Football,International,Sports,Soccer

Madrid: Lionel Messi put his arm around Ilaix Moriba, the 18-year-old born in the same year Messi made his Barcelona debut and who was now being given his own chance to play for the club's first team. Ilaix had just set up the opening goal against Alaves on Saturday when he was congratulated by his 33-year-old captain, whose task it is on Tuesday to lead this youthful Barca to an unfancied victory against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last 16. From nurturing

Lionel Messi and Francisco Trincao scored twice as Barcelona beat Alaves for a seventh consecutive La Liga win. Trincao opened the scoring from a pass by Ilaix Moriba - both players were making their first La Liga starts - and Messi doubled the lead via the inside of the post from outside the box. Luis Rioja gave struggling Alaves hope. Trincao scored again after Messi's shot was saved and then the Argentine netted an excellent 25-yard strike before Junior Firpo's close-range fifth. Messi

Injury looks like ruling PSG’s Brazilian forward out for a month and both legs of the Champions League tie with his former club. The sadness is huge, the pain is immense, and the weeping is constant.” Neymar had already been hit once and Mauricio Pochettino was about to take him off to protect him when he got hit again. As he left the field on Wednesday in Caen, the Paris Saint-Germain manager put an arm around the Brazilian but there was no consolation. He departed

Jurgen Klopp's sheer elation at Liverpool's outstanding return to form was illustrated seconds before the final whistle at a rain-sodden Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. As a clearance was lashed high into the empty stands and referee Martin Atkinson checked his watch, Klopp knew victory was assured. The manager turned towards Liverpool's bench to pump his fists in understated fashion: a moment of quiet celebration. Seconds later, the formalities of this impressive 3-1 win were completed - and even though we have hardly been talking

JURGEN KLOPP has hailed Liverpool’s perfect night in the Champions League, and insisted their qualities shone through against Porto. Liverpool have all but booked their place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a 5-0 thrashing away to Porto in the first leg of their last-16 tie. Sadio Mane grabbed a hat-trick to become only the second Liverpool player to score a treble away from home in Europe with Michael Owen being the only other former Anfield star to achieve that feat back

PAUL POGBA is reportedly irritated by the arrival of Alexis Sanchez at Manchester United. Sanchez joined Manchester United in January and became the highest paid player at the club, overtaking Pogba. But the Chilean’s has not had a smooth transition with two league defeats and just one goal. Meanwhile, Pogba has also struggled recently, being substituted in two of the past three games and named on the bench in the other. Pogba’s woes come as questions about his best position for United remain. United

Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde faces a dilemma before his side’s potentially tricky trip to in-form Eibar on Saturday, having watched his side’s seemingly unassailable La Liga lead cut to seven points from 11 in the last two weeks. The advantage would normally give the coach room to rotate his squad in order to keep his side fresh for the visit to Chelsea in the Champions League three days later but tiny Eibar’s consistency means such a move risks his side falling closer to

Arsenal playmaker Henrikh Mkhitaryan is delighted after reuniting with strike partner and good friend Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang at the Premier League club. The duo played together for three years at Germany’s Borussia Dortmund from 2013 and their partnership was best showcased in the 2015/16 season when they notched a combined 62 goals and 44 assists across all competitions. The pacey pair got off to a flying start at Arsenal, after Mkhitaryan joined the team last month from Manchester United, with the Armenian providing three

Chelsea defeated West Brom 3-0 to return back to winning ways after a series of disappointing losses against Watford and Bournemouth. While Eden Hazard was the star performer of the night for the reigning champions, it was French striker Olivier Giroud who had a superb outing for his new side and was deservingly praised for his display. Chelsea went back to winning ways at the Stamford Bridge as they brushed aside challenge from a hapless West Brom side in the Premier League. Antonio

La Liga president Javier Tebas declared that Neymar had not only peed in the pool when he left Barcelona last summer, but he 'got on the diving board' to do so. It was Neymar's own ambitions that forced him to consider and ultimately follow through on the move to Paris Saint-Germain, though, rather than some desire to hurt La Liga. And those same ambitions can be worked on by Real Madrid in the buildup to their Champions League matchup with PSG on Wednesday night, as

The Arsenal legend has some big words.

