Month: November 2024

Josko Gvardiol rose to global prominence as ‘the man in the mask’ at the 2022 World Cup but had long since been destined for the top.

The Zagreb-born 21-year-old caught the eye in Qatar, but more for his unruffled dynamism at the heart of Croatia’s defence than for the black face mask worn to protect his broken nose.

Gvardiol, who on Saturday completed a £77.6million to Manchester City, was a stand-out player during Croatia’s run to the semi-finals and emerged as arguably the best young player at the tournament and certainly among the world’s best left-footed central defenders.

Suits you, Josko!

…

Tottenham will open their Premier League campaign at home to Southampton as Antonio Conte embarks on his first full season in charge.

Spurs will be out for revenge in their August 6 opener after Southampton scored two goals in three minutes to steal a 3-2 victory in this exact fixture last February.

That started a run of three losses in four league games, with the one victory perhaps surprisingly coming at Manchester City, as Spurs form nosedived before they recovered to secure Champions League football.

While Ralph Hasenhuttl s side may pose a tough test, a more difficult challenge follows on the next matchday with a trip to Thomas Tuchel s Chelsea for Tottenham s first London derby of the season.

A trip to Premier League champions City comes on Septemb…

Luis Enrique believes Goncalo Ramos injury is serious after the forward limped off early on in Paris Saint-Germain s opening day win over Le Harve.

Ramos, who scored 11 goals for PSG last season, was forced to withdraw from the action at the Stade Oceane in the 20th minute following a late tackle from behind.

The Portugal international provided the assist for Lee Kang-In s strike inside three minutes, with only Angel Di Maria starting a game, delivering an assist and being subbed off earlier than Ramos in a Ligue 1 fixture.

His withdrawal serves as a significant blow for Enrique, who is looking to replace the 27 league goals scored by Kylian Mbappe last season after his move to Real Madrid.

I’m not a doctor but I think it looks pretty serious. I do…

Gavi scored one goal and set two up as Barcelona beat Real Madrid 3-1 in the Supercopa de Espana final to give Xavi a first major trophy of his reign.

Outstanding teenager Gavi opened the scoring after being picked out by Robert Lewandowski in a one-sided El Clasico showdown in Riyadh on Sunday.

Gavi then put one on a plate for Lewandowski to double the Blaugrana s lead just before half-time at the King Fahd Stadium and the attacking midfielder laid on for Pedri to make it 3-0 after the break.

Karim Benzema scored a late consolation but European and LaLiga champions Madrid were totally outclassed by their fierce rivals, who won the Supercopa for a record-extending 14th time and secured a first major honour since club legend Xavi was appointed as head coach in Nov…

Market: Lille win

Odds: 21/20 @

Desperate to make it back-to-back Ligue 1 victories on Wednesday night, Lille will welcome Nice to the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.

Starting with the hosts, while Lille might have come under real scrutiny for their dreadful 7-1 drumming at the hands of PSG on August 21st, the former Ligue 1 champions managed to find an immediate response. Last seen over the weekend picking up some perfect momentum as they cruised their way to a 3-1 victory away at Ajaccio, Head Coach Paulo Fonseca is desperate for his side to claim back-to-back top-flight wins here. Opening the 2022/23 campaign with a thumping 4-1 romp at home against Auxerre, Les Dogues should also be boosted by their most recent meeting against Wednesday s opponents. Claiming a 3-1 vict…

Thomas Tuchel has warned Manchester United there will be no let-up as already-qualified Bayern Munich attempt to extinguish the Old Trafford giants’ European hopes.

The perennial Bundesliga champions opened Group A with a 4-3 home win against the Red Devils and went on to seal progress to the Champions League knockout phase with two matches to spare.

Bayern are among the favourites to win a competition that United will be out of on Tuesday unless they seal a home win while Copenhagen and Galatasaray draw in the other final group game.

Tuchel: I haven t decided the starting eleven yet, I will wait until after my impressions from training. Then we will meet this evening and make a decision.

— FC Bayern Munich (@FCBayernEN)

Erik ten Hag’s m…

Pep Guardiola s mindset is just to enjoy leading Manchester City in the Champions League rather than worrying about talk of a disaster if they still cannot win Europe s elite club competition.

Guardiola won the Champions League twice while Barcelona coach but has failed to add to that haul in otherwise successful stints in charge of Bayern Munich and City.

Perennial Premier League champions City have been repeatedly frustrated in Europe, consigned to upset losses to Monaco, Liverpool, Tottenham and Lyon in the knockout stages in Guardiola s first four seasons.

City then reached the final in 2020-21, only to again come up short against Chelsea.

Last year, there was a painful semi-final reverse at the hands of eventual champions Real Madrid, increasing exte…

Real Madrid are keen on Jude Bellingham, and so too are Premier League giants Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool.

Given the hot pursuit, some are said to be considering alternative targets, particularly Liverpool who had a quiet off-season in the transfer market.

Jurgen Klopp s Reds added Darwin Nunez, with Sadio Mane exiting, but they did not make a major midfield signing in the off-season.

TOP STORY – LIVERPOOL EYE MUSIALA AS BELLINGHAM ALTERNATIVE

Liverpool are among the clubs circling for Borussia Dortmund s Jude Bellingham. Should they miss out, they will turn to Bayern Munich s Jamal Musiala, according to the Mirror.

Germany international Musiala spent time with Southampton and Chelsea in his youth and was capped by…

Aaron Ramsey has yet to come to an agreement with Arsenal over a new contract as he enters the final year of his current deal with the club.

As new Gunners boss Unai Emery prepares his squad for the new season with friendly matches in Singapore, Ramsey told reporters his future remains uncertain but said talks over a new contract are underway.

Injuries kept Ramsey sidelined for parts of 2017-18 but the Welsh midfielder nevertheless made 24 Premier League appearances for the Gunners, scoring seven goals.

When asked whether Emery was involved in the negotiations over a new deal, Ramsey said: No conversations with Unai on the contract. That has been dealt with by the club.

Great to meet Singapore fans at

— Aaron Ramsey (@aaronramsey)

…

Sonia Bompastor hailed her Chelsea players for taking her ideas on board quickly following Sunday s 1-0 friendly victory over Arsenal.

New arrival Sandy Baltimore scored the only goal of the game as Chelsea overcame their London rivals at Audi Field in Chicago.

Chelsea begin their quest for a sixth straight Women s Super League crown against Aston Villa on September 20, following a period of upheaval at Stamford Bridge.

Former Lyon boss Bompastor took the reins after Emma Hayes left to take the United States job and has overseen two pre-season victories, with the Blues also beating Gotham FC 3-1 on Monday.

Though she acknowledges there is more work to do ahead of their WSL opener, Bompastor believes her new players have already made plenty of progress.