YOANE WISSA: THE ACID ATTACK SURVIVOR WHO BECAME FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 HERO FOR DR CONGO

Yoane Wissa may not be a new name for football fans due to his time with Brentford in the Premier League but not many are aware of his courageous story off the field.

Yoane Wissa celebrates after scoring in FIFA World Cup 2026

Yoane Wissa may not be a new name for football fans due to his time with Brentford in the Premier League but not many are aware of his courageous story off the field. The striker grabbed the headlines on Wednesday as he scored DR Congo's first World Cup goal in 52 years to clinch a historic 1-1 draw against Portugal. Joao Neves handed Portugal the lead early in the match but DR Congo did not give up and Wissa's powerful header was the perfect example of their grit and determination. While the whole world could not stop praising the striker for his brilliant performance, it was less than five years ago that he almost lost his eyesight after suffering an acid attack at his home in Lorient.

A woman, who was later identified as Laetitia P, posed as a fan and threw acid on his face. She even tried to kidnap his daughter but was ultimately caught and sentenced to 18 years in prison. 

It was just days ahead of his move to Brentford from Lorient and it seemed like his transfer can get affected by the accident.

"I opened a door, and had liquid thrown in my face. I screamed and could not breathe. My wife called the emergency services, and they told me to get under the shower to rinse my eyes. At the hospital they told me my eyes were burned. Someone had to come and rinse them out every hour. It has been a nightmare."

Since then I panic every time I hear a noise, and the only thing that kept me going was knowing my children are safe. I had surgery on both eyes, and the doctor told me I will need to use eye drops for the rest of my life.  Had I not been treated so quickly, the consequences would have been far worse," Wissa told the court.

However, he joined Brentford in 2021 and ended up making 149 appearances for the club over four seasons. He scored 49 goals during his time with the club and ultimately moved to Newcastle United in a big-money deal.

- Sayan Ghosh

EDDIE HOWE: MY RELATIONSHIP WITH ALEXANDER ISAK CHANGED ONCE HE WENT ON STRIKE

The 25-year-old missed the club’s pre-season tour to Singapore and South Korea and was left training by himself on the squad’s return before eventually getting his wish with a deadline day move to Anfield.

HOWE TIMES HAVE CHANGED: Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe has revealed his relationship with striker Alexander Isak broke down after the player went on strike (John Walton/PA)

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has admitted his relationship with Alexander Isak became “difficult” after he went on strike in an attempt to force through his move to Liverpool.

The 25-year-old Sweden international missed the club’s pre-season tour to Singapore and South Korea and was left training by himself on the squad’s return before eventually getting his wish with a deadline day move to Anfield which netted the Magpies £130million.

Asked about his relationship with the man he signed from Real Sociedad for £63million during the summer of 2022, head coach Howe said: “Alex and I always enjoyed a great relationship. I loved working with him and I hope he loved working with us.

“It was mutually beneficial. We helped him become the player that he in part is today, and he helped us as a team achieve some unbelievable milestones. He was part of a very successful team.

“But to give you a bit more on that, the moment he went on strike, our relationship did change. I think that was probably a turning point in our relationship. Communication became difficult from that point onwards. I won’t go into any more detail than that.”

Isak’s departure prompted Newcastle to invest £69m in VfL Stuttgart’s Nick Woltemade and Brentford’s Yoane Wissa, who cost them £55m, and the former could make his debut against Wolves on Saturday.

However, Wissa will not be involved after returning from international duty with DR Congo with a knee injury which could also rule him out of Thursday night’s Champions League opener against Barcelona.

"The moment he went on strike, our relationship did change"

Asked if the 29-year-old would be available for the Premier League fixture, Howe said: “Unfortunately not, no, so he won’t make this game.

“I saw him for the first time yesterday, he’s feeling the effects of the injury he sustained just before he came off, so we’re going to have to see how he is.”

Asked further about the severity of Wissa’s problem, Howe added: “I don’t know currently as I sit here. I think he’ll go away for tests and maybe see a specialist to see.”

Woltemade could get his first taste of St James’ Park on Saturday, and Howe has called for patience as the 23-year-old Germany international attempts to plug a sizeable gap.

