Champions Rangers closed to within two games of an unbeaten Scottish Premiership season with a 4-1 win over 10-man Celtic in a thrilling Old Firm derby at Ibrox.
Not since 1898-99 have the Gers gone a full top-flight season without defeat – then winning all 18 matches – but Celtic, themselves invincible in 2016-17, failed to halt their latest bid.
Kemar Roofe chested in a smart opener after 26 minutes and Callum McGregor was sent off for a foul in the build-up to that goal, putting Steven Gerrard s side in complete control.
Although Celtic quickly responded with Odsonne Edouard s close-range header, Alfredo Morelos blasted Rangers back into the lead and Roofe and substitute Jermain Defoe added to their advantage.
A sublime Allan McGregor stop from Moh…
UAE coach Alberto Zaccheroni believes the 2019 Asian Cup will be decided on small margins.
The tournament gets under way on Saturday when Zaccheroni s men take on Bahrain at Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi in the opening game of Group A.
Zaccheroni has enjoyed success in the event, having led Japan to the 2011 title in Qatar, but he believes much has changed in the intervening period.
He told a news conference: The performance of the teams has changed a lot since the last time I managed a team in the Asian Cup.
Watching the Asian teams in the 2018 World Cup I can see a lot of improvement in them and many of those teams are in the Asian Games. My guess is the winner will win on small details.
I started working with UAE one year ago. We di…
Yacine Adli always had Milan in his mind while spending last season on loan at former club Bordeaux, and he arrives in Serie A with high expectations of what he could achieve.
The attacking midfielder, who turns 22 later this month, officially signed for Milan last August but remained in Ligue 1 for the 2021-22 campaign.
It ended up being a miserable one for Bordeaux, who finished bottom of the table and were then hit with a further demotion to the third tier due to their financial difficulties. The sanction was upheld after an initial appeal.
Adli knew his future was already settled, and with Bordeaux in turmoil, he unsurprisingly had greener pastures in his thoughts for much of the season.
While he was attempting to help Bordeaux dig themselves out of a…
Barcelona are confident of signing Marcos Alonso from Chelsea in the summer transfer window, according to . The report has claimed that La Liga powerhouse Barcelona remain in talks with Premier League giants Chelsea over signing defender Alonso.
Alonso, who can operate as a left-back or as a wing-back, has been on the books of Chelsea since 2016 and has done well for the Blues over the years. The Spain international has won the Premier League once, the UEFA Champions League on one occasion, and the UEFA Europa League once. Alonso has scored 26 goals and created 26 big chances in 179 appearances in the Premier League so far in his career.
have added that Alonso has agreed personal terms with Barcelona already, and now the former La Liga and UEFA Champions League champio…
According to a recent report from Corriere dello Sport, AC Milan are no longer going after the signing of Chelsea forward Olivier Giroud. The belief is that the Italian side are not willing to offer the Frenchman a deal that is two-and-a-half years long, likely indicating they would’ve only wanted something on a short term basis.
Giroud himself, however, wants an extended chance to prove himself on the big stage. At the age of 33 he’s still got a few good years left in him before he starts to slow down, and as such, he’s the sort of experienced name most European sides would love to throw on.
Giroud has been unable to secure a permanent place of any kind in the starting XI of Chelsea over the last few months, but whenever he’s been given an opportuni…
Nottingham Forest are in talks with Neal Maupay about the possibility of a transfer from Brighton and Hove Albion before the window closes, according to .
The French forward played for OGC Nice and Saint-Etienne and spent two years at Brentford in the Championship before arriving to Amex in the summer of 2019. He signed a four-year contract with Brighton back then and he s still on it, which means he s entered its final season. With 27 goals and seven assists in 109 matches for the Seagulls, it could be said that he s played an important role for the club, but he was left on the bench in the win over Manchester United in the opening round and completely out of the squad for the subsequent goalless draw against Newcastle.
If the deal goes through, the 26-year-old will …
Jorge Sampaoli has been appointed as Sevilla coach for the second time, with the former Argentina boss succeeding Julen Lopetegui.
The 62-year-old, who was in charge of Marseille last season, was originally handed the top job at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in June 2016, succeeding Unai Emery.
During his lone year at the club, he took them to a fourth-place finish in LaLiga, and the round of 16 in the Champions League.
Now, he returns following Lopetegui s exit amid a dismal start to the 2022-23 season for Sevilla, with the club 17th in LaLiga and similarly adrift in Europe following a 4-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday.
Sampaoli s immediate remit will be ensuring a swift turnaround in fortunes for the club, starting with this weekend s clash wit…
According to a recent report from AS, Real Madrid are currently monitoring the progress of Valencia youngster Ferran Torres. The winger has been turning heads throughout the course of the current season, with many fans and pundits alike believing it would only be a matter of time until bigger clubs within the sphere of European football came knocking at their door.
The 19 year old has been attracting the attention of a series of top clubs from around the Premier League, too, but with Real also being in La Liga, Torres may opt for a transfer to a team within a league that he’s already very familiar with, which makes sense.
Real have never been shy when it comes to putting the big money behind youngsters that they want to pursue, and Zinedine Zidane certainly seem…
Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has returned to full training but is still weeks away from being in contention to play first-team football.
Bentancur saw his fine 2022-23 campaign cut short in February when he suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage to his left knee during a 4-1 defeat to Leicester.
The ex-Juventus midfielder had been one of Spurs’ best performers, scoring six times in 26 appearances last season and after eight months out he is close to a return, but will not be in the squad for Monday’s visit of Fulham.
“No, he won’t be in the squad,” Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou confirmed.
“We ll be careful with him now he s fully training. He s looking good and we re looking forward to getting him back.”
A positive u…
The UK and Ireland submitted an official bid to host Euro 2028 on Wednesday, with the homes of Everton, Tottenham and Newcastle United among those proposed to be used.
Overall, 10 stadiums are included in the bid; Wembley Stadium, Hampden Park, Principality Stadium, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Etihad Stadium, St James Park, Villa Park, Hampden Park, Aviva Stadium, Casement Park and Everton s new stadium, which is still under construction.
England has previously hosted the 1966 World Cup and Euro 96, while multiple games were played at Wembley Stadium and Hampden Park during Euro 2020.
Women s Euro 2022 was also hosted in England, with the hosts ultimately winning the trophy.
The bid claims the UK and Ireland is: Committed to delivering a record-breaking to…