Dodi Lukebakio scored a stunning hat-trick as Fortuna Dusseldorf secured a 3-3 Bundesliga draw with Bayern Munich on Saturday to pile the pressure onto Niko Kovac.
Defeat to Borussia Dortmund before the international break had added to speculation over Kovac s future and the Bayern boss will come under increasing scrutiny after his side threw away a 3-1 lead against their lowly opponents.
They looked set for a routine win when Niklas Sule and Thomas Muller scored in the space of three first-half minutes, but Fortuna clawed their way back into the game after 44 minutes through Lukebakio.
Muller restored Bayern s two-goal advantage shortly before the hour, but Lukebakio had the final say, scoring breakaway goals in the 77th minute and three minutes into stop…
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Hoping to briefly climb to the top of the Serie A table, Juventus will welcome Napoli to Turin on Friday night for a heavyweight affair.
Juventus
Starting with the hosts, while Juventus might have dealt with a string of issues behind the scenes in Turin last season, the Italian heavyweights are in the midst of a stellar Serie A romp this time around. Continuing to shine on either side of November’s international break, Massimiliano Allegri’s men have certainly gained a string of plaudits. Knowing that another statement victory on Friday night would see them leapfrog Inter Milan to top spot, the Old Lady should find the mood in their camp at a red-hot high. Picking up some notable scalps this season and mustering 19 points from thei…
Graham Arnold plans to break with his tradition of naming his starting line-up the night before a match when Australia face United Arab Emirates in the Asian Cup quarter-final.
The Socceroos take on the hosts on Friday in Al Ain, hoping to become the first reigning champions to reach the last four of the tournament since Japan in 2007.
They have been made to work in their run to the last eight, recovering from an opening defeat to Jordan to progress to the round of 16, where they defeated Uzbekistan on penalties after a 0-0 draw.
Head coach Arnold believes that spot-kick success has instilled some confidence in his side and he hopes his players can tap into their renewed belief.
He intends to inform the squad of the team to face UAE on the morning of the …
David Silva is using the experience of past glory to help Manchester City in their Premier League title race with Liverpool and Tottenham.
Defending champions City have the chance to move level alongside Liverpool atop the table when they welcome Chelsea to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
There appeared to be nerves creeping into rivals Liverpool s game following back-to-back draws prior to Saturday s 3-0 win over Bournemouth.
Silva has won three Premier League titles since arriving from Valencia in 2010 and the Spanish star believes that experience will prove beneficial this season.
I think the next one is always the most important. The experience of many years and many games in the Premier League helps you a lot in moments like this, Silva said. Because …
Bruno Fernandes believes Manchester United s transfer business is arming them to compete with the best , which was his aim before agreeing to a new contract at Old Trafford.
Midfielder Fernandes is the captain and star man at United and committed his long-term future to the club last week ahead of the start of the new Premier League season.
This was despite United falling to eighth last season, their lowest finish in the Premier League era.
Erik ten Hag s men did win the FA Cup, beating Manchester City in the final, but they were unable to consistently compete with their rivals at the top of the table.
That needed to change for Fernandes to remain happy in Manchester, but he is encouraged by the early signs, with United signing Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, …
RB Leipzig have agreed an extension to Angelino s loan from Manchester City to keep him at the club for the 2020-21 season.
The deal includes an option for Champions League semi-finalists Leipzig to purchase Angelino permanently on a deal until 2025.
Leipzig signed the left-back on loan in January and he scored one goal and supplied five assists in 18 appearances for the club.
I m very happy that I m staying in Leipzig and that we can continue our journey together, said Angelino.
The first six months with RBL were great; I had a lot of playing time from the start, I like the way the coach and the team approach the game. We also had a strong season in the Bundesliga and the Champions League.
I m looking forward to the future and many more succes…
Former Spain head coach Vicente del Bosque says it would have been a dream to have Lionel Messi in his squad at international level.
Barcelona star Messi, who joined the club s academy in 2001, was eligible to play for Spain and Argentina but opted to represent the country of his birth.
His international career has been a relative disappointment compared to his club achievements, with Argentina having lost three Copa America finals and the World Cup final of 2014 with Messi in the side.
The 31-year-old has enjoyed astounding success with Barca, though, and his latest spectacular performance on Wednesday saw him reach 600 club goals with a double against Liverpool to inspire a 3-0 triumph in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final.
600 Lionel Mess…
Jordan Pickford is a key figure in England s run to the World Cup semi-finals according to former Three Lions boss Fabio Capello, who said the team finally discovered a goalkeeper who can make saves .
Pickford only made his full England debut in November 2017, just seven months before the World Cup in Russia, but he made crucial saves in the team s round-of-16 penalty shoot-out victory over Colombia.
The Everton shot-stopper had another solid performance in England s 2-0 quarter-final victory over Sweden, keeping his first clean sheet of the tournament, and Capello praised the 24-year-old s positioning and reactions.
Capello, who managed England to 28 victories and six defeats between 2008 and 2012, told Gazzetta dello Sport that Gareth Southgate s side have go…
Manchester United goalkeeper Sergio Romero wants to leave the club in the January transfer window, according to . It has been reported that the Argentina international is keen on parting company with the Red Devils after being omitted from the Premier League and Champions League squads.
The report has claimed that there is interest in Romero from clubs in his native Argentina and abroad. United want between £8 million and £10 million for the 33-year-old, who is out of contract at Old Trafford at the end of the season, but the Premier League giants do have an option to extend his deal for another 12 months.
Romero has been on the books of United since 2015, but the Argentine has failed to dislodged David de Gea from the starting lineup. A move away from Old Trafford in…
Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester United kicked off their respective FA Cup campaigns against each other at the Molineux on Saturday, which means one of them had to say farewell to the possibility of winning the trophy straight away. A contest between these two, at full strength, would have been easy to predict once upon a time. After all, it is a clash between a team that is an occasional Premier League feature against one of the most successful clubs in the history of English football.
However, things are very different these days. The days of Sir Alex Ferguson s Manchester United are long gone, and current boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is just the latest name on the list of those who have tried (and failed) to pick up where the legendary Scotsman left off when he retired in…