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Looking to extend on their purple patch in midweek, Manchester City will welcome a returning Aston Villa to the Etihad on Wednesday evening.
Manchester City
Starting with the hosts, eventually putting on what was another rampant display over the weekend, there is no doubt that the mood in Manchester City s camp will be at a season-high. Claiming a rampant 4-0 win against Crystal Palace on Sunday night, the Sky Blues have skyrocketed their way up that table and many have tipped them as the leading contender in the title chase. Really managing to turn a real corner after that 2-0 loss against Tottenham at the end of November, Pep Guardiola s side suddenly find themselves enjoying a hugely impressive 15-match unbeaten run across all comp…
Stefano Pioli claimed Milan could have done more in their 1-1 Champions League draw at Salzburg, as he acknowledged next week s clash with Dinamo Zagreb has already taken on extra importance.
Milan fell behind to a terrific solo effort from Noah Okafor after 28 minutes of their Champions League opener, but claimed a share of the spoils thanks to Alexis Saelemaekers fierce left-footed finish.
The Rossoneri have now avoided defeat in 14 of their last 15 opening group-stage matches in the competition (W10 D4 L1), but they struggled to break down their resolute hosts despite taking charge in the second half.
Milan enjoyed 65 per cent of the possession in Salzburg – their highest such figure in the Champions League since records began – but Rafael Leao s l…
New Atletico Madrid coach Abel Resino had a memorable debut as his side defeated Recreativo Huelva 3-0 on Sunday to record their first win in 2009.
Resino replaced the sacked Javier Aguirre this week and the change of manager had the desired effect as Atletico closed to within two points of fourth-placed Valencia.
Sergio Kun Aguero scored after just two minutes and Diego Forlan hit a quick-fire brace (26 and 34 minutes) to wrap up the points.
Forlan and Aguero now have 24 goals between them but Resino, a former Atletico goalkeeper, will be happy about a rare clean sheet from a side that have conceded far too many goals this season.
Villarreal stay two points ahead of Atletico in fifth after a 2-1 triumph over Numancia on Sunday.
Giuseppe Rossi sc…
The prospect of a World Cup without Cristiano Ronaldo and Thierry Henry will move a step closer if Portugal and France come unstuck in the first leg of their World Cup play-offs on Saturday.
Having failed to secure automatic qualification for the South Africa showpiece, Portugal must overcome Bosnia-Herzegovina while France face a stern test against Giovanni Trapattoni s rejuvenated Republic of Ireland.
Both France and Portugal, who lost to the French in the 2006 semi-finals, have been hampered by injury, with Les Bleus deprived of the services of Franck Ribery and Portugal missing talismanic captain Ronaldo.
France coach Raymond Domenech, apparently immune to the welter of public criticism which has rained down on him for much of his tenure, insists the French …
Luis Enrique believes his Barcelona side will have to play a complete game if they are to overcome title rivals Atletico Madrid in a must-win clash on Wednesday night.
The two teams are separated by just one point ahead of their meeting at Camp Nou, though both trail LaLiga leaders Real Madrid with four games played.
However, Luis Enrique sees Atleti challenging for top spot again this season, having won the title in 2014, and he was gushing in his praise of Diego Simeone s men as he prepares for a game he declares Barca have to win.
They look like they re practically the same team that was so successful in the last few years, especially the way they defend and in other aspects of play like transition game, counterattack, Luis Enrique told a news conference. T…
Jordon Mutch has joined Crystal Palace from fellow Premier League side QPR for an undisclosed fee.
Crystal Palace have completed the signing of QPR winger Jordon Mutch for an undisclosed fee.
Mutch only moved to Loftus Road from Cardiff City in the close-season, but has started just three Premier League games for Harry Redknapp s side this term.
Subsequently, he has opted to join Palace on a four-and-a-half-year deal and becomes manager Alan Pardew s second signing of the transfer window after Yaya Sanogo joined on loan from Arsenal.
Having started his career with Birmingham City, Mutch moved to Cardiff ahead of the 2012-13 season.
Mutch went on to make 60 appearances for the Welsh club, helping them achieve promotion to the Premier League in his …
Wolfsburg have announced that Julian Draxler will join Paris Saint-Germain in the January transfer window.
The Germany international has signed a four-year deal after the Ligue 1 champions agreed a transfer fee reportedly worth €35million, plus a further €10m in add-ons.
Julian Draxler is to leave VfL Wolfsburg and sign for French club Paris Saint-Germain, pending a medical examination, a club statement confirmed.
The 23-year-old attacker has agreed to a four-year deal with the Ligue 1 titleholders and UEFA Champions League participants. Both clubs have agreed to keep the financial details of the deal confidential.
Sporting director Olaf Rebbe said: We ve had some very intense but constructive discussions with Paris Saint-Germain, Julian Draxler an…
According to Marca, Portuguese star William Carvalho is on the verge of completing his move from Sporting CP to Real Betis. The deal, which is believed to be worth around €15 million, is awaiting the signature of the Sporting management commission before it can be deemed official. Given the nature of the transfer market and the inflation rates, Betis will likely be incredibly happy with the fee that has been reported.
Carvalho has been with Sporting since 2005, and in that time, he s been able to firmly establish himself as one of the club s most impactful players as a defensive midfielder. Carvalho has just returned from the World Cup in Russia where Portugal were unable to replicate their Euro 2016 heroics, being knocked out of the tournament at the Round of 16 stage by Uru…
Barcelona left-back Alejandro Balde has undergone surgery on a hamstring injury in Finland.
The homegrown 20-year-old talent has played 28 matches in all competitions this season and was forced off 23 minutes into last Wednesday’s Copa del Rey defeat at Athletic Bilbao.
Tests showed Balde had sustained an injury to a hamstring tendon that required surgery, which could rule the Spain international out for the remainder of the season.
A statement from the LaLiga club read: “The first team player Alejandro Balde has undergone a successful surgical procedure on the injury to the tendon in his right hamstring.
MEDICAL NEWS
Alejandro Balde undergoes successful surgery on the tendon in his right hamstring
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarc…
World Cup hosts South Africa could dump Brazilian coach Joel Santana if they suffer embarrassing friendly defeats in Norway Saturday and Iceland three days later.
Santana has been under public, media and official fire after six losses in seven outings with the sole success coming via a solitary goal at home to African featherweights Madagascar last month.
The national football association reacted by naming three assessors former national coaches Clive Barker and Jomo Sono and top South African Premiership coach Gavin Hunt to report on the national team.
This heightened a rumour mill already awash with names of possible new coaches, including Santana predecessor Carlos Alberto Parreira and recently fired Poland coach Leon Beenhakker.
While some believe it…