Inter head coach Antonio Conte claimed he and his squad received little protection from the club amid criticism as he hit out at the Nerazzurri.
Conte s Inter ended the 2019-20 Serie A season runners-up, just a point behind champions Juventus, following Saturday s 2-0 victory at Atalanta.
Danilo D Ambrosio and Ashley Young scored first-half goals as Inter collected 82 points from 38 matches, equalling the total of the 2009-10 treble-winning team under Jose Mourinho.
However, Conte – in his first season at San Siro – vented his frustration post-match, having previously insisted he would not hesitate to leave Inter if they were not happy.
We must give merit to these lads, 82 points is a lot, it s a lot and it shows that we worked well, Italian boss Co…
Best Odds: 4/5
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With the Portuguese Super Cup up for grabs on Wednesday night, Benfica will meet Porto at the Estadio Municipal de Aveiro.
Benfica
Starting with Benfica, enjoying what was a history-making campaign last season as they got their hands on a first domestic crown since 2019, Roger Schmidt’s men certainly impressed everyone across Portugal’s top-flight. Signing off the 2022/23 campaign with a routine 3-0 romp at home against Santa Clara, the Eagles will simply be hoping to carry on from where they left off back in May. Mounting what was a stunning charge after returning from the World Cup’s winter break, the former PSV boss saw his high-flying squad muster 16 points from just their final six Primera Liga showdowns. With that run under…
Bayer Leverkusen are honoured to take on a team with the pedigree of Milan, so says Xabi Alonso.
Milan made a poor start to the season, failing to earn a win in their opening three Serie A games while they also lost their Champions League meeting with Liverpool.
However, they have turned things around on the domestic front with three successive victories, including a 2-1 win over reigning Serie A champions and city rivals Inter.
Milan have won the European Cup/Champions League on seven occasions, and Alonso who was part of the Liverpool side that famously overcame the Rossoneri on penalties in the 2005 final says it is an honour to go up against one of the continent s great clubs.
Fundamental for my career. After 20 years we still talk about that night, …
Patrik Schick believes Czechia s 1-1 draw with Georgia was not enough but has pledged the team will do everything to advance to the last 16 in their final group game at Euro 2024.
Schick s equaliser ensured Czechia avoided a second successive defeat on Saturday, cancelling out Georges Mikautadze s penalty in an entertaining affair.
Schick, who netted five times at Euro 2020 to tie Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the goalscoring charts, is now his country s all-time leading marksman at the Euros with six goals, overtaking Milan Baros outright. No player has matched his return across the last two editions of the tournament.
However, Czechia will be lamenting a host of missed chances after firing off 27 shots to Georgia s five, hitting the target 12 times – the mo…
The European Championships of 2016 will consist of twenty-four participating nations. This was revealed by Franz Beckenbauer on Thursday.
At a meeting in Bordeaux, UEFA member states discussed the option of expanding the continental tournament in 2016. The results were to be announced on Friday, but Beckenbauer spoke a day earlier.
The European Championships underwent several mutations since its first edition in 1960. It first consisted of four nations, and another four were added in 1980. The 1996 tournament was the first edition that used the current set-up of sixteen countries.
In August, it became clear that all member states would agree on such an expansion. This is mainly to avoid that bigger football nations miss out on the tournament.
FIFA presid…
Rafa Mir believes he would fit in well at Atletico Madrid but will wait until after the Tokyo Olympics to discuss his future with Wolves.
The 24-year-old has failed to settle since moving to Molineux from Valencia in 2018 and has spent the last three seasons on loan with Las Palmas, Nottingham Forest and Huesca.
Mir has less than a year to run on his contract and has been touted as a target for LaLiga champions Atletico, who are seeking further back-up for first-choice striker Luis Suarez.
Reports in Spain on Sunday, meanwhile, suggest the former Barcelona youth product has been offered to the Catalan giants by agent Jorge Mendes.
And with his stock high after scoring a hat-trick for Spain in their Olympic quarter-final win against the Ivory Coast on Sat…
Mikel Arteta showered praise on his Arsenal players after their 3-1 victory against Southampton, saying his squad will always find a way to win.
The Gunners bounced back from Cameron Archer s opener to earn their 400th Premier League home win on Saturday, with Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka on target.
Arsenal enter the international break in third, hot on the heels of leaders Liverpool and level on points with Manchester City.
They also continued their impressive record against Southampton, extending their unbeaten run against them in the top flight to 25 matches (W17 D8), but the hosts were made to work for the win.
Arteta s side registered 14 shots in the first half with an expected goals (xG) total of 1.15, though their only shot on…
Tyson Fury issued a warning to Cristiano Ronaldo, insisting no matter who you are, age will get you eventually .
The Portugal captain, who entered the World Cup fresh from his acrimonious departure from Manchester United, has scored just once in four appearances in Qatar.
That goal came from the penalty spot against Ghana in his nation s opening match.
Having been criticised by head coach Fernando Santos for his reaction to being substituted during the Group H clash with South Korea, Ronaldo was then dropped for Portugal s comprehensive 6-1 victory over Switzerland in the last 16.
After being left out of the starting line-up, A Selecao have subsequently strongly denied reports the 37-year-old threatened to quit the squad during what is likely to be his sw…
Manchester United will look to sign a replacement forward for Cristiano Ronaldo during the January transfer window, according to the Manchester Evening News.
The 37-year-old Portuguese s exit by mutual consent with immediate effect has opened up all sorts of possibilities for the Red Devils.
But Erik ten Hag s side clearly need to bolster their ranks as they look to finish in the Premier League s top four this term.
TOP STORY – MEMPHIS WALKING BACK THROUGH THE DOORS AT OLD TRAFFORD?
Spanish media outlet Sport claims that Manchester United are keen on Barcelona s Memphis Depay in January.
The Blaugrana, who have been linked with United s Diogo Dalot, are eager to offload the Dutchman, whose contract ends in mid-2023.
The Netherlands inter…
Best odds: 3/4
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The season continues in La Liga this week after the World Cup with its 15th round this week, and on Saturday afternoon, the city of Barcelona will be blessed with the Derbi Barceloni at the Camp Nou where Barcelona welcome Espanyol. Quite apart from the significance of this fixture for the people of the city, it s an important match for both teams as they seek to achieve their respective goals for the season, as different as they obviously are.
Barcelona
Over the last couple of years, there s been a lot of talk about Barcelona being in a crisis of all sorts, as they suffered severe financial problems, failed to win the La Liga title since 2019 and the Champions League since 2015, and eventually lost their arguably greatest icon ever, L…