David de Gea s incongruous mistake handed a dogged Switzerland side a 1-1 draw away to Spain in a pre-World Cup friendly.
The Manchester United goalkeeper is regarded as being among the world s finest but he spilled a shot from reported Arsenal target Stephan Lichtsteiner, presenting Ricardo Rodriguez with a tap-in.
Spain were producing a commanding display to assert their status as one of the pre-tournament favourites prior to De Gea s out-of-character error in Villarreal.
Vladimir Petkovic s determined Swiss outfit had kept four consecutive clean sheets but they were undone by a goal out of the top drawer from Alvaro Odriozola in the 29th minute.
David Silva s cross found the right-back, who advanced on to the high ball and cushioned a strike on the vol…
Jurgen Klopp will make his much-anticipated emotional return to Borussia Dortmund with Liverpool in the Europa League on Thursday.
Thursday s quarter-final first leg at Signal Iduna Park sees Klopp return to a club where he won consecutive Bundesliga titles in 2010-11 and 2011-12, before reaching the 2013 Champions League final, where they lost to rivals Bayern Munich.
After Klopp s final season ended in far from fitting fashion Dortmund were bottom for large parts of the campaign, including throughout the mid-season break Thomas Tuchel has taken the club back to the top, and they sit five points off Bayern with six games to play.
Tuchel has beaten Klopp just once in the coaches 10 meetings, losing seven of Mainz and Dortmund s meetings between 2009 and 2014.
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Real Madrid are obviously looking to sign a striker following the departure of Karim Benzema to Saudi Arabia, and one of the names mentioned the most in that aspect is Chelsea s Kai Havertz.
For their part, Chelsea are also looking to restructure their attacking line as manager Mauricio Pochettino aims to improve on their tally of just Premier League goals in 2022/23. They are said to be looking for a classic No. 9 type of striker, with Pierre Emerick Aubameyang set to leave and David Datro Fofana obviously not trusted enough following his arrival from Molde in January.
The Blues would be willing to part ways with Havertz, but they demand a significant fee for the 23-year-old whose contract does not expire before 2025. Some reports suggest they ve set the price at €60…
Ronald Koeman says Southampton must back him in the transfer market to prove they can match his ambitions for the club.
Saints rounded off their season with a 4-1 win over FA Cup finalists Crystal Palace at St Mary s Stadium on Sunday, guaranteeing a top-six finish and Europa League football in the process.
Southampton have improved on their previous season each year since 2009-10, but Koeman has been tipped to take over at Everton following Roberto Martinez s sacking.
Though the Dutchman remains satisfied on the south coast, he shot a warning to Southampton s hierarchy that they will have to invest heavily if that trend is to continue.
Still I have a one-year contract, Koeman told Sky Sports.
I spoke to the board, we have the meeting after this…
Atletico Madrid are interested in signing Lyon midfielder Houssem Aouar in the summer of 2023, according to . The France international midfielder is out of contract at Ligue 1 outfit Lyon at the end of the season, and former La Liga champions Atletico want to secure the services of the 24-year-old on a free transfer.
The report has claimed that Atletico think that Aouar would make their midfield department better and would make it more creative. The 24-year-old is one of the best players in Ligue 1 and has been superb for Lyon over the years.
Aouar has made one appearance in Ligue 1 so far this season. The Lyon no. 8 made 29 starts and seven substitute appearances in Ligue 1 last season, scoring six goals and providing four assists in the process. Aouar also made six st…
Jordan Henderson hailed Liverpool s resolve after they overcame the loss of Mohamed Salah to emerge as FA Cup Final victors with a 6-5 penalty shoot-out win over Chelsea.
The Reds made it two domestic final triumphs from two against the Blues this season, as they overcame the London club in the tension of another sudden death shoot-out at Wembley on Saturday.
Konstantinos Tsimikas was the hero after Alisson saved Mason Mount s spot-kick following a goalless encounter, adding the only missing major honour to Jurgen Klopp s Anfield trophy cabinet.
Victory also keeps the prospect of an unprecedented quadruple alive though Liverpool would need Manchester City to slip up in the Premier League, with the Champions League final still against Real Madrid to come.<…
Pablo Zabaleta says he has offers from clubs in the Premier League and in other countries as his Manchester City career draws to a close.
Zabaleta, who is out of contract at the end of the season, played his last home game for the club in a 3-1 win over West Brom on Tuesday after announcing he will end his nine-year association with City.
West Ham have been linked with the Argentine, who joined City from Espanyol in 2008, and the 32-year-old said: I have a few offers from teams in the Premier League, some offers from abroad. I am just thinking what is the best for me and my family.
I have been in England for so many years. I am happy and I enjoy playing in the Premier League. We will see. I have offers from different countries. The Premier League is the gre…
The Prince of Wales has praised the “brave and inspirational” Dele Alli for speaking out about his mental health struggles after he revealed he was sexually abused as a child.
In an emotional interview, Alli told how he was “molested” as a six-year-old and was dealing drugs aged eight, while he also spoke about alcohol problems, sleeping pill addiction and addressing his mental health issues by spending six weeks in a rehab clinic.
The 27-year-old said he had contemplated hanging up his boots three years ago before leaving Tottenham for Everton in 2022, prompting an outpouring of support with Prince William, the NSPCC and England captain Harry Kane among those to applaud him.
Brave and inspirational . Discussing mental health is not a sign of weakness. Le…
Barcelona under-19 head coach Victor Valdes said he bought new boots for Ansu Fati as the teenager continues to impress at Camp Nou.
Fati became Barca s second youngest player to feature in LaLiga during their 5-2 win over Real Betis on Sunday.
The 16-year-old moved behind Vicente Martinez, who was 18 days younger when he played against Real Madrid in October 1941, after coming off the bench.
Former Barca goalkeeper Valdes – back at Camp Nou as a coach – spoke about the highly rated youngster.
When you are 16 years of age and playing at Camp Nou
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)
I told him to bring me his boots and they were a complete disaster, they were causing him pain, Valdes said at a news conference on Monday.
Nobo…
Roma survived a second-leg scare in their Europa League quarter-final against Ajax, advancing 3-2 on aggregate after a scarcely deserved 1-1 home draw.
The last remaining Serie A representatives in European competition this season held a commanding position heading into the return fixture, having won 2-1 in Amsterdam a week earlier.
But Roma largely lacked ambition at the Stadio Olimpico and invited Ajax to chase the two away goals they required, the first arriving when substitute Brian Brobbey beat Pau Lopez four minutes after half-time.
A second soon after was disallowed, though, and Edin Dzeko struck to restore parity on the night and set up a semi-final against Manchester United.
30 Edin Dzeko (30 for AS Roma) is one of the only four players able to s…