Former Spain defender Carles Puyol has backed the country s emerging stars to take the team forward as many of its best players near the end of their careers.
Puyol was part of the Spain team that won the European Championship in 2008 and the World Cup in 2010, along with current players Andres Iniesta, Sergio Ramos and David Silva – all of whom have passed 30.
Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has the likes of 21-year-old defender Hector Bellerin and 24-year-old midfielder Koke at his disposal in France, and Puyol believes the blend of youth and experience will pay off.
The former Barcelona man told SoFoot.com: We have great players, some of whom are experienced and can handle this kind of tournament, but also young people who arrive with a great desire and who, …
Brazil will defend their men s Olympic football title in the final thanks to a classy display of penalty-taking in a 4-1 shoot-out defeat of Mexico following a 0-0 draw after extra time.
The 2016 champions were pushed all the way by Jaime Lozano s side in Kashima but ultimately got the job done on penalties, successfully converting all four of their attempts to reach the final where they will face either Spain or Japan.
Guilherme Arana spurned the best chance of the first half in the 13th minute when he was denied by Guillermo Ochoa with just the goalkeeper in his way.
An even better opportunity looked set to fall Brazil s way soon after as Douglas Luiz was sent tumbling in the box, but the initial penalty award was overturned following a VAR review, with the Ast…
Inter have confirmed the appointment of Antonio Conte as their new coach following the departure of Luciano Spalletti.
Despite qualifying for the Champions League by finishing fourth in Serie A, Inter announced the dismissal of Spalletti in a short statement on Thursday.
The news came as a surprise to few, as rumours had linked Spalletti with the sack for several weeks with Conte mooted as his potential replacement.
Speculation went into overdrive on Wednesday when a photo of Conte with Inter s media team surfaced on social media, and the club made an announcement on Friday.
| UFFICIALE
Antonio Conte sarà il nuovo allenatore dell’Inter!
— Inter (@Inter)
A new chapter in my life is beginning, I m really excited, Con…
AC Milan stretched their unbeaten run in Serie A to eight games as Patrick Cutrone and Davide Calabria sealed a 2-0 win over Roma at the Stadio Olimpico.
Gennaro Gattuso s side were second best during a poor first half but came out for the second period rejuvenated and secured all three points thanks to their young stars.
Their more adventurous approach bore fruit after 48 minutes when Cutrone got a delicate touch to Suso s cross, which flashed past Alisson.
Milan had further chances to add a second before the unlikely figure of Calabria added gloss to the scoreline with a composed finish in the 74th minute.
The win sets Milan up perfectly for a big week, which sees them face Lazio in a Coppa Italia semi-final second leg on Wednesday before a crunch de…