While England might have endured a public struggle when opening this year s World Cup adventure, the Three Lions laid down what was a stellar marker in Doha on Monday afternoon.
Although some might have feared that Gareth Southgate s side could face a potential banana skin when opening their Group B run, the European giants breezed their way to a thumping 6-2 romp against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium.
Tipped as a standout pick to cruise their way to the knockout stage without breaking much of a sweat, goals from Jude Bellingham, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish and a Bukayo Saka brace clinched an empathic victory for England.
Putting in a performance that would have certainly been noted by camps across Qatar, we have taken a look at t…
Barca confirm Valencia talks over Alba
Barcelona have confirmed they are in talks with Valencia to sign full-back Jordi Alba.
The Spain international has long been linked with a summer move to Camp Nou, but neither the player nor the Catalans wanted to confirm the negotiations were in progress.
However, Barcelona president Sandro Rosell has now moved to confirm that Alba is close to joining the Catalans.
I don t like these negotiations being made public, but they have been, Rosell said at a press conference.
How much we pay for Alba will depend on the negotiations. Everything is worth what you are willing to pay or how much you are willing to sell for.
Jordi Alba is regarded as one of the best full-backs in world football and he furthe…
Sevilla head coach Michel is confident his side can beat his former club Getafe in their first La Liga outing of the season on Saturday.
Former Spain international Michel coached Getafe between 2009 and 2011, before taking over at Sevilla in February this year.
He guided the team to ninth last season, three points and two places better off than his old side.
They two teams go head-to-head at Sevilla s Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on Saturday, and Michel is confident the hosts will come out on top.
I think I have a team with the resources to beat Getafe, with all due respect to them, he said.
I m sorry to say that but my team is good, motivated and has a lot of desire to play the first match of the season a new season in entirely.
Sevil…
that Liverpool are closing in on a deal for James Milner, with the midfielder having held positive talks with the Merseyside club this week.
The England international is available on a free transfer this summer after declining Manchester City’s new offer, said to be worth around £165,000 per week.
Arsenal are also interested in signing Milner, though it is the Merseyside outfit who are leading the race to secure his services.
Since singing from City from Aston Villa in the summer of 2010, he has made over two hundred appearances in all competitions, scoring nineteen goals while he has won the FA Cup, the League Cup and two Premier League titles.
Internationally, the former Leeds United and Newcastle United man has been capped fifty-three times whi…
Queens Park Rangers midfielder Joey Barton has joined Ligue 1 club Marseille on a season-long loan deal.
Barton, 29, was given a 12-match ban by the English Football Association following his sending off on the final day of last season at Manchester City, when he was involved in confrontations with Sergio Aguero and Vincent Kompany.
Barton was stripped of the QPR captaincy and not assigned a squad number for the 2012/13 campaign.
Barton expressed his delight at the move on Friday by tweeting: I am now a player for L OM. What a birthday present! Cannot wait to get going. #allezL OM.
The midfielder expressed his thanks to QPR chairman Tony Fernandes and co-owner Amit Bhatia for facilitating the move: I would also like to thank @tonyfernandes and @Amit_Bha…
Alan Pardew became the latest victim of a growing curse when he departed Crystal Palace on Thursday.
With an average points tally of just 0.72 per game in 2016, the lowest of any Premier League or Football League side this calendar year, it is perhaps no surprise that the Eagles have opted for a change of leadership.
But it appears there could be a stronger force at play.
Rewind seven months to May and Pardew s Palace were readying themselves for an FA Cup final against Manchester United.
Despite a valiant effort from his players, it was the Red Devils who triumphed 2-1 after extra time at Wembley.
0.72 Crystal Palace have the lowest average points per game tally in the Premier League or Football League in 2016 (0.72). Worrying.
— O…
Tigres UANL remain confident of securing a first Copa Libertadores title as the first leg of the final against River Plate looms, despite heading into the clash on the back of a season-opening defeat in domestic competition.
No Mexican club has ever won the Copa only Guadalajara (2010) and Cruz Azul (2001) have previously reached the final and Tigres midfielder Edgar Lugo has urged his team-mates to make history against River.
Tigres will first have to bounce back from Saturday s 1-0 Liga MX loss at home to Toluca, although that game saw coach Ricardo Ferretti rest the likes of Andre-Pierre Gignac, Rafael Sobis, Egidio Arevalo and Javier Aquino.
Tigres advanced to the Copa Libertadores final with a 4-3 aggregate victory over Internacional of Brazil, with former M…
Jose Mourinho believes Zlatan Ibrahimovic has extra motivation to fire Manchester United to Europa League success as the final is being staged in his native Sweden.
United meet Anderlecht in the quarter-final, first leg on Thursday with Ibrahimovic just two rounds from a title match in Stockholm next month.
Mourinho said: It is the motivation of everyone at the club to go to the final and I believe maybe he has a little more motivation because the final is in Sweden.
Also because he has never played in this final during such an amazing career he has had.
Ibrahimovic has fond memories of Anderlecht, having scored five times in two games against the Brussels club in 2013-14 while at Paris Saint-Germain.
Four of those five goals came at the Con…
Bayern Munich have announced that midfielder Thiago Alcantara has signed a new contract.
The 26-year-old has agreed to a two-year extension of his deal, which will now run until June 30, 2021.
Thiago joined Bayern from Barcelona in 2013 and has established himself as a key member of the first team thanks to excellent form during the current campaign, having previously been hindered by fitness problems.
The Spain international has made 39 appearances in all competitions this term, scoring eight times and registering nine assists.
Thiago is one of the best and therefore most popular midfielders in Europe, chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told Bayern s official website.
We are very happy that we have been able to tie this outstanding professional to…
Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing Fenerbahce goalkeeper Altay Bayindir in the summer of 2021, according to . The report in the Turkish news outlet has claimed that Ajax, Schalke and Lille are also monitoring the 22-year-old goalkeeper.
Bayindir has been on the books of Fenerbahce since 2019 when he joined from fellow Turkish club Ankaragucu. Bayındır made 32 appearances in the Turkish Super Lig last season and has made 23 appearances in the league so far this campaign, according to .
Hugo Lloris is the first-choice goalkeeper at Tottenham, but the France international is prone to making mistakes, like the one he made against Manchester City in the Premier League recently. Joe Hart is the back-up, but the Englishman is 33 years of age and is also error prone.…