Talk of diving and tactical fouls has only added fuel to the fire as Liverpool and Manchester City face off in a mouth-watering top-of-the-table Premier League clash at Anfield.
The unbeaten league-leading Reds needed an 87th-minute header from Andy Robertson and an injury-time winner from Sadio Mane to defeat Aston Villa 2-1 last time out and preserve a six-point cushion over City.
Champions City needed to rally themselves to overcome Southampton, after which manager Pep Guardiola stoked the fires by saying of Liverpool s star forward Mane: Sometimes he [Mane] is diving. Sometimes he has this talent to score incredible goals in the last minute. He s a talent.
It was a suggestion Klopp bridled at and, although Guardiola later sought to clarify the meaning of his…
Carney Chukwuemeka praised “big brother” Raheem Sterling after the England forward endured a mixed afternoon during Chelsea’s FA Cup win over Leicester.
Sterling left the field late in the second half to a smattering of applause but also audible boos, with fans near the Stamford Bridge dugout having implored manager Mauricio Pochettino to substitute him.
Earlier he had missed two golden chances to help wrap up the game, which Chelsea eventually won 4-2 with stoppage-time goals from substitutes Chukwuemeka and Noni Madueke.
He received scorn from sections of the home support for taking the ball out of the hands of regular penalty taker Cole Palmer after winning a first-half spot-kick, which he subsequently saw saved by Leicester goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk.<…
Newcastle United have confirmed the appointment of boyhood fan and ex-Sunderland boss Steve Bruce as their new head coach, replacing departed manager Rafael Benitez.
The Magpies had been searching for a new coach since Benitez s departure at the end of his contract last month and they have found their man in Bruce, who leaves Sheffield Wednesday after a short but impressive stint.
The former Manchester United captain was reported to have resigned from his role at Wednesday earlier this week, having confirmed talks with Newcastle.
Bruce s links to rivals Sunderland, where he was manager between 2009 and 2011, may not go down well with supporters who were already organising protests against owner Mike Ashley, but he has signed a three-year deal at St James Park.
Zinedine Zidane moved to stamp out any speculation over his future on Friday, insisting he will be the Real Madrid coach next season.
Madrid s 2019-20 campaign finally came to an end at the Etihad Stadium with a 2-1 defeat to Manchester City in the Champions League – Los Blancos exiting the competition with a 4-2 aggregate loss.
The club do have the league title to show for the campaign, and it is their first LaLiga crown since 2017.
Asked if he planned to be in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2020-21, Zidane gave a defiant response.
Well, I m here, I m Madrid s coach until something happens which is out of the ordinary. I m here, of course, he told a news conference.
You don t have to think anything. I am the coach of Madrid, and that…
Man City out to amend poor Spanish record, Liverpool´s Benfica omen – Champions League in Opta numbe
The final matchday of the Champions League quarter-finals has arrived, with Liverpool and Manchester City in touching distance of the last four.
The Premier League pair played out a thrilling 2-2 draw in what many billed as the title decider on Sunday, but their attention now turns back to Europe as they hunt yet more silverware.
Liverpool, if uncomfortable at times, managed a 3-1 victory at the Estadio da Luz, while City hold a slender 1-0 advantage heading to the Wanda Metropolitano against Atletico Madrid.
Here, Stats Perform unpacks the pick of the data from a decisive Wednesday in UEFA s flagship club competition.
What s your best Anfield memory? | |
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague)
Atletico Madrid v Manchester City: …
Pep Guardiola has congratulated Joan Laporta on his election as Barcelona president and believes he will bring the feel-good factor back to Camp Nou.
Laporta was previously Barca president between 2003 and 2010, a spell that included hiring Guardiola to be head coach in 2008, starting an extraordinary run of success.
He has now returned to the role following a landslide election win over rivals Victor Font and Toni Freixa on Sunday.
One of his first points of business will be resolving the future of Lionel Messi, who has been strongly linked with a reunion with Guardiola at Manchester City, as well as Paris Saint-Germain.
Guardiola praised Laporta for his convincing win and believes his impact will be felt promptly.
All I can say is that it was …
Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid drew 1-1 at the Civitas Metropolitano on Sunday, with Eder Militao sending Real ahead in the 64th minute, only to see their lead perish in the fifth minute of stoppage time.
After Militao s goal, however, Atletico fans started throwing various objects towards Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, and aware of the potential problems such behaviour could cause, head coach Diego Simeone and captain Koke rushed over to try and talk some sense into the angry crowd.
Simeone and Koke ask Atlético fans to stop throwing objects to Courtois… as the game has been currently suspended.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano)
…
Putting in what was an empathic performance on Saturday evening, Spain opened their EURO 24 adventure with a thumping 3-0 victory against Croatia in Berlin.
While La Roja might have been preparing for what appeared to be a stern Group B opener, the three-time European champions run rampant throughout the first-half.
With the trio of Alvaro Morata, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Carvajal all getting on the scoresheet prior to the half-time break, Luis de la Fuente s men couldn’t have asked for a better start here.
While Croatia might have seen Bruno Petkovic miss a second-half penalty, the Blazers failed to find any kind of fluidity and were completely outplayed across the park.
On an evening when Spain opened their European Championship adventure with a major st…
Inter s hopes of a second straight Scudetto took another hit as they were held 1-1 by Fiorentina in Milan.
The reigning Serie A champions have now won just two of their past nine league matches after their stuttering form continued on Saturday.
Coach Simone Inzaghi had suggested Inter have deserved more from recent performances, but he might struggle to argue his case following a match in which Fiorentina initially lacked cutting edge but merited their lead through Lucas Torreira.
Although Denzel Dumfries soon responded with a leveller, it was not followed by a winner, meaning Inter have taken just four points from their past four games at San Siro.
The Nerazzurri knew they needed a result after Napoli s win earlier in the day, yet they were on the back …
Cristiano Ronaldo extended his astonishing streak of scoring at least 20 club goals in a season when he netted twice before half-time for Manchester United on Saturday.
The Portuguese superstar s double before the break against Norwich City took him to 20 for 2021-22, and he has now reached or passed that mark in 16 consecutive seasons.
His sensational run began during a first spell at United, with Ronaldo first breaking the 20-goal barrier when he scored 23 for the Red Devils in the 2006-07 campaign.
He hit 42 in 2007-08, and during a subsequent nine-year stint at Real Madrid, where he became the club s record scorer, Ronaldo exceeded 50 goals in six consecutive seasons from 2010-11 to 2015-16.
Ronaldo left Madrid in 2018 and remained a clinical fini…