Foden lauds ´genius´ Guardiola ahead of crucial trip to Atletico Madrid

Phil Foden hailed Pep Guardiola as a genius ahead of Manchester City s decisive Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid, having helped inspire his team to a 1-0 first-leg win last week.

The 21-year-old provided the assist for Kevin De Bruyne s 70th-minute winner just 79 seconds after being introduced as a substitute at the Etihad, allowing City to take a slender advantage into their second leg at the Wanda Metropolitano.

Foden s delightful ball to De Bruyne represented his seventh Champions League assist, with only Cesc Fabregas (10) ever assisting more goals for English clubs in the competition aged 21 or younger.

Looking back on a first leg in which City had to be patient after racking up 15 shots to Atletico s zero, Foden labelled his manager a genius fo…

Thiago hoping Liverpool´s ´worst nightmare´ is behind them after Champions League progression

Thiago Alcantara admits Liverpool could not imagine in their worst nightmares how bad this season would pan out, but the midfielder is hopeful his side are in the process of turning things around after advancing to the Champions League quarter-finals.

Liverpool have sent a number of unwanted records tumbling this season, including a run of six successive top-flight defeats at Anfield for the first time in their history.

The reigning Premier League champions have long been out of title contention and find themselves eighth with 10 games to play, seven points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea.

However, Jurgen Klopp s side put their domestic woes to one side on Wednesday by seeing off  RB Leipzig 2-0 in Budapest to complete a 4-0 aggregate victory in their last-16 t…

Barcelona set €500m buyout clause for teenage gem Marc Bernal after ´contract adjustment´

Barcelona have set midfielder Marc Bernal s buyout clause at €500million and extended the 17-year-old s contract until June 2026, the LaLiga club said on Monday

When Spaniard Bernal will no longer be an Under-19 player in 2026, he will have an option to extend for an additional three years, Barca added.

Bernal ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during Barca s 2-1 victory at Rayo Vallecano last month, where he was forced off the pitch in the final minutes.

A product of Barcelona s youth academy, Bernal has made three league appearances since his debut for the senior team in their LaLiga opener against Valencia.

LATEST NEWS | Update to Marc Bernal s contract

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)

Barcelona and Marc Bernal have reache…

Premier League ‘Big Six’ distance themselves from joining European Super League

The Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ have all now distanced themselves from the possibility of joining any new European Super League.

Arsenal became the last of the clubs who joined the original Super League in 2021 to confirm their position on Friday.

The Gunners issued a statement saying they will continue in UEFA competitions despite a European Court of Justice ruling which has at least opened the possibility of a club-led tournament to rival the Champions League being launched.

Club statement

— Arsenal (@Arsenal)

Liverpool have not commented directly since Thursday’s ruling but the PA news agency understands legal consent on the issue of joining new competitions has rested with the recognised supporters’ trust, the Spirit of Shankly (So…

Sterling strikes before Manchester City threaten to give themselves a game

Over the course of his two decades at the top of world snooker, Ronnie O Sullivan has carried an air few sportsman are lucky enough to possess.

The feeling has often been, no matter what his opponents do, if O Sullivan is in the mood then the outcome is entirely in his hands. He might lose focus or get bored, but the only person who can beat peak Ronnie is Ronnie.

A keen Arsenal fan, if O Sullivan had been watching his team on the television on Sunday, he might have seen something of himself in Manchester City s nonchalant dominance.

By the time Raheem Sterling leapt to head home Riyad Mahrez s cross after 75 seconds, the England forward had already swiped errantly at a left-footed volley after City s battery of playmakers cut Arsenal to ribbons from kick-off.

Prediction: England vs Poland

Prediction: England to win 2-0

Odds:

Bookmaker:

England will be aiming to continue their perfect start to FIFA 2022 World Cup qualifying as they host Poland at Wembley Stadium.

The Three Lions have won each of their opening two games throughout the campaign and will take control of the group as they come up against arguably their hardest rivals on home soil.

England

After their first two matches of qualifying, England sit where most would probably have backed them to be top of the group. Gareth Southgate s men have claimed two wins out of two with a 5-0 success against San Marino and a 2-0 victory versus Albania last time out. Those results have extended England s impressive run in qualifiers having not fallen to defeat in a World Cup qualifyi…

´Complete coach´ Allegri backed by Rabiot to turn around Juventus form

Massimiliano Allegri is a complete coach who has the ability to turn Juventus season around, according to midfielder Adrien Rabiot.

Experienced coach Allegri won 11 trophies in his first five-season spell with Juve, but he is under intense pressure a year and a half on from returning to the Allianz Stadium.

Juventus finished fourth in Serie A last season and ended the campaign trophy-less for the first time since the 2010-11 campaign.

The Bianconeri have started this season slow, too, with Saturday s 2-0 loss to rivals Milan leaving them eighth in the table and already 10 points off top spot after nine matches.

But speaking ahead of Juve s Champions League tie with Maccabi Haifa on Tuesday, Rabiot gave his backing to the under-fire coach.

Allegri…

Liverpool 2-1 Newcastle United: Last-gasp Carvalho goal gives Reds dramatic win

A goal in the 98th minute from substitute Fabio Carvalho gave Liverpool a dramatic 2-1 win against Newcastle United at Anfield on Wednesday.

Newcastle debutant Alexander Isak, playing just hours after receiving his work permit, had given his new team a first-half lead with a fine finish, only for Roberto Firmino to equalise in the second half.

It looked like more dropped points for Jurgen Klopp s side as the game ticked into stoppage time, but a late corner caused a goalmouth scramble, which ended in Carvalho scoring for the second time in a week.

Eddie Howe will be disappointed with the result but would have been pleased with the efforts of his team, who were missing key players Bruno Guimaraes and Allan Saint-Maximin.

90+ The day after his 20th bir…

UEFA and FIFA warned to halt Super League opposition by Spanish court

FIFA and UEFA have been told to stop their opposition against the European Super League (ESL), with a Spanish court ruling warning of anti-competitive behaviour and abuse of a dominant position.

Madrid s commercial court said on Monday the European and world governing bodies violated competition law by banning and punishing clubs from participating in a proposed new tournament.

FIFA and UEFA were told to reverse any anticompetitive actions committed in the past after A22 Sports Management, the company behind the plan to create the ESL, brought the case to Spanish court.

It s an important step towards a truly competitive and sustainable club football landscape in Europe, A22 CEO Bernd Reichart said in a statement after the ruling.

For too long UEFA has …

Allegri eyeing third place after Juve rally to beat Sassuolo

Massimiliano Allegri has his sights set on a third-placed finish in Serie A after Juventus came from behind to beat Sassuolo 2-1.

The Bianconeri snatched all three points at MAPEI Stadium – Citta del Tricolore on Monday to take a big stride towards qualifying for the Champions League after Giacomo Raspadori opened the scoring.

Paulo Dybala equalised just before half-time and Moise Kean came off the bench to win it in the 88th minute.

Victory for Juve moved them eight points ahead of fifth-placed Roma with four games to play and just a point adrift of third-placed Napoli.

Defeat was harsh on Sassuolo, who posed a big threat going forward with Domenico Berardi, who has now assisted 12 goals in Serie A, the most of any forward in the competition in …