Napoli put one foot in the knockout stage of the Champions League by beating Red Star Belgrade 3-1 to go top of a tightly balanced Group C with one game left to play.
Marek Hamsik s first goal of the season put Carlo Ancelotti s free-flowing side on their way after 11 minutes, and Dries Mertens bagged a brace either side of half-time to put the game beyond Red Star.
El Fardou Ben pulled one back but Vladan Milojevic s men can no longer progress in the competition after taking just four points from their five games, while Napoli need just a point in their final game against Liverpool to make certain of their progression.
That point will not come easy at Anfield but Ancelotti will be confident after seeing the Partenopei extend their unbeaten run to 10 matches in a…
Joao Felix scored the winner against his parent club as Barcelona beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 at home to move above them in the LaLiga table.
Felix, who joined Barca on loan during the summer, grabbed the only goal with a deft finish in the 28th minute – five days on from scoring his side’s second in their 2-1 Champions League victory over Porto.
Raphinha almost doubled the lead when he hit a post after the break, before Barca goalkeeper Inaki Pena came to the fore with some fine saves that included turning a Memphis Depay free-kick against the crossbar.
FÉLIX RISING
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)
Xavi’s men replace Diego Simeone’s Atletico in third, with a four-point gap to leaders Real Madrid and second-placed Girona – Barcelona’s …
Manchester City are closing in on the signing of Tottenham Hotspur defender Kyle Walker, according to the Daily Star.
The Citizens have been strongly linked with the full-back since the season ended last month and are on the verge of completing a deal with the transfer fee in the region of £40m.
Walker has been at White Hart Lane since signing from Sheffield United in the summer of 2009 and since returning from a loan spell back with them in 2010 has racked up two hundred and twenty-eight appearances in all competitions, scoring four goals.
Despite losing his starting place to Kieran Trippier towards the end of the recently closed campaign, the twenty-seven year old England international was named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year for a second time …
Liverpool booked their Champions League quarter-final place with an uninspiring 0-0 draw against Porto at Anfield.
The Reds lacklustre performance hardly mattered, though, after a devastating 5-0 win in Portugal three weeks ago all-but secured a first appearance in the last-eight since 2008-09.
That first-leg cushion enabled Jurgen Klopp to make five changes to the side that beat Newcastle United 2-0 on Saturday, with leading goalscorer Mohamed Salah dropping to the bench for Adam Lallana, who was making his first start in two months.
Sadio Mane had two clear chances to open the scoring in the first half, the second of which crashed against the post, while Dejan Lovren headed over.
James Milner and Roberto Firmino also squandered opportunities in the …
Manchester City s fans must match the players desire to reach a Champions League semi-final, according to manager Pep Guardiola.
City host Tottenham at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday, nursing a 1-0 deficit from last week s encounter in north London.
Despite contesting their eighth consecutive campaign in Europe s premier competition, City have only reached the last four once – losing 1-0 on aggregate to eventual winners Real Madrid in 2016.
An element in the club s uneasy relationship with the Champions League is rooted in a standoffishness from a significant section a fanbase that followed City with unswerving loyalty when they languished in English football s third tier 20 years ago.
Reasons for this are numerous – from dissatisfaction over UEFA pu…
Luis Suarez stuck to the script by scoring on his 100th international appearance for Uruguay, but you could be forgiven for thinking Russia were playing on Wednesday at Rostov Arena, where the loudest chants were neither for the Celeste nor their opponents Saudi Arabia.
Instead it was the fans of a resurgent host nation who made their presence felt, as they embarked on a noisy scouting mission ahead of what now looms as an unexpectedly decisive showdown to determine the winners of Group A at the World Cup.
Uruguay have played the part that was expected of them, edging past Egypt and overcoming the Saudis to reach the round of 16, where Portugal, Iran or Spain will lie in wait.
But the hosts have surprised everyone, including themselves, to make a flying start…
According to a recent report from El Desmarque, Manchester United are, in fact, still interested in pursuing a deal for Tottenham Hotspur playmaker Christian Eriksen, contrary to other recent reports. However, as opposed to waiting until the summer transfer window in order to try and strike up a deal, they want to get something done in January for a fee believed to be worth around £20.5 million.
Given the ability that the popular Dane possesses, many would’ve expected the fee to be at least a few million higher – but the whole saga has been dragging out for quite some time now.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is eager to bring in a few new faces in January and that much is understandable, as their position within the race for the top four is tedious at best.
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Tournament hosts Brazil are out for redemption as they take on Paraguay in the first of this year s Copa America quarter-finals.
Eight-time winners of the competition Brazil have been eliminated at this stage by the same opponents in their last two knockout-round involvements, both times on penalties.
Brazil failed to make it as far as the last eight in the United States three years ago but they had less trouble progressing this time around, sealing top spot in Group A with a resounding 5-0 victory over Peru in their final group game.
Tite s decision to shake up his attack paid off in Sao Paulo as Casemiro and Roberto Firmino put the hosts 2-0 up, and further goals followed from star man Everton, captain Dani Alves and substitute Willian.
ATENÇÃO! Est…
Inter Milan moved level with league leaders AC Milan with a confident 2-0 victory against Juventus in the Derby D Italia at the San Siro on Sunday evening.
Arturo Vidal struck a priceless opening blow against his former team with a thumping header in the 13th minute before Nicolo Barella doubled the lead shortly after the break to secure a big win in the context of the Serie A title race.
Here are five things we learned from the San Siro:
Vidal strikes against former club
Having not scored a goal in Serie A since May 2015, and not yet got off the mark in the league for Inter, not many will have backed Vidal to score the opening goal of the clash.
The 33-year-old midfielder has often been criticised for his performances in the centre of the park during t…
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes Manchester United s dressing room is being driven to success by Bruno Fernandes, Edinson Cavani and Paul Pogba.
United sit top of the Premier League table on 40 points, six clear of defending champions Liverpool, who Solskjaer s team face in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday, seven days on from a 0-0 draw at Anfield.
Liverpool have been eliminated from the FA Cup by United more than they have any other opponent in the competition s history, though the Red Devils have lost two of their past three against the Reds in the competition.
Integral to United s recent success has been the form of Fernandes, who has scored 19 league goals and created a further 14 from 33 top-flight appearances since joining from Sporting CP last year.
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