Kylian Mbappe spoke from the heart when defending Zinedine Zidane from sniping by French Football Federation chief Noel Le Graet, according to Paris Saint-Germain boss Christophe Galtier.
Le Graet is facing calls to quit as FFF president after coming under fire for a bizarre comment about France great Zidane, and allegations about his leadership.
The 81-year-old Le Graet told RMC he did not give a toss where the 1998 World Cup winner went in his next coaching job, and added he would not answer the phone to the former midfielder.
Former Real Madrid head coach Zidane had been thought to be a likely contender for the France post if coach Didier Deschamps had decided to leave after the recent World Cup in Qatar.
It was instead announced Deschamps would be sta…
Scotland could qualify for the 2024 European Championship when Norway host Spain in Oslo on Sunday night and unsurprisingly Erling Haaland is a central figure in the fixture.
Steve Clarke’s side lost 2-0 to La Roja in Seville on Thursday night and their first defeat after five Group A wins left them three points ahead of Luis de la Fuente’s men, having played a game more.
Scotland face France in a friendly in Lille on Tuesday night but in essence, if Norway fail to beat Spain then the Scots will be appearing at their second successive Euros, while there are two fixtures next month, Georgia away and Norway at Hampden Park, which offer opportunities to clinch qualification.
Norway, who lost 2-1 at home to the Scots in June with Haaland scoring from the penalty …
Pedri heaped praise on Robert Lewandowski after the Barcelona striker scored twice in a 4-1 win against Real Sociedad to open his LaLiga account.
On the back of a frustrating goalless draw against Rayo Vallecano on the opening weekend, the former Bayern Munich frontman opened the scoring with just 44 seconds on the clock.
Aleksander Isak equalised for La Real, who had chances to take the lead, before the introduction of Ansu Fati in the second half inspired Barcelona to their first win of the campaign.
Fati provided the assist for Ousmane Dembele to fire Xavi s side ahead, then combined with Lewandowski for the striker s second before the favour was returned for Fati to score Barcelona s fourth of the night.
The win brings an end to a three-match winles…
Holders Spain join fellow Euro giants England, Germany and France in hoping to avoid major slip-ups Tuesday following largely positive respective starts to Euro 2012 qualifying.
Having carried on from where they left off in winning a maiden World Cup by taking six points from their opening two fixtures, Vicente Del Bosque s Spain will look to keep that form going against Scotland in Glasgow.
The Scots put everyone behind the ball for much of Friday s match in Prague to frustrate a Czech side who finally prevailed 1-0.
With just the group winners guaranteed a place in the finals in Poland and Ukraine, the three points were hugely important for the Czechs, runners-up at Euro 96 but set for a tough battle with the Spanish to top the group.
Lithuania made Sp…
Best odds: 10/11
Bookmaker:
Barcelona will be looking to maintain their perfect start to the 2024/25 La Liga season as they face newly-promoted Real Valladolid on Saturday afternoon at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.
Hansi Flick s side have made an impressive start, sitting at the top of the table with nine points from three matches. Meanwhile, Real Valladolid have also enjoyed a respectable return to the top flight, securing four points from their opening three games, which places them in 11th position.
Barcelona
Xavi s unexpected departure as Barcelona head coach at the end of last season created uncertainty at Camp Nou, but new manager Hansi Flick has quickly steadied the ship. There is significant pressure on Flick to compete with Real Madrid for…
Bans for discriminatory abuse should at least match the sanctions imposed for betting offences, Anton Ferdinand has said.
The former QPR and West Ham defender, who was racially abused by Chelsea captain John Terry during a Premier League match in 2011, challenged the game’s authorities to act tougher on discrimination, not just talk tougher.
He also said the game’s executives should be the ones to instigate player walk-offs where there are instances of racism, rather than leave it to the players themselves.
Ferdinand, who was speaking at an event at Wembley to mark the 30th anniversary since the launch of anti-discrimination group Kick It Out, said: “Football as a whole is very good at saying ‘all forms of discrimination are top of our list to eradicate�…
Is Ronaldo entirely to blame for Portugal s poor performances? / Image via dailymail.co.uk
Ever since he stepped on the brightest football scene as an 18-year-old boy wearing a Saturday Swapshop style jumper following his £12 million Manchester United move from Sporting Lisbon, Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo has been polarizing the world football arguably like no player before.
Thirteen years down the line and at the Euro 2016 European Championship, now a Real Madrid star is stirring the pot once again with his displays and public comments in France.
He is everyone’s favourite bad guy, but do we have the right to hate – or love him for that matter – so passionately, judging his every move and scrutinising his every step of the way?
Burden of Leaders…
Inter Milan have been credited with Napoli star Piotr Zielinski, whose contract with the reigning Serie A champions is set to expire at the end of the season. Inter CEO Giuseppe Marotta addressed the rumours while speaking to the press after the Nerazzurri thrashed Napoli 0-3 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Sunday.
Marotta said Inter were aware of Zielinski s current contract situation, but he also expressed belief that Napoli are working on a new deal for the Poland international. He confirmed that Inter are looking at different players, but also that this is not the time for the club to engage in any talks about potential transfers at the end of the season.
Zielinski rose through the youth ranks at Polish club Lubin, and in 2011, he moved to Italy where he joi…
Best odds: 19/20
Bookmaker:
In the first leg of the second Champions League qualifying round, PAOK will host Borac Banja Luka at Stadio Toumbas in Thessaloniki on Wednesday.
The home side finished first in Greece s top flight championship playoff group with 80 points, showcasing their dominance. Meanwhile, the visitors, Borac Banja Luka, won Bosnia and Herzegovina s Premier League, amassing an impressive 78 points from 33 games.
PAOK Thessaloniki
The hosts did not participate in the first Champions League qualifying round, making Wednesday s game their first competitive match since May 19.
PAOK last competed in the Champions League qualifying rounds in September 2020, when they were eliminated in the fourth and final stage by Krasnodar, losing 4…
Paris Saint-Germain head coach Luis Enrique is relishing his side s Champions League tie with Arsenal next week after brushing aside Rennes on Friday.
The Parisiens maintained their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season, with Bradley Barcola s brace and Lee Kang-In s header sealing a 3-1 victory.
PSG are now unbeaten in their first six matches of a league season for the third time in the last four campaigns (L1 in 2023-24), as many as in the previous six.
Luis Enrique s side have also scored at least three goals in five of their six Ligue 1 matches, two more than any other team in the top five European leagues.
But the Parisiens next assignment sees them travel to the Emirates next Tuesday to face Arsenal, having edged past Girona in their Champions Lea…