CHELSEA boss Antonio Conte has dismissed speculation about his future after the Blues picked up a convincing 3-0 win against West Brom at Stamford Bridge. Antonio Conte has been under pressure this month following shock defeats against Bournemouth and Watford. The Italian made it clear he was feeling the heat and issued a desperate plea to the Chelsea board for a vote of confidence last week. It never came and it looked as if Roman Abramovich would soon be wielding the axe if

Liverpool FC boss Jurgen Klopp delivers his verdict on how the race for Champions League qualification is shaping up Jurgen Klopp has warned his Liverpool FC players that they still have a significant fight on their hands in trying to finish in the Premier League’s top four this season. The Reds boosted their hopes of securing Champions League qualification once again on Sunday when they beat Southampton 2-0 at St Mary’s to bounce back from their 2-2 draw with Spurs last weekend. Klopp

Our YEP Jury have their say on Paul Heckingbottom’s appointment and Leeds United’s Yorkshire derby at Sheffield United. MIKE GILLAfter the capitulation against Cardiff City last Saturday and the departure of the decent but ultimately ineffective Thomas Christiansen – on Sunday evening – the Whites visit Sheffield United. Paul Heckingbottom now takes charge of a depleted side ravaged by suspensions and injuries. All true fans will wish him well. In the short term, it will be tough for him and he will need

MANCHESTER UNITED are considering shoring up their defensive options in the summer with a move for Lazio defender Stefan de Vrij, according to reports. Jose Mourinho is likely to be heavily backed, with the club desperate to bridge the gap to runaway leaders Manchester City next season. Liverpool were interested in signing De Vrij last month, however they turned their attentions to Virgil van Dijk instead and completed a £75million deal instead. Chelsea are also supposedly monitoring De Vrij’s situation, with the player out

Liverpool legend Phil Thompson and the former Southampton star Matt Le Tissier have expressed their opinion regarding Virgil Van Dijk’s future at Anfield, live on Sky Sports. They both consider the Dutch defender possesses the necessary quality and leadership skills to become new Reds captain. The highly regarded centre-back arrived at the ranks of Merseyside club from Southampton for a world-record £75 million fee at the beginning of January. Jurgen Klopp has brought the 26-year-old Dutchman to improve his shaky backline instantly, but the

Reports suggested David Moyes may be relieved of his West Ham duties at the end of the season. West Ham United manager David Moyes has failed to rule out leaving his post as Hammers boss at the end of the season - in his London Evening Standard column - amid reports suggesting that he will not be offered a new deal. Multiple outlets reported that the former Manchester United and Everton boss was set to leave at the end of the season, regardless of whether he kept West

TOTTENHAM are a very similar side to Barcelona, according to ex-Juventus boss Marcello Lippi. Marcello Lippi’s former side Juventus take on Tottenham at the Allianz Stadium next Tuesday in the Champions League round of 16. He has warned the Serie A club to expect a stern test against Spurs, similar to last season’s clash with Barcelona. Juve were knocked out easily by the Catalan side last term, losing 3-0 on aggregate. And Lippi believes Mauricio Pochettino’s side possess many of the same qualities

Leeds United are eyeing up a transfer swoop for SD Huesca attacker Alex Gallar in the summer window, according to a report. Spanish publication Diario De Leon claim on their website that the Whites are keen on securing the services of the 25-year-old winger after his impressive performances this season, with five goals and five assists in 23 appearances for the side topping the table of Spain’s second division. He arrived at Heusca last summer from Cultural Leonesa to replace future Leeds star Samu Saiz,

Investigation has revealed that in spite of efforts by the federal government to curtail illegal migration in the country, the rate of trafficking and abuse of young Nigerian footballers has remained high . This is also as the regulations governing the transfer of underage football players, has fallen short of halting the trend. Findings revealed that illegal migration of these young Nigerian boys is mostly carried out by criminals who purport to be agents , thereby defrauding desperate young footballers online. Most of