Moratti defends Inter director

Antoine Griezmann is in talks over a new contract at Atletico Madrid and the France international claims even the presence of Zinedine Zindane would not persuade him to join  bitter rivals Real Madrid.

Griezmann has scored 32 goals in 53 appearances across all competitions for Atleti this season, including a memorable strike at Bayern Munich to help secure a Champions League final showdown against Madrid.

The 25-year-old forward is set to be a key performer when France hosts Euro 2016 next month, ideally assuming the mantle that Zidane took on when inspiring the national team to glory on home soil at the 1998 World Cup.

But Griezmann s admiration for the Madrid coach would not lead to him swapping loyalties in Spain s capital and he told Canal Plus he hopes to e…

Veteran striker Miroslav Klose got Germany out of jail with a hat-trick to seal a late 3-3 draw against Finland in Wednesday night s World Cup 2010 qualifier.

With less than ten minutes left, Euro 2008 finalists Germany were looking down the barrel of a defeat orchestrated by Finland s former Liverpool forward Daniel Sjolund who had put his side 3-2 ahead early in the second-half.

Despite recent criticism in the German press for his lack of goals for Bayern Munich, 30-year-old Klose silenced his critics with three goals to give Germany a point in their quest to reach the next World Cup in South Africa.

That is football, I never let my head drop, I knew what I can do. If I kept working, I knew it would work itself out, said Klose who was winning his 84th cap.<…

Netherlands head coach Ronald Koeman says the time is not right for him to consider becoming the new boss of former club Barcelona.

Koeman emerged as a leading candidate to take charge of the Blaugrana following reports that Ernesto Valverde was on the brink of his losing job.

Speculation surrounding the Spaniard s position has since gone quiet, with Valverde seemingly set to be granted a reprieve despite presiding over a second successive Champions League failure.

It is not the first time Koeman, who spent six seasons at Barca as a player, has been linked with a return to Camp Nou.

But having only been in his current role since February 2018, the former Everton and Southampton manager is not prepared to think about a change.

If it s been a ye…

Wolfsburg starlet Ricardo Rodriguez admits he is likely to remain at the club in spite of the heavy interest in his services.

The Switzerland international has been linked with clubs like Manchester United and Liverpool following some scintillating displays in the previous Bundesliga campaign and many people believed the Wolves would not be able to keep hold of him this summer.

However, Wolfsburg have made it clear that they have no intention to sell their star player, and Rodriguez does not seem to have a problem with staying at Volkswagen Arena.

“I have a two-year contract. I am looking forward to the new season,” the Swiss defender .

Asked whether he will be playing at Wolfsburg next season, Rodriguez replied: “Yes, I can say that. I am calm. I …

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After suffering an unexpected home defeat to Turkey on Thursday, Croatia will seek to set a few things right on Sunday when they travel to Cardiff to take on Wales in the Euro 2024 qualifications.

The campaign has reached a crucial stage now, with every point vitally important for all teams in Group D, apart from Latvia who have lost all hope of qualifying for the final tournament next year.

Wales

The campaign started very well for Rob Page and his team, who got a hard-earned point away to Croatia in the opening round and built on it through a win over Latvia. However, a real shock soon followed as they lost 2-4 at home to Armenia, and then they were beaten 2-0 away to group leaders Turkey. They finally got back to winning wa…

Celtic were drawn against Sarajevo in the Champions League first qualifying round, while Rangers learnt their Europa League fate.

While Celtic completed a third straight domestic treble in 2018-19, they failed to reach the group stage of Europe s elite club competition after falling to AEK Athens in the third qualifying round.

Neil Lennon s team will begin their quest to return to the Champions League with a home match against Sarajevo on July 9 or 10, with the return game in Bosnia-Herzegovina taking place the following week.

The biggest mistake you can make is underestimating a team like this. It s the Champions League so anything can happen. You just have to do your research and do as well as you can, said the club s on-loan attacker Daniel Arzani.

I…

Injury-plagued Fiorentina striker Giuseppe Rossi is set to miss up to five months of action after undergoing knee surgery.

The news is a further blow to the Italy international, who has been riddled by injury issues over the last three years.

Rossi s bad luck started when he sustained a damaged anterior cruciate ligament to his right knee while playing for former club Villarreal, before suffering a recurrence in April 2012.

The 27-year-old scored 16 goals in 21 Serie A appearances last term, but suffered a sprain to his medial collateral ligament in January and, despite fighting hard to recover, was omitted from Italy s World Cup squad.

Rossi then complained of discomfort during pre-season prompting Fiorentina to send him for keyhole surgery in Colorado, …

Laurent Blanc has urged his Paris Saint-Germain players to overcome Zlatan Ibrahimovic s absence when they face Barcelona on Tuesday.

The head coach had been hopeful that Ibrahimovic would recover from a troublesome heel injury in time to face his former club, but the Ligue 1 champions confirmed on Monday that the Sweden international would not be available.

It represents a blow to PSG ahead of their UEFA Champions League Group F encounter in Paris, with the French club already without captain Thiago Silva and forward Ezequiel Lavezzi with hamstring complaints.

But Blanc sees the clash as a chance for his side to show their strength without their talismanic striker.

It is the game that we will manage to find our level of last year, he said.

We c…

Former Belarus manager Yuri Kurnenin has died at the age of 55, just a month after leading the nation s youth team at the UEFA Under-21 Championships.

Kurnenin was mostly famous for his days as a player, and was part of the FC Dinamo Minsk side that became the first Belarussian team to win the Soviet championship in 1982.

As a manager, Kurnenin coached the Belarus national team in 2005 and 2006, and joined the Under-21 team in 2008 with a spot at the tournament finals as result.

…

Fenerbahce have officialy completed the signing of Nigeria international striker Emmanuel Emenike from Spartak Moscow.

The Super Lig outfit had announced a deal had been agreed on Wednesday, and the 26-year-old has now completed his medical and agreed personal terms.

He leaves a Spartak Moscow side that currently sit top of the Russian Premier League after four games, in no short part down to Emenike s three goals.

Emenike previously signed for Fenerbahce in July 2011 but in the same month was sold to Spartak after facing charges of match fixing.

He was later acquitted of all charges and returns to Turkey after also featuring for Karabukspor.

Emenike has 15 international caps and has contributed six goals to the Nigeria national team.

Fenerbahce could…