soulful arrangement that prominently featured gospel singers to cover for Healy’s supposedly “not-great” voice.

Grande, for her part, showed The 1975 some love on Twitter, retweeting their performance with a heart emoji, as well as Healy’s tweet about her that said, “We (and I mean society as a whole) fucking love you.”

The 1975’s Live Lounge visit also included performances of “Sincerity Is Scary” and “It’s Not Living (If It’s Not With You),” two tracks from A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships, their new album out Friday. Which will arrive first: that album or Grande’s “Thank U, Next” video? Stay tuned!

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Deontay Wilder v Tyson Fury: Gypsy King in peak condition and could cause on upset in LA

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The presence of Ricky Hatton in Tyson Fury’s corner on Saturday night will serve as an indication of just how far the Gypsy King has travelled in his mission to reshape his mind, his body, his life and his career.

In poundage, Fury has shed the equivalent of a peak-condition, light-welterweight Hatton since returning to training a year ago. And like Hatton, Fury has had to deal with the torment which sometimes besets even those who appear to have it all.

When Fury departed the scene in October 2016 with his world title belts either removed or relinquished, and a statement saying he needed to focus on his medical treatment, he tweeted a link to a song performed by the American country artist T Graham Brown entitled “Wine Into Water”, which includes the lines: “Tonight I’m as low as any man can go, I’m down and I can’t fall much farther.”

According to his father John, boxing has saved Fury’s life and the showdown here in Los Angeles is reward for a remarkable transformation.

Now the best part of 10 stones lighter, Fury is favoured by many respected voices to create an upset on Saturday. It is testament to his commitment (and pedigree) that there is even an argument about the outcome.

In August, when the possibility of a title shot against Deontay Wilder took root, an email I received from one of the UK’s leading bookmakers showed Fury as the odds-on favourite. Last month, a similar missive placed Wilder as the market leader.

In a poll of pundits in the November issue of Boxing Monthly, Wilder came out on top but only by 18 votes to 12. It is that kind of fight, one to send wise heads spinning.

The central theme of the debate is ring rust. How significant is a lengthy absence in an era when elite, pay-per-view fighters tend to box only a couple of times a year anyway?

Fury has fought twice – albeit in lesser company – since Wilder’s last appearance, when the American beat Cuba’s Luis Ortiz in March.

Wilder’s boxing ability undervalued

In the build-up to his win against Wladimir Klitschko three years ago this week, Fury had only three contests in two and a half years. The issue this time for Fury is more about what he did to his body while he was away and whether the opposition he has faced since can possibly have prepared him for Wilder.

The failed comebacks of Hatton and David Haye in recent years have provided us with evidence of the difference between general conditioning and boxing fitness. How much of the guile and the ability to read an opponent has Fury rediscovered?

Wilder’s boxing ability is undervalued. To win a bronze medal at the Olympic Games after only three years in the sport is a feat, even if his performances in Beijing in 2008 were scrappy.

Wilder succumbed in the semi-finals to the Italian Clemente Russo, who had beaten Tony Bellew’s recent conqueror Oleksandr Usyk to reach the last four.

The gold medal in China went to Russia’s Rakhim Chakhkiev, who was outpointed by Wilder in a USA v Russia international earlier in 2008. Such form is more than a mere slugger could have compiled and ought to act as insurance against complacency and the prevailing notion that Wilder can punch but can’t box.

Six of Wilder’s eight world title fights have gone at least into the eighth round and the win against Ortiz, in the 10th, underlines how he carries his power through the fight.

Aside from Ortiz, Wilder’s opposition might belong in the Hall of Tame but he has a knack of getting the job done and, unlike some heavy punchers, has shown strong survival instincts when hurt, as he was against Ortiz and Eric Molina.

Fury, also, has recovered from adversity, climbing off the canvas in 2011 to beat Neven Pajkic, a Bosnian based in Canada, and the American Steve Cunningham two years later.

On both occasions, Fury was felled by an overhand right – a shot Wilder throws particularly well. But when it came to Klitschko, Fury carried conviction and concentration into the ring and proved much more difficult to hit cleanly.

In an interview for BBC Radio 5 live a couple of months later, Fury told me how he could become “forever frozen in November 2015”, that his emphatic success against the long-reigning Klitschko might never be bettered as an achievement.

