Chapecoense s revival continued after the grief-stricken Brazilian side won the Santa Catarina state championship on Sunday.
It has been a time of mourning and rebuilding for Chapecoense since a plane carrying the Brazilian squad, technical commission and a number of journalists for the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final against Atletico Nacional crashed en route to Medellin two days before the match was due to take place, killing 71 people on board in November.
Only three members of the travelling squad survived Neto, Alan Ruschel and Jackson Follmann – as Chapecoense were left heartbroken and struggling to field a team.
However, Chapecoense s resurgence continued on the weekend as the tragedy-struck team – who claimed the second stage of the competiti…
Manchester United have completed the signing of highly-rated midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin from Southampton on a four-year deal.
Schneiderlin, who joined Southampton from RC Strasbourg Alsace for just £1.2 million in the summer of 2008, has chosen Manchester over a move to North London, with both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur having been keen on signing the midfielder earlier this summer.
The France international, 25, becomes the club s fourth summer recruit following the arrivals of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Matteo Darmian and Memphis Depay.
I am delighted to be a Manchester United player, Schneiderlin told the club s official website. Once I learned that United were interested in signing me, it was a very easy decision to make.<…
Taking down former employers Real Madrid something Schalke striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar is eager to do in the UEFA Champions League.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar is primed and ready to face former club Real Madrid on Wednesday as Schalke welcome them to the Veltins-Arena in the UEFA Champions League.
The Netherlands international is currently serving a four-match domestic ban following his dismissal against Hannover on January 31, but will feature against Real.
Huntelaar spent half a season at Santiago Bernabeu having joined in January 2009, before heading to Milan and latterly Schalke where he has scored three Champions League goals this season.
He comes face-to-face with Real for a second-successive season in the competition, and the 31-year-old is keen to avoi…
Ronald Koeman has warned Gary Neville, declaring the Valencia coaching job as extremely complicated following his appointment on Wednesday.
Southampton manager Koeman lasted just six months at the Mestalla despite lifting the Copa del Rey trophy with a 3-1 triumph over Getafe.
The Dutch boss exited the post in April 2008 following a 5-1 defeat to Athletic Bilbao and Koeman has warned the England assistant about the challenges he should expect to face.
It s a very difficult place to manage, Koeman said.
When I was there it was extremely complicated, nothing worked. And it is still complicated now.
It is important to learn the language. Does he speak it? I don t know. He has his brother [Phil] there but it is not the same if someone has to transl…
Since completing back-to-back Bundesliga titles under Jurgen Klopp in 2011-12, Borussia Dortmund have become a go-to source of star talent for some of Europe s heavyweight clubs.
Ousmane Dembele is set to become the latest big-name departure from Signal Iduna Park after it was announced on Friday an agreement for a €105million move to Barcelona had been reached.
The only positive for BVB is they have not seen him leave for domestic rivals Bayern Munich, who have frequently returned to raid their ranks in recent years.
Here, we look at who Dortmund have lost since their heady days under Klopp, when they departed and how they coped.
2013
Mario Gotze won widespread acclaim for his role in Dortmund s run to an all-German Champions League …
FIFA has confirmed the pots for next month s World Cup draw after Peru defeated New Zealand to complete the 32-team line-up for the finals in Russia.
The South American nation won the second leg of their inter-continental play-off 2-0 in Lima and will be in Pot 2 when the draw is made in the Kremlin Palace in Moscow on December 1.
Hosts Russia are joined by reigning champions Germany, five-time winners Brazil and fellow heavyweights Argentina, France and European champions Portugal, as well as talented Belgium and Poland sides, in Pot 1.
Together with Peru, Pot 2 includes 2010 winners Spain, 1966 champions England, along with Switzerland, Colombia, Mexico, Uruguay and Croatia.
Pot 3 contains debutants Iceland, surprise 2014 quarter-finalists Costa Rica …
David Silva s form for Manchester City this season is continuing to establish him as one of Spain s greatest players, according to ex-Liverpool and Barcelona forward Luis Garcia.
City are 15 points clear at the top of the Premier League following an on-going English record of 18 consecutive league wins.
Silva and Kevin De Bruyne have operated as the creative heart of Pep Guardiola s side and Garcia is not surprised by the level of performances produced by his 31-year-old countryman, who penned a contract extension at the Etihad Stadium last month.
Capped 118 times by Spain and fourth on his country s all-time international goals list with 35, Silva is set to have a vital role to play as Julen Lopetegui s men bid for World Cup glory in Russia next year.
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Prediction: Sevilla to win 2-1
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Osasuna and Sevilla will face each other in the first game of the new La Liga season this week. The match will be held at the El Sadar Stadium and is scheduled to kick off at 8pm UK time on Friday.
Osasuna
Osasuna are an established club in La Liga who tend to finish in mid-table or at the lower end of the standings. They ended up 10th in the La Liga table last season with 47 points from 38 matches, just one point behind former Spanish champions Valencia.
Jagoba Arrasate’s side have not been very active in the summer transfer window. Osasuna have made just one signing, and that too on a free transfer. Ruben Pena, who can operate as a right-back or as a winger, has joined after leaving La …
Lionel Messi says his situation at Barcelona has changed for the better compared to 12 months ago after he was crowned the best player in the world for the fifth time in his career on Monday.
The Argentina international had to settle for second spot in the vote for the FIFA Ballon d Or last year behind Cristiano Ronaldo and was heavily linked with a move away from Barcelona after allegedly falling out with Luis Enrique.
However, Messi was quick to stress that he is now thoroughly enjoying life at Camp Nou again after an incredibly successful year.
Right now, things are much better than 12 months ago, the 28-year-old told FIFA TV.
What happened then was difficult. But things change in football and you have to keep level-headed.
Messi first li…
Market: Both teams to score
Odds: 4/7 @
In what could prove to be an action-packed MLS showdown in the early hours of Thursday, San Jose will welcome Houston to PayPal Park.
Starting with the hosts, making an immediate return to losing ways last weekend as they slumped to a 2-1 loss at home against Sporting KC, San Jose have continued on a major MLS rut since opening up the 2024 campaign. Signing off June with a thumping 3-0 defeat at the hands of LA Galaxy, the Goonies sit rock-bottom of the Western Conference table and have already written off any chance of booking a play-off ticket. Including a woeful 6-2 loss against Los Angeles last month, interim boss Ian Russell has seen his downbeat squad lose seven of their previous eight MLS showdowns. With that that e…