Roberto Martinez hailed the experience of Cristiano Ronaldo as the 38-year-old scored twice in Portugal s 6-0 thrashing of Luxembourg.
Ronaldo followed up his brace against Liechtenstein on Thursday with another on Sunday at the Stade de Luxembourg as Portugal made it two wins from two to start their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign.
Joao Felix, Bernardo Silva, Otavio and Rafael Leao added the other goals, and Martinez was quick to praise Ronaldo for his contributions in the Spaniard s first games as head coach.
Cristiano has incredible international experience, probably unique as he is the only player [in the world] with 198 caps, he said at a post-match press conference. His experience is very important in the dressing room.
Passo a passo, rumo à qualif…
Market: France to beat Russia
Odds:
France visit the 2018 World Cup hosts Russia on Tuesday bidding to bounce back from defeat to Colombia in Paris on Friday.
For this summers World Cup hosts, while the tournament may still be covered in controversy, Russian boss Stanislav Cherchesov will be more concerned about his sides current form. After automatically booking their spot in the finals as the tournament hosts, Russia have admirably decided to test themselves against some of world football s elite. Coming off the back of a disappointing performance against Brazil in a 3-0 defeat, Cherchesov s side have now failed to win any of their last four and have just two wins in their last eight, one of those being in a hybrid friendly against Dinamo Moscow. Expec…
Neymar can make a difference but nobody can be a like-for-like replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid, according to Predrag Mijatovic.
Brazil star Neymar only joined Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona last August but is reportedly unhappy in France, leading to speculation he could make a sensational move to the Santiago Bernabeu.
The forward, who is currently recovering from a foot injury, has also been linked with a return to Barca just a year after his record-breaking €222million move away from Camp Nou.
While former Madrid player Mijatovic is a huge fan of the 26-year-old, he feels it will be impossible for any player to match Ronaldo s importance to Zinedine Zidane s side.
I love Neymar. I like him a lot as a player, he s a k…
In-form Stoke City midfielder Charlie Adam has been recalled to the Scotland squad for next month s matches against Qatar and Republic of Ireland.
Adam has scored four goals in his last seven Premier League appearances, including one from inside his own half in a 2-1 defeat at Chelsea last month.
His last international appearance came in a 1-0 friendly loss to Poland in March 2014, but his recent showings for Stoke have earned him a recall from manager Gordon Strachan.
Celtic duo Leigh Griffiths and Charlie Mulgrew are also included, the latter having recovered from a hamstring injury, while Griffiths 13 goals for the Scottish Premier League champions see him given a chance of a first Scotland appearance since September 2013.
There is maiden call-up for …
Sevilla coach Unai Emery said now is not the time to talk about the future , amid reports linking the Spaniard with a move away from the La Liga outfit.
After Sevilla claimed back-to-back UEFA Europa League titles via a 3-2 win over Dnipro in Warsaw on Wednesday, attention quickly turned to Emery and his future at the club.
Emery, who has overseen consecutive triumphs in Europe s second-tier competition since joining the club in 2013, has been linked to Milan, West Ham and even Real Madrid.
But the 43-year-old was tight-lipped when he fronted the media post-match.
Now is not the time to talk about the future, Emery said. I learned a long time ago that you have to live the present without thinking about the future.
We have demanded a lot of ourse…
New Manchester City director of football Txiki Begiristain is eager to create a successful relationship with manager Roberto Mancini.
Begiristain, who held the same position at Barcelona between 2003 and 2010, will oversee the recruitment of players after replacing Brian Marwood at the Etihad Stadium.
The Spaniard was responsible for signing Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto o, Thierry Henry and David Villa during his time at the Camp Nou.
He also maintained the youth setup that saw the likes of Sergio Busquets break into the senior team.
Begiristain will aim to provide a similar level of success in the transfer market, following complaints from Mancini about Marwood in the most recent window.
The 48-year-old said he was looking forward to operating alongsi…
Newcastle defender Davide Santon believes the club is capable of returning to European competition in the near future.
Alan Pardew s side struggled domestically last term, narrrowly avoiding relegation, but impressed in the UEFA Europa League, reaching the last eight before losing 4-2 on aggregate to Benfica.
Santon, signed from Inter in 2011, missed the second leg against the Portuguese outfit because of a hamstring injury sustained in a Premier League win over Fulham in April.
However, the Italy international is eager to help the St James Park outfit return to the European stage.
When I came here, I came from Inter and the dream was to play in Europe at St James Park, Santon told the Evening Chronicle.
We done that last season. Now the dream is to go back…
Former two-time Dutch national coach Dick Advocaat was named officially as coach of Belgium on Wednesday on a two year contract.
The 61-year-old will take up his duties on January 1 2010 as he is still under contract to Russian side Zenit St-Petersburg where he has enjoyed great success guiding them to the 2008 UEFA Cup and European Super Cup.
Advocaat, a former manager of Scottish giants Rangers and who enjoyed less successful spells with South Korea and Borussia Monchengladbach, replaces Rene Vandereycken.
The 55-year-old was sacked as coach of Belgium at the beginning of April after three years in the role.
Belgium are currently fourth in World Cup qualifying group five and stand little chance of qualifying for next summer s tournament in South Africa…
Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing Dominic Solanke from Premier League rivals Bournemouth, according to . The report in the British tabloid has claimed that Spurs want to sign a new striker in the summer of 2024, and that former Liverpool player Solanke is on their radar.
Solanke struggled to make an impact at Liverpool, but he is now one of the best and most important players for Bournemouth. The 26-year-old striker has scored 11 goals and given one assist in 17 Premier League matches for the Cherries so far this season.
Tottenham are fourth in the Premier League table at the moment with 36 points from 18 matches, four points behind leaders and North London rivals Arsenal. Meanwhile, Bournemouth currently find themselves 12th in the standings with 22 points fr…
Best Odds: 2/3
Bookmaker:
With a spot in the final of this year s EFL Cup up for grabs on Wednesday night, Manchester United will welcome their crosstown rivals to an empty Old Trafford.
Manchester United
Starting with the hosts, managing to pick up what was a controversial 2-1 victory against a high-flying Aston Villa on New Year s Day, Manchester United find themselves enjoying quite the purple patch. Despite a rocky start to the 2020/21 campaign and getting hit with that woeful 6-1 drumming at home against Tottenham back in October, some around Old Trafford have suddenly started to believe that their side could be a genuine title contender this season. Still sat level on points with Liverpool after their slip up against Southampton on Monday night, the forme…