Now there is desire and ambition anew, and a win over Wilder – so soon after the comeback – would rank as another of the finest by a British boxer.

The fight is important for boxing too, the most meaningful heavyweight title contest in the US since Lennox Lewis dredged up a victory over Vitali Klitschko in the same Staples Center ring in 2003.

Promotional trailers are playing out on huge screens outside the 21,000-capacity venue and staff at the box office report that tickets are selling well. In a busy week of basketball and ice hockey at the Center, they are also expecting a sizeable “walk-up” on Saturday.

And beyond here, we are likely to be talking about a rematch or Anthony Joshua – or both – in 2019.

Great eras in boxing are defined by rivalries and the action here in Los Angeles might be the start of something special.

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NASA’s InSight snaps a clear view of Mars’ surface

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After quite the journey, NASA’s InSight has landed on Mars. But what’s a trip without a happy snap?

While we savoured a dusty photo beamed back to Earth shortly after its landing, the spacecraft has sent another photo home, showing us a clearer glimpse of the red planet’s surface.

The lander also relayed signals back to base, indicating that it has opened its solar panels and is collecting sunlight, allowing it to recharge.

“The InSight team can rest a little easier tonight now that we know the spacecraft solar arrays are deployed and recharging the batteries,” Tom Hoffman, InSight’s project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said in a statement online.

“It’s been a long day for the team. But tomorrow begins an exciting new chapter for InSight: surface operations and the beginning of the instrument deployment phase.”

The onboard camera will be used in the coming days to snap photos of the ground, which will allow engineers to figure out where to place instruments to gather data about Mars’ mysterious surface.

It could be about three or four months before InSight starts sending back that information, so in the meantime, enjoy the view.

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Kabul to seek support for Afghan-led peace plan in Geneva talks

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Geneva, Switzerland – Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani is heading to Switzerland to hold high-level talks with international diplomats during a key summit focused on the development and the economy of a country wracked by years of war that have claimed thousands of lives.

Starting on Tuesday, the two-day summit in Geneva is billed as a platform for the Afghan government to renew its commitment to reform and discuss aid contributions in its bid to achieve stability and security.

The United Nations, which is co-hosting the summit at the city’s Palais des Nations with the Afghan government, says the conference “will also be crucial in measuring results against the $15.2 billion committed by the international community for Afghanistan in 2016”.

The Afghan delegation is expected to present its growth strategy, ranging from maintaining security and building infrastructure to fighting corruption and female empowerment.

They also plan to emphasise the continued need for constructive contribution from the international community.

“We have had at least 60 percent progress – we still have two more years for the completion – in mutually agreed upon indicators, which include expanding the private sector, increasing exports, reforming the security sector and making the Afghan government more gender inclusive,” Haroon Chakhansuri, spokesperson to the president of Afghanistan, told Al Jazeera.

“For example, for the first time in our history, we have a female judge nominated for Supreme Court. We have female representation in the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) as well. There are at least 30 women in leadership positions in the Ministry of Interior.”

The Afghan Ministry of Finance said in a statement that “foreign ministers from 62 nations and delegations of 35 assisting organisations would take part in the conference”.

It also said that the summit will give a chance to the Afghan government to call on the international community to “support an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process”.

The conference comes at a time when the US administration is holding direct talks with the Taliban, Afghanistan’s largest armed group which was toppled following a US-led invasion in 2001.

The Taliban wants to drive international forces out of the country and establish a legal system based on a strict interpretation of Islamic jurisprudence.

This month, Taliban officials have held three days of talks with Zalmay Khalilzad, Washington’s special representative for Afghanistan in Qatar,  aimed at renewing the peace process.

The Afghan government has not been involved in these talks.

[Al Jazeera] 

Last week, a five-member Taliban delegation headed to the Russian capital, Moscow, to attend for the first time an international conference to discuss the Afghan peace efforts.

“A second phase (of discussions) should be held among Afghans (themselves) on how to bring about peace and form a government in Afghanistan,” Sohail Shaheen, a Qatar-based spokesperson for the Taliban, told reporters in Moscow last week.

