Zinedine Zidane called for calm after Real Madrid s shock loss at home to Real Betis, insisting there is nothing to be worried about amid the LaLiga champions stuttering title defence.
Madrid s woes at the Santiago Bernabeu continued on Wednesday, beaten 1-0 by Betis in the Spanish capital, despite the return of reigning Ballon d Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo from a five-match domestic suspension.
Zidane s men had drawn back-to-back LaLiga matches in Madrid leading into the midweek clash and their winless streak on home soil in the league extended to a third game following Antonio Sanabria s dramatic 94th-minute winner.
It is Madrid s worst run at home in LaLiga since Jose Mourinho s tenure in April 2011 as the titleholders slipped seven points adrift of rivals and…
Gian Piero Ventura has fallen on his own sword after Italy failed to reach the World Cup for the first time since 1958.
After a qualifying campaign that saw a frustrating draw against Macedonia and a heavy defeat to Spain, Italy were consigned to the play-offs.
Standing in their way of a place at Russia 2018 were Sweden and Ventura s men were unable to make it past their Scandinavian rivals.
A 1-0 victory in Stockholm proved enough to secure Sweden s place at the showpiece tournament, the second leg in Milan ending goalless much to the ire of a packed San Siro.
In the aftermath of the aggregate defeat the pressure grew on Ventura to depart, and the 69-year-old has resigned as head coach following a meeting with the Italian Football Federation.
Wit…
Lisandro Martinez aims to come back stronger after suffering a season-ending injury in Manchester United s Europa League clash with Sevilla on Thursday.
Martinez was carried from the field by Sevilla s Marcos Acuna and Gonzalo Montiel – his Argentina team-mates – after going down unchallenged in the closing stages of the 2-2 draw at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils on Friday confirmed centre-back Martinez will not feature again in the 2022-23 campaign after fracturing a metatarsal bone in his foot.
They added that the former Ajax defender, who won the World Cup with Argentina in December, is expected to make a full recovery in time for the start of next season.
Writing on Instagram, Martinez said: Not the way I imagined what s been a very special season w…
Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon believes Jose Mourinho will return to the Santiago Bernabeu if fortunes do not improve under Zinedine Zidane.
Madrid and France legend Zidane was confirmed as Rafael Benitez s successor on Monday after the Spaniard paid the price for a mixed seventh months in charge.
A Clasico hammering at the hands of Barcelona, plus regular reports of dressing room unrest, undermined Benitez s reign, with Zidane seen by Madrid president Florentino Perez as the man to reunite the squad.
Former Madrid boss Mourinho remains without a club following his departure from Chelsea last month, and Calderon believes the Portuguese remains an ideal candidate should Zidane falter.
I wish Zidane all the best but it will be difficult. …
Manchester United have finalised the signing of free agent Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Swede arrives in the Premier League having won four straight Ligue 1 titles with Paris Saint-Germain and departed as the club s highest scorer with 156 goals in just four seasons.
On Thursday, the 34-year-old announced his next move would take him to Old Trafford and United have now confirmed the capture of the superstar forward, although the length of contract has not been disclosed.
I am absolutely delighted to be joining Manchester United and am looking forward to playing in the Premier League, he said in a statement on United s official website.
It goes without saying that I cannot wait to work with Jose Mourinho once again.
He is a fantastic manager …
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2010 World Cup winners Spain lock horns with Tunisia as both sides polish their form ahead of the 2018 showpiece tournament which is less than a week away. The game will be played at Krasnodar Stadium in Russia where both sides are hoping to feel the ground and atmosphere before the big event.
Spain
La Roja are determined to get back on the pedestal of international football after some rather disappointing performances at the global stage of late. The 2010 World Cup winners seem to have recovered from the Euro 2016 elimination going unbeaten in 19 consecutive matches since losing to Italy in the Last 16 stage in France.
Julen Lopetegui’s men were still given a wake-up call by Switzerland who held…
Santi Cazorla is keen to sign a new contract with Arsenal, .
The Spain international’s current deal with the club is set to expire at the end of this season, but he has no intentions of moving on as he is very happy at the club.
Since signing from Malaga in the summer of 2012 the thirty-one year old has racked up one hundred and seventy-five appearances in all competitions, scoring twenty-nine goals and was part of the squad that won back-to-back FA Cups in 2014 and 2015.
Internationally, he has been capped seventy-seven times for his country, scoring fourteen times and with them won the European Championships in both 2008 and 2012.
Arsenal moved to within two points of league leaders Manchester City with a narrow victory at Burnley on Sunday after…
Egypt goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary became the oldest player in Africa Cup of Nations history when he featured in his country s Group D opener against Mali on Tuesday.
The four-time winner of the competition began the match on the bench, but was summoned when first-choice Ahmed El-Shenawy was unable to continue do to an apparent shoulder injury – winning his 148th cap at the age of 44 years and two days.
FIFA tweeted its congratulations to El-Hadary, who is currently enjoying a second spell with Egyptian Premier League side Wadi Degla.
El-Hadary won his first African title in 1998 and was named as the best goalkeeper in the tournament when Egypt won on home soil in 2006 and defended their crown successfully in both 2008 and 2010.
He is older than Colombia …
Shrewsbury have confirmed the appointment of Matt Taylor as head coach in place of Steve Cotterill, who left the club earlier this month.
The 41-year-old Taylor made over 300 appearances in the Premier League during spells with Portsmouth, Bolton, West Ham and Burnley.
He began his coaching career at junior levels with Luton and Tottenham before a brief stint in charge of Walsall, whom he left early in 2022.
Taylor told Shrewsbury’s official website: “I’m very aware the football club has a successful playing style – something that has worked when you look at the finish last season.
“I hope to allow the players to really express themselves. There are some exceptional footballers here and part of my role is to give them a platform and a structure …
Cyriel Dessers salvaged a last-gasp draw for Rangers in a 1-1 draw with Dynamo Kyiv in their Champions League third-round qualifier first leg on Tuesday.
It looked like Andriy Yarmolenko s strike would give the Ukrainian side the advantage heading into the second leg next week, but the visitors dug deep to level the score.
Rangers made a decent start to the game but were punished for Ridvan Yilmaz s loose pass, as Vladyslav Vanat capitalised by flashing it into the box for Yarmolenko to turn home.
The visitors pushed for an equaliser, with Ross McCausland hitting the post before Heorhiy Bushchan made a fine save to keep out Dessers pacey shot.
And it was the Nigerian that eventually found the breakthrough for Rangers as he darted in to poke Vaclav Cerny s…