Newcastle new boy Jacob Ramsey is facing a month on the sidelines (Nigel French/PA)

Howe said: “I think it would have been impossible to have replaced Alex like-for-like. There’s no other player like Alex, he was totally unique. He had his qualities and I think it’s important we don’t compare whoever we bring in to Alex, because I think that’s very difficult to do.

“I think each player that comes in is an individual in their own right and has their own strengths and weaknesses. There will be a process where we have to mould ourselves to them, and vice-versa.”

Wissa’s absence, coupled with that of fellow summer arrival Jacob Ramsey, who will be sidelined until after the October international break with an ankle injury, represents a significant blow to Howe, who is already without the suspended Anthony Gordon.

- DAMIAN SPELLMAN, PA

LIVERPOOL PREPARED TO SMASH BRITISH TRANSFER RECORD AGAIN TO SIGN ALEXANDER ISAK FROM NEWCASTLE WITH STRIKER STALLING OVER NEW DEAL

Liverpool are prepared to smash their transfer record again to sign Alexander Isak this summer

Liverpool are prepared to smash their transfer record for the second time this summer as Alexander Isak's Newcastle future was cast into further doubt on Tuesday.

The Premier League champions have already made the statement signing of the summer by signing Florian Wirtz for £116million; they supplemented that by landing another Bayer Leverkusen player, Jeremie Frimpong, as well as Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez.

But the addition of Isak would surpass everything. It will take a new British record fee to secure the Sweden international, in advance of £125m, but Liverpool's intentions are clear: they will move if they receive encouragement.

Adding Isak to the squad would take Liverpool's transfer overhaul to more than £300m

Newcastle remain adamant that Isak is not for sale and want to enhance his £120,000 per week contract - a task that should have been done on the watch of former Director of Football Paul Mitchell - but talks stalled earlier this year and there has been no progress.

Isak is currently with Newcastle's squad in Austria for a training camp and they want to enhance their forward line by adding Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt but, so far, their bid has fallen way short of the German's expectations: they want €100m (£86m) for the France Under-21 international.

Mail Sport understands Newcastle have bid £70m for Ekitike - a player in whom Liverpool also retain an interest - but the structure of what they have offered doesn't tally with what Frankfurt want; it has been a challenging window so far for Newcastle, who have agreed to sell Sean Longstaff to Leeds.

The fee for Isak would surpass the total £116m which they could shell out for Wirtz if all add-ons clauses are met

Liverpool have been determined to add a striker to their ranks since they secured their 20th title and while Isak represents the ideal choice, it is very much the club's modus operandi to have other targets in mind should they be required.

Aside from Isak and Etikete, Liverpool have discussed Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins and Yoane Wissa, the livewire Brentford forward who was close to joining Arsenal in January. 

Victor Osimhen has also been mentioned during talks with Napoli over Darwin Nunez.

Another intriguing detail is the fact Manchester United's Marcus Rashford's name was floated during a conversation but nothing progressed beyond that; there is little potential for that to be resurrected, given the question marks about his form in recent seasons.

Eddie Howe's side have already bid £70m for Hugo Ekitike, a sign they could be planning for life without Isak

This is an exceptionally busy period for Liverpool, who on Tuesday immediately rebuffed an offer for Luis Diaz from Bayern Munich. 

The German champions made a £58.5m proposal for the Colombia international but that is miles short of the Anfield club's £86m valuation.

That figure is identical to fee Manchester United rejected for their captain Bruno Fernandes from Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal at the beginning of June. 

Diaz, who is two years younger than the Portuguese, was the subject of firm interest from Al Nassr.

Newcastle are currently away in Austria for their pre-season training camp (pic: Eddie Howe)

In a situation that mirrors Isak's position on Tyneside, though, sources in Colombia have told Mail Sport that while Diaz has huge affection for Liverpool, he doesn't believe his current salary represents his value to the club. There have been no signs of them renewing the 28-year-old's terms.

Barcelona have also been persistently linked with Diaz but they have not made any contact. 

Liverpool, clearly, will offload some of their squad in the coming weeks. Napoli are the only club to make contact over Darwin Nunez but their offer of £55m, including add-ons, was miles short.

Nunez, who scored in the 3-1 win at Preston last Sunday, was Liverpool's club record signing in 2022 at £84m and the intention is to recoup £70m. England Under-21 pair Harvey Elliott and Tyler Morton also have admirers.

- DOMINIC KING