Harry Kane says Tottenham have got to get better after letting slip a two-goal lead to draw against Olympiacos on Wednesday, but he remains confident they will qualify for the Champions League knockout stages again.

Losing finalists last season, Spurs opened their Group B campaign in 2019-20 by picking up a point from a tricky trip to Greece.

However, it could have been much better for Mauricio Pochettino s side after Kane s 26th-minute penalty was followed by Lucas Moura s strike from the edge of the box, putting the visitors 2-0 up.

Kane acknowledged conceding just before the interval was crucial, with Daniel Podence halving the deficit in the 44th minute. 

Mathieu Valbuena then drew Olympiacos level from the penalty spot in the second half, forcing…

Liverpool have virtually wrapped up the 2019-20 Premier League title since they hold a 22-point lead over Manchester City with nine games left in the schedule. However, they shouldn’t be as relaxed as they might be ahead of the 2020-21 campaign. The Reds will have a tough title rival in Chelsea.

The Blues have already secured the services of Hakim Ziyech and, on Thursday, they announced an agreement to sign Timo Werner. The club confirmed the deal in an official statement on the club’s website, saying the Germany international already agreed to personal terms and that will report at the club during July once the Bundesliga season comes to an end.

Chelsea are doing things right when it comes to transfers

Needless to say, the arrival of Werner gives Chelsea a huge bo…

Indonesia is out of the running to host football s World Cup finals in 2018 and 2022, world football s governing body FIFA said Friday.

The move followed a decision by Indonesia s government not to provide guarantees over taxes and other issues to back the country s bid committee by a December 2009 deadline, said FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke.

Indonesia is no longer a candidate for 2018 and 2022, he told journalists after the decision by the FIFA s executive committee at a meeting in Zurich

It was the government side of the guarantees that were missing, he said.

Australia, England, Japan, Netherlands/Belgium, Russia and Spain/Portugal have also bid to host both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, while Qatar and South Korea are bidding just to host th…

South Korea and Greece dip their toes into the World Cup water at this Eastern Cape port on Saturday anxious to get precious points on board with Argentina and Nigeria facing off later up in Ellis Park.

While by no means one of the first round glamour games an intriguing clash of styles is nevertheless in store at the brand new Nelson Mandela Bay stadium overlooking the Indian Ocean for this early 1130 GMT kick-off.

Speed and astute tactical awareness are the calling cards of a Korean side that tore up the World Cup formbook when making it through to the semi-finals in 2002.

Greece, who also turned football s natural order on its head when belying their status as rank outsiders to waltz off with Euro 2004, will be relying on their height advantage and set-piece …

Will Messi win his 5th Ballon d Or? / Image via dailyrecord.co.uk

The 2015 FIFA Ballon d’Or approaches and the voters are faced with another tough decision as they prepare to determine the world’s best for the previous twelve months.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been joined in the race by Neymar who broke into contention thanks to his scintillating displays for Barcelona. However, he is unlikely to break the order, at least this year as he faces stiff competition from the two players who have dominated the award for the past seven years.

National team coaches and captains will be joined by journalists from around the world in a tough challenge and a usual dilemma.

Goals

Cristiano Ronaldo carried Real Madrid on his back against Real…

Defender Jan Kirchhoff is on the verge of securing a move away from Bayern Munich, the Bundesliga champions have confirmed.

Kirchhoff has not travelled to Doha for a mid-season training camp, with the club revealing the 25-year-old is away with his agent concluding negotiations for a possible transfer .

First-team opportunities have been limited for Kirchhoff since arriving from Mainz in 2013, making just seven league outings for the Bavarian giants.

Kirchhoff spent much of that time on loan at Schalke, but only made 20 appearances in all competitions during an injury-marred 18 months in Gelsenkirchen.

Kirchhoff s permanent departure from the Allianz Arena now appears imminent and reports in Germany suggest he is heading to Sunderland to finalise a …

Pep Guardiola has a plan to make sure his Manchester City players cope with playing twice in less than 48 hours in December: Go home, open the fridge and get inside.

The reigning champions have been dealt a tricky hand over the festive period following fixture changes for live television coverage, with their trip to Wolves now starting at 19:45 local time on December 27.

They then welcome Sheffield United to the Etihad Stadium on December 29, that game kicking off at 18:00, before a home match against Everton on January 1, 2020.

Asked what he can do to combat such a quick turnaround between travelling to Molineux and hosting the Blades before the turn of the year, Guardiola replied: Players to the fridge. I m not joking.

Go home, open the f…

He went to Premier League but it has not worked out for him and now he could be going back to his native country. According to Turkish media outlet Sabah, Besiktas are planning on opening talks with Everton to take striker Cenk Tosun on a six-month loan.

The forward has not enjoyed his time in England at all and now he has not be playing almost at all for Marco Silva s side in recent months. He is widely reported to be close to leaving Goodison Park in January transfer window, as no one at Everton sees him as a realistic option to start regularly up front. His 20-odd months in England since joining the Toffees in January 2018 have not been good and now a return to Turkey could be on the cards.

Tosun scored 16 goals for Turkey in 40 appearances and he has a great reputat…

Swede Lars Lagerback has turned down an offer to continue as Nigeria coach, the national football federation (NFF) confirmed on Friday.

NFF president Aminu Maigari said that Lagerback told him he did not wish to continue in his post despite being offered a four-year deal, with Samson Siasia being lined up as a replacement.

Lagerback told me he could not continue as the coach of the Super Eagles because he feared that he might not be able to pen a four-year deal that would keep him in Nigeria for that long, Maigari told sports daily Soccer Star.

He thanked the NFF for the opportunity given him to take the eagles to the World Cup. He said the experience was worth it and that he would always remember Nigeria and her good people.

Maigari added that Lagerb…

What the papers say

Leicester’s James Maddison and Harvey Barnes, who have both been valued at around £40million, could stay in the Premier League while Leicester move down to the Championship.

Tottenham and Newcastle are both reportedly interested in the pair with a bidding battle to ensue over their signatures, The Sun says.

Tottenham’s have another competitor in the fight to sign former Barcelona and Spain manager Luis Enrique as Serie A Champions Napoli are interested in the 53-year-old, according to the Guardian.

The Daily Mail said Juventus were looking the most likely to sign Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic for a reported estimated transfer fee of around £20m.

Social media round-up

Arsenal are facing stiff competition

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