Didier Deschamps said he knows exactly who will be taking to the pitch when France open their FIFA World Cup campaign against Honduras.
France head to the tournament in Brazil keen to banish the ghosts of their performances and behaviour from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
The French went winless four years ago, finishing bottom of their group behind Uruguay, Mexico and South Africa, while their campaign was marred by a player revolt.
Four years on and France are unbeaten in five games, having scored 18 goals and kept four clean sheets on the back of Sunday s 8-0 rout of Jamaica.
And barring any unforeseen events, Deschamps seems set on his starting XI for Sunday s Group E clash in Porto Alegre.
I know my best line-up, said Deschamps. Even if I always …
Frickson Erazo has urged Ecuador not to despair after opening their FIFA World Cup campaign with a last-gasp defeat to Switzerland.
Haris Seferovic scored deep into second-half stoppage time to hand the Swiss a 2-1 victory on Sunday, after Enner Valencia had given Ecuador a first-half lead.
And, while admitting his disappointment, defender Erazo says his side should take confidence from the 2010 experience of Spain, who went on to lift the World Cup after losing to Switzerland in their first match.
It s a shame, he said. We know that there were millions of Ecuadorians watching and it hurts to lose like that.
But we re not out. Remember that this same Swiss team won in the World Cup to Spain and Spain finished as champions.
Ecuador face a crunch Group E fix…
Former Sevilla forward Julio Baptista insists coach Unai Emery will be a tough act to follow at the Europa League champions following his departure.
The worst kept secret in football was finally confirmed on Tuesday after Emery was appointed coach of French champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Emery guided Spanish outfit Sevilla to three consecutive Europa League crowns in three-and-a-half seasons at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
And Baptista, who made a name for himself during his two years in Seville between 2003-2005, knows replacement boss and former Chile coach Jorge Sampaoli has a difficult task on his hands.
It s a big loss. Emery has shown he can do a very successful job, ex-Brazil international Baptista told Omnisport.
He has got the club to a h…
Sassuolo coach Eusebio Di Francesco has ended months of speculation by signing a new contract, the Serie A club confirmed.
Di Francesco s contract extension will see him remain at Sassuolo until June 2019.
The 46-year-old, who first coached the club in 2012, had been linked with AC Milan and Fiorentina, as well as the Italy job, with Antonio Conte set to vacate the hot seat following Euro 2016.
This agreement confirms the desire of both parties to continue the journey that seen the club grow constantly over these four years and the conviction we can be protagonists in future too, Sassuolo said in a statement.
The project continues, together, to grow and improve. Forza Sasol!!!
Sassuolo are seventh in the Serie A with four matches remaining, fou…
Dani Carvajal said he is happy for former Real Madrid team-mate Alvaro Morata ahead of his move to bitter LaLiga rivals Atletico Madrid.
Morata is poised to swap Premier League side Chelsea for Atletico on an initial 18-month loan deal, with the option to make the move permanent.
The 26-year-old forward left Madrid for Chelsea in 2017, however, the Spaniard has struggled at Stamford Bridge over the past year.
Carvajal has no hard feelings as Morata – who emerged from Madrid s youth system and won two Champions League titles as well as a pair of LaLiga trophies among others – closes in on Atletico.
They are decisions of each player. I do not judge him, Madrid full-back Carvajal told reporters following Sunday s 4-2 win against Espanyol.
If…
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insisted there is no issue with Paul Pogba amid the flirtation between the French star and Real Madrid.
Pogba said it would be a dream to play for Zinedine Zidane during the international break and the Madrid boss has made no secret of his admiration for the United midfielder.
Rumours of a switch to Madrid – who tried to sign Pogba before he swapped Juventus for United in 2016 – continue to make headlines but Solskjaer is not fazed.
It doesn t really concern me, because my thought of action then is to sit down and speak to Paul, said Solskjaer.
And I ve had my chat with Paul and we re fine. He s going to do his utmost here because he knows I m very fond of him as a player and a person and he s important…
Kieran McKenna hailed his comeback kings as Ipswich dug deep to seal a jaw-dropping 3-2 stoppage-time victory against Southampton to go back top of the Sky Bet Championship.
A pulsating Easter Monday clash at a packed Portman Road went down to the wire after Che Adams and Adam Armstrong had put Saints in the driving seat, having been hit by a Leif Davis’ stunner.
Nathan Broadhead levelled for Ipswich and, after Southampton full-back James Bree was sent off, fellow substitute Jeremy Sarmiento snatched victory in the seventh and final minute of stoppage-time.
An unforgettable moment!
— Ipswich Town (@IpswichTown)
That goal sparked bedlam, sending Town back to the Championship summit as McKenna’s men took their points tally from losing positi…
New Barcelona head coach Xavi wants to sign Ferran Torres from Manchester City, according to . It has been reported by the Spanish news outlet that Xavi is a big fan of the Spain international attacker and is keen on bringing him to Xavi.
Torres is a winger by trade, but the 21-year-old can been playing as a striker under City manager Pep Guardiola. The Spain international is injured at the moment. The 21-year-old has scored two goals and provided one assist in four Premier League games, and has scored one goal in one Carabao Cup appearance so far this campaign.
The youngster made 15 starts and nine substitute appearances in the Premier League for City last season, scoring seven goals and providing two assists in the process. Torres also made four starts and two substit…
Stoke City midfielder Matthew Etherington is hopeful his side s impressive away form will continue when they travel to Fulham on Saturday.
Stoke have won just one of their past eight English Premier League fixtures, form which has seen them drop to 12th on the table.
But Tony Pulis side have won three of their past six away trips in the league, with their two defeats coming at Manchester City and Manchester United form which Etherington believes is much better than their efforts at home.
We re not going to panic, but we know our form just lately hasn t been good enough certainly not our home form anyway, and that is something we must address, Etherington told Stoke s official website.
On the road, we have picked up and started to get some good results.…
Bayern Munich are keeping tabs on Leeds United youngster Archie Gray, according to . The report has claimed that the German and European giants watched Gray in action for Leeds in their Championship match against Hull City at Elland Road on Monday. Daniel Farke’s side won the game 3-1.
Gray is a midfielder by trade, but the 18-year-old has been playing as a right-back for Leeds this season. The England Under-21 international has made 36 starts and three substitute appearances in the Championship for the Whites so far this season. He has given two assists in those games.
Leeds are third in the Championship table at the moment with 86 points from 41 matches, a point behind second-placed Ipswich Town and two points behind leaders Leicester City, who have played 40 games.…