Best Odds: 7/10
Bookmaker:
In what is an all-star showdown at the Estadio Wanda Metropolitano on Friday evening, Spain and Portugal will face off in a friendly showdown.
Spain
Starting with the hosts, while Spain might have last been seen back in March collecting back-to-back 2-1 and 3-1 wins against Georgia and Kosovo, the former world champions have struggled to find top gear. Despite signing off their run to the Nations League semi-finals with that famous 6-0 romp against Germany on home soil last year, Luis Enrique s side could only open their World Cup qualifying campaign with a shock 1-1 draw against Greece in Granada. Nevertheless, still opening this summer s European Championships as one of the standout picks, the one-time Barcelona boss should be boost…
Ernesto Valverde has the backing of Barcelona s backroom staff according to sporting director Eric Abidal, who moved to distance the Blaugrana from clubs that change coaches after bad results .
Barcelona are top of LaLiga, level on points with second-placed Real Madrid, but a 3-1 defeat at Levante and a goalless draw at home to Slavia Prague brought doubts over Valverde s leadership back to the fore among sections of the club s fanbase.
Ronaldo Koeman has been touted as a potential replacement for Valverde, should he leave the position he took up in May 2017.
Abidal admitted that Valverde s position is never far from the headlines, despite his back-to-back LaLiga triumphs, pointing to Barcelona s Champions League eliminations at the hands of Roma in 2017-18 and L…
Pep Guardiola suggested he is ready to name a strong Manchester City team against League One Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup after scheduling landed favourably for the Premier League leaders.
City cruised to a 4-0 victory over Basel in the Champions League on Tuesday and their fifth-round tie against League One Wigan does not come around until Monday, having been moved for television coverage.
Guardiola has used domestic cup competitions to field experimental line-ups from time to time during his City tenure but, with four routes to silverware still open for the EFL Cup finalists, he insists the trip to the DW Stadium will be strictly business and preceded by three full training sessions.
It depends [on the time] between the games, Guardiola told a pre-match news c…
Olivier Giroud has been handed a recall by France and a chance to put himself firmly back in Didier Deschamps World Cup plans.
The Milan striker has not featured in a match for France since Les Bleus exited Euro 2020 at the hands of Switzerland last June.
He has 46 goals for his country in 110 games, which puts him only five strikes behind Thierry Henry on the team s all-time list.
It appeared Giroud s international career might be over as coach Deschamps opted against calling him into recent squads.
However, a calf injury sustained by Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema, ruling him out of Sunday s game against Barcelona, has led to Giroud landing a summons to join up with France for the upcoming friendlies against Ivory Coast and South Africa.
Th…
Arsenal finished as Europa League Group F winners after goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Bukayo Saka helped them fight back to claim a 2-2 draw with Standard Liege on Wednesday.
Samuel Bastien and Selim Amallah gave Standard a two-goal advantage as they chased a victory to qualify for the knockout phase.
However, those hopes were dashed when Lacazette and Saka scored in quick succession to settle Arsenal s nerves.
The Gunners progressed to the last 32 of the competition as group winners ahead of Eintracht Frankfurt after they lost 3-2 to Vitoria Guimaraes.
And now we re level! equalises.
2-2 (81)
— Arsenal (@Arsenal)
Arsenal had won all five of their previous European encounters with Standard but a youthful side…
Yohan Benalouane has become Martin O’Neill’s first signing as Nottingham Forest manager, according to Sky Sports.
The former Republic of Ireland manager, who was announced as Aitor Karanka’s replacement at the City Ground on Tuesday afternoon has wasted no time in adding to his squad, focussing on an area where the club are desperately short due to injuries and suspension.
Benalouane moved to Leicester City in the summer of 2015 but racked up just four league appearances in his first season – one short of the amount required for him to receive a Premier League winner’s medal.
In total, he played twenty-nine times for the Foxes in all competitions though only one of those outings came in the league last season while he hasn’t featured at all this t…
The Capital One Cup represents an opportunity for the likes of Premier League underachievers Liverpool and Tottenham to win a trophy this season
We now know who will be in the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup, after last night’s quarter-final ties.
Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool and surprisingly League One Sheffield United have made it to the last four of the competition.
Chelsea will take on Liverpool over two-legs, while Spurs will face the third tier Blades.
This competition is another opportunity for the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham to claim silverware this season.
Inconsistent
Tottenham and Liverpool have encountered quite similar seasons in the fact that both have been wildly inconsistent.
The pair were two of seven …
Best Odds: 7/5
Bookmaker:
Hoping to try and find a route back to the top of the Bundesliga table, Bayern Munich will welcome Freiburg to the Allianz Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Bayern Munich
Starting with the hosts, managing to mount a second-half Champions League comeback earlier in the week as they landed a hard-fought 2-1 win against Copenhagen, Bayern Munich are dreaming of the chance to mount a genuine European charge this time around. Although Thomas Tuchel’s side might have been last seen in Bundesliga action having to settle for an action-packed 2-2 draw away at RB Leipzig, the former Chelsea boss is yet to see his superstar squad suffer a single defeat across any competition since opening up the 2023/24 campaign. Getting their Champions League adventu…
Lautaro Martinez has reiterated his desire to stay at Inter amid speculation of a transfer to Chelsea, stating my plan is clear .
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport confirmed on Monday that Chelsea are no longer subject to UK government sanctions following the club s sale to a consortium led by Todd Boehly.
The new owners are expected invest heavily in the upcoming transfer window to strengthen Thomas Tuchel s squad to be able to compete with Manchester City and Liverpool.
Martinez has been repeatedly linked with a move to Chelsea, with Tuchel attempting to reunite the Inter talisman with Romelu Lukaku after the pair fired the Nerazzurri to Scudetto success last season.
However, Martinez has made his intentions clear as he expressed his hopes to…
Slobodan Medojevic has been presented as an Eintracht Frankfurt player following his transfer from Wolfsburg.
The 23-year-old Serbian was part of the Wolfsburg team that finished as Bundesliga runners-up in 2009, and arrives at the Commerzbank Arena on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.
I am now happy to be in Frankfurt, Medojevic said on Monday. It was a little stressful for me in the last few weeks, because I did not know if I would be staying in Wolfsburg or not.
When I heard that Eintracht Frankfurt were interested in me, I immediately said that I would like to go.
The team has a huge potential. I am very happy to be here, in a great club with great tradition.
I ve played here a few times away and the support of the fans is amaz…