Koke s fine second-half strike earned Atletico Madrid a 1-0 derby victory over Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, though Diego Simeone s team finished with 10 men.
Antoine Griezmann and Joao Felix missed the best openings of a cagey first half, before visiting captain Koke finished neatly into the bottom-right corner in the 49th minute.
Jan Oblak made a fine left-handed save to preserve the lead, and Atleti held on despite Angel Correa s late red card, earning a fifth successive league win and boosting their hopes of a top-four finish.
Griezmann s early volley forced Stole Dimitrievski into a reaction stop at his near post, before Joao Felix poked agonisingly wide after meeting Rodrigo de Paul s free-kick at the back post.
Joao Felix then sent a disappoi…
Mount, who won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021 and has earned 36 caps for England, posted a farewell message to Blues fans on Instagram.
He said: “Hi Chelsea fans, given the speculation over the last six months this may not come as a surprise to you, but it doesn’t make it any easier to tell you that I’ve made the decision to leave Chelsea.
“I feel you deserve more than just a written statement, so I wanted to tell you directly how grateful I’ve been for all of your support over the last 18 years.
“I know some of you won’t be happy with my decision, but it’s what’s right for me at this moment in my career.
“I joined Chelsea when I was six years old and we’ve been through a lot together.
“Winning the Youth Cup, my …
The possibility of moving to Milan brought childhood memories rushing back to Olivier Giroud.
The Frenchman made official his departure from Chelsea for a reported two-year deal with the Serie A giants on Saturday.
Now the veteran striker has designs on winning trophies with the Rossoneri himself.
“I still feel like a little kid, 35 or almost 35 years old,” Giroud told Milan TV. “When I was young, I looked up to Jean-Pierre Papin, Andriy Shevchenko and obviously Paolo [Maldini].
“This team made me dream. I was also a big fan of Marco van Basten. So many great players have played in this massive club in Europe.
“Milan have a massive history in Europe and that’s why I wanted to join the club.
Also to play in the best com…
The likes of Leon Goretzka, Alexander Nubel, Breel Embolo, Thilo Kehrer, Max Meyer, Ozan Kabak and Weston McKennie have left Veltins-Arena in recent years and the replacements have not provided value for money.
Schalke invested in Sebastian Rudy, Suat Serdar, Omar Mascarell, Rabbi Matondo, Salif Sane, Mark Uth and Hamza Mendyl and Benito Raman over the past three terms, while big-name veterans Shkodran Mustafi, Sead Kolasinac and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar arrived during this season, but failed to make an impact.
They invest a lot of money, Kuranyi said. The players who they bring in for €10-15million, they don t return with good performances and points so it s difficult to work with this, they make a lot of mistakes the last few years.
Unheralded American forward …
Lionel Messi hailed phenomenon Emiliano Martinez after the Argentina goalkeeper saved three penalties to lead La Albiceleste to the Copa America final.
After Tuesday s semi-final against Colombia ended 1-1 without extra time, Martinez was the hero in the shoot-out, saving penalties from Davinson Sanchez, Yerry Mina and Edwin Cardona as Argentina earned a blockbuster showdown with defending champions Brazil.
Penalties were needed after Lautaro Martinez s seventh-minute opener was cancelled out by Colombia winger Luis Diaz just past the hour-mark in Brasilia.
Messi will have another chance to claim his first senior international trophy on Saturday as Argentina eye their first title since 1993, and the superstar captain heaped praise on Emiliano Martinez post-game.<…
Alexandre Lacazette ended his goalscoring drought as Arsenal eased to a 4-1 victory over Rapid Vienna to secure top spot in Europa League Group B.
Lacazette had gone eight matches without a goal before he put the Gunners ahead in the 10th minute on Thursday with a stunning long-range strike.
Pablo Mari headed in the second from a corner before Eddie Nketiah finished off a stylish team goal a minute before half-time.
Arsenal, who had already qualified for the competition s last 32, conceded when Koya Kitagawa fired home early in the second half but Emile Smith Rowe added a fourth to stifle any hopes of a comeback.
Mikel Arteta made 11 changes from the side that lost 2-1 at home to Wolves in the Premier League last weekend and those involved made a high-te…
Spain will look to end a run of falling at the first hurdle in the knockouts of a major tournament when they face Croatia in the last 16 of Euro 2020.
A 5-0 thrashing of Slovakia sent La Roja through in second place in Group E after draws with Sweden and Poland had left their chances of progressing in doubt.
Croatia, meanwhile, were 3-1 winners over Scotland on matchday three, ensuring they followed England in escaping Group D to secure a spot in the knockout phase for the fourth time in six European Championship appearances.
They have never progressed beyond the first round after the group stage, while Spain s recent form in the latter rounds of tournaments has also been poor: after winning Euro 2008, the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012, they were eliminated at thi…
Sunday s action at the Africa Cup of Nations will see two former winners go in search of much-needed points.
Algeria, champions in 1990 and three years ago, were held to a surprise draw by Sierra Leone on matchday one and sit second in Group E.
North African neighbours Tunisia, who won the tournament back in 2004, started their campaign with a 1-0 defeat to 10-man Mali and are in desperate need of a result against Mauritania.
Mali will take on Gambia, while the Ivory Coast will look to consolidate top spot in their group when they meet Sierra Leone.
Gambia v Mali
Gambia are bidding to become the first debutants to win their opening two matches at the Africa Cup of Nations since Equatorial Guinea did so in 2012.
That said, Mali a…
Brazil winger Raphinha says he does not see the favourites tag as pressure ahead of the World Cup, as the Selecao look to end their two-decade wait for the title.
Tite s side head to Qatar 2022 in search of a first triumph in the competition since victory at Korea/Japan 2002, having gone closest with a third-place finish on home soil in 2014 since.
Despite defeat in the Copa America to Argentina last year, Brazil enter the tournament among the frontrunners, with hopes of bringing a close to their drought.
Barcelona man Raphinha is among the players hoping to make a difference for the nation, but he says being pegged as potential favourites does not faze him.
I m ready for the World Cup and I m working hard to get there as good as I possibly can, both phy…
The Football Association has launched a swift investigation after crowd trouble marred Sunday’s FA Cup derby between West Brom and Wolves.
Play at The Hawthorns was suspended for more than half an hour after ugly scenes broke out in the stands and fans spilled onto the pitch.
West Midlands Police confirmed two arrests were made following the second-half disorder and one person was taken to hospital with head injuries.
Some West Brom players were concerned about family members sitting nearby and at least one, Kyle Bartley, went into the crowd to get his children out.
Baggies manager Carlos Corberan later confirmed no players’ family members were hurt but the unsavoury scenes completely overshadowed the contest.
Corberan said: “Unfortunately t…