Madrid hopes Mbappé can play against Barcelona in Spanish Super Cup final
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid is hoping Kylian Mbappé recovers from a knee issue in time to face a high-flying Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday.
Mbappé missed Madrid's hard-fought 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid in Thursday's semifinal, but coach Xabi Alonso said the France striker would travel from Spain to Saudi Arabia, where the mini-Super Cup tournament is being held.
Alonso wouldn't confirm if Mbappé will play, but said the team's top scorer is “much better, he's been training and he's feeling good."
Mbappé, who leads La Liga in goals this season, has been sidelined for two games with a left knee sprain.
Also this weekend, the teams not involved in the Spanish Super Cup will play a regular round of La Liga matches as the domestic competition reaches its midway point.
Key matches
Madrid beat Barcelona 2-1 in La Liga in October thanks to goals by Mbappé and Jude Bellingham. That victory, however, marked the high point of its first season under Alonso. Since then the fortunes of the rivals have inverted. Barcelona has overtaken Madrid for the league lead and produced much more impressive performances while speculation has grown about Alonso's job security.
Barcelona thumped Athletic Bilbao 5-0 in Wednesday's semifinal in Jeddah even with star forward Lamine Yamal resting on the bench until the damage was done and only playing the final minutes.
In last year's Spanish Super Cup final, Barcelona routed Madrid 5-2 to lift the first of three titles it collected ahead of winning the Copa del Rey and La Liga.
In La Liga this weekend, third-placed Villarreal can make up ground on the frontrunners when it hosts Alaves on Saturday. Villarreal is seven points behind second-placed Madrid and 11 adrift of Barcelona but with two games in hand.
Espanyol, in fifth, can pull closer to fourth-placed Atletico and challenge for a Champions League spot if it wins at Levante on Sunday.
Players to watch
If Mbappé plays, he will provide Madrid with some much-needed punch after the team struggled against Atletico. Even goal-scorer Federico Valverde said that Atletico had played better.
Yamal is expected to return to the starting lineup for Barcelona in his spot on the right flank.
But attacking midfielder Fermín López, who was reportedly close to a move to Chelsea in the summer, could prove key for Hansi Flick's side. Fermín's energy and appetite for goals make him unique in a Barcelona side full of finesse.
Out of action
While Barcelona will only be missing midfielder Gavi Paéz, Madrid has been badly hit by injuries.
Éder Militão, Dani Carvajal and Trent Alexander-Arnold were already out injured, and media reports say that Antonio Rudiger and fellow center back Raúl Asencio are doubtful for the final after playing against Atletico.
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Virudhunagar firecracker unit blast: Toll climbs to 25, Rs 5.5 lakh ex gratia announced
Virudhunagar (Tamil Nadu) (PTI): With most bodies charred beyond recognition, identification remains difficult, police said on Monday, as the toll in the massive explosion at a fireworks unit near Kattanarpatti here rose to 25.
The Virudhunagar district administration has announced Rs 5.5 lakh ex gratia to the kin of deceased.
The accident is one of the deadliest industrial disasters in the region in recent years.
"Bodies were so badly charred that we were able to identify mostly with jewellery that the victims were wearing," a police official told PTI.
He said that the families have not yet claimed the bodies due to the uncertainly in the identities.
The factory owner is absconding, he added.
The accident occurred at the Vanaja firecracker unit, owned by one Muthumanickam, which functions under the Vachakarapatti police station limits.
The unit is reportedly licensed by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO), Nagpur.
Post-mortem reports have established that the 25 victims, include 22 women and three men, the police official added.
Eight workers, mostly women, are critically injured with 60 per cent burn injuries. Twelve others, including eight policemen, were injured in a second blast on Sunday evening while rescue operations were underway.
Rescue operations were severely hampered for hours, as unexploded materials continued to detonate.
A second blast at 7.20 pm, triggered as an earthmover was clearing debris, caused chaos and injured several responders, including a revenue official.
Meanwhile, sources said about 1,000 people, including the families of the victims and residents of nearby villages, are threatening a road roko, demanding the arrest of the owner of the factory.
Local eyewitnesses, including Ranganathan from the nearby Seervaikarampatti village, described hearing a massive blast that sent "thick black smoke" into the sky.
"Nothing was recognisable. We saw bodies being loaded four at a time into vehicles," he told PTI Videos.
Many of the deceased were from Seervaikarampatti village, with residents claiming that at least 20 victims belonged to their village.
Among those killed was 46-year-old Indrani, a veteran worker of 25 years.
"My mother was the sole breadwinner. My father is disabled and stays home. I have an MSc degree, but I’m working at a petrol bunk to help out, and we haven't even paid my brother's school fees yet," said Madhubala, Indrani’s daughter, while pleading for government employment assistance.
Virudhunagar Collector N O Sukhaputra confirmed that the unit was operating without permission on a rest day.
Preliminary findings suggest the blast originated in a chemical mixing shed, where nearly 40 workers were busy making crackers, a violation of safety norms that typically limit occupancy to four workers per shed.
"Had these workers followed primary safety norms, the casualties could have been minimal," a senior official stated.
Chief Minister M K Stalin has ordered a high-level probe and directed ministers to oversee relief efforts.
The tragedy follows a similar accident in Vembakottai just days earlier, which claimed four lives, intensifying calls for stricter enforcement of safety regulations in the district’s firecracker hub.
The explosion occurred at approximately 3.15 pm on Sunday. Although the fireworks industry is officially shut on Sundays, over 100 workers were reportedly engaged in production.
Later in the day, Sukhaputra said Rs 5.5 lakh ex gratia each has been finalised for the families of 25 persons killed in the explosion.
Speaking to PTI Videos, he said the ex gratia cheques are ready for immediate distribution to the legal heirs.
"Out of 25 deaths, we have finished conducting post-mortems on 22 bodies. Already we have cheques (that) are ready,” Sukhaputra said.
The announcement followed intense demands from grieving relatives for financial security and government employment.
