Month: November 2024

Khadija Shaw opened her account for the Women s Super League season as Manchester City beat Brighton 1-0 to get their first win on the board.

Shaw was the runaway top scorer in the WSL last season, and she got up and running for the 2024-25 campaign with a neat close-range finish from Kerstin Casparij s low cross late in the first half of Sunday s clash at Joie Stadium.

Her goal was one of seven shots the Jamaican had throughout the contest, with Shaw having gone close on three occasions prior to breaking the deadlock.

Mary Fowler and Jessica Park both went close to extending City s lead after the break, while Lauren Hemp stung the palms of Sophie Baggaley.

The only disappointment for Gareth Taylor will have been that his side failed to make their dominan…

Ronald Koeman has been sacked as head coach of Barcelona following a poor start to the club s first season without Lionel Messi in 17 years. 

Financial difficulties saw the six-time Ballon d Or winner leave for Paris Saint-Germain and, in his absence, Koeman s side have struggled. 

The Dutchman replaced Quique Setien at Camp Nou in August 2020 and led Barca to Copa del Rey success in his first season, although they finished third in LaLiga and suffered a Champions League last-16 exit, as well as losing the Supercopa de Espana final to Athletic Bilbao. 

A shock 1-0 loss at Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday was the final straw and with the club in turmoil, it is imperative that Koeman s successor is chosen with great care. Stats Perform takes a look at the leading…

Liverpool are interested in signing Fabio Vieira from FC Porto in the summer transfer window, according to . The well-known and well-respected journalist has reported on his account that there will be more interest in the youngster.

Fábio Vieira está na lista de referenciados pelo Liverpool e o interesse acaba por aumentar com as boas atuações do médio no Euro Sub-21, tendo sido eleito o melhor jogador. FC Porto está em cima e bem para garantir a renovação do atleta, que tem contrato até junho de 2022

Bruno Andrade (@brunoandrd)

Vieira has been on the books of Porto since 2008 and has come through the ranks. The Portugal Under-21 international has established himself in the first team and is a very good and promising young player. The 21-yea…

Juventus centre-back Bremer will undergo surgery after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury against RB Leipzig.

The Brazil international was forced off six minutes into Juve s 3-2 win over Leipzig on Wednesday, with the club confirming the extent of his injury on Thursday.

Bremer has been key to Thiago Motta s side so far this season, playing every minute in Serie A with the team yet to concede a single goal in six matches.

Among his team-mates, he has played the most minutes (540), making the most interceptions (six) and blocks (11).

Juventus were also dealt another blow, with midfielder Nico Gonzalez suffering a thigh muscle injury.

Bremer and Nico Gonzalez underwent diagnostic tests which revealed an anterior cruciate ligament…

Alisson was given a stoppage-time VAR reprieve after conceding a penalty as Brazil somehow clung on to a 1-1 draw against Ecuador in a chaotic World Cup qualifying classic.

Felix Torres equalised with 15 minutes to go and Ecuador looked set to grab the win that would put them on the brink of qualification when awarded a last-gasp penalty, but that opportunity was taken away in an ending that befitted the remarkable 90 minutes that preceded it.

The first half saw the red card brandished three times – the first two, for Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez and Brazil right-back Emerson Royal, were decisions that remained, but Alisson s was overturned.

All the controversy somewhat overshadowed Casemiro s early goal, which looked likely to be the winner given Ecu…

Ukraine are set to strip their former captain Anatoliy Tymoshchuk of his record 144 caps and impose a string of further heavy sanctions as punishment for his ongoing work at Russian club Zenit.

The proposals were announced on Wednesday by the ethics and fair play committee of the Ukrainian Football Association, which accused Tymoshchuk of making a conscious choice that damages the image of Ukrainian football .

Tymoshchuk, 42, was a Champions League winner with Bayern Munich in 2013. Either side of his four-year playing spell in Germany, he had stints with Zenit, and in 2016 he joined up again with the Russian Premier League club in a coaching role.

The Ukrainian FA (UAF) ethics investigators said that by continuing to work for Zenit, while Russian forces inv…

Three matchdays remain in Serie A, and yet there is plenty still to be decided at both ends of the table – not least which side will be crowned champions.

Milan occupy top spot in their quest for a first Scudetto since 2011, but fierce rivals Inter are just two points behind and arguably have an easier set of fixtures to conclude the campaign.

Napoli and Juventus are not officially out of the title race just yet, though they are seven and eight points off first place respectively, therefore requiring a remarkable set of results.

Both Napoli and Juventus are already assured of a top-four finish, but there are several other teams still battling it out for the three remaining European spots.

Venezia appear doomed at the opposite end of the table after los…

In what was another dramatic Champions League showdown on Wednesday night, Atletico Madrid punched their quarter-final spot as they secured a nail-biting penalties victory against Inter Milan.

With the Nerrazzuri opening Wednesday’s showdown after collecting a 1-0 first-leg victory at the San Siro on February 20th, they doubled their advantage on the night as Federico Dimarco opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark.

However, with Antoine Griezmann pulling one back just seconds after Dimarco’s opener, Diego Simeone’s men mounted a stunning comeback on home soil.

With Dutch international Memphis Depay sending the home support into overdrive in the 87th-minute, neither side could find a dramatic winner in extra-time.

It was eventually Jan Obl…

Andrea Pirlo has been sacked as Sampdoria s head coach after just over a season at the helm.

Pirlo, who managed Juventus for the 2020-21 campaign, has been relieved of his duties after an underwhelming start to their Serie B season.

After finishing seventh in Italy s second tier last term, the 45-year-old was given the green light to try and return to Serie A at the second time of asking.

However, an opening day draw with Frosinone was followed up with back-to-back defeats to Reggiana and Salernitana, leaving them second-bottom in the division.

During his time in charge, Pirlo won 18 of his 45 matches in charge (D10 L17), averaging 1.42 points per game, a total only bettered by his time with Juventus (2.15).

Sampdoria return to the Stadio Luigi…

With the likes of Arsenal and Manchester United stealing centre stage on Sunday afternoon, we have a stacked schedule from across Europe’s elite.

So, for those of you looking to stick on a Sunday flutter, we have found a trio of helpful betting markets that are worth keeping an eye out for.

Sunday, February 11th
BST 12:00 Coventry vs Millwall

Extending on their FA Cup adventure earlier in the week as they stormed their way to a 4-1 romp at home against Sheffield Wednesday, Coventry have once again gained a string of plaudits this season. While Mark Robins’ men might have suffered play-off final heartbreak last year, Sunday’s hosts have their sights firmly set on securing another top-six finish in 2024. Handing themselves a real platform to build on in m…