Month: November 2024

Eddie Howe has insisted he remains committed to Newcastle United amid links to the vacant England head coach position.

Southgate, who led England to back-to-back European Championship showpieces, resigned on Tuesday following the Three Lions Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain.

Howe is among several names linked with the role alongside Graham Potter, Lee Carsley and an ambitious swoop for Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola.

Newcastle chief executive Darren Eales has already expressed his desire for Howe to remain at St. James Park, having led the Magpies to Champions League football during the 2022-23 Premier League season.

It is an unbelievable football club. I’m very, very proud to be the manager, Howe told BBC Radio Newcastle at the club s pre-s…

The final round of Premier League fixtures before the World Cup break produced a huge shock at the Etihad Stadium.

After missing out on England s World Cup squad, Ivan Toney struck twice to give Brentford a sensational 2-1 victory over Manchester City.

That result confirmed Arsenal would be top heading into the World Cup interval, and they increased their lead to five points by cruising past Wolves at Molineux as Martin Odegaard scored both goals in a 2-0 triumph.

Tottenham and Leeds United played out a seven-goal thriller at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with the hosts eventually running out 4-3 winners.

Elsewhere, Chelsea fell to a third straight league defeat as they were beaten 1-0 by in-form Newcastle United.

Here, Stats Perform looks throug…

Jhon Duran s dramatic late double earned Aston Villa a thrilling 3-3 draw with Liverpool at Villa Park, but the hosts will still have to wait before they can be sure of sealing a top-four Premier League finish.

Duran came off the bench to score in the 85th and 88th minutes to help Villa avoid what had looked set to be a fourth straight defeat in all competitions.

Emiliano Martinez s own goal gifted Liverpool the lead two minutes in on Monday and Cody Gakpo restored that advantage for the visitors after Youri Tielemans had Unai Emery’s side level.

It looked like Jarell Quansah s first goal for the Reds early in the second half had sealed the victory, but Duran’s late intervention ensured Villa emerged from the game with a valuable point.

Villa remain i…

In a rematch of the 2022 Champions League final Real Madrid will travel to Anfield on Tuesday on a mission to inflict more pain on Liverpool in the round of 16.

Madrid got their hands on the famous trophy in Paris last May, but while the Reds have struggled in the Premier League this campaign, their European form would suggest they should provide a tough test for a side who have had their number in recent years.

Meanwhile, reigning Europa League champions Eintracht Frankfurt will look to continue their sparkling European form when runaway Serie A leaders Napoli roll into town.

Napoli have taken on all comers this season, proving to be a force in Europe while they have taken Serie A by storm.

Courtesy of Stats Perform, here are some of the key stats and fa…

Anthony Martial confirmed his nine-year stay with Manchester United will come to an end when his contract expires in June.

The France forward announced on Monday that he will not be playing for the Red Devils next season, though the news was expected after an injury-hit spell in Manchester.

Martial scored 90 goals across his United career but had to deal with multiple injury setbacks in recent seasons – last appearing in the home defeat to Bournemouth in December.

The 28-year-old took to Instagram to confirm the decision as Martial joins Raphael Varane in leaving Erik ten Hag s side ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.

It s with great emotion that I write to you today to say goodbye, the former Monaco attacker wrote on social media as he prepares to leave wh…

Manchester City have confirmed defender Nicolas Otamendi has signed a new deal, which will run until 2022.

Otamendi s initial deal was due to expire in 2020, with his new terms tying him to City for an additional two campaigns.

The Argentina international came under fire for some sloppy performances following his reported £32million move from Valencia in 2015, but he has shown vast improvement in Pep Guardiola s second season at the helm and has only missed one Premier League game this term.

Otamendi has successfully adapted to the passing style demanded by former Barcelona boss Guardiola, leading the Premier League in completed passes at 2033.

The 29-year-old scored the winner as City defeated arch-rivals Manchester United 2-1 at Old Trafford last month…

The countdown continues and off the back of our here comes a piece on midfielders you’ll need to keep your eye on during the World Cup in Russia.

We start with a duo of Balkan boys who are ready to hit the stage on contrasting foundations and work our way through the continent with a look towards another three midfielder who could make a big impact both for their teams and the tournament in total.

Here goes nothing.

Luka Modric

The Croatian superstar is in all likelihood heading towards his last World Cup. The Real Madrid playmaker is 32, but is showing no signs of slowing down after an imperial season with the Champions League winners.

Former Dinamo Zagreb and Tottenham Hotspur star is under great scrutiny in his homeland for reportedly making false…

Kieran Tierney s participation at Euro 2024 is officially over after he was forced to leave the Scotland camp due to a hamstring injury he sustained in their draw with Switzerland.

The Arsenal full-back – who spent the 2023-24 season on loan at Real Sociedad – was carried off on a stretcher late on in Wednesday s 1-1 draw in Cologne.

Boss Steve Clarke immediately ruled Tierney out of their third Group A game, against Hungary on Sunday, and he will not be available for future games if they progress to the knockout rounds.

Writing on Instagram, Tierney said: Heartbroken doesn t cut it. Love this team and these boys. This too shall pass.

Assistant head coach John Carver added on Friday: He is heading home to be assessed by Arsenal and that s all I can r…

St. Louis City will play their first MLS game without Bradley Carnell after the head coach was dismissed ahead of Thursday s meeting with San Jose Earthquakes.

Carnell s departure was confirmed this week after failing to triumph since mid-May, slipping down to 12th in the Western Conference standings after a nine-game winless run.

St. Louis were guided to a first-place finish in the West last season, their maiden campaign in MLS, yet they are preparing for a new era with technical director John Hackworth in interim charge.

Given Bradley s many contributions to the club, this was not an easy decision,” said City s sporting director Lutz Pfannenstiel.

Unfortunately, based on our results to date, we believe a coaching change is in the best interest of th…

Cristiano Ronaldo has been named The Best FIFA Men s Player for 2016, beating Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann to the honour.

The Real Madrid forward added to his victory in the Ballon d Or with another individual triumph at Monday s ceremony in Zurich.

It caps a superb year for Ronaldo, who also won the Champions League and Club World Cup with Madrid, as well as Euro 2016 with Portugal.

But is Ronaldo really performing better than his rivals?

With the help of Opta data, we compare his club statistics from the start of the 2016-17 season to see if his trajectory points towards another individual accolade next year as the race for 2017 s top honours begins.

GOALS

After scoring 51 times in 48 appearances at club level last season, Ronaldo has…