Chelsea have appointed Joe Shields as co-director of recruitment and talent, as chairman Todd Boehly looks to build a world-class management team at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues have been targeting appointments in key roles since Boehly s consortium took control in May, and revealed Laurence Stewart is to become technical director at the end of his tenure with Monaco earlier this week.
Shields – who most recently worked as Southampton s head of recruitment following a nine-year spell with Manchester City s academy – will now join him in a new-look management team.
Boehly and co-owner Behdad Eghbali expressed their excitement at the prospect of working with Shields, telling Chelsea s website: Joe is another great addition to Chelsea, and we re thrilled to have …
Carlo Ancelotti refused to criticise Brazil boss Tite for snubbing Vinicius Junior after the Real Madrid star s match-winning performance at Elche.
Vinicius took his tally to seven goals in 11 LaLiga games in 2021-22, more than he managed in his previous two seasons combined, as Los Blancos claimed a 2-1 win at the Martinez Valero.
The winger scored in each half, either side of Raul Guti s dismissal, to send Madrid back to the top of the table despite a nervy finish to the game following Pere Milla s late goal.
Amid his impressive form, Vinicius has been omitted from Tite s national squad for the World Cup qualifiers in November, with Barcelona s Philippe Coutinho surprisingly recalled for what could be his first Brazil game in over a year.
However, Ancel…
Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United will host Arsene Wenger and Arsenal today in week three of the English Premier League. The match will be United s second at Old Trafford; their first was a 3-0 victory over the Gunners bitter North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
The Gunners are coming off a Premier League home loss to Liverpool FC. However, during the week, Arsenal sealed a place in the UEFA Champions League group stages with a 2-1 win versus Udinese in Udin, Italy (3-1 on aggregate).
Probable Lineups
Manchester United: De Gea, Smalling, Jones, Evans, Evra, Nani, Anderson, Cleverley, Young, Rooney, Welbeck.
Arsenal: Szeczny, Jenkinson, Djourou, Vermaelen, Sagna, Ramsey, Traore, Walcott, Rosicky, Arshavin, Van Persie.
Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo was officially presented with the European Golden Shoe award on Friday.
The Portugal international achieved the prestigious honour by firing home 40 goals in Spain s La Liga last term, thus scoring more times than any other player in the top division of a European league.
Ronaldo, who was handed the award by Portugal legend Eusebio and Real Madrid honorary president Alfredo Di Stefano, said that he would be happier to see his club side lift the biggest trophies in the game than to continue winning individual accolades.
I would trade this award right now for the Champions League or La Liga, Ronaldo said. You can only win individual awards because the team help you.
I would like to win something bigger at a collective …
Ajax striker Kolbeinn Sigthorsson has signed a contract extension with the Eredivisie champions that will keep him at the club until 2016.
The Iceland striker, who joined Ajax in 2011 from AZ, has put pen to paper on a one-year extension with the Amsterdam club.
Sigthorsson had verbally agreed to further his stay at the Amsterdam Arena back in August, and now the formalities of the deal have been completed.
However, the 24-year-old will not have the chance to immediately mark the agreement with a goal, due to the ankle injury he suffered in last Saturday s 5-0 victory over Willem II.
That blow will keep Sigthorsson out until the new year, placing more emphasis on top-scorer Arkadiusz Milik – who has 16 goals to his name in all competitions – to deliv…
Western Sydney Wanderers will not stand in the way of Tony Popovic if he is approached for the vacant Crystal Palace manager s job.
Former defender Popovic spent five years as a player at Selhurst Park between 2011 and 2006, returning as assistant to Dougie Freedman in February 2011 before departing again 15 months later to lead the then freshly formed Wanderers.
He has enjoyed stunning success with the A-League side, guiding them to consecutive Grand Finals as premiers in 2012-13 and winning the AFC Champions League this year, making them the first Australian side to win Asia s top prize.
Despite Popovic s previous success in the role, the Wanderers currently sit bottom of the A-League without a win all season and chairman Paul Lederer says he will allow his…
Bruno Genesio has announced he will leave his role as Lyon head coach at the end of the season.
The 52-year-old confirmed at a news conference on Saturday that he will not renew his contract, which expires in June.
For some time, I ve been facing we ve been facing a negative climate, which can be a drag on the players and the club, he said.
I had a very long conversation this morning with my president, in order to tell him that I will not continue next year.
I informed my players this morning. I m counting on everyone to keep together because we need to get the club into the Champions League. A fair few players have supported me.
It s in the interest of the club that I have taken this decision, in agreement with my president.
The news…
English football s Olympus didn t quite fall last year, but it felt an almighty tremor.
Leicester City s Premier League title win bore the hallmarks of a bona-fide legend come to life, and is likely to be remade into at least one movie.
Victories came with swashbuckling style, led by the demi-god talents of Riyad Mahrez and the goals of Jamie Vardy, the personification of a rags-to-riches story. At the helm was a manager with more heart-warming whimsy than a mechanical owl hooting on Harry Hamlin s shoulder.
But the footballing deities look determined not to be so ruffled again. A transfer window of unprecedented spending, including Paul Pogba s world record return to Manchester United, has followed an influx of some of the globe s finest managerial talent to Eng…
Dejan Lovren is set to leave Liverpool and join Zenit St Petersburg this summer, according to Paul Joyce of .
The Croatian centre-back arrived to Anfield six years ago for £20 million from Southampton, and played with mixed success for the newly crowned Premier League champions. He was an important part of the team that reached the Champions League final in 2018, but he has been overtaken in the pecking order by Joe Gomez and Joel Matip since.
Zenit have expressed their interest in the 31-year-old a while back but expected to get the deal done for very little money due to Lovren entering his final year under contract. However, it emerged later that the club had the option of extending the deal for another 12 months, and the two clubs have been locked in negotiations si…
Celta Vigo have announced Fran Escriba is to take over as head coach as the replacement for Miguel Cardoso.
Cardoso took charge last November following the sacking of head coach Antonio Mohamed but Sunday s 1-0 loss at Eibar proved the final straw.
Celta have won only once since December 8, with the injury issues of star striker Iago Aspas contributing to their slide down the LaLiga table.
Escriba returns to LaLiga management after last taking charge of Villarreal between August 2016 and September 2017. He has also coached Elche and Getafe.
The 53-year-old s first game in charge will be at home to Champions League-chasing Real Betis before a trip to Real Madrid on March 16.
Celta are 17th in the LaLiga table, two points above the relegation z…