Bayern Munich s seemingly unstoppable march to a sixth consecutive Bundesliga title continued as they brushed aside Freiburg 4-0 at the Schwarzwald-Stadion on Sunday.
The victory opens up a 20-point lead over second-placed Schalke and heralds a return to winning ways after last weekend s surprise 0-0 draw at home to Hertha Berlin.
After a sluggish start, Jupp Heynckes side burst into life midway through the opening period as Thomas Muller s persistence forced Alexander Schwolow into an own goal to break the deadlock.
That was soon followed by a thumping long-range drive from Corentin Tolisso, which flashed past the Freiburg goalkeeper to double their advantage.
Sandro Wagner added a third in the 54th minute to effectively end the game as a contest befo…
Tottenham winger Erik Lamela has been ruled out of the remainder of the Premier League season ahead of surgery on a long-standing hip injury.
The club confirmed on Wednesday that the Argentina international will go under the knife on Saturday, having been out of action for five months.
Lamela, who last featured in a 2-1 EFL Cup loss to Liverpool on October 25, will miss the final 10 league games of the campaign.
A Spurs statement said the 25-year-old had undertaken a comprehensive rehabilitation process and achieved a good level of function , but had fallen short of being able to return to full training.
INJURY UPDATE: is to undergo surgery on his hip on Saturday. This will result in Erik returning to action next season.
— Tottenham Hotspur (…
Maurizio Sarri considers his arrival at Juventus the crowning moment of his coaching career and insists he has not disrespected Napoli by taking the job.
Former Napoli boss Sarri has been appointed at Serie A champions Juve, leaving Chelsea after just one year in the Premier League to replace Massimiliano Allegri.
The 60-year-old, a boyhood fan of the Partenopei, had challenged the Bianconeri for the title in 2017-18 and his subsequent move to Turin has been met with outrage by some at Stadio San Paolo.
But Sarri is delighted to have moved to Italy s leading club in the modern era.
I had a wonderful experience in the Premier League but, for personal as well as professional reasons, I felt the need to come back to Italy, he told a news conference on Thurs…
Massimiliano Allegri would like to experience a Premier League he believes has been made more sophisticated by the influence of foreign coaches.
Allegri, 53, has been out of work since leaving Juventus at the end of the 2018-19 season, which saw him win a fifth consecutive Scudetto with the Bianconeri.
The former Milan boss has been continually linked with a move to the Premier League, with Arsenal and Manchester United frequently connected with Allegri in media reports.
And he would relish the chance to pit himself against the likes of Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp, Allegri expressing great admiration for what the latter has done with champions Liverpool.
I would like to experience the Premier League, Allegri told The Times.
In Italy, I was in…
With the final round of European qualifiers getting underway on Thursday, we have another string of intriguing affairs from across the continent.
So, for those of you looking to stick on a midweek flutter, we have found a pair of fixtures that are worth keeping an eye out for.
18:00 Slavia Prague vs Zorya
While Slavia Prague might have been disappointed after only settling for a silver medal finish among Czech Republic’s elite last season, Thursday’s hosts have enjoyed a hugely impressive flurry since opening the 2023/24 campaign. Extending on their Europa League qualifying adventure earlier in the month as they landed a 3-1 aggregate victory against Dnipro-1, Jindřich Trpisovsky s side will now have their sights set on claiming another Ukrainian scalp.
Franck Kessie wants to leave Barcelona in the January transfer window, according to . The report in the Spanish sports publication has claimed that the former AC Milan midfielder does not feel comfortable at Camp Nou and is willing to leave the former La Liga and UEFA Champions League winners in the January transfer window.
Kessie has been on the books of Barcelona since the summer of 2022 when he joined on a free transfer after leaving AC Milan. The 25-year-old Ivory Coast international midfielder won the Serie A title with the Rossoneri last season. So far this season, the midfielder has made two starts and five substitute appearances in La Liga and has made three starts and three substitute appearances in the UEFA Champions League this campaign.
Barcelona are at the …
Remi Garde has revealed Gerard Houllier advised him to take up the vacant coach s position at Aston Villa.
Houllier spent less than a year at Villa Park between 2010 and 2011 before stepping down due to illness.
Garde previously worked as the 68-year-old s assistant at Lyon, and disclosed the close relationship between the pair facilitated his decision to join Villa as Tim Sherwood s replacement.
Gerard told me a lot of good, positive things, he told AVTV.
He encouraged me to take the job. We had a long chat together.
Actually I visited him when he was manager of Aston Villa. So I was not totally lost when I came here to [training ground] Bodymoor Heath.
We liked each other very much. I don t know why sometimes you can t explain why.…
that Liverpool are not giving up on signing Real Madrid star Xabi Alonso.
The Spain international left the Reds to join Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, and the Anfield outfit quickly lived to regret the sale.
The club have been struggling to return to old glory days ever since, but they have never given up hope of luring Alonso back to Anfield.
Liverpool have been showing signs of promise this season and with captain Steven Gerrard set to sign a new deal, the Reds hope Alonso might be interested in a return.
The 31-year-old has a contract until June 2014 at Santiago Bernabeu and he has been unable to reach an agreement with club chiefs over a contract extension.
Liverpool are closely monitoring the situation and they are ready to pounce shoul…
Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone said not even the rumoured transfer of star Antoine Griezmann will distract him from the upcoming Europa League final.
Griezmann continues to be linked with LaLiga champions Barcelona – talk of a switch to the Spanish giants intensifying in recent weeks.
Atletico have been infuriated by Barcelona s attitude amid the speculation following comments made by Luis Suarez – who suggested the Frenchman s transfer to Camp Nou next season was a formality – and board members.
But Simeone refused to weigh into the reports ahead of Saturday s trip to Getafe and the Europa League decider against Marseille on May 16.
My sight is limited, like a blinkered horse right now, I only look at Getafe and the final, Simeone told r…
Borussia Dortmund full-back Lukasz Piszczek is keen to keep the club on course to complete a full set of European trophies in the second leg of their Europa League clash against Porto.
Poland full-back Piszczek opened the scoring after only six minutes when the sides met at Signal Iduna Park last week, with Marco Reus sealing a 2-0 triumph after the break.
Should Thomas Tuchel s men go all the way and claim the Europa League title, they would become the fifth club in history to lift all three major season-long European competitions, having won the 1996-97 Champions League and the now defunct Cup Winners Cup in 1965-66.
We know there is a trophy to win at the end and we want to get it in our hands, Piszczek told Sport 1.
It s only half-time [in the ti…