Gomes´ demands wrecked Palmeiras move

Fulham have confirmed the signing of Wolfsburg and Switzerland right-back Kevin Mbabu ahead of their return to the Premier League.

Reports suggest Fulham will pay £4.6million (€5.5m) plus add-ons for the 27-year-old, who made 24 Bundesliga appearances last season.

Marco Silva s newly promoted side have been active in the transfer market ahead of their season opener against Liverpool on August 6, acquiring Sporting CP s Joao Palhinha, Manchester United s Andreas Pereira and Shakhtar Donetsk winger Manor Solomon.

No German top-flight team bettered Wolfsburg s tally of 11 clean sheets last term (Bayern Munich also kept 11), although only six teams in the division conceded more than the 54 goals shipped by Die Wolfe.

After signing a three-year deal with t…

Stefano Pioli convinced Zlatan Ibrahimovic to reverse his decision to leave Milan earlier this year by holding heart-to-heart talks with the veteran striker.

The 39-year-old revealed in an interview with Sky Italia that he informed Pioli of his desire to leave San Siro in the close season to be closer to his family.

However, after initially accepting Ibrahimovic s choice, Pioli later managed to convince the ex-Sweden international to stay on at Milan and sign a 12-month extension.

I told him I would call it a day, as I thought of the sacrifices and my family being in Sweden, Ibrahimovic recalled.

Pioli told me: I respect that . However, the next day, he called me again. [He said] I let you go too easy, but if you don t stay, it ll be a different team . …

Toni Kroos has stoked the fire ahead of the Champions League final, claiming Real Madrid have more quality than rivals Atletico.

The two Spanish capital clubs will contest the competition decider at San Siro on May 28 in a rematch of the 2014 final after Madrid accounted for Manchester City 1-0 in the semi-finals on Wednesday.

Madrid winners of La Decima at the expense of their city rivals two years ago are without a win against Atletico this season, and they trail Diego Simeone s men and Barcelona by a point in La Liga.

But while acknowledging Atletico s route to the final via victories over domestic champions Barca and Bayern Munich, Madrid midfielder Kroos insisted his team-mates are the superior outfit heading into the showpiece in Milan.

We know th…

Real Madrid will upstage Atletico just like they did in the 2014 Champions League final, insists club great Francisco Gento.

Madrid and Atletico will go head-to-head in the Champions League final at San Siro on May 28, a repeat of the decider two years ago.

On that day, Madrid claimed La Decima courtesy of a 4-1 win after extra time in Lisbon, and six-time European Cup winner Gento is adamant his former club will repeat the feat in Milan.

We are going to win the same as we did in Portugal. We have a great team, great players and we cannot fail, the 82-year-old said via Marca.

You have to fight for the 90 minutes, this is how to win trophies.

We have never played for a draw and for this reason we have won so many trophies.

…

Cristiano Ronaldo was supposed to be Real Madrid s secret weapon this season but the reigning Spanish champions must shrug off the disappointment of failing to capture the Portuguese sensation.

And now Real will be focusing on securing a third straight league title for the first time in 21 years.

Ronaldo openly admitted his desire to join Real but Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson had other ideas blocking the transfer to leave Real counterpart Bernd Schuster frustrated.

We have to respect his decision. He was free to do what he wanted and it is a shame that he will not be joining us because he is a player that would have improved what is already a great team, said Schuster.

But we have a superb side to start the league with and to play for al…

Kenny McLean savoured a special moment in his career after his last-gasp winner earned Scotland a crucial three Euro 2024 qualifying points from a 2-1 victory in Norway.

McLean struck a composed 89th-minute finish with his right foot 10 minutes after coming off the bench and two minutes after Lyndon Dykes had cancelled out Erling Haaland’s 61st-minute opener from the penalty spot.

Left midfielder McLean said: “It was pretty special, a really good moment for everyone involved and obviously for the fans that travelled – it was amazing, I can hear them outside now.

“Obviously I have only had the San Marino goal previously so I am delighted to score such a meaningful goal.

“I don’t know if I was too happy with Dykesy – setting me up on my right …

Paris Saint-Germain stars Neymar and Kylian Mbappe get certain privileges at the club, according to team-mate Adrien Rabiot.

The Ligue 1 leaders stunned the football world last August when they signed Neymar from Barcelona after activating his €222million release clause.

That world-record transfer was followed by a deal for Monaco striker Mbappe, who moved to Parc des Princes on a season-long loan deal and will join on a permanent basis for a reported fee of €180m this year.

The forwards have formed a devastating attacking trident with Edinson Cavani in 2017-18, helping PSG to a 10-point lead at the top of the table and a place in the Champions League knockout stages, with Unai Emery s side aiming for a clean sweep of trophies.

Rabiot says the pair en…

Competition: La Liga

Market: Espanyol to beat Deportivo La Coruna

Odds:

La Liga continues this weekend for yet another massive round of games as the competition continues to heat up. The table has remained incredibly tight this season which means that a single win can quite often see a side rise up a number of places. With this in mind, there is a big battle near the bottom as Deportivo La Coruna host Espanyol on Friday.

Deportivo La Coruna have been awful this season and they are in a very precarious position at this stage of the season. After 24 games they have won four, drawn five and lost 15, scoring 24 goals and conceding 53 times. In their last five they have drawn once and lost four games which has seen them onto 17 points. Deportivo des…