Atletico to bid for Axel Witsel
Atletico Madrid could be making a January bid for Zenit hotshot Axel Witsel, the Daily Mail has suggested.
Los Colchoneros have enjoyed another impressive start to the season and after closing the gap behind leaders Barcelona, they can be backed at .
Diego Simeone, however, faces problems in the middle of the park as Tiago Mendes has been ruled out for the season and he needs to sign a quality replacement in January.
According to the Daily Mail, the Argentine coach hopes to lure Axel Witsel to Vicente Calderon, which is not going to be an easy task.
Despite the fact that the Belgium star wants to leave Zenit, he will not be available on the cheap, so it remains to be seen whether the two clubs can agree on the tran…
Michel Platini has defended UEFA s decision to alter the format for the 2016 European Championship qualifiers.
Under the plans, qualifying matches for the tournament to be held in France will take place on any day within a six-day window the so-called Week of Football .
Traditionally, international matches were held on Saturdays and Wednesdays, until a recent shift to Fridays and Tuesdays, but the governing body s president believes the new measures will prove a hit with fans.
The Week of Football is a new and exciting proposition for our fans, Platini said. We have spread out our qualifying games across six days from Thursday to Tuesday.
This means fans of European football around the world can watch more action than ever before. They will love it.
The pro…
Nicolo Zaniolo has earned a recall to the Italy squad, but injury appears to have ended Daniele De Rossi s hopes of an incredible return.
Zaniolo broke into the senior Azzurri set-up last season after impressing for Roma following a move from Inter as part of the deal to take Radja Nainggolan to San Siro.
The 20-year-old earned two caps but was left out of Roberto Mancini s squad in September.
However, having made eight appearances in all competitions at club level this season, scoring once in the Europa League, Zaniolo is back in the fold for Euro 2020 qualifiers against Greece and Liechtenstein.
While a current Roma star is included, a former Giallorossi icon misses out, with De Rossi absent following reports he was set to return almost two years on fro…
Cristiano Ronaldo became the top scorer in the 2019-20 Serie A campaign with his double against Lazio, but he also put Juventus one step away from winning the club s ninth consecutive league title. The Portuguese star netted a brace and carried Juventus to a huge 2-1 win over Lazio at Allianz Stadium on Monday. Ciro Immobile netted Lazio s lone strike late in the second half, but that wasn t enough to mount a comeback.
With the win, Juventus now sit in first place of the standings with an eight-point lead over Inter Milan and four matches left in the schedule. Putting things differently, Juventus now need two more wins in the final four games to become league champions. Again.
The first half didn t generate many scoring chances on either hand. Ronaldo was active for Juv…
The World Cup s greatest players may not be able to go on playing for ever, but that doesn t stop them seeking to score points from the sidelines.
The current tournament in South Africa has seen legends from yesteryear queueing up to fire barbs in various directions, with Pele, Diego Maradona and Franz Beckenbauer leading the way.
Pele and Maradona have long endured a topsy-turvy relationship, helped in no small part by their competing claims to be considered the greatest player the game has ever seen.
The Brazilian great threw the first punch in their latest spat, by claiming his 49-year-old rival had not been motivated by entirely pure considerations when he accepted to coach Argentina.
Maradona accepted the job as he needed work and needed the money,…
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Hoping to extend their buffer at the top of the La Liga table, Real Madrid will welcome Sevilla to the Spanish capital on Sunday night.
Real Madrid
Starting with the hosts, while Real Madrid might have eventually had to settle for a 1-1 stalemate away at local rivals Rayo Vallecano last week, the Spanish icons are enjoying a real purple patch. Firing on all cylinders and with the mood in Carlo Ancelotti’s camp at a real high, Los Blancos are tipped as a landslide contender to reclaim their domestic crown in 2024. Picking up a first-leg advantage while on Champions League duties earlier in the month as they secured a 1-0 victory away at RB Leipzig, Madrid have suffered just a single loss from any of their previous 29 appearances acro…
Kevin Gameiro shapes as the key man for Sevilla as they prepare to host Porto in their UEFA Europa League quarter-final second leg.
Sevilla lost the first leg in Portugal 1-0 last week but should be confident of overturning that deficit on Thursday as they have won five of their past six games at home in all competitions.
As one of the leading goal-scorers left in the Europa League this season, Gameiro has the pedigree to perform at continental level and showed he was in fine touch in Sevilla s La Liga encounter on Sunday.
Sevilla thrashed Espanyol 4-1 in the league with Gameiro scoring twice.
Gameiro has scored eight goals in Sevilla s past 13 games.
The 26-year-old Frenchman controlled Vitolo s cross on the stroke of half-time on Sunday before volleying i…
Atletico Madrid captain Gabi is hopeful that Fernando Torres will not play in Tuesday s UEFA Champions League semi-final against Chelsea.
Diego Simeone s men host the London club in the first leg of the last-four tie in what will be an emotional return to the Vicente Calderon for Atletico hero Torres.
Torres joined Atletico at the age of 11 back in 1995 and spent 12 years at his boyhood club before moving to Liverpool and then on to Chelsea in January 2011.
The 30-year-old did not feature in either of Liverpool s visits to the Calderon during his time on Merseyside, meaning that, if selected, Tuesday will mark the first time he has played there as an opposing player.
And former team-mate Gabi knows that Torres could be a threat to Atleti s hopes of reaching the …
Tottenham Hotspur are ready to offer Kieran Trippier a new contract in a bid to fend off interest from Everton, .
The twenty-six year old is set to be rewarded for his progress this term, with his form seeing him named ahead of regular right-back Kyle Walker for Sunday afternoon’s North London Derby which Spurs won by two goals to nil.
He also started the FA Cup semi-final defeat to Chelsea and may have an eye on making that spot his own with Walker linked with a move away from White Hart Lane this summer.
Trippier has racked up thirty-seven appearances since signing from Burnley in the summer of 2015, with his one and only goal for the club so far coming in a 1-0 win over Watford last February.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men travel to West Ham on Fri…
Atletico Madrid reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the fourth time in as many seasons following Wednesday s 0-0 draw with Bayer Leverkusen.
Diego Simeone s side claimed a 4-2 win in the first leg of the last-16 tie in Germany and were never unduly troubled as they produced a composed performance at the Vicente Calderon.
Leverkusen had only beaten Atletico once in their previous five meetings, and although they tested Jan Oblak on a handful of occasions, a stunning comeback rarely looked likely.
Bernd Leno produced two exemplary saves to deny Angel Correa and Koke in the first half, while Antoine Griezmann saw a devilish chip drop just wide, but Atleti chances were scarce in a low-risk performance.
Oblak produced a stunning triple-save to keep…