Best odds: 7/4
Bookmaker:
The match of the season, it has been branded in the Premier League. That, of course, is very hard to dispute at the moment. Manchester City and Liverpool have been fierce rivals in the last couple of years, not just on the domestic scene, with each perfectly capable of winning when the other seems unstoppable.
It s Manchester City who are to blame for Liverpool not winning more than one Premier League title under Jurgen Klopp so far. It s Liverpool who are to blame for Manchester City not exclusively dominating the English top flight since 2017-18. It s Manchester City who are given the shortest odds among the English clubs to win the Champions League each year. It s Liverpool who (along with Chelsea last season) have actually won it, w…
Like Cristiano Ronaldo five years ago, Lionel Messi has ended his international trophy drought with continental glory.
Ballon d Ors are one thing, with the pair sharing 11 between them, but achieving success with the national team has been critical to the grander standing and legacy of the two outstanding players of this generation.
There is a school of thought that Messi remains in Diego Maradona s shadow in Argentina.
The late Maradona, of course, took La Albiceleste to World Cup glory in 1986, which has eluded Messi who was a runner-up in 2014.
But Messi had also never won the Copa America. That was until Saturday s 1-0 win over Brazil, at the Maracana, the same venue where he lost the 2014 World Cup final to Germany.
Messi was part of the Arge…
It s seven months since fans were allowed to attend a Premier League match.
While reduced numbers of supporters have started to return to stadiums in some countries, such as Germany and France, the Premier League remains behind closed doors.
Initially it looked as though English top-flight clubs would be able to welcome fans back with reduced capacities in October, but with coronavirus infections on the rise again in England, those plans were put on the backburner as the British government tightened restrictions again.
A petition – which has since been backed by the EFL, Manchester United, Brighton Hove Albion and Sheffield United, among others – hopes to encourage the government to reconsider their previous judgement in an attempt to ease the financial worr…
Son Heung-min and Mohamed Salah shared the Premier League Golden Boot award after the respective Tottenham and Liverpool stars finished on 23 goals each.
Tottenham forward Son edged ahead of Salah in the race for the top-flight top scorer s accolade as the South Korea international fired in twice in a 5-0 rout of Norwich City at Carrow Road on Sunday, as Spurs confirmed their place in next season s Champions League.
Hoewever, Salah got back level with Son when he scored in the 84th minute at Anfield as Liverpool defeated Wolves 3-1, but that win was not enough to secure the Premier League title, which went to Manchester City after their dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Aston Villa.
Son became the first Asian player to win the Premier League Golden Boot, while …
Maxime Lopez struck for Sassuolo in the 95th minute at the Allianz Stadium on Wednesday to deal Juventus a 2-1 defeat, their first reverse in 10 matches in all competitions.
A stunning finish brought an end to a frustrating encounter for the Bianconeri, whose season has hit another stumbling block after six straight wins heading into Sunday s draw at Inter.
Lopez s breakaway winner decisively put Sassuolo – previously without an away Serie A victory at Juve – in front for the second time, having earlier led through Davide Frattesi.
Weston McKennie s thumping header got Massimiliano Allegri s men back on terms and seemed to set the stage for a second home goal, but it was Sassuolo who were celebrating deep in stoppage time.
The game ended as it began,…
Arsenal are among the clubs interested in signing Marco Asensio from Real Madrid, according to . Juventus, AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund are also keen on the 25-year-old Spain international winger.
Asensio has been at Madrid since 2014 and has won the La Liga title twice and the Champions League on two occasions with Los Blancos so far in his career. Although the winger has done well on occasions, he has had injury problems and has not been at his best for a while.
The winger has made three starts and six substitute appearances in La Liga for Madrid so far this season, scoring three goals in the process. Asensio has also played 13 minutes in the Champions League so far this campaign, providing one assist in the process.
…
Liverpool beat Aston Villa at Anfield in the fourth round of the Premier League campaign on Sunday by 3-0, courtesy of a third-minute opener from Dominik Szoboszlai, an own-goal by Villa defender Matty Cash in the 22nd, and a composed close-range finish from Mohamed Salah in the 55th.
The game
Liverpool expectedly dominated possession (64%) and took a total of 17 shots, four of which went on target, as opposed to Villa s nine, three on target.
Szoboszlai s goal, his first in a Liverpool shirt, came after the first corner of the game, taken from the right by Trent Alexander-Arnold. The ball went through the box with an outward curve, and missed by everybody in the crowd around the penalty spot, it was thumped home by the Hungarian.
The attack that set u…
Mateo Retegui scored a brace as Italy left it late to beat Venezuela 2-1 at Chase Stadium.
The Genoa forward’s double separated the teams, after Darwin Machis equalised for the South Americans on the night in Fort Lauderdale.
The Euro 2020 champions relied on Paris St Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma once again and his penalty saving heroics were on full display.
A friendly win in Florida!
— Italy (@Azzurri_En)
The penalty came early. Italy’s blushes were saved through Donnarumma who got down smartly to deny Salomon Rondon’s spot-kick in the opening minutes.
Italy enjoyed long spells of possession and Federico Chiesa went close to opening the scoring.
The Juventus winger cut inside on the left, opting for the fa…
Marcus Rashford says he is fully committed to England and does not care if onlookers criticise or question his dedication to the national team.
The 25-year-old is preparing for the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia having withdrawn from March’s meet-up through injury.
Rashford has had to pull out of numerous camps over the years but his decision to head to New York while England were winning their Group C opener 2-1 in Italy sparked debate.
Tuesday training
— England (@England)
Boss Gareth Southgate defended the 51-cap forward’s decision to jet off to the United States at the time and the Manchester United forward says he was unmoved by critical voices.
“I didn’t see it, to be honest with you,” Rashford s…
Mikel Arteta claimed his first win as Arsenal head coach against Manchester United on New Year s Day.
The end of a hectic spell of Premier League fixtures brought some belated joy for Arteta and Arsenal in a 2-0 home victory.
A fine day for the Gunners also saw rivals Tottenham beaten, but Manchester City and Liverpool made no mistake at the top.
We review the key midweek top-flight matches with the help of Opta data.
INGS AND SAINTS PREY ON LEAKY SPURS
Danny Ings is a man in top form and his goal on Wednesday a ninth in his past nine Premier League starts saw Southampton to a 1-0 win over Tottenham at St Mary s Stadium.
Only Jamie Vardy (17) can better Ings tally of 13 league goals this term, while the former Liverpool man has scored eight t…