Football legend Pele’s son has been acquitted of drug trafficking charges after he was previously linked to a drug gang despite him strenuously denying being part of it.

Nine defendants were named in the ruling by the courts of Praia Grande, on the coast of Brazil’s state of Sao Paulo, and the son of football legend Pele, Edinho, was the only one acquitted, local media reported on 3rd December.

Edinho, whose full name is Edson Cholbi do Nascimento, 54, is a Brazilian football manager who used to play as a goalkeeper. He was arrested along with 16 other people in 2005 for money laundering and drug trafficking and was jailed.

The courts in Praia Grande acquitted the former goalkeeper due to lack of evidence that he was part of the gang, sentencing Naldinho to 25 years in prison in absentia.

The defendant disappeared on December 29, 2008, while in an open regime. Like Edinho, he was also sentenced to 33 years in prison for money laundering from drug trafficking.

Some believe that Naldinho was killed while others think that he escaped, according to local media.

An Italian footballer has drowned after suffering a jet ski accident while on holiday at a Caribbean beach in Colombia.

The body of Nicholas Cudini, 26, from Pocenia, in the Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, was found after a 22-hour search by the Colombian coastguard in the waters of the popular tourist hotspot Cartagena de Indias, on the country’s Caribbean coast.

Nicholas was riding a jet ski with another person when the vehicle collided with a boat in the area of ​​Cholon Island, about 30 miles south of Cartagena, at around 4.30pm on December 2.

The person who was with Nicholas immediately raised the alarm after realising that the young man had not resurfaced, triggering the search operations. Unfortunately, after hours of operations, his lifeless body was found.

The Colombian Navy confirmed the discovery of Nicholas’ body after a long search. In an official statement, the Coast Guard said: “After more than 22 hours of searching, units of the Armada de Colombia have recovered the lifeless body of Nicholas Cudini, a 26-year-old Italian citizen who had been missing since Monday evening.”

His body was later transported to the Cartagena docks and then transferred to the forensic morgue for an autopsy, which will determine the exact cause of his death.

Originally from Pocenia, a small town in the Lower Friuli region, Nicholas studied at the Zanon Technical Institute in Udine and later moved to the United States to continue his studies at Santa Clara University in California, according to Italian media.

assion was football and played as a midfielder on the Santa Clara University team. His football career also saw him as a player with Udinese youth teams and with ASD Cjarlins Muzane, with whom he made his debut in Serie D.

National World

Bruno Guimaraes felt Newcastle United deserved to win against Liverpool on Wednesday night.

The two teams played out a thrilling 3-3 draw at St James’ Park. The Magpies led twice through Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon, with both goals coming either side of Curtis Jones’ strike.

Mohammed Salah’s brace then put Liverpool 2-0 up with five minutes remaining but Fabian Schar rescued a point in the 90th minute.

Guimaraes captained Newcastle on his 100th Premier League appearance for the club and set both Isak and Schar’s goals. The spoils were shared, but the Brazilian believes his team deserved more.

“A mix of emotions about today’s game. Happy to have reached 100 games in the Premier League and to have helped with two assists, but I believe we deserved a better outcome,” the midfielder wrote on social media.

“We move forward together and must keep fighting the same way from now on. Thank you for the support, NUFC fans!3️⃣9️⃣ “

Meanwhile, from a Liverpool perspective, manager Arne Slot said it felt like two points dropped.

Slot said: “I’ve said many times already to the other media there were moments in the game where you thought if we could come away from here with a draw it would be a good result, but those moments were mainly in the first half.

“In the second half, especially after we scored for 1-1, I thought we were really impressive. We created so many opportunities, good chances. Then, one minute before the end being 3-2 up, it feels like a disappointment to drop two points.”

Newcastle remain 10th in the Premier League table, level on points with Brentford, who they play away on Saturday and Tottenham Hotspur. Liverpool still sit top of the division, though saw their lead cut to seven points.