Last year, US President Donald Trump increased the number of US forces in the country as part of a new strategy against the Taliban. There are now about 14,000 US soldiers in the country. The Taliban has previously said the presence of foreign troops was the biggest obstacle to peace in Afghanistan.

According to the latest figures released in July by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), 1,692 civilians were killed during the first six months of 2018 – the most recorded in the period over the last decade since the agency began documentation.

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Meek Mill Announces His ‘Motivational’ First Post-Prison Tour

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Not only is Meek Mill celebrating his wins with a new album, Championships, this week, but he’s also putting his newfound liberation to use by heading out on The Motivation Tour.

Beginning in February 2019 and running through late March, the U.S. trek will visit 16 cities, including Meek’s hometown of Philadelphia. Notably, it marks the rapper’s first tour since his release from prison earlier this year.

Last week, Meek released “Uptown Vibes” and “Oodles O’ Noodles Babies” to rev up anticipation for Championships, which arrives Friday. The new project — his first full-length album since 2017’s Wins & Losses — also includes the Jeremih-featuring single “Dangerous,” as well as a rumored collaboration with Cardi B.

While gearing up for his new musical chapter, Meek is also continuing to passionately push for prison reform. Just before announcing his new tour on Monday (November 26), The New York Times published an op-ed from the rapper in which he announces his new criminal justice reform organization. Underscoring the country’s need for prison reform, he wrote, “A higher power has put me in a position to help fix this — to help clean up this persistent stain on our society.”

Read the full op-ed here, and check out the Motivation Tour dates below.

02/19 — Miami, FL @ The Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater

02/22 — Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom

02/23 — Houston, TX @ Revention Music Center

02/26 — Phoenix, AZ @ Comerica Theatre

02/28 — Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium

03/01 — San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic

03/05 — Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium

03/08 — Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom

03/09 — Detroit, MI @ The Fox Theatre

03/12 — New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom

03/15 — Philadelphia, PA @ The MET

03/19 — Lowell, MA @ Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell

03/21 — Washington, DC @ The Anthem

03/23 — Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz

03/24 — Atlanta, GA @ Coca-Cola Roxy

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Sean Cox: Liverpool v Roma attack victim’s wife on impact of serious assault

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My husband went to a match and never came home – Martina Cox speaks to BBC sports editor Dan Roan

“Sean went to a match in April and he never came home, that’s the reality of it.”

This is the stark truth Martina Cox is facing, after her husband Sean Cox was attacked before Liverpool’s Champions League semi-final against Roma in April, outside Anfield.

She says the attack lasted just 17 seconds. But that 17 seconds will have a lifetime effect on her 53-year-old husband, who now cannot talk, walk or sit up unaided.

Described as an “absolutely huge supporter” by his wife, Mr Cox had made a last-minute decision to travel to the match from his home in Dunboyne, Co Meath, Ireland with his brother Martin.

“He’s been supporting Liverpool all his life,” Mrs Cox said. “Sean regularly went to matches with either his brother or family, it was a very natural thing for him to do.

“It was a really familiar place for him. He would have felt quite safe there as well.”

The father-of-three was assaulted by a Roma fan outside a pub metres from the stadium and less than an hour before kick-off.

According to Mrs Cox, her husband was struck at the back and side of the head and then he fell, receiving a third knock to the head on the ground, in what she calls a “life-changing, horrific fall”.

Nobody has been convicted of the attack.

Roma fan Daniele Sciusco, 29, was jailed for violent disorder in August for his part in trouble outside the ground.

Last month Filippo Lombardi, 21, was cleared of assaulting Mr Cox – though he was jailed after admitting violent disorder.

And another Roma fan appeared in court in Rome last month on suspicion of assault and has been remanded before an extradition hearing.

‘I got a phone call… I was in shock’

Martina Cox says the attack on her husband was “senseless”

Recalling the moment she found out her husband had been injured, Mrs Cox said: “I got a phone call from my sister-in-law and she said Sean had a hit to the head and he was on his way to the Aintree Hospital.

“I got a call from a nurse and she explained that Sean had had a bleed on the brain and severe bruising and needed emergency surgery.

“I was just in absolute shock, I didn’t really take it in and I didn’t look on social media.”

She was then told the first 24 hours would be crucial to his survival.

