Ozil leaves door open for Real Madrid return

It wouldn’t be unfair to say that pretty much everyone expected Shadow of the Erdtree to be good. I don’t think there’s a single person out there who’s going to be surprised if you tell them the Elden Ring DLC is really good. When the base game launched in 2022, it set new standards for, well, just pretty much everything to do with games as a whole, so when someone tells you that the massive new chunk of content that FromSoftware has added to that masterpiece is also really damn good- yeah, that’s not a massive surprise.

You know what is a surprise, though? That somehow, in spite of the ridiculously high expectations everyone had heading into Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, th…

The gaming industry has seen its fair share of disappointing releases. Year in and year out, flops come and go, some on a much larger scale than others. By comparison, 2021 doesn’t seem all that terrible, with flops like Balan Wonderworld and Battlefield 2042 sticking out the most. However, it also marked the launch of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition, which packaged Rockstar’s classic 3D trilogy of Grand Theft Auto 3, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas into one remastered compilation.

To say that all three titles are beloved among fans would be an understatement, especially given how they influenced modern open worlds as we know them. Even wi…

Tottenham have confirmed plans with Brighton and Hove Albion, Crystal Palace and the Premier League to ensure they play one of their top-flight rivals at their new stadium before a home Champions League quarter-final.

Spurs booked their place in the last eight of Europe s elite competition with a 4-0 aggregate win over Borussia Dortmund this week.

And with Mauricio Pochettino revealing afterwards that he was hopeful of playing at the redeveloped White Hart Lane in the next stage, the club have worked to make sure that will be the case, provided they receive a safety certificate after two test events.

Tottenham are keen to play a league match at the stadium ahead of that European fixture, which could be played the week commencing April 8 if Spurs are drawn at home…

While Manchester City might have been handed the chance to briefly climb to the top of the Premier League table on Saturday lunchtime, the Sky Blues were hit with a stunning last-gasp defeat on home soil.

Failing to enter the World Cup s festive break with a statement at the Etihad, Pep Guardiola s superstars were eventually left heartbroken in Manchester City thanks to Ivan Toney s brace.

With Brentford s attacking talisman eventually bagging a remarkable 98th-minute winner, the defending Premier League champions now enter the five-week break sat five points adrift of a high-flying Arsenal.

Watching their stellar winning run at the Etihad come to an abrupt end on Saturday lunchtime, the Bees certainly deserve plenty of praise for a famous display here.

…

Inter president Massimo Moratti has leapt to the defence of Marco Branca after the club s director came under public attack from Lele Oriali.

Former Inter technical director Oriali, who has recently been linked with a return to the club he left two years ago, was involved in a heated exchange of words with Branca on Italian television after Sunday s 0-0 draw with Atalanta at San Siro.

Oriali accused the former Inter forward of playing a major role in the club s decline since the treble-winning campaign of 2009/10.

Moratti was left enraged by Oriali s accusations, telling reporters on Monday: I always find it annoying that a person who has left the club says those type of things.

And if I am holding on to Branca, it is because I consider him good (at hi…

Che Adams climbed off the bench to score a late winner for Southampton on their Sky Bet Championship return and silence taunts of the Sheffield Wednesday fans.

Adams entered the pitch to a chorus of boos due to his association with Sheffield United but eight minutes later he was celebrating scoring the 87th-minute goal that earned the Saints a 2-1 victory at Hillsborough.

It had looked like the Saints, back in the second tier for the first time in over a decade following last season’s Premier League relegation, would endure a frustrating evening as for large parts they failed to turn possession into goal threat.

Instant impact from

It had to be him! |

— Sky Bet Championship (@SkyBetChamp)

They had gone ahead early on through Adam A…

Attacker Giovani dos Santos has urged Tottenham to allow him to leave the club in the transfer window.

The versatile Mexican is continually being linked with a move away from Spurs, but the English Premier League side are only willing to let go of the 23-year-old for the right price.

Nevertheless, they are running the risk of losing dos Santos on a free transfer next year if they do not sell him this summer.

I m either leaving the club this summer, or I ll sign for another club for free in six months time, dos Santos told Medio Tiempo.

I am very calm (about my future). I have a contract with Tottenham and I don t know what will happen. I might leave the club. I m at a good team, but I want to play.

However, it s not my decision as to whether T…

Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has taken a swipe at former Bayern II coach Andries Jonker in the wake of his criticism towards the club.

Jonker sent an e-mail to the Bayern board earlier this week where he criticised their youth academy for lacking of a clear philosophy, among other things.

But Rummenigge believes the Dutchman should take a look at himself rather than berate others.

He should not have written this e-mail. There are situations where you can have a bit of self-criticism. I think we can exclude that in this case, Rummenigge told Bild.

Jonker joined Bayern in 2009 as Louis van Gaal s assistant and was named caretaker boss in 2010/11 following the latter s departure.

He was in charge of the Bavarians reserves last term, but…

Yaya Toure could be offered the chance to finish his career in the MLS with Manchester City’s sister club New York City, .

The Ivory Coast has, not for the first time hinted that he is unhappy with life at the Etihad Stadium in recent weeks and looks likely to move on when his contract expires at the end of next season.

The thirty-two year old is currently in his sixth season with the Citizens, and has so far racked up two hundred and thirty-two appearances for the club in all competitions, scoring sixty-six goals.

He was part of the squad that won the Premier League title in both 2012 and 2014, while he also has winners’ medals in the FA Cup and League Cup, scoring in the finals on both in 2011 and 2014 respectively.

Manuel Pellegrini’s men be…

New York City FC have announced the signing of Finnish midfielder Alexander Ring from Kaiserslautern.

The 25-year-old was recruited using Targeted Allocation Money and head coach Patrick Vieira clearly has high hopes for the Finland international.

“At 25, Alexander is a player entering his peak years who has played at a high level over a number of seasons,” Vieira said.

“He’s a midfielder who can contribute on both sides of the game, both defensively and offensively and he gives us another great option either at the base of midfield or box-to-box.

“Alexander has a good engine and is a competitive player which should suit Major League Soccer.”

Ring spent the majority of his career in Germany, representing Lannesdorf, Bayer Leverkusen, …