Former Barcelona star Hristo Stoichkov who spent seven seasons at the Camp Nou in two stints has ruled out PSG superstar Neymar's move to Real Madrid. The PSG superstar has been linked with a move to Real Madrid at the end of the season after reports of him growing unsettled in Paris. Paris Saint Germain superstar Neymar has been aggressively linked with a move back to Spain with Real Madrid appearing as the front-runners for the star forward’s signature. However, former Barcelona star
Brazilian nets opening goal in 2-0 victory over Valencia to set up final against Sevilla. Philippe Coutinho savoured a 'special moment' after his first goal for Barcelona helped them reach their fifth consecutive Copa del Rey final. Coutinho opened the scoring in a 2-0 win at Valencia that sent Barcelona through 3-0 on aggregate, the Brazilian netting four minutes after coming on at half-time for his fifth appearance since his £142 million (Dh726.2m) switch from Liverpool last month. He was quoted on Barcelona's
Burnley manager Sean Dyche is hopeful that a two-week break from action following Saturday’s Premier League trip to Swansea City will ease their injury burden as they go into the home stretch of the season. Defender Phil Bardsley (hamstring) was the latest addition to a long injury list but with the club not involved in next week’s FA Cup action after being knocked out by Manchester City, Dyche is looking forward to easing his players back. “Sometimes you don’t want a break, but
PHILIPPE COUTINHO has been hailed by manager Ernesto Valverde after he came off the bench to score his first goal for the club against Valencia. Barcelona headed into the Copa del Rey semi-final with a 1-0 first-leg advantage but struggled to add to their lead in the first half. Coutinho was brought off the bench at half-time and within four minutes he had converted former Liverpool team-mate Luis Suarez’s cross to open the scoring. Ivan Rakitic then added a second to seal their place in the
MANCHESTER UNITED midfielder Ander Herrera could face trial over an investigation into match-fixing allegations – but his new team-mate Alexis Sanchez has dodged court after accepting a suspended jail sentence for tax fraud. The long-running probe relating to Herrera follows claims the result of a La Liga match in 2011 between Real Zaragoza and Levante was manipulated when he was a player with the former club. Zaragoza won the game 2-1, which helped them avoid relegation and sent down Deportivo La Coruna, but
CHELSEA have begun negotiations with Luis Enrique as they look to replace Antonio Conte, according to stunning reports in Spain. Antonio Conte has been given a stay of execution and is expected to be in charge next Monday when Chelsea face West Brom. But that could be his last game at the club with reports from Sport in Spain claiming talks with Luis Enrique are underway. Conte is refusing to resign and Express Sport understand that one of the reasons he has not been sacked
MANCHESTER CITY could be boosted by the return of two key players from injury against Leicester City at the Etihad on Saturday (5.30pm). Pep Guardiola’s side are currently 13 points clear at the top of the Premier League after being held to a draw by Burnley at Turf Moor last weekend. The Manchester City boss will be buoyed by the potential return of David Silva and John Stones from injury against Leicester as his side look to get back to winning ways. Silva
TOTTENHAM managed to win Mauricio Pochettino’s 200th game in charge at the club without the help of Harry Kane but another horror show from Fernando Llorente showed just how much they will be relying again on their talisman this Saturday. An unfortunate own goal and Erik Lamela’s first goal since September 2016 were enough to see off plucky Newport at the second attempt but north London rivals Arsenal promise a far harder hurdle to clear in the next game here. Pochettino reserved praise
EDEN HAZARD pipped Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne to a prestigious award. Hazard was named the Best Belgian player in a Foreign League for 2017 yesterday. The playmaker edged out De Bruyne, garnering 326 votes, winning by a mere 11 and was 56 ahead of Napoli's Dries Mertens. De Bruyne, who has been in irresistible form this season for Manchester City, had picked up the accolade for the past two seasons on the trot. The City star had topped the second round
One of the things that will be troubling the bright, competitive mind of Ernesto Valverde is whether FC Barcelona currently have an unhealthy or even Pyrrhic relationship with Spain's Copa del Rey? 'Unhealthy' is a concept you can understand quickly: all of us fall prey to things we know we shouldn't do but that feel 'irresistible.' If 'Pyrrhic' isn't a word you use daily, then think of it like this: It means a victory that comes at far too high a cost to
Last week, when Real Madrid experienced a brief respite from crisis talk following wins over Deportivo and Valencia, reports surfaced of their plans in the build-up to the Paris Saint-Germain game. It would be a mini preseason, designed by fitness coach Antonio Pintus and his staff with a focus on the physical side of Real's game. There would also be work done on the psychological aspect of the game as they try to build confidence and re-install consistency. After all, at this point
Jose Mourinho will not be grateful for the manner in which Tottenham swept his team aside in the Premier League on Jan.31, but he may eventually reflect that Mauricio Pochettino and his men did Manchester United a favour. Pochettino ruthlessly proved that, against elite competition, Paul Pogba is best accompanied in the middle of the park by two midfielders, who also serve as necessary protection for the defence. Here, Nemanja Matic -- assuming he is properly rested at some point -- and Ander
Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes says it is 'quite normal' for his former club Real Madrid to be already out of the La Liga race, but adds that their experience in the Champions League makes them favourites against Paris Saint-Germain in their upcoming round-of-16 meeting. Zinedine Zidane's side sits fourth in the La Liga table, 19 points behind runaway leaders Barcelona, with defensive issues evident in last weekend's 2-2 draw at relegation battlers Levante. Many Blancos fans and pundits fear their side could suffer badly when PSG's
Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin insists his love for fashion doesn't take his focus away from football, as the Spain international became the first active Premier League player to address the Oxford Union. Bellerin has made a habit of posting photos of himself wearing various designer outfits on social media and made a much-publicised visit to London Fashion Week last month. Aside from the mixed reviews his choice of clothing often gets, some fans have also worried whether the right-back is spending too much
Kingsley Coman had a goal and an assist and Arjen Robbed added a late brace as Bayern Munich cruised into the semifinals of the DFB Pokal with a 6-0 win away to Paderborn on Tuesday. Robert Lewandowski, Joshua Kimmich and Corentin Tolisso also scored before Robben got in on the action as Bayern reached the semis for the ninth consecutive season. Third-division Paderborn had their share of chances and had a goal ruled out for offside in the eighth minute, but Bayern took