When Mrs Cox first saw her husband a few hours after the “senseless” incident, he was out of surgery and on a ventilator, heavily sedated.

“It was horrific looking at him, absolutely horrific. Your husband, just lying there lifeless. Awful really.”

The long, slow recovery

Mr Cox spent the next four and a half weeks at the Walton Centre in Liverpool, a specialist neurological unit for brain injuries, before being airlifted to another specialist unit at Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital.

“He was fully sedated for two weeks immediately after the attack, then it took nearly another four weeks for him to actually come around. It wasn’t actually until we got to Beaumont that he had opened his eyes, but he wasn’t fully conscious as such,” his wife said.

The Gaelic football fan was a keen golfer and runner before his brain injury, and was due to run the Dublin marathon in October.

He is now in a rehabilitation centre in Dun Laoghaire – a 40-minute drive from the family home – where he has been cared for for the past seven weeks.

The sales director has only recently become able to eat small portions of soft foods.

“Sean’s started to drink as well but it’s all very slow and measured because they’re all very small, tiny little steps but it’s good progress,” Mrs Cox said.

“There are more words coming since he started to eat – that does help – but it’s a very long, slow process and long journey for Sean.

“They say you don’t get back the same person and we know that.”

The lifelong Reds fan also recognises family members and Mrs Cox says it is “encouraging” to see her husband improving.

“It is difficult, there are good days and bad days, but it’s all about trying to get Sean to the best place and that’s where I’m at,” she said.

‘The children miss their dad’

The impact on the family has been “difficult” for the couple’s three children – Jack, 21, Shauna, 20, and Emma, 17 – and Mrs Cox says everyday life has “completely changed”.

“I miss Sean, our children miss their dad,” she said. “We’re trying to muddle through it and do the best we can. Sean would want us to get on with our lives and we’re trying as best we can.

“I have two kids in college and my youngest daughter is doing her leaving certificate this year so we have to get on with certain things, but it’s difficult.”

When asked if getting on with their lives might mean the children watching matches at Anfield, she answered: “Absolutely, yes. What happened shouldn’t have happened in the first place but people have to live their lives.”

What does the future hold?

Liverpool players show their support for injured fan Sean Cox

The Cox family are facing the reality that Sean’s recovery will need years of specialist treatment which could cost millions of pounds.

The family have received substantial donations from AS Roma, Liverpool, Everton’s Seamus Coleman and Reds manager Jurgen Klopp, both of whom gave 5,000 euros (£4,400).

Football fans have been donating to a Go Fund Me page as part of the fundraising efforts, which recently hit £400,000, but government funding for care in the rehab centre is set to end in the coming weeks.

“The fans have been absolutely amazing and the club has promised to support Sean,” Mrs Cox said.

“Roma don’t have any connection to Sean but they really have stepped up to the plate in terms of what they have given for the donation and they have also agreed to work with us in terms of fundraising activities going forward.”

Roma have donated an initial amount of 150,000 euros (£130,000) to help with her husband’s medical and rehab costs, of which 50,000 euros was a personal donation from club president Jim Pallotta.

When asked if she would like to see something similar from Liverpool, Mrs Cox said: “You would hope so, yes… let’s just wait and see, that’s all I can say at this point.

“There was a bucket collection at the Cardiff match and half the funds raised were matched by the Liverpool Foundation so that was about £29,000 which is really good and we’re very grateful for that. Liverpool have also agreed to help with some fundraising in terms of community activity going forward so that’s where we’re at.”

Liverpool said they were working on “a number of initiatives” to support the Cox family.

Mrs Cox has hailed the “fantastic” medical staff caring for her husband and revealed she is looking at other treatment options in the UK, Europe or America.

“Obviously we want the best for Sean because I think he deserves it, this shouldn’t have happened and we’ve done everything we can in terms of fundraising,” she said.

“People just have rallied around, they’ve done so much, it’s been heart-warming.”

Before his injuries, Mr Cox would set himself a goal “and stick to it”.

And that determination is what his wife believes will get him through his recuperation.

“He’s very determined in everything that he does, ” Mrs Cox said.

“Obviously the goal is to get him home, that’s what we all want, all his family want, and he belongs here with us.”

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